Cicero ad Familiares X.10
Commentary by Andrew Van Buskirk, revised by J. Bailly
Introduction
In this letter Cicero encourages Lucius Munatius Plancus to bring his
armies across the Alps and relieve Decimus Brutus at Mutina where
Brutus is being besieged by Antony. The letter is dated March 30th,
and Plancus did not commence his march until April 26th, by which time
it
was too late to be of any help (cf.
ad Fam. X 9 and X 11), because
Antony was defeated
by Hirtius, Pansa, and Octavian.
In ad Fam. X 6, dated March
20th, we learn that
Plancus was still uncertain whether or not he would champion the
Republican side or maintain peace with Antony. This letter is in line
with Cicero's previous effort to maintain Plancus' support for
the Republican cause (cf. ad Fam.
X 5). Cicero's promise to him of great honors are based on his
knowledge of Plancus' ambitious character. After the
battle of Mutina, Plancus pursued his own advantage and, along with
Lepidus and C. Asinius Pollio, joined forces with Antony.
Lucius Munatius Plancus (87 BCE-15 BCE) was consul in 42 and censor in
22 BCE (the last time the office was filled). An officer under Caesar
during the Gallic conquest, he switched allegiance to Antony, and then
again, when Antony was defeated in Parthia, to Octavian.
Plancus' tomb still stands, overlooking Gaeta in Italy. As proconsul of
Gallia Comata in 43 BCE, he founded the city of Lugdunum (Lyon) as well
as Raurica (Augusta Raurica, near Basel, Switzerland). He was known as
an orator.
Text
Scr. Romae III. Kal. Apriles a.u.c. 711. (March 30th, 43 B.C.)
CICERO PLANCO.
[1] Etsi satis ex Furnio nostro cognoram, quae tua voluntas, quod
consilium de re publica esset, tamen tuis litteris lectis liquidius de
toto sensu tuo iudicavi. Quamobrem, quamquam in uno proelio omnis
fortuna rei publicae disceptatur—quod quidem, cum haec legeres, iam
decretum arbitrabar fore—, tamen ipsa fama, quae de tua voluntate
percrebruit, magnam es laudem consecutus; itaque si consulem Romae
habuissemus, declaratum esset ab senatu cum tuis magnis honoribus, quam
gratus esset conatus et apparatus tuus: cuius rei non modo non
praeteriit tempus, sed ne maturum quidem etiam nunc meo quidem iudicio
fuit; is enim denique honos mihi videri solet, qui non propter spem
futuri beneficii, sed propter magna merita claris viris defertur et
datur.
[2] Quare, sit modo aliqua res publica, in qua honos elucere possit,
omnibus, mihi crede, amplissimis honoribus abundabis; is autem, qui
vere appellari potest honos, non invitamentum ad tempus, sed perpetuae
virtutis est praemium. Quamobrem, mi Plance, incumbe toto pectore ad
laudem: subveni patriae, opitulare collegae, omnium gentium consensum
et incredibilem conspirationem adiuva. Me tuorum consiliorum adiutorem,
dignitatis fautorem, omnibus in rebus tibi amicissimum fidelissimumque
cognosces; ad eas enim causas, quibus inter nos amore sumus, officiis,
vetustate coniuncti, patriae caritas accessit, eaque effecit, ut tuam
vitam anteferrem meae. III. K. Apr.
Commentary
Scr. Romae III. Kal. Apriles a.u.c. 711. (March 30th, 43 BCE)
CICERO PLANCO.
Scr.: scripsit or scriptum.
Romae: locative.
III. Kal. Apriles: the third day before the Kalends of Aprile (i.e.
March 30th).
a.u.c. 711: ab urbe condita 711 (i.e. 43 BCE).
Cicero Planco: understand scripsit.
[1] Etsi satis ex Furnio nostro
cognoram, quae tua voluntas, quod
consilium de re publica esset, tamen tuis litteris lectis liquidius de
toto sensu tuo iudicavi. Quamobrem, quamquam in uno proelio omnis
fortuna rei publicae disceptatur—quod quidem, cum haec legeres, iam
decretum arbitrabar fore—, tamen ipsa fama, quae de tua voluntate
percrebruit, magnam es laudem consecutus; itaque si consulem Romae
habuissemus, declaratum esset ab senatu cum tuis magnis honoribus, quam
gratus esset conatus et apparatus tuus: cuius rei non modo non
praeteriit tempus, sed ne maturum quidem etiam nunc meo quidem iudicio
fuit; is enim denique honos mihi videri solet, qui non propter spem
futuri beneficii, sed propter magna merita claris viris defertur et
datur.
Etsi: etsi is often followed by
subjunctive. Here cognoram relates a fact, and so the indicative is
used.
Furnio nostro: A close friend
of Cicero's who had helped him to keep Plancus on the Republican side.
We learn in ad Fam. X 6 that
Furnius addressed the senate on Plancus' behalf and affirmed Plancus'
loyalty to them. In that same letter, Cicero criticizes Plancus for
considering peace with Antony. Apparently Plancus was riding the fence,
or at least keeping his options open should his side suffer a reversal.
cognoram: syncopated form of
cognoveram. An 'epistolary' tense: i.e., by the time Plancus reads the
letter, the statement will be in the past.
quae tua voluntas: supply esset
from the following clause. Indirect question. Secondary sequence.
quod . . . esset: indirect
question, secondary sequence.
tuis lectis litteris: abl.
absolute.
liquidius: comparative adverb
modifying iudicavi.
Quamobrem: ob, "because of" +
quam rem, "which thing" = "that is why."
uno proelio: The battle of
Mutina, where the combined forces of Octavian and the consuls Hirtius
and Pansa
defeated Antony.
quod quidem . . . arbitrabar fore:
arbitrabar is an epistolary tense: by the time the letter is read, the
action will be past. Fore decretum = futurum esse decretum: future
infinitive in indirect statement.
legeres: cum temporal clauses
referring to the past often take subjunctive: secondary sequence.
tamen ipsa fama, quae de tua voluntate
percrebuit, magnam es laudem consecutus: the relative clause
interrupts the main clause, just as the cum clause did in the previous
sentence.
ipsa fama: why ablative?
Itaque . . . conatus et apparatus tuus:
past contrary-to-fact
condition.
Romae: locative case.
ne . . . quidem: "not even."
declaratum
esset: pluperfect
subjunctive in the apodosis of a past contrary-to-fact
condition. Singular, because it agrees with the number of the first
noun in the series (conatus).
quam gratus esset conatus et apparatus
. . .: The meaning of quam here
is "how (thankful)." This is an indirect question. The indirect
question clause as a whole is the subject of declaratum esset.
cuius
rei . . . tempus: cuius
rei is a gen. dependent on tempus and
refers to the possible awarding of honors to Plancus.
is enim denique honos mihi videri
solet qui . . .: honos is predicate nominative.
defertur et datur: pleonasm.
The two verbs mean practically the same
thing.
[2] Quare, sit modo aliqua res
publica, in qua honos elucere possit,
omnibus, mihi crede, amplissimis honoribus abundabis; is autem, qui
vere appellari potest honos, non invitamentum ad tempus, sed perpetuae
virtutis est praemium. Quamobrem, mi Plance, incumbe toto pectore ad
laudem: subveni patriae, opitulare collegae, omnium gentium consensum
et incredibilem conspirationem adiuva. Me tuorum consiliorum adiutorem,
dignitatis fautorem, omnibus in rebus tibi amicissimum fidelissimumque
cognosces; ad eas enim causas, quibus inter nos amore sumus, officiis,
vetustate coniuncti, patriae caritas accessit, eaque effecit, ut tuam
vitam anteferrem meae. III. K. Apr.
sit modo: sit is subjunctive in
a proviso
clause (modo, 'if only').
in qua honos elucere possit:
relative clause of characteristic: here equivalent to a purpose clause.
mihi crede: a parenthetical
remark (it has no effect on the syntax of the rest of the sentence).
incumbe . . . subveni . . . opitulare
. . . adiuva: four imperative
verbs in a row. Subvenio and opitulor both take the dative of person or
thing helped. Note that the last clause is the longest: that is called
a "crescendo."
collegae: does not seem to
refer to any one in particular, but rather generically refers to
any pro-republican.
Me ... cognosces: the series
of three accusatives (adiutorem, fautorem, amicissimum fidelissimumque)
constitute a tricolon (three part) crescendo (the last one is the
longest, so it grows, hence cresc-endo).
Ad eas enim causas quibus inter nos. .
.: quibus is acting as ablative
of means with the verb sumus iuncti. In the quibus clause there are
three ablative of means in asyndeton: 1) amore
2) officiis 3) and vetustate. Note again, as is frequent in this
letter, that the subordinate clause interrupts the main clause (ad eas
... caritas accessit).
Caritas patriae: subject of the
main clause. Caritas + gen. = "love of
...."
ut tuam vitam anteferrem meae:
antefero + acc.x + dat.y = "to
prefer x to y." This is a nominal ut clause with the verb effecit.
Vocabulary
abundo, are to abound, be rich in
accedo, -cedere, -cessi, -cessum, to be added
adiutor, oris m. a helper
adiuvo (1), help
amplus, -a, -um, ample, full, extensive, large
antefero, -ferre, -tuli, -latus, prefer (acc.x + dat.y = ìto
prefer x to y.î)
apparatus, a, um m. a preparation, preparing
appello (1), call, name
arbitror, ari dep. to decide, judge, think that
caritas, atis f., affection, love, esteem
cognosco, cognoscere, cognovi, cognitum, get to know, find out
(perfect: know)
collega, ae m. colleague (in office); associate, fellow member
conatus, us, m., effort
coniunctus, -a, -um, joined
consensus, -us, m., agreement
consequor, consequi, consecutus, acquire
consilium, -i, n., plan, advice, counsel, opinion
conspiratio, ionis, f. harmony, agreement, union
consul, -sulis, m. a consul, one of the two chief magistrates of the
Roman state under the republic
decerno, decernere, decrevi, decretum, decree, ordain; settle, decide
declaro (1), make clear or distinct; reveal or proclaim
defero, -ferre, -tuli, -latum confer, award, grant
discepto (1), decide, settle, determine
efficio, -ficere, -feci, -fectum, bring about that
eluceo, elucere, eluxi, beam forth, shine out, glitter
enim, truly, indeed
fama, -ae, f., rumor, report
fautor, oris m. a favorer, partisan
fidelis, -e, loyal, faithful, true
fore),
fortuna, -ae, f., fortune, future state
gens, gentis, f., people, clan; omnes gentes, , everyone, everyone in
the world
gratus, a, um pleasing, welcome, agreeable; deserving thanks
honos, honoris, m., honor
incumbo, cumbere, cubui, cubitum, to apply oneself to a thing, 'get
down to'
invitamentum, -i n. an invitation, attraction, allurement
Itaque, (and) thus
lego, legere, lexi, lectum, read
liquidius comparative degree of adj. liquidus, a, um, evident, certain
maturus, a, um, timely
meritum, -i, n., due reward
officium, -i, n., duty
opitulor, ari, + dat., to help, aid
pectus, oris n. the breast the breast as the seat of the affections
percrebresco, -brescere, -brui, become very frequent, become prevalent,
become well known
perpetuus, a, um, continuous, uninterrupted
praemium, -i, n., reward
praetereo, ire, ivi to go by, pass by
proelium, -i, n., battle
propter + acc., on account of, because of
quam + adj., how
quamquam, although
quamobrem, sometimes written as one word, sometimes as three, which is
why, for which reason
satis, sufficiently
sensus, us m. sense; way of thinking, attitude of mind
soleo, solere, solitus sum, be accustomed (+ inf.)
subvenio, venire, veni, ventum to come up to aid, relieve, succour
tempus, -oris, n., time: ad tempus, for the occasion, for the
moment
vetustas, atis f. long duration, length of time
voluntas, -atis, f., disposition, will; choice
Resources for this letter:
Cicero: The letters of January to
April 43 BC. M.M. Willcock. Aris & Phillips Ltd. Warminster,
England. 1995
The notes in Wilcock were of great help in learning the historical
context of the letter. For the beginner in Roman history, H.H.
Scullard's From the Gracchi to Nero
is of great help.