Lectitō › Julius Caesar › Gallic War, Book 4
De Bello Gallico 4.6
Caesar goes to the army
Caesar, De Bello Gallico IV. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in Lectitō4.6.1Quā cōnsuētūdine cognitā Caesar, nē graviōrī bellō, occurreret, mātūrius quam cōnsuērat ad exercitum proficīscitur.
Knowing this custom, Caesar set out for the army earlier than he usually did, so as not to face a more serious war.
4.6.2Eō cum vēnisset, ea quae fore suspicātus erat facta cognōvit: missās lēgātiōnēs ab nōn nūllīs cīvitātibus ad Germānōs invītātōsque eōs utī ab Rhēnō discēderent: omniaque quae postulāssent ab sē fore parāta.
When he arrived there, he learned that what he had suspected would happen had happened: embassies had been sent by some states to the Germans, inviting them to leave the Rhine, and promising that everything they asked for would be provided by them.
Note. fore = futūra esse. The Latin text prints omnia quaeque for omniaque quae: 'and that everything they asked for'.
4.6.4Quā spē adductī Germānī lātius iam vagābantur et in fīnēs Eburōnum et Condrūsōrum, quī sunt Trēverōrum clientēs, pervēnerant.
Led on by this hope, the Germans were now ranging more widely, and had reached the lands of the Eburones and the Condrusi, who are dependents of the Treveri.
4.6.5Prīncipibus Galliae ēvocātīs Caesar ea quae cognōverat dissimulanda sibi exīstimāvit, eōrumque animīs permulsīs et cōnfirmātīs equitātū imperātō bellum cum Germānīs gerere cōnstituit.
Caesar called together the leading men of Gaul and thought he should hide what he had learned; he soothed and reassured them, demanded cavalry from them, and decided to make war on the Germans.
Note. dissimulanda sibi: gerundive with dative of agent, 'that he should conceal'. Gallice is a misprint for Galliae.
Vocabulary
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| cōnsuētūdō, -inis f. | custom, habit; way of life |
| cognōscō, -gnōscere, -gnōvī, -gnitus | find out, learn; in tenses of completed action, have found out, know |
| nē, adv. | not; nē ... quidem, not ... even; conj., that not, lest |
| gravis, -e | heavy; severe, grievous, serious |
| bellum, -ī, n. | war |
| occurrō, -currere, -currī, -cursus | run against, meet |
| mātūrē (adv.; superl. mātūrrimē) | early, quickly |
| quam, adv. | how? as; than; with superl., as ... as possible |
| cōnsuēscō, -suēscere, -suēvī, -suētus | become accustomed; in tenses of completed action, have become accustomed, be accustomed or wont |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| exercitus, -ūs, m. | army |
| proficīscor, -ficīscī, -fectus sum | set out, depart, march |
| eō (adv.) | to that place, thither; to that point (usque eō); (with comparatives) by so much, all the (more) |
| cum, conj. | when, while, after; since; although |
| veniō, venīre, vēnī, ventus | come |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| suspicor, -spicārī, -spicātus | suspect |
| faciō, facere, fēcī, factus | make, do; iter facere, see iter |
| mittō, mittere, mīsī, missus | send |
| lēgātiō, -ōnis f. | embassy, mission |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| nōn, adv. | not |
| nūllus, -a, -um | not any, none, no |
| cīvitās, -tātis, f. | state |
| invītō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | invite |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| discēdō, -cēdere, -cessī, -cessus | go apart, withdraw, depart |
| omnis, -e | all, every |
| postulō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | ask, request, demand |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| parō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | make ready, prepare |
| spēs, speī, f. | hope |
| addūcō, -dūcere, -dūxī, -ductus | lead to, bring, take; induce, influence |
| lātē | widely |
| iam, adv. | now, already |
| vagor, -ārī, -ātus sum | wander, roam |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| fīnis, -is, m. | end, boundary; plur., borders, territory, country |
| cliēns, -entis m. | client, dependent |
| perveniō, -venīre, -vēnī, -ventus | come through, come, arrive, reach |
| prīnceps, -ipis | first, chief; as noun: leader |
| ēvocō, -vocāre, -vocāvī, -vocātus | call out, challenge |
| dissimulō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | hide, disguise, pretend not to notice |
| exīstimō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | consider, believe, think |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| animus, -ī, m. | mind; heart; spirit, courage |
| permulceō, -ēre, -mulsī, -mulsus | soothe, calm, charm |
| cōnfirmō, -firmāre, -firmāvī, -firmātus | strengthen, establish; declare, assert |
| equitātus, -ūs m. | cavalry |
| imperō, -perāre, -perāvī, -perātus | command, order, enjoin |
| cum, prep, with abl. | with |
| gerō, gerere, gessī, gestus | carry, wear; carry on, do |
| cōnstituō, -stituere, -stituī, -stitūtus | set together or up; appoint; determine |