100 ARTAXERXES LONGIMANUS-BATTLE OF CUNAXA. character of Xerxes, he has certainly transmitted his name to posterity as an object of contempt rather than of admiration. No name has been more frequently employed to "point a moral and adorn a tale." throne of white marble was placed on an eminence, has justly described, or grossly misrepresented, the from which he is said to have beheld these myriads of troops and vessels at one view, and to have been further gratified by the exhibition of a naval combat in which the Phoenicians of Sidon were the victors. The first feeling of the great king was that of pride, on viewing the vast assemblage of which he was the sovereign; but his mind was soon sobered by different thoughts, and he burst into tears at the reflection that not a man of all that numerous host would be alive a hundred years from that day. He had ordered a bridge to be constructed across the Hellespont. This was done by fastening several tiers of ships together by strong cordage. No sooner was this bridge completed than it was broken by a violent tempest. Herodotus states that Xerxes was so enraged at this accident, that he ordered the sea to be beaten with stripes, a pair of fetters to be thrown into it, and all the workmen employed upon the bridge to be beheaded. The bridge was then rebuilt in a stronger manner, and the whole army passed over. They marched through Thrace, where the inhabitants made their submission to Xerxes. The fleet which attended the army was unable to sail round the promontory of Mount Athos, and a canal was cut for its passage across the isthmus. The labor of this is said to have occupied three years. The Persians encountered no great obstacle till they reached the Grecian territory; but here, at the mountain pass of Thermopyla, the countless hordes of Xerxes were checked and repulsed by a handful of men, under the command of Leonidas, king of Sparta. Treachery, however, enabled the Persians to gain an entrance into the heart of the country; but the particulars of this invasion belong properly to Grecian history. It is sufficient at present to say, that the mighty hosts of Xerxes were destroyed by the Greeks at Salamis, Mycale, and Platea; and the great king himself was forced to recross the Hellespont in a fishing-boat, where he had passed, in so pompous a manner, a short time before. The Greeks, following up their success, expelled the Persians from the Mediterranean, and made them tremble for the security of their provinces in Asia Minor. CHAPTER LVIII. 465 to 334 B. C. Artaxerxes Longimanus Battle of Cunaza Retreat of the Ten Thousand Greeks under Xenophon. Xerxes was at Sardis when he heard of these ac cumulated disasters. He immediately fled from that That * Whatever doubts we may entertain of the precise accuracy of Herodotus, in the details of this part of his history, there are good grounds for believing that he is entitled to general confidence. He wrote at no very distant period from the time when the events happened; he appears, always, to have a sincere regard for truth; and even in giving the numbers of the Persian army, where the vastness of his figures XERXES was succeeded on the throne by Artaxerxes Longimanus, (465 B. C.) who is celebrated for his just insufficient to check the decline of the empire, which now began to exhibit signs of weakness in every quarter. After countless humiliations, Artaxerxes was forced to sign a disgraceful peace, by which he recog nized the independence of the Asiatic Greeks. Interthe royal forces were often defeated, and the emnal wars and rebellions were of frequent occurrence; pire was kept in a state of confusion. He died 425 B. C. and beneficent administration. But his virtues were of particular notice, and come to Artaxerxes Mnemon, We now pass over a few other monarchs, unworthy who ascended the throne 405 B. C. He was, however, opposed by his brother Cyrus, who had the support of the queen mother, and of an army of Greek mercenaries, which he was enabled to raise by his connection with Sparta. A battle took thousand Greeks and one hundred thousand of other statements. excite suspicion, he presents such particulars as confirm his telling us that their number was ascertained, not by countHe gives an enumeration of the land forces, ing, but by their being marched into enclosures, and the number inferred by calculation. He tells us the number of men in the naval armament, giving us first the number of ships, and then how many he reckoned to each. Upon these and other grounds, learned men, generally, consider this portion of the history of Herodotus, marvellous as its details may appear, as worthy of credit. For a long period, the Asiatic sovereigns had been accustomed to employ Greek soldiers as auxiliaries. These people, like the Swiss and Hessians of modern times, sold their services to the highest bidder. The Greeks formed the chief reliance of Darius in his conflict with Alexander. oppose them. They had no cavalry to chastise the clouds of barbarians who would perpetually hang upon their front, flanks, and rear: under such circumstances, it would seem that victory would be fruitless, and defeat inevitable ruin. Yet, in the face of all these terrors, the Greeks determined to make the attempt to fight their way homeward. Xenophon, in a council of war, roused the troops from the despondency which had taken possession of them, and was elected general-in-chief. The retreat was therefore commenced; but, as they proceeded, constant attacks in every quarter, made their march a continual battle. We can present only a portion of their adventures which followed; these we shall give nearly in the words of Xenophon himself, who became the historian of the expedition. After innumerable skirmishes with hosts of enemies, and a fatiguing march through a desert, they came to the Euphrates, near its source in Armenia. This they crossed, the water being breast high. From thence they marched three days over a plain covered with deep snow. The last day's march was very painful, for the north wind, blowing full in their faces, parched and benumbed the men. One of the priests advised them to sacrifice to the wind, which was done, and the violence of the blasts sensibly abated. The snow was a fathom in depth, so that many of the slaves and sumpter-horses died, with about thirty soldiers. They kept fires during the night, finding plenty of wood where they encamped. In the places where the fires were made, the snow being melted, there were large pits which reached down to the ground; this afforded an opportunity of measuring the depth of the snow. From this station they marched the next day through the snow, when many of the men were seized with a disease called bulimia, and fell down exhausted. Upon the march, a party, under Cheirisophus, came to a village just as it was dark, and found some women and girls at a fountain without the walls, carrying water. These females inquired who they were. The interpreter answered, in Persian, that they were going to the satrap from the king. The women replied, that he was not there, but at a place in the neighborhood. It being late, they entered the town with the women, and called upon the governor. Here Cheirisophus encamped, with all of his men that could come up. The rest, who were unable to continue their march, passed the night without food or fire, by which some of them perished; and a party of the enemy, following them, took those of the sumpter-horses that could not keep pace with the others. Some of the men, also, who had lost their sight by the snow, or whose toes were frozen, were left behind. The eyes of the men were relieved from the snow by wearing black cloth before them, and their feet by continual motion. Their extreme sufferings caused some of the men to sit down and refuse to march any farther. Xenophon used all the means in his power to persuade them not to stay behind, telling them that the enemy were in great force close upon the rear. At last he grew angry; but they bade him kill them if he chose, for they were not able to go on. Upon this, he determined, if possible, to strike a terror into the pursuers lest they should fall upon the men who were thus unable to proceed. It was now dark, and the enemy came on with great tumult, wrangling about the booty they had taken. At this moment, such of the Greek rear-guard as were able, rose up and rushed upon them, while those who were fatigued shouted as loud as they could, and struck their shields with their pikes. The enemy, in great alarm, rushed into a valley through the snow, and were heard of no more. Xenophon, with the rest of the forces, then retired, assuring the sick men that, the next day, some people 102 RETREAT OF THE TEN THOUSAND GREEKS. should be sent to them. But, before they had gone half a mile, they found others lying down in the snow, while no guard was set. They forced these men to rise, and then learned that the vanguard had halted. Xenophon, hearing this, pushed forward, sending the ablest of the targeteers before, to inquire the cause. They brought word that the whole army were taking their rest in the snow. Xenophon and his men, therefore, after setting such guard as they could, passed the night in that spot without fire or food. Towards daybreak, he sent the youngest of his men to compel the sick to rise, and proceed on the march. Meantime Cheirisophus had sent a company from the village, to inquire how the rear-guard fared. These were rejoiced to see them, and, having delivered their sick to be carried to the camp, they marched forward to the village. Here Cheirisophus kept his station, and the remainder of the army took up their quarters in the villages around. began to fail; for the natives inhabited fastnesses, into the recesses of which they had conveyed all their effects. The Greeks, at length, arrived at a strong post without any houses, but where great numbers of men, with their cattle, were collected. This place Cheirisophus attacked, and when one company was roughly received in the assault, another went up; for the place, being surrounded with precipices, could not be assailed in all parts at once. When Xenophon came up with the heavy-armed rear-guard, Cheirisophus said, "You come very seasonably, for this place must be taken, or the army will be starved." Upon this a council of war was called, and Cheirisophus said, "The place is accessible only at this point, and when any of our men attempt to go up, the enemy roll down great stones from the rock above; and behold the consequence!"-pointing to his men with broken legs and ribs. "But," replied Xenophon, "when they have expended all their stones, Polycrates, an Athenian, one of the captains, then what can hinder us from going up? I can see only a took a company of the light-armed troops, and made a few men with arms. The space through which we rapid incursion upon a neighboring village. He surmust pass, exposed to the stones, is not above a hunprised the inhabitants, together with the governor, in dred and fifty feet in length, one third of which is their houses, and found seventeen colts, that were covered with clumps of large pines, where the soldiers being bred as a tribute for the king; also the governor's may be sheltered." "But while they are exposed," daughter, who had been married about nine days: her said Cheirisophus," the stones will fall in a shower." husband, having gone to hunt rabbits, was not taken." So much the better," replied Xenophon; "they will The houses of these people were under ground, the be out of ammunition the sooner. Let us try it." entrance resembling a well, but the interior was spa- Upon this, Cheirisophus and Xenophon, with Callimcious. There was a passage dug for the cattle, but the achus of Parrhasia, one of the captains, advanced, inhabitants descended by ladders. In these houses all the rest of the officers keeping out of danger. were goats, sheep, cows, and fowls. All the cattle Then about seventy of the men crept forward, one by were fed within doors. There were also wheat, barley, one, under the trees, sheltering themselves as well as pulse, and jars of beer, the malt floating even with the they could. At a safe distance in the rear stood brim of the vessels. The jars contained reeds of Agasius the Stymphalian, and Aristonymus of Methydvarious sizes, without joints. When any one was nia. Callimachus advanced two or three paces from thirsty, he took one of these in his mouth and sucked. his tree, but as soon as he saw the stones pouring The liquor was very strong, but pleasant to those down, he ran back; this he repeated several times, and accustomed to it. Xenophon invited the governor of the village to sup with him, and encouraged him with the assurance that his children should not be taken from him, and that, when the Greeks departed, they would leave his house full of provisions in payment for what they took, provided he would serve them as a guide till they came to another nation. The governor agreed to this, and, as a proof of good-will, told them where there was some wine buried in the earth. The soldiers enjoyed plenty that night, keeping a watchful eye, however, upon the governor and his children. The next day, Xenophon, taking the governor with him, went to Cheirisophus, visiting the villages on his way, where he found the soldiers feasting and carousing. They all forced him to sit down and feast with them, and he every where found the tables covered with lamb, kid, pork, veal, and fowls, with plenty of wheaten and barley bread. When any one wished to drink to his friend, he took him to the jar, where he was obliged to stoop and drink like an ox. When the party came to Cheirisophus, they found his men also feasting, and crowned with garlands of hay, having Armenian boys, in barbarian dresses, to wait upon them. With these boys they conversed by signs, as if they had been deaf and dumb. Cheirisophus and Xenophon asked the governor, by their interpreter, what country this was; and he answered, Armenia. From hence, as the army advanced, they came into the country of the Taochians, and here their provisions on each occasion more than ten cartloads of stones were thrown at him. When Agasius saw what Callimachus was doing, and that the eyes of the whole army were upon him, he began to fear that his rival would bear away the palm of victory; so he pushed forward. Callimachus, seeing him endeavoring to pass by, laid hold of his shield; and, in the mean time, Aristonymus, and after him Eurylochus, ran by them both, for they were rivals in glory. By this emulation, which urged the assailants to the boldest efforts, the place was taken. And now followed a dreadful spectacle; for the women in the garrison first threw their children down the precipices, and then themselves. The men did the same. Æneas, the Stymphalian, a captain, seeing one of the barbarians, richly dressed, running to throw himself down, caught hold of him, and they both fell over together, and were dashed to pieces. The Greeks now advanced through the country of the Chalybians. These were the most courageous people they had hitherto met, and a close engagement soon followed. The enemy had long linen corselets, with thick twisted cords instead of tassels, and their pikes were fifteen cubits long. They kept within their towns till the Greeks had passed, and then followed them with harassing attacks. The latter, however, advanced in spite of every obstacle, and soon came to the River Harpasus, which was four hundred feet broad. From thence they marched through the country of the Scythians, and in four days more, vernor of this country sent the Greeks a s man promised, in five days, to bring them t of the sea; if not, he consented to be put The fifth day they arrived at the holy called Theches. As soon as the vanguard he mountain and saw the sea, they gave a , which being heard by Xenophon, and those r, they thought the front must be attacked. however, increased; for the men, as fast as up, joined in the shout. This so swelled the Xenophon, thinking something extraordinary ened, mounted his horse and rode forward. me heard the soldiers crying out, "The sea! and cheering one another with congratulathis moment they all ran, the rear-guard as erest, so that the horses and beasts of burden en forward in the crowd. When they all ne top of the mountain, and saw the sea, they one another with tears in their eyes, for they ed that they were near their home. Under ul impulse of the moment, they brought great number of stones, and built a mound, th they piled up the shields, staves, and buck1 from the enemy. The guide was dismissed present of a horse, a silver cup, a Persian a which had thus delighted the eyes of the as the Euxine or Black Sea. A few days' I ten darics. w brought them to the city of Trapezus, the Trebizond, a Grecian colony on the shore of he. They had traversed above one thousand a hostile and naturally difficult country, with gly little loss. They proceeded westward, Cerasus, another Grecian city, where they r arrived, muster of the forces took place, vas found that of the original ten thousand a ned men, eight thousand six hundred still this place they advanced, partly by land and water, to the city of Byzantium, now Conle.* Nearly a year had been spent in this ous and toilsome march, the success of which ttributed to the skill and ability of Xenophon, ler. It might have been supposed that they general route of this retreat may be easily made out ap of The East, at page 69. CHAPTER LIX. 400 to 336 В. С. Artaxerxes — Ochus - Darius Codomann We must return to Artaxerxes, who, during remainder of his reign, was the mere puppet of mother, whose inveterate hatred against all whom suspected of having contributed to the overthrow her favorite son Cyrus, filled the palace with mur and conspiracies. While the court was thus disgra Agesilaus, king of Sparta, joined with the Asiatic Gre and made rapid conquests in Western Persia. He w probably have dismembered the empire, had not troubles existing in Greece through a lavish distribu of Persian gold, compelled him to return home. Ochus, the youngest son of Artaxerxes, came to throne 360 B. C. He had murdered his brothe obtain this dignity; and, to secure the quiet posses of it, he put to death no less than eighty of the r family. Artabazus, the satrap of Asia Minor, tal advantage of the unpopularity which the bloody de of the king had brought upon him, made an effor seize the throne. But this attempt was unsucces and Ochus, after defeating Artabazus, marched aga the Phoenicians, who had rebelled, and who were ported by the Cyprians and Egyptians. of their leader gave Ochus an easy victory, and Phœnicians were reduced to such desperation, that The trea people of Sidon set their city on fire, and perished, their wives and children, to the number of 40,000 the conflagration. Having thus quelled all resistance to his autho Ochus renewed the attempt made by his father for conquest of Egypt. He marched with a nume: army into that country, but met with a disaster on lying between Phoenicia and the mouths of the During the continuance of the southerly winds, suc quantity of sand is thrown upon this dangerous s route from the Serbonian Lake - a marshy dis that it is impossible to distinguish dry land from fathomable bogs. The Persians, being unprovi with guides, wandered among these quagmires great numbers of them were ingulfed. Ochus, wreck of his army, arrived in Egypt; and feeble a resistance was made by the inhabitants, he was able to plunder the land, and return with a booty to Persia. The success of this enterprise so far satisfied that he gave himself up to enjoyment, and intru the administration of the government to two of officers, Mentor and Bagoas. The latter was Egyptian eunuch, and bore an inveterate ma against the king for having plundered the temples Egypt, and killed the sacred bull Apis. These he regarded as the worst crimes which a human be could perpetrate, and, under the influence of a fa ical zeal, he poisoned his master. Not content 104 ALEXANDER INVADES PERSIA. this revenge, he cut his body in pieces, and caused the flesh to be devoured by cats, and the bones to be made into sword handles. He then placed the youngest son of Ochus on the throne, hoping to govern the empire in his name. Darius Codomannus, the last of his line, thus became king of Persia, 336 B. C. Bagoas, finding him less subservient than he expected, prepared to remove him likewise by poison. The treacherous project was discovered, and Darius compelled the baffled eunuch to. drink the fatal potion himself. Bagoas died, and Darius was established upon the throne. But the overthrow of the Persian empire was now at hand. Alexander of Macedon soon appeared upon the scene, and the great Asiatic empire received a new master. CHAPTER LX. 334 B. C. to 226 A. D. Alexander marches against Persia - State of the Empire- Battle of the Granicus - Battle of the Issus. ACCORDING to the Persian authors, a monarch called Darab the First, was contemporary with Philip, the father of Alexander. In a war between these two princes, we are told that Philip was reduced to such distress, that he was glad to extricate himself by giving his daughter to Darab, and paying an annual tribute of a thousand eggs of pure gold. Darab the Second is the same with Darius Codomannus. He was deformed in body and depraved in mind, and his bad administration prepared the way for the success of Alexander. The quarrel between the Persian and Macedonia kings was caused by the refusal of Philip's son, Alexander, to pay the golden eggs. When Darab sent an ambassador for the customary tribute, Alexander replied, "The bird that laid the eggs has flown to the other world." Darab then sent another ambassador, with a bat and ball, and a bag of small seed. The two first were meant to ridicule Alexander's youth; the last was intended as an emblem of the countless numbers of the Persian army. Alexander took the bat in his hand, and said, "This is my power with which I will strike the ball of your monarch's dominion." Then, ordering the seed to be given to a fowl, he added, "This bird shall show what a small morsel his army will prove to mine." Next, giving a wild melon to the envoy, he desired him to tell his sovereign that the taste of that fruit would enable him to judge of the bitter lot which awaited him. Romantic and fabulous as this story is, it is certain that such symbolic messages were not uncommon among Oriental monarchs. The true cause of the war of Alexander upon Persia was, indeed, much deeper than the anecdote implies. The thirst for military enterprise and renown, stimulated by the remembrance of wrongs inflicted by Persia upon Greece, as well as the spectacle of a rich but weak empire, inviting him to conquest, were the real motives of the youthful monarch in his daring project. | enemies behind him, and given the restive Greeks a fearful lesson in the destruction of Thebes, Alexander set out, in the spring of 334 B. C., upon his Asiatic expedition. He had a small supply of money, and an army of but thirty thousand infantry and five thousand horse. Twelve thousand of the foot soldiery were supplied by the republics of Greece, though five thousand of that number were mercenaries. Macedon itself supplied twelve thousand of the infantry, and the remainder appear to have been chiefly derived from Thrace and Illyria. Macedon, Thessaly, and Thrace, at all times better provided with horses than republican Greece, furnished Alexander with his cavalry. These troops were well armed, the infantry bearing shields, spears, and battle-axes of iron. The horse were equipped with similar weapons, but defended with helmets and breastplates. The officers all bore swords. The arms of the Persians were similar, though many of their troops used the bow. The forces of Alexander were, however, better provided, better trained, and far more athletic, than their Asiatic enemies. We must pause a moment to look at that mighty power which had swallowed up Assyria, Babylon, and the other countries from the Grecian Archipelago in the west, to India on the east; an extent of territory nearly three thousand miles in length, and comprehending at once the most fertile and populous regions on the face of the globe. Such were the power and resources of the Persian empire, that, about one hundred and fifty years prior to the date of which we are speaking, it had sent an army, with its attendants, of five millions of persons, to conquer that very Greece which was now preparing to roll back the tide of war, and put a final period to its proud existence. The reigning king, Darius II., was a weak and conceited monarch, ill suited to the struggle which was about to ensue. His situation was very similar to that of the sultan of Turkey at the present day. The Persians, though their king ruled over almost countless nations, were comparatively few in number. His revenue was derived from the tribute of dependent princes, and the extortions made by his own satraps or governors. His empire, consisting of so many nations, required constant watchfulness to keep all parts in subjection; and, as the Asiatic troops were inferior, he followed the example of his predecessors, and kept in his pay a considerable number of renegade Greeks as soldiers. Being made aware of the designs of Alexander,* Darius sent a vast army westward, and, marching into Syria himself, determined there to await his enemy. Alexander crossed the Propontis, now Sea of Marmora, which immediately brought him into Asia Minor and the dominions of Persia. As soon as he landed, he went to Ilium, the scene of the Trojan war and the ten years' siege of Troy, celebrated in the Iliad. He anointed the pillar upon Achilles' tomb with oil, and he and his friends ran naked around it, according to the custom which then prevailed. He also adorned it with a wreath, in the form of a crown. These ceremonies are supposed to have been intended to enforce the belief that he was descended from Achilles - a claim which he always maintained. Meantime, the Persian generals had pushed forward and posted themselves upon the banks of the Granicus, Having subdued the tribes of barbarians along his By consulting the map, p. 69, the reader will be able northern border, that he might leave no troublesome to trace the entire route of Alexander in his march. |