On The Alexandrian War. Andrea Pietro Cornalba

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СКАЧАТЬ were targeted from two sides, from the fortification defending the field and from the ships on the river which were loaded with archers and equipped with bullet-launching machines. Ptolemy had deployed the best troops to guard the most exposed side and left the rest to guard the river side.

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      Caesar realized that his troops, despite the courage, were unable to make progress or at least progressed slowly; he noticed, however, that the highest side of the hill, the steep and almost impassable one, had been unguarded, as the Alexandrians who were to preside over it had moved to other areas where the battle raged, who out of curiosity to see, who with the intention of participating. So he ordered some cohorts to go around the field and climb that steep the hill. He had among his commanders a certain Corfulano (Corfulenus), of good character but also of great military capacity; he was entrusted to him by the cohorts who climbed the hill and presented themselves to the enemy who, surprised, slipped and offered almost no resistance. So the Romans were able to spread from the high side of the field and made a great carnage; the turmoil created by Corfulano's men was accompanied by the contemporary reinvigoration of Roman action on the other two fronts, which produced panic among the Egyptians, who rushed to flee to the side of the river where the ships of the fleet were. The precipitous and disorganized escape caused the disaster: throwing themselves from the bastion, the fugitives fell into the ditch dug in defense and were trampled by those who followed them. With the moat full of corpses, the escape was simpler, but once arrived to the ships that had already left the shore, it happened inevitable: reached by swimming by the fugitives, these became heavier and sank. Even Pharaoh suffered the same fate; it is certain that he too had fled on his ship, which like the others was joined by too many fugitives, and burdened with the young sovereign on board.

      32.

      After a quick and effective victory, Caesar decided to take advantage of it and to exploit the effect that this could have on the enemy, so he left with his cavalry on a country road in order to reach Alexandria as soon as possible. He entered the city not on the side occupied by his army but on the side controlled by the enemy and he could see that the news of his victory had taken away from the Alessandrini any desire to continue the war. In the city, Caesar received the subjugation of the citizens who had thrown their arms, left the fortifications and put on humble clothes, with the most sacred symbols before them as when they sought grace from their sovereign; they went to meet Caesar to submit to him and obtained clemency from him. Then Caesar crossed first the Alexandrian defences and then the Roman ones where he was welcomed by his soldiers, happy to see him victorious and also unharmed.

      33.

      Caesar, now lord of Egypt, fulfilled the duties entrusted to the Roman people by the previous Pharaoh Ptolemy XII (12), who had asked the Capitoline not to upset his will, which expected to leave the Kingdom to the greatest of his children males. However, having died, Caesar gave the Kingdom of Egypt to his younger brother, associating his older sister Cleopatra IV (4). The other sister Arsine, younger than Cleopatra, who had reigned in a despotic way through the eunuch Ganymede, was sent into exile, in order to remove her from Egypt to prevent new troublemakers from using her as a pretext for new unrest before the two new rulers had had time to strengthen.

      After arranging these things, Caesar left bringing the VI (6) legion with him and leaving the others to strengthen and control the new sovereigns who, ruling only a few days, still did not have the necessary authority to govern those subjects who were still opposed to the Roman people, leaving to those legions the disposition to keep the Roman control of the Kingdom firm, therefore he took the land route to Syria.

      34.

      While the things we told were happening in Egypt, Deiotaro, King of Galatia (Gallogrecia), went to Domizio Calvino, to whom Caesar had affiliated the governorate of Asia and the neighbouring provinces; to him, Deiotaro asked for help to stem the arrogance and raids of Farnace, ruler of Pontus, who oppressed Little Armenia and Cappadocia of Ariobarzane. He also pointed out to him that it would have been impossible, both for him and for the ruler of Cappadocia, to keep the promises of money made to Caesar if this situation had not been remedied. Domizio Calvino for his part, besides thinking about the money necessary for the expenses of the civil war, was also concerned about the prestige of Rome; therefore he could not allow a foreign sovereign to devastate and usurp thrones of allied sovereigns and friends of the Romans. Domizio Calvino sent an embassy to Farnace with which he ordered him to leave both Armenia and Cappadocia immediately and not to believe that, due to the civil war, Rome neglected to defend its rights in the most distant provinces. Believing however that this request should be strengthened by military pressure, but having sent two legions to Caesar, one of which by land, through Syria, which will not arrive in time to Caesar, took XXXVI (36) with him and others two legions and added them to Deiotaro (King of Galatia); these two legions had been trained in the Roman way for years. To these three legions were added 100 knights and another 100 received them from Ariobarzane, and still sent the Quaestors P. Sesto (P. Sestius) and C. Pletorio (C. Pletorius) to Ponto to bring him the legion he had hurriedly enlisted there, while Q. Pelusio (Q. Pelusius) was sent to Cilicia to retrieve another auxiliary that was enlisting there; all these forces met in Comana Pontica.

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