Page 693 the Harbours with his Machines was prevented by a fierce and violent Storm that then arose. But being calm all the night afterwards, he Sails up secretly, and seises upon the highest Rampart of the great Harbour, and forthwith draws a Mud-wall about it, and fences it with stones and planks of Timber: Then he landed Four hundred of his Men, and plac'd them there with all sorts of Darts and Weapons; the Fort was * Five Plethras distant from the Walls. As soon as it was light they came up with the Engines into the Port, with shouting and sound of Trumpet, then with their small shot which did execution at a great distance, they beat off those that were building the Wall in the Port, and with their battering Engines broke in pieces the Enemies Machines, and shak'd the the Wall near the Rampart in one part, and batter'd it down in another. For it was but low and weak at that time; the Citizens stoutly defended themselves, and spent all that day in wounding and receiving wounds from their Enemies: but night drawing on, Demetrius tow'd his Ships Cables ti'd to smaller Vessels and got oft his Engines out of the reach of the Enemies Artillery. But the Rhodians took fire along with them, and in Boats fill'd with combustible matter pursu'd their Enemies, and coming up with the Engines put fire to the matter in the Boats; but being presently beaten off by Darts and Arrows from the floating Rampart, they were forc'd to Tack about and so retire; but the Flame rag'd to that degree, that some few only having extinguish'd the fire return'd in the Boats; and the greatest part of them having had their Vessels burnt down to the Water, by swimming only sav'd their lives.
The next day Demetrius in the same manner made his Attack from the Sea, and ordered an Assault with shouting and sound of Trumpet should be made on every side from the Land, that he might strike the greater Terror into the Rhodians, while innumerable dangers, surrounded and distracted them on every hand; he continu'd thus assaulting the Town for the space of Eight daies together, shooting from his Engines upon the Rampart, stones of the weight of a Talent, and batter'd down the middle walls between the Towers, together with the Towers themselves: the Souldiers likewise possess'd themselves of part of the wall that fac'd the Harbours. Upon which the Rhodians all flockt to that place, and there they sharply fell to it, and ingag'd the Enemy; and over-powering them in number, with the slaughter of some of them, forc'd the rest to draw off. The uneasie rough and uneven passage to the place (by reason of many heaps of great and massy stones which were laid before the walls on the outside) was of great advantage to the besieg'd: many of the Enemies Vessels (in the midst of this hurly burly) mann'd with Soldiers comming up, the Rhodians presently tore off the Beaks of the Ships, and by combustible matter and Firebrands thrown in among them, burnt the Ships themselves. While the besieg'd were thus hurri'd and distracted in defending themselves; the Demetrians coming in with their Vessels on every side, set Scaling Ladders to the Walls, and prest on with the greater resolution, being assisted in all parts by the Soldiers at Land; who together with them in the Ships mutually repeated their shouts and acclamations. And now many boldly and resolutely in contempt of danger press'd forward, and in great Bodies mounted the Walls; upon which follow'd a sharp Ingagement, the assailant's forcing on with great resolution from without, and the besieg'd with as much courage flocking together to defend themselves within. At length the Rhodians after a brave Resistance beat off the Assailants, killing some, and taking others Prisoners that were wounded, amongst whom were some of the chiefest Commanders. The Besiegers being thus baffl'd, Demetrius draws off his Engines into his own Port, and then sets upon repairing both them and his Ships.
In the mean time the Rhodians bury their dead, and dedicated to their Gods their Enemies Arms and the Beaks of their Ships, and repair'd those parts of their walls, as were beaten down by the Engines.
Demetrius however, after seven days time spent in refitting his battering Engines, and repairing his Shipping, having now all things in readiness, enters the Harbor again. For he made it his main business to be absolute Lord of this, and to intercept all Provision that might be brought in to the relief of the City; when he came within the cast of a Dart, he threw Firebrands (of which he had a great number) into the Rhodians Ships which lay scatter'd here and there, and shook and batter'd the Walls with his Engines, and wounded and gall'd with his Darts and Arrows whoever appear'd in view. The Assault thus continuing to the great terror and amazement of the Inhabitants, the Rhodian Pilots (in great fear and concern for the Shipping) extinguish'd the Firebrands; and the Magistrates of the City (whom they call Prytanes) seeing that the Port was now even upon the point of being taken, earnestly intreated all the Citizens, both high and
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.