A day in the life of a Roman soldier - Robert Garland

Translator: Preliterate Prenumeric Reviewer: Nika Kotnik

The year is 15 CE and the Roman Empire is prospering.

Smo v letu 15 n.št. in Rimskemu imperiju gre odlično.

Most of the credit will go to the emperor,

Zasluge si lasti predvsem cesar,

but this success wouldn’t have been possible

toda ne bi mu uspelo

without loyal soldiers like Servius Felix.

brez zvestih vojakov kot je Servius Felix.

Servius enlisted as a legionary eight years ago at age 18,

Servius je vstopil v vojsko kot legionar pred osmimi leti, ko je jih dopolnil 18.

the son of a poor farmer with few prospects.

Sin obubožanega kmeta ni imel velike izbire.

Unlike the majority of legionaries, he doesn’t gamble,

Za razliko od večine vojakov, ne zapravlja denarja za igre na srečo.

so he’s been able to save most of his wages.

Zato je prihranil večino zaslužka.

He’s even kept his viaticum,

Še vedno ima tudi viaticum,

the three gold coins he received when he enlisted.

tri zlatnike, ki jih dobijo vojaki ob vstopu.

If he survives until retirement, he’ll receive several acres of land.

Na koncu vojaščine, če preživi, bo dobil več akrov zemlje.

And he’s grown rather fond of a girl back home

Doma je zagledan v dekle,

whom he intends to marry.

ki jo želi za ženo.

But he’ll have to wait until he completes his 25 years of service

Po koncu vojaške službe, ki traja 25 let,

before that can happen.

ga čaka vse to.

And the life of a legionary is dangerous and grueling.

Življenje poklicnega vojaka je nevarno in izčpavajoče.

Today, Servius’s legion, along with three others,

Danes je njegova legija s še tremi legijami,

has undertaken a “great march” of 30,000 Roman paces,

prehodila "veliki marš" 30.000 Rimskih 'dvojnih korakov'

the equivalent of nearly 36 kilometers.

ali približno 36 km.

Servius’s armor and weapons,

Vojaška obleka, ki jo nosi, in orožje,

including his gladius,

vključno z mečem,

scutum,

ščitom,

and two pila,

in dvema sulicama,

weigh over 20 kilograms.

tehta čez 20 kg.

And that’s not counting his backpack, or sarcina,

Prišteti pa je treba še nahrbtnik (sarcina),

which contains food and all the tools he needs to help build the camp –

v katerem nosi hrano in orodje za postavljanje kampa -

spade,

saw,

motiko,

žago,

pickaxe,

kramp

and basket.

in košaro.

Although Servius is exhausted, he won’t sleep much tonight.

Čeprav je Servius izčrpan, se nocoj ne bo mogel naspati.

He’s been assigned the first watch,

Določen je bil za stražo,

which means looking after the baggage animals

paziti mora na domače živali

and keeping alert against a possible ambush.

in na morebitno sovražno zasedo.

After he’s done, he lies awake, dreading the day ahead,

Na koncu, ko leže, ga je groza naslednjega dne,

which will force him to recall his worst nightmare.

ki ga bo spomnil na najhujšo moro.

At dawn, Servius eats breakfast with his seven tent companions.

Ob zori zajtrkuje še s sedmimi tovariši, ki si delijo šotor.

They’re like a family, all bearing scars from the battles they’ve fought together.

Zanj so kot družina, z brazgotinami iz bitk, ki so jih skupaj bili.

Servius is from Italia,

Servus je iz Italije,

but his fellow soldiers hail from all over the empire,

njegovi tovariši pa iz raznih delov imperija,

which stretches from Syria to Spain.

ki se razteza od Sirije do Španije.

So they’re all far from home in the northern land of Germania.

Nahajajo se daleč od doma, v severni Germaniji.

Servius’s legion and three others with him today

Servusiova legija in še tri ostale, ki so tudi tukaj,

are under the command of Emperor Tiberius’s nephew Germanicus,

so pod poveljstvom nečaka cesarja Tiberiusa, ki nosi ime

named for his father’s military successes against the Germanic tribes.

po očetovih zmagah nad Germanskimi plemeni - Germanicus.

Each legion has close to 5,000 men,

Ena legija ima skoraj 5000 mož,

divided into cohorts of about 500,

razdeljenih v kohorte po 500,

further subdivided into centuries of around 80-100 men.

dalje razdeljeni v centurije po 80 do 100 mož.

Each century is commanded by a centurion.

Vsaka centurija je pod poveljstvom centuriona.

An aquilifer, or eagle-bearer, marches at the head of each legion

Aquiliifer, nosilec orla, hodi na začetku legije

carrying its eagle standard.

in nosi znak orla.

The centurions march beside the legionaries belting out orders,

Centurioni hodijo ob vojakih in kričijo:

“Dex, sin, dex, sin,"

"Dex, sin, dex, sin."

“Right, left, right, left,"

"Desna, leva, desna, leva."

starting with the right foot as the left is considered unlucky or sinister.

Začenjajo z desno, ker leva ne prinaša sreče.

Despite the strict discipline, there’s tension in the air.

Kljub strogi disciplini, je čutiti napetost v zraku.

Last year, some legions in the area revolted,

Lani so se nekatere legije uprle in zahtevale

demanding better pay and a cut in the length of service.

večjo plačo in krajše služenje.

Only their general’s charisma and negotiating skills

General in njegova karizma in pogajalska spretnost

prevented wholesale mutiny.

sta preprečila nasilni upor.

Today is a “just march,” only 30 kilometers.

Danes je "samo pohod", 30 kilometrov.

As the marshes and forests of Germania lie beyond the empire’s road system

Nemško nižavje v Germaniji nima Rimskih cest,

the men must build causeways and bridges to make headway—

zato morajo vojaki nasipavati poti in graditi mostove -

something they’ve recently spent more time doing than fighting.

kar jim jemlje več časa kot spopadi.

Finally, they arrive at their destination, a place Servius knows too well.

Končno prispejo na cilj, kraj, ki ga Servius dobro pozna.

It’s a clearing on the outskirts of the Teutoburg Forest,

Gre za jaso na robu Teutoburškega gozda.

where six years ago, during the reign of the Emperor Augustus,

Tam je pred šestimi leti imperij pod Augustom

Germanic tribes under their chieftain Arminius

doživel poraz v bitki proti Germanom pod vodstvom Arminiusa,

ambushed and destroyed three legions.

ki je iz zasede potolkel tri legije.

Proceeding along a narrow path,

Med pohodom po ozki stezi

the legions were attacked from forest cover under torrential rain

so legije presenetili iz bližnjega gozda med nevihto,

with their escape blocked.

in jim preprečili izhod.

It was one of the worst defeats the Romans ever suffered

To je bil en najhujših Rimskih porazov

and Augustus never lived it down.

in August ga ni prebolel.

Servius was one of the few survivors.

Servius je bil en redkih preživelih.

Servius still has nightmares of his comrades lying where they fell.

Še vedno se mu v morah prikazujejo tovariši, ki ležijo, kjer so padli.

But now the army is back to bury the dead with full military honors.

Vrnili so se, da z vsemi častmi pokopljejo mrtve tovariše.

As he helps in the task,

Ko zbira kosti, se sprašuje

he can’t help wondering whether the bones he handles belonged to someone he knew.

ali ima v roki kost koga, ki ga je poznal.

Several times he wants to weep aloud, but he pushes on with the task.

Večkrat skoraj že na glas zajoka, a nadaljuje z delom.

The glory of the Empire can go to the crows.

Imperij lahko gre k vragu.

All he craves is to retire on a small farm with his wife-to-be,

Ko bi že lahko dobil malo kmetijo in tam živel z bodočo ženo,

if the gods should spare his life for 17 more years.

če mu bogovi naklonijo še 17 let.