Ergo inter sese paribus concurrere telis
Romanas acies iterum videre Philippi; 490
Nec fuit indignum superis, bis sanguine nostro
Emathiam et latos Haemi pinguescere campos.
Scilicet et tempus veniet, cum finibus illis
Agricola, incurvo terram molitus aratro,
Exesa inveniet scabra robigine pila, 495
Aut gravibus rastris galeas pulsabit inanes,
Grandiaque effossis mirabitur ossa sepulchris.
VERGIL, _Georg._ i. 489-497.
[Linenotes:
489. +Ergo+ = _therefore_, in fulfilment of the terrible warnings at
the death of Caesar.
490. +iterum+, i.e. at Philippi 42 B.C.; the first time at
Pharsalus.]
B59
CIVIL WAR, 49-45 B.C. (10)
_How Pompeius died, 48 B.C._
Pompeius, deposito adeundae Syriae consilio, et aeris magno pondere ad
militarem usum in naves imposito, duobusque milibus hominum armatis,
Pelusium pervenit. Ibi casu rex erat Ptolemaeus, puer aetate, magnis
copiis cum sorore Cleopatra {5} bellum gerens, quam paucis ante mensibus
per suos propinquos atque amicos regno expulerat; castraque Cleopatrae
non longo spatio ab eius castris distabant. Ad eum Pompeius misit, ut
pro hospitio atque amicitia patris Alexandria reciperetur atque illius
opibus in {10} calamitate tegeretur. Sed, qui ab eo missi erant,
confecto legationis officio, liberius cum militibus regis colloqui
coeperant eosque hortari, ut suum officium Pompeio praestarent, neve
eius fortunam despicerent. His tunc cognitis rebus amici regis, {15} qui
propter aetatem eius in procuratione erant regni, sive timore adducti,
ne Pompeius Alexandriam Aegyptunique occuparet, sive despecta eius
fortuna, iis, qui erant ab eo missi, palam liberaliter responderunt
eumque ad regem venire iusserunt: ipsi, {20} clam consilio inito,
Achillan, praefectum regium, singulari hominem audacia, et L. Septimium,
tribunum militum, ad interficiendum Pompeium miserunt. Ab his
liberaliter ipse appellatus naviculam parvulam conscendit cum paucis
suis, et ibi {25} ab Achilla et Septimio interficitur.
CAESAR, _de Bello Civili_, iii. 103, 104 (sel.)
+Context.+ After the battle of Pharsalus, Pompeius, closely pursued by
Caesar, had thoughts of going to Parthia and trying to form alliances
there. While in Cyprus he heard that Antioch (in Syria) had declared for
Caesar and that the route to the Parthians was no longer open. So he
altered his plan and sailed to Egypt, where a number of his old soldiers
served in the Egyptian army.
[Linenotes:
4. +Pelusium+, on the E. side of the easternmost mouth of the Nile.
5. +cum sorore Cleopatra.+ By his father’s will, Ptolemy ruled
jointly with his sister for three years, 51-48 B.C., when he
expelled her. Cleopatra raised an army in Syria and invaded Egypt.
The two armies were encamped opposite each other when Pompeius
landed to seek the help of Ptolemy.
15. +amici regis+, e.g. Achillas, l. 21, and espec. Ptolemy’s
guardian Pothinus, the _de facto_ ruler of Egypt.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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