Woodford's An Epitome of Part of Caesar's Commentaries

Julius Caesar - Rubens

Edward Woodford published his Epitome Caesaris in 1834. This text is from the 1848 edition. Using Book I, and then the invasions of Britain from Books IV and V of the Julius Caesar's Gallic Wars, Edward Woodford first ruthlessly pruned subordinate clauses, participial and infinitive phrases, and sentences that do not directly support the main thread of Caesar's history. As the text advances through theses passages, Woodford slowly begins to add these features back as students becomes more accustomed to structure and vocabulary of Caesar's sentences. For advanced students, these stories can be read directly after they finish Ritchie's Fabulae Faciles and serve as an ideal bridge to authentic, unchanged Classical Latin.


Note: Commentary 2 primarily consists of dialogue between Caesar, the Gauls, and Ariovistus. Because I have found that dialogue proves to be both difficult and confusing for my students, I have skipped making this commentary for the immediate future.

Important: These commentaries are meant to be used in conjunction with The 200. A list of the two hundred most common Latin words as found at Dickinson College Commentaries.


Part 1 - The Helvetian Campaign

Part 2 - The War with Ariovistus

Part 3 - The First Invasion of Britain

Part 4 - The Second Invasion of Britain