Consular Election, Minor Wars, and Pestilence — Livy, History of Rome Book 5 (5.31.1–5.31.9), Latin & English

§5.31.1

eo munere delenita plebe nihil certatum est, quo minus¹ consularia comitia haberentur.

The plebeians having been pacified by this gift, there was no dispute to prevent the consular comitia from being held.

§5.31.2

creati consules L. Valerius Potitus, M. Manlius, cui Capitolino postea fuit cognomen. hi consules magnos ludos fecere, quos M. Furius dictator voverat Veienti bello.

Lucius Valerius Potitus and Marcus Manlius, who was afterwards surnamed Capitolinus, were elected consuls. These consuls celebrated the great games which the dictator Marcus Furius had vowed during the Veientane war.

§5.31.3

eodem anno aedes Iunonis reginae ab eodem dictatore eodemque bello vota dedicatur, celebratamque dedicationem ingenti matronarum studio tradunt.

In the same year, the temple of Queen Juno, vowed by the same dictator during the same war, was dedicated, and they relate that the dedication was celebrated with great enthusiasm on the part of the matrons.

§5.31.4

Bellum haud memorabile in Algido cum Aequis gestum est fusis hostibus prius paene, quam manus consererent.

A war of little note was waged in Algidus with the Aequi, the enemy being routed almost before they could close in battle.

§5.31.5

Valerio, quod perseverantior in iis caedendis in fuga fuit, triumphus, Manlio, ut ovans ingrederetur urbem, decretum est. eodem anno novum bellum cum Volsiniensibus exortum; quo propter famem² pestilentiamque in agro Romano ex siccitate caloribusque nimiis ortam exercitus duci nequivit. ob quae Volsinienses Sappinatibus adiunctis superbia inflati ultro agros Romanos incursavere;

A triumph was decreed to Valerius because he was more persistent in cutting them down in their flight, and to Manlius it was decreed that he should enter the city in an ovation. In the same year, a new war broke out with the Volsinienses; to which an army could not be led because of a famine and pestilence that had arisen in the Roman territory from excessive drought and heat. On this account the Volsinienses, having joined themselves with the Sappinates, were puffed up with pride and of their own accord made incursions into the Roman territory;

§5.31.6

bellum inde duobus populis indictum. C. Iulius censor decessit; in eius locum M. Cornelius suffectus, quae res postea religioni fuit,³ quia eo lustro Roma est capta;

war was thereupon declared against the two nations. Gaius Iulius, the censor, died; Marcus Cornelius was substituted in his place, a circumstance which was afterwards a matter of religious scruple, because Rome was captured during that lustrum;

§5.31.7

nec deinde umquam in demortui locum censor sufficitur. consulibusque morbo inplicitis placuit per interregnum renovari auspicia.

nor from that time was a censor ever substituted in the place of one who had died. And as the consuls were seized with illness, it was resolved that the auspices should be renewed through an interregnum.

§5.31.8

itaque cum ex senatus consulto consules magistratu se abdicassent, interrex creatur M. Furius Camillus, qui P. Cornelium Scipionem, is deinde L. Valerium Potitum interregem prodidit.⁴

Therefore, when the consuls had abdicated their office in accordance with a decree of the senate, Marcus Furius Camillus was appointed interrex, who nominated Publius Cornelius Scipio, and he then nominated Lucius Valerius Potitus as interrex.

§5.31.9

ab eo creati sex tribuni militum consulari potestate, ut, etiam si cui eorum incommoda valetudo fuisset, copia magistratuum rei publicae esset.

By him six military tribunes with consular power were elected, so that, even if any of them should be in ill health, there might be a sufficient number of magistrates for the republic.

Syntax notes4 items

5.31.1nihil certatum est, quo minus
nihil certatum est is an impersonal passive. The quo minus clause acts similarly to clauses after verbs of hindering (like impedire or prohibere), meaning "so that ... might not" or "to prevent ... from being held".
5.31.5quo propter famem
The relative quo refers back to novum bellum and functions adverbially to indicate direction (ad quod bellum, "to which war"). While it could be interpreted as causal ("whereby"), it is more naturally understood as direction in combination with duci.
5.31.6quae res postea religioni fuit
quae res is a relative pronoun referring to the entire preceding clause (the substitution of a deceased censor). religioni is a dative of purpose/result (forming a double dative construction with the implied dative of reference), meaning "became a matter of religious scruple or taboo."
5.31.8prodidit
prodere is a specific constitutional term meaning to "nominate" or "appoint" the next interrex at the expiration of one's own five-day term.

Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-21)

2026-09-21 AI review — source 1

urn:cts:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:5.31.1-5.31.9