city of St. Paul. Some think it was founded by Tarshish the fon of Javan; but Strabo reckons Sardanapalus its founder, an antient monument being found in those parts with this infcription, Sardanapalus the Jon of Anacyndaraxes built the cities of Anchiale and Tarfus in one day. At prefent it is called by the Turks Hamfa, and by the Grecks Terfia; tho' the Terfians, to ingratiate themfelves with Julius Cæfar, changed the antient name of their city to that of Juliopolis. Not far from Tarfus ftood Anchiale. Here were alfo Anazarbum, Epiphania, Mopfueftia, Iffus, famous for the battle between Alexander and Darius; Alexandria, built by Alexander the Great at the ftraits leading into Syria, which being conveniently fituated for trade, foon became one of the moft flourishing cities in the world. It is at prefent called Scanderon and Alexandretta, and by Ptolemy is placed, tho' improperly, in Syria. The rivers of note in Cilicia are the Pyramus, the Cydnus, famous for the rapidity of its ftream and coldness of its waters; the Calycadnus, the Lamus, the Sarus, the Pinarus, &c. which difcharge themfelves into the Mediterranean, called in this place the fea of Cilicia. Cilicia Campeftris, according to Ammianus Marcellinus, was one of the most fruitful countries of all Afia; but the western part equally barren, tho' famous even to this day for an excellent breed of horfes. The air, tho' reckoned very wholfome in the inland cities, is dangerous on the coafts to thofe that are not accustomed to it. The firft inhabitants of this country, who, according to Jo The oriSephus, were the defcendants of Tarshish, were in process of gin of the time driven out by a colony of Phoenicians under Cilix. It was Cilicians. alfo peopled in part afterwards by Syrians and Greeks, whence in fome places the Cilicians used the Greek tongue, and in others the Syriac; but the predominant language of the country was a dialect of the Perfian. The Cilicians are faid to have been a rough race of people, Their unfair in their dealings, cruel, great liars, and were in the manners, Roman times entirely addicted to piracy. Their veffcis infested the whole Mediterranean fea for many years, and they were become fo formidable, that Pompey himfelf did not think it beneath his greatness to undertake a war against them, which he ended in the space of one month, having at the fame time attacked them both by fea and land, with 500 fhips and 130,000 men. The Cilicians, before they were fettled in Cilicia, were go- governverned in antient times by their own kings, and divided into ment, and two petty kingdoms, namely, the Theban and the Cyreneffian, hiftory. which were confined to the territories of each city. After their poffeffing Cilicia, we find no mention made of their kings till the time of Cyrus, to whom they voluntarily fubmitted, being governed, however, by their own kings till the reign of Artaxerxes Mnemon*. Upon the death of Alexander the Great, it Diod. 1. xvi. Curt. I. ii. VOL. II. Xen. Cyrop. 1. vii. fell to the fhare of Seleucus, and continued under his defcendants till it was by Pompey reduced to a Roman province. Cicero, who was the fecond governor of it, having reduced several ftrong holds on mount Amanus, was faluted by the army he commanded, Imperator or General. Being thus brought wholly under fubjection, it was firft divided into Cilicia Campeftris and Trachea, the former becoming a Roman province, and the latter being governed by kings appointed by the Romans. But the royal line becoming extinct in the reign of Vefpafian, this alfo was made a province of the empire, and the whole divided into Cilicia Prima, Cilicia Secunda, and Ifauria; in which ftate it continued till the divifion of the empire. The first of the Cilician kings mentioned by the antients is Eetion, who reigned at Thebes before he poffeffed Cilicia. He affifted Priam against the Greeks; but was killed by Achilles, with seven of his fons, in defence of his capital. The famous Andromache, Hector's wife, was his daughter. In Lyrneffus, at the fame time, reigned Evenus, mentioned by Homer. His fons, Mines and Epiftropus, who fucceeded him, were both killed by Achilles. Syennefis I. is mentioned as a Cilician king, who was a mediator between Cyaxares and Alyattes. Syennefis II. affifted Xerxes in his expedition against Greece. Syennefis III. much against his will, joined Cyrus the Younger against his brother Artaxerxes. After his death, there is no mention of kings, but only of governors of Cilicia, appointed by the Perfians; whence it is fuppofed he was the laft who reigned in Cilicia before the country was fubdued by Alexander. • Homer Iliad. (. BOOK (XXXX BOOK VI. The History of the MEDES and PERSIAN S. CHAP. I. The Hiftory of MEDIA. SECT. I. The defcription of MEDIA, and an account of the Τ Tof HIS country derives its name from Madai the third fon Its name, of Japhet, as is plain from Scripture, where the Medes are conftantly called Madai. Some prophane writers derive its name from Medus, the fon of Medea and Jafon. According to Ortellius, it was alfo called Aria; and Sextus Rufus tells us, that in his time it was known by the name of Medena. It was bounded, according to Ptolemy, on the north by part fituation, of the Cafpian fea, on the fouth by Perfis, Sufiana and Affyria, &c. on the eaft by Parthia and Hyrcania, and on the weft by Armenia Major, which, however, may more properly be reckoned a part of its northern boundary, as Affyria is part of its western. In antient times it was divided into feveral provinces; but by a later divifion, thefe were reduced to two only, the one called Media Magna, the other Media Atropatia, or fimply Atropatene. Atropatene was that part which lay between mount Taurus and the Cafpian fea, fo called from one Atropatus, who being governor of this province in the time of Darius, withstood Alexander the Great, and tranfmitted the country to his pofterity, who held it in Strabo's time. This tract was inhabited by the Cadufians and Cafpians, a favage race, originally sprung from the Scythians. Its chief cities were Gaza, Sanina, Fazina, G 2 and and Cyropolis. To the fouth-east of Atropatene lay Media Magna, in which flood Ecbatan, Laodicea, Apamea, Regeia, Arfacia, &c. Ecbatan, the metropolis of all Media, and the feat both of the Median and Perfian monarchy, was built by Dejoces, called in the book of Judith Arphaxad. The walls of this city, according to Herodotus, were feven in number, all of a circular form, and gradually rifing above each other by the height of the battlements of each wall, the ground rifing by an eafy afcent, and favouring the defign. The outermoft was 178 furlongs in circuit, and had white battlements. The battlements of the fecond were black, of the third purple, of the fourth blue, and of the fifth deep orange; but the two innermoft, as ferving more immediately for a fence to the royal perfon of the king, were embellifhed above the others, the one being covered with filver, and the other with gold. Tho' this account favours fomewhat of romance, yet that Ecbatan was a great and powerful city, is confirmed by good authority. In the book of Judith we read that the walls of the city were 70 cubits high and 50 cubits broad, built of hewn and polifhed ftone, each stone being fix cubits in length and three in breadth: that the towers on the gates were 100 cubits in height, and the breadth in the foundation 60 cubits. Diodorus, we have feen, carries back the building of this city to the fabulous times of Semiramis. It is now fo completely ruined, that our modern travellers are at a lofs where to look for its fituation. According to the moft probable opinion, Tauris is the antient and famous Ecbatan, tho' no magnificent ruins are difcovered in its neighbourhood. Laodicea is counted by Strabo among the cities of Media, and placed by Pliny near the confines of Perfia. Apamea is fometimes by Strabo adjudged to Media, and fometimes to Parthia. Ragea, or Rageia, is called by Ifidorus the greatest city of Media. By Nicanor, who repaired it, it was called Europus, by which name it was known to Ptolemy; but in the book of Tobit it is called Rages, and placed in the neighbourhood of Ecbatan. In procefs of time it became the feat of the Parthian kings, who gave it the name of Arfacia, or Arface. Its chief The chief mountains are Chatras, or Choatra, parting Media mountains and Affyria, and Zagius, alfo on the confines towards Affyria, and rivers, now called Adilbegian. On the borders of Perfia, according to Ptolemy, ftands Parachoatria. The Orontes, in the neighbourhood of Ecbatan, the Fafonius, and the Coronus, are, in the ftricteft fenfe, mountains of Media, as arifing in the very heart of the country. The rivers of note are, according to Ptolemy, the Straton, the Amardus, the Cyrus, and the Cambyfes. As to the Cafpian ftraits, or Pyla Cafpia, the opinion of authors concerning their fituation is very different; but, according to the best authorities, they lay on the confines of Media and Parthia*. * Strab. 1. ii. Arrian, 1. iii. Ifodor. Characenus. Dionys. Perieget. ver. 1039. -The The northern parts of Media, lying between the Caspian foil and mountains and the fea, are very cold and barren, the fnow ly- climate. ing on the mountains, according to Chardin, nine months in the year. The prefent inhabitants make their bread of dried almonds, and their drink of the juice of certain herbs. The fouthern parts are productive of all forts of grain and neceffaries for life, and withal fo pleafant, that the country adjoining to Tauris is called the garden of Perfia. There are here very extenfive plains, among which that of Nyfa is often mentioned and celebrated by the antients, for the numerous ftuds of horses that were kept in it for the use of the Perfian monarchs. The climate in the northern parts is exceeding cold and unhofpitable, owing to the vapours arifing from the Cafpian fea, and to the great number of marfhes, where innumerable fwarms of infects are bred; fo that, according to Elian, when the king of Perfia was to make a progrefs thither, the inhabitants, for three days before his arrival, were employed in clearing the country of the fcorpions and venemous infects. The fouthern provinces enjoy a very wholefome air, tho' liable to heavy rains and violent ftorms, especially in the fpring and autumn. Befides the cattle and game of all forts, which the inland provinces abound with, fome of them have been, for many ages, remarkable on account of the various forts of excellent wines they produce, efpecially the neighbourhood of Tauris, where no fewer than 60 different kinds of grapes, all of an exquifite flavour, are to be tafted at this day. The Cafpian fea, which is the northern boundary of Media, The Caf was called by the antients indifferently the Cafpian and the Hyr- pian sea. canian fea, from the Cafpians and Hyrcanians, whofe fhores it washed. Both antient and modern geographers had but a very imperfect knowlege of the true fituation, extent, coafts, and bays, of the Cafpian, before the difcoveries made in the beginning of this century by M. Vanverden, who, by orders of the great czar Peter of Mufcovy, formed a very exact chart of this fea, from obfervations made by him on the fpot. Ptolemy, and even Herodotus, knew that the Cafpian was furrounded on all fides by land, without any vifible efflux or communication with other feas. Ptolemy, however, was greatly mistaken as to its extent from weft to eat, which he made no lefs than 23 degrees and an half. His mistakes were obferved, and in fome degree redreffed by Abulfeda, an Arabian prince and able geographer. Abu'lfeda's obfervations were greatly improved by Bourrous, Olearius, and Jenkinfon; but the true dimenfions of this fea were not ascertained till the late observations above-mentioned; by which we are affured that it lies between the 37th and the 48th degrees of north latitude, and does not exceed three degrees forty-two minutes in its greatest longitude. The Perfians call this fea Kulfum, or the fea of Astracan, the Ruffians the fea of Gaulenfkoi, the Georgians, Sowa, the Armenians, Soof. It receives the great river Wolga and near 200 others G 3 into |