A message and a later departure
A study group receives this newly composed Latin example: „Postquam nuntius venit, cives portas clauserunt. Legati, qui in foro manebant, consilium audiverunt.“ It is an instructional passage, not a quotation attributed to Caesar or another ancient author. The group is asked to explain the order of events, identify the subjects of the main verbs and translate the relative clause. One learner reads nuntius as the subject of clauserunt because it appears earlier in the passage. Another assumes that the envoys closed the gates because they were standing in the forum. A third adds that the messenger brought news of an enemy army, although the passage supplies no such information. The exercise requires a defensible translation and a distinction between explicit information and an imagined historical narrative.
1. Identify the subjects and the sequence established by the text.
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Nuntius is the subject of venit; cives is the plural subject of clauserunt. The citizens closed the gates after the messenger arrived. Legati is the subject of audiverunt. The text does not state the content of the messenger’s news or prove that the envoys closed anything.
2. Explain qui in foro manebant and translate the second sentence.
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Qui is nominative masculine plural, referring to legati and serving as subject of manebant. A natural translation is: The envoys, who were remaining in the forum, heard the plan or proposal. Consilium needs the contextual sense, not an invented assembly.