Allusions and References
Variations of the sentence "Veni, vidi, vici" are often quoted in music, art, literature, and entertainment.
A quote attributed to King Jan III of Poland after the 17th-century Battle of Vienna—"Venimus, Vidimus, Deus vincit" ("We come, We see, God conquers")—is considered an allusion to the phrase.
The sentence lends itself to use in music, and has been used in several well-known works over the years, from the opening of Handel's 1724 opera Giulio Cesare: "Curio, Cesare venne, e vide e vinse (Curio, Caesar came, saw and conquered)", references in the 1940s song "These Foolish Things (Remind Me of You)" and a line ("You came, you saw, you conquered") from the title song of the musical Mame, through to modern times with such artists as Jay-Z (in "Encore"), Incubus (in "Beware! Criminal"), and The Hives (in Veni Vidi Vicious) still using references to the sentence.
There are also references in literature and film. In the poem "Veni, vidi, vixi" by French poet Victor Hugo, written after the death of his daughter Leopoldine at age 19 in 1843: the title means "I came, I saw, I lived", and the first verse is "J'ai bien assez vecu..." which could be translated as "I have already lived too long...". Peter Venkman, the protagonist in the 1984 film Ghostbusters, delivered a humorous variation on the phrase: "We came. We saw. We kicked its ass!" This line was among the 400 nominees for the AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes. Bartimaeus in Jonathan Stroud's The Golem's Eye says "Veni Vidi Vici" to Nathaniel after defeating the Afrit, Honorius.
The sentence prompted word play in 1987, when David Steadman named a newly-identified extinct species within the genus Vini: he named it the Conquered Lorikeet (Vini vidivici).
The phrase has been used as a motto by Philip Morris International, and also in a misspelled form ("Vini, Vidi, Vici"), by the United States Army Sniper School.
The sentence is used as slang by many modern teenagers, saying (Veni Vici Vidi) instead of the original as a euphemism for sex.
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