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diff --git a/16165.txt b/16165.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..3f90f2a --- /dev/null +++ b/16165.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11231 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Seven Great Monarchies Of The Ancient +Eastern World, Vol 5. (of 7): Persia, by George Rawlinson + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Seven Great Monarchies Of The Ancient Eastern World, Vol 5. (of 7): Persia + The History, Geography, And Antiquities Of Chaldaea, + Assyria, Babylon, Media, Persia, Parthia, And Sassanian + or New Persian Empire; With Maps and Illustrations. + +Author: George Rawlinson + +Illustrator: George Rawlinson + +Release Date: July 1, 2005 [EBook #16165] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SEVEN GREAT MONARCHIES *** + + + + +Produced by David Widger + + + + + +THE SEVEN GREAT MONARCHIES + +OF THE + +ANCIENT EASTERN WORLD; + + +OR, + + +THE HISTORY, GEOGRAPHY, AND ANTIQUITIES OF CHALDAEA, ASSYRIA + +BABYLON, MEDIA, PERSIA, PARTHIA, AND SASSANIAN, + +OR NEW PERSIAN EMPIRE. + + +BY + +GEORGE RAWLINSON, M.A., + +CAMDEN PROFESSOR OF ANCIENT HISTORY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD + + + +IN THREE VOLUMES. + + + +VOLUME II. + + + +WITH MAPS AND ILLUSTRATIONS + + + + +PERSIA PROPER. + + +[Illustration: MAP] + + + + +THE FIFTH MONARCHY. + + + + +PERSIA. + + + + +CHAPTER I. EXTENT OF THE EMPIRE. + + +The geographical extent of the Fifth Monarchy was far greater than that +of any one of the four which had preceded it. While Persia Proper is a +comparatively narrow and poor tract, extending in its greatest length +only some seven or eight degrees (less than 500 miles), the dominions of +the Persian kings covered a space fifty-six degrees long, and in places +more than twenty degrees wide. The boundaries of their empire were the +desert of Thibet, the Sutlej, and the Indus, on the east; the Indian +Sea, the Persian Gulf, the Arabian and Nubian deserts, on the south; +on the west, the Greater Syrtis, the Mediterranean, the Egean, and the +Strymon river; on the north, the Danube, the Black Sea, the Caucasus, +the Caspian, and the Jaxartes. Within these limits lay a territory, the +extent of which from east to west was little less than 3000 miles, +while its width varied between 500 and 1500 miles. Its entire area was +probably not less than, two millions of square miles--or more than half +that of modern Europe. It was thus at least eight times as large as the +Babylonian Empire at its greatest extent, and was probably more than +four times as large as the Assyrian. + +The provinces included within the Empire may be conveniently divided +into the Central, the Western, and the Eastern. The Central are Persia +Proper, Susiana, Babylonia, Assyria, Media, the coast tract of the +Caspian, and Sagartia, or the Great Desert. The Western are Paeonia, +Thrace, Asia Minor, Armenia, Iberia, Syria and Phoenicia, Palestine, +Egypt, and the Cyrenaica. The Eastern are Hyrcania, Parthia, Aria, +Chorasmia, Sogdiana, Bactria, Scythia, Gandaria, Sattagydia, India, +Paricania, the Eastern AEthiopia, and Mycia. + +Of these countries a considerable number have been already described in +these volumes. Susiana, Babylonia, Assyria, Media, the Caspian coast, +Armenia, Syria, Phoenicia, and Palestine, belong to this class; and it +may be assumed that the reader is sufficiently acquainted with their +general features. It would therefore seem to be enough in the present +place to give an account of the regions which have not yet occupied our +attention, more especially of Persia Proper--the home of the dominant +race. + +Persia Proper seems to have corresponded nearly to that province of the +modern Iran, which still bears the ancient name slightly modified, being +called Farsistan or Fars. The chief important difference between the two +is, that whereas in modern times the tract called Herman is regarded as +a distinct and separate region, Carmania anciently was included within +the limits of Persia. Persia Proper lay upon the gulf to which it has +given name, extending from the mouth of the Tab (Oroatis) to the point +where the gulf joins the Indian Ocean. It was bounded on the west by +Susiana, on the north by Media Magna, on the east by Mycia, and on +the south by the sea. Its length seems to have been about 450, and its +average width about 250 miles. It thus contained an area of rather more +than 100,000 square miles. + +In modern times it is customary to divide the province of Fars into +the _ghermsir_, or, "warm district," and the _serdsir_, or "cold +region"--and the physical character of the country must have made such a +division thoroughly appropriate at every period. The "warm district" +is a tract of sandy plain, often impregnated with salt, which extends +between the mountains and the sea the whole length of the province, +being a continuation of the flat region of Susiana, but falling very +much short of that region in all the qualities which constitute physical +excellence. The soil is poor, consisting of alternate sand and clay--it +is ill-watered, the entire tract possessing scarcely a single stream +worthy of the name of river--and, lying only just without the northern +Tropic, the district is by its very situation among the hottest of +western Asia. It forms, however, no very large portion of the ancient +Persia, being in general a mere strip of land, from ten to fifty +miles wide, and thus not constituting more than an eighth part of the +territory in question. + +The remaining seven eighths belong to the serdsir, or "cold region." +The mountain-range which under various names skirts on the east the +Mesopotamian lowland, separating off that depressed and generally +fertile region from the bare high plateau of Iran, and running +continuously in a direction parallel to the course of the Mesopotamian +streams--i.e. from the north-west to the south-east--changes its course +as it approaches the sea, sweeping gradually round between long. 50 deg. and +55 deg., and becoming parallel to the coast-line, while at the same time it +broadens out, till it covers a space of nearly three degrees, or above +two hundred miles. Along the high tract thus created lay the bulk of +the ancient Persia, consisting of alternate mountain, plain, and narrow +valley, curiously intermixed, and as yet very incompletely mapped. This +region is of varied character. In places richly, fertile, picturesque, +and romantic almost beyond imagination, with lovely wooded dells, green +mountain-sides, and broad plains suited for the production of almost any +crops, it has yet on the whole a predominant character of sterility and +barrenness, especially towards its more northern and eastern portions. +The supply of water is everywhere scanty. Scarcely any of the streams +are strong enough to reach the sea. After short courses they are +either absorbed by the sand or end in small salt lakes, from which +the superfluous water is evaporated. Much of the country is absolutely +without streams, and would be uninhabitable were it not for the +_kanats_, or _karizes_, subterranean channels of spring-water, described +at length in a former volume. + +The only rivers of the district which deserve any attention are the Tab +(or Oroatis), whereof a description has been already given, the Kur or +Bendamir (called anciently Araxes), with its tributary, the Pulwar (or +Cyrus), and the Khoonazaberni or river of Khisht. + +The Bendamir rises in the mountains of the Bakhtiyari chain, in lat. +30 deg. 35', long. 51 deg. 50' nearly, and runs with a course which is generally +south-east, past the ruins of Persepolis, to the salt lake of Neyriz +or Kheir, which it enters in long. 53 deg. 30'. It receives, where it +approaches nearest to Persepolis, the Pulwar or Kur-ab, a small stream +coming from the north-east and flowing by the ruins of both Pasargadae +and Persepolis. A little below its junction with this stream the +Bendamir is crossed by a bridge of five arches, and further down, on the +route between Shiraz and Herman, by another of twelve. Here its waters +are to a great extent drawn off by means of canals, and are made to +fertilize a large tract of rich flat country on either bank, after which +the stream pursues its course with greatly diminished volume to the salt +lake in which it ends. The entire course, including only main windings, +may be estimated at 140 or 150 miles. + +The Khoonazaberni or river of Khisht rises near the ruins of Shapur, at +a short distance from Kazerun, on the route between Bushire and +Shiraz, and flows in a broad valley between lofty mountains towards +the south-west, entering the Persian Gulf by three mouths, the chief of +which is at Rohilla, twenty miles north of Bushire, where the stream has +a breadth of sixty yards, and a depth of about four feet. Above Khisht +the river is already thirty yards wide. Its chief tributary is the +Dalaki stream, which enters it from the east, nearly in long. 51 deg.. The +entire course of the Khisht river may be about 95 or 100 miles. Its +water is brackish except near the source. + +The principal lakes are the Lake of Neyriz and the Deriah-i-Nemek. The +Deriah-i-Nemek is a small basin distant about ten miles from Shiraz, +which receives the waters of the streams that supply that town. It has a +length of about fifteen and a breadth of about three or three and a half +miles. The lake of Neyriz or Kheir is of far larger size, being from +fifty to sixty miles long and from three to six broad, though in the +summer season it is almost entirely dried up. Salt is then obtained +from the lake in large quantities, and forms an important feature in the +commerce of the district. Smaller lakes, also salt or brackish, exist in +other parts of the country, as Lake Famur, near Kazerun, which is about +six miles in length, and from half a mile to a mile across. + +The most remarkable feature of the country consists in the extraordinary +gorges which pierce the great mountain-chain, and render possible the +establishment of routes across that tremendous barrier. Scarped rocks +rise almost perpendicularly on either side of the mountain-streams, +which descend rapidly with frequent cascades and falls. Along the slight +irregularities of these rocks the roads are carried in zigzags, often +crossing the streams from side to side by bridges of a single arch, +which are thrown over profound chasms where the waters chafe and roar +many hundred feet below.46 [PLATE XXVI.] The roads have for the most +part been artificially cut in the sides of the precipices, which rise +from the streams sometimes to the height of 2000 feet. In order to cross +from the Persian Gulf to the high plateau of Iran, no fewer than three +or four of these kotuls, or strange gorge-passes, have to be traversed +successively. Thus the country towards the edge of the plateau is +peculiarly safe from attack, being defended on the north and east by +vast deserts, and on the south by a mountain-barrier of unusual strength +and difficulty. + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXVI.] + + +It is in these regions, which combine facility of defence with +pleasantness of climate, that the principal cities of the district have +at all times been placed. The earliest known capital of the region was +Pasargadae, or Persagadae, as the name is sometimes written, of which +the ruins still exist near Murgab, in lat. 30 deg. 15' long. 53 deg. 17'. +Here is the famous tomb of Cyrus, whereof a description will be given +hereafter; and here are also other interesting remains of the old +Persian architecture. Neither the shape nor the extent of the town can +be traced. The situation was a plain amid mountains, watered by small +streams which found their way to a river of some size (the Pulwar) +flowing at a little distance to the west. [PLATE XXVII Fig. 1.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXVII.] + + +At the distance of thirty miles from Pasargadae, or of more than forty +by the ordinary road, grew up the second capital, Persepolis, occupying +a more southern position than the primitive seat of power, but still +situated towards the edge of the plateau, having the mountain-barrier +to the south-west and the desert at no great distance to the north-east. +Like its predecessor, Persepolis was situated in a plain, but in a plain +of much larger dimensions and of far greater fertility. The plain of +Merdasht is one of the most productive in Persia, being watered by the +two streams of the Bendamir and the Pulwar, which unite a few miles +below the site of the ancient city. From these two copious and unfailing +rivers a plentiful supply of the precious fluid can at all times be +obtained; and in Persia such a supply will always create the loveliest +verdure, the most abundant crops, and the richest and thickest foliage. +The site of Persopolis is naturally far superior to that in which +the modern provincial capital, Shiraz, has grown up, at about the +same distance from Persepolis as that is from Pasargadae. and in the +same--i.e. in a south-west--direction. + +Besides Persepolis and Pasargadse, Persia Proper contained but few +cities of any note or name. If we include Carmania in Persia, Carmana, +the capital of that country, may indeed be mentioned as a third Persian +town of some consequence; but otherwise the names which occur in ancient +authors are insignificant, and designate villages rather than towns of +any size. Carmana, however, which is mentioned by Ptolemy and +Ammianus as the capital of those parts, seems to have been a place of +considerable importance. It may be identified with the modern Kerman, +which lies in lat. 39 deg. 55', long. 56 deg. 13', and is still one of the +chief cities of Persia. Situated, like Pasargadae and Persepolis, in a +capacious plain surrounded by mountains, which furnish sufficient water +for cultivation to be carried on by means of kanats in most parts of the +tract enclosed by them, and occupying a site through which the trade of +the country almost of necessity passes, Kerman must always be a town of +no little consequence. Its inland and remote position, however, +caused it to be little known to the Greeks; and, apparently, the great +Alexandrian geographer was the first who made them acquainted with its +existence and locality. + +The Persian towns or villages upon the coast of the Gulf were chiefly +Armuza (which gave name to the district of Ar-muzia), opposite the +modern island of Ormuz; Sisidona, which must have been near Cape Jerd; +Apostana, probably about Shewar; Gogana, no doubt the modern Kongoon; +and Taoce on the Granis, famous as having in its neighborhood a royal +palace, which we may perhaps place near Dalaki, Taoce itself occupying +the position of Rohilla, at the mouth of the Khisht river. Of the inland +towns the most remarkable, after Persepolis, Pasargadse, and Carmana, +were Gabae, near Pasar-gadae, also the site of a palace; Uxia, or the +Uxian city, which may have occupied the position of Mai-Amir, Obroatis, +Tragonice, Ardea, Portospana, Hyrba, etc., which it is impossible to +locate unless by the merest conjecture. + +The chief districts into which the territory was divided were +Paraetacene, a portion of the Bakhtiyari mountain-chain, which some, +however, reckoned to Media; Mardyene, or the country of the Mardi, also +one of the hill tracts; Taocene, the district about Taoce, part of the +low sandy coast region; Ciribo, the more northern portion of the same +region; and Carmania, the entire eastern territory. These districts were +not divided from one another by any marked natural features, the only +division of the country to which such a character attached being the +triple one into the high sandy plains north of the mountains, the +mountain region, and the Deshtistan, or low hot tract along the coast. + +From this account it will be easy to understand how Persia Proper +acquired and maintained the character of "a scant land and a rugged," +which we find attaching to it in ancient authors. The entire area, as +has been already observed was about 100,000 square miles--little more +than half that of Spain, and about one fifth of the area of modern +Persia. Even of this space nearly one half was uninhabitable, consisting +either of barren stony mountain or of scorching sandy plain, ill +supplied with water, and often impregnated with salt, the habitable +portion consisted of the valleys and plains among the mountains and +along their skirts, together with certain favored spots upon the banks +of streams in the flat regions. These flat regions themselves were +traversed in many places by rocky ridges of a singularly forbidding +aspect. The whole appearance of the country was dry, stony, sterile. As +a modern writer observes, "the livery of the land is constantly brown +or gray; water is scanty; plains and mountains are equally destitute of +wood. When the traveller, after toiling over the rocky mountains that +separate the plains looks down from the pass he has won with toil +and difficulty upon the country below, his eye wanders unchecked and +unrested over an uniform brown expanse losing itself in distance." + +Still this character, though predominant, is not universal. Wherever +there is water, vegetation springs up. The whole of the mountain region +is intersected by valleys and plains which are more or less fertile. +The line of country between Bebahan and Shiraz is for above sixty miles +"covered with wood and verdure," in East of Shiraz, on the route between +that city and Kerman the country is said to be in parts "picturesque and +romantic," consisting of "low luxuriant valleys or; plains separated +by ranges of low mountains, green to their very summits with beautiful +turf." The plains of Khubbes, Merdasht, Ujan, Shiraz, Kazerun, +and others, produce abundantly under a very inefficient system of +cultivation. Even in the most arid tracts there is generally a time of +greenness immediately after the spring rains, when the whole country +smiles with verdure. + +It has been already remarked that the Empire, which, commencing from +Persia Proper, spread itself towards the close of the sixth century +before Christ, over the surrounding tracts, included a number of +countries not yet described in these volumes, since they formed no part +of any of the four Empires which preceded the Persian. To complete, +therefore, the geographical survey proper to our subject, it will be +necessary to give a sketch of the tracts in question. They will +fall naturally into three groups, an eastern, a north-western, and a +southwestern--the eastern extending from the skirts of Mount Zagros to +the Indian Desert, the north-western from the Caspian to the Propontis, +and the south-western from the borders of Palestine to the shores of the +Greater Syrtis. + +Inside the Zagros and Elburz ranges, bounded on the north and west by +those mountain-lines, on the east by the ranges of Suliman and Hala, and +on the south by the coast-chain which runs from Persia Proper nearly +to the Indus, lies a vast tableland, from 3000 to 5000 feet above the +sea-level, known to modern geographers as the Great Plateau of Iran. Its +shape is an irregular rectangle, or trapezium, extending in its greatest +length, which is from west to east, no less than twenty degrees, or +above 1100 miles, while the breadth from north to south varies from +seven degrees, or 480 miles (which is its measure along the line of +Zagros), to ten degrees, or 690 miles, where it abuts upon the Indus +valley. The area of the tract is probably from 500,000 to 600,000 square +miles. + +It is calculated that two thirds of this elevated region are absolutely +and entirely desert. The rivers which flow from the mountains +surrounding it are, with a single exception--that of the Etymandrus or +Helmend--insignificant, and their waters almost always lose themselves, +after a course proportioned to their volume, in the sands of the +interior. Only two, the Helmend and the river of Ghuzni, have even the +strength to form lakes; the others are absorbed by irrigation, or sucked +up by the desert. Occasionally a river, rising within the mountains, +forces its way through the barrier, and so contrives to reach the sea. +This is the case, especially, on the south, where the coast chain is +pierced by a number of streams, some of which have their sources at a +considerable distance inland. On the north the Heri-rud, or River of +Herat, makes its escape in a similar way from the plateau, but only to +be absorbed, after passing through two mountain chains, in the sands of +the Kharesm. Thus by far the greater portion of this region is desert +throughout the year, while, as the summer advances, large tracts, which +in the spring were green, are burnt up--the rivers shrink back towards +their sources--the whole plateau becomes dry and parched--and the +traveller wonders that any portion of it should be inhabited. + +It must not be supposed that the entire plateau of which we have been +speaking is to the eye a single level and unbroken plain. In the western +portion of the region the plains are constantly intersected by "brown, +irregular, rocky ridges," rising to no great height, but serving to +condense the vapors held in the air, and furnishing thereby springs +and wells of inestimable value to the inhabitants. In the southern and +eastern districts "immense" ranges of mountains are said to occur; and +the south-eastern as well as the north-eastern corners of the plateau +are little else than confused masses of giant elevations. Vast flats, +however, are found. In the Great Salt Desert, which extends from Kashan +and Koum to the Deriah or "Sea" in which the Helmend terminates, and +in the sandy desert of Seistan, which lies east and south-east of that +lake, reaching from near Furrah to the Mekran mountains, plains of above +a hundred miles in extent appear to occur, sometimes formed of loose +sand, which the wind raises into waves like those of the sea, sometimes +hard and gravelly, or of baked and indurated clay. + +The tract in question, which at the present day is divided between +Afghanistan, Beloochistan, and Iran, contained, at the time when +the Persian Empire arose, the following nations: the Sagartians, the +Cossseans, the Parthians, the Hariva or Arians, the Gandarians, the +Sattagydians, the Arachotians, the Thamanseans, the Sarangae, and the +Paricanians. The Sagartians and Cossseans dwelt in the western portion +of the tract, the latter probably about the Siah-Koh mountains, the +former scattered over the whole region from the borders of Persia Proper +to the Caspian Gates and the Elburz range. Along its northern edge, east +of the Sagartians, were the Parthians, the Arians, and the Gandarians. +occurring in that order as we proceed from west to east. The Parthians +held the country known now as the Atak or "Skirt," the flat tract at the +southern base of the Elburz from about Shahrud to Khaff, together with +a portion of the mountain region adjoining. This is a rich and valuable +territory, well watered by a number of small streams, which, issuing +from the ravines and valleys of the Elburz, spread fertility around, but +lose themselves after a short, course in the Salt Desert. Adjoining the +Parthians upon the east were the Haroyu, Hariva, or Arians, an Iranic +race of great antiquity, who held the country along the southern skirts +of the mountains from the neighborhood of Khaff to the point where the +Heri-rud (Arius) issues from the Paropamisan mountains. The character +of this country closely resembles that of Parthia, whereof it is a +continuation; but the copious stream of the Heri-rud renders it even +more productive. + +The Gandarians held Kabul, and the mountain tract on both sides of the +Kabul river as far as the upper course of the Indus, thus occupying +the extreme north-eastern corner of the plateau, the region where its +elevation is the greatest. Lofty mountain-ridges, ramifying in various +directions but tending generally to run east and west, deep gorges, +narrow and tremendous passes, like the Khyber, characterize this +district. Its soil is generally rocky and barren; but many of the +valleys are fertile, abounding with enchanting scenery and enjoying a +delightful climate. More especially is this the case in the neighborhood +of the city of Kabul, which is perhaps the Caspatyrus of Herodotus, +where Darius built the fleet which descended the Indus. + +South of Aria and Gandaria, in the tract between the Great Desert +and the Indus valley, the plateau was occupied by four nations--the +Thamanseans, the Sarangians, the Sattagydians, and the Arachotians. +The Thamanaean country appears to have been that which lies south and +south-east of Aria (Herat), reaching from the Haroot-rud or river of +Subzawar to the banks of the Helmend about Ghirisk. This is a varied +region, consisting on the north and the north-east of several high +mountain chains which ramify from a common centre, having between +them large tracts of hills and downs, while towards the south and the +south-west the country is comparatively low and flat, descending to +the level of the desert about the thirty second parallel. Here the +Thamanseans were adjoined upon by the Sarangians, who held the land +about the lake in which the Helmend terminates--the Seistan of Modern +Persia. Seistan is mainly desert. One third of the surface of the soil +is composed of moving sands, and the other two thirds of a compact +sand, mixed with a little clay, but very rich in vegetable matter. It +is traversed by a number of streams, as the Haroot-rud, the river +of Furrah, the river of Khash, the Helmend, and others, and is +very productive along their banks, which are fertilized by annual +inundations; but the country between the streams is for the most part an +arid desert. + +The Sattagydians and Arachotians divided between them the remainder of +Afghanistan, the former probably occupying south-eastern Kabul, from the +Ghuzni river and its tributaries to the valley of the Indus, while the +latter were located in the modern Candahar, upon the Urghand-ab and +Turnuk rivers. The character of these tracts is similar to that of +north-western Kabul, but somewhat less rugged and mountainous. Hills and +downs alternate with rocky ranges and fairly fertile vales. There is +a scantiness of water, but still a certain number of moderate-sized +rivers, tolerably well supplied with affluents. The soil, however, is +either rocky or sandy; and without a careful system of irrigation great +portions of the country remain of necessity barren and unproductive. + +The south-eastern corner of the plateau, below the countries of the +Sarangians and the Arachotians, was occupied by a people, called +Paricanians by Herodotus, perhaps identical with the Gedrosians of +later writers. This district, the modern Beloochistan, is still very +imperfectly known, but appears to be generally mountainous, to have a +singularly barren soil, and to be deficient in rivers. The nomadic life +is a necessity in the greater part of the region, which is in few places +suitable for cultivation, but has good pastures in the mountains or the +plains according to the season of the year. The rivers of the country +are for the most part mere torrents, which carry a heavy body of +water after rains, but are often absolutely dry for several months in +succession. Water, however, is generally obtainable by digging wells in +their beds; and the liquid procured in this way suffices, not only for +the wants of man and beast, but also for a limited irrigation. + +The Great Plateau which has been here described is bordered everywhere, +except at its north-eastern and north-western corners, by low regions. +On the north the lowland is at first a mere narrow strip intervening +between the Elburz range and the Caspian, a strip which has been already +described in the account given of the Third Monarchy. Where, however, +the Caspian ends, its shore trending away to the northward, there +succeeds to this mere strip of territory a broad and ample tract of +sandy plain, extending from about the 54th to the 68th degree of east +longitude--a distance of 760 miles--and reaching from the 36th to the +50th parallel of north latitude--a distance not much short of a thousand +miles! This tract which comprises the modern Khanats of Khiva and +Bokhara, together with a considerable piece of Southern Asiatic Russia, +is for the most part a huge trackless desert, composed of loose sand, +black or red, which the wind heaps up into hills. Scarcely any region on +the earth's surface is more desolate. The boundless plain lies stretched +before the traveller like an interminable sea, but dead, dull, and +motionless. Vegetation, even the most dry and sapless, scarcely exists. +For three or four hundred miles together he sees no running stream. +Water, salt, slimy, and discolored, lies Occasionally in pools, or +is drawn from wells, which yield however only a scanty supply. For +anything like a drinkable beverage the traveller has to trust to the +skies, which give or withhold their stores with a caprice that is truly +tantalizing. Occasionally, but only at long intervals, out of the +low sandy region there issues a rocky range, or a plateau of moderate +eminence, where the soil is firm, the ground smooth, and vegetation +tolerably abundant. The most important of the ranges are the Great +and Little Balkan, near the Caspian Sea, between the 39th and 40th +parallels, the Khalata and Urta Tagh, north-west, of Bokhara, and the +Kukuth; still further to the north-west in latitude 42 deg. nearly. The +chief plateau is that of Ust-Urt, between the Caspian and the Sea of +Aral, which is perhaps not more than three or four hundred feet above +the sandy plain, but is entirely different in character. + +This desolate region of low sandy plain would be wholly uninhabitable, +were it not for the rivers. Two great streams, the Amoo or Jyhun +(anciently the Oxus), and the Sir or Synuti (anciently the Jaxartes), +carry their waters across the desert, and pour them into the basin of +the Aral. Several others of less volume, as the Murg-ab, or river of +Merv, the Abi Meshed or Tejend, the Heri-rud, the river of Maymene, the +river of Balkh, the river of Khulm, the Shehri-Sebz, the Ak Su or river +of Bokhara, the Kizil Deria, etc., flow down from the high ground +into the plain, where their waters either become lost in the sands, or +terminate in small salt pools. Along the banks of these streams the soil +is fertile, and where irrigation is employed the crops are abundant. In +the vicinity of Khiva, at Kermineh on the Bokhara river, at Samarcand, +at Balkh--and in a few other places, the vegetation is even luxuriant; +gardens, meadows, orchards, and cornfields fringe the river-bank; and +the natives see in such favored spots resemblances of Paradise! Often, +however, even the river-banks themselves are uncultivated, and the +desert creeps up to their very edge; but this is in default, not in +spite, of human exertion. A well-managed system of irrigation could, +in almost every instance, spread on either side of the streams a broad +strip of verdure. + +In the time of the Fifth Monarchy, the tract which has been here +described was divided among three nations. The region immediately to the +east of the Caspian, bounded on the north by the old course of the Oxus +and extending eastward to the neighborhood of Merv, though probably +not including that city, was Chorasmia, the country of the Chorasmians. +Across the Oxus to the north-east was Sogdiana (or Sugd), reaching +thence to the Jaxartes, which was the Persian boundary in this +direction. South of Sogdiana, divided from it by the Middle and Upper +Oxus, was Bactria, the country of the Bakhtars or Bactrians. The +territory of this people reached southward to the foot of the +Paropamisus, adjoining Chorasmia and Aria on the west, and on the south +Sattagydia and Gandaria. + +East of the table-land lies the valley of the Indus and its tributaries, +at first a broad tract, 350 miles from west to east, but narrowing as +it descends, and in places not exceeding sixty or seventy miles, +across. The length of the valley is not less than 800 miles. Its area is +probably about a hundred thousand square miles. We may best regard it +as composed of two very distinct tracts--one the broad triangular plain +towards the north, to which, from the fact of its being watered by five +main streams, he natives have given the name of Punj-ab, the other the +long and comparatively narrow valley of the single Indus river, which, +deriving its appellation from that noble stream, is known in modern +geography as Sinde. The Punjab, which contains an area of above fifty +thousand square miles, is mountainous towards the north, where it +adjoins on Kashmeer and Thibet, but soon sinks down into a vast plain, +with a soil which is chiefly either sand or clay, immensely productive +under irrigation, but tending to become jungle or desert if left without +human care. Sinde, or the Indus valley below the Punjab, is a region of +even greater fertility. It is watered, not only by the main stream of +the Indus, but by a number of branch channels which the river begins to +throw off from about the 28th parallel. It includes, on the right bank +of the stream, the important tract called Cutchi Gandava, a triangular +plain at the foot of the Suliman and Hala ranges, containing about 7000 +square miles of land which is all capable of being made into a garden. +The soil is here for the most part rich, black, and loamy; water is +abundant; and the climate suitable for the growth of all kinds of grain. +Below Cutchi Gandava the valley of the Indus is narrow for about a +hundred miles, but about Tatta it expands and a vast delta is formed. +This is a third triangle, containing above a thousand square miles of +the richest alluvium, which is liable however to floods and to vast +changes in the river beds, whereby often whole fields are swept away. +Much of this tract is moreover low and swampy; the climate is trying; +and rice is almost the only product that can be advantageously +cultivated. + +The low region lying south of the Great Plateau is neither extensive +nor valuable. It consists of a mere strip of land along the coast of +the Indian Ocean, extending a distance of about nine degrees (550 miles) +from the mouth of the Persian Gulf to Cape Monze, near Kurrachee, but +in width not exceeding ten or, at the most, twenty miles. This tract +was occupied in ancient times mainly by a race which Herodotus called +Ethiopians and the historians of Alexander Ichthyophagi (Fish-Eaters). +It is an arid, sultry, and unpleasant region, scarcely possessing a +perennial stream, and depending for its harvests entirely upon the +winter rains, and for its water during the summer on wells which are +chiefly brackish. Tolerable pasturage is, however, obtainable in places +even during the hottest part of the year, and between Cape Jask and +Gwattur the crops produced are far from contemptible. + +A small tract of coast, a continuation of the territory just described, +intervening between it and Kerman, was occupied in the early Persian +times by a race known to the Persians as Maka, and to the Greeks as +Mycians. This district, reaching from about Cape Jask to Gombroon, +is one of greater fertility than is usual in these regions, being +particularly productive in dates and grain. This fertility seems, +however, to be confined to the vicinity of the sea-shore. + +To complete the description of the Eastern provinces two other tracts +must be mentioned. The mountain-chain which skirts the Great Plateau on +the north, distinguished in these pages by the name of Elburz, broadens +out after it passes the south-eastern corner of the Caspian Sea till it +covers a space of nearly three degrees (more than 200 miles). Instead +of the single lofty ridge which separates the Salt Desert from the low +Caspian region, we find between the fifty-fourth and fifty-ninth degrees +of east longitude three or four distinct ranges, all nearly parallel to +one another, having a general direction of east and west. Broad and rich +valleys are enclosed between these latitudinal ranges which are watered +by rivers of a considerable size, as more especially the Ettrek and +the Gurgan. Thus a territory is formed capable of supporting a largish +population, a territory which possesses a natural unity, being shut in +on three sides by mountains, and on the fourth by the Caspian. Here in +Persian times was settled a people called Hyrcani; and from them the +tract derived the name of Hyrcania (Vehrkana), while the lake on which +it adjoined came to be known as "the Hyrcanian Sea." The fertility +of the region, its broad plains, shady woods and lofty mountains were +celebrated by the ancient writers. + +Further to the east, beyond the low sandy plain, and beyond the +mountains in which its great rivers have their source--on the other +side of the "Roof of the World," as the natives name this elevated +region--lay a tract unimportant in itself, but valuable to the Persians +as the home of a people from whom they obtained excellent soldiers. The +plain of Chinese Tartary, the district about Kashgar and Yarkand, seems +to have been in possession of certain Sacans or Scythians, who in the +flourishing times of the empire acknowledged subjection to the Persian +crown. These Sacans, who call themselves Huma-varga or Amyrgians, +furnished some of the best and bravest of the Persian troops. Westward +they bordered on Sogdiana and Bactria; northward they extended probably +to the great mountain-chain of the Tien-chan; on the east they were shut +in by the vast desert of Gobi or Shamoo; while southward they must have +touched Gandaria and perhaps India. A portion of this country--that +towards the north and west--was well watered and fairly productive; but +the southern and eastern part of it must have been arid and desert. + +From this consideration of the Eastern provinces of the Empire, we pass +on naturally to those which lay towards the North-West. The Caspian Sea +alone intervened between these two groups, which thus approached each +other within a distance of some 250 or 260 miles. + +Almost immediately to the west of the Caspian there rises a high +table-land diversified by mountains, which stretches eastward for more +than eighteen degrees between the 37th and 41st parallels. This highland +may properly be regarded as a continuation of the great Iranean plateau, +with which it is connected at its south-eastern corner. It comprises +a portion of the modern Persia, the whole of Armenia, and most of Asia +Minor. Its principal mountain-ranges are latitudinal or from west to +east, only the minor ones taking the opposite or longitudinal direction. +Of the latitudinal chains the most important is the Taurus, which, +commencing at the southwestern corner of Asia Minor in longitude 29 deg. +nearly, bounds the great table-land upon the south, running parallel +with the shore at the distance of sixty or seventy miles as far as +the Pylse Cilicise, near Tarsus, and then proceeding in a direction +decidedly north of east to the neighborhood of Lake Van, where it unites +with the line of Zagros. The elevation of this range, though not equal +to that of some in Asia, is considerable. In Asia Minor the loftiest of +the Taurus peaks seem to attain a height of about 9000 or 10,000 feet. +Further to the east the elevation appears to be even greater, the peaks +of Ala Dagh, Sapan, Nimrud, and Mut Khan in the tract about Lake Van +being all of them considerably above the line of perpetual snow, and +therefore probably 11,000 or 12,000 feet. + +At the opposite side of the table-land, bounding it towards the north, +there runs under various names a second continuous range of inferior +elevation, which begins near Brusa, in the Keshish Dagh or Mysian +Olympus, and proceeds in a line nearly parallel with the northern coast +to the vicinity of Kars. Between this and Taurus are two other important +ridges, which run westward from the neighborhood of Ararat to about the +34th degree of east longitude, after which they subside into the plain. + +The heart of the mountain-region, the tract extending from the district +of Erivan on the east to the upper course of the Kizil-Irmak river +and the vicinity of Sivas upon the west, was, as it still is, Armenia. +Amidst these natural fastnesses, in a country of lofty ridges, deep +and narrow valleys, numerous and copious streams, and occasional broad +plains--a country of rich pasture grounds, productive orchards, and +abundant harvests--this interesting people has maintained itself almost +unchanged from the time of the early Persian kings to the present day. +Armenia was one of the most valuable portions of the Persian Empire, +furnishing, as it did, besides stone and timber, and several most +important minerals, an annual supply of 20,000 excellent horses to the +stud of the Persian king. + +The highland west of Armenia, the plateau of Asia Minor, from the +longitude of Siwas (37 deg. E.) to the sources of the Meander and the +Hermus, was occupied by the two nations of the Cappadocians and +Phrygians, whose territories were separated by the Kizil-Irmak or Halys +river. This tract, though diversified by some considerable ranges, and +possessing one really lofty mountain, that of Argseus, was, compared +with Armenia, champaign and level. Its broad plains afforded the best +possible pasturage for sheep, while at the same time they bore excellent +crops of wheat. The entire region was well-watered; it enjoyed a +delightful climate; and besides corn and cattle furnished many products +of value. + +Outside the plateau on the north, on the north-east, on the west, and +on the south, lie territories which, in comparison with the high +region whereon they adjoined, may be called lowlands. The north-eastern +lowland, the broad and rich valley of the Kur, which corresponds closely +with the modern Russian province of Georgia, was in the possession of a +people called by Herodotus Saspeires or Sapeires, whom we may identify +with the Iberians of later writers. Adjoining upon them towards the +south, probably in the country about Erivan, and so in the neighborhood +of Ararat, were the Alarodians, whose name must be connected with that +of the great mountain. On the other side of the Sapeirian country, in +the tracts now known as Mingrelia and Imeritia, regions of a wonderful +beauty and fertility, were the Colchians--dependants, but not exactly +subjects, of Persia. + +The northern lowland, which consisted of a somewhat narrow strip of land +between the plateau and the Euxine, was a rich and well-wooded region, +630 miles in length, and in breadth from forty to a hundred. It was +inhabited by a large number of rude and barbarous tribes, each of whom +possessed a small portion of the sea-board. These tribes, enumerated in +the order of their occurrence from east to west, were the following: +the Moschi, the Macrones (or Tzani), the Mosy-noeci, the Mares, the +Tibareni, the Chalybes, the Paphlagones, the Mariandyni, the Bithyni, +and the Thyni. The Moschi, Macrones, Mosynoeci, Mares, and Tibareni +dwelt towards the east, occupying the coast from Batoum to Ordou. +The Chalybes inhabited the tract immediately adjoining on Sinope. +The Paphlagonians held the rest of the coast from the mouth of the +Kizil-Irmak to Cape Baba, where they were succeeded by the Mariandyni, +who owned the small tract between Cape Baba and the mouth of +the Sakkariyeh (Sangarius). From the Sangarius to the canal of +Constantinople dwelt the Thynians and Bithynians intermixed, the former +however affecting the coast and the latter the interior of the country. +The entire tract was of a nearly uniform character, consisting of wooded +spurs from the northern mountain-chain, with, valleys of greater or +less width between them. Streams were numerous, and vegetation was +consequently rich; but it may be doubted whether the climate was +healthy. + +The western lowland comprised the inland regions of Mysia, Lydia, +and Caria, together with the coast-tracts which had been occupied by +immigrant Greeks, and which were known as Juolis, Doris, and Ionia. The +broad and rich plains, the open valleys, the fair grassy mountains, the +noble trees, the numerous and copious rivers of this district are too +well known to need description here. The western portion of Asia Minor +is a terrestrial paradise, well deserving the praises which Herodotus +with patriotic enthusiasm bestowed upon it. The climate is delightful, +only that it is somewhat too luxurious; the soil is rich and varied in +quality; the vegetable productions are abundant; and the mountains, at +any rate anciently, possessed mineral treasures of great value. + +The lowland upon the south is narrower and more mountainous than either +of the others. It comprised three countries only--Lycia, Pamphylia, and +Cilicia. The tract is chiefly occupied by spurs from Taurus, between +which lie warm and richly wooded valleys. In Lycia, however, the +mountain-ridges embrace some extensive uplands, on a level not much +inferior to that of the central plateau itself, while in Pamphylia and +Cilicia are two or three low alluvial plains of tolerable extent and +of great fertility. Of these the most remarkable is that near Tarsus, +formed by the three streams of the Cydnus, the Sarus, and the Pyramus, +which extends along the coast a distance of forty miles and reaches +inland about thirty, the region which gave to the tract where it occurs +the name of Cilicia Campestris or Pedias. + +The Persian dominion in this quarter was not bounded by sea. Opposite to +Cilicia lay the large and important island of Cyprus, which was included +in the territories of the Great King from the time of Cambyses to the +close of the Empire. Further to the west, Rhodes, Cos, Samos, Chios, +Lesbos, Tenedos, Lemnus, Imbrus, Samothrace, Thasos, and most of the +islands of the Egean were for a time Persian, but were never grasped +with such firmness as to be a source of real strength to their +conquerors. The same may be said of Thrace and Pseonia, subjugated under +Darius, and held for some twenty or thirty years, but not assimilated, +not brought into the condition of provinces, and therefore rather +a drain upon the Empire than an addition to its resources. It seems +unnecessary to lengthen out this description of the Persian territories +by giving an account of countries and islands, whose connection with the +Empire was at once so slight and so temporary. + +A few words must, however, be said respecting Cyprus. This island, which +is 140 miles long from Bafa (Paphos) to Cape Andrea, with an average +width for two thirds of its length of thirty-five, and for the remaining +third of about six or seven miles, is a mountainous tract, picturesque +and varied, containing numerous slopes, and a few plains, well fitted +for cultivation. According to Eratosthenes it was in the more ancient +times richly wooded, but was gradually cleared by human labor. Its soil +was productive, and particularly well suited for the vine and the olive. +It grew also sufficient corn for its own use. But its special value +arose from its mineral products. The copper mines near Tamasus were +enormously productive, and the ore thence derived so preponderated over +all other supplies that the later Romans came to use the word Cyprium +for the metal generally--whence the names by which it is even now known +in most of the languages of modern Europe. On the whole Cyprus was +considered inferior to no known island. Besides its vegetable and +mineral products, it furnished a large number of excellent sailors to +the Persian fleet. + +It remains to notice briefly those provinces of the south-west which had +not been included within any of the preceding monarchies, and which are +therefore as yet undescribed in these volumes. These provinces are the +African, and may be best considered under the three heads of Egypt, +Libya, and the Cyrenaica. + +Egypt, if we include under the name not merely the Nile valley and the +Delta, but the entire tract interposed between the Libyan Desert on the +one side and the Arabian Gulf or Red Sea on the other, is a country of +nearly the size of Italy. It measures 520 miles from Elephantine to the +Mediterranean, and has an average width of 150 or 160 miles. It must +thus contain an area of about 80,000 square miles. Of this space, +however, at least three fourths is valueless, consisting of bare rocky +mountain or dry sandy plain. It is only along the course of the narrow +valley in which the Nile flows from the Cataracts to beyond Cairo, in +the tract known as the Faioum, and in the broad region of the Delta, +that cultivation is possible. Even in the Delta itself there are large +spaces which are arid, and others which are permanent marshes, so that +considerable portions of its surface are unfitted for husbandry. But if +the quantity of cultivable land is thus limited in Egypt, the quality is +so excellent, in consequence of the alluvial character of the soil, that +the country was always in ancient times a sort of granary of the world. +The noble river, bringing annually a fresh deposit of the richest soil, +and furnishing a supply of water, which is sufficient, if carefully +husbanded, to produce a succession of luxuriant crops throughout the +year, makes Egypt--what it is even at the present day--one of the most +fertile portions of the earth's surface--a land of varied products, +all excellent--but especially a land of corn, to which the principal +nations of the world looked for their supplies, either regularly, or at +any rate in times of difficulty. + +West of Egypt was a dry and sandy tract, dotted with oases, but +otherwise only habitable along the shore, which in the time of the +Persian Empire was occupied by a number of wild tribes who were mostly +in the lowest condition to which savage man is capable of sinking. The +geographical extent of this tract was large, exceeding considerably that +of Egypt; but its value was slight. Naturally, it produced nothing but +dates and hides. The inhumanity of the inhabitants made it, however, +further productive of a commodity, which, until the world is +christianized, will probably always be regarded as one of high +value--the commodity of negro slaves, which were procured in the Sahara +by slave-hunts, and perhaps by purchase in Nigritia. + +Still further to the west, and forming the boundary of the Empire in +this direction, lay the district of the Cyrenaica, a tract of singular +fertility and beauty. Between Benghazi, in east longitude 20 deg., and the +Ras al Tynn (long. 23 deg. 15'), there rises above the level of the adjacent +regions an extensive table land, which, attracting the vapors that float +over the Mediterranean, condenses them, and so abounds with springs +and rills. A general freshness and greenness, with rich vegetation in +places, is the consequence. Olives, figs, carobs, junipers, oleanders, +cypresses, cedars, myrtles, arbutus-trees, cover the flanks of the +plateau and the hollows which break its surface, while the remainder is +suitable alike for the cultivation of cereals and for pasturage. Nature +has also made the region a special gift in the laserpitium or silphium, +which was regarded by the ancients as at once a delicacy and a plant +of great medicinal power, and which added largely to the value of the +country. + +Such was the geographical extent of the Persian Empire, and such +were the chief provinces which it contained besides those previously +comprised in the empires of Media or Babylon. Territorially, the great +mass of the Empire lay towards the east, between long. 50 deg. and 75 deg., or +between the Zagros range and the Indian Desert. But its most important +provinces were the western ones. East of Persepolis, the only regions +of much value were the valleys of the Indus and the Oxus. Westward lay +Susiana, Babylonia, Assyria, Media, Armenia, Iberia, Cappadocia, Asia +Minor, Cyprus, Syria, Palestine, Egypt, the Cyrenaica--all countries of +great, or at least considerable, productiveness. The two richest grain +tracts of the ancient world, the best pasture regions, the districts +which produced the most valuable horses, the most abundant of known +gold-fields, were included within the limits of the Empire, which may +be looked upon as self-sufficing, containing within it all that man in +those days required, not only for his necessities, but even for his most +cherished luxuries. + +The productiveness of the Empire was the natural result of its +possessing so many and such large rivers. Six streams of the first +class, having courses exceeding a thousand miles in length, helped to +fertilize the lands which owned the sway of the Great King. These were +the Nile, the Indus, the Euphrates, the Jaxartes, the Oxus, and the +Tigris. Two of the six have been already described in these volumes, and +therefore will not need to detain us here; but a few words must be +said with respect to each of the remaining four, if our sketch of the +geography of the Empire is to make any approach to completeness. + +The Nile was only in the latter part of its course a Persian stream. +Flowing, as we now know that it does, from within a short distance of +the equator, it had accomplished more than three fourths of its course +before it entered a Persian province. It ran, however, through Persian +territory a distance of about six hundred miles, and conferred on +the tract through which it passed immeasurable benefits. The Greeks +sometimes maintained that "Egypt was the gift of the river;" and, though +this was very far from being a correct statement in the sense intended, +there is a meaning of the words in which we may accept them as +expressing a fact. Egypt is only what she is through her river. The Nile +gives her all that makes her valuable. This broad, ample, and unfailing +stream not only by its annual inundation enriches the soil and prepares +it for tillage in a manner that renders only the lightest further labor +necessary, but serves as a reservoir from which inexhaustible supplies +of the precious fluid can be obtained throughout the whole of the year. +The water, which rises towards the end of June, begins to subside early +in October, and for half the year--from December till June--Egypt is +only cultivable through irrigation. She produces, however, during this +period, excellent crops--even at the present day, when there are few +canals--from the facility with which water is obtained, by means of +a very simple engine, out of the channel of the Nile. This unfailing +supply enabled the cultivator to obtain a second, a third, and even +sometimes a fourth crop from the same land within the space of a year. + +The course of the Nile from Elephantine, where it entered Egypt, to +Cercasorus, near Heliopolis, where it bifurcated, was in general north, +with, however, a certain tendency westward. It entered Egypt nearly in +long. 33 deg., and at Neapolis (more than two degrees further north) it was +still within 15 deg. of the same meridian; then, however, it took a westerly +bend, crossed the 32nd and 31st meridians, and in lat. 28 deg. 23 reached +west as far as long. 30 deg. 43'. After this it returned a little eastward, +recrossed the 31st meridian, and having reached long. 31 deg. 22' near +Aphroditopolis (lat.29 deg. 25), it proceeded almost due north to Cercasorus +in lat. 30 deg. 7'. The course of the river up to this point was, from its +entry into the country, about 540 miles. At Cercasorus the Delta began. +The river threw out two branches, which flowed respectively to the +north-east and the north-west, while between them was a third channel, +a continuation of the previous course of the stream, which pierced the +Delta through its centre, flowing almost due north. Lower down, further +branch channels were thrown out, some natural, some artificial, and the +triangular tract between the two outer arms of the river was intersected +by at least five, and (in later times) by fourteen large streams. The +right and left arms appear to have been of about equal in length, and +may be estimated at 150 or 160 miles; the central arm had a shorter +course, not exceeding 110 miles. The volume of water which the Nile +pours into the Mediterranean during a day and night is estimated at from +150,000 millions to 700,000 millions of cubic metres. It was by far the +largest of all the rivers of the Empire. + +The Indus, which was the next largest of the Persian rivers to the Nile, +rose (like the Nile) outside the Persian territory. Its source is in the +region north of the Himalaya range, about lat. 31 deg., long. 82 deg. 30'. It +begins by flowing to the north-west, in a direction parallel to that of +the Western Himalayas, along the northern flank of which it continues +in this line a distance of about 700 miles, past Ladak, to long. 75 deg. +nearly. Here it is met by the Bolor chain, which prevents its further +progress in this direction and causes it to turn suddenly nearly at a +right angle to the south-west. Entering a transverse valley, it finds a +way (which is still very imperfectly known) through the numerous ridges +of the Himalaya to the plain at its southern base, on which it debouches +about thirty miles above Attock. It is difficult to say at what exact +point it crossed the Persian frontier, but probably at least the first +700 miles of its course were through territory not Persian. From Attock +to the sea the Indus is a noble river. It runs for 900 miles in a +general direction of S.S.W. through the plain in one main stream (which +is several hundred yards in width), while on its way it throws off also +from time to time small side streamlets, which are either consumed in +irrigation or rejoin the main channel. A little below Tatta its Delta +begins--a Delta, however, much inferior in size to that of the Nile. The +distance from the apex to the sea is not more than sixty miles, and +the breadth of the tract embraced between the two arms does not exceed +seventy miles. The entire course of the Indus is reckoned at 1960 miles, +of which probably 1260 were through Persian territory. The volume of +the stream is always considerable, while in the rainy season it is very +great. The Indus is said then to discharge into the Indian ocean +446,000 cubic feet per second, or 4280 millions of cubic yards in the +twenty-four hours. + +The Oxus rises from an Alpine lake, lying on the western side of the +Bolor chain in lat. 37 deg. 40', long. 73 deg. 50'. After a rapid descent from +the high elevation of the lake, during which it pursues a somewhat +serpentine course, it debouches from the hills upon the plain about +long. 69 deg. 20', after receiving the river of Fyzabad, and then proceeds, +first west and afterwards north-west, across the Great Kharesmian Desert +to the Sea of Aral. During the first 450 miles of its course, while it +runs among the hills, it receives from both sides numerous and important +tributaries; but from the meridian of Balkh those fail entirely, and +for above 800 miles the Oxus pursues its solitary way, unaugmented by a +single affluent, across the waste of Tartary, rolling through the desert +a wealth of waters, which must diminish, but which does not seem very +sensibly to diminish, by evaporation. At Kilef, sixty miles north-west +of Balkh, the width of the river is 350 yards; at Khodja Salih, thirty +miles lower down, it is 823 yards with a depth of twenty feet; at Kerki, +seventy miles below Khodja Salih, it is "twice the width of the Danube +at Buda-Pesth," or about 940 yards; at Betik, on the route between +Bokhara and Merv, its width has diminished to 650 yards, but its depth +has increased to twenty-nine feet. Finally, at Gorlen Hezaresp near +Khiva, the breadth of the Oxus is so great that both banks are hardly +distinguishable at the same time; but the stream is here comparatively +shallow, ceasing to be navigable at about this point. The present course +of the Oxus from its rise in Lake Sir-i-Kol to its termination in the +Sea of Aral is estimated at 1400 miles. Anciently its course must have +been still longer. The Oxus, in the time of the Achaemenian kings, fell +into the Caspian by a channel which can even now be traced. Its length +was thus increased by at least 450 miles, and, exceeding that of the +Jaxartes, fell but little short of the length of the Indus. + +The Oxus, like the Nile and the Indus, has a periodical swell, which +lasts from May to October. It does not, however, overflow its +hanks. Under a scientific system of irrigation it is probable that a +considerable belt of land on either side of its course might be brought +under cultivation. But at present the extreme limit to which culture +is carried, except in the immediate vicinity of Khiva, seems to be four +miles; while often, in the absence of human care, the desert creeps up +to the very brink of the river. + +The Jaxartes, or Sir-Deria, rises from two sources in the Thian-chan +mountain chain, the more remote of which is in long. 79 deg. nearly. The two +streams both flow to the westward in almost parallel valleys, uniting +about long. 71 deg.. After their junction the course of the stream is still +to the westward for two degrees; but between Khokand and Tashkend the +river sweeps round in a semicircle and proceeds to run first due north +and then north-west, skirting the Kizil Koum desert to Otrar, where +it resumes its original westerly direction and flows with continually +diminishing volume across the desert to the Sea of Aral. The Jaxartes +is a smaller stream than the Oxus. At Otrar, after receiving its last +tributary, it is no more than 250 yards wide. Below this point it +continually dwindles, partly from evaporation, partly from the branch +stream which it throws off right and left, of which the chief are the +Cazala and the Kuvan Deria. On its way through the desert it spreads but +little fertility along its banks, which are in places high and arid, in +others depressed and swampy. The branch streams are of some service for +irrigation; and it is possible that a scientific system might turn the +water of the main channel to good account, and by its means redeem from +the desert large tracts which have never yet been cultivated. But no +such system has hitherto been applied to the Sir, and it is doubtful +whether success would attend it. The Sir, where it falls into the Sea +of Aral, is very shallow, seldom even in the flood season exceeding four +feet. The length of the stream was till recently estimated at more than +1208 miles; but the latest explorations seem to require an enlargement +of this estimate by at least 200 or 250 miles. + +In rivers of the second class the Persian Empire was so rich that it +will be impossible, within the limits prescribed for the present work, +to do more than briefly enumerate them. The principal were, in Asia +Minor, the Hermus (Ghiediz Chai), and the Maeander (Mendere) on the +west, the Sangarius (Sakka-riyeh), the Halys (Kizil Irmak), and the Iris +(Yechil Irmak) on the north, the Cydnus (Tersoos Chai), Sarus (Cilician +Syhun), and Pyramus (Cilician Jyhun) on the south; in Armenia and the +adjacent regions, the Araxes (Aras), Cyrus (Kur), and Phasis (Eion); on +the Iranic plateau, the Sefid-rud, the Zenderud or river of Isfahan, the +Etymandrus (Helmend), and the Arius (Heri-rud); in the low country east +of the Caspian, the Gurgan and Ettrek, rivers of Hyrcania, the Margus +Churghab (or river of Merv), the Delias or river of Balkh, the Ak Su or +Bokhara river, and the Kizil Deria, a stream in the Khanat of Kokand; +in Afghanistan and India, the Kabul river, the Hydaspes (Jelum), the +Aoesines (Chenab), the Hydraotes (Ravee), and the Hyphasis (Sutlej +or Gharra); in Persia Proper, the Oroatis (Hindyan or Tab), and the +Bendamir; in Susiana, the Pasitigris (Kuran), the Hedypnus (Jerahi), +the Choaspes (Kerkhah), and the Eulsenus (a branch of the same); in the +Upper Zagros region, the Gyndes (Diyaleh), and the Greater and Lesser +Zabs; in Mesopotamia, the Chaboras (Kha-bour), and Bilichus (Belik); +finally, in Syria and Palestine, the Orontes or river of Antioch +(Nahr-el-asy), the Jordan, and the Barada or river of Damascus. Thus, +besides the six great rivers of the Empire, forty other considerable +streams fertilized and enriched the territories of the Persian monarch, +which, though they embraced many arid tracts, where cultivation was +difficult, must be pronounced upon the whole well-watered, considering +their extent and the latitude in which they lay. + +The Empire possessed, besides its rivers, a number of important lakes. +Omitting the Caspian and the Aral, which lay upon its borders, there +were contained within the Persian territories the following important +basins: the Urumiyeh, Lake Van, and Lake Goutcha or Sivan in Armenia; +Lakes Touz-Ghieul, Egerdir, Bey-Shehr, Chardak, Soghla, Buldur, +Ghieul-Hissar, Iznik, Abullionte, Maniyas, and many others in Asia +Minor; the Sabakhah, the Bahr-el-Melak, and the Lake of Antioch in +Northern Syria; the Lake of Hems in the Coele-Syrian valley; the +Damascus lakes, the Lake of Merom, the Sea of Tiberias, and the Dead +Sea in Southern Syria and Palestine; Lake Moeris and the Natron lakes in +Egypt; the Bahr-i-Nedjif in Babylonia; Lake Neyriz in Persia Proper; +the Lake of Seistan in the Iranic Desert; and Lake Manchur in the In dus +valley. Several of these have been already described in these +volumes. Of the remainder the most important were the Lake of Van, the +Touz-Ghieul, the great lake of Seistan, and Lake Moeris. These cannot be +dismissed without a brief description. + +Lake Van is situated at a very unusual elevation, being more than 5400 +feet above the sea level. It is a triangular basin, of which the three +sides front respectively S.S.E., N.N.E., and N.W. by W. The sides +are all irregular, being broken by rocky promontories; but the chief +projection lies to the east of the lake, where a tract is thrown out +which suddenly narrows the expanse from about fifty miles to less than +five. The greatest length of the basin is from N.E. to S.W., where it +extends a distance of eighty miles between Amis and Tadvan; its greatest +width is between Aklat and Van, where it measures across somewhat more +than fifty miles. The scenery which surrounds it is remarkable for +its beauty. The lake is embosomed amid high mountains, picturesque in +outline, and all reaching in places the level of perpetual snow. Its +waters, generally placid, but sometimes lashed into high waves, are +of the deepest blue; while its banks exhibit a succession of orchards, +meadows, and gardens which have scarcely their equals in Asia. The lake +is fed by a number of small streams flowing down from the lofty ridges +which surround it, and, having no outlet, is of course salt, though +far less so than the neighboring lake of Urumiyeh. Gulls and cormorants +float upon its surface fish can live in it; and it is not distasteful to +cattle. Set in the expanse of waters are a few small islets, whose vivid +green contrasts well with the deep azure which surrounds them. + +The Touz-Ghieul is a basin of a very different character. Situated on +the upland of Phrygia, in lat. 39 deg., long. 33 deg., 30', its elevation is not +more than 2500 feet. Low hills of sandstone and conglomerate encircle +it, but generally at some distance, so that a tract of plain, six or +seven miles in width, intervenes between their base and the shore. The +shape of the lake is an irregular oval, with the greater axis running +nearly due north and south. Its greatest length is estimated at +forty-five miles, its width varies, but is generally from ten to sixteen +miles. At one point, however, nearly opposite to Kodj Hissar, the lake +narrows to a distance of no more than five miles; and here a causeway +has been constructed from shore to shore, which, though ruined, still +affords a dry pathway in the summer. The water of the Touz-Ghieul is +intensely salt, containing at some seasons of the year no less than +thirty-two per cent of saline matter, which is considerably more than +the amount of such matter in the water of the Dead Sea. The surrounding +plain is barren, in places marshy, and often covered with an +incrustation of salt. The whole scene is one of desolation. The acrid +waters support no animal organization; birds shun them; the plain grows +nothing but a few stunted and sapless shrubs. The only signs of life +which greet the traveller are the carts of the natives, which pass him +laden with the salt that is obtained with ease from the saturated water. + +The Zerreh or Sea of Seistan--called sometimes the Hamun, or +"expanse"--is situated in the Seistan Desert on the Great Iranic +plateau, and consequently at an elevation of (probably) 3000 feet. It +is formed by the accumulation of the waters brought down by the Helmend, +the Haroot-rud, the river of Khash, the Furrah-rud and other streams, +which flow from the mountains of Afghanistan, with converging courses +to the south-west. It is an extensive basin, composed of two arms, an +eastern and a western. The western arm, which is the larger of the +two, has its greatest length from N.N.E. to S.S.W., and extends in this +direction about ninety miles. Its greatest width is about twenty-five +miles. The eastern arm is rather more than forty miles long, and from +ten to twenty broad. It is shaped much like a fish's tail. The two arms +are connected by a strait seven or eight miles in width, which joins +them near their northern extremities. The water of the lake, though +not salt, is black and has a bad taste. Fish support life in it with +difficulty, and never grow to any great size. The lake is shallow, not +much exceeding a depth of three or four feet. It contracts greatly in +the summer, at which time the strait connecting the two arms is often +absolutely dry. The edges of the lake are clothed with tamarisk and +other trees; and where the rivers enter it, sometimes by several +branches, the soil is rich and cultivation productive; but elsewhere the +sand of the desert creeps up almost to the margin of the water, clothed +only with some sickly grass and a few scattered shrubs. + +The Birket-el-Keroun, or Lake Moaris of the classical writers, is a +natural basin--not, as Herodotus imagined, an artificial one--situated +on the western side of the Nile valley, in a curious depression which +nature has made among the Libyan hills. This depression--the modern +district of the Faioom--is a circular plain, which sinks gradually +towards the north-west, descending till it is more than 100 feet below +the surface of the Nile at low water. The Northern and northwestern +portion of the depression is occupied by the lake, a sheet of brackish +water shaped like a horn (whence the modern name) measuring about +thirty-five or thirty-six miles from end to end, and attaining in the +middle a width of between five and six miles. The area of the lake is +estimated roughly at 150 square miles, its circumference at about ninety +miles. It has a depth varying from twelve to twenty-four feet. Though +the water is somewhat brackish, yet the Birket contains several species +of fresh-water fish; and in ancient times its fisheries are said to have +been exceedingly productive. + +The principal cities of the Empire were, besides Pesargadae and +Persepolis, Susa--the chief city of Susiana--which became the capital; +Babylon, Ecbatana, Rhages, Zadracarta, Bactra (now Balkh), Maracanda +(now Samarcand), Aria, or Artacoana (Herat), Caspatyrus on the Upper +Indus,Taxila (Attock?), Pura (perhaps Bunpoor), Carmana (Kerman), +Arbela, Nisibis, Amida (now Diarbekr); Mazaca in Cappadocia; Trapezus +(Trebizond), Sinope, Dascyleium, Sardis, Ephesus, Miletus, Gordium, +Perga, and Tarsus in Asia Minor: Damascus, Jerusalem, Sidon, Tyre, +Azotus or Ashdod, and Gaza in Syria; Memphis and Thebes in Egypt; Cyrene +and Barca in the Cyrenaica. Of these, while Susa had from the time of +Darius Hystaspis a decided pre-eminence as the main residence of the +court, and consequently as the usual seat of government, there were +three others which could boast the distinction of being royal abodes +from time to time, either regularly at certain seasons, or occasionally +at the caprice of the monarch. These were Babylon, Ecbatana, and +Persepolis, the capitals respectively of Chaldaea, Media, and Persia +Proper, all great and ancient cities, accustomed to the presence of +Courts, and all occupying positions sufficiently central to render them +not ill-suited for the business of administration. Next to these in +order of dignity may be classed the satrapial residences, often the +chief cities of old monarchies, such as Sardis, the capital city of +Lydia, Dascyleium of Bithynia, Memphis of Egypt, Bactra of Bactria, and +the like; while the third rank was held by the towns, where there was no +Court, either royal or satrapial. + +Before this chapter is concluded a few words must be said with respect +to the countries which bordered upon the Persian Empire. The Empire +was surrounded, for the most part, either by seas or deserts. The +Mediterranean, the Egean, the Propontis, the Euxine, the Caspian, the +Indian Ocean, the Persian Gulf, and the Arabian Gulf or Bed Sea washed +its shores, bounding almost all its western, and much of its northern +and southern sides; while the sands of the Sahara, the deserts of +Arabia and Syria of India and Thibet, filled up the greater part of the +intervening spaces. The only countries of importance which can be viewed +as in any sense neighbors of Persia are European and Asiatic Scythia, +Hindustan, Arabia, Ethiopia, and Greece. + +Where the Black Sea, curving round to the north, ceased to furnish to +the Empire the advantage of a water barrier, a protection of almost +equal strength was afforded to it by the mountain-chain of the Caucasus. +Excepting on the extreme east, where it slopes gently to the Caspian, +this range is one of great elevation, possessing but few passes, and +very difficult to traverse. Its fastnesses have always been inhabited by +wild tribes, jealous of their freedom; and these tribes may have caused +annoyance, but they could at no time have been a serious danger to +the Empire. They were weak in numbers, divided in nationality and in +interests, and quite incapable of conducting any distant expedition. +Like their modern successors, the Circassians, Abassians, and Lesghians, +their one and only desire was to maintain themselves in possession of +their beloved mountains; and this desire would cause them to resist +all attempts that might be made to traverse their country, whether +proceeding from the north or from the south, from the inhabitants of +Europe or from those of Asia. Persia was thus strongly protected in this +quarter; but still she could not feel herself altogether safe. Once at +least within historic memory the barrier of the Caucasus had proved to +be surmountable. From the vast Steppe which stretches northwards from +its base, in part salt, in part grassy, had crossed into Asia--through +its passes or round its eastern flank--a countless host, which had swept +all before it, and brought ruin upon flourishing empires. The Scythian +and Samaritan hordes of the steppe-country between the Wolga and +the Dnieper were to the monarchies of Western Asia a permanent, if a +somewhat distant, peril. It could not be forgotten that they had +proved themselves capable of penetrating the rocky barrier which would +otherwise have seemed so sure a protection, or that when they swarmed +across it in the seventh century before our era, their strength was at +first irresistible. The Persians knew, what the great nations of the +earth afterwards forgot, that along the northern horizon there lay a +black cloud, which might at any time burst, carrying desolation to +their homes and bringing ruin upon their civilization. We shall find the +course of their history importantly affected by a sense of this danger, +and we shall have reason to admire the wisdom of their measures of +precaution against it. + +It was not only to the west of the Caspian that the danger threatened. +East of that sea also was a vast steppe-region--rolling plains of sand +or grass--the home of nomadic hordes similar in character to those who +drank the waters of the Don and Wolga. The Sacse, Massagetse, and Dahse +of this country, who dwelt about the Caspian, the Aral, and the Lower +Jaxartes, were an enemy scarcely less formidable than the Sarmatians +and the Scyths of the West. As the modern Iran now suffers from the +perpetual incursions of Uzbegs and Turcomans, so the north-eastern +provinces of the ancient Persia were exposed to the raids of the Asiatic +Scythians and the Massagetse, who were confined by no such barrier as +the Caucasus, having merely to cross a river, probably often fordable +during the summer, in order to be in Persia. Hyrcania and Parthia had +indeed a certain amount of protection from the Kharesmian Desert; but +the upper valleys of the great streams--the satrapies of Sogdiana and +Bactria--must have suffered considerable annoyance from such attacks. + +On the side of India, the Empire enjoyed a twofold security. From the +shores of the Indian Ocean in the vicinity of the Runn of Cutch to the +31st parallel of north latitude--a distance of above 600 miles--there +extends a desert, from one to two hundred miles across, which +effectually shuts off the valley of the Indus from the rest of +Hindustan. It is only along the skirts of the mountains, by Lahore, +Umritsir, and Loodiana, that the march of armies is possible--by this +line alone can the Punjabis threaten Central India, or the inhabitants +of Central India attack the Punjab. Hence in this quarter there was but +a very narrow tract to guard; and the task of defence was still further +lightened by the political condition of the people. The Gangetic +Indians, though brave and powerful, were politically weak, from their +separation into a number of distinct states under petty Rajahs, who +could never hope to contend successfully against the forces of a mighty +Empire. Persia, consequently, was safe upon this side, in the division +of her adversaries. Nor had she neglected the further security which was +obtainable by an interposition between her own actual frontier and her +enemies' dominions of a number of half-subject dependencies. Native +princes were allowed to bear sway in the Punjab region, who acknowledged +the suzerainty of Persia, and probably paid her a fixed tribute, but +whose best service was that they prevented a collision between the Power +of whom they held their crowns and the great mass of their own nation. + +The Great Arabian Peninsula, which lay due south of the most central +part of the Empire, and bordered it on this side for about thirteen +degrees, or (if we follow the line of the boundary) for above a thousand +miles, might seem to have been the most important of all the adjacent +countries, since it contains an area of a million of square miles, and +is a nursery of brave and hardy races. Politically, however, Arabia is +weak, as has been shown in a former volume; while geographically she +presents to the north her most arid and untraversable regions, so that +it is rarely, and only under very exceptional circumstances, that she +menaces seriously her northern neighbors. Persia seems never to have +experienced any alarm of an Arab invasion; her relations with the tribes +that came into closest contact with her were friendly; and she left the +bulk of the nation in unmolested enjoyment of their independence. + +Another country adjoining the Persian Empire on the south, and one which +might have been expected to cause some trouble, was Ethiopia. To Egypt +Ethiopia had always proved an unquiet, and sometimes even a dangerous, +neighbor; she was fertile, rich, populous; her inhabitants were tall, +strong, and brave; she had a ready means of marching into Egypt down the +fertile valley of the Nile; and her hosts had frequently ravaged, +and even held for considerable terms of years, that easily subjected +country. It is remarkable that during the whole time of the Persian +dominion Ethiopia seems to have abstained from any invasion of the +Egyptian territory. Apparently, she feared to provoke the power which +had seated itself on the throne of the Pharaohs, and preferred the quiet +enjoyment of her own wealth and resources to the doubtful issues of a +combat with the mistress of Asia. + +On her western horizon, clearly discernible from the capes and headlands +of the Asiatic coast, but separated from her, except in one or two +places, by a tolerably broad expanse of sea, and so--as it might have +seemed--less liable to come in contact with her than her neighbors upon +the land, lay the shores and isles of Greece--lovely and delightful +regions, in possession of a brave and hardy race, as yet uncorrupted by +luxury, though in the enjoyment of a fair amount of civilization. As the +eye looked across the Egean waters, resting with pleasure on the varied +and graceful forms of Sporades and Cyclades, covetous thoughts might +naturally arise in the beholder's heart; and the idea might readily +occur of conquering and annexing the fair tracts which lay so temptingly +near and possessed such numerous attractions. The entire region, +continent and islands included, was one of diminutive size--not half +so large as an ordinary Persian satrapy; it was well peopled, but its +population could not have amounted to that of the Punjab or of Egypt, +countries which Persia had overrun in a single campaign; its inhabitants +were warlike, but they were comparatively poor, and the true sinews of +war are money; moreover, they were divided amongst themselves, locally +split up by the physical conformation of their country, and politically +repugnant to anything like centralization or union. A Persian king like +Cambyses or Darius might be excused if, when his thoughts turned to +Greece, he had a complacent feeling that no danger could threaten him +from that quarter--that the little territory on his western border was a +prey which he might seize at any time that it suited his convenience or +seemed good to his caprice; so opening without any risk a new world +to his ambition. It required a knowledge that the causes of military +success and political advance lie deeper than statistics can reach--that +they have their roots in the moral nature of man, in the grandeur of his +ideas and the energy of his character--in order to comprehend the fact, +that the puny power upon her right flank was the enemy which Persia had +most to fear, the foe who would gradually sap her strength, and finally +deal her the blow that would lay her prostrate. + + + + +CHAPTER II. CLIMATE AND PRODUCTIONS. + + +It is evident that an Empire which extended over more than twenty +degrees of latitude, touching on the one hand the tropic of Cancer, +while it reached upon the other to the parallel of Astrakan, and which +at the same time varied in elevation, from 20,000 feet above to 1300 +below the sea level, must have comprised within it great differences of +climate, and have boasted an immense variety of productions. No general +description can be applicable to such a stretch of territory; and it +will therefore be necessary to speak of the various parts of the +Empire successively in order to convey to the reader a true idea of +the climatic influences to which it was subject, and the animals, +vegetables, and minerals which it produced. + +Commencing with Persia Proper, the original seat and home of the race +with whose history we are specially concerned at present, we may observe +that it was regarded by the ancients as possessing three distinct +climates--one along the shore, dry and scorchingly hot; another in the +mountain region beyond, temperate and delightful; and a third in the +tract further inland, which was thought to be disagreeably cold and +wintry. Moderns, on the contrary, find two climates only in Fars--one +that of the Desbistan or "low country," extremely hot and dry, +with frequent scorching and oppressive winds from the south and the +south-east; the other, that of the highlands, which is cold in winter, +but in summer pleasant and enjoyable. In the Deshistan snow never falls, +and there is but little rain; heavy dews, however, occur at night, so +that the mornings are often fresh and cool; but the middle of the day +is almost always hot, and from March to November the temperature at noon +ranges from 90 deg. to 100 deg. of Fahrenheit. Occasionally it reaches 125 deg., and +is then fearfully oppressive. Fierce gusts laden with sand sweep over +the plain, causing vegetation to droop or disappear, and the animal +world to hide itself. Man with difficulty retains life at these trying +times, feeling a languor and a depression of spirits which are barely +supportable.10 All who can do so quit the plains and betake themselves +to the upland region till the great heats are past, and the advance of +autumn brings at any rate cool nights and mornings. The climate of the +uplands is severe in winter. Much snow falls, and the thermometer often +marks from ten to fifteen degrees of frost. From time to time there are +furious gales, and, as the spring advances, a good deal of wet falls; +but the summer and autumn are almost rainless. The heat towards midday +is often considerable, but it is tempered by cool winds, and even at the +worst is not relaxing. The variations of temperature are great in the +twenty-four hours, and the climate is, so far, trying; but, on the +whole, it seems to be neither disagreeable nor unhealthy. + +A climate resembling that of the Deshtistan prevailed along the entire +southern coast of the Empire, from the mouth of the Tigris to that of +the Indus. It was exchanged in the lower valleys of the great streams +for a damp close heat, intolerably stifling and oppressive. The upper +valleys of these streams and the plains into which they expanded were at +once less hot and less moist, but were subject to violent storms, owing +to the near vicinity of the mountains. In the mountains themselves, in +Armenia and Zagros, and again in the Elburz, the climate was of a more +rigorous character--intensely cold in winter, but pleasant in the summer +time. [PLATE XXVII., Fig. 3.] Asia Minor enjoyed generally a warmer +climate than the high mountain regions; and its western and southern +coasts, being fanned by fresh breezes from the sea, or from the hills +of the interior, and cooled during the whole of the summer by frequent +showers, were especially charming. In Syria and Egypt the heats of +summer were somewhat trying, more especially in the Ghor or depressed +Jordan valley, and in the parts of Egypt adjoining on Ethiopia; but the +winters were mild, and the springs and autumns delightful. The rarity of +rain in Egypt was remarkable, and drew the attention of foreigners, +who recorded, in somewhat exaggerated terms, the curious meteorological +phenomenon. In the Cyrenaica there was a delicious summer climate--an +entire absence of rain, with cool breezes from the sea, cloudy skies, +and heavy dews at night, these last supplying the moisture which through +the whole of summer covered the ground with the freshest and loveliest +verdure. The autumn and winter rains were, however, violent; and +terrific storms were at that time of no unusual occurrence. The natives +regarded it as a blessing, that over this part of Africa the sky was +"pierced," and allowed moisture to fall from the great reservoir of +"waters above the firmament;" but the blessing must have seemed one of +questionable value at the time of the November monsoon, when the country +is deluged with rain for several weeks in succession. + +On the opposite side of the Empire, towards the north and the +north-east, in Azerbijan, on the Iranian plateau, in the Afghan plains, +in the high flat region east of the Bolor, and again in the low plain +about the Aral lake and the Caspian, a severe climate prevailed during +the winter, while the summer combined intense heat during the day with +extraordinary cold--the result of radiation--at night. Still more bitter +weather was experienced in the mountain regions of these parts--in +the Bolor, the Thian Chan, the Himalaya, and the Paropamisus or Hindu +Kush--where the winters lasted more than half the year, deep snow +covering the ground almost the whole of the time, and locomotion being +rendered almost impossible; while the summers were only moderately hot. +On the other hand, there was in this quarter, at the very extreme +east of the Empire, one of the most sultry and disagreeable of all +climates--namely, that of the Indus valley, which is either intolerably +hot and dry, with fierce tornadoes of dust that are unspeakably +oppressive, or close and moist, swept by heavy storms, which, while +they somewhat lower the temperature, increase the unhealthiness of the +region. The worst portion of the valley is its southern extremity, where +the climate is only tolerable during three months of the year. From +March to November the heat is excessive; dust-storms prevail; there are +dangerous dews at night; and with the inundation, which commences in +April, a sickly time sets in, which causes all the wealthier classes +to withdraw from the country till the stagnant water, which the swell +always leaves behind it, has dried up. + +Upon the whole, the climate of the Empire belonged to the warmer class +of the climates which are called temperate. In a few parts only, indeed, +as in the Indus valley, along the coast from the mouth of the Indus +to that of the Tigris, in Lower Babylonia and the adjoining portion +of Susiana, in Southern Palestine, and in Egypt, was frost absolutely +unknown; while in many places, especially in the high mountainous +regions, the winters were bitterly severe; and in all the more elevated +portions of the Empire, as in Phrygia and Cappadocia, in Azerbijan, on +the great Iranian plateau, and again in the district about Kashgar and +Yarkand, there was a prolonged period of sharp and bracing weather. But +the summer warmth of almost the whole Empire was great, the thermometer +probably ranging in most places from 90 deg. to 120 deg. during the months of +June, July, August, and September. The springs and autumns were, except +in the high mountain tracts, mild and enjoyable; the Empire had few very +unhealthy districts; while the range of the thermometer was in most of +the provinces considerable, and the variations in the course of a single +day and night were unusually great, there was in the climate, speaking +generally, nothing destructive of human vigor--nothing even inimical to +longevity. + +The vegetable productions of Persia Proper in ancient times (so far as +we have direct testimony on the subject) were neither numerous nor very +remarkable. The low coast tract supplied dates in tolerable plenty, +and bore in a few favored spots, corn, vines, and different kinds of +fruit-trees; but its general character was one of extreme barrenness. +In the mountain region there was an abundance of rich pasture, excellent +grapes were grown, and fruit-trees of almost every sort, except the +olive, flourished. One fruit-tree, regarded as indigenous in the +country, acquired a special celebrity, and was known to the Romans +as the persica, whence the German Pfirsche, the French peche, and our +"peach." Citrons, which grew in few places, were also a Persian fruit. +Further, Persia produced a coarse kind of silphium or assafoetida; it +was famous for its walnuts, which were distinguished by the epithet +of "royal"; and it supplied to the pharmacopeia of Greece and Rome a +certain number of herbs. + +The account of Persian vegetable products which we derive from antiquity +is no doubt very incomplete; and it is necessary to supplement it from +the observations of modern travellers. These persons tell us that, while +Fars and Kerman are ill-supplied with forest-trees, they yet produce in +places oaks, planes, chenars or sycamores, poplars, willows, pinasters, +cypresses, acacias, fan-palms, konars, and junipers. Among shrubs, they +bear the wild fig, the wild almond, the tamarisk, the myrtle, the box, +the rhododendron, the camel's thorn, the gum tragacanth, the caper +plant, the benneh, the blackberry, and the liquorice-plant. They boast a +great abundance of fruit-trees--as date-bearing palms, lemons, oranges, +pomegranates, vines, peaches, nectarines, apricots, quinces, pears, +apples, plums, figs, cherries, mulberries, barberries, walnuts, almonds, +and pistachio-nuts. The kinds of grain chiefly cultivated are wheat, +barley, millet, rice, and Indian corn or maize, which has been imported +into the country from America. Pulse, beans, sesame, madder, henna, +cotton, opium, tobacco, and indigo, are also grown in some places. The +three last-named, and maize or Indian corn, are of comparatively recent +introduction; but of the remainder it may be doubted whether there is a +single one which was unknown to the ancient inhabitants. + +Among Persian indigenous animals may be enumerated the lion, the bear, +the wild ass, the stag, the antelope, the ibex or wild goat, the wild +boar, the hyena, the jackal, the wolf, the fox, the hare, the porcupine, +the otter, the jerboa, the ichneumon, and the marmot. The lion appears +to be rare, occurring only in some parts of the mountains. The ichneumon +is confined to the Deshtistan. The antelope, the wild boar, the wolf, +the fox, the jackal, the porcupine, and the jerboa are common. Wild +asses are found only on the northern side of the mountains, towards the +salt desert. In this tract they are frequently seen, both singly and in +herds, and are hunted by the natives, who regard their flesh as a great +delicacy. + +The most remarkable of the Persian birds are the eagle, the vulture, the +cormorant, the falcon, the bustard, the pheasant, the heath-cock, the +red-legged partridge, the small gray partridge, the pin tailed grouse, +the sand-grouse, the francolin, the wild swan, the flamingo, the stork, +the bittern, the oyster-catcher, the raven, the hooded crow, and +the cuckoo. Besides these, the lakes boast all the usual kinds of +water-fowl, as herons, ducks, snipe, teal, etc.; the gardens and groves +abound with blackbirds, thrushes, and nightingales; curlews and peewits +are seen occasionally; while pigeons, starlings, crows, magpies, larks, +sparrows, and swallows are common. The francolin is hunted by men on +foot in the country between Shiraz and Kerman, and is taken by the hand +after a few flights. The oyster-catcher, which is a somewhat rare bird, +has been observed only on Lake Neyriz. The bustard occurs both in the +low plain along the coast, and on the high plateau, where it is captured +by means of hawks. The pheasant and the heath-cock (the latter a black +species spotted with white) are found in the woods near Failyun. The +sand-grouse and the pin-tailed grouse belong to the eastern portion +of the country, the portion known anciently as Carmania or "the hot +region." The other kinds are diffused pretty generally. + +The shores and rivers of Persia Proper supplied the people very +plentifully with fish. The ancient writers tell us that the inhabitants +of the coast tract lived almost wholly on a fish diet. The Indian Sea +appears in those days to have abounded with whales, which were not +unfrequently cast upon the shores, affording a mine of wealth to the +natives. The great ribs were used as beams in the formation of huts, +while the jaws served as doors and the smaller bones as planking. +Dolphins also abounded in the Persian waters; together with many other +fish of less bulk, which were more easy to capture. On these smaller +fish, which they caught in nets, the maritime inhabitants subsisted +principally. They had also an unfailing resource in the abundance of +oysters, and other shell-fish along their coast--the former of excellent +quality. + +In the interior, though the lakes, being salt or brackish, had no +piscatory stores, the rivers were, for the most part, it would seem, +well provided; at least, good fish are still found in many of the +streams, both small and large; and in some they are exceedingly +plentiful. Modern travellers fail to distinguish the different kinds; +but we may presume that they are not very unlike those of the adjoining +Media, which appear to be trout, carp, barbel, dace, bleak, and gudgeon. + +The reptiles of Persia Proper are not numerous. They are chiefly +tortoises, lizards, frogs, land-snakes, and water-snakes. The +land-snakes are venomous, but their poison is not of a very deadly +character; and persons who have been bitten by them, if properly +treated, generally recover. The lizards are of various sizes, some quite +small, others more than three feet long, and covered with a coarse rough +skin like that of a toad. They have the character of being venomous, and +even dangerous to life; but it may be doubted whether they are not, like +our toads and newts, in reality perfectly harmless. + +The traveller in Persia suffers less from reptiles than from insects. +Scorpions abound in all parts of the country, and, infesting houses, +furniture, and clothes, cause perpetual annoyance. Mosquitoes swarm +in certain places and seasons, preventing sleep and irritating the +traveller almost beyond endurance. A poisonous spider, a sort of +tarantula, is said to occur in some localities; and Chardin further +mentions a kind of centipede, the bite of which, according to him, is +fatal. To the sufferings which these creatures cause, must be added a +constant annoyance from those more vulgar forms of insect life which +detract from the delights of travel even in Europe. + +Persia, moreover, suffers no less than Babylonia and Media, from the +ravages of locusts. Constantly, when the wind is from the south-east, +there cross from the Arabian coast clouds of these destructive insects, +whose numbers darken the air as they move, in flight after flight, +across the desert to the spots where nature or cultivation has clothed +the earth with verdure. The Deshtistan, or low country, is, of course, +most exposed to their attacks, but they are far from being confined to +that region. The interior, as far as Shiraz itself, suffers terribly +from this scourge, which produces scarcity, or even famine, when (as +often happens) it is repeated year after year. The natives at such times +are reduced to feeding on the locusts themselves; a diet which they do +not relish, but to which necessity compels them. + +The locusts of Persia Proper are said to be of two kinds. One, which +is regarded as bred in the country, bears the name of _missri_, being +identified with the locust of Egypt. The other, which is thought to +be blown over from Arabia, and thus to cross the sea, is known as the +_melelch deriai_, or "sea-locust." The former is regarded as especially +destructive to the crops, the latter to the shrubs and trees. + +The domestic animals in use at the present day within the provinces of +Fars and Kerman are identical with those employed in the neighboring +country of Media, and will need only a very few words of notice here. +The ordinary horse of the country is the Turcoman, a large, strong, but +somewhat clumsy animal, possessed of remarkable powers of endurance; +but in the Deshtistan the Arabian breed prevails, and travellers tell us +that in this region horses are produced which fall but little short of +the most admired coursers of Nejd. Cows and oxen are somewhat rare, beef +being little eaten, and such cattle being only kept for the supply +of the dairy, and for purposes of agriculture. Sheep and goats are +abundant, and constitute the chief wealth of the inhabitants; the goat +is, on the whole, preferred, and both goats and sheep are generally of +a black or brown color. The sheep of Kerman are small and short-legged; +they produce a wool of great softness and delicacy. + +It is probable that in ancient times the domestic animals of the country +were nearly the same as at the present day. The statement of Xenophon, +that anciently a horse was a rarity in Persia Proper, is contradicted by +the great bulk of the early writers, who tell us that the Persians were +from the first expert riders, and that their country was peculiarly well +fitted for the breeding of horses. Their camels, sheep, goats, asses, +and oxen, are also expressly mentioned by the Greeks, who even indicate +a knowledge of the fact that goats were preferred to sheep by the +herdsmen of the country. + +The mineral treasures of the country appear to have been considerable, +though to what extent they were known and made use of in ancient times +is open to some question. Mines of gold, silver, copper, iron, red lead, +and orpiment are said to have been actually worked under the Persian +kings; and some of the other minerals were so patent and obvious, that +we can scarcely suppose them to have been neglected. Salt abounded in +the region in several shapes. It appeared in some places as rock salt, +showing itself in masses of vast size and various colors. In other +places it covered the surface of the ground for miles together with a +thick incrustation, and could be gathered at all seasons with little +labor. It was deposited by the waters of several lakes within the +territory, and could be collected round their edges at certain times +of the year. Finally, it was held in solution, both in the lakes and in +many of the streams; from whose waters it might have been obtained by +evaporation. Bitumen and naphtha were yielded by sources near Dalaki, +which were certainly known to the ancients. Sulphur was deposited upon +the surface of the ground in places. Some of the mountains contained +ordinary lead; but it is not unlikely that this metal escaped notice. + +Ancient Persia produced a certain number of gems. The pearls of +the Gulf, which have still so great a reputation, had attracted the +attention of adventurers before the time of Alexander, whose naval +captains found a regular fishery established in one of the islands. The +Orientals have always set a high value on this commodity; and it appears +that in ancient times the Gulf pearls were more highly esteemed than any +others. Of hard stones the only kinds that can be distinctly assigned to +Persia Proper are the iritis, a species of rock-crystal; the atizoe, a +white stone which had a pleasant odor; the mithrax, a gem of many hues, +the nipparene, which resembled ivory; and the the lycardios or mule, +which was in special favor among the natives of the country. + +From this account of the products of Persia Proper we have now to pass +to those of the Empire in general--a wide subject, which it will be +impossible to treat here with any completeness, owing to the limits to +which the present work is necessarily confined. In order to bring the +matter within reasonable compass, the reader may be referred in the +first instance to the account which was given in a former volume of the +products of the empire of Babylon; and the enquiry may then be confined +to those regions which were subject to Persia, but not contained within +the limits of the Fourth Monarchy. + +Among the animals belonging to these regions, the following are +especially noticeable:--The tiger, the elephant, the hippopotamus, the +crocodile, the monitor, the two-humped camel, the Angora goat, the elk, +the monkey, and the spotted hysena, or _Felis chaus_. The tiger, which +is entirely absent from Mesopotamia, and unknown upon the plateau of +Iran, abounds in the low tract between the Elburz and the Caspian, in +the flat region about the Sea of Aral, and in the Indus valley. The +elephant was, perhaps, anciently an inhabitant of Upper Egypt, where the +island of Elephantine remained an evidence of the fact. It was also in +Persian times a denizen of the Indus valley, though perhaps only in a +domesticated state. The hippopotamus, unknown in India, was confined to +the single province of Egypt, where it was included among the animals +which were the objects of popular worship. The crocodile--likewise a +sacred animal to the Egyptians--frequented both the Nile and the Indus. +Monitors, which are a sort of diminutive crocodiles, were of two kinds: +one, the _Lacerta Nilotica_, was a water animal, and was probably found +only in Egypt; the other, _Lacerta scincus_, frequented dry and sandy +spots, and abounded in North Africa and Syria, as well as in the Nile +valley. The two-humped camel belonged to Bactria, where he was probably +indigenous, but was widely spread over the Empire, on account of his +great strength and powers of endurance. + +The Angora goat is, perhaps, scarcely a distinct species. If not +identical with the ordinary wild goat of Persia and Mesopotamia (_Capra +cegagrus_), he is at any rate closely allied to it; and it is possible +that all his peculiar characteristics may be the effect of climate. He +has a soft, white, silky fleece, very long, divided down the back by +a strong line of separation, and falling on either side in beautiful +spiral ringlets; his fleece weighs from two to four pounds. It is +of nearly uniform, length, and averages from five to five and a half +inches. + +The elk is said to inhabit Armenia, Affghanistan, and the lower part of +the valley of the Indus; but it is perhaps not certain that he is really +to be found in the two latter regions. Monkeys abound in Eastern Oabul +and the adjoining parts of India. They may have also existed formerly +in Upper Egypt. The spotted hyena, _Felis chaus_ (_Canis crocuta_ of +Linnaeus), is an Egyptian animal, inhabiting principally the hills on +the western side of the Nile. In appearance it is like a large cat, +with a tuft of long black hair at the extremities of its ears--a feature +which it has in common with the lynx. + +Among the rarer birds of the Empire may be mentioned the ostrich, which +occurred in Mesopotamia; parrots, which were found in Cabul and the +Punjab; ibises, which abounded in Egypt, and in the Delta of the Indus, +the great vulture (Vultur cinereus), which inhabited the Taurus, the +Indian owl (_Athena Indica_), the spoonbill (_Platalea nudifrons_); the +benno (_Ardea bubulcus_), and the sicsac (_Charadrius melanocephalus_). + +The most valuable of the fish belonging to the Persian seas and rivers +were the pearl oyster of the Gulf, and the murex of the Mediterranean, +which furnished the famous purple dye of Tyre. After these may be placed +the sturgeon and sterlet of the Caspian, the silurus of the Sea of Aral, +the Aleppo eel, and the palla, a small but excellent fish, which is +captured in the Indus during the flood season. The Indian Ocean and +the Persian Gulf, as we have seen, were visited by whales; dolphins, +porpoises, cod, and mullet abounded in the same seas; the large rivers +generally contained barbel and carp; while some of them, together with +many of the smaller streams, supplied trout of a good flavor. The +Nile had some curious fish peculiar to itself, as the oxyrinchus, +the lepidotus, the Perca Nilotica, the Silurus Schilbe Niloticus, the +Silurus carmuth and others. Great numbers of fish, mostly of the same +species with those of the Nile, were also furnished by the Lake Moeris; +and from these a considerable revenue was derived by the Great Kings. + +Among the more remarkable of the reptiles which the Empire comprised +within its limits may be noticed--besides the great saurians already +mentioned among the larger animals--the Nile and Euphrates turtles +(_Trionyx Egypticus_ and _Trionyx Euphraticus_), iguanas (_Stellio +vulgaris_ and _Stellio spinipes_), geckos, especially the Egyptian house +gecko (_O. lobatus_), snakes, such as the asp (_Coluber haje_) and +the horned snake (_Coluber cerastes_), and the chameleon. The Egyptian +turtle is a large species, sometimes exceeding three feet in length. It +is said to feed on the young of the crocodile. Both it and the Euphrates +turtle are of the soft kind, i.e., of the kind which has not the shell +complete, but unites the upper and under portions by a coriaceous +membrane. The turtle of the Euphrates is of moderate size, not exceeding +a a length of two feet. It lives in the river, and on warm days suns +itself on the sandbanks with which the stream abounds. It is active, +strong, violent, and passionate. When laid on its back it easily +recovers itself. If provoked, it will snap at sticks and other objects, +and endeavor to tear them to pieces. It is of an olive-green color, with +large irregular greenish black spots. + +Iguanas are found in Egypt, in Syria, and elsewhere. The most common +kind (_Stellio vulgaris_) does not exceed a foot in length, and is of +an olive color, shaded with black. It is persecuted and killed by the +Mahometans, because they regard its favorite attitude as a derisive +imitation of their own attitude of prayer. There is another species, +also Egyptian, which is of a much larger size, and of a grass-green +color. This is called _Stellio spinipes_: it has a length of from two to +three feet. + +The gecko is a kind of nocturnal lizard. Its eyes are large, and the +pupil is extremely contractile. It hides itself during the day, and is +lively only at nights. It haunts rooms, especially kitchens, in Egypt, +where it finds the insects which form its ordinary food. Its feet +constitute its most marked characteristic. The five toes are enlarged +and furnished with an apparatus of folds, which, by some peculiar +action, enable it to adhere to perfectly smooth surfaces, to ascend +perpendicular walls, cross ceilings, or hang suspended for hours on the +under side of leaves. The Egyptians called it the abu burs, or "father +of leprosy," and there is a wide-spread belief in its poisonous +character; but modern naturalists incline to regard the belief as +unfounded, and to place the gecko among reptiles which are absolutely +harmless. [PLATE XXVIII., Fig. 1.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXVIII.] + + +The asp of Egypt (_Coluber haje_) is a species of cobra. It is a large +snake, varying from three to six feet in length, and is extremely +venomous. It haunts gardens, where it is of great use, feeding on mice, +frogs, and various small reptiles. It has the power of greatly dilating +the skin of the neck, and this it does when angered in a way that is +very remarkable. Though naturally irritable, it is easily tamed; and the +serpent-charmers of the East make it the object of their art more often +than any other species. [PLATE XXVIII., Fig. 2.] After extracting the +fangs or burning out the poison-bag with a red-hot iron, the charmer +trains the animal by the shrill sounds of a small flute, and it is soon +perfectly docile. + +The cerastes is also employed occasionally by the snake-charmers. It +has two long and thin excrescences above the eyes, whereto the name of +"horns" has been given: they stand erect, leaning a little backwards; +no naturalist has as yet discovered their use. The cerastes is of a +very pale brown color, and is spotted with large, unequal, and +irregularly-placed spots. Its bite is exceedingly dangerous, since it +possesses a virulent poison; and, being in the habit of nearly burying +itself in the sand, which is of the same color with itself, it is the +more difficult of avoidance. Its size also favors its escaping notice, +since in length it rarely much exceeds a foot. [PLATE XXVIII., Fig. 3.] + +The chameleon has in all ages attracted the attention of mankind. It is +found in Egypt, and in many others parts of Africa, in Georgia, and in +India. The power of changing color which it possesses is not really its +most remarkable characteristic. Far more worthy of notice are its slow +pace, extraordinary form, awkward movements, vivacity, and control of +eye, and marvellous rapidity of tongue. It is the most grotesque of +reptiles. With protruding and telescopic eyes, that move at will in +the most opposite directions, with an ungainly head, a cold, dry, +strange-looking skin, and a prehensile tail, the creature slowly steals +along a branch or twig, scarcely distinguishable from the substance +along which it moves, and scarcely seeming to move at all, until it has +come within reach of its prey. Then suddenly, with a motion rapid as +that of the most agile bird, the long cylindrical and readily extensile +tongue is darted forth with unerring aim, and the prey is seized +and swallowed in a single moment of time. The ordinary color of the +chameleon is a pale olive-green. This sometimes fades to a sort of +ashen-gray, while sometimes it warms to a yellowish-brown, on which +are seen faint spots of red. Modern naturalists, for the most part, +attribute the changes to the action of the lungs, which is itself +affected chiefly by the emotions of anger, desire, and fear. [PLATE +XXVIII., Fig. 5.] + +The great extent of the Empire caused its vegetable productions to +include almost all the forms known to the ancient world. On the one +hand, the more northern and more elevated regions bore pines, firs, +larches, oaks, birch, beech, ash, ilex, and junipers, together with the +shrubs and flowers of the cooler temperate regions; on the other +hand, the southern tracts grew palms of various kinds, mangoes, +tamarind-trees, lemons, oranges, jujubes, mimosas, and sensitive plants. +Between these extremes of tropical and cold-temperate products, the +Empire embraced an almost infinite variety of trees, shrubs, and +flowers. The walnut and the Oriental plane grew to avast size in many +places. Poplars, willows, fig-mulberries, konars, cedars, cypresses, +acacias, were common. Bananas, egg-plants, locust-trees, banyans, +terebinths, the gum-styrax, the gum-tragacanth, the assafoetida plant, +the arbor vitse, the castor-oil plant, the Judas-tree, and other +somewhat rare forms, sprang up side by side with the pomegranate, +the oleander, the pistachio-nut, the myrtle, the bay, the laurel, the +mulberry, the rhododendron, and the arbutus. The Empire grew all the +known sorts of grain, and almost all the known fruits. Among its various +productions of this class, it is only possible to select for notice +a few which were especially remarkable either for their rarity or for +their excellent quality. + +The ancients celebrated the wheat of AEolis, the dates of Babylon, +the citrons of Media, the Persian peach, the grapes of Carmania, +the Hyrcanian fig, the plum of Damascus, the cherries of Pontus, the +mulberries of Egypt and of Cyprus, the silphium of Gyrene, the wine of +Helbon, the wild-grape of Syria. It is not unlikely that to these +might have been added as many other vegetable products of first-rate +excellence, had the ancients possessed as good a knowledge of the +countries included within the Empire as the moderns. At present, the +mulberries of Khiva, the apricots of Bokhara, the roses of Mexar, the +quinces and melons of Isfahan, the grapes of Kasvin and Shii-az, the +pears of Natunz, the dates of Dalaki, have a wide-spread reputation, +which appears in most cases to be well deserved. On the whole, it is +certain that for variety and excellence the vegetable products of the +Persian Empire will bear comparison with those of any other state or +community that has as yet existed, either in the ancient or the modern +world. + +Two only of these products seem to deserve a longer description. The +Cyrenaic silphium, of which we hear so much, as constituting the main +wealth of that province, was valued chiefly for its medicinal qualities. +A decoction from its leaves was used to hasten the worst kind of labors; +its root and a juice which flowed from it were employed in a variety +of maladies. The plant, which is elaborately described by Theophrastus, +appears to have been successfully identified by modern travellers in +the Cyrenaica, who see it in the drias or derias of the Arabs, an +umbelliferous plant, which grows to a height of about three feet, has a +deleterious effect on the camels that browse on it, and bears a striking +resemblance to the representations of the ancient silphium upon +coins and medals. This plant grows only in the tract between Merj and +Derna--the very heart of the old silphium country, while that it has +medicinal properties is certain from its effects upon animals; there can +thus be little doubt that it is the silphium of the ancients, somewhat +degenerated, owing to want of cultivation. + +The Egyptian byblus or papyrus (_Cyperus papyrus_) was perhaps the +most valuable of all the vegetables of the Empire. The plant was a +tall smooth reed of a triangular shape. It grew to the height of ten or +fifteen feet, and terminated in a tuft or plume of leaves and flowers. +Though indigenous in the country, it was the subject of careful +cultivation, and was grown in irrigated ground, or in such lands as were +naturally marshy. The root of the plant was eaten, while from its stem +was made the famous Egyptian paper. The manufacture of the papyrus was +as follows; The outer rind having been removed, there was exposed a +laminated interior, consisting of a number of successive layers of inner +cuticle, generally about twenty. These were carefully separated from +one another by the point of a needle, and thus were obtained a number +of strips of the raw material, which were then arranged in rows, covered +with a paste, and crossed at right angles by another set of strips +placed over them, after which the whole was converted into paper by +means of a strong pressure. A papyrus roll was made by uniting together +a greater or less number of such sheets. The best paper was made +from the inmost layers of cuticle. The outer rind of the papyrus was +converted into ropes; and this fabric was found to be peculiarly adapted +for immersion in water. + +The mineral treasures of the Empire were various and abundant. It has +been noticed already that Persia Proper, if we include in it Carmania, +possessed mines of gold, silver, copper, iron, red lead, orpiment, and +salt, yielding also bitumen, naphtha, sulphur, and most probably common +lead. We are further informed by ancient writers that Drangiana, or +Sarangia, furnished the rare and valuable mineral tin, without which +copper could not be hardened into bronze; that Armenia yielded emery, so +necessary for the working and polishing of gems; that the mountains +and mines of the Empire supplied almost all the varieties of useful and +precious stones; and that thus there was scarcely a mineral known to and +required by the ancients for the purposes of their life which the Great +King could not command without having recourse to others than his own +subjects. It may be likewise noticed that the more important were very +abundant, being found in many places and in large quantities. Gold was +furnished from the mountains and deserts of Thibet and India, from the +rivers of Lydia, and probably from other places where it is still found, +as Armenia, Cabul, and the neighborhood of Meshed. Silver, which was +the general medium of exchange in Persia, must have been especially +plentiful. It was probably yielded, not only by the Kerman mines, +but also by those of Armenia, Asia Minor, and the Elburz. Copper was +obtained in great abundance from Cyprus, as well as from Carmania; and +it may have been also derived, as it is now in very large quantities, +from Armenia. Iron, really the most precious of all metals, existed +within the Persian territory in the shape of huge boulders, as well +as in nodules and in the form of ironstone. Lead was procurable from +Bactria, Armenia, Korman, and many parts of Affghanistan; orpiment +from Bactria, Kerman, and the Hazareh country; antimony from Armenia, +Affghanistan, and Media; hornblende, quartz, talc, and asbestos, from +various places in the Taurus. + +Of all necessary minerals probably none was so plentiful and so widely +diffused as salt. It was not only in Persia Proper that nature had +bestowed this commodity with a lavish hand--there was scarcely +a province of the Empire which did not possess it in superfluous +abundance. Large tracts were covered by it in North Africa, in Media, +in Carmania, and in Lower Babylonia. In Asia Minor, Armenia, Syria, +Palestine, and other places, it could be obtained from lakes. In Kerman, +and again in Palestine, it showed itself in the shape of large masses, +not inappropriately termed "mountains." Finally, in India it was the +chief material of a long mountain-range, which is capable of supplying +the whole world with salt for many ages. + +Bitumen and naptha were also very widely diffused. At the eastern foot +of the Caucasus, where it subsides into the Caspian Sea, at various +points in the great Mesopotamian plain, in the Deshtistan or low country +of Persia Proper, in the Bakh-tiyari mountains, and again in the distant +Jordan valley, these two inseparable products are to be found, generally +united with indications of volcanic action, present or recent. The +bitumen is of excellent quality, and was largely employed by the +ancients. The naphtha is of two kinds, black naphtha or petroleum, and +white naphtha, which is much preferred to the other. The bitumen-pits +also, in some places, yielded salt. + +Another useful mineral with which the Persians were very plentifully +supplied, was sulphur. Sulphur is found in Persia Proper, in Carmania, +on the coast of Mekran, in Azerbijan, in the Elburz, on the Iranian +plateau, in the vicinity of the Dead Sea, and in very large quantities +near Mosul. Here it is quarried in great blocks, which are conveyed to +considerable distances. + +Excellent stone for building purposes was obtainable in most parts of +the Empire. Egypt furnished an inexhaustible supply of the best possible +granite; marbles of various kinds, compact sandstone, limestone, and +other useful sorts were widely diffused; and basalt was procurable from +some of the outlying ranges of Taurus. In the neighborhood of Nineveh, +and in much of the Mesopotamian region, there was abundance of grey +alabaster, and a better kind was quarried near Damascus. A gritty +silicious rock on the banks of the Euphrates, a little above Hit, was +suitable for mill-stones. + +The gems furnished by the various provinces of the Empire are too +numerous for mention. They included, it must be remembered, all the +kinds which have already been enumerated among the mineral products of +the earlier Monarchies. Among them, a principal place must, one would +think, have been occupied by the turquoise--the gem, par excellence, of +modern Persia--although, strange to say, there is no certain mention +of it among the literary remains of antiquity. This lovely stone +is produced largely by the mines at Nishapur in the Elburz, and is +furnished also in less abundance and less beauty by a mine in Kerman, +and another near Khojend. It is noticed by an Arabian author as early as +the twelfth century of our era. A modern writer on gems supposes that it +is mentioned, though not named, by Theophrastus; but this view scarcely +seems to be tenable. + +Among the gems of most value which the Empire certainly produced were +the emerald, the green ruby, the red ruby, the opal, the sapphire, the +amethyst, the carbuncle, the jasper, the lapis lazuli, the sard, the +agate, and the topaz. Emeralds were found in Egypt, Media, and Cyprus; +green rubies in Bactria; common or red rubies in Caria; opals in Egypt, +Cyprus, and Asia Minor; sapphires in Cyprus; amethysts also in Cyprus, +and moreover in Egypt, Galatia, and Armenia; carbuncles in Caria; +jaspers in Cyprus, Asia Minor, and Persia Proper; the lapis lazuli in +Cyprus, Egypt, and Media; the sard in Babylonia; the agate in Carmania, +Susiana, and Armenia; and the topaz or chrysoprase in Upper Egypt. + +The tales which are told of enormous emeralds are undoubtedly fictions, +the material which passed for that precious substance being really in +these cases either green jasper or (more probably) glass. But lapis +lazuli and agate seem to have existed within the Empire in huge masses. +Whole cliffs of the former overhang the river Kashkar in Kaferistan; and +the myrrhine vases of antiquity which were (it is probable) of agate, +and came mainly from Carmania, seem to have been of a great size. + +We may conclude this review by noticing, among stones of less +consequence produced within the Empire, jet, which was so called from +being found at the mouth of the river Gagis in Lycia, garnets, which are +common in Armenia, and beryl, which is a product of the same country. + + + + +CHAPTER III. CHARACTER, MANNERS AND CUSTOMS, DRESS, ETC., OF THE PEOPLE. + + +"I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, there stood before the +river a ram which had two horns: and the two horns were high; but one +was higher than the other, and the higher came up last."--Dan. viii. 3. + + +The ethnic identity of the Persian people with the Medes, and the +inclusion of both nations in that remarkable division of the human +race which is known to ethnologers as the Ipanic or Arian, have been +maintained in a former volume. To the arguments there adduced it seems +unnecessary to add anything in this place, since at the present day +neither of the two positions appears to be controverted. It is admitted +generally, not only that the Persians were of the same stock with the +Medes, but that they formed, together with the Medes and a few +other tribes and peoples of less celebrity, a special branch of the +Indo-European family--a branch to which the name of Arian may be +assigned, not merely for convenience sake, but on grounds of actual +tradition and history. Undistinguished in the earlier annals of their +race, the Medes and Persians became towards the eighth or seventh +century before our era, its leading and most important tribes. Closely +united together, with the superiority now inclining to one, now to the +other, they claimed and exercised a lordship over all the other members +of the stock, and not only over them, but over various alien races +also. They had qualities which raised them above their fellows, and a +civilization, which was not, perhaps, very advanced, but was still not +wholly contemptible. Such details as could be collected, either from +ancient authors, or from the extant remains, of the character, mode of +life, customs, etc., of the Medes, have already found a place in this +work. + +The greater part of what was there said will apply also to the Persians. +The information, however, which we possess, with respect to this latter +people, is so much more copious than that which has come down to us with +regard to the Medes, that, without repeating anything from the former +place, our materials will probably enable us to give to the present +chapter considerable dimensions. + +The woodcuts of the preceding volume will have made the reader +sufficiently familiar with the physiognomy of the Persians, or, at any +rate, with the representation of it which has come down to us upon the +Persian monuments. It may be remarked that the type of face and head is +uniform upon all of them, and offers a remarkable contrast to the type +assigned to themselves by the Assyrians, from whom the Arians evidently +adopted the general idea of bas-reliefs, as well as their general mode +of treating subjects upon them. The novelty of the physiognomy is +a strong argument in favor of its truthfulness; and this is further +confirmed by the evidence which we have, that the Persian artists aimed +at representing the varieties of the human race, and succeeded fairly +in rendering them. Varieties of, physiognomy are represented upon the +bas-reliefs with much care, and sometimes with remarkable success, as +the annexed head of a negro, taken from one of the royal tombs, will +sufficiently indicate. [PLATE XXIX., Fig.1.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXIX.] + + +According to Herodotus, the skulls of the Persians were extraordinarily +thin and weak--a phenomenon for which he accounted by the national habit +of always covering the head. There does not seem to be in reality any +ground for supposing that such a practice would at all tend to produce +such a result. If, therefore, we regard the fact of thinness as +established, we can only view it as an original feature in the physical +type of the race. Such a feature would imply, on the supposition that +the heads were of the ordinary size, a large brain-cavity, and so +an unusual volume of brain, which is generally a concomitant of high +intellectual power. + +The Persians seem, certainly, to have been quick and lively, +keen-witted, capable of repartee, ingenious, and, for Orientals, +far-sighted. They had fancy and imagination, a relish for poetry and +art, and they were not without a certain power of political combination. +But we cannot justly ascribe to them any high degree of intellectual +excellence. The religious ideas which they held in common with the Medes +were, indeed, of a more elevated character than is usual with races not +enlightened by special revelation; but these ideas were the common stock +of the Iranic peoples, and were inherited by the Persians from a remote +ancestry, not excogitated by themselves. Their taste for art, though +marked, was neither pure nor high. We shall have to consider, in a +future chapter, the architecture and mimetic art of the people to weigh +their merits in these respects, and, at the same time, to note their +deficiencies. + +Without anticipating the exact verdict then to be pronounced, we may say +at once that there is nothing in the remains of the Persian architecture +and sculpture that have come down to us indicative of any remarkable +artistic genius; nothing that even places them on a par with the best +works of the kind produced by Orientals. Again, if the great work of +Firdausi represents to us, as it probably does, the true spirit of the +ancient poetry of the Persians, we must conclude that, in the highest +department of art, their efforts were but of moderate merit. A tone of +exaggeration, an imagination exuberant and unrestrained, a preference +for glitter over solid excellence, a love of far-fetched conceits, +characterize the Shahnameh; and, though we may fairly ascribe something +of this to the idiosyncrasy of the poet, still, after we have made all +due allowance upon this score, the conviction presses upon us that there +was a childish and grotesque character in the great mass of the old +Persian poetry, which marks it as the creation of moderate rather than +of high intellectual power, and prevents us from regarding it with the +respect with which we view the labors of the Greeks and Romans, or, +again, of the Hebrews, in this department. A want of seriousness, a +want of reality, and, again, a want of depth, characterize the poetry +of Iran, whose bards do not touch the chords which rouse what is noblest +and highest in our nature. They give us sparkle, prettiness, quaint and +ingenious fancies, grotesque marvels, an inflated kind of human heroism; +but they have none of the higher excellencies of the poetic art, none of +the divine fire which renders the true poet, and the true prophet, one. + +Among moral qualities, we must assign to the Persians as their most +marked characteristics, at any rate in the earlier times, courage, +energy, and a regard for truth. The valor of their troops in the great +combats of Platsea and Thermopylae extorted the admiration of their +enemies, who have left on record their belief that, "in boldness and +warlike spirit, the Persians were not a whit behind the Greeks," +and that their defeat was "wholly owing to the inferiority of their +equipment and training." Without proper shields, with little defensive +armor, wielding only short swords and lances that were scarcely more +than javelins, they dashed themselves upon the serried ranks of the +Spartans, seizing the huge spear-shafts of these latter with their +hands, striving to break them, and to force a way in. No conduct could +have been braver than this, which the modern historian well compares +with brilliant actions of the Romans and the Swiss. The Persians +thoroughly deserved to be termed (as they are termed by AEschylus), a +"valiant-minded people;" they had boldness, elan, dash, and considerable +tenacity and stubbornness; no nation of Asia or Africa was able to stand +against them; if they found their masters in the Greeks, it was owing, +as the Greeks themselves tell us, to the superiority of Hellenic arms, +equipment, and, above all, of Hellenic discipline, which together +rendered the most desperate valor unavailing, when it lacked the support +of scientific organization and united simultaneous movement. + +The energy of the Persians during the earlier years of their ascendancy +is no less remarkable than their courage. AEschylus speaks of a +mysterious fate which forced them to engage continually in a long series +of wars, to take delight in combats of horse, and in the siege and +overthrow of cities. Herodotus, in a tone that is not very different, +makes Xerxes, soon after his accession, represent himself as bound by +the examples of his forefathers to engage his country in some great +enterprise, and not suffer the military spirit of his people to decay +through want of employment. We shall find, when we come to consider the +history of the Empire, that, for eighty years, under four sovereigns, +the course indicated by these two writers was in fact pursued--that +war followed on war, expedition on expedition--the active energy of +sovereign and people carrying them on, without rest or pause, in a +career of conquest that has few parallels in the history of Oriental +nations. In the subsequent period, this spirit is less marked; but, +at all times, a certain vigor and activity has characterized the race, +distinguishing it in a very marked way from the dreamy and listless +Hindus upon the one hand, and the apathetic Turks upon the other. + +The Persian love of truth was a favorite theme with the Greeks, who +were, perhaps, the warmer in their praises from a latent consciousness +of their own deficiency in the virtue. According to Herodotus, the +attention of educators was specially directed to the point, and each +young Persian was taught by his preceptors three main things:--"To +ride, to draw the bow, and to speak the truth." We find that, in the +Zendavesta, and more especially in its earliest and purest portions, +truth is strenuously inculcated. Ahura-Mazda himself is "true," +"the father of all truth," and his worshippers are bound to conform +themselves to his image. Darius, in his inscriptions, protests +frequently against "lies," which he seems to regard as the embodiment +of all evil. A love of finesse and intrigue is congenital to Orientals; +and, in the later period of their sway, the Persians appear to have +yielded to this natural inclination, and to have used freely in their +struggle with the Greeks the weapons of cunning and deception; but, +in the earlier period, a different spirit prevailed; lying was then +regarded as the most disgraceful act of which a man could possibly be +guilty truth was both admired and practised; Persian kings, entrapped +into a promise, stood to it firmly, however much they might wish it +recalled; foreign powers had never to complain that the terms of a +treaty were departed from; the Persians thus form an honorable exception +to the ordinary Asiatic character, and for general truthfulness and a +faithful performance of their engagements compare favorably with the +Greeks and Romans. + +The Persian, if we may trust Herodotus, was careful to avoid debt. +He had a keen sense of the difficulty with which a debtor escapes +subterfuge and equivocation--forms, slightly disguised, of lying. To buy +and sell wares in a market place, to chaffer and haggle over prices, +was distasteful to him, as apt to involve falsity and unfairness. He +was free and open in speech, bold in act, generous, warm-hearted, +hospitable. His chief faults were an addiction to self-indulgence and +luxury, a passionate abandon to the feeling of the hour, whatever that +might happen to be; and a tameness and subservience in all his relations +towards his prince, which seem to moderns almost incompatible with real +self-respect and manliness. + +The luxury of the Persians will be considered when we treat of +their manners. In illustration of the two other weak points of their +character, it may be observed that, in joy and in sorrow, they were +alike immoderate; in the one transported beyond all reasonable bounds, +and exhibiting their transports with entire unreserve and openness; +in the other proportionately depressed, and quite unrestrained in +the expression of their anxiety or misery. AEschylus' tragedy of the +"Persae" is, in this respect, true to nature, and represents with +accuracy the real habits of the nation. The Persian was a stranger +to the dignified reserve which has commonly been affected by the more +civilized among Western nations. He laughed and wept, shouted and +shrieked, with the unrestraint of a child, who is not ashamed to lay +bare his inmost feelings to the eyes of those about him. Lively and +excitable, he loved to give vent to every passion that stirred his +heart, and cared not how many witnessed his lamentations or his +rejoicings. + +The feeling of the Persian towards his king is one of which moderns can +with difficulty form a conception. In Persia the monarch was so much the +State, that patriotism itself was, as it were, swallowed up in loyalty; +and an absolute unquestioning submission, not only to the deliberate +will, but to the merest caprice of the sovereign, was, by habit and +education, so engrained into the nature of the people that a contrary +spirit scarcely ever manifested itself. In war the safety of the +sovereign was the first thought, and the principal care of all. +The tales told of the self-devotion of individuals to secure the +preservation of the monarch may not be true, but they indicate +faithfully the actual tone of men's sentiments about the value of the +royal person. If the king suffered, all was lost; if the king escaped, +the greatest calamities seemed light, and could be endured with +patience. Uncomplaining acquiescence in all the decisions of the +monarch--cheerful submission to his will, whatever it might chance to +be--characterized the conduct of the Persians in time of peace. It +was here that their loyalty degenerated into parasitical tameness, +and became a defect instead of a virtue. The voice of remonstrance, of +rebuke, of warning, was unheard at the Court; and tyranny was allowed to +indulge unchecked in the wildest caprices and extravagances. The +father, whose innocent son was shot before his eyes by the king in pure +wantonness, instead of raising an indignant protest against the +crime, felicitated him on the excellence of his archery. Unfortunates, +bastinadoed by the royal orders, declared themselves delighted, because +his majesty had condescended to recollect them. A tone of sycophancy +and servility was thus engendered, which, sapping self-respect, tended +fatally to lower and corrupt the entire character of the people. + +In considering the manners and customs of the Persians, it will be +convenient to follow the order already observed in treating of Assyria +and Media--that is to say, to treat, in the first instance, of their +warlike, and subsequently of their peaceful usages. On the latter the +monuments throw considerable light; on the former, the information which +they supply is comparatively scanty. + +The Persians, like the Medes, regarded chariots with disfavor, and +composed their armies almost entirely of foot and horse. The ordinary +dress of the foot-man was, in the earlier times, a tunic with long +sleeves, made of leather, and fitting rather tightly to the frame, which +it covered from the neck to the knee. Under this was worn a pair of +trousers, also of leather, and tolerably tight-fitting, especially at +the ankles, where they met a sort of high shoe, or low boot. The head +was protected by a loose round cap, apparently of felt, which projected +a little in front, and rose considerably above the top of the head. +Round the waist was worn a double girdle or belt, from which depended a +short sword. [PLATE XXVIII Fig. 4.] + +The offensive arms of the foot-man were, a sword, a spear, and a bow. +The sword, which was called by the Persians _akinaces_, appears to +have been a short, straight weapon, suited for stabbing rather than for +cutting, and, in fact, not very much better than a dagger. [PLATE XXIX., +Fig. 2.] It was carried in a sheath, and was worn suspended from the +girdle on the right side. From the Persepolitan sculptures it would +seem not to have hung freely, but to have been attached to the right +thigh by a thong which passed round the knee. The handle was short, +and generally unprotected by a guard; but, in some specimens, we see a +simple cross-bar between the hilt and the blade. + +The spear carried by the Persian foot-man was also short, or, at any +rate, much shorter than the Greek. To judge by the representations of +guardsmen on the Persepolitan sculptures, it was from six to six and a +half or seven feet in length. The Grecian spear was sometimes as much as +twenty-one feet. The Persian weapon had a short head, which appears to +have been flattish, and which was strengthened by a bar or ridge down +the middle. The shaft, which was of cornel wood, tapered gradually from +bottom to top, and was ornamented at its lower extremity with a ball, +sometimes carved in the shape of an apple or a pomegranate. [PLATE +XXIX., Fig. 3.] + +The Persian bow, according to Herodotus and Xenophon, was of unusual +size. According to the sculptures, it was rather short, certainly not +exceeding four feet. It seems to have been carried strung, either on the +left shoulder, with the arm passed through it, or in a bow-case slung at +the left side. It was considerably bent in the middle, and had the ends +slightly turned back. [PLATE XXX., Fig. 1.] The arrows, which were of +reed, tipped with metal, and feathered, were carried in a quiver, which +hung at the back near the left shoulder. To judge from the sculptures, +their length must have been about two feet and a half. The arrow-heads, +which were either of bronze or iron, seem to have been of various +shapes, the most common closely resembling the arrow-heads of the +Assyrians. [PLATE XXX., Fig. 3.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXX.] + + +Other offensive weapons carried occasionally by the Persian foot-men +were, a battle-axe, a sling, and a knife. The battle-axe, which appears +in the sculptures only in one or two instances, is declared to have been +a common Persian weapon by Xenophon, who, upon such a point, would seem +to be trustworthy. The use of the sling by the Persian light-armed is +quite certain. It is mentioned by Curtius and Strabo, no less than by +Xenophon; and the last-named writer speaks with full knowledge on the +subject, for he witnessed the effect of the weapon in the hands of +Persian slingers during his return with the Ten Thousand. The only +missiles which the Persian slingers threw were stones; they did not, +like the Rhodians, make use of small lumps of lead. + +The knife seems also to have been a Persian weapon. Its blade appears to +have been slightly curved, like that of a pruning-hook. It was worn in a +sheath, and was probably thrust into the belt or girdle like the similar +weapon, half knife, half dagger, of a modern Persian. + +The ordinary defence of the Persian against the weapons of his enemy was +a shield of wicker-work, which covered him almost from head to foot, +and which probably differed little from the wattled shield of the +Assyrians. [PLATE XXX., Fig. 2.] This he commonly planted on the ground, +supporting it, perhaps, with a crutch, while he shot his arrows from +behind it. Occasionally, he added to this defence the protection of a +coat of mail, composed either of scale armor, or of quilted linen, like +the corselets of the Egyptians. Armor of the former kind was almost +impenetrable, since the scales were of metal--iron, bronze, or sometimes +gold--and overlapped one another like those of a fish. + +The Persian cavalry was armed, in the early times of the monarchy, +almost exactly in the same manner as their infantry. Afterwards, however +a considerable change seems to have been made. In the time of the +younger Cyrus cavalry soldiers were very fully protected. They wore +helmets on their heads, coats of mail about their bodies, and greaves +on their legs. Their chief offensive arms seem, then, to have been the +short sword, the javelin, and the knife. It is probable that they were +without shields, being sufficiently defended by their armor, which (as +we have seen) was almost complete. + +The javelin of the horseman, which was his special weapon, was a short +strong spear or pike, with a shaft of cornel-wood, and an iron point. It +was common for him to carry two such weapons, one of which he used as +a missile, while he retained the other in order to employ it in +hand-to-hand combat with the enemy. It was a stout manageable weapon, +and though no match for the longer and equally strong spear of +the Macedonian cavalry, was preferred by Xenophon to the long weak +reed-lance commonly carried by horse-soldiers in his day. + +It was the practice of the later Persians to protect with armor, not +only the horseman, but the horse. They selected for the service large +and powerful animals, chiefly of the Nisaean breed, and cased them +almost wholly in mail. The head was guarded by a frontlet, and the neck +and chest by a breast-piece; the sides and flanks had their own special +covering and cuisses defended the thighs. These defences were not +merely, like those of the later Assyrian heavy cavalry, of felt or +leather, but consisted, like the cuirasses worn by the riders, of some +such material covered with metal scales. The weight which the horse had +to sustain was thus very great, and the movements of the cavalry force +were, in consequence, slow and hesitating. Flight was difficult; and, in +a retreat, the weaker animals were apt to sink under their burdens, and +to be trampled to death by the stronger ones. + +There can be no doubt that, besides these heavy horsemen, the Persians +employed, even in the latest times, and much more in the earlier, +a light and agile cavalry force. Such were the troops which, under +Tissaphernes, harassed the Ten Thousand during their retreat; and such, +it may be conjectured, was really at all times the great body of their +cavalry. The education of the Persian, as we shall see hereafter, was +directed to the formation of those habits of quickness and agility in +the mounting and managing of horses, which have a military value only +as furnishing a good training for the light-cavalry service; and the +tendency of the race has at all times been, not to those forms of +military organization which are efficient by means of solidity and +strength, but to those lighter, more varied, and more elastic branches +which compensate for a want of solidity by increased activity, +readiness, and ease of movement. + +Though the Persians did not set any great store by chariots, as an arm +of the military service, they nevertheless made occasional use of them. +Not only were their kings and princes, when they commanded their troops +in person, accustomed to direct their movements, both on the march and +even inaction, from the elevation of a war-chariot, but now and then, in +great battles, a considerable force of them was brought into the field, +and important consequences were expected from their employment. The +wheels of the war-chariots were armed with scythes; and these, when the +chariot was set in motion, were regarded as calculated to inflict great +damage on the ranks of opponents. Such hopes seem, however, to have +been generally disappointed. As every chariot was drawn by at least +two horses, and contained at least two persons--the charioteer and the +warrior--a large mark was offered by each to the missiles of the light +troops who were commonly stationed to receive them; and, as practically +it was found that a single wound to either horse or man threw the whole +equipage into confusion, the charge of a scythed chariot was commonly +checked before it reached the line of battle of the enemy. Where this +was not the case, the danger was escaped by opening the ranks and +letting the chariots pass through them to the rear, a good account being +speedily given of any adventurer who thus isolated himself from the +support of his own party. + +The Persian war-chariot was, probably, somewhat loftier than the +Assyrian. The wheels appear to have been from, three to four feet in +diameter; and the body rose above them to a height from the ground of +nearly five feet. The person of the warrior was thus protected up to his +middle by the curved board which enclosed the chariot on three sides. +The axle-tree is said to have been broad, since breadth afforded a +security against being overturned, and the whole construction to have +been strong and solid. The wheels had twelve spokes, which radiated from +a nave of unusual size. The felloes were narrower than the Assyrian, but +were still composed, like them, of two or three distinct layers of wood. +The tires were probably of metal, and were indented like the edge of a +saw. [PLATE XXXI., Fig. 1.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXXI.] + + +No great ornamentation of the chariot appears to have been attempted. +The body was occasionally patterned with a chequer-work, which maybe +compared with a style common in Assyria, and the spokes of the wheels +were sometimes of great elegance, but the general character of the +workmanship was massive and plain. The pole was short, and terminated +with a simple curve. From the evidence of the monuments it would seem +that chariots were drawn by two horses only; but the classical writers +assure us that the ordinary practice was to have teams of four. The +harness used was exceedingly simple, consisting of a yoke, a belly-band, +a narrow collar, a head-stall, a bit, and reins. When the charioteer +left his seat, the reins could be attached to a loop or bar which +projected from the front of the chariot-board. + +Chariots were constructed to contain two, or perhaps, in some instances, +three persons. These consisted of the warrior, his charioteer, who stood +beside him, and an attendant, whose place was behind, and whose business +it was to open and shut the chariot doors. The charioteer wore a visor +and a coat of mail, exposing nothing to the enemy but his eyes. + +The later Persians made use also of elephants in battle, but to a very +small extent, and without any results worth mentioning. + +The chief points of Persian tactics were the following. The army was +organized into three distinct services--those of the chariots, the +horse, and the foot. In drawing up the line of battle, it was usual, +where chariots were employed, to place them in the front rank, in front +of the rest of the army. Behind the chariots were stationed the horse +and the foot; the former generally massed upon the wings; the latter +placed in the middle, drawn up according to nations, in a number of +oblong squares, which touched, or nearly touched, one another. The +bravest and best armed troops were placed in front; the ranks towards +the rear being occupied by those of inferior quality. The depth of the +ranks was usually very great, since Oriental troops cannot be trusted to +maintain a firm front unless they are strongly supported from behind. +No attempt, however, seems to have been made at forming a second line of +battle in the rear of the first, nor does there even seem to have been +any organized system of reserves. When the battle began, the chariots +were first launched against the enemy, whose ranks it was hoped they +would confuse, or, at any rate, disturb. After this the main line +advanced to the attack, but without any inclination to come at once to +close quarters. Planting their shields firmly on the ground in front of +them, the Persian heavy-armed shot flight after flight of arrows against +their foe, while the slingers and other light-armed in the rear sent +clouds of missiles over the heads of their friends into the adverse +ranks beyond them. It was usually the enemy which brought this phase of +the battle to an end, by pressing onward and closing with the Persian +main line in a hand:to-hand combat. Here the struggle was commonly +brief--a very few minutes often decided the engagement. If the Persian +line of battle was forced or broken, all was immediately regarded as +lost--flight and rout followed. The cavalry, from its position on +the wings, might attempt, by desperate charges on the flanks of the +advancing foe, to stay his progress, and restore the fortune of the +day, but such efforts were usually unavailing. Its line of battle +once broken, a Persian army lost heart; its commander commonly set the +example of flight, and there was a general rush of all arms from the +battle-field. + +For success the Persians trusted mainly to their numbers, which enabled +them, in some cases, to renew an attack time after time with fresh +troops, in others to outflank and surround their adversary. Their best +troops were undoubtedly their cavalry, both heavy and light. The heavy, +armed in the old times with bows, and in the later with the javelins, +highly distinguished itself on many important occasions. The weight of +its charge must have been great; its offensive weapons were good; and +its armor made it almost invulnerable to ordinary weapons. The +light cavalry was celebrated for the quickness and dexterity of its +manoeuvres. It had the loose organization of modern Bashi-Bazouks or +Cossacks; it hung in clouds on the enemy--assailed, retreated, rallied, +re-advanced--fled, and even in flight was formidable, since each rider +was trained to discharge his arrows backwards with a sure aim. +against the pursuing foe. The famous skill of the Parthians in their +horse-combats was inherited from their Persian predecessors, who seem to +have invented the practice which the later people carried to perfection. + +Though mainly depending for success on their numbers, the Persians did +not wholly despise the use of contrivance and stratagem. At Arbela, +Darius Codomannus had spiked balls strewn over the ground where he +expected the Greek cavalry to make its attacks. [PLATE XXX., Fig. 5]; +and, at Sardis, Cyrus obtained his victory over the Lydian horse +by frightening them with the grotesque and unfamiliar camel. Other +instances will readily occur to the reader, whereby it appears that the +art of war was studied, and ingenuity allowed its due place in military +matters, by this people, who showed a fair share of Oriental subtlety in +the devices which they employed against their enemies. + +It is doubtful whether we are to include among these devices the use of +military engines. On the one hand, we have several distinct statements +by the author of the "Cyrpoasdia," to the effect that engines were well +known to the Persians; on the other, we remark an entire absence from +the works of other ancient writers of any notice that they actually +employed them, either in their battles or their sieges. The silence of +Scripture, of Herodotus, of the inscriptions, of Quintus Curtius, of +Arrian, may fairly be regarded as outweighing the unsupported authority +of the romance-writer, Xenophon; and though it would be rash to decide +that such things as siege-towers, battering rams, and balistce--all +of which are found to have been in constant use under the Assyrian and +Babylonian monarchies--were wholly discarded by, or unknown to, +their successors in the government of Asia, yet a wise criticism will +conclude, that they were, at any rate, unfamiliar to the Persians, +rarely and sparingly (if at all) employed by them, other methods +of accomplishing the ends whereto they served having more approved +themselves to this ingenious people. In ordinary sieges it would seem +that they trusted to the bank or mound, while sometimes they drove mines +under the walls, and sought in this way to effect a breach. Where the +place attacked was of great strength, they had recourse in general +either to stratagem or to blockade. Occasionally they employed the +destructive force of fire, and no doubt they often succeeded by the +common method of escalade. On the whole, it must certainly be said that +they were successful in their sieges, exhibiting in their conduct of +them courage, activity, and considerable fertility of resource. + +A Persian army was usually, though not always, placed under a single +commander. This commander was the monarch, if he was present; if not, it +was a Persian, or a Mede, nominated by him. Under the commander-in-chief +were a number of general officers, heads of corps or divisions, of whom +we find, in one instance, as many as nine. Next in rank to these were +the chiefs of the various ethnic contingents composing the army, who +were, probably, in general the satraps of the different provinces. Thus +far appointments were held directly from the crown; but beyond this the +system was changed. The ethnic or satrapial commanders appointed the +officers next below themselves, the captains over a thousand, and (if +their contingent was large enough to admit it) the captains over ten +thousand; who, again, nominated their subordinates, commanders of a +hundred, and commanders of ten. Thus, in the main, a decimal scale +prevailed. The lowest rank of officers commanded each ten men, the next +lowest a hundred, the next to that a thousand, the next ten thousand. +The officer over ten thousand was sometimes a divisional chief; +sometimes he was subject to the commander of an ethnic contingent, who +was himself under the orders of the head of a division. Altogether there +were six ranks of officers, exclusive of the commander-in-chief. + +The proper position of the commander-in-chief was considered to be the +centre of the line of battle. He was regarded as safer there than +he would have been on either wing; and it was seen that, from such a +position, his orders would be most rapidly conveyed to all parts of the +battlefield. It was not, however, thought to be honorable that he should +keep aloof from the fight, or avoid risking his own person. On the +contrary, he was expected to take an active part in the combat; and +therefore, though his place was not exactly in the very foremost ranks, +it was towards the front, and the result followed that he was often +exposed to imminent danger. The consequences of this arrangement +were frequently disastrous in the extreme, the death or flight of the +commander producing universal panic, stopping the further issue of any +general order, and thus paralyzing the whole army. + +The numbers of a Persian army, though no doubt exaggerated by the +Greeks, must have been very great, amounting, probably, on occasions, +to more than a million of combatants. Troops were drawn from the entire +empire, and were marshalled in the field according to nations, +each tribe accoutred in its own fashion. Here were seen the gilded +breastplates and scarlet kilts of the Persians and Medes; there the +woollen shirt of the Arab, the leathern jerkin of the Berber, or the +cotton dress of the native of Hindustan. Swart savage Ethiops from the +Upper Nile, adorned with a war-paint of white and red, and scantily +clad with the skins of leopards or lions, fought in one place with huge +clubs, arrows tipped with stone, and spears terminating in the horn of +an antelope. In another, Scyths, with their loose spangled trousers and +their tall pointed caps, dealt death around from their unerring blows; +while near them Assyrians, helmeted, and wearing corselets of quilted +linen, wielded the tough spear, or the still more formidable iron mace. +Rude weapons, like cane bows, unfeathered arrows, and stakes hardened at +one end in the fire, were seen side by side with keen swords and +daggers of the best steel, the finished productions of the workshops +of Phoenicia and Greece. Here the bronze helmet was surmounted with +the ears and horns of an ox; there it was superseded by a fox-skin, a +leathern or wooden skull-cap, or a head-dress fashioned out of a horse's +scalp. Besides horses and mules, elephants, camels, and wild asses, +diversified the scene, and rendered it still more strange and wonderful +to the eye of a European. One large body of cavalry was accustomed +to enter the field apparently unarmed; besides the dagger, which the +Oriental never lays aside, they had nothing but a long leathern thong. +They used this, however, just as the lasso is used by the natives of +Brazil, and the wretch at whom they aimed their deadly noose had small +chance of escape. The Persians, like the Assyrians, usually avoided +fighting during the winter, and marched out their armies against the +enemy in early spring. With the great hosts which they moved a fixed +order of march was most necessary; and we find evidence of so much +attention being paid to this point that confusion and disorder seem +scarcely ever to have arisen. When the march lay within their own +country, it was usual to send on the baggage and the sumpter-beasts in +advance, after which came about half the troops, moving slowly in a long +and continuous column along the appointed line of route. At this point +a considerable break occurred, in order that all might be clear for +the most important part of the army, which was now to follow. A guard, +consisting of a thousand horse and a thousand foot, picked men of the +Persian people, prepared the way for what was most holy in the eyes of +the nation--the emblems of their religion, and their king. The former +consisted of sacred horses and cars; perhaps, in the later times, of +silver altars also, bearing the perpetual and heaven-kindled fire, +which was a special object of Persian religious regard, and which the +superstition of the people viewed as a sort of palladium, sure to bring +the blessings of heaven upon their arms. Behind the sacred emblems +followed the Great King himself, mounted on a car drawn by Nissean +steeds, and perhaps protected on either side by a select band of his +relatives. Behind the royal chariot came a second guard, consisting, +like the first, of a thousand foot and a thousand horse. Then followed +ten thousand picked foot, probably the famous "Immortals;" then came +a body of ten thousand picked Persian horsemen. After these a space of +four hundred yards (nearly a quarter of a mile) was left vacant; then +marched, in a second continuous column, the remainder of the host. + +On entering an enemy's country, or drawing near a hostile force in their +own, certain alterations in these dispositions became necessary, and +were speedily effected. The baggage-train was withdrawn, and instead of +moving before the army, followed at some little distance in the rear. +Horsemen were thrown out in front, to feel for the enemy and notify his +arrival. Sometimes, if the host was large, a division of the troops +was made, and several _corps d'armee_ advanced against the foe +simultaneously by distinct routes. When this took place, the +commander-in-chief was careful to accompany the central force, so as to +find himself in his proper position if he was suddenly compelled to give +battle. + +Night movements were seldom attempted by the Persians. They marched from +sunrise to sunset, halting, probably, during the midday heat. In their +most rapid marches they seldom accomplished more than from twenty to +twenty-five miles in the day; and when this rate was attempted for any +continuance, it was necessary to rest the men at intervals for as much +as three days at a time. The great drag upon rapidity of movement was +the baggage-train, which consisted ordinarily of a vast multitude of +camels, horses, asses, mules, oxen, etc., in part carrying burthens upon +their backs, in part harnessed to carts laden with provisions, tents, +and other necessaries. The train also frequently comprised a number of +litters, in which the wives or female companions of the chief men were +luxuriously conveyed, amid a crowd of eunuchs and attendants, and with +all the cumbrous paraphernalia of female wardrobes. Roads, it must be +remembered, did not exist; rivers were not bridged, except occasionally +by boats; the army marched on the natural ground along an established +line of route which no art had prepared for the passage of man or beast. +Portions of the route would often be soft and muddy; the carts and +litters would become immovable, their wheels sinking into the mire up +to the axles; all the efforts of the teams would be unavailing; it must +have been imperative to halt the main line, and employ the soldiers in +the release of the vehicles, which had to be lifted and carried forward +till the ground was sufficiently firm to bear them. When a river crossed +the line of route, a ford had to be sought, boats procured, or rafts +extemporized. The Persians were skilful in the passage of streams, to +which they became accustomed in their first campaigns under Cyrus; but +the march was necessarily retarded by these and similar obstacles, and +we cannot be surprised that the average rate of movement was slow. + +As evening approached the Persians sought a suitable place for their +camp. An open plain was preferred for the purpose, and the vicinity of +water was a necessity. If an enemy was thought to be at hand, a ditch +was rapidly dug, and the earth thrown up inside; or if the soil was +sandy, sacks were filled with it, and the camp was protected with +sand-bags. Immediately within the rampart were placed the _gerrhophori_, +or Persians armed with large wicker shields. The rest of the soldiers +had severally their appointed places, the position assigned to the +commander-in-chief being the centre. All the army had tents, which were +pitched so as to face the east. The horses of the cavalry were tethered +and hobbled in front of the tents of their owners. + +The Persians disliked encamping near to their enemy. They preferred an +interval of seven or eight miles, which they regarded as a considerable +security against a surprise. As their most important arm was the +cavalry, and as it was impossible for the cavalry to unfasten and +unhobble their steeds, to equip them properly, to arm themselves, and +then to mount in a short space of time, when darkness and confusion +reigned around, a night attack on the part of an enterprising enemy +would have been most perilous to a Persian army. Hence the precaution +which they observed against its occurrence--a precaution which was +seldom or never omitted where they felt any respect for their foe, +and which seems to have been effective, since we do not hear of their +suffering any disaster of the kind which they so greatly feared. + +The Persians do not seem to have possessed any special corps of +pioneers. When the nature of the country was such as to require the +felling of timber or the removal of brushwood, the army was halted, and +the work was assigned to a certain number of the regular soldiers. For +the construction of bridges, however, in important places, and for +other works on a grand scale intended to facilitate an expedition, +preparations were made beforehand, the tasks being entrusted either to +skilled workmen, or to the crews of ships, if they were tolerably easy +of performance. + +Commissariat arrangements were generally made by the Persians on a +large scale, and with the best possible results. An ample baggage-train +conveyed corn sufficient to supply the host during some months and in +cases where scarcity was apprehended, further precautions were taken. +Ships laden with corn accompanied the expedition as closely as possible, +and supplemented any deficiency that might arise from a failure on the +part of the land transport department. Sometimes, too, magazines were +established at convenient points along the intended line of march +previously to the setting forth of the army, and stores were thus +accumulated at places where it was probable they would be found of most +service. + +Requisitions for supplies were also made upon the inhabitants of the +towns and villages through which lay the route of the army. Whenever the +host rested for a night at a place of any consequence, the inhabitants +seem to have been required to furnish sufficient bread for a meal +to each man, and, in addition, to provide a banquet for the king +(or general) and his suite, which was always very numerous. Such +requisitions, often intolerably burthensome to those upon whom they +were laid, must have tended greatly to relieve the strain upon their own +resources, which the sustentation of such enormous hosts as the Persian +kings were in the habit of moving, cannot have failed to produce in many +cases. + +The effectiveness of these various arrangements for the provisioning of +troops upon a march was such that Persian armies were rarely, if ever, +in any difficulty with respect to their subsistence. Once only in +the entire course of their history do we hear of the Persian forces +suffering to any considerable extent from a want of supplies. According +to Herodotus, Cambyses, when he invaded Ethiopia, neglected the ordinary +precautions and brought his army into such straits that his men began to +eat each other. This caused the total failure of his expedition, and +the loss of a great proportion of the troops employed in it. There +is, however, reason to suspect that, even in this case, the loss and +difficulty which occurred have been much exaggerated. + +The Persians readily gave quarter to the enemy who asked it, and +generally treated their prisoners of war with much kindness. Personages +of importance, as monarchs or princes, either preserved their titles +and their liberty, with even a certain nominal authority, or received +appanages in other parts of the Persian territory, or, finally, were +retained about the Court as friends and table-companions of the Great +King. Those of less rank were commonly given lands and houses in some +province remote from their own country, and thenceforth held the same +position as the great mass of the subject races. Exchanges of prisoners +do not seem to have been thought of. In a few cases, persons, whom we +should regard as prisoners of war, experienced some severities, but +probably only when they were viewed by the Persians, not as fair +enemies, but as rebels. Rebels were, of course, liable to any punishment +which the king might think it right to inflict upon them, and there were +occasions after a revolt when sentences of extreme rigor were passed +upon the persons considered to have been most in fault. According to +Herodotus, three thousand Babylonians were crucified by order of +Darius, to punish their revolt from him; and, though this is probably an +exaggeration, it is certain that sometimes, where an example was thought +to be required, the Persians put to death, not only the leader of a +rebellion, but a number of his chief adherents. Crucifixion, or, at +any rate, impalement of some sort, was in such cases the ordinary +punishment. Sometimes, before a rebel was executed, he was kept for a +while chained at the king's door, in order that there might be no doubt +of his capture. + +Among the minor punishments of rebellion were branding, and removal of +the rebels _en masse_ from their own country, to some remote locality. +In this latter case, they were merely treated in the same way as +ordinary prisoners of war. In the former, they probably became royal +slaves attached to the household of the monarch. + +Though the Persians were not themselves a nautical people, they were +quite aware of the great importance of a navy, and spared no pains to +provide themselves with an efficient one. The conquests of Phoenicia, +Cyprus, Egypt, and the Greek islands were undertaken, it is probable, +mainly with this object; and these parts of the Empire were always +valued chiefly as possessing skilled seamen, vessels, and dockyards, +from which the Great King could draw an almost inexhaustible supply of +war-ships and transports. Persia at times had the complete command of +the Mediterranean Sea, and bore undisputed sway in the Levant during +almost the whole period of her existence as an empire. + +The war-ship preferred by the best naval powers during the whole period +of the Persian rule was the trireme, or decked galley impelled by rowers +sitting in three tiers, or banks, one above another. This vessel, the +invention of the Corinthians, had been generally adopted by the nations +bordering on the Mediterranean in the interval between B.C. 700 and B.C. +525, when by the reduction of Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Egypt, the Persians +obtained the command of the sea. Notwithstanding the invention of +quadriremes by the Carthaginians before B.C. 400, and of quinqueremes by +Dionysius the Elder soon after, the trireme stood its ground, and from +first to last the Persian fleets were mainly composed of this class of +vessels. + +The trireme was a vessel of a considerable size, and was capable of +accommodating two hundred and thirty persons. Of these, two hundred +constituted the crew, while the remaining thirty were men-at-arms, +corresponding to our own "marines." By far the greater number of the +crew consisted of the rowers, who probably formed at least nine-tenths +of the whole, or one hundred and eighty out of the two hundred. The +rowers sat, not on benches running right across the vessel, but on small +seats attached to its side. They were arranged, as before stated, in +three tiers, not, however, directly one over the head of another, but +obliquely, each at once above and behind his fellow. Each rower had the +sole management of a single oar, which he worked through a hole pierced +in the side of the vessel. To prevent his oar from slipping he had a +leathern strap, which he twisted round it, and fastened to the thole, +probably by means of a button. The remainder of the crew comprised the +captain, the steersman, the petty officers, and the sailors proper, or +those whose office it was to trim the sails and look to the rigging. +The trireme of Persian times had, in all cases, a mast, and at least one +sail, which was of a square shape, hung across the mast by means of a +yard or spar, like the "square-sail" of a modern vessel. The rudder +was composed of two broad-bladed oars, one on either side of the stern, +united, however, by a cross-bar, and managed by a single steersman. The +central part of a trireme was always decked, and on this deck, which +was generally level with the bulwarks, stood and fought the men-at-arms, +whose business it was to engage the similar force of the enemy. + +The weapon of the trireme, with which she was intended chiefly to +attack her foe, was the beak. [PLATE XXXI., Fig. 3.] This consisted of +a projection from the prow of the ship, either above or below the +water-line, strongly shod with a casting of iron, and terminating either +in the head of an animal, or in one or more sharp points. A trireme was +expected, like a modern "ram," to use this implement against the sides +of her adversary's vessels, so as to crush them in and cause the vessels +to sink. Driven by the full force of her oars, which impelled her almost +at the rate of a modern steamer, she was nearly certain, if she struck +her adversary full, to send ship and men to the bottom. She might +also, it is true, greatly damage herself; but, to preclude this, it was +customary to make the whole prow of a trirene exceedingly strong, and, +more particularly, to support it with beams at the side which tended to +prevent the timbers from starting. + +Besides triremes, which constituted the bulk of the Persian navy, there +were contained in their fleet various other classes of vessels, as +triaconters, penteconters, cercuri, and others. Triaconters were long, +sharp-keeled ships, shaped very much like a trireme, rowed by thirty +rowers, who sat all upon a level, like the rowers in modern boats, +fifteen on either side of the vessel. [PLATE XXXI., Fig. 2.] +Penteconters were very similar, the only difference being in the number +of the oars and oarsmen. [PLATE XXXI., Fig. 4.] Both these classes of +vessels seem to have been frequently without sails. Cercuri were light +boats, very long and swift. They are said to have been invented by the +Cyprians, and were always peculiar to Asia. + +The transports of the Persians were either for the conveyance of horses +or of food. Horse-transports were large clumsy vessels, constructed +expressly for the service whereon they were used, possessing probably a +special apparatus for the embarkation and disembarkation of the animals +which they were built to carry. Corn-transports seem to have been of a +somewhat lighter character. Probably, they varied very considerably in +their size and burthen, including huge and heavy merchantmen on the one +hand, and a much lighter and smaller craft on the other. + +The Persians used their ships of war, not only for naval engagements, +but also for the conveyance of troops and the construction of bridges. +Accustomed to pass the great streams which intersect Western Asia +by bridges of boats, which were permanently established wherever an +unfordable river crossed any of the regular routes connecting the +provinces with the capital, the Persians, when they proceeded to carry +their arms from Asia into Europe, conceived the idea of bridging the +interval between the continents, which did not much exceed the width of +one of the Mesopotamian streams, by constructions similar in principle +and general character to those wherewith long use had made them familiar +in their own country. Ranging a number of vessels side by side, at no +great distance one from another, parallel with the course of the stream, +which ran down the straits, anchoring each vessel stem and stern to keep +it in place, and then laying upon these supports a long wooden platform, +they made a floating bridge of considerable strength, reaching from +the Asiatic to the European coast, on which not only men, but horses, +camels, chariots, and laden carts passed over safely from the one +continent to the other. Only, as the water which they had to cross was +not a river, but an arm of the real salt sea, and might, therefore, in +case of a storm, show a might and fury far beyond a river's power, they +thought it necessary to employ, in lieu of boats, the strongest ships +which they possessed, namely, triremes and pentecon-ters, as best +capable of withstanding the force of an angry sea. Bridges of this +kind were intended sometimes for temporary, sometimes for permanent +constructions. In the latter case, great care and much engineering skill +was lavished on their erection. The shore cables, which united the ships +together, and sustained the actual bridge or platform, were made of most +carefully selected materials, and must have been of enormous strength; +the ships were placed in close proximity one to another; and by the +substitution of a double for a single line--of two bridges, in fact, for +one--the solidity of the work was very largely augmented. Yet, rare as +was the skill shown, solid and compact as were the causeways thus +thrown by human art over the sea, they were found inadequate to the end +desired. The great work of Xerxes, far the most elaborate of its class, +failed to withstand the fury of the elements for a single year; the +bridge, constructed in one autumn, was utterly swept away in the next; +and the army which had crossed into Europe by its aid had to embark as +it best could, and return on board ship to Asia. + +As the furnishing of the Persian fleet was left wholly to the subject +nations of the Empire, so was its manning intrusted to them almost +entirely. Phoenicians, Syrians, Egyptians, Cypriots, Cilicians, Lycians, +Pamphylians, Carians, Greeks, equipped in the several costumes of their +countries, served side by side in their respective contingents of ships, +thereby giving the fleet nearly the same motley appearance which +was presented by the army. In one respect alone did the navy exhibit +superior uniformity to their sister service--the _epibatae_, or +"marines," who formed the whole fighting force of the fleet while it +kept the sea, was a nearly homogeneous body, consisting of three races +only (two of which were closely allied), namely, Persians, Medes, and +Sacse. Every ship had thirty such men on board; all, it is probable, +uniformly armed, and all animated by one and the same spirit. To this +force the Persians must have owed it mainly that their great fleets +were not mere congeries of mutually repellant atoms, but were capable of +acting against an enemy with a fair amount of combination and singleness +of purpose. + +When a fleet accompanied a land army upon an expedition, it was usually +placed under the same commander. This commander, however, was not +expected to adventure himself on board much less to take the direction +of a sea-fight. He intrusted the fleet to an officer, or officers, whom +he nominated, and was content himself with the conduct of operations +ashore. Occasionally the land and sea forces were assigned to distinct +commanders of co-ordinate authority--an arrangement which led naturally, +to misunderstanding and quarrel. + +The tactics of a Persian fleet seem to have been of the simplest +kind Confident in their numbers, until experience had taught them the +fallaciousness of such a ground of hope, they were chiefly anxious +that their enemy should not escape. To prevent this they endeavored to +surround the ships opposed to them, advancing their line in a crescent +form, so as to enclose their adversary's wings, or even detaching +squadrons to cut off his retreat. They formed their line several ships +deep and when the hour of battle came, advanced directly at their best +speed against the enemy, endeavoring to run down his vessels by sheer +force, and never showing any acquaintance with or predilection for +manoeuvres of a skilful antagonist, who avoided or successfully +withstood this first onset, they were apt through their very numbers to +be thrown into disorder: the first line would become entangled with the +second, the second with the third, and inextricable confusion would be +the result. Confusion placed them at the mercy of their antagonist, +who, retaining complete command over his own vessels, was able to strike +theirs in vulnerable parts, and, in a short time, to cover the sea with +shattered and sinking wrecks. The loss to the Persians in men as well +as in material, was then sure to be very great; for their sailors seldom +knew how to swim, and were consequently drowned, even when the shore was +but a few yards distant. + +When, from deficiency in their numbers, or distrust of their own +nautical skill in comparison with that of their enemy, the commanders of +a Persian fleet wished to avoid an engagement, a plan sometimes adopted +was to run the ships ashore upon a smooth soft beach, and, after drawing +them together, to surround them with such a rampart as could be hastily +made, and defend this rampart with the sailors. The crews of the Persian +vessels were always more or less completely armed, in order that, if +occasion arose, they might act as soldiers ashore, and were thus quite +capable of fighting effectively behind a rampart. They might count, too, +under such circumstances, upon assistance from such of their own land +forces as might happen to be in the neighborhood, who would be sure to +come with all speed to their aid, and might be expected to prove a sure +protection. + +The subject nations who furnished the Persians with their fleet were, +in the earlier times, the Phoenicians, the Egyptians, the Cypriots, the +Cilicians, the Syrians of Palestine, the Pamphylians, the Lycians, the +Carians, and the Greeks of Asia Minor and the islands. The Greeks seem +to have furnished the largest number of ships; the Phoenicians, the +next largest; then the Egyptians; after them the Cypriots; then the +Cilicians; then the Carians; next the Lycians; while the Pamphylians +furnished the least. The best ships and the best sailors were the +Phoenicians, especially those of Sidon. In later times, ships were drawn +either from Phoenicia alone, or from Phoenicia, Cilicia, and Cyprus. + +The limits assigned to the present work forbid the further prosecution +of this branch of our inquiry, and require us now to pass on from the +consideration of the Persian usages in war, to that of their manners +and customs, their habits and proceedings, in time of peace. And here +it will once more be convenient to follow a division of the subject with +which the reader is familiar, and to treat first of the public life of +the King and Court, and next of the private life of the people. + +The Persian king held the same rank and position in the eyes of his +subjects which the great monarch of Western Asia, whoever he might be, +had always occupied from time immemorial. He was their lord and master, +absolute disposer of their lives, liberties, and property; the +sole fountain of law and right, incapable himself of doing wrong, +irresponsible irresistable--a sort of God upon earth; one whose favor +was happiness, at whose frown men trembled, before whom all bowed +themselves down with the lowest and humblest obeisance. + +To a personage so exhalted, a state and pomp of the utmost magnificence +was befitting. The king's ordinary dress in time of peace was the long +flowing "Median garment," or _candys_--made in his case (it is probable) +of richest silk, which, with its ample folds, its wide hanging sleeves, +and its close fit about the neck and chest, gave dignity to almost any +figure, and excellently set off the noble presence of an Achaemenian +prince. The royal robe was either of purple throughout, or sometimes of +purple embroidered with gold. It descended below the ankles; resting on +the foot even when the monarch was seated. A broad girdle confined it at +the waist. Under it was worn a tunic, or shirt, which reached from the +neck to the knee, and had tight-fitting sleeves that covered the arm to +the wrist. The tunic was purple in color, like the _candys_, or robe, +but striped or mixed with white. The lower limbs were encased in +trousers of a crimson hue. On his feet the the king wore shoes like +those of the Medes, long and taper at the toe buttoned in front, +and reaching very high up the instep: their color was deep yellow or +saffron. [PLATE XXXII., Fig.1.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXXII.] + + +Thus far the monarch's costume, though richer in material than the dress +of the Persian nobles, and in some points different in color, was on the +whole remarkably like that of the upper class of his subjects. It +was, however, most important that his dress should possess some +distinguishing feature, and that that feature should be one of +very marked prominency. In an absolute monarchy the king must be +unmistakable, at almost any distance, and almost in any light. +Consequences of the gravest kind may follow from any mistake of the +royal identity; and it is therefore essential to the comfort both of +prince and subject that some very conspicuous badge shall mark and +notify the monarch's presence. Accordingly, it appears that the Persian +ruler was to be known by his headdress, which was peculiar alike +in shape and in color, and was calculated to catch the eye in both +respects. It bore the name _kitaris_ or _hidaris_, and was a tall stiff +cap, slightly swelling as it ascended, flat at top, and terminating in a +ring or circle which projected beyond the lines of the sides. Round +it, probably near the bottom, was worn a fillet or band--the diadem +proper--which was blue, spotted with white. + +As the other Persians wore either simple fillets round their heads, or +soft, rounded, and comparatively low caps, with no band round them, the +king's headdress, which would tower above theirs and attract attention +by its color, could readily be distinguished even in the most crowded +Court. + +It has been asserted that the _kidaris_, or tiara of the Persian kings, +was "commonly adorned with gold and jewelry;" and this may possibly have +been the case, but there is no evidence that it was so. Its material +was probably either cloth or felt, and it was always of a bright color, +though not (apparently) always of the same color. Its distinguishing +features were its height, its stiffness, and the blue and white fillet +which encircled it. + +Among other certain indications of the royal presence may be mentioned +the golden sceptre, and the parasol. The sceptre, which is seen +frequently in the king's hands, was a plain rod, about five feet in +length, ornamented with a ball, or apple, at its upper end, and at its +lower tapering nearly to a point. The king held it in his right hand, +grasping it near, but not at, the thick end, and rested the thin end on +the ground in his front. When he walked, he planted it upright before +him, as a spearman would plant his spear. When he sate, he sloped it +outwards, still, however, touching the ground with its point. + +The parasol, which has always been in the East a mark of dignity, seems +in Persia, as in Assyria, to have been confined, either by law or usage, +to the king. The Persian implement resembled the later Assyrian, except +that it was not tasselled, and had no curtain or flap. It had the same +tent-like shape, the same long thick stem, and the same ornament at the +top. It only differed in being somewhat shallower, and in having the +supports, which kept it open, curved instead of straight. It was held +over the king's head on state occasions by an attendant who walked +immediately behind him. [PLATE XXXII., Fig. 3.] + +The throne of the monarch was an elevated seat, with a high back, but +without arms, cushioned, and ornamented with a fringe, and with moldings +or carvings along the back and legs. The ornamentation consisted chiefly +of balls and broad rings, and contained little that was artistic or +elaborate. The legs, however, terminated in lions' feet, resting upon +half balls, which were ribbed or fluted. The sides of the chair +below the seat appear to have been panelled, like the thrones of the +Assyrians, but were not adorned with any carving. The seat of the throne +was very high from the ground, and without a rest the legs would have +dangled. A footstool consequently was provided, which was plain, like +the throne, but was supported on legs terminating in the feet of bulls. +Thus the lion and the bull, so frequent in the symbolism of the East, +were here again brought together, being represented as the supports of +the throne. + +With respect to the material whereof the throne was composed, there +can be no doubt that it was something splendid and costly. Late writers +describe it as made of pure gold; but, as we hear of its having silver +feet, we may presume that parts at least were of the less precious +metal. Ivory is not said to have been used in its composition. We may, +perhaps, conjecture, that the frame of the throne was wood, and that +this was overlaid with plates of gold or silver, whereby the whole of +the woodwork was concealed from view, and an appearance of solid metal +presented. + +The person of the king was adorned with golden ornaments. He had +earrings of gold in his ears, often inlaid with jewels he wore golden +bracelets upon his wrists; and he had a chain or collar of gold about +his neck. [PLATE XXXIII., Fig. 1.] In his girdle, which was also of +gold, he carried a short sword, the sheath of which was formed of a +single precious stone. The monuments, unfortunately, throw little light +on the character and workmanship of these portions of the royal costume. +We may gather from them, perhaps, that the bracelets had a large jewel +set in their centre, and that the collars were of twisted work, worn +loosely around the neck. The sword seems to have differed little from +that of the ordinary Persians. It had a short straight blade, a mere +crossbar for a guard, and a handle almost devoid of ornament. This +plainness was compensated, if we may trust Curtius, by the magnificence +of the sheath, which was, perhaps, of jasper, agate, or lapis lazuli. +[PLATE XXXIII., Fig. 2.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXXIII.] + + +The officers in most close attendance on the monarch's person were, +in war, his charioteer, his stool-bearer, his bow-bearer, and his +quiver-bearer; in peace, his parasol-bearer, and his fan bearer, who +was also privileged to carry what has been termed "the royal +pocket-handkerchief." + +The royal charioteer is seemingly unarmed. His head is protected merely +by a fillet. He sits in front of his master, and both his hands are +fully occupied with the management of the reins. He has no whip, and +seems to urge his horses forward simply by leaning forward himself, and +slackening or shaking the reins over them. He was, no doubt, in every +case a Persian of the highest rank, such near proximity to the Royal +person being a privilege to which none but the very noblest could +aspire. [PLATE XXXIII., Fig. 2.] + +The office of the stool-bearer, was to assist the king as he mounted his +chariot or dismounted from it. He carried a golden stool, and followed +the royal chariot closely, in order that he might be at hand whenever +his master felt disposed to alight. On a march, the king was wont to +vary the manner of his travelling, exchanging, when the inclination took +him, his chariot for a litter, and riding in that more luxurious vehicle +till he was tired of it, after which he returned to his chariot for +a space. The services of the stool-bearer were thus in constant +requisition, since it was deemed quite impossible that his Majesty could +ascend or descend his somewhat lofty war-car without such aid. + +The rank of the bow-bearer was probably nearly as great as that of the +driver of the chariot. He was privileged to stand immediately behind the +monarch on grand occasions, so carrying in his left hand the weapon from +which he derived his appellation. The quiver-bearer had the next place. +Both wore the Median costume--the _candys_, or flowing robe, the girdle, +the high shoe, and the stiff fluted cap, or, perhaps, occasionally the +simple fillet. Sometimes the two offices would seem to have been held +by the same person, unless we are to attribute this appearance, where +it occurs, to the economy of the artist, who may have wished to save +himself the trouble of drawing two separate figures. [PLATE XXXIII., +Fig. 5.] + +The parasol-bearer was attired as the bow and quiver bearers, +except that he was wholly unarmed, and had the fillet for his proper +head-dress. Though not a military officer, he accompanied the monarch in +his expeditions, since in the midst of war there might be occasions of +state when his presence would be convenient. The officer who bore the +royal fan and handkerchief had generally the same costume; but sometimes +his head was enveloped in a curious kind of cowl or muffler, which +covered the whole of it except the forehead, the eyes, the nose, the +mouth, and the upper portion of the cheeks. [PLATE XXXIV., Fig. 1.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXXIV.] + + +The fan, or fly-chaser, had a long straight handle, ornamented with +a sort of beading, which held a brush of some springy fibrous matter. +[PLATE XXXIII., Fig. 4.] The bearer, whose place was directly behind the +monarch, held his implement, which bent forward gracefully, nearly at +arm's length over his master's head. + +It would seem that occasionally the bearer of the handkerchief +laid aside his fly-chaser, and assumed in lieu of it a small bottle +containing perfumery. [PLATE XXXIV., Fig. 4.] In a sculptured tablet at +Persepolis, given by Ker Porter, an attendant in the Median robe, with a +fillet upon his head, who bears the handkerchief in the usual way in his +left hand, carries in the palm of his right what seems to be a bottle, +not-unlike the scent-bottle of a modern lady. It has always been an +Oriental custom to wash the hands before meals, and the rich commonly +mix some perfumery or other with the water. We may presume that this +was the practice at the Persian Court, and that the Great King therefore +took care to have an officer, who should at all times be ready to +provide his guests, or himself, with the scent which was most rare or +most fashionable. + +The Persians seem to have been connoisseurs in scents. We are told that, +when the royal tiara was not in wear, it was laid up carefully with a +mixture of myrrh and _labyzus_, to give it an agreeable odor. Unguents +were thought to have been a Persian invention, and at any rate were most +abundantly used by the upper classes of the nation. The monarch applied +to his own person an ointment composed of the fat of lions, palm wine, +saffron, and the herb helianthes, which was considered to increase the +beauty of the complexion. He carried with him, even when he went to the +wars, a case of choice unguents; and such a treasure fell into the hands +of Alexander, with the rest of Darius's camp equipage, at Arbela. It may +be suspected that the "royal ointment" of the Parthian kings, composed +of cinnamon, spikenard, myrrh, cassia, gum styrax, saffron, cardamum, +wine, honey, and sixteen other ingredients, was adopted from the +Persians, who were far more likely than the rude Parthians to have +invented so recondite a mixture. Nor were scents used only in this form +by the ingenious people of whom we are speaking. Arabia was required +to furnish annually to the Persian crown a thousand talents' weight of +frankincense; and there is reason to believe that this rare spice was +largely employed about the Court, since the walls of Persepolis have +several representations of censers, which are sometimes carried in +the hands of an attendant, while sometimes they stand on the ground +immediately in front of the Great King.321 [PLATE XXXIV., Fig. 2.] + +The box or vase in which the Persians commonly kept their unguents was +of alabaster. This stone, which abounded in the country, was regarded as +peculiarly suited for holding ointments, not only by the Persians, but +also by the Egyptians, the Greeks, and (probably) the Assyrians. The +Egyptian variety of stone seems to have been especially valued; and +vases appear to have been manufactured in that country for the use of +the Persian monarch, which were transmitted to the Court, and became +part of the toilet furniture of the palace.330 [PLATE XXXIV., Fig. 3.] + +Among the officers of the Court, less closely attached to the person of +the monarch than those above enumerated, may be mentioned the steward +of the household; the groom or master of the horse; the chief eunuch, +or keeper of the women; the king's "eyes" and "ears," persons whose +business it was to keep him informed on all matters of importance; +his scribes or secretaries, who wrote his letters and his edicts; his +messengers, who went his errands; his ushers, who introduced strangers +to him; his "tasters," who tried the various dishes set before him lest +they should be poisoned; his cupbearers who handed him his wine, and +tasted it; his chamberlains, who assisted him to bed; and his musicians, +who amused him with song and harp. Besides these, the Court comprised +various classes of guards, and also doorkeepers, huntsmen, grooms, +cooks, and other domestic servants in great abundance, together with +a vast multitude of visitors and guests, princes, nobles, captives of +rank, foreign refugees, ambassadors, travellers. We are assured that +the king fed daily within the precincts of his palace as many as fifteen +thousand persons, and that the cost of each day's food was four hundred +talents. A thousand beasts were slaughtered for each repast, besides +abundance of feathered game and poultry. The beasts included not only +sheep, goats, and oxen, but also stags, asses, horses, and camels. Among +the feathered delicacies were poultry, geese, and ostriches. + +The monarch himself rarely dined with his guests. For the most part he +was served alone. Sometimes he admitted to his table the queen and two +or three of his children. Sometimes, at a "banquet of wine," a certain +number of privileged boon companions were received, who drank in the +royal presence, not, however, of the same wine, nor on the same terms. + +The monarch reclined on a couch with golden feet, and sipped the rich +wine of Helbon; the guests drank an inferior beverage, seated upon the +floor. At a great banquet, it was usual to divide the guests into two +classes. Those of lower degree were entertained in an outer court or +chamber to which the public had access, while such as were of higher +rank entered the private apartments, and drew near to the king. Here +they were feasted in a chamber opposite to the king's chamber, which had +a curtain drawn across the door, concealing him from their gaze, but not +so thick as to hide them from their entertainer. Occasionally, on some +very special occasion, as, perhaps, on the Royal birthday, or other +great festival, the king presided openly at the banquet, drinking and +discoursing with his lords, and allowing the light of his countenance to +shine freely upon a large number of guests, whom, on these occasions, +he treated as if they were of the same flesh and blood with himself. +Couches of gold and silver were spread for all, and "royal wine in +abundance" was served to them in golden goblets. On these, and, indeed, +on all occasions, the guests, if they liked, carried away any portion +of the food set before them which they did not consume at the time, +conveying it to their homes, where it served to support their families. + +The architecture of the royal palace will be discussed in another +chapter; but a few words may be said in this place with respect to its +furniture and general appearance. The pillared courts and halls of +the vast edifices which the Achaemenian monarchs raised at Susa and +Persepolis would have had a somewhat bare and cold aspect, if it had not +been for their internal fittings. The floors were paved with stones +of various hues, blue, white, black, and red, arranged doubtless into +patterns, and besides were covered in places with carpeting. The spaces +between the pillars were filled with magnificent hangings, white green, +and violet, which were fastened with cords of fine linen (?) and purple +to silver rings and pillars of marble, screening the guests from sight, +while they did not too much exclude the balmy summer breeze. The walls +of the apartments were covered with plates of gold. All the furniture +was rich and costly. The golden throne of the monarch stood under an +embroidered canopy or awning supported by four pillars of gold inlaid +with precious stones. [PLATE XXXV.] Couches resplendent with silver and +gold filled the rooms. The private chamber of the monarch was adorned +with a number of objects, not only rich and splendid, but valuable as +productions of high art. Here, impending over the royal bed, was the +golden vine, the work of Theodore of Samos, where the grapes were +imitated by means of precious stones, each of enormous value. Here, +probably, was the golden plane-tree, a worthy companion to the +vine, though an uncourtly Greek declared it was too small to shade a +grasshopper. Here, finally, was a bowl of solid gold, another work +of the great Samian metallurgist, more precious for its artistic +workmanship than even for its material. + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXXV.] + + +Nothing has hitherto been said of the Royal harem or seraglio, which, +however, as a feature of the Court always important, and ultimately +preponderating over all others, claims a share of our attention. In the +early times, it would appear that the Persian kings were content with +three or four wives, and a moderate number of concubines. Of the wives +there was always one who held the most exalted place, to whom alone +appertained the title of "Queen," and who was regarded as "wife" in a +different sense from the others. Such was Atossa to Darius Hystaspis, +Amestris to Xerxes, Statira to Darius Codomannus. Such, too, were Vashti +and Esther to the prince, whoever he was, whose deeds are recorded in +Scripture under the name of Ahasuerus. The chief wife, or Queen-Consort, +was privileged to wear on her head a royal tiara or crown. She was +the acknowledged head of the female apartments or Gynaeceum, and the +concubines recognized her dignity by actual prostration. On great +occasions, when the king entertained the male part of the Court, she +feasted all the females in her own part of the palace. She had a +large revenue of her own, assigned her, not so much by the will of her +husband, as by an established law or custom. Her dress was splendid, +and she was able to indulge freely that love of ornament of which few +Oriental women are devoid. Though legally subject to her husband as much +as the meanest of his slaves, she could venture on liberties which would +have been fatal to almost any one else, and often, by her influence over +the monarch, possessed a very considerable share of power. + +The status of the other wives was very inferior to this; and it is +difficult to see how such persons were really in a position much +superior to that of the concubines. As daughters of the chief +nobles--for the king could only choose a wife within a narrow +circle--they had, of course, a rank and dignity independent of that +acquired by marriage; but otherwise they must have been almost on a par +with those fair inmates of the Gynaeceum who had no claim even to +the name of consort. Each wife had probably a suite of apartments to +herself, and a certain number of attendants--eunuchs, and tirewomen--at +her disposal; but the inferior wives saw little of the king, being only +summoned each in their turn to share his apartment, and had none of the +privileges which made the position of chief wife so important. + +The concubines seem to have occupied a distinct part of the Gynaeceum, +called "the second house of the women." They were in the special charge +of one of the eunuchs, and were no doubt kept under strict surveillance. +The Empire was continually searched for beautiful damsels to fill the +harem, a constant succession being required, as none shared the royal +couch more than once, unless she attracted the monarch's regard very +particularly. In the later times of the Empire, the number of the +concubines became enormous, amounting (according to one authority) to +three hundred and twenty-nine, (according to another) to three hundred +and sixty. They accompanied the king both in his wars and in his hunting +expeditions. It was a part of their duty to sing and play for the royal +delectation; and this task, according to one author, they had to perform +during the whole of each night. It is a more probable statement that +they entertained the king and queen with music while they dined, one of +them leading, and the others singing and playing in concert. + +The Gynaeceum--in the Susa palace, at any rate--was a building distinct +from the general edifice, separated from the "king's house" by a court. +It was itself composed of at least three sets of apartments--viz. +apartments for the virgins who had not yet gone into the king, +apartments for the concubines, and apartments for the Queen-Consort and +the other wives. These different portions were under the supervision +of different persons. Two eunuchs of distinction had the charge +respectively of the "first" and of the "second house of the women." The +Queen-Consort was, at any rate nominally, paramount in the third, her +authority extending over all its inmates, male and female. + +Sometimes there was in the Gynaeceum a personage even more exalted than +any which have as yet been mentioned. The mother of the reigning prince, +if she outlived his father, held a position at the Court of her son +beyond that even of his Chief Wife. She kept the ensigns of royalty +which she had worn during the reign of her husband; and wielded, as +Queen-Mother, a far weightier and more domineering authority than she +ever exercised as Queen-Consort. The habits of reverence and obedience, +in which the boy had been reared, retained commonly their power over the +man; and the monarch who in public ruled despotically over millions +of men, succumbed, within the walls of the seraglio, to the yoke of a +woman, whose influence he was too weak to throw off. The Queen-Mother +had her seat at the royal table whenever the king dined with his wife; +and, while the wife sat below, she sat above the monarch. She had a +suite of eunuchs distinct from those of her son. Ample revenues were +secured to her, and were completely at her disposal. She practically +exercised--though she could not perhaps legally claim--a power of life +and death. She screened offenders from punishment, procuring for them +the royal pardon, or sheltering them in her own apartments; and she +poisoned, or openly executed, those who provoked her jealousy or +resentment. + +The service of the harem, so far as it could not be fitly performed by +women, was committed to eunuchs. Each legitimate wife--as well as the +Queen-Mother--had a number of these unfortunates among her attendants; +and the king intrusted the house of the concubines, and also that of the +virgins, to the same class of persons. His own attendants seem likewise +to have been chiefly eunuchs. In the later times, the eunuchs acquired +a vast political authority, and appear to have then filled all the chief +offices of state. They were the king's advisers in the palace, and his +generals in the field. They superintended the education of the young +princes, and found it easy to make them their tools. The plots and +conspiracies, the executions and assassinations, which disfigure the +later portion of the Persian annals, maybe traced chiefly to their +intrigues and ambition. But the early Persian annals are free from these +horrors; and it is clear that the power of the eunuchs was, during this +period, kept within narrow bounds. We hear little of them in authentic +history till the reign of Xerxes. It is remarkable that the Persepolitan +sculptures, abounding as they do in representations of Court life, of +the officers and attendants who approached at all closely to the person +of the monarch, contain not a single figure of a eunuch in their entire +range. We may gather from this that there was at any rate a marked +difference between the Assyrian and the early Persian Court in the +position which eunuchs occupied at them respectively: we should not, +however, be justified in going further and questioning altogether the +employment of eunuchs by the Persian monarchs during the early period, +since their absence from the sculptures may be accounted for on other +grounds. + +It is peculiarly noticeable in the Persian sculptures and inscriptions +that they carry to excess that reserve which Orientals have always +maintained with regard to women. The inscriptions are wholly devoid +of all reference to the softer sex, and the sculptures give us no +representation of a female. In Persia, at the present day, it is +regarded as a gross indecorum to ask a man after his wife; and anciently +it would seem that the whole sex fell under a law of taboo, which +required that, whatever the real power and influence of women, all +public mention of them, as well as all representations of the female +form, should be avoided. If this were so, it must of course still more +have been the rule that the women--or, at any rate, those of the upper +classes--should not be publicly seen. Hence the indignant refusal of +Vashti to obey the command of King Aha-suerus to show herself to his +Court. Hence, too, the law which made it a capital offence to address or +touch one of the royal concubines or even to pass their litters upon +the road. The litters of women were always curtained; and when the Queen +Statira rode in hers with the curtains drawn, it was a novelty which +attracted general attention, as a relaxation of the ordinary etiquette, +though only females were allowed to come near her. Married women +might not even see their nearest male relatives, as their fathers and +brothers; the unmarried had, it is probable, a little more liberty. + +As the employment of eunuchs at the Persian Court was mainly in the +harem, and in offices connected therewith, it is no wonder that +they shared, to some extent, in the law of taboo, which forbade the +representation of women. Their proper place was in the female courts and +apartments, or in close attendance upon the litters, when members of +the seraglio travelled, or took the air--not in the throne-room, or the +antechambers, or the outer courts of the palace, which alone furnished +the scenes regarded as suitable for representation. + +Of right, the position at the Persian Court immediately below that of +the king belonged to the members of certain privileged families. Besides +the royal family itself--or clan of the Achaemenidae--there were +six great houses which had a rank superior to that of all the other +grandees. According to Herodotus these houses derived their special +dignity from the accident that their heads had been fellow-conspirators +with Darius Hystaspis; but there is reason to suspect that the rank +of the families was precedent to the conspiracy in question, certain +families conspiring because they were great, and not becoming great +because they conspired. At any rate, from the time of Darius I., +there seem to have been seven great families, including that of the +Achaemenidae, whose chiefs had the privilege of free communication +with the monarch, and from which he was legally bound to choose his +legitimate wives. The chiefs appear to have been known as "the Seven +Princes," or "the Seven Counsellors," of the king. They sat next to him +at public festivals; they were privileged to tender him their advice, +whenever they pleased; they recommended important measures of state, and +were, in part, responsible for them; they could demand admission to the +monarch's presence at any time, unless he were in the female apartments; +they had precedence on all great occasions of ceremony, and enjoyed +a rank altogether independent of office. Sometimes--perhaps most +commonly--they held office; but they rather conferred a lustre on the +position which they consented to fill, than derived any additional +splendor from it. + +It does not appear that the chiefs of the seven great families had any +peculiar insignia. Officers of the Court, on the contrary, seem to have +always carried, as badges marking their position, either wands about +three feet in length, or an ornament resembling a lotos blossom, which +is sometimes seen in the hands of the monarch himself. Such officers +wore, at their pleasure, either the long Median robe and the fluted cap, +or the close-fitting Persian tunic and trousers, with the loose felt +[Greek name]. All had girdles, in which sometimes a dagger was placed; +and all had collars of gold about their necks, and earrings of gold in +their ears. The Median robes were of various colors--scarlet, purple, +crimson, dark gray, etc. Over the Persian tunic a sleeved cloak, or +great coat, reaching to the ankles, was sometimes worn; this garment was +fastened by strings in front, and descended loosely from the shoulders, +no use being commonly made of the sleeves, which hung empty at the +wearer's side. [PLATE XXXVI., Fig. 1.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXXVI.] + + +An elaborate Court ceremonial was the natural accompaniment of the ideas +with respect to royalty embodied in the Persian system. Excepting +the "Seven Princes," no one could approach the royal person unless +introduced by a Court usher, Prostration--the attitude of worship--was +required of all as they entered the presence. The hands of the persons +introduced had to be hidden in their sleeves so long as their audience +lasted. In crossing the Palace Courts it was necessary to abstain +carefully from touching the carpet which was laid for the king to walk +on. Coming into the king's presence unsummoned was a capital crime, +punished by the attendants with instant death, unless the monarch +himself, as a sign that he pardoned the intrusion, held out towards the +culprit the golden sceptre which he bore in his hands. It was also a +capital offence to sit down, even unknowingly, upon the royal throne; +and it was a grave misdemeanor to wear one of the king's cast-off +dresses. Etiquette was almost as severe on the monarch himself as on +his subjects. He was required to live chiefly in seclusion; to eat his +meals, for the most part, alone; never to go on foot beyond the palace +walls; never to revoke an order once given, however much he might regret +it; never to draw back from a promise, whatever ill results he might +anticipate from its performance. To maintain the quasi-divine character +which attached to him it was necessary that he should seem infallible, +immutable, and wholly free from the weakness of repentance. + +As some compensation for the restrictions laid upon him, the Persian +king had the sole enjoyment of certain luxuries. The wheat of Assos was +sent to the Court to furnish him with bread, and the vines of Helbon +were cultivated for the special purpose of supplying him with wine. +Water was conveyed to Susa for his use from distant streams regarded as +specially sweet and pure; and in his expeditions he was accompanied, by +a train of wagons, which were laden with silver flasks, filled from the +clear stream of the Choaspes. The oasis of Ammon contributed the salt +with which he seasoned his food. All the delicacies that the Empire +anywhere produced were accumulated on his board, for the supply of which +each province was proud to send its best and choicest products. + +The chief amusements in which the Great King indulged were hunting and +playing at dice. Darius Hystaspis, who followed the chase with such +ardor as on one occasion to dislocate his ankle in the pursuit of a wild +beast, had himself represented on his signet-cylinder as engaged in a +lion-hunt. From this representation, we learn that the Persian monarchs, +like the Assyrian, pursued the king of beasts in their chariots, and +generally despatched him by means of arrows. Seated in a light car, +and attended by a single unarmed charioteer, they invaded the haunts of +these fiercest of brutes, rousing them from their lairs--probably with +Indian hounds, and chasing them at full speed if they fled, or, if they +faced the danger, attacking them with arrows or with the javelin. [PLATE +XXXVI., Fig. 2.] Occasionally the monarch might indulge in this sport +alone; but generally he was (it seems) accompanied by some of his +courtiers, who shared the pleasures of the chase with him on the +condition that they never ventured to let fly their weapons before he +had discharged his. If they disregarded this rule they were liable +to capital punishment, and might esteem themselves fortunate if they +escaped with exile. + +Besides lions, the Persian monarch chased, it is probable, stages, +antelopes, wild asses, wild boars, bears, wild sheep, and leopards. +[PLATE XXXVI., Fig. 3.] These animals all abounded in the neighborhood +of the royal palaces, and they are enumerated by Xenophon among the +beasts hunted by Cyrus. The mode of chasing the wild ass was for the +horsemen to scatter themselves over the plain, and to pursue the +animal in turns, one taking up the chase when the horse of another was +exhausted. The speed of the creature is so great that no horse with +a rider on his back can long keep pace with him; and thus relays were +necessary to tire him out, and enable the hunters to bring him within +the range of their weapons. + +When game was scarce in the open country, or when the kings were +too indolent to seek it in its native haunts, they indulged their +inclination for sport by chasing the animals which they kept in their +own "paradises." These were walled enclosures of a large size, well +wooded, and watered with sparkling streams, in which were bred or kept +wild beasts of various kinds, chiefly of the more harmless sorts, as +stags, antelopes, and wild sheep. These the kings pursued and shot with +arrows, or brought down with the javelin; but the sport was regarded as +tame, and not to be compared with hunting in the open field. + +Within the palace the Persian monarchs are said to have amused +themselves with dice. They played, it is probable, chiefly with their +near relatives, as their wives, or the Queen-Mother. The stakes, as was +to be expected, ran high, as much as a thousand darics (nearly L 1100.) +being sometimes set on a single throw. Occasionally they played for the +persons of their slaves, eunuchs, and others, who, when lost, became the +absolute property of the winner. + +Another favorite royal amusement was carving or planing wood. According +to AElian, the Persian king, when he took a journey, always employed +himself, as he sat in his carriage, in this way; and Ctesias speaks of +the occupation as pursued also within the walls of the palace. Manual +work of this kind has often been the refuge of those rulers, who, sated +with pleasure and devoid of literary tastes, have found time hang heavy +upon their hands. + +In literature a Persian king seems rarely to have taken any pleasure at +all. Occasionally, to beguile the weary hours, a monarch may have had +the "Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Persia and Media" read +before him; but the kings themselves never opened a book, or studied any +branch of science or learning. The letters, edicts, and probably even +the inscriptions, of the monarch were the composition of the Court +scribes, who took their orders from the king or his ministers, and +clothed them in their own language. They did not even call upon their +master to sign his name to a parchment; his seal, on which his name was +engraved, sufficiently authenticated all proclamations and edicts. + +Among the more serious occupations of the monarch were the holding of +councils, the reviewing of troops, the hearing of complaints, and the +granting or refusing of redress, the assignment of rewards, perhaps, in +some cases, the trying of causes, and, above all, the general direction +of the civil administration and government of the Empire. An energetic +king probably took care to hear all the reports which were sent up to +the Court by the various officials employed in the actual government of +the numerous provinces, as well as those sent in by the persons who from +time to time inspected, on the part of the Crown, the condition of this +or that satrapy. Having heard and considered these reports, and perhaps +taken advice upon them, such a monarch would give clear directions as +to the answers to be sent, which would be embodied in despatches by his +secretaries, and then read over to him, before he affixed his seal to +them. The concerns of an empire so vast as that of Persia would have +given ample employment for the greater part of the day to any monarch +who was determined not only to reign, but to govern. Among the Persian +sovereigns there seems to have been a few who had sufficient energy and +self-denial to devote themselves habitually to the serious duties of +their office. Generally, however, the cares of government were devolved +upon some favorite adviser, a relative, or a eunuch, who was entrusted +by the monarch with the entire conduct of affairs, in order that he +might give himself up to sensual pleasures, to the sports of the field, +or to light and frivolous amusements. + +The passion for building, which we have found so strong in Assyria and +Babylonia, possessed, but in a minor degree, a certain number of the +Persian monarchs. The simplicity of their worship giving little scope +for architectural grandeur in the buildings devoted to religion, they +concentrated their main efforts upon the construction of palaces and +tombs. The architectural character of these works will be considered in +a later chapter. It is sufficient to note here that a good deal of the +time and attention of many monarchs were directed to these objects; and +particularly it is interesting to remark, that, notwithstanding their +worldly greatness, and the flattering voices of their subjects, which +were continually bidding them "live for ever," the Persian kings were +quite aware of the frail tenure by which man holds his life, and, while +they were still in vigorous health, constructed their own tombs. + +It was an important principle of the Magian religion that the body +should not after death be allowed to mingle with, and so pollute, any +one of the four elements. Either from a regard for this superstition, or +from the mere instinctive desire to preserve the lifeless clay as long +as possible, the Persians entombed their kings in the following way. +The body was placed in a golden coffin, which was covered with a +close-fitting lid, and deposited either in a massive building erected to +serve at once as a tomb and a monument, or in a chamber cut out of some +great mass of solid rock, at a considerable elevation above its base. In +either case, the entrance into the tomb was carefully closed, after the +body had been deposited in it, by a block or blocks of stone. [PLATE +XXXVII., Fig. 1.] Inside the tomb were placed, together with the coffin, +a number of objects, designed apparently for the king's use in the other +world, as rich cloaks and tunics, trousers, purple robes, collars of +gold, earrings of gold, set with gems, daggers, carpets, goblets, +and hangings. Generally the tomb was ornamented with sculptures, and +sometimes, though rarely, it had an inscription (or inscriptions) upon +it, containing the name and titles of the monarch whose remains reposed +within. + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXXVII.] + + +If the tomb were a building, and not rock-hewn, the ground in the +vicinity was formed into a park or garden, which was planted with all +manner of trees. Within the park, at some little distance from the +tomb, was a house, which formed the residence of a body of priests, who +watched over the safety of the sepulchre. + +The Greeks seem to have believed that divine honors were sometimes paid +to a monarch after his decease; but the spirit of the Persian religion +was so entirely opposed to any such observance that it is most probable +the Greeks were mistaken. Observing that sacrifices were offered once a +month in the vicinity of some of the royal tombs, they assumed that +the object of the cult was the monarch himself, whereas it was no doubt +really addressed either to Ormazd or to Mithras. The Persians cannot +rightly be accused of the worship of dead men, a superstition from which +both the Zoroastrian and the Magian systems were entirely free. + +From this account of the Persian monarchs and their Court, we may +now turn to a subject which moderns regard as one of much greater +interest--the general condition, manners, and customs of the Persian +people. Our information on these points is unfortunately far less full +than on the subject which we have been recently discussing, but still it +is perhaps sufficient to give us a tolerably complete notion of the real +character of the nation. + +The Persians, according to Herodotus, were divided into ten tribes, of +which four were nomadic and three agricultural. The nomadic were the +Dai, the Mardi, the Dropici, and the Sagartii; the agricultural were +the Panthilaei, the Derusisei, and the Germanii, or Carmanians. What the +occupation of the other three tribes was Herodotus does not state; +but, as one of them--the Pasargadae--was evidently the ruling class, +consisting, therefore (it is probable), of land owners, who did not +themselves till the soil, we may perhaps assume that all three occupied +this position, standing in Persia somewhat--as the three tribes of +Dorians stood to the other Greeks in the Peloponnese. If this were the +case, the population would have been really divided broadly into the two +classes of settled and nomade, whereof the former class was subdivided +into those who were the lords of the soil, and those who cultivated it, +either as farmers or as laborers, under them. + +The ordinary dress of the poorer class, whether agricultural or nomade, +was probably the tunic and trousers of leather which have been already +mentioned as the true national costume of the people. The costume was +completed by a loose felt cap upon the head, a strap or belt round the +waist, and a pair of high shoes upon the feet, tied in front with a +string. [PLATE XXXVIII., Fig. 2.] In later times a linen or muslin rag +replaced the felt cap, and the tunic was lengthened so as to reach half +way between the knee and the ankle. + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXXVIII.] + + +The richer classes seem generally to have adopted the Median costume +which was so prevalent at the Court. They wore long purple or flowered +robes with loose hanging sleeves, flowered tunics reaching to the knee, +also sleeved, embroidered trousers, tiaras, and shoes of a more elegant +shape than the ordinary Persian. Nor was this the whole of their dress. +Under their trousers they wore drawers, under their tunics shirts, on +their hands gloves, and under their shoes socks or stockings--luxuries +these, one and all, little known in the ancient world. The Persians +were also, like most Orientals, extremely fond of ornaments. Men of rank +carried, almost as a matter of course, massive chains or collars of gold +about their necks, and bracelets of gold upon their arms. The sheaths +and handles of their swords and daggers were generally of gold, +sometimes, perhaps, studded with gems. Many of them wore earrings. Great +expense was lavished on the trappings of the horses which they rode or +drove; the bridle, or at least the bit, was often of solid gold, and the +rest of the equipment was costly. Among the gems which were especially +affected, the pearl held the first place. Besides being set in the +ordinary way, it was bored and strung, in order that it might be used +for necklaces, bracelets, and ankles. Even children had sometimes golden +ornaments, which were preferred when the gold was of a reddish color. + +Very costly and rich too was the furniture of the better class of +houses. The tables were plated or inlaid with silver and gold. Splendid +couches, spread with gorgeous coverlets, invited the inmates to repose +at their ease; and, the better to insure their comfort, the legs of the +couches were made to rest upon carpets, which were sufficiently elastic +to act as a sort of spring, rendering the couches softer and more +luxurious than they would otherwise have been. Gold and silver plate, +especially in the shape of drinking-cups, was largely displayed in all +the wealthy mansions, each household priding itself on the show which it +could make of the precious metals. + +In respect of eating and drinking, the Persians, even better sort, were +in the earlier times noted for their temperance and sobriety. Their +ordinary food was wheaten bread, barley-cakes, and meat simply roasted +or boiled, which they seasoned with salt and with bruised cress-seed, a +substitute for mustard. The sole drink in which they indulged was water. +Moreover, it was their habit to take one meal only each day. The poorer +kind of people were contented with even a simpler diet, supporting +themselves, to a great extent, on the natural products of the soil, as +dates, figs, wild pears, acorns, and the fruit of the terebinth-tree. +But these abstemious habits were soon laid aside, and replaced by luxury +and self-indulgence, when the success of their arms had put it in their +power to have the full and free gratification of all their desires and +propensities. Then, although the custom of having but one meal in the +day was kept up, the character of the custom was entirely altered by +beginning the meal early and making it last till night. Not many sorts +of meat were placed on the board, unless the occasion was a grand one; +but course after course of the lighter kinds of food flowed on in +an almost endless succession, intervals of some length being allowed +between the courses to enable the guests to recover their appetites. +Instead of water, wine became the usual beverage; each man prided +himself on the quantity he could drink; and the natural result followed +that most banquets terminated in general intoxication. Drunkenness even +came to be a sort of institution. Once a year, at the feast of Mithras, +the king of Persia, according to Duris, was bound to be drunk. A general +practice arose of deliberating on all important affairs under the +influence of wine, so that, in every household, when a family crisis +impended, intoxication was a duty. + +The Persians ate, not only the meats which we are in the habit of +consuming, but also the flesh of goats, horses, asses, and camels. The +hump of the last-named animal is considered, even at the present day, a +delicacy in many parts of the East; but in ancient Persia it would seem +that the entire animal was regarded as fairly palatable. The horse +and ass, which no one would touch in modern Persia, were thought, +apparently, quite as good eating as the ox; and goats, which were far +commoner than sheep, appeared, it is probable, oftener at table. The +dietery of a grand house was further varied by the admission into it +of poultry and game--the game including wild boars, stags, antelopes, +bustards, and probably partridges; the poultry consisting of geese +and chickens. Oysters and other fish were used largely as food by the +inhabitants of the coast-region. + +Grades of society were strongly marked among the Persians; and the +etiquette of the Court travelled down to the lowest ranks of the people. +Well-known rules determined how each man was to salute his equal, +his inferior, or his superior; and the observance of these rules was +universal. Inferiors on meeting a decided superior prostrated themselves +on the ground; equals kissed each other on the lips; persons nearly but +not quite equals kissed each other's cheeks. The usual Oriental rules +prevailed as to the intercourse of the sexes. Wives lived in strict +seclusion within the walls of the Gynaeceum, or went abroad in litters, +seeing no males except their sons, their husbands, and their husbands' +eunuchs. Concubines had somewhat more freedom, appearing sometimes at +banquets, when they danced, sang, and played to amuse the guests of +their master. + +The Persian was allowed to marry several wives, and might maintain in +addition as many concubines as he thought proper. Most of the richer +class had a multitude of each, since every Persian prided himself on the +number of his sons, and it is even said that an annual prize was given +by the monarch to the Persian who could show most sons living. The +concubines were not unfrequently Greeks, if we may judge by the case of +the younger Cyrus, who took two Greek concubines with him when he made +his expedition against his brother. It would seem that wives did +not ordinarily accompany their husbands, when these went on military +expeditions, but that concubines were taken to the wars by most Persians +of consideration. Every such person had a litter at her disposal, and a +number of female attendants, whose business it was to wait upon her and +execute her orders. + +All the best authorities are agreed that great pains were taken by +the Persians--or, at any rate, by those of the leading clans--in the +education of their sons. During the first five years of his life the boy +remained wholly with the women, and was scarcely, if at all, seen by his +father. After that time his training commenced. He was expected to rise +before dawn, and to appear at a certain spot, where he was exercised +with other boys of his age in running, slinging stones, shooting with +the bow, and throwing the javelin. At seven he was taught to ride, and +soon afterwards he was allowed to begin to hunt. The riding included, +not only the ordinary management of the horse, but the power of jumping +on and off his back when he was at speed, and of shooting with the bow +and throwing the javelin with unerring aim, while the horse was still at +full gallop. The hunting was conducted by state-officers, who aimed at +forming by its means in the youths committed to their charge all the +qualities needed in war. The boys were made to bear extremes of heat +and cold, to perform long marches, to cross rivers without wetting their +weapons, to sleep in the open air at night, to be content with a single +meal in two days, and to support themselves occasionally on the wild +products of the country, acorns, wild pears, and the fruit of the +terebinth-tree. On days when there was no hunting they passed their +mornings in athletic exercises, and contests with the bow or the +javelin, after which they dined simply on the plain food mentioned above +as that of the men in the early times, and then employed themselves +during the afternoon in occupations regarded as not illiberal--for +instance, in the pursuits of agriculture, planting, digging for roots, +and the like, or in the construction of arms and hunting implements, +such as nets and springes. Hardy and temperate habits being secured +by this training, the point of morals on which their preceptors mainly +insisted was the rigid observance of truth. Of intellectual education +they had but little. It seems to have been no part of the regular +training of a Persian youth that he should learn to read. He was given +religious notions and a certain amount of moral knowledge by means of +legendary poems, in which the deeds of gods and heroes were set before +him by his teachers, who recited or sung them in his presence, and +afterwards required him to repeat what he had heard, or, at any rate, +to give some account of it. This education continued for fifteen years, +commencing when the boy was five, and terminating when he reached the +age of twenty. + +The effect of this training was to render the Persian an excellent +soldier and a most accomplished horseman. Accustomed from early boyhood +to pass the greater part of every day in the saddle, he never felt so +much at home as when mounted upon a prancing steed. On horseback he +pursued the stag, the boar, the antelope, even occasionally the bear +or the lion, and shot his arrows, or slung his stones, or hurled his +javelin at them with deadly aim, never pausing for a moment in his +career. [PLATE XXXVII., Fig. 2.] Only when the brute turned on his +pursuers, and stood at bay, or charged them in its furious despair, they +would sometimes descend from their coursers, and receive the attack, +or deal the _coup de grace_ on foot, using for the purpose a short +but strong hunting-spear. [PLATE XXXVII., Fig. 3.] The chase was the +principal delight of the upper class of Persians, so long as the ancient +manners were kept up, and continued an occupation in which the bolder +spirits loved to indulge long after decline had set in, and the advance +of luxury had changed, to a great extent, the character of the nation. + +At fifteen years of age the Persian was considered to have attained to +manhood, and was enrolled in the ranks of the army, continuing liable to +military service from that time till he reached the age of fifty. Those +of the highest rank became the body-guard of the king, and these formed +the garrison of the capital. They were a force of not less than fourteen +or fifteen thousand men. Others, though liable to military service, did +not adopt arms as their profession, but attached themselves to the Court +and looked to civil employment, as satraps, secretaries, attendants, +ushers, judges, inspectors, messengers. A portion, no doubt, remained +in the country districts, and there followed those agricultural pursuits +which the Zoroastrian religion regarded as in the highest degree +honorable. But the bulk of the nation must, from the time of the great +conquests, have passed their lives mainly, like the Roman legionaries +under the Empire, in garrison duty in the provinces. The entire +population of Persia Proper can scarcely have exceeded two millions. Not +more than one fourth of this number would be males between the ages +of fifteen and fifty. This body of 500,000 men, besides supplying the +official class at the Court and throughout the provinces, and also +furnishing to Persia Proper those who did the work of its cultivation, +had to supply to the whole Empire those large and numerous garrisons on +whose presence depended the maintenance of the Persian dominion in every +province that had been conquered. According to Herodotus, the single +country of Egypt contained, in his day, a standing army of 120,000 +Persians; and, although this was no doubt an exceptional case, Egypt +being more prone to revolt than any other satrapy, yet there is abundant +evidence that elsewhere, in almost every part of the Empire, large +bodies of troops were regularly maintained; troops which are always +characterized as "Persians." We may suspect that under the name were +included the kindred nation of the Medes, and perhaps some other Arian +races, as the Hyrcanians, and the Bactrians, for it is difficult to +conceive that such a country as Persia Proper could alone have kept up +the military force which the Empire required for its preservation; +but to whatever extent the standing army was supplemented from these +sources, Persia must still have furnished the bulk of it; and the +demands of this service must have absorbed, at the very least, one third +if not one half of the adult male population. + +For trade and commerce the Persians were wont to express extreme +contempt. The richer classes made it their boast that they neither +bought nor sold, being supplied (we must suppose) from their estates, +and by their slaves and dependents, with all that they needed for the +common purposes of life. Persians of the middle rank would condescend to +buy, but considered it beneath them to sell; while only the very lowest +and poorest were actual artisans and traders. Shops were banished +from the more public parts of the towns; and thus such commercial +transactions as took place were veiled in what was regarded as a decent +obscurity. The reason assigned for this low estimation of trade was that +shopping and bargaining involved the necessity of falsehood. + +According to Quintus Curtius, the Persian ladies had the same objection +to soil their hands with work that the men had to dirty theirs with +commerce. The labors of the loom, which no Grecian princess regarded +as unbecoming her rank, were despised by all Persian women except the +lowest; and we may conclude that the same idle and frivolous gossip +which resounds all day in the harems of modern Iran formed the main +occupation of the Persian ladies in the time of the Empire. + +With the general advance of luxury under Xerxes and his successors, of +which something has been already said, there were introduced into the +Empire a number of customs of an effeminate and demoralizing character. +From the earliest times the Persians seem to have been very careful of +their beards and hair, arranging the latter in a vast number of short +crisp curls, and partly curling the former, partly training it to hang +straight from the chin. After a while, not content with this degree +of care for their personal appearance, they proceeded to improve it by +wearing false hair in addition to the locks which nature had given them, +by the use of cosmetics to increase the delicacy of their complexions, +and by the application of a coloring matter to the upper and lower +eyelids, for the purpose of giving to the eye an appearance of greater +size and beauty. They employed a special class of servants to perform +these operations of the toilet, whom the Greeks called "adorners". Their +furniture increased, not merely in splendor, but in softness; their +floors were covered with carpets, their beds with numerous and delicate +coverlets; they could not sit upon the ground unless a cloth was first +spread upon it; they would not mount a horse until he was so caparisoned +that the seat on his back was softer even than their couches. At the +same time they largely augmented the number and variety of their viands +and of their sauces, always seeking after novel delicacies, and offering +rewards to the inventors of "new pleasures." A useless multitude of lazy +menials was maintained in all rich households, each servant confining +himself rigidly to a single duty, and porters, bread-makers, cooks, +cup-bearers, water-bearers, waiters at table, chamberlains, "awakers," +"adorners," all distinct from one another, crowded each noble mansion, +helping forward the general demoralization. It was probably at this +comparatively late period that certain foreign customs of a sadly +lowering character were adopted by this plastic and impressible people, +who learnt the vice of paederasty from the Greeks, and adopted from the +Assyrians the worship of Beltis, with its accompaniment of religious +prostitution. + +On the whole the Persians may seem to have enjoyed an existence free +from care, and only too prosperous to result in the formation of a high +and noble character. They were the foremost Asiatic people of their +time, and were fully conscious of their pre-eminency. A small ruling +class in a vast Empire, they enjoyed almost a monopoly of office, and +were able gradually to draw to themselves much of the wealth of the +provinces. Allowed the use of arms, and accustomed to lord it over the +provincials, they themselves maintained their self-respect, and showed, +even towards the close of their Empire, a spirit and an energy seldom +exhibited by any but a free people. But there was nevertheless a dark +side to the picture--a lurking danger which must have thrown a shadow +over the lives of all the nobler and richer of the nation, unless +they were utterly thoughtless. The irresponsible authority and cruel +dispositions of the kings, joined to the recklessness with which they +delegated the power of life and death to their favorites, made it +impossible for any person of eminence in the whole Empire to feel sure +that he might not any day be seized and accused of a crime, or even +without the form of an accusation be taken and put to death, after +suffering the most excruciating tortures. To produce this result, it was +enough to have failed through any cause whatever in the performance of +a set task, or to have offended, even by doing him too great a service, +the monarch or one of his favorites. Nay, it was enough to have +provoked, through a relation or a connection, the anger or jealousy of +one in favor at Court; for the caprice of an Oriental would sometimes +pass over the real culprit and exact vengeance from one quite +guiltless--even, it may be, unconscious--of the offence given. +Theoretically, the Persian was never to be put to death for a single +crime; or at least he was not to suffer until the king had formally +considered the whole tenor of his life, and struck a balance between his +good and his evil deeds to see which outweighed the other. Practically, +the monarch slew with his own hand any one whom he chose, or, if +he preferred it, ordered him to instant execution, without trial +or inquiry. His wife and his mother indulged themselves in the same +pleasing liberty of slaughter, sometimes obtaining his tacit consent to +their proceedings, sometimes without consulting him. It may be said +that the sufferers could at no time be very many in number, and that +therefore no very wide-spread alarm can have been commonly felt; but +the horrible nature of many of the punishments, and the impossibility +of conjecturing on whom they might next fall, must be set against their +infrequency; and it must be remembered that an awful horror, from which +no precautions can save a man, though it happen to few, is more terrible +than a score of minor perils, against which it is possible to guard. +Noble Persians were liable to be beheaded, to be stoned to death, to be +suffocated with ashes, to have their tongues torn out by the roots, to +be buried alive, to be shot in mere wantonness, to be flayed and then +crucified, to be buried all but the head, and to perish by the lingering +agony of "the boat." If they escaped these modes of execution, they +might be secretly poisoned, or they might be exiled, or transported for +life. Their wives and daughters might be seized and horribly mutilated, +or buried alive, or cut into a number of fragments. With these perils +constantly impending over their heads, the happiness of the nobles can +scarcely have been more real than that of Damocles upon the throne of +Dionysius. + +In conclusion, we may notice as a blot upon the Persian character and +system, the cruelty and barbarity which was exhibited, not only in these +abnormal acts of tyranny and violence, but also in the regular and legal +punishments which were assigned to crimes and offences. The criminal +code, which--rightly enough--made death the penalty of murder, rape, +treason, and rebellion, instead of stopping at this point, proceeded +to visit with a like severity even such offences as deciding a cause +wrongfully on account of a bribe, intruding without permission on the +king's privacy, approaching near to one of his concubines, seating +oneself, even accidentally, on the throne, and the like. The modes of +execution were also, for the most part, unnecessarily cruel. Poisoners +were punished by having their heads placed upon a broad stone, and then +having their faces crushed, and their brains beaten out by repeated +blows with another stone. Ravishers and rebels were put to death by +crucifixion. The horrible punishment of "the boat" seems to have been no +individual tyrant's cruel conception, but a recognized and legal form of +execution. The same may be said also of burying alive. Again the Persian +secondary punishments were for the most part exceedingly barbarous. +Xenophon tells us, as a proof of the good government maintained by the +younger Cyrus, in his satrapy, that under his sway it was common to see +along all the most frequented roads numbers of persons who had had +their hands or feet cut off, or their eyes put out, as a punishment +for thieving and rascality. And other writers relate that similar +mutilations were inflicted on rebels, and even on prisoners of war. +It would seem, indeed, that mutilation and scourging were the ordinary +forms of secondary punishment used by the Persians, who employed +imprisonment solely for the safe custody of an accused person between +his arrest and his execution, while they had recourse to transportation +and exile only in the case of political offenders. + + + + +CHAPTER IV. LANGUAGE AND WRITING. + + +It has been intimated in the account of the Median Empire which was +given in a former-volume that the language of the Persians, which was +identical, or almost identical, with that of the Medes, belonged to the +form of speech known to moderns as Indo-European. The characteristics of +that form of speech are a certain number of common, or at least +widely spread, roots, a peculiar mode of inflecting, together with +a resemblance in the inflections, and a similarity of syntax or +construction. Of the old Persian language the known roots are, almost +without exception, kindred forms to roots already familiar to the +philologist through the Sanscrit, or the Zend, or both; while many are +of that more general type of which we have spoken--forms common to all, +or most of the varieties of the Indo-European stock. To instance in a +few very frequently recurring words--"father" is in old Persian (as +in Sanscrit) _pitar_, which differs only in the vocalization from the +Zendic _patar_, the Greek [ ], and the Latin _pater_, and of which +cognate forms are the Gothic _fadar_, the German voter, the English +_father_, and the Erse _athair_. + + [See the html version for the following pages of this + chapter which is a section with hundreds of Greek + words.] + + +[Illustration: PAGE 365] + +[Illustration: PAGE 366] + +[Illustration: PAGE 367] + +[Illustration: PAGE 368] + +[Illustration: PAGE 369] + +[Illustration: PAGE 370] + +[Illustration: PAGE 371] + +[Illustration: PAGE 372] + +[Illustration: PAGE 373] + +[Illustration: PAGE 374] + +[Illustration: PAGE 375] + +[Illustration: PAGE 376] + +[Illustration: PAGE 377] + +[Illustration: PAGE 378] + + +The ordinary Persian writing was identical with that which has been +described in the second volume of this work as Median. A cuneiform +alphabet, consisting of some thirty-six or thirty-seven forms, +expressive of twenty-three distinct sounds, sufficed for the wants of +the people, whose language was simple and devoid of phonetic luxuriance. +Writing was from left to right, as with the Arian nations generally. +Words were separated from one another by an oblique wedge; and were +divided at any point at which the writer happened to reach the end of +a line. Enclitics were joined without any break to the words which they +accompanied. + +The Persian writing which has come down to us is almost entirely upon +stone. It comprises various rock tablets, a number of inscriptions upon +buildings, and a few short legends upon vases and cylinders. It is in +every case incised or cut into the material. The letters are of various +sizes, some (as those at Elwend) reaching a length of about two inches, +others (those, for instance, on the vases) not exceeding the sixth of +an inch. The inscriptions cover a space of at least a hundred and eighty +years, commencing with Cyrus, and terminating with Artaxerxes Ochus, +the successor of Mnemon. The style of the writing is, on the whole, +remarkably uniform, the latter inscriptions containing only two +characters unknown to the earlier times. Orthography, however, and +grammar are in these later inscriptions greatly changed, the character +of the changes being indicative of corruption and decline, unless, +indeed, we are to ascribe them to mere ignorance on the part of the +engravers. + +There can be little doubt that, besides the cuneiform character, which +was only suited for inscriptions, the Persians employed a cursive +writing for common literary purposes. Ctesias informs us that the royal +archives were written on parchment; and there is abundant evidence that +writing was an art perfectly familiar to the educated Persian. It might +have been supposed that the Pehlevi, as the lineal descendant of the +Old Persian language, would have furnished valuable assistance towards +solving the question of what character the Persians employed commonly; +but the alphabetic type of the Pehlevi inscriptions is evidently +Semitic; and it would thus seem that the old national modes of writing +had been completely lost before the establishment by Ardeshir, son of +Babek, of the new Persian Empire. + + + + +CHAPTER V. ARCHITECTURE AND OTHER ARTS. + + +If in the old world the fame of the Persians, as builders and artists, +fell on the whole below that of the Assyrians and Babylonians--their +instructors in art, no less than in letters and science--it was not so +much that they had not produced works worthy of comparison with those +which adorned Babylon and Nineveh, as that, boasting less antiquity and +less originality than those primitive races, they did not strike in the +same way the imagination of the lively Greeks, who moreover could not +but feel a certain jealousy of artistic successes, which had rewarded +the efforts of a living and rival people. It happened, moreover, that +the Persian masterpieces were less accessible to the Greeks than the +Babylonian, and hence there was actually less knowledge of their real +character in the time when Greek literature was at its best. Herodotus +and Xenophon, who impressed on their countrymen true ideas of the +grandeur and magnificence of the Mesopotamian structures, never +penetrated to Persia Proper, and perhaps never beheld a real Persian +building. Ctesias, it is true, as a resident at the Achaemenian Court +for seventeen years, must certainly have seen Susa and Ecbatana, if not +even Persepolis, and he therefore must have been well acquainted with +the character of Persian palaces; but, so far as appears from the +fragments of his work which have come down to us, he said but little +on the subject of these edifices. It was not until Alexander led his +cohorts across the chain of Zagros to the high plateau beyond, that a +proper estimate of the great Persian buildings could be made; and then +the most magnificent of them all was scarcely seen before it was laid +in ruins. The barbarous act of the great Macedonian conqueror, in +committing the palace of Persepolis to the flames, tended to prevent +a full recognition of the real greatness of Persian art even after the +Greeks had occupied the country; but we find from this time a certain +amount of acknowledgment of its merits--a certain number of passages, +which, like that which forms the heading to this chapter, admit alike +its grandeur and its magnificence. + +If, however, the ancients did less than justice to the efforts of the +Persians in architecture, sculpture, and the kindred arts, moderns have, +on the contrary, given them rather an undue prominence. From the +middle of the seventeenth century, when Europeans first began freely to +penetrate the East, the Persian ruins, especially those of Persepolis, +drew the marked attention of travellers; and in times when the site of +Babylon had attracted but scanty notice, and that of Nineveh and the +other great Assyrian cities was almost unknown, English, French, and +German savans measured, described, and figured the Persian remains with +a copiousness and exactness that left little to desire. Chardin, the +elder Mebuhr, Le Brun, Ouseley, Ker Porter, exerted themselves with the +most praiseworthy zeal to represent fully and faithfully the marvels of +the Chehl Minar; and these persevering efforts were followed within no +very lengthy period by the splendid and exhaustive works of the Baron +Texier and of MM. Flandin and Coste. Persepolis rose again from its +ashes in the superb and costly volumes of these latter writers, who +represented on the grandest scale, and in the most finished way, +not only the actual but the ideal--not only the present but the +past--placing before our eyes at once the fullest and completest views +of the existing ruins, and also restorations of the ancient structures, +some of them warm with color and gilding, which, though to a certain +extent imaginary, probably give to a modern the best notion that it is +now possible to form of an old Persian edifice. + +It is impossible within the limits of the present work, and with the +resources at the author's command, to attempt a complete description of +the Persian remains, or to vie with writers who had at their disposal +all the modern means of illustration. By the liberality of a well-known +authority on architecture, he is able to present his readers with +certain general views of the most important structures; and he also +enjoys the advantage of illustrating some of the most curious of the +details with engravings from a set of photographs recently taken. These +last have, it is believed, an accuracy beyond that of any drawings +hitherto made, and will give a better idea than words could possibly do +of the merit of the sculptures. With these helps, and with the addition +of reduced copies from some of MM. Flandin and Coste's plates, the +author hopes to be able to make his account fairly intelligible, and to +give his readers the opportunity of forming a tolerably correct judgment +on the merit of the Persian art in comparison with that of Babylon and +Assyria. + +Persian architectural art displayed itself especially in two forms of +building--the palace and the tomb. Temples were not perhaps unknown in +Persia, though much of the worship may always have been in the open +air; but temples, at least until the time of Artaxerxes Mnemon, were +insignificant, and neither attracted the attention of contemporaries, +nor were of such a character as to leave traces of themselves to after +times. The palaces of the Persian kings, on the other hand, and the +sepulchres which they prepared for themselves, are noticed by many +ancient writers as objects of interest; and, notwithstanding certain +doubts which have been raised in recent years, it seems tolerably +certain that they are to be recognized in the two chief classes of +ancient ruins which still exist in the country. + +The Persian palatial buildings, of which traces remain, are four in +number. One was situated at Ecbatana, the Median capital, and was a sort +of adjunct to the old residence of the Median kings. Of this only a very +few vestiges have been hitherto found; and we can merely say that it +appears to have been of the same general character with the edifices +which will be hereafter described. Another was built by Darius and +his son Xerxes on the great mound of Susa; and of this we have the +ground-plan, in a great measure, and various interesting details. A +third stood within the walls of the city of Persepolis, but of this not +much more is left than of the construction at Ecbatana. Finally, there +was in the neighborhood of Persepolis, but completely distinct from the +town, the Great Palace, which, as the chief residence, at any rate of +the later kings, Alexander burnt, and of which the remains still to +be seen are ample, constituting by far the most remarkable group of +buildings now existing in this part of Asia. + +It is to this last edifice, or group of edifices, that the reader's +attention will be specially directed in the following pages. Here the +greatest of the Persian monarchs seem to have built the greatest of +their works. Here the ravages of time and barbarism, sadly injurious +as they may have been, have had least effect. Here, moreover, modern +research has spent its chief efforts, excavations having been made, +measurements effected, and ground-plans laid down with accuracy. In +describing the Persepolitan buildings we have aids which mostly fail us +elsewhere--charts, plans, drawings in extraordinary abundance and often +of high artistic value, elaborate descriptions, even photographs. [PLATE +XXXVIII., Fig. 3.] If the describer has still a task of some difficulty +to perform, it is because an overplus of material is apt to cause almost +as much embarrassment as too poor and scanty a supply. + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXVIII.] + + +The buildings at Persepolis are placed upon a vast platform. It was +the practice of the Persians, as of the Assyrians and Babylonians, to +elevate their palaces in this way. They thus made them at once more +striking to the eye, more dignified, and more easy to guard. In +Babylonia an elevated habitation was also more healthy and more +pleasant, being raised above the reach of many insects, and laid open to +the winds of heaven, never too boisterous in that climate. Perhaps the +Assyrians and Persians in their continued use of the custom, to some +extent followed a fashion, elevating their royal residences, not so much +for security or comfort, as because it had come to be considered that a +palace ought to have a lofty site, and to look down on the habitations +of meaner men; but, however this may have been, the custom certainly +prevailed, and at Persepolis we have, in an almost perfect condition, +this first element of a Persian palace. [PLATE XXXIX.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE XXXIX.] + + +The platform at Persepolis is built at the foot of a high range of +rocky hills, on which it abuts towards the east. It is composed of solid +masses of hewn stone, which were united by metal clamps, probably of +iron or lead. The masses were not cut to a uniform size, nor even always +to a right angle, but were fitted together with a certain amount +of irregularity, which will be the best understood from the woodcut +overleaf. Many of the blocks were of enormous size; and their +quarrying, transport, and elevation to their present places, imply very +considerable mechanical skill. They were laid so as to form a perfectly +smooth perpendicular wall, the least height of which above the +plain below is twenty feet. The outline of the platform was somewhat +irregular. Speaking roughly, we may call it an oblong square, with a +breadth about two thirds of its length; but this description, unless +qualified, will give an idea of far greater uniformity than actually +prevails. [PLATE XL., Fig. 1.] The most serious irregularity is on the +north side, the general line of which is not parallel to the south side, +nor at right angles with the western one, but forms with the general +line of the western an angle of about eighty degrees. The cause of this +deviation lay probably in the fact that, on this side, a low rocky +spur ran out from the mountain-range in this direction, and that it +was thought desirable to accommodate the line of the structure to the +natural irregularities of the ground. In addition to the irregularity +of general outline thus produced, there is another of such perpetual +occurrence that it must be regarded as an essential element of the +original design, and therefore probably as approving itself to the +artistic notions of the builder. This is the occurrence of frequent +angular projections and indentations, which we remark on all three sides +of the platform equally, and which would therefore seem to have been +regarded in Persia, no less than in Assyria, as ornamental. + + +[Illustration: PLATE XL.] + + +The whole of the platform is not of a uniform height. On the contrary, +it seems to have been composed, as originally built, of several quite +distinct terraces. Three of these still remain, exhibiting towards the +west a very marked difference of elevation. The lowest of the three is +on the south side, and it may therefore be termed the Southern Terrace. +It extends from east to west a distance of about 800 feet, with a width +of about 170 or 180, and has an elevation above the plain of from twenty +to twenty-three feet. Opposite to this, on the northern side of the +platform, is a second terrace, more than three times the breadth of the +southern one, which may be called, by way of distinction, the Northern +Terrace. This has an elevation above the plain of thirty-five feet. +Intermediate between these two is the great Central or Upper Terrace, +standing forty-five feet above the plain, having a length of 770 feet +along the west face of the platform, and a width of about 400. Upon +this Upper Terrace were situated almost all the great and important +buildings. + +The erection of a royal residence on a platform composed of several +terraces involved the necessity of artificial ascents, which the +Persian architects managed by means of broad and solid staircases. These +staircases constitute one of the most remarkable features of the place, +and seem to deserve careful and exact description. [PLATE XLI., Fig. 2.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE XLI.] + + +The first, and grandest in respect of scale, is on the west front of the +platform towards its northern end, and leads up from the plain to the +summit of the northern terrace, furnishing the only means by which the +platform can even now be ascended. It consists of two distinct sets of +steps, each composed of two flights, with a broad landing-place between +them, the steps themselves running at right angles to the platform wall, +and the two lower flights diverging, while the two upper ones converge +to a common landing-place on the top. The slope of the stairs is so +gentle that, though each step has a convenient width, the height of a +step is in no case more than from three to four inches. It is thus +easy to ride horses both up and down the staircase, and travellers are +constantly in the habit of ascending and descending it in this way. + +The width of the staircase is twenty-two feet--space sufficient to allow +of ten horsemen ascending each flight of steps abreast. Altogether this +ascent, which is on a plan unknown elsewhere, is pronounced to be the +noblest example of a flight of stairs to be found in any part of the +world. It does not project beyond the line of the platform whereto it +leads, but is, as it were, taken out of it. [PLATE XLII.] + + +[[Illustration: PLATE XLII.] + + +The next, and in some respects the most remarkable of all the +staircases, conducts from the level of the northern platform to that of +the central or upper terrace. This staircase fronts northward, and opens +on the view as soon as the first staircase (A on the plan) has been +ascended, lying to the right of the spectator at the distance of about +fifty or sixty yards. It consists of four single flights of steps, two +of which are central, facing one another, and leading to a projecting +landing-place (B), about twenty feet in width; while the two others +are on either side of the central flights, distant from them about +twenty-one yards. The entire length of this staircase is 212 feet; +its greatest projection in front of the line of the terrace whereon it +abuts, is thirty-six feet. The steps, which are sixteen feet wide, rise +in the same gentle way as those of the lower or platform staircase. The +height of each is under four inches; and thus there are thirty-one steps +in an ascent of ten feet. + +The feature which specially distinguishes this staircase from the lower +one already described is its elaborate ornamentation. The platform +staircase is perfectly plain. The entire face which this staircase +presents to the spectator is covered with sculptures. In the first +place, on the central projection, which is divided perpendicularly into +three compartments, are represented, in the spandrels on either side, +a lion devouring a bull, and in the compartment between the spandrels +eight colossal Persian guardsmen, armed with spears and either with +sword or shield. Further, above the lion and bull, towards the edge of +the spandrel where it slopes, forming a parapet to the steps, [PLATE +XLIII., Fig. 1.] there was a row of cypress trees, while at the end of +the parapet and along the whole of its inner face were a set of small +figures, guardsmen habited like those in the central compartment, but +carrying mostly a bow and quiver instead of a shield. Along the extreme +edge of the parapet externally was a narrow border thickly set with +rosettes. [PLATE XLIII., Fig. 2.] Next, in the long spaces between the +central stairs and those on either side of them, the spandrels contain +repetitions of the lion and bull sculpture, while between them and the +central stairs the face of the wall is divided horizontally into three +bands, each of which has been ornamented with a continuous row of +figures. The highest row of the three is unfortunately mutilated, the +upper portion of all the bodies being lost in consequence of their +having been sculptured upon a parapet wall built originally to protect +the edge of the terrace, but now fallen away. The middle and lowest rows +are tolerably perfect, and possess considerable interest, as well as +some artistic merit. The entire scene represented on the right side +seems to be the bringing of tribute or presents to the monarch by the +various nations under his sway. On the left-hand side this subject was +continued to a certain extent; but the greater part of the space was +occupied by representations of guards and officers of the court, the +guards being placed towards the centre, and, as it were, keeping the +main stairs, while the officers were at a greater distance. The three +rows of figures were separated from one another by narrow bands, thickly +set with rosettes. + + +[Illustration: PLATE XLIII.] + + +The builder of this magnificent work was not content to leave it to +history or tradition to connect his name with his construction, but +determined to make the work itself the means of perpetuating his memory. +In three conspicuous parts of the staircase, slabs were left clear of +sculpture, undoubtedly to receive inscriptions commemorative of the +founder. The places selected were the front of the middle staircase, the +exact centre of the whole work, and the space adjoining the spandrels to +the extreme right and the extreme left. In one instance alone, however, +was this part of the work completed. On the right hand, or western +extremity of the staircase, an inscription of thirty lines in the old +Persian language informs us that the constructor was "Xerxes, the Great +King, the King of Kings, the son of King Darius, the Achaemenian." The +central and left-hand tablets, intended probably for Babylonian and +Scythic translations of the Persian legend, were never inscribed, and +remain blank to the present day. + +The remaining staircases will not require very lengthy or elaborate +descriptions. They are six in number, and consist, in most instances, +of a double flight of steps, similar to the central portion of the +staircase which has been just described. Two of them (e and f) belonged +to the building marked as the "Palace of Darius" on the plan, and gave +entrance to it from the central platform above which it is elevated +about fourteen or fifteen feet. Two others (c and d) belonged to the +"Palace of Xerxes." These led up to a broad paved space in front of +that building, which formed a terrace, elevated about ten feet above +the general level of the central platform. Their position was at the two +ends of the terrace, opposite to one another; but in other respects +they cannot be said to have matched. The eastern, which consisted of two +double flights, was similar in general arrangement to the staircase by +which the platform was mounted from the plain, excepting that it was not +recessed, but projected its full breadth beyond the line of the terrace. +It was decidedly the more elegant of the two, and evidently formed the +main approach. It was adorned with the usual bull and lion combats, with +figures of guardsmen, and with attendants carrying articles needed for +the table or the toilet. The inscriptions upon it declare it to be +the work of Xerxes. [PLATE XLIV.] The western staircase was composed +merely of two single flights, facing one another, with a narrow +landing-place between them. It was ornamented like the eastern, but +somewhat less elaborately. + + +[Illustration: PLATE XLIV.] + + +A staircase, very similar to this last, but still one with certain +peculiarities, was built by Artaxerxes Ochus, at the west side of the +Palace of Darius, in order to give it a second entrance. [PLATE XLV., +Fig. 1.] There the spandrels have the usual figures of the lion and +bull; but the intermediate space is somewhat unusually arranged. It is +divided vertically and horizontally into eight squared compartments, +three on either side, and two in the middle. The upper of these two +contains nothing but a winged circle, the emblem of Divinity being thus +placed reverently by itself. Below, in a compartment of double size, is +an inscription of Ochus, barbarous in language, but very religious in +tone. The six remaining compartments had each four figures, representing +tribute-bearers introduced to the royal presence by a court officer. + + +[Illustration: PLATE XLV.] + + +The other, and original, staircase to this palace (f on the plan) was +towards the north, and led up to the great portico, which was anciently +its sole entrance. Two flights of steps, facing each other, conducted to +a paved space of equal extent with the portico and projecting in front +of it about five feet. On the base of the staircase were sculptures in +a single line--the lion and bull in either spandrel--and between the +spandrels eighteen colossal guardsmen, nine facing either way towards +a central inscription, which was repeated in other languages on slabs +placed between the guardsmen and the bulls. Above the spandrels, on +the parapet which fenced the stairs, was a line of figures representing +attendants bringing into the palace materials for the banquet. A similar +line adorned the inner wall of the staircase. + +Opposite to this, at the distance of about thirty-two yards, was another +very similar staircase, leading up to the portico of another +building, erected (apparently) by Artaxerxes Ochus, which occupied the +south-western corner of the upper platform. The sculptures here seem to +have been of the usual character but they are so mutilated that no very +decided opinion can be passed upon them. + +Last of all, a staircase of a very peculiar character, (h on the plan) +requires notice. This is a flight of steps cut in the solid rock, +which leads up from the southern terrace to the upper one, at a point +intervening between the south-western edifice, or palace of Artaxerxes, +and the palace of Xerxes, or central southern edifice. These steps are +singular in facing the terrace to which they lead, instead of being +placed sideways to it. They are of rude construction, being without a +parapet, and wholly devoid of sculpture or other ornamentation. +They furnish the only communication between the southern and central +terraces. + +It is a peculiarity of the Persepolitan ruins that they are not +continuous, but present to the modern inquirer the appearance, at +any rate, of a number of distinct buildings. Of these the platform +altogether contains ten, five of which are of large size, while the +remainder are comparatively insignificant. + +Of the five large buildings four stand upon the central or upper +terrace, while one lies east of that terrace, between it and the +mountains. The four upon the central terrace comprise three buildings +made up of several sets of chambers, together with one great open +pillared hall, to which are attached no subordinate apartments. The +three complex edifices will be here termed "palaces," and will take +the names of their respective founders, Darius, Xerxes, and Artaxerxes +Ochus: the fourth will be called the "Great Hall of Audience." The +building between the upper terrace and the mountains will be termed the +"Great Eastern Edifice." + +The "Palace of Darius," which is one of the most interesting of the +Persepolitan buildings, stands near the western edge of the platform, +midway between the "Great Hall of Audience" and the "Palace of +Artaxerxes Ochus." [PLATE XLVI., Fig. 1.] It is a building about one +hundred and thirty five feet in length, and in breadth a little short of +a hundred. Of all the existing buildings on the platform it occupies +the most exalted position, being elevated from fourteen to fifteen feet +above the general level of the central terrace, and being thus four or +five feet higher than the "Palace of Xerxes." It fronted towards the +south, where it was approached by a double staircase of the usual +character, which led up to a deep portico of eight pillars arranged in +two rows. On either side of the portico were guard-rooms, which opened +upon it, in length twenty-three feet, and in breadth thirteen. Behind +the portico lay the main chamber, which was a square of fifty feet, +having a roof supported by sixteen pillars, arranged in four rows of +four, in line with the pillars of the portico. [PLATE XLV., Fig. 2.] +The bases for the pillars alone remain; and it is thus uncertain whether +their material was stone or wood. They were probably light and slender, +not greatly interrupting the view. The hall was surrounded on all sides +by walls from four to five feet in thickness, in which were doors, +windows, and recesses, symmetrically arranged. The entrance from the +portico was by a door in the exact centre of the front wall, on either +side of which were two windows, looking into the portico. The +opposite, or back, wall was pierced by two doors, which faced the +intercolumniations of the side rows of pillars, as the front door faced +the intercolumniation of the central rows. Between the two doors +which pierced the back wall was a squared recess, and similar recesses +ornamented the same wall on either side of the doors. The side walls +were each pierced originally by a single doorway, between which and the +front wall was a squared recess, while beyond, between the doorways +and the back wall, were two recesses of the same character. Curiously +enough, these side doorways and recesses fronted the pillars, not the +intercolumniations. + + +[Illustration: PLATE XLVI.] + + +No sculpture, so far as appears, adorned this apartment, excepting +in the doorways, which however had in every case this kind of +ornamentation. The doorways in the back wall exhibited on their jambs +figures of the king followed by two attendants, one holding a cloth, and +the other a fly-chaser. [PLATE XLV., Fig. 3.] These figures had in every +case their faces turned towards the apartment. The front doorway showed +on its jambs the monarch followed by the parasol-bearer and the bearer +of the fly-chaser, with his back turned to the apartment, issuing forth, +as it were, from it. On the jambs of the doors of the side apartments +was represented the king in combat with a lion or a monster, the king +here in every case facing outwards, and seeming to guard the entrances +to the side chambers. + +At the back of the hall, and at either side, were chambers of very +moderate dimensions. The largest were to the rear of the building, +where there seems to have been one about forty feet by twenty-three, and +another twenty-eight feet by twenty. The doorways here had sculptures, +representing attendants bearing napkins and perfumes. The side chambers, +five in number, were considerably smaller than those behind the great +hall, the largest not exceeding thirty-four feet by thirteen. + +It seems probable that this palace was without any second story. There +is no vestige in any part of it of a staircase--no indication of its +height having ever exceeded from twenty-two to twenty-five feet. It was +a modest building, simple and regular, covering less than half the space +of an ordinary palace in Assyria. [PLATE XLV., Fig. 2.] Externally, +it must have presented an appearance not very dissimilar to that of +the simpler Greek temples; distinguished from them by peculiarities of +ornamentation, but by no striking or important feature, excepting +the grand and elaborately sculptured staircase. Internally, it was +remarkable for the small number of its apartments, which seem not to +have been more than twelve or thirteen, and for the moderate size of +most of them. Even the grand central hall covered a less area than three +out of the five halls in the country palace of Sargon. The effect +of this room was probably fine, though it must have been somewhat +over-crowded with pillars. If these were, however (as is probable), +light wooden posts, plated with silver or with gold, and if the ceiling +consisted (as it most likely did) of beams, crossing each other at right +angles, with square spaces between them, all likewise coated with the +precious metals; if moreover the cold stone walls, excepting where +they were broken by a doorway, or a window, were similarly decked; if +curtains of brilliant hues hung across the entrances; if the pavement +was of many-colored stones, and in places covered with magnificent +carpets; if an elevated golden throne, under a canopy of purple, adorned +the upper end of the room, standing against the wall midway between the +two doors--if this were in truth the arrangement and ornamentation of +the apartment, we can well understand that the _coup d'oeil_ must +have been effective, and the impression made on the spectator highly +pleasing. A room fifty feet square, and not much more than twenty high, +could not be very grand; but elegance of form, combined with richness +of material and splendor of coloring, may have more than compensated for +the want of that grandeur which results from mere size. + +If it be inquired how a palace of the dimensions described can have +sufficed even for one of the early Persian kings, the reply must +seemingly be that the building in question can only have contained +the public apartments of the royal residence--the throne-room, +banqueting-rooms, guard-rooms, etc.,--and that it must have been +supplemented by at least one other edifice of a considerable size, the +Gynaeceum or "House of the Women." There is ample room on the platform +for such a building, either towards the east, where the ground is now +occupied by a high mound of rubbish, or on the west, towards the edge of +the platform, where traces of a large edifice were noted by Niebuhr. On +the whole, this latter situation seems to be the more probable; and the +position of the Gynaeceum in this quarter may account for the alteration +made by Artaxerxes Ochus in the palace of Darius, which now seriously +interferes with its symmetry. Artaxerxes cut a doorway in the outer +western wall, and another opposite to it in the western wall of the +great hall, adding at the same time a second staircase to the building, +which thus became accessible from the west no less than from the south. +It has puzzled the learned in architecture to assign a motive for this +alteration. May we not find an adequate one in the desire to obtain a +ready and comparatively private access to the Gynaeceum, which must have +been somewhere on the platform, and which may well have lain in this +direction? + +The minute account which has been now given of this palace will render +unnecessary a very elaborate description of the remainder. Two grand +palatial edifices seem to have been erected on the platform by later +kings--one by Xerxes and the other by Artaxerxes Ochus; but the latter +of these is in so ruined a condition, and the former is so like the +palace of Darius, that but few remarks need be made upon either. The +palace of Xerxes is simply that of Darius on a larger scale, the pillars +in the portico being increased from two rows of four to two rows of six, +and the great hall behind being a square of eighty instead of a square +of fifty feet, with thirty-six instead of sixteen pillars to support +its roof. On either side of the hall, and on either side of the portico, +were apartments like those already described as abutting on the same +portions of the older palace, differing from them chiefly in being +larger and more numerous. The two largest, which were thirty-one feet +square, had roofs supported on pillars, the numbers of such supports +being in each case four. The only striking difference in the plans of +the two buildings consisted in the absence from the palace of Xerxes of +any apartments to the rear of the great hall. In order to allow space +for an ample terrace in front, the whole edifice was thrown back so +close to the edge of the upper platform that no room was left for any +chambers at the back, since the hall itself was here brought almost to +the very verge of the sheer descent from the central to the low southern +terrace. In ornamentation the palaces also very closely resembled each +other, the chief difference being that the combats of the king with +lions and mythological monsters, which form the regular ornamentation +of the side-chambers in the palace of Darius, occur nowhere in the +residence of his son, where they are replaced by figures of attendants +bringing articles for the toilet or the table, like those which adorn +the main staircase of the older edifice. Figures of the same kind also +ornament all the windows in the palace of Xerxes. A tone of mere sensual +enjoyment is thus given to the later edifice, which is very far from +characterizing the earlier; and the decline of morals at the Court, +which history indicates as rapid about this period, is seen to +have stamped itself, as such changes usually do, upon the national +architecture. + +A small building, at the distance of about twenty or twenty-five yards +from the eastern wall of the palace of Xerxes, possesses a peculiar +interest, in consequence of its having some claims to be considered +the most ancient structure upon the platform. It consists of a hall and +portico, in size, proportions, and decoration almost exactly resembling +the corresponding parts of Darius's palace, but unaccompanied by any +trace of circumjacent chambers, and totally devoid of inscriptions. The +building is low, on the level of the northern, rather than on that of +the central terrace, and is indeed half buried in the rubbish which has +accumulated at its base. Its fragments are peculiarly grand and massive, +while its sculptures are in strong and bold relief. There can be little +doubt but that it was originally, like the hall and portico of Darius, +surrounded on three sides by chambers. These, however, have entirely +disappeared, having probably been pulled down to furnish materials for +more recent edifices. Like the palaces of Xerxes and Artaxerxes Ochus, +and unlike the palace of Darius, the building faces to the north, which +is the direction naturally preferred in such a climate. We may suppose +it to have been the royal residence of the earlier times, the erection +of Cyrus or Cambyses, and to have been intended especially for summer +use, for which its position well fitted it. Darius, wishing for a winter +palace at Persepolis, as well as a summer one, took probably this early +palace for his model, and built one as nearly as possible resembling it, +except that, for the sake of greater warmth, he made his new erection +face southwards. Xerxes, dissatisfied with the size of the old summer +palace, built a new one at its side of considerably larger dimensions, +using perhaps some of the materials of the old palace in his new +building. Finally, Artaxerxes Ochus made certain additions to the palace +of Xerxes on its western side, and at the same time added a staircase +and a doorway to the winter residence of Darius. Thus the Persepolitan +palace, using the word in its proper sense of royal residence, attained +its full dimensions, occupying the southern half of the great central +platform, and covering with its various courts and buildings a space +500 feet long by 375 feet wide, or nearly the space covered by the less +ambitious of the palaces of Assyria. + +Besides edifices adapted for habitation, the Persepolitan platform +sustained two other classes of buildings. These were propylaea, or +gateways--places commanding the approach to great buildings, where a +guard might be stationed to stop and examine all comers--and halls of a +vast size, which were probably throne-rooms, where the monarch held +his court on grand occasions, to exhibit himself in full state to his +subjects. The propylaea upon the platform appear to have been four +in number. One, the largest, was directly opposite the centre of the +landing-place at the top of the great stairs which gave access to the +platform from the plain. This consisted of a noble apartment, eighty-two +feet square, with a roof supported by four magnificent columns, each +between fifty and sixty feet high. The walls of the apartment were from +sixteen to seventeen feet thick. Two grand portals, each twelve feet +wide by thirty-six feet high, led into this apartment, one directly +facing the head of the stairs, and the other opposite to it, towards the +east. Both were flanked with colossal bulls, those towards the staircase +being conventional representations of the real animal, while the +opposite pair are almost exact reproductions of the winged and +human-headed bulls, with which the Assyrian discoveries have made us so +familiar. The accompanying illustration [PLATE XLVII., Fig. 1.], which +is taken from a photograph, exhibits this inner pair in their present +condition. The back of one of the other pair is also visible. Two of +the pillars--which alone are still standings appear in their places, +intervening between the front and the back gateway. + + +[Illustration: PLATE XLVII.] + + +The walls which enclosed this chamber, notwithstanding their immense +thickness, have almost entirely disappeared. On the southern side alone, +where there seems to have been a third doorway, unornamented, are there +any traces of them. We must conclude that they were either of burnt +brick or of small blocks of stone, which the natives of the country +in later times found it convenient to use as material for their own +buildings. + +An edifice, almost exactly similar to this, but of very inferior +dimensions, occupied a position due east of the palace of Darius, and +a little to the north of the main staircase leading to the terrace in +front of the palace of Xerxes. The bases of two pillars and the jambs +of three doorways remain, from which it is easy to reconstruct the main +building. Its position seems to mark it as designed to give entrance +to the structure, whatever it was, which occupied the site of the great +mound (M on the Plan) east of Darius's palace, and north of the palace +of his son. The ornamentation, however, would rather connect it with +the more eastern of the two great pillared halls, which will have to be +described presently. + +A third edifice of the same kind stood in front of the great eastern +hall, at the distance of about seventy yards from its portico. This +building is more utterly ruined than either of the preceding, and its +dimensions are open to some doubt. On the whole, it seems probable that +it resembled the great propylaea at the head of the stairs leading from +the plain rather than the central propylaea just described. Part of its +ornamentation was certainly a colossal bull, though whether human-headed +or not cannot be determined. + +The fourth of the propylaea was on the terrace whereon stood the palace +of Xerxes, and directly fronting the landing-place at the head of its +principal stairs, just as the propylaea first described fronted the +great stairs leading up from the plain. Its dimensions were suited to +those of the staircase which led to it, and of the terrace on which it +was placed. It was less than one fourth the size of the great propylaea, +and about half that of the propylaea which stood the nearest to it. +The bases of the four pillars alone remain in situ; but, from the +proportions thus obtained, the position of the walls and doorways is +tolerably certain. + +We have now to pass to the most magnificent of the Perse-politan +buildings--the Great Pillared Halls--which constitute the glory of Arian +architecture, and which, even in their ruins, provoke the wonder and +admiration of modern Europeans, familiar with all the triumphs of +Western art, with Grecian temples, Roman baths and amphitheatres, +Moorish palaces, Turkish mosques, and Christian cathedrals. Of these +pillared halls, the Persepolitan platform supports two, slightly +differing in their design, but presenting many points of agreement. They +bear the character of an earlier and a later building--a first effort +in the direction which circumstances compelled the architecture of the +Persians to take, and the final achievement of their best artists in +this kind of building. + +Nearly midway in the platform between its northern and its southern +edges, and not very far from the boundary of rocky mountain on which +the platform abuts towards the east, is the vast edifice which has been +called with good reason the "Hall of a Hundred Columns," since its +roof was in all probability supported by that number of pillars. This +building consisted of a single magnificent chamber, with a portico, and +probably guard-rooms, in front, of dimensions quite unequalled upon +the platform. The portico was 183 feet long by 52 feet deep, and was +sustained by sixteen pillars, about 33 feet high, arranged in two rows +of eight. The great chamber behind was a square of 227 feet, and had +therefore an area of about 51,000 feet. Over this vast space were +distributed, at equal distances from one another, one hundred columns, +each 35 feet high, arranged in ten rows of ten each, every pillar thus +standing at a distance of nearly 20 feet from any other. The four walls +which enclosed this great hall had a uniform thickness of 10 1/2 feet, +and were each pierced at equal intervals by two doorways, the doorways +being thus exactly opposite to one another, and each looking down an +avenue of columns. In the spaces of wall on either side of the doorways, +eastward, westward, and southward, were three niches, all square-topped, +and bearing the ornamentation which is universal in the case of all +niches, windows, and doorways in the Persepolitan ruins. [PLATE XLVII., +Fig. 2.] In the northern, or front, wall, the niches were replaced by +windows looking upon the portico, excepting towards the angles of the +building, where niches were retained, owing to a peculiarity in the +plan of the edifice which has now to be noticed. The portico, instead +of being, as in every other Persian instance, of the same width with the +building which it fronted, was 44 feet narrower, its antce projecting +from the front wall, not at either extremity, but at the distance of 11 +feet from the corner. While the porch was thus contracted, so that the +pillars had to be eight in each row instead of ten, space was left on +either side for a narrow guard-room opening on to the porch, indications +of which are seen in the doorways placed at right angles to the front +wall, which are ornamented with the usual figures of soldiers armed +with spear and shield. It has been suggested that the hall was, like the +smaller pillared chambers upon the platform, originally surrounded on +three sides by a number of lesser apartments; and this is certainly +possible: but no trace remains of any such buildings. The ornamentation +which exists seems to show that the building was altogether of a public +character. Instead of exhibiting attendants bringing articles for the +toilet or the banquet, it shows on its doors the monarch, either engaged +in the art of destroying symbolical monsters, or seated on his throne +under a canopy, with the tiara on his head, and the golden sceptre in +his right hand. The throne representations are of two kinds. On the +jambs of the great doors leading out upon the porch, we see in the top +compartment the monarch seated under the canopy, accompanied by five +attendants, while below him are his guards, arranged in five rows of +ten each, some armed with spears and shields, others with spears, short +swords, bows and quivers. Thus the two portals together exhibit the +figures of 200 Persian guardsmen in attendance on the person of the +king. The doors at the back of the building present us with a still +more curious sculpture. On these the throne appears elevated on a lofty +platform, the stages of which, three in number, are upheld by figures +in different costumes, representing apparently the natives of all the +different provinces of the Empire. It is a reasonable conjecture that +this great hall was intended especially for a throne-room, and that in +the representations on these doorways we have figured a structure which +actually existed under its roof (probably at t in the plan)--a platform +reached by steps, whereon, in the great ceremonies of state, the royal +throne was placed, in order that the monarch might be distinctly seen at +one and the same time by the whole Court. + + +[Illustration: PLATE XLVIII.] + + +The question of the lighting of this huge apartment presents some +difficulties. On three sides, as already observed, the hall had (so +far as appears) no windows--the places where windows might have been +expected to occur being occupied by niches. The apparent openings are +consequently reduced to some fifteen, viz., the eight doorways, and +seven windows, which looked out upon the portico, and were therefore +overhung and had a north aspect. It is clear that sufficient light could +not have entered the apartment from these--the only visible--apertures. +We must therefore suppose either that the walls above the niches were +pierced with windows, which is quite possible, or else that light was in +some way or other admitted from the roof. The latter is the supposition +of those most competent to decide. M. Flandin conjectures that the roof +had four apertures, placed at the points where the lines drawn from +the northern to the southern, and those drawn from the eastern to the +western, doors would intersect one another. He seems to suppose that +these openings were wholly unprotected, in which case they would have +admitted, in a very inconvenient way, both the sun and the rain. May we +not presume that, if such openings existed, they were guarded by louvres +such as have been regarded as probably lighting the Assyrian halls, and +of which a representation has already been given? + +The portico of the Hall of a Hundred Columns was flanked on either side +by a colossal bull, standing at the inner angle of the antes, and thus +in some degree narrowing the entrance. Its columns were fluted, and +had in every case the complex capital, which occurs also in the great +propylaea and in the Hall of Xerxes. It was built of the same sort of +massive blocks as the south-eastern edifice, or Ancient Palace--blocks +often ten feet square by seven feet thick, and may be ascribed probably +to the same age as that structure. Like that edifice, it is situated +somewhat low; it has no staircase, and no inscription. We may fairly +suppose it to have been the throne-room or great hall of audience of the +early king who built the South-eastern Palace. + +We have now to describe the most remarkable of all the Persepolitan +edifices--a building the remains of which stretch nearly 350 feet in one +direction, while in the other they extend 246 feet. Its ruins consist +almost entirely of pillars, which are divided into four groups. The +largest of these was a square of thirty-six pillars, arranged in six +rows of six, all exactly equidistant from one another, and covering +an area of above 20,000 square feet. On three sides of this square, +eastward, northward, and westward, were magnificent porches, each +consisting of twelve columns, arranged in two rows, in line with the +pillars of the central cluster. These porches stood at the distance of +seventy feet from the main building, and have the appearance of having +been entirely separate from it. They are 143 feet long, by thirty broad, +and thus cover each an area of 4260 feet. The most astonishing feature +in the whole building is the height of the pillars. These, according to +the measurements of M. Flandin, had a uniform altitude throughout the +building of sixty-four feet. Even in their ruin, they tower over every +other erection upon the platform, retaining often, in spite of the +effects of time, an elevation of sixty feet. + +The capitals of the pillars were of three kinds. Those of the side +colonnades were comparatively simple: they consisted, in each case, of +a single member, formed, in the eastern colonnade, of two half-griffins, +with their heads looking in opposite directions [PLATE XLVII, Fig. 2]; +and, in the western colonnade, of two half-bulls, arranged in the +same manner [PLATE XLVII., Fig. 3]. The capitals of the pillars in the +northern colonnade, which faced the great sculptured staircase, and +constituted the true front of the building, were of a very complex +character. They may be best viewed as composed of three distinct +members--first, a sort of lotos-bud, accompanied by pendent leaves; +then, above that, a member, composed of volutes like those of the Ionic +order, but placed in a perpendicular instead of a horizontal direction; +and at the top, a member composed of two half-bulls, exactly similar to +that which forms the complete capital of the western group of pillars. +The pillars of the groat central cluster had capitals exactly like those +of the northern colonnade. + +The bases of the colonnade pillars are of singular beauty. Bell-shaped, +and ornamented with a double or triple row of pendent lotus-leaves, some +rounded, some narrowed to a point; they are as graceful as they are rare +in their forms, and attract the admiration of all beholders. Above them +rise the columns, tapering gently as they ascend, but without any swell +or entasis. They consist of several masses of stone, carefully joined +together, and secured at the joints by an iron cramp in the direction of +the column's axis. All are beautifully fluted along their entire length, +the number of the incisions or flutings being from forty-eight to +fifty-two in each pillar. They are arcs of circles smaller than +semicircles, thus resembling those of the Doric, rather than those of +the Ionic or Corinthian order. The cutting of all is very exact and +regular. + +There can be little doubt but that both the porches, and the +great central pillar-cluster, were roofed in. The double-bull and +double-griffin capital are exactly suited to receive the ends of beams, +which would stretch from pillar to pillar, and support a roof and an +entablature. [PLATE L., Fig.1.] We may see in the entrances to the royal +tombs the true use of pillars in a Persian building, and the character +of the entablature which, they were intended to sustain, Assuming, +then, that both the great central pillar phalanx and the three detached +colonnades supported a roof, the question arises, were the colonnades +in any way united with the main building, or did they stand completely +detached from it? It has been supposed that they were all porticos _in +antis_, connected with the main building by solid walls--that the great +central column-cluster was surrounded on all sides by a wall of a very +massive description, from the four corners of which similar barriers +were carried down to the edge of the terrace, abutting in front upon +the steps of the great sculptured staircase, and extending eastward and +westward, so as to form the antce of an eastern and a western portico. +In the two corners between the northern in _antae_ of the side porticos +and the _antae_ of the portico in front are supposed to have been large +guard-rooms, entirely filling up the two angles. The whole building is +thus brought into close conformity with the "Palace of Xerxes," from +which it is distinguished only by its superior size, its use of stone +pillars, and the elongation of the tetrastyle chambers at the sides of +that edifice into porticos of twelve pillars each. + + +[Illustration: PLATE L.] + + +The ingenuity of this conception is unquestionable; and one is tempted +at first sight to accept a solution which removes so much that is +puzzling, and establishes so remarkable a harmony between works whose +outward aspect is so dissimilar. It seems like the inspiration of genius +to discern so clearly the like in the unlike, and one inclines at first +to believe that what is so clever cannot but be true. But a rigorous +examination of the evidence leads to an opposite conclusion, and if it +does not absolutely disprove Mr. Fergusson's theory, at any rate shows +it to be in the highest degree doubtful. Such walls as he describes, +with their _antae_ and their many doors and windows, should have left +very marked traces of their existence in great squared pillars at the +sides of porticos, in huge door-frames and window-frames, or at least +in the foundations of walls, or, the marks of them, on some part of the +paved terrace. Now the entire absence of squared pillars for the ends +of antce, of door-frames, and window-frames, or even of such sculptured +fragments as might indicate their former existence, is palpable and is +admitted; nor is there any even supposed trace of the walls, excepting +in one of the lines which by the hypothesis they would occupy. In front +of the building, midway between the great pillar-cluster and the north +colonnade, are the remains of four stone bases, parallel to one another, +each seventeen feet long by five feet six inches wide. Mr. Fergusson +regards these bases as marking the position of the doors in his front +wall; and they are certainly in places where doors might have been +looked for, if the building had a front wall, since the openings are +exactly opposite the inter-columniations of the pillars, both in the +portico and in the main cluster. But there are several objections to the +notion of these bases being the foundations of the jambs of doors. In +the first place, they are too wide apart, being at the distance from one +another of seventeen feet, whereas no doorway on the platform exceeds a +width of twelve or thirteen feet. In the second place, if these massive +stone bases were prepared for the jambs of doors, it could only have +been for massive stone jambs like those of the other palaces; but +in that case, the jambs could not have disappeared. Thirdly, if the +doorways on this side were thus marked, why were they not similarly +marked on the other sides of the building? On the whole, the supposition +of M. Flandin, that the bases were pedestals for ornamental statues, +perhaps of bulls, seems more probable than that of Mr. Fergusson; +though, no doubt, there are objections also to M. Flandin's hypothesis, +and it would be perhaps best to confess that we do not know the use of +these strange foundations, which have nothing that at all resembles them +upon the rest of the platform. + +Another strong objection to Mr. Fergusson's theory, and one of which +he, to a certain extent, admits the force, is the existence of drains, +running exactly in the line of his side walls, which, if such walls +existed, would be a curious provision on the part of the architect for +undermining his own work. Mr. Fergusson supposes that they might be +intended to drain the walls themselves and keep them dry. But as it is +clear that they must have carried off the whole surplus water from +the roof of the building, and as there is often much rain and snow +at Persepolis, their effect on the foundations of such a wall as Mr. +Fergusson imagines would evidently be disastrous in the extreme. + +To these minute and somewhat technical objections may be added the +main one, whereof all alike can feel the force--namely, the entire +disappearance of such a vast mass of building as Mr. Fergusson's +hypothesis supposes. To account for this, Mr. Fergusson is obliged to +lay it down, that in this magnificent structure, with its solid +stone staircase, its massive pavement of the same material, and its +seventy-two stone pillars, each sixty-four feet high, the walls were of +mud. Can we believe in this incongruity? Can we imagine that a prince, +who possessed an unbounded command of human labor, and an inexhaustible +supply of stone in the rocky mountains close at hand, would have had +recourse to the meanest of materials for the walls of an edifice which +he evidently intended to eclipse all others upon the platform. And, +especially, can we suppose this, when the very same prince used solid +blocks of stone, in the walls of the very inferior edifice which he +constructed in this same locality? Mr. Fergusson, in defence of +his hypothesis, alleges the frequent combination of meanness with +magnificence in the East, and softens down the meanness in the present +case by clothing his mud walls with enamelled tiles, and painting them +with all the colors of the rainbow. But here again the hypothesis is +wholly unsupported by fact. Neither at Persepolis, nor at Pasargadae, +nor at any other ancient Persian site, has a single fragment of an +enamelled tile or brick been discovered. In Babylonia and Assyria, where +the employment of such an ornamentation was common, the traces of it +which remain are abundant. Must not the entire absence of such traces +from all exclusively Persian ruins be held to indicate that this mode of +adorning edifices was not adopted in Persia? + +If then we resign the notion of this remarkable building having been a +walled structure, we must suppose that it was a summer throne-room, +open to all the winds of heaven, except so far as it was protected by +curtains. For the use of these by the Persians in pillared edifices, we +have important historical authority in the statement already quoted from +the Book of Esther. The Persian palace, to which that passage directly +refers, contained a structure almost the exact counterpart of this +at Persepolis; and it is probable that at both places the interstices +between the outer pillars of, at any rate, the great central colonnade, +were filled with "hangings of white and green and blue, fastened with +cords of white and purple to silver rings," which were attached to the +"pillars of marble;" and that by these means an undue supply of light +and air, as well as an unseemly publicity, were prevented. A traveller +in the country well observes, in allusion to this passage from Esther: +Nothing could be more appropriate than this method at Susa and +Persepolis, the spring residences of the Persian monarchs. It must be +considered that these columnar halls were the equivalents of the modern +throne-rooms, that here all public business was dispatched, and that +here the king might sit and enjoy the beauties of the landscape. With +the rich plains of Susa and Persepolis before him, he could well, after +his winter's residence at Babylon, dispense with massive walls, which +would only check the warm fragrant breeze from those verdant prairies +adorned with the choicest flowers. A massive roof, covering the whole +expanse of columns, would be too cold and dismal, whereas curtains +around the central group would serve to admit both light and warmth. +Nothing can be conceived better adapted to the climate or the season. + +If the central cluster of pillars was thus adapted to the purposes of +a throne-room, equally well may the isolated colonnades have served as +ante-chambers or posts for guards. Protected, perhaps, with curtains +or awnings of their own, of a coarser material than those of the main +chamber, or at any rate casting, when the sun was high, a broad and deep +shadow, they would give a welcome shelter to those who had to watch +over the safety of the monarch, or who were expecting but had not yet +received their summons to the royal presence. Except in the very hottest +weather, the Oriental does not love to pass his day within doors. Seated +on the pavement in groups, under the deep shadows of these colonnades, +which commanded a glorious view of the vast fertile plain of the +Bendamir, of the undulating mountain-tract beyond, and of the +picturesque hills known now as Koh-Istakhr, or Koh-Rhamgherd, the +subjects of the Great King, who had business at Court, would wait, +agreeably enough, till their turn came to approach the throne. + +Our survey of the Persepolitan platform is now complete; but, before we +entirely dismiss the subject of Persian palaces, it seems proper to say +a few words with respect to the other palatial remains of Achasmenian +times, remains which exist in three places--at Murgab or Pasargadse, at +Istakr, and at the great mound of Susa. The Murgab and Istakr ruins were +carefully examined by MM. Coste and Flandin; while General Williams and +Mr. Loftus diligently explored, and completely made out, the plan of the +Susian edifice. + +The ruins at Murgab, which are probably the most ancient in Persia, +comprise, besides the well-known "Tomb of Cyrus," two principal +buildings. The largest of these was of an oblong-square shape, about 147 +feet long by 116 wide. It seems to have been surrounded by a lofty +wall, in which were huge portals, consisting of great blocks of +stone, partially hollowed out, to render them portable. There was an +inscription on the jambs of each portal, containing the words, "I am +Cyrus the King, the Achaemenian." Within the walled enclosure which may +have been skirted internally by a colonnade was a pillared building, of +much greater height than the surrounding walls, as is evident from the +single column which remains. This shaft, which is perfectly plain, and +shows no signs of a capital, has an altitude of thirty-six feet, with +a diameter of three feet four inches at the base. On the area around, +which was carefully paved, are the bases of seven other similar pillars, +arranged in lines, and so situated as apparently to indicate an oblong +hall, supported by twelve pillars, in three rows of four each. The +chief peculiarity of the arrangement is, a variety in the width of the +intercolumniations, which measure twenty-seven feet ten inches in one +direction, but twenty-one feet only in the other. The smaller building, +which is situated at only a short distance from the larger one, covers a +space of 125 feet by fifty. It consists of twelve pillar bases, arranged +in two rows of six each, the pillars being somewhat thicker than those +of the other building, and placed somewhat closer together. [PLATE +XLIX., Fig. 5.] The form of the base is very singular. It exhibits +at the side a semicircular bulge, ornamented with a series of nine +flutings, which are carried entirely round the base in parallel +horizontal circles. [PLATE L., Fig. 2.] In front of the pillar bases, +at the distance of about twenty-three feet from the nearest, is a square +column, still upright, on which is sculptured a curious mythological +figure, together with the same curt legend, which appears on the larger +building--"I am Cyrus, the King, the Achaemenian." + + +[Illustration: PLATE XLIX.] + + +There are two other buildings at Murgab remarkable for their masonry. +One is a square tower, with slightly projecting corners, built of +hewn blocks of stone, very regularly laid, and carried to a height +of forty-two feet. The other is a platform, exceedingly massive and +handsome, composed entirely of squared stone, and faced with blocks +often eight or ten feet long, laid in horizontal courses, and rusticated +throughout in a manner that is highly ornamental. [PLATE L. Fig. 3.] The +style resembles that of the substructions of the Temple of Jerusalem. +It occurs occasionally, though somewhat rarely, in Greece; but there +is said to exist nowhere so extensive and beautiful a specimen of it as +that of the platform at this ancient site. [PLATE L., Fig. 4.] + +The palace at Istakr is in better preservation than either of the two +pillared edifices at Murgab; but still, it is not in such a condition as +to enable us to lay down with any certainty even its ground-plan. [PLATE +LI., Fig. 1.] One pillar only remains erect; but the bases of eight +others have been found in situ; the walls are partly to be traced, +and the jambs of several doorways and niches are still standing. These +remains show that in many respects, as in the character of the pillars, +which were fluted and had capitals like those already described, in the +massiveness of the door and window jambs, and in the thickness of +the walls, the Istakr Palace resembled closely the buildings on the +Persepolitan platform; but at the same time they indicate that its plan +was wholly different, and thus our knowledge of the platform buildings +in no degree enables us to complete, or even to carry forward to any +appreciable extent, the ground-plan of the edifice derived from actual +research. The height of the columns, which is inferior to that of the +lowest at the great platform, would seem to indicate, either that the +building was the first in which stone pillars were attempted, or that +it was erected at a time when the Persians no longer possessed the +mechanical skill required to quarry, transport, and raise into place the +enormous blocks used in the best days of the nation. + + +[Illustration: PLATE LI.] + + +The palace of Susa, exhumed by Mr. Loftus and General Williams, +consisted of a great Hall or Throne-room, almost exactly a duplicate +of the Chehl Minar at Persepolis, and of a few other very inferior +buildings. It stood at the summit of the great platform, a quadrilateral +mass of unburnt brick, which from a remote antiquity had supported the +residence of the old Susian kings. It fronted a little west of north, +and commanded a magnificent view over the Susianian plains to the +mountains of Lauristan. An inscription, repeated on four of its +pillar-bases, showed that it was originally built by Darius Hystaspis, +and afterwards repaired by Artaxerxes Longimanus. As it was so exactly +a reproduction of an edifice already minutely described, no further +account of it need be here given. + +From the palaces of the Persian kings we may now pass to their tombs, +remarkable structures which drew the attention of the ancients, and +which have been very fully examined and represented in modern times. +These tombs are eight in number, but present only two types, so that +it will be sufficient to give in this place a detailed account of two +tombs--one of each description. + +The most ancient, and, on the whole, the most remarkable of the tombs, +is almost universally allowed to be that of the Great Cyrus. It is +unique in design, totally different from all the other royal sepulchres; +and, though it has been often described, demands, and must +receive, notice in any account that is given of the ancient Persian +constructions. The historian Arrian calls it "a house upon a pedestal;" +and this brief description exactly expresses its general character. On a +base, composed of huge blocks of the most beautiful white marble,1 which +rises pyramidically in seven steps of different heights, there stands a +small "house" of similar material, crowned with a stone roof, which +is formed in front and rear into a pediment resembling that of a Greek +temple. [PLATE LI., Fig.3.] The "house" has no window, but one of the +end walls was pierced by a low and narrow doorway, which led into a +small chamber or cell, about eleven feet long, seven broad, and seven +high. Here, as ancient writers inform us, the body of the Great Cyrus +was deposited in a golden coffin. Internally the chamber is destitute +of any inscription, and indeed seems to have been left perfectly plain. +Externally, there is a cornice of some elegance below the pediment, a +good molding over the doorway, which is also doubly recessed--and two +other very slight moldings, one at the base of the "house," and the +other at the bottom of the second step. [PLATE LI., Fig. 2.] Except for +these, the whole edifice is perfectly plain. Its present height above +the ground is thirty-six feet, and it may originally have been a foot +or eighteen inches higher, for the top of the roof is worn away. It +measures at the base forty-seven feet by forty-three feet nine inches. + +The tomb stands within a rectangular area, marked out by pillars, the +bases or broken shafts of which are still to be seen. They appear to +have been twenty-four in number; all of them circular and smooth, not +fluted; six pillars occupied each side of the rectangle, and they stood +distant from each other about fourteen feet. It is probable that they +originally supported a colonnade, which skirted internally a small +walled court, within which the tomb was placed. The capitals of the +pillars, if they had any, have wholly disappeared; and the researches +conducted on the spot have failed to discover any trace of them. + +The remainder of the Persian royal sepulchres are rock-tombs, +excavations in the sides of mountains, generally at a considerable +elevation, so placed as to attract the eye of the beholder, while they +are extremely difficult of approach. Of this kind of tomb there are +four in the face of the mountain which bounds the Pulwar Valley on the +north-west, while there are three others in the immediate vicinity of +the Persepolitan platform, two in the mountain which overhangs it, and +one in the rocks a little further to the south. The general shape of +the excavations, as it presents itself to the eye of the spectator, +resembles a Greek cross. [PLATE LII., Fig. 1.] This is divided by +horizontal lines into three portions, the upper one (corresponding with +the topmost limb of the cross) containing a very curious sculptured +representation of the monarch worshipping Ormazd; the middle one, which +comprises the two side limbs, together with the space between them, +being carved architecturally so as to resemble a portico; and the third +compartment (corresponding with the lowest limb of the cross) being left +perfectly plain. In the centre of the middle compartment is sculptured +on the face of the rock the similitude of a doorway, closely resembling +those which still stand on the great platform; that is to say, doubly +recessed, and ornamented at the top with lily-work. The upper portion of +this doorway is filled with the solid rock, smoothed to a flat surface +and crossed by three horizontal bars. The lower portion, to the height +of four or five feet, is cut away; and thus entrance is given to the +actual tomb, which is hollowed out in the rock behind. + + +[Illustration: PLATE LII.] + + +Thus far the rock tombs, are, with scarcely an exception, of the same +type. The excavations, however, behind their ornamental fronts, present +some curious differences. In the simplest case of all, we find, on +entering, an arched chamber, thirteen feet five inches long by seven +feet two inches wide, from which there opens out, opposite to the door +and at the height of about four feet from the ground, a deep horizontal +recess, arched, like the chamber. Near the front of this recess is a +further perpendicular excavation, in length six feet ten inches, in +width three feet three inches, and in depth the same. This was the +actual sarcophagus, and was covered, or intended to be covered, by a +slab of stone. In the deeper part of the recess there is room for two +other such sarcophagi; but in this case they have not been excavated, +one burial only having, it would seem, taken place in this tomb. Other +sepulchres present the same general features, but provide for a much +greater number of interments. In that of Darius Hystaspis the sepulchral +chamber contains three distinct recesses, in each of which are three +sarcophagi, so that the tomb would hold nine bodies. It has, apparently, +been cut originally for a single recess, on the exact plan of the tomb +described above, but has afterwards been elongated towards the left. +[PLATE LIII., Fig. 1.] Two of the tombs show a still more elaborate +ground-plan--one in which curved lines take to some extent the place +of straight ones. [PLATE LII., Fig. 2.] The tombs above the platform of +Persepolis are more richly ornamented than the others, the lintels +and sideposts of the doorways being covered with rosettes, and the +entablature above the cornice bearing a row of lions, facing on either +side towards the centre. [PLATE LIII., Fig. 2.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE LIII.] + + +A curious edifice, belonging probably to the later Achaemenian times, +stands immediately in front of the four royal tombs at Nakhsh-i-Eustam. +This is a square tower, composed of large blocks of marble, cut with +great exactness, and joined together without mortar or cement of +any kind. The building is thirty-six feet high; and each side of it +measures, as near as possible, twenty-four feet. It is ornamented with +pilasters at the corners and with six recessed niches, or false windows, +in three ranks, one over the other, on three out of its four faces. On +the fourth face are two niches only, one over the other; and below +them is a doorway with a cornice. The surface of the walls between the +pilasters is also ornamented with a number of rectangular depressions, +resembling the sunken ends of beams. The doorway, which looks north, +towards the tombs, is not at the bottom of the building, but half-way up +its side, and must have been reached either by a ladder or by a flight +of steps. It leads into a square chamber, twelve feet wide by nearly +eighteen high, extending to the top of the building, and roofed in with +four large slabs of stone, which reach entirely across from side to +side, being rather more than twenty-four feet long, six feet wide, and +from eighteen inches to three feet in thickness. [PLATE LIII., Fig. 3.] +On the top these slabs are so cut that the roof has every way a slight +incline; at their edges they are fashioned between the pilasters, into +a dentated cornice, like that which is seen on the tomb. Externally they +were clamped together in the same careful way which we find to have been +in use both at Persepolis and Parsargadae. The building seems to have +been closed originally by two ponderous stone doors. [PLATE LIV., Fig. +1.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE LIV.] + + +Another remarkable construction, which must belong to a very ancient +period in the history of the country, is a gateway composed of enormous +stones, which forms a portion of the ruins of Istakr. [PLATE LIV., Fig. +2.] It has generally been regarded as one of the old gates of the city; +but its position in the gorge between the town wall and the opposite +mountain, and the fact that it lies directly across the road from +Pasargadae into the plain of Merdasht, seem rather to imply that it was +one of those fortified "gates," which we know to have been maintained by +the Persians, at narrow points along their great routes, for the purpose +of securing them, and stopping the advance of an enemy. On either +side were walls of vast thickness, on the one hand abutting upon the +mountain, on the other probably connected with the wall of the town, +while between them were three massive pillars, once, no doubt, the +supports of a tower, from which the defenders of the gate would engage +its assailants at a great advantage. + +We have now described (so far as our data have rendered it possible) +all the more important of the ancient edifices of the Persians, and +may proceed to consider the next branch of the present inquiry, namely, +their skill in the mimetic arts. Before, however, the subject of their +architecture is wholly dismissed, a few words seem to be required on its +general character and chief peculiarities. + +First, then, the simplicity and regularity of the style are worthy of +remark. In the ground-plans of buildings the straight line only is used; +all the angles are right angles; all the pillars fall into line; the +intervals between pillar and pillar are regular, and generally equal; +doorways are commonly placed opposite intercolumniations; where there is +but one doorway, it is in the middle of the wall which it pierces; where +there are two, they correspond to one another. Correspondence is the +general law. Not only does door correspond to door, and pillar to +pillar, but room to room, window to window, and even niche to niche. +Most of the buildings are so contrived that one half is the exact +duplicate of the other; and where this is not the case, the irregularity +is generally either slight, or the result of an alteration, made +probably for convenience sake. Travellers are impressed with the Grecian +character of what they behold, though there is an almost entire absence +of Greek forms. The regularity is not confined to single buildings, but +extends to the relations of different edifices one to another. The sides +of buildings standing on one platform, at whatever distance they may be, +are parallel. There is, however, less consideration paid than we should +have expected to the exact position, with respect to a main building, +in which a subordinate one shall be placed. Propylaea, for instance, +are not opposite the centre of the edifice to which they conduct, but +slightly on one side of the centre. And generally, excepting in the +parallelism of their sides, buildings seem placed with but slight regard +to neighboring ones. + +For effect, the Persian architecture must have depended, firstly, +upon the harmony that is produced by the observance of regularity and +proportion; and, secondly, upon two main features of the style. These +were the grand sculptured staircases which formed the approaches to all +the principal buildings, and the vast groves of elegant pillars in and +about the great halls. The lesser buildings were probably ugly, except +in front. But such edifices as the Chehl Minar at Persepolis, and its +duplicate at Susa--where long vistas of columns met the eye on every +side, and the great central cluster was supported by lighter detached +groups, combining similarity of form with some variety of ornament, +where richly colored drapings contrasted with the cool gray stone of the +building, and a golden roof overhung a pavement of many hues--must +have been handsome, from whatever side they were contemplated, and for +general richness and harmony of effect may have compared favorably +with any edifices which, up to the time of their construction, had been +erected in any country or by any people. If it may seem to some that +they were wanting in grandeur, on account of their comparatively low +height--a height which, including that of the platform, was probably in +no case much more than a hundred feet--it must be remembered that the +buildings of Greece and (except the Pyramids) those of Egypt, had the +same defect, and that, until the constructive powers of the arch came to +be understood, it was almost impossible to erect a building that should +be at once lofty and elegant. Height, moreover, if the buildings are for +use, implies inconvenience, a waste of time and power being involved +in the ascent and descent of steps. The ancient architects, studying +utility more than effect, preferred spreading out their buildings +to piling them up, and rarely, unless in thickly-peopled towns, even +introduced a second story. + +The spectator, however, was impressed with a sense of grandeur in +another way. The use of huge blocks of stone, not only in platforms, +but in the buildings themselves, in the shafts of pillars, the antae of +porticos, the jambs of doorways, occasionally in roofs, and perhaps in +epistylia, produced the same impression of power, and the same feeling +of personal insignificance in the beholder, which is commonly effected +by great size in the edifice, and particularly by height. The mechanical +skill required to transport and raise into place the largest of these +blocks must have been very considerable, and their employment causes not +merely a blind admiration of those who so built on the part of ignorant +persons, but a profound respect for them on the part of those who are by +their studies and tastes best qualified for pronouncing on the relative +and absolute merits of architectural masterpieces. + +Among the less pleasing peculiarities of the Persian architecture may be +mentioned a general narrowness of doors in proportion to their height, a +want of passages, a thickness of walls, which is architecturally clumsy, +but which would have had certain advantages in such a climate, an +inclination to place the doors of rooms near one corner, an allowance of +two entrances into a great hall from under a single portico, a peculiar +position of propylaea, and the very large employment of pillars in +the interior of buildings. In many of these points, and also in the +architectural use which was made of sculpture, the style of building +resembled, to some extent, that of Assyria; the propylaea, however, were +less Assyrian than Egyptian; while in the main and best features of the +architecture, it was (so far as we can tell) original. The solid and +handsome stone platforms, the noble staircases, and the profusion of +light and elegant stone columns, which formed the true glory of +the architecture--being the features on which its effect chiefly +depended--have nowhere been discovered in Assyria; and all the +evidence is against their existence. The Arians found in Mesopotamia an +architecture of which the pillar was scarcely an element at all--which +was fragile and unenduring--and which depended for its effect on a +lavish display of partially colored sculpture and more richly tinted +enamelled brick. Instead of imitating this, they elaborated for +themselves, from the wooden buildings of their own mountain homes, a +style almost exactly the reverse of that with which their victories had +brought them into contact. Adopting, of main features, nothing but the +platform, they imparted even to this a new character, by substituting +in its construction the best for the worst of materials, and by further +giving to these stone structures a massive solidity, from the employment +of huge, blocks, which made them stand in the strongest possible +contrast to the frail and perishable mounds of Babylonia and Assyria. +Having secured in this way a firm and enduring basis, they proceeded to +erect upon it buildings where the perpendicular line was primary and the +horizontal secondary--buildings of almost, the same solid and massive +character as the platform itself--forests of light but strong columns, +supporting a wide-spreading roof, sometimes open to the air, sometimes +enclosed by walls, according as they were designed for summer or winter +use, or for greater or less privacy. To edifices of this character +elaborate ornamentation was unnecessary; for the beauty of the column is +such that nothing more is needed to set off a building. Sculpture +would thus be dispensed with, or reserved for mere occasional use, and +employed not so much on the palace itself as on its outer approaches; +while brick enamelling could well be rejected altogether, as too poor +and fragile a decoration for buildings of such strength and solidity. + +The origination of this columnar architecture must be ascribed to the +Medes, who, dwelling in or near the more wooden parts of the Zagros +range, constructed, during the period of their empire, edifices of +considerable magnificence, whereof wooden pillars were the principal +feature, the courts being surrounded by colonnades, and the chief +buildings having porticos, the pillars in both cases being of wood. A +wooden roof rested on these supports, protected externally by plates of +metal. We do not know if the pillars had capitals, or if they supported +an entablature; but probability is in favor of both these arrangements +having existed. When the Persians succeeded the Medes in the +sovereignty of Western Asia, they found Arian architecture in this +condition. As stone, however, was the natural material of their country, +which is but scantily wooded and is particularly barren towards the edge +of the great plateau, where their chief towns were situated, and as +they had from the first a strong desire of fame and a love for the +substantial and the enduring, they almost immediately substituted for +the cedar and cypress pillars of the Medes, stone shafts, plain or +fluted, which they carried to a surprising height, and fixed with such +firmness that many of them have resisted the destructive powers of +time, of earthquakes, and of vandalism for more than three-and-twenty +centuries, and still stand erect and nearly as perfect as when they +received the last touch from the sculptor's hand more than 2000 years +ago. It is the glory of the Persians in art to have invented this style, +which they certainly did not learn from the Assyrians, and which +they can scarcely be supposed to have adopted from Egypt, where the +conception of the pillar and its ornamentation were wholly different. +We can scarcely doubt that Greece received from this quarter the impulse +which led to the substitution of the light and elegant forms which +distinguish the architecture of her best period from the rude and clumsy +work of the more ancient times. + +Of the mimetic art of the Persians we do not possess any great amount, +or any great variety, of specimens. The existing remains consist of +reliefs, either executed on the natural rock or on large slabs of hewn +stone used in building, of impressions upon coins, and of a certain +number of intaglios cut upon gems. We possess no Persian statues, no +modelled figures, no metal castings, no carvings in ivory or in wood, no +enamellings, no pottery even. The excavations on Persian sites have been +singularly barren of those minor results which flowed so largely +from the Mosopotamian excavations, and have yielded no traces of the +furniture, domestic implements, or wall-ornamentation of the people; +have produced, in fact, no small objects at all, excepting a few +cylinders and some spear and arrow heads, thus throwing scarcely any +light on the taste or artistic genius of the people. + +The nearest approach to statuary which we meet with among the Persian +remains are the figures of colossal bulls, set to guard portals, +or porticos, which are not indeed sculptures in the round, but are +specimens of exceedingly high relief, and which, being carved in front +as well as along the side, do not fall very far short of statues. Of +such figures, we find two varieties--one representing the real animal, +the other a monster with the body and legs of a bull, the head of a +man, and the wings of an eagle. There is considerable merit in both +representations. They are free from the defect of flatness, or want of +breadth in comparison with the length, which characterizes the similar +figures of Assyrian artists; and they are altogether grand, massive, and +imposing. The general proportions of the bulls are good, the limbs are +accurately drawn, the muscular development is well portrayed, and the +pose of the figure is majestic. Even the monstrous forms of human-headed +bulls have a certain air of quiet dignity, which is not without its +effect on the beholder; and, although implying no great artistic merit, +since they are little more than reproductions of Assyrian models, +indicate an appreciation of some of the best qualities of Assyrian +art--the combination of repose with strength, of great size with the +most careful finish, and of strangeness with the absence of any approach +to grotesqueness or absurdity. The other Persian reliefs may be divided +under four heads: + +(1) Mythological representations of a man--the king apparently--engaged +in combat with a lion, a bull, or a monster; (2) Processions of guards, +courtiers, attendants, or tribute-bearers; (3) Representations of the +monarch walking, seated upon his throne, or employed in the act of +worship; and (4) Representations of lions and bulls, either singly or +engaged in combat. + +On the jambs of doorways in three of the Persepolitan buildings, a human +figure, dressed in the Median robe, but with the sleeve thrown back from +the right arm, is represented in the act of killing either a lion, a +bull, or a grotesque monster. In every case the animal is rampant, and +assails his antagonist with three of his feet, while he stands on the +fourth. The lion and bull have nothing about them that is very peculiar; +but the monsters present most strange and unusual combinations. One +of them has the griffin head, which we have already seen in use in +the capitals of columns, a feathered crest and neck, a bird's wings, +a scorpion's tail, and legs terminating in the claws of an eagle. The +other has an eagle's head, ears like an ass, feathers on the neck, the +breast, and the back, with the body, legs, and tail of a lion. [PLATE +LV., Fig. 1.] Figures of equal grotesqueness, some of which possess +certain resemblances to these, are common in the mythology of Assyria, +and have been already represented in these volumes; but the Persian +specimens are no servile imitations of these earlier forms. The idea of +the Assyrian artist has, indeed, been borrowed; but Persian fancy has +worked it out in its own way, adding, modifying, and subtracting in such +a manner as to give to the form produced a quite peculiar, and (so to +speak) native character. + + +[Illustration: PLATE LV.] + + +Persian gems abound with monstrous forms, of equal, or even superior +grotesqueness. As the Gothic architects indulged their imagination +in the most wonderful combinations to represent evil spirits or the +varieties of vice and sensualism, so the Persian gem-engravers seem +to have allowed their fancy to run riot in the creation of monsters, +representative of the Powers of Darkness or of different kinds of evil, +The stones exhibit the king in conflict with a vast variety of monsters, +some nearly resembling the Persepolitan, while others have strange +shapes unseen elsewhere. Winged lions, with two tails and with the horns +of a ram or an antelope, sphinxes and griffins of half a dozen different +kinds, and various other nondescript creatures, appear upon the Persian +gems and cylinders, furnishing abundant evidence of the quaint and +prolific fancy of the designers. + +The processional subjects represented by the Persian artists are of +three kinds. In the simplest and least interesting the royal guards, or +the officers of the court, are represented in one or more lines of very +similar figures, either moving in one direction, or standing in two +bodies, one facing the other, in the attitude of quiet expectation. In +these subjects there is a great sameness, and a very small amount of +merit. The proportion of the forms is, indeed, fairly good, the heads +and hands are well drawn, and there is some grace in certain of +the figures, but the general effect is tame and somewhat heavy; the +attitudes are stiff, and present little variety, while, nevertheless, +they are sometimes impossible; there is a monotonous repetition of +identically the same figure, which is tiresome, and a want of grouping +which is very inartistic. If Persia had produced nothing better than +this in sculpture, she would have had to be placed not only behind +Assyria, but behind Egypt, as far as the sculptor's art is concerned. + +Processional scenes of a more attractive character are, however, +tolerably frequent. Some exhibit to us the royal purveyors arriving at +the palace with their train of attendants, and bringing with them the +provisions required for the table of the monarch. Here we have some +varieties of costume which are curious, and some representations +of Persian utensils, which are not without a certain interest. +Occasionally, too, we are presented with animal forms, as kids, which +have considerable merit. + +But by far the most interesting of the processional scenes, are those +which represent the conquered nations bringing to the monarch those +precious products of their several countries which the Lord of Asia +expected to receive annually, as a sort of free gift from his subjects, +in addition to the fixed tribute which was exacted from them. Here we +have a wonderful variety of costume and equipment, a happy admixture of +animal with human forms, horses, asses, chariots, sheep, cattle, camels, +interspersed among men, and the whole divided into groups by means of +cypress-trees, which break the series into portions, and allow the eye +to rest in succession upon a number of distinct pictures. Processions of +this kind occurred on several of the Persepolitan staircases; but by far +the most elaborate and complete is that on the grand steps in front of +the Chehl Minar, or Great Hall of Audience, where we see above twenty +such groups of figures, each with it own peculiar features, and all +finished with the utmost care and delicacy. The illustration [PLATE LV., +Fig. 2], which is taken from a photograph, will give a tolerable idea +of the general character of this relief; it shows the greater portion of +six groups, whereof two are much injured by the fall of the parapet-wall +on which they were represented, while the remaining four are in good +preservation. It will be noticed that the animal forms--the Bactrian +camel and the humped ox--are superior to the human, and have +considerable positive merit as works of art. This relative superiority +is observable throughout the entire series, which contains, besides +several horses (some of which have been already represented in these +volumes), a lioness, an excellent figure of the wild ass, and two +tolerably well-drawn sheep. [PLATE LVI., Fig. 2 and 3.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE LVI.] + + +The representations of the monarch upon the reliefs are of three kinds. +In the simplest, he is on foot, attended by the parasol-bearer and +the napkin-bearer, or by the latter only, apparently in the act of +proceeding from one part of the palace to another. In the more elaborate +he is either seated on an elevated throne, which is generally supported +by numerous caryatid figures, or he stands on a platform similarly +upheld, in the act of worship before an altar. This latter is the +universal representation upon tombs, while the throne scenes are +reserved for palaces. In both representations the supporting figures +are numerous; and it is here chiefly that we notice varieties of +physiognomy, which are evidently intended to recall the differences +in the physical type of the several races by which the Empire was +inhabited. In one case, we have a negro very well portrayed; in others +we trace the features of Scyths or Tatars. It is manifest that the +artist has not been content to mark the nationality of the different +figures by costume alone, but has aimed at reproducing upon the stone +the physiognomic peculiarities of each race. + +The purely animal representations which the bas-reliefs bring before us +are few in number, and have little variety of type. The most curious and +the most artistic is one which is several times repeated at Persepolis, +where it forms the usual ornamentation of the triangular spaces on the +facades of stairs. This is a representation of a combat between a lion +and a bull, or (perhaps, we should rather say) a representation of a +lion seizing and devouring a bull; for the latter animal is evidently +powerless to offer any resistance to the fierce beast which has sprung +upon him from behind, and has fixed both fangs and claws in his body. +[PLATE LVI., Fig. 4.] In his agony the bull rears up his fore-parts, and +turns his head feebly towards his assailant, whose strong limbs and jaws +have too firm a hold to be dislodged by such struggles as his unhappy +victim is capable of making. In no Assyrian drawing is the massiveness +and strength of the king of beasts more powerfully rendered than in +this favorite group, which the Persian sculptors repeated without the +slightest change from generation to generation. The contour of the lion, +his vast muscular development, and his fierce countenance are really +admirable, and the bold presentation of the face in full, instead of in +profile, is beyond the ordinary powers of Oriental artists. + +Drawings of bulls and lions in rows, where each animal is the exact +counterpart of all the others, are found upon the friezes of some of the +tombs, and upon the representations of canopies over the royal throne. +These drawings are fairly spirited, but have not any extraordinary +merit. They reproduce forms well known in Assyria. A figure of a sitting +lion seems also to have been introduced occasionally on the facades of +staircases, occurring in the central compartment of the parapet-wall at +top. These figures, in no case, remain complete; but enough is left +to show distinctly what the attitude was, and this appears not to have +resembled very closely any common Assyrian type. [PLATE LVII., Fig. 1.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE LVII.] + + +The Persian gem-engravings have considerable merit, and need not fear a +comparison with those of any other Oriental nation. They occur upon +hard stones of many different kinds, as cornelian, onyx, rock-crystal, +sapphirine, sardonyx, chalcedony, etc., and are executed for the most +part with great skill and delicacy. The designs which they embody are in +general of a mythological character; but sometimes scenes of real life +occur upon them, and then the drawing is often good, and almost +always spirited. In proof of this, the reader may be referred to the +hunting-scenes already given, which are derived wholly from this source, +as well as to the gems figured [PLATE LVI., Fig. 3], one of which is +certainly, and the other almost certainly, of Persian workmanship. In +the former we see the king, not struggling with a mythological lion but +engaged apparently in the actual chase of the king of beasts Two lions +have been roused from their lairs, and the monarch hastily places an +arrow on the string, anxious to despatch one of his foes before the +other can come to close quarters The eagerness of the hunter and the +spirit and boldness of the animals are well represented. In the other +gem, while there is less of artistic excellence, we have a scene of +peculiar interest placed before us. A combat between two Persians and +two Cythians seems to be represented. The latter marked by their peaked +cap and their loose trousers, fight with the bow and the battle-axe, +the former with the bow and the sword One Scyth is receiving his +death-wound, the other is about to let loose a shaft, but seems at the +same time half inclined to fly The steady confidence of the warriors +on the one side contrasts well with the timidity and hesitancy of their +weaker and smaller rivals. [PLATE LVII., Fig. 3.] + +The vegetable forms represented on the gems are sometimes graceful +and pleasing. This is especially the case with palm-trees, a favorite +subject of the artists, who delineated with remarkable success the +feathery leaves, the pendant fruit and the rough bark of the +stem. [PLATE LVIII., Fig 1.] The lion-hunter represented on the +signet-cylinder of Darius Hystaspis takes place in a palm-grove, and +furnishes the accompanying example of this form of vegetable life. + + +[Illustration: PLATE LVIII.] + + +One gem, ascribed on somewhat doubtful grounds to the Persians of +Achaemenian times, contains what appears to be a portrait. It is thought +to be the bust of a satrap of Salamis in Cyprus, and is very carefully +executed. If really of Persian workmanship, it would indicate a +considerable advance in the power of representing the human countenance +between the time of Darius Hystaspis and that of Alexander [PLATE LVII. +Fig. 2.] + +Persian coins are of three principal types. The earliest have on the one +side the figure of a monarch bearing the diadem and armed with the bow +and javelin, while on the other there is an irregular indentation of the +same nature with the _quadratum incusum_ of the Greeks. This rude form +is replaced in later times by a second design, which is sometimes a +horseman, sometimes the forepart of a ship, sometimes the king drawing +an an arrow from his quiver. Another type exhibits on the obverse the +monarch in combat with a lion while the reverse shows a galley, or a +towered and battlemented city with two lions standing below it, back to +back. The third common type has on the obverse the king in his chariot, +with his charioteer in front of him, and (generally) an attendant +carrying a fly-chaser behind. The reverse has either the trireme or the +battlemented city. A specimen of each type is given. [PLATE LVII., Fig. +4.] + +The artistic merit of these medals is not great. The relief is low, +and the drawing generally somewhat rude. The head of the monarch in the +early coins is greatly too large. The animal forms are, however, much +superior to the human, and the horses which draw the royal chariot, the +lions placed below the battlemented city, and the bulls which are found +occasionally in the same position, must be pronounced truthful and +spirited. + +Of the Persian taste in furniture, utensils, personal ornaments and the +like, we need say but little. The throne and footstool of the monarch +are the only pieces of furniture represented in the sculptures, +and these, though sufficiently elegant in their forms, are not very +remarkable. Costliness of material seems to have been more prized than +beauty of shape; and variety appears to have been carefully eschewed, +one single uniform type of each article occurring in all the +representations. The utensils represented are likewise few in number, +and limited to certain constantly repeated forms. The most elaborate is +the censer, which has been already given. With this is usually seen +a sort of pail or basket, shaped like a lady's reticule, in which the +aromatic gums for burning were probably kept. [PLATE LVIII., Fig. 5.] +A covered dish, and a goblet with an inverted saucer over it, are also +forms of frequent occurrence in the hands of the royal attendants; and +the tribute-bearers frequently carry, among their other offerings, bowls +or basons, which, though not of Persian manufacture, were no doubt left +at the court, and took their place among the utensils of the palace. +[PLATE LVIII., Figs. 2 and 3.] + +In the matter of personal ornaments the taste of the Persians seems to +have been peculiarly simple. Earrings were commonly plain rings of gold; +bracelets mere bands of the same metal. Collars were circlets of gold +twisted in a very inartificial fashion. There was nothing artistic +in the sheaths or hilts of swords, though spear-shafts were sometimes +adorned with the representation of an apple or a pomegranate. Dresses +seem not to have been often patterned, but to have depended generally +for their effect on make and color. In all these respects we observe +a remarkable contrast between the Arian and the Semitic races, +extreme simplicity characterizing the one, while the most elaborate +ornamentation was affected by the other. + +Persia was not celebrated in antiquity for the production of any special +fabrics. The arts of weaving and dyeing were undoubtedly practised in +the dominant country, as well as in most of the subject provinces, and +the Persian dyes seem even to have had a certain reputation; but none +of the productions of their looms acquired a name among foreign nations. +Their skill, indeed, in the mechanical arts generally was, it is +probable, not more than moderate. It was their boast that they were +soldiers, and had won a position by their good swords which gave them +the command of all that was most exquisite and admirable, whether in the +natural world or among the products of human industry. So long as the +carpets of Babylon and Sardis, the shawls of Kashmir and India, the fine +linen of Borsippa and Egypt, the ornamental metal-work of Greece, +the coverlets of Damascus, the muslins of Babylonia, the multiform +manufactures of the Phoenician towns, poured continually into Persia +Proper in the way of tribute, gifts, or merchandise, it was needless for +the native population to engage largely in industrial enterprise. + +To science the ancient Persians contributed absolutely nothing. The +genius of the nation was adverse to that patient study and those +laborious investigations from which alone scientific progress ensues. +Too light and frivolous, too vivacious, too sensuous for such pursuits, +they left them to the patient Babylonians, and the thoughtful, many-sided +Greeks. The schools of Orchoe, Borsippa, and Miletus flourished under +their sway, but without provoking their emulation, possibly without so +much as attracting their attention. From first to last, from the dawn +to the final close of their power, they abstained wholly from scientific +studies. It would seem that they thought it enough to place before the +world, as signs of their intellectual vigor, the fabric of their Empire +and the buildings of Susa and Persepolis. + + + + +CHAPTER VI. RELIGION. + + +The original form of the Persian religion has been already described +under the head of the third or Median monarchy. It was identical with +the religion of the Medes in its early shape, consisting mainly in +the worship of Ahura-Mazda, the acknowledgment of a principle of +evil--Angro-Mainyus, and obedience to the precepts of Zoroaster. When +the Medes, on establishing a wide-spread Empire, chiefly over races by +whom Magism had been long professed, allowed the creed of their subjects +to corrupt their own belief, accepted the Magi for their priests, and +formed the mixed religious system of which an account has been given in +the second volume of this work, the Persians in their wilder country, +less exposed to corrupting influences, maintained their original faith +in undiminished purity, and continued faithful to their primitive +traditions. The political dependence of their country upon Media during +the period of the Median sway made no difference in this respect; for +the Medes were tolerant, and did not seek to interfere with the creed of +their subjects. The simple Zoroastrian belief and worship, overlaid by +Magism in the now luxurious Media, found a refuge in the rugged Persian +uplands, among the hardy shepherds and cultivators of that unattractive +region, was professed by the early Achaemenian princes, and generally +acquiesced in by the people. + +The main feature of the religion daring this first period was the +acknowledgment and the worship of a single supreme God--"the Lord God of +Heaven"--"the giver (i.e. maker) of heaven and earth"--the disposer of +thrones, the dispenser of happiness. The foremost place in inscriptions +and decrees was assigned, almost universally, to the "great god, +Ormazd." Every king, of whom we have an inscription more than two lines +in length, speaks of Ormazd as his upholder; and the early monarchs +mention by name no other god. All rule "by the grace of Ormazd." From +Ormazd come victory, conquest, safety, prosperity, blessings of every +kind. The "law of Ormazd" is the rule of life. The protection of Ormazd +is the one priceless blessing for which prayer is perpetually offered. + +While, however, Ormazd holds this exalted and unapproachable position, +there is still an acknowledgment made, in a general way, of "other +gods." Ormazd is "the greatest of the gods" (_mathista baganam_). It is +a usual prayer to ask for the protection of Ormazd, together with that +of these lesser powers (_hada bagaibish_). Sometimes the phrase is +varied, and the petition is for the special protection of a certain +class of Deities--the _Dii familiares_--or "deities who guard the +house." + +The worship of Mithra, or the Sun, does not appear in the inscriptions +until the reign of Artaxerxes Mnemon, the victor of Cunaxa. It is, +however, impossible to doubt that it was a portion of the Persian +religion, at least as early as the date of Herodotus. Probably it +belongs, in a certain sense, to primitive Zoroastrianism, but was kept +in the background during the early period, when a less materialistic +worship prevailed than suited the temper of later times. + +Nor can it be doubted that the Persians held during this early period +that Dualistic belief which has been the distinguishing feature of +Zoroastrianism from a time long anterior to the commencement of the +Median Empire down to the present day. It was not to be expected +that this belief would show itself in the inscriptions, unless in the +faintest manner; and it can therefore excite no surprise that they are +silent, or all but silent, on the point in question. Nor need we wonder +that this portion of their creed was not divulged by the Persians to +Herodotus or to Xenophon, since it is exactly the sort of subject on +which reticence was natural and might have been anticipated. Neither the +lively Halicarnassian, nor the pleasant but somewhat shallow Athenian, +had the gift of penetrating very deeply into the inner mind of a +foreign people; added to which, it is to be remembered that they were +unacquainted with Persia Proper, and drew their knowledge of Persian +opinions and customs either from hearsay or from the creed and practices +of the probably mixed garrisons which held Asia Minor, Syria, and Egypt. + +Persian worship, in these early times, was doubtless that enjoined by +the Zendavesta, comprising prayer and thanksgiving to Ormazd and the +good spirits of his creation, the recitation of Gathas or hymns, the +performance of sacrifice, and participation in the Soma ceremony. +Worship seems to have taken place in temples, which are mentioned +(according to the belief of most cuneiform scholars) in the Behistun +inscription. Of the character of these buildings we can say nothing. +It has been thought that those two massive square towers so similar in +construction, which exist in a more or less ruined condition at Murgab +and Nakhsh-i-Rustam, are Persian temples of the early period, built to +contain an altar on which the priests offered victims. But the absence +of any trace of an altar from both, the total want of religious emblems, +and the extremely small size of the single apartment which each tower +contains, make strongly against the temple theory; not to mention that a +much more probable use may be suggested for the buildings. + +With respect to the altars upon which sacrifice was offered, we are not +left wholly without evidence. The Persian monarchs of the early period, +including Darius Hystaspis, represented themselves on their tombs in the +act of worship. Before them, at the distance of a few feet, stands an +altar, elevated on three steps, and crowned with the sacrificial fire. +Its form is square, and its only ornaments are a sunken squared recess, +and a strongly projecting cornice at top. The height of the altar, +including the steps, was apparently about four and a half feet. [PLATE +LVIII., Fig. 4.] + +The Persians' favorite victim was the horse; but they likewise +sacrificed cattle, sheep, and goats. Human sacrifices seem to have been +almost, if not altogether, unknown to them, and were certainly alien to +the entire spirit of the Zoroastrian system. The flesh of the victim was +probably merely shown to the sacred fire, after which it was eaten by +the priests, the sacrificer, and those whom the latter associated with +himself in the ceremony. + +The spirit of the Zendavesta is wholly averse to idolatry, and we may +fully accept the statement of Herodotus that images of the gods were +entirely unknown to the Persians. Still, they did not deny themselves a +certain use of symbolic representations of their deities, nor did +they even scruple to adopt from idolatrous nations the forms of their +religious symbolism. The winged circle, with or without the addition of +a human figure, which was in Assyria the emblem of the chief Assyrian +deity, Asshur, became with the Persians the ordinary representation of +the Supreme God, Ormazd, and, as such, was placed in most conspicuous +positions on their rock tombs and on their buildings. [PLATE LVIII., +Fig. 7.] Nor was the general idea only of the emblem adopted, but all +the details of the Assyrian model were followed, with one exception. The +human figure of the Assyrian original wore the close-fitting tunic, with +short sleeves, which was the ordinary costume in Assyria, and had on +its head the horned cap which marked a god or a genius. In the Persian +counterpart this costume was exchanged for the Median robe, and a tiara, +which was sometimes that proper to the king,23 sometimes that worn with +the Median robe by court officers. [PLATE LVIII., Fig. 7.] + +Mithra, or the Sun, is represented in Persian sculptures by a disk or +orb, which is not four-rayed like the Assyrian, but perfectly plain +and simple. In sculptures where the emblems of Ormazd and Mithra occur +together, the position of the former is central, that of the latter +towards the right hand of the tablet. The solar emblem is universal on +sculptured tombs, but is otherwise of rare occurrence. + +Spirits of good and evil, the Ahuras and Devas of the mythology, were +represented by the Persians under human, animal, or monstrous forms. +There can be little doubt that it is a good genius--perhaps the +"well-formed, swift, tall Serosh"--who appears on one of the square +pillars set up by Cyrus at Pasargadae. This figure is that of a colossal +man, from whose shoulders issue four wings, two of which spread upwards +above his head, while the other two droop and reach nearly to his feet. +[PLATE LIX.] It stands erect, in profile, with both arms raised and the +hands open. The costume of the figure is remarkable. It consists of a +long fringed robe reaching from the neck to the ankles--apparently of +a stiff material, which conceals the form--and of a very singular +head-dress. This is a striped cap, closely fitting the head, +overshadowed by an elaborate ornament, of a character purely Egyptian. +First there rise from the top of the cap two twisted horns, which, +spreading right and left, become a sort of basis for the other forms to +rest upon. These consist of two grotesque human-headed figures, one at +either side, and of a complex triple ornament between them, clumsily +imitated from a far more elegant Egyptian model. [PLATE LX., Fig. 1.] + + +[Illustration: PLATE LIX.] + + +The winged human-headed bulls, which the Persians adopted from the +Assyrians, with very slight modifications, were also, it is probable, +regarded as emblems of some god or good genius. They would scarcely +otherwise have been represented on Persian cylinders as upholding the +emblem of Ormazd in the same way that human-headed bulls uphold the +similar emblem of Asshur on Assyrian cylinders. [PLATE LX., Fig. 2.] +Their position, too, at Persepolis, where they kept watch over the +entrance to the palace, accords with the notion that they represented +guardian spirits, objects of the favorable regard of the Persians. Yet +this view is not wholly free from difficulty. The bull appears in +the bas-reliefs of Persepolis among the evil, or at any rate hostile, +powers, which the king combats and slays; and though in these +representations the animal is not winged or human-headed, yet on some +cylinders apparently Persian, the monarch contends with bulls of exactly +the same type as that which is assigned in other cylinders to the +upholders of Ormazd. It would seem therefore that in this case the +symbolism was less simple than usual, the bull in certain combinations +and positions representing a god or a good spirit, while in others he +was the type of a deva or evil genius. + + +[[Illustration: PLATE LX.] + + +The most common representatives of the Evil Powers of the mythology +were lions, winged or unwinged, and monsters of several different +descriptions. At Persepolis the lions which the king stabs or strangles +are of the natural shape, and this type is found also upon gems and +cylinders; but on these last the king's antagonist is often a winged, +while sometimes he is a winged and horned, lion. [PLATE LX., Fig. 3.] +The monsters are of two principal types. In both the forms of a bird and +a beast are commingled; but in the one the bird, and in the other the +beast predominates. Specimens are given [PLATE LX., Fig. 4] taken from +Persian gems and cylinders. + +Such seems to have been, in outline, the purer and more ancient form +of the Persian religion. During its continuance a fierce iconoclastic +spirit animated the princes of the Empire, who took every opportunity of +showing their hatred and contempt for the idolatries of the neighboring +nations, burning temples, confiscating or destroying images, scourging +or slaying idolatrous priests, putting a stop to festivals, +disturbing tombs, smiting with the sword animals believed to be divine +incarnations. Within their own dominions the fear of stirring up +religious wars compelled them to be moderately tolerant, unless it +were after rebellion, when a province lay at their mercy; but when they +invaded foreign countries, they were wont to exhibit in the most open +and striking way their aversion to materialistic religions. In Greece, +during the great invasion, they burned every temple that they came near; +in Egypt, on their first attack, they outraged every religious feeling +of the people. + +It was during this time of comparative purity, when the anti-idolatrous +spirit was in full force, that a religious sympathy seems to have drawn +together the two nations of the Persians and the Jews. Cyrus evidently +identified Jehovah with Ormazd, and, accepting as a divine command the +prophecy of Isaiah, undertook to rebuild their temple for a people who, +like his own, allowed no image of God to defile the sanctuary. Darius, +similarly, encouraged the completion of the work, after it had been +interrupted by the troubles which followed the death of Cambyses. The +foundation was thus laid for that friendly intimacy between the two +peoples, of which we have abundant evidence in the books of Ezra, +Nehemiah, and Esther, a friendly intimacy which caused the Jews to +continue faithful to Persia to the last, and to brave the conqueror +of Issus rather than desert masters who had shown them kindness and +sympathy. + +The first trace that we have of a corrupting influence being brought +to bear on the Persian religion is connected with the history of the +pseudo-Smerdis. According to Herodotus, Cambyses, when he set out on +his Egyptian expedition, left a Magus, Patizeithes, at the capital, as +comptroller of the royal household. The conferring of an office of such +importance on the priest of an alien religion is the earliest indication +which we have of a diminution of zeal for their ancestral creed on the +part of the Achaemenian kings, and the earliest historical proof of the +existence of Magism beyond the limits of Media. Magism was really, it +is probable, an older creed than Zoroastrianism in the country where the +Persians were settled; but it now, for the first time since the Persian +conquest, began to show itself, to thrust itself into high places, and +to attract general notice. From being the religion of the old Scythic +tribes whom the Persians had conquered and whom they held in subjection, +it had passed into being the religion of great numbers of the Persians +themselves. The same causes which had corrupted Zoroastrianism in Media +soon after the establishment of the Empire, worked also, though more +slowly, in Persia, and a large section of the nation was probably weaned +from its own belief, and won over to Magism, before Cambyses went +into Egypt. His prolonged absence in that country brought matters to +a crisis. The Magi took advantage of it to attempt a substitution +of Magism for Zoroastrianism as the religion of the state. When +this attempt failed, there was no doubt a reaction for a time, and +Zoroastrianism thought itself triumphant. But a foe is generally most +dangerous when he is despised. Magism, repulsed in its attempt to oust +the rival religion, derived wisdom from the lesson, and thenceforth set +itself to sap the fortress which it could not storm. Little by little +it crept into favor, mingling itself with the old Arian creed, not +displacing it, but only adding to it. In the later Persian system the +Dualism of Zoroaster and the Magian elemental worship were jointly +professed--the Magi were accepted as the national priests--the rights +and ceremonies of the two religions were united--a syncretism not +unusual in the ancient world blended into one two creeds originally +quite separate and distinct, but in few respects antagonistic--and the +name of Zoroaster being still fondly cherished in the memory of the +nation, while in their practical religion Magian rites predominated, +the mixed religion acquired the name, by which it was known to the later +Greeks, of "the Magism of Zoroaster." + +The Magian rites have been described in the chapter on the Median +Religion. Their leading feature was the fire-worship, which is still +cherished among those descendants of the ancient Persians who did +not submit to the religion of Islam. On lofty spots in the high +mountain-chain which traversed both Media and Persia, fire-altars were +erected, on which burnt a perpetual flame, watched constantly lest it +should expire, and believed to have been kindled from heaven. Over the +altar in most instances a shrine or temple was built; and on these +spots day after day the Magi chanted their incantations, displayed +their barsoms or divining-rods, and performed their choicest ceremonies. +Victims were not offered on these fire-altars. When a sacrifice took +place, a fire was laid hard-by with logs of dry wood, stript of their +bark, and this was lighted from the flame which burned on the altar. +On the fire thus kindled was consumed a small part of the fat of the +victim; but the rest was cut into joints, boiled, and eaten or sold +by the worshipper. The true offering, which the god accepted, was, +according to the Magi, the soul of the animal. + +If human victims were ever really offered by the Persians as sacrifices, +it is to Magian influence that the introduction of this horrid practice +must be attributed, since it is utterly opposed to the whole spirit of +Zoroaster's teaching. An instance of the practice is first reported in +the reign of Xerxes, when Magism, which had been sternly repressed by +Darius Hystaspis, began once more to lift its head, crept into favor +at Court, and obtained a status which it never afterwards forfeited. +According to Herodotus, the Persians, on their march into Greece, +sacrificed, at Ennea Hodoi on the Strymon river, nine youths and nine +maidens of the country, by burying them alive. Herodotus seems to have +viewed the act as done in propitiation of a god resembling the Grecian +Pluto; but it is not at all certain that he interpreted it correctly. +Possibly he mistook a vengeance for a religious ceremony. The Brygi, who +dwelt at this time in the vicinity of Ennea Hodoi, had given Mardonius +a severe defeat on a former occasion; and the Persians were apt to +treasure up such wrongs, and visit them, when occasion offered, with +extreme severity. + +When the Persians had once yielded to the syncretic spirit so far as to +unite the Magian tenets and practices with their primitive belief, they +were naturally led on to adopt into their system such portions of the +other religions, with which they were brought into close contact, as +possessed an attraction for them. Before the date of Herodotus they had +borrowed from the Babylonians the worship of a Nature-Goddess, whom the +Greeks identified at one time with Aphrodite, at another with Artemis, +at another (probably) with Here, and had thus made a compromise with one +of the grossest of the idolatries which, theoretically, they despised +and detested. The Babylonian Venus, called in the original dialect of +her native country Nana, was taken into the Pantheon of the Persians, +under the name of Nansea, Anaea, Anaitis, or Tanata, and became in a +little while one of the principal objects of Persian worship. At first +idolatry, in the literal sense, was avoided; but Artaxerxes Mnemon, the +conqueror of Cunaxa, an ardent devotee of the goddess, not content with +the mutilated worship which he found established, resolved to show his +zeal by introducing into all the chief cities of the Empire the image +of his patroness. At Susa, at Persepolis, at Babylon, at Ecbatana, at +Damascus, at Sardis, at Bactra, images of Anaitis were set up by his +authority for the adoration of worshippers. It is to be feared that at +this time, if not before, the lascivious rites were also adopted, which +throughout the East constituted the chief attraction of the cult of +Venus. + +With the idolatry thus introduced, another came soon to be joined. +Mithra, so long an object of reverence, if not of actual worship, to +the Zoroastrians, was in the reign of Artaxerxes Mnemon, honored, like +Anaitis, with a statue, and advanced into the foremost rank of deities. +The exact form which the image took is uncertain; but probability is in +favor of the well-known type of a human figure slaying a prostrate bull, +which was to the Greeks and Romans the essential symbol of the Mithraic +worship. The intention of this oft-repeated group has been well +explained by Hyde, who regards it as a representation of the Sun +quitting the constellation of Taurus, the time when in the East his +fructifying power is the greatest. The specimens which we possess of +this group belong to classical art and to times later than Alexander; +but we can scarcely suppose the idea to have been Occidental. The +Western artists would naturally adopt the symbolism of those from whom +they took the rites, merely modifying its expression in accordance with +their own aesthetic notions. + +Towards the close of the Empire two other gods emerged from the +obscurity in which the lower deities of the Zoroastrian system were +shrouded during the earlier and purer period. Vohu-manu, or Bah-man, +and Amerdat, or Amendat, two of the councillors of Ormazd, became the +objects of a worship, which was clearly of an idolatrous character. +Shrines were built in their honor, and were frequented by companies +of Magi, who chanted their incantations, and performed their rites +of divination in these new edifices as willingly as in the old +Fire-temples. The image of Bah-man was of wood, and was borne in +procession on certain occasions. + +Thus as time went on, the Persian religion continually assimilated +itself more and more to the forms of belief and worship which prevailed +in the neighboring parts of Asia. Idolatries of several kinds came +into vogue, some adopted from abroad, others developed out of their +own system. Temples, some of which had a character of extraordinary +magnificence, were erected to the honor of various gods; and the +degenerate descendants of pure Zoroastrian spiritualists bowed down to +images, and entangled themselves in the meshes of a sensualistic and +most debasing Nature-worship. Still, amid whatsoever corruptions, the +Dualistic faith was maintained. The supremacy of Ormazd was from first +to last admitted. Ahriman retained from first to last the same character +and position, neither rising into an object of worship, nor sinking into +a mere personification of evil. The inquiries which Aristotle caused to +be made, towards the very close of the Empire, into the true nature of +the Persian Religion, showed him Ormazd and Ahriman still recognized +as Principles, still standing in the same hostile and antithetical +attitude, one towards the other, which they occupied when the first +Fargard of the Vendidad was written, long anterior to the rise of the +Persian Power. + + + + +CHAPTER VII. CHRONOLOGY AND HISTORY. + + +"I saw the man pushing westward, and northward, and southward; so +that no beast might stand before him, neither was there any that could +deliver out of his hand; but he did according to his will, and became +great."--Daniel, viii. 4. + + +The history of the Persian Empire dates from the conquest of Astyages by +Cyrus, and therefore commences with the year B.C. 558. But the present +inquiry must be carried considerably further back, since in this, as +in most other cases, the Empire grew up out of a previously existing +monarchy. Darius Hystaspis reckons that there had been eight Persians +kings of his race previously to himself; and though it is no doubt +possible that some of the earlier names may be fictitious, yet we can +scarcely suppose that he was deceived, or that he wished to deceive, as +to the fact that long anterior to his own reign, or that of his elder +contemporary, Cyrus, Persia had been a monarchy, governed by a line of +princes of the same clan, or family, with himself. It is our business in +this place, before entering upon the brilliant period of the Empire, to +cast a retrospective glance over the earlier ages of obscurity, and +to collect therefrom such scattered notices as are to be found of the +Persians and their princes or kings before they suddenly attracted +the general attention of the civilized world by their astonishing +achievements under the great Cyrus. + +The more ancient of-the sacred books of the Jews, while distinctly +noticing the nation of the Medes, contain no mention at all of Persia +or the Persians. The Zendavesta, the sacred volume of the people +themselves, is equally silent on the subject. The earliest appearance +of the Persians in history is in the inscriptions of the Assyrian kings, +which begin to notice them about the middle of the ninth century B.C. +At this time Shalmaneser II. found them in south-western Armenia, where +they were in close contact with the Medes, of whom, however, they seem +to have been wholly independent. Like the modern Kurds in this same +region, they owned no subjection to a single head, but were under the +government of numerous petty chieftains, each the lord of a single town +or of a small mountain district. Shalmaneser informs us that he took +tribute from twenty-five such chiefs. Similar tokens of submission were +paid also to his son and grandson. After this the Assyrian records are +silent as to the Persians for nearly a century, and it is not until the +reign of Sennacherib that we once more find them brought into contact +with the power which aspired to be mistress of Asia. At the time of +their reappearance they are no longer in Armenia, but have descended the +line of Zagros and reached the districts which lie north and north-east +of Susiana, or that part of the Bakhtiyari chain which, if it is not +actually within Persia Proper, at any rate immediately adjoins upon it. +Arrived thus far, it was easy for them to occupy the region to which +they have given permanent name; for the Bakhtiyari mountains command it +and give a ready access to its valleys and plains. + +The Persians would thus appear not to have completed their migrations +till near the close of the Assyrian period, and it is probable that +they did not settle into an organized monarchy much before the fall of +Nineveh. At any rate we hear of no Persian ruler of note or name in the +Assyrian records, and the reign of petty chiefs would seem therefore to +have continued at least to the time of Asshur-bani-pal, up to which date +we have ample records. The establishment, however, about the year +B.C. 660, or a little later, of a powerful monarchy in the kindred and +neighboring Media, could not fail to attract attention, and might well +provoke imitation in Persia; and the native tradition appears to have +been that about this time. Persian royalty began in the person of a +certain Achaemenes (Hakhamanish), from whom all their later monarchs, +with one possible exception, were proud to trace their descent. + +The name Achaemenes cannot fail to arouse some suspicion. The Greek +genealogies render us so familiar with heroes eponymi--imaginary +personages, who owe their origin to the mere fact of the existence +of certain tribe or race names, to account for which they were +invented--that whenever, even in the history of other nations, we +happen upon a name professedly personal, which stands evidently in close +connection with a tribal designation, we are apt at once to suspect it +of being fictitious. But in the East tribal and even ethnic names +were certainly sometimes derived from actual persons; and it may be +questioned whether the Persians, or the Iranic stock generally, had the +notion of inventing personal eponyms. The name Achaemenes, therefore, +in spite of its connection with the royal clan name of Achaemenidae, may +stand as perhaps that of a real Persian king, and, if so, as probably +that of the first king, the original founder of the monarchy, who united +the scattered tribes in one, and thus raised Persia into a power of +considerable importance. + +The immediate successor of Achaemenes appears to have been his son, +Teispes. Of him and of the next three monarchs, the information that +we possess is exceedingly scanty. The very names of one or two in the +series are uncertain. One tradition assigns either to the second or the +fourth king of the list the establishment of friendly relations with +a certain Pharnaces, King of Cappadocia, by an intermarriage between a +Persian princess, Atossa, and the Cappadocian monarch. The existence +of communication at this time between petty countries politically +unconnected, and placed at such a distance from one another as +Cappadocia and Persia, is certainly what we should not have expected; +but our knowledge of the general condition of Western Asia at the period +is too slight to justify us in a positive rejection of the story, which +indicates, if it be true, that even during this time of comparative +obscurity, the Persian monarchs were widely known, and that their +alliance was thought a matter of importance. + +The political condition of Persia under these early monarchs is a more +interesting question than either the names of the kings or the foreign +alliances which they attracted. According to Herodotus, that condition +was one of absolute and unqualified subjection to the sway of the Medes, +who conquered Persia and imposed their yoke upon the people before +the year B.C. 634. The native records, however, and the accounts which +Xenophon preferred, represent Persia as being at this time a separate +and powerful state, either wholly independent of Media, or, at any +rate, held in light bonds of little more than nominal dependence. On the +whole, it appears most probable that the true condition of the country +was that which this last phrase expresses. It maybe doubted whether +there had ever been a conquest; but the weaker and less developed of +the two kindred states owned the suzerainty of the stronger, and though +quite unshackled in her internal administration, and perhaps not very +much interfered with in her relations towards foreign countries, was, +formally, a sort of Median fief, standing nearly in the position in +which Egypt now stands to Turkey. The position was irksome to the +sovereigns rather than unpleasant to the people. It detracted from the +dignity of the Persian monarchs, and injured their self-respect; it +probably caused them occasional inconvenience, since from time to time +they would have to pay their court to their suzerain; and it seems +towards the close of the Median period to have involved an obligation +which must have been felt, if not as degrading, at any rate as very +disagreeable. The monarch appears to have been required to send his +eldest son as a sort of hostage to the Court of his superior, where he +was held in a species of honorable captivity, not being allowed to +quit the Court and return home without leave, but being otherwise well +treated. The fidelity of the father was probably supposed to be in this +way secured while it might be hoped that the son would be conciliated, +and made an attached and willing dependent. + +When Persian history first fairly opens upon us in the pages of Xenophon +and of Nicolaus Damascenus, this is the condition of things which we +find existing. Cambyses, the father of Cyrus the Great--called Atradates +by the Syrian writer--is ruler of Persia, and resides in his native +country, while his son Cyrus is permanently, or at any rate usually, +resident at the Median Court, where he is in high favor with the +reigning monarch, Astyages. According to Xenophon, who has here the +support of Herodotus, he is Astyages' grandson, his father, Cambyses, +being married to Mandane, that monarch's daughter. According to +Nicolaus, who in this agrees with Ctesias, he is no way related to +Astyages, who retains him at his court because he is personally attached +to him. In the narrative of the latter writer, which has already been +preferred in these volumes, the young prince, while at the Court, +conceives the idea of freeing his own country by a revolt, and enters +into secret communication with his father for the furtherance of his +object. His father somewhat reluctantly assents, and preparations are +made, which lead to the escape of Cyrus and the commencement of a war +of independence. The details of the struggle, as they are related by +Nicolaus, have been already given. After repeated defeats, the Persians +finally make a stand at Pasargadae, their capital, where in two great +battles they destroy the power of Astyages, who himself remains a +prisoner in the hands of his adversary. + +In the course of the struggle the father of Cyrus had fallen, and its +close, therefore, presented Cyrus himself before the eyes of the Western +Asiatics as the undisputed lord of the great Arian Empire which had +established itself on the ruins of the Semitic. Transfers of sovereignty +are easily made in the East, where independence is little valued, +and each new conqueror is hailed with acclamations from millions. It +mattered nothing to the bulk of Astyages' subjects whether they were +ruled from Ecbatana or Pasargadae, by Median or Persian masters. Fate +had settled that a single lord was to bear sway over the tribes and +nations dwelling between the Persian Gulf and the Euxine; and the +arbitrament of the sword had now decided that this single lord should be +Cyrus. We may readily believe the statement of Nicolaus that the nations +previously subject to the Medes vied with each other in the celerity +and zeal with which they made their submission to the Persian conqueror. +Cyrus succeeded at once to the full inheritance of which he had +dispossessed Astyages, and was recognized as king by all the tribes +between the Halys and the desert of Khorassan. + +He was at this time, if we may trust Dino, exactly forty years of age, +and was thus at that happy period in life when the bodily powers +have not yet begun to decay, while the mental are just reaching their +perfection. Though we may not be able to trust implicitly the details of +the war of independence which have come down to us, yet there can be no +doubt that he had displayed in its course very remarkable courage and +conduct. He had intended, probably, no more than to free his country +from the Median yoke; by the force of circumstances he had been led on +to the destruction of the Median power, and to the establishment of a +Persian Empire in its stead. With empire had come an enormous accession +of wealth. The accumulated stores of ages, the riches of the Ninevite +kings--the "gold," the "silver," and the "pleasant furniture" of those +mighty potentates, of which there was "none end"--together with all the +additions made to these stores by the Median monarchs, had fallen into +his hands, and from comparative poverty he had come per saltum into the +position of one of the wealthiest--if not of the very wealthiest--of +princes. An ordinary Oriental would have been content with such a +result, and have declined to tempt fortune any more. But Cyrus was +no ordinary Oriental. Confident in his own powers, active, not to say +restless, and of an ambition that nothing could satiate, he viewed, +the position which he had won simply as a means of advancing himself to +higher eminence. According to Ctesias, he was scarcely seated upon the +throne, when he led an expedition to the far north-east against the +renowned Bactrians and Sacans; and at any rate, whether this be true or +no--and most probably it is an anticipation of later occurrences--it +is certain that, instead of folding his hands, Cyrus proceeded with +scarcely a pause on a long career of conquest, devoting his whole life +to the carrying out of his plans of aggression, and leaving a portion +of his schemes, which were too extensive for one life to realize, as a +legacy to his successor. The quarter to which he really first turned +his attention seems to have been the north-west. There, in the somewhat +narrow but most fertile tract between the river Halys and the Egean Sea, +was a state which seemed likely to give him trouble--a state which had +successfully resisted all the efforts of the Medes to reduce it, and +which recently, under a warlike prince, had shown a remarkable power +of expansion. An instinct of danger warned the scarce firmly-settled +monarch to fix his eye at once upon Lydia; in the wealthy and successful +Croesus, the Lydian king, he saw one whom dynastic interests might +naturally lead to espouse the quarrel of the conquered Mede, and whose +power and personal qualities rendered him a really formidable rival. + +The Lydian monarch, on his side, did not scruple to challenge a contest. +The long strife which his father had waged with the great Cyaxares +had terminated in a close alliance, cemented by a marriage, which made +Croesus and Astyages brothers. The friendship of the great power of +Western Asia, secured by this union, had set Lydia free to pursue +a policy of self-aggrandizement in her own immediate, neighborhood. +Rapidly, one after another, the kingdoms of Asia Minor had been reduced; +and, excepting the mountain districts of Lycia and Cilicia, all Asia +within the Halys now owned the sway of the Lydian king. Contented with +his successes, and satisfied that the tie of relationship secured him +from attack on the part of the only power which he had need to fear, +Croesus had for some years given himself up to the enjoyment of his +gains and to an ostentatious display of his magnificence. It was a rude +shock to the indolent and self-complacent dreams of a sanguine optimism, +which looked that "to-morrow should be as to-day, only much more +abundant," when tidings came that revolution had raised its head in the +far south-east, and that an energetic prince, in the full vigor of life, +and untrammelled by dynastic ties, had thrust the aged Astyages from +his throne, and girt his own brows with the Imperial diadem. Croesus, +according to the story, was still in deep grief on account of the +untimely death of his eldest son, when the intelligence reached +him. Instantly rousing himself from his despair, he set about his +preparations for the struggle, which his sagacity saw to be inevitable. +After consultation of the oracles of Greece, he allied himself with the +Grecian community, which appeared to him on the whole to be the most +powerful. At the same time he sent ambassadors to Babylon and Memphis, +to the courts of Labynetus and Amasis, with proposals for an alliance +offensive and defensive between the three secondary powers of the +Eastern world against that leading power whose superior strength and +resources were felt to constitute a common danger. His representations +were effectual. The kings of Babylon and Egypt, alive to their own +peril, accepted his proposals; and a joint league was formed between the +three monarchs and the republic of Sparta for the purpose of resisting +the presumed aggressive spirit of the Medo-Persians. + +Cyrus, meanwhile, was not idle. Suspecting that a weak point in his +adversary's harness would be the disaffection of some of his more +recently conquered subjects, he sent emissaries into Asia Minor to sound +the dispositions of the natives. These emissaries particularly addressed +themselves to the Asiatic Greeks, who, coming of a freedom-loving stock, +and having been only very lately subdued, would it was thought, be +likely to catch at an opportunity of shaking off the yoke of their +conqueror. But, reasonable as such hopes must have seemed, they were in +this instance doomed to disappointment. The Ionians, instead of hailing +Cyrus as a liberator, received his overtures with suspicion. They +probably thought that they were sure not to gain, and that they might +possibly lose, by a change of masters. The yoke of Croesus had not, +perhaps, been very oppressive; at any rate it seemed to them preferable +to "bear the ills they had," rather than "fly to others" which might +turn out less tolerable. + +Disappointed in this quarter, the Persian prince directed his efforts to +the concentration of a large army, and its rapid advance into a position +where it would be excellently placed both for defence and attack. The +frontier province of Cappadocia, which was only separated from the +dominions of the Lydian monarch by a stream of moderate size, the +Halys, was a most defensible country, extremely fertile and productive, +abounding in natural fastnesses, and inhabited by a brave and warlike +population. Into this district Cyrus pushed forward his army with all +speed, taking, as it would seem, not the short route through Diarbekr, +Malatiyah, and Gurun, along which the "Royal Road" afterwards ran, +but the more circuitous one by Erzerum, which brought him into Northern +Cappadocia, or Pontus, as it was called by the Romans. Here, in a +district named Pteria, which cannot have been very far from the coast, +he found his adversary, who had crossed the Halys, and taken several +Cappadocian towns, among which was the chief city of the Pterians. +Perceiving that his troops considerably outnumbered those of Crcesus, he +lost no time in giving him battle. The action was fought in the Pterian +country, and was stoutly contested, terminating at nightfall without any +decisive advantage to either party. The next day neither side made any +movement; and Crcesus, concluding from his enemy's inaction that, though +he had not been able to conquer him, he had nothing to fear from +his desire of vengeance or his spirit of enterprise, determined on +a retreat. He laid the blame of his failure, we are told, on the +insufficient number of his troops, and purposed to call for the +contingents of his allies, and renew the war with largely augmented +forces in the ensuing spring. + +Cyrus, on his part, allowed the Lydians to retire unmolested, thus +confirming his adversary in the mistaken estimate which he had formed of +Persian courage and daring. Anticipating the course which Croesus would +adopt under the circumstances, he kept his army well in hand, and, as +soon as the Lydians were clean gone, he crossed the Halys, and marched +straight upon Sardis. Croesus, deeming himself safe from molestation, +had no sooner reached his capital than he had dismissed the bulk of +his troops to their homes for the winter, merely giving them orders to +return in the spring, when he hoped to have received auxiliaries +from Sparta, Babylon, and Egypt. Left thus almost without defence, he +suddenly heard that his audacious foe had followed on his steps, had +ventured into the heart of his dominions, and was but a short distance +from the capital. In this crisis he showed a spirit well worthy of +admiration. Putting himself at the head of such an army of native +Lydians as he could collect at a few hours' notice, he met the advancing +foe in the rich plain a little to the east of Sardis, and gave him +battle immediately. It is possible that even under these disadvantageous +circumstances he might in fair fight have been victorious, for the +Lydian cavalry were at this time excellent, and decidedly superior +to the Persian. But Cyrus, aware of their merits, had recourse to +stratagem, and by forming his camels in front, so frightened the Lydian +horses that they fled from the field. The riders dismounted and fought +on foot, but their gallantry was unavailing. After a prolonged and +bloody combat the Lydian army was defeated, and forced to take refuge +behind the walls of the capital. + +Croesus now in hot haste sent off fresh messengers to his allies, +begging them to come at once to his assistance. He had still a good hope +of maintaining himself till their arrival, for his city was defended +by walls, and was regarded by the natives as impregnable. An attempt to +storm the defences failed; and the siege must have been turned into +a blockade but for an accidental discovery. A Persian soldier had +approached to reconnoitre the citadel on the side where it was strongest +by nature, and therefore guarded with least care, when he observed one +of the garrison descend the rock after his helmet, which had fallen from +his head, pick it up, and return with it. Being an expert climber, he +attempted the track thus pointed out to him, and succeeded in reaching +the summit. Several of his comrades followed in his steps; the citadel +was surprised, and the town taken and plundered. + +Thus fell the greatest city of Asia Minor after a siege of fourteen +days. The Lydian monarch, it is said, narrowly escaped with his life +from the confusion of the sack; but, being fortunately recognized +in time, was made prisoner, and brought before Cyrus. Cyrus at first +treated him with some harshness, but soon relented, and, with that +clemency which was a common characteristic of the earlier Persian kings, +assigned him a territory for his maintenance, and gave him an honorable +position at Court, where he passed at least thirty years, in high favor, +first with Cyrus, and then with Cambyses. Lydia itself was absorbed at +once into the Persian Empire, together with most of its dependencies, +which submitted as soon as the fall of Sardis was known. There still, +however, remained a certain amount of subjugation to be effected. The +Greeks of the coast, who had offended the Great King by their refusal of +his overtures, were not to be allowed to pass quietly into the condition +of tributaries; and there were certain native races in the south-western +corner of Asia Minor which declined to submit without a struggle to +the new conqueror. But these matters were not regarded by Cyrus as +of sufficient importance to require his own personal superintendence. +Having remained at Sardis for a few weeks, during which time he received +an insulting message from Sparta, whereto he made a menacing reply, and +having arranged for the government of the newly-conquered province and +the transmission of its treasures to Ecbatana, he quitted Lydia for +the interior, taking Croesus with him, and proceeded towards the +Median capital. He was bent on prosecuting without delay his schemes +of conquest in other quarters--schemes of a grandeur and a +comprehensiveness unknown to any previous monarch. + +Scarcely, however, was he departed when Sardis became the scene of an +insurrection. Pactyas, a Lydian, who had been entrusted with the duty +of conveying the treasures of Croesus and his more wealthy subjects to +Ecbatana, revolted against Tabalus, the Persian commandant of the town, +and being joined by the native population and numerous mercenaries, +principally Greeks, whom he hired with the treasure that was in his +hands, made himself master of Sardis, and besieged Tabalus in the +citadel. The news reached Cyrus while he was upon his march; but, +estimating the degree of its importance aright, he did not suffer it to +interfere with his plans. He judged it enough to send a general with +a strong body of troops to put down the revolt, and continued his own +journey eastward. Mazares, a Mede, was the officer selected for +the service. On arriving before Sardis, he found that Pactyas had +relinquished his enterprise and fled to the coast, and that the revolt +was consequently at an end. It only remained to exact vengeance. The +rebellious Lydians were disarmed. Pactyas was pursued with unrelenting +hostility, and demanded, in succession, of the Cymaeans, the +Mytilenseans, and the Chians, of whom the last-mentioned surrendered +him. The Greek cities which had furnished Pactyas with auxiliaries were +then attacked, and the inhabitants of the first which fell, Priene, were +one and all sold as slaves. + +Mazares soon afterwards died, and was succeeded by Ha-pagus, another +Mede, who adopted a somewhat milder policy towards the unfortunate +Greeks. Besieging their cities one by one, and taking them by means +of banks or mounds piled up against the walls, he, in some instances, +connived at the inhabitants escaping in their ships, while, in others, +he allowed them to take up the ordinary position of Persian subjects, +liable to tribute and military service, but not otherwise molested. So +little irksome were such terms to the Ionians of this period that even +those who dwelt in the islands off the coast, with the single exception +of the Samians--though they ran no risk of subjugation, since the +Persians did not possess a fleet--accepted voluntarily the same +position, and enrolled themselves among the subjects of Cyrus. + +One Greek continental town alone suffered nothing during this time of +trouble. When Cyrus refused the offers of submission, which reached him +from the Ionian and AEolian Greeks after his capture of Sardis, he made +an exception in favor of Miletus, the most important of all the Grecian +cities in Asia. Prudence, it is probable, rather than clemency, dictated +this course, since to detach from the Grecian cause the most powerful +and influential of the states was the readiest way of weakening the +resistance they would be able to make. Miletus singly had defied the +arms of four successive Lydian kings, and had only succumbed at last +to the efforts of the fifth, Croesus. If her submission had been now +rejected, and she had been obliged to take counsel of her despair, the +struggle between the Greek cities and the Persian generals might have +assumed a different character. + +Still more different might have been the result, if the cities +generally had had the wisdom to follow a piece of advice which the great +philosopher and statesman of the time, Thales, the Milesian, is said +to have given them. Thales suggested that the Ionians should form +themselves into a confederation, to be governed by a congress which +should meet at Teos, the several cities retaining their own laws and +internal independence, but being united for military purposes into a +single community. Judged by the light which later events, the great +Ionian revolt especially, throw upon it, this advice is seen to have +been of the greatest importance. It is difficult to say what check, or +even reverse, the arms of Persia might not have at this time sustained, +if the spirit of Thales had animated his Asiatic countrymen generally; +if the loose Ionic Amphictyony, which in reality left each state in +the hour of danger to its own resources, had been superseded by a +true federal union, and the combined efforts of the thirteen Ionian +communities had been directed to a steady resistance of Persian +aggression and a determined maintenance of their own independence. +Mazares and Harpagus would almost certainly have been baffled, and the +Great King himself would probably have been called off from his eastern +conquests to undertake in person a task which after all he might have +failed to accomplish. + +The fall of the last Ionian town left Harpagus free to turn his +attention to the tribes of the south-west which had not yet made their +submission--the Carians, the Dorian Greeks, the Caunians, and the people +of Lycia. Impressing the services of the newly-conquered Ionians and +AEolians, he marched first against Caria, which offered but a feeble +resistance. The Dorians of the continent, Myndians, Halicarnassians, and +Cnidians. submitted still more tamely, without any struggle at all; but +the Caunians and Lycians showed a different spirit. These tribes, which +were ethnically allied, and of a very peculiar type, had never yet, it +would seem, been subdued by any conqueror. Prizing highly the liberty +they had enjoyed so long, they defended themselves with desperation. +When they were defeated in the field they shut themselves up within +the walls of their chief cities, Caunus and Xanthus, where, finding +resistance impossible, they set fire to the two places with their own +hands, burned their wives, children, slaves, and valuables, and then +sallying forth, sword in hand, fell on the besiegers' lines, and fought +till they were all slain. + +Meanwhile Cyrus was pursuing a career of conquest in the far east. It +was now, according to Herodotus, who is, beyond all question, a better +authority than Ctesias for the reign of Cyrus, that the reduction of the +Bactrians and the Sacans, the chief nations of what is called by moderns +Central Asia, took place. Bactria was a country which enjoyed the +reputation of having been great and glorious at a very early date. In +one of the most ancient portions of the Zendavesta it was celebrated +as "Bahhdi eredhwo-drafsha," or "Bactria" with the lofty banner; and +traditions not wholly to be despised made it the native country of +Zoroaster. There is good reason to believe that, up to the date of +Cyras, it had maintained its independence, or at any rate that it had +been untouched by the great monarchies which for above seven hundred +years had borne sway in the western parts of Asia. Its people were +of the Iranic stock, and retained in their remote and somewhat savage +country the simple and primitive habits of the race. Though their arms +were of indifferent character, they were among the best soldiers to +be found in the East, and always showed themselves a formidable enemy. +According to Ctesias, when Cyrus invaded them, they fought a pitched +battle with his army, in which the victory was with neither party. +They were not, he said, reduced by force of arms at all, but submitted +voluntarily when they found that Cyrus had married a Median princess. +Herodotus, on the contrary, seems to include the Bactrians among the +nations which Cyrus subdued, and probability is strongly in favor of +this view of the matter. So warlike a nation is not likely to have +submitted unless to force; nor is there any ground to believe that a +Median marriage, had Cyrus contracted one, would have made him any the +more acceptable to the Bactrians. + +On the conquest of Bactria followed, we may be tolerably sure, an attack +upon the Sacae. This people, who must certainly have bordered on the +Bactrians, dwelt probably either on the Pamir Steppe, or on the high +plain of Chinese Tartary, east of the Bolar range--the modern districts +of Kashgar and Yarkand. They were reckoned excellent soldiers. They +fought with the bow, the dagger, and the battle-axe, and were equally +formidable on horseback and on foot. In race they were probably Tatars +or Turanians, and their descendants or their congeners are to be seen +in the modern inhabitants of these regions. According to Ctesias, their +women took the field in almost equal numbers with their men; and the +mixed army which resisted Cyrus amounted, including both sexes, to half +a million. The king who commanded them was a certain Amorges, who was +married to a wife called Sparethra. In an engagement with the Persians +he fell into the enemy's hands, whereupon Sparethra put herself at the +head of the Sacan forces, defeated Cyrus, and took so many prisoners +of importance that the Persian monarch was glad to release Amorges in +exchange for them. The Sacse, however, notwithstanding this success, +were reduced, and became subjects and tributaries of Persia. + +Among other countries subdued by Cyrus in this neighborhood, probably +about the same period, may be named Hyrcania, Parthia, Chorasmia, +Sogdiana, Aria (or Herat), Drangiana, Arachosia, Sattagydia, and +Gandaria. The brief epitome which we possess of Ctesias omits to make +any mention of these minor conquests, while Herodotus sums them all +up in a single line; but there is reason to believe that the Cnidian +historian gave a methodized account of their accomplishment, of which +scattered notices have come down to us in various writers. Arrian +relates that there was a city called Cyropolis, situated on the +Jaxartes, a place of great strength defended by very lofty walls, which +had been founded by the Great Cyrus. This city belonged to Sogdiana. +Pliny states that Capisa, the chief city of Capisene, which lay not far +from the upper Indus, was destroyed by Cyrus. This place is probably +Kafshan, a little to the north of Kabul. Several authors tell us that +the Ariaspse, a people of Drangiana, assisted Cyrus with provisions when +he was warring in their neighborhood, and received from him in return a +new name, which the Greeks rendered by "Euergetse"--"Benefactors." The +Ariaspae must have dwelt near the Hamoon, or Lake of Seistan. We have +thus traces of the conqueror's presence in the extreme north on the +Jaxartes, in the extreme east in Affghanistan, and towards the south as +far as Seistan and the Helmend; nor can there be any reasonable doubt +that he overran and reduced to subjection the whole of that vast tract +which lies between the Caspian on the west, the Indus valley and the +desert of Tartary towards the east, the Jaxartes or Sir Deria on the +north, and towards the south the Great Deserts of Seistan and Khorassan. + +More uncertainty attaches to the reduction of the tract lying south +of these deserts. Tradition said that Cyrus had once penetrated into +Gedrosia on an expedition against the Indians, and had lost his entire +army in the waterless and trackless desert; but there is no evidence at +all that he reduced the country. It appears to have been a portion of +the Empire in the reign of Darius Hystaspis, but whether that monarch, +or Cambyses, or the great founder of the Persian power conquered it, +cannot at present be determined. + +The conquest of the vast tract lying between the Caspian and the +Indus, inhabited (as it was) by a numerous, valiant, and freedom-loving +population, may well have occupied Cyrus for thirteen or fourteen years. +Alexander the Great spent in the reduction of this region, after the +inhabitants had in a great measure lost their warlike qualities, as +much as five years, or half the time occupied by his whole series of +conquests. Cyrus could not have ventured on prosecuting his enterprises, +as did the Macedonian prince, continuously and without interruption, +marching straight from one country to another without once revisiting +his capital. He must from time to time have returned to Ecbatana or +Pasargadae; and it is on the whole most probable that, like the Assyrian +monarchs, he marched out from home on a fresh expedition almost every +year. Thus it need cause us no surprise that fourteen years were +consumed in the subjugation of the tribes and nations beyond the Iranic +desert to the north and the north-east, and that it was not till B.C. +539, when he was nearly sixty years of age, that the Persian monarch +felt himself free to turn his attention to the great kingdom of the +south. + +The expedition of Cyrus against Babylon has been described already. +Its success added to the Empire the rich and valuable provinces of +Babylonia, Susiana, Syria, and Palestine, thus augmenting its size by +about 240,000 or 250,000 square miles. Far more important, however, +than this geographical increase was the removal of the last formidable +rival--the complete destruction of a power which represented to the +Asiatics the old Semitic civilization, which with reason claimed to be +the heir and the successor of Assyria, and had a history stretching back +for a space of nearly two thousand years. So long as Babylon, "the +glory of kingdoms," "the praise of the whole earth," retained her +independence, with her vast buildings, her prestige of antiquity, her +wealth, her learning, her ancient and grand religious system, she could +scarcely fail to be in the eyes of her neighbors the first power in the +world, if not in mere strength, yet in honor, dignity, and reputation. +Haughty and contemptuous herself to the very last, she naturally imposed +on men's minds, alike by her past history and her present pretensions; +nor was it possible for the Persian monarch to feel that he stood before +his subjects as indisputably the foremost man upon the earth until he +had humbled in the dust the pride and arrogance of Babylon. But, with +the fall of the Great City, the whole fabric of Semetic greatness was +shattered. Babylon became "an astonishment and a hissing"--all her +prestige vanished--and Persia stepped manifestly into the place, which +Assyria had occupied for so many centuries, of absolute and unrivalled +mistress of Western Asia. + +The fall of Babylon was also the fall of an ancient, widely spread, +and deeply venerated religious system. Not of course, that the religion +suddenly disappeared or ceased to have votaries, but that, from a +dominant system, supported by all the resources of the state, and +enforced by the civil power over a wide extent of territory, it became +simply one of many tolerated beliefs, exposed to frequent rebuffs and +insults, and at all times overshadowed by a new and rival system--the +comparatively pure creed of Zoroastrianism, The conquest of Babylon by +Persia was, practically, if not a death-blow, at least a severe wound, +to that sensuous idol-worship which had for more than twenty centuries +been the almost universal religion in the countries between the +Mediterranean and the Zagros mountain range. The religion never +recovered itself--was never reinstated. It survived, a longer or a +shorter time, in places. To a slight extent it corrupted Zoroastrianism; +but, on the whole, from the date of the fall of Babylon it declined. +"Bel bowed down; Nebo stooped;" "Merodach was broken in pieces." +Judgment was done upon the Babylonian graven images; and the system, of +which they formed a necessary part, having once fallen from its proud +pre-eminence, gradually decayed and vanished. + +Parallel with the decline of the old Semitic idolatry was the advance +of its direct antithesis, pure spiritual Monotheism. The same blow which +laid the Babylonian religion in the dust struck off the fetters from +Judaism. Purified and refined by the precious discipline of adversity, +the Jewish system, which Cyrus, feeling towards it a natural sympathy, +protected, upheld, and replaced in its proper locality, advanced from +this time in influence and importance, leavening little by little the +foul mass of superstition and impurity which came in contact with it. +Proselytism grew more common. The Jews spread themselves wider. The +return from, the captivity, which Cyrus authorized almost immediately +after the capture of Babylon, is the starting point from which we may +trace a gradual enlightenment of the heathen world by the dissemination +of Jewish beliefs and practices--such dissemination being greatly helped +by the high estimation in which the Jewish system was held by the civil +authority, both while the empire of the Persians lasted, and when power +passed to the Macedonians. + +On the fall of Babylon its dependencies seem to have submitted to +the conqueror, with a single exception. Phoenicia, which had never +acquiesced contentedly either in Assyrian or in Babylonian rule, saw, +apparently, in the fresh convulsion that was now shaking the East, an +opportunity for recovering autonomy. It was nearly half a century since +her last struggle to free herself had terminated unsuccessfully. A new +generation had grown up since that time--a generation which had seen +nothing of war, and imperfectly appreciated its perils. Perhaps some +reliance was placed on the countenance and support of Egypt, which, it +must have been felt, would view with satisfaction any obstacle to the +advance of a power wherewith she was sure, sooner or later, to come into +collision. At any rate, it was resolved to make the venture. Phoenicia, +on the destruction of her distant suzerain, quietly resumed her freedom; +abstained from making any act of submission to the conqueror; while, +however, at the same time, she established friendly relations for +commercial purposes with one of the conqueror's vassals, the prince who +had been sent into Palestine to re-establish the Jews at Jerusalem. + +It might have been expected that Cyrus, after his conquest of Babylon, +would have immediately proceeded towards the south-west. The reduction +of Egypt had, according to Herodotus, been embraced in the designs which +he formed fifteen years earlier. The non-submission of Phoenicia +must have been regarded as an act of defiance which deserved signal +chastisement. It has been suspected that the restoration of the Jews was +prompted, at least in part, by political motives, and that Cyrus, when +he re-established them in their country, looked to finding them of use +to him in the attack which he was meditating upon Egypt. At any rate it +is evident that their presence would have facilitated his march through +Palestine, and given him a _point d'appui_, which could not but have +been of value. These considerations make it probable that an Egyptian +expedition would have been determined on, had not circumstances occurred +to prevent it. + +What the exact circumstances were, it is impossible to determine. +According to Herodotus, a sudden desire seized Cyrus to attack the +Massagetae, who bordered his Empire to the north-east. He led his troops +across the Araxes (Jaxartes?), defeated the Massagetae by stratagem in +a great battle, but was afterwards himself defeated and slain, his body +falling into the enemy's hands, who treated it with gross indignity. +According to Ctesias, the people against whom he made his expedition +were the Derbices, a nation bordering upon India, Assisted by Indian +allies, who lent them a number of elephants, this people engaged Cyrus, +and defeated him in a battle, wherein he received a mortal wound. +Reinforced, however, by a body of Sacae, the Persians renewed the +struggle, and gained a complete victory, which was followed by the +submission of the nation. Cyrus, however, died of his wound on the third +day after the first battle. + +This conflict of testimony clouds with uncertainty the entire closing +scene of the life of Cyrus. All that we can lay down as tolerably well +established is, that instead of carrying out his designs against Egypt, +he engaged in hostilities with one of the nations on his north-eastern +frontier, that he conducted the war with less than his usual success, +and in the course of it received a wound of which he died (B.C. 529), +after he had reigned nine-and-twenty years. That his body did not fall +into the enemy's hands appears, however, to be certain from the fact +that it was conveyed into Persia Proper, and buried at Pasargadae. + +It may be suspected that this expedition, which proved so disastrous to +the Persian monarch, was not the mere wanton act which it appears to be +in the pages of our authorities. The nations of the north-east were at +all times turbulent and irritable, with difficulty held in check by the +civilized power that bore rule in the south and west. The expedition +of Cyrus, whether directed against the Massagetae or the Derbices, was +probably intended to strike terror into the barbarians of these regions, +and was analogous to those invasions which were undertaken under the +wisest of the Roman Emperors, across the Rhine and Danube, against +Germans, Goths, and Sarmatae. The object of such inroads was not to +conquer, but to alarm--it was hoped by an imposing display of organized +military force to deter the undisciplined hordes of the prolific North +from venturing across the frontier and carrying desolation through large +tracts of the Empire. Defensive warfare has often an aggressive look. It +may have been solely with the object of protecting his own territories +from attack that Cyrus made his last expedition across the Jaxertes, or +towards the upper Indus. + +The character of Cyrus, as represented to us by the Greeks, is the +most favorable that we possess of any early Oriental monarch. Active, +energetic, brave, fertile in stratagems, he has all the qualities +required to form a successful military chief. He conciliates his people +by friendly and familiar treatment, but declines to spoil them by +yielding to their inclinations when they are adverse to their true +interests. He has a ready humor, which shows itself in smart sayings and +repartees, that take occasionally the favorite Oriental turn of parable +or apologue. He is mild in his treatment of the prisoners that fall into +his hands, and ready to forgive even the heinous crime of rebellion. He +has none of the pride of the ordinary eastern despot, but converses on +terms of equality with those about him. We cannot be surprised that the +Persians, contrasting him with their later monarchs, held his memory +in the highest veneration, and were even led by their affection for +his person to make his type of countenance their standard of physical +beauty. + +The genius of Cyrus was essentially that of a conqueror, not of an +administrator. There is no trace of his having adopted anything like a +uniform system for the government of the provinces which he subdued. +In Lydia he set up a Persian governor, but assigned certain important +functions to a native; in Babylon he gave the entire direction of +affairs into the hands of a Mede, to whom he allowed the title and style +of king; in Judaea he appointed a native, but made him merely "governor" +or "deputy;" in Sacia he maintained as tributary king the monarch who +had resisted his arms. Policy may have dictated the course pursued +in each instance, which may have been suited to the condition of the +several provinces; but the variety allowed was fatal to consolidation, +and the monarchy, as Cyrus left it, had as little cohesion as any of +those by which it was preceded. + +Though originally a rude mountain-chief, Cyrus, after he succeeded to +empire, showed himself quite able to appreciate the dignity and value +of art. In his constructions at Pasargadae he combined massiveness +with elegance, and manifested a taste at once simple and refined. He +ornamented his buildings with reliefs of an ideal character. It is +probably to him that we owe the conception of the light tapering stone +shaft, which is the glory of Persian architecture. If the more massive +of the Persepolitan buildings are to be ascribed to him, we must regard +him as haying fixed the whole plan and arrangement which was afterwards +followed in all Persian palatial edifices. + +In his domestic affairs Cyrus appears to have shown the same moderation +and simplicity which we observe in his general conduct. He married, as +it would seem, one wife only, Cassandane, the daughter of Pharnaspes, +who was a member of the royal family. By her he had issue two sons +and at least three daughters. The sons were Cambyses and Smerdis; +the daughters Atossa, Artystone, and one whose name is unknown to us. +Cassandane died before her husband, and was deeply mourned by him. +Shortly before his own death he took the precaution formally to settle +the succession. Leaving the general inheritance of his vast dominions to +his elder son, Cambyses, he declared it to be his will that the younger +should be entrusted with the actual government of several large and +important provinces. He thought by this plan to secure the well-being of +both the youths, never suspecting that he was in reality consigning +both to untimely ends, and even preparing the way for an extraordinary +revolution. + +The ill effect of the unfortunate arrangement thus made appeared almost +immediately. Cambyses was scarcely settled upon the throne before he +grew jealous of his brother, and ordered him to be privately put to +death. His cruel orders were obeyed, and with so much secrecy that +neither the mode of the death, nor even the fact, was known to more than +a few. Smerdis was generally believed to be still alive; and thus an +opportunity was presented for personation--a form of imposture very +congenial to Orientals, and one which has often had very disastrous +consequences. We shall find in the sequel this opportunity embraced, and +results follow of a most stirring and exciting character. + +It required time, however, to bring to maturity the fruits of the crime +so rashly committed. Cambyses, in the meanwhile, quite unconscious of +danger, turned his attention to military matters, and determined on +endeavoring to complete his father's scheme of conquest by the reduction +of Egypt. Desirous of obtaining a ground of quarrel less antiquated +than the alliance, a quarter of a century earlier, between Amasis and +Croesus, he demanded that a daughter of the Egyptian king should be sent +to him as a secondary wife. Amasis, too timid to refuse, sent a damsel +named Nitetis, who was not his daughter; and she, soon after her +arrival, made Cambyses acquainted with the fraud. A ground of quarrel +was thus secured, which might be put forward when it suited his purpose; +and meanwhile every nerve was being strained to prepare effectually +for the expedition. The difficulty of a war with Egypt lay in her +inaccessibility. She was protected on all sides by seas or deserts; and, +for a successful advance upon her from the direction of Asia, it was +desirable both to obtain a quiet passage for a large army through the +desert of El-Tij, and also to have the support of a powerful fleet in +the Mediterranean. This latter was the paramount consideration. An army +well supplied with camels might carry its provisions and water through +the desert, and might intimidate or overpower the few Arab tribes which +inhabited it; but, unless the command of the sea was gained and the +navigation of the Nile closed, Memphis might successfully resist +attack. Cambyses appears to have perceived with sufficient clearness +the conditions on which victory depended, and to have applied himself at +once to securing them. He made a treaty with the Arab Sheikh who had the +chief influence over the tribes of the desert; and at the same time +he set to work to procure the services of a powerful naval force. By +menaces or negotiations he prevailed upon the Phoenicians to submit +themselves to his yoke, and having thus obtained a fleet superior to +that of Egypt, he commenced hostilities by robbing her of a dependency +which possessed considerable naval strength, in this way still further +increasing the disparity between his own fleet and that of his enemy. +Against the combined ships of Phoenicia, Cyprus, Ionia, and AEolis, +Egypt was powerless, and her fleets seem to have quietly yielded the +command of the sea. Cambyses was thus able to give his army the support +of a naval force, as it marched along the coast, from Carmel probably +to Pelusium; and when, having defeated the Egyptians at the last-named +place, he proceeded against Memphis, he was able to take possession of +the Nile, and to blockade the Egyptian capital both by land and water. + +It appears that four years were consumed by the Persian monarch in his +preparations for his Egyptian expedition. It was not until B.C. 525 that +he entered Egypt at the head of his troops, and fought the great battle +which decided the fate of the country. The struggle was long and bloody. +Psammenitus, who had succeeded his father Amasis, had the services, not +only of his Egyptian subjects, but a large body of mercenaries besides, +Greeks and Carians. These allies were zealous in his cause, and are said +to have given him a horrible proof of their attachment. One of +their body had deserted to the Persians some little time before the +expedition, and was believed to have given important advice to the +invader. He had left his children behind in Egypt; and these his former +comrades now seized, and led out in front of their lines, where they +slew them before their father's eyes, and, having so done, mixed their +blood in a bowl with water and wine, and drank, one and all, of the +mixture. The battle followed immediately after; but, in spite of their +courage and fanaticism, the Egyptian army was completely defeated. +According to Ctesias, fifty thousand fell on the vanquished side, while +the victors lost no more than seven thousand. Psammenitus, after his +defeat, threw himself into Memphis, but, being blockaded by land +and prevented from receiving supplies from the sea, after a stout +resistance, he surrendered. The captive monarch received the respectful +treatment which Persian clemency usually accorded to fallen sovereigns. +Herodotus even goes so far as to intimate that, if he had abstained from +conspiracy, he would probably have been allowed to continue ruler +of Egypt, exchanging, of course, his independent sovereignty for a +delegated kingship held at the pleasure of the Lord of Asia. + +The conquest of Egypt was immediately followed by the submission of the +neighboring tribes. The Libyans of the desert tract which borders the +Nile valley to the west, and even the Greeks of the more remote Barca +and Cyrene, sent gifts to the conqueror and consented to become his +tributaries. But Cambyses placed little value on such petty accessions +to his power. Inheriting the grandeur of view which had characterized +his father, he was no sooner master of Egypt than he conceived the idea +of a magnificent series of conquests in this quarter, whereby he hoped +to become Lord of Africa no less than of Asia, or at any rate to leave +himself without a rival of any importance on the vast continent which +his victorious arms had now opened to him. Apart from Egypt, Africa +possessed but two powers capable, by their political organization and +their military strength, of offering him serious resistance. These were +Ethiopia and Carthage--the one the great power of the South, the equal, +if not even the superior, of Egypt--the other the great power of the +West--remote, little known, but looming larger for, the obscurity in +which she was shrouded, and attractive from her reputed wealth. The +views of Cambyses comprised the reduction of both these powers, and +also the conquest of the oasis of Ammon. As a good Zoroastrian, he was +naturally anxious to exhibit the superiority of Ormazd to all the +"gods of the nations;" and, as the temple of Ammon in the oasis had the +greatest repute of all the African shrines, this design would be best +accomplished by its pillage and destruction. It is probable that he +further looked to the subjugation of all the tribes on the north coast +between the Nile valley and the Carthaginian territory; for he would +undoubtedly have sent an army along the shore to act in concert with his +fleet, had he decided ultimately on making the expedition. An unexpected +obstacle, however, arose to prevent him. The Phoenicians, who formed +the main strength of his navy, declined to take any part in an attack +on Carthage, since the Carthaginians were their colonists, and the +relations between the two people had always been friendly. Cambyses +did not like to force their inclinations, on account of their recent +voluntary submission; and as, without their aid, his navy was manifestly +unequal to the proposed service, he felt obliged to desist from the +undertaking. + +While the Carthaginian scheme was thus nipped in the bud, the +enterprises which Cambyses attempted to carry out led to nothing but +disaster. An army, fifty thousand strong, despatched from Thebes against +Ammon, perished to a man amid the sands of the Libyan desert. A still +more numerous force, led by Cambyses himself towards the Ethiopian +frontier, found itself short of supplies on its march across Nubia, and +was forced to return, without glory, after suffering considerable loss. +It became evident that the abilities of the Persian monarch were +not equal to his ambition--that he insufficiently appreciated the +difficulties and dangers of enterprises--while a fatal obstinacy +prevented him from acknowledging and retrieving an error while retrieval +was possible. The Persians, we may be sure, grew dispirited under such +a leader; and the Egyptians naturally took heart. It seems to have +been shortly after the return of Cambyses from his abortive expedition +against Ethiopia that symptoms of an intention to revolt began to +manifest themselves in Egypt. The priests declared an incarnation of +Apis, and the whole country burst out into rejoicings. It was probably +now that Psammenitus, who had hitherto been kindly treated by his +captor, was detected in treasonable intrigues, condemned to death, and +executed. At the same time, the native officers who had been left in +charge of the city of Memphis were apprehended and capitally punished. +Such stringent measures had all the effect that was expected from them; +they wholly crushed the nascent rebellion; they left, however, behind +them a soreness, felt alike by the conqueror and the conquered, which +prevented the establishment of a good understanding between the Great +King and his new subjects. Cambyses knew that he had been severe, and +that his severity had made him many enemies; he suspected the people, +and still more suspected the priests, their natural leaders; he soon +persuaded himself that policy required in Egypt a departure from the +principles of toleration which were ordinarily observed towards their +subjects by the Persians, and a sustained effort on the part of the +civil power to bring the religion, and its priests, into contempt. +Accordingly, he commenced a serious of acts calculated to have this +effect. He stabbed the sacred calf, believed to be incarnate Apis; he +ordered the body of priests who had the animal in charge to be publicly +scourged; he stopped the Apis festival by making participation in it a +capital offence; he opened the receptacles of the dead, and curiously +examined the bodies contained in them, he intruded himself into the +chief sanctuary at Memphis, and publicly scoffed at the grotesque +image of Phtha; finally, not content with outraging in the same way the +inviolable temple of the Cabeiri, he wound up his insults by ordering +that their images should be burnt. These injuries and indignities +rankled in the minds of the Egyptians, and probably had a large share in +producing that bitter hatred of the Persian yoke which shows itself in +the later history on so many occasions; but for the time the policy was +successful: crushed beneath the iron heel of the conqueror--their faith +in the power of their gods shaken, their spirits cowed, their hopes +shattered--the Egyptian subjects of Cambyses made up their minds to +submission. The Oriental will generally kiss the hand that smites him, +if it only smite hard enough. Egypt became now for a full generation the +obsequious slave of Persia, and gave no more trouble to her subjugator +than the weakest or the most contented of the provinces. + +The work of subjection completed, Cambyses, having been absent from his +capital longer than was at all prudent, prepared to return home. He had +proceeded on his way as far as Syria, when intelligence reached him of +a most unexpected nature. A herald suddenly entered his camp and +proclaimed, in the hearing of the whole army, that Cambyses, son of +Cyrus, had ceased to reign, and that the allegiance of all Persian +subjects was henceforth to be paid to Smerdis, son of Cyrus. At first, +it is said, Cambyses thought that his instrument had played him false, +and that his brother was alive and had actually seized the throne; but +the assurances of the suspected person, and a suggestion which he made, +convinced him of the contrary, and gave him a clue to the real solution +of the mystery. Prexaspes, the nobleman inculpated, knew that the +so-called Smerdis must be an impostor, and suggested his identity with +a certain Magus, whose brother had been intrusted by Cambyses with the +general direction of his household and the care of the palace. He was +probably led to make the suggestion by his knowledge of the resemblance +borne by this person to the murdered prince, which was sufficiently +close to make personation possible. Cambyses was thus enabled to +appreciate the gravity of the crisis, and to consider whether he could +successfully contend with it or no. Apparently, he decided in the +negative. Believing that he could not triumph over the conspiracy +which had decreed his downfall, and unwilling to descend to a private +station--perhaps even uncertain whether his enemies would spare his +life--he resolved to fly to the last refuge of a dethroned king, and +to end all by suicide. Drawing his short sword from its sheath, he gave +himself a wound, of which he died in a few days. + +It is certainly surprising that the king formed this resolution. He +was at the head of an army, returning from an expedition, which, if +not wholly successful, had at any rate added to the empire an important +province. His father's name was a tower of strength; and if he could +only have exposed the imposture that had been practised on them, +he might have counted confidently on rallying the great mass of the +Persians to his cause. How was it that he did not advance on the +capital, and at least strike one blow for empire? No clear and decided +response can be made to this inquiry; but we may indistinctly discern +a number of causes which may have combined to produce in the monarch's +mind the feeling of despondency whereto he gave way. Although he +returned from Egypt a substantial conqueror, his laurel wreath was +tarnished by ill-success; his army, weakened by its losses, and +dispirited by its failures, was out of heart; it had no trust in +his capacity as a commander, and could not be expected to fight with +enthusiasm on his behalf. There is also reason to believe that he was +generally unpopular on account of his haughty and tyrannical temper, +and his contempt of law and usage, where they interfered with the +gratification of his desires. Though we should do wrong to accept as +true all the crimes laid to his charge by the Egyptians, who detested +his memory, we cannot doubt the fact of his incestuous marriage with his +sister, Atossa, which was wholly repugnant to the religious feelings of +his nation. Nor can we well imagine that there was no foundation at +all for the stories of the escape of Croesus, the murder of the son +of Prexaspes, and the execution in Egypt on a trivial charge of twelve +noble Persians. His own people called Cambyses a "despot" or "master," +in contrast with Cyrus, whom they regarded as a "father," because, as +Herodotus says, he was "harsh and reckless," whereas his father was +mild and beneficent. Further, there was the religious aspect of the +revolution, which had taken place, in the background. Cambyses may have +known that in the ranks of his army there was much sympathy with Magism, +and may have doubted whether, if the whole conspiracy were laid bare, +he could count on anything like a general adhesion of his troops to the +Zoroastrian cause. These various grounds, taken together, go far +towards accounting for a suicide which at first sight strikes us as +extraordinary, and is indeed almost unparalleled. + +Of the general character of Cambyses little more need be said. He +was brave, active, and energetic, like his father: but he lacked his +father's strategic genius, his prudence, and his fertility in resources. +Born in the purple, he was proud and haughty, careless of the feelings +of others, and impatient of admonition or remonstrance. His pride made +him obstinate in error; and his contempt of others led on naturally +to harshness, and perhaps even to cruelty. He is accused of "habitual +drunkenness," and was probably not free from the intemperance which +was a common Persian failing; but there is not sufficient ground for +believing that his indulgence was excessive, much less that it proceeded +to the extent of affecting his reason. The "madness of Cambyses," +reported to and believed in by Herodotus, was a fiction of the Egyptian +priests, who wished it to be thought that their gods had in this way +punished his impiety. The Persians had no such tradition, but merely +regarded him as unduly severe and selfish. A dispassionate consideration +of all the evidence on the subject leads to the conclusion that Cambyses +lived and died in the possession of his reason, having neither destroyed +it through inebriety nor lost it by the judgment of Heaven. + +The death of Cambyses (B.C. 522) left the conspirators, who had +possession of the capital, at liberty to develop their projects, and +to take such steps as they thought best for the consolidation and +perpetuation of their power. The position which they occupied was one +of peculiar delicacy. On the one hand, the impostor had to guard against +acting in any way which would throw suspicion on his being really +Smerdis, the son of Cyrus. On the other, he had to satisfy the Magian +priests, to whom he was well known, and on whom he mainly depended for +support, if his imposture should be detected. These priests must have +desired a change of the national religion, and to effect this must have +been the true aim and object of the revolution. But it was necessary to +proceed with the utmost caution. An open proclamation that Magism was +to supersede Zoroastrianism would have seemed a strange act in an +Achaemenian prince, and could scarcely have failed to arouse doubts +which might easily terminate in discovery. The Magian brothers shrank +from affronting this peril, and resolved, before approaching it, to +obtain for the new government an amount of general popularity which +would make its overthrow in fair fight difficult. Accordingly the new +reign was inaugurated by a general remission of tribute and military +service for the space of three years--a measure which was certain to +give satisfaction to all the tribes and nations of the Empire, except +the Persians. Persia Proper was at all times exempt from tribute, and +was thus, so far, unaffected by the boon granted, while military service +was no doubt popular with the ruling nation, for whose benefit the +various conquests were effected. Still Persia could scarcely take +umbrage at an inactivity which was to last only three years, while +to the rest of the Empire the twofold grace accorded must have been +thoroughly acceptable. + +Further to confirm his uncertain hold upon the throne, the +Pseudo-Smerdis took to wife all the widows of his predecessor. This is +a practice common in the East; and there can be no doubt that it gives a +new monarch a certain prestige in the eyes of his people. In the present +case, however, it involved a danger. The wives of the late king were +likely to be acquainted with the person of the king's brother; Atossa, +at any rate, could not fail to know him intimately. If the Magus allowed +them to associate together freely, according to the ordinary practice, +they would detect his imposture and probably find a way to divulge it. +He therefore introduced a new system into the seraglio. Instead of the +free intercourse one with another which the royal consorts had enjoyed +previously, he established at once the principle of complete isolation. +Each wife was assigned her own portion of the palace; and no visiting +of one wife by another was permitted. Access to them from without was +altogether forbidden, even to their nearest relations; and the wives +were thus cut off wholly from the external world, unless they could +manage to communicate with it by means of secret messages. But +precautions of this kind, though necessary, were in themselves +suspicious; they naturally suggested an inquiry into their cause and +object. It was a possible explanation of them that they proceeded from +an extreme and morbid jealousy; but the thought could not fail to occur +to some that they might be occasioned by the fear of detection. + +However, as time went on, and no discovery was actually made, the Magus +grew bolder, and ventured to commence that reformation of religion which +he and his order had so much at heart. He destroyed the Zoroastrian +temples in various places, and seems to have put down the old worship, +with its hymns in praise of the Zoroastrian deities. He instituted +Magian rites in lieu of the old ceremonies, and established his +brother Magians as the priest-caste of the Persian nation. The changes +introduced were no doubt satisfactory to the Medes, and to many of +the subject races throughout the Empire. They were even agreeable to a +portion of the Persian people, who leant towards a more material worship +and a more gorgeous ceremonial than had contented their ancestors. If +the faithful worshippers of Ormazd saw them with dismay, they were too +timid to resist, and tacitly acquiesced in the religious revolution. + +In one remote province the change gave a fresh impulse to a religious +struggle which was there going on, adding strength to the side of +intolerance. The Jews had now been engaged for fifteen or sixteen years +in the restoration of their temple, according to the permission granted +them by Cyrus. Their enterprise was distasteful to the neighboring +Samaritans, who strained every nerve to prevent its being brought to a +successful issue, and as each new king mounted the Persian throne, +made a fresh effort to have the work stopped by authority. Their +representations had had no effect upon Cambyses; but when they were +repeated on the accession of the Pseudo-Smerdis, the result was +different. An edict was at once sent down to Palestine, reversing the +decree of Cyrus, and authorizing the inhabitants of Samaria to interfere +forcibly in the matter, and compel the Jews to desist from building. +Armed with this decree, the Samaritan authorities hastened to Jerusalem, +and "made the Jews to cease by force and power." + +These revelations of a leaning towards a creed diverse from that of the +Achaemenian princes, combined with the system of seclusion adopted in +the palace--a system not limited to the seraglio, but extending also +to the person of the monarch, who neither quitted the palace precincts +himself, nor allowed any of the Persian nobles to enter them--must have +turned the suspicions previously existing into a general belief and +conviction that the monarch seated on the throne was not Smerdis the son +of Cyrus, but an impostor. Yet still there was for a while no outbreak. +It mattered nothing to the provincials who ruled them, provided that +order was maintained, and that the boons granted them at the opening of +the new reign were not revoked or modified. Their wishes were no doubt +in favor of the prince who had remitted their burthens; and in Media a +peculiar sympathy would exist towards one who had exalted Magism. Such +discontent as was felt would be confined to Persia, or to Persia and a +few provinces of the north-east, where the Zoroastrian faith may have +maintained itself. + +At last, among the chief Persians, rumors began to arise. These were +sternly repressed at the outset, and a reign of terror was established, +during which men remained silent through fear. But at length some of +the principal nobles, convinced of the imposture, held secret council +together, and discussed the measures proper to be adopted under the +circumstances. Nothing, however, was done until the arrival at the +capital of a personage felt by all to be the proper leader of the nation +in the existing crisis. This was Darius, the son of Hystaspes, a +prince of the blood royal who probably stood in the direct line of the +succession, failing the issue of Cyrus. At the early age of twenty he +had attracted the attention of that monarch, who suspected him even then +of a design to seize the throne. He was now about twenty-eight years +of age, and therefore at a time of life suited for vigorous enterprise; +which was probably the reason why his father, Hystaspes, who was still +alive, sent him to the capital, instead of proceeding thither in person. +Youth and vigor were necessary qualifications for success in a struggle +against the holders of power; and Hystaspes no longer possessed those +advantages. He therefore yielded to his son that headship of the +movement to which his position would have entitled him; and, with the +leadership in danger, he yielded necessarily his claim to the first +place, when the time of peril should be past and the rewards of victory +should come to be apportioned. + +Darius, on his arrival at the capital, was at once accepted as head of +the conspiracy, and with prudent boldness determined on pushing matters +to an immediate decision. Overruling the timidity of a party among the +conspirators, who urged delay, he armed his partisans, and proceeded, +without a moment's pause, to the attack. According to the Greek +historians, he and his friends entered the palace in a body, and +surprised the Magus in his private apartments, where they slew him +after a brief struggle. But the authority of Darius discredits the Greek +accounts, and shows us, though with provoking brevity, that the course +of events must have been very different. The Magus was not slain in the +privacy of his palace, at Susa or Ecbatana, but met his death in a small +and insignificant fort in the part of Media called "the Maesan plain," +or, more briefly, "Nisaea," whither he appears to have fled with a band +of followers. Whether he was first attacked in the capital, and escaping +threw himself into this stronghold, or receiving timely warning of his +danger withdrew to it before the outbreak occurred, or merely happened +to be at the spot when the conspirators decided to make their attempt, +we have no means of determining. We only know that the scene of the +last struggle was Sictachotes, in Media; that Darius made the attack +accompanied by six Persian nobles of high rank; and that the contest +terminated in the slaughter of the Magus and of a number of his +adherents, who were involved in the fall of their master. + +Nor did the vengeance of the successful conspirators stop here. +Speeding to the capital, with the head of the Magus in their hands, and +exhibiting everywhere this proof at once of the death of the late king +and of his imposture, they proceeded to authorize and aid in carrying +out, a general massacre of the Magian priests, the abettors of the later +usurpation. Every Magus who could be found was poniarded by the enraged +Persians; and the caste would have been well-nigh exterminated, if it +had not been for the approach of night. Darkness brought the carnage +to an end; and the sword, once sheathed, was not again drawn. Only, to +complete the punishment of the ambitious religionists who had insulted +and deceived the nation, the day of the massacre was appointed to be +kept annually as a solemn festival, under the name of the Magophonia; +and a law was passed that on that day no Magus should leave his house. + +The accession of Darius to the vacant throne now took place (Jan. 1, +B.C. 521). According to Herodotus it was preceded by a period of debate +and irresolution, during which the royal authority was, as it were, in +commission among the Seven; and in this interval he places not only the +choice of a king, but an actual discussion on the subject of the proper +form of government to be established. Even his contemporaries, however, +could see that this last story was unworthy of credit and it may be +questioned whether any more reliance ought to be placed on the remainder +of the narrative. Probably the true account of the matter is, that, +having come to a knowledge of the facts of the case, the heads of the +seven great Persian clans or families met together in secret conclave +and arranged all their proceedings beforehand. No government but the +monarchical could be thought of for a moment, and no one could assert +any claim to be king but Darius. Darius went into the conspiracy as a +pretender to the throne: the other six were simply his "faithful men," +his friends and well-wishers. While, however, the six were far from +disputing Darius's right, they required and received for themselves a +guarantee of certain privileges, which may either have belonged to them +previously, by law or custom, as the heads of the great clans, or may +have been now for the first time conceded. The king-bound himself to +choose his wives from among the families of the conspirators only, and +sanctioned their claim to have free access to his person at all times +without asking his permission. One of their number, Otanes, demanded and +obtained even more. He and his house were to remain "free," and were to +receive yearly a magnificent kaftan, or royal present. Thus, something +like a check on unbridled despotism was formally and regularly +established; an hereditary nobility was acknowledged; the king became +to some extent dependent on his grandees; he could not regard himself as +the sole fountain of honor; six great nobles stood round the throne +as its supports; but their position was so near the monarch that they +detracted somewhat from his prestige and dignity. + +The guarantee of these privileges was, we may be sure, given, and the +choice of Darius as king made, before the attack upon the. Magus began. +It would have been madness to allow an interval of anarchy. When +Darius reached the capital, with the head of the Pseudo-Smerdis in his +possession, he no doubt proceeded at once to the palace and took his +seat upon the vacant throne. No opposition was offered to him. The +Persians gladly saw a scion of their old royal stock installed in power. +The provincials were too far off to interfere. Such malcontents as +might be present would be cowed by the massacre that was going on in the +streets. The friends and intimates of the fallen monarch would be only +anxious to escape notice. The reign of the new king no doubt commenced +amid those acclamations which are never wanting in the East when a +sovereign first shows himself to his subjects. + +The measures with which the new monarch inaugurated his reign had for +their object the re-establishment of the old worship. He rebuilt the +Zoroastrian temples which the Magus had destroyed, and probably restored +the use of the sacred chants and the other accustomed ceremonies. It may +be suspected that his religious zeal proceeded often to the length of +persecution, and that the Magian priests were not the only persons who, +under the orders which he issued, felt the weight of the secular arm. +His Zoroastrian zeal was soon known through the provinces; and the Jews +forthwith resumed the building of their temple, trusting that their +conduct would be consonant with his wishes. This trust was not +misplaced: for, when the Samaritans once more interfered and tried to +induce the new king to put a stop to the work, the only result was +a fresh edict, confirming the old decree of Cyrus, forbidding +interference, and assigning a further grant of money, cattle, +corn, etc., from the royal stores, for the furtherance of the pious +undertaking. Its accomplishment was declared to be for the advantage of +the king and his house, since, when the temple was finished, sacrifices +would be offered in it to "the God of Heaven," and prayer would be made +"for the life of the king and of his sons." Such was the sympathy which +still united pure Zoroastrianism with the worship of Jehovah. But the +reign, which, so far, might have seemed to be auspiciously begun, +was destined ere long to meet opposition, and even to encounter armed +hostility, in various quarters. In the loosely organized empires of +the early type, a change of sovereign, especially if accompanied +by revolutionary violence, is always regarded as an opportunity for +rebellion. Doubt as to the condition of the capital paralyzes the +imperial authority in the provinces; and bold men, taking advantage +of the moment of weakness, start up in various places, asserting +independence, and seeking to obtain for themselves kingdoms out of +the chaos which they see around them. The more remote provinces are +especially liable to be thus affected, and often revolt successfully on +such an occasion. It appears that the circumstances under which Darius +obtained the throne were more than usually provocative of the spirit +of disaffection and rebellion. Not only did the governors of remote +countries, like Egypt and Lydia, assume an attitude incompatible with +their duty as subjects, but everywhere, even in the very heart of the +Empire, insurrection raised its head; and for six long years the new +king was constantly employed in reducing one province after another to +obedience. Susiana, Babylonia, Persia itself, Media, Assyria, Armenia, +Hyrcania, Parthia, Margiana, Sagartia, and Sacia, all revolted during +this space, and were successively chastised and recovered. It may +be suspected that the religious element entered into some of these +struggles, and that the unusual number of the revolts and the obstinate +character of many of them were connected with the downfall of Magism and +the restoration of the pure Zoroastrian faith, which Darius was bent on +effecting. But this explanation can only be applied partially. We must +suppose, besides, a sort of contagion of rebellion--an awakening of +hopes, far and wide, among the subject nations, as the rumor that +serious troubles had broken out reached them, and a resolution to take +advantage of the critical state of things, spreading rapidly from one +people to another. + +A brief sketch of these various revolts must now be given. They +commenced with a rising in Susiana, where a certain Atrines assumed +the name and state of king, and was supported by the people. Almost +simultaneously a pretender appeared in Babylon, who gave out that he was +the son of the late king, Nabonidus, and bore the world-renowned name +of Nebuchadnezzar. Darius, regarding this second revolt as the more +important of the two, while he dispatched a force to punish the +Susianians, proceeded in person against the Babylonian pretender. The +rivals met at the river Tigris, which the Babylonians held with a naval +force, while their army was posted on the right bank, ready to dispute +the passage. Darius, however, crossed the river in their dispute, and, +defeating the troops of his antagonist, pressed forward against the +capital. He had nearly reached it, when the pretender gave him battle +for the second time at a small town on the banks of the Euphrates. +Fortune again declared in favor of the Persians, who drove the host of +their enemy into the water and destroyed great numbers. The soi-disant +Nebuchadnezzar escaped with a few horsemen and threw himself into +Babylon; but the city was ill prepared for a siege, and was soon taken, +the pretender falling into the hands of his enemy, who caused him to be +executed. + +Meanwhile, in Susiana, Atrines, the original leader of the rebellion, +had been made prisoner by the troops sent against him, and, being +brought to Darius while he was on his march against Babylon, was put to +death. But this severity had little effect. A fresh leader appeared in +the person of a certain Martes, a Persian who, taking example from the +Babylonian rebel, assumed a name which connected him with the old kings +of the country, and probably claimed to be their descendant, but the +hands of Darius were now free by the termination of the Babylonian +contest, and he was able to proceed towards Susiana himself. This +movement, apparently, was unexpected; for when the Susianians heard of +it they were so alarmed that they laid hands on the pretender and slew +him. + +A more important rebellion followed. Three of the chief provinces of +the empire, Media, Armenia, and Assyria, revolted in concert. A Median +monarch was set up, who called himself Xathrites, and claimed descent +from the great Oyaxares; and it would seem that the three countries +immediately acknowledged his sway. Darius, seeing how formidable the +revolt was, determined to act with caution. Settling himself at the +newly-conquered city of Babylon, he resolved to employ his generals +against the rebels, and in this way to gauge the strength of the +outbreak, before adventuring his own person into the fray. Hydarnes, +one of the Seven conspirators, was sent into Media with an army, while +Dadarses, an Armenian, was dispatched into Armenia, and Vomises, a +Persian, was ordered to march through Assyria into the same country. +All three generals were met by the forces of the pretender, and several +battles were fought, with results that seem not to have been very +decisive. Darius claims the victory on each occasion for his own +generals; but it is evident that his arms made little progress, and +that, in spite of several small defeats, the rebellion maintained a bold +front, and was thought not unlikely to be successful. So strong was +this feeling that two of the eastern provinces, Hyrcania and Parthia, +deserted the Persian cause in the midst of the struggle, and placed +themselves under the rule of Xathrites. Either this circumstance, or the +general position of affairs, induced Darius at length to take the field +in person. Quitting Babylon, he marched into Media, and being met by the +pretender near a town called Kudrus, he defeated him in a great battle. +This is no doubt the engagement of which Herodotus speaks, and which he +rightly regards as decisive. The battle of Kudrus gave Ecbatana into the +hands of Darius, and made the Median prince an outcast and a fugitive. +He fled towards the East, probably intending to join his partisans in +Hyrcania and Parthia, but was overtaken in the district of Rhages and +made prisoner by the troops of Darius. The king treated his captive with +extreme severity. Having cut off his nose, ears, and tongue, he kept +him for some time chained to the door of his palace, in order that there +might be no doubt of his capture. When this object had been sufficiently +secured, the wretched sufferer was allowed to end his miserable +existence. He was crucified in his capital city, Ecbatana, before the +eyes of those who had seen his former glory. + +The rebellion was thus crushed in its original seat, but it had still to +be put down in the countries whereto it had extended itself. Parthia +and Hyrcania, which had embraced the cause of the pretender, were still +maintaining a conflict with their former governor, Hystaspes, Darius's +father. Darius marched as far as Rhages to his father's assistance, and +dispatched from that point a body of Persian troops to reinforce him. +With this important aid Hystaspes once more gave the rebels battle, and +succeeded in defeating them so entirely that they presently made their +submission. + +Troubles, meanwhile, had broken out in Sagartia. A native chief, moved +probably by the success which had for a while attended the Median rebel +who claimed to rule as the descendant and representative of Cyaxares, +came forward with similar pretensions, and was accepted by the +Sargartians as their monarch. This revolt, however, proved unimportant. +Darius suppressed it with the utmost facility by means of a mixed +army of Persians and Medes, whom he placed under a Median leader, +Tachamaspates. The pretender was captured and treated almost exactly +in the same way as the Mede whose example he had followed. His nose and +ears were cut off; he was chained for a while at the palace door; and +finally he was crucified at Arbela. + +Another trifling revolt occurred about the same time in Margiana. The +Margians rebelled and set up a certain Phraates, a native, to be their +king. But the satrap of Bactria, within whose province Margiana lay, +quelled the revolt almost immediately. + +Hitherto, however thickly troubles had come upon him, Darius could have +the satisfaction of feeling that he was contending with foreigners, +and that his own nation at any rate was faithful and true. But now +this consolation was to be taken from him. During his absence in +the provinces of the north-east Persia itself revolted against his +authority, and acknowledged for king an impostor, who, undeterred by the +fate of Gomates, and relying on the obscurity which still hung over +the end of the real Smerdis, assumed his name, and claimed to be the +legitimate occupant of the throne. The Persians at home were either +deceived a second time, or were willing to try a change of ruler; but +the army of Darius, composed of Persians and Medes, adhered to the +banner under which they had so often marched to victory, and enabled +Darius, after a struggle of some duration, to re-establish his sway. +The impostor suffered two defeats at the hands of Artabardes, one +of Darius's generals, while a force which he had detached to excite +rebellion in Arachosia was engaged by the satrap of that province and +completely routed. The so-called Smerdis was himself captured, and +suffered the usual penalty of unsuccessful revolt, crucifixion. + +Before, however, these results were accomplished--while the fortune of +war still hung in the balance--a fresh danger threatened. Encouraged +by the disaffection which appeared to be so general, and which had at +length reached the very citadel of the Empire, Babylon revolted for the +second time. A man, named Aracus, an Armenian by descent, but settled +in Babylonia, headed the insurrection, and, adopting the practice +of personation so usual at the time, assumed the name and style of +"Nebuchadnezzar, son of Nabonidus." Less alarmed on this occasion than +at the time of the first revolt, the king was content to send a +Median general against the new pretender. This officer, who is called +Intaphres, speedily chastised the rebels, capturing Babylon, and taking +Aracus prisoner. Crucifixion was again the punishment awarded to the +rebel leader. + +A season of comparative tranquillity seems now to have set in; and it +may have been in this interval that Darius found time to chastise +the remoter governors, who without formally declaring themselves +independent, or assuming the title of king, had done acts savoring of +rebellion. Oroetes, the governor of Sardis, who had comported himself +strangely even under Cambyses, having ventured to entrap and put to +death an ally of that monarch's, Polycrates of Samos, had from the +time of the Magian revolution assumed an attitude quite above that of a +subject. Having a quarrel with Mitrobates, the governor of a neighboring +province, he murdered him and annexed his territory. When Darius sent a +courier to him with a message the purport of which he disliked, he set +men to waylay and assassinate him. It was impossible to overlook such +acts; and Darius must have sent an army into Asia Minor, if one of +his nobles had not undertaken to remove Oroetes in another way. Arming +himself with several written orders bearing the king's seal, he went +to Sardis, and gradually tried the temper of the guard which the satrap +kept round his person. When he found them full of respect for the royal +authority and ready to do whatever the king commanded, he produced +an order for the governor's execution, which they carried into effect +immediately. + +The governor of Egypt, Aryandes, had shown a guilty ambition in a more +covert way. Understanding that Darius had issued a gold coinage of +remarkable purity, he, on his own authority and without consulting the +king, issued a silver coinage of a similar character. There is reason to +believe that he even placed his name upon his coins; an act which to +the Oriental mind distinctly implied a claim of independent sovereignty. +Darius taxed him with a design to revolt, and put him to death on the +charge, apparently without exciting any disturbance. + +Still, however, the Empire was not wholly tranquillized. A revolt in +Susiana, suppressed by the conspirator Gobryas, and another among the +Sacse of the Tigris, quelled by Darius in person, are recorded on the +rock of Behistun, in a supplementary portion of the Inscription. We +cannot date, unless it be by approximation, these various troubles; but +there is reason to believe that they were almost all contained within +a space not exceeding five or six years. The date of the Behistun +Inscription is fixed by internal evidence to about B.C. 516-515--in +other words, to the fifth or sixth year of the reign of Darius. Its +erection seems to mark the termination of the first period of the reign, +or that of disturbance, and the commencement of the second period, or +that of tranquillity, internal progress, and patronage of the fine arts +by the monarch. + +It was natural that Darius, having with so much effort and difficulty +reduced the revolted provinces to obedience, should proceed to consider +within himself how the recurrence of such a time of trouble might be +prevented. His experience had shown him how weak were the ties which had +hitherto been thought sufficient to hold the Empire together, and how +slight an obstacle they opposed to the tendency, which all great empires +have, to disruption. But, however natural it might be to desire a remedy +for the evils which afflicted the State, it was not easy to devise one. +Great empires had existed in Western Asia for above seven hundred years, +and had all suffered more or less from the same inherent weakness; but +no one had as yet invented a cure, or even (so far as appears) conceived +the idea of improving on the rude system of imperial sway which the +first conqueror had instituted. It remained for Darius, not only to +desire, but to design--not only to design, but to bring into action--an +entirely new form and type of government. He has been well called "the +true founder of the Persian state." He found the Empire a crude and +heterogeneous mass of ill-assorted elements, hanging loosely together by +the single tie of subjection to a common head; he left it a compact +and regularly organized body, united on a single well-ordered system, +permanently established everywhere. + +On the nature and details of this system it will be necessary to speak +at some length. It was the first, and probably the best, instance of +that form of government which, taking its name from the Persian word +for provincial ruler, is known generally as the system of "satrapial" +administration. Its main principles were, in the first place, the +reduction of the whole Empire to a quasi-uniformity by the substitution +of one mode of governing for several; secondly, the substitution of +fixed and definite burthens on the subject in lieu of variable and +uncertain calls; and thirdly, the establishment of a variety of checks +and counterpoises among the officials to whom it was necessary that the +crown should delegate its powers, which tended greatly to the security +of the monarch and the stability of the kingdom. A consideration of the +modes in which these three principles were applied will bring before us +in a convenient form the chief points of the system. + +Uniformity, or a near approach to it, was produced, not so much by the +abolition of differences as by superadding one and the same governmental +machinery in all parts of the Empire. It is an essential feature of +the satrapial system that it does not aim at destroying differences, or +assimilating to one type the various races and countries over which +it is extended. On the contrary, it allows, and indeed encourages, the +several nations to retain their languages, habits, manners, religion, +laws, and modes of local government. Only it takes care to place above +all these things a paramount state authority, which is one and the same +everywhere, whereon the unity of the kingdom is dependent. The authority +instituted by Darius was that of his satraps. He divided the whole +empire into a number of separate governments--a number which must have +varied at different times, but which seems never to have fallen short +of twenty. Over each government he placed a satrap, or supreme civil +governor, charged with the collection and transmission of the revenue, +the administration of justice, the maintenance of order, and the general +supervision of the territory. These satraps were nominated by the king +at his pleasure from any class of his subjects, and held office for no +definite term, but simply until recalled, being liable to deprivation +or death at any moment, without other formality than the presentation +of the royal firman. While, however, they remained in office they were +despotic--they represented the Great King, and were clothed with a +portion of his majesty--they had palaces, Courts, body-guards, parks +or "paradises," vast trains of eunuchs and attendants, well-filled, +seraglios. They wielded the power of life and death. They assessed the +tribute on the several towns and villages within their jurisdiction +at their pleasure, and appointed deputies--called sometimes, like +themselves, satraps--over cities or districts within their province, +whose office was regarded as one of great dignity. They exacted from +the provincials, for their own support and that of their Court, over and +above the tribute due to the crown, whatever sum they regarded them as +capable of furnishing. Favors, and even justice, had to be purchased +from them by gifts. They were sometimes guilty of gross outrages on the +persons and honor of their subjects. Nothing restrained their tyranny +but such sense of right as they might happen to possess, and the fear of +removal or execution if the voice of complaint reached the monarch. + +Besides this uniform civil administration, the Empire was pervaded +throughout by one and the same military system. The services of the +subject nations as soldiers were, as a general rule, declined, unless +upon rare and exceptional cases. Order was maintained by large and +numerous garrisons of foreign troops--Persians and Medes--quartered +on the inhabitants, who had little sympathy with those among whom they +lived, and would be sure to repress sternly any outbreak. All places of +much strength were occupied in this way; and special watch was kept upon +the great capitals, which were likely to be centres of disaffection. +Thus a great standing army, belonging to the conquering race, stood +everywhere on guard throughout the Empire, offending the provincials no +doubt by their pride, their violence, and their contemptuous bearing, +but rendering a native revolt under ordinary circumstances hopeless. + +Some exceptions to the general uniformity had almost of necessity to be +made in so vast and heterogeneous an empire as the Persian. Occasionally +it was thought wise to allow the continuance of a native dynasty in a +province; and the satrap had in such a case to share with the native +prince a divided authority. This was certainly the case in Cilicia, and +probably in Paphlagonia and Phoenicia. Tribes also, included within +the geographical limits of a satrapy, were sometimes recognized as +independent; and petty wars were carried on between these hordes and +their neighbors. Robber bands in many places infested the mountains, +owing no allegiance to any one, and defied alike the satrap and the +standing army. + +The condition of Persia Proper was also purely exceptional. Persia paid +no tribute, and was not counted as a satrapy. Its inhabitants were, +however, bound, when the king passed through their country, to bring him +gifts according to their means. This burthen may have been felt sensibly +by the rich, but it pressed very lightly on the poor, who, if they could +not afford an ox or a sheep, might bring a little milk or cheese, a +few dates, or a handful of wild fruit. On the other hand, the king was +bound, whenever he visited Pasargadae, to present to each Persian woman +who appeared before him a sum equal to twenty Attic drachmas, or about +sixteen shillings of our money. This custom commemorated the service +rendered by the sex in the battle wherein Cyrus first repulsed the +forces of Astyages. + +The substitution of definite burthens on the subject in lieu of variable +and uncertain charges was aimed at, rather than effected, by the new +arrangement of the revenue which is associated with the name of Darius. +This arrangement consisted in fixing everywhere the amount of tribute +in money and in kind which each satrapy was to furnish to the crown. A +definite money payment, varying, in ordinary satrapies, from 170 to +1000 Babylonian silver talents,330 or from L42,000. to L250,000. of our +money, and amounting, in the exceptional case of the Indian satrapy, to +above a million sterling, was required annually by the sovereign, +and had to be remitted by the satrap to the capital. Besides this, a +payment, the nature and amount of which was also fixed, had to be made +in kind, each province being required to furnish that commodity, or +those commodities, for which it was most celebrated. This latter burthen +must have pressed very unequally on different portions of the Empire, +if the statement of Herodotus be true that Babylonia and Assyria paid +one-third of it. The payment seems to have been very considerable +in amount. Egypt had to supply grain sufficient for the nutriment of +120,000 Persian troops quartered in the country. Media had to contribute +100,000 sheep, 4000 mules, and 3000 horses; Cappadocia, half the above +number of each kind of animal; Armenia furnished 20,000 colts; Cilicia +gave 360 white horses and a sum of 140 talents (L35,000.) in lieu +of further tribute in kind. Babylonia, besides corn, was required to +furnish 500 boy eunuchs. These charges, however, were all fixed by the +crown, and may have been taken into consideration in assessing the money +payment, the main object of the whole arrangement evidently being to +make the taxation of each province proportionate to its wealth and +resources. + +The assessment of the taxation upon the different portions of his +province was left to the satrap. We do not know on what principles he +ordinarily proceeded, or whether any uniform principles at all were +observed throughout the Empire. But we find some evidence that, in +places at least, the mode of exaction and collection was by a land-tax. +The assessment upon individuals, and the actual collection from them, +devolved, in all probability, on the local authorities, who distributed +the burthen imposed upon their town, village, or district as they +thought proper. Thus the foreign oppressor did not come into direct +contact with the mass of the conquered people, who no doubt paid the +calls made upon them with less reluctance through the medium of their +own proper magistrates. + +If the taxation of the subject had stopped here, he would have had +no just ground of complaint against his rulers. The population of the +Empire cannot be estimated at less than forty millions of souls. The +highest estimate of the value of the entire tribute, both in money and +kind, will scarcely place it at more than ten millions sterling. Thus +far, then, the burthen of taxation would certainly not have exceeded +five shillings a head per annum. Perhaps it would not have reached half +that amount. But, unhappily, neither was the tribute the sole tax which +the crown exacted from its subjects, nor had the crown the sole right +of exacting taxation. Persian subjects in many parts of the Empire paid, +besides their tribute, a water-rate, which is expressly said to have +been very productive. The rivers of the Empire were the king's; and when +water was required for irrigation, a state officer superintended the +opening of the sluices, and regulated the amount of the precious fluid +which might be drawn off by each tribe or township. For the opening of +the sluices a large sum was paid to the officer, which found its way +into the coffers of the state. Further, it appears that such things +as fisheries--and if so, probably salt-works, mines, quarries, and +forests--were regarded as crown property, and yielded large sums to the +revenue. They appear to have been farmed to responsible persons, who +undertook to pay at a certain fixed rate, and made what profit they +could by the transaction. The price of commodities thus farmed would be +greatly enhanced to the consumer. + +By these means the actual burthen of taxation upon the subject was +rendered to some extent uncertain and indefinite, and the benefits of +the fixed tribute system were diminished. But the chief drawback upon +it has still to be mentioned. While the claims of the crown upon its +subjects were definite and could not be exceeded, the satrap was at +liberty to make any exactions that he pleased beyond them. There +is every reason to believe that he received no stipend, and that, +consequently, the burthen of supporting him, his body-guard, and his +Court was intended to fall on the province which had the benefit of his +superintendence. Like a Roman proconsul, he was to pay himself out of +the pockets of his subjects; and, like that class of persons, he took +care to pay himself highly. It has been calculated that one satrap of +Babylon drew from his province annually in actual coin a sum equal to +L100,000. of our money. We can scarcely doubt that the claims made by +the provincial governors were, on the average, at least equal to +those of the crown; and they had the disadvantage of being irregular, +uncertain, and purely arbitrary. + +Thus, what was gained by the new system was not so much the relief of +the subject from uncertain taxation as the advantage to the crown of +knowing beforehand what the revenue would be, and being able to regulate +its expenditure accordingly. Still a certain amount of benefit did +undoubtedly accrue to the provincials from the system; since it gave +them the crown for their protector. So long as the payments made to the +state were irregular, it was, or at least seemed to be, for the interest +of the crown to obtain from each province as much as it could anyhow +pay. When the state dues were once fixed, as the crown gained nothing by +the rapacity of its officers, but rather lost, since the province became +exhausted, it was interested in checking greed, and seeing that the +provinces were administered by wise and good satraps. + +The control of its great officers is always the main difficulty of a +despotic government, when it is extended over a large space of territory +and embraces many millions of men. The system devised by Darius for +checking and controlling his satraps was probably the best that has +ever yet been brought into operation. His plan was to establish in every +province at least three officers holding their authority directly from +the crown, and only responsible to it, who would therefore act as checks +one upon another. These were the satrap, the military commandant, and +the secretary. The satrap was charged with the civil administration, and +especially with the department of finance. The commandant was supreme +over the troops. The office of the secretary is less clearly defined; +but it probably consisted mainly in keeping the Court informed by +despatches of all that went on in the province. Thus, if the satrap +were inclined to revolt, he had, in the first place, to persuade the +commandant, who would naturally think that, if he ran the risk, it might +as well be for himself; and, further, he had to escape the lynx eyes of +the secretary, whose general right of superintendence gave him entrance +everywhere, and whose prospects of advancement would probably depend a +good deal upon the diligence and success with which he discharged the +office of "King's Eye" and "Ear." So, if the commandant were ambitious +of independent sway, he must persuade the satrap, or he would have no +money to pay his troops; and he too must blind the secretary, or else +bribe him into silence. As for the secretary, having neither men +nor money at his command, it was impossible that he should think of +rebellion. + +But the precautions taken against revolt did not end here. Once a year, +according to Xenophon, or more probably at irregular intervals, an +officer came suddenly down from the Court with a commission to inspect +a province. Such persons were frequently of royal rank, brothers or sons +of the king. They were accompanied by an armed force, and were empowered +to correct whatever was amiss in the province, and in case of necessity +to report to the crown the insubordination or incompetency of its +officers. If this system had been properly maintained, it is evident +that it would have acted as a most powerful check upon misgovernment, +and would have rendered revolt almost impossible. + +Another mode by which it was sought to secure the fidelity of the +satraps and commandants was by choosing them from among the king's blood +relations, or else attaching them to the crown by marriage with one of +the princesses. It was thought that the affection of sons and brothers +would be a restraint upon their ambition, and that even connections by +marriage would feel that they had an interest in upholding the power and +dignity of the great house with which they had been thought worthy of +alliance. This system, which was entensively followed by Darius, had on +the whole good results, and was at any rate preferable to that barbarous +policy of prudential fratricide which has prevailed widely in Oriental +governments. + +The system of checks, while it was effectual for the object at which it +specially aimed, had one great disadvantage. It weakened the hands of +authority in times of difficulty. When danger, internal or external, +threatened, it was an evil that the powers of government should be +divided, and the civil authority lodged in the hands of one officer, the +military in those of another. Concentration of power is needed for rapid +and decisive action, for unity of purpose, and secrecy both of plan and +of execution. These considerations led to a modification of the original +idea of satrapial government, which was adopted partially at first--in +provinces especially exposed to danger, internal or external--but which +ultimately became almost universal. The offices of satrap, or civil +administrator, and commandant, or commander of the troops, were vested +in the same person, who came in this way to have that full and complete +authority which is possessed by Turkish pashas and modern Persian +khans or beys--an authority practically uncontrolled. This system was +advantageous for the defence of a province against foes; but it was +dangerous to the stability of the Empire, since it led naturally to the +occurrence of formidable rebellions. + +Two minor points in the scheme of Darius remain to be noticed, before +this account of his governmental system can be regarded as complete. +These are his institution of posts, and his coinage of money. + +In Darius's idea of government was included rapidity of communication. +Regarding it as of the utmost importance that the orders of the Court +should be speedily transmitted to the provincial governors, and that +their reports and those of the royal secretaries should be received +without needless delay, he established along the lines of routes already +existing between the chief cities of the Empire a number of post-houses, +placed at regular intervals, according to the estimated capacity of a +horse to gallop at his best speed without stopping. At each post-house +were maintained, at the cost of the state, a number of couriers and +several relays of horses. When a despatch was to be forwarded it was +taken to the first post-house along the route, where a courier received +it, and immediately mounting on horseback galloped with it to the next +station. Here it was delivered to a new courier, who, mounted on a fresh +horse, took it the next stage on its journey; and thus it passed from +hand to hand till it reached its destination. According to Xenophon, the +messengers travelled by night as well as by day; and the conveyance was +so rapid that some even compared it to the flight of birds. Excellent +inns or caravanserais were to be found at every station; bridges or +ferries were established upon all the streams; guard-houses occurred +here and there, and the whole route was kept secure from the brigands +who infested the Empire. Ordinary travellers were glad to pursue so +convenient a line of march; it does not appear, however, that they could +obtain the use of post-horses even when the government was in no need +of them. The coinage of Darius consisted, it is probable, both of a gold +and silver issue. It is not perhaps altogether certain that he was +the first king of Persia who coined money; but, if the term "daric" is +really derived from his name, that alone would be a strong argument in +favor of his claim to priority. In any case, it is indisputable that +he was the first Persian king who coined on a large scale, and it is +further certain that his gold coinage was regarded in later times as of +peculiar value on account of its purity. His gold darics appear to have +contained, on an average, not quite 124 grains of pure metal, which +would make their value about twenty two shillings of our money. +They were of the type usual at the time both in Lydia and in +Greece--flattened lumps of metal, very thick in comparison with the size +of their surface, irregular, and rudely stamped. The silver darics +were similar in general character, but exceeded the gold in size. Their +weight was from 224 to 230 grains, and they would thus have been worth +not quite three shillings of our money. It does not appear that any +other kinds of coins besides these were ever issued from the Persian +mint. They must, therefore, it would seem, have satisfied the commercial +needs of the people. + +From this review of the governmental system of Darius we must now return +to the actions of his later life. The history of an Oriental monarchy +must always be composed mainly of a series of biographies; for, as the +monarch is all in all in such communities, his sayings, doings, and +character, not only determine, but constitute, the annals of the State. +In the second period of his reign, that which followed on the time of +trouble and disturbance, Darius (as has been already observed) +appears to have pursued mainly the arts of peace. Bent on settling and +consolidating his Empire, he set up everywhere the satrapial form of +government, organized and established his posts, issued his coinage, +watched over the administration of justice, and in various ways +exhibited a love of order and method, and a genius for systematic +arrangement. At the same time he devoted considerable attention to +ornamental and architectural works, to sculpture, and to literary +composition. He founded the royal palace at Susa, which was the main +residence of the later kings. At Persepolis he certainly erected one +very important building; and it is on the whole most probable that he +designed--if he did not live to execute--the Chehl Minor itself--the +chief of the magnificent structures upon the great central platform. The +massive platform itself, with its grand and stately steps, is certainly +of his erection, for it is inscribed with his name. He gave his works +all the solidity and strength that is derivable from the use of huge +blocks of a good hard material. He set the example of ornamenting the +stepped approached to a palace with elaborate bas-reliefs. He designed +and caused to be constructed in his own lifetime the rock-tomb at +Nakhsh-i-Rustam, in which his remains were afterwards laid. The +rock-sculpture at Behistun was also his work. In attention to the +creation of permanent historical records he excelled all the Persian +kings, both before him and after him. The great Inscription of Behistun +has no parallel in ancient times for length, finish, and delicacy +of execution, unless it be in Assyria or in Egypt. The only really +historical inscription at Persepolis is one set up by Darius. He was the +only Persian king, except perhaps one, who placed an inscription upon +his tomb. The later monarchs in their records do little more than repeat +certain religious phrases and certain forms of self-glorification which +occur in the least remarkable inscriptions of their great predecessor. +He alone oversteps those limits, and presents us with geographical +notices and narratives of events profoundly interesting to the +historian. + +During this period of comparative peace, which may have extended +from about B.C. 516 to B.C. 508 or 507, the general tranquillity was +interrupted by at least one important expedition. The administrational +merits of Darius are so great that they have obscured his military +glories, and have sent him down to posterity with the character of an +unwarlike monarch--if not a mere "peddler," as his subjects said, yet, +at any rate, a mere consolidator and arranger. But the son of Hystaspes +was no carpet prince. He had not drawn the sword against his domestic +foes to sheath it finally and forever when his triumph over them was +completed. On the contrary, he regarded it as incumbent on him to carry +on the aggressive policy of Cyrus and Cambyses, his great predecessors, +and like them to extend in one direction or another the boundaries of +the Empire. Perhaps he felt that aggression was the very law of the +Empire's being, since if the military spirit was once allowed to become +extinct in the conquering nation, they would lose the sole guarantee of +their supremacy. At any rate, whatever his motive, we find him, after +he had snatched a brief interval of repose, engaging in great wars +both towards his eastern and his western frontier--wars which in both +instances had results of considerable importance. + +The first grand expedition was towards the East. Cyrus, as we have seen, +had extended the Persian sway over the mountains of Affghanistan and the +highlands from which flow the tributaries of the Upper Indus. From these +eminences the Persian garrisons looked down on a territory possessing +every quality that could attract a powerful conqueror. Fertile, +well-watered, rich in gold, peopled by an ingenious yet warlike race, +which would add strength no less than wealth to its subjugators, the +Punjab lay at the foot of the Sufeid Koh and Suliman ranges, inviting +the attack of those who could swoop down when they pleased upon the low +country. It was against this region that Darius directed his first great +aggressive effort. Having explored the course of the Indus from Attock +to the sea by means of boats, and obtained, we may suppose, in this way +some knowledge of the country and its inhabitants, he led or sent an +expedition into the tract, which in a short time succeeded in completely +reducing it. The Punjab, and probably the whole valley of the Indus, was +annexed, and remained subject till the later times of the Empire. The +results of this conquest were the acquisition of a brave race, capable +of making excellent soldiers, an enormous increase of the revenue, a +sudden and vast influx of gold into Persia, which led probably to the +introduction of the gold coinage, and the establishment of commercial +relations with the natives, which issued in a regular trade carried +on by coasting-vessels between the mouths of the Indus and the Persian +Gulf. + +The next important expedition--one probably of still greater +magnitude--took exactly the opposite direction. The sea which bounded +the Persian dominion to the west and the north-west narrowed in two +places to dimensions not much exceeding those of of the greater Asiatic +rivers. The eye which looked across the Thracian Bosphorus or the +Hellespont seemed to itself to be merely contemplating the opposite +bank of a pretty wide stream. Darius, consequently being master of +Asia Minor, and separated by what seemed to him so poor a barrier +from fertile tracts of vast and indeed indefinite extent, such as were +nowhere else to be found on the borders of his empire, naturally turned +his thoughts of conquest to this quarter. His immediate desire was, +probably, to annex Thrace; but he may have already entertained wider +views, and have looked to embracing in his dominions the lovely isles +and coasts of Greece also, so making good the former threats of Cyrus. +The story of the voyage and escape of Democedes, related by Herodotus +with such amplitude of detail, and confirmed to some extent from other +sources, cannot be a mere myth without historical foundation. Nor is +it probable that the expedition was designed merely for the purpose of +"indulging the exile with a short visit to his native country," or of +collecting "interesting information." If by the king's orders a vessel +was fitted out at Sidon to explore the coasts of Greece under the +guidance of Democedes, which proceeded as far as Crotona in Magna +Grsecia, we may be tolerably sure that a political object lay at the +bottom of the enterprise. It would have exactly the same aim and end as +the eastern voyage of Scylax, and would be intended, like that, to pave +the way for a conquest. Darius was therefore, it would seem, already +contemplating the reduction of Greece Proper, and did not require +to have it suggested to him by any special provocation. Mentally, or +actually, surveying the map of the world, so far as it was known to +him, he saw that in this direction only there was an attractive country +readily accessible. Elsewhere his Empire abutted on seas, sandy deserts, +or at best barren steppes; here, and here only, was there a rich prize +close at hand and (as it seemed) only waiting to be grasped. + +But if the aggressive force of Persia was to be turned in this +direction, if the stream of conquest was to be set westward along the +flanks of Rhodope and Haemus, it was essential to success, and even to +safety, that the line of communication with Asia should remain intact. +Now, there lay on the right flank of an army marching into Europe a vast +and formidable power, known to be capable of great efforts, which, if +allowed to feel itself secure from attack, might be expected at any +time to step in, to break the line of communication between the east +and west, and to bring the Persians who should be engaged in conquering +Pseonia, Macedonia, and Greece, into imminent danger. It is greatly to +the credit of Darius that he saw this peril--saw it and took effectual +measures to guard against it. The Scythian expedition was no insane +project of a frantic despot, burning for revenge, or ambitious of an +impossible conquest. It has all the appearance of being a well-laid +plan, conceived by a moderate and wise prince, for the furtherance of +a great design, and the permanent advantage of his empire. The lord of +South-Western Asia was well aware of the existence beyond his northern +frontier of a standing menace to his power. A century had not sufficed +to wipe out the recollection of that terrible time when Scythian hordes +had carried desolation far and wide over the fairest of the regions that +were now under the Persian dominion. What had occurred once might recur. +Possibly, as a modern author suggests, "the remembrance of ancient +injuries may have been revived by recent aggressions." It was at any +rate essential to strike terror into the hordes of the Steppe Region in +order that Western Asia might attain a sense of security. It was still +more essential to do so if the north-west was to become the scene +of war, and the Persians were to make a vigorous effort to establish +themselves permanently in Europe. Scythia, it must be remembered, +reached to the banks of the Danube. An invader, who aspired to the +conquest even of Thrace, was almost forced into collision with her next +neighbor. + +Darius, having determined on his course, prefaced his expedition by a +raid, the object of which was undoubtedly to procure information. He +ordered Ariaramnes, satrap of Cappadocia, to cross the Euxine with a +small fleet, and, descending suddenly upon the Scythian coast, to carry +off a number of prisoners. Ariaramnes executed the commission skilfully, +and was so fortunate as to make prize of a native of high rank, the +brother of a Scythian chief or king. From this person and his companions +the Persian monarch was able to obtain all the information which he +required. Thus enlightened, he proceeded to make his preparations. +Collecting a fleet of 600 ships, chiefly from the Greeks of Asia, and +an army estimated at from 700,000 to 800,000 men, which was made up +of contingents from all the nations under his rule, he crossed the +Bosphorus by a bridge of boats constructed by Mandrocles a Samian; +marched through Thrace along the line of the Little Balkan, receiving +the submission of the tribes as he went; crossed the Great Balkan; +conquered the Getae, who dwelt between that range and the Danube; passed +the Danube by a bridge, which the Ionian Greeks had made with their +vessels just above the apex of the Delta; and so invaded Scythia. The +natives had received intelligence of his approach, and had resolved not +to risk a battle. They retired as he advanced, and endeavored to bring +his army into difficulties by destroying the forage, driving off the +cattle, and filling in the wells. But the commissariat of the Persians +was, as usual, well arranged. Darius remained for more than two months +in Scythia without incurring any important losses. He succeeded in +parading before the eyes of the whole nation the immense military power +of his empire. He no doubt inflicted considerable damage on the hordes, +whose herds he must often have captured, and whose supplies of forage he +curtailed. It is difficult to say how far he penetrated. Herodotus was +informed that he marched east to the Tanais (Don), and thence north to +the country of the Budini, where he burnt the staple of Gelonus, which +cannot well have been below the fiftieth parallel, and was probably +not far from Voronej. It is certainly astonishing that he should have +ventured so far inland, and still more surprising that, having done +so, he should have returned with his army well-nigh intact. But we can +scarcely suppose the story that he destroyed the staple of the Greek +trade a pure fiction. He would be glad to leave his mark in the country, +and might make an extraordinary effort to reach the only town that was +to be found in the whole steppe region. Having effected his purpose by +its destruction, he would retire, falling back probably upon the coast, +where he could obtain supplies from his fleet. It is beyond dispute that +he returned with the bulk of his army, having suffered no loss but +that of a few invalid troops whom he sacrificed. Attempts had been made +during his absence to induce the Greeks, who guarded the bridge over +the Danube, to break it, and so hinder his return; but they were +unsuccessful. Darius recrossed the river after an interval of somewhat +more than two months, victorious according to his own notions, and +regarded himself as entitled thenceforth to enumerate among the subject +races of his empire "the Scyths beyond the sea." On his return march +through Thrace, he met, apparently, with no opposition. Before passing +the Bosphorus, he gave a commission to one of his generals, a certain +Megabazus, to complete the reduction of Thrace, and assigned him for the +purpose a body of 80,000 men, who remained in Europe while Darius and +the rest of his army crossed into Asia. + +Megabazus appears to have been fully worthy of the trust reposed in him. +In a single campaign (B.C. 506) he overran and subjugated the entire +tract between the Propontis and the Strymon, thus pushing forward the +Persian dominion to the borders of Macedonia. Among the tribes which he +conquered were the Perinthians, Greeks; the Pseti, Cicones, Bistones, +Sapaei, Dersaei and Edoni, Thracians; and the Paeoplae and Siripasones, +Pseonians. These last, to gratify a whim of Darius, were transported +into Asia. The Thracians who submitted were especially those of the +coast, no attempt, apparently, being made to penetrate the mountain +fastnesses and bring under subjection the tribes of the interior. + +The first contact between Persia and Macedonia possesses peculiar +interest from the circumstances of the later history. An ancestor of +Alexander the Great sat upon the throne of Macedon when the general of +Darius was brought in his career of conquest to the outskirts of the +Macedonian power. The kingdom was at this time comparatively small, not +extending much beyond Mount Bermius on the one hand, and not reaching +very far to the east of the Axius on the other. Megabazus saw in it, +we may be sure, not the fated destroyer of the Empire which he was +extending, but a petty state which the mere sound of the Persian +name would awe into subjection. He therefore, instead of invading the +country, contented himself with sending an embassy, with a demand +for earth and water, the symbols, according to Persian custom, of +submission. Amyntas, the Macedonian king, consented, to the demand +at once; and though, owing to insolent conduct on the part of the +ambassadors, they were massacred with their whole retinue, yet this +circumstance did not prevent the completion of Macedonian vassalage. +When a second embassy was sent to inquire into the fate of the first, +Alexander, the son of Amyntas, who had arranged the massacre, contrived +to have the matter hushed up by bribing one of the envoys with a large +sum of money and the hand of his sister, Gygsea. Macedonia took up the +position of a subject kingdom, and owned for her true lord the great +monarch of Western Asia. + +Megabazus, having accomplished the task assigned him, proceeded to +Sardis, where Darius had remained almost, if not quite, a full year His +place was taken by Otanes, the son of Sisamnes, a different person from +the conspirator, who rounded off the Persian conquests in these parts +by reducing, probably in B.C. 505, the cities of Byzantium, Chalcedon, +Antandrus, and Lamponium, with the two adjacent islands of Letnnos and +Imbrus. The inhabitants of all were, it appears, taxable, either with +having failed to give contingents towards the Scythian expedition, +or with having molested it on its return--crimes these, which Otanes +thought it right to punish by their general enslavement. + +Darius, meanwhile, had proceeded to the seat of government, which +appears at this time to have been Susa. He had perhaps already built +there the great palace, whose remains have been recently disinterred +by English enterprise; or he may have wished to superintend the work of +construction. Susa, which was certainly from henceforth the main Persian +capital, possessed advantages over almost any other site. Its climate +was softer than that of Ecbatana and Persepolis, less sultry than that +of Babylon. Its position was convenient for communicating both with +the East and with the West. Its people were plastic, and probably +more yielding and submissive than the Medes or the Persians. The king, +fatigued with his warlike exertions, was glad for a while to rest and +recruit himself at Susa, in the tranquil life of the Court. For some +years he appears to have conceived no new aggressive project; and he +might perhaps have forgotten his designs upon Greece altogether, had not +his memory been stirred by a signal and extraordinary provocation. + +The immediate circumstances which led to the Ionian Revolt belong to +Greek rather than to Persian history, and have been so fully treated of +by the historians of the Hellenic race that a knowledge of them may be +assumed as already possessed by the reader. What is chiefly remarkable +about them is, that they are so purely private and personal. A chance +quarrel between Aristagoras of Miletus and the Persian Megabates, +pecuniary difficulties pressing on the former, and the natural desire +of Histiseus, father-in-law of Aristagoras, to revisit his native place, +were undoubtedly the direct and immediate causes of what became a +great national outbreak. That there must have been other and wider +predisposing causes can scarcely be doubted. Among them two may be +suggested. The presence of Darius in Asia Minor, and his friendliness +towards the tyrants who bore sway in most of the Greek cities, were +calculated to elate those persons in their own esteem, and to encourage +in them habits and acts injurious or offensive to their subjects. Their +tyranny under these circumstances would become more oppressive and +galling. At the same time the popular mind could not fail to associate +together the native despot and the foreign lord, who (it was clear to +all) supported and befriended each other. If the Greeks of Asia, like so +many of their brethren in Europe, had grown weary of their tyrants +and were desirous of rising against them, they would be compelled to +contemplate the chances of a successful resistance to the Persians. +And here there were circumstances in the recent history calculated +to inspirit them and give them hopes. Six hundred Greek ships, manned +probably by 120,000 men, had been lately brought together, and had +formed a united fleet. The fate of the Persian land-army had depended +on their fidelity. It is not surprising that a sense of strength should +have been developed, and something like a national spirit should have +grown up in such a condition of things. + +If this were the state of feeling among the Greeks, the merit of +Aristagoras would be, that he perceived it, and, regardless of all class +prejudices, determined to take advantage of the chance which it gave +him of rising superior to his embarrassments. Throwing himself on the +popular feeling, the strength of which he had estimated aright, he by +the same act gave freedom to the cities, and plunged his nation into +a rebellion against Persia. It was easy for reason to show, when the +matter was calmly debated, that the probabilities of success against +the might of Darius were small. But the arrest of the tyrants by +Aristagoras, and his deliverance of them into the hands of their +subjects, was an appeal to passion against which reason was powerless. +No state could resist the temptation of getting rid of the tyranny under +which it groaned. But the expulsion of the vassal committed those who +took part in it to resist in arms the sovereign lord. + +In the original revolt appear to have been included only the cities +of Ionia and AEolis. Aristagoras felt that some further strength was +needed, and determined to seek it in European Greece. Repulsed from +Sparta, which was disinclined to so distant an expedition, he applied +for aid to cities on which he had a special claim. Miletus counted +Athens as her mother state; and Eretria was indebted to her for +assistance in her great war with Chalcis. Applying in these quarters +Aristagoras succeeded better, but still obtained no very important help. +Athens voted him twenty ships, Eretria five and with the promise of +these succors he hastened back to Asia. + +The European contingent soon afterwards arrived; and Aristagoras, +anxious to gain some signal success which should attract men to his +cause, determined on a most daring enterprise. This was no less than an +attack on Sardis, the chief seat of the Persian power in these parts, +and by far the most important city of Asia Minor. Sailing to Ephesus, he +marched up the valley of the Cayster, crossed Mount Tmolus, and took +the Lydian capital at the first onset. Artaphernes, the satrap, was only +able to save the citadel; the invaders began to plunder the town, and in +the confusion it caught fire and was burnt. Aristagoras and his troops +hastily retreated, but were overtaken before they could reach Ephesus by +the Persians quartered in the province, who fell upon them and gave +them a severe defeat. The expedition then broke up; the Asiatic Greeks +dispersed among their cities; the Athenians and Eretrians took ship and +sailed home. + +Results followed that could scarcely have been anticipated. The failure +of the expedition was swallowed up in the glory of its one achievement. +It had taken Sardis--it had burnt one of the chief cities of the Great +King. The news spread like wildfire on every side, and was proclaimed +aloud in places where the defeat of Ephesus was never even whispered. +Everywhere revolt burst out. The Greeks of the Hellespont--not only +those of Asia but likewise those of Europe--the Carians and Caunians of +the south-western coast--even the distant Cyprians broke into rebellion; +the Scythians took heart and made a plundering raid through the Great +King's Thracian territories;4 vassal monarchs, like Miltiades, assumed +independence, and helped themselves to some of the fragments of the +Empire that seemed falling to pieces. If a great man, a Miltiades or +a Leondias, had been at the head of the movement, and if it had been +decently supported from the European side, a successful issue might +probably have been secured. + +But Aristagoras was unequal to the occasion; and the struggle for +independence, which had promised so fair, was soon put down. Despite a +naval victory gained by the Greeks over the Phoenician fleet off Cyprus, +that island was recovered by the Persians within a year. Despite a +courage and a perseverance worthy of a better fate, the Carians were +soon afterwards forced to succumb. The reduction of the Hellespontine +Greeks and of the AEolians followed. The toils now closed around Ionia, +and her cities began to be attacked one by one; whereupon the incapable +Aristagoras, deserting the falling cause, betook himself to Europe, +where a just Nemesis pursued him: he died by a Thracian sword. After +this the climax soon arrived. Persia concentrated her strength upon +Miletus, the cradle of the revolt, and the acknowledged chief of the +cities; and though her sister states came gallantly to her aid, and a +fleet was collected which made it for a while doubtful which way victory +might incline, yet all was of no avail. Laziness and insubordination +began and treachery completed the work which all the force of Persia +might have failed to accomplish; the combined Ionian fleet was totally +defeated in the battle of Lade; and soon after Miletus herself fell. +The bulk of her inhabitants were transported into inner Asia and settled +upon the Persian Gulf. The whole Ionian coast was ravaged, and the +cities punished by the loss of their most beautiful maidens and youths. +The islands off the coast were swept of their inhabitants. The cities on +the Hellespont and Sea of Marmora were burnt. Miltiades barely escaped +from the Chersonese with the loss of his son and his kingdom. The flames +of rebellion were everywhere ruthlessly trampled out; and the power +of the Great King was once more firmly established over the coasts and +islands of the Propontis and the Egean Sea. + +It remained, however, to take vengeance upon the foreigners who had +dared to lend their aid to the king's revolted subjects, and had borne +a part in the burning of Sardis. The pride of the Persians felt such +interference as an insult of the grossest kind: and the tale may well be +true that Darius, from the time that he first heard the news, employed +an officer to bid him daily "remember Athens." The schemes which he had +formerly entertained with respect to the reduction of Greece recurred +with fresh force to his mind; and the task of crushing the revolt was no +sooner completed than he proceeded to attempt their execution. +Selecting Mardonius, son of Gobryas the conspirator, and one of his +own sons-in-law, for general, he gave him the command of a powerful +expedition, which was to advance by way of Thrace, Macedonia, and +Thessaly, against Eretria and Athens. At the same time, with a wisdom +which we should scarcely have expected in an Oriental, he commissioned +him, ere he quitted Asia, to depose the tyrants who bore rule in the +Greek cities, and to allow the establishment of democracies in their +stead. Such a measure was excellently calculated to preserve the +fidelity of the Hellenic population and to prevent any renewal of +disturbance. It gave ample employment to unquiet spirits by opening to +them a career in their own states--and it removed the grievance which, +more than anything else, had produced the recent rebellion. + +Mardonius having effected this change proceeded into Europe. He had a +large land force and a powerful navy, and at first was successful both +by land and sea. The fleet took Thasos, an island valuable for its +mines; and the army forced the Macedonians to exchange their position +of semi-independence for that of full Persian subjects, liable to both +tribute and military service. But this fair dawn was soon overcast. As +the fleet was rounding Athos a terrible tempest arose which, destroyed +300 triremes and more than 20,000 men, some of whom were devoured by +sea-monsters, while the remainder perished by drowning. On shore, +a night attack of the Brygi, a Thracian tribe dwelling in the tract +between the Strymon and the Axius, brought disaster upon the land force, +numbers of which were slain, while Mardonius himself received a wound. +This disgrace, indeed, was retrieved by subsequent operations, which +forced the Brygi to make their submission; but the expedition found +itself in no condition to advance further, and Mardonius retreated into +Asia. + +Darius, however, did not allow failure to turn him from his purpose. +The attack of Mardonius was followed within two years by the well-known +expedition under Datis (B.C. 490), which, avoiding the dangers of Athos, +sailed direct to its object, crossing the Egean by the line of the +Cyclades, and falling upon Eretria and Attica. Eretria's punishment +warned the Athenians to resist to the uttermost; and the skill of +Miltiades, backed by the valor of his countrymen, gave to Athens the +great victory of Marathon. Datis fell back upon Asia, having suffered +worse disasters than his predecessor, and bore to the king the +melancholy tidings that his vast force of from 100,000 to 200,000 men +had been met and worsted by 20,000 Athenians and Plataeans. + +Still Darius was not shaken in his resolution. He only issued fresh +orders for the collection of men, ships, and materials. For three years +Asia resounded with the din of preparation; and it is probable that in +the fourth year a fresh expedition would have been led into Greece, had +not an important occurrence prevented it. Egypt, always discontented +with its subject position under a race which despised its religion, and +perhaps occasionally persecuted it, broke out into open revolt (B.C. +487). Darius, it seems, determined to divide his forces, and proceed +simultaneously against both enemies; he even contemplated leading one +of the two expeditions in person; but before his preparations were +completed his vital powers failed. He died in the year following the +Egyptian revolt (B.C. 486), in the sixty-third year of his age, and +the thirty-sixth of his reign, leaving his crown to his eldest son by +Atossa, Xerxes. + +The character of Darius will have revealed itself with tolerable +clearness in the sketch which has been here given of the chief events +of his reign. But a brief summary of some of its main points may not be +superfluous. Darius Hystaspis was, next to Cyrus, the greatest of the +Persian kings; and he was even superior to Cyrus in some particulars. +His military talent has been underrated. Though not equal to the founder +of the Empire in this respect, he deserves the credit of energy, vigor, +foresight, and judicious management in his military expeditions, of +promptness in resolving and ability in executing, of discrimination in +the selection of generals, and of a power of combination not often found +in Oriental commanders. He was personally brave, and quite willing to +expose himself, even in his old age, to dangers and hardships. But +he did not unnecessarily thrust himself into peril. He was content to +employ generals, where the task to be accomplished did not seem to be +beyond their powers; and he appears to have been quite free from an +unworthy jealousy of their successes. He was a man of kindly and warm +feeling--strongly attached to his friends; he was clement and even +generous towards conquered foes. When he thought the occasion required +it, he could be severe but his inclination was towards mildness and +indulgence. He excelled all the other Persian kings in the arts of +peace. To him, and him alone, the Empire owed its organization. He was +a skilful administrator, a good financier, and a wise and far-seeing +ruler. Of all the Persian princes he is the only one who can be called +"many-sided." He was organizer, general, statesman, administrator, +builder, patron of arts and literature, all in one. Without him Persia +would probably have sunk as rapidly as she rose, and would be known to +us only as one of the many meteor powers which have shot athwart the +horizon of the East. + +Xerxes, the eldest son of Darius by Atossa, succeeded his father by +virtue of a formal act of choice. It was a Persian custom that the king, +before he went out of his dominions on an expedition, should nominate a +successor. Darius must have done this before his campaign in Thrace +and Scythia; and if Xerxes was then, as is probable, a mere boy, it is +impossible that he should have received the appointment. Artobazanes, +the eldest of all Darius's sons, whose mother, a daughter of Gobryas, +was married to Darius before he became king, was most likely then +nominated, and was thenceforth regarded as the heir-apparent. When, +however, towards the close of his reign Darius again proposed to head +a foreign expedition, an opportunity occurred of disturbing this +arrangement, of which Atossa, Darius's favorite wife, whose influence +over her husband was unbounded, determined to take advantage. According +to the law, a fresh signification of the sovereign's will was now +requisite; and Atossa persuaded Darius to make it in favor of Xerxes. +The pleas put forward were, first, that he was the eldest son of the +king, and secondly, that he was descended from Cyrus. This latter +argument could not fail to have weight. Backed by the influence of +Atossa, it prevailed over all other considerations; and hence Xerxes +obtained the throne. + +If we may trust the informants of Herodotus, it was the wish of Xerxes +on his accession to discontinue the preparations against Greece, and +confine his efforts to the re-conquest of Egypt. Though not devoid of +ambition, he may well have been distrustful of his own powers; and, +having been nurtured in luxury, he may have shrunk from the perils of a +campaign in unknown regions. But he was surrounded by advisers who had +interests opposed to his inclinations, and who worked on his facile +temper till they prevailed on him to take that course which seemed best +calculated to promote their designs. Mardonius was anxious to retrieve +his former failure, and expected, if Greece were conquered, that the +rich prize would become his own satrapy. The refugee princes of the +family of Pisistratus hoped to be reinstated under Persian influence as +dependent despots of Athens. Demaratus of Sparta probably cherished +a similar expectation with regard to that capital. The Persian nobles +generally, who profited by the spoils of war, and who were still full of +the military spirit, looked forward with pleasure to an expedition +from which they anticipated victory, plunder, and thousands of valuable +captives. The youthful king was soon persuaded that the example of his +predecessors required him to undertake some fresh conquest, while the +honor of Persia absolutely demanded that the wrongs inflicted upon her +by Athens should be avenged. Before, however, turning his arms against +Greece, two revolts required his attention. In the year B.C. 485--the +second of his reign--he marched into Egypt, which he rapidly reduced to +obedience and punished by increasing its burthens. Soon afterwards he +seems to have provoked a rebellion of the Babylonians by acts which they +regarded as impious, and avenged by killing their satrap, Zopyrus, and +proclaiming their independence. Megabyzus, the son of Zopyrus, recovered +the city, which was punished by the plunder and ruin of its famous +temple and the desolation of many of its shrines. + +Xerxes was now free to bend all his efforts against Greece, and, +appreciating apparently to the full the magnitude and difficulty of the +task, resolved that nothing should be left undone which could possibly +be done in order to render success certain. The experience of former +years had taught some important lessons. The failure of Datis had proved +that such an expedition as could be conveyed by sea across the Egean +would be insufficient to secure the object sought, and that the only +safe road for a conqueror whose land force constituted his real strength +was along the shores of the European continent. But if a large army +took this long and circuitous route, it must be supported by a powerful +fleet; and this involved a new danger. The losses of Mardonius off Athos +had shown the perils of Egean navigation, and taught the lesson that the +naval force must be at first far more than proportionate to the needs +of the army, in order that it might still be sufficient notwithstanding +some considerable disasters. At the same time they had indicated one +special place of danger, which might be avoided, if proper measures +were taken. Xerxes, in the four years which followed on the reduction of +Egypt, continued incessantly to make the most gigantic preparations +for his intended attack upon Greece, and among them included all the +precautions which a wise foresight could devise in order to ward off +every conceivable peril. A general order was issued to all the satraps +throughout the Empire, calling on them to levy the utmost force of their +province for the new war; while, as the equipment of Oriental troops +depends greatly on the purchase and distribution of arms by their +commander, a rich reward was promised to the satrap whose contingent +should appear at the appointed place and time in the most gallant array. +Orders for ships and transports of different kinds were given to the +maritime states, with such effect that above 1200 triremes and 3000 +vessels of an inferior description were collected together. Magazines +of corn were formed at various points along the intended line of route. +Above all, it was determined to bridge the Hellespont by a firm and +compact structure, which it was thought would secure the communication +of the army from interruption by the elements; and at the same time it +was resolved to cut through the isthmus which joined Mount Athos to the +continent, in order to preserve the fleet from disaster at that most +perilous part of the proposed voyage. These remarkable works, which made +a deep impression on the minds of the Greeks, have been ascribed to +a mere spirit of ostentation on the part of Xerxes; the vain-glorious +monarch wished, it is supposed, to parade his power, and made a useless +bridge and an absurd cutting merely for the purpose of exhibiting to +the world the grandeur of his ideas and the extent of his resources. But +there is no necessity for travelling beyond the line of ordinary human +motive in order to discover a reason for the works in question. The +bridge across the Hellespont was a mere repetition of the construction +by which Darius had passed into Europe when he made his Scythian +expedition, and probably seemed to a Persian not a specially dignified +or very wonderful way of crossing so narrow a strait, but merely the +natural mode of passage. The only respect in which the bridge of Xerxes +differed from constructions with which the Persians were thoroughly +familiar, was in its superior solidity and strength. The shore-cables +were of unusual size and weight, and apparently of unusual materials; +the formation of a double line--of two bridges, in fact, instead of +one--was almost without a parallel; and the completion of the work by +laying on the ordinary plank-bridge a solid causeway composed of earth +and brushwood, with a high bulwark on either side, was probably, if not +unprecedented, at any rate very uncommon. Boat-bridges were usually, +as they are even now in the East, somewhat rickety constructions, which +animals unaccustomed to them could with difficulty be induced to cross. +The bridge of Xerxes was a high-road, as AEschylus calls it along, which +men, horses, and vehicles might pass with as much comfort and facility +as they could move on shore. + +The utility of such a work is evident. Without it Xerxes must have been +reduced to the necessity of embarking in ships, conveying across the +strait, and disembarking, not only his entire host, but all its stores, +tents, baggage, horses, camels, and sumpter-beasts. If the numbers of +his army approached even the lowest estimate that has been formed of +them, it is not too much to say that many weeks must have been spent in +this operation. As it was, the whole expedition marched across in seven +days. In the case of ship conveyance, continual accidents would have +happened: the transport would from time to time have been interrupted by +bad weather; and great catastrophes might have occurred. By means of the +bridge the passage was probably effected without any loss of either man +or beast. Moreover, the bridge once established, there was a safe +line of communication thenceforth between the army in Europe and the +headquarters of the Persian power in Asia, along which might pass +couriers, supplies, and reinforcements, if they should be needed. +Further, the grandeur, massiveness, and apparent stability of the work +was calculated to impose upon the minds of men, and to diminish their +power of resistance by impressing them strongly with a sense of the +irresistible greatness and strength of the invader. + +The canal of Athos was also quite a legitimate and judicious +undertaking. [PLATE LXI.] No portion of the Greek coast is so dangerous +as that about Athos. Greek boatmen even at the present day refuse to +attempt the circumnavigation; and probably any government less apathetic +than that of the Turks would at once re-open the old cutting. The work +was one of very little difficulty, the breadth of the isthmus being less +than a mile and a half, the material sand and marl, and the greatest +height of the natural ground above the level of the sea about fifty +feet. The construction of a canal in such a locality was certainly +better than the formation of a ship-groove or Diolcus--the substitute +for it proposed by Ferodotus, [PLATE LXI.] not to mention that it is +doubtful whether at the time that this cutting was made ship-grooves +were known even to the Greeks. + + +[Illustration: PLATE LXI.] + + +Xerxes, having brought his preparations into a state of forwardness, +having completed his canal and his bridge--after one failure with the +latter, for which the constructors and the sea were punished--proceeded, +in the year B.C. 481, along the "Royal Road" from Susa to Sardis, and +wintered at the Lydian capital. His army is said to have accompanied +him; but more probably it joined him in the spring, flocking in, +contingent after contingent, from the various provinces of his vast +Empire. Forty-nine nations, according to Herodotus, served under his +standard; and their contingents made up a grand total of eighteen +hundred thousand men. Of these, eighty thousand were cavalry, while +twenty thousand rode in chariots or on camels; the remainder served on +foot. There are no sufficient means of testing these numbers. Figures +in the mouth of an Oriental are vague and almost unmeaning; armies are +never really counted: there is no such thing as a fixed and definite +"strength" of a division or a battalion. Herodotus tells us that a rough +attempt at numbering the infantry of the host was made on this occasion; +but it was of so rude and primitive a description that little dependence +can be placed on the results obtained by it. Ten thousand men were +counted, and were made to stand close together; a line was then drawn +round them, and a wall built on the line to the height of a man's waist; +within the enclosure thus made all the troops in turn entered, and each +time that the enclosure appeared to be full, ten thousand were supposed +to be within it. Estimated in this way, the infantry was regarded as +amounting to 1,700,000. It is clear that such mode of counting was of +the roughest kind, and might lead to gross exaggeration. Each commander +would wish his troops to be thought more numerous than they really were, +and would cause the enclosure to appear full when several thousands +more might still have found room within it. Nevertheless there would be +limits beyond which exaggeration could not go; and if Xerxes was made to +believe that the land force which he took with him into Europe amounted +to nearly two millions of men, it is scarcely doubtful but that it must +have exceeded one million. + +The motley composition of such a host has been described in a former +chapter. Each nation was armed and equipped after its own fashion, and +served in a body, often under a distinct commander. The army marched +through Asia in a single column, which was not, however, continuous, +but was broken into three portions. The first portion consisted of the +baggage animals and about half of the contingents of the nations; the +second was composed wholly of native Persians, who preceded and followed +the emblems of religion and the king; the third was made up of the +remaining national contingents. The king himself rode alternately in +a chariot and in a litter. He was preceded immediately by ten sacred +horses, and a sacred chariot drawn by eight milk-white steeds. Round +him and about him were the choicest troops of the whole army, twelve +thousand horse and the same number of foot, all Persians, and those too +not taken at random, but selected carefully from the whole mass of the +native soldiery. Among them seem to have been the famous "Immortals"--a +picked body of 10,000 footmen, always maintained at exactly the same +number, and thence deriving their appellation. + +The line of march from Sardis to Abydos was only partially along the +shore. The army probably descended the valley of the Hermus nearly to +its mouth, and then struck northward into the Caicus vale, crossing +which it held on its way, with Mount Kara-dagh (Cane) on the left, +across the Atarnean plain, and along the coast to Adramytium (Adramyti) +and Antandros, whence it again struck inland, and, crossing the ridge +of Ida, descended into the valley of the Scamander. Some losses were +incurred from the effects of a violent thunderstorm amid the mountains; +but they cannot have been of a any great consequence. On reaching the +Scamander the army found its first difficulty with respect to water. +That stream was probably low, and the vast host of men and animals +were unable to obtain from it a supply sufficient for their wants. This +phenomenon, we are told, frequently recurred afterwards; it surprises +the English reader, but is not really astonishing, since, in hot +countries, even considerable streams are often reduced to mere threads +of water during the summer. + +Rounding the hills which skirt the Scamander valley upon the east, the +army marched past Rhoeteum, Ophrynium, and Dardanus to Abydos. Here +Xerxes, seated upon a marble throne, which the people of Abydos had +erected for him on the summit of a hill, was able to see at one glance +his whole, armament, and to feast his eyes with the sight. It is not +likely that any misgivings occurred to him at such a moment. Before him +lay his vast host, covering with its dense masses the entire low ground +between the hills and the sea; beyond was the strait, and to his left +the open sea, white with the sails of four thousand ships; the green +fields of the Chersonese smiled invitingly a little further on; while, +between him and the opposite shore, the long lines of his bridges lay +darkling upon the sea, like a yoke placed upon the neck of a captive. +Having seen all, the king gave his special attention to the fleet, which +he now perhaps beheld in all its magnitude for the first time. Desirous +of knowing which of his subjects were the best sailors, he gave orders +for a sailing-match, which were at once carried out. The palm was borne +off by the Phoenicians of Sidon, who must have beaten not only their own +countrymen of Tyre, but the Greeks of Asia and the islands. + +On the next day the passage took place. It was accompanied by religious +ceremonies. Waiting for the sacred hour of sunrise, the leader of the +host, as the first rays appeared, poured a libation from a golden goblet +into the sea, and prayed to Mithra that he might effect the conquest of +Europe. As he prayed he cast into the sea the golden goblet, and with it +a golden bowl and a short Persian sword. Meanwhile the multitude strewed +all the bridge with myrtle boughs, and perfumed it with clouds of +incense. The "Immortals" crossed first, wearing garlands on their +heads. The king, with the sacred chariot and horses passed over on the +second day. For seven days and seven nights the human stream flowed +on without intermission across one bridge, while the attendants and the +baggage-train made use of the other. The lash was employed to quicken +the movements of laggards. At last the whole army was in Europe, and the +march resumed its regularity. + +It is unnecessary to follow in detail the advance of the host along the +coast of Thrace, across Chalcidice, and round the Thermaic Gulf into +Pieria. If we except the counting of the fleet and army at Doriscus no +circumstances of much interest diversified this portion of the march, +which lay entirely through territories that had previously submitted +to the Great King. The army spread itself over a wide tract of country, +marching generally in three divisions, which proceeded by three parallel +lines--one along the coast, another at some considerable distance +inland, and a third, with which was Xerxes himself, midway between them. +At every place where Xerxes stopped along his line of route the natives +had, besides furnishing corn for his army, to entertain him and his +suite at a great banquet, the cost of which was felt as a heavy burthen. +Contributions of troops or ships were also required from all the cities +and tribes; and thus both fleet and army continually swelled as they +advanced onward. In crossing the track between the Strymon and the Axius +some damage was suffered by the baggage-train from lions, which came +down from the mountains during the night and devoured many of the +camels; but otherwise the march was effected without loss, and the fleet +and army reached the borders of Thessaly intact, and in good condition. +Here it was found that there was work for the pioneers, and a +reconnaissance of the enemy's country before entering it was probably +also thought desirable. The army accordingly halted some days in Pieria, +while preparations were being made for crossing the Olympic range into +the Thessalian lowland. + +During the halt intelligence arrived which seemed to promise the invader +an easy conquest. Xerxes, while he was staying at Sardis, had sent +heralds to all the Grecian states, excepting Athens and Sparta, with a +demand for earth and water, the recognized symbols of submission. His +envoys now returned, and brought him favorable replies from at least +one-third of the continental Greeks--from the Perrhaebians, Thessalians, +Dolopians, Magnetians, Achaeans of Phthiotis, Enianians, Malians, +Locrians, and from most of the Boeotians. Unless it were the +insignificant Phocis, no hostile country seemed to intervene between the +place where his army lay and the great object of the expedition, Attica. +Xerxes, therefore, having first viewed the pass of Tempe, and seen with +his own eyes that no enemy lay encamped beyond, passed over the Olympic +range by a road cut through the woods by his army, and proceeded +southwards across Thessaly and Achaea Phthiotis into Malis, the fertile +plain at the mouth of the Spercheius river. Here, having heard that a +Greek force was in the neighborhood, he pitched his camp not far from +the small town of Trachis. + +Thus far had the Greeks allowed the invader to penetrate their country +without offering him any resistance. Originally there had been an +intention of defending Thessaly, and an army under Evsenetus, a Spartan +polemarch, and Themistocles, the great Athenian, had proceeded to Tempe, +in order to cooperate with the Thessalians in guarding the pass. But the +discovery that the Olympic range could be crossed in the,place where +the army of Xerxes afterwards passed it had shown that the position was +untenable; and it had been then resolved that the stand should be +made at the next defensible position, Thermopylae. [PLATE LXII.] Here, +accordingly, a force was found--small, indeed, if it be compared with +the number of the assailants, but sufficient to defend such a position +as that where it was posted against the world in arms. Three hundred +Spartans, with their usual retinue of helots, 700 Lacedaemonians, other +Peloponnesians to the number of 2800, 1000 Phocians, the same number +of Locrians, 700 Thespians, and 400 Thebans, formed an army of 9000 +men--quite as numerous a force as could be employed with any effect in +the defile they were sent to guard. The defile was a long and narrow +pass shut in between a high mountain, Callidromus, and the sea, and +crossed at one point by a line of wall in which was a single gateway. +Unless the command of the sea were gained, or another mode of crossing +the mountains discovered, the pass could scarcely be forced. + + +[Illustration: PLATE LXII.] + + +Xerxes, however, confident in his numbers--after waiting four days at +Trachis, probably in the hope that his fleet would join him--proceeded +on the fifth day to the assault. First the Medes and Cissians, then +the famous "Immortals" were sent into the jaws of the pass against the +immovable foe; but neither detachment could make any impression. The +long spears, large shields, and heavy armor of the Greeks, their skilful +tactics, and steady array, were far more than a match for the inferior +equipments and discipline of the Asiatics. Though the attack was made +with great gallantry, both on this day and the next, it failed to +produce the slightest effect. Very few of the Greeks were either slain +or wounded; and it seemed as if the further advance of a million of men +was to be stopped by a force less than a hundredth part of their number. + +But now information reached Xerxes which completely changed the face +of affairs. There was a rough mountain-path leading from Trachis up +the gorge of the Asopus and across Callidromus to the rear of the Greek +position, which had been unknown to the Greeks when they decided on +making their first stand at Thermopylae, and which they only discovered +when their plans no longer admitted of alteration. It was, perhaps, +not much more than a goat-track, and apparently they had regarded it as +scarcely practicable, since they had thought its defence might be safely +entrusted to a thousand Phocians. Xerxes, however, on learning the +existence of the track, resolved at once to make trial of it. His +Persian soldiers were excellent mountaineers. He ordered Hydarnes to +take the "Immortals," and, guided by a native, to proceed along the path +by night, and descend with early dawn into the rear of the Greeks, who +would then be placed between two fires. The operation was performed with +complete success. The Phocian guard, surprised at the summit, left the +path free while they sought a place of safety. The Greeks in the pass +below, warned during the night of their danger, in part fled, in part +resolved on death. When morning came, Leonidas, at the head of about +half his original army, moved forward towards the Malian plain, and +there met the advancing Persians. A bloody combat ensued, in which the +Persians lost by far the greater number; but the ranks of the Greeks +were gradually thinned, and they were beaten back step by step into the +narrowest part of the pass, where finally they all perished, except the +four hundred Thebans, who submitted and were made prisoners. + +So terminated the first struggle on the soil of Greece, between the +invaders and the invaded. It seemed to promise that, though at vast +cost, Persia would be victorious. If her loss in the three days' combat +was 20,000 men, as Herodotus states, yet, as that of her enemy was 4000, +the proportionate advantage was on her side. + +But, for the conquest of such a country as Greece, it was requisite, not +only that the invader should succeed on land, but also that he should be +superior at sea. Xerxes had felt this, and had brought with him a fleet, +calculated, as he imagined, to sweep the Greek navy from the Egean. As +far as the Pagasaean Gulf, opposite the northern extremity of Euboea, +his fleet had advanced without meeting an enemy. It had encountered one +terrible storm off the coast of Magnesia, and had lost 400 vessels; but +this loss was scarcely felt in so vast an armament. When from Aphetse, +at the mouth of the gulf, the small Greek fleet, amounting to no more +than 271 vessels, was seen at anchor off Artemisium, the only fear which +the Persian commanders entertained was lest it should escape them. They +at once detached 200 vessels to sail round the Coast coast of Euboea, +and cut off the possibility of retreat. When, however, these vessels +were all lost in a storm, and when in three engagements on three +successive days, the Greek fleet showed itself fully able to contend +against the superior numbers of its antagonist, the Persians themselves +could not fail to see that their naval supremacy was more than doubtful. +The fleet at Artemisium was not the entire Greek naval force; on another +occasion it might be augumented, while their own could scarcely expect +to receive reinforcements. The fights at Artemisium foreshadowed a day +when the rival fleets would no longer meet and part on equal terms, but +Persia would have to acknowledge herself inferior. + +Meanwhile, however, the balance of advantage rested with the invaders. +The key of Northern Greece was won, and Phocis, Locris, Boeotia, Attica, +and the Megarid lay open to the Persian army. The Greek fleet could gain +nothing by any longer maintaining the position of Artemisium, and fell +back towards the south, while its leaders anxiously considered where it +should next take up its station. The Persians pressed on both by land +and sea. A rapid march through Phocis and Boeotia brought Xerxes to +Athens, soon after the Athenians, knowing that resistance would be vain, +had evacuated it. The Acropolis, defended by a few fanatics, was taken +and burnt. One object of the expedition was thus accomplished. Athens +lay in ruins; and the whole of Attica was occupied by the conqueror. +The Persian fleet, too, finding the channel of the Euripus clear, sailed +down it, and rounding Sunium, came to anchor in the bay of Phalerum. + +In the councils of the Greeks all was doubt and irresolution. The +army, which ought to have mustered in full force at Thermopylae and +Callidromus, and which, after those passes were forced, might have +defended Cithseron and Parnes, had never ventured beyond the Isthmus +of Corinth, and was there engaged in building a wall across the neck of +land from sea to sea. The fleet lay off Salamis, where it was detained +by the entreaties of the Athenians, who had placed in that island the +greater part of the non-combatant population; but the inclination was +strong on the part of many to withdraw westward and fight the next +battle, if a battle must be fought, in the vicinity of the land force, +which would be a protection in case of defeat. Could Xerxes have had +patience for a few days, the combined fleet would have broken up. The +Peloponnesian contingents would have withdrawn to the isthmus; and the +Athenians, despairing of success, would probably have sailed away to +Italy. But the Great King, when he saw the vast disproportion +between his own fleet and that of the enemy, could not believe in the +possibility of the Greeks offering a successful resistance. Like a +modern emperor, who imagined that, if only he could have been with his +fleet, all would necessarily have gone well, Xerxes supposed that by +having the sea-fight under his own eye he would be sure of victory. Thus +again, as at Artemisium, the only fear felt was lest the Greeks should +fly, and in that way escape chastisement. Orders were therefore issued +to the Persian fleet to close up at once, and blockade the eastern end +of the Salaminian strait, while a detachment repeated the attempted +manoeuvre at Euboea, and sailed round the island to guard the channel at +its western outlet. + +These movements were executed late in the day on which the Persian +fleet arrived at Phalerum. During the night intelligence reached the +commanders that the retreat of the Greeks was about to commence at once; +whereupon the Persian right wing was pushed forward into the strait, +and carried beyond the Greek position so as to fill the channel where +it opens into the bay of Eleusis. The remainder of the night passed +in preparations for the battle on both sides. At daybreak both fleets +advanced from their respective shores, the Persians being rather the +assailants. Their thousand vessels were drawn up in three lines, and +charged their antagonists with such spirit that the general inclination +on the part of the Greeks was at first to retreat. Some of their ships +had almost touched the shore, when the bold example of one of the +captains, or a cry of reproach from unknown lips, produced a revulsion +of feeling, and the whole line advanced in good order. The battle was +for a short time doubtful; but soon the superiority of Greek naval +tactics began to tell. The Persian vessels became entangled one with +another, and crashing together broke each other's oars. The triple +line increased their difficulties. If a vessel, overmatched, sought to +retreat, it necessarily came into collision with the ships stationed +in its rear. These moreover pressed too eagerly forward, since their +captains were anxious to distinguish themselves in order to merit the +approval of Xerxes. The Greeks found themselves able to practice +with good effect their favorite manoeuvre of the _periplus_, and thus +increased the confusion. It was not long before the greater part of +the Persian fleet became a mere helpless mass of shattered or damaged +vessels. Five hundred are said to have been sunk--the majority by the +enemy, but some even by their own friends. The sea was covered with +wrecks, and with wretches who clung to them, till the ruthless enemy +slew them or forced them to let go their hold. + +This defeat was a death-blow to the hopes of Xerxes, and sealed the fate +of the expedition. From the moment that he realized to himself the fact +of the entire inability of his fleet to cope with that of the Greeks, +Xerxes made up his mind to return with all haste to Asia. From +over-confidence he fell into the opposite extreme of despair, and made +no effort to retrieve his ill fortune. His fleet was ordered to sail +straight for the Hellespont, and to guard the bridges until he reached +them with his army. He himself retreated hastily along the same road +by which he had advanced, his whole army accompanying him as far as +Thessaly, where Marnonius was left with 260,000 picked men, to prevent +pursuit, and to renew the attempt against Greece in the ensuing year. +Xerxes pressed on to the Hellespont, losing vast numbers of his troops +by famine and sickness on the way, and finally returned into Asia, not +by his magnificent bridge, which a storm had destroyed, but on board a +vessel, which, according to some, narrowly escaped shipwreck during the +passage. Even in Asia disaster pursued him. Between Abydos and Sardis +his army suffered almost as much from over-indulgence as it had +previously suffered from want; and of the mighty host which had gone +forth from the Lydian capital in the spring not very many thousands can +have re-entered it in the autumn. + +Still, however, there was a possibility that the success which his +own arms had failed to achieve might reward the exertions of his +lieutenants. Mardonius had expressed himself confident that with 300,000 +picked soldiers he could overpower all resistance, and make Greece +a satrapy of Persia. Xerxes had raised his forces to that amount by +sending Artabazus back from Sestos at the head of a _corps d'armee_ +numbering 40,000 men. The whole army of 300,000 wintered in Thessaly; +and Mardonius, when spring came, having vainly endeavored to detach the +Athenians from the Grecian ranks, marched through Boeotia in Attica, and +occupied Athens for the second time. Hence he proceeded to menace the +Peloponnese, where he formed an alliance with the Argives, who promised +him that they would openly embrace the Persian cause. At the same time +the Athenians, finding that Sparta took no steps to help them, began to +waver in their resistance, and to contemplate accepting the terms which +Mardonius was still willing to grant them. The fate of Greece trembled +in the balance, and apparently was determined by the accident of a death +and a succession, rather than by any wide-spread patriotic feeling or +any settled course of policy. Cleombrotus, regent for the young son +of Leonidas, died, and his brother Pausanias--a brave, clever, and +ambitious man--took his place. We can scarcely be wrong in ascribing--at +least in part--to this circumstance the unlooked-for change of policy, +which electrified the despondent ambassadors of Athens almost as soon as +Pausanias was installed in power. It was suddenly announced that +Sparta would take the offensive. Ten thousand hoplites and 400,000 +light-armed--the largest army that she ever levied--took the field, +and, joined at the isthmus by above 25,000 Peloponnesians, and soon +afterwards by almost as many Athenians and Megarians, proceeded to seek +the foreigners, first in Attica, and then in the position to which they +had retired in Boeotia. On the skirts of Citheeron, near Platsea, a +hundred and eight thousand Greeks confronted more than thrice their +number of Persians and Persian subjects; and now at length the trial +was to be made whether, in fair and open fight on land, Greece or Persia +would be superior. A suspicion of what the result would be might have +been derived from Marathon. But there the Persians had been taken at a +disadvantage, when the cavalry, their most important arm, was absent. +Here the error of Datis was not likely to be repeated. Mardonius had a +numerous and well-armed cavalry, which he handled with no little skill. +It remained to be seen, when the general engagement came, whether, with +both arms brought fully into play, the vanquished at Marathon would be +the victors. + +The battle of Plataea was brought on under circumstances very +unfavorable to the Greeks. Want of water and a difficulty about +provisions had necessitated a night movement on their part. The +cowardice of all the small contingents, and the obstinacy of an +individual Spartan, disconcerted the whole plan of the operation, and +left the Lacedaemonians and the Athenians at daybreak separated from +each other, and deserted by the whole body of their allies. Mardonius +attacked at once, and prevented the junction of the two allies, so that +two distinct and separate engagements went on at the same time. In both +the Greeks were victorious. The Spartans repulsed the Persian horse and +foot, slew Mardonius and were the first to assail the Persian camp. The +Athenians defeated the _medizing_ Greeks, and effected a breach in +the defences of the camp, on which the Spartans had failed to make any +impression. A terrible carnage followed. The contingent of 40,000 troops +under Artabazus alone drew off in good order. + +The remainder were seized with panic, and were either slaughtered like +sheep or fled in complete disarray. Seventy thousand Greeks not only +defeated but destroyed the army of 300,000 barbarians, which melted +away and disappeared making no further stand anywhere. The disaster of +Marathon was repeated on a larger scale, and without the resource of +an embarkation. Henceforth the immense superiority of Greek troops to +Persian was well known on both sides; and nothing but the distance from +Greece of her vital parts, and the quarrels of the Greek states among +themselves, preserved for nearly a century and a half the doomed empire +of Persia. + +The immediate result of the defeats of Salamis and Platsea was a +contraction of the Persian boundary towards the west. Though a few +Persian garrisons maintained themselves for some years on the further +side of the straits, soothing thereby the wounded vanity of the Great +King, who liked to think that he had still a hold on Europe; yet there +can be no doubt that, after the double flight of Xerxes and Artabazus, +Macedonia, Pseonia, and Thrace recovered their independence. Persia lost +her European provinces, and began the struggle to retain those of Asia. +Terminus receded, and having once receded never advanced again in this +quarter. The Greeks took the offensive. Sailing to Asia, they not only +liberated from their Persian bondage the islands which lay along the +coast, but landing their men on the continent, attacked and defeated +an army of 60,000 Persians at Mycale, and destroyed the remnant of the +ships that had escaped from Salamis. Could they have made up their minds +to maintain a powerful fleet permanently on the coast of Asia, they +might at once have deprived Persia of her whole sea-hoard on the +Propontis and the Egean; but neither of the two great powers of Greece +was prepared for such a resolve. Sparta disliked distant expeditions; +and Athens did not as yet see her way to undertaking the protection +of the continental Greeks. She had much to do at home, and had not +yet discovered those weak points in her adversary's harness, which +subsequently enabled her to secure by treaty the freedom of the Greek +cities upon the mainland. For the present, therefore, Persia only lost +the bulk of her European possessions, and the islands of the Propontis +and the Egean. + +The circumstances which caused a renewal of Greek agressions upon Asia +towards the close of the reign of Xerxes are not very clearly narrated +by the authors who speak of them. It appears, however, that after twelve +years of petty operations, during which Eion was recovered, and Doriscus +frequently attacked, but without effect, the Athenians resolved, in B.C. +466, upon a great expedition to the eastward. Collecting a fleet of +300 vessels, which was placed under the command of Cimon, the son of +Miltiades, they sailed to the coast of Caria and Lycia, where they drove +the Persian garrisons out of the Greek towns, and augmenting their +navy by fresh contingents at every step, proceeded along the shores of +Pamphylia as far as the mouth of the river Eurymedon, where they found +a Phoenician fleet of 340 vessels, and a Persian army, stationed to +protect the territory. Engaging first the fleet they defeated it, and +drove it ashore, after which they disembarked and gained a victory +over the Persian army. As many as two hundred triremes were taken +or destroyed. They then sailed on towards Cyprus, where they met and +destroyed a squadron of eighty ships, which was on its way to reinforce +the fleet at the Eurymedon. Above a hundred vessels, 20,000 captives, +and a vast amount of plunder were the prize of this war; which had, +however, no further effect on the relations of the two powers. + +In the following year the reign of Xerxes came to an end abruptly. +With this monarch seems to have begun those internal disorders of the +seraglio, which made the Court during more than a hundred and forty +years a perpetual scene of intrigues, assassinations, executions, and +conspiracies. Xerxes, who appears to have only one wife, Amestris, +the daughter (or grand-daughter) of the conspirator, Otanes, permitted +himself the free indulgence of illicit passion among the princesses +of the Court, the wives of his own near relatives. The most horrible +results followed. Amestris vented her jealous spite on those whom she +regarded as guilty of stealing from her the affections of her husband; +and to prevent her barbarities from producing rebellion, it was +necessary to execute the persons whom she had provoked, albeit they were +near relations of the monarch. The taint of incontinence spread among +the members of the royal family; and a daughter of the king, who was +married to one of the most powerful nobles, became notorious for +her excesses. Eunuchs rose into power, and fomented the evils which +prevailed. The king made himself bitter enemies among those whose +position was close to his person. At last, Artabanus, chief of the +guard, a courtier of high rank, and Aspamitres, a eunuch, who held the +office of chamberlain, conspired against their master, and murdered him +in his sleeping apartment, after he had reigned twenty years. + +The character of Xerxes falls below that of any preceding monarch. +Excepting that he was not wholly devoid of a certain magnanimity, which +made him listen patiently to those who opposed his views or gave him +unpalatable advice and which prevented him from exacting vengeance on +some occasions, he had scarcely a trait whereon the mind can rest with +any satisfaction. Weak and easily led, puerile in his gusts of passion +and his complete abandonment of himself to them--selfish, fickle, +boastful, cruel, superstitious, licentious--he exhibits to us the +Oriental despot in the most contemptible of all his aspects--that +wherein the moral and the intellectual qualities are equally in defect, +and the career is one unvarying course of vice and folly. From Xerxes we +have to date at once the decline of the Empire in respect of territorial +greatness and military strength, and likewise its deterioration in +regard to administrative vigor and national spirit. With him commenced +the corruption of the Court--the fatal evil, which almost universally +weakens and destroys Oriental dynasties. His expedition against Greece +exhausted and depopulated the Empire; and though, by abstaining from +further military enterprises, he did what lay in his power to recruit +its strength, still the losses which his expedition caused were +certainly not repaired in his lifetime. + +As a builder, Xerxes showed something of the same grandeur of conception +which is observable in his great military enterprise and in the works by +which it was accompanied. His Propylaea, and the sculptured staircase in +front of the Chebl Minar, which is undoubtedly his work, are among the +most magnificent erections upon the Persepolitan platform; and are quite +sufficient to place him in the foremost rank of Oriental builders. If +we were to ascribe the Chehl Minar itself to him, we should have to give +him the palm above all other kings of Persia; but on the whole it +is most probable that that edifice and its duplicate at Susa were +conceived, and in the main, constructed, by Darius. + +Xerxes left behind him three sons--Darius, Hystaspes, and +Artaxerxes--and two daughters, Amytis and Rhodogune. Hystaspes was +satrap of Bactria, and at the time of their father's death, only Darius +and Artaxerxes were at the Court. + +Fearing the eldest son most, Artabanus persuaded Artaxerxes that the +assassination of Xerxes was the act of his brother, whereupon Artaxerxes +caused him to be put to death, and himself ascended the throne (B.C. +465). + +Troubles, as usual, accompanied this irregular accession. Artabanus, not +content with exercising an influence under Artaxerxes such as has +caused some authors to speak of him as king, aimed at removing the +young prince, and making himself actual monarch. But his designs being +betrayed to Artaxerxes by Megabyzus, and at the same time his +former crimes coming to light, he was killed, together with his tool +Aspamitres, seven months after the murder of Xerxes. The sons of +Artabanus sought to avenge his death, but were defeated by Megabyzus in +an engagement, wherein they lost their lives. + +Meanwhile, in Bactria, Hystaspes, who had a rightful claim to the +throne, raised the standard of revolt. Artaxerxes marched against him +in person, and engaged him in two battles, the first of which was +indecisive, while in the second the Bactrians suffered defeat, chiefly +(according to Ctesias) because the wind blew violently in their faces. +So signal was victory, that Bactria at once submitted. Hystaspes' fate +is uncertain. + +Not long after the reduction of Bactria, Egypt suddenly threw off the +Persian yoke (B.C. 460). Inarus, a king of the wild African tribes who +bordered the Nile valley on the west, but himself perhaps a descendant +of the old monarchs of Egypt, led the insurrection, and, in conjunction +with an Egyptian, named Amyrtseus, attacked the Persian troops stationed +in the country, who were commanded by Achaemenes, the satrap. A battle +was fought near Papremis in the Delta, wherein the Persians were +defeated, and Achaemenes fell by the hand of Inarus himself. The +Egyptians generally now joined in the revolt; and the remnant of the +Persian army was shut up in Memphis. Inarus had asked the aid of Athens; +and an Athenian fleet of 200 sail was sent to his assistance. This fleet +sailed up the Nile, defeated a Persian squadron, and took part in the +capture of Memphis and the siege of its citade (White Castle). When +the Persian king first learned what had happened, he endeavored to rid +himself of his Athenian enemies by inducing the Spartans to invade their +country; but, failing in his attempt, he had recourse to arms, and, +levying a vast host, which he placed under the command of Megabyzus, +sent that officer to recover the revolted province. Megabyzus marched +upon Memphis, defeated the Egyptians and their allies in a great battle, +relieved the citadel of Memphis from its siege, and recovered the rest +of the town. The Athenians fled to the tract called Prosopitis, which +was a a portion of the Delta, completely surrounded by two branch +streams of the Nile. Here they were besieged for eighteen months, till +Megabyzus contrived to turn the water from one of the two streams, +whereby the Athenian ships were stranded, and the Persian troops were +able to march across the river bed, and overwhelm the Athenians with +their numbers. A few only escaped to Cyrene. The entire fleet fell into +the enemy's hands; and a reinforcement of fifty more ships, arriving +soon after the defeat, was attacked unawares after it had entered the +river, and lost more than half its number. Inarus was betrayed by some +of his own men, and, being carried prisoner to Persia, suffered death by +crucifixion. Amyrtseus fled to the fens, where for a while he maintained +his independence. Egypt, however, was with this exception recovered to +the Empire (B.C. 455); and Athens was taught that she could not always +invade the dominions of the Great King with impunity. + +Six years after this, the Athenians resolved on another effort. A fleet +of 200 ships was equipped and placed under the command of the victor +of the Eurymedon, Cimon, with orders to proceed into the Eastern +Mediterranean, and seek to recover the laurels lost in Egypt. Cimon +sailed to Cyprus, where he received a communication from Amyrtseus, +which induced him to dispatch sixty ships to Egypt, while with the +remaining one hundred and forty he commenced the siege of Citium. Here +he died, either of disease or from the effects of a wound; and his +armament, pressed for provisions, was forced soon afterwards to raise +the siege, and address itself to some other enterprise. Sailing past +Salamis, it found there a Cilician and Phoenician fleet, consisting of +300 vessels, which it immediately attacked and defeated, notwithstanding +the disparity of number. Besides the ships which were sunk, a hundred +triremes were taken; and the sailors then landed and gained a victory +over a Persian army upon the shore. Artaxerxes, upon this, fearing lest +he should lose Cyprus altogether, and thinking that, if Athens became +mistress of this important island, she would always be fomenting +insurrection in Egypt, made overtures for peace to the generals who were +now in command. His propositions were favorably received. Peace was made +on the following terms:--Athens agreed to relinquish Cyprus, and recall +her squadron from Egypt; while the king consented to grant freedom to +all the Greek cities on the Asiatic continent, and not to menace them +either by land or water. The sea was divided between the two powers, +Persian ships of war were not to sail to the west of Phaselis in the +Levant, or of the Cyanean islands in the Euxine; and Greek war-ships, we +may assume, were not to show themselves east of those limits. On these +conditions there was to be peace and amity between the Greeks and the +Persians, and neither nation was to undertake any expeditions against +the territories of the other. Thus terminated the first period of +hostility between Greece and Persia, a period of exactly half a century, +commencing B.C. 499 and. ending B.C. 449, in the seventeenth year of +Artaxerxes. + +It was probably not many years after the conclusion of this peace that +a rebellion broke out in Syria. Megabyzus, the satrap of that important +province, offended at the execution of Inarus, in violation of the +promise which he had himself made to him, raised a revolt against +his sovereign, defeated repeatedly the armies sent to reduce him to +obedience, and finally treated with Artaxerxes as to the terms on which +he would consent to be reconciled. Thus was set an example, if not of +successful insurrection, yet at any rate of the possibility of rebelling +with impunity--an example which could not fail to have a mischievous +effect on the future relations of the monarch with his satraps. It +would have been better for the Empire had Megabyzus suffered the fate +of Oroetes, instead of living to a good old age in high favor with the +monarch whose power he had weakened and defied. + +Artaxerxes survived the "Peace of Callias" twenty-four years. His +relations with the Greeks continued friendly till his demise, though, +on the occasion of the revolt of Samos (B.C. 440), Pissuthnes, satrap of +Sardis, seems to have transgressed the terms of the treaty, and to +have nearly brought about a renewal of hostilities. It was probably +in retaliation for the aid given to the revolted Samians, that the +Athenians, late in the reign of Artaxerxes, made an expedition against +Caunus, which might have had important consequences, if the Caunians +had not been firm in their allegiance. A revolt of Lycia and Caria under +Zopyrus, the son of Megabyzus, assisted by the Greeks, might have proved +even more difficult to subdue than the rebellion of Syria under his +father. Persia, however, escaped this danger; and Artaxerxes, no doubt, +saw with pleasure a few years later the Greeks turn their arms against +each other--Athens, his great enemy, being forced into a contest for +existence with the Peloponnesian confederacy under Sparta. + +The character of Artaxerxes, though it receives the approval of Plutarch +and Diodorus, must be pronounced on the whole poor and contemptible. +His ready belief of the charge brought by Artabanus against his brother, +Darius, admits perhaps of excuse, owing to his extreme youth; but his +surrender of Inarus to Amestris on account of her importunity, his +readiness to condone the revolt of Megabyzus, and his subjection +throughout almost the whole of his life to the evil influence of Amytis, +his sister, and Amestris, his mother--both persons of ill-regulated +lives--are indications of weakness and folly quite unpardonable in +a monarch. That he was mild in temperament, and even kind and +good-natured, is probable. But he had no other quality that deserves the +slightest commendation. In the whole course of his long reign he seems +never once to have adventured himself in the field against an enemy. +He made not a single attempt at conquest in any direction. We have no +evidence that he patronized either literature or the arts. His peace +with Athens was necessary perhaps, but disgraceful to Persia. The +disorders of the Court increased under his reign, from the license +(especially) which he allowed the Queen-mother, who sported with the +lives of his subjects. The decay of the Empire received a fatal impulse +from the impunity which he permitted to Megabyzus. + +Like his father, Artaxerxes appears to have had but one legitimate wife. +This was a certain Damaspia, of whom nothing is known, except that she +died on the same day as her husband, and was the mother of his only +legitimate son, Xerxes. Seventeen other sons, who survived him, were +the issue of various concubines, chiefly--it would appear--Babylonians. +Xerxes II. succeeded to the throne on the death of his father (B.C. +425), but reigned forty-five days only, being murdered after a festival, +in which he had indulged too freely, by his half-brother, Secydianus or +Sogdianus. Secydianus enjoyed the sovereignty for little more than half +a year, when he was in his turn put to death by another, brother, Ochus, +who on ascending the throne took the name of Darius, and became known to +the Greeks as Darius Nothus. + +Darius Nothus had in his father's lifetime been made satrap of Hyrcania, +and had married his aunt, Parysatis, a daughter of Xerxes. He had +already two children at his accession,--a daughter, Amestris, and a +son, Arsaces, who succeeded him as Artaxerxes. His reign, which lasted +nineteen years, was a constant scene of insurrections and revolts, some +of which were of great importance, since they had permanent and +very disastrous consequences. The earliest of all was raised by his +full-brother, Arsites, who rebelled in conjunction with a son of +Megabyzus, and, obtaining the support of a number of Greek mercenaries, +gained two victories over the forces dispatched against him by the king. +At last, however, the fortune of war changed. Persian gold was used +to corrupt the mercenaries; and the rebels being thus reduced to +extremities, were forced to capitulate, yielding themselves on the +condition that their lives should be spared. Parysatis induced her +husband to disregard the pledges given and execute both Arsites and his +fellow-conspirator--thus proclaiming to the world that, unless by the +employment of perfidy, the Empire was incapable of dealing with those +who rebelled against its authority. + +The revolt of Pissuthnes, satrap of Lydia, was the next important +outbreak. Its exact date is uncertain; but it seems not to have very +long preceded the Athenian disasters in Sicily. Pissuthnes, who had held +his satrapy for more than twenty years, was the son of a Hystaspes, and +probably a member of the royal family. His wealth--the accumulations of +so long a term of office--enabled him to hire the services of a body of +Greek mercenaries, who were commanded by an Athenian, called Lycon. On +these troops he placed his chief dependence; but they failed him in the +hour of need. Tissaphernes, the Persian general sent against him, bribed +Lycon and his men, who thereupon quitted Pissuthnes and made common +cause with his adversaries. The unfortunate satrap could no longer +resist, and therefore surrendered upon terms, and accompanied +Tissaphernes to the Court. Darius, accustomed now to disregard the +pledged word of his officers, executed him forthwith, and made over his +satrapy to Tissaphernes, as a reward for his zeal. Lycon, the Athenian +traitor, received likewise a handsome return for his services, the +revenues of several towns and districts being assigned him by the Great +King. + +The rebellion, however, was not wholly crushed by the destruction of +its author, Amorges, a bastard son of Pissuthnes, continued to maintain +himself in Caria, where he was master of the strong city of Iasus, on +the north coast of the Sinus Iasicus, and set the power of Tissaphernes +at defiance. Having probably inherited the wealth of his father, he +hired a number of Peloponnesian mercenaries, and succeeded in maintaining +himself as an independent monarch for some years. + +Such was the condition of things in Asia Minor, when intelligence +arrived of the fearful disasters which had befallen the Athenians in +Sicily--disasters without a parallel since those of Salamis--sudden, +unexpected, overwhelming. The news, flying through Asia, awoke +everywhere a belief that the power of Athens was broken, and that her +hostility need no longer be dreaded. The Persian monarch considered that +under the altered circumstances it would be safe to treat the Peace of +Callias as a dead letter, and sent down orders to the satraps of Lydia +and Bithynia that they were once more to demand and collect the tribute +of the Greek cities within their provinces. The satraps began to +speculate on the advantages which they might derive from alliance with +the enemies of Athens, and looked anxiously to see a Peloponnesian fleet +appear off the coast of Asia. Tissaphernes and Pharnabazus vied with +each other in the tempting offers which they made to Sparta, and it was +not long before a formal treaty was concluded between that state +and Persia, by which the two powers bound themselves to carry on war +conjointly against Athens. + +Thus the contest between Persia and her rival entered upon a new phase. +Henceforth until the liberties of Greece were lost, the Great King could +always count on having for his ally one of the principal Grecian powers. +His gold was found to possess attractions which the Greeks were quite +unable to resist. At one time Sparta, at another Athens, at another +Thebes yielded to the subtle influence; Greek generals commanded the +Persian armies; Greek captains manoeuvered the Persian fleets; the very +rank and file of the standing army came to be almost as much Greek as +Persian. Acting on the maxim, _Divide et impera_, Persia prolonged for +eighty years her tottering Empire, by the skilful use which she made of +the mutual jealousies and divisions of the Hellenic states. + +It scarcely belongs to the history of Persia to trace in detail the +fortunes of the contending powers during the latter portion of the +Peloponnesian war. We need only observe that the real policy of the +Court of Susa, well understood, and, on the whole, tolerably well +carried out by the satraps, was to preserve the balance of power +between Athens and Sparta, to allow neither to obtain too decided a +preponderance, to help each in turn, and encourage each to waste the +other's strength, but to draw back whenever the moment came for striking +a decisive blow against either side. This policy skilfully pursued +by Tissaphernes (who had a genius for intrigue and did not require +an Alcibiades to give him lessons in state-craft), more clumsily +by Pharnabazus, whose character was comparatively sincere and +straightforward, prevailed until the younger Cyrus made his appearance +upon the scene, when a disturbing force came into play which had +disastrous effects both on the fortunes of Greece and on those of +Persia. The younger Cyrus had personal views of self-aggrandizement +which conflicted with the true interests of his nation, and was so bent +on paving the way for his own ascent to sovereign power that he did not +greatly care whether he injured his country or no. As the accomplishment +of his designs depended mainly on his obtaining a powerful land-force, +he regarded a Spartan as preferable to an Athenian alliance; and, having +once made his choice, he lent his ally such effectual aid that in +two years from the time of his coming down to the coast the war was +terminated. Persian gold manned and partly built the fleet which +conquered at AEgos-Potami; perhaps it contributed in a still more +decisive manner to the victory. Cyrus, by placing his stores at the +entire command of Lysander, deserved and acquired the cordial good-will +of Sparta and the Peloponnesians generally--an advantage of which we +shall find him in the sequel making good use. + +The gain to Persia from the dominion which she had reacquired over the +Greeks of Asia was more than counter-balanced by a loss of territory in +another quarter, which seems to have occurred during the reign of Darius +Nothus, though in what exact year is doubtful. The revolt of Egypt is +placed by Heeren and Clinton in B.C. 414, by Eusebius in B.C. 411, by +Manetho in the last year of Darius Nothus, or B.C. 405. The earlier +dates depend on the view that the Amyrtseus of Manetho's twenty-eighth +dynasty was the leader of the rebellion, and had a reign of six years +at this period--a view which is perhaps unsound. Manetho probably +represented Nepherites (Nefaorot) as the leader; and it is quite clear +that he placed the re-establishment of the old throne of the Pharaohs in +the year that Darius Nothus died. As his authority is the best that we +can obtain upon this obscure point, we may regard the last days of +the Persian monarch as clouded by news of a rebellion, which had been +perhaps for some time contemplated, but which did not break out until he +was known to be in a moribund condition. + +A few years earlier, B.C. 408 or 409, the Medes had made an unsuccessful +attempt to recover their independence. The circumstances of this revolt, +which is mentioned by no writer but Xenophon, are wholly unknown, but we +may perhaps connect it with the rebellion of Terituchmes, a son-in-law +of the king. The story of Terituchmes, which belongs to this period, +deserves at any rate to be told, as illustrating, in a very remarkable +way, the corruption, cruelty, and dissoluteness of the Persian Court at +the time to which we have now come. Terituchmes was the son of Idernes, +a Persian noble of high rank, probably a descendant of the conspirator +Hydarnes. On the death of his father, he succeeded to his satrapy, as +to a hereditary fief, and being high in favor with Darius Nothus, he +received in marriage that monarch's daughter, Amestris. Having, however, +after his marriage become enamored of his own half-sister, Roxana, and +having persuaded her to an incestuous commerce, he grew to detest his +wife, and as he could not rid himself of her without making an enemy of +the king, he entered into a conspiracy with 300 others, and planned to +raise a rebellion. The bond of a common crime, cruel and revolting in +its character, was to secure the fidelity of the rebels one to another. +Amestris was to be placed in a sack, and each conspirator in turn was +to plunge his sword into her body. It is not clear whether this intended +murder was executed or no. Hoping to prevent it, Darius commissioned +a certain Udiastes, who was in the service of Terituchmes, to save his +daughter by any means that might be necessary; and Udiastes, collecting +a band, set upon Terituchmes and slew him after a strenuous resistance. +After this, his mother, brothers, and sisters were apprehended by the +order of Parysatis, the queen, who caused Roxana to be hewn in pieces, +and the other unfortunates to be buried alive. It was with great +difficulty that Arsaces, the heir-apparent, afterwards Artaxerxes +Mnemon, preserved his own wife, Statira, from the massacre. It happened +that she was sister to Terituchmes, and, though wholly innocent of his +offence, she would have been involved in the common destruction of her +family had not her husband with tears and entreaties begged her life of +his parents. The son of Terituchmes maintained himself for a while in +his father's government; but Parysatis succeeded in having him taken off +by poison. + +The character of Darius Nothus is seen tolerably clearly in the account +of his reign which has been here given. He was at once weak and wicked. +Contrary to his sworn word, he murdered his brothers, Secydianus and +Arsites. He broke faith with Pissuthnes. He sanctioned the wholesale +execution of Terituchmes' relatives. Under him the eunuchs of the palace +rose to such power that one of them actually ventured to aspire to the +sovereignty. Parysatis, his wife, one of the most cruel and malignant +even of Oriental women, was in general his chosen guide and counsellor. +His severities cannot, however, in all eases be ascribed to her +influence, for he was anxious that she should put the innocent Statira +to death, and, when she refused, reproached her with being foolishly +lenient. In his administration of the Empire he was unsuccessful; for, +if he gained some tracts of Asia Minor, he lost the entire African +satrapy. Under him we trace a growing relaxation of the checks by which +the great officers of the state were intended to have been held +under restraint. Satraps came to be practically uncontrolled in their +provinces, and the dangerous custom arose of allowing sons to succeed, +almost as a matter of course, to the governments of their fathers. +Powers unduly large were lodged in the hands of a single officer, and +actions, that should have brought down upon their perpetrators sharp +and signal punishment, were timorously or negligently condoned by the +supreme authority. Cunning and treachery were made the weapons wherewith +Persia contended with her enemies. Manly habits were laid aside, and the +nation learned to trust more and more to the swords of mercenaries. + +Shortly before the death of Darius there seems to have been a doubt +raised as to the succession. Parysatis, who preferred her second son to +her first-born, imagined that her influence was sufficient to induce her +husband to nominate Cyrus, instead of Arsaces, to succeed him; and Cyrus +is said to have himself expected to be preferred above his brother. He +had the claim, if claim it can be called, that he was the first son +born to his father after he became king; but his main dependence was +doubtless on his mother. Darius, however, proved less facile in his +dying moments than he had been during most of his life, and declined +to set aside the rights of the eldest son on the frivolous pretence +suggested to him. His own feelings may have inclined him towards +Arsaces, who resembled him far more than Cyrus did in character; and +Cyrus, moreover, had recently offended him, and been summoned to court, +to answer a very serious charge. Arsaces, therefore, was nominated, and +took the name of Artaxerxes--as one of a king who had reigned long, and, +on the whole, prosperously. + +An incident of ill omen accompanied the commencement of the new reign +(B.C. 405). The inauguration of the monarch was a religious ceremony, +and took place in a temple at Pasargadae, the old capital, to which +a peculiar sanctity was still regarded as attaching. Artaxerxes had +proceeded to this place, and was about to engage in the ceremonies, when +he was interrupted by Tissaphernes, who informed him that his life was +in danger. Cyrus, he said, proposed to hide himself in the temple, +and assassinate him as he changed his dress, a necessary part of the +formalities. One of the officiating priests--a Magus, as it would +seem--confirmed the charge. Cyrus was immediately arrested, and would +have been put to death on the spot, had not his mother interfered, and, +embracing him in her arms, made it impossible for the executioner to +perform his task. With some difficulty she persuaded Artaxerxes to spare +his brother's life and allow him to return to his government, assuring +him, and perhaps believing, that the charges made against her favorite +were without foundation. + +Cyrus returned to Asia Minor with the full determination of attacking +his brother at the earliest opportunity. He immediately began the +collection of a mercenary force, composed wholly of Greeks, on whose +arms he was disposed to place far more reliance than on those of +Orientals. As Tissaphernes had returned to the coast with him, and was +closely watching all his proceedings, it was necessary to exercise great +caution, lest his intentions should become known before he was ready to +put them into execution. He therefore had recourse to three different +devices. Having found a cause of quarrel with Tissaphernes in the +ambiguous terms of their respective commissions, he pressed it on to +an actual war, which enabled him to hire troops openly, as against this +enemy; and in this way he collected from 5000 to 6000 Greeks--chiefly +Peloponnesians. He further gave secret commissions to Greek officers, +whose acquaintance he had made when he was previously in these parts, +to collect men for him, whom they were to employ in their own quarrels +until he needed their services. From 3000 to 4000 troops were gathered +for him by these persons. Finally, when he found himself nearly ready +to commence his march, he discovered a new foe in the Pisidians of +the Western Taurus, and proceeded to levy a force against them, which +amounted to some thousands more. In all, he had in readiness 11,000 +heavy-armed and about 2000 light-armed Greeks before his purpose became +so clear that Tissaphernes could no longer mistake it, and therefore +started off to carry his somewhat tardy intelligence to the capital. + +The aims of Cyrus were different from those of ordinary rebel satraps; +and we must go back to the times of Darius Hystaspis in order to find a +parallel to them. Instead of seeking to free a province from the Persian +yoke, or to carve out for himself an independent sovereignty in some +remote corner of the Empire, his intention was to dethrone his brother, +and place on his own brows the diadem of his great namesake. It was +necessary for him therefore to assume the offensive. Only by a bold +advance, and by taking his enemy to some extent unprepared, and so at a +disadvantage, could he hope to succeed in his audacious project. It is +not easy to see that he could have had any considerable party among +the Persians, or any ground for expecting to be supported by any of +the subject nations. His following must have been purely personal; and +though it may be true that he was of a character to win more admiration +and affection than his brother, yet Artaxerxes himself was far from +being unpopular with his subjects, whom he pleased by a familiarity and +a good-nature to which they were little accustomed. Cyrus knew that +his principal dependence must be on himself, on his Greeks, and on the +carelessness and dilatoriness of his adversary, who was destitute of +military talent and was even thought to be devoid of personal bravery. + +Thus it was important to advance as soon as possible. Cyrus therefore +quitted Sardis before all his troops were collected (B.C. 401), and +marched through Lydia and Phrygia, by the route formally followed in the +reverse direction by the army of Xerxes, as far as Celsense, where +the remainder of his mercenaries joined him. With his Greek force thus +raised to 13,000 men, and with a native army not much short of 100,000, +he proceeded on through Phrygia and Lycaonia to the borders of Cilicia, +having determined on taking the shortest route to Babylon, through the +Cilician and Syrian passes, and then along the course of the Euphrates. +At Caystrupedion he was met by Epyaxa, consort of Syennesis, the +tributary king of Cilicia, who brought him a welcome supply of money, +and probably assured him of the friendly disposition of her husband, who +was anxious to stand well with both sides. In Lycaonia, Cyrus divided +his forces, and sending a small body of troops under Menon to escort +Epyaxa across the mountains and enter Cilicia by the more western of the +two practicable passes he proceeded himself with the bulk of his troops +to the famous Pylae Cilicias, where he probably knew that Syennesis +would only make a feint of resistance. He found the pass occupied; but +it was evacuated the next day, on the receipt of intelligence that Menon +had already entered the country and that the fleet of Cyrus--composed +partly of his own ships, partly of a squadron furnished to him by +Sparta--had appeared off the coast and threatened a landing. Cyrus +thus crossed the most difficult and dangerous of all the passes that +separated him from the heart of the Empire, without the loss of a man. + +Thus far it would appear that Cyrus had to a certain extent masked his +plans. The Greek captains must have guessed, if they had not actually +learnt, his intentions; but to the bulk of the soldiery they had been +hitherto absolutely unknown. It was only in Cilicia that the light broke +in upon them, and they began to suspect that they were being marched +into the interior of Asia, there to engage in a contest with the entire +power of the Great King. Something of the horror which is ascribed to +Cleomenes, when it was suggested to him a century earlier that he should +conduct his Spartans the distance of a three months' journey from the +sea, appears to have taken possession of the minds of the mercenaries +on their awaking to this conviction. They at once refused to proceed. It +was only by the most skilful management on the part of their captains, +joined to a judicious liberality on the part of Cyrus, that they were +induced to forego their intention of returning home at once, and so +breaking up the expedition. A perception of the difficulty of effecting +a retreat, together with an increase of pay, extorted a reluctant assent +to continue the march, of which the real term and object were even now +not distinctly avowed. Cyrus said he proposed to attack the army of +Abrocomas, which he believed to be posted on the Euphrates. If he did +not find it there, a fresh consultation might be held to consider any +further movement. + +The march now proceeded rapidly. The gates of Syria--a narrow pass on +the east coast of the Gulf of Issus, shut in, like Thermopylae, +between the mountains and the sea, and strengthened moreover by +fortifications--were left unguarded by Abrocomas; and the army, having +traversed them without loss, crossed the Amanus range by the pass of +Beilan, and in twenty-nine days from Tarsus reached Thapsacus on +the Euphrates. The forces of Artaxerxes had nowhere made their +appearance--Abrocomas, though he had 300,000 men at his disposal, had +weakly or treacherously abandoned all these strong and easily defensible +positions; he does not seem even to have wasted the country; but, +having burnt the boats at Thapsacus, he was content to fall back upon +Phoenicia, and left the way to Babylon and Susa open. At Thapsacus there +was little difficulty in persuading the Greeks, who had no longer the +sea before their eyes, to continue the march; they only stipulated for a +further increase of pay, which was readily promised them by the sanguine +prince, who believed himself on the point of obtaining by their aid the +inexhaustible treasures of the Empire. The river, which happened to be +unusually low for the time of year, was easily forded. Cyrus entered +Mesopotamia, and continued his march down the left bank of the Euphrates +at the quickest rate that it was possible to move a hundred thousand +Orientals. In thirty-three days he had accomplished above 600 miles, and +had approached within 120 miles of Babylon without seeing any traces +of an enemy. His only difficulties were from the nature of the country, +which, after the Khabour is passed, becomes barren, excepting close +along the river. From want of fodder there was a great mortality among +the baggage-animals; the price of grain rose; and the Greeks had to +subsist almost entirely upon meat. At last, when the Babylonian alluvium +was reached, with its abundance of fodder and corn, signs of the enemy +began to be observed. Artaxerxes, who after some doubts and misgivings +had finally determined to give his enemy battle in the plain, was +already on his way from Babylon, with an army reckoned at 900,000 men +and had sent forward a body of horse, partly to reconnoitre, partly +to destroy the crops, in order to prevent Cyrus and his troops from +benefiting by them. Cyrus now advanced slowly and cautiously, at the +rate of about fourteen miles a day, expecting each morning to fight a +general engagement before evening came. On the third night, believing +the battle to be imminent, he distributed the commands and laid down a +plan of operations. But morning brought no appearance of the enemy, and +the whole day passed tranquilly. In the course of it, he came upon a +wide and deep trench cut through the plain for a distance of above forty +miles--a recent work, which Artaxerxes had intended as a barrier to stop +the progress of his enemy. But the trench was undefended and incomplete, +a space of twenty feet being left between its termination and the +Euphrates. Cyrus, having passed it, began to be convinced that his +brother would not risk a battle in the plain, but would retreat to the +mountains and make his stand at Persepolis or Ecbatana. He therefore +continued his march negligently. His men piled their arms on the wagons +or laid them, across the beasts of burthen; while he himself exchanged +the horse which he usually rode for a chariot, and proceeded on his way +leisurely, having about his person a small escort, which preserved +their ranks, while all the rest of the troops were allowed to advance in +complete disarray. + +Suddenly, as the army was proceeding in this disorderly manner through +the plain, a single horseman was perceived advancing at full gallop from +the opposite quarter, his steed all flecked with foam. As he drew near, +he shouted aloud to those whom he met, addressing some in Greek, others +in Persian, and warning them that the Great King, with his whole force, +was close at hand, and rapidly approaching in order of battle. The news +took every one by surprise, and at first all was hurry and confusion. +The Greeks, however, who were on the right, rapidly marshalled their +line, resting it upon the river; while Cyrus put on his armor, mounted +his horse, and arranged the ranks of his Asiatics. Ample time was given +for completing all the necessary dispositions; since three hours, at the +least, must have elapsed from the announcement of the enemy's approach +before he actually appeared. Then a white cloud of dust arose towards +the verge of the horizon, below which a part of the plain began soon to +darken; presently gleams of light were seen to flash out from the dense +mass which was advancing, the serried lines of spears came into view, +and the component parts of the huge army grew to be discernible. On the +extreme left was a body of horsemen with white cuirasses, commanded by +Tissaphernes; next came infantry, carrying the long wicker shield, or +_gerrhum_ then a solid square of Egyptians, heavily armed, and bearing +wooden shields that reached to the feet; then the contingents of many +different nations, some on foot, some on horseback, armed with bows +and other weapons. The line stretched away to the east further than the +Greeks, who were stationed on the right, could see, extending (as it +would seem) more than twice the distance which was covered by the +army of Cyrus. Artaxerxes was in the centre of his line, on horseback, +surrounded by a mounted guard of 6000 Persians. In front of the line, +towards the river, were drawn up at wide intervals a hundred and fifty +scythed chariots, which were designed to carry terror and confusion into +the ranks of the Greeks. + +On the other side, Cyrus had upon the extreme right a thousand +Paphlagonian cavalry with the more lightly armed of the Greeks; +next, the Greek heavy-armed, under Clearchus; and then his Asiatics, +stretching in a line to about the middle of his adversary's army, his +own special command being in the centre; and his left wing being led +by the satrap, Ariaeus. With Ariseus was posted the great mass of the +cavalry; but a band of six hundred, clad in complete armor, with their +horses also partially armed, waited on Cyrus himself, and accompanied +him wherever he went. As the enemy drew near, and Cyrus saw how much he +was outflanked upon the left, he made an attempt to remedy the evil by +ordering Clearchus to move with his troops from the extreme right to +the extreme left of the line, where he would be opposite to Artaxerxes +himself. This, no doubt, would have been a hazardous movement to make in +the face of a superior enemy; and Clearchus, feeling this, and regarding +the execution of the order as left to his discretion, declined to move +away from the river. Cyrus, who trusted much to the Greek general's +judgment, did not any further press the change, but prepared to fight +the battle as he stood. + +The combat began upon the right. When the enemy had approached within +six or seven hundred yards, the impatience of the Greeks to engage could +not be restrained. They sang the paean and started forwards at a pace +which in a short time became a run. The Persians did not await their +charge. The drivers leaped from their chariots, the line of battle +behind them wavered, and then turned and fled without striking a blow. +One Greek only was wounded by an arrow. As for the scythed chariots, +they damaged their own side more than the Greeks; for the frightened +horses in many cases, carried the vehicles into the thick of the +fugitives, while the Greeks opened their ranks and gave passage to such +as charged in an opposite direction. Moderating their pace so as to +preserve their tactical arrangement, but still advancing with great +rapidity, the Greeks pressed on the flying enemy, and pursued him a +distance of two or three miles, never giving a thought to Cyrus, who, +they supposed, would conquer those opposed to him with as much ease as +themselves. + +But the prince meanwhile was in difficulties. Finding himself +outnumbered and outflanked, and fearing that his whole army would be +surrounded, and even the victorious Greeks attacked in the rear, he set +all upon one desperate cast and charged with his Six Hundred against +the six thousand horse who protected his brother. Artagerses, their +commander, who met him with a Homeric invective, he slew with his own +hand. The six thousand were routed and took to flight; the person of the +king was exposed to view; and Cyrus, transported at the sight, rushed +forward shouting, "I see the man," and hurling his javelin, struck him +straight upon the breast, with such force that the cuirass was pierced +and a slight flesh-wound inflicted. The king fell from his horse; but at +the same moment Cyrus received a wound beneath the eye from the javelin +of a Persian, and in the melee which followed he was slain with eight of +his followers. The Six Hundred could lend no effectual aid, because they +had rashly dispersed in pursuit of the flying enemy. + +As the whole contest was a personal one, the victory was now decided. +Fighting, however, continued till nightfall. On learning the death of +their leader, the Asiatic troops under Ariseus fled--first to their +camp, and then, when Artaxerxes attacked them there, to the last night's +station. The Grecian camp was assaulted by Tissaphernes, who at the +beginning of the battle had charged through the Greek light-armed, +without however, inflicting on them any loss, and had then pressed on, +thinking to capture the Grecian baggage. But the guard defended their +camp with success, and slew many of the assailants. Tissaphernes and +the king drew off after a while, and retraced their steps, in order to +complete the victory by routing the troops of Clearchus. Clearchus was +at the same time returning from his pursuit, having heard that his camp +was in danger, and as the two bodies of troops approached, he found +his right threatened by the entire host of the enemy, which might have +lapped round it and attacked it in front, in flank, and in rear. To +escape this peril he was about to wheel his line and make it rest +alone its whole extent upon the river, when the Persians passed him and +resumed the position which they had occupied at the beginning of the +battle. They were then about to attack, when once more the Greeks +anticipated them and charged. The effect was again ludicrous. The +Persians would not abide the onset, but fled faster than before. The +Greeks pursued them to a village, close by which was a knoll or mound, +whither the fugitives had betaken themselves. Again the Greeks made a +movement in advance, and immediately the flight recommenced. The last +rays of the setting sun fell on scattered masses of Persian horse and +foot flying in all directions over the plain from the little band of +Greeks. + +The battle of Cunaxa was a double blow to the Persian power. By the +death of Cyrus there was lost the sole chance that existed of such a +re-invigoration of the Empire as might have enabled it to start again +on a new lease of life, with ability to held its own, and strength to +resume once more the aggressive attitude of former times. The talents of +Cyrus have perhaps been overrated, but he was certainly very superior +to most Orientals; and there can be no doubt that the Empire would have +greatly gained by the substitution of his rule for that of his brother. +He was active, energetic, prompt indeed, ready in speech, faithful in +the observance of his engagements, brave, liberal--he had more foresight +and more self-contro than most Asiatics; he knew how to deal with +different classes of men; he had a great power of inspiring affection +and retaining it; he was free from the folly of national prejudice, +and could appreciate as they deserved both the character and the +institutions of foreigners. It is likely that he would have proved a +better administrator and ruler than any king of Persia since Darius +Hystaspis. He would, therefore, undoubtedly have raised his country +to some extent. Whether he could really have arrested its decline, and +enabled it to avenge the humiliations of Marathon, Salamis, and the +peace of Callias, is, however, exceedingly doubtful. For Cyrus, though +he had considerable merits, was not without great and grievous defects. +As the Tartar is said always to underlie the Russ, so the true Oriental +underlay that coating of Grecian manners and modes of thought and act, +with which a real admiration of the Hellenic race induced Cyrus to +conceal his native barbarism. When he slew his cousins for an act which +he chose to construe as disrespect, and when he executed Orontes for +contemplated desertion, secretly and silently, so that no one knew +his fate, when transported with jealous rage he rushed madly upon his +brother, exposing to hazard the success of all his carefully formed +plans, and in fact ruining his cause, the acquired habits of the +Phil-Hellene gave way, and the native ferocity of the Asiatic came +to the surface. We see Cyrus under favorable circumstances, while +conciliation, tact, and self-restraint were necessities of his position, +without which he could not possibly gain his ends--we do not know what +effect success and the possession of supreme power might have had upon +his temper and conduct; but from the acts above-mentioned we may at any +rate suspect that the result would have been very injurious. + +Again, intellectually, Cyrus is only great for an Asiatic. He has more +method, more foresight, more power of combination, more breadth of mind +than the other Asiatics of his day, or than the vast mass of Asiatics of +any day. But he is not entitled to the praise of a great administrator +or of a great general. His three years' administration of Asia Minor +was chiefly marked by a barbarous severity towards criminals, and by a +lavish expenditure of the resources of his government, which left him in +actual want at the moment when he was about to commence his expedition. +His generalship failed signally at the battle of Cunaxa, for the loss of +which he is far more to be blamed than Clearchus. As he well knew that +Artaxerxes was sure to occupy the centre of his line of battle, he +should have placed his Greeks in the middle of his own line, not at +one extremity. When he saw how much his adversary outflanked him on the +left--a contingency which was so probable that it ought to have occurred +to him beforehand--he should have deployed his line in that direction, +instead of ordering such a movement as Clearchus, not unwisely, declined +to execute. He might have trusted the Greeks to fight in line, as they +had fought at Marathon; and by expanding their ranks, and moving off +his Asiatics to the left, he might, have avoided the danger of being +outflanked and surrounded. But his capital error was the wildness +and abandon of his charge with the Six Hundred--a charge which it was +probably right to make under the circumstances, but which required a +combination of coolness and courage that the Persian prince evidently +did not possess when his feelings were excited. Had he kept his +Six Hundred well in hand, checked their pursuit, and abstained from +thrusting his own person into unnecessary danger, he might have joined +the Greeks as they returned from their first victory and participated +in their final triumph. At the same time, Clearchus cannot but be blamed +for pushing his suit too far. If, when the enemy in his front fled, he +had at once turned against those who were engaging Cyrus, taking them +on their left flank, which must have been completely uncovered, he might +have been in time to prevent the fatal results of the rash charge made +by his leader. + +Thus the death of Cyrus, though a calamity to Persia, was scarcely the +great loss which it has been represented. A far worse result of the +Cyreian expedition was the revelation which it made of the weakness of +Persia, and of the facility with which a Greek force might penetrate +to the very midst of the Empire, defeat the largest army that could be +brought against it, and remain, or return, as it might think proper. +Hitherto Babylon and Susa had been, even to the mind of a Greek +statesman, remote localities, which it would be the extreme of rashness +to attempt to reach by force of arms, and from which it would be +utter folly to suppose that a single man could return alive except by +permission of the Great King. Henceforth these towns were looked upon +as prizes quite within the legitimate scope of Greek ambition, and their +conquest came to be viewed as little more than a question of time. The +opinion of inaccessibility, which had been Persia's safeguard hitherto, +was gone, and in its stead grew up a conviction that the heart of the +Empire might be reached with very little difficulty. + +It required, however, for the production of this whole change, not +merely that the advance to Cunaxa should have been safely made, and the +immeasurable superiority of Greek to Asiatic soldiers there exhibited, +but also that the retreat should have been effected, as it was effected, +without disaster. Had the Ten Thousand perished under the attacks of the +Persian horse, or even under the weapons of the Kurds, or amid the +snows of Armenia, the opinion of Persian invulnerability would have been +strengthened rather than weakened by the expedition. But the return to +Greece of ten thousand men, who had defeated the hosts of the Great King +in the centre of his dominions, and fought their way back to the +sea without suffering more than the common casualties of war, was an +evidence of weakness which could not but become generally known, and of +which all could feel the force. Hence the retreat was as important as +the battle. If in late autumn and mid-winter a small Greek army, without +maps or guides, could make its way for a thousand miles through Asia, +and encounter no foe over whom it could not easily triumph, it was clear +that the fabric of Persian power was rotten, and would collapse on the +first serious attack. + +Still, it will not be necessary to trace in detail the steps of the +retreat. It was the fact of the return, rather than the mode of its +accomplishment, which importantly affected the subsequent history of +Persia. We need only note that the retreat was successfully conducted in +spite, not merely of the military power of the Empire, but of the most +barefaced and cruel treachery--a fact which showed clearly the strong +desire that there was to hinder the invaders' escape. Persia did not +set much store by her honor at this period; but she would scarcely have +pledged her word and broken it, without the slightest shadow of excuse, +unless she had regarded the object to be accomplished as one of vast +importance, and seen no other way which offered any prospect of the +desired result. Her failure, despite the success of her treachery, +places her military weakness in the strongest possible light. The +Greeks, though deprived of their leaders, deceived, surprised, and +hemmed in by superior numbers, amid terrific mountains, precipices, +and snows, forced their way by sheer dogged perseverance through all +obstacles, and reached Trebizond with the loss of not one fourth of +their original number. + +There was also another discovery made during the return which partly +indicated the weakness of the Persian power, and partly accounted for +it. The Greeks had believed that the whole vast space enclosed between +the Black Sea, Caucasus, Caspian, and Jaxartes on the one hand, and the +Arabian Desert, Persian Gulf, and Indian Ocean on the other, was bound +together into one single centralized monarchy, all the resources of +which were wielded by a single arm. They now found that even towards the +heart of the empire, on the confines of Media and Assyria, there existed +independent tribes which set the arms of Persia at defiance; while +towards the verge of the old dominion whole provinces, once certainly +held in subjection, had fallen away from the declining State, and +succeeded in establishing their freedom. The nineteenth satrapy of +Herodotus existed no more; in lieu of it was a mass of warlike and +autonomous tribes--Chalybes, Taochi, Chaldeans, Macronians, Scythians, +Colchians, Mosynoecians, Tibarenians--whose services, if he needed them, +the King of Persia had to buy, while ordinarily their attitude towards +him was one of distrust and hostility. Judging of the unknown from the +known, the Greeks might reasonably conclude that in all parts of +the Empire similar defections had occurred, and that thus both +the dimensions and the resources of the state had suffered serious +diminution, and fell far below the conception which they had been +accustomed to form of them. + +The immediate consequence of the Cyreian expedition was a rupture +between Persia and Sparta. Sparta had given aid to Cyrus, and thus +provoked the hostility of the Great King. She was not inclined to +apologize or to recede. On the contrary, she saw in the circumstances +of the expedition strong grounds for anticipating great advantages +to herself from a war with so weak an antagonist. Having, therefore, +secured the services of the returned Ten Thousand, she undertook the +protection of the Asiatic Greeks against Persia, and carried on a war +upon the continent against the satraps of Lydia and Phrygia for the +space of six years (B.C. 399 to B.C. 394). The disorganization of the +Persian Empire became very manifest during this period. So jealous were +the two satraps of each other, that either was willing at any time +to make a truce with the Spartans on condition that they proceeded to +attack the other; and, on one occasion, as much as thirty silver talents +was paid by a satrap on the condition that the war should be transferred +from his own government to that, of his rival. At the same time the +native tribes were becoming more and more inclined to rebel. The Mysians +and Pisidians had for a long time been practically independent. Now the +Bithynians showed a disposition to shake off the Persian yoke, while +in Paphlagonia the native monarchs boldly renounced their allegiance. +Agesilaus, who carried on the war in Asia Minor for three years, knew +well how to avail himself of all these advantageous circumstances; +and it is not unlikely that he would have effected the separation +from Persia of the entire peninsula, had he been able to continue the +struggle a few years longer. But the league between Argos, Thebes, and +Corinth, which jealousy of Sparta caused and Persian gold promoted, +proved so formidable, that Agesilaus had to be summoned home: and +after his departure, Conon, in alliance with Pharnabazus, recovered the +supremacy of the sea for Athens, and greatly weakened Spartan influence +in Asia. Not content with this result, the two friends, in the year B.C. +393, sailed across the Egean, and the portentous spectacle of a Persian +fleet in Greek waters was once more seen--this time in alliance with +Athens! Descents were made upon the coasts of the Peloponnese, and the +island of Cythera was seized and occupied. The long walls of Athens were +rebuilt with Persian money, and all the enemies of Sparta were richly +subsidized. Sparta was made to feel that if she had been able at one +time to make the Great King tremble for his provinces, or even for +his throne, the King could at another reach her across the Egean, and +approach Sparta as nearly as she had, with the Cyreians, approached +Babylon. + +The lesson of the year B.C. 393 was not thrown away on the Spartan +government. The leading men became convinced that unless they could +secure the neutrality of the Persians, Sparta must succumb to the +hostility of her Hellenic enemies. Under these circumstances they +devised, with much skill, a scheme likely to be acceptable to the +Persians, which would weaken their chief rivals in Greece--Athens and +Thebes--while it would leave untouched their own power. They proposed +a general peace, the conditions of which should be the entire +relinquishment of Asia to the Persians, and the complete autonomy of all +the Greek States in Europe. The first attempt to procure the acceptance +of these terms failed (B.C. 393); but six years later, after Antalcidas +had explained them at the Persian Court, Artaxerxes sent down an +ultimatum to the disputants, modifying the terms slightly as regarded +Athens, extending them as regarded himself so as to include the islands +of Clazomenae and Cyprus, and requiring their acceptance by all the +belligerents, on pain of their incurring his hostility. To this threat +all yielded. A Persian king may be excused if he felt it a proud +achievement thus to dictate a peace to the Greeks--a peace, moreover, +which annulled the treaty of Callias, and gave back absolutely into +his hands a province which had ceased to belong to his Empire more than +sixty years previously. + +It was the more important to Artaxerxes that his relations with the +European Greeks should be put upon a peaceful footing, since all the +resources of the Empire were wanted for the repression of disturbances +which had some years previously broken out in Cyprus. The exact date +of the Cyprian revolt under Evagoras, the Greek tyrant of Salamis, is +uncertain; but there is evidence that, at least as early as B.C. 391, he +was at open war with the power of Persia, and had made an alliance +with the Athenians, who both in that year and in B.C. 388 sent him aid. +Assisted also by Achoris, independent monarch of Egypt, and Hecatomnus, +vassal king of Caria, he was able to take the offensive, to conquer +Tyre, and extend his revolt into Cilicia and Idumaea. An expedition +undertaken against him by Autophradates, satrap of Lydia, seems to have +failed. It was the first object of the Persians, after concluding the +"Peace of Antalcidas," to crush Evagoras. They collected 300 vessels, +partly from the Greeks of Asia, and brought together an army of 300,000 +men. The fleet of Evagoras numbered 200 triremes, and with these he +ventured on an attack, but was completely defeated by Tiribazus, who +shut him up in Salamis, and, after a struggle which continued for at +least six years, compelled him to submit to terms (B.C. 380 or 379). +More fortunate than former rebels, he obtained not merely a promise of +pardon, which would probably have been violated, but a recognition of +his title, and permission to remain in his government, with the single +obligation of furnishing to the Great King a certain annual tribute. + +During the continuance of this war, Artaxerxes was personally engaged in +military operations in another part of his dominions. The Cadusians, +who inhabited the low and fertile tract between the Elburz range and the +Caspian, having revolted against his authority, Artaxerxes invaded their +territory at the head of an army which is estimated at 300,000 foot and +10,000 horse. The land was little cultivated, rugged, and covered with +constant fogs; the men were brave and warlike, and having admitted him +into their country, seem to have waylaid and intercepted his convoys. +His army was soon reduced to great straits, and forced to subsist on the +cavalry horses and the baggage-animals. A most disastrous result must +have followed, had not Tiribazus, who had been recalled from Cyprus +on charges preferred against him by the commander of the land force, +Orontes, contrived very artfully to induce the rebels to make their +submission. Artaxerxes was thus enabled to withdraw from the country +without serious disaster, having shown in his short campaign that he +possessed the qualities of a soldier, but was entirely deficient in +those of a general. + +A time of comparative tranquillity seems to have followed the Cadusian +campaign. Artaxerxes strengthened his hold upon the Asiatic Greeks by +razing some of their towns and placing garrisons in others. His satraps +even ventured to commence the absorption of the islands off the coast; +and there is evidence that Sanaos, at any rate, was reduced and added +to the Empire. Cilicia, Phoenicia, and Idumaea were doubtless recovered +soon after the great defeat of Evagoras. There remained only one +province in this quarter which still maintained its revolt, and enjoyed, +under native monarchs, the advantages of independence. This was Egypt, +which had now continued free for above thirty years, since it shook off +the yoke of Darius Nothus. Artaxerxes, anxious to recover this portion +of his ancestral dominions, applied in B.C. 375 to Athens for the +services of her great general, Iphicrates. His request was granted, and +in the next year a vast armament was assembled at Acre under Iphicrates +and Pharnabazus, which effected a successful landing in the Delta at the +Mendesian mouth of the Nile, stormed the town commanding this branch of +the river, and might have taken Memphis, could the energetic advice of +the Athenian have stirred to action the sluggish temper of his Persian +colleague. But Pharnabazus declined to be hurried, and preferred to +proceed leisurely and according to rule. The result was that the season +for hostilities passed and nothing had been done. The Nile rose as the +summer drew on, and flooded most of the Delta; the expedition could +effect nothing, and had to return. Pharnabazus and Iphicrates parted +amid mutual recriminations; and the reduction of Egypt was deferred for +above a quarter of a century. + +In Greece, however, the Great King still retained that position of +supreme arbiter with which he had been invested at the "Peace of +Antalcidas." In B.C. 372 Antalcidas was sent by Sparta a second time up +to Susa, for the purpose of obtaining an imperial rescript, prescribing +the terms on which the then existing hostilities among the Greeks should +cease. In B.C. 367 Pelopidas and Ismenias proceeded with the same object +from Thebes to the Persian capital. In the following year a rescript, +more in their favor than former ones, was obtained by Athens. Thus every +one of the leading powers of Greece applied in turn to the Great King +for his royal mandate, so erecting him by common consent into a sort of +superior, whose decision was to be final in all cases of Greek quarrel. + +But this external acknowledgment of the imperial greatness of Persia +did not, and could not, check the internal decay and tendency to +disintegration, which was gradually gaining head, and threatening the +speedy dissolution of the Empire. The long reign of Artaxerxes Mnemon +was now verging towards its close. He was advanced in years, and +enfeebled in mind and body, suspicious of his sons and of his nobles, +especially of such as showed more than common ability. Under these +circumstances, revolts on the part of satraps grew frequent. First +Ariobarzanes, satrap of Phrygia, renounced his allegiance (B.C. 366), +and defended himself with success against Autophradates, satrap of +Lydia, and Mausolus, native king of Caria under Persia, to whom the +task of reducing him had been entrusted. Then Aspis, who held a part +of Cappadocia, revolted and maintained himself by the help of the +Pisidians, until he was overpowered by Datames. Next Datames himself, +satrap of the rest of Cappadocia, understanding that Artaxerxes' mind +was poisoned against him, made a treaty with Ariobarzanes, and assumed +an independent attitude in his own province. In this position he +resisted all the efforts of Autophradates to reduce him to obedience; +and Artaxerxes condescended first to make terms with him and then to +remove him by treachery. Finally (B.C. 362), there seems to have been +something like a general revolt of the western provinces, in which the +satraps of Mysia, Phrygia, and Lydia, Mausolus, prince of Caria, and the +people of Lycia, Pamphylia, Cilicia, Syria, and Phoenicia participated. +Tachos, king of Egypt, fomented the disturbances, which were also +secretly encouraged by the Spartans. A terrible conflict appeared to be +imminent; but it was avoided by the ordinary resources of bribery and +treachery. Orontes, satrap of Phrygia, and Rheomithras, one of the +revolted generals, yielding to the attractions of Persian gold, deserted +and betrayed their confederates. The insurrection was in this way +quelled, but it had raised hopes in Egypt, which did not at once +subside. Tachos, the native king, having secured the services of +Agesilaus as general, and of Chabrias, the Athenian, as admiral of his +fleet, boldly advanced into Syria, was well received by the Phoenicians, +and commenced the siege of some of the Syrian cities. Persia might +have suffered considerable loss in this quarter, had not the internal +quarrels of the Egyptians among themselves proved a better protection to +her than her own armies. Two pretenders to the throne sprang up as soon +as Tachos had quitted the country, and he was compelled to return to +Egypt in order to resist them. The force intended to strike a vigorous +blow against the power of Artaxerxes was dissipated in civil conflicts; +and Persia had once more to congratulate herself on the intestine +divisions of her adversaries. A few years after this, Artaxerxes died, +having reigned forty-six years, and lived, if we may trust Plutarch, +ninety-four. Like most of the later Persian kings, he was unfortunate +in his domestic relations. To his original queen, Statira, he was indeed +fondly attached; and she appears to have merited and returned his love, +but in all other respects his private life was unhappy. Its chief curse +was Parysatis, the queen-mother. This monster of cruelty held Artaxerxes +in a species of bondage during almost the whole of his long reign, and +acted as if she were the real sovereign of the country. She encouraged +Cyrus in his treason, and brought to most horrible ends all those who +had been prominent in frustrating it. She poisoned Statira out of hatred +and jealousy, because she had a certain degree of influence over her +husband. She encouraged Artaxerxes to contract an incestuous marriage +with his daughter Atossa, a marriage which proved a fertile source +of further calamities. Artaxerxes had three sons by Statira--Darius, +Ariaspes, and Ochus. Of these Darius, as the eldest, was formally +declared the heir. But Ochus, ambitious of reigning, intrigued with +Atossa, and sought to obtain the succession by her aid. So good seemed +to Darius the chances of his brother's success that he took the rash +step of conspiring against the life of his father, as the only way of +securing the throne. His conspiracy was detected, and he was seized and +executed, Ariaspes thereby becoming the eldest son, and so the natural +heir. Ochus then persuaded Ariaspes that he had offended his father, +and was about to be put to a cruel and ignominious death, whereupon that +prince in despair committed suicide. His elder brothers thus removed, +there still remained one rival, whom Ochus feared. This was Arsames, one +of his half-brothers, an illegitimate son of Artaxerxes, who stood high +in his favor. Assassination was the weapon employed to get rid of this +rival. It is said that this last blow was too much for the aged and +unhappy king, who died of grief on receiving intelligence of the murder. + +Artaxerxes was about the weakest of all the Persian monarchs. He was +mild in temperament, affable in demeanor, goodnatured, affectionate +and well-meaning. But, possessing no strength of will, he allowed the +commission of the most atrocious acts, the most horrible cruelties, by +those about him, who were bolder and more resolute than himself. The +wife and son, whom he fondly loved, were plotted against before his +eyes; and he had neither the skill to prevent nor the courage to avenge +their fate. Incapable of resisting entreaty and importunity, he granted +boons which he ought to have refused, and condoned offences which it +would have been proper to punish. He could not maintain long the most +just resentment, but remitted punishments even when they were far milder +than the crime deserved. He was fairly successful in the management +of his relations with foreign countries, and in the suppression of +disturbances within his own dominions; but he was quite incapable +of anything like a strenuous and prolonged effort to renovate and +re-invigorate the Empire. If he held together the territories which he +inherited, and bequeathed them to his successor augmented rather than +diminished, it is to be attributed more to his good fortune than to his +merits, and to the mistakes of his opponents than to his own prudence or +sagacity. + +Ochus, who obtained the crown in the manner related above, was the most +cruel and sanguinary of all the Persian kings. He is indeed the only +monarch of the Achaemenian line who appears to have been bloodthirsty +by temperament. His first act on finding himself acknowledged king (B.C. +359) was to destroy, so far as he could, all the princes of the blood +royal, in order that he might have no rival to fear. He even, if we may +believe Justin, involved in this destruction a number of the princesses, +whom any but the most ruthless of despots would have spared. Having +taken these measures for his own security, he proceeded to show himself +more active and enterprising than any monarch since Longimanus. It was +now nearly half a century since one of the important provinces of the +Empire--Egypt--had successfully asserted its independence and restored +the throne of its native kings. General after general had been employed +in vain attempts to reduce the rebels to obedience. Ochus determined +to attempt the recovery of the revolted province in person. Though +a rebellion had broken out in Asia Minor, which being supported by +Thebes, threatened to become serious, he declined to be diverted from +his enterprise. Levying a vast army, he marched into Egypt, and engaged +Noctanebo, the king, in a contest for existence. Nectanebo, however, +having obtained the services of two Greek generals, Diophantus, an +Athenian, and Lamius, a citizen of Sparta, boldly met his enemy in the +field, defeated him, and completely repulsed his expedition. Hereupon +the contagion of revolt spread. Phoenicia assumed independence under the +leadership of Sidon, expelled or massacred the Persian garrisons, which +held her cities, and formed an alliance with Egypt. Her example was +followed by Cyprus, where the kings of the nine principal towns assumed +each a separate sovereignty. + +The chronology of this period is somewhat involved; but it seems +probable that the attack and failure of Ochus took place about B.C. 351; +that the revolts occurred in the next year, B.C. 350; while it was not +till B.C. 346, or four years later, that Ochus undertook his second +expedition into these regions. He had, however, in the meanwhile, +directed his generals or feudatories, to attack the rebels, and bring +them into subjection. The Cyprian war he had committed to Idrieus, +prince of Caria, who employed on the service a body of 8000 Greek +mercenaries, commanded by Phocion, the Athenian, and Evagoras, son of +the former Evagoras, the Cyprian monarch; while he had committed to +Belesys, satrap of Syria, and Mezseus, satrap of Cilicia, the task of +keeping the Phoenicians in check. Idrieus succeeded in reducing Cyprus; +but the two satraps suffered a single defeat at the hands of Tennes, the +Sidonian king, who was aided by 40,000 Greek mercenaries, sent him by +Nectanebo, and commanded by Mentor the Rhodian. The Persian forces were +driven out of Phoenicia; and Sidon had ample time to strengthen its +defences and make preparations for a desperate resistance. The approach, +however, of Ochus, at the head of an army of 330,000 men, shook the +resolution of the Phoenician monarch, who endeavored to purchase his +own pardon by treacherously delivering up a hundred of the principal +citizens of Sidon into the hands of the Persian king, and then admitting +him within the defences of the town. Ochus, with the savage cruelty +which was his chief characteristic, caused the hundred citizens to be +transfixed with javelins, and when 500 more came out as suppliants to +entreat his mercy, relentlessly consigned them to the same fate. Nor did +the traitor Tennes derive any advantage from his guilty bargain. +Ochus, having obtained from him all he needed, instead of rewarding his +desertion, punished his rebellion with death. Hereupon the Sidonians, +understanding that they had nothing to hope from submission, formed the +dreadful resolution of destroying themselves and their town. They had +previously, to prevent the desertion of any of their number, burnt their +ships. Now they shut themselves up in their houses, and set fire each +to his own dwelling. Forty thousand persons lost their lives in the +conflagration; and the city was reduced to a heap of ruins, which Ochus +sold for a large sum. Thus ended the Phoenician revolt. Among its most +important results was the transfer of his services to the Persian king +on the part of Mentor the Rhodian, who appears to have been the ablest +of the mercenary leaders of whom Greece at this time produced so many. + +The reduction of Sidon was followed closely by the invasion of +Egypt. Ochus, besides his 330,000 Asiatics, had now a force of 14,000 +Greeks--6000 furnished by the Greek cities of Asia Minor; 4000 under +Mentor, consisting of the troops which he had brought to the aid of +Tennes from Egypt; 3000 sent by Argos; and 1000 from Thebes. He divided +his numerous armament into three bodies, and placed at the head of +each two generals--one Persian and one Greek. The Greek commanders were +Lacrates of Thebes, Mentor of Rhodes, and Nicostratus of Argos, a man +of enormous strength, who regarded himself as a second Hercules, and +adopted the traditional costume of that hero--a club and a lion's skin. +The Persians were Rhossaces, Aristazanes, and Bagoas, the chief of the +eunuchs. Nectanebo was only able to oppose to this vast array an army +less than one third of the size. Twenty thousand, however, out of the +100,000 troops at his disposal were Greeks; he occupied the Nile and +its various branches with a numerous navy the character of the country, +intersected by numerous canals, and full of strongly fortified towns, +was in his favor; and he might have been expected to make a prolonged, +if not even a successful, resistance. But he was deficient in generals, +and over-confident in his own powers of command: the Greek captains +out-manoeuvred him; and no sooner did he find one line of his defences +forced than his ill-founded confidence was exchanged for an alarm +as little reasonable. He hastily fell back upon Memphis, leaving the +fortified towns to the defence of their garrisons. These consisted of +mixed troops, partly Greek and partly Egyptian; between whom jealousies +and suspicions were easily sown by the Persian leaders, who by these +means rapidly reduced the secondary cities of Lower Egypt, and were +advancing upon Memphis, when Nectanebo in despair quitted the country +and fled southwards to Ethiopia. All Egypt submitted to Ochus, who +demolished the walls of the cities, plundered the temples, and after +amply rewarding his mercenaries, returned to his own capital with an +immense booty, and with the glory of having successfully carried through +a most difficult and important enterprise. + +It has been well observed that "the reconquest of Egypt by Ochus must +have been one of the most impressive events of the age," and that it +"exalted the Persian Empire in force and credit to a point nearly as +high as it had ever occupied before." Ochus not only redeemed by means +of it his former failure, but elevated himself in the opinions of men to +a pitch of glory such as no previous Persian king had reached, excepting +Cyrus, Cambyses, and the first Darius. Henceforth we hear of no more +revolts or rebellions. Mentor and Bagoas, the two generals who had most +distinguished themselves in the Egyptian campaign, were advanced by the +gratitude of Ochus to posts of the highest importance, in which their +vigor and energy found ample room to display themselves. Mentor, who was +governor of the entire Asiatic sea-board, exerted himself successfully +to reduce to subjection the many chiefs who during the recent troubles +had assumed an independent authority, and in the course of a few +years brought once more the whole coast into complete submission and +dependence. Bagoas, carried with him by Ochus to the capital, became +the soul of the internal administration, and maintained tranquillity +throughout the rest of the Empire. The last six years of the reign of +Ochus form an exceptional period of vigorous and successful government, +such as occurs nowhere else in the history of the later Persian +monarchy. The credit of bringing about such a state of things may be due +especially to the king's officers, Bagoas and Mentor; but a portion of +it must reflect upon himself, as the person who selected them, assigned +them their respective tasks, and permanently maintained them in office. + +It was during this period of vigor and renewed life, when the Persian +monarchy seemed to have recovered almost its pristine force and +strength, that the attention of its rulers was called to a small cloud +on the distant horizon, which some were wise enough to see portended +storm and tempest. The growing power of Macedon, against which +Demosthenes was at this time in vain warning the careless Athenians, +attracted the consideration of Ochus or of his counsellors; and orders +went forth from the Court that Persian influence was to be used to check +and depress the rising kingdom. A force was consequently despatched to +assist the Thracian prince, Cersobleptes, to maintain his independence; +and such effectual aid was given to the city of Perinthus that the +numerous and well-appointed army with which Philip had commenced its +siege was completely baffled and compelled to give up the attempt (B.C. +340). The battle of Chseroneia had not yet been fought, and Macedonia +was still but one of the many states which disputed for supremacy over +Greece; but it is evident that she had already awakened the suspicions +of Persia, which saw a rival and a possible assailant in the rapidly +growing monarchy. + +Greater and more systematic efforts might possibly have been made, and +the power of Macedon might perhaps have been kept within bounds, had not +the inveterate evil of conspiracy and revolution once more shown itself +at the Court, and paralyzed for a time the action of the Empire on +communities beyond its borders. Ochus, while he was a vigorous ruler +and administrator, was harsh and sanguinary. His violence and cruelty +rendered him hateful to his subjects; and it is not unlikely that they +caused even those who stood highest in his favor to feel insecure. +Bagoas may have feared that sooner or later he would himself be one +of the monarch's victims, and have been induced by a genuine alarm +to remove the source of his terrors. In the year B.C. 338 he poisoned +Ochus, and placed upon the throne his youngest son, Arses, at the same +time assassinating all the brothers of the new monarch. It was evidently +his aim to exercise the supreme power himself, as counsellor to a prince +who owed his position to him, and who was moreover little more than a +boy. But Arses, though subservient for a year or two, began, as he grew +older, to show that he had a will of his own, and was even heard to +utter threats against his benefactor whereupon Bagoas, accustomed now to +crime, secured himself by a fresh series of murders. He caused Arses and +his infant children to be assassinated, and selected one of his friends, +Codomannus, the son of Arsanes, to fill the vacant throne. About the +same time (B.C. 336), Philip of Macedon was assassinated by the incensed +Pausanias; and the two new monarchs--Codomannus, who took the name +of Darius, and Alexander the Great--assumed their respective sceptres +almost simultaneously. + +Codomannus, the last of the Persian kings, might with some reason have +complained, like Plato, that nature had brought him in the world too +late. Personally brave, as he proved himself into the Cadusian war, +tall and strikingly handsome, amiable in temper, capable of considerable +exertion, and not altogether devoid of military capacity, he would have +been a fairly good ruler in ordinary times, and might, had he fallen +upon such times, have held an honorable place among the Persian +monarchs. But he was unequal to the difficulties of such a position as +that in which he found himself. Raised to the throne after the victory +of Chaeroneia had placed Philip at the head of Greece, and when a +portion of the Macedonian forces had already passed into Asia, he was +called upon to grapple at once with a danger of the most formidable +kind, and had but little time for preparation. It is true that Philip's +death soon after his own accession gave him a short breathing-space: +but at the same time it threw him off his guard. The military talents of +Alexander were untried, and of course unknown; the perils which he had +to encounter were patent. Codomannus may be excused if for some months +after Alexander's accession he slackened his preparations for defence, +uncertain whether the new monarch would maintain himself, whether +he would overpower the combinations which were formed against him in +Greece, whether he would inherit his father's genius for war, or adopt +his ambitious projects. It would have been wiser, no doubt, as the event +proved, to have joined heart and soul with Alexander's European enemies, +and to have carried the war at once to the other side of the Egean. But +no great blame attaches to the Persian monarch for his brief inaction. +As soon as the Macedonian prince had shown by his campaigns in Thrace, +Illyria, and Boeotia that he was a person to be dreaded, Darius +Codomannus renewed the preparations which he had discontinued, and +pushed them forward with all the speed that was possible. A fleet was +rapidly got ready: the satraps of Asia Minor were reinforced with troops +of good quality from the interior of the Empire, and were ordered to +raise a strong force of mercenaries; money was sent into Greece to the +Lacedaemonians and others in order to induce them to create disturbances +in Europe; above all, Memnon the Rhodian, a brother of Mentor, and a +commander of approved skill, was sent to the Hellespont, at the head of +a body of Greeks in Persian pay, with an authority co-ordinate to that +of the satraps. + +A certain amount of success at first attended these measures. Memnon +was able to act on the offensive in North-Western Asia. He marched upon +Cyzicus and was within a little of surprising it, obtaining from the +lands and villas without the walls an immense booty. He forced Parmenio +to raise the seige of Pitane; and when Callas, one of the Macedonian +leaders, endeavored to improve the condition of things by meeting the +Persian forces in the open field, he suffered a defeat and was compelled +to throw himself into Rhoeteum. + +These advantages, however, were detrimental rather than serviceable to +the Persian cause; since they encouraged the Persian satraps to regard +the Macedonians as an enemy no more formidable than the various tribes +of Greeks with whom they had now carried on war in Asia Minor for +considerably more than a century. The intended invasion of Alexander +seemed to them a matter of no great moment--to be classed with +expeditions like those of Thimbron and Agesilaus, not to need, as it +really did, to be placed in a category of its own. Accordingly, they +made no efforts to dispute the passage of the Hellespont, or to oppose +the landing of the expedition on the Asiatic shore. Alexander was +allowed to transport a force of 30,000 foot and 4000 or 5000 horse from +the Chersonese to Mysia without the slightest interference on the part +of the enemy, notwithstanding that his naval power was weak and that +of the Persians very considerable. This is one of those pieces of +remissness in the Persian conduct of military matters, whereof we have +already had to note signal instances, and which constantly caused the +failure of very elaborate and judicious preparations to meet a danger. +Great efforts had been made to collect and equip a numerous fleet, and +a few weeks later it was all-powerful in the Egean. But it was absent +exactly at the time when it was wanted. Alexander's passage and landing +were unopposed, and the Persians thus admitted within the Empire without +a struggle the enemy who was fated to destroy it. + +When the Persian commanders heard that Alexander was in Asia, they +were anxious to give him battle. One alone, the Rhodian Greek, Memnon, +proposed and urged a wholly different plan of operations. Memnon advised +that a general engagement should be avoided, that the entire country +should be laid waste, and even the cities burnt, while the army +should retire, cut off stragglers, and seek to bring the enemy into +difficulties. At the same time he recommended that the fleet should be +brought up, a strong land force embarked on board it, and an effort made +to transfer the war into Europe. But Memnon's colleagues, the satraps +and commandants of the north-western portion of Asia Minor, could not +bring themselves to see that circumstances required a line of action +which they regarded as ignominious. It is not necessary to attribute to +them personal or selfish motives. They probably thought honestly that +they were a match for Alexander with the troops at their disposal, and +viewed retreat before an enemy numerically weaker than themselves as +a disgrace not to be endured unless its necessity was palpable. +Accordingly they determined to give the invader battle. Supposing that +Alexander, having crossed into Asia at Abydos, would proceed to attack +Dascyleium, the nearest satrapial capital, they took post on the +Granicus, and prepared to dispute the further advance of the Macedonian +army. They had collected a force of 20,000 cavalry of the best quality +that the Empire afforded, and nearly the same number of infantry, +who were chiefly, if not solely, Greek mercenaries. With these +they determined to defend the passage of the small stream above +mentioned--one of the many which flow from the northern flank of Ida +into the Propontis. + +The battle thus offered was eagerly accepted by the Macedonian. If he +could not defeat with ease a Persian force not greatly exceeding his +own, he had miscalculated the relative goodness of the soldiers on +either side, and might as well desist from the expedition. Accordingly, +he no sooner came to the bank of the river, and saw the enemy drawn up +on the other side, than, rejecting the advice of Parmenio to wait till +the next day, he gave orders that the whole army should enter the stream +and advance across it. The Granicus was in most places fordable; but +there were occasional deeper parts, which had to be avoided; and there +was thus some difficulty in reaching the opposite bank in line. That +bank itself was generally steep and precipitous, but offered also +several gentle slopes where a landing was comparatively easy. The +Persians had drawn up their cavalry along the line of the river close to +the water's edge, and had placed their infantry in the rear. Alexander +consequently attacked with his cavalry. The engagement began upon the +right. Amytas and Ptolemy, who were the first to reach the opposite +bank, met with a strenuous resistance and were driven back into the +stream by the forces of Memnon and his sons. The battle, however, on +this side was restored by Alexander himself, who gradually forced the +Persians back after a long hand-to-hand fight, in which he received +a slight wound, and slew with his own hand several noble Persians. +Elsewhere the resistance was less determined. Parmenio crossed on the +left with comparative ease, by his advance relieving Alexander. The +Persians found the long spears of the Macedonians and their intermixture +of light-armed foot with heavy-armed cavalry irresistible. The +Macedonians seem to have received orders to strike at their adversaries' +faces--a style of warfare which was as unpleasant to the Persians as it +was to the soldiers of Pompey at Pharsalia. Their line was broken +where it was opposed to Alexander and his immediate companions; but the +contagion of disorder rapidly spread, and the whole body of the cavalry +shortly quitted the field, after having lost a thousand of their number. +Only the infantry now remained. Against these the Macedonian phalanx was +brought up in front, while the cavalry made repeated charges on +either flank with overwhelming effect. Deserted by their horse, vastly +outnumbered, and attacked on all sides, the brave mercenaries stood +firm, fought with desperation, and were mostly slaughtered where they +stood. Two thousand out of the 20,000--probably wounded men--were made +prisoners. The rest perished, except a few who lay concealed among the +heaps of slain. + +The Persians lost by the battle 20,000 of their best footmen, and one or +two thousand horse. Among their slain the proportion of men of rank +was unusually large. The list included Spithridates, satrap of Lydia, +Mithrobarzanes, governor of Cappadocia, Pharnaces, a brother-in-law, and +Mithridates, a son-in-law of Darius, Arbupales, a grandson of Artaxerxes +Mnemon, Omares, the commander of the mercenaries, Niphates, Petines, +and Ehoesaces, generals. The Greek loss is said to have been exceedingly +small. Aristobulus made the total number of the slain thirty-four; +Arrian gives it as one hundred and fifteen, or a little over. It has +been suspected that even the latter estimate is below the truth; but the +analogy furnished by the other great victories of the Greeks over the +Persians tends rather to confirm Arrian's statement. + +The battle of the Granicus threw open to Alexander the whole of Asia +Minor. There was no force left in the entire country that could venture +to resist him, unless protected by walls. Accordingly, the Macedonian +operations for the next twelve months, or during nearly the whole +space that intervened between the battles of the Granicus and of Issus, +consist of little more than a series of marches and sieges. The reader +of Persian history will scarcely wish for an account of these operations +in detail. Suffice it to say that Alexander rapidly overran Lydia, +Ionia, Caria, Lycia, Pamphylia, Pisidia, and Phrygia, besieged and took +Miletus, Halicarnassus, Marmareis, and Sagalassus, and received the +submission of Dascyleium, Sardis, Ephesus, Magnesia, Tralles, the Lycian +Telmisseis, Pinara, Xanthus, Patara, Phaselis, Side, Aspendus, Celaenee, +and Gordium. This last city was the capital of Phrygia; and there the +conqueror for the first time since his landing gave himself and his army +a few months' rest during the latter part of the winter. + +With the first breath of spring his forces were again in motion. +Hitherto anxious with respect to the state of things on the coast and in +Greece, he had remained in the western half of Asia Minor, within call +of his friends in Macedonia, at no time distant more than about 200 +miles from the sea. Now intelligence reached him which made him feel at +liberty to advance into the interior of Asia. Memnon the Rhodian fell +sick and died in the early spring of B.C. 333. It is strange that so +much should have depended on a single life; but it certainly seems that +there was no one in the Persian service who, on Memnon's death, could +replace him--no one fitted for the difficult task of uniting Greeks and +Asiatics together, capable of influencing and managing the one while he +preserved the confidence of the other. Memnon's death disconcerted all +the plans of the Great King, who till it occurred had fully intended to +carry the war into his enemy's country. It induced Darius even to give +up the notion of maintaining a powerful fleet, and to transfer to the +land service the most efficient of his naval forces. At the same time it +set Alexander free to march wherever he liked, liberating him from the +keen anxiety, which he had previously felt, as to the maintenance of the +Macedonian power in Europe. + +It now became the object of the Persian king to confront the daring +invader of his Western provinces with an army worthy of the Persian +name and proportionate to the vastness of the Empire. He had long been +collecting troops from many of the most warlike nations, and had got +together a force of several hundred thousand men. Forgetting the lessons +of his country's previous history, he flattered himself that the host +which he had brought together was irresistible, and became anxious to +hurry on a general engagement. Starting from Babylon, probably about the +time that Alexander left Gordium in Phrygia, he marched up the valley of +the Euphrates, and took up a position at Sochi, which was situated in +a large open plain, not far from the modern Lake of Antioch. On his +arrival there he heard that Alexander was in Cilicia at no great +distance; and the Greeks in his service assured him that it would not +be long before the Macedonian monarch would seek him out and accept his +offer of battle. But a severe attack of illness detained Alexander at +Tarsus, and when he was a little recovered, troubles in Western Cilicia, +threatening his communications with Greece, required his presence; +so that Darius grew impatient, and, believing that his enemy had no +intention of advancing further than Cilicia, resolved to seek him in +that country. Quitting the open plain of Sochi, he marched northwards, +having the range of Amanus on his left, almost as far as the +thirty-seventh parallel, when turning sharply to the west, he crossed +the chain, and descended upon Issus, in the inner recess of the gulf +which bore the same name. Here he came upon Alexander's hospitals, and +found himself to his surprise in the rear of his adversary, who, while +Darius was proceeding northwards along the eastern flank of Amanus, had +been marching southwards between the western flank of the same range and +the sea. Alexander had crossed the Pylse, or narrowest portion of the +pass, and had reached Myriandrus--a little beyond Iskonderum--when news +reached him that Darius had occupied Issus in his rear, and had put +to death all the sick and wounded Macedonians whom he had found in the +town. At first he could not credit the intelligence; but when it was +confirmed by scouts, whom he sent out, he prepared instantly to retrace +his steps, and to fight his first great battle with the Persian king +under circumstances which he felt to be favorable beyond anything that +he could have hoped. The tract of flat land between the base of the +mountains and the sea on the borders of the Gulf of Issus was nowhere +broader than about a mile and a half. The range of Amanus on the +east rose up with rugged and broken hills, so that on this side the +operations of cavalry were impracticable. It would be impossible to +form a line of battle containing in the front rank more than about 4000 +men,1048 and difficult for either party to bring into action as many as +30,000 of their soldiers. Thus the vast superiority of numbers on the +Persian side became in such a position absolutely useless, and even +Alexander had more troops than he could well employ. No wonder that the +Macedonian should exclaim, that "God had declared Himself on the Grecian +side by putting it into the heart of Darius to execute such a movement." +It may be that Alexander's superior generalship would have made him +victorious even on the open plain of Sochi; but in the defile of Issus +success was certain, and generalship superfluous. + +Darius had started from Issus in pursuit of his adversary, and had +reached the banks of the Pinarus, a small stream flowing westward from +Amanus into the Mediterranean, when he heard that Alexander had hastened +to retrace his stops, and was coming to meet him. Immediately he +prepared for battle. Passing a force of horse and foot across the stream +in his front, to keep his adversary in check if he advanced too rapidly, +he drew up his best troops along the line of the river in a continuous +solid mass, the ranks of which must have been at least twenty deep. +Thirty thousand Greek mercenaries formed the centre of the line, while +on either side of them were an equal number of Asiatic "braves"--picked +probably from the mass of the army. Twenty thousand troops of a lighter +and inferior class were placed upon the rough hills on the left, the +outskirts of the Amanian range, where the nature of the ground allowed +them to encircle the Macedonian right, which, to preserve its ranks +unbroken, kept the plain. The cavalry, to the number of 30,000, was +massed upon the other wing, near the sea. + +The battle began by certain movements of Alexander against the flank +force which menaced his right. These troops, assailed by the Macedonian +light-armed, retreated at once to higher ground, and by their manifest +cowardice freed Alexander from all anxiety on their account. Leaving 300 +horse to keep the 20,000 in check, he moved on his whole line at a slow +pace towards the Pinarus till it came within bow-shot of the enemy, when +he gave the order to proceed at a run. The line advanced as commanded; +but before it could reach the river, the Persian horse on the extreme +right, unable to restrain themselves any longer, dashed across the +shallow stream, and assailed Alexander's left, where they engaged in a +fierce battle with the Thessalian cavalry, in which neither attained any +decided advantage. The infantry, meanwhile, came into conflict along +the rest of the line. Alexander himself, with the right and the +right-centre, charged the Asiatic troops on Darius's left, who, like +their brethren at Cunaxa, instantly broke and fled. Parmenio, with the +left-centre, was less successful. The north bank of the Pinarus was in +this part steep and defended by stakes in places; the Greek mercenaries +were as brave as the Macedonians, and fought valiantly. It was not till +the troops which had routed the Persian right began, to act against +their centre, assailing it upon the flank, while it was at the same time +engaged in front, that the mercenaries were overpowered and gave way. +Seeing their defeat, the horse likewise fled, and thus the rout became +general. + +It is not quite clear what part Darius took in the battle, or how far +he was answerable for its untoward result. According to Arrian, he was +struck with a sudden panic on beholding the flight of his left wing, and +gave orders to his charioteer instantly to quit the field. But Curtius +and Diodorus represent him as engaged in a long struggle against +Alexander himself, and as only flying when he was in imminent danger of +falling into the enemy's hands. Justin goes further, and states that +he was actually wounded. The character gained by Darius in his earlier +years makes it improbable that he would under any circumstances have +exhibited personal cowardice. On the whole it would seem to be most +probable that the flight of the Persian monarch occurred, not when the +left wing fled, but when the Greek mercenaries among whom he had placed +himself began to give way before the irresistible phalanx and the +impetuous charges of Alexander. Darius, not unwisely, accepted the +defeat of his best troops as the loss of the battle, and hastily retired +across Amanus by the pass which had brought him to Issus, whence +he hurried on through Sochi to the Euphrates, anxious to place that +obstacle between himself and his victorious enemy. His multitudinous +host, entangled in the defiles of the mountains, suffered by its own +weight and size, the stronger fugitives treading down the weaker, while +at the same time it was ruthlessly slaughtered by the pursuing enemy, +so long as the waning light allowed. As many as 100,000--90,000 foot and +10,000 horse--are said to have fallen. The ravines were in places choked +with the dead bodies, and Ptolemy the son of Lagus related that in one +instance he and Alexander crossed a gully on a bridge of this kind. +Among the slain were Sabaces, satrap of Egypt, Bubaces, a noble of high +rank, and Arsames, Rheomithres, and Atizyes, three of the commanders +at the Granicus. Forty thousand prisoners were made. The whole of the +Persian camp and camp-equipage fell into the enemy's hands, who found in +the royal pavilion the mother, wife, and sister of the king, an +infant son, two daughters, and a number of female attendants, wives of +noblemen. The treasure captured amounted to 3000 silver talents. Among +the trophies of victory were the chariot, bow, shield, and robe of the +king, which he had abandoned in his hurried flight. + +The loss on the side of the Macedonians was trivial. The highest +estimate places it at 450 killed, the lowest at 182. Besides these, +504 were wounded. Thus Alexander had less than 1000 men placed hors de +combat. He himself received a slight wound in the thigh from a sword, +which, used a little more resolutely, might have changed the fortunes of +the world. + +The defeat of the Persians at Issus seems to have been due simply to the +fact that, practically, the two adversaries engaged with almost equal +numbers, and that the troops of Alexander were of vastly superior +quality to those of Darhis. The Asiatic infantry--notwithstanding their +proud title of "braves"--proved to be worthless; the Greek mercenaries +were personally courageous, but their inferior arms and training +rendered them incapable of coping with the Macedonian phalanx. The +cavalry was the only arm in which the Persians were not greatly at a +disadvantage; and cavalry alone cannot gain, or even save a battle. +When Darius put himself into a position where he lost all the advantages +derivable from superiority of numbers, he made his own defeat and his +adversary's triumph certain. + +It remained, therefore, before the Empire could be considered as +entirely lost, that this error should be corrected, this false step +retrieved. All hope for Persia was not gone, so long as her full force +had not been met and defeated in a fair and open field. When Darius fled +from Issus, it was not simply to preserve for a few months longer his +own wretched life; it was to make an effort to redeem the past--to give +his country that last chance of maintaining her independence which she +had a right to claim at his hands--to try what the award of battle +would be under the circumstances which he had fair grounds for +regarding as the most favorable possible to his own side and the most +disadvantageous to his adversary. Before the heart of the Empire +could be reached from the West, the wide Mesopotamian plain had to be +traversed--there, in those vast flats, across which the enemy must come, +a position might be chosen where there would be room for the largest +numbers that even his enormous Empire could furnish--where cavalry and +even chariots would be everywhere free to act--where consequently he +might engage the puny force of his antagonist to the greatest advantage, +outflank it, envelop it, and perhaps destroy it. Darius would have +been inexcusable had he given up the contest without trying this last +chance--the chance of a battle in the open field with the full collected +force of Persia. + +His adversary gave him ample time to prepare for this final struggle. +The battle of Issus was fought in November, B.C. 333. It was not till +the summer of B.C. 331, twenty months later that the Macedonian forces +were set in motion towards the interior of the Empire. More than a year +and a half was consumed in the reduction of Phoenicia, the siege of +Gaza, and the occupation of Egypt. Alexander, apparently, was confident +of defeating Darius in a pitched battle, whenever and under whatever +circumstances they should again meet; and regarded as the only +serious dangers which threatened him, a possible interruption of his +communications with Greece, and the employment of Persian gold and +Persian naval force in the raising of troubles on the European side of +the Egean. He was therefore determined, before he plunged into the depth +of the Asiatic continent, to isolate Persia from Greece, to destroy her +naval power, and to cripple her pecuniary resources. The event showed +that his decision was a wise one. By detaching from Persia and bringing +under his own sway the important countries of Syria, Phoenicia, +Palestine, Idumsea, and Egypt, he wholly deprived Persia of her navy, +and transferred to himself the complete supremacy of the sea, he greatly +increased his own resources while he diminished those of the enemy, and +he shut out Persia altogether from communication with Greece, excepting +through his territories. He could therefore commence his march into the +interior with a feeling of entire security as to his communications and +his rear. No foe was left on the coast capable of causing him a moment's +uneasiness. Athens and Sparta might chafe and even intrigue; but without +the Persian "archers," it was impossible that any force should be raised +which could in the slightest degree imperil his European dominions. + +From Babylon, whither Darius proceeded straight from Issus, he appears +to have made two ineffectual attempts at negotiating with his enemy. The +first embassy was despatched soon after his arrival, and, according +to Arrian, was instructed merely to make proposals for peace, and to +request the restitution of the Queen, the Queen-mother, Sisygambis, the +infant prince, and the two princesses, captured by Alexander. To this +Alexander replied, in haughty and contemptuous terms, that if Darius +would acknowledge him as Lord of Asia, and deliver himself into his +power, he should receive back his relatives: if he intended still to +dispute the sovereignty, he ought to come and fight out the contest, and +not run away. + +The second embassy was sent six or eight months later, while Alexander +was engaged in the siege of Tyre. Darius now offered, as a ransom for +the members of his family held in captivity by Alexander, the large sum +of ten thousand talents (L240,000.), and was willing to purchase peace +by the cession of all the provinces lying west of the Euphrates, several +of which were not yet in Alexander's possession. At the same time he +proposed that Alexander should marry his daughter, Statira, in order +that the cession of territory might be represented as the bestowal of a +dowry. The reply of Alexander was, if possible, ruder and haughtier than +before. "What did Darius mean by offering money and territory? All his +treasure and all his territory were Alexander's already. As for the +proposed marriage, if he (Alexander) liked to marry a daughter of +Darius, he should of course do so, whether her father consented or not. +If Darius wanted merciful treatment, he had better come and deliver +himself up at once." + +The terms of this reply rendered further negotiation impossible. +Darius had probably not hoped much from his pacific overtures, and was +therefore not greatly concerned at their rejection. He knew that the +members of his family were honorably and even kindly treated by their +captor, and that, so far at any rate, Alexander had proved himself a +magnanimous conqueror. He can scarcely have thought that a lasting peace +was possible between himself and his young antagonist, who had only just +fleshed his maiden sword, and was naturally eager to pursue his career +of conquest. Indeed, he seems from the moment of his defeat at Issus to +have looked forward to another battle as inevitable, and to have been +unremitting in his efforts to collect and arm a force which might +contend, with a good hope of victory, against the Macedonians. He +replaced the panoplies lost at Issus with fresh ones; he armed his +forces anew with swords and spears longer than the Persians had been +previously accustomed to employ, on account of the great length of the +Macedonian weapons; he caused to be constructed 200 scythed chariots; he +prepared spiked balls to use against his enemy's cavalry; above all, he +laid under contribution for the supply of troops all the provinces, +even the most remote, of his extensive Empire, and asked and obtained +important aid from allies situated beyond his borders. The forces which +he collected for the final struggle comprised--besides Persians, Medes, +Babylonians, and Susianians from the centre of the Empire--Syrians from +the banks of the Orontes, Armenians from the neighborhood of Ararat, +Cappadocians and Albanians from the regions bordering on the Euxine, +Cadusians from the Caspian, Bactrians from the Upper Oxus, Sogdians from +the Jaxartes, Arachosians from Cabul, Arians from Herat, Indians from +Punjab, and even Sacse from the country about Kashgar and Yarkand, on +the borders of the Great Desert of Gobi. Twenty-five nations followed +the standard of the Great King, and swelled the ranks of his vast army, +which amounted (according to the best authorities) to above a million of +men. Every available resource that the Empire possessed was brought +into play. Besides the three arms of cavalry, infantry, and chariots, +elephants were, for perhaps the first time in the history of military +science, marshalled in the battle-field, to which they added an unwonted +element of grotesqueness and savagery. + +The field of battle was likewise selected with great care, and +artificially prepared for the encounter. Darius, it would seem, had +at last become convinced that his enemy would seek him out wherever he +might happen to be, and that consequently the choice of ground rested +wholly with himself. Leaving, therefore, the direct road to Babylon +by the line of the Euphrates undefended, he selected a position which +possessed all the advantages of the Mesopotamian plain, being open, +level, fertile, and well supplied with water, while its vicinity to the +eastern and northern provinces, made it convenient for a rendezvous. +This position was on the left or east bank of the Tigris, in the heart +of the ancient Assyria, not more than thirty miles from the site of +Nineveh. Here, in the region called by the Greeks Adiabene, extended +between the Tigris and the river Zab or Lycus, a vast plain broken by +scarcely any elevations, and wholly bare of both shrubs and trees. The +few natural inequalities which presented themselves were levelled by +order of Darius, who made the entire plain in his front practicable not +only for cavalry but for chariots. At the same time he planted, in the +places where Alexander's cavalry was likely to charge, spiked balls to +damage the feet of the horses. + +Meanwhile, Alexander had quitted Egypt, and after delaying some months +in Syria while his preparations were being completed, had crossed the +Euphrates at Thapsacus and marched through northern Mesopotamia along +the southern flank of the Mons Masius, a district in which provisions, +water, and forage were abundant, to the Tigris, which he must have +reached in about lat. 36 deg. 30', thirty or forty miles above the site of +Nineveh. No resistance was made to his advance; even the passage of +the great rivers was unopposed. Arrived on the east bank of the Tigris, +Alexander found himself in Assyria Proper, with the stream upon his +right and the mountains of Gordyene Kurdistan at no great distance upon +his left. But the plain widened as he advanced, and became, as he drew +near the position of his enemy, a vast level, nowhere less than thirty +miles in breadth, between the outlying ranges of hills and the great +river. Darius, whose headquarters had been at Arbela, south of the Zab, +on learning Alexander's approach, had crossed that stream and taken post +on the prepared ground to the north, in the neighborhood of a small town +or village called Gaugamela. Here he drew up his forces in the order +which he thought best, placing the scythed chariots in front, with +supports of horse--Scythian, Bactrian, Armenian, and Cappadocian--near +to them; then, the main line of battle, divided into a centre and two +wings, and composed of horse and foot intermixed; and finally a reserve +of Babylonians. Sitaceni, and others, massed in heavy column in the +rear. His own post was, according to invariable Persian custom, in +the centre; and about him were grouped the best troops--the Household +brigade, the Melophori or Persian foot-guards, the Mardian archers, some +Albanians and Carians, the entire body of Greek mercenaries, and the +Indians with their elephants. + +Alexander, on his side, determined to leave nothing to chance. Advancing +leisurely, resting his troops at intervals, carefully feeling his way by +means of scouts, and gradually learning from the prisoners whom he +took, and the deserters who came over to him, all the dispositions and +preparations of the enemy, he arrived opposite the position of Darius on +the ninth day after his passage of the Tigris. His officers were eager +to attack at once; but with great judgment he restrained them, gave his +troops a night's rest, and obtained time to reconnoitre completely the +whole position of the enemy and the arrangement which he had made of his +forces. He then formed his own dispositions. The army with which he +was to attack above a million of men consisted of 40,300 foot and 7000 +horse. Alexander drew them up in three lines: + +The first consisted of light-armed troops, horse and foot, of good +quality, which were especially intended to act against the enemy's +chariots. The next was the main line of battle, and contained the +phalanx with the rest of the heavy infantry in the centre, the heavy +cavalry upon the two wings. The third line consisted of light troops, +chiefly horse, and was instructed to act against such of the Persians as +should outflank the Macedonian main line and so threaten their rear. +As at Issus, Alexander took the command of the right wing himself, and +assigned the left to Parmenio. + +As the two armies drew near, Alexander, who found himself greatly +outflanked on both wings, and saw in front of him smooth ground +carefully prepared for the operations of chariots and cavalry, began a +diagonal movement towards the right, which tended at once to place him +beyond the levelled ground, and to bring him in contact with his enemy's +left wing rather than with his direct front. The movement greatly +disconcerted his adversary, who sought to prevent it by extending and +advancing his own left, which was soon engaged with Alexander's right +in a fierce hand-to-hand conflict. Alexander still pressed his slanting +movement, and in resisting it Darius's left became separated from his +centre, while at the same time he was forced to give the signal for +launching the chariots against the foe sooner than he had intended, and +under circumstances that were not favorable. The effect of the operation +was much the same as at Cunaxa. Received by the Macedonian light-armed, +the chariots were mostly disabled before the enemy's main line was +reached; the drivers were dragged from the chariot-boards; and the +horses were cut to pieces. Such as escaped this fate and charged the +Macedonian line, were allowed to pass through the ranks, which opened to +receive them, and were then dealt with by grooms and others in the rear +of the army. + +No sooner had the chariot attack failed, and the space between the two +lines of battle become clear, than Alexander, with the quick eye of a +true general, saw his opportunity: to resist his flank movement, the +Bactrians and Sacae with the greater part of the left wing had broken +off from the main Persian line, and in pressing towards the left +had made a gap between their ranks and the centre. Into this gap the +Macedonian king, at the head of the "Companion" cavalry and a portion of +the phalanx, plunged. Here he found himself in the near neighborhood +of Darius, whereupon he redoubled the vigor of his assault, knowing the +great importance of any success gained in this quarter. The Companions +rushed on with loud cries, pressing with all their weight, and thrusting +their spears into the faces of their antagonists--the phalanx, bristling +with its thick array of lances, bore them down. Alexander found himself +sufficiently near Darius to hurl a spear at him, which transfixed his +charioteer. The cry arose that the king had fallen, and the ranks at +once grew unsteady. The more timid instantly began to break and fly; +the contagion of fear spread; and Darius was in a little while almost +denuded of protection on one side. Seeing this, and regarding the battle +as lost, since his line was broken, his centre and left wing defeated, +while only his right wing remained firm, the Persian monarch yielded to +his alarm, and hastily quitting the field, made his way to Arbela. The +centre and left fled with him. The right, which was under the command +of the Syrian satrap, Mazseus, made a firmer stand. On this side the +chariots had done some damage, and the horse was more than a match for +the Thessalian cavalry. Parmenio found himself in difficulties about the +time when the Persian king fled. His messengers detained a part of the +phalanx, which was about to engage in the pursuit, and even recalled +Alexander, who was hastening upon the track of Darius. The careful +prince turned back, but before he could make his way through the crowd +of fugitives to the side of his lieutenant, victory had declared in +favor of the Macedonians in this part of the field also. Mazseus and his +troops, learning that the king was fled, regarded further resistance as +useless, and quitted the field. The Persian army hurriedly recrossed +the Zab, pursued by the remorseless conquerors, who slew the unresisting +fugitives till they were weary of slaughter. Arrian says that 300,000 +fell, while a still larger number were taken prisoners. Other writers +make the loss considerably less. All, however, agree that the army was +completely routed and dispersed, that it made no attempt to rally, and +gave no further trouble to the conqueror. + +The conduct of Darius in this--the crisis of his fate--cannot be +approved; but it admits of palliation, and does not compel us to +withdraw from him that respectful compassion which we commonly accord +to great misfortunes. After Issus, it was his duty to make at least one +more effort against the invader. To this object he addressed himself +with earnestness and diligence. The number and quality of the troops +collected at Arbela attests at once the zeal and success of his +endeavors. His choice and careful preparation of the field of battle +are commendable; in his disposition of his forces there is nothing with +which to find fault. Every arm of the service had full room to act; all +were brought into play; if Alexander conquered, it was because he was a +consummate general, while at the same time he commanded the best troops +in the world. Arbela was not, like Issus, won by mere fighting. It was +the leader's victory, rather than the soldiers. Alexander's diagonal +advance, the confusion which it caused, the break in the Persian line, +and its prompt occupation by some of the best cavalry and a portion +of the phalanx, are the turning-points of the engagement. All the +rest followed as a matter of course. Far too much importance has been +assigned to Darius's flight, which was the effect rather than the cause +of victory. When the centre of an Asiatic army is so deeply penetrated +that the person of the monarch is exposed and his near attendants begin +to fall, the battle is won. Darius did not--indeed he could not--"set +the example of flight." Hemmed in by vast masses of troops, it was not +until their falling away from him on his left flank at once exposed +him to the enemy and gave him room to escape, that he could extricate +himself from the melee. + +No doubt it would have been nobler, finer, more heroic, had the Persian +monarch, seeing that all was lost, and that the Empire of the Persians +was over, resolved not to outlive the independence of his country. Had +he died in the thick of the fight, a halo of glory would have surrounded +him. But, because he lacked, in common with many other great kings and +commanders, the quality of heroism, we are not justified in affixing to +his memory the stigma of personal cowardice. Like Pompey, like +Napoleon, he yielded in the crisis of his fate to the instinct of +self-preservation. He fled from the field where he had lost his crown, +not to organize a new army, not to renew the contest, but to prolong for +a few weeks a life which had ceased to have any public value. + +It is needless to pursue further the dissolution of the Empire. +The fatal blow was struck at Arbela--all the rest was but the long +death-agony. At Arbela the crown of Cyrua passed to the Macedonian; +the Fifth Monarchy came to an end. The HE-GOAT, with the notable horn +between his eyes, had come from the west to the ram which had two horns, +and had run into him with the fury of his power. He had come close to +him, and, moved with choler, had smitten the ram and broken his two +horns--there was no power in the ram to stand before him, but he had +cast him down to the ground and stamped upon him--and there was none to +deliver the ram out of his hand. + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Seven Great Monarchies Of The +Ancient Eastern World, Vol 5. 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