Battle of the Tagus Flashcards
Quod vero Hannibal Romanos arma movere volebat, in Olcadum fines induxit exercitum.
Because in fact Hannibal was wanting the Romans to take up arms, he led his army into the territory of the Olcades.
Itaque Cartalam, urbem opulentam, caput gentis eius, expugnavit diripuitque; metu minores civitates sine pugna se dediderunt et imperium Hannibalis acceperunt.
And so he took by storm and ransacked Cartala, a wealthy city, the capital [city] of that tribe; the smaller states surrendered themselves in fear without a fight and acknowledged Hannibal’s rule.
Victor exercitus opulentusque praeda ad urbem Carthaginem Novam in hiberna deductus est
His army, victorious and rich with booty, was withdrawn to the city of New Carthage to its winter-quarters.
Vere primo in Vaccaeos promotum est bellum, et Hermandica et Arbocala, eorum urbes, vi captae sunt.
At the beginning of spring the campaign was extended against the Vaccaei, and Hermandica and Arbocala, their cities, were taken by force.
Post paulo, ab Hermandica profungi cum exsulibus Olcadum Hannibalem redeuntem ex Vaccaeis adorti sunt haud procul Tago flumine, et agmen Carthaginiense, grave praeda, turbaverunt.
A little later, the refugees from Hermandica along with the exiles of the Olcades attacked Hannibal as he was returning from the Vaccaei not far from the River Tagus, and threw the Carthaginian column, laden with booty, into confusion.
Hannibal invadere eos transeuntes constituit.
Hannibal decided to attack them as they were crossing.
Equites iussit, hostibus ingressis aquam, adoriri impetum agmen; in ripa elephantos – quadraginta enim erat – disposuit.
He ordered the cavalry, when the enemy had entered the water, to attack the heavily laden column; he stationed his elephants — for there were forty of them — on the bank.
Barbari centum milia fuerunt, invicta acies si aequo dimicaretur campo.
There were one hundred thousand barbarians, an invincible battleline if the fight were taking place on level ground.
Itaque et ingenio feroces et multitudine freti et, quod metu se recepisse credebant hostem, rati hoc unum, quod interesset amnis, morari victoriam, clamore sublato passim sine ullius imperio in amnem ruerunt.
And so, being both high-spirited in their nature and relying on their large numbers and, because they believed that the enemy had retreated in fear, thinking that this one [obstacle], the fact that the river was between them, was delaying their victory, they raised a shout on all sides and rushed into the stream without anyone’s command.
Et ex parte altera ripae vis ingens equitum in flumen immissa est, duoque exercitus in medio flumine haudquaquam pari certamine concurrerunt, quod pedites propter altitudinem aquae erant instabiles et etiam ab inermi equite perverti poterant.
And from the other side of the bank a huge force of cavalry was sent into the river, and the two armies clashed in the middle of the river in by no means an equal contest, for the infantry, due to the depth of the water, was without firm footing and could be ridden down even by an unarmed rider.
Equites autem, corpore armisque liberi, equis etiam per medios gurgites stabilibus, comminus eminusque rem gerebant.
The cavalry however, with their body and weapons unencumbered, with their horses on firm footing even in the middle of the raging current, were getting on with the job at close quarters and from a distance.
Pars magna flumine absumpta est; quidam, delati in hostes, ab elephantis obtriti sunt.
A large portion was swept away by the river; certain men, swept down to the enemy, were trampled to death by the elephants.
Denique Hannibal, agmine quadrato amnem ingressus, fugam ex ripa fecit.
Finally Hannibal, entering the stream with his army formed into a square, caused a rout from the bank.
Vastatis agris, intra paucos dies Carpetanos quoque in deditionem accepit; et iam omnia trans Hiberum praeter Saguntum Carthaginiensium erant.
Having laid waste to their fields, within a few days he received the Carpetani in surrender as well; and now everything across the Ebro was Carthaginian except for Saguntum.
