Res Gestae

Ammianus Marcellinus

Ammianus Marcellinus. Ammianus Marcellinus, with an English translation, Vols. I-III. Rolfe, John C., translator. Cambridge, MA; London: Harvard University Press; W. Heinemann, 1935-1940 (printing).

On his first attack the king himself, with a troop of horsemen gleaming in full armour and

v2.p.43

himself towering above the rest, rode about the circuit of the camp, and with over-boldness advanced to the very edge of the trenches. But becoming the target of repeated missiles from the ballistae and of arrows, he was protected by a close array of shields placed side by side as in a tortoise-mantlet, and got away unhurt.

However, he suppressed his anger for the time being, and sending heralds in the usual manner, courteously urged the besieged, taking regard for their lives and their hope for the future, to put an end to the blockade by a timely surrender, unbar their gates and come forth, presenting themselves as suppliants to the conqueror of the nations.