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Julius Caesar · Gallic War §2.10.1-2.10.5

Defeat at the Axona and Belgic Decision to Disband

Passage 64 of 404 · Latin

Summary

Caesar attacks and repulses the enemy attempting to cross the river Axona, inflicting heavy casualties. Suffering from defeat and food shortage, the enemy decides to retreat to their respective territories to defend them against the Romans.

§2.10.1Caesar certior factus ab Titurio omnem equitatum et levis armaturae Numidas, funditores sagittariosque pontem traducit atque ad eos contendit.
Caesar, having been informed by Titurius, led all the cavalry and the light-armed Numidians, the slingers and archers across the bridge and hastened toward them.
Acriter in eo loco pugnatum est.
A fierce battle was fought in that place.
§2.10.2Hostes impeditos nostri in flumine adgressi magnum eorum numerum occiderunt; §2.10.3per eorum corpora reliquos audacissime transire conantes multitudine telorum reppulerunt primosque, qui transierant, equitatu circumventos interfecerunt.
Our men, having attacked the enemy while they were impeded in the river, slew a great number of them; by a multitude of darts they repulsed the rest who were attempting most daringly to cross over their bodies, and they slew with their cavalry, having surrounded them, the first who had crossed.
§2.10.4Hostes, ubi et de expugnando oppido et de flumine transeundo spem se fefellisse intellexerunt neque nostros in locum iniquiorum progredi pugnandi causa viderunt atque ipsos res frumentaria deficere coepit, concilio convocato constituerunt optimum esse domum suam quemque reverti, et quorum in fines primum Romani exercitum introduxissent, ad eos defendendos undique convenirent, ut potius in suis quam in alienis finibus decertarent et domesticis copiis rei frumentariae uterentur.
The enemy, when they realized that their hope had deceived them both regarding the storming of the town and the crossing of the river, and saw that our men did not advance into a more disadvantageous place for the sake of fighting, and when provisions began to fail them, having called a council, decided that it was best for each to return to his own home, and that they should assemble from all quarters to defend those into whose territories the Romans should first introduce their army, so that they might fight rather in their own than in foreign territories, and make use of their domestic supplies of provisions.
§2.10.5Ad eam sententiam cum reliquis causis haec quoque ratio eos deduxit, quod Diviciacum atque Haeduos finibus Bellovacorum adpropinquare cognoverant.
To this opinion, along with the remaining reasons, this consideration also led them, because they had learned that Diviciacus and the Haedui were approaching the borders of the Bellovaci.
His persuaderi ut diutius morarentur neque suis auxilium terrent non poterat.
These could not be persuaded to stay longer and not bring aid to their own people.

Notes

  1. §2.10.1pontem — The verb traducit (traducere) takes a double accusative: one of the objects led (omnem equitatum...), and another of the place crossed (pontem).
  2. §2.10.4spem se fefellisse — An accusative-and-infinitive construction in indirect discourse. spem is the subject of fefellisse, and se is the accusative object (referring back to the main subject, hostes). Thus it means 'that hope had deceived them.'
  3. §2.10.4in locum iniquiorum — iniquiorum is the genitive plural of the comparative adjective iniquus (agreeing with an implied locorum), modifying locum indirectly: 'into a place of more unfavorable [places]' i.e., 'into more disadvantageous ground.'
  4. §2.10.5His persuaderi... non poterat — An impersonal passive construction of the intransitive verb persuadere (to persuade), which governs the dative. Since verbs governing the dative cannot be used personally in the passive, they are used impersonally (third-person singular passive), retaining the dative His. Literally, 'it could not be persuaded to them,' meaning 'they could not be persuaded.'
  5. §2.10.5ferrent — The word terrent in the text is a clear typographical error for ferrent (imperfect subjunctive of ferre), as confirmed by the context. auxilium ferre is the standard idiom meaning 'to bring aid.'

Cite this passage

Julius Caesar, Gallic War §2.10.1-2.10.5. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0448.phi001.humanitext-lat2:2.10.1-2.10.5

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