Darius, since it was under his protection, that 513. come acquainted with ourselves; to know what we really are, not only in the sight of men, but also in the sight of God. Megabyzus continued some time in Thrace, whose inhabitants, according to Herodotus, would have been invincible, had they possessed the discretion of uniting their forces, and of choosing one commander. Being however divided, they were subdued one by one, and brought under the yoke of Persia. Some of the tribes, as the Pæonians, the Syropæonians, the Pæoplæ, etc., were removed from their habitations, at the command of Darius, and transported to Asia. Darius, on his return to Sardis, having learned that he owed his safety to Hystiæus, who had persuaded the Ionians not to destroy the bridge on the Danube, sent for him, and desired him to name what reward he wished for his services. Hystiæus, who was tyrant of Miletus, requested Mircina of Edonia, a territory upon the river Strymon in Thrace, with the liberty of building a city there. His request was granted, and he was proceeding with his designs, when, upon the representations of Megabyzus, he was recalled, under the plea of seeking his counsel in some great matter, and with a promise of ample possessions in Persia, in lieu of those in Thrace. Herodotus relates an instance of wanton cruelty Hystiæus, pleased with this distinction, accomcommitted by Darius, on his departure for Scy-panied Darius to Susa, leaving Aristagoras, his thia, which well deserved such a disastrous issue. Oebazus, a Persian, who had three sons serving in the army, petitioned the monarch that one of them might be left at home. The king replied, that since he was a friend, and had made a modest request, he would leave him all his sons. Oebazus was rejoiced, and hoped that they would be discharged from the service; but Darius ordered them to be slain, and delivered to the parent. And yet this same prince soon after set up an inscription to this effect: "Darius, son of Hystaspes, the best, and fairest of all men, king of the Persians, and of all the continent, in his expedition against the Scythians, came hither to the springs of the river Tearus, which afford the best and fairest water of all rivers." Plutarch pertinently remarks, "What made Nero erect his tragic theatre, and wear the mask and buskins as an actor, but the plaudits of adulators? Were not kings in general styled, while they sang, Apollos? while drunk, Bacchuses? while wrestling at the games, Hercules? and, delighting in these titles, led on by flattery to the lowest depravity." Thus it was with the kings of Persia. Their courtiers spoiled them by their base and gross adulation, and by it they were led to commit the most fearful crimes without compunction, and without fear of restraint; so true it is, that flattery and indulgence make the passions eager and ungovernable. Flattery is, indeed, a most base disposition. It often betrays a man to his ruin, and it declares the man who covets it totally unconcerned about the misery or welfare of his brother. The cynic Diogenes, being asked what beasts were apt to bite the worst, answered, "Of all wild beasts, the detractor; and of all tame beasts, the flatterer." In a word, flattery is an ensnaring quality, and leaves a dangerous impression on the mind, against which we should carefully guard. One of the chief objects of our lives should be, to be son, to govern in Miletus. Having subjected Thrace, Megabyzus sent seven Persian noblemen to Amyntas, king of Macedon, to require earth and water in the name of Darius, as a token of his submission to that monarch. Amyntas complied with their request, and entertained them hospitably; but the conduct of the Persians towards his wife and daughters so enraged his son Alexander, that, by a stratagem, he caused them to be slain. Search was made by Megabyzus for these ambassadors, but Alexander having bribed Bubares, who was sent to inquire after them, with large presents, their death was concealed, and the matter glossed over. About the same time, B.c. 508, the Scythians, to be revenged on Darius for invading their country, passed the Danube, and laid waste the country of Thrace, under the government of Persia, as far as the Hellespont. They returned home laden with booty, without meeting any opposition either from the Persians or the Thracians. During this period, Darius appears to have paid considerable attention to maritime affairs. He finished a canal of communication between the Nile and the head of the Red Sea, which had been commenced by Pharaoh-Necho, but failed, after a great loss of life among the workmen. According to Rennell, this canal, with others made by Ptolemy Philadelphus, Adrian, and the caliph Omar afterwards, were more for ostentation than use. They soon, at least, became unnavigable, either from the failure of the Pelusiac, or eastern branch of the Nile, which supplied them with water, or from the stoppage of their outlet at the head of the Red Sea, and by the operation of the tides. About the same time, Darius, ambitious of extending his conquests eastwards, resolved to obtain a proper knowledge of the country. For this purpose, he employed Syclax, and other able navigators, on a voyage of discovery down the river Indus to its mouth. From this point they coasted westwards, along the Persian Gulf, and after a voyage of two years and a half, they reached the port on the Red Sea from which the Phenicians, employed in the circumnavigation of Africa, had set out about a hundred years before. From thence Syclax returned to Susa, where he gave Darius an account of his discoveries. After this, says Herodotus, Darius subdued the Indians, and became master of the ocean, which probably means no more than that he possessed himself of the tract adjacent to the Indus and its branches. History does not record the particulars of this expedition. According to the Greek historians, the latter part of the reign of Darius was turbulent, and embarrassed both abroad and at home. In the seventeenth year of his reign, B.C. 504, from a small spark, kindled by a sedition at Naxos, (which, according to Hawkins, is the largest and most circular of all the Cyclades in the Ægean Sea,) a flame arose, which occasioned a considerable war. In this sedition, the principal inhabitants, being overpowered by the populace, were banished the island. They fled to Miletus, and implored the assistance of Aristagoras, who was at that time governor of that city, as lieutenant to Hystiæus, to whom he was both nephew and son-in-law. Aristagoras promised to restore the exiles to their native country; but not being powerful enough to accomplish his design alone, he went to Sardis, and communicated the matter to Artaphernes, the king's brother, who governed in that city, in order to obtain his assistance. He represented to Artaphernes, that if he were once master of that island, all the rest of the Cyclades might be brought under subjection; that the isle of Euboea, now Negropont, which was as large as Cyprus, and lay very near them, would be easily conquered; and that from thence Darius would have a free passage into Greece. He concluded by saying that 100 ships would be sufficient for the enterprize. Artaphernes was pleased with the project, and promised 200 ships, if the king's consent could be gained. In this matter there was no difficulty. Charmed with the mighty hopes held out, and regardless of the injustice of the enterprize, as well as of the perfidy of Aristagoras and Artaphernes, the king approved of the project, and preparations were made for putting it into execution. goras. During the next spring, B.C. 503, Artaphernes sent the number of ships he had promised to Miletus, under the command of Megabates, a noble Persian, of the Achæmenian family. The order Megabates received was, to obey AristaThis gave him great offence, and led to a breach between the two generals; and Megabates, to be revenged of Aristagoras, gave the Naxians secret intelligence of the design formed against them. They prepared for their defence, and the Persians, after having spent four months in besieging the capital of the island, and consumed all their provisions, were compelled to retire. This project having thus miscarried, Megabates threw all the blame upon Aristagoras, and ruined his credit with Artaphernes. Aristagoras foresaw the loss of his government, and his own ruin, and he resolved upon a revolt, as the only expedient whereby he could save himself. His design was seconded by the secret counsel of Hystiæus, who, imagining that if any troubles should arise in Ionia, he should be sent to quell them, took this step in order to be restored to his native country. Arist goras, therefore, after having communicated his designs to the principal persons of Ionia, began to prepare for the revolt with great activity. At this date, B.C. 502, the people of Tyre, who had been reduced to slavery, when their city was taken by Nebuchadnezzar, having groaned under that oppression for seventy years, were restored, according to Isaiah's prophecy, to the possession of their ancient privileges, with the liberty of having a king of their own, which liberty they enjoyed till the time of Alexander the Great. The prophecy reads thus : "And it shall come to pass after the end of seventy years, That the Lord will visit Tyre, And she shall turn to her hire, And shall commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world Upon the face of the earth. It seems probable, that this favour was granted them by Darius, in consideration of the services he expected to receive from the Tyrians, who were powerful at sea, in reducing the Ionians to their ancient subjection. The next year, B. C. 501, Aristagoras reinstated the Ionians in their liberty, and in all their former privileges. He began with Miletus, where he divested himself of his power, and resigned it into the hands of the people. He then travelled through Ionia, where, by his example and influence, he prevailed upon all the other petty princes, or, as the Greeks then called them, 66 tyrants," to do the same. Having thus united them all into one common league, of which he himself was the acknowledged leader, he openly revolted from Darius. To strengthen himself the more against the Persians, in the beginning of the following year, he went to Lacedæmon to engage that city in his interest. He made tempting offers to Cleomenes, who was at that time king of Lacedæmon; but Cleomenes was proof against them, and declined sending him any succours. Aristagoras then proceeded to Athens, and the Athenians being at this time at variance with the Persians, for having shown favour to Hippias, the son of Pisistratus, tyrant of Athens, whom they had exiled ten years before, availed themselves of this opportunity of revenge, and ordered a fleet of twenty ships to be sent to the assistance of the Ionians. In the year B.C. 500, the Ionians, having collected their forces, and being reinforced with these twenty vessels, and five more from Eretria, in the island of Euboea, set sail for Ephesus, and leaving their ships there, they marched by land to Sardis. The city was soon taken, and an Ionian soldier having set fire to one house, the flames spread and communicated to the rest: most of them being built with reeds, the whole city was reduced to ashes. The citadel only, into which Artaphernes had fled, escaped the general conflagration. to the Panionium.* The result of their deliberations was, that the people of Miletus should vigorously defend their city; that the allies should provide and equip every vessel in their power; and that as soon as their fleet should be in readiness, they should meet at Lada,† and risk a battle in favour of Miletus. The Ionians assembled at Lada, as had been After this accident, the Persians and Lydians appointed, and so vigorous had they been in their assembling their forces together for their defence, preparations, that they had collected a fleet of 353 sail. At the sight of this fleet, the Persians, the Ionians retreated, in order to re-embark at Ephesus; but before they had reached that city, though double their number, were afraid to join they were overtaken by the enemy, and defeated issue, till by their emissaries they had secretly with great slaughter. The Athenians, who es- corrupted the greatest part of the confederates, caped, immediately set sail, and returned home; and engaged them to desert the common cause. and notwithstanding the urgent solicitations of The defection took place at the commencement Aristagoras, they would not return to the combat. of the engagement; the Samians and Lesbians, Darius being informed of these proceedings, with others, hoisting_sail, returned to their reenraged with the Athenians for the part they spective countries. The remaining fleet of the confederates did not consist of above 100 ships, had taken, resolved from that time to make war upon Greece. Shooting an arrow into the air, and these were quickly overpowered by the Perhe exclaimed, "Suffer me, O Jove, to be re-sians, and almost entirely destroyed. After this, venged on these Athenians." And that his the city of Miletus was besieged, and became a revenge might not slumber, he commanded one prey to the conquerors, who levelled it with the of his attendants to repeat to him three times ground. every day, when he sat down to table, "Remember the Athenians." A wiser admonition, and more conducive to the happiness of the monarch, would have been the following sentiment, so well expressed by one of our own poets "Bid o'er revenge the charities prevail."-CAWTHORN. In the burning of Sardis, the temple of Cybele, the tutelar goddess of that country, was totally destroyed, which was afterwards used as a pretence by the Persians for burning the temples of the Greeks. Their true motive will fall under observation in a future page. The Ionians, though deserted by the Athenians, and weakened by their late overthrow, nevertheless pursued their point with great resolution. Their fleet sailed towards the Hellespont and the Propontis, where they reduced Byzantium, and most of the other Greek cities on those coasts. As they returned, they obliged the Carians to join with them in this war; the people of Cyprus likewise entered into the confederacy, and openly revolted from the Persians. The Persian generals, however, having divided their forces, marched three different ways against the rebels, and defeated them in several encounters, in one of which Aristagoras was slain: the island of Cyprus was again subjected to the Persians. According to the expectations of Hystiæus, he was sent back to Ionia, in order to restore the king's affairs in that province. No sooner, however, had he arrived at Sardis, than he formed a plot against the government, into which he drew a great number of Persians. For fear of detection, he retired to the isle of Chios, where by artifice he justified himself to the Ionians, and engaged them to prosecute the war with vigour. The generals of the Persian forces, finding that Miletus was the centre of the Ionian confederacy, resolved to march thither with all their forces. When the Ionians received intelligence of this armament, which not only menaced Miletus, but the rest of Ionia, they sent delegates This event occurred six years after the revolt of Aristagoras. All the other cities that had revolted returned to their allegiance soon after, either voluntarily, or by compulsion. Those that opposed the victors were treated in a barbarous manner. The handsomest of their youths were made eunuchs; the young women were sent into Persia; and the cities and temples were reduced to ashes. Such were the effects of the revolt of the Ionians, a revolt into which the people had been drawn by the ambition of two designing men, Aristagoras and Hystiæus. When Hystiæus was soon after taken by the Persians, and carried to Sardis, where he was crucified by order of Artaphernes, who hastened his end without consulting Darius, lest his affection for him should incline him to mercy. The conjecture of Artaphernes was well grounded. the head of Hystiæus was brought to Darius, he expressed his displeasure at the act, and caused it to be honourably interred, as the remains of one to whom he owed great obligations. Hystiæus was the most bold, restless, and enterprising With him all means were genius of his age. good and lawful that served to promote the end he had in view, acknowledging no other rule of his actions than his own interest and ambition, to which he was ever ready to sacrifice the good of his country, and even his own kindred. In the page of history, his name stands forth as a witness It is supposed that the Panionium here mentioned suggested to Milton the idea of his Pandemonium: "Meanwhile the winged heralds by command + According to Pausanias, this island was divided into two, one of which parts was called Asterius, from Asterius, the son of Anactes. At the present period, by the alluvions of the Meander, it is joined to the main land, and is a full mile within the margin of the sea; so that the Latinicus Sinus is become an inland lake, seven or eight miles distant from the sea. to the truths that human nature, uncontrolled by, a Divine power, is capable of committing the most fearful deeds; that man is very far departed from original righteousness. The flame of revenge, which had been long smouldering in the breast of Darius, at length burst forth. In the twenty-eighth year of his reign, B. C. 494, having recalled all his other generals, he appointed Mardonius, the son of Gobryas, a young Persian nobleman who had lately married one of his daughters, to the command in chief throughout all the maritime parts of Asia, with a particular order to invade Greece, and to revenge the burning of Sardis upon the Athenians and Eretrians. Mardonius, pursuant to his orders, marched through Thrace into Macedonia, ordering his fleet first to reduce Thasus, and then to coast along the shore, that they might act in concert with each other. On his arrival in Macedonia, all the country took the alarm at such a mighty army, and submitted; but the fleet, in doubling the cape at Mount Athos, now called Cape Santo, was dispersed by a storm; 300 ships, and 20,000 men perished in the mighty waters. His land army met at the same time with a misfortune no less fatal. Being encamped in a place not sufficiently secured, the Bryges,* a people of Thrace, attacked him under cover of the night, broke into his camp, and wounded Mardonius himself. These misfortunes obliged him to return into Asia, from whence he was soon after recalled by Darius. Darius, perceiving too late that the inexperience of Mardonius had occasioned the defeat of his troops, put two other generals in his place, namely, Datis, a Mede, and Artaphernes, son of his brother Artaphernes, who had been governor of Sardis. Before, however, he made any farther attempts upon Greece, he deemed it politic first to sound the Greeks, to discover how these different states stood affected to, or were averse from the Persian government. With this view, he sent heralds to all their cities, to demand earth and water, in token of submission. On the arrival of these heralds, many of the Greek cities, dreading the power of the Persians, complied with their demands, as did all the inhabitants of Ægina, a small island near Athens. At Athens and Sparta, the heralds met with a different reception. One of them was thrown into a well, and the other into a deep ditch, and were bid to take thence earth and water. This they did under the influence of anger. When that was passed, they were ashamed of the transaction, looking upon it as a violation of the law of nations; and they accordingly sent ambassadors to the king of Persia at Susa, to offer him what satisfaction he pleased for the affront they had put upon his heralds. But Darius, declaring himself satisfied with the embassy, sent the ambassadors back to their respective countries, though those of Sparta voluntarily offered themselves as victims, to expiate the crime of which their countrymen had been guilty. This incident affords an excellent lesson on that sinful passion, anger, which has been justly characterized by an ancient sage as a "short madness." Reader, beware of doing irrevocable These Bryges were probably the Phrygians. acts in thy passion. The hair of Samson grew again, but his eyes no more drank in the blessed light of heaven. Time may restore some losses, but others are never to be repaired. Do not, therefore, in an instant what an age cannot recompense. An old divine has said, "As a good man would not wish to be taken out of the world in a fit of anger, into that place which is all peace and quietness, so he should never indulge passion, lest he should die in that state." "Be all mad rage, all anger then resigned, hastened the departure of his generals, Datis and Bent upon the reduction of Greece, Darius Artaphernes. Their instructions were, to plunder the cities of Eretria and Athens, to burn down to the ground all their houses and temples, and to make all the inhabitants slaves, and to send them to Darius; for which purpose they were provided with a great number of chains and fetters. their fleet to meet at Samos, set sail from thence The generals having appointed with 600 ships, and an army of 500,000 men. After having made themselves masters of the islands in the Egean Sea, which they did without difficulty, they turned their course towards Eretria, a city of Eubea, which they took, after a siege of seven days, by the treachery of some city to ashes, put all the inhabitants in chains, of the principal inhabitants. They reduced the and sent them to Persia, and then sailed for Attica. When the Persians had arrived at Attica, Hippias, of whom mention has before been made, conducted them to Marathon. In order to strike terror into the citizens of Athens, they sent heralds from thence to acquaint them with the fate of Eretria, hoping thereby to induce them to surrender immediately. It had the contrary effect. Despair inspired them with courage, and not being able to gain assistance from their allies, except 1000 men from Platea, they armed their slaves, which was contrary to their usual practice. The Persian army commanded by Datis consisted of 100,000 foot, and 10,000 horse; that of the Athenians amounted in the whole but to 10,000 men. It was commanded by ten generals, of whom Miltiades was chief, and these ten were to have the command of the whole army, each for a day, in rotation. There was a division among the generals whether they should hazard a battle, or simply fortify and defend the city. Miltiades argued that the only way to raise the courage of their own troops, and strike terror attack them with intrepidity. Aristides, coninto the enemy, was to advance fearlessly, and vinced by this argument, embraced the opinion, and brought over to it some of the other comall that it would be wise to engage the enemy in manders; and eventually it was agreed upon by the open field; and under this feeling, the conduct of the battle was yielded to Miltiades. Thus all sentiments of jealousy gave way to the love of the public good: this was noble, and it resulted in the redemption of their country from Persian domination. The distance of Marathon from Athens is about twenty-four miles. Although honoured with the general command, Miltiades would not engage in battle till his own day for governing arrived. When that day came, he endeavoured by the advantage of the ground to make up for his deficiency in strength and number. He drew up his army at the foot of a mountain, that the enemy should neither be able to surround him, nor charge him in the rear. On the two sides of his army he caused large trees to be thrown, in order to cover his flanks, and render the Persian cavalry useless. Datis, the commander of the Persians, was sensible that the place was not advantageous for him; but relying upon the number of his troops, he determined to sustain a battle. All things being disposed, and the sacrifice, according to the custom of the Greeks, performed, Miltiades commanded the signal to be given for battle. Betwixt the two armies there was an interval of about eight furlongs; and the Persians seeing the Athenians approach by running, prepared to receive them as men devoted to destruction. As soon, however, as the Greeks mingled with the enemy, they discovered that they were no mean foes.* After a long and obstinate contest, the barbarians in the centre, composed of the Persians and the Sacæ, obliged the Greeks to give way, and pursued the flying foe into the middle of the country. At the same time, however, the Athenians and Platæans, who were in the two wings, having defeated the wings of the enemy, came up to the relief of the centre, and obtained a complete victory, killing a prodigious number, and pursuing the rest to the sea, where they set fire to the vessels. It was on this occasion that Cynægirus, brother of the celebrated tragic poet, Eschylus, who had laid hold of one of the ships in order to get into it with those that fled, had his right hand cut off, and was drowned; of which we find a similar example in Lucan: "He, the bold youth, as board and board they stand, Amongst those that were slain on the side of the Greeks were Callimachus and Stasileus, two of their chief commanders. They had not above 200 men killed on their side in this engagement; whereas on the side of the Persians about 6000 fell, besides those who were drowned in their • Xenophon relates, that the Athenians made a vow to sacrifice to Diana as many goats as they should kill enemies; and being unable to procure a sufficient number, they determined every year to sacrifice 500. Elian relates the same fact with some slight variation; and we read in the Scholiast on Aristophanes, that Callimachus, one of the Athenian generals, vowed to sacrifice as many oxen as they should slay enemies; and unable to obtain a sufficient number, he substituted goats in their room. Herodotus is silent on this matter, for which he is blamed by Plutarch. The account which Xenophon gives is, however, the most probable; for Callimachus being killed in the battle, could not have performed a vow. attempts to escape, and those that were consumed in their burning ships.† The Greeks, moreover, obtained possession of seven of the enemy's vessels. Hippias was killed in the battle. That perfidious citizen, in order to recover the unjust dominion usurped by his father, Pisistratus, over the Athenians, had put himself at the head of those who were come with a design to reduce to ashes that city to which he owed his birth. An ignominious death, with lasting infamy entailed upon his name, was the result of his treachery. The Persians had considered victory so sure, that they had brought marble to Marathon, in order to erect a trophy. The Grecians took this marble, and caused a statue to be made of it by Phidias, in honour of the goddess Nemesis, whose business, it was supposed, was to punish injustice and oppression, and who had a temple near Marathon. Plutarch relates, that immediately after the battle, an Athenian soldier, stained with blood, hastened to Athens, to acquaint his fellow-citizens with the success of their army at Marathon. When he arrived at the public palace, where the magistrates were assembled, he was so spent that, having uttered these words, "Rejoice, the victory is ours!" he fell down, and expired. The news of this victory spread a general joy throughout the nations around, to which the poet Wordsworth has a fine allusion: "When far and wide, swift as the beams of morn, Instead of sailing by the islands, the Persian fleet, in order to return to Asia, doubled the cape of Sunium, with the design of surprising Athens before the Athenian forces should arrive to its defence. The latter, however, had the precaution to march thither with nine tribes, to secure their country, and these performed the march with so much expedition, that they arrived there the same day, and the designs of the Persians were frustrated. This battle occurred B. c. 490. The Lacedæmonians had promised assistance to the Athenians, but they were hindered by a ridiculous superstition from taking a part in the action. Mankind, in all ages of the world, from observing the visible operations of the moon upon the ocean, have supposed its influence to It was between the foot of the Agherlichi and the Charadrus mountains that Miltiades ranged his troops. The Persians being driven across the Charadrus by the Greeks, the whole body made for the defile, where the only passage afforded was hardly broad enough to admit of two persons abreast of each other. Every attempt to escape in this direction was impossible, as the sea or the swamp interposed to prevent it. The consequence of such an attempt is obvious; and hence it follows, that the vast loss of the Persians was as much owing to their ignorance of the existence of this swamp, and defile leading to it, as to the valour of the Greeks. |