The fitua

According to Thucidydes, about fixty years after the taking of Troy, the Theffalians are faid to have driven the Baotians from a fmall territory in Theffaly, and the Breotians poffeffing themselves of the country of Cadmeis, called it by their name Baotia.

The next memorable thing of the Theffalians is their conftant wars with the Phocians, a people who inhabited a tract of land between the fouth border of Theffaly and the bay of Corinth. It is not eafy to gucfs at the true ground of thofe wars, only we find there was an irreconcileable hatred betwen the two nations; infomuch that they never ceafed their hoftilities against each other, till each ceafed to be a nation. The Theffalians, though fuperior in ftrength, efpecially on account of their cavalry, were very often worfted by the policy of their enemies, whofe country being very mountainous, the avenues into it were almoft inacceffible to cavalry.

The country of Phocis, as we obferved, lay betwixt Theffaly tion and and the bay of Corinth. On the weft it was bounded by Etolia, extent of Locris, and Ozolca, and on the caft by Megaris and Baotia. the king- According to Dionyfius Periegetes, it antiently extended itself as dom of far as Thermopyla, but the Phocians were very early deprived of that part of their country. Its greatest length from north to fouth was about 35 miles, but from caft to weft it scarcely extended 30 miles.

Phocis.

The firft

Phocus, the fon of Ornytion, a native of Corinth, is fuppofed to have given his name to the country; but another Phocus, fon of Eacus, king of Enopia or Egina, foon after invading it, at the head of the Egineta, the memory of the first infenfibly gave way to that of the second.

Phocis was famed for feveral celebrated mountains, the three principal of which were, Parnaffus, facred to Apollo; Helicon; and Citharon; both confecrated to the muses: all three were highly celebrated by the poets.

It had feveral confiderable cities, the chief of which was difcovery Delphos or Delphi, famous for the temple of Apollo, whofe oraof the cle was reforted to from all parts of Afia, Europe, and Africa. Delphic How Apollo came by the honour of this oracle is variouily reoracle. ported. Some fay that it originally belonged to the earth; others to Neptune and the Earth, and that he refigned his fhare to the Earth, who was fuccceded by her daughter Themis. That the refigned it to her fifter Phabe, and the to Apollo. Its firft difcovery is faid to have been owing to fome goats, who being obferved by their shepherd, upon their approach to a certain cavern in the mountain Parnaffus, to frisk about and utter fome ftrange founds, he had the curiofity to go and view it, and found himself seized with the like fit of madnefs, fkipping about and foretelling things to come. This being known, multitudes flocked thither, many of whom were feized with fuch phrensy, that they threw themselves headlong into the cavern; infomuch, that they were forced to prohibit, by an edict, any from approaching it. After this they placed, at the mouth of the cave, a tripod, or three-footed ftool, upon which a virgin being feated,

received

received and returned the answers of the deity. Paufanias, upon the credit of the Phocians, has given us feveral different accounts of this wonderful place, which our readers may fee in that author. The cave was at length covered with a chapel, made of laurel boughs; next, according to the Phocian tradition, by one of wax, reared by the bees; and afterwards a third was built of folid copper by Vulcan. This laft being deftroyed by an earthquake, or by fire, a fumptuous edifice all of stone was erected by Agamedes and Trophimus.

Delphos was fo excellently fituated, being in the heart of all Greece, that it became in time the feat of the general council of all the Grecian ftates. Here fat the court of the Amphittyones, who were chosen out of the prime cities of Greece. Caufes of all kinds were brought before them, and their fentence was deemed definitive. Deucalion began to reign in that part of Phocis, in the neighbourhood of Parnaffus, about the time that Cecrops fettled at Athens. But afterwards the Phoceans formed themselves into a commonwealth, governed by their general affemblies, the members of which they chofe from among themselves, and changed as often as occafion required.

The hiftory of the Phocians is altogether obfcure, till the The Phatime of the holy war begun against them on the following oc- cian hif cafion. They having prefumed to plough the territories of the tory. city of Cyrra, which was confecrated to the Delphic god, were fined by the court of the Amphictyons for their facrilege. But refufing to pay the fine, on pretence that it was too large, next feffions the court adjudged their dominions confifcated to the use of the temple. The Phocians, who were only more exafperated by this fentence, went and feized upon the temple, plundered it of its treasure, and held the facred depofitum for a confiderable time. The Amphityons for this fecond crime, formally declared war against the Phocians, in which the several states took part according to their inclinations and interefts. Athens, and Sparta with fome others of the Peloponnefians declared for the Phocians, and the Thebans, Theffalians, Locrians, and other neighbouring ftates against them. This war, which was carried on with great fury on both fides lafted ten years, but the Phocians, who had made a gallant defence, were at length totally defeated by Philip of Macedon. A fine of 60 talents was then impofed upon the Phocians, to be paid annually to the temple till all the damage it had fuffered by them was fully repaired, and till that was done, they were excluded from dwelling in any walled towns, and from having any vote in the grand affembly. They were, however, foon after released from this heavy fentence, their known bravery making them fo neceffary to the reft, that they were glad to remit it *. The other towns in this country were on the fea coafts, Cyrra, Crissa, and Anticyrra, and in the inland Pythia, Daulis, Elatia, Ergofthenia, and Balia, &c.

* Paufan. in Phocid.

SECT

called.

SECT. VII.

The Hiftory of the antient Kingdom of CORINTH.

Corinth, Hofmari,king, the Won callupiter, or a cording to others, HIS fmall kingdom was called Corinth, according to fome the grandfon of the fun's grandfon. But most authors afcribe the name of the kingdom, and the building, or rebuilding of Corinth, to Corinthos, the fon of Pelops. Among its other antient names, the city was called Heliopolis, or the city of the Sun; but on what account is quite uncertain.

The ex

The bounds of this kingdom were, on the eaft, the gulf of tent of the Saron; on the fouth, the kingdom of Argos; on the weft, Sicyon; kingdom. and on the north, part of the bay of Corinth and the ifthmus, which joins the Peloponnefe to the continent. Its utmost extent from eaft to weft was about 30 miles, and from north to south about half that space. It abounded with mountains, the chief of which was Acrocorinthium, at the foot of which the city of Corinth was built, and at the top the citadel, about 60 ftades from the sea on each fide. The city of Corinth is faid to have been founded by Sifyphus, the fon of Eolus, and grandfather of Ulyffes, and its antient name to have been Ephyra, from a nymph of that name, the daughter of Oceanus and Tethys; and according to others of Myrmex, the wife of Epimetheus, the fon of Japetus. Sifyphus is fuppofed to have founded it about the year of the flood 834. The only two cities of any note next to Corinth in this fmall ftate, were Lecheum, feated on the bay of Corinth, and Cenchrea on that of Saron, which were looked upon as the two havens of the metropolis. They were so well fituated for naval commerce, which was the chief study of the Corinthians, that they made ample compenfation for the barrenness of the foil.

Corinth, The Corinthians by addicting themfelves more to trade one of the than war, became in time exceeding opulent; fo that what firft cities influence they had over the other ffates, was rather owing of Greece to their wealth than to their valour. Their flourishing comfor beauty merce drawing ftrangers thither from Europe and Asia, their

and

wealth.

city at length became one of the finest in all Greece, being adorned with fumptuous buildings, fuch as temples, palaces, theatres, porticoes, and other edifices, all of them enriched with elegant columns, capitals, and bafes, from which the Corinthian order took its name, with numberless statues done by the most famous artifts; infomuch, that with respect to its riches, greatnefs, and excellent fituation, the Romans efteemed it equally worthy of empire with Carthage and Capua. Among other artificial rarities may be reckoned the fumptuous embellifhments of the fountain of Pyrene, fuppofed to be the fame with the fountain Hippocrene, feigned by the poets to have sprung from Pegafus ftriking his foot against the rock. Thefe embellifhments confifted of feveral caves in form of grottos, all co

vered

vered with white marble. The theatre and the ftadium, ör course, were also both adorned with white marble. The temple of Neptune was ornamented with a multitude of brazen tritons, or fea gods, befides a great number of other embellifhments, and its avenue on one fide was lined with the ftatues of all thofe who had won the prize at the ifthmian games, which åre faid to have been inftituted in honour of Neptune, and on the other fide with ftately pines fet in regular rows. We muft refer our readers to Paufanias for a full description of all the other edifices and mafferpieces of architecture, carving and painting, with which this fmall fpot of ground was enriched.

The Corinthians, notwithstanding their affiduous application to trade, did not forget to cultivate a regular difcipline both in peace and war. Though war was not their common occupation, yet they furnished many brave and experienced generals to the rest of the Grecian cities; infomuch, that it was common for these to prefer a Corinthian general to one either of their own or any other state:

The defcendants of Sifyphus, after enjoying the throne of The anCorinth for feven or eight generations, were at length expelled tient hif by Aletes, one of the Heráclide. From him we meet with a tery of the long fucceffion of kings of his line, concerning the greatest Corinthipart of whom little elfe remains but their names and the years ans. they are faid to have reigned. The race of Aletes held the monarchy of Corinth between 3 and 400 years, under the name of Heraclide, and almoft as long under the name of Bachide: but the Corinthians at laft, grown weary of kingly government; entirely diffolved it, in the reign of Teleftes their laft king, who was murdered after he had reigned i2 years. Upon his death 200 of the principal Bachida feized upon the government, fharing the adminiftration of affairs among themfelves, and electing a fupreme magiftrate out of their own body, whom they called Prytanis, to prefide over the reft. Corinth continued under this ariftocracy for feveral years, when Cypfelus defcended from them by the mother's fide, having received fome obfcure hint from the oracle that he fhould be king of Corinth, found means to wreft the power out of their hand. From Sisyphus the first founder, to this Cypfelus, the Corinthian government had ftood almoft 860 years*: Sifyphus, who is generally allowed the first founder of the Corinthian kingdom, was the fon of Eolus, and was killed by Thefeus, for the many inroads he made into Attica. He left feveral fons, and amongst them Glaucus; Laertes, the father of Ulyffes; and Ornythus or Ornytion, the father of Phocus, who gave his name to Phocis, whither he carried a colony.

Glaucus, called by Euripides Creon, received Jafon and Medea into Corinth, after they had both been expelled Theffaly by Acaftus the fon of Pelias. Crean about ten years after, having

* Paufan, in Elid, and in Corinth. Heral 1. v. Did. Sic. VOL. II.

T

married

married his daughter to Jafon, the flighted forceress Medea was thereupon fo enraged, that the fet the palace on fire, murdered all the children fhe had by Jafon, and fled to Athens. According to Paufanias, Glaucus having affifted at the funeral games, inftituted by Acaftus in memory of his father, was trampled to death by his own horses.

The fon of Glaucus having killed a man, named Beller, was called Bellerophon, and for that manflaughter was obliged to fly to Argos, where Stenobaa, the queen, having falfly accused him of an attempt upon her chastity, he was fent to her father Jobates, king of Lycia, to be put to death. That king, not chufing to embrue his hands in the blood of a ftranger, put him upon feveral hazardous expeditions in hopes of his perishing, but he always returning with victory, he at length gave him his daughter Philonoe in marriage, and declared him his fucceffor. In his extraordinary atchievements, however, the poets tell us he had the affiftance of Minerva, who pitying his innocence, lent him the famous horfe Pegafus, which the herself had broke and tamed, and that by his affiftance he had killed the monfter Chimera. Upon his profperous change of fortune, however, he is faid to have grown fo infolent and prefumptuous, as to have attempted to fly up to heaven upon Pegafus, by whom he was flung down into the valley of Cilicia, where he died blind*. Thoas, the fon of Ornytion, in the mean time fucceeded his uncle Glaucus upon the throne of Corinth. From him the crown defcended to his fon Demiphon, to his grandfon Propidas, and laftly to his two great grandfons Doridas and Hyanthidas. In the reign of thefe two, the kingdom was invaded by the Dorians, under Aletes, one of the Heraclide, who forced the two brothers to yield the crown to him, and to lead a private life at Corinth. Aletes enlarged the metropolis of his new kingdom, and called it Corinth of Jupiter, in gratitude to the oracle of this deity at Dodona, which had favoured his pretenfions. His pofterity held the crown for many generations; but at length the form of government was changed from a monarchy into an aristocracy of 200 Bacchida, who, the better to secure the government to themselves, refufed to intermarry with other families. Ection, however, a man defcended at a great distance from the Lapitha, married Labda, one of the Bacchida, who was lame and fo deformed that none of her tribe would take her to wife. By her he had Cypfelus, who put an end to the ariftocracy and made himself king.

* Paufan. ut fupra. Hefiod. Theogn. Lucret. Horat. Ovid. Apollodor.

SECT.