held the office of archon, and was made the supreme tribunal in all capital cases. It was likewise intrusted with the superintendence of morals, with the censorship upon the conduct of the archons at the expiration of their office; and it had besides the privilege of amending or rescinding the measures that had passed the general assemblies of the people.

Soon after this constitution was established, Sólon was sent as a deputy to the Amphictyon'ic council at Delphi, and had no small share in stimulating that body to undertake the first sacred war against the Crisséans who had invaded the sacred territories, and not only ravaged the country, but even plundered the shrine of Apollo. The war was protracted ten years; but it terminated in the final destruction of the Crisséan community, and the dedication of their territory to the deity whose temple they had sacrilegiously plundered (B. c. 590). The termination of the war was celebrated by the revival of the Pythian games, which had been discontinued during the contest.

Scarcely had the liberties of Athens been established, when they were again subverted by the usurpation of Peisis'tratus. Like Sólon, the usurper was descended from the ancient kings of Athens. He was also possessor of an enormous fortune, which he distributed to the poor with lavish munificence. His generosity, his eloquence, and his courteous manners, won for him universal favor: but he had the art to persuade the lower ranks of his countrymen, that his popularity had rendered him odious to the nobles, and that the protection of a body-guard was necessary to the safety of his life. Scarcely had this been granted, when he seized on the Acrop'olis, and made himself absolute master of Athens (B. c. 561). Sólon refused the usurper's offers of favor and protection he went into voluntary exile, and died, or at least was buried, at Salamis. Meg'acles, the chief of the powerful family of the Alcmæon'idæ, retired, with all his attendants and political friends, beyond the boundaries of At'tica; but he entered into a secret intrigue with Lycurgus, the chief of another faction, and by their joint efforts Peisis'tratus was driven into exile about twelve months after he had obtained the sovereignty.

Meg'acles soon quarrelled with Lycurgus, and opened a negotiation with Peisis'tratus, offering to restore him, if he would become his sonin-law. The terms were accepted, and Peisis'tratus was again summoned to assume sovereign power, amid the general exultation of the people. A quarrel with Meg'acles drove him a second time into banishment; but he returned again at the head of an army, and having recovered the reins of power, held them without interruption to the day of his death. The power thus illegally acquired, was administered with equity and mildness. Peisis'tratus ceased not to exert himself to extend the glory of Athens, and secure the happiness of the Athenians. On the death of Peisis'tratus (B. c. 528), his sons Hipparchus and Hip'pias succeeded to his power, but not to his prudence and abilities. After a joint reign of fourteen years, Hippar'chus was murdered by two young Athenians, Harmódius and Aristogeíton, whose resentment he had provoked by an atrocious insult (B. c. 514). The cruelty with which Hip'pias punished all whom he suspected of having had a share in his brother's death, alienated the affections of the people, and encour

aged the Alcmæonída to make an effort for his expulsion. By large bribes to the Delphian priesthood, they obtained a 'response from the oracle commanding the Spartans to expel the Peisistrat'idæ ; and that superstitious people immediately sent an army for that purpose (B. C. 510). After a brief struggle Hip'pias was forced to abandon Athens, and thenceforward lived in perpetual exile.

Scarcely was the tyrant expelled, when the state was rent in sunder by the rivalry of contending factions. Clis'thenes, the son of Meg'acles, headed one; the other, chiefly composed of the aristocracy, was led by Isag'oras. Isag'oras received armies to support his cause from the Spartans, the Corinthians, the Boeotians, the Chalcidians, and the Eginetans. But the confederates could not agree; and these dissensions broke up the alliance. After some time, the Spartans, having discovered the trick played upon them by the Delphian oracle, wished to restore Hip'pias; but, finding their allies universally opposed to the project, they abandoned him to his fate, and he fled to the court of Persia, where his exertions greatly contributed to the forcing Daríus into a war against Greece.

SECTION V.-Historical Notices of the minor Grecian States previous to the Persian War.

FROM B. C. 1100 TO B. c. 500.

AFTER the capture of Thebes by the Epig'oni, the Baotians were expelled by Thracian hordes, and retired to Ar'ne in Thessaly, but about the time of the great Dorian migration they returned to the land of their forefathers, and became united with some Æolian tribes.

and Royalty was abolished upon the death of Xúthus (B. c. 1126), the Boeotians formed a confederation of as many states as there were cities in the province: at the head of which was Thebes, but with very indefinite privileges. The constitutions of the states were unfixed; and they continually fluctuated between a licentious democracy and a tyrannical oligarchy. This great evil, combined with the unsettled nature of the confederation, prevented the Boeotians from taking a leading share in the affairs of Greece.

Acarnánia, Ætólia, and Lócris, offer nothing remarkable; and the most important event in the history of Phócis was the sacred war, which has been described in the last section. The states of Thessaly were for the most part governed by arbitrary individuals.

In the Peloponnésus, Corinth was the most remarkable state next to Sparta. At the time of the Dorian conquest of southern Greece, its throne was seized by Alétes, whose descendants retained the and power title of royalty for five generations. On the death of Teles'sus, the last of the Alétian race, Bac'chis usurped the throne (B. c. 777), and his descendants, called Bacchíadæ, held the regal authority for five generations more. Teles'tes, the last of these kings, having been murdered, the kingly office was abolished, and a species of oligarchy established in its stead, under yearly magistrates, called prytanes, chosen exclusively from the house of Bac'chis. It would have been scarcely possible for such a narrow oligarchy to maintain its ground, even if it had

used its power with moderation and wisdom; but the Bacchiads, proud of their race and great commercial wealth, insulted their subjects; and Cyp'selus, an opulent citizen of Æolian descent, aided by the commonalty, usurped the government (B. c. 657), and held the supreme power for thirty years. On his death, he was succeeded by his son Perian'der, who is sometimes ranked among the Seven Wise Men of Greece, though he is described by many writers as a rapacious, oppressive, and cruel despot. His reign lasted forty years, and yet is supposed to have been shortened either by violence or grief for the loss of his son. He was succeeded by his nephew Psammet'ichus, whose reign lasted only three years, when he was expelled by his subjects, assisted by a Spartan army (B. c. 584). This revolution was followed by the establishment of a commercial aristocracy, whose exact constitution is uuknown, but which long kept Corinth in close alliance with Sparta. The Corinthian trade consisted chiefly in the exchange of Asiatic and Italian merchandise, for which her position gave her many peculiar advantages. The period of Corinth's highest prosperity closed with the government of the Cyp'selids; and the loss of Corcy'ra one of her colonies which had been kept in subjection by Periander, but revolted after his death, proved a blow to her power which she never recovered. The naval engagement between the Corcyrians and Corinthians (B. c. 650) is the first sea-fight recorded in history.

The history of Sic'yon and the other Achæan states presents a series of revolutions similar to those of Corinth. After various revolutions and usurpations, they all adopted republican institutions, about.the time that the Cyp'selids were expelled from Corinth.

The constitution of Arcádia became republican when Aristodémus, its last king, was stoned by his subjects for having betrayed Aristom'enes and the Messenians.

The regal dignity was abolished in Argos so early as B. c. 984; but nothing is known of the circumstances that led to the change, or the peculiar nature of the republic by which it was succeeded.

E'lis preserved its internal peace, owing to the wise laws of Iph'itus, a contemporary of Lycurgus; while the sanctity of its soil ensured its external security. After the abolition of royal power two supreme magistrates were chosen, called Hellanodícæ, to whose office was added the charge of superintending the Olympic games. Their number was subsequently increased to ten, one being chosen from each of the Elian tribes; and their power was limited by a senate of ninety, whose members were chosen for life.

SECTION VI.-History of the principal Grecian Islands.

THE revolutions in the Grecian islands were very similar to those on the continent, republican constitutions having succeeded to monarchy in most of them. After the Athenians had acquired the sovereignty of the sea, the insular states lost their independence; for though they were called confederates, they were treated as subjects; no change, however, was made in their internal constitutions. We shall only notice the islands that were most remarkable in history.

Corcyra was occupied by a Corinthian colony under Chersic'rates

(B. C. 753), who expelled or subdued the former inhabitants. As the leader and most of his companions had been driven into exile by political commotions, they retained but little affection for the parent state; while the rapid progress of the Corcyrean power excited the commercial jealousy of Corinth. These circumstances led to an open war. The Corcyrean constitution appears to have been originally aristocratic or oligarchical, like that of most Dorian states; but after the Persian wars a democratic faction arose, powerfully supported by the Athenians, which produced the most violent internal commotions, and ended in the total ruin of Corcy'ra.

Ægína, first colonized B. c. 1358, rapidly grew, by commerce, and navigation, to be one of the first Grecian states. It even established colonies of its own in Creté and Pontus. Ægína was long the successful rival of Athens; it was subdued by Themistocles (B. c. 485).

The island of Eubœ'a received many different colonies from the mainland of Greece; but its cities were not united by any confederation, each possessing a separate constitution. It was subdued by the Athenians after the Persian wars; but the islanders made several sanguinary struggles to regain their independence.

The Cyc'lades were all, except Délos, rendered tributary to Athens, when that state acquired the supremacy of the sea.

Creté was celebrated in the heroic ages for the laws of Mínos (*B. C. 1300). After the death of Clean'thus (*B. c. 800), republican constitutions were adopted in the principal cities, which thenceforth became independent states. The Cretans rarely engaged in foreign wars, but they were almost incessantly involved in mutual hostilities; a circumstance that tended greatly to degrade the national character.

Cy'prus was only partially colonized by the Greeks, whose principal settlement was at Sal'amis, founded by Teucer, a little after the Trojan war (B. c. 1100). The island was successively subject to the Phonicians, Egyptians, and Persians. The kings of Sal'amis frequently revolted against their Persian masters, and always maintained a qualified independence. When Alexander the Great besieged Tyre (B. c. 332), he was voluntarily joined by the nine Cypriot kings, and thenceforth the island was annexed to the Macedonian monarchy.

The history of Rhodes belongs properly to the portion of this work which treats of the successors of Alexander, to which we refer our readers.

SECTION VII.-History of the Greek Colonies in Asia Minor.

FROM B. c. 1200 TO B. c. 500.

THE colonies founded by the Greeks, between the period of the Dorian migration and the final subversion of Grecian liberty by the triumph of the Macedonians, were the most numerous and important established by any nation, and all acted a very conspicuous part in accelerating the progress of civilization.

The colonies that first engage our attention are those that were established along the western coast of Asia Minor, from the Hellespont to the confines of Cilic'ia, in consequence of the revolutions produced by the Dorian migration and conquest of the Peloponnésus. They were

established by the Æolians, Ionians, and Carians; their commerce soon exceeded that of the parent states; and in them were produced the first of Grecian poets, Hómer and Alcæ'us; and the first of Grecian philosophers, Thales and Pythagoras.

The EOLIANS, after the conquest of the Peloponnésus, settled for a time in Thrace, whence they passed over, after the lapse of a generation, to Asia (*B. c. 1124), and occupied the coasts of Mýsia and Cária giving to the strip of land they colonized the name of Eólis. They acquired possession, also, of the islands of Les'bos, Ten'edos, and the cluster called the Hecatonnési (hundred islands). Twelve cities were erected on the mainland by the Æolians, of which the chief were Cymé and Smyr'na. The latter city was destroyed by the Lydians (*B. C. 600), and was not restored until four hundred years later, when it became a flourishing Macedonian colony. The Æolian cities maintained their independence until the age of Cy'rus, when those on the mainland were subdued by the Persians. When Athens acquired supremacy by sea, the insular states were forced to submit to her authority, and were in general ruled with great severity.

The IONIAN migration took place some years after the Æolian, about B. c. 1044. It was the largest that ever left Greece; and fortunately it is that, with whose details we are best acquainted. It originated in the abolition of royalty at Athens: the sons of Códrus reluctant to live as private individuals, declared their design of leading a colony into Asia: they were readily joined by the Ionian exiles from the northern Peloponnésus, who were straitened for room in At'tica, and by large bands of emigrants from the neighboring states, actuated by political discontent, or the mere love of change. They were supplied liberally with ships and munitions of war. They pursued their voyage to Asia Minor, and landed on the coast south of 'olis. After a long series of sanguinary wars, the native barbarians resigned their lands to the intruders; and the Ionians acquired possession of the whole of the valuable district between Milétus and Mount Sip'ylus.

The Ionians then began to erect cities; they established twelve, united by an Amphictyon'ic confederacy; viz., Eph'esus, Ery'thræ, Clazom'enæ, Colophon, My'us, Milétus, Priéne, Phocæ'a, Leb'edos, Sámos, Téos, and Chíos, of which the last three were insular stations. Milétus was the chief of the Ionian colonies: but Eph'esus was the most renowned of the cities.

All the Ionian cities were united by an Amphictyon'ic confederacy. Deputies from the different states met, at stated times, in a temple of Nep'tune, erected on the headland of Mycále, which they named Helicónean, from Helíce, the chief of their ancient cities in the northern Peloponnésus. Here they deliberated on all matters that affected the Pan-Ionian league; but the council never interfered with the domestic government of the several cities. They also celebrated festivals and public games, which rivalled in magnificence those of Greece. In the midst of their prosperity, the Ionian cities became engaged in a long and arduous struggle with the Lydian kings, which continued almost without intermission until both were absorbed in the rising greatness of the Persian empire.

Neither the extent nor progress of the Dorian colonies could com