The names of Thamis, Cyprus. Its chief cities. Its cli mate. SECT. III. The Hiftory of CYPRUS. HE ifland of Cyprus was alfo named by the ancients, Acamis, Ceraftis, Afpalia, Amathus, Macaria, Cryptos, Colinia, Spechia, Paphia, Salaminia, and Erofa. The moft common opinion is, that its prefent name was derived from a fhrub, called by the Greeks Cypros, found in plenty in that island, though very fearce in other countries; but what kind of fhrub this was, is ftill matter of difpute among authors. With the flower of this fhrub the ancient inhabitants made a very sweet oil, which is much commended by Pliny. The cities of moft note in Cyprus were, according to Ptolemy and Strabo, on the north fide of the ifland. Thefe were, Arfinoe, fo called from a queen of Egypt; Sola, or Soli, founded by the advice of Solon, the famous law-giver of the Athenians; Lapithus, on the banks of a fmall river bearing the fame name; Aphrodifia and Carpafia. On this coaft alfo ftood Cerines, antiently called Ceraunia, faid to have been built by Cyrus the Great; and Tremitus, often mentioned by Sozomene. On the eaftern coaft ftood Salamis, built by Teucer, the fon of Telamon, after his return from the Trojan war. This city is ftiled by Diodorus, the first of all the Cyprian cities, and faid to have once excelled most of the Greek cities in power and riches. In after ages it was called Conftantia. Some are of opinion that Famagefta, the present metropolis of the island, was built on its ruins. On this fide of the ifle are two, or, according to Pliny, three small iflands, named Clides. On the fouth coafts were the cities of Throni, Citium, supposed by Jofephus to be built by Cittim, the fon of Javan, Malum and Amathus, which city was confecrated to Venus. On the weft fide of the island stood Palapaphos, or old Paphos, about ten furlongs from the fhore. This city was in a peculiar manner facred to Venus; and the young women here ufed to proftitute themselves to fuch ftrangers as came on fhore, in order to raise money for their portions. About 60 furlongs from Palæpaphos ftood Neapaphos, or New Paphos, famous for its harbour. Ptolemy mentions only three inland towns, namely, Chybrus, Trimethus, and Tamaffus, to which Strabo adds another, named Limenia. The copper that was found in the mines adjoining to Tamaffus, was deemed the best in the world. According to the ancient geographers, Cyprus was divided into four provinces or diftricts, namely, Paphia to the west, Amathufa to the fouth, Lapitha to the north, and Salaminia to the eaft. The inland extends from eaft to weft along the coaft of Cilicia about 180 miles, and is about forty-five miles broad. It was anciently reckoned one of the moft fruitful islands of the Mediterranean; but is at prefent in great part uncultivated, and the the air in most places very unwholesome, by reafon of the fens and marshes. The honey of Cyprus is much commended by the ancients, and likewife the wine, oil, wool, &c. but above all the copper. According to Eratofthenes and Herodotus, this ifland was firft The first difcovered and peopled by the Phoenicians; but Jofephus says, inhabithat the defcendants of Cittim, the fon of Javan, and grandion tants of of Japhet, were the original inhabitants of Cyprus. As Cyprus Cyprus. was too narrow to contain the great numbers who attended him, and their defcendants, he left fo many as might ferve in time to plant the island, and with the reft is fuppofed to have paffed over into Macedon. In procefs of time Cyprus was inhabited, according to Herodotus, by colonies of the Phenicians, Athenians, Salaminians, Arcadians, and Ethiopians. We find kings reigning in Cyprus in the earlieft ages, there- Their fore we may conclude that their firft government was monar- kings. chical. Their first king we read of is Cinyras, the grandfon of Pygmalion the ftatuary, who is faid to have fallen in love with a ftatue of his own making, which Venus, at his entreaty, changed into a fair damfel, whom he married. By this wife, it is faid, he had Paphus, who was the father of Cinyras, who was the firft king of the island. Cinyras is faid to have poffeffed immenfe riches, infomuch that the wealth of Cinyras became a proverb to exprefs an overgrown eftate. The priesthood of Venus became hereditary in his race, which dignity they enjoyed for many ages after the throne was feized by others. Belus, one of the fucceffors of Cinyras, is faid to have affifted Teucer in laying the foundations of Salamis. Cinyras and his fucceffors were kings only of Paphos and the adjoining province, befides which kingdom we find eight others, mentioned by the ancients. The names of fome of the other kings that have been tranfmitted to us are, Philocyprus, king of Soli, contemporary with Solon; Ariftocyprus, fon of the former, mentioned by Herodotus; Paficrates, or Paficyprus, faid by Athenæus to have fucceeded Ariftocyprus. Timonax, Pygmalion, Praxippus, Stafiæchus, Idomeneus, Mofchion. Diphilus, Solon, and Themifon, are mentioned alfo by the ancients, as reigning in Cyprus, but what kingdoms they held is uncertain. The kingdom of Salamis was by far the moft powerful in Cyprus, the Salaminian princes having, in procefs of time, fubdued the whole island. Each of the petty kings in Cyprus reigned in his own territories, with an uncontrouled authority, till the time of Cyrus the Great, who fubdued them by his lieutenants; but leaving them in poffeffion of their respective kingdoms, obliged them only to pay an annual tribute to him and his fucceffors, and to fend fupplies of men, money, and fhips when required. In the reign of Darius Hyftafpis, the Cyprian princes attempted to shake off the Perfian yoke, being encouraged thereto by Onefilus, king of Salamis, after which period the hiftory of Cyprus is no other than that of the Salaminian kings. Nn 4 Salamis, Teucer first Salamis, the capital of this ifland, was firft founded, as we king of have faid, by Teucer, about 1160 years before the Chriftian æra. Salamis. This prince is faid by Lactantius to have introduced into the ifland of Cyprus the barbarous cuftom of offering human facrifices to Jupiter, which continued till the reign of the emperor Adrian. As to the immediate fucceflors of Teucer, in the kingdom of Salamis, we are quite in the dark. Many years after him reigned Nicocreon, whofe daughter Arfinoe is mentioned by Ovid. The next king we find reigning in Salamis is Euelthon, who, Herodotus fays, firft fubmitted to the Egyptians, and afterwards to Cambyfes, the fon of Cyrus, whom he affifted with men, money, and hips. Pheretima, queen of the Cyreneans, being expelled from Cyrene, came to Salamis, and follicited Eucithon to affift her with an army, in order to recover her kingdom. The king not caring to engage in a war, made her rich prefents, hoping to content her by that means. She always adding, that though they were very valuable, yet an army would be far more acceptable to her; he at laft made her a prefent of a reel and diftaff of gold, and told her, that these were more proper prefents for women than armies. Onefilus revolts Siromus and Cherfis are mentioned by Herodotus, as kings of Salamis. The latter left three fons, Gorgus, Onefilus, and Philaon; Gorgus, the eldeft, fucceeding him on the throne. Oneftlus having often in vain follicited his brother to shake off the Perfian yoke, refolved to poffefs himself of the throne, not doubting but all the Cyprians would fupport him against the Perfians, who grievously oppreffed them. He was confirmed in his refolution by the news of the revolt of the Ionians, and accordingly when Gorgus was one day out of the city, he feized on the gates, and caufed himself to be proclaimed king. Gorgus being thus excluded, fled to the Perfians, while Onefilus prevailed on all the princes and cities of the ifland, except Amathus, to take up arms and drive out the Perfian garrifons. While he was befieging Amathus, the Perfians landed in the ifland with an army, and marched ftraight to Salamis, upon which he follicited the affiftance of the Ionians, who foon after arrived at the ifland with a powerful fleet. The Perfian army about the fame who foon time appearing in the plains of Salamis, the confederate kings reduce the of Cyprus drew out their forces, and ventured an engagement, in revolters. which the Cyprians were defeated, and Onefilus was killed. The from the Pe fans, Bef. Chr. 500. Perfians after this victory foon reduced all the cities that had revolted, except Soli, which coft them a fiege of fix months. Thus the Cyprians having enjoyed their liberty during the space of one year, were reduced to their former ftate of flavery, Gorgus being again reftored to the throne of Salamis. Gorgus was fucceeded by his fon Nicocrates, who, as Athenæus informs us, made a curious collection of books, which he purchased at a great rate. His brother Timarchus fucceeded him, and, according to Pliny, was remarkable for a double row of teeth. Evagoras I. the fon of Nicocrates, fuccceded Timarchus, in whole reign Cimon, the Athenian, arrived at Cyprus, with a fleet of of 200 fail, with the defign of driving the Perfians from the ifland; but of the fuccefs of this expedition, and of the peace foon after concluded between Artaxerxes and the Athenians, we have spoken in the Perftan and Athenian hiftories. In confe- The Perquence of that treaty, the Perfians withdrew all their garrifons fans withfrom Cyprus, leaving all the kings of the ifland free and inde- draw from pendant. Evagoras not long after, according to Diodorus, died Cyprus. in banishment, having been driven out of his kingdom by his Bef. Chr. nephew Protagoras, who held it for fome years. In the 18th 460. year of Artaxerxes Mnemon, Cyprus was again fubjected to the Perfians, with all the Greek cities in Afia, by the famous treaty concluded with the Perfians by Antalcidas, the Lacedæmonian. At this time reigned at Salamis Nicocreon, the fon of the ufurper Protagoras, who was famous for his cruelty. Taking offence at a fatirical faying of the philofopher Anaxarchus, it is faid he caufed him to be put into a great mortar and to be pounded to death*. Nicocles, the fon of Timarchus, fucceeded Nicocreon, and was expelled from the throne by a Phoenician named Abdymon, whom he had hofpitably received at Salamis. While the ufurper, by the affiftance of the Perfians, held the throne, Evagoras 11. was born to Nicocles. This prince gave early proofs of thofe virtues, The exwhich, according to Ifocrates, made him afterwards the perfect cellent model of a good king. He came into the world with the most character happy difpofitions, a great fund of genius, an eafy conception, of Evagsand a moft lively penetration; qualities which might have ex- ras II. empted him from all ftudy and application, and nevertheless he spent great part of his time in reading, as if he had been quite deftitute of talents, and obliged to fupply by ftudy what nature had denied him. In his youth he was diftinguifhed for his modefty and the innocence of his behaviour, and as he advanced in years, his virtues became fo confpicuous, as to give no small jealousy to the tyrant. Evagoras, indeed, waited only for an opportunity of recovering the crown; but the tyrant being murdered by one of the principal citizens, who feized on the throne for himfelf, Evagoras on that occafion was obliged to fly from the island. His countrymen being grievously oppreffed by the new ufurper, he not long after paffed over to the ifland, attended only by 50 followers, and the Cyprians joining him all to a man, he drove out the tyrant, and recovered the throne of his ancestors. Artaxerxes, king of Perfia, attempted to replace the ufurper, but being diverted by the Greek war, he put off the enterprife to a more proper feafon. Evagoras in the He bemean time extended his dominions, and by degrees made him- comes felf mafter of almoft the whole ifland. The king of Perfia master of having at laft concluded a peace with the Greeks, and being almost the follicited by the Amathufians, Solians, and Citians, bent all his whole force against Evagoras. We have already given an account of ifland. * Laert. in vit. Philofoph. Plin. 1 7. tihs this war in the Perfian hiftory, and of the terms of peace to which Evagoras was obliged to fubmit. Not long after the peace, Evagoras being murdered by one of his eunuchs, his fon Nicocles fucceeded to the throne, and celebrated the funeral of his father with the utmost pomp and magnificence, and on that occafion pronounced the difcourfe entitled Evagoras, which was composed by the celebrated Ifocrates. The fame philofopher wrote two other orations, addreffed to Nicocles, whofe naine they still bear, and for which he received from the king 20 talents. This prince feems to have reigned but a few years, his fon Evagoras being in poffeffion of the throne before the revolt of Cyprus, which happened in the very beginning of the reign of Ochus. Evagoras III. the fon of Nicocles, whom we have juft mentioned, was driven out by his uncle The Cy- Protagoras, under whofe government the Cyprians revolted from prians a- the Perfians, and joined the Egyptians and Phoenicians, who had gain re already taken arms. Ochus ordering Idrieus, king of Caria, to volt from invade Cyprus, he fent 8000 Greek mercenaries thither, under the Per- the command of Phocion, the Athenian, who was joined by Evagoras, the exiled prince, and great numbers of volunteers from Syria and Cilicia. Phocion invefted Salamis, but Protagoras making a vigorous defence, Ochus, who was entirely bent on the reduction of Egypt, compounded with him and the eight other Cyprian princes, redreffing all their grievances, and confirming them in the government of their refpective territories. To content Evagoras, the government of another place was conferred upon him, but he acting in the fame arbitrary manner as he had formerly done at Salamis, was obliged to fave himself by flying to Cyprus, where he was feized and put to death by Protagoras. fians. Ptolemy From this time till after the death of Alexander there is takes Cy- no mention of the Cyprian kings; but Arrian seems to infinuate prus from that they fubmitted to that conqueror. After Alexander's death, Anti onus Cyprus fell to Antigonus; but while he was engaged in Afia Minor Bef. Chr. with Caffander, Ptolemy, the fon of Lagus, invaded the ifland, 311. Demetrius invades and reduced the greatest part of it. Nicocles, king of Paphos, who had fubmitted to Ptolemy, foon after being accused of privately corresponding with Antigonus, Ptolemy ordered a part of his troops to cut him off. The foldiers having furrounded the houfe of Nicocles, he first attempted to clear himself of what was laid to his charge; but feeing no one hearkened to him, he drew his fword and flew himself on the fpot. Axiothea, his wife, hearing of his death, first killed all her daughters, and then laid violent hands upon herself. The brothers of Nicocles retiring each of them to their own habitations, fet fire to their houfes, and perifhed with their whole families in the flames. This Nicocles is fuppofed to have been the last of the Teucrian family, and to have poffeffed both the kingdom of Paphos and that of Salamis. Not long after, Demetrius, the fon of Antigonus, attempted the recovery of Cyprus, and landed in the island with 15000 foot Cyprus, and 400 horfe. Having fecured his fleet with a double rampart, he |