tion, was Miltiades, who lived about ninety years after Solon, and is reckoned to have been the first great captain, not only of Athens, but of all Greece. From the time of Miltiades to that of Phocion, who is looked upon as the last famous general of Athens, are about 180 years: after which, they were fubdued and infulted by Alexander's captains, and continued, under feveral revolutions, a fmall truckling ftate, of no name or reputation, till they fell, with the rest of Greece, under the power of the Romans. During this period from Miltiades to Phocion, Ifhall trace the conduct of the Athenians with relation to their diffenfions between the people and fome of their generals; who, at that time, by their power and credit in the army, in a warlike commonwealth, and often fupported by each other, were, with the magiftrates and other civil officers, a fort of counterpoife to the power of the people, who, fince the death of Solon, had already made great encroachments. What these diffenfions were, how founded, and what the confequences of them, I fhall briefly and impartially relate. I must here premife, that the Nobles in Athens, were not at this time a corporate affembly, that I can gather; therefore, the refentments of the Commons were usually turned against particular perfons, and by way of articles of impeachment. Whereas, the Commons in Rome, and fome other states, as will appear in a proper place, though they followed this method upon occafion, occafion, yet generally pursued the enlargement of their power, by more fet quarrels of one entire affembly againft another. However, the cuftom of particular impeachments being not limited to former ages, any more than that of general ftruggles and diffenfions between fixed affemblies of Nobles and Commons, and the ruin of Greece having been owing to the former, as that of Rome was to the latter, I shall treat on both exprefly; that thofe ftates, who are concerned in either (if at least there be any fuch now in the world) may, by obferving the means and iffues of former diffenfions, learn whether the causes are alike in theirs; and if they find them to be fo, may confider whether they ought not justly to apprehend the fame effects. To speak of every particular person impeached by the Commons of Athens, within the compass defigned, would introduce the hiftory of almost every great man they had among them: I fhall therefore take notice only of fix, who, living in that period of time when Athens was at the height of its glory, as indeed it could not be otherwife, while fuch hands were at the helm; though impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors, such as bribery, arbitrary proceedings, mifapplying or embezzling public funds, ill conduct at fea, and the like, were honoured and lamented by their country, as the preservers of it, and have had the veneration of all ages fince paid justly to their memories. Miltiades was one of the Athenian generals against against the Perfian power, and the famous victory at Marathon was chiefly owing to his valour and conduct. Being fent, fome time after, to reduce the island Paros, he miftook a great fire at a distance for the fleet, and being no ways a match for them, fet fail for Athens; at his arrival, he was impeached by the Commons for treachery, though not able to appear by reafon of his wounds, fined 30,000 crowns, and died in prifon. Though the confequences of this proceeding, upon the affairs of Athens, were no other than the untimely lofs of fo great and good a man, yet I could not forbear relating it. Their next great man was Ariftides. * Befides the mighty service he had done his country. in the wars, he was a person of the strictest justice, and best acquainted with the laws, as well as forms of their government, fo that he was in a manner Chancellor of Athens. This man, upon a flight and false accusation, of favouring arbitrary power, was banished by oftracism; which, rendered into modern English, would fignify, that they voted, he should be removed from their prefence and council for ever. But, however, they had the wit to recal him, and to that action owed the prefervation of their state, by his future fervices. For it must be ftill confeffed in behalf of the Athenian people, that they never conceived themfelves perfectly infallible, nor arrived to the heights of modern affemblies, to make obstinacy VOL. II. confirm X Lord Somers. He was the general patron of the literati, and the particular friend of Dr. Swift. Orrery. confirm what fudden heat and temerity began. They thought it not below the dignity of an affembly, to endeavour at correcting an ill step; at leaft to repent, though it often fell out too late. Themiftocles + was at firft a Commoner himfelf: it was he that raised the Athenians to get their greatnefs at fea, which he thought to be the true and constant interest of that commonwealth; and the famous naval victory over the Perfians, at Salamis, was owing to his conduct. It feems the people observed fomewhat of haughtiness in his temper and behaviour, and therefore banished him for five years; but, finding fome flight' matter of accufation against him, they fent to feize his perfon, and he hardly escaped to the Perfian court; from whence, if the love of his country had not furmounted its base ingratitude to him, he had many invitations to return at the head of the Perfian fleet, and take a terrible revenge: but he rather chofe a voluntary death. The people of Athens impeached Pericles, * for Earl of Orford. He had been confidered in a manner as Lord High Admiral, the whole affairs of the navy having been committed to his charge. Orrery. * Lord Halifax. He had a fine genius for poetry; and had employed his more youthful part of life in that science. He was distinguished by the name of Moufe Montague, having ridiculed, jointly with Mat. Prior, Mr. Dryden's famous poem of the Hind and Panther. The parody is drawn from Horace's fable of the city moufe and country moufe. But afterwards, upon Mr. Montague's promotion to the Chancellorship of the Exchequer, Prior, with a good-humoured indignation at seeing his friend preferred, and himself neglected, concludes an epistle, written for misapplying the public revenues to his own private ufe. He had been a person of great defervings from the republic, was an admirable speaker, and very popular. His accompts were confused, and he could not then give them up; therefore, merely to divert that difficulty, and the confequences of it, he was forced to engage his country in the Peloponnefian war, the longest that ever was known in Greece, and which ended in the utter ruin of Athens. The fame people, having refolved to subdue Sicily, fent a mighty fleet under the command of Nicias, Lyfimachus, and Alcibiades; the two former, perfons of age and experience; the last, a young man of noble birth, excellent education, and a plentiful fortune. A little before the fleet fet fail, it seems, one night, the ftone images of Mercury, placed in several parts of the city, were all pared in the face: this action the Athenians interpreted for a defign of deftroying the popular ftate; and Alcibiades, having been formerly noted for the like frolicks and excurfions, was immediately accused of this. He, whether confcious of his innocence, or affured of the fecrecy, offered to come to his trial, before he went to his command; this the Athenians refufed. But as foon as he was got to Sicily, they fent for him back, defigning to take the advantage, and profecute X 2 written in the year 1698, to Fleetwood Shepherd, Efq; with these three lines: My friend Charles Montague's preferr❜d, That one mouse eats while t'other's starv’d. Orrery. |