The town wall was 1200 paces distant from the plain and foot of the ascent, in a straight line, if no gap intervened;
Oppidi murus ab planitie atque initio ascensus recta regione, si nullus anfractus intercederet, MCC passus aberat:
whatever circuit was added to this ascent, to make the hill easy, increased the length of the route.
quidquid huc circuitus ad molliendum clivum accesserat, id spatium itineris augebat.
But almost in the middle of the hill, the Gauls had previously built a wall six feet high, made of large stones, and extending in length as far as the nature of the ground permitted, as a barrier to retard the advance of our men; and leaving all the lower space empty, they had filled the upper part of the hill, as far as the wall of the town, with their camps very close to one another.
A medio fere colle in longitudinem, ut natura montis ferebat, ex grandibus saxis sex pedum murum qui nostrorum impetum tardaret praeduxerant Galli, atque inferiore omni spatio vacuo relicto superiorem partem collis usque ad murum oppidi densissimis castris compleverant.
The soldiers, on the signal being given, quickly advance to this fortification, and passing over it, make themselves masters of the separate camps.
Milites dato signo celeriter ad munitionem perveniunt eamque transgressi trinis castris potiuntur;
And so great was their activity in taking the camps, that Teutomarus, the king of the Nitiobriges, being suddenly surprised in his tent, as he had gone to rest at noon, with difficulty escaped from the hands of the plunderers, with the upper part of his person naked, and his horse wounded.
ac tanta fuit in castris capiendis celeritas, ut Teutomatus, rex Nitiobrigum, subito in tabernaculo oppressus, ut meridie conquieverat, superiore corporis parte nudata vulnerato equo vix se ex manibus praedantium militum eriperet.