Scipio's Siege of New Carthage and Speech to His Troops — Livy, History of Rome Book 26 (26.43.1–26.43.8), Latin & English

§26.43.1

cetera, quae munienda erant, cum perfecisset, naves etiam in portu, velut maritimam quoque ostentans obsidionem, instruxit; circumvectusque classem cum monuisset praefectos navium, ut vigilias¹ nocturnas intenti servarent, omnia ubique primo obsessum hostem conari,² regressus in castra, ut consilii sui rationem, quod ab urbe potissimum oppugnanda³ bellum orsus esset, militibus ostenderet et spem potiundae⁴ cohortando faceret, contione advocata ita disseruit:

When he had completed the other things which were to be fortified, he also drew up the ships in the harbor, as if displaying a naval blockade as well; and sailing around the fleet, when he had warned the captains of the ships to keep nightly vigils intently, since a besieged enemy for the first time would attempt everything everywhere, returning to the camp, in order to show to the soldiers the reason for his plan—namely, why he had begun the war by attacking this city in preference to all others—and to inspire in them, by encouraging them, the hope of capturing it, he called an assembly and spoke thus:

§26.43.3

“ad urbem unam oppugnandam si quis vos adductos credit, is magis operis vestri quam emolumenti rationem exactam, milites, habet. oppugnabitis enim vere moenia unius urbis, sed in una urbe universam ceperitis Hispaniam.

”If anyone believes, soldiers, that you have been led here to attack a single city, he has a more exact calculation of your labor than of the benefit. For you will indeed attack the walls of a single city, but in that single city you will have captured the whole of Spain.

§26.43.4

hic sunt obsides omnium nobilium regum populorumque; qui simul in potestate vestra erunt, extemplo omnia, quae nunc sub Carthaginiensibus sunt, in dicionem tradent;

Here are the hostages of all the noble kings and peoples; as soon as these are in your power, they will immediately deliver into our dominion everything that is now under the Carthaginians;

§26.43.5

hic pecunia omnis hostium, sine qua neque illi gerere bellum possunt, quippe qui mercennarios exercitus alant,⁵ et quae nobis maximo usui ad conciliandos animos barbarorum erit;

here is all the money of the enemy, without which they cannot wage war, since they support mercenary armies, and which will be of the greatest use to us in winning over the minds of the barbarians;

§26.43.6

hic tormenta, arma, omnis apparatus belli est, qui simul et vos instruet et hostis nudabit.

here are the engines, the weapons, and all the equipment of war, which will at the same time equip you and strip the enemy.

§26.43.7

potiemur praeterea cum pulcherrima opulentissimaque urbe,⁶ tum opportunissima portu egregio, unde terra marique, quae belli usus poscunt, suppeditentur. quae cum magna ipsi habebimus,⁷ tum dempserimus hostibus multo maiora.

Moreover, we shall gain possession of a city not only most beautiful and wealthy, but also most convenient with its excellent harbor, whence everything that the needs of war demand may be supplied by land and sea. While we ourselves shall possess these as great things, we shall have taken away far greater things from the enemy.

§26.43.8

haec illis arx, hoc horreum, aerarium, armamentarium, hoc omnium rerum receptaculum est; huc rectus ex Africa cursus est; haec una inter Pyrenaeum et Gadis statio; hinc omni Hispaniae imminet Africa.” * * *

This is their citadel, this their granary, treasury, armory, this the receptacle of all things; hither is the direct course from Africa; this is the only station between the Pyrenees and Gades; from here Africa threatens all Spain.”

Syntax notes7 items

26.43.1at vigilias
The word at in the text is a typo or variant for the conjunction ut. Here, introduced by monuisset, it forms a substantive clause of purpose or command (with subjunctive servarent) meaning 'to keep...'. Likewise, at in at consilii in 26.43.2 is a typo for ut introducing a purpose clause (with subjunctive ostenderet).
26.43.1omnia ubique primo obsessum hostem conari
An accusative with infinitive (A.C.I.) construction dependent on monuisset. primo obsessum hostem is the subject accusative ('an enemy besieged for the first time'), conari is the infinitive ('attempts'), and omnia is the object accusative ('all things'). It states a general truth representing the content of the warning.
26.43.2ab urbe potissimum oppugnanda
A gerundive construction with the gerundive oppugnanda agreeing with the noun urbe in the ablative after the preposition ab. It means 'from attacking this city.' The adverb potissimum (above all, in preference to others) modifies the gerundive phrase.
26.43.2potiundae
The genitive feminine singular of the gerundive potiundus (from potior, 'to gain possession of'). The noun urbis ('of the city') is understood, and the phrase functions as a genitive modifying spem ('hope of capturing [it]').
26.43.5quippe qui ... alant
A relative clause of characteristic/cause expressing the reason for the main subject's action. quippe qui with the subjunctive (alant) introduces a strongly asserted reason ('since they, in fact, support...').
26.43.7urbe
urbe is in the ablative case. The verb potiemur (from potior, 'to gain possession of') regularly governs the ablative case, which here includes both urbe and portu.
26.43.7quae cum magna ipsi habebimus
A relative connection where the relative pronoun quae (neuter plural accusative) refers to the various benefits of capturing New Carthage mentioned before. In the cum ... tum ... correlation, magna ('as great things') functions as a predicate accusative with habebimus.

Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25) · Revision history (3, latest 2026-09-22)

2026-09-22 AI review — source 2
2026-09-21 AI review — source 1

urn:cts:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:26.43.1-26.43.8