mand. The great Africanus ferved under his brother Cornelius, who, after vifiting all the coafts of Epirus, came and encamped within three miles of Amphiffe, which, before his arrival, had furrendered to Acilius. The new conful was vifited by deputies from Athens, who interceded for the Etolians, and Africanus alfo interefting himfelf in their behalf, Cornelius, after fome He grants difficulty, granted them a fix months truce, that they might a truce to again apply to the fenate. The fame ambaffadors, who had the tobeen driven from Rome, were fent back thither. Acilius then lians. raifing the fiege of the citadel of Amphissa, refigned the command of the army to Scipio, and returned to Rome. Cornelius marched directly with his army into Afia against Antiochus, whom he foon obliged to fue for peace. His troops The Etohad scarcely evacuated Greece, when the Etolians took up arms lians inin favour of Amyander, whom they restored to the kingdom of vade the Athamania, after having driven out of his cities the Macedonian territories garrifons that held them for king Philip. They next reduced of Philip, almost the whole province of Amphilochia in Epirus, formerly the ally of fubject to them, but now under the protection of Rome. Hav- the Roing afterwards recovered Aperantia, which had likewife belonged mans. to them, they fell upon the Dolopians, who had always been fubject to Macedon; but now fubmitted to them without oppofition. Though these conquefts were fo many infults offered to the Romans, yet the fenate, upon an embafly from Amyander, confirmed him in the poffeffion of his dominions. This encou raged the Etolians to apply to the fenate, not only for a peace, but for their consent to hold the provinces which they had lately reduced. Their ambaffadors arrived at Rome foon after the election of the new confuls, M. Fulvius Nobilior and Cn. Manlius Vulfo, and before the news of the defeat of Antiochus had reached Italy. The better therefore to fucceed in their negotiations, they spread a report, that the two Scipios had been made prifo ners at a conference, and that the Roman army was entirely defeated, and putting on an air of confidence, they feemed rather to demand than beg a peace. Their ambaffadors, however, Their amwere difmiffed, without obtaining any of their demands, and baffadors were ordered not to return, without the express confent of the dismissed generals who fhould command in Greece. a fecond M. Fulvius Nobilior, the conful, foon after landing with an time from army at Apollonia, by the advice of the Epirots, befieged Am- Rome. bracia, which formerly belonged to them, and was now to be Ambracia reftored to them. When the Etolians understood that Fulvius befieged had begun the fiege of Ambracia, they affembled their troops, to by the attempt the relief of a place which was a key to their dominions. Romans, As the Romans had not yet compleated their lines of circumvallation, Eupolemus, a man of great refolution, entered Ambracia at the head of 1000 Etolians. Nicander, the Etolian prætor, marched against the Epirots, who were encamped by themselves on one fide of the town; but finding them ftrongly entrenched, he led his army into 4carnania, lates. Acarnania, and laid waste the whole country. The fiege of the place was carried on with the utmoft vigour; nor were the befieged lefs indefatigable and refolute in their defence. Nicander having returned from pillaging Acarnania, fent 500 men as a reinforcement to the garrifon. Soon after, the Ætolians making a fally from the town in the night-time, killed a great many of the Romans, and fet fire to part of their camp. Nicander, however, not seconding them with the army of obfervation, as he had promifed, they were obliged to return into the city. Perfeus having invaded Dolopia, and Pleuratus, king of Illyricum, ravaging the coafts of Ætolia, Nicander was fo occupied in oppofing the enemy in thofe parts, that he had not leifure to aflift the befieged, who nevertheless defended themselves with the utmoft refolution. The conful, finding all the efforts of his battering engines baffled by the befieged, began to undermine the wall, in hopes of throwing down great part of it at once; but the Etolians no, fooner perceived his defign, than they began a countermine; and having at length come to that part of the wall which the Romans had fapped, a battle began betwixt the miners of each party, firft with pickaxes and fpades, and then with fwords and fpears. The Atolians having, at length, made a kind of rampart of the loose earth to keep off the Romans, invented a machine to drive them out of the mine. They made a hollow veffel, with an iron bottom, bored through in many places, and having filled it with feathers, they fet fire to them, and with large bellows driving the fmoke on the befieged, they obliged them to leave the mine through fear of being fuffocated. The Etolians, when they had forced them to retire, immediately repaired the foundations of the walls. The general state of the war, however, began greatly to alarm the Etolians, who found themselves unable to refift at once the Romans, Macedonians, Illyrians, and Ach ans. They therefore made offers of peace to the conful, who received their deputies with great haughtiness, and infifted on the following preliminaries: first, that they should lay down their arms; fecondly, that they fhould deliver up to him all the horfes of their army; and laftly, that they fhould pay to the republic 1000 talents, one half upon the fpot, and the other at different payments. The deputies laying thefe preliminaries before the affembly, were checked by them for not figning them; We must have a peace, they all cried out, good or bad. The deputies were fent back to Fulvius, who, about the fame time, at the interceffion of the Athenians, Rhodians, and AmyAmbracia ander, granted a capitulation to the Ambracians on the followcapitu- ing terms; that the Etolians fhould have leave to march out of the city; that the inhabitants fhould pay 500 talents; and that they should deliver up to the conful all the prifoners and deferters that were in the city. Thefe articles being agreed to, the Ambracians opened their gates to the conful, and prefented him with a crown of gold, and many fine ftatues and pictures. The The Etolian deputies foon after having a conference with Fulvius in Etolia, and declaring that their diet accepted the conditions he had offered them, he granted them a truce till they should lay the articles before the fenate. The ambaffadors The Atoof the king of Macedon having complained of the Atolians for liens again unjustly detaining from him Dolopia, Athamania, and Amphilo- fend an chia, the fenate was fo exafperated against them, that they even embaffy to refused their deputies an audience. The Athenian deputies, Rome. however, interceding in their behalf, and Valerius, the brother of the conful and the fon of Lavinus, who concluded the first alliance between Rome and Atolia, also espousing their cause, they at length were heard, and obtained a peace on these terms: A peace First, the majefty of the Roman people fhall be revered in all concluded Etolia, which fhall reckon the enemies of Rome as its enemies. betwixt Secondly, the Etolians fhall, in the fpace of 100 days, deliver the toup all the prisoners and deferters, whether of the Romans or lians and their allies, except fuch as have been taken twice, or during the Roher alliance with Rome. Thirdly, the Etolians fhall pay down mans. in ready money 200 Euboic talents, and engage to pay 50 talents more within the fix years following. Fourthly, they fhall put into the hands of the conful 40 fuch hoftages as he fhall chufe. Fifthly, Etolia fhall renounce all pretenfions to the cities and territories which the Romans have conquered fince the confulate of Flaminius. Sixthly, the city of Oenias, and its diftrict, fhall continue fubject to the Acarnanians, and Cephalenia fhall not be included in the treaty. trary man Though the antient liberties of the Etolians were greatly The Roabridged by this peace, yet after the conqueft of Macedon, their mans treat republic was reduced to a much worfe condition; for great them in numbers of their chief men, who had either declared for Per- an arbifeus, or were fufpected to favour him, were fent to Rome, and were never afterwards fuffered to return to their native country. ner. Five hundred of their nobles were barbaroufly affaffinated by the partizans of Rome, for no other crime but that of being fufpected to with well to Perfeus. The Etolians could obtain no redrefs, when they complained of this inhumanity to P. Emilius. On the contrary, the commiffioners, who were appointed to fettle the affairs of Greece, declared, that those who were killed had fuffered juftly. From this time, thofe only were raifed to the chief honours and employments in the Etolian republic, who were known to prefer the intereft of Rome to that of their country. When Corinth was deftroyed, and the Achæan league diffolved, Etolia, with the other free ftates of Greece, was then reduced to a Roman province, commonly called the province of Achaia. The whole nation paid a certain tribute, and the rich were forbidden to poffefs lands any where but in their own country. tolia Etolia continued in this ftate, with little alteration, till the The ftate reign of Conftantine the Great, who divided the western parts of of Greece from the reft, calling them new Epirus, and fubjecting to the prethe whole country to the Prefectus Pratoric for Illyricum. Un fent time. L13 der der the fucceffors of Conftantine, Greece was parcelled out into feveral principalities; and when Conflantinople was taken by the western princes, Theodorus Angelus, a noble Grecian of the imperial family, feized on Etolia and Epirus. The former continued in his family for fome time; but one of his defcendants dying without lawful iffue, a difpute arofe about the fucceffion among his baftard fons, which gave Amurath II. an opportunity of expelling them all in 1432. The Turks were afterwards difpoffeffed of this country by the famous prince of Epirus, George Caftriot, commonly called Scanderbeg, who, at his death, left part of Etolia to the Venetians. The whole country, however, was foon after reduced by Mohammed II. whofe fucceflors hold it to this day. CHAP. VII. The history of ATHENS, from the time of the ACHÆAN league till the reduction of GREECE by the ROMANS. RATUS, as we formerly mentioned, restored the Athenians to their antient liberty, by prevailing on the Macedonians, in confideration of 150 talents, to evacuate the Pyrum, Munichia, and Mufum. They had not enjoyed this Philip of liberty many years, when Philip of Macedon formed a defign of Macedon reducing, not only Attica, but all Greece. He made ufe of the declares following pretence for commencing hoftilities against the Athe war against Aibens. Two young Acarnanians, who happened to be at Athens while the inhabitants were celebrating the myfteries of Ceres, had entered the temple of the goddefs with the croud. As it was not lawful for any person to affift at those myfteries without being initiated, the Acarnanians, who were difcovered by their language to be ftrangers, were carried before the chief prieft, and by him fentenced to die, though it was well known they had offended purely out of ignorance. The Acarnanians complaining of this inhumanity to Philip of Macedon, with whom they were then joined in alliance, he, without demanding any fatisfaction, proclaimed war against Athens, and fent a body of troops to join the Acarnanians, and The Athe lay wafte Attica. The Athenians, being unable to oppofe the nians im- Macedonians, implored the protection of the Romans, who were plore the well known at Athens, and had been honoured there with partiprotection cular marks of diftinction. About thirty-two years before the of Rome. prefent rupture with Philip, Rome had fent ambaffadors to Athens, and feveral other free ftates of Greece, to make them fenfible of the happiness fhe had procured them, by humbling the Illyrians. This news was fo agreeable to the Athenians, who had been infested by their pirates, that they not only re ceived ceived the ambaffadors with great demonftrations of kindness, The king of Pergamus and the Rhodians foon after retiring, Philip, having made Demetrias, a city of Theffaly, the capital Philip atof his dominions, affembled his fea and land forces, and pro- tempts to ceeded from thence, in hopes of furprifing the Romans at Chal- furprife cis; but coming too late, he turned all his rage against Athens. Athens. The Athenians, having received notice of his approach, prepared with the utmost diligence to receive him; fo that Philip, finding he could not furprise the city, refolved to attack it. The garrifon perceiving his intention, marched out with a body of the citizens to oppofe him in one of the large streets of the fuburbs. Philip, overjoyed at an opportunity of joining battle, encouraged his men with this fhort fpeech, Fix your eyes on me, and do as I do. He then fell upon the Athenians with great fury, and foon drove them to the gate; but fuch fhowers of darts were then discharged upon his men from the ramparts, that he was obliged to found a retreat. Next day, the befieged made another fally with much greater advantage; fo that Philip was obliged to decamp; but before he retired, he vented Dreadful his rage in a most barbarous manner. He fpared neither tem- ravages ples nor tombs, nor the Lyceum, nor facred groves, nor houfes commitof ted by him. L14 |