De Bello Gallico 6.30

Ambiorix escapes

In brief. Basilus moves fast and surprises Ambiorix at his house in the woods. Ambiorix loses his equipment, carriages and horses, but his companions hold off the cavalry while he escapes on horseback; Caesar stresses the power of fortune in war.

LatinLatin and EnglishEnglish onlyRead it word by word

6.30.1Basilus, ut imperātum est, facit.Basilus did as he was ordered. 6.30.1Celeriter contrāque omnium opīniōnem cōnfectō itinere multōs in agrīs inopīnantēs dēprehendit: eōrum indiciō ad ipsum Ambiorīgem contendit, quō in locō cum paucīs equitibus esse dīcēbātur.Having completed his march quickly and contrary to everyone's expectation, he caught many people off guard in the fields; on their information he hurried toward Ambiorix himself, at the place where he was said to be with a few horsemen. 6.30.2Multum cum in omnibus rēbus tum in rē mīlitārī potest fortūna.Fortune has great power in all things, and especially in war.Note. cum … tum: 'both … and especially'. 6.30.2Nam sīcut magnō accidit cāsū ut in ipsum incautum etiam atque imparātum incideret, priusque eius adventus ab omnibus vidērētur, quam fāma ac nūntius adferrētur: sīc magnae fuit fortūnae omnī mīlitārī īnstrūmentō, quod circum sē habēbat, ēreptō, raedīs equīsque comprehēnsīs ipsum effugere mortem.For just as it was a great stroke of luck that he came upon Ambiorix himself unwary and unprepared, and that his arrival was seen by all before any rumor or message of it was brought, so it was great good fortune for Ambiorix that, though all the military equipment he had about him was taken and his carriages and horses were captured, he himself escaped death.Note. magnō … cāsū: 'by great chance'. magnae fuit fortūnae: genitive of characteristic, 'it was a matter of great good luck'.

6.30.2Sed hoc quoque factum est, quod aedificiō circumdatō silvā, ut sunt ferē domicilia Gallōrum, quī vītandī aestūs causā plērumque silvārum atque flūminum petunt propinquitātēs, comitēs familiārēsque eius angustō in locō paulisper equitum nostrōrum vim sustinuērunt.But this too came about because his house was surrounded by woods, as the dwellings of the Gauls generally are (to escape the heat they usually seek out places near woods and rivers), and his companions and friends held off the force of our cavalry for a short while in a narrow place.Note. The parenthesis ut sunt ferē domicilia Gallōrum explains why the house was surrounded by woods. 6.30.4Hīs pugnantibus illum in equum quīdam ex suīs intulit: fugientem silvae tēxērunt.While they were fighting, one of his men put him on a horse; the woods hid him as he fled. 6.30.4Sīc et ad subeundum perīculum et ad vītandum multum fortūna valuit.So fortune had great power both in bringing on the danger and in escaping it.

Read the Latin itself: tap any word for its meaning and grammar, save words to review, and keep your place.

Read in Lectitō

Grammar in this passage: ablative absolute ×4, indirect statement ×1, gerunds and gerundives ×3

Latin vocabulary for this passage (98 words)

ut, conj.	as; when; that; ita ut, as
imperō, -perāre, -perāvī, -perātus	command, order, enjoin
sum, esse, fuī, futūrus	be
faciō, facere, fēcī, factus	make, do; iter facere, see iter
celeriter, adv.	swiftly, quickly
contrā, prep, with acc.	against, contrary to
que, enclitic conj.	and
omnis, -e	all, every
opīniō, -ōnis, f.	opinion, expectation; reputation
cōnficiō, -ficere, -fēcī, -fectus	make or do completely, complete, finish, accomplish, make; wear out
iter, itineris, n.	a going, journey, march; iter facere, to journey, march
multus, -a, -um	much, great; plur., many
in, prep. with acc. and abl.	with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on
ager, agri, m.	field, land
inopīnāns, -antis	not expecting, off guard
dēprehendō, -ere, -hendī, -hēnsus	catch, seize, overtake; detect
is, ea, id, dem. pron.	this, that; he, she, it, they
indicium, -ī n.	information, evidence; an informer's report
ad, prep. with acc.	to, toward; at, near; for
ipse, ipsa, ipsum, intensive pron.	self, himself, herself, itself, themselves; often to be rendered by very
contendō, -tendere, -tendī, -tentus	stretch, hasten
quī, quae, quod, rel. pron.	who, which
locus, -ī, m., plur. loca, -orum, n.	place, situation
cum, prep, with abl.	with
paucī, -ae, -a, plur. adj.	few
eques, equitis m.	horseman; (pl.) cavalry
dīcō, dīcere, dīxī, dictus	say, speak; diem dīcere, to appoint or set a day
multum, -ī, n.	much
cum, conj.	when, while, after; since; although
rēs, reī, f.	thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really
tum, adv.	then, at that time
mīlitāris, -e	military, warlike; rēs mīlitāris, art of war, warfare
possum, posse, potuī	be able, have power, can
fortūna, -ae, f.	fortune
nam, conj.	for
sīcut (conj.)	just as
magnus, -a, -um	large, big, great, mighty; loud
accidō, -cidere, -cidī	fall to or upon; befall, happen
cāsus, -ūs, m.	fall; chance, accident
incautus, -a, -um	off one's guard, careless
etiam, adv.	and now, also, too, even
atque, ac (conj.)	and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants)
imparātus, -a, -um	unprepared
incidō, -cidere, -cidī	fall into or upon
prius, adv.	before, first
adventus, -ūs, m.	approach, arrival
ā, ab (prep. + abl.)	away from, from; by (ā only before consonants)
videō, vidēre, vīdī, vīsus	see; pass., seem
quam, adv.	how? as; than; with superl., as ... as possible
fāma, -ae, f.	report, rumor
nūntius, -ī, m.	messenger; message
afferō, afferre, attulī, allātum	bring, bring to; cause
sīc, adv.	so, thus
īnstrūmentum, -ī n.	tool, equipment; pl. gear, baggage
circum, prep. with acc.	around
suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron.	himself, herself, itself, themselves
habeō, -ēre, -uī, -itus	have, hold; consider
ēripiō, -ripere, -ripuī, -reptus	snatch out or away, rescue
raeda, -ae f.	wagon, carriage
equus, -ī, m.	horse
comprehendō, -prehendere, -prehendī, -prehēnsus	seize, catch
effugio, -fugere, -fūgī	flee out or away, escape
mors, mortīs, f.	death
sed, conj.	but
hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron.	this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter
quoque, adv.	also
quod, conj.	that, in that, because
aedificium, -ī n.	building
circumdō, -dare, -dedī, -datus	put around, surround
silva, -ae, f.	wood, forest
ferē, adv.	nearly, about, almost, for the most part
domicilium, -ī n.	home, dwelling place
vītō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	avoid, escape
aestus, -ūs m.	heat; tide
causa, -ae, f.	cause, reason; abl. causā, for the sake of
plērumque (adv.)	generally, mostly
flūmen, -minis, n.	river
petō, -ere, -īvī or -iī, -ītus	seek, ask; attack
propinquitās, -ātis f.	nearness; kinship
comes, -itis, m. and f.	companion
familiāris, -e; as noun, -is m.	of the household (rēs familiāris: private property); friend
angustus, -a, -um	narrow, cramped
paulisper (adv.)	for a short time
noster, -tra, -trum	our
vīs, vīs, f.	violence, force; virtue, potency, efficacy; plur. vīrēs, -ium, strength; omnibus vīribus, with all one's strength, with might and main
sustineō, -tinēre, -tinuī, -tentus	hold or bear up, sustain, withstand
pugnō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	fight
ille, illa, illud, dem. pron.	that; he, she, it, they; ille ... hīc, see hīc
quīdam, quaedam, quoddam, indef. pron.	a certain, certain
ex, ē (prep. + abl.)	out of, from; of (ē only before consonants)
suus, -a, -um	his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their
īnferō, īnferre, intulī, inlātus	bring in or against, wage against; inflict
fugiō, fugere, fūgī, fugitūrus	flee, run away
tegō, tegere, tēxī, tēctus	cover
et, conj.	and; et ... et, both ... and
subeō, -īre, -iī, -itus	go under; undergo, submit to, sustain, bear, endure
perīculum, -ī, n.	danger, peril, risk
valeō, -ēre, -uī, -itūrus	be strong or effectual, have effect, prevail

Caesar, De Bello Gallico VI. Latin text: T. Rice Holmes (Oxford, 1914), public domain; digital text from the Perseus Digital Library, CC BY-SA. Word analysis: LatinCy, then every word checked and corrected by hand. Vocabulary: F. Ritchie (1903, public domain) and entries written for this app. English translation, notes and grammar hints: written for this app.