account of ponnesian races. According to our author, "the country of Pelops Herodotus's the Phrygian," as he calls it, was in his time occu- the Pelopied by seven different races, namely, Arcadians, pe Cynurians, Achaeans, Dorians, Aetolians, Dryopes, and Lemnians. Of these the Arcadians and Cynurians were aborigines who still occupied their ancient territory; the Achaeans had also never removed from the Peloponnesus, but had passed from one territory to another. The remaining four were foreigners.' The history of these races appears to have been as follows. of the races vasion. Prior to the Dorian invasion, the centre was occu- Settlement pied by the Arcadians, and the south-eastern pro- prior to the montory by the Cynurians, and both these nations Dorian inwere Pelasgians. The east and south were held by the Achaeans. The west and north were originally peopled by races not mentioned here because subsequently driven out; viz. the Ionians, called also 1 viii. 73. EUROPE. Aegialeis, or "coast-men," on the north,' and the CHAP. III. Caucones on the west. The Dryopes from Doris had also formed settlements in Messenia and Argolis.3 These races seem therefore to have anciently occupied the following positions. Settlements in the time tus. Subsequently the Dorians and Aetolians invaded The of Herodo- the Peloponnesus. The Aetolians seized the western territory, whilst the Dorians turned out the Achaeans and occupied the south and east. Achaeans mostly proceeded to the north, and drove out the Ionian Aegialeis and occupied their territory, but a few remained behind. The Ionians proceeded to Athens. Subsequently the Minyans from Lemnos, called also Lemnians, drove out the Caucones and obtained their country. The inhabitants of the Peloponnesus therefore in the time of Herodotus seem to have been situated as follows: 1 i. 145; vii. 94. 2 iv. 148. 3 viii. 73. 5 iv. 148. The Dorians possessed many considerable cities; the Aetolians only Elis; the Dryopes had Hermione, (in the south-east of Argolis,) and Asine, (in the southern promontory of Messenia,) near the Laconian Cardamyle; the Lemnians had all the Paroreatae, and were descended from the Minyans. The Cynurians, though aborigines, were thought by some to be Ionians, (Pelasgians,) but became Dorians like the Orneatae and their neighbours from the lapse of time, and from living under the dominion of the Argives.' We now turn to the geography of the nine dis tricts. General I. ARCADIA was the central, and next to Laconica I. ARCADIA. the largest, country in the Peloponnesus. It was description. surrounded on all sides by a ring of mountains, forming a kind of natural wall, and may be regarded 1 viii. 73. EUROPE. as the Switzerland of Greece, though its mountains CHAP. III. are of a much less elevation.1 Herodotus's account. Topography Tegea. Mantinea. 3 Arcadia was inhabited by the Pelasgians, who from the beginning, and likewise during the Dorian invasion of the Peloponnesus, remained in this country, and alone preserved the sacred rites of the Thesmophoria.2 Some, however, joined the great Ionian migration to Asia Minor, and others perhaps migrated to Cyprus, where at least an Arcadian race is named. In an oracle the Pythia says, "There are many acorn-eating men in Arcadia; "s by which we may conclude that they were a rude, uncultivated people, simple in their habits, and moderate in their desires. Of the Arcadian towns several are mentioned, but without any detailed description. Tegea was situated in a fair plain, and contained the coffin, seven cubits long, enclosing the bones of Orestes, which Liches the Laconian discovered, and carried to Sparta. In the temple of Athena Alea, in the same city, were suspended the fetters which the Laconians, in their arrogance, carried with them in their expedition against the Tegeans. There also was the brazen manger which was taken from the tent of Mardonius, after the battle of Plataea.' The Tegeans sent 500 men to Thermopylae, and at the battle of Plataea furnished 1500 hoplites, who disputed the post of honour with the Athenians." 8 The city of Mantinea was anciently celebrated for the wisdom of its political institutions. The wise Demonax was fetched from thence to remodel the government of Cyrene. 10 The Mantineans sent 500 men to Thermopylae," who arrived too late to fight at Plataea, and on their return home banished their 1 The Arcadians, like the Swiss, frequently served as mercenaries. With the exception of the Mantineans and Tegeans, they took no decided part in the Persian or Peloponnesian wars. The poverty and populousness of their country had made them mere soldiers of fortune, and Thucydides affirms, (vii. 57,) that in the expedition against Sicily, Arcadians were to be found in the ranks of both armies. 2 ii. 171. 6 i. 66-68. 10 iv. 161. 3 i. 146. 4 vii. 90. 8 vii. 202. 5 i. 66. 5 3 Phigalea. commanders.' Orchomenus sent 120 men to Ther- EUROPE. mopylae,2 and 600 hoplites to Plataea. Phigalea is CHAP. III. barely alluded to as the birth-place of the prophet OrchomeCleander.* From Trapezus came Amiantus, one of us. the suitors for the daughter of Cleisthenes, tyrant of Trapezus. Sicyon. Paeos, or Pagos, was situated in the district Paeos. of the Azanes," whence came Laphanes, who was also a suitor. At or near Dipaea, all the Arcadians, Dipaea. except the Mantineans, were defeated by the Laconians.R At Nonacris, near Pheneum, a small quan- Nonacris. tity of water, said by the Arcadians to be the water of the Styx, dropped from a rock into a hollow surrounded by a fence of masonry.9 Above Tegea was Mount Parthenion, where a Mount Parlittle before the battle of Marathon the deity Pan thenion. appeared to the messenger sent from Athens to Sparta.10 The Stymphalian lake is also noticed as Stymphaan unimportant piece of water, which was said to disappear through an unseen chasm, and to reappear in Argos, where it became the river Erasinus." lian lake. description. II. ARGOLIS lay on the east of the Peloponne- II. ARGOsus, and included the whole acte or peninsula be- s. General tween the Saronic and Argolic Gulfs. Prior to the Dorian invasion, the Argives were Achaeans, who had supplanted the original Pelasgian population, and many of the Achaeans remained after the Dorian conquest. Argos then became the great seat of Dorian power in the Peloponnesus, whilst Sparta was her inferior. At an early period war broke out between the two powers for the border district of Thyrea. Here the celebrated battle was fought between 300 Argives and 300 Spartans.12 The war was terminated in the reign of Cleomenes, by the total defeat of the Argives." 13 Argolis properly embraced all the country west- Herodotus's ward, as far as the southern promontory of Malea, 2 vii. 102. 3 ix. 28. 4 vi. 83. 1 ix. 77. 5 vi. 127. According to Steph. Byzantinus, the Arcadians were distributed into three geographical divisions, viz. Azanes, Parrhasii, and Trapezuntii. Steph. Β. s. v. ̓Αζῆνες. 7 vi. 127. 12 i. 82. 8 ix. 35. 9 vi. 74. 10 vi. 105. 11 vi. 76. 13 vi. 78. account. |