Page 424 The Year following, when Hippodamus was Chief Magistrate of Athens, and Four Military Tribunes, viz.Lucius Valerius,Crispus Manlius, FabiusServilius, and Sulpitius Lucretius were Roman Consuls. Artaxerxes used his utmost Endeavour to quiet all things in Greece, that he might raise the more Mercenaries for the Carrying on the War against the Aegyptians: For by this means he hop'd the Graecians being freed from Domestick Broils would be in a Condition to assist him abroad. To this end, he sent Ambassadors into Greece to Negotiate in this Affair amongst all the Cities. And this Embassy was very welcome to the Graecians, who were near tyr'd out with continual Wars; so that a General Peace was concluded upon these Conditions: That all the Cities should for the future be govern'd by their own Laws, and all the Garisons be withdrawn. And there were certain Grecians appointed as Commissioners to see the Garisons drawn out; who accordingly went to every City where there was any Soldiers, and order'd them to leave the Place.
In the mean time, the Thebans only through every Town disagreed to these Terms, and exempted all Beotia as Tributary only to themselves: But the Athenians oppos'd this with all earnestness, and this Affair was banded in the Common Assembly of the Greeks, by Callistratus a Tribune of the People, on the behalf of the Athenians, and by Epaminondas on the behalf of the Thebans, after which, all the rest of the Grecians persisted in their resolution to stand to the League, leaving out the Thebans, who (relying upon the Wisdom and Prudence of Epaminondas) boldly oppos'd the Decree made by the General Assembly.
For being that the Lacedaemonians and Athenians had been all along hitherto contesting for the Sovereign Command of Greece, and at length had agreed upon these Terms, That the Lacedaemonians should have the Command at Land, and the Athenians at Sea, they were very uneasie to think that now a Third should carry away the Sovereignty from them both, for which reason they would not allow the Cities of Beotia to be under the Power of the Thebans. But the Thebans (who were Men of strong Bodies and stout Hearts, and had lately beaten the Laredaemonians in several Fights) bore themselves very high, and were in hopes to gain the Sovereign Command at Land. Neither were they frustrated in their design for the Reasons before mentioned, and likewise for that they had at that time many Excellent Officers and Valiant Commanders; amongst whom the most Famous were Pelopidas, Gorgias, and Epaminondas; which last was not only the Best and most Expert Commander of any of his own Country, but even of all the Grecians; and was likewise a Man of great Learning in the Liberal Sciences, and especially in the Pythagorean Philosophy: Being besides of excellent Natural Parts, and Mother-Wit, it was no wonder if he exceeded others in performing those things that were more than ordinarily remarkable. For with a small Body of Men he Engag'd with the whole Power of the Lacedaemonians, and their Confederates, and so routed those (formerly unconquerable) Warriors, that he kill'd their King Cleombrotus, and cut off almost the whole Army of the Spartans. And by the advantage of his singular Wisdom, and Virtuous and Liberal Education, such things were perform'd by him as were admirable beyond all Expectation. Of which we shall speak more fully hereafter when we come to treat particularly of those Things.
But now to return to the Course of our History; It was agreed, That every City should govern according to their own Laws; but presently after, all the Cities were again involv'd in great Tumults and Seditions, especially those in Peloponnesus. Some few of these had been Enslav'd in the late Domineering time, and being now restor'd to their Democratical Government, they made but an all Improvement of it, for they banish'd many Honest Citizens that were falsly Accus'd, and as unjustly Condemn'd; and by the prevailing Power of the Seditious, nothing was more frequent than Banishment and Confiscation of Goods; and those chiefly were the Sufferers that had been Magistrates in the time of the Lacedaemonian Government; for because in those time they carry'd it something imperiously towards the People, not with that regard to Justice as they ought, now that the Commonalty were restor'd to their Liberty they too much resented their former Injuries.
The Exiles therefore of Phialea, were the first that Consulted and Join'd together, and seiz'd upon Herea, a strong and well-fortify'd Castle; and from thence made frequent Incursions into the Territories of Phialea. And at the time when the Feasts of Bacchus were celebrated, (upon the sudden) they rush'd upon the People in the Theatre, and cut many of their Throats, having before persuaded a considerable Number to join with them in this wicked Confederacy, and afterwards they return'd to Sparta. Then the Exiles of Corinth, who were in great numbers at Argos, determin'd to force their own return. In order hereunto some of their Servants and Friends were receiv'd into the City; but the thing being discover'd to the Magistrates, they could not lie long conceal'd, but being just ready to be seiz'd (through fear of Punishment) they kill'd one another. But the
The Histories of Herodotus written in 440 BC is considered to be the founding work of history in Western literature. His history included stories and fables but he claimed to have traveled extensively and learned about many countries through direct observation.
The thesis of Stolen Legacy is that the Egyptians created what is wrongly called Greek philosophy. Dr. James argues that the African origin of Greek Philosophy is well known but rarely discussed. Ancient Greek historians such as Herodotus and Diodorus the Sicilian wrote in significant detail about the contributions of Egypt. Egyptian technology and libraries were unmatched and Greek philosophers such as Pythagoras and Plato studied there. The contribution of Africa to the intellectual foundation of modern knowledge is tremendous but unacknowledged.
The Library of History by Diodorus the Sicilian is one of the most highly regarded universal histories in antiquities. His work includes the history of Egypt, Asia, Africa, Greece and Europe. His book is a must read for research of ancient history.
Bible Study The King James Bible (kjv), World English Bible (web) and Bible in Basic English (bbe) are all examples of public domain books. The King James Bible (kjv) online uses the content from these books and open source software to enhance Bible study capabilities. The site includes the verse of the day, search tools, christian literature and links to related content. It demonstrates the use of open source to create a valuable service.