Ludi Romani 2761 Historicum final results (Nova Roma)

Ludi Romani certamen historicum corrected version

Here is the corrected version displayed on a.d. XVI Kal. Oct. 2761 (Sept. 16, 2008) by Scriba G. Marcius Crispus in Nova Roma forum (msg 57668):

1.Veni, Vidi, Vici

• Meaning? I came, I saw, I conquered
• Said by? G. Iulius Caesar
• Said to? The Roman Senate, in his report
• What happened? He was reporting his victory over Pharnaces II of Pontus in the Battle of Zela. This curt phrase sums up his own military effectiveness, suggesting how unwise it might be for any others to oppose him.

2.Mulus Marianus

• Meaning? Marius' mules
• Said by? The Roman troops
• What happened? Among his reforms aimed at increasing military resources and efficiency by introducing a professional, full-time and highly trained army, Marius replaced lengthy baggage trains by making troops carry their own equipment. The troops, thus burdened, gave themselves this nickname.

3. Alea iacta est

• Meaning? The die is cast
• Said by? G. Iulius Caesar
• Said to? His troops as he prepared to cross the Rubicon river in northern Italy.
• What happened? The Rubicon was considered to mark the boundary between Cisalpine Gaul and Italy proper. By crossing it with an armed force, Caesar put himself in conflict with Rome. Given the small size of his troops relative to those loyal to Pompey at this stage, this phrase is appropriate in indicating what a gamble Caesar was taking in starting another civil war to defend his honour and dignity.

4. Carthago delenda est

• Meaning? Carthage must be destroyed.
• Said by? Cato the Elder, aka Cato the Censor, aka Marcus Porcius Cato.
• Said to? Anyone he could influence, particularly to the Senate, at the end of every speech.
• What happened? After defeat in the 2nd Punic War, Carthage again started to prosper, becoming a rival to Roman trade, and was also starting to strengthen its forces against other African enemies. Cato believed a third Punic war was therefore inevitable and indeed necessary, so he added this phrase to all of his public speeches. After its defeat in the 3rd Punic War, Carthage was destroyed.

5. Pecunia non olet

• Meaning? Money doesn't stink
• Said by? The emperor Vespasian, Titus Flavius Vespasianus
• Said to? His son, Titus
• What happened? Titus questioned the propriety of his father's tax on public urinals and the sale of urine for industrial purposes in order to raise revenue. The reply simply states that, whatever the source of money, money itself is always perfectly acceptable.

6. Cui bono

• Meaning? To whose benefit? Who stands to gain?
• Said by? M. Tullius Cicero, quoting Censor Lucius Cassius Longinus Ravilla,
• Said to? Famously said to the Roman senate by Cicero in his defence of Titus Annius Milo against a murder charge.
• What happened? Milo was convicted anyway, but Cicero's speech famously popularised this phrase which has become a standard element of the process of criminal investigation.

7. Qualis artifex pereo

• Meaning? What an artist I perish, or What an artist dies in me.
• Said by? The emperor Nero
• What happened? After the loss of the two great restraining influences that had fostered an exemplary early reign, tumult arose throughout the Empire, the Gallic and Spanish legions, along with the Praetorian Guards rose against him and Nero fled Rome. The senate declared him a public enemy and he committed suicide, speaking these words that reflect the various performances that he delighted to give.

8. Panem et circenses

• Meaning? Bread and circuses.
• Said by? The poet Juvenal, Decimus Iunius Iuvenalis
• What happened? Juvenal regrets the way that the people have lost sight of their freedoms and civic duties and given power to whoever promises them a handout of bread and free entry to popular attractions. Like many today, the mob were more interested in popular pleasures rather than things that should matter.

9. Ave atque vale

• Meaning? Hail and farewell.
• Said by? The poet Catullus
• Said to? In a poem in his honour at the tomb of his dead brother.
• What happened? Catullus visits the tomb of his brother, far from Rome,

who had earlier encouraged his poetry. He laments the time that has passed since he last saw him, and that he will now see him no more.

10. Et tu, Brute OR Tu quoque Brute, mi fili ?

• Meaning? You too, Brute, (my son)
• Said by? Julius Caesar
• Said to? M. Junius Brutus.
• What happened? Supposedly what Caesar said when he saw that Brutus was amongst the conspirators who stabbed him (contemporaries report that he said, in Greek, "You too, son?" - kai su, teknon? - while Shakespeare made famous the "et tu, Brute?" version)

11. Peccavi

• Meaning? I have sinned.
• Said by? Every Roman Catholic who ever went to confession before the 2nd Vatican

Council. AND The British General Sir Charles James Napier.

• Said to? The priest by those confessing their sins, AND Napier to his superiors at army HQ.
• What happened? The penitent catholic received absolution, AND in 1843 Napier captured Sindh, gaining this area for the British Empire. His message means "I have Sindh".

12. Romanes eunt domus

• Meaning? – exact translation, please. "Romanes they go (the) house".
• Written by (name of character)? Brian (Brian Cohen in the Monty Python movie The Life of Brian.
• Written to? The occupying Roman forces.
• What happened? Brian has joined the People's Front of Judea, and for his first assignment is tasked to write "Romans go home" on the palace walls .A centurion catches him, and, rather than punish him, acts the part of an English boarding school Latin teacher to correct the grammar. He makes Brian write the phrase correctly 100 times to impress it into his mind.
• Give the correct Latin for this ungrammatical phrase: Romani, ite domum.

Ludi Romani certamen historicum final results

The final scores are:

A Octavius Plautus: 45 winner of the Certamen Historicum ludorum romanorum 2761

G Petronius Dexter: 44

G Valerius Germanicus: 44

Gn Equitius Marinus: 43

T Galerius Paulinus: 42

D Arminus Brutus: 39.

G. Marcius Crispus's thanks

"I thank all contestants for taking part. We enjoyed good hunting, and I look forward to seeing you all again, joined I hope by some who were missing from our ranks this time, for the next contest".

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