- 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-lat2:4.1.1-4.1.10
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-27
In the winter of 55 BC, the Usipetes and Tencteri cross the Rhine to escape the oppression of the Suebi, whose military and agricultural organization, land system, and physical habits are detailed.
Ea quae secuta est hieme, qui fuit annus1 Cn. Pompeio, M. Crasso consulibus,2 Usipetes Germani et item Tencteri magna [cum] multitudine hominum flumen Rhenum transierunt, non longe a mari, quo Rhenus influit.
In the winter which followed, which was the year when Gnaeus Pompeius and Marcus Crassus were consuls, the Usipetes, a German tribe, and likewise the Tencteri, crossed the river Rhine with a great multitude of men, not far from the sea into which the Rhine flows.
Causa transeundi fuit quod ab Suebis complures annos exagitati bello premebantur et agri cultura prohibebantur.
The reason for their crossing was that, having been harassed by the Suebi for several years, they were hard pressed by war and prevented from agricultural pursuits.
Sueborum gens est longe maxima et bellicosissima Germanorum omnium.
The nation of the Suebi is by far the largest and the most warlike of all the Germans.
Hi centum pagos habere dicuntur, ex quibus quotannis singula milia3 armatorum bellandi causa ex finibus educunt. Reliqui, qui domi manserunt, se atque illos alunt;
They are said to possess a hundred cantons, from each of which they lead out yearly a thousand armed men from their territories for the purpose of waging war. The remainder, who have stayed at home, support themselves and the others;
hi rursus in vicem anno post in armis sunt, illi domi remanent.
these, in their turn, are in arms the year after, while the former remain at home.
Sic neque agri cultura nec ratio atque usus belli intermittitur.
In this manner, neither agriculture nor the theory and practice of war is interrupted.
Sed privati ac separati agri apud eos nihil est, neque longius anno remanere uno in loco colendi causa licet.
But there is no private and separate land among them, nor is it permitted to remain in one place longer than a year for the purpose of cultivation.
Neque multum frumento, sed maximam partem4 lacte atque pecore vivunt multum sunt in venationibus;
They do not live much on corn, but for the most part on milk and cattle, and are much engaged in hunting;
quae res et cibi genere et cotidiana exercitatione et libertate vitae, quod a pueris nullo officio aut disciplina adsuefacti nihil omnino contra voluntatem faciunt, et vires alit et immani corporum magnitudine5 homines efficit.
which habit, both from the nature of their food, and their daily exercise, and the freedom of their life (because from their boyhood, being accustomed to no duty or discipline, they do nothing at all contrary to their inclination), both nourishes their strength and makes them men of immense bodily stature.
Atque in eam se consuetudinem adduxerunt ut locis frigidissimis6 neque vestitus praeter pelles habeant quicquam, quarum propter exiguitatem magna est corporis pars aperta, et laventur in fluminibus.
And they have brought themselves to such a habit that, in spite of the coldest climate, they have no clothing except skins, owing to the smallness of which a great part of the body is exposed, and they bathe in the rivers.
- 4.1.1qui fuit annus
The relative pronoun qui (masculine singular) agrees in gender and number with the predicate noun annus in its own clause, rather than with its antecedent hieme (feminine singular) in the main clause.
- 4.1.1Cn. Pompeio, M. Crasso consulibus
An ablative absolute consisting of two nouns without a participle of esse. It serves as a temporal expression to denote the year (55 BC), literally 'Pompey and Crassus being consuls.'
- 4.1.4singula milia
The distributive numeral singula indicates 'one thousand each' from each of the one hundred cantons (pagos), meaning a total of 100,000 armed men are led out every year.
- 4.1.8maximam partem
An adverbial accusative meaning 'for the most part' or 'chiefly,' modifying the verb vivunt.
- 4.1.9immani corporum magnitudine
An ablative of quality modifying homines, translating as 'makes them men of huge stature (of immense size of bodies).'
- 4.1.10locis frigidissimis
An ablative absolute with concessive force ('although the climate is extremely cold'), or an ablative of place without a preposition ('in the coldest places').