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Livy · History of Rome §37.4.1-37.4.10

Departure of Lucius Cornelius and the Attack on Lamia

Passage 1329 of 1770 · Latin

Summary

The consul Lucius Cornelius mobilizes the army and sets out for Brundisium. Meanwhile, the Aetolians occupy Mount Corax to block the Romans, but the proconsul Acilius decides to make a surprise attack on Lamia.

§37.4.1L. Cornelius consul peractis, quae Romae agenda erant, pro contione edixit, ut milites, quos ipse in supplementum scripsisset, quique in Bruttiis cum A. Cornelio propraetore essent, ut hi omnes idibus Quinctilibus Brundisium convenirent.
The consul Lucius Cornelius, having finished what had to be done at Rome, proclaimed before an assembly that the soldiers whom he himself had enlisted as reinforcements, and those who were in the land of the Bruttii with the propraetor Aulus Cornelius, that all these should assemble at Brundisium on the Ides of July.
§37.4.2item tres legatos nominavit, Sex. Digitium L. Apustium C. Fabricium Luscinum, qui ex ora maritima undique navis Brundisium contraherent; et omnibus iam paratis paludatus ab urbe est profectus.
He also named three envoys, Sextus Digitius, Lucius Apustius, and Gaius Fabricius Luscinus, who were to collect ships from all along the sea coast to Brundisium; and when all things were now ready, he set out from the city, clad in the general's cloak.
§37.4.3ad quinque milia voluntariorum, Romani sociique, qui emerita stipendia sub imperatore P. Africano habebant, praesto fuere exeunti consuli et nomina dederunt.
About five thousand volunteers, both Romans and allies, who had completed their service under the command of Publius Africanus, were at hand for the consul as he was departing, and gave in their names.
§37.4.4per eos dies, quibus est profectus ad bellum consul, ludis Apollinaribus, a. d. quintum idus Quinctiles caelo sereno interdiu obscurata lux est, cum luna sub orbem solis subisset.
During those days on which the consul set out for the war, during the Apollinarian Games, five days before the Ides of July, in a clear sky during the day, the light was darkened when the moon passed under the orb of the sun.
§37.4.5et L. Aemilius Regillus, cui navalis provincia evenerat, eodem tempore profectus est.
And Lucius Aemilius Regillus, to whom the naval province had fallen, set out at the same time.
L. Aurunculeio negotium ab senatu datum est, ut triginta quinqueremes, viginti triremes faceret, quia fama erat Antiochum post proelium navale maiorem classem aliquanto reparare.
Lucius Aurunculeius was given the task by the senate to build thirty quinqueremes and twenty triremes, because there was a rumor that Antiochus, after the naval battle, was repairing a considerably larger fleet.
§37.4.6Aetoli, postquam legati ab Roma rettulerunt nullam spem pacis esse, quamquam omnis ora — maritima eorum, quae in Peloponnesum versa est, depopulata ab Achaeis erat, §37.4.7periculi magis quam damni memores, ut Romanis intercluderent iter, Coracem occupaverunt montem; neque enim dubitabant ad oppugnationem Naupacti eos principio veris redituros esse.
The Aetolians, after the envoys returned from Rome and reported that there was no hope of peace, although their entire sea coast facing the Peloponnese had been devastated by the Achaeans, mindful of danger more than of their loss, in order to block the way for the Romans, occupied Mount Corax; for they did not doubt that the Romans would return at the beginning of spring to the siege of Naupactus.
§37.4.8Acilio, quia id expectari sciebat, satius visum est inopinatam adgredi rem et Lamiam oppugnare; §37.4.9nam et a Philippo prope ad excidium adductos esse, et tunc eo ipso, quod nihil tale timerent, opprimi incautos posse.
To Acilius, since he knew that this was expected, it seemed better to undertake an unexpected enterprise and to attack Lamia; for they had been brought close to destruction by Philip, and at that time, for the very reason that they feared no such thing, they could be overwhelmed off their guard.
§37.4.10profectus ab Elatia primum in hostium terra circa Spercheum amnem posuit castra; inde nocte motis signis prima luce corona moenia est adgressus.
Setting out from Elatia, he first pitched camp in the enemy's land near the river Spercheus; from there, having moved his standards by night, at dawn he assaulted the walls by surrounding them.

Notes

  1. 37.4.1ut milites, quos ipse in supplementum scripsisset, quique in Bruttiis cum A. Cornelio propraetore essent, ut hi omnes — In the structure ut milites ... ut hi omnes ... convenirent, there is an anacoluthon (pleonasm) where the conjunction ut is repeated and the subject milites (modified by relative clauses) is resumed by the pronoun hi omnes. This repetition serves to clarify the structure of the long sentence.
  2. 37.4.3ad quinque milia — The preposition ad is used adverbially with numerals to mean 'about' or 'approximately'. Although placed before the nominative voluntariorum, Romani sociique, it does not govern their case.
  3. 37.4.9nam et a Philippo prope ad excidium adductos esse — This sentence is in indirect speech (Oratio Obliqua), depending on satius visum est (§37.4.8) or sciebat (representing the thoughts of Acilius), with the infinitives adductos esse and posse serving as the main verbs of the clauses.

Cite this passage

Livy, History of Rome §37.4.1-37.4.10. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:37.4.1-37.4.10

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