De Bello Gallico Book 2 (1–18)

[1] 

1 Cum esset Caesar in citeriore Gallia [in hibernis], ita uti supra demonstravimus, crebri ad eum rumores adferebantur litterisque item Labieni certior fiebat omnes Belgas, quam tertiam esse Galliae partem dixeramus, contra populum Romanum coniurare obsidesque inter se dare. 

1 When Caesar was in Cisalpine Gaul [in winter quarters], as we have shown above, frequent rumors were brought to him, and he was also informed by letters from Labienus that all the Belgae, whom we had said made up a third part of Gaul, were conspiring against the Roman people and giving hostages to each other. 

2 Coniurandi has esse causas: primum quod vererentur ne, omni Gallia pacata, ad eos exercitus noster adduceretur; 

2 The causes of the conspiracy were these: first, because they feared that, with all Gaul pacified, our army would be led against them; 

3 deinde quod ab non nullis Gallis sollicitarentur, partim qui, ut Germanos diutius in Gallia versari noluerant, ita populi Romani exercitum hiemare atque inveterascere in Gallia moleste ferebant, partim qui mobilitate et levitate animi novis imperiis studebant; 

3 then because they were stirred up by certain Gauls, some of whom, just as they had not wanted the Germans to remain longer in Gaul, likewise resented the Roman army wintering and becoming established there; and others, through fickleness and instability of mind, were eager for new regimes; 

4 ab non nullis etiam quod in Gallia a potentioribus atque iis qui ad conducendos homines facultates habebant vulgo regna occupabantur; qui minus facile eam rem imperio nostro consequi poterant. 

4 and also by some because in Gaul, kingdoms were commonly seized by the more powerful and by those who had the resources to hire men; who could less easily achieve this under our rule. 

[2] 

1 His nuntiis litterisque commotus Caesar duas legiones in citeriore Gallia novas conscripsit et inita aestate in ulteriorem Galliam qui deduceret Q. Pedium legatum misit. 

1 Stirred by these reports and letters, Caesar raised two new legions in Cisalpine Gaul and, at the beginning of summer, sent the legate Quintus Pedius to lead them into Transalpine Gaul. 

2 Ipse, cum primum pabuli copia esse inciperet, ad exercitum venit. 

2 He himself, as soon as there began to be a supply of fodder, came to the army. 

3 Dat negotium Senonibus reliquisque Gallis qui finitimi Belgis erant uti ea quae apud eos gerantur cognoscant seque de his rebus certiorem faciant. 

3 He gave instructions to the Senones and the other Gauls who bordered the Belgae to learn what was going on among them and to inform him of these matters. 

4 Hi constanter omnes nuntiaverunt manus cogi, exercitum in unum locum conduci. Tum vero dubitandum non existimavit quin ad eos proficisceretur. Re frumentaria provisa castra movet diebusque circiter XV ad fines Belgarum pervenit. 

4 They all consistently reported that forces were being gathered and an army assembled in one place. Then indeed he considered it beyond doubt that he should set out for them. Having secured a supply of grain, he broke camp and, in about fifteen days, arrived at the borders of the Belgae. 

[3] 

1 Eo cum de improviso celeriusque omnium opinione venisset, Remi, qui proximi Galliae ex Belgis sunt, ad eum legatos Iccium et Andebrogium, primos civitatis, miserunt, 

1 When he had arrived there unexpectedly and more quickly than anyone had supposed, the Remi, who are the nearest of the Belgae to Gaul, sent envoys to him, Iccius and Andebrogius, the leading men of their state, 

2 qui dicerent se suaque omnia in fidem atque potestatem populi Romani permittere, neque se cum reliquis Belgis consensisse neque contra populum Romanum coniurasse, 

2 who said that they committed themselves and all their possessions to the protection and authority of the Roman people, and that they had neither joined in agreement with the rest of the Belgae nor conspired against the Roman people, 

3 paratosque esse et obsides dare et imperata facere et oppidis recipere et frumento ceterisque rebus iuvare; 

3 and that they were ready both to give hostages, to carry out orders, to receive the Romans into their towns, and to assist with grain and other supplies; 

4 reliquos omnes Belgas in armis esse, Germanosque qui cis Rhenum incolant sese cum his coniunxisse, 

4 that all the rest of the Belgae were under arms, and that the Germans who lived on this side of the Rhine had joined themselves to them, 

5 tantumque esse eorum omnium furorem ut ne Suessiones quidem, fratres consanguineosque suos, qui eodem iure et isdem legibus utantur, unum imperium unumque magistratum cum ipsis habeant, deterrere potuerint quin cum iis consentirent. 

5 and that the madness of them all was so great that not even the Suessiones, their brothers and kinsmen, who used the same laws and the same customs and had one government and one magistrate with them, had been able to deter them from siding with the others. 

[4] 

1 Cum ab iis quaereret quae civitates quantaeque in armis essent et quid in bello possent, sic reperiebat: plerosque Belgos esse ortos a Germanis Rhenumque antiquitus traductos propter loci fertilitatem ibi consedisse Gallosque qui ea loca incolerent expulisse, solosque esse qui, 

1 When he asked them what states and how many men were under arms, and what they could do in war, he found out the following: that most of the Belgae were descended from the Germans and had long ago been led across the Rhine, and had settled there because of the fertility of the land, having driven out the Gauls who had inhabited those places, and that they alone were those who, 

2 patrum nostrorum memoria omni Gallia vexata, Teutonos Cimbrosque intra suos fines ingredi prohibuerint; 

2 in the memory of our fathers, when all Gaul was harassed, had prevented the Teutones and Cimbri from entering their borders; 

3 qua ex re fieri uti earum rerum memoria magnam sibi auctoritatem magnosque spiritus in re militari sumerent. 

3 and that as a result they derived from the memory of those deeds great prestige and high confidence in military matters. 

4 De numero eorum omnia se habere explorata Remi dicebant, propterea quod propinquitatibus adfinitatibusque coniuncti quantam quisque multitudinem in communi Belgarum concilio ad id bellum pollicitus sit cognoverint. 

4 The Remi said that they had complete information about their numbers, because being connected to them by ties of kinship and marriage, they had learned what number of troops each state had promised for this war in the general council of the Belgae. 

5 Plurimum inter eos Bellovacos et virtute et auctoritate et hominum numero valere: hos posse conficere armata milia centum, pollicitos ex eo numero electa milia LX totiusque belli imperium sibi postulare. 

5 That among them the Bellovaci were the strongest in courage, authority, and number of men: that they could muster one hundred thousand armed men, and had promised sixty thousand picked men, and were demanding for themselves the command of the entire war. 

6 Suessiones suos esse finitimos; fines latissimos feracissimosque agros possidere. 

6 That the Suessiones were their neighbors; they possessed very wide and fertile lands. 

7 Apud eos fuisse regem nostra etiam memoria Diviciacum, totius Galliae potentissimum, qui cum magnae partis harum regionum, tum etiam Britanniae imperium obtinuerit; nunc esse regem Galbam: ad hunc propter iustitiam prudentiamque summam totius belli omnium voluntate deferri; oppida habere numero XII, polliceri milia armata L; totidem Nervios, 

7 That among them, even in our memory, there had been a king Diviciacus, the most powerful man in all Gaul, who had held sway over a great part of these regions and also over Britain; that now Galba was king: and to him, because of his justice and wisdom, the supreme command of the whole war had by everyone's agreement been entrusted; that they had twelve towns, and promised fifty thousand armed men; the same number from the Nervii, 

8 qui maxime feri inter ipsos habeantur longissimeque absint; 

8 who were considered the fiercest among them and lived farthest away; 

9 XV milia Atrebates, Ambianos X milia, Morinos XXV milia, Menapios VII milia, Caletos X milia, Veliocasses et Viromanduos totidem, Atuatucos XVIIII milia; 

9 fifteen thousand from the Atrebates, ten thousand from the Ambiani, twenty-five thousand from the Morini, seven thousand from the Menapii, ten thousand from the Caleti, the same number from the Veliocasses and Viromandui, and nineteen thousand from the Atuatuci; 

10 Condrusos, Eburones, Caerosos, Paemanos, qui uno nomine Germani appellantur, arbitrari ad XL milia. 

10 and that the Condrusi, Eburones, Caerosi, and Paemani, who are called Germans under one name, were estimated at forty thousand. 

[5] 

1 Caesar Remos cohortatus liberaliterque oratione prosecutus omnem senatum ad se convenire principumque liberos obsides ad se adduci iussit. Quae omnia ab his diligenter ad diem facta sunt. 

1 Caesar encouraged the Remi and addressed them generously, ordering their entire senate to come to him and the children of their chiefs to be brought to him as hostages. All these things were diligently done by them on the appointed day. 

2 Ipse Diviciacum Haeduum magnopere cohortatus docet quanto opere rei publicae communisque salutis intersit manus hostium distineri, ne cum tanta multitudine uno tempore confligendum sit. 

2 He himself strongly encouraged Diviciacus the Haeduan, explaining how greatly it concerned the republic and the common safety that the enemy’s forces be kept apart, so that he might not have to fight such a multitude all at once. 

3 Id fieri posse, si suas copias Haedui in fines Bellovacorum introduxerint et eorum agros populari coeperint. 

3 He said that this could be accomplished if the Haedui led their forces into the territory of the Bellovaci and began to lay waste to their fields. 

4 His datis mandatis eum a se dimittit. Postquam omnes Belgarum copias in unum locum coactas ad se venire vidit neque iam longe abesse ab iis quos miserat exploratoribus et ab Remis cognovit, flumen Axonam, quod est in extremis Remorum finibus, exercitum traducere maturavit atque ibi castra posuit. 

4 Having given these instructions, he dismissed him. After he saw all the forces of the Belgae gathered in one place and coming towards him, and learned from the scouts he had sent and from the Remi that they were not far off, he hastened to lead his army across the river Axona, which is in the furthest borders of the Remi, and there he pitched camp. 

5 Quae res et latus unum castrorum ripis fluminis muniebat et post eum quae erant tuta ab hostibus reddebat et commeatus ab Remis reliquisque civitatibus ut sine periculo ad eum portari possent efficiebat. 

5 This measure both protected one side of the camp with the riverbanks, made what lay behind him safe from the enemy, and ensured that supplies could be brought to him from the Remi and the other states without danger. 

6 In eo flumine pons erat. Ibi praesidium ponit et in altera parte fluminis Q. Titurium Sabinum legatum cum sex cohortibus relinquit; castra in altitudinem pedum XII vallo fossaque duodeviginti pedum muniri iubet. 

6 There was a bridge on that river. He placed a garrison there and on the far side of the river he left the legate Quintus Titurius Sabinus with six cohorts; he ordered the camp to be fortified with a rampart twelve feet high and a ditch eighteen feet wide. 

[6] 

1 Ab his castris oppidum Remorum nomine Bibrax aberat milia passuum VIII. Id ex itinere magno impetu Belgae oppugnare coeperunt. Aegre eo die sustentatum est. 

1 From this camp, the town of the Remi called Bibrax was eight miles distant. The Belgae began to attack it with great force as they marched. It was with difficulty held that day. 

2 Gallorum eadem atque Belgarum oppugnatio est haec: ubi circumiecta multitudine hominum totis moenibus undique in murum lapides iaci coepti sunt murusque defensoribus nudatus est, testudine facta portas succedunt murumque subruunt. Quod tum facile fiebat. 

2 The method of assault of the Gauls and Belgae is this: when a multitude of men has been thrown around the entire circuit of the walls and stones begin to be hurled from all sides onto the wall and the wall is stripped of defenders, they form a testudo, approach the gates, and undermine the wall. This was then easily done. 

3 Nam cum tanta multitudo lapides ac tela coicerent, in muro consistendi potestas erat nulli. 

3 For when such a multitude hurled stones and missiles, no one had the ability to stand on the wall. 

4 Cum finem oppugnandi nox fecisset, Iccius Remus, summa nobilitate et gratia inter suos, qui tum oppido praeerat, unus ex iis qui legati de pace ad Caesarem venerant, nuntium ad eum mittit, nisi subsidium sibi submittatur, sese diutius sustinere non posse. 

4 When night had brought an end to the attack, Iccius the Remus, a man of the highest nobility and influence among his people, who was then in command of the town and one of those who had come to Caesar as envoys concerning peace, sent a message to him that unless help were sent, he could not hold out much longer. 

[7] 

1 Eo de media nocte Caesar isdem ducibus usus qui nuntii ab Iccio venerant, Numidas et Cretas sagittarios et funditores Baleares subsidio oppidanis mittit; 

1 In the middle of the night, Caesar, using the same guides who had come from Iccius as messengers, sent Numidian and Cretan archers and Balearic slingers to aid the townspeople; 

2 quorum adventu et Remis cum spe defensionis studium propugnandi accessit et hostibus eadem de causa spes potiundi oppidi discessit. 

2 by whose arrival both the Remi gained fresh eagerness for defense together with hope of holding out, and for the enemy, for the same reason, the hope of taking the town was lost. 

3 Itaque paulisper apud oppidum morati agrosque Remorum depopulati, omnibus vicis aedificiisque quo adire potuerant incensis, ad castra Caesaris omnibus copiis contenderunt et a milibus passuum minus duobus castra posuerunt; 

3 Therefore, after delaying briefly at the town and laying waste to the lands of the Remi, having set fire to all villages and buildings they had been able to reach, they advanced with all their forces toward Caesar’s camp and pitched camp less than two miles away; 

4 quae castra, ut fumo atque ignibus significabatur, amplius milibus passuum VIII latitudinem patebant. 

4 this camp, as was indicated by smoke and fires, stretched more than eight miles in width.

[8] 

1 Caesar primo et propter multitudinem hostium et propter eximiam opinionem virtutis proelio supersedere statuit; 

1 Caesar at first decided to refrain from battle both because of the great number of the enemy and because of their exceptional reputation for bravery; 

2 cotidie tamen equestribus proeliis quid hostis virtute posset et quid nostri auderent periclitabatur. 

2 however, he daily tested in cavalry skirmishes what the enemy could do in valor and what our men dared. 

3 Ubi nostros non esse inferiores intellexit, loco pro castris ad aciem instruendam natura opportuno atque idoneo, quod is collis ubi castra posita erant paululum ex planitie editus tantum adversus in latitudinem patebat quantum loci acies instructa occupare poterat, atque ex utraque parte lateris deiectus habebat et in fronte leniter fastigatus paulatim ad planitiem redibat, ab utroque latere eius collis transversam fossam obduxit circiter passuum CCCC 

3 When he realized that our men were not inferior, in a naturally suitable and advantageous place for drawing up a battle line in front of the camp—because that hill where the camp had been placed, slightly raised above the plain, extended forward in width only as much as a battle line could occupy, and had slopes on both flanks, while at the front it gently sloped and gradually descended to the plain—he drew a transverse trench from both sides of that hill about 400 paces long 

4 et ad extremas fossas castella constituit ibique tormenta conlocavit, ne, cum aciem instruxisset, hostes, quod tantum multitudine poterant, ab lateribus pugnantes suos circumvenire possent. 

4 and he built redoubts at the ends of the trenches and placed artillery there, so that when he had drawn up the line of battle, the enemy, relying on their great numbers, could not outflank his troops by attacking from the sides. 

5 Hoc facto, duabus legionibus quas proxime conscripserat in castris relictis ut, si quo opus esset, subsidio duci possent, reliquas VI legiones pro castris in acie constituit. Hostes item suas copias ex castris eductas instruxerunt. 

5 This done, with the two legions he had recently enlisted left in the camp so that they could be brought out as support if necessary, he drew up the remaining six legions in line of battle in front of the camp. The enemy likewise led out their forces from camp and drew them up. 

[9] 

1 Palus erat non magna inter nostrum atque hostium exercitum. Hanc si nostri transirent hostes expectabant; nostri autem, si ab illis initium transeundi fieret, ut impeditos adgrederentur, parati in armis erant. 

1 There was a small marsh between our army and the enemy's. The enemy were waiting to see whether our men would cross it; our men, however, were ready under arms to attack them while encumbered if the enemy began the crossing. 

2 Interim proelio equestri inter duas acies contendebatur. Ubi neutri transeundi initium faciunt, secundiore equitum proelio nostris Caesar suos in castra reduxit. 

2 Meanwhile, a cavalry skirmish was fought between the two lines. When neither side initiated the crossing, with the cavalry fight going in our favor, Caesar led his men back into camp. 

3 Hostes protinus ex eo loco ad flumen Axonam contenderunt, quod esse post nostra castra demonstratum est. 

3 The enemy immediately marched from that place to the river Axona, which, as has been stated, lay behind our camp. 

4 Ibi vadis repertis partem suarum copiarum traducere conati sunt eo consilio ut, si possent, castellum, cui praeerat Q. Titurius legatus, expugnarent pontemque interscinderent; 

4 There, having found fords, they attempted to lead part of their forces across with the plan of storming the redoubt commanded by the legate Quintus Titurius and cutting the bridge; 

5 si minus potuissent, agros Remorum popularentur, qui magno nobis usui ad bellum gerendum erant, commeatuque nostros prohiberent. 

5 and if they could not do that, they would ravage the lands of the Remi, which were of great use to us for carrying on the war, and cut off our men from supplies.

 

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[10] 

1 [Caesar] certior factus ab Titurio omnem equitatum et levis armaturae Numidas, funditores sagittariosque pontem traducit atque ad eos contendit. Acriter in eo loco pugnatum est. 

1 [Caesar], having been informed by Titurius, led all the cavalry, and the Numidian light-armed troops, slingers, and archers across the bridge and hurried to the spot. There was fierce fighting in that place. 

2 Hostes impeditos nostri in flumine adgressi magnum eorum numerum occiderunt; 

2 Our men attacked the enemy as they were hindered in the river and killed a great number of them; 

3 per eorum corpora reliquos audacissime transire conantes multitudine telorum reppulerunt primosque, qui transierant, equitatu circumventos interfecerunt. 

3 they repelled the rest, who were most boldly trying to cross over the bodies of the slain, with a hail of missiles, and surrounded and killed with cavalry those who had crossed first. 

4 Hostes, ubi et de expugnando oppido et de flumine transeundo spem se fefellisse intellexerunt neque nostros in locum iniquiorem progredi pugnandi causa viderunt atque ipsos res frumentaria deficere coepit, concilio convocato constituerunt optimum esse domum suam quemque reverti, et quorum in fines primum Romani exercitum introduxissent, ad eos defendendos undique convenirent, ut potius in suis quam in alienis finibus decertarent et domesticis copiis rei frumentariae uterentur. 

4 The enemy, when they realized that their hopes both of storming the town and of crossing the river had failed, and when they saw that our men did not advance into an unfavorable position for fighting, and when their own grain supplies began to run short, called a council and decided that it was best for each man to return to his own home, and that they should all assemble to defend those into whose territory the Roman army had first advanced, so that they might fight in their own territory rather than in another’s, and make use of their own resources for grain. 

5 Ad eam sententiam cum reliquis causis haec quoque ratio eos deduxit, quod Diviciacum atque Haeduos finibus Bellovacorum adpropinquare cognoverant. His persuaderi ut diutius morarentur neque suis auxilium ferrent non poterat. 

5 Among the reasons that brought them to this resolution was also the fact that they had learned that Diviciacus and the Haedui were approaching the territory of the Bellovaci. It was not possible to persuade these men to delay any longer or to refrain from bringing help to their own people. 

[11] 

1 Ea re constituta, secunda vigilia magno cum strepitu ac tumultu castris egressi nullo certo ordine neque imperio, cum sibi quisque primum itineris locum peteret et domum pervenire properaret, fecerunt ut consimilis fugae profectio videretur. 

1 That decision having been made, they left camp in the second watch with great noise and confusion, in no fixed order or by command, since each man was seeking the lead position on the road and hurrying to get home, and their departure seemed like a rout. 

2 Hac re statim Caesar per speculatores cognita insidias veritus, quod qua de causa discederent nondum perspexerat, exercitum equitatumque castris continuit. 

2 Caesar, having immediately learned of this event through scouts, and fearing an ambush (since he had not yet perceived the reason for their departure), kept both his army and cavalry in camp. 

3 Prima luce, confirmata re ab exploratoribus, omnem equitatum, qui novissimum agmen moraretur, praemisit. His Q. Pedium et L. Aurunculeium Cottam legatos praefecit; T. Labienum legatum cum legionibus tribus subsequi iussit. 

3 At first light, when the report was confirmed by scouts, he sent ahead all the cavalry to delay the enemy's rear guard. He placed Quintus Pedius and Lucius Aurunculeius Cotta as legates in charge of them; and he ordered the legate Titus Labienus to follow with three legions. 

4 Hi novissimos adorti et multa milia passuum prosecuti magnam multitudinem eorum fugientium conciderunt, cum ab extremo agmine, ad quos ventum erat, consisterent fortiterque impetum nostrorum militum sustinerent, 

4 These attacked the rearmost and, pursuing them for many miles, cut down a large number of the fugitives, although those in the very rear, whom they had reached, stood firm and bravely withstood the attack of our soldiers, 

5 priores, quod abesse a periculo viderentur neque ulla necessitate neque imperio continerentur, exaudito clamore perturbatis ordinibus omnes in fuga sibi praesidium ponerent. 

5 but those in the front, because they seemed far from danger and were restrained by neither necessity nor command, hearing the shouting, broke ranks and sought safety in flight. 

6 Ita sine ullo periculo tantam eorum multitudinem nostri interfecerunt quantum fuit diei spatium; sub occasum solis sequi destiterunt seque in castra, ut erat imperatum, receperunt. 

6 Thus without any danger our men killed as many of them as the length of the day allowed; toward sunset they ceased the pursuit and returned to camp, as had been ordered. 

[12] 

1 Postridie eius diei Caesar, prius quam se hostes ex terrore ac fuga reciperent, in fines Suessionum, qui proximi Remis erant, exercitum duxit et magno itinere [confecto] ad oppidum Noviodunum contendit. 

1 The next day, Caesar, before the enemy could recover from their terror and flight, led his army into the territory of the Suessiones, who were nearest to the Remi, and, having completed a long march, hastened to the town of Noviodunum. 

2 Id ex itinere oppugnare conatus, quod vacuum ab defensoribus esse audiebat, propter latitudinem fossae murique altitudinem paucis defendentibus expugnare non potuit. 

2 Attempting to storm it on the march, because he had heard it was undefended, he was unable to take it with so few defenders, due to the width of the ditch and the height of the wall. 

3 Castris munitis vineas agere quaeque ad oppugnandum usui erant comparare coepit. 

3 Having fortified his camp, he began to bring forward siege sheds and to prepare everything necessary for the assault. 

4 Interim omnis ex fuga Suessionum multitudo in oppidum proxima nocte convenit. 

4 Meanwhile, all the multitude of the Suessiones who had fled gathered into the town during the following night. 

5 Celeriter vineis ad oppidum actis, aggere iacto turribusque constitutis, magnitudine operum, quae neque viderant ante Galli neque audierant, et celeritate Romanorum permoti legatos ad Caesarem de deditione mittunt et petentibus Remis ut conservarentur impetrant. 

5 With the siege sheds quickly moved up to the town, a ramp thrown up, and towers set in place, the Gauls—moved by the size of the works, which they had neither seen nor heard of before, and by the speed of the Romans—sent envoys to Caesar to sue for surrender and, at the request of the Remi, obtained permission to be spared. 

[13] 

1 Caesar, obsidibus acceptis primis civitatis atque ipsius Galbae regis duobus filiis armisque omnibus ex oppido traditis, in deditionem Suessiones accipit exercitumque in Bellovacos ducit. 

1 Caesar, having received as hostages the leading men of the state and two sons of King Galba himself, and with all arms surrendered from the town, accepted the Suessiones into his protection and led his army into the territory of the Bellovaci. 

2 Qui cum se suaque omnia in oppidum Bratuspantium contulissent atque ab eo oppido Caesar cum exercitu circiter milia passuum V abesset, omnes maiores natu ex oppido egressi manus ad Caesarem tendere et voce significare coeperunt sese in eius fidem ac potestatem venire neque contra populum Romanum armis contendere. 

2 When they had brought themselves and all their possessions into the town of Bratuspantium, and when Caesar with his army was about five miles from that town, all the elders came out and began to stretch out their hands to Caesar and declare aloud that they placed themselves in his protection and authority and would not fight against the Roman people. 

3 Item, cum ad oppidum accessisset castraque ibi poneret, pueri mulieresque ex muro passis manibus suo more pacem ab Romanis petierunt. 

3 Likewise, when he approached the town and was pitching camp there, the boys and women, with outstretched hands, in their customary fashion, begged peace from the Romans from atop the wall. 

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[14] 

1 Pro his Diviciacus (nam post discessum Belgarum dimissis Haeduorum copiis ad eum reverterat) facit verba: 

1 On their behalf, Diviciacus (for after the departure of the Belgae, having dismissed the Haeduan forces, he had returned to Caesar) spoke: 

2 Bellovacos omni tempore in fide atque amicitia civitatis Haeduae fuisse; 

2 that the Bellovaci had always remained loyal and friendly to the Haeduan state; 

3 impulsos ab suis principibus, qui dicerent Haeduos a Caesare in servitutem redactos. Omnes indignitates contumeliasque perferre, et ab Haeduis defecisse et populo Romano bellum intulisse. 

3 that they had been driven by their chiefs, who claimed that the Haedui had been reduced to slavery by Caesar; that they had endured all kinds of insults and indignities, had broken away from the Haedui, and had made war on the Roman people. 

4 Qui eius consilii principes fuissent, quod intellegerent quantam calamitatem civitati intulissent, in Britanniam profugisse. 

4 That the leaders of this plan, once they realized how much harm they had brought upon their state, had fled to Britain. 

5 Petere non solum Bellovacos, sed etiam pro his Haeduos, ut sua clementia ac mansuetudine in eos utatur. 

5 That not only the Bellovaci, but the Haedui on their behalf, begged that Caesar would show his usual clemency and mildness toward them. 

6 Quod si fecerit, Haeduorum auctoritatem apud omnes Belgas amplificaturum, quorum auxiliis atque opibus, si qua bella inciderint, sustentare consuerint. 

6 And that if he did so, he would enhance the authority of the Haedui among all the Belgae, whose support and resources they had been accustomed to rely upon if any wars should arise. 

[15] 

1 Caesar honoris Diviciaci atque Haeduorum causa sese eos in fidem recepturum et conservaturum dixit, et quod erat civitas magna inter Belgas auctoritate atque hominum multitudine praestabat, DC obsides poposcit. 

1 Caesar, out of regard for Diviciacus and the Haedui, said he would accept them under his protection and preserve them; and because it was a powerful state, surpassing the other Belgae in authority and number of men, he demanded six hundred hostages. 

2 His traditis omnibusque armis ex oppido conlatis, ab eo loco in fines Ambianorum pervenit; qui se suaque omnia sine mora dediderunt. 

2 When these had been handed over, and all the arms collected from the town, he proceeded from there into the territory of the Ambiani, who surrendered themselves and all their possessions without delay. 

3 Eorum fines Nervii attingebant. Quorum de natura moribusque Caesar cum quaereret, sic reperiebat: 

3 Their territory bordered on that of the Nervii. When Caesar inquired into the nature and customs of the Nervii, he discovered the following: 

4 nullum esse aditum ad eos mercatoribus; nihil pati vini reliquarumque rerum ad luxuriam pertinentium inferri, quod his rebus relanguescere animos eorum et remitti virtutem existimarent; 

4 that there was no access to them for merchants; that they did not allow wine or other luxuries to be imported, because they believed that such things weakened their spirits and diminished their valor; 

5 esse homines feros magnaeque virtutis; increpitare atque incusare reliquos Belgas, qui se populo Romano dedidissent patriamque virtutem proiecissent; 

5 that they were fierce men and of great bravery; that they scorned and reproached the other Belgae who had surrendered to the Roman people and thrown away the valor of their ancestors; 

6 confirmare sese neque legatos missuros neque ullam condicionem pacis accepturos. 

6 and that they asserted they would neither send ambassadors nor accept any terms of peace. 

[16] 

1 Cum per eorum fines triduum iter fecisset, inveniebat ex captivis Sabim flumen a castris suis non amplius milibus passuum X abesse; 

1 When he had marched for three days through their territory, he learned from captives that the river Sabis was no more than ten miles from his camp; 

2 trans id flumen omnes Nervios consedisse adventumque ibi Romanorum expectare una cum Atrebatibus et Viromanduis, finitimis suis 

2 that all the Nervii had settled across that river and were awaiting the arrival of the Romans there together with the Atrebates and Viromandui, their neighbors 

3 (nam his utrisque persuaserant uti eandem belli fortunam experirentur); 

3 (for they had persuaded both these tribes to try the same fortune of war); 

4 expectari etiam ab iis Atuatucorum copias atque esse in itinere; 

4 that the forces of the Atuatuci were also expected by them and were on the march; 

5 mulieres quique per aetatem ad pugnam inutiles viderentur in eum locum coniecisse quo propter paludes exercitui aditus non esset. 

5 and that they had placed their women and those who seemed unfit for battle by reason of age in a place to which the army could not gain access because of the marshes. 

[17] 

1 His rebus cognitis, exploratores centurionesque praemittit qui locum castris idoneum deligant. 

1 Having learned these things, he sent ahead scouts and centurions to select a suitable place for a camp. 

2 Cum ex dediticiis Belgis reliquisque Gallis complures Caesarem secuti una iter facerent, quidam ex his, ut postea ex captivis cognitum est, eorum dierum consuetudine itineris nostri exercitus perspecta, nocte ad Nervios pervenerunt atque his demonstrarunt inter singulas legiones impedimentorum magnum numerum intercedere, neque esse quicquam negotii, cum prima legio in castra venisset reliquaeque legiones magnum spatium abessent, hanc sub sarcinis adoriri; 

2 Since several of the surrendered Belgae and other Gauls were accompanying Caesar and marching along with him, some of them, as was later learned from captives, having observed the marching routine of our army in those days, arrived at night at the camp of the Nervii and informed them that a large number of baggage trains came between each legion, and that it would be no great task to attack the first legion under its packs once it arrived in camp while the others were still at a great distance; 

3 qua pulsa impedimentisque direptis, futurum ut reliquae contra consistere non auderent. 

3 and that if it were routed and its baggage plundered, the others would not dare to stand their ground. 

4 Adiuvabat etiam eorum consilium qui rem deferebant quod Nervii antiquitus, cum equitatu nihil possent (neque enim ad hoc tempus ei rei student, sed quicquid possunt, pedestribus valent copiis), quo facilius finitimorum equitatum, si praedandi causa ad eos venissent, impedirent, teneris arboribus incisis atque inflexis crebrisque in latitudinem ramis enatis [et] rubis sentibusque interiectis effecerant ut instar muri hae saepes munimentum praeberent, quo non modo non intrari sed ne perspici quidem posset. 

4 Their plan was also supported by those who brought the report, because the Nervii, from ancient times, since they had no power with cavalry (nor do they even now pay attention to it, but whatever strength they possess lies in infantry forces), in order more easily to hinder the cavalry of their neighbors if they came to raid, had by cutting and bending young trees, and with numerous branches growing sideways, and interweaving brambles and thorns, made these hedges form a barrier like a wall, through which one could not only not enter, but not even see. 

5 His rebus cum iter agminis nostri impediretur, non omittendum sibi consilium Nervii existimaverunt. 

5 Because these things hindered the advance of our column, the Nervii decided that they ought not to abandon their plan. 

[18] 

1 Loci natura erat haec, quem locum nostri castris delegerant. Collis ab summo aequaliter declivis ad flumen Sabim, quod supra nominavimus, vergebat. 

1 The nature of the place which our men had chosen for the camp was this: a hill, sloping evenly from the top, extended toward the river Sabis, which we mentioned above. 

2 Ab eo flumine pari acclivitate collis nascebatur adversus huic et contrarius, passus circiter CC infimus apertus, ab superiore parte silvestris, ut non facile introrsus perspici posset. 

2 From that river, a hill of equal slope rose opposite and facing this one, open for about two hundred paces at the bottom, wooded on the upper part, so that it could not easily be seen into. 

3 Intra eas silvas hostes in occulto sese continebant; in aperto loco secundum flumen paucae stationes equitum videbantur. Fluminis erat altitudo pedum circiter trium. 

3 Within these woods the enemy kept themselves concealed; in the open ground along the river, a few cavalry outposts were visible. The river was about three feet deep.   
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