Page images
PDF
EPUB

DISTINGUISHED MEN OF MYSIA.

men, but was repulsed with loss and ignominy from its walls. Yet the ancient inhabitants were regarded as a cowardly and effeminate race. Cicero represents the Cyzicans of his day as a quiet and inoffensive people, averse to war, plots, and tumults, and addicted altogether to epicurean enjoyments. Under the Romans, Cyzicus was made the capital of a province, called the Consular Hellespont. In the year 943, it was almost entirely destroyed by an earthquake, and its beautiful marble columns were subsequently transported to Constantinople, to embellish that capital. At present, it is little better than a village.

[ocr errors]

bodies.

265

He is the earliest writer who has said any thing of importance on the blood-vessels: he discovered by experiment that the arteries contain blood, and not the mere animal spirits, as was then maintained. His writings were very numerous: two hundred of his works were lost by the burning of the temple of Peace at Rome; yet those which remain are sufficient to compose a large body of theoretical and practical medicine. Galen shows himself well acquainted with philosophy and science in general, and he deserves to be regarded as one of the most accomplished scholars of antiquity.

Anaximenes, an historian and rhetorician, was born Eudoxus, the famous navigator, was a native of at Lampsacus, in Mysia, (380 B. C.) He was a dis- Cyzicus, in Mysia, and born in the third century beciple of Diogenes the Cynic. Philip of Macedon in- fore the Christian era. He was sent on a mission to vited him to his court to instruct his son Alexander in Alexandria, in Egypt, then the chief seat of maritime rhetoric; and some writers ascribe to him the rhetorical enterprise and geographical knowledge. His ardent treatise which bears the name of Aristotle. With many mind was strongly imbued with the spirit of commerother learned men, Anaximenes accompanied Alex- cial adventure which reigned there, and he made an ander in his expedition against the Persians. The offer of his services to the reigning monarch, Ptolemy inhabitants of Lampsacus, who had espoused the in- Euergetes, to undertake an expedition of discovery. teres's of Darius, entreated Anaximenes, after the The plan first contemplated was to ascend the Nile, conquest of Persia, to implore the clemency of Alex- for the purpose of discovering the sources of that river; ander in their behalf. He undertook the embassy; but a new object was presented by the arrival in Egypt but the conqueror, as soon as he learned his errand, of a person who professed to be a Hindoo, shipwrecked swore he would grant him nothing that he should ask. in the Red Sea. It was decided to undertake discovAnaximenes, taking advantage of this, put up his re-eries in that direction. Ptolemy fitted out a fleet, with quest in the following manner: "I entreat you to which Eudoxus sailed down the Red Sea. It does destroy Lampsacus, to burn its temple, and to sell its not appear how far he proceeded; but the voyage was inhabitants for slaves!" Alexander, pleased with the very prosperous, and the fleet returned with a cargo ingenuity with which he had been circumvented, of aromatics and precious stones. Eudoxus was spared the city. Another anecdote is related of cheated out of a great part of his gains by the king; Anaximenes, which, though not much to his honor, is but, when Ptolemy died, he was taken into favor worth notice, as, perhaps, the first specimen of a liter- by Queen Cleopatra, who sent him on a second voyary trick. Entertaining a grudge against the historian age. This time he was driven by storms on the coast Theopompus, he avenged himself by writing a severe of Ethiopia, where he was well received by the satire against the Spartans and Thebans, in a style natives, and carried on some profitable trade. His exactly similar to that of the historian. This he ad- return to Alexandria was again unfortunate. Cleopadressed, under the name of Theopompus, to the tra was dead, and her successor treated Eudoxus as Athenians. It was received as the work of that author badly as Ptolemy had done. The navigator, however, throughout all Greece, and brought upon him much brought home with him a singular trophy from the discredit and ill will. Anaximenes also wrote the farthest extremity of the country which he had visited: lives of Philip and Alexander, and twelve books on this was the prow of a ship, on which was sculptured the early history of Greece; but all his writings are the figure of a horse, and which was said to have drifted lost. to the African coast from the west. This was seen by Galen, the most eminent of the physicians of anti- some sailors belonging to Gades, now Cadiz, and they quity next to Hippocrates, was born at Pergamus, declared it to be the very form peculiar to a species of (A. D. 131.) His father was an architect of much large vessel which sailed from that port for the coast learning in the mathematical sciences. Galen received of Mauritania. Eudoxus heard this with enthusiastic a liberal education; but, being admonished by a dream, credulity. He determined to renounce the deceitful as he informs us, he turned his attention to medicine, patronage of courts, and to fit out a new expedition and, in pursuit of knowledge in this branch, he trav- from the commercial city of Sades. On his way to that elled to Smyrna, Alexandria, and Corinth. In his place, he touched at Massilia, now Marseilles, and twenty-eighth year, he returned to his native city, and other seaports, where he announced his design, and became surgeon to the public gladiators—a class of invited all mariners who were animated with the spirit wretched beings, whom the Romans maintained in all of enterprise to accompany him. He succeeded in the large cities of their empire for the brutal pleasure equipping an expedition on a liberal scale, considering of seeing them fight and kill each other. Galen the time. He had one large ship and two small ones, visited Rome in his thirty-third year, and obtained carrying not only goods and provisions, but artisans, great reputation by his skill in anatomy and the prac-physicians, and a band of music. A company so gay, tice of physic. After a residence there of four years, the plague drove him back to his own country. He was, however, recalled to Rome by the pressing entreaties of the joint emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus. The former made him his family physician. It is not known where or when Galen died. He was a skilful anatomist for the age in which he lived, and made many experiments on living

and inspired, probably, with extravagant hopes, were
ill fitted to encounter the perils and hardships of a
voyage of discovery. They appear to have sailed to
the south along the coast of Africa. The crew took
fright on finding themselves far out at sea, and insisted
on steering the ships close along the shore.
was too experienced a sailor not to know that this was
much the more dangerous route; but he was com-

Eudoxus

266

FOUNDATION OF THE TROJAN MONARCHY.

pelled to do as his men desired. The consequences turned, and applied to Bocchus, king of Mauritania, which he had foreseen took place. The ships were wrecked, and the cargoes with difficulty saved. The most valuable articles were then placed in one of the boats, and the voyage was prosecuted till they came to a race of people who appeared to speak the same language with those visited by Eudoxus on the opposite side of the continent. Imagining that he had now accomplished the great purpose of his voyage, he re

for assistance in following up this discovery; but, after a while, suspecting that monarch of a treacherous design against him, he went again to Spain. Here he succeeded in equipping another expedition; but how it resulted we are ignorant, as the narrative breaks off at this point. The story is told by the geographer Strabo, who derived it from materials originally furnished by Eudoxus himself.

[graphic][subsumed][ocr errors]

Achilles dragging the dead Body of Hector around the Walls of Troy.
CHAPTER CXXXV.

1546 to 1184 B. C.

TROY.-Foundation of the Trojan Monarchy -Reign of Priam- The Trojan War. TROY, or Ilium, was a kingdom of small extent, situated within the geographical limits of Mysia, on the eastern shore of the Hellespont, the southern coast of the Propontis, and the northern shore of the Egean Sea. This territory, at its greatest extent, was not above two hundred miles in length, and was very narrow, being shut in by the shores of three seas, and the lofty mountain ridge of Ida. It was, however, very fertile and picturesque, and enjoyed a mild climate. Of the particular origin of the inhabitants we have no account; but they were celebrated, in very early times, for their activity in trade and the urbanity of their manners. Some authors regard them as a mixture of Greeks and Phrygians, while others consider them as descendants of the Assyrians.

The founder of the Trojan monarchy was said to be Teucer; but neither the date nor the events of his reign are known with accuracy. He was succeeded by Dardanus, an adventurer, called by Homer the son of Jupiter. He is represented as a just and wise monarch, who extended the boundaries of his kingdom, and made many salutary laws. He built a city on the western slope of Mount Ida, overlooking a beautiful plain, watered by the Rivers Simois and Scamander, which afterwards became famous in poetry. This city was called, after his own name, Dardana. He also built the city of Thymbra. Dardanus is said to have reigned sixty-four years. He was succeeded by his son Ericthonius, whose prudent conduct insured him, the obedience and esteem of his subjects,

and maintained his kingdom in peace. He is famous for being the first king, in this part of the world, who horses; he was also the first who harnessed these anigave his attention to the breeding and training of mals in a chariot. By trading in horses, he became very rich. He is said to have reigned forty-six years, and to have left his kingdom in a state of high prosperity.

His successor, Tros, no sooner ascended the throne, than he laid the foundation of a new city, which was destined to become the most famous in all Asia Minor. This was built in the plain under Mount Ida, and named, from its founder, Troy. When the building of the city was well advanced, he invited the neighboring princes to assist in the solemnities of its dedication, but omitted Tantalus, king of Sipylus. This monarch resented the affront, and seized the first opportunity of revenge. Ganymede, the son of Tros, having occasion to pass through his territories some time afterward, was seized by him, and exposed to such ill treatment as caused his death. The Trojan king made war upon Tantalus, in retaliation for this outrage; but, being unsuccessful, he died of chagrin.

Ilus, the son of Tros, next ascended the throne, and carried on the war so vigorously, that he gained many victories, and at length drove Tantalus out of Asia, and possessed himself of all his dominions. Having thus revenged his brother's death, he devoted the whole of his time to the improvement of his territories and the enactment of just and salutary laws. After a reign of forty years, he died universally lamented. According to some accounts, it was Ilus who removed the seat of government from Dardana to the new city in the plain, on which account it received the name of llion. The date of this event is quite uncertain.

THE SIEGE OF TROY.

Laomedon was the next king. He built a citadel in Troy with the treasures which he took from the temples of Apollo and Neptune — a measure which gave deep offence to many of his subjects, and subsequently led the way to great calamities. Jason and the Argonauts, on their expedition from Greece to the Euxine Sea in search of the golden fleece, landed on the coast of Troy, and were treated in a hostile manner by Laomedon. This occasioned a war. The Greeks invaded his territories, under the command of Hercules; of the five sons of Laomedon, all were killed but Priam, who was taken prisoner, and ransomed with a large sum of money.

Priam succeeded Laomedon. He had no sooner established himself upon the throne, than he built a strong wall round the city of Troy, to prevent a repetition of the disasters which had recently happened. He also embellished the city with many stately towers, castles, and aqueducts, maintained a numerous army in constant pay, conquered several of the neighboring states, and rose to such a height of power and celebrity, that he was regarded rather as king of Asia Minor than of Troy.

He was the richest and most powerful of all the princes of his line, and was the father of fifty sons. When he surrounded the city with walls, he is said to have changed its name from Troy to Pergamus. Queen Hecuba, his second wife, dreamed that one of her children became a firebrand, which consumed the whole city. Priam was so much alarmed at this portent, that he ordered the next child born of Hecuba to be exposed in a desert place among the mountains. Notwithstanding this, the boy was preserved by the care of his mother, and privately reared. He was named Paris. When still a youth, he appeared at the court of Priam, where his beautiful person attracted general admiration. Upon this, he ventured to discover himself; and the king was so fascinated with his beauty and accomplishments, that he thought no more of his dream.

Some time after this, Paris undertook an expedition into Greece, on pretence of recovering his aunt Hesione, who, when very young, had been carried away by Hercules, and by him had been given in marriage to Telamon. The story of this event is related in the following manner: Laomedon, king of Troy, and the father of Hesione, had, as we have already related, taken the treasures of the temples of Neptune and Apollo for political uses, under a promise of repayment. But, being unable or unwilling to perform this promise, the oracle declared that he must expiate the sacrilege by exposing a Trojan virgin to a sea monster. Hesione was condemned by lot to undergo this punishment; but Hercules slew the monster, and rescued Hesione. This tale has been highly embellished by the Greek poets.

Paris, upon his arrival at Sparta, was received in the kindest and most hospitable manner by Menelaus, the king of that city. But the young Trojan, falling in love with Helen, the wife of his host, persuaded her to run away with him. Menelaus, fired with indignation at this piece of treachery, prevailed upon his brother Agamemnon, king of Argos, to espouse his quarrel. By their joint efforts, all the other Greek princes were brought to unite in the same cause, and they bound themselves, by an oath, either to recover Helen or to overthrow Troy. Agamemnon was chosen commander-in-chief of the confederacy. Au

267

lis was the general rendezvous of the expedition; and the combined forces of the Greeks who assembled at this place formed an army of one hundred thousand men. The fleet in which they embarked for Troy comprised eleven hundred and fifty vessels; they had no decks, and carried from fifty to one hundred and fifty men each. The most celebrated warriors besides Agamemnon and Menelaus, were Diomed, Nestor, Ajax Telamonius, Ajax Oileus, Achilles, Ulysses, Patroclus, and Idomeneus.

The Greeks sailed up the Egean Sea, and landed on the plain of Troy. on the plain of Troy. But the Trojans were a brave and warlike people, and were not intimidated at the sight of this formidable armament. Ulysses and Menelaus were sent to Priam, to demand the restitution of Helen. But the king, in opposition to the opinion of his council, refused to comply with the demand, and both parties made preparations for battle. The Greeks defeated the Trojans in two successive engagements, but soon began to feel a scarcity of provisions. They therefore were compelled to divide their forces, one part remaining to carry on the siege, while the other went into the country to forage. This gave the Trojans leisure to negotiate with the neighboring states for assistance. Achilles, in the mean time, being engaged in the foraging service, captured several towns, and acquired a valuable booty in cattle, prisoners, &c. Nine years of the war were consumed in various plundering and military operations, during which the city was not very closely blockaded; so that the siege of Troy did not properly begin till the tenth year. At this time, a quarrel arose between Agamemnon and Achilles, in consequence of the former having seized a female prisoner which the latter had obtained in one of his plundering excursions. Achilles withdrew his troops from the Greek camp, and kept himself apart, taking no share in the siege of the city.

The Trojans were commanded by Hector, Æneas, Deiphobus, and other sons of Priam, together with Sarpedon, Glaucus, Memnon, and other chiefs of their auxiliaries. They had the advantage in several engagements, and made a great slaughter of their enemies; but none of these actions were decisive. At length, Hector beat the Greeks fairly from the field, attacked their intrenched camp, forced the walls, and set fire to the ships. Victory now seemed on the point of declaring for the Trojans.

But in this critical conjuncture, Patroclus, the friend and companion of Achilles, perceiving the distress of his countrymen, advanced to their relief, and arrested the progress of the Trojans. After performing prodigies of valor, he fell by the hand of Hector. Achilles, furious at the loss of his friend, immediately forgot his resentment against Agamemnon, and rushed into the thickest of the fight. The tide of battle now turned against the Trojans; they were driven back to the city, and in a subsequent engagement Hector and Achilles met in single combat. Hector was slain, and his body dragged round the walls of Troy at the chariot wheels of his conqueror.

The Trojans having lost their most able commanders, reposed their last hope on the famous Palladium, a statue of Minerva, who was named Pallas in Greek. This was said to have dropped into the city directly from heaven; and it was a received opinion, that while the Palladium remained within the walls of Troy, the city never could be taken. There are two differ

268

STORY OF THE TROJAN WAR.

ent accounts of the capture. According to one of these, Antenor and Eneas treacherously betrayed the Palladium to the Greeks, and at the same time threw open the gates of the city at night. According to the other account, the capture was effected by the stratagem of the wooden horse, which was planned by the cunning of Ulysses. A huge, hollow structure, resembling a horse, was filled with armed men, and left standing in the plain, while the Greeks went on board their ships, and sailed to the Island of Tenedos, which lay not far distant. By an artful manœuvre the Trojans were made to believe that this horse was an offering to Minerva, and that they would achieve a great triumph by carrying it into the city. Accordingly they made a breach in the wall, and transported the horse within. In the dead of the night, the Greeks broke out of their concealment, and set the city on fire. The fleet, on a signal given, sailed back from Tenedos; the army landed; Troy was taken and destroyed. This event is usually placed about the year 1184 B. C.

CHAPTER CXXXVI.

B. C. 1184 to 1200 A. D.

Greece, and by the divine honors paid to her at Sparta and elsewhere. But a still stronger reason for doubting the reality of the motive assigned by Homer for the Trojan war, is, that the same incident occurs in another legend, in which the abduction of Helen is ascribed to Theseus. According to another tradition, Helen was carried away by Idas and Lynceus, two heroes of Messene. These various legends seem to prove that the abduction of Helen was a theme for poetry originally independent of the Trojan war, but which might easily and naturally be associated with that event by the skill of a great poet.

As to the expedition which ended in the fall of Troy, while the leading facts are so uncertain, it must be hopeless to form any distinct conception of its details. No more reliance can be placed on the enumeration of the Greek forces in the Iliad, than on the other parts of the poem which have a more poetical aspect, especially as it appears to be a compilation adapted to a later state of things. Thucydides has remarked that the numbers of the armament appear to be exaggerated by the poet, which we may very readily believe. The son of Hercules is introduced in the Iliad as saying, "My father came here with no more than six ships and few men; yet he laid Ilion waste, and made her streets desolate." This is a great contrast to the

Probability of the Tale of Troy - Alexandria efforts and success of Agamemnon, who, with his

Troas.

SUCH are the leading incidents of the story of the Iliad, which the genius of the Father of Greek poetry has made familiar to all readers, long before their critical faculties are called into exercise, and before they are tempted to inquire into the truth of the historical events which form its foundation. It is difficult, therefore, to enter upon the inquiry without some prepossessions unfavorable to an impartial judgment. Many learned and sagacious critics have denied the reality of the Trojan war, and regarded the poems of Homer as having no more truth at their foundation than John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress. This opinion, however, seems to us to be pronounced without sufficient ground, and against strong evidence. According to the rules of sound criticism, very cogent arguments should be required to induce us to reject, as a mere fiction, an historical tradition so ancient, so universally received, so definite, and so interwoven with the whole mass of the national recollections of the ancient Greeks, as that of the Trojan war. The leaders of the earliest of the Greek colonies in Asia claimed Agamemnon as their ancestor.

The reality of the Trojan war must, therefore, be admitted. But, beyond this historical fact, we can scarcely venture a step with certainty. Its cause and its issue, the manner in which it was conducted, and the parties engaged in it, are matters so completely involved in obscurity, that all attempts to throw light upon these parts of history is utterly vain. It seems particularly difficult to adopt the poetical story of Helen, partly on account of its inherent improbability, and partly because there is good evidence elsewhere that Helen is altogether a mythological person. She is classed by Herodotus with Io, Europa, and Medea all of them persons, who, on distinct grounds, must be referred to the domain of mythology. This suspicion is confirmed by all the particulars of the legend respecting her by her birth, by her relation to the divine twins, Castor and Pollux, whose worship seems to have been one of the most ancient forms of religion in

[ocr errors]

twelve hundred ships and one hundred thousand men, lay ten years before the city—often ready to abandon the enterprise in despair, and at last indebted for victory to an unexpected turn of affairs.

It has been conjectured that, after the first capture by Hercules, the city was more strongly fortified, and rose rapidly in power during the reign of Priam; but this supposition can hardly reconcile the imagination to the transition from the six ships of Hercules to the vast host of Agamemnon. On the other hand, there is no difficulty in believing that, whatever may have been the motives of the expedition, the spirit of adventure may have drawn warriors together from all parts of Greece; and thus it may have deserved the character, which is uniformly ascribed to it, of a national enterprise. The presence of several distinguished chiefs, each attended by a small band, would be sufficient to explain the celebrity of the achievement, and to account for the success which followed it.

Though there can be no doubt that the object of the enterprise was accomplished, it seems to be also clear that a Trojan state survived the fall of Ilion. An historian of great authority on this subject, both from his age and his country-Xanthus the Lydian-affirms that the Trojan dominion was finally overthrown by an invasion of the Phrygians, a Thracian tribe, which crossed over from Europe to Asia after the Trojan war. This is indirectly confirmed by the testimony of Homer, who introduces Neptune predicting that the posterity of Æneas should long continue to reign over the Trojans, after the extinction of the race of Priam.

Not far from the site of ancient Troy was afterward built a city called Alexandria Troas. It owed its foundation to Alexander the Great, who, instead of marking his conquering course by mere bloodshed and devastation, wisely provided more lasting and honorable monuments of his passage through the countries which he subdued — causing cities and towns to be erected, and forming plans for their future improvement and prosperity. As his stay in one place was commonly short, the execution of his designs was

ALEXANDRIA TROAS-IONIA.

committed to the governors whom he appointed. Alexandria Troas was one of eighteen cities which bore the conqueror's name. It was begun by Antigonus, one of the generals of Alexander, and from him it was at first called Antigonia. But Lysimachus, to whom, as a successor of Alexander, it devolved, changed the name to Alexandria. It was seated on a hill, sloping to the sea, and divided from Mount Ida by a deep valley. On each side is an extensive plain with watercourses. In the war between the Romans and Antiochus, king of Syria, this city was eminent for its fidelity to the republic, and it enjoyed the same political privileges as an Italian city. Under Augustus, it received a Roman colony, and increased; it was inferior to no city of the same name except the capital of Egypt.

Alexandria Troas had a magnificent aqueduct, the ruins of which are still to be seen. The history of this noble and useful structure affords an illustrious instance of imperial and private liberality. An Athenian named Julius Atticus, after being reduced to great poverty, discovered an immense treasure in an old house in Athens. The sum was so great that he dared not make use of it, and he wrote to the emperor Nerva at Rome, informing him of the discovery, and desiring to know his pleasure respecting it. The good-natured emperor replied, "Use it." Julius, still doubtful of his safety in appropriating so much wealth, wrote again, saying it was too much for one man to use. "Then abuse it," replied the emperor. The riches of Julius were inherited by his son Herodes Atticus, who was born at Marathon, carefully educated under the most eminent masters, and became so famous for learning and eloquence, that he was not surpassed by any man of his age. His generosity equalled his wealth, and was as noble as it was extensive. He was raised to the Roman consulate A. D. 143, and presided over the free cities of Asia. Seeing that Alexandria Troas was destitute of commodious baths, and of water, except such as was procured from muddy wells and cisterns, he wrote to the emperor Adrian, requesting him not to suffer an ancient and maritime city to be destroyed by drought, but to make an appropriation of money for building an aqueduct. Adrian complied, and appointed him to superintend the work. The appropriation was three hundred myriads of drachms; but, this being insufficient, Herodes expended seven hundred myriads, paying the overplus, equal to about eight hundred thousand dollars, out of his own pocket. This was but one of the few instances of his liberality. The magnificent buildings which he erected were the ornaments of Asia Minor, Greece, and Italy. Statues were erected to him, and cities vied with each other in honoring their common benefactor. Several of them still retain durable monuments of his splendid liberality.

The Christian religion was early established at Troas, and this is the city at which St. Paul left his cloak, for which he writes in one of his epistles. There is a legend of the fifth century respecting Bishop Sylvanus, of this place. A ship on the stocks could not be launched for some reason, and was supposed to be possessed by a demon. It was of enormous size, and intended for transporting large columns, like the one which conveyed the obelisk of Luxor from Egypt to Paris. The bishop was requested to drive away the demon which prevented the ship from moving. Going down to the beach, he prayed, and, taking hold of a rope, called on the multitude to assist. As the story

269

is told, the ship readily obeyed, and glided at once into the sea.

Under the Greek emperors, Alexandria Troas declined, and had probably fallen to ruin before the extinction of the empire. Many houses and public buildings at Constantinople have since been raised with its materials. Notwithstanding this, the ruins of the city are still very extensive, and all travellers are struck with their grand and colossal character. The city wall is standing; the remains of the aqueduct extend for miles; and the theatre and baths are yet in good preservation.

[blocks in formation]

THIS portion of Asia Minor was bounded north by Æolia, east by Lydia and Caria, south by Caria, and west by the gean Sea. It received its name from the Ionians, a tribe or nation of Greeks who emigrated to this country, and built twelve cities here. It has been supposed that, previous to the Trojan war, many Greeks had settled in Asia Minor; and in fact the earliest known people in the western part of this region differed little in their language and manners from the people of Greece. Some of the towns on the coast were inhabited by a race so unquestionably Grecian and at so early a period, that the antiquarians of after times-who were unwilling to allow any thing to be Greek that did not originate in the territory of Greece were at a loss to account for their establishment. Miletus, one of the Ionian cities mentioned by Homer in his catalogue, and Teos and Smyrna, arc said by Strabo to have been Grecian towns before the Trojan war.

How or when the Ionian settlements were founded, we have no history to tell us. An ancient Greek legend treats of a great event, called the Ionic migration, about one hundred and forty years after the Trojan war. According to this account, the settlers were led by Androclus and Neleus, the sons of Codrus, king of Athens. A great multitude followed them, including many Athenians, and the Ionian and Messenian families which had been driven by the conquests of the Dorians to seek refuge in Athens. These adventurers seized upon the finest spots of land along the sea-coast, and there formed permanent establishments. An island closely adjoining the shore, on a tongue of land, connected with the continent by a narrow isthmus, and containing a hill sufficiently lofty for a citadel, or acropolis, seems to have been regarded as the most favorable situation for a Grecian colonial settlement. Most of the Ionic cities conform to this description. Twelve of these became very flourishing and important places, namely, Miletus, Myus, Priene, Samos, Ephesus, Colophon, Lebedus, Teos, Erythræ, Chios, Clazomena, and Phocæa. At a later period, Smyrna was detached from the Eolians, and added to the Ionian confederacy.

Asiatic Ionia, according to the opinion of Herodotus, was the finest country, and enjoyed the most favorable climate, in the world. It included the islands of Chios and Samos, with a few smaller ones, and

« PreviousContinue »