Diomedes and Cluentius

More work for my year 12 class, apologies to everyone else.

Envoys return to tell Turnus that, despite all he was offered, the Greek hero Diomedes will not help the Latins in the war.


Hos inter motus, medio in flagrante tumultu,
ecce super maesti magna Diomedis ab urbe
legati responsa ferunt: nihil omnibus actum
tantorum impensis operum, nil dona neque aurum
nec magnas valuisse preces; alia arma Latinis
quaerenda, aut pacem Troiano ab rege petendum.

Virgil, Aeneid XI, 225-230

In the midst of (inter) these events (hos... motus) and in the middle of (in medio) the blazing crowd (flagrante tumultu), behold (ecce), the ambassadors (legati) bring (ferunt) replies (responsa) from the great city (magna... ab urbe) of regretful Diomedes (maesti... Diomedis) as well (super): that no great work (nihil... tantorum... operum) had been achieved (actum) by all their expense (omnibus... impensis), that neither their gifts (dona) nor their gold (aurum) nor their great prayers (magnas... preces) had been enough (valuisse); that the Latins (Latinis) must look for (quaerenda) other arms, or seek peace (pacem... petendum) from the Trojan king (Troiano ab rege).

Cicero explains that the enmity between his client Cluentius and Oppianicus is a long-standing one – and prepares to go into the story at some length.

Atque ut intellegatis Cluentium non accusatorio animo, non ostentatione aliqua aut gloria adductum, sed nefariis iniuriis, cotidianis insidiis, proposito ante oculos vitae periculo, nomen Oppianici detulisse, paulo longius exordium rei demonstrandae petam; quod quaeso, iudices, ne moleste patiamini; principiis enim cognitis, multo facilius extrema intellegetis.

Cicero, Pro Cluentio, 11.

And so that you may understand (ut intellegatis) that Cluentius has accused (Cluentium... detulisse) the name of Oppianicus (nomen Oppianici) having been spurred on (adductum) not by a vindictive spirit (non accusatorio animo) nor by some desire to show off (non ostentatione aliqua) or for glory (aut gloria), but by the criminal injustices (sed nefariis iniuriis), by the daily plots (cotidianis insidiis), by the danger to his life (vitae periculo) displayed before our eyes (proposito ante oculos), I shall seek (petam) briefly (paulo) a longer introduction (longius exordium) to demonstrate this matter (rei demonstrandae); I beg this (quod quaeso), judges, so that you will not suffer (ne... patiamini) in an irritated way (moleste); for (enim) with the beginnings having been grasped (principiis... cognitis), you will much more easily (multo facilius) understand the ends (extrema).