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The Gallic Wars were a series of military campaigns by several invading Roman legions under the
command of Julius Caesar into Gaul, and the subsequent uprisings of the Gallic tribes. The Romans
would also raid Britannia and Germania, but these expeditions never developed into full-scale invasions.
The Gallic Wars culminated in the decisive Battle of Alesia in 52 BC, in which a complete Roman
victory resulted in the expansion of the Roman Republic over the whole of Gaul.
Although Caesar portrayed this invasion as being a defensive pre-emptive action, most historians agree
that the wars were fought primarily to boost Caesar's political career and to pay off his massive debts.
Still, one can not lightly discard the military importance of Gaul for the Romans themselves, who had
been attacked several times by barbaric tribes coming from the North, crossing the Alps, and invading
Italy. Conquering Gaul and securing the natural border of the river Rhine, the Romans could easily
oppose invading Germanic tribes.
This military campaign is painstakingly described by Julius Caesar himself in his book Commentarii de
Bello Gallico, which still is the most important historical source. This book is also a masterwork of
political propaganda, as Caesar was keenly interested in manipulating his readers in Rome.
Nevertheless, his detailed account is still of major importance for the modern scholar.1
1
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallic_War
nomen mihi est ______________________
Commentarii de Bellō Gallico (Julius Caesar)
Gallia est omnis divisa in partes tres, quarum unam incolunt Belgae, aliam Aquitani,
tertiam qui2 ipsorum linguā Celtae, nostrā Galli appellantur. Hi omnes linguā, institutīs,
legibus inter se differunt. Gallos ab Aquitanīs Garumna3 flumen, a Belgīs Matrona et
Sequana dividit. Horum omnium fortissimi sunt Belgae, propterea quod4 a cultū atque
humanitate provinciae longissime absunt, minimeque ad eos mercatores saepe commeant
atque ea quae ad effeminandos5 animos pertinent important, proximique sunt Germanīs,
qui trans Rhenum incolunt, quibuscum continenter bellum gerunt. Quā6 de causā Helvetii
quoque reliquos Gallos virtute praecedunt, quod fere cotidianis proeliis cum Germanis
contendunt, cum7 aut suis finibus eos prohibent aut ipsi in eorum finibus bellum gerunt.
divido, dividere, divisi, divisus – divide, separate
incolo, incolere, incolui – to inhabit
lingua, ae (f) – language, tongue
institutum, i (m) – custom, habit
differo, differre, distuli, dilatus – differ
fortissimus, a, um – strongest, bravest
cultus, ūs (m) – civilization, refinement
humanitas, -tatis (f) – kindness, refinement, culture
longissime – very far (adv)
absum, abesse, abfui, abfuturus – be away, be distant, be lacking
minime – very little (adv) ; [w/ saepe translate as “least often, least frequently”]
mercator, -toris (m) – trader, merchant
commeo (1) – to go to, travel, pass, communicate
effemino (1) weaken, make effeminate, emasculate
pertineo, -tinēre, -tinui, -tentus – relate to, concern, pertain to
importo (1) – bring in, import
proximus, a, um – nearest
continenter – continuously
reliquus, a, um – remaining, rest
praecedo, -cedere, -cessi, -cessus – surpass, excel
fere – almost, nearly
cotidianus, a, um – daily
contendo, -tendere, -tendi, -tentus – compete, contend
(eī) qui
Garumna, Matrona, Sequana, Rhenus – names of rivers
4
propterea quod = because
5
ad effeminandos – “for the purpose of emasculating”
6
quā (connecting relative) – translate as “which” or “this”
7
cum = when
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