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Julius Caesar · Gallic War §4.14.1-4.14.5

Surprise Attack on the German Camp and Their Flight

Passage 132 of 404 · Latin

Summary

Caesar quickly marches and launches a surprise attack on the German camp, throwing the unprepared enemy into confusion. While some take up arms to resist, the remaining multitude of women and children flee, and Caesar sends his cavalry to pursue them.

§4.14.1Acie triplici instituta et celeriter VIII milium itinere confecto, prius ad hostium castra pervenit quam quid ageretur Germani sentire possent.
Having formed a triple line of battle and quickly completed a march of eight miles, Caesar arrived at the enemy's camp before the Germans could perceive what was happening.
§4.14.2Qui omnibus rebus subito perterriti et celeritate adventus nostri et discessu suorum, neque consilii habendi neque arma capiendi spatio dato perturbantur, copiasne adversus hostem ducere an castra defendere an fuga salutem petere praestaret.
Suddenly terrified by all these circumstances—both the speed of our arrival and the absence of their own chiefs—and being given no time to form a plan or to take up arms, they were thrown into confusion as to whether it was better to lead their forces against the enemy, to defend the camp, or to seek safety in flight.
§4.14.3Quorum timor cum fremitu et concursu significaretur, milites nostri pristini diei perfidia incitati in castra inruperunt.
When their terror was signaled by their crying out and running about, our soldiers, incited by the treachery of the previous day, burst into the camp.
§4.14.4Quo loco qui celeriter arma capere potuerunt paulisper nostris restiterunt atque inter carros impedimenta proelium commiserunt; §4.14.5at reliqua multitudo puerorum mulierumque (nam cum omnibus suis domo excesserant Rhenum transierant) passim fugere coepit, ad quos consectandos Caesar equitatum misit.
In this place, those who were able to take up arms quickly resisted our men for a short time and joined battle among the carts and baggage; but the remaining multitude of children and women (for they had left their homes and crossed the Rhine with all their belongings) began to flee in all directions, and Caesar sent the cavalry to pursue them.

Notes

  1. 4.14.1prius ... quam ... possent — The correlated prius ... quam ("before") takes the imperfect subjunctive possent, indicating that the action of the main clause was intended to prevent or anticipate the enemy's realization (sentire).
  2. 4.14.2discessu suorum — Although suorum literally means "of their own people," in this context it refers specifically to their chiefs and elders who had gone to Caesar's camp in the previous chapter and were detained.
  3. 4.14.2copiasne adversus hostem ducere an castra defendere an fuga salutem petere praestaret — This indirect question clause depends on the verb perturbantur ("they are thrown into confusion"), explaining the nature of their confusion. It takes the form of a triple alternative question introduced by -ne ... an ... an ..., with the impersonal praestaret ("whether it was better to...") as the verb.
  4. 4.14.5ad quos consectandos — A gerundive construction expressing purpose, where the preposition ad is followed by the gerundive consectandos in agreement with the relative pronoun quos. The relative pronoun is used as a connecting relative referring back to the multitude of children and women.

Cite this passage

Julius Caesar, Gallic War §4.14.1-4.14.5. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0448.phi001.humanitext-lat2:4.14.1-4.14.5

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