All Mock Content - Latin Literature

hinc invictus patriam defensum revocatus

Then, undefeated, he was called back to defend his native land Carthage

“patriam defensum” - why was Hannibal sent back?

Romans had sent their army on offensive into Africa to attack Carthage and force Hannibal to return to face a prepared army.

bellum gessit adversus P. Scipionem, filium eius,

and he waged war against Publius Scipio, son of that Scipio,

“filium eius” - son of who?

Scipio Asina, Roman commander

quem ipse primo apud Rhodanum, iterum apud Padum, tertio apud Trebiam fugarat.

whom he himself had put to flight, first at the River Rhone, then at the River Po and thirdly at Lake Trebia.

cum hoc exhaustis iam patriae facultatibus

Since now the resources of his country had been used up with Scipio,

cupivit impraesentiarum bellum componere,

he desired to arrange a war truce in present circumstances,

“impraesentiarum” - what does this suggest?

Hannibal did not view this as a permanent surrender but rather a truce while he reorganised the army to strengthen his forces.

quo valentior postea congrederetur.

so that he might fight more powerfully afterwards.

in colloquium convenit;

Then he agreed upon a conference,

condiciones non convenerunt.

but they did not agree upon terms for the truce.

post id factum paucis diebus apud Zamam cum eodem conflixit;

A few days after that meeting had occurred, he clashed with the same Scipio at Zama;

“apud Zamam” - why is this so significant (casualty stats for each army)?

Turning point in the conflict - Romans lost 2000 men, Carthaginians lost 20,000

pulsus - incredibile dictu - biduo et duabus noctibus Hadrumetum pervenit,

despite having been defeated (incredible to say), in two days and two nights he reached Hadrumetum,

“biduo et duabus noctibus” - what is so impressive about this?

Hannibal fled without stopping showing his skill in moving a defeated army so quickly.

quod abest ab Zama circiter milia passuum trecenta.

which is around 300 miles away from Zama.

in hac fuga Numidae,

On this retreat the Numidians

“Numidae” - why are these people significant?

They had previously fought for the Carthaginians but defected after Zama in 202BC.

qui simul cum eo ex acie excesserant, insidiati sunt ei;

who had left from the battle-line at the same time with him, ambushed him.

quos non solum effugit, sed etiam ipsos oppressit.

He not only escaped them, but he even crushed them themselves.

Hadrumeti reliquos e fuga collegit;

At Hadrumetum he rallied those men remaining from the retreat,

novis dilectibus paucis diebus multos contraxit.

he levied many men by new recruitment drives in a few days.

cum in apparando acerrime esset occupatus,

Although Hannibal had been most keenly occupied in making preparations for war,

Carthaginienses bellum cum Romanis composuerunt.

the Carthaginians arranged a war-truce with the Romans.

ille nihilo setius exercitui postea praefuit resque in Africa gessit

He afterwards nonetheless was put in charge of the army and he carried out affairs in Africa

“ille nihilo setius exercitui postea praefuit” - what does this signify?

Though the Carthaginians were pro-peace, Hannibal remained pro-war.

itemque Mago frater eius usque ad P. Sulpicium C. Aurelium consules.

and likewise did his brother Mago right up until Publius Sulpicius and Gaius Aurelius were consuls.

“P. Sulpicium C. Aurelium consules” - why is this relevant and what does it signify?

Romans dated years by reference to consuls at the time, in this case 200BC

his enim magistratibus legati Carthaginienses Romam venerunt,

For when these men were holding political office, Carthaginian ambassadors came to Rome

qui senatui populoque Romano gratias agerent, quod cum iis pacem fecissent,

to give thanks to the Roman senate and people because they had made peace with them

ob eamque rem corona aurea eos donarent simulque peterent,

and for this reason to gift them with a golden crown and at the same time to ask

ut obsides eorum Fregellis essent captivique redderentur.

that their hostages remain at Fregellae and the Carthaginian prisoners be given back.

his ex senatus consulto responsum est:

A reply was given to them from a decree of the senate:

munus eorum gratum acceptumque esse;

the Romans said that their gift was welcome and had been accepted;

obsides, quo loco rogarent, futuros;

that their hostages would remain in the place which they requested;

captivos non remissuros,

however that they would not send back their prisoners

quod Hannibalem, cuius opera susceptum bellum foret, inimicissimum nomini Romano, etiamnum cum imperio apud exercitum haberent

because they still kept Hannibal, due to whose work the war had been undertaken and who was most hostile to the name “Roman”, with the right to command among the army

cum imperio apud exercitum - ie?

Hannibal was still in a powerful military position.

itemque fratrem eius Magonem.

and likewise his brother, Mago.

hoc responso Carthaginienses cognito Hannibalem domum et Magonem revocarunt.

When this response had been found out, the Carthaginians called Hannibal back home and Mago.

huc ut rediit, rex factus est, postquam praetor fuerat, anno secundo et vicesimo:

When Hannibal returned there, he was made “rex”, after he had been “praetor”, in his 22nd year [as general]:

“praetor” - what position was this?

Commander of the Carthaginian army

“anno secundo et vicesimo” - what year was this?

196 BC

“rex” - what was the Carthaginian name for the most senior non-military officials?

suffes

ut enim Romae consules, sic Carthagine quotannis annui bini reges creabantur.

For just as consuls in Rome, so too in Carthage every year two kings were created, lasting a year.

in eo magistratu pari diligentia se Hannibal praebuit, ac fuerat in bello.

In that office Hannibal presented himself with equal care, as he had been in war.

namque effecit, ex novis vectigalibus non solum ut esset pecunia,

For he brought it about from new taxes not only that there was money

quae Romanis ex foedere penderetur,

which was to be paid to the Romans according to their treaty,

“ex foedere” - why?

A condition in the peace treaty stated Carthage had to pay an annual sum in reparations to the Romans.

sed etiam superesset, quae in aerario reponeretur.

but also that there was some left over, which was to be laid aside in the treasury.

deinde M. Claudio L. Furio consulibus Roma legati Carthaginem venerunt.

Then, when Marcus Claudius and Lucius Furius were consuls, envoys came from Rome to Carthage.

“M. Claudio L. Furio” - when was this?

196 BC

hos Hannibal ratus sui exposcendi gratia missos,

Hannibal, thinking that these men had been sent for the sake of demanding himself to be surrended,

priusquam iis senatus daretur, navem ascendit clam atque in Syriam ad Antiochum profugit.

before a meeting was given to them, he boarded a ship secretly and fled to Syria to King Antiochus.

hac re palam facta Poeni naves duas, quae eum comprehenderent, si possent consequi, miserunt,

When this action had been made public, the Carthaginians sent two ships to seize him, if they could overtake him,

bona eius publicarunt, domum a fundamentis disiecerunt, ipsum exulem iudicarunt.

they confiscated his property, they demolished his house from the foundation and they publicly declared him himself an exile.

at Hannibal anno tertio, postquam domo profugerat, L. Cornelio Q. Minucio consulibus,

But Hannibal, in his third year, after he had fled from his home, while Lucius Cornelius and Quintus Minucius were serving as consuls,

“L. Cornelio Q. Minucio” - when was this?

193 BC

cum quinque navibus Africam accessit in finibus Cyrenaeorum,

landed in Africa with five ships, in the borders of Cyrene,

“Cyrenaeorum” - where is this?

Egyptian province to the East of Carthage’s territory (ie Hannibal returned to Africa but not Carthage yet)

si forte Carthaginienses ad bellum Antiochi spe fiduciaque inducere posset,

to see if by chance he could induce the Carthaginians to war [against the Romans], because of their belief and confidence in Antiochus,

“Antiochi spe fiduciaque” - what does Hannibal hope?

That Carthage view Antiochus as powerful enough an ally to encourage his homeland to join the attack against Rome.

cui iam persuaserat ut cum exercitibus in Italiam proficisceretur.

whom he had already persuaded to set out against Italy with his armies.

huc Magonem fratrem excivit.

He summoned his brother Mago to here to help.

id ubi Poeni resciverunt, Magonem eadem, qua fratrem, absentem affecerunt poena.

When the Carthaginians learnt this information, they treated Mago, although he was not present in person, with the same punishment with which they had treated his brother Hannibal.

“absentem” - what is this emphasising?

Even though Mago was not present to defend himself, Carthage condemned him just as they had Hannibal, making him an outcast like his brother.

illi desperatis rebus cum solvissent naves

Since the situation was desperate, when they had set sail

ac vela ventis dedissent, Hannibal ad Antiochum pervenit.

and had made off, Hannibal reached Antiochus.

de Magonis interitu duplex memoria prodita est:

A double account has been produced about the death of Mago:

namque alii naufragio, alii a servolis ipsius interfectum eum scriptum reliquerunt.

for some have left a written account that he had been killed in a shipwreck, others that he had been killed by his very own slaves.

Antiochus autem si tam in agendo bello consiliis eius parere voluisset, quam in suscipiendo instituerat,

However Antiochus, if he had wanted to obey Hannibal’s counsel in the waging war to that extent to which he had been proactive in undertaking the war,

“Antiochus… instituerat” - what is the implication here?

Though Hannibal had been able to persuade Antiochus to undertake a campaign against Italy, he could not encourage him to follow his advice.

propius Tiberi quam in Thermopylis de summa imperii dimicasset.

he would have fought about the supremacy of command closer to the River Tiber than at Thermopylae.

“propius Tiberi quam in Thermopylis” - what is being implied here?

Antiochus should have brought the battle closer to Roman territory - although Thermopylae is a significant site, the Tiber stands symbolically in Rome.

quem etsi multa stulte conari videbat, tamen nulla deseruit in re.

Although Hannibal saw that Antiochus was trying many attempts foolishly, nevertheless he abandoned no efforts in the matter.

“tamen nulla deseruit in re” - what does this imply about Hannibal’s actions (compared to Antiochus’)?

Hannibal does all he can for the success of the campaign, even when Antiochus does not take it seriously enough.

praefuit paucis navibus, quas ex Syria iussus erat in Asiam ducere,

He commanded a few ships, which he had been ordered to take from Syria to Asia

hisque adversus Rhodiorum classem in Pamphylio mari conflixit.

and with these he clashed against the fleet of the Rhodians in the Pamphylian Sea.

quo cum multitudine adversariorum sui superarentur,

Although his men were overcome by this number of opponents,

ipse, quo cornu rem gessit, fuit superior.

he was victorious on the wing on which he himself engaged in battle.

Antiocho fugato verens ne dederetur,

After Antiochus had been routed, Hannibal, fearing that he would be handed over (to the Romans),

quod sine dubio accidisset, si sui fecisset potestatem,

an action which would have happened without a doubt, if he had surrendered power over himself,

Cretam ad Gortynios venit, ut ibi, quo se conferret, consideraret.

came to Crete to the Gortynians so that there he might consider where he could take himself to.

vidit autem vir omnium callidissimus in magno se fore periculo,

However the shrewdest man of all, he saw that he would be in great danger

nisi quid providisset, propter avaritiam Cretensium.

unless he made some plan in advance, because of the greed of the Cretans:

magnam enim secum pecuniam portabat,

for he was carrying a great sum of money with him,

de qua sciebat exisse famam.

about which he knew that rumour had got out.

itaque capit tale consilium.

And so he devised a plan of the following sort:

amphoras complures complet plumbo,

he filled several amphoras with lead,

summas operit auro et argento.

he covered the tops of the amphoras with gold and silver.

has praesentibus principibus deponit in templo Dianae,

With the (local) leaders present, he set these down in the temple of Diana,

simulans se suas fortunas illorum fidei credere.

pretending that he was entrusting his property to their protection.

his in errorem inductis

Once they had been misled into error,

statuas aeneas, quas secum portabat, omni sua pecunia complet

he filled bronze statutes which he was carrying with him, with all his wealth

easque in propatulo domi abicit.

and threw them down in the courtyard of his house.

“propatulo domi abicit” - what does this reveal about Hannibal’s treatment of the statues?

He acted as though they were worthless.

Gortynii templum magna cura custodiunt

The Gortynians were guarding the temple with great care,

non tam a ceteris quam ab Hannibale,

not so much from others as from Hannibal,

ne ille inscientibus iis tolleret secumque duceret.

so that he might not remove his wealth and take it away with him, with them being unaware.

sic conservatis suis rebus

After his wealth had been safeguarded in this way,