King Tarquinius Superbus wages war with the neighbouring peoples. When he comes up against stiff opposition from the town of Gabii he adopts a different tactic...

Task 1: try and match these key terms that characterise Tarquin with their English translation.

Task 2: Now match the same Latin terms with additional Latin that is paired with them in the passage.

When you have finished translating and discussing this passage, you should be able to answer the following:

1. How does Livy undermine the potential positives of Tarquin’s reign in the first paragraph?

2. except deinde … adgressus est. How does Livy show the twists and turns of this war in just one sentence?

3. What crimes of his father does Sextus report to the people of Gabii?

4. How does Sextus use the following to convince the people of Gabii to take him in?

i) Gabii’s fear of his father;

ii) the tradition of guest friendship;

iii) his next options;

iv) the opportunity he has to offer them.