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Julius Caesar · Gallic War §8.33.1-8.33.2

Caninius Begins the Siege of Uxellodunum

Passage 382 of 404 · Latin

Summary

Gaius Caninius arrives at Uxellodunum, assesses its steep terrain and the townsmen's baggage, decides on a siege, and divides his forces into three camps on high ground to begin constructing a rampart around the town.

§8.33.1Quo cum confestim Gaius Caninius venisset animadverteretque omnes oppidi partes praeruptissimis saxis esse munitas, quo defendente nullo tamen armatis ascendere esset difficile, magna autem impedimenta oppidanorum videret, quae si clandestina fuga subtrahere conarentur, effugere non modo equitatum, sed ne legiones quidem possent, tripertito cohortibus divisis trina excelsissimo loco castra fecit; §8.33.2a quibus paulatim, quantum copiae patiebantur, vallum in oppidi circuitum ducere instituit.
When Gaius Caninius had arrived there immediately and observed that all parts of the town were fortified by extremely steep cliffs, so that even with no one defending it, it would still be difficult for armed men to climb up, and when he saw the great baggage of the townsmen, which if they attempted to carry off by a clandestine flight, they would be unable to escape not only the cavalry but not even the legions, having divided his cohorts into three parts, he made three camps on the highest ground; from which, as far as his forces permitted, he began gradually to draw a rampart around the circuit of the town.

Notes

  1. 8.33.1quo — Functions as a relative adverb of direction or place, modifying the following infinitive `ascendere` ("to climb up thither / to that place"). The antecedent is the steep rocks (`praeruptissimis saxis`) or the location they form.
  2. 8.33.1defendente nullo — An ablative absolute with a present participle and negative pronoun (`nullo`), expressing a concessive force: "with no one defending" or "even if no one were defending."
  3. 8.33.1quae si clandestina fuga subtrahere conarentur — The relative pronoun `quae` (accusative neuter plural) refers to the antecedent `magna impedimenta` and is integrated into the conditional clause `si ... conarentur` (relative connection), meaning "which if they attempted to...". The subject of the main apodosis is the townsmen (`oppidani`), with the verb `possent` in the imperfect subjunctive.
  4. 8.33.2a quibus — A relative connection in the ablative plural, referring to the antecedent `trina castra` (three camps) in the preceding sentence. Since `castra` is a plurale tantum (always plural in form), it is referred to by the plural `quibus` despite representing a single unit of camps, paired here with the preposition `a` (from).

Cite this passage

Julius Caesar, Gallic War §8.33.1-8.33.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0448.phi001.humanitext-lat2:8.33.1-8.33.2

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