Lectitō › Julius Caesar › Gallic War, Book 8
De Bello Gallico 8.13
The Germans' panic
Hirtius, De Bello Gallico VIII. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in Lectitō8.13.1Nōn intermittunt interim cōtīdiāna proelia in cōnspectū utrōrumque castrōrum, quae ad vada trānsitūsque fīēbant palūdis.
Meanwhile the daily fights within sight of both camps do not stop; they took place at the fords and crossings of the marsh.
Note. utrōrumque castrōrum: uterque is used in the plural with plural-only nouns like castra, 'of both camps'.
8.13.2Quā contentiōne Germānī, quōs proptereā Caesar trādūxerat Rhēnum ut equitibus interpositī proeliārentur, cum cōnstantius ūniversī palūdem trānsīssent paucīsque resistentibus interfectīs pertinācius reliquam multitūdinem essent īnsecūtī, perterritī nōn sōlum eī quī aut comminus opprimēbantur aut ēminus vulnerābantur, sed etiam quī longius subsidiārī cōnsuērant, turpiter refūgērunt, nec prius fīnem fugae fēcērunt saepe āmissīs superiōribus locīs quam sē aut in castra suōrum reciperent, aut nōnnūllī pudōre coāctī longius profugerent.
In one such fight the Germans, whom Caesar had brought across the Rhine for the purpose of fighting mixed with the cavalry, all crossed the marsh together quite resolutely, killed the few who resisted and pursued the rest of the host rather stubbornly; then they took fright, and not only those who were being overwhelmed at close quarters or wounded from a distance, but even those who had been used to standing in reserve further back, fled shamefully, and often losing the higher ground, they did not stop their flight until they had got back into the camp of their own side, or some, compelled by shame, fled further.
Note. A very long sentence describing a panic. ut … proeliārentur: purpose clause; Caesar used German horsemen mixed with infantry. The main verb is refūgērunt; the cum clause tells what happened first. nec prius … quam: 'and did not … until'.
8.13.4Quōrum perīculō sīc omnēs cōpiae sunt perturbātae ut vix iūdicārī posset, utrum secundīs minimīsque rēbus īnsolentiōrēs an adversō mediocrī cāsū timidiōrēs essent.
By their danger all the enemy forces were so thrown off balance that it could scarcely be judged whether they were more arrogant after a success and a very small one, or more timid after a moderate setback.
Note. utrum … an: 'whether … or', an indirect alternative question. secundīs minimīsque rēbus: 'after a success, and a very small one'. The Gauls are mocked for swinging between arrogance and panic.
Vocabulary
| nōn, adv. | not |
| intermittō, -mittere, -mīsī, -missus | leave off, interrupt; let pass; pass., be left between, intervene, elapse |
| interim (adv.) | meanwhile |
| cottīdiānus, -a, -um | daily |
| proelium, -ī, n. | battle, combat; proelium committere, to join battle |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| cōnspectus, -ūs, m. | sight |
| uterque, utraque, utrumque | each, either, both |
| castra, -ōrum, n. plur. | camp |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| vadum, -ī n. | ford, shallow place |
| trānsitus, -ūs m. | crossing, passage |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| fīō, fierī, factus sum | be done or made, become, happen |
| pālus, -ī, m. | stake |
| contentiō, -ōnis f. | struggle, dispute |
| proptereā | for this reason; proptereā quod: because |
| trādūcō, -dūcere, -dūxī, -ductus | lead across |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| eques, equitis m. | horseman; (pl.) cavalry |
| interpōnō, -ere, -posuī, -positum | put between; bring forward (an excuse) |
| proelior, -ārī, -ātus sum | fight a battle |
| cum, conj. | when, while, after; since; although |
| cōnstanter (adv.) | steadily, consistently |
| ūniversus, -a, -um | all together, whole, entire, all |
| trānseō, -īre, -iī, -itus | go across or over, cross |
| paucī, -ae, -a, plur. adj. | few |
| resistō, -sistere, -stitī | stand back, resist |
| interficiō, -ficere, -fēcī, -fectus | put out of the way, kill |
| pertināciter (adv.) | stubbornly, persistently |
| reliquus, -a, -um | left, the remaining, the other, the rest of |
| multitūdō, -tūdinis, f. | multitude |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| īnsequor, -sequī, -secūtus | follow upon or up, pursue |
| perterreō, -terrēre, -terrui, -territus | thoroughly frighten, terrify |
| sōlum (adv.); solum, -ī n. | only (nōn sōlum … sed etiam: not only … but also); ground, soil |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| aut, conj. | or; aut ... aut, either ... or |
| comminus (adv.) | hand to hand, at close quarters |
| opprimō, -primere, -pressī, -pressus | press against, overpower, crush |
| ēminus (adv.) | at a distance, from afar |
| vulnerō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | wound |
| sed, conj. | but |
| etiam, adv. | and now, also, too, even |
| longē, adv. | far |
| subsidior, -ārī, -ātus sum | act as a reserve, stand in support |
| cōnsuēscō, -suēscere, -suēvī, -suētus | become accustomed; in tenses of completed action, have become accustomed, be accustomed or wont |
| turpiter (adv.) | shamefully, disgracefully |
| refugiō, -fugere, -fūgī | flee back, run away, retreat |
| neque or nec, conj. | and not, nor; neque ... neque, neither ... nor; neque enim, for ... not |
| prius, adv. | before, first |
| fīnis, -is, m. | end, boundary; plur., borders, territory, country |
| fuga, -ae, f. | flight |
| faciō, facere, fēcī, factus | make, do; iter facere, see iter |
| saepe, adv. | often, frequently |
| āmittō, -mittere, -mīsī, -missus | send away, lose |
| superior, -ius, adj. | higher; former, previous, preceding |
| locus, -ī, m., plur. loca, -orum, n. | place, situation |
| quam, adv. | how? as; than; with superl., as ... as possible |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| suus, -a, -um | his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their |
| recipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus | take or get back, recover; sē recipere, to betake oneself, withdraw; to collect oneself, recover |
| nōnnūllus, -a, -um | not none, some, several |
| pudor, -ōris m. | shame, sense of honour |
| cōgō, cōgere, coēgī, coāctus | drive together, collect; compel |
| profugiō, -ere, -fūgī | flee, escape |
| perīculum, -ī, n. | danger, peril, risk |
| sīc, adv. | so, thus |
| omnis, -e | all, every |
| cōpia, -ae, f. | supply, abundance; plur., forces, troops |
| perturbō, -turbāre, -turbāvi, -turbātus | greatly disturb, disturb, agitate, throw into confusion |
| vix, adv. | with difficulty, scarcely, hardly, barely |
| iūdicō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | judge, decide |
| possum, posse, potuī | be able, have power, can |
| utrum (conj.) | whether (utrum … an: whether … or) |
| secundus, -a, -um | following, favorable |
| parvus, -a, -um | little, small |
| rēs, reī, f. | thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really |
| īnsolēns, -entis | unaccustomed (to: gen.); excessive, arrogant |
| an, conj. | or (in questions) |
| adversus, -a, -um | facing; unfavourable, unsuccessful |
| mediocris, -e | moderate, ordinary |
| cāsus, -ūs, m. | fall; chance, accident |
| timidus, -a, -um | fearful, timid |