Justin: HISTORIARVM PHILIPPICARVM T. POMPEII TROGI LIBRI XLIV IN EPITOMEN REDACTI

1. While these things are being carried on in Sicily, meanwhile in Greece, with Ptolemy Ceraunus and Antiochus and Antigonus, the kings, dissenting among themselves in war

2 omnes ferme Graeciae civitates ducibus Spartanis, velut occasione data ad spem libertatis erectae, missis invicem legatis, per quos in societatis foedera alligarentur, in bellum prorumpunt et,

2 almost all the cities of Greece, under Spartan leaders, as if, the occasion having been given, raised to the hope of liberty, with legates sent to each other in turn, by whom they might be bound into treaties of alliance, burst forth into war and,

3 ne cum Antigono, sub cuius regno erant, bellum coepisse viderentur, socios eius Aetolos adgrediuntur, causas belli praetendentes,

3 lest they might seem to have begun war with Antigonus, under whose rule they were, they attack his allies, the Aetolians, putting forward pretexts for war,

4 quod consensu Graeciae sacratum Apollini Cirraeum campum per vim occupassent.

4 because they had by force occupied the Cirrhaean field, consecrated to Apollo by the consensus of Greece.

5 Huic bello ducem deligunt Area, qui adunato exercitu urbes sataque in his campis posita depopulatur, quae auferri non poterant incendit.

5 For this war they choose Areus as leader, who, with the army assembled, lays waste the cities and the sown crops set in these plains; what could not be carried off he sets on fire.

6 Quod cum e montibus conspicati pastores Aetolorum essent, congregati admodum quingenti sparsos hostes ignorantesque, quanta manus esset, quoniam conspectum illis metus et incendiorum fumus abstulerat, consectantur trucidatisque admodum novem milibus praedones in fugam verterunt.

6 When the herdsmen of the Aetolians had caught sight of this from the mountains, having congregated to about five hundred, they pursue the enemies, who were scattered and ignorant how great the band was, since fear and the smoke of the fires had taken away their view; and, with about nine thousand slaughtered, they turned the marauders to flight.

7 Reparantibus deinde Spartanis bellum auxilium multae civitates negaverunt, existimantes eos dominationem, non libertatem Graeciae quaerere.

7 Then, while the Spartans were renewing the war, many cities refused assistance, supposing that they were seeking domination, not the liberty of Greece.

8 Interea inter reges bellum finitur; nam Ptolomeus pulso Antigono cum regnum totius Macedoniae occupasset, pacem cum Antiocho facit adfinitatemque cum Pyrro rege data ei in matrimonium filia sua iungit.

8 Meanwhile the war is ended among the kings; for Ptolemy, with Antigonus driven out, when he had occupied the kingdom of all Macedonia, makes peace with Antiochus and joins an affinity with King Pyrrhus by giving his daughter to him in matrimony.

II. Exinde externo metu deposito inpium et facinorosum animum ad domesticae scelera convertit insidiasque Arsinoae, sorori suae, instruit, quibus et filios eius vita et ipsam Cassandreae urbis possessione privaret.

2. Thereafter, with external fear laid aside, he turned his impious and criminal mind to domestic crimes, and he contrived plots against Arsinoe, his sister, by which he would deprive both her sons of life and herself of the possession of the city of Cassandrea.

2 Primus ei dolus fuit simulato amore sororis matrimonium petere; aliter enim ad sororis filios, quorum regnum occupaverat, quam concordiae fraude pervenire non poterat.

2 His first deceit was, with simulated love for his sister, to seek marriage; for he could not reach his sister’s sons, whose kingdom he had occupied, otherwise than by the fraud of concord.

3 Sed nota scelerata Ptolomei voluntas sorori erat.

3 But the wicked will of Ptolemy was known to his sister.

4 Itaque non credenti mandat velle se cum filiis eius regni consortium iungere; cum quibus non ideo se armis contendisse, quoniam eripere his regnum, sed quod id facere sui muneris vellet.

4 And so he sends word to her, not believing, that he wishes to join with her sons in a consortium of the kingdom; with whom he had not for that reason contended with arms, namely to snatch the kingdom from them, but because he wished to do that as a duty of his office.

5 In hoc mitteret arbitrum iuris iurandi, quo praesente apud deos patrios quibus vellet obsecrationibus se obligaret.

5 For this he would send an arbiter of the oath, in whose presence, before the ancestral gods, he would bind himself with whatever adjurations he wished.

6 Incerta Arsinoe quid ageret; si mitteret, decipi periurio, si non mitteret, provocare rabiem fraternae crudelitatis timebat.

6 Arsinoe, uncertain what to do; if she were to send, she feared being deceived by perjury; if she were not to send, she feared to provoke the rage of fraternal cruelty.

7 Itaque plus liberis quam sibi timens, quos matrimonio suo protecturam se arbitrabatur, mittit ex amicis suis Dionem;

7 Therefore, fearing more for her children than for herself—whom she supposed she would protect by her matrimony—she sends, from among her friends, Dion.

8 quo perducto in sanctissimum Iovis templum veterrimae Macedonum religionis Ptolomeus sumptis in manus altaribus, contingens ipsa simulacra et pulvinaria deorum inauditis ultimisque execrationibus adiurat,

8 when he had been brought there into the most holy temple of Jupiter, of the most ancient religion of the Macedonians, Ptolemy, grasping the altars in his hands, touching the very simulacra and couches of the gods, adjures with unheard-of and utmost execrations,

9 se sincera fide sororis matrimonium petere nuncupaturumque se eam reginam, neque in contumeliam eius se aliam uxorem aliosve quam filios eius liberos habiturum. m Arsinoe postquam et spe inpleta est et metu soluta, ipsa cum fratre conloquitur, cuius vultus et blandientes oculi cum fidem non minorem quam ius iurandum promitterent, reclamante Ptolomeo filio fraudem subesse, in matrimonium fratris concedit.

9 he declares that he seeks his sister’s marriage in sincere good faith and that he will publicly declare her queen, and that, not to her contumely, he will have neither another wife nor any children other than her sons. Arsinoe, after both her hope was fulfilled and her fear dispelled, herself confers with her brother; and as his countenance and blandishing eyes promised trust no less than an oath, with her son Ptolemy protesting that a fraud lurked beneath, she consents to marriage with her brother.

III. Nuptiae magno apparatu laetitiaque omnium celebrantur.

3. The nuptials are celebrated with great apparatus and the joy of all.

2 Ad contionem quoque vocato exercitu capiti sororis diadema inponit reginamque eam appellat.

2 With the army also summoned to an assembly, he places the diadem upon his sister’s head and calls her queen.

3 Quo nomine in laetitiam effusa Arsinoe, quia quod morte Lysimachi, prioris mariti, amiserat recepisset, ultro virum in urbem suam Cassandream invitat, cuius urbis cupiditate fraus struebatur.

3 By this title, Arsinoe, overflowing into joy—because she had recovered what she had lost by the death of Lysimachus, her former husband—of her own accord invites the man into her city Cassandrea, and out of cupidity for that city a fraud was being contrived.

4 Praegressa igitur virum diem festum urbi in adventum eius indicit, domos, templa ceteraque omnia exornari iubet, aras ubique hostiasque disponi;

4 Having gone on ahead of her husband, therefore, she proclaims a festal day to the city for his arrival, orders the houses, the temples, and all other things to be adorned, that altars and victims be disposed everywhere;

5 filios quoque suos, Lysimachum sedecim annos natum, Philippum triennio minorem, utrumque forma insignem, coronatos occurrere iubet.

5 she also orders her sons, Lysimachus, sixteen years old, Philip, younger by three years, both distinguished in form, to meet him crowned.

6 Quos Ptolomeus ad celandam fraudem cupide et ultra modum verae adfectionis amplexus osculis diu fatigat.

6 Whom Ptolemy, to conceal the fraud, having embraced eagerly and beyond the measure of true affection, long wearies with kisses.

7 Vbi ad portam ventum est, occupari arcem iubet, pueros interfici. Qui cum ad matrem confugissent, in gremio eius inter ipsa oscula trucidantur, proclamante Arsinoe,

7 When they came to the gate, he orders the citadel to be seized, the boys to be killed. When they had fled for refuge to their mother, they are butchered in her lap amid the very kisses, with Arsinoe crying out,

8 quid tantum nefas aut nubendo aut post nuptias contraxisset. Pro filiis saepe se percussoribus obtulit, frequenter corpore suo puerorum corpora amplexata protexit vulneraque excipere, quae liberis intendebantur, voluit.

8 what so great a nefarious offense she had incurred either by marrying or after the nuptials. For her sons she often offered herself to the assassins; frequently, having embraced the boys’ bodies with her own body, she protected them and wished to receive the wounds that were being directed against her children.

9 Ad postremum etiam spoliata funeribus filiorum scissa veste et crinibus sparsis cum duobus servulis ex urbe protracta Samothraciam in exilium abiit, eo miserior, quod mori ei cum filiis non licuit.

9 At last, even despoiled by the funerals of her sons, with garment torn and hair spread, dragged out of the city with two little slaves, she departed into exile to Samothrace, the more miserable for this, that it was not permitted her to die with her sons.

10 Sed nec Ptolomeo inulta scelera fuerunt; quippe diis inmortalibus tot periuria et tam cruenta parricidia vindicantibus brevi post a Gallis spoliatus regno captusque vitam ferro, ut meruerat, amisit.

10 But neither were Ptolemy’s crimes unavenged; indeed, with the immortal gods vindicating so many perjuries and such blood-stained parricides, shortly after, despoiled of his kingdom by the Gauls and captured, he lost his life by the sword, as he had deserved.

IV. I Namque Galli abundante multitudine, cum eos non caperent terrae, quae genuerant, CCC milia hominum ad sedes novas quaerendas velut ver sacrum miserunt.

4. 1 For indeed the Gauls, with an abundant multitude, since the lands that had engendered them did not contain them, sent out 300 thousand men to seek new settlements, as though a sacred spring.

2 Ex his portio in Italia consedit, quae et urbem Romanam captam incendit

2 Of these, a portion settled in Italy, which also set the captured city of Rome on fire

3 et portio Illyricos sinus ducibus avibus (nam augurandi studio Galli praeter ceteros callent) per strages barbarorum penetravit et in Pannonia consedit;

3 and a portion to the Illyrian bays, with birds as leaders (for in the zeal of augury the Gauls excel beyond the rest), penetrated through with slaughters of the barbarians and settled in Pannonia;

4 gens aspera, audax, bellicosa, quae prima post Herculem, cui ea res virtutis admirationem et inmortalitatis fidem dedit, Alpium invicta iuga et frigore intractabilia loca transcendit.

4 a harsh, audacious, bellicose people, who, the first after Hercules— to whom that deed gave admiration of virtue and faith in immortality— crossed the invincible ridges of the Alps and places intractable with cold.

5 Ibi domitis Pannoniis per multos annos cum finitimis varia bella gesserunt.

5 There, the Pannonians having been subdued, for many years they waged various wars with the neighboring peoples.

6 Hortante deinde successu divisis agminibus alii Graeciam, alii Macedoniam omnia ferro prosternentes petivere,

6 Then, success encouraging them, with the columns divided, some sought Greece, others Macedonia, laying everything low with the sword,

7 tantusque terror Gallici nominis erat, ut etiam reges non lacessiti ultro pacem ingenti pecunia mercarentur.

7 so great was the terror of the Gallic name, that even kings, unprovoked, of their own accord would purchase peace for an immense sum of money.

8 Solus rex Macedoniae Ptolomeus adventum Gallorum intrepidus audivit eisque cum paucis et incompositis, quasi bella non diffçcilius quam scelera patrarentur, parricidiorum furiis agitatus occurrit.

8 Only the king of Macedonia, Ptolemy, heard of the arrival of the Gauls undaunted, and, with few and ill‑arrayed men, as if wars were no more difficult to perpetrate than crimes, driven by the Furies of parricides, he went to meet them.

9 Dardanorum quoque legationem XX milia armatorum in auxilium offerentem sprevit, addita insuper contumelia, actum de Macedonia dicens, si, cum totum Orientem soli domuerint, nunc in vindictam finium Dardanis egeant;

9 He also spurned the legation of the Dardanians, which was offering 20 thousand armed men as aid, an insult being added besides, declaring that it was all over for Macedonia, if, when they alone have subdued the whole Orient, they now need the Dardanians for the vindication of their borders;

10 milites se habere filios eorum, qui sub Alexandro rege stipendia toto orbe terrarum victores fecerint.

10 that he had as soldiers the sons of those who, under King Alexander, had done military service as victors throughout the whole world.

11 Quae ubi Dardano regi nuntiata sunt, inclitum illud Macedoniae regnum brevi inmaturi iuvenis temeritate casurum dixit.

11 When these things were reported to King Dardanus, he said that that illustrious kingdom of Macedonia would shortly fall through the temerity of an immature youth.

V. Igitur Galli duce Belgio ad temptandos Macedonum animos legatos ad Ptolomeum mittunt, offerentes pacem, si emere velit;

5. Therefore the Gauls, with Belgio as leader, send legates to Ptolemy to tempt the spirits of the Macedonians, offering peace, if he should wish to buy it;

2 sed Ptolomeus inter suos belli metu pacem Gallos petere gloriatus est.

2 but Ptolemy, among his own, boasted that the Gauls were seeking peace from fear of war.

3 Nec minus ferociter se legatis quam inter amicos iactavit, aliter se pacem daturum negando, nisi principes suos obsides dederint et arma tradiderint; non enim fidem se nisi inermibus habiturum.

3 Nor did he vaunt himself less ferociously to the legates than among his friends, denying that he would grant peace otherwise, unless their chiefs gave hostages and handed over their arms; for he would have trust only in the unarmed.

4 Renuntiata legatione risere Galli, undique adclamantes brevi sensurum, sibi an illi consulentes pacem obtulerint.

4 With the legation reported, the Gauls laughed, acclaiming from every side that he would shortly perceive whether they had offered peace consulting for themselves or for him.

5 Interiectis diebus proelium conseritur;

5 After some days had intervened, a battle is joined;

6 victi Macedones caeduntur; Ptolomeus multis vulneribus saucius capitur; caput eius amputatum et lancea fixum tota acie ad terrorem hostium circumfertur.

6 the Macedonians, defeated, are cut down; Ptolemy, wounded by many wounds, is captured; his head, amputated and fixed on a lance, is carried around along the whole battle line for the terror of the enemy.

7 Paucos ex Macedonibus fuga servavit; ceteri aut capti aut occisi.

7 Flight saved a few of the Macedonians; the rest were either captured or killed.

8 Haec cum nuntiata per omnem Macedoniam essent, portae urbium clauduntur, luctu omnia replentur:

8 When these things had been announced through all Macedonia, the gates of the cities are closed, all things are filled with lamentation:

9 nunc orbitatem amissorum filiorum dolebant, nunc excidia urbium metuebant, nunc Alexandri Philippique, regum suorum, nomina sicuti numina in auxilium vocabant;

9 now they were grieving the bereavement of their lost sons, now they were fearing the destruction of the cities, now they were calling upon the names of Alexander and Philip, their kings, as though numina, for aid;

10 sub illis se non solum tutos, verum etiam victores orbis terrarum extitisse;

10 that under them they had been not only safe, but even victors of the world;

11 ut tuerentur patriam suam, quam gloria rerum gestarum caelo proximam reddidissent, ut opem adflictis ferrent, quos furor et temeritas Ptolomei regis perdidisset, orabant.

11 they were begging that they protect their fatherland, which by the glory of deeds done they had rendered next to heaven, that they bring aid to the afflicted, whom the fury and temerity of King Ptolemy had ruined.

12 Desperantibus omnibus non votis agendum Sosthenes, unus de principibus Macedonum, ratus contracta iuventute et Gallos victoria exultantes conpescuit et Macedoniam ab hostili populatione defendit.

12 With all despairing, Sosthenes, one of the princes of the Macedonians, thinking that action was to be taken not by vows, with the youth mustered, checked the Gauls exulting in victory and defended Macedonia from hostile ravaging.

13 Ob quae virtutis beneficia multis nobilibus regnum Macedoniae adfectantibus ignobilis ipse praeponitur,

13 On account of these benefits of valor, with many nobles aspiring to the kingdom of Macedonia, he himself, ignoble, is preferred,

14 et cum rex ab exercitu appellatus esset, ipse non in regis, sed in ducis nomen iurare milites conpulit.

14 and when he had been hailed as king by the army, he himself compelled the soldiers to swear not to the name of king, but to that of leader.

VI. Interea Brennus, quo duce portio Gallorum in Graeciam se effuderat, audita victoria suorum, qui Belgio duce Macedonas vicerant, indignatus parta victoria opimam praedam et Orientis spoliis onustam tam facile relictam esse, ipse adunatis CL milibus peditum et XV milibus equitum in Macedoniam inrumpit.

VI. Meanwhile Brennus, under whose leadership a portion of the Gauls had poured into Greece, on hearing of the victory of his men, who, with Belgius as leader, had conquered the Macedonians, indignant that, with victory won, the rich booty, laden with the spoils of the East, had been so easily left, he himself, after assembling 150 thousand infantry and 15 thousand cavalry, bursts into Macedonia.

2 Cum agros villasque popularetur, occurrit ei cum instructo exercitu Macedonum Sosthenes; sed pauci a pluribus, trepidi a valentibus facile vincuntur.

2 While he was devastating the fields and villas, Sosthenes met him with a marshaled army of the Macedonians; but the few by the many, the alarmed by the valiant, are easily conquered.

3 Itaque cum victi se Macedones intra muros urbium condidissent, victor Brennus nemine prohibente totius Macedoniae agros depraedatur.

3 Therefore, when the defeated Macedonians had shut themselves within the walls of the cities, the victorious Brennus, with no one hindering, plunders the fields of all Macedonia.

4 Inde quasi terrena iam spolia sorderent, animum ad deorum inmortalium templa convertit, scurriliter iocatus locupletes deos largiri hominibus oportere.

4 Thence, as if terrestrial spoils were now sordid, he turned his mind to the temples of the immortal gods, scurrilously jesting that wealthy gods ought to grant largesse to human beings.

5 Statim igitur Delphos iter vertit, praedam religioni, aurum offensae deorum inmortalium praeferens; quos nullis opibus egere, ut qui eas largiri hominibus solent, adfirmabat.

5 Immediately therefore he turned his route to Delphi, preferring plunder to religion, gold to the offense of the immortal gods; he affirmed that they had no need of any wealth, since they are wont to lavish it upon men.

6 Templum autem Apollinis Delphis positum est in monte Parnasso, in rupe undique inpendente; ibi civitatem frequentia hominum fecit, qui admiratione maiestatis undique concurrentes in eo saxo consedere.

6 The temple of Apollo at Delphi is situated on Mount Parnassus, on a rock overhanging on every side; there he made a city through the concourse of men, who, converging from everywhere in admiration of its majesty, settled on that rock.

7 Atque ita templum et civitatem non muri, sed praecipitia, nec manu facta, sed naturalia praesidia defendunt, prorsus ut incertum sit, utrum munimentum loci an maiestas dei plus hic admirationis habeat.

7 And thus the temple and the city are defended not by walls, but by precipices, not by hand-made works, but by natural protections, altogether so that it is uncertain whether the fortification of the place or the majesty of the god has more admiration here.

8 Media saxi rupes in formam theatri recessit. Quamobrem et hominum clamor et si quando accedit tubarum sonus, personantibus et resonantibus inter se rupibus multiplex audiri ampliorque quam editur resonare solet. Quae res maiorem maiestatis terrorem ignaris rei et admirationem stupentibus plerumque adfert.

8 The middle crag of the rock has receded into the form of a theatre. Wherefore both the clamor of men and, whenever the sound of trumpets approaches, with the cliffs resounding and resonating among themselves, is heard manifold and is wont to resound more amply than it is emitted. This thing for the most part brings a greater awe of majesty to those ignorant of the matter, and admiration to those who stand astounded.

9 In hoc rupis amfractu media ferme montis altitudine planities exigua est, atque in ea profundum terrae foramen, quod in oracula patet, ex quo frigidus spiritus vi quadam velut vento in sublime expulsus mentes vatum in vecordiam vertit inpletasque deo responsa consulentibus dare cogit.

9 In this winding recess of the cliff, at almost the mountain’s middle altitude, there is a small plain; and in it a deep aperture of the earth, which stands open into the oracles, from which a cold breath, by a certain force, as if by a wind, driven aloft, turns the minds of seers into frenzy and, when filled with the god, compels them to give responses to those consulting.

10 Multa igitur ibi et opulenta regum ac populorum visuntur munera quaeque magnificentia sui reddentium vota gratam voluntatem et deorum responsa manifestant.

10 Therefore, many and opulent gifts of kings and peoples are seen there, which, by their own magnificence and by the paying of vows by those fulfilling them, manifest grateful goodwill and the responses of the gods.

VII. Igitur Brennus cum in conspectu haberet templum, diu deliberavit, an confestim rem adgrederetur an vero fessis via militibus noctis spatium ad resumendas vires daret.

7. Therefore Brennus, when he had the temple in sight, deliberated for a long time whether to address the affair forthwith, or indeed to grant to the soldiers wearied by the road a span of night for recovering their strength.

2 Aenianum et Thessalorum duces, qui se ad praedae societatem iunxerant, amputari moras iubebant, dum inparati hostes et recens adventus sui terror esset;

2 The leaders of the Aenianians and of the Thessalians, who had joined themselves to a society of booty, were ordering that delays be cut off, while the enemies were unprepared and the recent terror of their arrival was present;

3 interiecta nocte et animos hostibus, forsitan et auxilia accessura, et, vias, quae tunc pateant, obstructum iri.

3 with a night interposed, the spirit of the enemies—and perhaps even auxiliaries—would come up, and the roads, which then lie open, would be obstructed.

4 Sed Gallorum vulgus ex longa inopia, ubi primum vino ceterisque commeatibus referta rura invenit, non minus abundantia quam victoria laetum per agros se sparserat,

4 But the multitude of the Gauls, from long want, as soon as it found the countryside replete with wine and the other provisions, no less glad from abundance than from victory, had scattered itself through the fields,

5 desertisque signis ad occupanda omnia pro victoribus vagabantur. Quae res dilationem Delphis dedit.

5 and with the standards deserted, they were roaming to seize everything as victors. Which circumstance gave delay to the Delphians.

6 Prima namque opinione adventus Gallorum prohibiti agrestes oraculis feruntur messes vinaque villis efferre.

6 For at first, the rustics, restrained by the opinion of the advent of the Gauls, are reported, owing to the oracles, to carry out harvests and wines from the villas.

7 Cuius rei salutare praeceptum non prius intellectum est, quam vini ceterarumque copiarum abundantia velut mora Gallis obiecta auxilia finitimorum convenere. 8, Prius itaque urbem suam Delphi aucti viribus sociorum permunivere, quam Galli vino velut praedae incubantes ad signa revocarentur.

7 The salutary precept of this matter was not understood earlier than when, with an abundance of wine and of the other supplies—thrown before the Gauls as a kind of delay—the reinforcements of the neighbors convened. 8, Therefore the Delphians, augmented by the forces of their allies, amply fortified their city before the Gauls, brooding over the wine as over booty, could be recalled to the standards.

9 Habebat Brennus lecta ex omni exercitu peditum sexaginta quinque milia; Delphorum sociorumque non nisi quattuor milia milites erant,

9 Brennus had sixty-five thousand infantry, chosen from the whole army; of the Delphians and their allies there were only four thousand soldiers,

10 quorum contemptu Brennus ad acuendos suorum animos praedae ubertatem omnibus ostendebat statuasque cum quadrigis, quarum ingens copia procul visebatur, solido auro fusas esse plusque in pondere quam in specie habere praedae adfirmabat.

10 In contempt of whom, Brennus, to whet the spirits of his own men, was showing to all the abundance of booty, and the statues with quadrigae (four-horse chariots), a huge multitude of which was seen from afar, had been cast in solid gold, and he affirmed that, as plunder, they had more in weight than in appearance.

VIII. Hac adseveratione incitati Galli, simul et hesterno mero saucii, sine respectu periculorum in bellum ruebant.

8. Incited by this asseveration, the Gauls, at the same time also wounded by yesterday’s wine, rushed headlong into war without regard for dangers.

2 Contra Delphi plus in deo quam in viribus deputantes cum contemptu hostium resistebant scandentesque Gallos e summo montis vertice partim saxo, partim armis obruebant.

2 Conversely, the Delphians, reckoning more upon God than upon their own forces, with contempt for the enemy were resisting, and, as the Gauls were scaling up, from the topmost peak of the mountain they were overwhelming them, partly with rock, partly with arms.

3 In hoc partium certamine repente universorum templorum antistites, simul et ipsae vates sparsis crinibus cum insignibus atque infulis pavidi vecordesque in primam pugnantium aciem procurrunt.

3 In this contest of the parties, suddenly the high priests of all the temples, and at the same time the prophetesses themselves, with hair disheveled, with insignia and infulae, panic-stricken and out of their wits, rush forward into the foremost battle-line of the fighters.

4 Advenisse deum clamant, eumque se vidisse desilientem in templum per culminis aperta fastigia,

4 They cry out that the god has arrived, and that they have seen him leaping down into the temple through the roof’s open gables,

5 dum omnes opem dei suppliciter inplorant, iuvenem supra humanum modum insignis pulchritudinis; comitesque ei duas armatas virgines ex propinquis duabus Dianae Minervaeque aedibus occurrisse;

5 while all supplicantly implored the aid of the god, a youth of distinguished beauty beyond the human measure; and that two armed virgins, companions to him, had met him from the two neighboring shrines of Diana and Minerva;

6 nec oculis tantum haec se perspexisse, audisse etiam stridorem arcus ac strepitum armorum.

6 that they had perceived these things not only with their eyes, but had also heard the twang of the bow and the clatter of arms.

7 Proinde ne cunctarentur diis antesignanis hostem caedere et victoriae deorum socios se adiungere summis obsecrationibus monebant.

7 Accordingly, with the highest supplications they were urging that they not hesitate, with the gods as standard-bearers, to cut down the enemy and to join themselves as partners in the victory of the gods.

8 Quibus vocibus incensi omnes certatim in proelium prosiliunt.

8 Inflamed by these words, all, vying with one another, leap forth into battle.

9 Praesentiam dei et ipsi statim sensere, nam et terrae motu portio montis abrupta Gallorum stravit exercitum et confertissimi cunei non sine vulneribus hostium dissipati ruebant.

9 They themselves immediately sensed the presence of the god; for also, by the movement of the earth, a portion of the mountain, broken off, laid low the army of the Gauls, and the most tightly packed wedges, not without wounds to their foes, dissipated, were crashing down.

10 Insecuta deinde tempestas est, quae grandine et frigore saucios ex vulneribus absumpsit.

10 Then a tempest followed, which with hail and cold consumed the wounded because of their wounds.

11 Dux ipse Brennus cum dolorem vulnerum ferre non posset, pugione vitam finivit.

11 The leader Brennus himself, since he could not bear the pain of his wounds, finished his life with a dagger.

12 Alter ex ducibus punitis belli auctoribus cum decem milibus sauciorum citato agmine Graecia excedit.

12 Another of the commanders, the authors of the war having been punished, withdrew from Greece with ten thousand of the wounded, by a forced march.

13 Sed nec fugientibus fortuna commodior fuit, siquidem pavidis nulla sub tectis acta nox, nullus sine labore et periculo dies;

13 But fortune was no more favorable to the fugitives, since for the panic-stricken not a single night was passed under roofs, nor any day without labor and peril;

14 adsidui imbres et gelu nix concreta et fames et lassitudo et super haec maximum pervigiliae malum miseras infelicis belli reliquias obterebant.

14 continual rains and frost, snow concreted, and hunger and weariness, and over and above these the greatest evil, pervigil nights, were crushing the wretched remnants of the ill-starred war.

15 Gentes quoque nationesque, per quas iter habebant, palantes velut praedam sectabantur.

15 The peoples and the nations too, through which they were making their way, pursued the stragglers as if prey.

16 Quo pacto evenit, ut nemo ex tanto exercitu, qui paulo ante fiducia virium etiam deos contemnebat, vel ad memoriam tantae cladis superesset.

16 In such wise it came about that no one out of so great an army, which a little before, in confidence in its strength, was even contemning the gods, survived even for the memory of so great a calamity.