In hac nova historia regina non tam gloriam suam quam salutem civitatis quaerit.

Because the preposition in here means in / within a place, setting, or context, and with that meaning it takes the ablative.

So:

• in = in
• hac = this (ablative feminine singular)
• nova = new (ablative feminine singular)
• historia = story / history (ablative singular)

All three words agree with each other because hac and nova describe historia.

So in hac nova historia means in this new story or in this new history/account.

Because hac is the ablative feminine singular form of hic, haec, hoc (this).

Since historia is feminine singular, and since in here takes the ablative, the demonstrative also has to be ablative feminine singular:

• nominative: haec historia = this story
• ablative: in hac historia = in this story

So hac is used because the grammar requires the ablative.

This is a very common Latin comparison pattern. It means:

not so much ... as ...

In this sentence:

• non tam gloriam suam
• quam salutem civitatis

means:

not so much her own glory as the safety of the state

Latin often uses this structure where English might say:

• not so much X as Y
• less X than Y
• not X, but rather Y

It shows contrast, but not always a total rejection of the first idea. It often means that one thing matters less than the other.

Because both are objects connected with quaerit (seeks), and quaerere takes a direct object in the accusative.

So:

• gloriam suam = her own glory
• salutem civitatis = the safety of the state

The construction non tam ... quam ... contrasts two accusative objects of the same verb.

You can think of the sentence as:

• the queen seeks not so much her own glory
• as the safety of the state

Because suus, sua, suum is the reflexive possessive adjective. It refers back to the subject of the clause.

Here the subject is regina (the queen), so:

• gloriam suam = her own glory = the queen’s own glory

If Latin used eius, that would usually mean his/her/its referring to someone else, not back to the subject.

So:

• suam = her own
• eius = his/her, but someone else’s

That is an important distinction in Latin.

Civitatis is genitive singular of civitas.

The genitive often shows possession or close relationship, so here:

• salus = safety, welfare
• salus civitatis = the safety of the state/community/city

So civitatis depends on salutem and tells whose safety it is.

Depending on context, civitas can mean:

• state
• community
• body of citizens
• city-state

So salutem civitatis can be understood as the welfare of the state or the safety of the community.

Because regina is the subject of quaerit.

The sentence’s main verb is quaerit = she seeks, so the noun doing that action is in the nominative:

• regina = the queen

Even though it does not come first in the sentence, it is still the subject. Latin word order is much freer than English word order, so you have to rely more on endings than position.

Latin often puts the verb near the end of the sentence, especially in straightforward prose. That is a very common pattern, though it is not a strict rule.

So this sentence follows a very typical Latin order:

• setting: In hac nova historia
• subject: regina
• contrasted objects: non tam gloriam suam quam salutem civitatis
• verb: quaerit

English depends heavily on word order, but Latin can move words around more freely because the endings show their roles.

Quaerit is the 3rd person singular present active indicative of quaerere.

Here it means seeks.

Depending on context, quaerere can mean things like:

• seek
• look for
• aim at
• pursue
• inquire about

In this sentence, seeks or aims at works well, because the queen is pursuing one goal rather than another.

Because Latin has no definite or indefinite article.

So Latin does not have separate words for:

• the
• a / an

Whether a noun is understood as the queen, a queen, the state, or a state depends on context.

So:

• regina can mean queen, a queen, or the queen
• civitatis can mean of the state, of a state, of the community, and so on

When translating into English, you add the article that sounds natural.

Latin adjectives are more flexible in position than English adjectives.

So both of these are possible in Latin:

• suam gloriam
• gloriam suam

The meaning is the same: her own glory.

Latin word order often depends on style, emphasis, rhythm, or balance. Here gloriam suam fits neatly into the contrast with salutem civitatis.

Yes. Historia can mean several related things, depending on context:

• story
• history
• narrative
• account

So in hac nova historia might mean:

• in this new story
• in this new account
• in this new history

The exact English word depends on what kind of text you are reading.

Not exactly.

• non ... sed ... usually means not X but Y
• non tam ... quam ... means not so much X as Y

The second one is often a bit more nuanced. It does not always deny X completely; it says Y is more important or more truly the point.

So here the idea is not necessarily that the queen has no concern at all for her glory, but that she seeks the safety of the state more than her own glory.