Chapter 10.1–3
Hannibal arrives in Bithynia · Life of Hannibal · A-level Latin · OCR H443/03
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SubjectObjectVerbGenitiveDativeAblativeConjunctionAdverb
Latin
English
sic conservatis suis rebus Poenus illusis Cretensibus omnibus ad Prusiam in Pontum
Having saved his fortune in this way, and having made fools of every Cretan, Hannibal reached
pervenit. apud quem eodem animo fuit erga Italiam neque aliud quicquam egit quam regem
King Prusias in Pontus. At his court he kept exactly the same attitude towards Italy, and did nothing else but arm and
armavit et exercuit adversus Romanos.
train the king against Rome.
quem cum videret domesticis opibus minus esse robustum, conciliabat ceteros reges,
Seeing that Prusias lacked the resources to stand on his own, Hannibal won over other kings to his side
adiungebat bellicosas nationes. dissidebat ab eo Pergamenus rex Eumenes, Romanis
and drew warlike nations into alliance with him. Eumenes, king of Pergamum, a close ally of Rome,
amicissimus, bellumque inter eos gerebatur et mari et terra;
was at odds with Prusias, and war was being fought between them on both land and sea;
sed utrobique Eumenes plus valebat propter Romanorum societatem. quo magis cupiebat
but on both fronts Eumenes had the advantage, thanks to his alliance with Rome. This only made Hannibal
eum Hannibal opprimi; quem si removisset, faciliora sibi cetera fore arbitrabatur. ad hunc
more determined to see him crushed — if he could remove Eumenes, he reasoned, everything else would come more easily.
interficiundum talem iniit rationem.
To kill him, he devised the following plan.
Style notes this section · 15Word order · 1Repetition and structure · 4Word choice · 7Imagery and tone · 1Grammar · 2
sic conservatis suis rebus Poenus illusis Cretensibus omnibusBalance
his property thus saved, the Carthaginian, with all the Cretans fooled
Two ablative absolutes frame the subject, one for his money saved and one for the Cretans fooled, so the trick is summed up neatly before the story moves on.
PoenusWord choice
the Carthaginian
Nepos calls Hannibal "the Phoenician", the Roman word that brought to mind proverbial Punic cunning, just after he has tricked the Cretans.
omnibusEmphasis
all
Not some Cretans but all of them were fooled, which completes the joke of the last chapter.
eodem animo fuit erga ItaliamCharacterisation
he kept the same attitude towards Italy
His hatred of Rome is unchanged by exile, as Nepos promised in chapter 1.
neque aliud quicquam egit quamEmphatic negative
he did nothing else but
The negative shows Hannibal's single-minded focus: everything he does at Prusias' court is aimed at Rome.
armavit et exercuitPairing
he armed and trained
Two verbs show Hannibal turning a king into a weapon against Rome, as if Prusias were one of his soldiers.
domesticis opibus minus esse robustumWord choice
was not strong enough in his own resources
Minus, "less", gently plays down the king's weakness, but the point is clear: Prusias cannot fight Rome alone.
conciliabat ceteros reges, adiungebat bellicosas nationesAsyndeton
he won over other kings, he joined warlike nations to him
Two matching clauses without a connecting word, both in the imperfect, show Hannibal's tireless diplomacy.
Romanis amicissimusSuperlative
a very close friend to the Romans
Eumenes is defined by his friendship with Rome, the opposite of Hannibal, so his conflict with Prusias becomes Hannibal's war with Rome by proxy.
et mari et terraPairing
both by sea and by land
The war is fought on every front, which raises the stakes.
propter Romanorum societatemEmphatic position
because of his alliance with the Romans
The reason for Eumenes' advantage comes last: behind every enemy Hannibal faces, Rome is the real power.
opprimiWord choice
to be crushed
A violent verb shows how far Hannibal is prepared to go.
quem si removisset, faciliora sibi cetera fore arbitrabaturConditional
he thought that if he removed him, everything else would be easier for him
The condition shows Hannibal's clear strategic reasoning: remove the key ally and the rest will follow.
ad hunc interficiundumGerundive
for killing him
The blunt gerundive of purpose, with its old-fashioned -und- spelling, states Hannibal's aim without softening: murder.
talem iniit rationemForeshadowing
he adopted the following plan
The phrase echoes capit tale consilium in the Cretan story, so the reader expects another clever trick.
Notes on the text 2
PrusiamPrusias
Prusias
Prusias I, king of Bithynia (about 228 to 182 BC), in north-west Asia Minor. Nepos says Pontus, loosely: Bithynia lay on the coast of the Black Sea, the Pontus Euxinus.
EumenesEumenes
Eumenes
Eumenes II, king of Pergamum (197 to 159 BC), Rome's loyal ally in Asia Minor, who gained much of Antiochus' former territory at the peace of Apamea and fought Prusias in the 180s BC.
Questions to think about · 3
- How does Nepos show that Hannibal's aims have not changed since chapter 1?
- Why does Hannibal decide that Eumenes is the key obstacle, and what does this show about his strategic thinking?
- How does Nepos prepare the reader for another trick at the end of this section?
The kingdoms of Asia Minor background
After the peace of Apamea (188 BC) Rome took no land in Asia Minor for itself but rewarded its friends. Eumenes II of Pergamum and the island state of Rhodes received most of the territory Antiochus gave up, and Pergamum became Rome's most important ally in the region.
Prusias I of Bithynia, in the north-west of Asia Minor on the coast of the Black Sea, was a rival of Pergamum, and the two kings fought over border lands in the 180s BC. For Hannibal, Prusias offered a last chance to strike at Rome through one of its allies.
Vocabulary in this section · 73 wordsVocabulary tester
sic (adv.) thus, in this way
conservo, conservare, conservavi, conservatum save, preserve
suus, -a, -um his own
res, rei (f.) thing; (pl.) possessions, fortune
Poenus, -i (m.) a Carthaginian (here Hannibal)
illudo, illudere, illusi, illusum mock, make a fool of
Cretenses, -ium (m. pl.) the Cretans
omnis, -e all, every
ad (prep. + acc.) to
Prusias, -ae (m.) Prusias, king of Bithynia
in (prep. + acc.) into, to
Pontus, -i (m.) Pontus, the region by the Black Sea
pervenio, pervenire, perveni, perventum arrive, reach
apud (prep. + acc.) at the house of, with, at the court of
qui, quae, quod who, which
idem, eadem, idem the same
animus, -i (m.) mind, spirit; attitude
sum, esse, fui be
erga (prep. + acc.) towards
Italia, -ae (f.) Italy
neque (conj.) and not, nor
alius, alia, aliud other, else
quisquam, quicquam anyone, anything
ago, agere, egi, actum do, drive
quam (adv.) than; (after aliud) except, but
rex, regis (m.) king
armo, armare, armavi, armatum arm, equip
et (conj.) and
exerceo, exercere, exercui, exercitum train, exercise
adversus (prep. + acc.) against
Romani, -orum (m. pl.) the Romans
cum (conj.) since, when
video, videre, vidi, visum see
domesticus, -a, -um of the home; one's own
ops, opis (f.) help; (pl.) resources, wealth
minus (adv.) less; not very
robustus, -a, -um strong, sturdy
concilio, conciliare, conciliavi, conciliatum win over, bring together
ceteri, -ae, -a the other, the rest
adiungo, adiungere, adiunxi, adiunctum join to, attach as allies
bellicosus, -a, -um warlike
natio, -onis (f.) nation, tribe
dissideo, dissidere, dissedi, dissessum disagree, be at odds
ab (prep. + abl.) from
is, ea, id he, she, it
Pergamenus, -a, -um of Pergamum
Eumenes, -is (m.) Eumenes II, king of Pergamum
amicus, -a, -um friendly; (superl.) very friendly, a close ally
bellum, -i (n.) war + -que (conj.) and
inter (prep. + acc.) between, among
gero, gerere, gessi, gestum carry on, wage
mare, -is (n.) sea
terra, -ae (f.) land
sed (conj.) but
utrobique (adv.) on both sides, in both places
plus (adv.) more; plus valere be stronger, have the advantage
valeo, valere, valui, valitum be strong, prevail
propter (prep. + acc.) because of, thanks to
societas, -atis (f.) alliance, partnership
magis (adv.) more
cupio, cupere, cupivi, cupitum want, desire
Hannibal, -alis (m.) Hannibal
opprimo, opprimere, oppressi, oppressum crush, overwhelm
si (conj.) if
removeo, removere, removi, remotum remove, get rid of
facilis, -e easy
se (reflexive pronoun) himself
arbitror, arbitrari, arbitratus sum think, judge
hic, haec, hoc this; he, she, it
interficio, interficere, interfeci, interfectum kill
talis, -e such, of this kind
ineo, inire, inii, initum enter upon; (rationem) devise, adopt
ratio, -onis (f.) plan, method