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Julius Caesar · Gallic War §5.38.1-5.38.4

Ambiorix Rallies the Nervii to Attack Cicero

Passage 194 of 404 · Latin

Summary

Riding the wave of his victory, Ambiorix persuades the Aduatuci and the Nervii to join him, proposing a plan to launch a sudden attack and destroy the Roman legion under Cicero.

§5.38.1Hac victoria sublatus Ambiorix statim cum equitatu in Aduatucos, qui erant eius regno finitimi, proficiscitur; neque noctem neque diem intermittit peditatumque se subsequi iubet.
Elated by this victory, Ambiorix immediately sets out with his cavalry to the Aduatuci, who were neighboring to his kingdom; he pauses neither night nor day, and orders the infantry to follow him.
§5.38.2Re demonstrata Aduatucisque concitatis postero die in Nervios pervenit hortaturque, ne sui in perpetuum liberandi atque ulciscendi Romanos pro eis quas acceperint iniuriis occasionem dimittant:
Having explained the matter and aroused the Aduatuci, on the following day he arrives among the Nervii and exhorts them not to let slip the opportunity of freeing themselves forever and of avenging themselves on the Romans for the injuries which they had received.
§5.38.3interfectos esse legatos duos magnamque partem exercitus interisse demonstrat;
He points out that two legates had been slain, and that a large part of the army had perished.
§5.38.4nihil esse negoti subito oppressam legionem quae cum Cicerone hiemet interfici; se ad eam rem profitetur adiutorem.
He declares that it is a matter of no difficulty for the legion which is wintering with Cicero to be suddenly overwhelmed and destroyed; he offers himself as an assistant for that undertaking.
Facile hac oratione Nerviis persuadet.
He easily persuades the Nervii by this speech.

Notes

  1. §5.38.2sui in perpetuum liberandi — Although sui is the genitive plural of the reflexive pronoun se, it is identical in form to the genitive singular neuter. Consequently, the gerundive liberandi is also in the genitive singular neuter form, rather than plural. This is a standard Latin grammatical construction when a gerundive modifies the genitive of a plural reflexive pronoun.
  2. §5.38.2quas acceperint iniuriis — The antecedent iniuriis is incorporated into the relative clause, which would otherwise be phrased as pro eis iniuriis quas acceperint (for those injuries which they had received). The verb acceperint is in the perfect subjunctive due to the indirect discourse/subordinate clause.
  3. §5.38.4nihil esse negoti — negoti is the genitive singular of negotium (business, trouble), serving as a partitive genitive dependent on nihil. The phrase nihil negoti esse means 'that it is a matter of no difficulty,' with the infinitive clause legionem ... interfici (that the legion be destroyed) serving as its subject.

Cite this passage

Julius Caesar, Gallic War §5.38.1-5.38.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0448.phi001.humanitext-lat2:5.38.1-5.38.4

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