- 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-lat2:8.49.1-8.49.3
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-05
While wintering in Belgium, Caesar treated the Gallic states with clemency and respect, aiming to keep them at peace and prevent any outbreak of war before his departure.
Caesar in Belgio cum hiemaret, unum illud propositum habebat, continere in amicitia civitates, nulli spem aut causam dare1 armorum.
When Caesar was wintering in Belgium, he had this one purpose in mind: to keep the states in friendship, and to give to none any hope or cause for arms.
Nihil enim minus volebat quam2 sub decessu suo necessitatem sibi aliquam imponi belli gerendi, ne, cum exercitum deducturus esset, bellum aliquod relinqueretur quod omnis Gallia libenter sine praesenti periculo susciperet.3
For he wished nothing less than that, on the eve of his departure, some necessity of waging war should be imposed upon him, lest, when he was about to withdraw his army, some war should be left behind which all Gaul would gladly undertake without present danger.
Itaque honorifice civitates appellando, principes maximis praemiis adficiendo, nulla onera iniungendo defessam tot adversis proeliis Galliam condicione parendi meliore facile in pace continuit.
Therefore, by addressing the states honorably, by rewarding the leading men with the greatest presents, and by imposing no burdens, he easily kept Gaul, exhausted by so many unsuccessful battles, in peace under a better condition of obedience.
- 8.49.1continere ... dare
The infinitives continere and dare act in apposition to the preceding noun phrase unum illud propositum ('this one purpose'), explaining the specific details of Caesar's objective.
- 8.49.2Nihil enim minus volebat quam
Literally 'he wished nothing less than...', this comparative construction expresses a strong negative preference ('he wished least of all that...'). The particle quam is followed by the accusative and infinitive clause (necessitatem... imponi).
- 8.49.2susciperet
Subjunctive imperfect in the relative clause (quod... susciperet). It can be interpreted as a subjunctive of characteristic describing the type of war (a war 'such as all Gaul would gladly undertake'), or as a subjunctive by attraction due to its subordination within the ne-clause.