XIII
Ipsi Britanni dilectum ac tributa et iniuncta imperii munia impigre obeunt, si iniuriae absint: has aegre tolerant, iam domiti ut pareant, nondum ut serviant. Igitur primus omnium Romanorum divus Iulius (divus Julius: for divus cf. divus Vespasianus, in ch. 9.; same for divus Augustus and divus Claudius further below ; Julius Caesar’s invasion of Britain took place in 55 and 54 B.C.) cum exercitu Britanniam ingressus, quamquam prospera pugna terruerit incolas ac litore potitus sit, potest videri ostendisse posteris, non tradidisse. Mox bella civilia (bella civilia: the struggle for power between Julius Caesar and Pompey first, then between Octavian and Marc Antony) et in rem publicam versa principum arma, ac longa oblivio (bella…arma… oblivio: the verb or verbs for these subjects, if any, are left to the reader) Britanniae etiam in pace: consilium id divus Augustus vocabat, Tiberius praeceptum. Agitasse Gaium Caesarem (Gaium Caesarem: Caligula) de intranda Britannia (agitasse…de intranda Britannia: lit. ‘had considered about Britain to be invaded’) satis constat, ni (ni: = nisi, ‘except that’) velox ingenio mobili paenitentiae, (velox ingenio mobili paenitentiae: ingenio is dat. of respect, lit. ‘volatile as to a preference for changeable attitudes’) et ingentes adversus Germaniam conatus frustra fuissent. Divus Claudius auctor iterati operis, (auctor iterati operis: in 43 A.D.) transvectis legionibus auxiliisque et adsumpto in partem rerum Vespasiano, (adsumpto in partem rerum Vespasiano: abl. abs., ‘Vespasian being brought into partnership of the undertaking’) quod initium venturae mox fortunae fuit: domitae gentes, capti reges et monstratus fatis Vespasianus. (monstratus [est] fatis Vespasianus: ‘Vespasian was revealed [to the world] by fate’; fatis is dative of agent with monstratus; cf. note for cum … Rustico … Thrasea … Senecioni … Helvidius laudati essent in ch. 2)