- Source
- Titi Livi ab urbe condita libri editionem priman, Pars I-IV, Libri I-XL. Editio Stereotypica. Weissenborn, Wilhelm; Mueller, Moritz, editors. Leipzig: Teubner, 1884-1911.
- 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:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:1.57.1-1.57.11
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-05
During the siege of Ardea, a dispute arises among the royal youths regarding the virtue of their wives, leading them to visit Collatia where they witness Lucretia's supreme chastity, which ignites a wicked passion in Sextus Tarquinius.
Ardeam Rutuli habebant, gens ut in ea regione atque in ea aetate1 divitiis praepollens. eaque ipsa causa belli fuit, quod rex Romanus cum ipse ditari, exhaustus magnificentia publicorum operum, tum praeda delenire popularium animos studebat, praeter aliam superbiam regno infestos2 etiam, quod se in fabrorum ministeriis ac servili tam diu habitos opere ab rege indignabantur.
The Rutulians held Ardea, a nation pre-eminent in wealth for that region and that age. And this itself was the cause of the war, because the Roman king was eager both to enrich himself, exhausted as he was by the magnificence of his public works, and to soothe with booty the minds of the common people, who, besides his other arrogance, were hostile to the kingdom also because they were indignant that they had been kept for so long by the king in the service of craftsmen and in slavish labor.
temptata res est, si primo impetu capi Ardea posset. ubi id parum processit, obsidione munitionibusque coepti premi hostes.
An attempt was made to see if Ardea could be taken by a first assault. When that met with little success, they began to press the enemy with a siege and works.
in his stativis, ut fit longo magis quam acri bello, satis liberi commeatus erant, primoribus tamen magis quam militibus;
In this permanent camp, as usually happens in a war more long than sharp, furloughs were free enough, more so however for the leading men than for the soldiers;
regii quidem iuvenes interdum otium conviviis comisationibusque inter se terebant. forte potantibus his apud Sex. Tarquinium, ubi et Collatinus cenabat Tarquinius, Egerii filius, incidit de uxoribus mentio; suam quisque laudare3 miris modis.
the royal youths indeed sometimes spent their leisure among themselves in banquets and revelries. By chance, while they were drinking at the house of Sextus Tarquinius, where Tarquinius Collatinus, the son of Egerius, was also dining, mention happened to be made of their wives; each praised his own in wonderful ways.
inde certamine accenso Collatinus negat verbis opus esse, paucis id quidem horis posse sciri, quantum ceteris praestet Lucretia sua. “quin, si vigor iuventae inest, conscendimus4 equos invisimusque praesentes nostrarum ingenia? id cuique spectatissimum sit, quod necopinato viri adventu occurrerit oculis.”
Thence, when the dispute grew warm, Collatinus denied that there was need of words, saying that in indeed a few hours it could be known how much his own Lucretia excelled the rest. “Why not, if the vigor of youth is in us, do we mount our horses and visit in person the characters of our wives? Let that be the most decisive proof for each which meets his eyes at the unexpected arrival of her husband.”
incaluerant vino; “age sane!” omnes; citatis equis avolant Romam. quo cum primis se intendentibus tenebris pervenissent, pergunt inde Collatiam, ubi Lucretiam haudquaquam ut regias nurus, quas in convivio luxuque cum aequalibus viderant tempus terentes, sed nocte sera deditam lanae inter lucubrantes ancillas in medio aedium sedentem inveniunt. muliebris certaminis laus penes Lucretiam fuit.
They had grown warm with wine; “Come on then!” cried all; with spurred horses they fly to Rome. When they had arrived there at the first gathering of darkness, they proceed thence to Collatia, where they find Lucretia, by no means like the royal daughters-in-law, whom they had seen passing their time in banquets and luxury with their equals, but late at night devoted to her wool, sitting in the middle of the house among her maids working by lamplight. The honor of the female contest was with Lucretia.
adveniens vir Tarquiniique excepti benigne; victor maritus comiter invitat regios iuvenes. ibi Sex. Tarquinium mala libido Lucretiae per vim stuprandae capit;
On their arrival, the husband and the Tarquins were kindly received; the victorious husband courteously invites the royal youths. There a wicked passion for defiling Lucretia by force seizes Sextus Tarquinius;
cum forma tum spectata castitas incitat. et tum quidem ab nocturno iuvenali ludo in castra redeunt.
both her beauty and her proven chastity incite him. And for that time indeed they return to the camp from their nightly youthful sport.
- 1.57.1ut in ea regione atque in ea aetate
The conjunction 'ut' is used here in a restrictive sense ('considering...', 'for...'), qualifying the degree of 'divitiis praepollens' within the context of that region and age.
- 1.57.2regno infestos
The adjective 'infestos' (accusative plural masculine) modifies 'popularium animos' (the minds of the common people), which is the object of 'studebat' in the preceding sentence (1.57.1). It indicates that the people themselves were hostile to the monarchy (regno, dative).
- 1.57.6suam quisque laudare
The verb 'laudare' is a historical infinitive, used instead of the imperfect indicative ('laudabat') to present a vivid narrative. The subject is the singular 'quisque'.
- 1.57.7quin... conscendimus
The particle 'quin' followed by the present indicative (first-person plural) is an idiomatic expression of strong exhortation or proposal ('why not...?').
Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-21)
- 2026-09-21 AI review — source 1