- 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-lat2:2.20.1-2.20.4
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-26
Faced with a sudden enemy attack, Caesar is aided by his experienced soldiers' ability to act on their own and by his prior command forbidding the legates to leave their posts.
Caesari1 omnia uno tempore erant agenda: vexillum proponendum, quod erat insigne, cum ad arma concurri oporteret;2 signum tuba dandum; ab opere revocandi milites; qui paulo longius aggeris petendi causa processerant arcessendi; acies instruenda; milites cohortandi; signum dandum.
Caesar had to do everything at one time: the standard had to be displayed, which was the signal for when it was necessary to rush to arms; the signal had to be given with the trumpet; the soldiers had to be recalled from the work; those who had proceeded a little further for the purpose of seeking material for the mound had to be summoned; the line of battle had to be formed; the soldiers had to be encouraged; the signal had to be given.
Quarum rerum magnam partem temporis brevitas et incursus hostium impediebat.
The shortness of time and the onset of the enemy prevented a great part of these matters.
His difficultatibus3 duae res erant subsidio, scientia atque usus militum, quod superioribus proeliis exercitati quid fieri oporteret non minus commode ipsi sibi praescribere quam ab aliis doceri poterant, et quod ab opere singulisque legionibus singulos legatos Caesar discedere nisi munitis castris4 vetuerat.
In these difficulties, two things were of assistance: the knowledge and experience of the soldiers, because, having been trained in former battles, they could prescribe for themselves what ought to be done no less fitly than be taught by others; and because Caesar had forbidden the individual legates to leave the work and their respective legions unless the camp was fortified.
Hi propter propinquitatem et celeritatem hostium nihil iam Caesaris imperium expectabant, sed per se quae videbantur administrabant.
These men, on account of the proximity and speed of the enemy, did not wait for any command from Caesar now, but by themselves administered what seemed best.
- 2.20.1Caesari
Dative of agent. Used with the passive periphrastic (such as agenda [erant], proponendum [erat]) to denote the person by whom the series of actions must be performed.
- 2.20.1concurri oporteret
Impersonal passive construction. The intransitive verb concurrere (to rush together) is used in the passive third person singular to express the abstract action itself ("a rushing together"). This functions as the infinitive subject of the impersonal verb oporteret.
- 2.20.3His difficultatibus
Dative of reference (or disadvantage). Combined with the dative of purpose subsidio to form a double dative construction ("two things were as a help to these difficulties").
- 2.20.3nisi munitis castris
Ablative absolute composed of the noun castris and the perfect passive participle munitis. Accompanied by the conjunction nisi (unless/except), it expresses a conditional exception ("unless the camp were fortified").