Ac primo congressu eminus certabatur; simulque constantia, simul arte Britanni ingentibus gladiis et brevibus caetris missilia nostrorum vitare vel excutere, atque ipsi magnam vim telorum superfundere, donec Agricola quattuor Batavorum cohortes ac Tungrorum duas cohortatus est, ut rem ad mucrones ac manus adducerent; quod et ipsis vetustate militiae exercitatum et hostibus inhabile, parva scuta et enormes  gladios gerentibus; nam Britannorum gladii sine mucrone complexum armorum et in arto pugnam non tolerabant.
The battle began with fighting at long range; the Britons, with their long swords and short shields, showed determination and skill in evading or brushing aside the Roman missiles, while on their own side they launched dense volleys of spears; until Agricola ordered four battalions of Batavi and two of Tungri to bring things to the swords point and to hand-to-hand fighting; a manoeuvre familiar to them from long service and embarrassing to the enemy, whose shields were small and swords too long; for the British swords, without points, did not admit of locked lines and fighting at close quarters.
final_alignments\Tacitus_Agricola.json