fent an emiffary to Sphodrias, a Spartan general, encamped at The SparThefpia, and urged him to make an attempt to feize the Piraum. tan geneSphodrias thought to have feized the port in the night, but day ral makes appearing before he could reach the place, he was obliged to an atreturn unsuccessful. The Athenians immediately fent ambaffa- tempt to dors with their compliments to Sparta. Before their arrival, furprise Sphodrias had been cited for his conduct, which was fome fatif- the Pirafaction for the infult, but by the intereft of Agefilaus being ac- um. quitted upon his trial, the Athenians inftantly declared war. The AtheIphicrates being abfent in the fervice of the king of Perfia, nians dethey named Timotheus, Chabrias, and Calliftratus, as their ge- clare war nerals. Timotheus was the fon of Conon, and was greatly against efteemed on account of his magnanimity and prudence; Callif- them. tratus was a man of great worth; and Chabrias was reputed one of the first generals of his age. To ftrengthen their confederacy, they restored all the lands which had been divided among their citizens out of Attica, to their ancient proprietors, and offered fuch reasonable terms to their allies, particularly the establishing a senate, compofed of a deputy from each city, that they prefently drew a great number to their fide, and exceedingly alarmed the Lacedæmonians, who fent Agefilaus with a powerful army against the Thebans. Chabrias, who commanded the allies, fuccefsfully oppofed all the defigns of Agefilaus, and even prevented Cleombrotus, king of Sparta, from entering Baotia. The command of the Athenian fleet being afterwards given to Chabrias, he failed against Naxus, and befieged the capital of The Athethe ifland. Pollis, the Lacedæmonian admiral, attempting to re- nians delieve the place, was defeated by him, with the lofs of 32 gal- feat the lies, eight of which were taken with all their men. The Athe- Lacedaenians by this naval victory, which was the firft they had acquir- monians at ed fince the Peloponnefian war, recovered their reputation at sea. fea. Chabrias being foon after affaffinated at Abdera, which city he had delivered from the tyranny of the Thracians, the Athenians sent Timotheus to fupply his place. Timotheus by his eloquence, affability, and juftice, prevailed on many of the Lacedæmonian allies to forfake them. By his great skill in mari- A fecond time affairs, he gained a victory over the Spartans at Leucades, victory and was in general fo fuccefsful, that his enemies envying his gained by glory, painted him fleeping, with the goddess Fortune at his feet the Athetaking towns in nets for him. The Athenians and Lacedæmo- nians. nians at length being weary of the war, which they perceived A peace only ferved to aggrandize the Thebans, concluded a peace at the betwixt interceffion of Artaxerxes, upon this condition, that all cities them and fhould be free. The Thebans abfolutely refused to agree to this the Lacetreaty. dæmoni Iphicrates about this time quitting the Perfian fervice, the ans. Perfians charged him with mighty crimes, and earnestly defired Bef. Chr. the Athenians to punish him. They answered that he should be punished when he was proved guilty. In the mean time having occafion for his fervices, they made him admiral of their fleet. Disputes 371. Difputes arifing in the Greek cities, that were declared free, about the form of government, the Lacedæmonians, notwithstanding the peace, affifted, to the utmoft of their power, such as were for oligarchy, while the Athenians endeavoured every where to fupport the democratic government. Menefippus, the Lacedæmonian general, blocked up the Corcyrans, who begging the affiftance of the Athenians, they ordered Timotheus and Iphicrates to fail to their relief. Thefe generals, however, finding it neceffary to fail firft to Thrace, the Athenians condemned them both, but reftoring them afterwards to their command, they failed to Corcyra, from whence they expelled the Lacedamonians. Artaxerxes ftill labouring to reconcile the Grecian ftates, the Athenians and Lacedæmonians again renewed the peace upon the old terms, which were rejected by the Thebans, who from the fuccefs of their arms, under Pelopidas, and Epaminondas, began to afpire at extending their dominion. The Athenians, on the other hand, perceiving that they were become very inconfiderable, endeavoured to ftrengthen themfelves, by propofing a general alliance, offenfive and defenfive, which was readily agreed to by all, except the Eleans and TheThe Athe- bans. A new war breaking out between the Thebans and the nians fuc- Spartans, the latter were obliged to afk the affiftance of the cour the Athenians, who fent Iphicrates to them with fome troops. Soon Spartans after they fent Chares to the affiftance of Phliacians againft the against Argives, who were twice defeated by that general. The Athethe The- nians being now forced to temporize, and to take fuch opporbans.. tunities as the times offered for maintaining themselves in any degree of power, entered into a ftrict league with the Arcadians. and enter Some commotions happening foon after in Arcadia, the Athenians fent an army thither, under the command of Pammenes, who performed what he was fent for, and returned home with into an alliance with the honour. Arcadians. The Athenians afterwards oppofed the defigns of Alexander, tyrant of Pharea, against the Cyclades, but fome of their gal lies being taken by the enemy, they condemned their general, Leofthenes, and fent Chares with a fleet into thofe parts, who, by his ill management, greatly encreafed the difafters of the republic, plundering the confederates, delaying any attempts upon the enemy, creating feditions where-ever he came, and feeming to have nothing in view but to enrich himself. About the fame time a rupture happened between the Athenians and Philip, king of Macedon, who was very defirous of making himself master of their colonies in Thrace and Macedon. As Philip's power was not then well established, he readily confentThe focial ed to an accommodation. The Athenians were quickly after engaged in a more dangerous war; the Chians, Rhodians, Coans, Bef. Ch. and Byzantines, who had hitherto been their allies, now entering 358. war. Xenoph. Hellen. 1. 7. 8. Diod. 1. 15. Plut, and Corn. Nep. Juftin. 1. 6. into into a confederacy against them. On the first notice of this revolt, the Athenians fent Chares with a land army to befiege Chios, while Chabrias was to block up the place by fea. Chabrias broke in with his galley into the port, but the other gallies, afraid to follow him, he was furrounded by the enemy and cut off. This firft attempt having mifcarried, the Athenians reinforced their fleet with 60 gallies, under Timotheus and Iphicrates. The confederates in the mean time fitting out a fleet of 100 gal- The conlies, ravaged feveral islands belonging to the Athenians, where federates they made a great booty, and at lait invefted Samos. The Athe-befiege ns obliged them to abandon this defign by laying fiege to By- Samos, tium. They failed with their whole fleet to the relief of this and the and when they came before the port, offered the Athenians Athenians. le; but a great form arifing, Timotheus and Iphicrates re- Byzantid to fight. Chares, though lefs experienced, was of a dif- um. nt opinion, and fending to Athens, and accufing his collegues, people were fo incenfed against them, that they cafhiered and d them. Timotheus being unable to pay his mulct, did not urn to his country, but retiring to Chelos, broke his heart. Iphicrates at his trial, pofted round the place where the judges affembled, a number of young men armed with poinards, and being afterwards reproached with fo violent a proceeding, by which he had got himself acquitted, he answered, I had been a fool indeed, if having made war fuccessfully for the Athenians, I had neglected doing fo for myself." Chares having now nobody to check him, rafhly engaged in The bad an arduous affair, probably from views of perfonal intereft. conduct of Having received great promifes from Pharnabazus, who had re- Chares. volted from the Perfian king, and was then befieged by an army of 30,000 men, he failed to his affiftance, and enabled him totally to rout the king's generals. The Athenians, on the news of this victory, greatly extolled Chares; but the Perfian king complaining loudly of their violation of the amity fubfifting between them, and threatening to affift the allies with a fleet of 300 fail, they then treated Chares as a traitor, and in their first transports of fear refolved to make peace with the ftates that A peace had revolted from them, almoft upon their own terms. Peace concluded was accordingly concluded, though little to the honour of the with the Athenians, after the war had lafted four years. allies. 354. The fame year that this peace was concluded, the Phocian Bef. Ch. war broke out, which, as we have formerly related, was owing to the fuppofed facrilege of the Phocians, who had plowed fome A general lands dedicated to the temple of the Delphic Apollo, and had war even seized the temple. To fupport themselves against their against neighbours, who had taken up arms against them, the Pho- the Phocians, by making ufe of the riches of the temple, prevailed cians, with the Athenians and Lacedæmonians to declare for them. During the war, which lafted ten years, the Athenians fent who are the Phocian commanders large fupplies, at one time no less than fupported 3000 foot and 300 horfe. As their zeal for the Phocians was by the chiefly owing to the large pay which their troops received, Athenians. the the Athenians were highly cenfured for their conduct. The money expended on this occafion, being raised either by the coinage or fale of the dedicated things in the temple of Delphos, it was confidered as a facrilege to receive any part of it, efpecially for defending the robbers. The Athenians, however, made no hesitation of accepting the pay of the Phocians, which may be looked upon as a certain fign of their degeneracy and corruption, as it has always been accounted fo, when people lofe all fenfe of religion, and openly affront those powers they pretend to worship. The Phocian chiefs had nothing else to fupport their caufe but money, and that they parted with it very freely may be conjectured from Diodorus and Plutarch, who tell us, that in a few years they fquandered' 10,000 talents, which falls little fhort of two millions of our money. Philip, king of Macedon, wanted to intereft himfelf in this war, but Macedon, Demofthenes, the famous orator, who perceived his ambitious wants to designs, warned the Athenians to guard against him. They accordingly feized the ftraits of Thermopyla, and prevented him from advancing. Philip, king of engage in this war. cation, &c. Demofthenes was the son of an eminent Athenian, who had Demofthe- raised a great fortune from the manufacture of fword blades. nes, his He feemed leaft of all defigned for an orator; his person was birth,ede- far from being handfome, his tongue was too large, his voice weak and broken, and his gefture very uncouth. His father dying when he was young, and his own conftitution being weak, his mother indulged him to the prejudice of his education, and his guardians taking the advantage of his tender years, imposed on him to the prejudice of his fortune. These unforeseen accidents led him to commence orator. The first effay of his eloquence was against his guardians, whom he obliged to refund a part of his fortune. Encouraged by this fuccefs, he attempted, when of a proper age, to harangue the people, but being hiffed by the whole audience, he retired greatly difcouraged. The advice of his friends, however, and his paffion for becoming an orator, enabled him to get the better of nature and of the people. To render his tongue flexible, he accustomed himself to speak with small pebbles in his mouth. To raise his voice to a proper pitch, he declaimed on the fea fhore; and to reprefs a habit he had got of fhrugging up his fhoulders, he hung a drawn fword in his chamber in fuch a manner, that when he practifed his orations, it pricked his shoulders whenever he pulled them up. At length by patience, long ftudy and practice, he acquired a manly folid eloquence, being fuperior, not only to his cotemporaries, but excelling alfo all that went before, and all that came after him. He reproached his countrymen with their ficklenefs, faithleffnefs, and want of true regard for the public intereft. He exclaimed againft their vanity, in attributing to themselves the merit of their ancestors, and fancying that the reputation of the ancient Athenians would fupport the vices of their pofterity. He exhorted them to live always on good terms with with the Perfian king, because it was no longer in his power, Above all he cautioned them against the ambition and grow- He cauing power of Philip, who, after he was repulfed from Thermo- tions the pyla, turned his arms against the Olynthians, allies of the Athe- dihenians, nians, in Macedonia. Demofthenes, by warmly efpoufing the against the caufe of the Olynthians, prevailed on the Athenians to fend them ambition fuccours. Thefe, however, being chiefly mercenaries, the of Philip. Olynthians, who were befieged in their city, obtained a fecond reinforcement of 2000 foot and 300 horfe, under the command of Chares, a man of great vices and small abilities. The Athenians vainly thinking that they had acted with great spirit against Philip, could not be prevailed upon by the warmeft remon ftrances of Demofthenes, to fupport the war against him in his own territories, fo that the Olynthians were quickly reduced and their city destroyed. Philip then took feveral places belonging to the Athenians in Philip Thrace; nevertheless, by the intereft of his friends in Athens, concludes he prevailed on the Athenians to conclude a peace with him. a peace This was the eafier accomplished, because Phocion, the wor- with the thieft man in the republic, did not oppofe Philip. Phocion was Athenians, a moft difinterested patriot, and therefore could have no great affection for Philip. He nevertheless advifed his countrymen to cultivate his friendship, for fince they would not be at the head of Greece themselves, it would be their intereft, he faid, to be on good terms with that power who would be fo. He was both a great general and a great statesman, but he was fo modeft, that he never fought commands, nor did he ever promote wars, that he might raife his authority by them. He was of a mild temper, delivered himself in few plain and fignificant words, and lived and died poor. The peace was no fooner concluded with the Athenians, than He paffes Philip fuddenly paffed Thermopyla, and entering Phocis, put an Thermopy end to the facred war. Some time after, making an attempt le, and upon Byzantium, the Athenians difpatched Chares thither with a puts an good fleet, but the Byzantines knowing him to be no better than end to the a pyrate with a commiffion, refufed to let him enter their har- Phocian bour. The Athenians looked upon this as a great infult, but war Phocion rifing up in the affembly, and faying, My masters, you ought not fo much to blame the jealousy of your allies, as the base behaviour of your generals, who have rendered you fufpected, even to thofe who are unable to fupport themselves without your affiftance they unanimoufly appointed him general in the place of Chares. Phocion was admitted by the Byzantines into their harbour, and into their city with joy, though he offered to encamp without Phocion the walls. He quickly obliged Philip to return to his own do- obliges minions, took many of his fhips, recovered feveral places into Philip to which he had put garrifons, and exceedingly harraffed the fron- raife the tiers of his kingdom. Phocion, fome time after his return, per- fege of fuaded the Athenians to fend fuccours to the Megarians, and Byzanti VOL. II. match-um, Bb EA | |