Civil War Quotes

“God cheats men into living on by hiding how blessed it is to die.”
― Lucanus, De bello civili libri X (Bibliotheca scriptorum Graecorum et Romanorum Teubneriana)

“And they are ignorant that the purpose of the sword is to save every man from slavery.”
― Marcus Annaeus Lucanus, Civil War

“quod defles, illud amasti.”
― Lucan, Lucan; The Civil War Books I-X

“Whether the author of the universe, when the fire gave place and he first took in his hand the shapeless realm of raw matter, established the chain of causes for all eternity, and bound himself as well by universal law, and portioned out the universe, which endures the ages prescribed for it, by a fixed line of destiny; or whether nothing is ordained and Fortune, moving at random, brings round the cycle of events, and chance is master of mankind - in either case, let they purpose, whatever it be, be sudden; let the mind of man be blind to coming doom; he fears, but leave him hope.”
― Lucan, Lucan: The Civil War

“Unutterable are the things we fear, but soon our fears will be exceeded.”
― Lucan, Lucan's Pharsalia

“There, with just a small rampart between, 180 they pitch their camps. Not obscured by distance, eyes on both sides behold well-known faces, they see brothers, their own sons, and fathers— the unspeakable civil crime is now unmasked.”
― Lucan, Civil War

“hic sacra domus carique penates, hic mihi Roma fuit.”
― Lucan, Lucan; The Civil War Books I-X

“And now (admiring that proſpect)
To Rome this ſpeech he did direct.
O ſeate of Gods! could this men ſo
Forſake thee, ere they ſaw a foe?
If thou canſt not, what Citty can
Deſerue to be fought for by man?
Well haue the higher powers repreſt,
The humors of the armed Eaſt,
From ioyning with the Hungars ſtout
And all that fierce outragious rout
Of Dakes, of Getes, and Sarmatans,
From bringing downe their bloudy bands
To thee (poore Rome) by Fortune ſpar'd
Whom fearefull Pompey durſt not gaurd.
So weakely mand, more bleſt art farre
With ciuill then with Forraigne warre.
Thus ſaid, forthwith he did inveſt
The Citty, then with feares poſſeſt:
For ſure they thought, that (in his ire)
All should haue beene conſum'd with fire,
And Temples ſhould to ruine runne,
As ſoone as hee the walles had wonne.
Such was the meaſure of their fright,
His will they conſtru'd by his might.
And in ſuch ſudden mazements weare,
That they their ſacred rites forbeare.
The common ſort to ſportings bent,
Their merry tunes turn'd to lament:
No ſpleen they had, their ſprights were ſpent
The Roman Fathers reuerend troope
In Phabus Pallace fitting, droope:
Not thither called at an houre,
By order of the Senates powre.
No Conſuls with their preſence grace
Their ſacred ſeates in ſupreme place.
Nor next to them the lawes to ſway
The Prator ſate in his array.
No Coches at the Senate gate,
That thither bring the Peeres of ſtate.
Caſar alone was all in all,
His priuate voyce the Court doth thrall.
The Fathers to his heſts giue way,
Rady his pleasure to obay.
Whether he Monarchy deſire,
Or would to ſacred rites aſpire:
Or liues of Senators would waſt,
Or them into exile would caſt.
But he (more modeſt and more milde)
Did blush his power ſhould be defil'd
More to command (with threatning feare)
Then well the Roman ſtate could beare.”
― Thomas May, Civil War

“Even those who lack tombs are covered by the sky.”
― Lucan, Civil War

“The winners had the gods. But the losers had Cato.”
― Lucan, Civil War

“No escape lies open; our countrymen surround us, 510 intent on having our throats. Resolve to die and all fear will dissolve. Desire what you can’t avoid.”
― Lucan, Civil War

“Unutterable are the things we fear, but soon our fears will be exceeded”
― Marcus Annaeus Lucanus, Civil War

“to plunge so deep takes more than any sword: such gaping wounds belong to civic hands.”
― Marcus Annaeus Lucanus, Civil War

“From Iolcus the sea was first challenged, when the untried Argo scorned the shore and brought together nations that before were strangers; she first matched mankind against the raging winds and waves of ocean, and by her means a new form of death was added to the old.”
― Lucan, Lucan: The Civil War

“Inde lacessitum primo mare, cum rudis Argo
Miscuit ignotas temerato litore gentes
Priamque cum ventis pelagique furentibus undis
Conposuit mortale genus, fatisque per ilam
Accesit mors una ratem.”
― Lucan, Lucan: The Civil War

“Sive parens rerum, cum primum informia regna
Materiamque rudem flamma cedente recpit,
Fixit in aeternum causas, qua cuncta coercet
Se quoque lege tenens, et saecula iussa ferentem
Fatorum inmoto divisit limite mundum;
Sive nihil positom est sed fors incerta vagatur
Fertque refertque vices, et habet mortalia casus:
Sit subitum, quodcumque paras; sit caeca future
Mens hominum fati; liceat sperare timenti.”
― Lucan, Lucan: The Civil War