The Seige of Alesia Caesar Book 7 Chapters 63-90
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The Seige of Alesia Caesar Book 7 chapters 63-90 1 1 [63] Defectione Aeduorum cognita bellum augetur. Legationes in omnes partes circummittuntur: quantum gratia, auctoritate, pecunia valent1, ad sollicitandas civitates nituntur2; nacti3 obsides, quos Caesar apud eos deposuerat, horum4 supplicio dubitantes territant. Petunt a Vercingetorige Aedui ut ad se veniat 5 rationesque belli gerendi communicet. Re impetrata5 contendunt ut ipsis summa imperi6 tradatur, et re in controversiam deducta totius Galliae concilium Bibracte7 indicitur8. Eodem conveniunt undique frequentes9. Multitudinis suffragiis10 res permittitur: ad unum11 omnes Vercingetorigem probant imperatorem. Ab hoc concilio Remi, Lingones, Treveri afuerunt: illi12, quod 10 amicitiam Romanorum sequebantur; Treveri, quod aberant longius et ab Germanis premebantur, quae fuit causa quare toto abessent bello et neutris auxilia mitterent. Magno dolore Aedui ferunt13 se deiectos principatu14, queruntur fortunae commutationem et Caesaris indulgentiam in se requirunt15, neque tamen suscepto bello suum consilium ab reliquis separare16 audent. Inviti 15 summae spei17 adulescentes Eporedorix et Viridomarus18 Vercingetorigi parent. [64] Ipse19 imperat20 reliquis civitatibus obsides diemque ei rei constituit. Omnes equites, quindecim milia numero, celeriter convenire iubet; peditatu quem antea habuerit se fore contentum dicit, neque fortunam temptaturum aut in acie dimicaturum21, sed, quoniam abundet equitatu, perfacile esse factu22 frumentationibus pabulationibusque23 Romanos prohibere, aequo modo24 animo sua ipsi 5 frumenta corrumpant25 aedificiaque incendant, qua rei familiaris iactura26 perpetuum imperium 1 quantum valent: as much as they are able 2 ad sollicitandas civitates nituntur: strive to arouse the states 3 nacti: nanciscor, -i, nactus sum, obtain 4 horum: refers to the hostages 5 re impetrata: this thing having been achieved 6 summa imperi: subject of tradatur 7 Bibracte: city in modern-day Burgundy, chief city of the Aedui 8 indicitur: indico, -ere, -dixi, -dictum, announce 9 frequentes: frequens, -ntis, numerous, crowded 10 suffragiis: suffragium, -i, n, vote 11 ad unum: to a man 12 illi: refers to Remi and Lingones 13 ferunt: fero, ferre, tuli, latus, endure, say [pick the meaning you like best] 14 principatu: principatus, -us, m, leadership 15 requirunt: requiro, -ere, requisivi, requisitus, miss, recall with regret 16 separare: separo, -are, separate 17 Inviti summae spei adulescentes: young men of greatest hope unwilling[ly] 18 Eporedorix and Viridomarus first appeared in Bk 7/35-40, 54-55; they are allies of Caesar. Eporedorix is a leader of the Aedui. 19 ipse: Vercingetorix; he is the subject of all the verbs 20 imperat: impero, -are, levy 21 dimicaturum: dimico, -are, fight 22 factu: to do (supine) 23 frumentationibus pabulationibusque: frumentationibus is food for humans; pabulationibus is food for horses; both mean grain. 24 modo: just, only 25 corrumpant: corrumpo, -ere, -rupi, -ruptum, destroy 26 iactura: iactura, -ae, f, loss 2 libertatemque se consequi videant. His constitutis rebus Aeduis Segusiavisque, qui sunt finitimi provinciae, decem milia peditum imperat; huc addit equites octingentos1. His praeficit fratrem Eporedorigis2 bellumque inferri Allobrogibus3 iubet. Altera ex parte Gabalos4 proximosque pagos5 Arvernorum in Helvios6, item Rutenos7 Cadurcosque ad fines Volcarum Arecomicorum8 10 depopulandos9 mittit. Nihilo minus clandestinis nuntiis legationibusque Allobrogas sollicitat, quorum mentes nondum ab superiore bello10 resedisse11 sperabat. Horum principibus pecunias, civitati autem imperium totius provinciae pollicetur. [65] Ad hos omnes casus provisa erant12 praesidia cohortium13 duarum et viginti, quae ex ipsa provincia ab Lucio Caesare14 legato ad omnes partes opponebantur15. Helvii sua sponte cum finitimis proelio congressi16 pelluntur et Gaio Valerio Donnotauro17, Caburi18 filio, principe civitatis, compluribusque aliis interfectis intra oppida ac muros19 compelluntur20. Allobroges crebris21 ad 5 Rhodanum dispositis praesidiis magna cum cura et diligentia suos fines tuentur22. Caesar, quod 23 hostes equitatu superiores esse intellegebat et interclusis omnibus itineribus nulla re ex provincia 1 octingentos: octingenti, -ae, -a, 800 2 Eporedorigis: Eporedorix, -rigis, m, Eporedorix 3 Allobrogibus: Allobroges, -um, m, Allobroges, a tribe that were allies of the Romans 4 Gabalos: Gabali, -orum, m, tribe in Aquitania; “as the Roman frontier was bent into an irregular curve by the line of the Cevennes, the Gauls would strike the Province in two directions, the Haedui from the north, the Ruteni, etc., from the west…” Caesar’s Gallic War, Greenough, D’Ooge and Daniell, Boston, Ginn & Co., 1898, p. 432. 5 pagos: pagus,- i, m, district 6 Helvios: Helvi(i), -orum, m, tribe in southern Gaul, ally of the Romans 7 Rutenos: Ruteni, -orum, m, “Celtic people in the south of the Massif Central between the Arverni in the north, the Cadurci in the west, the Gabali in the east and the Volcae in the south. Because they were vassals of the Arverni, part of their territory was taken by the Romans (R. provinciales) after the defeat of King Bituitus in 121 BC. In 52 BC, they sent 12,000 men to Alesia (Caes. B Gall. 7,75).” Source: Demarolle, Jeanne-Marie (Nancy). "Ruteni." Brill’s New Pauly. Antiquity volumes edited by: Hubert Cancik and , Helmuth Schneider. Brill Online, 2014. Reference. 05 December 2014 http://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/brill-s-new- pauly/ruteni-e1025990 First appeared online: 2006 First Print Edition: 9789004122598, 20110510 8 Volcarum Arecomicorum: the Volcae tribe was divided into 2 groups, of which the Arecomici were one; they were in Transalpine Gaul. 9 depopulandos: depopulo, -are, destroy 10 61 BC, when their chief Catugnatus had been beaten by the Romans after he tried to rebel. 11 resedisse: resedeo, -ere, -sedi, -sessum, settle 12 provisa erant: provideo, -ere, -vidi, -visum, provide 13 cohortium: not legionary troops but auxiliaries levied in the Province (Greenough p. 438) 14 Lucius Caesar was a distant relative of Julius Caesar and had been consul in 64 BC. 15 opponebantur: oppono,- ere, opposui, oppositum, place opposite; oppose 16 proelio congressi: having joined in battle 17 Donnotaurus is the brother of C Valerius Procillus, who was sent by Caesar as envoy to Ariovistus in Bk I.47 of the Gallic Wars; Procillus was put into chains by Ariovistus but later saved by Caesar himself (I.53). 18 Caburus had been given Roman citizenship. 19 muros: “strongholds – not simply the walls of the oppido.” (Greenough p. 438) 20 compelluntur: compello, -ere, -pulsi, -pulsum, enclose; note use of pelluntur just before 21 crebris: creber,- ris, -re, numerous; frequent 22 tuentur: tueor,- eri, tutus sum, watch over 23 interclusis: “from this we see how much Caesar was hampered and weakened by the skillful plan of campaign that Vercingetorix employed against him.” (Greenough p. 438) 3 atque Italia sublevari1 poterat, trans Rhenum in Germaniam mittit ad eas civitates quas superioribus annis pacaverat, equitesque ab his arcessit2 et levis armaturae3 pedites, qui inter eos4 proeliari consuerant5. Eorum adventu, quod minus idoneis equis utebantur, a tribunis militum reliquisque 10 equitibus Romanis atque evocatis6 equos sumit Germanisque7 distribuit. [66] Interea, dum haec geruntur, hostium copiae ex Arvernis equitesque qui toti Galliae erant imperati conveniunt. Magno horum coacto numero, cum Caesar in Sequanos per extremos Lingonum fines8 iter faceret, quo facilius subsidium provinciae ferri posset9, circiter milia passuum decem ab Romanis trinis10 castris Vercingetorix consedit convocatisque ad concilium praefectis equitum venisse 5 tempus victoriae demonstrat. Fugere11 in provinciam Romanos Galliaque excedere. Id sibi ad praesentem12 obtinendam libertatem satis esse; ad reliqui temporis pacem atque otium parum profici13: maioribus enim coactis copiis reversuros neque finem bellandi facturos14. Proinde agmine impeditos15 adorirantur16. Si pedites17 suis auxilium ferant atque in eo morentur, iter facere non posse; si, id quod magis futurum18 confidat19, relictis impedimentis suae saluti consulant, et usu 10 rerum necessariarum et dignitate spoliatum iri20. Nam de equitibus hostium21, quin22 nemo eorum progredi modo extra agmen audeat, et ipsos quidem non debere dubitare, et quo maiore faciant 23 24 1 animo , copias se omnes pro castris habiturum et terrori hostibus futurum. Conclamant equites 1 sublevari: sublevo, -are, assist 2 arcessit: arcessio, -ere, -cessi, -cessum, summon 3 levis armaturae: genitive with pedites 4 inter eos: i.e., on the side of the equites 5 consuerant: syncopated form of consueverant 6 evocatis: evocatus, -i, m, veteran (men who come back for limited duty and with more rights than the usual soldiers) 7 Germanisque: and among the Germans 8 fines: “bearing from near Agedincum (where he had been joined by Labienus, ch. 62) toward the east, and so leaving the hostile Haedui to the south. This movement, checked by the attack of Vercingetorix, explains how the crisis of the campaign came to be the seige and capture of Alesia.” (Greenough p 438) 9 posset: imperfect subjunctive in comparative purpose clause (quo facilius) 10 trinis: trini, -ae, -a, three; refers to Vercingetorix’ camps 11 fugere and the following infinitives are part of the indirect statement based on demonstrat in the prior sentence. 12 praesentem: for the time being 13 parum profici: too little to be accomplished 14 neque finem bellandi facturos: i.e.,