Lectitō › Cornelius Nepos › Life of Hamilcar
Nepos, Hamilcar 3
To Spain, with Hannibal and Hasdrubal
Nepos, Hamilcar. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in LectitōHam. 3.1Rēbus hīs ex sententiā perāctīs fīdentī animō atque īnfestō Rōmānīs, quō facilius causam bellandī reperīret, effēcit ut imperātor cum exercitū in Hispāniam mitterētur, eōque sēcum dūxit fīlium Hannibalem annōrum novem.
When these things had been accomplished to his satisfaction, confident in spirit and hostile to the Romans, in order to find a pretext for war more easily, he arranged to be sent to Spain as commander with an army, and took with him there his son Hannibal, nine years old.
Note. ex sententiā 'as he wished'. fīdentī animō atque īnfestō Rōmānīs: ablatives of description. quō facilius … reperīret: quō introduces a purpose clause containing a comparative. Hamilcar went to Spain in 237 BC to build a new power base and fresh resources for Carthage.
Ham. 3.2Erat praetereā cum eō adulēscēns illūstris, fōrmōsus, Hasdrubal, quem nōnnūllī dīligī turpius, quam pār erat, ab Hamilcare loquēbantur (nōn enim maledicī tantō virō dēesse poterant).
With him besides was a distinguished, handsome young man, Hasdrubal, whom some said Hamilcar loved more shamefully than was proper (for a man so great could not lack slanderers).
Note. quem nōnnūllī dīligī … loquēbantur: accusative and infinitive after loquēbantur 'said'. turpius quam pār erat: 'more shamefully than was proper'. The parenthesis gives Nepos' own reason for doubting the gossip.
Ham. 3.2Quō factum est ut ā praefectō mōrum Hasdrubal cum eō vetārētur esse.
As a result Hasdrubal was forbidden by the guardian of morals to be with him.
Note. praefectō mōrum: Nepos uses a Roman-sounding title for a Carthaginian official responsible for public morals. vetārētur: vetō takes an infinitive (esse).
Ham. 3.2Huic ille fīliam suam in mātrimōnium dedit, quod mōribus eōrum nōn poterat interdīcī socerō generō.
Hamilcar gave him his daughter in marriage, because by their customs a father-in-law could not be kept from his son-in-law.
Note. quod … nōn poterat interdīcī: impersonal passive, 'it could not be forbidden'. socerō generō: dative, 'a father-in-law (to be kept) from his son-in-law'.
Ham. 3.3Dē hōc ideō mentiōnem fēcimus, quod Hamilcare occīsō ille exercituī praefuit rēsque magnās gessit et prīnceps largītiōne vetustōs pervertit mōrēs Karthāginiēnsium eiusdemque post mortem Hannibal ab exercitū accēpit imperium.
We have mentioned him for this reason: after Hamilcar was killed he commanded the army and did great things, and he was the first to corrupt the old customs of the Carthaginians by bribery; and after his death Hannibal received the command from the army.
Note. Hasdrubal commanded in Spain 229–221 BC and founded New Carthage (Cartagena). prīnceps 'the first' (to do something). eiusdemque post mortem: Hasdrubal was murdered in 221, and the army chose Hannibal, then about 26.
Vocabulary
| rēs, reī, f. | thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| ex, ē (prep. + abl.) | out of, from; of (ē only before consonants) |
| sententia, -ae, f. | opinion; purpose |
| peragō, -ere, -ēgī, -āctum | carry through, complete |
| fīdō, -ere, fīsus sum | trust, rely on (+ dat. or abl.); fīdēns, confident, bold |
| animus, -ī, m. | mind; heart; spirit, courage |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| īnfestus, -a, -um | unsafe, dangerous |
| Rōmānus, -a, -um | Roman |
| quō, adv. | to what place? whither? to which place, whither; for which reason, wherefore, therefore; quō ūsque, till when? how long? |
| facilis, -e (comp. facilior) | easy |
| causa, -ae, f. | cause, reason; abl. causā, for the sake of |
| bellō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | wage war, fight |
| reperiō, reperīre, repperī, repertus | find, discover |
| efficiō, -ficere, -fēcī, -fectus | make or work out, accomplish, effect |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| imperātor, -ōris, m. | commander, general |
| cum, prep, with abl. | with |
| exercitus, -ūs, m. | army |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| mittō, mittere, mīsī, missus | send |
| eō (adv.) | to that place, thither; to that point (usque eō); (with comparatives) by so much, all the (more) |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| dūcō, dūcere, dūxī, ductus | lead; make, dig; with or without in mātrimōnium, marry |
| fīlius, -ī, m. | son |
| annus, -ī, m. | year |
| novem, indecl. adj. | nine |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| praetereā, adv. | besides this, besides, moreover |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| adulēscēns, -entis, m. | youth, young man |
| illūstris, -e | distinguished, noble |
| fōrmōsus, -a, -um | beautiful |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| nōnnūllus, -a, -um | not none, some, several |
| dīligō, -ere, -lēxī, -lēctus | love, value highly |
| turpiter (adv.) | shamefully, disgracefully |
| quam, adv. | how? as; than; with superl., as ... as possible |
| pār, paris | equal |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| loquor, loquī, locūtus | speak |
| nōn, adv. | not |
| enim, conj. | for |
| maledicus, -a, -um | abusive, slanderous; (as noun) a slanderer |
| tantus, -a, -um | so great or much |
| vir, virī, m. | man |
| dēsum, deesse, dēfuī | be lacking, fail |
| possum, posse, potuī | be able, have power, can |
| faciō, facere, fēcī, factus | make, do; iter facere, see iter |
| praefectus, -ī m. | commander, officer |
| mōs, mōris, m. | way, manner, habit, custom |
| vetō, -āre, vetuī, vetitum | forbid |
| ille, illa, illud, dem. pron. | that; he, she, it, they; ille ... hīc, see hīc |
| fīlia, -ae, f. | daughter |
| suus, -a, -um | his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their |
| mātrimōnium, -ī, n. | marriage; in mātrimōnium dūcere, marry |
| dō, dare, dedī, datus | give |
| quod, conj. | that, in that, because |
| interdīcō, -ere, -dīxī, -dictum | forbid; (+ dat. and abl.) bar someone from |
| socer, -erī m. | father-in-law |
| gener, -erī m. | son-in-law |
| dē, prep, with abl. | down from, from, out of; about, concerning, of |
| ideō (adv.) | for that reason, therefore |
| mentiō, -ōnis, f. | mention |
| occīdō, -cīdere, -cīdī, -cīsus | cut down, kill |
| praesum, -esse, -fuī | be before, preside over, have charge of, command |
| magnus, -a, -um | large, big, great, mighty; loud |
| gerō, gerere, gessī, gestus | carry, wear; carry on, do |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| prīnceps, -ipis | first, chief; as noun: leader |
| largītiō, -ōnis f. | lavish giving, bribery |
| vetustus, -a, -um | old, ancient, long-established |
| pervertō, -ere, -vertī, -versus | overturn; corrupt, ruin |
| īdem, eadem, idem, dem. pron. | the same; sometimes to be translated likewise, also |
| post, adv. | after, later; prep. with acc., after, behind |
| mors, mortīs, f. | death |
| accipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus | take to oneself, receive, accept; hear; suffer |
| imperium, -ī, n. | command; sway, rule |