Humanitext Reader

Julius Caesar · Gallic War §4.30.1-4.30.3

British Chiefs Plotting to Renew Rebellion

Passage 148 of 404 · Latin

Summary

Recognizing the difficulties of the Romans, the British chiefs resolve to renew the rebellion, cut off their provisions, and prolong the war into winter, secretly beginning to withdraw.

§4.30.1Quibus rebus cognitis, principes Britanniae, qui post proelium ad Caesarem convenerant, inter se conlocuti, cum et equites et naves et frumentum Romanis deesse intellegerent et paucitatem militum ex castrorum exiguitate cognoscerent, quae hoc erant etiam angustior quod sine impedimentis Caesar legiones transportaverat, §4.30.2optimum factu esse duxerunt rebellione facta frumento commeatuque nostros prohibere et rem in hiemem producere, quod his superatis aut reditu interclusis neminem postea belli inferendi causa in Britanniam transiturum confidebant.
Having learned these things, the chiefs of Britain, who had assembled near Caesar after the battle, conferred with one another; since they understood that cavalry, ships, and grain were lacking to the Romans, and recognized the small number of soldiers from the smallness of the camp, which was even narrower for this reason, that Caesar had transported the legions without baggage, they decided that the best thing to do was, having renewed the rebellion, to cut off our men from grain and provisions and to prolong the business into the winter, because they were confident that, if these men were overcome or cut off from return, no one would afterwards cross over into Britain for the purpose of making war.
§4.30.3Itaque rursus coniuratione facta paulatim ex castris discedere et suos clam ex agris deducere coeperunt.
And so, having formed a conspiracy again, they began to depart gradually from the camp and to lead their own men secretly out of the fields.

Notes

  1. §4.30.1quae hoc erant etiam angustior quod — The antecedent of 'quae' is 'castrorum' (castra, neuter plural). 'hoc' is an ablative of degree or cause, correlating with the following 'quod' clause, meaning 'even narrower for this reason, that...'. 'angustior' is read as 'angustiora' in some manuscripts to agree with 'quae'.
  2. §4.30.2optimum factu — 'factu' is the supine in the ablative of the verb 'facio', modifying the adjective 'optimum' to express respect or specification ('best to do' or 'best in the doing').
  3. §4.30.2his superatis aut reditu interclusis — An ablative absolute construction with the pronoun 'his' (referring to the Romans) and the noun 'reditu' (return). It functions here with a conditional force: 'if these men were overcome or cut off from return'.

Cite this passage

Julius Caesar, Gallic War §4.30.1-4.30.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0448.phi001.humanitext-lat2:4.30.1-4.30.3

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.