Lectitō › Julius Caesar › Gallic War, Book 7
De Bello Gallico 7.52
Caesar rebukes his soldiers
Caesar, De Bello Gallico VII. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in Lectitō7.52.1Posterō diē Caesar cōntiōne advocātā temeritātem cupiditātemque mīlitum reprehendit, quod sibi ipsī iūdicāvissent quō prōcēdendum aut quid agendum vidērētur, neque signō recipiendī datō cōnstitissent neque ab tribūnīs mīlitum lēgātīsque retinērī potuissent.
The next day Caesar called an assembly and rebuked the soldiers' rashness and eagerness, because they had decided for themselves where they should advance or what they should do, and had not halted when the signal for retreat was given, and could not be held back by the military tribunes and lieutenants.
Note. quō prōcēdendum … vidērētur: impersonal passive periphrastic, 'where it seemed necessary to advance'. The subjunctives after quod show that this is the reason as Caesar gave it in his speech.
7.52.2Exposuit quid inīquitās locī posset, quid ipse ad Avaricum sēnsisset, cum sine duce et sine equitātū dēprehēnsīs hostibus explōrātam victōriam dīmīsisset, nē parvum modo dētrīmentum in contentiōne propter inīquitātem locī accideret.
He set out what the unevenness of the ground could do, and what he himself had felt at Avaricum, when, though he had caught the enemy without a leader and without cavalry, he had let a sure victory go, so that not even a small loss should occur in the fight because of the unfavourable ground.
7.52.3Quantō opere eōrum animī magnitūdinem admīrārētur, quōs nōn castrōrum mūnītiōnēs, nōn altitūdō montis, nōn mūrus oppidī tardāre potuisset, tantō opere licentiam arrogantiamque reprehendere, quod plūs sē quam imperātōrem dē victōriā atque exitū rērum sentīre exīstimārent;
Much as he admired the greatness of spirit of men whom neither the fortifications of a camp, nor the height of a mountain, nor the wall of a town could hold back, just as much did he blame their lawlessness and arrogance, in thinking that they knew more than their general about victory and the outcome of events;
Note. Quantō opere … tantō opere: 'as much as … so much'. plūs sē quam imperātōrem … sentīre: 'that they knew more than their general'.
7.52.4nec minus sē ab mīlite modestiam et continentiam quam virtūtem atque animī magnitūdinem dēsīderāre.
he wanted self-control and restraint from a soldier no less than courage and greatness of spirit.
Vocabulary
| posterus, -a, -um | following, next |
| diēs, -ēī, m. and f. | day |
| cōntiō, -ōnis f. | assembly, meeting; speech to an assembly |
| advocō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | call, summon (contiōnem advocāre: call an assembly) |
| temeritās, -ātis f. | rashness, recklessness |
| cupiditās, -tātis, f. | desire, longing, eagerness |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| mīles, mīlitis, m. | soldier |
| reprehendō, -ere, -hendī, -hēnsum | blame, criticise |
| quod, conj. | that, in that, because |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| ipse, ipsa, ipsum, intensive pron. | self, himself, herself, itself, themselves; often to be rendered by very |
| iūdicō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | judge, decide |
| quō, adv. | to what place? whither? to which place, whither; for which reason, wherefore, therefore; quō ūsque, till when? how long? |
| prōcēdō, -ere, -cessī, -cessum | go forward, advance |
| aut, conj. | or; aut ... aut, either ... or |
| quis, quid, interrog. pron. | who? which? what? |
| agō, agere, ēgī, āctus | drive; do; pass, lead; grātiās agere, see grātia |
| videō, vidēre, vīdī, vīsus | see; pass., seem |
| neque or nec, conj. | and not, nor; neque ... neque, neither ... nor; neque enim, for ... not |
| signum, -ī, n. | sign, signal |
| recipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus | take or get back, recover; sē recipere, to betake oneself, withdraw; to collect oneself, recover |
| dō, dare, dedī, datus | give |
| cōnsistō, -sistere, -stitī, -stitus | station oneself, take one's stand; consist |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| tribūnus, -ī m. | tribune (tribūnus mīlitum: senior officer of a legion) |
| lēgātus, -ī, m. | ambassador |
| retineō, -tinēre, -tinuī, -tentus | hold or keep back, keep, restrain; hold fast |
| possum, posse, potuī | be able, have power, can |
| expōnō, -pōnere, -posuī, -positus | put out, set forth; put on shore, land; explain |
| inīquitās, -ātis f. | unevenness; unfairness, difficulty |
| locus, -ī, m., plur. loca, -orum, n. | place, situation |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| sentiō, sentīre, sēnsī, sēnsus | perceive, feel |
| cum, conj. | when, while, after; since; although |
| sine, prep. with abl. | without |
| dux, ducis, m. and f. | leader, commander |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| equitātus, -ūs m. | cavalry |
| dēprehendō, -ere, -hendī, -hēnsus | catch, seize, overtake; detect |
| hostis, -is, m. and f. | enemy, foe |
| explōrō, -plōrāre, -plōrāvī, -plōrātus | search out, explore |
| victōria, -ae, f. | victory |
| dīmittō, -mittere, -mīsī, -missus | send different ways, send forth or away, despatch; let slip, lose |
| nē, adv. | not; nē ... quidem, not ... even; conj., that not, lest |
| parvus, -a, -um | little, small |
| modo, adv. | only |
| dētrīmentum, -ī n. | loss, harm |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| contentiō, -ōnis f. | struggle, dispute |
| propter, prep. with acc. | on account of, because of |
| accidō, -cidere, -cidī | fall to or upon; befall, happen |
| quantus, -a, -um | how great or much? |
| opus, operis, n. | work, task |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| animus, -ī, m. | mind; heart; spirit, courage |
| magnitūdō, -tūdinis, f. | greatness, size |
| admīror, -mīrārī, -mīrātus | wonder at, admire |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| nōn, adv. | not |
| castra, -ōrum, n. plur. | camp |
| mūnītiō, -ōnis f. | fortification, defence works |
| altitūdō, -inis f. | height; depth |
| mōns, montis, m. | mountain |
| mūrus, -ī, m. | wall |
| oppidum, -ī, n. | town |
| tardō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | slow down, check |
| tantus, -a, -um | so great or much |
| licentia, -ae f. | freedom; lack of restraint, lawlessness |
| arrogantia, -ae f. | arrogance |
| multus, -a, -um | much, great; plur., many |
| quam, adv. | how? as; than; with superl., as ... as possible |
| imperātor, -ōris, m. | commander, general |
| dē, prep, with abl. | down from, from, out of; about, concerning, of |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| exitus, -ūs m. | way out; outcome, end |
| rēs, reī, f. | thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really |
| exīstimō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | consider, believe, think |
| minus, comp. adv. | less |
| modestia, -ae f. | moderation, discipline, restraint |
| continentia, -ae f. | self-restraint, self-control |
| virtūs, -tūtis, f. | manliness, courage, bravery |
| dēsīderō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | long for, miss; require |