Page 518 War against the Persians, and forthwith sent A ta •us and Parmenio before into Asia to free the Greek Cities there from Slavery. He himself intending to have the Concurrence of the Gods, consulted the Oracle at Delphos, whether or no he should be victorious over the King of Persia. The Answer was thus,
This doubtful Answer, Philip constru'd to his own advantage, as if the Oracle had expresly foretold, that he should lead away the Persian King as a Victim to the Sacrifice. But in truth, it fell out quite otherwise, and by the effect it appear'd, that it had a contrary Signification, to wit, that Philip in a Throng, at the time of a Sacred Festival was to be knock'd on the Head like a Bullock crown'd with a Garland, for Sacrifice.
In the mean time, he was very jocund, as if he had conquer'd Asia already, and concluded the Gods were engag'd with him in the Expedition. Without delay therefore he offer'd most costly and magnificent Sacrifices, and at the same time, solemnized the Marriage of his Daughter, Cleopatra, by Olympias: He Marry'd her to Alexander, King of Epirus, Brother of Olympias. Having therefore a desire of a considerable Appearance of the Graecians at this Nuptial Festivity, conjoin'd with his Religious Sacrifices, he made most pompous Preparation for the Entertainment of his Friends and Guests, both with Musick, Dancing, and Feasting.
To this End, he Invited those that were his special Friends and Familiars, all over Greece, and commanded his Servants and Attendants that they should invite as many Strangers from all Places as were of their own Acquaintance. And his main design in all this, was, that he might assure all the Graecians of his Kindness towards them, and testify his Gratitude by these Friendly Entertainments, for the Honours conferr'd upon him. A vast Concourse of People therefore were got together from all Places, to the Solemnity of these Nuptials, which were magnificently Solemniz'd at Aeges in Macedonia, with all sorts of Sports and Plays; so that not only Noblemen and Persons of Quality, but even many great Cities presented Philip with Crowns of Gold. Among the Cities, Athens made one; and when the Common Cryer with a loud Voice presented the Crown sent from them to Philip, he clos'd with this, That if any Plotter of Treason against Philip, should hereafter slee to Athens for shelter, he should be forthwith deliver'd up. By this accidental Publication of this Cryer, it seem'd to be intimated (as it were by some Divine Providence) that some piece of Treachery was near at hand to be executed.
There were several other the like Words (as by a Divine Instigation) uttered, which portended the King's Death. There was then at the Festival, Neoptolemus the Tragedian, remarkable above all others for the Loudness of his Voice, and Famous and Eminent in other respects. He had commanded him to repeat some Verses which he was ordered to compose, especially relating to the Persian Expedition. Whereupon, he began to recite a Witty Poem, proper (as he thought) to Philip's intended Passage into Asia, wherein he set forth the Glory and Greatness of the Persian King; and though he was so Famous all the World over, yet that Fortune would some time or other bring him down. The Poem was thus,
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.