XLIII.
Forte inter Padum viamque patenti campo duae legiones congressae sunt, pro Vitellio unaetvicensima, cui cognomen Rapaci, vetere gloria insignis, e parte Othonis prima Adiutrix, non ante in aciem deducta, (prima Adiutrix: constituted by Nero with navy troops (cf. Book 1, ch. 6.), the legion had already seen action (cf. ch. 24), but Tacitus perhaps considers that episode a mere skirmish rather than a battle. The Twenty-first Rapax has received repeated mention ere now.) sed ferox et novi decoris avida. primani stratis unaetvicensimanorum principiis (stratis … principiis: strictly speaking, as the term is used here, principia refers to the soldiers forming a legion’s second line of battle, strong, healthy men in the prime of life, who would intervene if the first line ran into problems during a clash.) aquilam abstulere; quo dolore accensa legio et impulit rursus (rursus: ‘in their turn’) primanos, interfecto Orfidio Benigno legato, et plurima signa vexillaque ex hostibus rapuit. a parte alia (a parte alia: ’elsewhere in the battlefield’) propulsa quintanorum impetu tertia decima legio, circumventi plurium adcursu quartadecimani. (propulsa quintanorum impetu tertia decima legio … circumventi …quartadecimani: for the Fifth legion cf. Book 1, ch. 55; as for the Othonian Thirteenth and Fourteenth legions, we know from ch. 11 that only detachments or vexillarii of the two legions had been sent out in advance and had arrived in time for the battle. Cf. also ch. 66 ahead.) et ducibus Othonis iam pridem (iam pridem: ‘long before’) profugis Caecina ac Valens subsidiis suos firmabant. accessit recens auxilium, Varus Alfenus (Varus Alfenus: cf. ch. 29 of this Book.) cum Batavis, fusa gladiatorum manu, (fusa gladiatorum manu: ‘the force of gladiators having been dispersed’; cf. ch. 35.) quam navibus transvectam obpositae cohortes in ipso flumine trucidaverant: ita victores latus hostium invecti. (ita victores latus hostium invecti [sunt]: ‘thus victorious, the Batavi quickly moved in to assail the enemy’s flank’. invecti: the passive of inveho can have the active sense of ‘to rush in to attack’ )