- Source
- Julius Caesar. Aulus Hirtius. C. Iuli Commentarii Rerum in Gallia Gestarum VII A. Hirti Commentarius VII. Holmes, T. Rice (Thomas Rice), editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1914.
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:latinLit:phi0448.phi001.humanitext-lat2:1.26.1-1.26.6
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-24
Caesar fights a fierce double-fronted battle against the Helvetii, captures their baggage and camp along with Orgetorix's family, and pursues the fleeing survivors.
Ita ancipiti proelio1 diu atque acriter pugnatum est.2 Diutius cum sustinere nostrorum impetus non possent, alteri se, ut coeperant, in montem receperunt, alteri ad impedimenta et carros suos se contulerunt.
Thus, in a battle on two fronts, they fought long and fiercely. When they could no longer withstand the onslaught of our men, the one party retreated to the mountain, as they had begun to do, while the other betook themselves to their baggage and wagons.
Nam hoc toto proelio, cum ab hora septima ad vesperum pugnatum sit, aversum hostem videre nemo potuit.
For in this entire battle, although they fought from the seventh hour until evening, no one could see an enemy with his back turned.
Ad multam noctem etiam ad impedimenta pugnatum est, propterea quod pro vallo carros obiecerunt et e loco superiore in nostros venientes tela coiciebant et non nulli inter carros rotasque mataras ac tragulas subiciebant nostrosque vulnerabant.
Even until late at night, they fought at the baggage, because they had drawn up their wagons as a rampart, and from the higher ground they kept casting weapons at our men as they came up, and some kept thrusting Gallic pikes and light javelins between the wagons and the wheels, wounding our men.
Diu cum esset pugnatum, impedimentis castrisque nostri potiti sunt. Ibi Orgetorigis filia atque unus e filiis captus est.3
When they had fought for a long time, our men gained possession of the baggage and the camp. There, the daughter of Orgetorix and one of his sons were captured.
Ex eo proelio circiter hominum milia CXXX superfuerunt eaque tota nocte continenter ierunt [nullam partem noctis itinere intermisso]; in fines Lingonum die quarto pervenerunt, cum et propter vulnera militum et propter sepulturam occisorum nostri [triduum morati] eos sequi non potuissent.
About a hundred and thirty thousand men survived that battle and marched continuously through that whole night [no part of the night being interrupted in their march]; they reached the borders of the Lingones on the fourth day, since our men, [having delayed for three days] both because of the wounds of the soldiers and for the burial of the slain, had been unable to pursue them.
Caesar ad Lingonas litteras nuntiosque misit, ne eos frumento neve alia re iuvarent: qui si iuvissent, se eodem loco quo Helvetios habiturum.4 Ipse triduo intermisso cum omnibus copiis eos sequi coepit.
Caesar sent letters and messengers to the Lingones, warning them not to assist them with grain or any other thing: declaring that if they should assist them, he would regard them in the same light as the Helvetii. He himself, after an interval of three days, began to pursue them with all his forces.
- 1.26.1ancipiti proelio
Ablative of circumstance of the adjective anceps ('two-headed', 'double-fronted', 'undecided'). In connection with the division of the Roman forces mentioned in 1.25.7, it refers to a 'double-fronted battle' rather than an 'undecided battle.'
- 1.26.1pugnatum est
Impersonal passive of the intransitive verb pugno ('to fight'). Latin frequently uses this idiom ('it was fought' = 'they fought') in descriptions of battles to focus on the action rather than the actors. The construction is repeated in this chapter: pugnatum sit (§1.26.2), pugnatum est (§1.26.3), and pugnatum esset (§1.26.4).
- 1.26.4captus est
The verb is in the singular, agreeing with the nearest subject (unus, masculine singular), although the subject is grammatically compound (Orgetorigis filia atque unus e filiis). This is a common Latin syntax called grammatical agreement with the closest subject (attraction).
- 1.26.6qui si iuvissent, se eodem loco quo Helvetios habiturum
Indirect speech (oratio obliqua). The relative pronoun qui is a connecting relative (= 'and if they'). The pluperfect subjunctive iuvissent represents a future perfect indicative (iuerint) of the direct speech, shifted due to the historical main verb misit. se ... habiturum [esse] is an accusative with infinitive clause dependent on the implied verb of saying in misit. eodem loco quo Helvetios implies 'in the same position as [he regarded] the Helvetii' (i.e., as enemies).