Bellum Hispaniense 28

B. Hisp. 28.1Sequentī diē cum iter facere Caesar cum cōpiīs vellet, renūntiātum est ab speculātōribus Pompēium dē tertiā vigiliā in aciē stetisse.

The next day, when Caesar wanted to march with his forces, the scouts reported that Pompey had stood in battle line since the third watch.

Note. The battle of Munda, 17 March 45 BC, the last great battle of the civil war. Throughout these chapters Pompeius without a first name is Gnaeus, Pompey the Great's elder son, who led the Pompeians in Spain. sequentī diē: sequentī is a present participle of the deponent sequor, 'the following day'. dē tertiā vigiliā: 'from the third watch' (roughly midnight to 3 a.m.). stetisse: perfect infinitive in indirect statement after renūntiātum est.

B. Hisp. 28.2Hōc nūntiō adlātō vēxillum prōposuit.

When this news was brought, he hoisted the flag for battle.

Note. Hōc nūntiō adlātō: ablative absolute. vexillum prōposuit: the red flag hung out over the general's tent was the signal for battle.

B. Hisp. 28.2Idcircō enim cōpiās ēdūxerat, quod Ursaonēnsium cīvitātī, quī suī fuissent fautōrēs, anteā litterās mīserat Caesarem nōlle in convallem dēscendere, quod maiōrem partem exercitūs tīrōnem habēret.

Pompey had led his forces out for this reason: he had earlier sent a letter to the community of Urso, who were his supporters, saying that Caesar was unwilling to come down into the valley because the greater part of his army was raw recruits.

Note. The author's Latin is loose, and the subject changes without warning: the subject of ēdūxerat is Pompey. Ursaōnēnsium cīvitātī, quī sui fuissent fautōrēs: the relative quī agrees in sense with the people of the town, not with the feminine cīvitās. suī here is the genitive of the reflexive pronoun, an objective genitive with fautōrēs, 'supporters of himself'. litterās … Caesarem nōlle: the indirect statement gives what the letter said. tīrōnem: the singular used collectively, 'raw recruits'.

B. Hisp. 28.3Hae litterae vehementer cōnfirmābant mentēs oppidānōrum.

This letter greatly strengthened the townspeople's resolve.

Note. mentēs: 'resolve, spirits'. The Ursaonenses (Urso is modern Osuna) were firmly Pompeian; the siege of their town comes in chapter 41.

B. Hisp. 28.3Ita hāc opīniōne frētus tūtō sē facere posse exīstimābat: etenim et nātūrā locī dēfendēbātur et ipsīus oppidī mūnītiōne, ubi castra habuit cōnstitūta.

So, relying on this belief, he thought he could act in safety: for he was protected both by the nature of the ground and by the fortifications of the town itself, where he had his camp set up.

Note. opīniōne frētus: frētus takes the ablative, 'relying on'. tūtō: adverb, 'safely'. et nātūrā locī … et ipsīus oppidī mūnītiōne: two ablatives of means. The town is Munda. habuit cōnstitūta: habeō with a perfect participle stresses the lasting result, 'he had his camp set up there'.

B. Hisp. 28.4Namque ut superius dēmōnstrāvimus, loca excellentia tumulīs continērī iuterim nūlla plānitia dīvidit;

For, as we showed earlier, the high ground is made up of hills, and in between [the text is corrupt here] no plain divides them;

Note. Kübler marks this passage with a dagger as corrupt, and the printed iuterim (for interim, 'in between'?) does not make a sentence with contineri. The general sense seems to be that the high ground is a chain of hills with no level ground between them. loca excellentia: 'high ground', present participle of excellō.

B. Hisp. 28.4id quod eō incidit tempore.

and that is what happened at that time.

Note. id quod: 'and that is what…', summing up the previous clause. eō tempore: eō is the demonstrative pronoun, 'at that time'.