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Julius Caesar · Gallic War §3.6.1-3.6.5

Galba's Decisive Sally and Withdrawal to the Province

Passage 95 of 404 · Latin

Summary

The Roman soldiers launched a sudden sally, decisively defeating the massive barbarian forces. Considering the unexpected situation and the lack of provisions, Galba decided to burn the village and successfully withdrew his legion to the Allobroges territory for the winter.

§3.6.1Quod iussi sunt faciunt, ac subito omnibus portis eruptione facta neque cognoscendi quid fieret neque sui colligendi hostibus facultatem relinquunt.
They do what they were ordered, and suddenly making a sally from all the gates, they leave the enemy no opportunity either of understanding what was happening or of collecting themselves.
§3.6.2Ita commutata fortuna eos qui in spem potiundorum castrorum venerant undique circumventos intercipiunt, et ex hominum milibus amplius XXX, quem numerum barbarorum ad castra venisse constabat, plus tertia parte interfecta reliquos perterritos in fugam coiciunt ac ne in locis quidem superioribus consistere patiuntur.
Thus, fortune having changed, they surround on all sides and cut off those who had come with the hope of gaining possession of the camp; and having killed more than a third part out of over thirty thousand men (which number of barbarians it was well known had come to the camp), they put the rest to flight in terror, and do not allow them to make a stand even on the higher grounds.
§3.6.3Sic omnibus hostium copiis fusis armisque exutis se intra munitiones suas recipiunt.
Having thus routed all the forces of the enemy and stripped them of their arms, they retreat within their own fortifications.
§3.6.4Quo proelio facto, quod saepius fortunam temptare Galba nolebat atque alio se in hiberna consilio venisse meminerat, aliis occurrisse rebus videbat, maxime frumenti [commeatusque] inopia permotus postero die omnibus eius vici aedificiis incensis in provinciam reverti contendit, §3.6.5ac nullo hoste prohibente aut iter demorante incolumem legionem in Nantuates, inde in Allobroges perduxit ibique hiemavit.
This battle having been fought, because Galba was unwilling to tempt fortune too often, and remembered that he had come into winter quarters with one design, but saw that he had met with other matters, being chiefly moved by the lack of corn [and provisions], on the following day, having burned all the buildings of that village, he hastened to return into the Province; and with no enemy opposing or delaying his march, he led the legion safely into the territory of the Nantuates, and thence into that of the Allobroges, and there wintered.

Notes

  1. §3.6.1sui colligendi — The word 'sui' is the genitive of the reflexive pronoun 'se' and refers to a plural entity ('themselves'). Although functionally plural here, Latin grammar dictates that when a gerundive modifies a genitive personal or reflexive pronoun, it takes the neuter singular genitive form (-i), regardless of the pronoun's actual gender or number. Thus, 'colligendi' is grammatically singular but plural in meaning.
  2. §3.6.2potiundorum castrorum — The form 'potiundorum' is the gerundive of the deponent verb 'potiri' (to gain possession of), using the archaic suffix '-undus' instead of the classical '-endus'. While 'potiri' normally governs the genitive or ablative case, in the gerundive construction it behaves like a transitive verb governing the accusative, thus agreeing in gender, number, and case with 'castrorum' (neuter plural).
  3. §3.6.2amplius XXX — The comparative adverb 'amplius' (like 'plus' later in the sentence) is used parenthetically with numerals. In this construction, the omission of 'quam' (than) does not affect the case of the following nouns; hence, 'milibus' remains in the ablative governed by 'ex', resulting in the meaning 'out of more than thirty thousand men'.

Cite this passage

Julius Caesar, Gallic War §3.6.1-3.6.5. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0448.phi001.humanitext-lat2:3.6.1-3.6.5

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