Monday, February 25, 2013

Livy I 6 (p. 15, 17, 19)


Ita undique regi dolus nectitur. Romulus non cum globo iuvenum venit – nec enim erat ad vim apertam par;

So the trickery is woven against the king from all sides. Romulus did not come with his band of youngsters – for he was not equal in an open fight.

sed alios pastores alio itinere certo tempore ad regiam venire iussit et ad regem impetum fecit; et a domo Numitoris alia comparata manu adiuvat Remus. Ita regem obtruncat.

but he ordered the other shepherds to come to the palace by other routes at the designated time and he attacked the king; and (coming) from the house of Numitor Remus helped after he had prepared another force. So he slaughters the king.

Numitor inter primum tumultum, hostes invasisse urbem atque adortos  (esse) regiam dictitabat.

At the beginning of the disturbance Numitor was insisting that enemies had invaded the city and they had attacked the palace.

Cum pubem Albanam in arcem praesidio armisque obtinendam avocasset, postquam iuvenes perpetrata caede pergere ad se gratulantes vidit, extemplo concilium advocavit.

When he had summoned away the youth of Alba to occupy the citadel with garrison and arms, after the killing was done and he saw the young men approaching him to congratulate him, he immediately called for a council.


In eo concilio scelera in se fratris, originem nepotum, ut geniti, ut educati, ut cogniti essent, caedem deinceps tyranni seque eius auctorem (esse) ostendit.


In this council he showed his brother’s crimes against himself, the origin of his grandsons, how they had been born, how they had been brought up, how they had been recognized, next the slaughter of the tyrant and himself to be the instigator of this (slaughter).

Iuvenes per mediam contionem agmine ingressi cum avum regem salutassent, secuta ex omni multitudine consentiens vox ratum nomen imperiumque regi efficit.

When the youths had marched in line in the middle of the assembly and had saluted their grandfather as king, an agreeing shout from everyone followed and ratified the name and the power for the king.

Ita Numitori Albana re (publica) permissa Romulum Remumque cupido cepit in iis locis ubi expositi ubique educati erant urbis condendae. Et supererat mulltitudo Albanorum Latinorumque;

Thus with the state of Alba having been entrusted to Numitor a desire seized Romulus and Remus to found a city in these places where they had been exposed and where they had been brought up.


ad id pastores quoque accesserant, qui omnes facile spem facerent parvam Albam, parvum Lavinium prae ea urbe quae conderetur fore.

to this the shepherds were also added so that all of them easily gave rise to the hope that Alba would be small, Lavinium would be small compared to this city which would be founded (i.e.: which was about to be founded).

Intervenit deinde his cogitationibus avitum malum, regni cupido, atque inde foedum certamen coortum (est) a satis miti principio.

Afterwards the ancestral evil, the desire of the throne, interrupted these thoughts and from there a horrible struggle broke out from a gentle beginning (a quite harmless beginning).

Quoniam gemini essent nec aetatis verecundia discrimen facere posset, ut di quorum tutelae ea loca essent auguriis legerent qui nomen novae urbi daret, qui conditam (urbem) imperio regeret, Palatium Romulus, Remus Aventinum ad inaugurandum templa capiunt.

Since they were twins and respect of age was not able to make a difference, Romulus takes the Palatine, Remus (takes) the Aventine as quarters of the sky to make the observations (i.e. to look for omens) so that the gods, under whose protection those places were, would choose by omens the one who was to give the name to the new city, who was to rule over it with power after its foundation.

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