- 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-lat2:27.32.1-27.32.11
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-30
King Philip invades Elis but is met with a Roman ambush, resulting in a fierce battle where he is thrown from his horse and forced to retreat. Upon hearing that Macedonia is threatened by foreign enemies, he leaves a garrison to protect his allies and quickly returns home.
primum diem, quo fines hostium ingressi sunt, populando absumpserunt. postero die acie instructa ad urbem accesserunt praemissis equitibus, qui obequitando portis promptum ad excursiones genus lacesserent Aetolorum.1
They spent the first day, on which they entered the enemy’s territory, in ravaging. On the following day, having drawn up their battle line, they approached the city, after sending ahead the cavalry, who, by riding up to the gates, might provoke the Aetolians, a race ready for excursions.
ignorabant Sulpicium cum quindecim navibus ab Naupacto Cyllenen traiecisse et expositis in terram quattuor milibus armatorum silentio noctis, ne conspici agmen posset, intrasse Elim.
They were ignorant that Sulpicius with fifteen ships had crossed from Naupactus to Cyllene, and, having landed four thousand armed men, had entered Elis in the silence of the night, so that the march could not be observed.
itaque inprovisa res ingentem iniecit terrorem, postquam inter Aetolos Eliosque Romana signa atque arma cognovere.
Therefore, this unforeseen matter struck great terror into them, after they recognized the Roman standards and arms among the Aetolians and Eleans.
et primo recipere suos voluerat rex; dein contracto iam inter Aetolos et Tralles — Illyriorum id est genus — certamine cum urgeri videret suos, et ipse rex cum equitatu in cohortem Romanam incurrit.
And at first the king wished to recall his men; then, when the contest had already begun between the Aetolians and the Trallians—this is a race of Illyrians—and when he saw his men hard-pressed, the king himself also with his cavalry charged into the Roman cohort.
ibi equus pilo traiectus cum prolapsum super caput regem effudisset, atrox pugna utrimque accensa est et ab Romanis impetu in regem facto et protegentibus regiis.2
There, his horse being pierced by a javelin, when it had fallen forward and thrown the king over its head, a fierce battle was kindled on both sides, both by the Romans making an assault upon the king, and by the royal troops protecting him.
insignis et ipsius pugna fuit cum pedes inter equites coactus esset proelium inire. dein, cum iam impar certamen esset, caderentque circa eum multi et vulnerarentur, raptus ab suis atque alteri equo iniectus fugit.
Distinguished also was his own fighting, since he, a foot soldier, had been forced to enter the battle among cavalry. Then, when the contest was already unequal, and many were falling and being wounded around him, he was carried off by his men and, thrown onto another horse, fled.
eo die castra quinque milia passuum ab urbe Eliorum posuit. postero die omnes copias ad propinquum Eliorum castellum — Pyrgum vocant — eduxit, quo agrestium multitudinem cum pecoribus metu populationum compulsam audierat.
On that day he pitched his camp five miles from the city of the Eleans. On the following day he led out all his forces to a neighboring fortress of the Eleans—they call it Pyrgus—where he had heard that a multitude of rustics with their cattle had been driven by fear of ravages.
eam inconditam inermemque multitudinem primo statim terrore adveniens cepit; compensaveratque ea praeda quod ignominiae ad Elim acceptum fuerat.3
Arriving, he captured this unorganized and unarmed multitude at the very first terror; and with that booty he compensated for what of disgrace had been received at Elis.
dividenti4 praedam captivosque — fuere autem quattuor milia hominum, pecorumque omnis generis ad viginti milia — nuntius ex Macedonia venit Aeropum quendam corrupto arcis praesidiique praefecto Lychnidum cepisse, tenere et Dassaretiorum quosdam vicos et Dardanos etiam concire.
While he was distributing the booty and the captives—there were, moreover, four thousand people, and of cattle of all kinds up to twenty thousand—a messenger came from Macedonia that a certain Aeropus, having corrupted the commander of the citadel and garrison, had captured Lychnidus, and was holding certain villages of the Dassaretii, and was also stirring up the Dardanians.
omisso igitur Achaico atque Aetolico bello relictis tamen duobus milibus et quingentis omnis generis armatorum cum Menippo et Polyphanta ducibus ad praesidium sociorum, profectus ab Dymis per Achaiam Boeotiamque et Euboeam decumis castris5 Demetriadem in Thessaliam pervenit.
Therefore, having abandoned the Achaean and Aetolian war, though leaving two thousand five hundred armed men of all kinds under the command of Menippus and Polyphantas for the protection of the allies, he set out from Dymae, and through Achaea, Boeotia, and Euboea, reached Demetrias in Thessaly on the tenth day’s march.
- 27.32.1qui obequitando portis promptum ad excursiones genus lacesserent Aetolorum
The subjunctive imperfect lacesserent with the relative pronoun qui expresses the purpose of the cavalry sent ahead. The antecedent is equitibus. The phrase genus Aetolorum means 'the race of the Aetolians', with Aetolorum in the genitive.
- 27.32.5ab Romanis impetu in regem facto et protegentibus regiis
This part consists of two ablative absolute constructions joined by et. The former means 'an assault having been made on the king by the Romans', and the latter 'the royal troops (regiis = regiis militibus) protecting him'. They form coordinate absolute clauses.
- 27.32.8quod ignominiae ad Elim acceptum fuerat
The word ignominiae is a partitive genitive qualifying the relative pronoun quod, which functions substantively. The literal meaning is 'that of disgrace which had been received at Elis', meaning 'the disgrace suffered at Elis'.
- 27.32.9dividenti
This is the dative form of the present participle, functioning as a dative of reference (dative of interest). It indicates the person affected by the action of the main verb: 'while he was distributing... a messenger came to him'.
- 27.32.11decumis castris
This is an ablative expressing means or time elapsed: 'by the tenth camp (castra)'. In ancient military marches, the number of camps corresponds to the number of days, meaning 'on the tenth day's march'.