Bellum Hispaniense 1

B. Hisp. 1.1Pharnace superātō, Āfricā receptā, quī ex hīs proeliīs cum adulēscente Cn. Pompēiō profūgissent, cum… et ulteriōris Hispāniae potītus esset, dum Caesar mūneribus dandīs in Ītaliā dētinētur,… quō facilius praesidia contrā comparāret, Pompēius in fidem ūniuscuiusque cīvitātis cōnfugere coepit.

After Pharnaces had been defeated and Africa recovered, those who had escaped from these battles with the young Gnaeus Pompeius, when … and he had made himself master of Further Spain, while Caesar was kept in Italy by the giving of shows, … so that he might the more easily get together forces against him, Pompeius began to throw himself on the protection of each community in turn.

Note. The author is unknown: an officer in Caesar's army who wrote a rough, colloquial Latin, and the text has come down badly damaged. The dots mark gaps where words are lost, so the sentence cannot be fully construed. Pharnace superātō, Āfricā receptā: ablatives absolute recalling Caesar's victories at Zela (47 BC) and Thapsus (46 BC). quī … profūgissent: the antecedent ('those who') is missing in the gap. adulēscente Cn. Pompeiō: Gnaeus, Pompey the Great's elder son. mūneribus dandīs: gerundive, 'by the giving of shows', i.e. Caesar's triumphal games of 46 BC. quō facilius: quō introduces a purpose clause containing a comparative.

B. Hisp. 1.2Ita partim precibus partim vī bene magnā comparātā manū prōvinciam vāstāre.

So, partly by entreaties and partly by force, he got together a very large band and set about ravaging the province.

Note. vastāre: a historic infinitive, used in vivid narrative where a finite verb would be normal, 'he set about ravaging'. bene magnā: bene strengthens the adjective, 'very large', a colloquial usage this author loves (compare bene multīs, bene magnum later). manū: 'band of men'.

B. Hisp. 1.3Quibus in rēbus nōnnūllae cīvitātēs suā sponte auxilia mittēbant, item nōnnūllae portās contrā clūdēbant.

In these circumstances some communities sent him help of their own accord, while some, on the other hand, shut their gates against him.

Note. Quibus in rēbus: a connecting relative, 'in these circumstances'. suā sponte: 'of their own accord'. contrā here is an adverb, 'against him'. clūdēbant: the form clūdō for claudō.

B. Hisp. 1.4Ex quibus sī qua oppida vī cēperat, cum aliquis ex eā cīvitāte optimē dē Cn. Pompēiō meritus cīvis esset, propter pecūniae magnitūdinem aliā qua eī īnferēbātur causā, ut eō dē mediō sublātō ex eius pecūniā latrōnum largītiō fieret.

If he took any of these towns by force, then whenever some citizen of that community had deserved very well of Gnaeus Pompeius, because of the size of his wealth some other charge was brought against him, so that, once he was put out of the way, a handout for the brigands could be made from his money.

Note. sī qua oppida: after sī the indefinite quis/quī drops the ali-, so qua = aliqua. optimē … meritus: bene merērī dē aliquō, 'to do good service to someone'. aliā quā … causā: 'some other charge'; again quā = aliquā. eō dē mediō sublātō: 'once he was removed from the scene', i.e. killed. latrōnum largītiō: a handout to his 'brigands', the author's hostile word for Pompeius' men.

B. Hisp. 1.4Ita pācis commoda hoste hortātō maiōrēs augēbantur cōpiae.

So, the enemy being encouraged by the advantages of peace, his forces grew larger.

Note. Kübler marks the text as corrupt (†) at hortātō, and the sentence does not construe cleanly: hoste hortātō is ablative absolute, 'the enemy being encouraged', and pācis commoda seems to mean 'the benefits of peace' that let the enemy build up strength. The general sense is that Pompeius' forces kept growing.

B. Hisp. 1.5Hoc crēbrīs nūntiīs in Ītaliam missīs cīvitātēs contrāriae Pompēiō indicābant et auxilia sibi dēpostulābant.

The communities opposed to Pompeius reported this by frequent messages sent to Italy and kept demanding help for themselves.

Note. Hoc: object of indicābant, 'reported this'. contrāriae Pompeiō: 'opposed to Pompeius', with the dative. dēpostulābant: a rare compound, 'kept demanding'; the imperfects describe repeated action. sibi: plural reflexive, referring to the communities.