- 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
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- CTS URN
- urn:cts:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:2.13.1-2.13.11
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-04
Porsinna, shaken by the assassination attempt of Mucius and the resolute determination of the Romans, proposes peace terms and withdraws his army. He is further astonished by the bravery of the hostage Cloelia, who leads a daring escape, prompting the Romans to honor her with an equestrian statue.
Mucium dimissum,1 cui postea Scaevolae a clade dextrae manus cognomen inditum, legati a Porsinna Romam secuti sunt;
Ambassadors from Porsinna followed to Rome Mucius, who had been dismissed, and to whom the cognomen of Scaevola was afterwards given from the loss of his right hand;
adeo moverat eum et primi periculi casus, a quo nihil se praeter errorem insidiatoris texisset,2 et subeunda dimicatio totiens, quot coniurati superessent, ut pacis condiciones ultro ferret Romanis.
for so much had he been moved both by the hazard of the first danger, from which nothing but the mistake of the assassin had protected him, and by the struggle to be undergone as many times as there were conspirators remaining, that he voluntarily offered terms of peace to the Romans.
iactatum3 in condicionibus nequiquam de Tarquiniis in regnum restituendis, magis quia id negare ipse nequiverat Tarquiniis, quam quod negatum iri sibi ab Romanis ignoraret.4
Mention was made in the terms, to no purpose, of restoring the Tarquinii to the throne, rather because he himself had been unable to refuse this to the Tarquinii, than because he was ignorant that it would be refused to him by the Romans.
de agro Veientibus restituendo inpetratum, expressaque necessitas obsides dandi Romanis, si Ianiculo praesidium deduci vellent. his condicionibus conposita pace exercitum ab Ianiculo deduxit Porsinna et agro Romano excessit.
In respect to restoring territory to the Veientes, his request was granted, and the necessity of giving hostages was extorted from the Romans, if they wished the garrison to be withdrawn from the Janiculum. On these terms peace was concluded, and Porsinna led his army down from the Janiculum and departed from Roman territory.
patres C. Mucio virtutis causa trans Tiberim agrum dono dedere, quae postea sunt Mucia prata appellata.
The patres gave land across the Tiber to Gaius Mucius as a gift for his valor, which was afterwards called the Mucian Meadows.
ergo ita honorata virtute feminae quoque ad publica decora excitatae, et Cloelia virgo, una ex obsidibus, cum castra Etruscorum forte haud procul ripa Tiberis locata essent, frustrata custodes, dux agminis virginum inter tela hostium Tiberim tranavit sospitesque omnes Romam ad propinquos restituit.
Therefore, valor being thus honored, women also were excited to public achievements, and Cloelia, a maiden, one of the hostages, when the camp of the Etruscans happened to be situated not far from the bank of the Tiber, having eluded the guards, as leader of a band of maidens, swam across the Tiber amidst the darts of the enemy, and restored them all safe to their relations at Rome.
quod ubi regi nuntiatum est, primo incensus ira oratores Romam misit ad Cloeliam obsidem deposcendam: alias haud magni facere;
When this was reported to the king, at first, incensed with anger, he sent envoys to Rome to demand the hostage Cloelia: that he did not make much account of the others;
deinde in admirationem versus supra Coclites Muciosque dicere id facinus esse et prae se ferre,5 quem ad modum, si non dedatur obses, pro rupto foedus se habiturum, sic deditam intactam inviolatamque ad suos remissurum.
then, turning to admiration, he said that this deed surpassed those of Cocles and Mucius, and declared that, just as he would consider the treaty as broken if the hostage were not given up, so, if she were surrendered, he would send her back to her people untouched and inviolate.
utrimque constitit fides: et Romani pignus pacis ex foedere restituerunt, et apud regem Etruscum non tuta solum sed honorata etiam virtus fuit, laudatamque virginem parte obsidum se donare dixit;
On both sides faith was kept: both the Romans restored the pledge of peace according to the treaty, and with the Etruscan king valor was not only safe but also honored, and he said that he would present the praised maiden with a part of the hostages;
ipsa, quos vellet, legeret.6 productis omnibus elegisse inpubes dicitur, quod et virginitati decorum et consensu obsidum ipsorum probabile erat, eam aetatem potissimum liberari ab hoste, quae maxime opportuna iniuriae esset.
she herself might choose whom she wished. All being brought out, she is said to have chosen the youths under age, which was both becoming to her maidenhood, and by the consensus of the hostages themselves approved, that that age should especially be freed from the enemy which was most liable to injury.
pace redintegrata Romani novam in femina virtutem novo genere honoris, statua equestri, donavere: in summa sacra via posita virgo insidens equo.
Peace being renewed, the Romans honored this extraordinary valor in a woman with a new kind of honor, an equestrian statue: at the top of the Sacra Via was placed a maiden sitting upon a horse.
- 2.13.1Mucium dimissum
The direct object of the main verb secuti sunt. It is placed at the beginning of the sentence for emphasis.
- 2.13.2a quo nihil se praeter errorem insidiatoris texisset
The pluperfect subjunctive texisset in the relative clause introduced by a quo. Relative to the main verb's pluperfect moverat, it implies a counterfactual or restrictive nuance ('which, had it not been for the assassin's mistake, would have protected him from nothing').
- 2.13.3iactatum
An impersonal perfect passive form, with the auxiliary est omitted (for iactatum est), meaning 'it was discussed' or 'mention was made'.
- 2.13.3magis quia id negare ipse nequiverat Tarquiniis, quam quod negatum iri sibi ab Romanis ignoraret
Two contrasting causal clauses. The actual, affirmative reason is stated with quia + indicative pluperfect (nequiverat), whereas the rejected, hypothetical reason is stated with quod + subjunctive imperfect (ignoraret).
- 2.13.8dicere id facinus esse et prae se ferre
Historical infinitives. The infinitives dicere and ferre are used in place of past indicative verbs (dicebat and prae se ferebat) to give dramatic vividness and rapidity to the narrative.
- 2.13.10ipsa, quos vellet, legeret
An independent command or exhortation in indirect discourse. A direct command (lege) or hortatory subjunctive becomes the imperfect subjunctive legeret in dependence on a past main verb. The pronoun ipsa is emphasized to show that the choice was left entirely to her.