The Great Events by Famous Historians, Volume 4 eBook (2024)

The Great Events by Famous Historians, Volume 4

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Table of Contents
Section	Page
Start of eBook	1
	1
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS	1
AN OUTLINE NARRATIVE	1
CHARLES F. HORNE	2
THE PERIOD OF INVASION	3
THE PERIOD OF SETTLEMENT	4
THE MAHOMETAN OUTBURST	6
THE EMPIRE OF CHARLEMAGNE	7
FOOTNOTES:	8
VISIGOTHS PILLAGE ROME	8
EDWARD GIBBON	8
HUNS INVADE THE EASTERN ROMAN EMPIRE	29
A.D. 441	29
FOOTNOTES:	49
THE ENGLISH CONQUEST OF BRITAIN	49
JOHN R. GREEN CHARLES KNIGHT	49
CHARLES KNIGHT	55
ATTILA INVADES WESTERN ROME	62
A.D. 451	62
SIR EDWARD SHEPHERD CREASY	63
EDWARD GIBBON	74
FOOTNOTES:	80
FOUNDATION OF VENICE	80
THOMAS HODGKIN JOHN RUSKIN	80
JOHN RUSKIN	87
CLOVIS FOUNDS THE KINGDOM OF THE FRANKS: IT BECOMES CHRISTIAN	94
FRANCOIS P.G. GUIZOT	94
PUBLICATION OF THE JUSTINIAN CODE	113
EDWARD GIBBON	114
FOOTNOTES:	147
AUGUSTINE’S MISSIONARY WORK IN ENGLAND	148
THE VENERABLE BEDE[43] JOHN RICHARD GREEN	148
JOHN RICHARD GREEN	159
FOOTNOTES:	160
THE HEGIRA	160
A.D. 622	160
WASHINGTON IRVING	161
SIMON OCKLEY	167
THE KORAN	185
THE MAHOMETAN CREED	189
FOOTNOTES:	194
THE SARACEN CONQUEST OF SYRIA	198
SIMON OCKLEY	198
FOOTNOTES:	223
SARACENS CONQUER EGYPT	223
A.D. 640	223
EVOLUTION OF THE DOGESHIP IN VENICE	233
WILLIAM CAREW HAZLITT	233
SARACENS IN SPAIN: BATTLE OF THE GUADALETE	240
AHMED IBN MAHOMET AL-MAKKARI	240
BATTLE OF TOURS	249
SIR EDWARD SHEPHERD CREASY	249
FOOTNOTES:	257
FOUNDING OF THE CARLOVINGIAN DYNASTY	257
A.D. 751	257
CAREER OF CHARLEMAGNE	264
FRANCOIS P.G. GUIZOT	264
EGBERT BECOMES KING OF THE ANGLO-SAXON HEPTARCHY	294
DAVID HUME	294
FOOTNOTES:	300
CHRONOLOGY OF UNIVERSAL HISTORY	300
A.D. 410-842	300
A.D.	300
FOOTNOTES:	314
END OF VOLUME IV	314

An Outline Narrative of the Great Events,CHARLES F. HORNE

Visigoths Pillage Rome (A.D. 410),
Edward Gibbon

Huns Invade the Eastern Roman Empire
Attila Dictates a Treaty of Peace (A.D. 441),
Edward Gibbon

The English Conquest of Britain (A.D. 449-579),
John R. Green
Charles Knight

Attila Invades Western Europe
Battle of Chalons (A.D. 451),
Sir Edward S. Creasy
Edward Gibbon

Foundation of Venice (A.D. 452),
Thomas Hodgkin
John Ruskin

Clovis Founds the Kingdom of the Franks
It Becomes Christian (A.D. 486-511),
Francois P.G. Guizot

Publication of the Justinian Code (A.D. 529-534),
Edward Gibbon

Augustine’s Missionary Work in England (A.D.597),
The venerable Bede
John R. Green

The Hegira: Career of Mahomet
The Koran: and Mahometan Creed (A.D. 622),
Washington Irving
Simon Ockley

The Saracen Conquest of Syria (A.D. 636),
Simon Ockley

Saracens Conquer Egypt
Destruction of the Library at Alexandria (A.D. 640),
Washington Irving

Evolution of the Dogeship in Venice (A.D. 697),
William C. Hazlitt

Saracens in Spain
Battle of the Guadalete (A.D. 711),
Ahmed Ibn Mahomet al-MAKKARI

Battle of Tours (A.D. 732),
Sir Edward S. Creasy

Founding of the Carlovingian Dynasty
Pepin the Short Usurps the Frankish Crown (A.D. 751),
Francois P.G. Guizot

Career of Charlemagne (A.D. 772-814),
Francois P.G. Guizot

Egbert Becomes King of the Anglo-Saxon
Heptarchy (A.D. 827),
David Hume

Universal Chronology (A.D. 410-842),
John Rudd

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

VOLUME IV

A captive’s wife pleads with the barbarian chieffor
the life of her husband, Frontispiece
Painting by R. Peaco*ck.

Mahomet, preaching the unity of God, enters Mecca
at the head of his victorious followers,
Painting by A. Mueller.

[Illustration: A captive’s wife pleadswith the barbarian chief for the life of her husband

Painting by R. Peaco*ck.]

AN OUTLINE NARRATIVE

Tracing briefly the causes, connections,and consequences of the great
events

(From the fall of Rome tothe empire of Charlemagne)

CHARLES F. HORNE

Our modern civilization is built up on three greatcorner-stones, three inestimably valuable heritagesfrom the past. The Graeco-Roman civilizationgave us our arts and our philosophies, the bases ofintellectual power. The Hebrews bequeathed tous the religious idea, which has saved man from despair,has been the potent stimulus to two thousand yearsof endurance and hope. The Teutons gave us a healthy,sturdy, uncontaminated physique, honest bodies andclean minds, the lack of which had made further progressimpossible to the ancient world.

This last is what made necessary the barbarian overthrowof Rome, if the world was still to advance. Theslowly progressing knowledge of the arts and handicraftswhich we have seen passed down from Egypt to Babylonia,to Persia, Greece, and Rome, had not been acquiredwithout heavy loss. The system of slavery whichallowed the few to think, while the many were constrainedto toil as beasts, had eaten like a canker into theheart of society. The Roman world was repeatingthe oft-told tale of the past, and sinking into thelifeless formalism of which Egypt was the type.Man had become wise, but worthless.

As though on purpose to prove to future generationshow utterly worthless, the Roman civilization wasallowed to continue uninterrupted in one unneededcorner of its former domains. For over a thousandyears the successors of Theodosius and of Constantineheld unbroken sway in the capital which the latterhad founded. They only succeeded in emphasizinghow futile their culture had become.

The entire ten centuries that followed the overthrowof Rome have long been spoken of as the “DarkAges,” but, considering how infinitely darkerthose same ages must have become without the interventionof the Teutons, present criticism begins to protestagainst the term. All that was lost with theancient world was something of intellectual keenness,something of artistic culture, quickly regained whenman was once more ripe for them. What the Teutonshad to offer of infinitely greater worth, what theyhad developed in their cold, northern forests, wastheir sense of liberty and equality, their love ofhonesty, their respect for womankind. It is nottoo much to say that, without these, any higher progresswas, and always will be, impossible.

In short, the Roman and Grecian races had become impotentand decrepit. The high destiny of man lay notwith them, but with the younger race, for whom allearlier civilizations had but prepared the way.

Who were these Teutons? Rome knew them only vaguelyas wild tribes dwelling in the gloom of the greatforest wilderness. In reality they were but thevanguard of vast races of human beings who throughages had been slowly populating all Eastern Europeand Northern Asia. Beyond the Teutons were otherAryans, the Slavs. Beyond these were vague non-Aryanraces like the Huns, content to direct their careersof slaughter against one another, and only occasionallyand for a moment flaring with red-fire beacons ofruin along the edge of the Aryan world.

Some at least of the Teutonic tribes had grown partlycivilized. The Germans along the Rhine, and theGoths along the Danube, had been from the time ofAugustus in more or less close contact with Rome.Germanicus had once subdued almost the whole of Germany;later emperors had held temporarily the broad provinceof Dacia, beyond the Danube. The barbarians wereeagerly enlisted in the Roman army. During theclosing centuries of decadence they became its mainsupport; they rose to high commands; there were evenbarbarian emperors at last. The interminglingof the two worlds thus became extensive, and the Teutonslearned much of Rome. The Goths whom Theodosiuspermitted to settle within its dominions were alreadypartly Christian.

THE PERIOD OF INVASION

It was these same Goths who became the immediate causeof Rome’s downfall. Theodosius had keptthem in restraint; his feeble sons scarce even attemptedit. The intruders found a famous leader in Alaric,and, after plundering most of the Grecian peninsula,they ravaged Italy, ending in 410 with the sack ofRome itself.[1]

This seems to us, perhaps, a greater event than itdid to its own generation. The “Emperorof the West,” the degenerate son of Theodosius,was not within the city when it fell; and the storyis told that, on hearing the news, he expressed relief,because he had at first understood that the evil tidingsreferred to the death of a favorite hen named Rome.The tale emphasizes the disgrace of the famous capital;it had sunk to be but one city among many. Alaric’sGoths had been nominally an army belonging to theEmperor of the East; their invasion was regarded asonly one more civil war.

Besides, the Roman world might yet have proved itselfbig enough to assimilate and engulf the entire massof this already half-civilized people. Its namewas still a spell on them. Ataulf, the successorof Alaric, was proud to accept a Roman title and becomea defender of the Empire. He marched his followersinto Gaul under a commission to chastise the “barbarians”who were desolating it.

These later comers were the instruments of that moreoverwhelming destruction for which the Goths had butprepared the way. To resist Alaric, the Romanlegions had been withdrawn from all the western frontiers,and thus more distant and far more savage tribes ofthe Teutons beheld the glittering empire unprotected,its pathways most alluringly left open. Theybegan streaming across the undefended Rhine and Danube.Their bands were often small and feeble, such as earlieremperors would have turned back with ease; but nowall this fascinating world of wealth, so dimly knownand doubtless fiercely coveted, lay helpless, opento their plundering. The Vandals ravaged Gauland Spain, and, being defeated by the Goths, passedon into Africa. The Saxons and Angles penetratedEngland[2] and fought there for centuries against thedesperate Britons, whom the Roman legions had perforceabandoned to their fate. The Franks and Burgundiansplundered Gaul.

Fortunately the invading tribes were on the wholea kindly race. When they joyously whirled theirhuge battle-axes against iron helmets, smashing downthrough bone and brain beneath, their delight was notin the scream of the unlucky wretch within, but intheir own vigorous sweep of muscle, in the consciouspower of the blow. Fierce they were, but notcoldly cruel like the ancients. The conditionof the lower classes certainly became no worse fortheir invasion; it probably improved. Much thenew-comers undoubtedly destroyed in pure wantonness.But there was much more that they admired, half understood,and sought to save.

Behind them, however, came a conqueror of far moreterrible mood. We have seen that when the Gothsfirst entered Roman territory they were driven onby a vast migration of the Asiatic Huns. Thesewild and hideous tribes then spent half a centuryroaming through central Europe, ere they were gatheredinto one huge body by their great chief, Attila, andin their turn approached the shattered regions of theMediterranean.[3] Their invasion, if we are to trustthe tales of their enemies, from whom alone we knowof them, was incalculably more destructive than allthose of the Teutons combined. The Huns delightedin suffering; they slew for the sake of slaughter.Where they passed they left naught but an empty desert,burned and blackened and devoid of life.

Crossing the Danube, they ravaged the Roman Empireof the East almost without opposition. Only theimpregnable walls of Constantinople resisted the destruction.A few years later the savage horde appeared upon theRhine, and in enormous numbers penetrated Gaul.No people had yet understood them, none had even checkedtheir career. The white races seemed helplessagainst this “yellow peril,” this “Scourgeof God,” as Attila was called.

Goths and Romans and all the varied tribes which wereranging in perturbed whirl through unhappy Gaul laidaside their lesser enmities and met in common causeagainst this terrible invader. The battle ofChalons, 451,[4] was the most tremendous struggle inwhich Turanian was ever matched against Aryan, theone huge bid of the stagnant, unprogressive races,for earth’s mastery.

Old chronicles rise into poetry at thought of thatimmeasurable battle. They figure the slain byhundred thousands; they describe the souls of thedead as rising above the bodies and continuing theirfurious struggle in the air. Attila was checkedand drew back. Defeated we can scarce call him,for only a year or so later we find him ravaging Italy.Fugitives fleeing before him to the marshes lay thefirst stones of Venice.[5] Leo, the great Pope, pleadswith him for Rome. His forces, however, are obviouslyweaker than they were. He retreats; and afterhis death his irresponsible followers disappear foreverin the wilderness.

THE PERIOD OF SETTLEMENT

Toward the close of this tumultuous fifth century,the various Teutonic tribes show distinct tendenciestoward settling down and forming kingdoms amid thevarious lands they have overrun. The Vandals builda state in Africa, and from the old site of Carthagesend their ships to the second sack of Rome.The Visigoths form a Spanish kingdom, which lastsover two hundred years. The Ostrogoths constructan empire in Italy (493-554), and, under the wiserule of their chieftain Theodoric, men joyfully proclaimthat peace and happiness and prosperity have returnedto earth. Most important of all in its bearingupon later history, the Franks under Clovis beginthe building of France.[6]

Encouraged by these milder days, the Roman emperorsof Constantinople attempt to reclaim their old domain.The reign of Justinian begins (527-565), and his greatgeneral Belisarius temporarily wins back for him bothAfrica and Italy. This was a comparatively unimportantdetail, a mere momentary reversal of the historictide. Justinian did for the future a far morenoted service.

If there was one subject which Roman officials hadlearned thoroughly through their many generationsof rule, it was the set of principles by which judgesmust be guided in their endeavor to do justice.Long practical experience of administration made theRomans the great law-givers of antiquity. Andnow Justinian set his lawyers to work to gather intoa single code, or “digest,” all the scatteredand elaborate rules and decisions which had placein their gigantic system.[7]

It is this Code of Justinian which, handed down throughthe ages, stands as the basis of much of our law to-day.It shapes our social world, it governs the fundamentalrelations between man and man. There are notwanting those who believe its principles are wrong,who aver that man’s true attitude toward hisfellows should be wholly different from its presentartificial pose. But whether for better or forworse we live to-day by Roman law.

This law the Teutons were slowly absorbing. Theyaccepted the general structure of the world into whichthey had thrust themselves; they continued its styleof building and many of its rougher arts; they evenadopted its language, though in such confused and awkwardfashion that Italy, France, and Spain grew each tohave a dialect of its own. And most importantof all, they accepted the religion, the Christianreligion of Rome. Missionaries venture forth again.Augustine preaches in England.[8] Boniface penetratesthe German wilds.

It must not be supposed that the moment a Teuton acceptedbaptism he became filled with a pure Christian spiritof meekness and of love. On the contrary, heprobably remained much the same drunken, roisteringheathen as before. But he was brought in contactwith noble examples in the lives of some of the Christianbishops around him; great truths began to touch hismobile nature; he was impressed, softened; he beganto think and feel.

Given a couple of centuries of this, we really beginto see some very encouraging results. We realizethat for once we are being allowed to study a civilizationin its earlier stages, to be present almost at itsbirth, to watch the methods of the Master-builder inthe making of a race. Gazing at similar developmentsin the days of Egypt and Babylon, we guessed vaguelythat they must have been of slowest growth. Hereat last one takes place under our eyes, and it doesnot need so many ages after all. There is nostudy more fascinating than to trace the slow changesstamping themselves ineradicably upon the Teutonicmind and soul during these misty far-off centuriesof turmoil.

On the whole, of course, the sixth, seventh, and eventhe eighth centuries form a period of strife.The Teutons had spent too many ages warring againstone another in petty strife to abandon the pleasurein a single generation. Men fought because theyliked fighting, much as they play football to-day.Then, too, there came another great outburst of Semitereligious enthusiasm. Mahomet[9] started the Arabson their remarkable career of conquest.

THE MAHOMETAN OUTBURST

Mahomet himself died (632) before he had fully establishedhis influence even over Arabia: his successorshad practically to reconquer it. Yet within fiveyears of his death the Arabs had mastered Syria.[10]They spread like some sudden, unexpected, immeasurablewhirlwind. Ancient Persia went down before them.By 640 they had trampled Egypt under foot, and destroyedthe celebrated Alexandrian library.[11] They sweptover all Africa, completely obliterating every traceof Vandal or of Roman. Their dominion reachedfarther east than that of Alexander. They wrestedmost of its Asiatic possessions from the pretentiousEmpire at Constantinople, and reduced that exhaustedState to a condition of weakness from which it neverarose. Then, passing on through their Africanpossessions, they entered Spain and overthrew the kingdomof the Visigoths.[12] It was a storm whose end noman could measure, whose coming none could have foreseen.And then, just a century after Mahomet’s death,the Arabs, pressing on through Spain, encountered theFranks on the plains of France.

A thousand years had passed since Semitic Carthagehad fallen before Aryan Rome. Now once againthe Semites, far more dangerous because in the fulltide of the religious frenzy of their race, threatenedto engulf the Aryan world. They were repulsedby the still sturdy Franks under their great leader,Charles Martel, at Tours. The battle of Tours[13]was only less momentous to the human race than thatof Chalons. What the Arab domination of Europewould have meant we can partly guess by looking atthe lax and lawless states of Northern Africa to-day.These fair lands, under both Roman and Vandal, hadlong been sharing the lot of Aryan Europe; they seemeddestined to follow in its growth and fortune.But the Arab conquest restored them to Semitism, madeAsia the seat from which they were to have their training,attached them to the chariot of sloth instead of thatof effort. What they are to-day, all Europe mighthave been.

Yet with the picture of these fifth and sixth andseventh centuries of battle full before us, we arenot tempted to glory overmuch even in such victoriesas Tours and Chalons. We see war for what it hasever been—­the curse of man, the hugesthinderance to our civilization. While men fightthey have small time for thought or art or any softor kindly sentiment. The survivors may with goodluck develop into a stronger breed; they are inevitablymore brutal.

We thus begin to recognize just how necessary forhuman progress was the work Rome had been engagedin. By holding the world at peace, she had givenhumankind at least the opportunity to grow. Themoment her restraining hand was shaken off, war sprangup everywhere. Not only do we find the inheritorsof her territory fighting among themselves, they areexposed to the savagery of Attila, the fury of theArabs. New bands of more distant Teutons come,ever pushing in amid their half-settled brethren,overthrowing them in turn. The Lombards captureNorthern Italy, only Venice remaining safe amid hermarshes.[14] The East-Franks—­that is, thesemi-barbarians still remaining in the wilderness—­masterthe more cultured West-Franks, who hold Gaul.No sooner does civilization start up than it is troddenon.

THE EMPIRE OF CHARLEMAGNE

At length there arose among the Franks a series ofstalwart rulers, keen-eyed, penetrating somewhat atleast into the meaning of their world, determinedto have peace if they must fight for it. CharlesMartel was one of these. Then came his son Pepin,[15]who held out his hand to the bishops of Rome, acknowledgedtheir vast civilizing influence, saved them from theLombards, and joined church and state once more inharmony. After Pepin came his son, Charlemagne,whose reign marks an epoch of the world. Thepeace his fathers had striven for, he won at last,though only, as they had done, by constant fighting.He attacked the Arabs and reduced them to permanentfeebleness in Spain. He turned backward the Teutonicmovement, marching his Franks into the German forests,and in campaign after campaign defeating the wild tribesthat still remained there. The strongest of them,the Saxons, accepted an enforced Christianity.Even the vague races beyond the German borders wereso harried, so weakened, that they ceased to be a seriousmenace.

Charlemagne[16] had thus in very truth created a newempire. He had established at least one centralspot, so hedged round by border dependencies thatno later wave of barbarians ever quite succeeded insubmerging it. The bones of the great Emperor,in their cathedral sepulchre at Aix, have never beendisturbed by an unfriendly hand, Paris submitted tono new conquest until over a thousand years later,when the nineteenth century had stolen the barbarityfrom war. It was then no more than a just acknowledgmentof Charlemagne’s work when, on Christmas Dayof the year 800, as he rose from kneeling at the cathedralaltar in Rome, he was crowned by the Pope whom hehad defended, and hailed by an enthusiastic peopleas lord of a re-created “Holy Roman Empire.”

In England, also, the centuries of warfare among theBritons and the various antagonistic Teutonic tribesseemed drawing to an end. Egbert establishedthe “heptarchy";[17] that is, became overlordof all the lesser kings. Truly for a moment civilizationseemed reestablished. The arts returned to prominence.England could send so noteworthy a scholar as Alcuinto the aid of the great Emperor. Charlemagne encouragedlearning; Alcuin established schools. Once moremen sowed and reaped in security. The “Romanpeace” seemed come again.

[For the next Section ofthis general survey see volumeV.]

FOOTNOTES:

[1] See Visigoths Pillage Rome, page 1.

[2] See The English Conquest of Britain, page55.

[3] See Huns Invade the Eastern Roman Empire,page 28.

[4] See Attila Invades Western Europe, page72.

[5] See Foundation of Venice, page 95.

[6] See Clovis Founds the Kingdom of the Franks,page 113.

[7] See Publication of the Justinian Code,page 138.

[8] See Augustine’s Missionary Work in England,page 182.

[9] See The Hegira, page 198.

[10] See The Saracen Conquest of Syria, page247.

[11] See Saracens Conquer Egypt, page 278.

[12] See Saracens in Spain, page 301.

[13] See Battle of Tours, page 313.

[14] See Evolution of the Dogeship in Venice,page 292.

[15] See Founding of the Carlovingian Dynasty,page 324.

[16] See Career of Charlemagne, page 334.

[17] See Egbert Becomes King of the Anglo-SaxonHeptarchy, page 372.

VISIGOTHS PILLAGE ROME

A.D. 410

EDWARD GIBBON

Of the two great historical divisionsof the Gothic race the Visigoths or West Gothswere admitted into the Roman Empire in A.D. 376,when they sought protection from the pursuing Huns,and were transported across the Danube to theMoesian shore. The story of their gradualprogress in civilization and growth in military power,which at last enabled them to descend with overwhelmingforce upon Rome itself, forms one of the romancesof history.

From their first reception into LowerMoesia the Visigoths were subjected to the mostcontemptuous and oppressive treatment by the Romanswho had admitted them into their domains. At lastthe outraged colonists were provoked to revolt,and a stubborn war ensued, which was ended atAdrianople, August 9, A.D. 378, by the defeatof the emperor Valens and the destruction of his army,two-thirds of his soldiers perishing with Valenshimself, whose body was never found.

In 382 a treaty was made which restoredpeace to the Eastern Empire, the Visigoths nominallyowning the sovereignty of Rome, but living invirtual independence. They continued to increasein numbers and in power, and in A.D. 395, underAlaric, their King, they invaded Greece, butwere compelled by Stilicho, in 397, to retireinto Epirus. Stilicho was the commander-in-chiefof the Roman army, and the guardian of the youngemperor Honorius. Alaric soon afterwardbecame commander-in-chief of the Roman forces in EasternIllyricum and held that office for four years.During that time he remained quiet, arming anddrilling his followers, and waiting for the opportunityto make a bold stroke for a wider and more securedominion.

In the autumn of A.D. 400, while Stilichowas campaigning in Gaul, Alaric made his firstinvasion of Italy, and for more than a year heranged at will over the northern part of the peninsula.Rome was made ready for defence, and Honorius,the weak Emperor of the Western Empire, preparedfor flight into Gaul; but on March 19th of theyear 402, Stilicho surprised the camp of Alaric, nearPollentia, while most of his followers were atworship, and after a desperate battle they werebeaten. Alaric made a safe retreat, and soonafterward crossed the Po, intending to march againstRome, but desertions from his ranks caused himto abandon that purpose. In 403 he was overtakenand again defeated by Stilicho at Verona, Alarichimself barely escaping capture. Stilicho, however,permitted him—­some historians say,bribed him—­to withdraw to Illyricum,and he was made prefect of Western Illyricum by Honorius.Such is the prelude, followed in history by the amazingexploits of Alaric’s second invasion ofItaly.

His troops having revolted at Pavia,Stilicho fled to Ravenna, where the ungratefulEmperor had him put to death August 23, 408.In October of that year Alaric crossed the Alps,advancing without resistance until he reachedRavenna; after threatening Ravenna he marchedupon Rome and began the preparations that ended inthe sack of the city.

The incapacity of a weak and distracted governmentmay often assume the appearance, and produce the effects,of a treasonable correspondence with the public enemy.If Alaric himself had been introduced into the councilof Ravenna, he would probably have advised the samemeasures which were actually pursued by the ministersof Honorius. The King of the Goths would haveconspired, perhaps with some reluctance, to destroythe formidable adversary, by whose arms, in Italy aswell as in Greece, he had been twice overthrown.Their active and interested hatred laboriously accomplishedthe disgrace and ruin of the great Stilicho.The valor of Sarus, his fame in arms, and his personal,or hereditary, influence over the confederate Barbarians,could recommend him only to the friends of their country,

who despised, or detested, the worthless charactersof Turpilio, Varanes, and Vigilantius. By thepressing instances of the new favorites, these generals,unworthy as they had shown themselves of the namesof soldiers, were promoted to the command of the cavalry,of the infantry, and of the domestic troops. TheGothic prince would have subscribed with pleasurethe edict which the fanaticism of Olympius dictatedto the simple and devout Emperor.

Honorius excluded all persons who were adverse tothe Catholic Church from holding any office in theState; obstinately rejected the service of all thosewho dissented from his religion; and rashly disqualifiedmany of his bravest and most skilful officers who adheredto the pagan worship or who had imbibed the opinionsof Arianism. These measures, so advantageousto an enemy, Alaric would have approved, and mightperhaps have suggested; but it may seem doubtful whetherthe Barbarian would have promoted his interest atthe expense of the inhuman and absurd cruelty whichwas perpetrated by the direction, or at least withthe connivance, of the imperial ministers. Theforeign auxiliaries who had been attached to the personof Stilicho lamented his death; but the desire ofrevenge was checked by a natural apprehension for thesafety of their wives and children, who were detainedas hostages in the strong cities of Italy, where theyhad likewise deposited their most valuable effects.

At the same hour, and as if by a common signal, thecities of Italy were polluted by the same horrid scenesof universal massacre and pillage which involved inpromiscuous destruction the families and fortunes ofthe Barbarians. Exasperated by such an injury,which might have awakened the tamest and most servilespirit, they cast a look of indignation and hope towardthe camp of Alaric, and unanimously swore to pursue,with just and implacable war, the perfidious nationthat had so basely violated the laws of hospitality.By the imprudent conduct of the ministers of Honoriusthe republic lost the assistance, and deserved theenmity, of thirty thousand of her bravest soldiers;and the weight of that formidable army, which alonemight have determined the event of the war, was transferredfrom the scale of the Romans into that of the Goths.

In the arts of negotiation, as well as in those ofwar, the Gothic King maintained his superior ascendantover an enemy, whose seeming changes proceeded fromthe total want of counsel and design. From hiscamp, on the confines of Italy, Alaric attentivelyobserved the revolutions of the palace, watched theprogress of faction and discontent, disguised thehostile aspect of a Barbarian invader, and assumedthe more popular appearance of the friend and allyof the great Stilicho; to whose virtues, when theywere no longer formidable, he could pay a just tributeof sincere praise and regret.

The pressing invitation of the malcontents, who urgedthe King of the Goths to invade Italy, was enforcedby a lively sense of his personal injuries; and hemight speciously complain that the Imperial ministersstill delayed and eluded the payment of the four thousandpounds of gold which had been granted by the Romansenate, either to reward his services or to appeasehis fury. His decent firmness was supported byan artful moderation, which contributed to the successof his designs. He required a fair and reasonablesatisfaction; but he gave the strongest assurancesthat, as soon as he had obtained it, he would immediatelyretire. He refused to trust the faith of the Romans,unless Aetius and Jason, the sons of two great officersof state, were sent as hostages to his camp; but heoffered to deliver, in exchange, several of the noblestyouths of the Gothic nation. The modesty of Alaricwas interpreted, by the ministers of Ravenna, as asure evidence of his weakness and fear. Theydisdained either to negotiate a treaty or to assemblean army; and with a rash confidence, derived onlyfrom their ignorance of the extreme danger, irretrievablywasted the decisive moments of peace and war.While they expected, in sullen silence, that the Barbariansshould evacuate the confines of Italy, Alaric, withbold and rapid marches, passed the Alps and the Po;hastily pillaged the cities of Aquileia, Altinum,Concordia, and Cremona, which yielded to his arms;increased his forces by the accession of thirty thousandauxiliaries; and, without meeting a single enemy inthe field, advanced as far as the edge of the morasswhich protected the impregnable residence of the Emperorof the West.

Instead of attempting the hopeless siege of Ravenna,the prudent leader of the Goths proceeded to Rimini,stretched his ravages along the sea-coast of the Adriatic,and meditated the conquest of the ancient mistressof the world. An Italian hermit, whose zeal andsanctity were respected by the Barbarians themselves,encountered the victorious monarch, and boldly denouncedthe indignation of heaven against the oppressors ofthe earth; but the saint himself was confounded bythe solemn asseveration of Alaric, that he felt asecret and preternatural impulse, which directed,and even compelled, his march to the gates of Rome.He felt that his genius and his fortune were equalto the most arduous enterprises; and the enthusiasmwhich he communicated to the Goths insensibly removedthe popular, and almost superstitious, reverence ofthe nations for the majesty of the Roman name.His troops, animated by the hopes of spoil, followedthe course of the Flaminian way, occupied the unguardedpasses of the Apennine, descended into the rich plainsof Umbria; and, as they lay encamped on the banks ofthe cl*tumnus, might wantonly slaughter and devourthe milk-white oxen, which had been so long reservedfor the use of Roman triumphs. A lofty situation,and a seasonable tempest of thunder and lightning,preserved the little city of Narni; but the King ofthe Goths, despising the ignoble prey, still advancedwith unabated vigor; and after he had passed throughthe stately arches, adorned with the spoils of Barbaricvictories, he pitched his camp under the walls of Rome.

By a skilful disposition of his numerous forces, whoimpatiently watched the moment of an assault, Alaricencompassed the walls, commanded the twelve principalgates, intercepted all communication with the adjacentcountry, and vigilantly guarded the navigation of theTiber, from which the Romans derived the surest andmost plentiful supply of provisions. The firstemotions of the nobles and of the people were thoseof surprise and indignation that a vile Barbarianshould dare to insult the capital of the world; buttheir arrogance was soon humbled by misfortune; andtheir unmanly rage, instead of being directed againstan enemy in arms, was meanly exercised on a defencelessand innocent victim. Perhaps in the person ofSerena, the Romans might have respected the nieceof Theodosius, the aunt, nay, even the adoptive mother,of the reigning Emperor; but they abhorred the widowof Stilicho; and they listened with credulous passionto the tale of calumny, which accused her of maintaininga secret and criminal correspondence with the Gothicinvader. Actuated or overawed by the same popularfrenzy, the senate, without requiring any evidenceof her guilt, pronounced the sentence of her death.Serena was ignominiously strangled; and the infatuatedmultitude were astonished to find that this cruel actof injustice did not immediately produce the retreatof the Barbarians and the deliverance of the city.

That unfortunate city gradually experienced the distressof scarcity, and at length the horrid calamities offamine. The daily allowance of three pounds ofbread was reduced to one-half, to one-third, to nothing;and the price of corn still continued to rise in arapid and extravagant proportion. The poorercitizens, who were unable to purchase the necessariesof life, solicited the precarious charity of the rich;and for a while the public misery was alleviated bythe humanity of Laeta, the widow of the emperor Gratian,who had fixed her residence at Rome, and consecratedto the use of the indigent the princely revenue whichshe annually received from the grateful successorsof her husband. But these private and temporarydonatives were insufficient to appease the hungerof a numerous people; and the progress of famine invadedthe marble palaces of the senators themselves.The persons of both sexes, who had been educated inthe enjoyment of ease and luxury, discovered how littleis requisite to supply the demands of nature, and lavishedtheir unavailing treasures of gold and silver to obtainthe coarse and scanty sustenance which they wouldformerly have rejected with disdain. The foodthe most repugnant to sense or imagination, the alimentsthe most unwholesome and pernicious to the constitution,were eagerly devoured, and fiercely disputed, by therage of hunger. A dark suspicion was entertainedthat some desperate wretches fed on the bodies of theirfellow-creature, whom they had secretly murdered; andeven mothers—­such was the horrid conflictof the two most powerful instincts implanted by naturein the human breast—­even mothers are saidto have tasted the flesh of their slaughtered infants!

Many thousands of the inhabitants of Rome expiredin their houses or in the streets for want of sustenance;and as the public sepulchres without the walls werein the power of the enemy, the stench which arose fromso many putrid and unburied carcasses infected theair; and the miseries of famine were succeeded andaggravated by the contagion of a pestilential disease.The assurances of speedy and effectual relief, whichwere repeatedly transmitted from the court of Ravenna,supported for some time the fainting resolution ofthe Romans, till at length the despair of any humanaid tempted them to accept the offers of a preternaturaldeliverance. Pompeianus, prefect of the city,had been persuaded, by the art or fanaticism of someTuscan diviners, that, by the mysterious force ofspells and sacrifices, they could extract the lightningfrom the clouds, and point those celestial fires againstthe camp of the Barbarians. The important secretwas communicated to Innocent, the Bishop of Rome;and the successor of St. Peter is accused, perhapswith foundation, of preferring the safety of the republicto the rigid severity of the Christian worship.But when the question was agitated in the senate;when it was proposed, as an essential condition, thatthose sacrifices should be performed in the Capitol,by the authority, and in the presence, of the magistrates,the majority of that respectable assembly, apprehensiveeither of the divine or of the Imperial displeasure,refused to join in an act which appeared almost equivalentto the public restoration of paganism.

The last resource of the Romans was in the clemency,or at least in the moderation, of the King of theGoths. The senate, who in this emergency assumedthe supreme powers of government, appointed two ambassadorsto negotiate with the enemy. This important trustwas delegated to Basilius, a senator of Spanish extraction,and already conspicuous in the administration of provinces;and to John, the first tribune of the notaries, whowas peculiarly qualified by his dexterity in business,as well as by his former intimacy with the Gothicprince. When they were introduced into his presence,they declared, perhaps in a more lofty style thanbecame their abject condition, that the Romans wereresolved to maintain their dignity, either in peaceor war; and that, if Alaric refused them a fair andhonorable capitulation, he might sound his trumpets,and prepare to give battle to an innumerable people,exercised in arms, and animated by despair. “Thethicker the hay, the easier it is mowed,” wasthe concise reply of the Barbarian; and this rusticmetaphor was accompanied by a loud and insulting laugh,expressive of his contempt for the menaces of an unwarlikepopulace, enervated by luxury before they were emaciatedby famine. He then condescended to fix the ransomwhich he would accept as the price of his retreat fromthe walls of Rome: all the gold and silverin the city, whether it were the property of the Stateor of individuals; all the rich and preciousmovables; and all the slaves who could provetheir title to the name of Barbarians.The ministers of the senate presumed to ask, in amodest and suppliant tone, “If such, O king,are your demands, what do you intend to leave us?”

“Your lives!” replied the haughtyconqueror.

They trembled and retired. Yet, before they retired,a short suspension of arms was granted, which allowedsome time for a more temperate negotiation. Thestern features of Alaric were insensibly relaxed; heabated much of the rigor of his terms; and at lengthconsented to raise the siege on the immediate paymentof five thousand pounds of gold, of thirty thousandpounds of silver, of four thousand robes of silk, ofthree thousand pieces of fine scarlet cloth, and ofthree thousand pounds weight of pepper. But thepublic treasury was exhausted; the annual rents ofthe great estates in Italy and the provinces wereintercepted by the calamities of war; the gold andgems had been exchanged, during the famine, for thevilest sustenance; the hoards of secret wealth werestill concealed by the obstinacy of avarice; and someremains of consecrated spoils afforded the only resourcethat could avert the impending ruin of the city.

As soon as the Romans had satisfied the rapaciousdemands of Alaric, they were restored, in some measure,to the enjoyment of peace and plenty. Severalof the gates were cautiously opened; the importationof provisions from the river and the adjacent countrywas no longer obstructed by the Goths; the citizensresorted in crowds to the free market, which was heldduring three days in the suburbs; and while the merchantswho undertook this gainful trade made a considerableprofit, the future subsistence of the city was securedby the ample magazines which were deposited in thepublic and private granaries.

A more regular discipline than could have been expectedwas maintained in the camp of Alaric; and the wiseBarbarian justified his regard for the faith of treatiesby the just severity with which he chastised a partyof licentious Goths who had insulted some Roman citizenson the road to Ostia. His army, enriched by thecontributions of the capital, slowly advanced intothe fair and fruitful province of Tuscany, where heproposed to establish his winter quarters; and theGothic standard became the refuge of forty thousandBarbarian slaves, who had broken their chains, andaspired, under the command of their great deliverer,to revenge the injuries and the disgrace of their cruelservitude. About the same time he received amore honorable reinforcement of Goths and Huns, whomAdolphus, the brother of his wife, had conducted, athis pressing invitation, from the banks of the Danubeto those of the Tiber; and who had cut their way,with some difficulty and loss, through the superiornumbers of the Imperial troops. A victorious leader,who united the daring spirit of a Barbarian with theart and discipline of a Roman general, was at thehead of a hundred thousand fighting men; and Italypronounced, with terror and respect, the formidablename of Alaric.

At the distance of fourteen centuries, we may be satisfiedwith relating the military exploits of the conquerorsof Rome, without presuming to investigate the motivesof their political conduct.

In the midst of his apparent prosperity, Alaric wasconscious, perhaps, of some secret weakness, someinternal defect; or perhaps the moderation which hedisplayed was intended only to deceive and disarm theeasy credulity of the ministers of Honorius.The King of the Goths repeatedly declared that itwas his desire to be considered as the friend of peaceand of the Romans. Three senators, at his earnestrequest, were sent ambassadors to the court of Ravenna,to solicit the exchange of hostages and the conclusionof the treaty; and the proposals, which he more clearlyexpressed during the course of the negotiations, couldonly inspire a doubt of his sincerity as they mightseem inadequate to the state of his fortune.The Barbarian still aspired to the rank of master-generalof the armies of the West; he stipulated an annualsubsidy of corn and money; and he chose the provincesof Dalmatia, Noricum, and Venetia for the seat ofhis new kingdom, which would have commanded the importantcommunication between Italy and the Danube. Ifthese modest terms should be rejected, Alaric showeda disposition to relinquish his pecuniary demands,and even to content himself with the possession ofNoricum; an exhausted and impoverished country perpetuallyexposed to the inroads of the Barbarians of Germany.

But the hopes of peace were disappointed by the weakobstinacy, or interested views, of the minister Olympius.Without listening to the salutary remonstrances ofthe senate, he dismissed their ambassadors under theconduct of a military escort, too numerous for a retinueof honor and too feeble for an army of defence.Six thousand Dalmatians, the flower of the Imperiallegions, were ordered to march from Ravenna to Rome,through an open country which was occupied by the formidablemyriads of the Barbarians. These brave legionaries,encompassed and betrayed, fell a sacrifice to ministerialfolly; their general, Valens, with a hundred soldiers,escaped from the field of battle; and one of the ambassadors,who could no longer claim the protection of the lawof nations, was obliged to purchase his freedom witha ransom of thirty thousand pieces of gold. YetAlarie, instead of resenting this act of impotenthostility, immediately renewed his proposals of peace;and the second embassy of the Roman senate, whichderived weight and dignity from the presence of Innocent,bishop of the city, was guarded from the dangers ofthe road by a detachment of Gothic soldiers.

Olympius might have continued to insult the just resentmentof a people who loudly accused him as the author ofthe public calamities; but his power was underminedby the secret intrigues of the palace. The favoriteeunuchs transferred the government of Honorius, andthe Empire, to Jovius, the praetorian prefect; anunworthy servant, who did not atone, by the meritof personal attachment, for the errors and misfortunesof his administration. The exile, or escape,of the guilty Olympius, reserved him for more vicissitudesof fortune: he experienced the adventure of anobscure and wandering life; he again rose to power;he fell a second time into disgrace; his ears werecut off; he expired under the lash; and his ignominiousdeath afforded a grateful spectacle to the friendsof Stilicho.

After the removal of Olympius, whose character wasdeeply tainted with religious fanaticism, the pagansand heretics were delivered from the impolitic proscriptionwhich excluded them from the dignities of the State.The brave Gennerid, a soldier of Barbarian origin,who still adhered to the worship of his ancestors,had been obliged to lay aside the military belt; andthough he was repeatedly assured by the Emperor himselfthat laws were not made for persons of his rank ormerit, he refused to accept any partial dispensation,and persevered in honorable disgrace till he had extorteda general act of justice from the distress of theRoman Government. The conduct of Gennerid, inthe important station to which he was promoted orrestored, of master-general of Dalmatia, Pannonia,Noricum, and Rhaetia, seemed to revive the disciplineand spirit of the republic. From a life of idlenessand want, his troops were soon habituated to severeexercise and plentiful subsistence; and his privategenerosity often supplied the rewards which were deniedby the avarice, or poverty, of the court of Ravenna.

The valor of Gennerid, formidable to the adjacentBarbarians, was the firmest bulwark of the Illyrianfrontier; and his vigilant care assisted the Empirewith a reinforcement of ten thousand Huns, who arrivedon the confines of Italy, attended by such a convoyof provisions, and such a numerous train of sheepand oxen, as might have been sufficient, not onlyfor the march of an army, but for the settlement ofa colony.

But the court and councils of Honorius still remaineda scene of weakness and distraction, of corruptionand anarchy. Instigated by the prefect Jovius,the guards rose in furious mutiny, and demanded theheads of two generals and of the two principal eunuchs.The generals, under a perfidious promise of safety,were sent on shipboard and privately executed; whilethe favor of the eunuchs procured them a mild andsecure exile at Milan and Constantinople. Eusebiusthe eunuch, and the Barbarian Allobich, succeededto the command of the bed-chamber and of the guards;and the mutual jealousy of these subordinate ministerswas the cause of their mutual destruction. Bythe insolent order of the count of the domestics,the great chamberlain was shamefully beaten to deathwith sticks, before the eyes of the astonished Emperor;and the subsequent assassination of Allobich, in themidst of a public procession, is the only circ*mstanceof his life in which Honorius discovered the faintestsymptom of courage or resentment.

Yet before they fell, Eusebius and Allobich had contributedtheir part to the ruin of the Empire, by opposingthe conclusion of a treaty which Jovius, from a selfish,and perhaps a criminal, motive, had negotiated withAlaric, in a personal interview under the walls ofRimini. During the absence of Jovius, the Emperorwas persuaded to assume a lofty tone of inflexibledignity, such as neither his situation nor his character

could enable him to support; and a letter, signed withthe name of Honorius, was immediately despatched tothe praetorian prefect, granting him a free permissionto dispose of the public money, but sternly refusingto prostitute the military honors of Rome to the prouddemands of a Barbarian. This letter was imprudentlycommunicated to Alaric himself; and the Goth, whoin the whole transaction had behaved with temper anddecency, expressed, in the most outrageous language,his lively sense of the insult so wantonly offeredto his person and to his nation.

The conference of Rimini was hastily interrupted;and the prefect Jovius, on his return to Ravenna,was compelled to adopt, and even to encourage, thefashionable opinions of the court. By his adviceand example, the principal officers of the State andarmy were obliged to swear that, without listening,in any circ*mstances, to any conditions of peace,they would still persevere in perpetual and implacablewar against the enemy of the republic. This rashengagement opposed an insuperable bar to all futurenegotiation. The ministers of Honorius were heardto declare that if they had only invoked the name ofthe Deity they would consult the public safety, andtrust their souls to the mercy of heaven; but theyhad sworn by the sacred head of the Emperor himself;they had touched, in solemn ceremony, that august seatof majesty and wisdom; and the violation of theiroath would expose them, to the temporal penaltiesof sacrilege and rebellion.

While the Emperor and his court enjoyed, with sullenpride, the security of the marshes and fortificationsof Ravenna, they abandoned Rome, almost without defence,to the resentment of Alaric. Yet such was themoderation which he still preserved, or affected, that,as he moved with his army along the Flaminian way,he successively despatched the bishops of the townsof Italy to reiterate his offers of peace and to conjurethe Emperor that he would save the city and its inhabitantsfrom hostile fire and the sword of the Barbarians.These impending calamities were, however, averted,not indeed by the wisdom of Honorius, but by the prudenceor humanity of the Gothic King; who employed a milder,though not less effectual, method of conquest.Instead of assaulting the capital, he successfullydirected his efforts against the port of Ostia, oneof the boldest and most stupendous works of Roman magnificence.

The accidents to which the precarious subsistenceof the city was continually exposed in a winter navigationand an open road, had suggested to the genius of thefirst Caesar the useful design which was executedunder the reign of Claudius. The artificial moles,which formed the narrow entrance, advanced far intothe sea, and firmly repelled the fury of the waves,while the largest vessels securely rode at anchorwithin three deep and capacious basins, which receivedthe northern branch of the Tiber, about two milesfrom the ancient colony of Ostia. The Roman port

insensibly swelled to the size of an episcopal city,where the corn of Africa was deposited in spaciousgranaries for the use of the capital. As soonas Alaric was in possession of that important place,he summoned the city to surrender at discretion; andhis demands were enforced by the positive declarationthat a refusal, or even a delay, should be instantlyfollowed by the destruction of the magazines, on whichthe life of the Roman people depended. The clamorsof that people, and the terror of famine, subduedthe pride of the senate; they listened, without reluctance,to the proposal of placing a new emperor on the throneof the unworthy Honorius; and the suffrage of the Gothicconqueror bestowed the purple on Attalus, prefect ofthe city. The grateful monarch immediately acknowledgedhis protector as master-general of the armies of theWest; Adolphus, with the rank of count of the domestics,obtained the custody of the person of Attalus; andthe two hostile nations seemed to be united in theclosest bands of friendship and alliance.

The gates of the city were thrown open, and the newEmperor of the Romans, encompassed on every side bythe Gothic arms, was conducted, in tumultuous procession,to the palace of Augustus and Trajan. After hehad distributed the civil and military dignities amonghis favorites and followers, Attalus convened an assemblyof the senate; before whom, in a formal and floridspeech, he asserted his resolution of restoring themajesty of the republic, and of uniting to the Empirethe provinces of Egypt and the East which had onceacknowledged the sovereignty of Rome. Such extravagantpromises inspired every reasonable citizen with a justcontempt for the character of an unwarlike usurper,whose elevation was the deepest and most ignominiouswound which the republic had yet sustained from theinsolence of the Barbarians. But the populace,with their usual levity, applauded the change of masters.The public discontent was favorable to the rival ofHonorius; and the sectaries, oppressed by his persecutingedicts, expected some degree of countenance, or atleast of toleration, from a prince who, in his nativecountry of Ionia, had been educated in the pagan superstition,and who had since received the sacrament of baptismfrom the hands of an Arian bishop.

The first days of the reign of Attains were fair andprosperous. An officer of confidence was sentwith an inconsiderable body of troops to secure theobedience of Africa; the greatest part of Italy submittedto the terror of the Gothic powers; and though thecity of Bologna made a vigorous and effectual resistance,the people of Milan, dissatisfied perhaps with theabsence of Honorius, accepted, with loud acclamations,the choice of the Roman senate. At the head ofa formidable army, Alaric conducted his royal captivealmost to the gates of Ravenna; and a solemn embassyof the principal ministers, of Jovius, the praetorianprefect, of Valens, master of the cavalry and infantry,

of the quaestor Potamius, and of Julian, the firstof the notaries, was introduced, with martial pomp,into the Gothic camp. In the name of their sovereign,they consented to acknowledge the lawful electionof his competitor, and to divide the provinces ofItaly and the West between the two emperors. Theirproposals were rejected with disdain; and the refusalwas aggravated by the insulting clemency of Attalus,who condescended to promise that, if Honorius wouldinstantly resign the purple, he should be permittedto pass the remainder of his life in the peacefulexile of some remote island. So desperate indeeddid the situation of the son of Theodosius appear,to those who were the best acquainted with his strengthand resources, that Jovius and Valens, his ministerand his general, betrayed their trust, infamouslydeserted the sinking cause of their benefactor, anddevoted their treacherous allegiance to the serviceof his more fortunate rival.

Astonished by such examples of domestic treason, Honoriustrembled at the approach of every servant, at thearrival of every messenger. He dreaded the secretenemies who might lurk in his capital, his palace,his bed-chamber; and some ships lay ready in the harborof Ravenna to transport the abdicated monarch to thedominions of his infant nephew, the Emperor of theEast.

But there is a Providence—­such at leastwas the opinion of the historian Procopius—­thatwatches over innocence and folly; and the pretensionsof Honorius to its peculiar care cannot reasonablybe disputed. At the moment when his despair,incapable of any wise or manly resolution, meditateda shameful flight, a seasonable reinforcement of fourthousand veterans unexpectedly landed in the port ofRavenna. To these valiant strangers, whose fidelityhad not been corrupted by the factions of the court,he committed the walls and gates of the city; andthe slumbers of the Emperor were no longer disturbedby the apprehension of imminent and internal danger.The favorable intelligence which was received fromAfrica suddenly changed the opinions of men and thestate of public affairs. The troops and officerswhom Attalus had sent into that province were defeatedand slain; and the active zeal of Heraclian maintainedhis own allegiance and that of his people. Thefaithful Count of Africa transmitted a large sum ofmoney, which fixed the attachment of the Imperialguards; and his vigilance in preventing the exportationof corn and oil introduced famine, tumult, and discontentinto the walls of Rome.

The failure of the African expedition was the sourceof mutual complaint and recrimination in the partyof Attalus; and the mind of his protector was insensiblyalienated from the interest of a prince who wantedspirit to command, or docility to obey. The mostimprudent measures were adopted, without the knowledge,or against the advice, of Alaric; and the obstinaterefusal of the senate to allow, in the embarkation,

the mixture even of five hundred Goths, betrayed asuspicious and distrustful temper, which, in theirsituation, was neither generous nor prudent.The resentment of the Gothic King was exasperated bythe malicious arts of Jovius, who had been raisedto the rank of patrician, and who afterward excusedhis double perfidy, by declaring, without a blush,that he had only seemed to abandon the serviceof Honorius, more effectually to ruin the cause ofthe usurper. In a large plain near Rimini, andin the presence of an innumerable multitude of Romansand Barbarians, the wretched Attalus was publiclydespoiled of the diadem and purple; and those ensignsof royalty were sent by Alaric, as the pledge of peaceand friendship, to the son of Theodosius.

The officers who returned to their duty were reinstatedin their employments, and even the merit of a tardyrepentance was graciously allowed; but the degradedEmperor of the Romans, desirous of life and insensibleof disgrace, implored the permission of following theGothic camp, in the train of a haughty and capriciousBarbarian.

The degradation of Attalus removed the only real obstacleto the conclusion of the peace; and Alaric advancedwithin three miles of Ravenna, to press the irresolutionof the Imperial ministers, whose insolence soon returnedwith the return of fortune. His indignation waskindled by the report that a rival chieftain, thatSarus, the personal enemy of Adolphus, and the hereditaryfoe of the house of Balti, had been received intothe palace. At the head of three hundred followers,that fearless Barbarian immediately sallied from thegates of Ravenna; surprised, and cut in pieces, aconsiderable body of Goths; reentered the city intriumph; and was permitted to insult his adversaryby the voice of a herald, who publicly declared thatthe guilt of Alaric had forever excluded him fromthe friendship and alliance of the Emperor.

The crime and folly of the court of Ravenna were expiateda third time by the calamities of Rome. The Kingof the Goths, who no longer dissembled his appetitefor plunder and revenge, appeared in arms under thewalls of the capital; and the trembling senate, withoutany hopes of relief, prepared, by a desperate resistance,to delay the ruin of their country. But theywere unable to guard against the secret conspiracyof their slaves and domestics; who, either from birthor interest, were attached to the cause of the enemy.At the hour of midnight the Salarian gate was silentlyopened, and the inhabitants were awakened by the tremendoussound of the Gothic trumpet. Eleven hundred andsixty-three years after the foundation of Rome, theImperial city, which had subdued and civilized soconsiderable a part of mankind, was delivered to thelicentious fury of the tribes of Germany and Scythia.

The proclamation of Alaric, when he forced his entranceinto a vanquished city, discovered, however, someregard for the laws of humanity and religion.He encouraged his troops boldly to seize the rewardsof valor, and to enrich themselves with the spoilsof a wealthy and effeminate people; but he exhortedthem, at the same time, to spare the lives of theunresisting citizens, and to respect the churches ofthe apostles St. Peter and St. Paul as holy and inviolablesanctuaries. Amid the horrors of a nocturnaltumult, several of the Christian Goths displayed thefervor of a recent conversion; and some instances oftheir uncommon piety and moderation are related, andperhaps adorned, by the zeal of ecclesiastical writers.

While the Barbarians roamed through the city in questof prey, the humble dwelling of an aged virgin, whohad devoted her life to the service of the altar,was forced open by one of the powerful Goths.He immediately demanded, though in civil language,all the gold and silver in her possession; and wasastonished at the readiness with which she conductedhim to a splendid hoard of massy plate, of the richestmaterials and the most curious workmanship. TheBarbarian viewed with wonder and delight this valuableacquisition, till he was interrupted by a seriousadmonition, addressed to him in the following words:“These,” said she, “are the consecratedvessels belonging to St. Peter; if you presume totouch them, the sacrilegious deed will remain on yourconscience. For my part, I dare not keep whatI am unable to defend.” The Gothic captain,struck with reverential awe, despatched a messengerto inform the King of the treasure which he had discovered;and received a peremptory order from Alaric, thatall the consecrated plate and ornaments should betransported, without damage or delay, to the churchof the apostle.

From the extremity, perhaps, of the Quirinal hill,to the distant quarter of the Vatican, a numerousdetachment of Goths, marching in order of battle throughthe principal streets, protected, with glitteringarms, the long train of their devout companions, whobore aloft on their heads the sacred vessels of goldand silver; and the martial shouts of the Barbarianswere mingled with the sound of religious psalmody.From all the adjacent houses a crowd of Christianshastened to join this edifying procession; and a multitudeof fugitives, without distinction of age, or rank,or even of sect, had the good fortune to escape tothe secure and hospitable sanctuary of the Vatican.The learned work, concerning the City of God,was professedly composed by St. Augustine, to justifythe ways of Providence in the destruction of the Romangreatness. He celebrates, with peculiar satisfaction,this memorable triumph of Christ; and insults hisadversaries by challenging them to produce some similarexample of a town taken by storm, in which the fabulousgods of antiquity had been able to protect eitherthemselves or their deluded votaries.

In the sack of Rome, some rare and extraordinary examplesof Barbarian virtue have been deservedly applauded.But the holy precincts of the Vatican, and the apostolicchurches, could receive a very small proportion ofthe Roman people; many thousand warriors, more especiallyof the Huns, who served under the standard of Alaric,were strangers to the name, or at least to the faith,of Christ; and we may suspect, without any breachof charity or candor, that in the hour of savage license,when every passion was inflamed, and every restraintwas removed, the precepts of the Gospel seldom influencedthe behavior of the Gothic Christians. The writersthe best disposed to exaggerate their clemency havefreely confessed that a cruel slaughter was made ofthe Romans; and that the streets of the city werefilled with dead bodies, which remained without burialduring the general consternation. The despairof the citizens was sometimes converted into fury;and whenever the Barbarians were provoked by opposition,they extended the promiscuous massacre to the feeble,the innocent, and the helpless. The private revengeof forty thousand slaves was exercised without pityor remorse; and the ignominious lashes which theyhad formerly received were washed away in the bloodof the guilty or obnoxious families. The matronsand virgins of Rome were exposed to injuries more dreadful,in the apprehension of chastity, than death itself;and the ecclesiastical historian has selected an exampleof female virtue for the admiration of future ages.

A Roman lady, of singular beauty and orthodox faith,had excited the impatient desires of a young Goth,who, according to the sagacious remark of Sozomen,was attached to the Arian heresy. Exasperatedby her obstinate resistance, he drew his sword, and,with the anger of a lover, slightly wounded her neck.The bleeding heroine still continued to brave hisresentment and to repel his love, till the ravisherdesisted from his unavailing efforts, respectfullyconducted her to the sanctuary of the Vatican, andgave six pieces of gold to the guards of the church,on condition that they should restore her inviolateto the arms of her husband. Such instances ofcourage and generosity were not extremely common.

Avarice is an insatiate and universal passion; sincethe enjoyment of almost every object that can affordpleasure to the different tastes and tempers of mankindmay be procured by the possession of wealth. Inthe pillage of Rome a just preference was given togold and jewels, which contain the greatest valuein the smallest compass and weight; but after theseportable riches had been removed by the more diligentrobbers, the palaces of Rome were rudely strippedof their splendid and costly furniture. The sideboardsof massy plate, and the variegated wardrobes of silkand purple, were irregularly piled in the wagons, thatalways followed the march of a Gothic army. Themost exquisite works of art were roughly handled or

wantonly destroyed; many a statue was melted for thesake of the precious materials; and many a vase, inthe division of the spoil, was shivered into fragmentsby the stroke of a battle-axe. The acquisitionof riches served only to stimulate the avarice of therapacious Barbarians, who proceeded, by threats, byblows, and by tortures, to force from their prisonersthe confession of hidden treasure. Visible splendorand expense were alleged as the proof of a plentifulfortune; the appearance of poverty was imputed to aparsimonious disposition; and the obstinacy of somemisers, who endured the most cruel torments beforethey would discover the secret object of their affection,was fatal to many unhappy wretches, who expired underthe lash for refusing to reveal their imaginary treasures.

The edifices of Rome—­though the damagehas been much exaggerated—­received someinjury from the violence of the Goths. At theirentrance through the Salarian gate they fired the adjacenthouses to guide their march, and to distract the attentionof the citizens; the flames, which encountered noobstacle in the disorder of the night, consumed manyprivate and public buildings; and the ruins of thepalace of Sallust remained, in the age of Justinian,a stately monument of the Gothic conflagration.Yet a contemporary historian has observed that firecould scarcely consume the enormous beams of solidbrass, and that the strength of man was insufficientto subvert the foundations of ancient structures.Some truth may possibly be concealed in his devoutassertion that the wrath of heaven supplied the imperfectionsof hostile rage; and that the proud Forum of Rome,decorated with the statues of so many gods and heroes,was levelled in the dust by the stroke of lightning.

Whatever might be the number of equestrian or plebeianrank who perished in the massacre of Rome, it is confidentlyaffirmed that only one senator lost his life by thesword of the enemy. But it was not easy to computethe multitudes who, from an honorable station and aprosperous fortune, were suddenly reduced to the miserablecondition of captives and exiles. As the Barbarianshad more occasion for money than for slaves, theyfixed a moderate price for the redemption of theirindigent prisoners; and the ransom was often paidby the benevolence of their friends or the charityof strangers.

The captives, who were regularly sold either in openmarket or by private contract, would have legallyregained their native freedom, which it was impossiblefor a citizen to lose or to alienate. But as itwas soon discovered that the vindication of their libertywould endanger their lives; and that the Goths, unlessthey were tempted to sell, might be provoked to murdertheir useless prisoners; the civil jurisprudence hadbeen already qualified by a wise regulation that theyshould be obliged to serve the moderate term of fiveyears, till they had discharged by their labor theprice of their redemption.

The nations who invaded the Roman Empire had drivenbefore them, into Italy, whole troops of hungry andaffrighted provincials, less apprehensive of servitudethan of famine. The calamities of Rome and Italydispersed the inhabitants to the most lonely, the mostsecure, the most distant places of refuge. Whilethe Gothic cavalry spread terror and desolation alongthe sea-coast of Campania and Tuscany, the littleisland of Igilium, separated by a narrow channel fromthe Argentarian promontory, repulsed, or eluded, theirhostile attempts; and at so small a distance fromRome, great numbers of citizens were securely concealedin the thick woods of that sequestered spot. Theample patrimonies, which many senatorian familiespossessed in Africa, invited them, if they had time,and prudence, to escape from the ruin of their country,to embrace the shelter of that hospitable province.The most illustrious of these fugitives was the nobleand pious Proba, the widow of the prefect Petronius.After the death of her husband, the most powerfulsubject of Rome, she had remained at the head of theAnician family, and successively supplied, from herprivate fortune, the expense of the consulships ofher three sons. When the city was besieged andtaken by the Goths, Proba supported, with Christianresignation, the loss of immense riches; embarkedin a small vessel, from whence she beheld, at sea,the flames of her burning palace, and fled with herdaughter Laeta, and her granddaughter, the celebratedvirgin Demetrias, to the coast of Africa. Thebenevolent profusion with which the matron distributedthe fruits, or the price, of her estates, contributedto alleviate the misfortunes of exile and captivity.But even the family of Proba herself was not exemptfrom the rapacious oppression of Count Heraclian, whobasely sold, in matrimonial prostitution, the noblestmaidens of Rome to the lust or avarice of the Syrianmerchants.

The Italian fugitives were dispersed through the provinces,along the coast of Egypt and Asia, as far as Constantinopleand Jerusalem; and the village of Bethlehem, the solitaryresidence of St. Jerome and his female converts, wascrowded with illustrious beggars of either sex, andevery age, who excited the public compassion by theremembrance of their past fortune. This awfulcatastrophe of Rome filled the astonished Empire withgrief and terror. So interesting a contrast ofgreatness and ruin disposed the fond credulity ofthe people to deplore, and even to exaggerate, theafflictions of the queen of cities. The clergy,who applied to recent events the lofty metaphors oforiental prophecy, were sometimes tempted to confoundthe destruction of the capital and the dissolutionof the globe.

There exists in human nature a strong propensity todepreciate the advantages, and to magnify the evils,of the present times. Yet, when the first emotionshad subsided, and a fair estimate was made of thereal damage, the more learned and judicious contemporarieswere forced to confess that infant Rome had formerlyreceived more essential injury from the Gauls thanshe had now sustained from the Goths in her decliningage. The experience of eleven centuries has enabledposterity to produce a much more singular parallel,and to affirm with confidence that the ravages ofthe Barbarians, whom Alaric had led from the banksof the Danube, were less destructive than the hostilitiesexercised by the troops of Charles V, a Catholic prince,who styled himself Emperor of the Romans.

The Goths evacuated the city at the end of six days,but Rome remained above nine months in the possessionof the Imperialists, and every hour was stained bysome atrocious act of cruelty, lust, and rapine.The authority of Alaric preserved some order and moderationamong the ferocious multitude which acknowledged himfor their leader and king; but the constable of Bourbonhad gloriously fallen in the attack of the walls;and the death of the general removed every restraintof discipline from an army which consisted of threeindependent nations, the Italians, the Spaniards,and the Germans.

The retreat of the victorious Goths, who evacuatedRome on the sixth day, might be the result of prudence;but it was not surely the effect of fear. Atthe head of an army encumbered with rich and weightyspoils, their intrepid leader advanced along the Appianway into the southern provinces of Italy, destroyingwhatever dared to oppose his passage, and contentinghimself with the plunder of the unresisting country.

Above four years elapsed from the successful invasionof Italy by the arms of Alaric to the voluntary retreatof the Goths under the conduct of his successor Adolphus;and during the whole time they reigned without controlover a country which, in the opinion of the ancients,had united all the various excellences of nature andart. The prosperity, indeed, which Italy hadattained in the auspicious age of the Antonines hadgradually declined with the decline of the Empire.The fruits of a long peace perished under the rudegrasp of the Barbarians; and they themselves wereincapable of tasting the more elegant refinementsof luxury which had been prepared for the use of thesoft and polished Italians. Each soldier, however,claimed an ample portion of the substantial plenty,the corn and cattle, oil and wine that was daily collectedand consumed in the Gothic camp; and the principalwarriors insulted the villas and gardens, once inhabitedby Lucullus and Cicero, along the beauteous coastof Campania. Their trembling captives, the sonsand daughters of Roman senators, presented, in gobletsof gold and gems, large draughts of Falernian wineto the haughty victors, who stretched their huge limbsunder the shade of plane trees, artificially disposedto exclude the scorching rays and to admit the genialwarmth of the sun. These delights were enhancedby the memory of past hardships; the comparison oftheir native soil, the bleak and barren hills of Scythia,and the frozen banks of the Elbe and Danube added newcharms to the felicity of the Italian climate.[18]

Whether fame or conquest or riches were the objectof Alaric, he pursued that object with an indefatigableardor which could neither be quelled by adversitynor satiated by success. No sooner had he reachedthe extreme land of Italy than he was attracted bythe neighboring prospect of a fertile and peacefulisland. Yet even the possession of Sicily heconsidered only as an intermediate step to the importantexpedition which he already meditated against thecontinent of Africa.

The whole design was defeated by the premature deathof Alaric, which fixed, after a short illness, thefatal term of his conquests. The ferocious characterof the Barbarians was displayed in the funeral of ahero whose valor and fortune they celebrated with mournfulapplause. By the labor of a captive multitude,they forcibly diverted the course of the Busentinus,a small river that washes the walls of Consentia.The royal sepulchre, adorned with the splendid spoilsand trophies of Rome, was constructed in the vacantbed; the waters were then restored to their naturalchannel, and the secret spot where the remains of Alarichad been deposited was forever concealed by the inhumanmassacre of the prisoners who had been employed toexecute the work.

The personal animosities and hereditary feuds of theBarbarians were suspended by the strong necessityof their affairs, and the brave Adolphus, the brother-in-lawof the deceased monarch, was unanimously elected tosucceed to his throne. The character and politicalsystem of the new King of the Goths may be best understoodfrom his own conversation with an illustrious citizenof Narbonne; who afterward, in a pilgrimage to theHoly Land, related it to St. Jerome, in the presenceof the historian Orosius. “In the full confidenceof valor and victory, I once aspired (said. Adolphus)to change the face of the universe; to obliteratethe name of Rome; to erect on its ruins the dominionof the Goths; and to acquire, like Augustus, the immortalfame of the founder of a new empire. By repeatedexperiments I was gradually convinced that laws areessentially necessary to maintain and regulate a well-constitutedstate; and that the fierce, untractable humor of theGoths was incapable of bearing the salutary yoke oflaws and civil government. From that moment Iproposed to myself a different object of glory andambition; and it is now my sincere wish that the gratitudeof future ages should acknowledge the merit of a strangerwho employed the sword of the Goths, not to subvert,but to restore and maintain, the prosperity of theRoman Empire.” With these pacific views,the successor of Alaric suspended the operations ofwar, and seriously negotiated with the Imperial courta treaty of friendship and alliance. It was theinterest of the ministers of Honorius, who were nowreleased from, the obligation of their extravagantoath, to deliver Italy from the intolerable weightof the Gothic powers; and they readily accepted their

service against the tyrants and Barbarians who infestedthe provinces beyond the Alps. Adolphus, assumingthe character of a Roman general, directed his marchfrom the extremity of Campania to the southern provincesof Gaul. His troops, either by force or agreement,immediately occupied the cities of Narbonne, Toulouse,and Bordeaux; and though they were repulsed by CountBoniface from the walls of Marseilles, they soon extendedtheir quarters from the Mediterranean to the ocean.The oppressed provincials might exclaim that the miserableremnant which the enemy had spared was cruelly ravishedby their pretended allies; yet some specious colorswere not wanting to palliate, or justify, the violenceof the Goths. The cities of Gaul, which theyattacked, might perhaps be considered as in a stateof rebellion against the government of Honorius; thearticles of the treaty or the secret instructionsof the court might sometimes be alleged in favor ofthe seeming usurpations of Adolphus; and the guiltof any irregular, unsuccessful act of hostility mightalways be imputed, with an appearance of truth, tothe ungovernable spirit of a Barbarian host, impatientof peace or discipline. The luxury of Italy hadbeen less effectual to soften the temper than to relaxthe courage of the Goths; and they had imbibed thevices, without imitating the arts and institutions,of civilized society.

The professions of Adolphus were probably sincere,and his attachment to the cause of the republic wassecured by the ascendant which a Roman princess hadacquired over the heart and understanding of the Barbarianking. Placidia, the daughter of the great Theodosius,and of Galla, his second wife, had received a royaleducation in the palace of Constantinople; but theeventful story of her life is connected with the revolutionswhich agitated the Western Empire under the reign ofher brother Honorius. When Rome was first investedby the arms of Alaric, Placidia, who was then abouttwenty years of age, resided in the city; and herready consent to the death of her cousin Serena hasa cruel and ungrateful appearance, which, accordingto the circ*mstances of the action, may be aggravated,or excused, by the consideration of her tender age.The victorious Barbarians detained, either as a hostageor a captive, the sister of Honorius; but, while shewas exposed to the disgrace of following round Italythe motions of a Gothic camp, she experienced, however,a decent and respectful treatment. The authorityof Jornandes, who praises the beauty of Placidia, mayperhaps be counterbalanced by the silence, the expressivesilence, of her flatterers; yet the splendor of herbirth, the bloom of youth, the elegance of manners,and the dexterous insinuation which she condescendedto employ, made a deep impression on the mind of Adolphus,and the Gothic King aspired to call himself the brotherof the Emperor. The ministers of Honorius rejectedwith disdain the proposal of an alliance so injurious

to every sentiment of Roman pride, and repeatedlyurged the restitution of Placidia as an indispensablecondition of the treaty of peace. But the daughterof Theodosius submitted, without reluctance, to thedesires of the conqueror, a young and valiant prince,who yielded to Alaric in loftiness of stature, butwho excelled in the more attractive qualities of graceand beauty. The marriage of Adolphus and Placidiawas consummated before the Goths retired from Italy;and the solemn, perhaps the anniversary, day of theirnuptials was afterward celebrated in the house ofIngenuus, one of the most illustrious citizens ofNarbonne in Gaul. The bride, attired and adornedlike a Roman empress, was placed on a throne of state;and the King of the Goths, who assumed, on this occasion,the Roman habit, contented himself with a less honorableseat by her side. The nuptial gift which, accordingto the custom of his nation, was offered to Placidia,consisted of the rare and magnificent spoils of hercountry. Fifty beautiful youths, in silken robes,carried a basin in each hand; and one of these basinswas filled with pieces of gold, the other with preciousstones of an inestimable value. Attalus, so longthe sport of fortune and of the Goths, was appointedto lead the chorus of the hymeneal song; and the degradedEmperor might aspire to the praise of a skilful musician.The Barbarians enjoyed the insolence of their triumph;and the provincials rejoiced in this alliance, whichtempered, by the mild influence of love and reason,the fierce spirit of their Gothic lord.

After the deliverance of Italy from the oppressionof the Goths, some secret counsellor was permitted,amid the factions of the palace, to heal the woundsof that afflicted country. By a wise and humaneregulation the eight provinces which had been the mostdeeply injured, Campania, Tuscany, Picenum, Samnium,Apulia, Calabria, Bruttium, and Lucania, obtainedan indulgence of five years; the ordinary tribute wasreduced to one-fifth, and even that fifth was destinedto restore and support the useful institution of thepublic posts. By another law, the lands whichhad been left without inhabitants or cultivation weregranted, with some diminution of taxes, to the neighborswho should occupy or the strangers who should solicitthem; and the new possessors were secured againstthe future claims of the fugitive proprietors.About the same time a general amnesty was publishedin the name of Honorius, to abolish the guilt andmemory of all the involuntary offences whichhad been committed by his unhappy subjects during theterm of the public disorder and calamity. A decentand respectful attention was paid to the restorationof the capital; the citizens were encouraged to rebuildthe edifices which had been destroyed or damaged byhostile fire; and extraordinary supplies of corn wereimported from the coast of Africa. The crowdsthat so lately fled before the sword of the Barbarians

were soon recalled by the hopes of plenty and pleasure;and Albinus, prefect of Rome, informed the Court, withsome anxiety and surprise, that in a single day hehad taken an account of the arrival of fourteen thousandstrangers. In less than seven years the vestigesof the Gothic invasion were almost obliterated, andthe city appeared to resume its former splendor andtranquillity. The venerable matron replaced hercrown of laurel, which had been ruffled by the stormsof war; and was still amused, in the last moment ofher decay, with the prophecies of revenge, of victory,and of eternal dominion.

FOOTNOTE:

[18]

“The prostrateSouth to the destroyer yields
Her boasted titles andher golden fields;
With grim delight thebrood of winter view
A brighter day and skiesof azure hue;
Scent the new fragranceof the opening rose,
And quaff the pendentvintage as it grows.”

See Gray’s Poems, published by Mr. Mason,p. 197.

HUNS INVADE THE EASTERN ROMAN EMPIRE

ATTILA DICTATES A TREATY OF PEACE

A.D. 441

EDWARD GIBBON

Beyond the Great Wall of China, erectedto secure the empire from their encroachments,were numerous tribes of troublesome Hiongnou who,becoming united under one head, were successful inan invasion of that country. These confederatedtribes became known as the Huns. Until theadvent of M. Deguignes all was dark concerning them.That learned and laborious scholar conceived the ideathat the Huns might be thus identified, and haswritten the history from Chinese sources, ofthose who since that time have poured down upon thecivilized countries of Asia and Europe and wasted them.Boulger also identifies these tribes with theHuns of Attila. After driving the Alaniacross the Danube and compelling them to seek an asylumwithin the borders of the Roman Empire, the terribleHuns had halted in their march westward for somethingmore than a generation. They were hovering,meantime, on the eastern frontiers of the empire,“taking part like other barbarians in its disturbancesand alliances.” Emperors paid them tribute,and Roman generals kept up a politic or a questionablecorrespondence with them. Stilicho had detachmentsof Huns in the armies which fought against Alaric,King of the Goths, the greatest Roman soldier afterStilicho—­and, like Stilicho, of barbarianparentage—­Aetius, who was to be theirmost formidable antagonist, had been a hostage andmessmate in their camps. All historians agreethat the influx of these barbaric peoples hastened,more than any other cause, the rapid declineof the great empire which the Romans had built up.

About A.D. 433 Attila, equally famousin history and legend, became the King of theHuns. The attraction of his daring character,and of his genius for the war which nomadic tribesdelight in, gave him absolute ascendency overhis nation, and over the Teutonic and Slavonictribes near him. Like other conquerors of hisrace he imagined and attempted an empire of ravageand desolation, a vast hunting ground and preserve,in which men and their works should supply theobjects and zest of the chase.

The gradual encroachments of the Hunson the northern frontiers of the Roman domainled to a terrific war in 441. Attila was king.His first assault upon the Roman power was directedagainst the Eastern Empire. The court atConstantinople had been duly obsequious to him,but he found a pretext for war. The dreadfulravages of his hordes and the shameful treatywhich he forced upon the empire form a thrillingyet terrible chapter in the history of the world.

The western world was oppressed by the Goths and Vandals,who fled before the Huns; but the achievements ofthe Huns themselves were not adequate to their powerand prosperity. Their victorious hordes had spreadfrom the Volga to the Danube; but the public forcewas exhausted by the discord of independent chieftains;their valor was idly consumed in obscure and predatoryexcursions; and they often degraded their nationaldignity by condescending, for the hopes of spoil, toenlist under the banners of their fugitive enemies.In the reign of Attila the Huns again became the terrorof the world; and I shall now describe the characterand actions of that formidable Barbarian; who alternatelyinsulted and invaded the East and the West, and urgedthe rapid downfall of the Roman Empire.

In the tide of emigration which impetuously rolledfrom the confines of China to those of Germany, themost powerful and populous tribes may commonly befound on the verge of the Roman provinces. Theaccumulated weight was sustained for a while by artificialbarriers; and the easy condescension of the emperorsinvited, without satisfying, the insolent demandsof the Barbarians, who had acquired an eager appetitefor the luxuries of civilized life. The Hungarians,who ambitiously insert the name of Attila among theirnative kings, may affirm with truth that the hordes,which were subject to his uncle Roas, or Rugilas, hadformed their encampments within the limits of modernHungary,[19] in a fertile country, which liberallysupplied the wants of a nation of hunters and shepherds.In this advantageous situation, Rugilas and his valiantbrothers, who continually added to their power andreputation, commanded the alternative of peace orwar with the two empires. His alliance with theRomans of the West was cemented by his personal friendshipfor the great Aetius, who was always secure of finding,in the Barbarian camp, a hospitable reception anda powerful support. At his solicitation, andin the name of John the Usurper, sixty thousand Hunsadvanced to the confines of Italy; their march andtheir retreat were alike expensive to the State; andthe grateful policy of Aetius abandoned the possessionof Pannonia to his faithful confederates.

The Romans of the East were not less apprehensiveof the arms of Rugilas, which threatened the provinces,or even the capital. Some ecclesiastical historianshave destroyed the Barbarians with lightning and pestilence;but Theodosius was reduced to the more humble expedientof stipulating an annual payment of three hundred andfifty pounds of gold, and of disguising this dishonorabletribute by the title of general, which the King ofthe Huns condescended to accept. The public tranquillitywas frequently interrupted by the fierce impatienceof the Barbarians and the perfidious intrigues ofthe Byzantine court. Four dependent nations,among whom we may distinguish the Bavarians, disclaimedthe sovereignty of the Huns; and their revolt was encouragedand protected by a Roman alliance, till the just claimsand formidable power of Rugilas were effectually urgedby the voice of Eslaw his ambassador. Peace wasthe unanimous wish of the senate: their decreewas ratified by the Emperor; and two ambassadors werenamed, Plinthas, a general of Scythian extraction,but of consular rank; and the quaestor Epigenes, awise and experienced statesman, who was recommendedto that office by his ambitious colleague.

The death of Rugilas suspended the progress of thetreaty. His two nephews, Attila and Bleda, whosucceeded to the throne of their uncle, consentedto a personal interview with the ambassadors of Constantinople;but as they proudly refused to dismount, the businesswas transacted on horseback, in a spacious plain nearthe city of Margus, in the Upper Maesia. Thekings of the Huns assumed the solid benefits, as wellas the vain honors, of the negotiation. They dictatedthe conditions of peace, and each condition was aninsult on the majesty of the empire. Besidesthe freedom of a safe and plentiful market on thebanks of the Danube, they required that the annualcontribution should be augmented from three hundredand fifty to seven hundred pounds of gold; that afine or ransom of eight pieces of gold should be paidfor every Roman captive who had escaped from his Barbarianmaster; that the Emperor should renounce all treatiesand engagements with the enemies of the Huns; andthat all the fugitives who had taken refuge in thecourt or provinces of Theodosius should be deliveredto the justice of their offended sovereign. Thisjustice was rigorously inflicted on some unfortunateyouths of a royal race. They were crucified onthe territories of the empire, by the command of Attila:and as soon as the King of the Huns had impressedthe Romans with the terror of his name, he indulgedthem in a short and arbitrary respite, while he subduedthe rebellious or independent nations of Scythia andGermany.

Attila, the son of Mundzuk, deduced his noble, perhapshis regal, descent from the ancient Huns, who hadformerly contended with the monarchs of China.His features, according to the observation of a Gothichistorian, bore the stamp of his national origin; andthe portrait of Attila exhibits the genuine deformityof a modern Calmuk; a large head, a swarthy complexion,small, deep-seated eyes, a flat nose, a few hairsin the place of a beard, broad shoulders, and a shortsquare body, of nervous strength, though of a disproportionedform. The haughty step and demeanor of the Kingof the Huns expressed the consciousness of his superiorityabove the rest of mankind; and he had a custom offiercely rolling his eyes, as if he wished to enjoythe terror which he inspired. Yet this savagehero was not inaccessible to pity; his suppliant enemiesmight confide in the assurance of peace or pardon;and Attila was considered by his subjects as a justand indulgent master.

He delighted in war; but, after he had ascended thethrone in a mature age, his head, rather than hishand, achieved the conquest of the North; and thefame of an adventurous soldier was usefully exchangedfor that of a prudent and successful general.The effects of personal valor are so inconsiderable,except in poetry or romance, that victory, even amongBarbarians, must depend on the degree of skill withwhich the passions of the multitude are combined andguided for the service of a single man. The Scythianconquerors, Attila and Zingis, surpassed their rudecountrymen in art rather than in courage; and it maybe observed that the monarchies, both of the Hunsand of the Moguls, were erected by their founderson the basis of popular superstition. The miraculousconception, which fraud and credulity ascribed to thevirgin-mother of Zingis, raised him above the levelof human nature; and the naked prophet, who in thename of the Deity invested him with the empire ofthe earth, pointed the valor of the Moguls with irresistibleenthusiasm.

The religious arts of Attila were not less skilfullyadapted to the character of his age and country.It was natural enough that the Scythians should adore,with peculiar devotion, the god of war; but as theywere incapable of forming either an abstract idea ora corporeal representation, they worshipped theirtutelar deity under the symbol of an iron cimeter.One of the shepherds of the Huns perceived, that aheifer, who was grazing, had wounded herself in thefoot, and curiously followed the track of the blood,till he discovered, among the long grass, the pointof an ancient sword, which he dug out of the groundand presented to Attila. That magnanimous, orrather that artful, prince accepted, with pious gratitude,this celestial favor, and, as the rightful possessorof the sword of Mars, asserted his divine andindefeasible claim to the dominion of the earth.If the rites of Scythia were practised on this solemnoccasion, a lofty altar, or rather pile of fa*gots,three hundred yards in length and in breadth, was raisedin a spacious plain; and the sword of Mars was placederect on the summit of this rustic altar, which wasannually consecrated by the blood of sheep, horses,and of the hundredth captive.

Whether human sacrifices formed any part of the worshipof Attila, or whether he propitiated the god of warwith the victims which he continually offered in thefield of battle, the favorite of Mars soon acquireda sacred character, which rendered his conquests moreeasy and more permanent; and the Barbarian princesconfessed, in the language of devotion or flattery,that they could not presume to gaze, with a steadyeye, on the divine majesty of the King of the Huns.His brother Bleda, who reigned over a considerablepart of the nation, was compelled to resign his sceptreand his life. Yet even this cruel act was attributedto a supernatural impulse; and the vigor with whichAttila wielded the sword of Mars convinced the worldthat it had been reserved alone for his invinciblearm. But the extent of his empire affords theonly remaining evidence of the number and importanceof his victories; and the Scythian monarch, howeverignorant of the value of science and philosophy, mightperhaps lament that his illiterate subjects were destituteof the art which could perpetuate the memory of hisexploits.

If a line of separation were drawn between the civilizedand the savage climates of the globe; between theinhabitants of cities, who cultivated the earth, andthe hunters and shepherds, who dwelt in tents, Attilamight aspire to the title of supreme and sole monarchof the Barbarians. He alone, among the conquerorsof ancient and modern times, united the two mightykingdoms of Germany and Scythia; and those vague appellations,when they are applied to his reign, may be understoodwith an ample latitude. Thuringia, which stretchedbeyond its actual limits as far as the Danube, wasin the number of his provinces; he interposed, withthe weight of a powerful neighbor, in the domesticaffairs of the Franks; and one of his lieutenantschastised, and almost exterminated, the Burgundiansof the Rhine. He subdued the islands of the ocean,the kingdoms of Scandinavia, encompassed and dividedby the waters of the Baltic; and the Huns might derivea tribute of furs from that northern region, whichhas been protected from all other conquerors by theseverity of the climate and the courage of the natives.

Toward the east, it is difficult to circ*mscribe thedominion of Attila over the Scythian deserts:yet we may be assured that he reigned on the banksof the Volga; that the King of the Huns was dreaded,not only as a warrior, but as a magician; that heinsulted and vanquished the khan of the formidableGeougen; and that he sent ambassadors to negotiatean equal alliance with the empire of China. Inthe proud review of the nations who acknowledged thesovereignty of Attila, and who never entertained,during his lifetime, the thought of a revolt, the Gepidaeand the Ostrogoths were distinguished by their numbers,their bravery, and the personal merit of their chiefs.The renowned Ardaric, King of the Gepidae, was thefaithful and sagacious counsellor of the monarch,

who esteemed his intrepid genius, while he loved themild and discreet virtues of the noble Walamir, Kingof the Ostrogoths. The crowd of vulgar kings,the leaders of so many martial tribes, who served underthe standard of Attila, were ranged in the submissiveorder of guards and domestics round the person oftheir master. They watched his nod; they trembledat his frown; and at the first signal of his will theyexecuted, without murmur or hesitation, his stern andabsolute commands. In time of peace the dependentprinces, with their national troops, attended theroyal camp in regular succession; but when Attila collectedhis military force he was able to bring into the fieldan army of five or, according to another account,of seven hundred thousand Barbarians.

The ambassadors of the Huns might awaken the attentionof Theodosius, by reminding him that they were hisneighbors both in Europe and Asia; since they touchedthe Danube on one hand, and reached, with the other,as far as the Tanais. In the reign of his fatherArcadius, a band of adventurous Huns had ravaged theprovinces of the East, from whence they brought awayrich spoils and innumerable captives. They advanced,by a secret path, along the shores of the CaspianSea; traversed the snowy mountains of Armenia; passedthe Tigris, the Euphrates, and the Halys; recruitedtheir weary cavalry with the generous breed of Cappadocianhorses: occupied the hilly country of Cilicia,and disturbed the festal songs and dances of the citizensof Antioch.

Egypt trembled at their approach; and the monks andpilgrims of the Holy Land prepared to escape theirfury by a speedy embarkation. The memory of thisinvasion was still recent in the minds of the orientals.The subjects of Attila might execute, with superiorforces, the design which these adventurers had soboldly attempted; and it soon became the subject ofanxious conjecture whether the tempest would fall onthe dominions of Rome or of Persia. Some of thegreat vassals of the King of the Huns, who were themselvesin the rank of powerful princes, had been sent toratify an alliance and society of arms with the Emperor,or rather with the general, of the West. Theyrelated, during their residence at Rome, the circ*mstancesof an expedition which they had lately made into theEast.

After passing a desert and a morass, supposed by theRomans to be the lake Maeotis, they penetrated throughthe mountains, and arrived, at the end of fifteendays’ march, on the confines of Media; wherethey advanced as far as the unknown cities of Basicand Cursic. They encountered the Persian armyin the plains of Media; and the air, according totheir own expression, was darkened by a cloud of arrows.But the Huns were obliged to retire before the numbersof the enemy. Their laborious retreat was effectedby a different road; they lost the greater part oftheir booty; and at length returned to the royal camp,with some knowledge of the country, and an impatientdesire of revenge. In the free conversation ofthe imperial ambassadors, who discussed, at the courtof Attila, the character and designs of their formidableenemy, the ministers of Constantinople expressed theirhope that his strength might be diverted and employedin a long and doubtful contest with the princes ofthe house of Sassan.

The more sagacious Italians admonished their easternbrethren of the folly and danger of such a hope; andconvinced them, that the Medes and Persians were incapableof resisting the arms of the Huns; and that the easyand important acquisition would exalt the pride, aswell as power, of the conqueror. Instead of contentinghimself with a moderate contribution and a militarytitle, which equalled him only to the generals ofTheodosius, Attila would proceed to impose a disgracefuland intolerable yoke on the necks of the prostrateand captive Romans, who would then be encompassed,on all sides, by the empire of the Huns.

While the powers of Europe and Asia were solicitousto avert the impending danger, the alliance of Attilamaintained the Vandals in the possession of Africa.An enterprise had been concerted between the courtsof Ravenna and Constantinople for the recovery of thatvaluable province; and the ports of Sicily were alreadyfilled with the military and naval forces of Theodosius.But the subtle Genseric, who spread his negotiationsround the world, prevented their designs, by excitingthe King of the Huns to invade the Eastern Empire;and a trifling incident soon became the motive, orpretence, of a destructive war. Under the faithof the treaty of Margus, a free market was held onthe northern side of the Danube, which was protectedby a Roman fortress surnamed Constantia. A troopof Barbarians violated the commercial security, killedor dispersed the unsuspecting traders, and levelledthe fortress with the ground. The Huns justifiedthis outrage as an act of reprisal, alleged that theBishop of Margus had entered their territories todiscover and steal a secret treasure of their kings,and sternly demanded the guilty prelate, the sacrilegiousspoil, and the fugitive subjects who had escaped fromthe justice of Attila.

The refusal of the Byzantine court was the signalof war; and the Maesians at first applauded the generousfirmness of their sovereign. But they were soonintimidated by the destruction of Viminiacum and theadjacent towns; and the people were persuaded to adoptthe convenient maxim that a private citizen, howeverinnocent or respectable, may be justly sacrificedto the safety of his country. The Bishop of Margus,who did not possess the spirit of a martyr, resolvedto prevent the designs which he suspected. Heboldly treated with the princes of the Huns; secured,by solemn oaths, his pardon and reward; posted a numerousdetachment of Barbarians, in silent ambush, on thebanks of the Danube; and, at the appointed hour, opened,with his own hand, the gates of his episcopal city.This advantage, which had been obtained by treachery,served as a prelude to more honorable and decisivevictories.

The Illyrian frontier was covered by a line of castlesand fortresses; and though the greatest part of themconsisted only of a single tower, with a small garrison,they were commonly sufficient to repel or to interceptthe inroads of an enemy who was ignorant of the artand impatient of the delay of a regular siege.But these slight obstacles were instantly swept awayby the inundation of the Huns. They destroyed,with fire and sword, the populous cities of Sirmiumand Singidunum, of Ratiaria and Marcianopolis, ofNaissus and Sardica; where every circ*mstance of thediscipline of the people and the construction of thebuildings had been gradually adapted to the sole purposeof defence. The whole breadth of Europe, as itextends above five hundred miles from the Euxine tothe Hadriatic, was at once invaded and occupied anddesolated by the myriads of Barbarians whom Attilaled into the field. The public danger and distresscould not, however, provoke Theodosius to interrupthis amusem*nts and devotion or to appear in personat the head of the Roman legions.

But the troops which had been sent against Gensericwere hastily recalled from Sicily; the garrisons onthe side of Persia were exhausted; and a militaryforce was collected in Europe, formidable by theirarms and numbers, if the generals had understood thescience of command and their soldiers the duty ofobedience. The armies of the Eastern Empire werevanquished in three successive engagements; and theprogress of Attila may be traced by the fields of battle.The two former, on the banks of the Utus and underthe walls of Marcianapolis, were fought in the extensiveplains between the Danube and Mount Haemus. Asthe Romans were pressed by a victorious enemy, theygradually and unskilfully retired toward the Chersonesusof Thrace; and that narrow peninsula, the last extremityof the land, was marked by their third, and irreparable,defeat.

By the destruction of this army Attila acquired theindisputable possession of the field. From theHellespont to Thermopylae, and the suburbs of Constantinople,he ravaged, without resistance and without mercy,the provinces of Thrace and Macedonia. Heracleaand Hadrianople might, perhaps, escape this dreadfulirruption of the Huns; but the words, the most expressiveof total extirpation and erasure, are applied to thecalamities which they inflicted on seventy cities ofthe Eastern Empire. Theodosius, his court, andthe unwarlike people were protected by the walls ofConstantinople; but those waits had been shaken bya recent earthquake, and the fall of fifty-eight towershad opened a large and tremendous breach. Thedamage indeed was speedily repaired; but this accidentwas aggravated by a superstitious fear, that heavenitself had delivered the imperial city to the shepherdsof Scythia, who were strangers to the laws, the language,and the religion of the Romans.

In all their invasions of the civilized empires ofthe South, the Scythian shepherds have been uniformlyactuated by a savage and destructive spirit.The laws of war, that restrain the exercise of nationalrapine and murder, are founded on two principles ofsubstantial interest: the knowledge of the permanentbenefits which may be obtained by a moderate use ofconquest; and a just apprehension, lest the desolationwhich we inflict on the enemy’s country may beretaliated on our own. But these considerationsof hope and fear are almost unknown in the pastoralstate of nations. The Huns of Attila may, withoutinjustice, be compared to the Moguls and Tartars, beforetheir primitive manners were changed by religion andluxury.

After the Moguls had subdued the northern provincesof China, it was seriously proposed, not in the hourof victory and passion, but in calm deliberate council,to exterminate all the inhabitants of that populouscountry, that the vacant land might be converted tothe pasture of cattle. The firmness of a Chinesemandarin, who insinuated some principles of rationalpolicy into the mind of Genghis, diverted him fromthe execution of this horrid design. But in thecities of Asia, which yielded to the Moguls, the inhumanabuse of the rights of war was exercised with a regularform of discipline, which may, with equal reason,though not with equal authority, be imputed to thevictorious Huns. The inhabitants, who had submittedto their discretion, were ordered to evacuate theirhouses, and to assemble in some plain adjacent tothe city; where a division was made of the vanquishedinto three parts. The first class consisted ofthe soldiers of the garrison, and of the young mencapable of bearing arms; and their fate was instantlydecided; they were either enlisted among the Moguls,or they were massacred on the spot by the troops,who, with pointed spears and bended bows, had formeda circle round-the captive multitude. The secondclass, composed of the young and beautiful women,of the artificers of every rank and profession, andof the more wealthy or honorable citizens, from whoma private ransom might be expected, was distributedin equal or proportionable lots. The remainder,whose life or death was alike useless to the conquerors,were permitted to return to the city; which, in themean while, had been stripped of its valuable furniture;and a tax was imposed on those wretched inhabitantsfor the indulgence of breathing their native air.

Such was the behavior of the Moguls, when they werenot conscious of any extraordinary rigor. Butthe most casual provocation, the slightest motiveof caprice or convenience, often provoked them to involvea whole people in an indiscriminate massacre; andthe ruin of some flourishing cities was executed withsuch unrelenting perseverance that, according to theirown expression, horses might run, without stumbling,over the ground where they had once stood. The

three great capitals of Khorassan, and Maru, Neisabour,and Herat, were destroyed by the armies of Genghis,and the exact account which was taken of the slainamounted to four million three hundred and forty-seventhousand persons. Timur, or Tamerlane, was educatedin a less barbarous age, and in the profession ofthe Mahometan religion; yet, if Attila equalled thehostile ravages of Tamerlane,[20] either the Tartaror the Hun might deserve the epithet of the “Scourgeof God.”

It may be affirmed, with bolder assurance, that theHuns depopulated the provinces of the Empire, by themurder of Roman subjects whom they led away into captivity.In the hands of a wise legislator, such an industriouscolony might have contributed to diffuse through thedeserts of Scythia the rudiments of the useful andornamental arts; but these captives, who had beentaken in war, were accidentally dispersed among thehordes that obeyed the empire of Attila. The estimateof their respective value was formed by the simplejudgment of unenlightened and unprejudiced Barbarians.Perhaps they might not understand the merit of a theologian,profoundly skilled in the controversies of the Trinityand the Incarnation; yet they respected the ministersof every religion; ind the active zeal of the Christianmissionaries, without approaching the person or thepalace of the monarch, successfully labored in thepropagation of the Gospel.

The pastoral tribes, who were ignorant of the distinctionof landed property, must have disregarded the use,as well as the abuse, of civil jurisprudence; andthe skill of an eloquent lawyer could excite onlytheir contempt or their abhorrence. The perpetualintercourse of the Huns and the Goths had communicatedthe familiar knowledge of the two national dialects;and the Barbarians were ambitious of conversing inLatin, the military idiom even of the Eastern Empire.But they disdained the language and the sciences ofthe Greeks; and the vain sophist, or grave philosopher,who had enjoyed the flattering applause of the schools,was mortified to find that his robust servant was acaptive of more value and importance than himself.The mechanic arts were encouraged and esteemed, asthey tended to satisfy the wants of the Huns.An architect in the service of Onegesius, one of thefavorites of Attila, was employed to construct a bath;but this work was a rare example of private luxury;and the trades of the smith, the carpenter, the armorer,were much more adapted to supply a wandering peoplewith the useful instruments of peace and war.

But the merit of the physician was received with universalfavor and respect: the Barbarians, who despiseddeath, might be apprehensive of disease; and the haughtyconqueror trembled in the presence of a captive towhom he ascribed perhaps an imaginary power of prolongingor preserving his life. The Huns might be provokedto insult the misery of their slaves, over whom theyexercised a despotic command; but their manners were

not susceptible of a refined system of oppression;and the efforts of courage and diligence were oftenrecompensed by the gift of freedom. The historianPriscus, whose embassy is a source of curious instruction,was accosted in the camp of Attila by a stranger, whosaluted him in the Greek language, but whose dressand figure displayed the appearance of a wealthy Scythian.In the siege of Viminiacum he had lost, accordingto his own account, his fortune and liberty; he becamethe slave of Onegesius; but his faithful services,against the Romans and the Acatzires, had graduallyraised him to the rank of the native Huns; to whomhe was attached by the domestic pledges of a new wifeand several children. The spoils of war had restoredand improved his private property; he was admittedto the table of his former lord; and the apostateGreek blessed the hour of his captivity, since it hadbeen the introduction to a happy and independent state,which he held by the honorable tenure of militaryservice.

This reflection naturally produced a dispute on theadvantages and defects of the Roman government, whichwas severely arraigned by the apostate, and defendedby Priscus in a prolix and feeble declamation.The freedman of Onegesius exposed, in true and livelycolors, the vices of a declining empire, of whichhe had so long been the victim; the cruel absurdityof the Roman princes, unable to protect their subjectsagainst the public enemy, unwilling to trust them witharms for their own defence; the intolerable weightof taxes, rendered still more oppressive by the intricateor arbitrary modes of collection; the obscurity ofnumerous and contradictory laws; the tedious and expensiveforms of judicial proceedings; the partial administrationof justice; and the universal corruption, which increasedthe influence of the rich and aggravated the misfortunesof the poor. A sentiment of patriotic sympathywas at length revived in the breast of the fortunateexile: and he lamented, with a flood of tears,the guilt or weakness of those magistrates who hadperverted the wisest and most salutary institutions.

The timid or selfish policy of the Western Romanshad abandoned the Eastern Empire to the Huns.The loss of armies, and the want of discipline orvirtue, were not supplied by the personal characterof the monarch. Theodosius might still affectthe style, as well as the title, of “InvincibleAugustus”; but he was reduced to solicit theclemency of Attila, who imperiously dictated theseharsh and humiliating conditions of peace:

I. The Emperor of the East resigned, by an expressor tacit convention, an extensive and important territory,which stretched along the southern banks of the Danube,from Singidunum, or Belgrade, as far as Novae, inthe diocese of Thrace. The breadth was definedby the vague computation of fifteen days’ journey;but, from the proposal of Attila to remove the situationof the national market, it soon appeared that he comprehendedthe ruined city of Naissus within the limits of hisdominions.

II. The King of the Huns required and obtainedthat his tribute or subsidy should be augmented fromseven hundred pounds of gold to the annual sum oftwo thousand one hundred; and he stipulated the immediatepayment of six thousand pounds of gold to defray theexpenses or to expiate the guilt of the war.One might imagine that such a demand, which scarcelyequalled the measure of private wealth, would havebeen readily discharged by the opulent Empire of theEast; and the public distress affords a remarkableproof of the impoverished, or at least of the disorderly,state of the finances. A large proportion of thetaxes extorted from the people was detained and interceptedin their passage, through the foulest channels, tothe treasury of Constantinople. The revenue wasdissipated by Theodosius and his favorites in wastefuland profuse luxury, which was disguised by the nameof imperial magnificence or Christian charity.The immediate supplies had been exhausted by the unforeseennecessity of military preparations. A personalcontribution, rigorously but capriciously imposedon the members of the senatorian order, was the onlyexpedient that could disarm, without loss of time,the impatient avarice of Attila; and the poverty ofthe nobles compelled them to adopt the scandalousresource of exposing to public auction the jewelsof their wives and the hereditary ornaments of theirpalaces.

III. The King of the Huns appears to have established,as a principle of national jurisprudence, that hecould never lose the property, which he had once acquired,in the persons who had yielded either a voluntary orreluctant submission to his authority. From thisprinciple he concluded, and the conclusions of Attilawere irrevocable laws, that the Huns, who had been,taken prisoners in war, should be released withoutdelay and without ransom; that every Roman captivewho had presumed to escape should purchase his rightto freedom at the price of twelve pieces of gold;and that all the Barbarians who had deserted the standardof Attila should be restored, with out any promiseor stipulation of pardon. In the execution ofthis cruel and ignominious treaty the imperial officerswere forced to massacre several loyal and noble deserterswho refused to devote themselves to certain death;and the Romans forfeited all reasonable claims tothe friendship of any Scythian people, by this publicconfession, that they were destitute either of faithor power to protect the suppliant who had embracedthe throne of Theodosius.

It would have been strange, indeed, if Theodosiushad purchased, by the loss of honor, a secure andsolid tranquillity, or if his tameness had not invitedthe repetition of injuries. The Byzantine courtwas insulted by five or six successive embassies,and the ministers of Attila were uniformly instructedto press the tardy or imperfect execution of the lasttreaty; to produce the names of fugitives and deserters,who were still protected by the Empire; and to declare,

with seeming moderation, that, unless their sovereignobtained complete and immediate satisfaction, it wouldbe impossible for him, were it even his wish, to checkthe resentment of his warlike tribes. Besidesthe motives of pride and interest, which might promptthe King of the Huns to continue this train of negotiation,he was influenced by the less honorable view of enrichinghis favorites at the expense of his enemies. Theimperial treasury was exhausted to procure the friendlyoffices of the ambassadors and their principal attendants,whose favorable report might conduce to the maintenanceof peace.

The Barbarian monarch was flattered by the liberalreception of his ministers; he computed, with pleasure,the value and splendor of their gifts, rigorouslyexacted the performance of every promise which wouldcontribute to their private emolument, and treatedas an important business of state the marriage ofhis secretary Constantius. That Gallic adventurer,who was recommended by Aetius to the King of the Huns,had engaged his service to the ministers of Constantinople,for the stipulated reward of a wealthy and noble wife;and the daughter of Count Saturninus was chosen todischarge the obligations of her country. Thereluctance of the victim, some domestic troubles, andthe unjust confiscation of her fortune cooled theardor of her interested lover; but he still demanded,in the name of Attila, an equivalent alliance; and,after many ambiguous delays and excuses, the Byzantinecourt was compelled to sacrifice to this insolentstranger the widow of Armatius, whose birth, opulence,and beauty placed her in the most illustrious rankof the Roman matrons.

For these importunate and oppressive embassies Attilaclaimed a suitable return: he weighed, with suspiciouspride, the character and station of the imperial envoys;but he condescended to promise that he would advanceas far as Sardica to receive any ministers who hadbeen invested with the consular dignity. Thecouncil of Theodosius eluded this proposal, by representingthe desolate and ruined condition of Sardica, andeven ventured to insinuate that every officer of thearmy or household was qualified to treat with themost powerful princes of Scythia. Maximin, arespectable courtier, whose abilities had been longexercised in civil and military employments, accepted,with reluctance, the troublesome, and perhaps dangerous,commission of reconciling the angry spirit of theKing of the Huns.

His friend, the historian Priscus, embraced the opportunityof observing the Barbarian hero in the peaceful anddomestic scenes of life: but the secret of theembassy, a fatal and guilty secret, was intrusted onlyto the interpreter Vigilius. The two last ambassadorsof the Huns, Orestes, a noble subject of the Pannonianprovince, and Edecon, a valiant chieftain of the tribeof the Scyrri, returned at the same time from Constantinopleto the royal camp. Their obscure names were afterwardillustrated by the extraordinary fortune and the contrastof their sons: the two servants of Attila becamethe fathers of the last Roman Emperor of the West,and of the first Barbarian King of Italy.

The ambassadors, who were followed by a numerous trainof men and horses, made their first halt at Sardica,at the distance of three hundred and fifty miles,or thirteen days’ journey, from Constantinople.As the remains of Sardica were still included withinthe limits of the Empire, it was incumbent on theRomans to exercise the duties of hospitality.They provided, with the assistance of the provincials,a sufficient number of sheep and oxen, and invitedthe Huns to a splendid, or, at least, a plentifulsupper. But the harmony of the entertainmentwas soon disturbed by mutual prejudice and indiscretion.The greatness of the Emperor and the empire was warmlymaintained by their ministers; the Huns, with equalardor, asserted the superiority of their victoriousmonarch: the dispute was inflamed by the rashand unseasonable flattery of Vigilius, who passionatelyrejected the comparison of a mere mortal with thedivine Theodosius; and it was with extreme difficultythat Maximin and Priscus were able to divert the conversation,or to soothe the angry minds, of the Barbarians.When they rose from the table, the Imperial ambassadorpresented Edecon and Orestes with rich gifts of silkrobes and Indian pearls, which they thankfully accepted.

Yet Orestes could not forbear insinuating that hehad not always been treated with such respect andliberality; and the offensive distinction which wasimplied, between his civil office and the hereditaryrank of his colleague seems to have made Edecon adoubtful friend and Orestes an irreconcilable enemy.After this entertainment they travelled about onehundred miles from Sardica to Naissus. That flourishingcity, which had given birth to the great Constantine,was levelled with the ground; the inhabitants weredestroyed or dispersed; and the appearance of somesick persons, who were still permitted to exist amongthe ruins of the churches, served only to increasethe horror of the prospect. The surface of thecountry was covered with the bones of the slain; andthe ambassadors, who directed their course to thenorthwest, were obliged to pass the hills of modernServia before they descended into the flat and marshygrounds which are terminated by the Danube.

The Huns were masters of the great river: theirnavigation was performed in large canoes, hollowedout of the trunk of a single tree; the ministers ofTheodosius were safely landed on the opposite bank;and their Barbarian associates immediately hastenedto the camp of Attila, which was equally preparedfor the amusem*nts of hunting or of war. No soonerhad Maximin advanced about two miles from the Danubethan he began to experience the fastidious insolenceof the conqueror. He was sternly forbidden topitch his tents in a pleasant valley, lest he shouldinfringe the distant awe that was due to the royalmansion. The ministers of Attila pressed himto communicate the business, and the instructions,which he reserved for the ear of their sovereign.

When Maximin temperately urged the contrary practiceof nations, he was still more confounded to find thatthe resolutions of the Sacred Consistory, those secrets(says Priscus) which should not be revealed to thegods themselves, had been treacherously disclosedto the public enemy. On his refusal to complywith such ignominious terms, the Imperial envoy wascommanded instantly to depart; the order was recalled;it was again repeated; and the Huns renewed theirineffectual attempts to subdue the patient firmnessof Maximin.

At length, by the intercession of Scotta, the brotherof Onegesius, whose friendship had been purchasedby a liberal gift, he was admitted to the royal presence;but, instead of obtaining a decisive answer, he wascompelled to undertake a remote journey toward thenorth, that Attila might enjoy the proud satisfactionof receiving, in the same camp, the ambassadors ofthe Eastern and Western empires. His journeywas regulated by the guides, who obliged him to halt,to hasten his march, or to deviate from the commonroad, as it best suited the convenience of the King.The Romans, who traversed the plains of Hungary, supposethat they passed several navigable rivers, eitherin canoes or portable boats; but there is reason tosuspect that the winding stream of the Teyss, or Tibiscus,might present itself in different places under differentnames.

From the contiguous villages they received a plentifuland regular supply of provisions; mead instead ofwine, millet in the place of bread, and a certainliquor named camus, which, according to thereport of Priscus, was distilled from barley.[21] Suchfare might appear coarse and indelicate to men whohad tasted the luxury of Constantinople; but, in theiraccidental distress, they were relieved by the gentlenessand hospitality of the same Barbarians, so terribleand so merciless in war. The ambassadors hadencamped on the edge of a large morass. A violenttempest of wind and rain, of thunder and lightning,overturned their tents, immersed their baggage andfurniture in the water, and scattered their retinue,who wandered in the darkness of the night, uncertainof their road, and apprehensive of some unknown danger,till they awakened by their cries the inhabitants ofa neighboring village, the property of the widow ofBleda. A bright illumination, and, in a few moments,a comfortable fire of reeds, was kindled by theirofficious benevolence; the wants, and even the desires,of the Romans were liberally satisfied; and they seemto have been embarrassed by the singular politenessof Bleda’s widow, who added to her other favorsthe gift, or at least the loan, of a sufficient numberof beautiful and obsequious damsels.

The sunshine of the succeeding day was dedicated torepose, to collect and dry the baggage, and to therefreshment of the men and horses; but, in the evening,before they pursued their journey, the ambassadorsexpressed their gratitude to the bounteous lady ofthe village, by a very acceptable present of silvercups, red fleeces, dried fruits, and Indian pepper.Soon after this adventure, they rejoined the marchof Attila, from whom they had been separated aboutsix days, and slowly proceeded to the capital of anempire, which did not contain, in the space of severalthousand miles, a single city.

As far as we may ascertain the vague and obscure geographyof Priscus, this capital appears to have been seatedbetween the Danube, the Teyss, and the Carpathianhills, in the plains of Upper Hungary, and most probablyin the neighborhood of Jezberin, Agria, or Tokay.In its origin it could be no more than an accidentalcamp, which, by the long and frequent residence ofAttila, had insensibly swelled into a huge village,for the reception of his court, of the troops who followedhis person, and of the various multitude of idle orindustrious slaves and retainers. The baths,constructed by Onegesius, were the only edifice ofstone; the materials had been transported from Pannonia;and since the adjacent country was destitute evenof large timber, it may be presumed that the meanerhabitations of the royal village consisted of straw,or mud, or of canvas. The wooden houses of themore illustrious Huns were built and adorned withrude magnificence, according to the rank, the fortune,or the taste of the proprietors. They seemed tohave been distributed with some degree of order andsymmetry; and each spot became more honorable as itapproached the person of the sovereign.

The palace of Attila, which surpassed all other housesin his dominions, was built entirely of wood, andcovered an ample space of ground. The outwardenclosure was a lofty wall, or palisade, of smoothsquare timber, intersected with high towers, but intendedrather for ornament than defence. This wall,which seems to have encircled the declivity of thehill, comprehended a great variety of wooden edifices,adapted to the uses of royalty. A separate housewas assigned to each of the numerous wives of Attila;and, instead of the rigid and illiberal confinementimposed by Asiatic jealousy, they politely admittedthe Roman ambassadors to their presence, their table,and even to the freedom of an innocent embrace.When Maximin offered his presents to Cerce, the principalQueen, he admired the singular architecture of hermansion, the height of the round columns, the sizeand beauty of the wood, which was curiously shapedor turned, or polished or carved; and his attentiveeye was able to discover some taste in the ornamentsand some regularity in the proportions.

After passing through the guards, who watched beforethe gate, the ambassadors were introduced into theprivate apartment of Cerce. The wife of Attilareceived their visit sitting, or rather lying, on asoft couch; the floor was covered with a carpet; thedomestics formed a circle round the Queen; and herdamsels, seated on the ground, where employed in workingthe variegated embroidery which adorned the dress ofthe Barbaric warriors. The Huns were ambitiousof displaying those riches which were the fruit andevidence of their victories; the trappings of theirhorses, their swords, and even their shoes were studdedwith gold and precious stones; and their tables wereprofusely spread with plates, and goblets, and vases

of gold and silver, which had been fashioned by thelabor of Grecian artists. The monarch alone assumedthe superior pride of still adhering to the simplicityof his Scythian ancestors. The dress of Attila,his arms, and the furniture of his horse were plain,without ornament, and of a single color. The royaltable was served in wooden cups and platters; fleshwas his only food; and the conqueror of the Northnever tasted the luxury of bread.

When Attila first gave audience to the Roman ambassadorson the banks of the Danube, his tent was encompassedwith a formidable guard. The monarch himselfwas seated in a wooden chair. His stern countenance,angry gestures, and impatient tone, astonished thefirmness of Maximin; but Vigilius had more reasonto tremble, since he distinctly understood the menace,that if Attila did not respect the law of nations,he would nail the deceitful interpreter to the cross,and leave his body to the vultures. The Barbariancondescended, by producing an accurate list, to exposethe bold falsehood of Vigilius, who had affirmed thatno more than seventeen deserters could be found.But he arrogantly declared that he apprehended onlythe disgrace of contending with his fugitive slaves;since he despised their impotent efforts to defendthe provinces which Theodosius had intrusted to theirarms: “For what fortress,” addedAttila, “what city, in the wide extent of theRoman Empire, can hope to exist, secure and impregnable,if it is our pleasure that it should be erased fromthe earth?”

He dismissed, however, the interpreter, who returnedto Constantinople with his peremptory demand of morecomplete restitution and a more splendid embassy.His anger gradually subsided, and his domestic satisfactionin a marriage which he celebrated on the road withthe daughter of Eslam, might perhaps contribute tomollify the native fierceness of his temper.The entrance of Attila into the royal village wasmarked by a very singular ceremony. A numeroustroop of women came out to meet their hero and theirKing. They marched before him, distributed intolong and regular files; the intervals between the fileswere filled by white veils of thin linen, which thewomen on either side bore aloft in their hands, andwhich formed a canopy for a chorus of young virgins,who chanted hymns and songs in the Scythian language.The wife of his favorite Onegesius, with a train offemale attendants, saluted Attila at the door of herown house, on his way to the palace; and offered,according to the custom of the country, her respectfulhomage, by entreating him to taste the wine and meatwhich she had prepared for his reception. Assoon as the monarch had graciously accepted her hospitablegift, his domestics lifted a small silver table toa convenient height, as he sat on horseback; and Attila,when he had touched the goblet with his lips, againsaluted the wife of Onegesius, and continued his march.

During his residence at the seat of empire, his hourswere not wasted in the recluse idleness of a seraglio;and the King of the Huns could maintain his superiordignity, without concealing his person from the publicview. He frequently assembled his council, andgave audience to the ambassadors of the nations; andhis people might appeal to the supreme tribunal, whichhe held at stated times, and, according to the Easterncustom, before the principal gate of his wooden palace.The Romans, both of the East and of the West, weretwice invited to the banquets, where Attila feastedwith the princes and nobles of Scythia. Maximinand his colleagues were stopped on the threshold, tillthey had made a devout libation to the health andprosperity of the King of the Huns, and were conducted,after this ceremony, to their respective seats ina spacious hall. The royal table and couch, coveredwith carpets and fine linen, was raised by severalsteps in the midst of the hall; and a son, an uncle,or perhaps a favorite king were admitted to share thesimple and homely repast of Attila.

Two lines of small tables, each of which containedthree or four guests, were ranged in order on eitherhand; the right was esteemed the most honorable, butthe Romans ingenuously confess that they were placedon the left; and that Beric, an unknown chieftain,most probably of the Gothic race, preceded the representativesof Theodosius and Valentinian. The Barbarianmonarch received from his cup-bearer a goblet filledwith wine, and courteously drank to the health ofthe most distinguished guest, who rose from his seatand expressed in the same manner his loyal and respectfulvows. This ceremony was successively performedfor all, or at least, for the illustrious personsof the assembly; and a considerable time must havebeen consumed, since it was thrice repeated as eachcourse or service was placed on the table. Butthe wine still remained after the meat had been removed;and the Huns continued to indulge their intemperancelong after the sober and decent ambassadors of thetwo empires had withdrawn themselves from the nocturnalbanquet. Yet before they retired, they enjoyeda singular opportunity of observing the manners ofthe nation in their convivial amusem*nts. TwoScythians stood before the couch of Attila, and recitedthe verses which they had composed, to celebrate hisvalor and his victories.

A profound silence prevailed in the hall; and theattention of the guests was captivated by the vocalharmony, which revived and perpetuated the memoryof their own exploits; a martial ardor flashed fromthe eyes of the warriors, who were impatient for battle;and the tears of the old men expressed their generousdespair, that they could no longer partake the dangerand glory of the field. This entertainment, whichmight be considered as a school of military virtue,was succeeded by a farce, that debased the dignityof human nature. A Moorish and a Scythian buffoon

successively excited the mirth of the rude spectators,by their deformed figure, ridiculous dress, antic gestures,absurd speeches, and the strange, unintelligible confusionof the Latin, the Gothic, and the Hunnic languages;and the hall resounded with loud and licentious pealsof laughter. In the midst of this intemperateriot, Attila alone, without a change of countenance,maintained his steadfast and inflexible gravity; whichwas never relaxed, except on the entrance of Irnac,the youngest of his sons: he embraced the boywith a smile of paternal tenderness, gently pinchedhim by the cheek, and betrayed a partial affection,which was justified by the assurance of his prophetsthat Irnac would be the future support of his familyand empire.

Two days afterward, the ambassadors received a secondinvitation: and they had reason to praise thepoliteness, as well as the hospitality, of Attila.The King of the Huns held a long and familiar conversationwith Maximin; but his civility was interrupted byrude expressions and haughty reproaches; and he wasprovoked, by a motive of interest, to support, withunbecoming zeal, the private claims of his secretaryConstantius. “The Emperor,” said Attila,“has long promised him a rich wife: Constantiusmust not be disappointed; nor should a Roman emperordeserve the name of liar.” On the thirdday the ambassadors were dismissed: the freedomof several captives was granted, for a moderate ransom,to their pressing entreaties; and, besides the royalpresents, they were permitted to accept from eachof the Scythian nobles the honorable and useful giftof a horse. Maximin returned, by the same road,to Constantinople; and though he was involved in anaccidental dispute with Beric, the new ambassadorof Attila, he flattered himself that he had contributed,by the laborious journey, to confirm the peace andalliance of the two nations.[22]

But the Roman ambassador was ignorant of the treacherousdesign which had been concealed under the mask ofthe public faith. The surprise and satisfactionof Edecon, when he contemplated the splendor of Constantinople,had encouraged the interpreter Vigilius to procurefor him a secret interview with the eunuch Chrysaphius,[23]who governed the Emperor and the empire. Aftersome previous conversation, and a mutual oath of secrecy,the eunuch, who had not from his own feelings or experienceimbibed any exalted notions of ministerial virtue,ventured to propose the death of Attila as an importantservice, by which Edecon might deserve a liberal shareof the wealth and luxury which he admired. Theambassador of the Huns listened to the tempting offer;and professed, with apparent zeal, his ability, aswell as readiness, to execute the bloody deed:the design was communicated to the master of the offices,and the devout Theodosius consented to the assassinationof his invincible enemy. But this perfidiousconspiracy was defeated by the dissimulation, or therepentance, of Edecon; and though he might exaggeratehis inward abhorrence for the treason, which he seemedto approve, he dexterously assumed the merit of anearly and voluntary confession.

If we now review the embassy of Maximin andthe behavior of Attila, we must applaud the Barbarian,who respected the laws of hospitality, and generouslyentertained and dismissed the minister of a princewho had conspired against his life. But the rashnessof Vigilius will appear still more extraordinary,since he returned, conscious of his guilt and danger,to the royal camp, accompanied by his son, and carryingwith him a weighty purse of gold, which the favoriteeunuch had furnished, to satisfy the demands of Edeconand to corrupt the fidelity of the guards. Theinterpreter was instantly seized, and dragged beforethe tribunal of Attila, where he asserted his innocencewith specious firmness, till the threat of inflictinginstant death on his son extorted from him a sincerediscovery of the criminal transaction. Under thename of ransom, or confiscation, the rapacious Kingof the Huns accepted two hundred pounds of gold forthe life of a traitor whom he disdained to punish.He pointed his just indignation against a nobler object.His ambassadors, Eslaw and Orestes, were immediatelydespatched to Constantinople, with a peremptory instruction,which it was much safer for them to execute than todisobey.

They boldly entered the Imperial presence, with thefatal purse hanging down from the neck of Orestes,who interrogated the eunuch Chrysaphius, as he stoodbeside the throne, whether he recognized the evidenceof his guilt. But the office of reproof was reservedfor the superior dignity of his colleague, Eslaw,who gravely addressed the Emperor of the East in thefollowing words: “Theodosius is the sonof an illustrious and respectable parent: Attilalikewise is descended from a noble race; and hehas supported, by his actions, the dignity which heinherited from his father Mundzuk. But Theodosiushas forfeited his paternal honors, and, by consentingto pay tribute, has degraded himself to the conditionof a slave. It is therefore just, that he shouldreverence the man whom fortune and merit have placedabove him, instead of attempting, like a wicked slave,clandestinely to conspire against his master.”The son of Arcadius, who was accustomed only to thevoice of flattery, heard with astonishment the severelanguage of truth: he blushed and trembled, nordid he presume directly to refuse the head of Chrysaphius,which Eslaw and Orestes were instructed to demand.

A solemn embassy, armed with full powers and magnificentgifts, was hastily sent to deprecate the wrath ofAttila; and his pride was gratified by the choiceof Nomius and Anatolius, two ministers of consularor patrician rank, of whom the one was great treasurer,and the other was master-general of the armies ofthe East. He condescended to meet these ambassadorson the banks of the river Drenco; and though he atfirst affected a stern and haughty demeanor, his angerwas insensibly mollified by their eloquence and liberality.He condescended to pardon the Emperor, the eunuch,

and the interpreter; bound himself by an oath to observethe conditions of peace; released a great number ofcaptives; abandoned the fugitives and deserters totheir fate; and resigned a large territory, to thesouth of the Danube, which he had already exhaustedof its wealth and inhabitants. But this treatywas purchased at an expense which might have supporteda vigorous and successful war: and the subjectsof Theodosius were compelled to redeem the safety ofa worthless favorite by oppressive taxes, which theywould more cheerfully have paid for his destruction.

FOOTNOTES:

[19] Hungary has been successively occupied by threeScythian colonies: 1. The Huns of Attila;2. The Abares, in the sixth century; and, 3.The Turks or Magyars, A.D. 889, the immediate andgenuine ancestors of the modern Hungarians, whoseconnection with the two former is extremely faintand remote.

[20] Cherefeddin Ali, his servile panegyrist, wouldafford us many horrid examples. In his camp beforeDelhi, Timur massacred one hundred thousand Indianprisoners who had smiled when the army of theircountrymen appeared in sight. The people of Ispahansupplied seventy thousand human skulls for the structureof several lofty towers. A similar tax was leviedon the revolt of Bagdad; and the exact account, whichCherefeddin was not able to procure from the properofficers, is stated by another historian (Ahmed Arabsiada)at ninety thousand heads.

[21] The Huns themselves still continued to despisethe labors of agriculture: they abused the privilegeof a victorious nation; and the Goths, their industrioussubjects, who cultivated the earth, dreaded theirneighborhood, like that of so many ravenous wolves.

[22] The curious narrative of this embassy, whichrequired few observations, and was not susceptibleof any collateral evidence, may be found in Priscus.But I have not confined myself to the same order; andI had previously extracted the historical circ*mstances,which were less intimately connected with the journey,and business, of the Roman ambassadors.

[23] M. de Tillemont has very properly given the successionof chamberlains who reigned in the name of Theodosius.Chrysaphius was the last, and, according to the unanimousevidence of history, the worst of these favorites.His partiality for his godfather, the heresiarch Eutyches,engaged him to persecute the orthodox party.

THE ENGLISH CONQUEST OF BRITAIN

A.D. 449-579

JOHN R. GREEN CHARLES KNIGHT

If we look for the fatherland of theEnglish race, we must, as modern historians haveclearly shown, direct our search “far away fromEngland herself.” In the fifth century ofthe Christian era a region in what is now calledSchleswig was known by the name of Anglen (England).But the inhabitants of this district are believedto have comprised only a small detached portionof the Engle (English), while the great bodyof this people probably dwelt within the limitsof the present Oldenburg and lower Hanover.

On several sides of Anglen were thehomes of various tribes of Saxons and Jutes,and these peoples were all kindred, being membersof one branch (Low German) of the Teutonic family.History first finds them becoming united throughcommunity of blood, of language, institutions,and customs, although it was too early yet to justifythe historian in giving to them the inclusivename of Englishmen. They all, however, hadpart in the conquest of England, and it was theirunion in that land that gave birth to the English people.

Little is known of the actual characterand life of these people who made the earliestEngland, but their Germanic inheritance is traceablein their social and political framework, which alreadyprefigured the national organization that throughcenturies of gradual development became modernEngland.

Out of their early modes grew the formsof English citizenship and legislation, and theindividual and public freedom which has slowly broadeneddown from generation to generation. Later camethe modifying, if not transforming, influenceof Christianity, replacing the ancient nature-worshipwhich they took with them to their new home.On these foundations the English race, as it has grownup in the land they made their own, and in other landsto which like men and institutions have beencarried, has reared its various structures ofnationality.

JOHN R. GREEN

Of the three English tribes the Saxons lay nearestto the empire, and they were naturally the first totouch the Roman world; before the close of the thirdcentury indeed their boats appeared in such force inthe English Channel as to call for a special fleetto resist them. The piracy of our fathers hadthus brought them to the shores of a land which, dearas it is now to Englishmen, had not as yet been troddenby English feet. This land was Britain.When the Saxon boats touched its coast the islandwas the westernmost province of the Roman Empire.In the fifty-fifth year before Christ a descent ofJulius Caesar revealed it to the Roman world; anda century after Caesar’s landing the emperorClaudius undertook its conquest. The work wasswiftly carried out. Before thirty years wereover the bulk of the island had passed beneath theRoman sway, and the Roman frontier had been carriedto the firths of Forth and of Clyde. The workof civilization followed fast on the work of the sword.

To the last indeed the distance of the island fromthe seat of empire left her less Romanized than anyother province of the west. The bulk of the populationscattered over the country seem in spite of imperialedicts to have clung to their old law as to their oldlanguage, and to have retained some traditional allegianceto their native chiefs. But Roman civilisationrested mainly on city life, and in Britain as elsewherethe city was thoroughly Roman. In towns such asLincoln or York, governed by their own municipal officers,guarded by massive walls, and linked together by anetwork of magnificent roads which reached from oneend of the island to the other, manners, language,political life, all were of Rome.

For three hundred years the Roman sword secured orderand peace without Britain and within, and with peaceand order came a wide and rapid prosperity. Commercesprang up in ports among which London held the firstrank; agriculture flourished till Britain became oneof the corn-exporting countries of the world; themineral resources of the province were explored inthe tin mines of Cornwall, the lead mines of Somersetor Northumberland, and the iron mines of the Forestof Dean. But evils which sapped the strengthof the whole empire told at last, on the provinceof Britain.

Wealth and population alike declined under a crushingsystem of taxation, under restrictions which fetteredindustry, under a despotism which crushed out alllocal independence. And with decay within camedanger from without. For centuries past the Romanfrontier had held back the Barbaric world beyond it—­theParthian of the Euphrates, the Numidian of the Africandesert, the German of the Danube or the Rhine.In Britain a wall drawn from Newcastle to Carlislebridled the British tribes, the Picts as they werecalled, who had been sheltered from Roman conquestby the fastnesses of the Highlands.

It was this mass of savage barbarism which broke uponthe empire as it sank into decay. In its westerndominions the triumph of these assailants was complete.The Franks conquered and colonized Gaul. TheWest Goths conquered and colonized Spain. TheVandals founded a kingdom in Africa. The Burgundiansencamped in the borderland between Italy and the Rhone.The East Goths ruled at last in Italy itself.

It was to defend Italy against the Goths that Romein the opening of the fifth century withdrew her legionsfrom Britain, and from that moment the province wasleft to struggle unaided against the Picts. Norwere these its only enemies. While maraudersfrom Ireland, whose inhabitants then bore the nameof Scots, harried the west, the boats of Saxon pirates,as we have seen, were swarming off its eastern andsouthern coasts.

For forty years Britain held bravely out against theseassailants; but civil strife broke its powers of resistance,and its rulers fell back at last on the fatal policyby which the empire invited its doom while strivingto avert it, the policy of matching barbarian againstbarbarian. By the usual promises of land and paya band of warriors was drawn for this purpose fromJutland in 449 with two ealdormen, Hengist and Horsa,at their head.

If by English history we mean the history of Englishmenin the land which from that time they made their own,it is with this landing of Hengist’s war bandthat English history begins. They landed on theshores of the Isle of Thanet at a spot known sinceas Ebbsfleet. No spot can be so sacred to Englishmenas the spot which first felt the tread of Englishfeet. There is little to catch the eye in Ebbsfleetit*elf, a mere lift of ground with a few gray cottagesdotted over it, cut off nowadays from the sea by areclaimed meadow and a sea-wall.

But taken as a whole the scene has a wild beauty ofits own. To the right the white curve of Ramsgatecliffs looks down on the crescent of Pegwell Bay;far away to the left across gray marsh levels wheresmoke wreaths mark the site of Richborough and Sandwichthe coast line trends dimly toward Deal. Everythingin the character of the spot confirms the nationaltradition which fixed here the landing-place of ourfathers; for the physical changes of the country sincethe fifth century have told little on its main features.At the time of Hengist’s landing a broad inletof sea parted Thanet from the mainland of Britain;and through this inlet the pirate boats would naturallycome sailing with a fair wind to what was then thegravel spit of Ebbsfleet.

The work for which the mercenaries had been hiredwas quickly done; and the Picts are said to have beenscattered to the winds in a battle fought on the easterncoast of Britain. But danger from the Pict washardly over when danger came from the jutes themselves.Their fellow-pirates must have flocked from the channelto their settlement in Thanet; the inlet between Thanetand the mainland was crossed, and the Englishmen wontheir first victory over the Britons in forcing theirpassage of the Medway at the village of Aylesford.

A second defeat at the passage of the Cray drove theBritish forces in terror upon London; but the groundwas soon won back again, and it was not till 465 thata series of petty conflicts which had gone on alongthe shores of Thanet made way for a decisive struggleat Wippedsfleet. Here however the overthrow wasso terrible that from this moment all hope of savingnorthern Kent seems to have been abandoned, and itwas only on its southern shore that the Britons heldtheir ground. Ten years later, in 475, the longcontest was over, and with the fall of Lymne, whosebroken walls look from the slope to which they clingover the great flat of Romney Marsh, the work of thefirst English conqueror was done.

The warriors of Hengist had been drawn from the Jutes,the smallest of the three tribes who were to blendin the English people. But the greed of plundernow told on the great tribe which stretched from theElbe to the Rhine, and in 477 Saxon invaders wereseen pushing slowly along the strip of land whichlay westward of Kent between the weald and the sea.Nowhere has the physical aspect of the country moreutterly changed. A vast sheet of scrub, woodland,and waste which then bore the name of the Andredswealdstretched for more than a hundred miles from the bordersof Kent to the Hampshire Downs, extending northwardalmost to the Thames and leaving only a thin stripof coast which now bears the name of Sussex betweenits southern edge and the sea.

This coast was guarded by a fortress which occupiedthe spot now called Pevensey, the future landing-placeof the Norman Conqueror; and the fall of this fortressof Anderida in 491 established the kingdom of the SouthSaxons. “AElle and Cissa beset Anderida,”so ran the pitiless record of the conquerors, “andslew all that were therein, nor was there afterwardone Briton left.”

But Hengist and AElle’s men had touched hardlymore than the coast, and the true conquest of SouthernBritain was reserved for a fresh band of Saxons, atribe known as the Gewissas, who landed under Cerdicand Cynric on the shores of the Southampton Water,and pushed in 495 to the great downs or Gwent whereWinchester offered so rich a prize. Nowhere wasthe strife fiercer than here; and it was not till 519that a decisive victory at Charford ended the strugglefor the “Gwent” and set the crown of theWest Saxons on the head of Cerdic. But the forestbelt around it checked any further advance; and onlya year after Charford the Britons rallied under anew leader, Arthur, and threw back the invaders asthey pressed westward through the Dorsetshire woodlandsin a great overthrow at Badbury or Mount Badon.The defeat was followed by a long pause in the Saxonadvance from the southern coast, but while the Gewissasrested, a series of victories whose history is lostwas giving to men of the same Saxon tribe the coastdistrict north of the mouth of the Thames.

It is probable, however, that the strength of Camulodunum,the predecessor of our modern Colchester, made theprogress of these assailants a slow and doubtful one;and even when its reduction enabled the East Saxonsto occupy the territory to which they have given theirname of Essex a line of woodland which has left itstraces in Epping and Hainault forests checked theirfarther advance into the island.

Though seventy years had passed since the victoryof Aylesford only the outskirts of Britain were won.The invaders were masters as yet but of Kent, Sussex,Hampshire, and Essex. From London to St. David’sHead, from the Andredsweald to the Firth of Forththe country still remained unconquered, and therewas little in the years which followed Arthur’striumph to herald that onset of the invaders whichwas soon to make Britain England. Till now itsassailants had been drawn from two only of the threetribes whom we saw dwelling by the northern sea, fromthe Saxons and the jutes. But the main work ofconquest was to be done by the third, by the tribewhich bore that name of Engle or Englishmen whichwas to absorb that of Saxon or Jute and to stamp itselfon the people which sprang from the union of the conquerorsas on the land that they won.

The Engle had probably been settling for years alongthe coast of Northumbria and in the great districtwhich was cut off from the rest of Britain by theWash and the Fens, the later East Anglia. Butit was not till the moment we have reached that theline of defences which had hitherto held the invadersat bay was turned by their appearance in the Humberand the Trent. This great river line led likea highway into the heart of Britain; and civil strifeseems to have broken the strength of British resistance.But of the incidents of this final struggle we knownothing. One part of the English force marchedfrom the Humber over the Yorkshire wolds to foundwhat was called the kingdom of the Deirans.

Under the empire political power had centred in thedistrict between the Humber and the Roman wall; Yorkwas the capital of Roman Britain; villas of rich land-ownersstudded the valley of the Ouse; and the bulk of thegarrison maintained in the island lay camped alongits northern border. But no record tells us howYorkshire was won, or how the Engle made themselvesmasters of the uplands about Lincoln. It is onlyby their later settlements that we follow their marchinto the heart of Britain. Seizing the valleyof the Don and whatever breaks there were in the woodlandthat then filled the space between the Humber and theTrent, the Engle followed the curve of the latterriver, and struck along the line of its tributarythe Soar. Here round the Roman Ratae, the predecessorof our Leicester, settled a tribe known as the MiddleEnglish, while a small body pushed farther southward,and under the name of “South Engle” occupiedthe ooelitic upland that forms our present Northamptonshire.

But the mass of the invaders seem to have held tothe line of the Trent and to have pushed westwardto its head-waters. Repton, Lichfield, and Tamworthmark the country of these western Englishmen, whoseolder name was soon lost in that of Mercians, or Menof the March. Their settlement was in fact anew march or borderland between conqueror and conquered;for here the impenetrable fastness of the Peak, themass of Cannock Chase, and the broken country of Staffordshireenabled the Briton to make a fresh and desperate stand.

It was probably this conquest of Mid-Britain by theEngle that roused the West Saxons to a new advance.For thirty years they had rested inactive within thelimits of the Gwent, but in 552 their capture of thehill fort of Old Sarum threw open the reaches of theWiltshire downs, and a march of King Cuthwulf on theThames made them masters in 571 of the districts whichnow form Oxfordshire and Berkshire.

Pushing along the upper valley of Avon to a new battleat Barbury Hill they swooped at last from their uplandson the rich prey that lay along the Severn. Gloucester,Cirencester, and Bath, cities which had leagued undertheir British kings to resist this onset, became in577 the spoil of an English victory at Deorham, andthe line of the great western river lay open to thearms of the conquerors. Once the West Saxonspenetrated to the borders of Chester, and Uriconium,a town beside the Wrekin which has been recently broughtagain to light, went up in flames. The raid endedin a crushing defeat which broke the West-Saxon strength,but a British poet in verses still left to us singspiteously the death song of Uriconium, “thewhite town in the valley,” the town of whitestone gleaming among the green woodlands. Thetorch of the foe had left it a heap of blackened ruinswhere the singer wandered through halls he had knownin happier days, the halls of its chief Kyndylan,“without fire, without light, without song,”their stillness broken only by the eagle’s scream,the eagle who “has swallowed fresh drink, heart’sblood of Kyndylan the fair.”

With the victory of Deorham the conquest of the bulkof Britain was complete. Eastward of a line whichmay be roughly drawn along the moorlands of Northumberlandand Yorkshire through Derbyshire and the Forest ofArden to the Lower Severn, and thence by Mendip tothe sea, the island had passed into English hands.Britain had in the main become England. And withinthis new England a Teutonic society was settled onthe wreck of Rome. So far as the conquest hadyet gone it had been complete. Not a Briton remainedas subject or slave on English ground. Sullenly,inch by inch, the beaten men drew back from the landwhich their conquerors had won; and eastward of theborder line which the English sword had drawn allwas now purely English.

CHARLES KNIGHT

“They” [the Romans], says Bede, “residedwithin the rampart that Severus made across the island,on the south side of it; as the cities, temples, bridges,and paved ways do testify to this day.”On the north of the wall were the nations that noseverity had reduced to subjection, and no resistancecould restrain from plunder. At the extreme westof England were the people of Cornwall, or littleWales, as it was called; having the most intimaterelations with the people of Britannia Secunda, orWales; and both connected with the colony of Armorica.The inhabitants of Cornwall and Wales, we may assume,were almost exclusively of the old British stock.The abandonment of the country by the Romans had affectedthem far less than that change affected the more cultivatedcountry, that had been the earliest subdued, and fornearly four centuries had received the Roman institutionsand adopted the Roman customs.

But in the chief portion of the island, from the southernand eastern coasts to the Tyne and the Solway, therewas a mixed population, among whom it would be difficultto trace that common bond which would constitute nationality.The British families of the interior had become mingledwith the settlers of Rome and its tributaries to whomgrants of land had been assigned as the rewards ofmilitary service; and the coasts from the Humber tothe Exe had been here and there peopled with northernsettlers, who had gradually planted themselves amongthe Romanized British; and were, we may well believe,among the most active of those who carried forwardthe commercial intercourse of Britain with Gaul andItaly.

When, therefore, we approach the period of what istermed the Saxon invasion, and hear of the decay,the feebleness, the cowardice, and the misery of theBritons—­all which attributes have been somewhattoo readily bestowed upon the population which theRomans had left behind—­it would be wellto consider what these so-called Britons really were,to enable us properly to understand the transitionstate through which the country passed.

Our first native historian is Gildas, who lived inthe middle of the sixth century. “Fromthe early part of the fifth century, when the Greekand Roman writers cease to notice the affairs of Britain,his narrative, on whatever authority it may have beenfounded, has been adopted without question by Bedeand succeeding authors, and accepted, notwithstandingits barrenness of facts and pompous obscurity, by allbut general consent, as the basis of early Englishhistory.” Gibbon has justly pointed outhis inconsistencies, his florid descriptions of theflourishing condition of agriculture and commerce afterthe departure of the Romans, and his denunciationsof the luxury of the people; when he, at the sametime, describes a race who were ignorant of the arts,incapable of building walls of defence, or of armingthemselves with proper weapons. When “thismonk,” as Gibbon calls him, “who, in theprofound ignorance of human life, presumes to exercisethe office of historian,” tells us that theRomans, who were occasionally called in to aid againstthe Picts and Scots, “give energetic counselto the timorous natives, and leave them patterns bywhich to manufacture arms,” we seem to be readingan account of some remote tribe, to whom the Romansword and buckler were as unfamiliar as the musketwas to the Otaheitans when Cook first went among them.

When Gildas describes the soldiers on the wall as“equally slow to fight and ill-adapted to runaway”; and tells the remarkable incident whichforms part of every schoolboy’s belief, thatthe defenders of the wall were pulled down by greathooked weapons and dashed against the ground, we feela pity akin to contempt for a people so stupid andpassive, and are not altogether sorry that the Pictsand Scots, “differing one from another in manners,

but inspired with the same avidity for blood,”had come with their bushy beards and their half-clothedbodies, to supplant so effeminate a race. Whenhe makes this feeble people send an embassy to a Romanin Gaul to say, “The barbarians drive us to thesea; the sea throws us back on the barbarians:thus two modes of death await us; we are either slainor drowned,” we must wonder at the very straitenedlimits in which this unhappy people were shut up.

Surely much of this is little more than the tumidrhetoric of the cloister; for all the assumptionsthat have been raised of the physical degeneracy ofthe people are quite unsupported by any real historicalevidence. M. Guizot considers it unjust and cruelto view their humble supplications, so declared byGildas, to Rome for aid, as evidences of the effeminacyof that nation, whose resistance to the Saxons hasgiven a chapter to history at a time when historyhas few traces of Italians, Spaniards, and Gauls.

That the representations of Gildas could only be partiallytrue, as applied to some particular districts, issufficiently proved, by the undoubted fact that withinlittle more than twenty years from the date of thesecowardly demonstrations Anthemius, the Emperor, solicitedthe aid of the Britons against the Visigoths; andtwelve thousand men from this island, under one ofthe native chieftains, Rhiothimus, sailed up the Loire,and fought under the Roman command. They are describedby a contemporary Roman writer as quick, well-armed;turbulent and contumacious from their bravery, theirnumbers, and their common agreement. These werenot the people who were likely to have stood upona wall to be pulled down by hooked weapons. Theymight have been the people who had clung, more thanthe other inhabitants of the Roman provinces, to theiroriginal language and customs; but it is not improbablethat they would have been of the mixed races with whomRome had been in more intimate relations, and to whomshe continued to render offices of friendship afterthe separation of the island province from her empire.

Amid all this conflict of testimony there is the undoubtedfact that out of the Roman municipal institutionshad risen the establishment of separate sovereignties,as Procopius relates. Britain, according to St.Jerome, was “a province fertile in tyrants.”The Roman municipal government was kept compact anduniform under a great centralizing power. Itfell to pieces here, as in Gaul, when that power waswithdrawn. It resolved itself into a number oflocal governments without any principle of cohesion.The vicar of the municipium became an independentruler and head of a little republic; and that his authoritywas contested by some who had partaken of his delegateddignity may be reasonably inferred.

The difference of races would also promote the contestsfor command. If East Anglia contained a preponderanceof one race of settlers, and Kent and Sussex of another,they might well quarrel for supremacy. But whenall the settlers on the Saxon shore had lost the controland protection of the Count who once governed them,it may also be imagined that the more exclusivelyBritish districts would not readily cooeperate fordefence with those who were more strange to their kindredeven than the Roman. All the European Continentwas in a state of political dislocation; and we maysafely conclude that when the great power was shatteredthat had so long held the government of the world,the more distant and subordinate branch of its empirewould resolve itself into some of the separate elementsof authority and of imperfect obedience by which aclan is distinguished from a nation.

Nor was the power of the Christian Church in Britainof a more united character than that of the civilrulers. No doubt a church had been formed andorganized. There were bishops, so called, in theseveral cities; but their authority was little concentratedand their tenets were discordant. Pilgrimageswere even made to the sacred places of Palestine;and at a very early period monasteries were founded.That of Bangor, or the Great Circle, seems to havehad some relation to the ancient Druidical worship,upon which it was probably engrafted in that regionwhere Druidism had long flourished. There wereBritish versions of the Bible. But that the churchhad no sustaining power at the period when civil societywas so wholly disorganized, may be inferred from circ*mstanceswhich preceded the complete overthrow of Christianrites by Saxon heathendom.

Bede devotes several chapters of his EcclesiasticalHistory to the actions of St. Germanus, who cameexpressly to Britain to put down the Pelagian heresy;and, amid the multitude of miraculous circ*mstances,records how “the authors of the perverse notionslay hid, and, like the evil spirits, grieved for theloss of the people that was rescued from them.At length, after mature deliberation, they had theboldness to enter the lists, and appeared, being conspicuousfor riches, glittering in apparel, and supported bythe flatteries of many.” The people, accordingto Bede, were the judges of this great controversy,and gave their voices for the orthodox belief.

Whether the Pelagians were expelled from Britain byreason or by force, it is evident that, in the middleof the fifth century, there was a strong element ofreligious disunion very generally prevailing; and thatat a period when the congregations were in a greatdegree independent of each other, and therefore difficultof subjection to a common authority, the rich andthe powerful had adopted a creed which was opposedto the centralizing rule of the Roman Church, andwere arguing about points of faith as strongly asthey were contesting for worldly supremacy. Dr.Lappenberg justly points out this celebrated controversyin our country as “indicating the weakness ofthat religious connection which was so soon to betotally annihilated.” We may, in some degree,account for the reception of the doctrine of Pelagiusby knowing that he was a Briton, whose plain unlatinizedname was Morgan.

Macaulay has startled many a reader of the most familiarhistories of England, in saying, “Hengist andHorsa, Vortigern and Rowena, Arthur and Mordred, aremythical persons, whose very existence may be questioned,and whose adventures must be classed with those ofHercules and Romulus.” It is difficultto write of a period of which the same writer hassaid, “an age of fable completely separates twoages of truth.” Yet no one knew betterthan this accomplished historian himself that an ageof fable and an age of truth cannot be distinguishedwith absolute precision. It is not that whatis presented to us through the haze of tradition mustnecessarily be unreal, any more than that what comesto us in an age of literature must be absolutely true.An historical fact, a real personage, may be handeddown from a remote age in the songs of bards; butit is not therefore to be inferred that these nationallyrics are founded upon pure invention. It iscurious to observe that, wandering amid these tracesof events and persons that have been shaped into history,how ready we are to walk in the footsteps of somehalf-fabulous records, and wholly to turn away fromothers which seem as strongly impressed upon the shiftingsands of national existence.

We derive Hengist and Horsa from the old Anglo-Saxonauthorities; and modern history generally adopts them.Arthur and Mordred have a Celtic origin, and theyare as generally rejected as “mythical persons.”It appears to us that it is as precipitate whollyto renounce the one as the other, because they areboth surrounded with an atmosphere of the fabulous.Hengist and Horsa come to us encompassed with Gothictraditions that belong to other nations. Arthurpresents himself with his attributes of the magicianMerlin, and the knights of the Round Table. Butare we therefore to deny altogether their historicalexistence? In following the ignis fatuusof tradition, the credulous annalists of the monasticage were lost in the treacherous ground over whichit led them. The more patient research of a criticalage sees in that doubtful light a friendly warningof what to avoid, and hence a guide to more stablepathways.

Hengist and Horsa—­who, according to theAnglo-Saxon historians, landed in the year 449 onthe shore which is called Ebbsfleet—­werepersonages of more than common mark. “Theywere the sons of Wihtgils; Wihtgils son of Witta,Witta of Wecta, Wecta of Woden.” So saysthe Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, and adds, “Fromthis Woden sprang all our royal families.”These descendants, in the third generation from thegreat Saxon divinity, came over in three boats.They came by invitation of Wyrtgeone—­Vortigern—­Kingof the Britons. The King gave them land in thesoutheast of the country, on condition that they shouldfight against the Picts; and they did fight, and hadthe victory wheresoever they came. And then theysent for the Angles, and told them of the worthlessnessof the people and the excellences of the land.This is the Saxon narrative. The seductive gracesof Rowena, the daughter of Horsa, who corrupted theKing of the Britons by love and wine, is an embellishmentof the British traditions.

Then came the great battles for possession of theland. At Aylesford and Crayford the Kentish Britonswere overthrown. Before the Angles the Welshfled like fire. These events occupy a quarterof a century. While they are going on, the RomanEmperor, as we have mentioned upon indubitable authority,receives an auxiliary force of twelve thousand menfrom Britain. We cannot rely upon narratives thattell us of the king of the Britons, when welearn from no suspicious sources that the land wasgoverned by many separate chiefs; and which representa petty band of fugitives as gaining mighty triumphsfor a great ruler, and then subduing him themselvesin a wonderfully short time.

The pretensions of Hengist and Horsa to be the immediatedescendants of Woden would seem to imply their mythicalorigin. But many Saxon chiefs of undoubted realityrested their pretensions upon a similar genealogy.The myth was as flattering to the Anglo-Saxon prideof descent as the corresponding myth that the ancientinhabitants of the island were descended from theTrojan Brute was acceptable to the British race.But amid much of fable there is the undoubted factthat Germanic tribes were gradually possessing themselvesof the fairest parts of Britain—­a progressiveusurpation, far different from a sudden conquest.Amid the wreck of the social institutions left byRome, when all that remained of a governing powerwas centred in the towns, it may be readily conceivedthat the rich districts of the eastern and southerncoasts would be eagerly peopled by new settlers, whosebond of society was founded upon the occupation ofthe land; and who, extending the area of their occupation,would eventually come into hostile conflict with theprevious possessors.

For a century and a half a thick darkness seems tooverspread the history of our country. In theAnglo-Saxon writers we can trace little, with anydistinctness, beyond the brief and monotonous recordsof victories and slaughters. Hengist and AEscslew four troops of Britons with the edge of the sword.Hengist then vanishes, and AElla comes with his threesons. In 491 they besieged Andres-cester, “andslew all that dwelt therein, so that not a singleBriton was there left.” Then come Cerdicand Cynric his son; then Port and his two sons, andland at Portsmouth; and so we reach the sixth century.Cerdic and Cynric now stand foremost among the slaughterers,and they establish the kingdom of the West Saxonsand conquer the Isle of Wight.

In the middle of the century Ida begins to reign,from whom arose the royal race of North-humbria.In 565 Ethelbert succeeded to the kingdom of the Kentish-men,and held it fifty-three years. The war goes onin the south-midland counties, where Cuthwulf is fighting;and it reaches the districts of the Severn, whereCuthwine and Ceawlin slay great kings, and take Gloucesterand Cirencester and Bath. One of these fiercebrethren is killed at last, and Ceawlin, “havingtaken many spoils and towns innumerable, wrathfulreturned to his own.” Where “his own”was we are not informed.

We reach, at length, the year 596, when “PopeGregory sent Augustin to Britain, with a great manymonks, who preached the word of God to the nationof the Angles.” Bede very judiciously omitsall such details. He tells us that “theycarried on the conflagration from the eastern to thewestern sea, without any opposition, and almost coveredall the superfices of the perishing island. Publicas well as private structures were overturned; thepriests were everywhere slain before the altars; theprelates and the people, without any respect of persons,were destroyed with fire and sword.” Thereis little to add to these impressive words, whichno doubt contain the general truth. But if weopen the British history of Geoffrey of Monmouth, wefind ourselves relieved from the thick darkness ofthe Anglo-Saxon records, by the blue lights and redlights of the most wondrous romance. Rowena comeswith her golden wine-cup. Merlin instructs Vortigernhow to discover the two sleeping dragons who hinderedthe foundation of his tower. Aurelius, the ChristianKing, burns Vortigern in his Cambrian city of refuge.Eldol fights a duel with Hengist, cuts off his head,and destroys the Saxons without mercy. Merlinthe magician, and Uther Pendragon, with fifteen thousandmen, bring over “the Giant’s Dance”from Ireland, and set it up in Salisbury Plain.Uther Pendragon is made the Christian king over allBritain.

At length we arrive at Arthur, the son of Uther.To him the entire monarchy of Britain belonged byhereditary right. Hoel sends him fifteen thousandmen from Armorica, and he makes the Saxons his tributaries;and with his own hand kills four hundred and seventyin one battle. He not only conquers the Saxons,but subdues Gaul, among other countries, and holdshis court in Paris. His coronation at the Cityof the Legions (Caer-Leon) is gorgeous beyond allrecorded magnificence; and the general state of thecountry, in these days of Arthur, before the middleof the sixth century, is thus described: “Atthat time, Britain had arrived at such a pitch ofgrandeur that in abundance of riches, luxury of ornaments,and politeness of inhabitants, it far surpassed allother kingdoms.” Mordred, the wicked traitor,at length disturbs all this tranquillity and grandeur,and brings over barbarous people from different countries.Arthur falls in battle. The Saxons prevail, andthe Britons retire into Cornwall and Wales.

Amid the bewildering mass of the obscure and the fabulouswhich our history presents of the first century anda half of the Saxon colonization, there are some well-establishedfacts which are borne out by subsequent investigations.Such is Bede’s account of the country of theinvaders, and the parts in which they settled.This account, compared with other authorities, givesus the following results. They consisted of “thethree most powerful nations of Germany—­Saxons,Angles, and Jutes.” The Saxons came fromthe parts which, in Bede’s time, were calledthe country of the Old Saxons. That country isnow known as the duchy of Holstein. These, underElla, founded the kingdom of the South Saxons—­ourpresent Sussex. Later in the fifth century, thesame people, under Cerdic, established themselves inthe district extending from Sussex to Devonshire andCornwall, which was the kingdom of the West Saxons.

Other Saxons settled in Essex and Middlesex.The Angles, says Bede, came from “the countrycalled Angelland, and it is said from that time toremain desert to this day.” There is a partof the duchy of Schleswig, to the north of Holstein,which still bears the name of Anglen. These peoplegave their name to the whole country, Engla-land, orAngla-land, from the greater extent of territory whichthey permanently occupied. As the Saxons possessedthemselves of the southern coasts, the Angles establishedthemselves on the northeastern. Their kingdomof East Anglia comprised Norfolk and Suffolk, as wellas part of Cambridgeshire; and they extended themselvesto the north of the Humber, forming the powerful stateof Northumbria, and carrying their dominion even tothe Forth and the Clyde.

The Jutes came from the country north of the Angles,which is in the upper part of the present Schleswig;and they occupied Kent and the Isle of Wight, withthat part of Hampshire which is opposite the island.Sir Francis Palgrave is of opinion that “thetribes by whom Britain was invaded appear principallyto have proceeded from the country now called Friesland;for of all the continental dialects the ancient Frisickis the one which approaches most nearly to the Anglo-Saxonof our ancestors.” Mr. Craik has pointedout that “the modern kingdom of Denmark comprehendsall the districts from which issued, according tothe old accounts, the several tribes who invaded Britainupon the fall of the Roman Empire. And the Danesproper (who may be considered to represent the Jutes);the Angles, who live between the Bight of Flensborgand the river Schley on the Baltic; the Frisons, whoinhabit the islands along the west coast of Jutland,with a part of the bailiwick of Husum in Schleswig;and the Germans of Holstein (Bede’s Old Saxons)are still all recognized by geographers and ethnographersas distinct races.”

ATTILA INVADES WESTERN ROME

BATTLE OF CHALONS

A.D. 451

CREASY GIBBON

After Attila had conquered and laidwaste the provinces of the Eastern Empire southof the Danube and exacted heavy tribute from TheodosiusII, he turned his attention to the subjugation of theSlavic and Germanic tribes who still remainedindependent. These, with one exception,he overcame and placed under the sovereignty of hisson. He laid claim to one-half of the WesternEmpire, as the betrothed husband of Valentinian’ssister Honoria, from whom he had years beforereceived the offer of her hand in marriage.

In 451, with Genseric, King of theVandals, for his ally, he invaded Gaul.Before his advance the cities hastened to capitulate,and so complete was his devastation of the countrythat it came to be a saying that the grass nevergrew where his horses had trod. But in Aetius,their commander-in-chief under Valentinian III, theRomans had an able general, who was aided by theWest Gothic king Theodoric. The West Gothsand the Franks, the former from the South, thelatter from the North of Gaul, joined him in largenumbers, and the allied forces drove the Hunsfrom the walls of Orleans, which he had besieged.From there he retreated to Chalons, where hiswestward movement was to receive its final check.This decisive event was, in the words of Herbert,“the discomfiture of the mighty attemptof Attila to found a new anti-Christian dynasty uponthe wreck of the temporal power of Rome, at the endof the term of twelve hundred years, to whichits duration had been limited by the forebodingsof the heathen.”

SIR EDWARD SHEPHERD CREASY

A broad expanse of plains, the Campi Catalaunici ofthe ancients, spreads far and wide around the cityof Chalons, in the northeast of France. The longrows of poplars, through which the river Marne windsits way, and a few thinly scattered villages, are almostthe only objects that vary the monotonous aspect ofthe greater part of this region. But about fivemiles from Chalons, near the little hamlets of Chapeand Cuperly, the ground is indented and heaped up inranges of grassy mounds and trenches, which attestthe work of man’s hands in ages past, and which,to the practised eye, demonstrate that this quiet spothas once been the fortified position of a huge militaryhost.

Local tradition gives to these ancient earthworksthe name of Attila’s Camp. Nor is thereany reason to question the correctness of the title,or to doubt that behind these very ramparts it wasthat fourteen hundred years ago the most powerfulheathen king that ever ruled in Europe mustered theremnants of his vast army, which had striven on theseplains against the Christian soldiery of Toulouse andRome. Here it was that Attila prepared to resistto the death his victors in the field; and here heheaped up the treasures of his camp in one vast pile,which was to be his funeral pyre should his camp bestormed. It was here that the Gothic and Italianforces watched, but dared not assail their enemy inhis despair, after that great and terrible day of battlewhen

“Thesound
Of conflict was o’erpast,the shout of all
Whom earth could send fromher remotest bounds,
Heathen or faithful; fromthy hundred mouths,
That feed the Caspian withRiphean snows.
Huge Volga! from famed Hypanis,which once
Cradled the Hun; from allthe countless realms
Between Imaus and that utmoststrand
Where columns of Herculeanrock confront
The blown Altantic; Roman,Goth, and Hun,
And Scythian strength of chivalry,that tread
The cold Codanian shore orwhat far lands
Inhospitable drink Cimmerianfloods,
Franks, Saxons, Suevic, andSarmatian chiefs,
And who from green Armoricaor Spain
Flocked to the work of death.”

The victory which the Roman general Aetius, with hisGothic allies, had then gained over the Huns, wasthe last victory of imperial Rome. But amongthe long fasti of her triumphs, few can be found that,for their importance and ultimate benefit to mankind,are comparable with this expiring effort of her arms.It did not, indeed, open to her any new career ofconquest—­it did not consolidate the relicsof her power—­it did not turn the rapidebb of her fortunes. The mission of imperialRome was, in truth, already accomplished. Shehad received and transmitted through her once ampledominion the civilization of Greece. She hadbroken up the barriers of narrow nationalities amongthe various states and tribes that dwelt around thecoasts of the Mediterranean. She had fused theseand many other races into one organized empire, boundtogether by a community of laws, of government andinstitutions. Under the shelter of her full powerthe true faith had arisen in the earth, and duringthe years of her decline it had been nourished to maturity,it had overspread all the provinces that ever obeyedher sway. For no beneficial purpose to mankindcould the dominion of the seven-hilled city have beenrestored or prolonged. But it was all-importantto mankind what nations should divide among them Rome’srich inheritance of empire. Whether the Germanicand Gothic warriors should form states and kingdomsout of the fragments of her dominions, and become thefree members of the Commonwealth of Christian Europe,or whether pagan savages, from the wilds of centralAsia, should crush the relics of classic civilizationand the early institutions of the Christianized Germansin one hopeless chaos of barbaric conquest. TheChristian Visigoths of King Theodoric fought and triumphedat Chalons side by side with the legions of Aetius.Their joint victory over the Hunnish host not onlyrescued for a time from destruction the old age ofRome, but preserved for centuries of power and glorythe Germanic element in the civilization of modernEurope.

In order to estimate the full importance to mankindof the battle of Chalons we must keep steadily inmind who and what the Germans were, and the importantdistinctions between them and the numerous other racesthat assailed the Roman Empire; and it is to be understoodthat the Gothic and Scandinavian nations are includedin the German race. Now, “in two remarkabletraits the Germans differed from the Sarmatic as wellas from the Slavic nations, and, indeed, from all thoseother races to whom the Greeks and Romans gave thedesignation of barbarians. I allude to theirpersonal freedom and regard for the rights of men;secondly, to the respect paid by them to the femalesex, and the chastity for which the latter were celebratedamong the people of the North. These were thefoundations of that probity of character, self-respect,and purity of manners which may be traced among theGermans and Goths even during pagan times, and which,when their sentiments were enlightened by Christianity,brought out those splendid traits of character whichdistinguish the age of chivalry and romance.”

What the intermixture of the German stock with theclassic, at the fall of the Western Empire, has donefor mankind may be best felt by watching, with Arnold,over how large a portion of the earth the influenceof the German element is now extended.

“It affects, more or less, the whole west ofEurope, from the head of the Gulf of Bothnia to themost southern promontory of Sicily, from the Oderand the Adriatic to the Hebrides and to Lisbon.It is true that the language spoken over a large portionof this place is not predominantly German; but evenin France and Italy, and Spain, the influence of theFranks, Burgundians, Visigoths, Ostrogoths, and Lombardswhile it has colored even the language, has in bloodand institutions left its mark legibly and indelibly.Germany, the Low Countries, Switzerland, for the mostpart Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, and our own islandsare all in language, in blood, and in institutionsGerman most decidedly. But all South Americais peopled with Spaniards and Portuguese; all NorthAmerica and all Australia with Englishmen. I saynothing of the prospects and influence of the Germanrace in Africa and in India; it is enough to say thathalf of Europe and all America and Australia are German,more or less completely, in race, in language, or ininstitutions, or in all.”

By the middle of the fifth century Germanic nationshad settled themselves in many of the fairest regionsof the Roman Empire, had imposed their yoke on theprovincials, and had undergone, to a considerableextent, that moral conquest which the arts and refinementsof the vanquished in arms have so often achieved overthe rough victor. The Visigoths held the Northof Spain, and Gaul south of the Loire. Franks,Alemanni, Alans, and Burgundians had established themselvesin other Gallic provinces, and the Suevi were mastersof a large southern portion of the Spanish peninsula.A king of the Vandals reigned in North Africa; andthe Ostrogoths had firmly planted themselves in theprovinces north of Italy. Of these powers andprincipalities, that of the Visigoths, under theirking Theodoric, son of Alaric, was by far the firstin power and in civilization.

The pressure of the Huns upon Europe had first beenfelt in the fourth century of our era. They hadlong been formidable to the Chinese empire, but theascendency in arms which another nomadic tribe of CentralAsia, the Sienpi, gained over them, drove the Hunsfrom their Chinese conquest westward; and this movementonce being communicated to the whole chain of barbaricnations that dwelt northward of the Black Sea and theRoman Empire, tribe after tribe of savage warriorsbroke in upon the barriers of civilized Europe.The Huns crossed the Tanais into Europe in 375, andrapidly reduced to subjection the Alans, the Ostrogoths,and other tribes that were then dwelling along thecourse of the Danube. The armies of the RomanEmperor that tried to check their progress were cut

to pieces by them, and Pannonia and other provincessouth of the Danube were speedily occupied by thevictorious cavalry of these new invaders. Notmerely the degenerate Romans, but the bold and hardywarriors of Germany and Scandinavia, were appalledat the number, the ferocity, the ghastly appearance,and the lightning-like rapidity of the Huns. Strangeand loathsome legends were coined and credited, whichattributed their origin to the union of

“Secret, black, andmidnight hags”

with the evil spirits of the wilderness.

Tribe after tribe and city after city fell beforethem. Then came a pause in their career of conquestin Southwestern Europe, caused probably by dissensionsamong their chiefs, and also by their arms being employedin attacks upon the Scandinavian nations. Butwhen Attila—­or Atzel, as he is called inthe Hungarian language—­became their ruler,the torrent of their arms was directed with augmentedterrors upon the West and the South, and their myriadsmarched beneath the guidance of one master-mind tothe overthrow both of the new and the old powers ofthe earth.

Recent events have thrown such a strong interest overeverything connected with the Hungarian name thateven the terrible renown of Attila now impresses usthe more vividly through our sympathizing admirationof the exploits of those who claim to be descendedfrom his warriors, and “ambitiously insert thename of Attila among their native kings.”The authenticity of this martial genealogy is deniedby some writers and questioned by more. But itis at least certain that the Magyars of Arpad, whoare the immediate ancestors of the bulk of the modernHungarians, and who conquered the country which bearsthe name of Hungary in A.D. 889, were of the samestock of mankind as were the Huns of Attila, evenif they did not belong to the same subdivision of thatstock. Nor is there any improbability in the traditionthat after Attila’s death many of his warriorsremained in Hungary, and that their descendants afterwardjoined the Huns of Arpad in their career of conquest.It is certain that Attila made Hungary the seat ofhis empire. It seems also susceptible of clearproof that the territory was then called Hungvar,and Attila’s soldiers Hungvari. Both theHuns of Attila and those of Arpad came from the familyof nomadic nations whose primitive regions were thosevast wildernesses of High Asia which are includedbetween the Altaic and the Himalayan mountain chains.

The inroads of these tribes upon the lower regionsof Asia and into Europe have caused many of the mostremarkable revolutions in the history of the world.There is every reason to believe that swarms of thesenations made their way into distant parts of the earthat periods long before the date of the Scythian invasionof Asia, which is the earliest inroad of the nomadicrace that history records. The first, as faras we can conjecture, in respect to the time of their

descent, were the Finnish and Ugrian tribes, who appearto have come down from the Altaic border of High Asiatoward the northwest, in which direction they advancedto the Uralian Mountains. There they establishedthemselves; and that mountain chain, with its valleysand pasture lands, became to them a new country, whencethey sent out colonies on every side; but the Ugriancolony which under Arpad occupied Hungary and becamethe ancestors of the bulk of the present Hungariannation did not quit their settlements on the UralianMountains till a very late period, and not until fourcenturies after the time when Attila led from the primaryseats of the nomadic races in High Asia the host withwhich he advanced into the heart of France. Thathost was Turkish, but closely allied in origin, language,and habits with the Finno-Ugrian settlers on the Ural.

Attila’s fame has not come down to us throughthe partial and suspicious medium of chroniclers andpoets of his own race. It is not from Hunnishauthorities that we learn the extent of his might:it is from his enemies, from the literature and thelegends of the nations whom he afflicted with hisarms, that we draw the unquestionable evidence of hisgreatness. Besides the express narratives of Byzantine,Latin, and Gothic writers, we have the strongest proofof the stern reality of Attila’s conquests inthe extent to which he and his Huns have been thethemes of the earliest German and Scandinavian lays.Wild as many of those legends are, they bear concurrentand certain testimony to the awe with which the memoryof Attila was regarded by the bold warriors who composedand delighted in them.

Attila’s exploits, and the wonders of his unearthlysteed and magic sword, repeatedly occur in the sagasof Norway and Iceland; and the celebrated Nibelungenlied,the most ancient of Germanic poetry, is full of them.There Etsel, or Attila, is described as the wearerof twelve mighty crowns, and as promising to his bridethe lands of thirty kings whom his irresistible swordhad subdued. He is, in fact, the hero of thelatter part of this remarkable poem; and it is at hiscapital city, Etselenburg, which evidently correspondsto the modern Buda, that much of its action takesplace.

When we turn from the legendary to the historic Attila,we see clearly that he was not one of the vulgar herdof barbaric conquerors. Consummate military skillmay be traced in his campaigns; and he relied farless on the brute force of armies for the aggrandizementof his empire than on the unbounded influence overthe affections of friends and the fears of foes whichhis genius enabled him to acquire. Austerelysober in his private life—­severely juston the judgment seat—­conspicuous amonga nation of warriors for hardihood, strength, andskill in every martial exercise—­grave anddeliberate in counsel, but rapid and remorseless inexecution, he gave safety and security to all whowere under his dominion, while he waged a warfare of

extermination against all who opposed or sought toescape from it. He watched the national passions,the prejudices, the creeds, and the superstitionsof the varied nations over which he ruled and of thosewhich he sought to reduce beneath his sway: allthese feelings he had the skill to turn to his ownaccount. His own warriors believed him to bethe inspired favorite of their deities, and followedhim with fanatic zeal; his enemies looked on him asthe preappointed minister of heaven’s wrathagainst themselves; and though they believed not inhis creed, their own made them tremble before him.

In one of his early campaigns he appeared before histroops with an ancient iron sword in his grasp, whichhe told them was the god of war whom their ancestorshad worshipped. It is certain that the nomadictribes of Northern Asia, whom Herodotus described underthe name of Scythians, from the earliest times worshippedas their god a bare sword. That sword-god wassupposed, in Attila’s time, to have disappearedfrom earth; but the Hunnish King now claimed to havereceived it by special revelation. It was saidthat a herdsman, who was tracking in the desert awounded heifer by the drops of blood, found the mysterioussword standing fixed in the ground, as if it had darteddown from heaven. The herdsman bore it to Attila,who thenceforth was believed by the Huns to wieldthe Spirit of Death in battle, and their seers prophesiedthat that sword was to destroy the world. A Roman,who was on an embassy to the Hunnish camp, recordedin his memoirs Attila’s acquisition of thissupernatural weapon, and the immense influence overthe minds of the barbaric tribes which its possessiongave him. In the title which he assumed we shallsee the skill with which he availed himself of thelegends and creeds of other nations as well as of hisown. He designated himself “ATTILA, Descendantof the Great Nimrod. Nurtured in Engaddi.By the grace of God, King of the Huns, the Goths,the Danes, and the Medes. The Dread of the World.”

Herbert states that Attila is represented on an oldmedallion with a teraph, or a head, on his breast;and the same writer adds: “We know, fromthe Hamartigenea of Prudentius, that Nimrod,with a snaky-haired head, was the object of adorationof the heretical followers of Marcion; and the samehead was the palladium set up by Antiochus Epiphanesover the gates of Antioch, though it has been calledthe visage of Charon. The memory of Nimrod wascertainly regarded with mystic veneration by many;and by asserting himself to be the heir of that mightyhunter before the Lord, he vindicated to himself atleast the whole Babylonian kingdom.

“The singular assertion in his style, that hewas nurtured in Engaddi, where he certainly had neverbeen, will be more easily understood on referenceto the twelfth chapter of the Book of Revelation, concerningthe woman clothed with the sun, who was to bring forthin the wilderness—­’where she hatha place prepared of God’—­a man-child,who was to contend with the dragon having seven headsand ten horns, and rule all nations with a rod ofiron. This prophecy was at that time understooduniversally by the sincere Christians to refer to thebirth of Constantine, who was to overwhelm the paganismof the city on the seven hills, and it is still soexplained; but it is evident that the heathens musthave looked on it in a different light, and have regardedit as a foretelling of the birth of that Great onewho should master the temporal power of Rome.The assertion, therefore, that he was nurtured inEngaddi, is a claim to be looked upon as that man-childwho was to be brought forth in a place prepared ofGod in the wilderness. Engaddi means a placeof palms and vines in the desert; it was hard by Zoar,the city of refuge, which was saved in the Vale ofSiddim, or Demons, when the rest were destroyed byfire and brimstone from the Lord in heaven, and might,therefore, be especially called a place prepared ofGod in the wilderness.”

It is obvious enough why he styled himself “Bythe Grace of God, King of the Huns and Goths,”and it seems far from difficult to see why he addedthe names of the Medes and the Danes. His armieshad been engaged in warfare against the Persian kingdomof the Sassanidae, and it is certain that he meditatedthe invasion and overthrow of the Medo-Persian power.Probably some of the northern provinces of that kingdomhad been compelled to pay him tribute; and this wouldaccount for his styling himself king of the Medes,they being his remotest subjects to the south.From a similar cause he may have called himself kingof the Danes, as his power may well have extendednorthward as far as the nearest of the Scandinaviannations, and this mention of Medes and Danes as hissubjects would serve at once to indicate the vast extentof his dominion.[24]

The immense territory north of the Danube and BlackSea and eastward of Caucasus, over which Attila ruled,first in conjunction with his brother Bleda, and afterwardalone, cannot be very accurately defined, but it musthave comprised within it, besides the Huns, many nationsof Slavic, Gothic, Teutonic, and Finnish origin.South also of the Danube, the country, from the riverSau as far as Novi in Thrace, was a Hunnish province.Such was the empire of the Huns in A.D. 445; a memorableyear, in which Attila founded Buda on the Danube ashis capital city, and rid himself of his brother bya crime which seems to have been prompted not onlyby selfish ambition, but also by a desire of turningto his purpose the legends and forebodings which thenwere universally spread throughout the Roman Empire,and must have been well known to the watchful andruthless Hun.

The year 445 of our era completed the twelfth centuryfrom the foundation of Rome, according to the bestchronologers. It had always been believed amongthe Romans that the twelve vultures, which were saidto have appeared to Romulus when he founded the city,signified the time during which the Roman power shouldendure. The twelve vultures denoted twelve centuries.This interpretation of the vision of the birds ofdestiny was current among learned Romans, even whenthere were yet many of the twelve centuries to run,and while the imperial city was at the zenith of itspower. But as the allotted time drew nearer andnearer to its conclusion, and as Rome grew weakerand weaker beneath the blows of barbaric invaders,the terrible omen was more and more talked and thoughtof; and in Attila’s time, men watched for themomentary extinction of the Roman State with the lastbeat of the last vulture’s wing. Moreover,among the numerous legends connected with the foundationof the city, and the fratricidal death of Remus, therewas one most terrible one, which told that Romulusdid not put his brother to death in accident or inhasty quarrel, but that

“He slew his gallanttwin
With inexpiable sin,”

deliberately and in compliance with the warnings ofsupernatural powers. The shedding of a brother’sblood was believed to have been the price at whichthe founder of Rome had purchased from destiny hertwelve centuries of existence.

We may imagine, therefore, with what terror in thisthe twelve hundredth year after the foundation ofRome the inhabitants of the Roman Empire must haveheard the tidings that the royal brethren Attila andBleda had founded a new capital on the Danube, whichwas designed to rule over the ancient capital on theTiber; and that Attila, like Romulus, had consecratedthe foundations of his new city by murdering his brother;so that for the new cycle of centuries then aboutto commence, dominion had been bought from the gloomyspirits of destiny in favor of the Hun by a sacrificeof equal awe and value with that which had formerlyobtained it for the Roman.

It is to be remembered that not only the pagans butalso the Christians of that age knew and believedin these legends and omens, however they might differas to the nature of the superhuman agency by whichsuch mysteries had been made known to mankind.And we may observe with Herbert, a modern learneddignitary of our Church, how remarkably this augurywas fulfilled; for “if to the twelve centuriesdenoted by the twelve vultures that appeared to Romuluswe add, for the six birds that appeared to Remus,six lustra or periods of five years each, bywhich the Romans were wont to number their time, itbrings us precisely to the year 476, in which theRoman Empire was finally extinguished by Odoacer.”

An attempt to assassinate Attila, made, or supposedto have been made, at the instigation of Theodoricthe Younger, the emperor of Constantinople, drew theHunnish armies, in 445, upon the Eastern Empire, anddelayed for a time the destined blow against Rome.Probably a more important cause of delay was the revoltof some of the Hunnish tribes to the north of theBlack Sea against Attila, which broke out about thisperiod, and is cursorily mentioned by the Byzantinewriters. Attila quelled this revolt, and havingthus consolidated his power, and having punished thepresumption of the Eastern Roman Emperor by fearfulravages of his fairest provinces, Attila, in 450 A.D.,prepared to set his vast forces in motion for theconquest of Western Europe. He sought unsuccessfullyby diplomatic intrigues to detach the king of theVisigoths from his alliance with Rome, and he resolvedfirst to crush the power of Theodoric, and then toadvance with overwhelming power to trample out thelast sparks of the doomed Roman Empire.

A strange invitation from a Roman princess gave hima pretext for the war, and threw an air of chivalricenterprise over his invasion. Honoria, sisterof Valentinian III, the emperor of the West, had sentto Attila to offer him her hand and her supposed rightto share in the imperial power. This had beendiscovered by the Romans, and Honoria had been forthwithclosely imprisoned. Attila now pretended to takeup arms in behalf of his self-promised bride, andproclaimed that he was about to march to Rome to redressHonoria’s wrongs. Ambition and spite againsther brother must have been the sole motives that ledthe lady to woo the royal Hun; for Attila’sface and person had all the natural ugliness of hisrace, and the description given of him by a Byzantineambassador must have been well known in the imperialcourts. Herbert has well versified the portraitdrawn by Priscus of the great enemy of both Byzantiumand Rome:

“Terrific was his semblance,in no mould
Of beautiful proportion cast;his limbs
Nothing exalted, but withsinews braced
Of Chalybean temper, agile,lithe,
And swifter than the roe;his ample chest
Was overbrow’d by agigantic head,
With eyes keen, deeply sunk,and small, that gleam’d
Strangely in wrath as thoughsome spirit unclean
Within that corporal tenementinstall’d
Look’d from its windows,but with temper’d fire
Beam’d mildly on theunresisting. Thin
His beard and hoary; his flatnostrils crown’d
A cicatrized, swart visage;but, withal,
That questionable shape suchglory wore
That mortals quail’dbeneath him.”

Two chiefs of the Franks, who were then settled onthe Lower Rhine, were at this period engaged in afeud with each other, and while one of them appealedto the Romans for aid, the other invoked the assistanceand protection of the Huns. Attila thus obtainedan ally whose cooeperation secured for him the passageof the Rhine, and it was this circ*mstance which causedhim to take a northward route from Hungary for hisattack upon Gaul. The muster of the Hunnish hostswas swollen by warriors of every tribe that they hadsubjugated; nor is there any reason to suspect theold chroniclers of wilful exaggeration in estimatingAttila’s army as seven hundred thousand strong.Having crossed the Rhine probably a little below Coblentz,he defeated the king of the Burgundians, who endeavoredto bar his progress. He then divided his vastforces into two armies, one of which marched northwestupon Tongres and Arras and the other cities of thatpart of France, while the main body, under Attilahimself, advanced up the Moselle, and destroyed Besanconand other towns in the country of the Burgundians.

One of the latest and best biographers of Attila wellobserves that, “having thus conquered the easternpart of France, Attila prepared for an invasion ofthe West-Gothic territories beyond the Loire.He marched upon Orleans, where he intended to forcethe passage of that river, and only a little attentionis requisite to enable us to perceive that he proceededon a systematic plan: he had his right wing onthe north for the protection of his Frank allies;his left wing on the south for the purpose of preventingthe Burgundians from rallying and of menacing thepasses of the Alps from Italy; and he led his centretoward the chief object of the campaign—­theconquest of Orleans, and an easy passage into theWest-Gothic dominion. The whole plan is very likethat of the allied powers in 1814, with this difference,that their left wing entered France through the defilesof the Jura, in the direction of Lyons, and that themilitary object of the campaign was the capture ofParis.”

It was not until the year 451 that the Huns commencedthe siege of Orleans; and during their campaign inEastern Gaul, the Roman general Aetius had strenuouslyexerted himself in collecting and organizing suchan army as might, when united to the soldiery of theVisigoths, be fit to face the Huns in the field.He enlisted every subject of the Roman Empire whompatriotism, courage, or compulsion could collect beneaththe standards; and round these troops, which assumedthe once proud title of the legions of Rome he arrayedthe large forces of barbaric auxiliaries, whom pay,persuasion, or the general hate and dread of the Hunsbrought to the camp of the last of the Roman generals.King Theodoric exerted himself with equal energy.Orleans resisted her besiegers bravely as in after-times.The passage of the Loire was skilfully defended againstthe Huns; and Aetius and Theodoric, after much manoeuvringand difficulty, effected a junction of their armiesto the south of that important river.

On the advance of the allies upon Orleans, Attilainstantly broke up the siege of that city and retreatedtoward the Marne. He did not choose to risk adecisive battle with only the central corps of hisarmy against the combined power of his enemies, andhe therefore fell back upon his base of operations,calling in his wings from Arras and Besancon, andconcentrating the whole of the Hunnish forces on thevast plains of Chalons-sur-Marne. A glance atthe map will show how scientifically this place waschosen by the Hunnish general as the point for hisscattered forces to converge upon; and the natureof the ground was eminently favorable for the operationsof cavalry, the arm in which Attila’s strengthpeculiarly lay.

It was during the retreat from Orleans that a Christianhermit is reported to have approached the HunnishKing and said to him, “Thou art the Scourgeof God for the chastisem*nt of the Christians.”Attila instantly assumed this new title of terror,which thenceforth became the appellation by whichhe was most widely and most fearfully known.

The confederate armies of Romans and Visigoths atlast met their great adversary face to face on theample battleground of the Chalons plains. Aetiuscommanded on the right of the allies; King Theodoricon the left; and Sangipan, King of the Alans, whosefidelity was suspected, was placed purposely in thecentre, and in the very front of the battle.Attila commanded his centre in person, at the headof his own countrymen, while the Ostrogoths, the Gepidae,and the other subject allies of the Huns were drawnup on the wings.

Some manoeuvring appears to have occurred before theengagement, in which Aetius had the advantage, inasmuchas he succeeded in occupying a sloping hill whichcommanded the left flank of the Huns. Attila sawthe importance of the position taken by Aetius onthe high ground, and commenced the battle by a furiousattack on this part of the Roman line, in which heseems to have detached some of his best troops fromhis centre to aid his left. The Romans, havingthe advantage of the ground, repulsed the Huns, andwhile the allies gained this advantage on their right,their left, under King Theodoric, assailed the Ostrogoths,who formed the right of Attila’s army.The gallant King was himself struck down by a javelinas he rode onward at the head of his men; and his owncavalry, charging over him, trampled him to death inthe confusion. But the Visigoths, infuriated,not dispirited, by their monarch’s fall, routedthe enemies opposed to them, and then wheeled uponthe flank of the Hunnish centre, which had been engagedin a sanguinary and indecisive contest with the Alans.

In this peril Attila made his centre fall back uponhis camp; and when the shelter of its intrenchmentsand wagons had once been gained, the Hunnish archersrepulsed, without difficulty, the charges of the vengefulGothic cavalry. Aetius had not pressed the advantagewhich he gained on his side of the field, and whennight fell over the wild scene of havoc Attila’sleft was still undefeated, but his right had beenrouted and his centre forced back upon his camp.

Expecting an assault on the morrow, Attila stationedhis best archers in front of the cars and wagons,which were drawn up as a fortification along his lines,and made every preparation for a desperate resistance.But the “Scourge of God” resolved thatno man should boast of the honor of having eithercaptured or slain him, and he caused to be raised inthe centre of his encampment a huge pyramid of thewooden saddles of his cavalry; round it he heapedthe spoils and the wealth that he had won; on it hestationed his wives who had accompanied him in thecampaign; and on the summit Attila placed himself,ready to perish in the flames and balk the victoriousfoe of their choicest booty should they succeed instorming his defences.

But when the morning broke and revealed the extentof the carnage with which the plains were heaped formiles, the successful allies saw also and respectedthe resolute attitude of their antagonist. Neitherwere any measures taken to blockade him in his camp,and so to extort by famine that submission which itwas too plainly perilous to enforce with the sword.Attila was allowed to march back the remnants of hisarmy without molestation, and even with the semblanceof success.

It is probable that the crafty Aetius was unwillingto be too victorious. He dreaded the glory whichhis allies the Visigoths had acquired, and fearedthat Rome might find a second Alaric in Prince Torismund,who had signalized himself in the battle, and had beenchosen on the field to succeed his father Theodoric.He persuaded the young King to return at once to hiscapital, and thus relieved himself at the same timeof the presence of a dangerous friend as well as ofa formidable though beaten foe.

Attila’s attacks on the Western Empire weresoon renewed, but never with such peril to the civilizedworld as had menaced it before his defeat at Chalons;and on his death, two years after that battle, thevast empire which his genius had founded was soondissevered by the successful revolts of the subjectnations. The name of the Huns ceased for somecenturies to inspire terror in Western Europe, andtheir ascendency passed away with the life of thegreat King by whom it had been so fearfully augmented.[25]

EDWARD GIBBON

The facility with which Attila had penetrated intothe heart of Gaul may be ascribed to his insidiouspolicy as well as to the terror of his arms.His public declarations were skilfully mitigated byhis private assurances; he alternately soothed andthreatened the Romans and the Goths; and the courtsof Ravenna and Toulouse, mutually suspicious of eachother’s intentions, beheld with supine indifferencethe approach of their common enemy. Aetius wasthe sole guardian of the public safety; but his wisestmeasures were embarrassed by a faction which, sincethe death of Placidia, infested the imperial palace;the youth of Italy trembled at the sound of the trumpet;

and the barbarians, who, from fear or affection, wereinclined to the cause of Attila, awaited with doubtfuland venal faith the event of the war. The patricianpassed the Alps at the head of some troops, whosestrength and numbers scarcely deserved the name ofan army. But on his arrival at Aries, or Lyons,he was confounded by the intelligence that the Visigoths,refusing to embrace the defence of Gaul, had determinedto expect, within their own territories, the formidableinvader, whom they professed to despise.

The senator Avitus, who, after the honorable exerciseof the praetorian prefecture, had retired to his estatein Auvergne, was persuaded to accept the importantembassy, which he executed with ability and success.He represented to Theodoric that an ambitious conqueror,who aspired to the dominion of the earth, could beresisted only by the firm and unanimous alliance ofthe powers whom he labored to oppress. The livelyeloquence of Avitus inflamed the Gothic warriors bythe description of the injuries which their ancestorshad suffered from the Huns, whose implacable furystill pursued them from the Danube to the foot ofthe Pyrenees. He strenuously urged that it wasthe duty of every Christian to save from sacrilegiousviolation the churches of God and the relics of thesaints; that it was the interest of every barbarianwho had acquired a settlement in Gaul, to defend thefields and vineyards, which were cultivated for hisuse, against the desolation of the Scythian shepherds.Theodoric yielded to the evidence of truth, adoptedthe measure at once the most prudent and the most honorable,and declared that, as the faithful ally of Aetiusand the Romans, he was ready to expose his life andkingdom for the common safety of Gaul. The Visigoths,who at that time were in the mature vigor of theirfame and power, obeyed with alacrity the signal ofwar, prepared their arms and horses, and assembledunder the standard of their aged King, who was resolved,with his two eldest sons, Torismond and Theodoric,to command in person his numerous and valiant people.

The example of the Goths determined several tribesor nations that seemed to fluctuate between the Hunsand the Romans. The indefatigable diligence ofthe patrician gradually collected the troops of Gauland Germany, who had formerly acknowledged themselvesthe subjects or soldiers of the republic, but whonow claimed the rewards of voluntary service and therank of independent allies; the Laeti, the Armoricans,the Breones, the Saxons, the Burgundians, the Sarmatiansor Alani, the Ripuarians, and the Franks who followedMeroveus as their lawful prince. Such was thevarious army which, under the conduct of Aetius andTheodoric, advanced, by rapid marches, to relieve Orleansand to give battle to the innumerable host of Attila.

On their approach, the king of the Huns immediatelyraised the siege, and sounded a retreat to recallthe foremost of his troops from the pillage of a citywhich they had already entered. The valor of Attilawas always guided by his prudence; and as he foresawthe fatal consequences of a defeat in the heart ofGaul, he repassed the Seine, and expected the enemyin the plains of Chalons, whose smooth and level surfacewas adapted to the operations of his Scythian cavalry.But in this tumultuary retreat, the vanguard of theRomans and their allies continually pressed, and sometimesengaged, the troops whom Attila had posted in therear; the hostile columns, in the darkness of the nightand the perplexity of the roads, might encounter eachother without design; and the bloody conflict of theFranks and Gepidae, in which fifteen thousand barbarianswere slain, was a prelude to a more general and decisiveaction.

The Catalaunian fields spread themselves round Chalons,and extend, according to the vague measurement ofJornandes, to the length of one hundred and fiftyand the breadth of one hundred miles, over the wholeprovince, which is entitled to the appellation of achampaign country. This spacious plainwas distinguished, however, by some inequalities ofground; and the importance of a height which commandedthe camp of Attila was understood and disputed bythe two generals. The young and valiant Torismondfirst occupied the summit; the Goths rushed with irresistibleweight on the Huns, who labored to ascend from theopposite side; and the possession of this advantageouspost inspired both the troops and their leaders witha fair assurance of victory. The anxiety of Attilaprompted him to consult his priests and haruspices.It was reported that, after scrutinizing the entrailsof victims and scraping their bones, they revealed,in mysterious language, his own defeat, with the deathof his principal adversary; and that the barbarian,by accepting the equivalent, expressed his involuntaryesteem for the superior merit of Aetius.

But the unusual despondency, which seemed to prevailamong the Huns, engaged Attila to use the expedient,so familiar to the generals of antiquity, of animatinghis troops by a military oration; and his languagewas that of a king who had often fought and conqueredat their head. He pressed them to consider theirpast glory, their actual danger, and their futurehopes. The same fortune which opened the desertsand morasses of Scythia to their unarmed valor, whichhad laid so many warlike nations prostrate at theirfeet, had reserved the joys of this memorablefield for the consummation of their victories.The cautious steps of their enemies, their strictalliance, and their advantageous posts he artfullyrepresented as the effects, not of prudence, but offear. The Visigoths alone were the strength andnerves of the opposite army; and the Huns might securelytrample on the degenerate Romans, whose close and

compact order betrayed their apprehensions, and whowere equally incapable of supporting the dangers orthe fatigues of a day of battle. The doctrineof predestination, so favorable to martial virtue,was carefully inculcated by the king of the Huns, whoassured his subjects that the warriors, protectedby heaven, were safe and invulnerable amid the dartsof the enemy, but that the unerring Fates would striketheir victims in the bosom of inglorious peace.“I myself,” continued Attila, “willthrow the first javelin, and the wretch who refusesto imitate the example of his sovereign is devotedto inevitable death.”

The spirit of the barbarians was rekindled by thepresence, the voice, and the example of their intrepidleader; and Attila, yielding to their impatience,immediately formed his order of battle. At thehead of his brave and faithful Huns, he occupied inperson the centre of the line. The nations subjectto his empire, the Rugians, the Heruli, the Thuringians,the Franks, the Burgundians, were extended on eitherhand, over the ample space of the Catalaunian fields;the right wing was commanded by Ardaric, king of theGepidae; and the three valiant brothers who reignedover the Ostrogoths were posted on the left to opposethe kindred tribes of the Visigoths. The dispositionof the allies was regulated by a different principle.Sangiban, the faithless King of the Alani, was placedin the centre, where his motions might be strictlywatched, and his treachery might be instantly punished.Aetius assumed the command of the left, and Theodoricof the right wing; while Torismond still continuedto occupy the heights which appear to have stretchedon the flank, and perhaps the rear, of the Scythianarmy. The nations from the Volga to the Atlanticwere assembled on the plain of Chalons; but many ofthese nations had been divided by faction or conquestor emigration; and the appearance of similar arms andensigns, which threatened each other, presented theimage of a civil war.

The discipline and tactics of the Greeks and Romansform an interesting part of their national manners.The attentive study of the military operations ofXenophon or Caesar or Frederic, when they are describedby the same genius which conceived and executed them,may tend to improve—­if such improvementcan be wished—­the art of destroying thehuman species. But the battle of Chalons can onlyexcite our curiosity by the magnitude of the object;since it was decided by the blind impetuosity of barbarians,and has been related by partial writers, whose civilor ecclesiastical profession secluded them from theknowledge of military affairs. Cassiodorus, however,had familiarly conversed with many Gothic warriorswho served in that memorable engagement; “aconflict,” as they informed him, “fierce,various, obstinate, and bloody; such as could notbe paralleled either in the present or in past ages.”The number of the slain amounted to one hundred andsixty-two thousand, or, according to another account,three hundred thousand persons; and these incredibleexaggerations suppose a real and effective loss sufficientto justify the historian’s remark that wholegenerations may be swept away, by the madness of kings,in the space of a single hour.

After the mutual and repeated discharge of missileweapons, in which the archers of Scythia might signalizetheir superior dexterity, the cavalry and infantryof the two armies were furiously mingled in closercombat. The Huns, who fought under the eyes oftheir King, pierced through the feeble and doubtfulcentre of the allies, separated their wings from eachother, and wheeling, with a rapid effort, to the left,directed their whole force against the Visigoths.As Theodoric rode along the ranks to animate his troops,he received a mortal stroke from the javelin of Andages,a noble Ostrogoth, and immediately fell from his horse.The wounded King was oppressed in the general disorderand trampled under the feet of his own cavalry; andthis important death served to explain the ambiguousprophecy of the haruspices.

Attila already exulted in the confidence of victory,when the valiant Torismund descended from the hillsand verified the remainder of the prediction.The Visigoths, who had been thrown into confusion bythe flight or defection of the Alani, gradually restoredtheir order of battle; and the Huns were undoubtedlyvanquished, since Attila was compelled to retreat.He had exposed his person with the rashness of a privatesoldier; but the intrepid troops of the centre hadpushed forward beyond the rest of the line; theirattack was faintly supported; their flanks were unguarded;and the conquerors of Scythia and Germany were savedby the approach of the night from a total defeat.They retired within the circle of wagons that fortifiedtheir camp; and the dismounted squadrons prepared,themselves for a defence, to which neither their armsnor their temper was adapted. The event was doubtful:but Attila had secured a last and honorable resource.The saddles and rich furniture of the cavalry werecollected, by his order, into a funeral pile; andthe magnanimous barbarian had resolved, if his intrenchmentsshould be forced, to rush headlong into the flames,and to deprive his enemies of the glory which theymight have acquired by the death or captivity of Attila.

But his enemies had passed the night in equal disorderand anxiety. The inconsiderate courage of Torismundwas tempted to urge the pursuit, till he unexpectedlyfound himself, with a few followers, in the midst ofthe Scythian wagons. In the confusion of a nocturnalcombat he was thrown from his horse; and the Gothicprince must have perished like his father, if hisyouthful strength, and the intrepid zeal of his companions,had not rescued him from this dangerous situation.In the same manner, but on the left of the line, Aetiushimself, separated from his allies, ignorant of theirvictory and anxious for their fate, encountered andescaped the hostile troops that were scattered overthe plains of Chalons, and at length reached the campof the Goths, which he could only fortify with a slightrampart of shields till the dawn of day. Theimperial general was soon satisfied of the defeat of

Attila, who still remained inactive within his intrenchments;and when he contemplated the bloody scene, he observed,with secret satisfaction, that the loss had principallyfallen on the barbarians. The body of Theodoric,pierced with honorable wounds, was discovered undera heap of the slain; his subjects bewailed the deathof their king and father; but their tears were mingledwith songs and acclamations, and his funeral riteswere performed in the face of a vanquished enemy.

The Goths, clashing their arms, elevated on a bucklerhis eldest son Torismund, to whom they justly ascribedthe glory of their success; and the new King acceptedthe obligation of revenge as a sacred portion of hispaternal inheritance. Yet the Goths themselveswere astonished by the fierce and undaunted aspectof their formidable antagonist; and their historianhas compared Attila to a lion encompassed in his denand threatening his hunters with redoubled fury.The kings and nations who might have deserted hisstandard in the hour of distress were made sensiblethat the displeasure of their monarch was the mostimminent and inevitable danger. All his instrumentsof martial music incessantly sounded a loud and animatingstrain of defiance; and the foremost troops who advancedto the assault were checked or destroyed by showersof arrows from every side of the intrenchments.It was determined, in a general council of war, tobesiege the King of the Huns in his camp, to intercepthis provisions, and to reduce him to the alternativeof a disgraceful treaty or an unequal combat.But the impatience of the barbarians soon disdainedthese cautious and dilatory measures; and the maturepolicy of Aetius was apprehensive that, after the extirpationof the Huns, the republic would be oppressed by thepride and power of the Gothic nation.

The patrician exerted the superior ascendants of authorityand reason to calm the passions, which the son ofTheodoric considered as a duty; represented, withseeming affection and real truth, the dangers of absenceand delay; and persuaded Torismond to disappoint, byhis speedy return, the ambitious designs of his brothers,who might occupy the throne and treasures of Toulouse.After the departure of the Goths and the separationof the allied army, Attila was surprised at the vastsilence that reigned over the plains of Chalons:the suspicion of some hostile stratagem detained himseveral days within the circle of his wagons, andhis retreat beyond the Rhine confessed the last victorywhich was achieved in the name of the Western Empire.Meroveus and his Franks, observing a prudent distance,and magnifying the opinion of their strength by thenumerous fires which they kindled every night, continuedto follow the rear of the Huns till they reached theconfines of Thuringia. The Thuringians servedin the army of Attila: they traversed, both intheir march and in their return, the territories ofthe Franks; and it was perhaps in this war that they

exercised the cruelties which, about fourscore yearsafterward, were revenged by the son of Clovis.They massacred their hostages, as well as their captives:two hundred young maidens were tortured with exquisiteand unrelenting rage; their bodies were torn asunderby wild horses or their bones were crushed under theweight of rolling wagons, and their unburied limbswere abandoned on the public roads as a prey to dogsand vultures. Such were those savage ancestorswhose imaginary virtues have sometimes excited thepraise and envy of civilized ages!

FOOTNOTES:

[24] In the Nibelungenlied, the old poet whodescribes the reception of the heroine Chrimhild byAttila [Etsel], says that Attila’s dominionswere so vast that among his subject warriors therewere Russian, Greek, Wallachian, Polish, and evenDanish knights.

[25] If I seem to have given fewer of the detailsof the battle itself than its importance would warrant,my excuse must be that Gibbon has enriched our languagewith a description of it too long for quotation andtoo splendidly for rivalry. I have not, however,taken altogether the same view of it that he has.

FOUNDATION OF VENICE

A.D. 452

THOMAS HODGKIN JOHN RUSKIN

The foundation of Venice (Venetia)is an incident in the history of Attila’sincursions, at the head of his Huns, into Italy afterhis defeat at the battle of Chalons-sur-Marne.Venetia was then a large and fertile provinceof Northern Italy, and fifty Venetian cities flourishedin peace and safety under the protection of the Empire.After Attila’s remorseless hordes had takenand destroyed Aquileia, near the head of theAdriatic, they swept, with resistless fury, throughVenetia, whose cities were so utterly destroyed thattheir very sites could henceforth scarcely beidentified. The inhabitants fled in largenumbers to the shores of the Adriatic, where, at theextremity of the gulf, a group of a hundred isletsis separated by shallows from the mainland ofItaly. Here the Venetians built their cityon what had hitherto been uncultivated and almost uninhabitedsand-banks. Under such unfavorable circ*mstanceswas started the career of that wonderful citywhich afterward became “Queen of the Adriatic”and mother of art, science, and learning.

The two greatest authorities on Veniceare Thomas Hodgkin, who made a life study ofItaly and her invaders, and the immortal Ruskin, whosegrandly descriptive articles were written in the atmosphereof Venice and the Adriatic Sea.

THOMAS HODGKIN

The terrible invaders, made wrathful and terribleby the resistance of Aquileia, streamed through thetrembling cities of Venetia. Each earlier stagein the itinerary shows a town blotted out by theirtruly Tartar genius for destruction. At the distanceof thirty-one miles from Aquileia stood the flourishingcolony of Tulia Concordia, so named, probably, incommemoration of the universal peace which, four hundredand eighty years before, Augustus had established inthe world. Concordia was destroyed, and onlyan insignificant little village now remains to showwhere it once stood. At another interval of thirty-onemiles stood Altinum, with its white villas clusteringround the curves of its lagoons, and rivalling Baiaein its luxurious charms. Altinum was effacedas Concordia and as Aquileia. Yet another marchof thirty-two miles brought the squalid invaders toPatavium, proud of its imagined Trojan origin, and,with better reason, proud of having given birth toLivy. Patavium, too, was levelled with the ground.True, it has not like its sister towns remained inthe nothingness to which Attila reduced it. Itis now

“Many-domed Padua proud,”

but all its great buildings date from the Middle Ages.Only a few broken friezes and a few inscriptions inits museum exist as memorials of the classical Patavium.

As the Huns marched on Vicenza, Verona, Brescia, Bergamo,all opened their gates at their approach, for theterror which they inspired was on every heart.In these towns, and in Milan and Pavia (Ticinum), whichfollowed their example, the Huns enjoyed doubtlessto the full their wild revel of lust and spoliation,but they left the buildings unharmed, and they carriedcaptive the inhabitants instead of murdering them.

The valley of the Po was now wasted to the heart’scontent of the invaders. Should they cross theApennines and blot out Rome as they had blotted outAquileia from among the cities of the world? Thiswas the great question that was being debated in theHunnish camp, and, strange to say, the voices werenot all for war. Already Italy began to strikethat strange awe into the hearts of her northern conquerorswhich so often in later ages has been her best defence.The remembrance of Alaric, cut off by a mysteriousdeath immediately after his capture of Rome, was presentin the mind of Attila, and was frequently insistedupon by his counsellors, who seem to have had a forebodingthat only while he lived would they be great and prosperous.

While this discussion was going forward in the barbariancamp, all voices were hushed, and the attention ofall was aroused by the news of the arrival of an embassyfrom Rome. What had been going on in that cityit is not easy to ascertain. The Emperor seemsto have been dwelling there, not at Ravenna.Aetius shows a strange lack of courage or of resource,and we find it difficult to recognize in him the victorof the Mauriac plains. He appears to have been

even meditating flight from Italy, and to have thoughtof persuading Valentinian to share his exile.But counsels a shade less timorous prevailed.Some one suggested that possibly even the Hun mightbe satiated with havoc, and that an embassy mightassist to mitigate the remainder of his resentment.Accordingly ambassadors were sent in the once mightyname of “the Emperor and the Senate and Peopleof Rome” to crave for peace, and these werethe men who were now ushered into the camp of Attila.

The envoys had been well chosen to satisfy that punctiliouspride which insisted that only men of the highestdignity among the Romans should be sent to treat withthe lord of Scythia and Germany. Avienus, whohad, two years before, worn the robes of consul, wasone of the ambassadors. Trigetius, who had wieldedthe powers of a prefect, and who, seventeen yearsbefore, had been despatched upon a similar missionto Genseric the Vandal, was another. But it wasnot upon these men, but upon their greater colleague,that the eyes of all the barbarian warriors and statesmenwere fixed. Leo, bishop of Rome, had come, onbehalf of his flock, to sue for peace from the idolater.

The two men who had thus at last met by the banksof the Mincio are certainly the grandest figures whomthe fifth century can show to us, at any rate sinceAlaric vanished from the scene.

Attila we by this time know well enough; adequatelyto describe Pope Leo I, we should have to travel toofar into the region of ecclesiastical history.Chosen pope in the year 440, he was now about halfway through his long pontificate, one of the few whichhave nearly rivalled the twenty-five years traditionallyassigned to St. Peter. A firm disciplinarian,not to say a persecutor, he had caused the Priscillianistsof Spain and the Manichees of Rome to feel his heavyhand. A powerful rather than subtle theologian,he had asserted the claims of Christian common-senseas against the endless refinements of oriental speculationconcerning the nature of the Son of God. Likean able Roman general he had traced, in his letterson the Eutychian controversy, the lines of the fortressin which the defenders of the Catholic verity werethenceforward to intrench themselves and from whichthey were to repel the assaults of Monophysites onthe one hand and of Nestorians on the other.These lines had been enthusiastically accepted bythe great council of Chalcedon—­held in theyear of Attila’s Gaulish campaign—­andremain from that day to this the authoritative utteranceof the Church concerning the mysterious union of theGodhead and the manhood in the person of Jesus Christ.

And all these gifts of will, of intellect, and ofsoul were employed by Leo with undeviating constancy,with untired energy, in furthering his great aim,the exaltation of the dignity of the popedom, the conversionof the admitted primacy of the bishops of Rome intoan absolute and world-wide spiritual monarchy.Whatever our opinions may be as to the influence ofthis spiritual monarchy on the happiness of the world,or its congruity with the character of the Teacherin whose words it professed to root itself, we cannotwithhold a tribute of admiration for the high temperof this Roman bishop, who in the ever-deepening degradationof his country still despaired not, but had the courageand endurance to work for a far-distant future, who,when the Roman was becoming the common drudge andfootstool of all nations, still remembered the proudwords “Tu regere imperio populos, Romane,memento!” and under the very shadow of Attilaand Genseric prepared for the city of Romulus a newand spiritual dominion, vaster and more enduring thanany which had been won for her by Julius or by Hadrian.

Such were the two men who stood face to face in thesummer of 452 upon the plains of Lombardy. Thebarbarian King had all the material power in his hand,and he was working but for a twelvemonth. Thepontiff had no power but in the world of intellect,and his fabric was to last fourteen centuries.They met, as has been said, by the banks of the Mincio.Jordanes tells us that it was “where the riveris crossed by many wayfarers coming and going.”Some writers think that these words point to the groundnow occupied by the celebrated fortress of Peschiera,close to the point where the Mincio issues from theLake of Garda. Others place the interview atGovernolo, a little village hard by the junction ofthe Mincio and the Po. If the latter theory betrue, and it seems to fit well with the route whichwould probably be taken by Attila, the meeting tookplace in Vergil’s country, and almost in sightof the very farm where Tityrus and Meliboeus chattedat evening under the beech-tree.

Leo’s success as an ambassador was complete.Attila laid aside all the fierceness of his angerand promised to return across the Danube, and to livethenceforward at peace with the Romans. But inhis usual style, in the midst of reconciliation heleft a loophole for a future wrath, for “heinsisted still on this point above all, that Honoria,the sister of the Emperor, and the daughter of theAugusta Placidia, should be sent to him with the portionof the royal wealth which was her due; and he threatenedthat unless this was done he would lay upon Italy afar heavier punishment than any which it had yet borne.”

But for the present, at any rate, the tide of devastationwas turned, and few events more powerfully impressedthe imagination of that new and blended world whichwas now standing at the threshold of the dying empirethan this retreat of Attila, the dreaded king of kings,before the unarmed successor of St. Peter.

Attila was already predisposed to moderation by thecounsels of his ministers. The awe of Rome wasupon him and upon them, and he was forced incessantlyto ponder the question, “What if I conquer likeAlaric, to die like him?” Upon these doubtsand ponderings of his supervened the stately presenceof Leo, a man of holy life, firm will, dauntless courage—­that,be sure, Attila perceived in the first moments of theirinterview—­and, besides this, holding anoffice honored and venerated through all the civilizedworld. The barbarian yielded to his spell ashe had yielded to that of Lupus of Troyes, and, accordingto a tradition, which, it must be admitted, is notvery well authenticated, he jocularly excused hisunaccustomed gentleness by saying that “he knewhow to conquer men, but the lion and the wolf (Leoand Lupus) had learned how to conquer him.”

The tradition which asserts that the republic of Veniceand its neighbor cities in the lagoons were peopledby fugitives from the Hunnish invasion of 452, isso constant and in itself so probable that we seembound to accept it as substantially true, though contemporaryor nearly contemporary evidence to the fact is utterlywanting.

The thought of “the glorious city in the sea”so dazzles our imaginations when we turn our thoughtstoward Venice that we must take a little pains tofree ourselves from the spell and reproduce the aspectof the desolate islands and far-stretching wastes ofsand and sea to which the fear of Attila drove thedelicately nurtured Roman provincials for a habitation.

If we examine on the map the well-known and deep recessof the Adriatic Sea, we shall at once be struck byone marked difference between its eastern and itsnorthern shores. For three hundred miles downthe Dalmatian coast not one large river, scarcelya considerable stream, descends from the too closelytowering Dinaric mountains to the sea. If weturn now to the northwestern angle which formed theshore of the Roman province of Venetia, we find thecoast line broken by at least seven streams, two ofwhich are great rivers.

These seven streams, whose mouths are crowded intoless than eighty miles of coast, drain an area which,reckoning from Monte Viso to the Terglon Alps—­thesource of the Ysonzo—­must be four hundredand fifty miles in length, and may average two hundredmiles in breadth, and this area is bordered on oneside by the highest mountains in Europe, snow-covered,glacier-strewn, wrinkled and twisted into a thousandvalleys and narrow defiles, each of which sends downits river or its rivulet to swell the great outpour.

For our present purpose, and as a worker out of Venetianhistory, Po, notwithstanding the far greater volumeof his waters, is of less importance than the sixother small streams which bear him company. He,carrying down the fine alluvial soil of Lombardy, goeson lazily adding, foot by foot, to the depth of hisdelta, and mile by mile to its extent. They,swiftly hurrying over their shorter course from mountainto sea, scatter indeed many fragments, detached fromtheir native rocks, over the first meadows which theymeet with in the plain, but carry some also far outto sea, and then, behind the bulwark which they thushave made, deposit the finer alluvial particles withwhich they, too, are laden. Thus we get the twocharacteristic features of the ever-changing coastline, the Lido and the Laguna. The Lido, foundedupon the masses of rock, is a long, thin slip of theterra firma, which form a sort of advance guardof the land.

The Laguna, occupying the interval between the Lidoand the true shore, is a wide expanse of waters, generallyvery few feet in depth, with a bottom of fine sand,and with a few channels of deeper water, the representativesof the forming rivers winding intricately among them.In such a configuration of land and water the stateof the tide makes a striking difference in the scene.And unlike the rest of the Mediterranean, the Adriaticdoes possess a tide, small, it is true, in comparisonwith the great tides of ocean—­for the wholedifference between high and low water at the floodis not more than six feet, and the average flow issaid not to amount to more than two feet six inches—­buteven this flux is sufficient to produce large tractsof sea which the reflux converts into square milesof oozy sand.

Here, between sea and land, upon this detritus ofthe rivers, settled the detritus of humanity.The Gothic and the Lombard invasions contributed probablytheir share of fugitives, but fear of the Hunnishworld-waster—­whose very name, accordingto some, was derived from one of the mighty riversof Russia—­was the great “degrading”influence that carried down the fragments of Romancivilization and strewed them over the desolate lagoons.The inhabitants of Aquileia, or at least the feebleremnants that escaped the sword of Attila, took refugeat Grado. Concordia migrated to Caprularia (nowCaorle). The inhabitants of Altinum, abandoningtheir ruined villas, founded their new habitationsupon seven islands at the mouth of the Piave, which,according to tradition, they named from the sevengates of their old city—­Torcellus, Maiurbius,Boreana, Ammiana, Constantiacum, and Anianum.The representatives of some of these names, Torcello,Mazzorbo, Burano, are familiar sounds to the Venetianat the present day.

From Padua came the largest stream of emigrants.They left the tomb of their mythical ancestor, Antenor,and built their humble dwellings upon the islandsof the rivers Altus and Methamaucus, better known tous as Rialto and Malamocco. This Paduan settlementwas one day to be known to the world by the name ofVenice. But let us not suppose that the future“Queen of the Adriatic” sprang into existenceat a single bound like Constantinople or Alexandria.For two hundred and fifty years, that is to say foreight generations, the refugees on the islands of theAdriatic prolonged an obscure and squalid existence—­fishing,salt manufacturing, damming out the waves with wattledvine-branches, driving piles into the sand-banks,and thus gradually extending the area of their villages.Still these were but fishing villages, loosely confederatedtogether, loosely governed, poor and insignificant,so that the anonymous geographer of Ravenna, writingin the seventh century, can only say of them, “Inthe country of Venetia there are some few islandswhich are inhabited by men.” This seemsto have been their condition, though perhaps graduallygrowing in commercial importance, until at the beginningof the eighth century the concentration of politicalauthority in the hands of the first doge, and therecognition of the Rialto cluster of islands as thecapital of the confederacy, started the republic ona career of success and victory, in which for sevencenturies she met no lasting check.

But this lies far beyond the limit of our presentsubject. It must be again said that we have notto think of “the pleasant place of all festivity,”but of a few huts among the sand-banks, inhabited byRoman provincials, who mournfully recall their charredand ruined habitations by the Brenta and the Piave.The sea alone does not constitute their safety.If that were all, the pirate ships of the Vandal Gensericmight repeat upon their poor dwellings all the terrorof Attila. But it is in their amphibious life,in that strange blending of land and sea which isexhibited by the lagunes, that their safety lies.Only experienced pilots can guide a vessel of anyconsiderable draught through the mazy channels ofdeep water which intersect these lagoons; and shouldthey seem to be in imminent peril from the approachof an enemy, they will defend themselves not likethe Dutch by cutting the dikes which barricade themfrom the ocean, but by pulling up the poles which eventhose pilots need to indicate their pathway throughthe waters. There, then, engaged in their humble,beaver-like labors, we leave for the present the Venetianrefugees from the rage of Attila.

But even while protesting, it is impossible not tolet into our minds some thought of what those desolatefishing villages will one day become. The dimreligious light, half revealing the slowly gatheredglories of St. Mark’s; the Ducal Palace, thathistory in stone; the Rialto, with the babble of manylanguages; the Piazza, with its flock of fearlesspigeons; the Brazen Horses, the Winged Lion, the Bucentaur,all that the artists of Venice did to make her beautiful,her ambassadors to make her wise, her secret tribunalsto make her terrible; memories of these things mustcome thronging upon the mind at the mere mention ofher spell-like name. Now, with these picturesglowing vividly before you, wrench the mind away withsudden effort to the dreary plains of Pannonia.Think of the moody Tartar, sitting in his log-hut,surrounded by his barbarous guests; of Zercon, gabblinghis uncouth mixture of Hunnish and Latin; of the bath-manof Onegesh, and the wool-work of Kreka, and the reedcandles in the village of Bleda’s widow; andsay if cause and effect were ever more strangely metedin history than the rude and brutal might of Attilawith the stately and gorgeous and subtle republicof Venice.

One more consideration is suggested to us by thatwhich was the noblest part of the work of Venice,the struggle which she maintained for centuries, reallyin behalf of all Europe, against the Turk. Attila’spower was soon to pass away, but, in the ages thatwere to come, another Turanian race was to arise,as brutal as the Huns, but with their fierceness sharp-pointedand hardened into a far more fearful weapon of offenceby the fanaticism of Islam. These descendantsof the kinsfolk of Attila were the Ottomans, and butfor the barrier which, like their own murazziagainst the waves, the Venetians interposed againstthe Ottomans, it is scarcely too much to say thathalf Europe would have undergone the misery of subjectionto the organized anarchy of the Turkish pachas.The Tartar Attila, when he gave up Aquileia and herneighbor cities to the tender mercies of his myrmidons,little thought that he was but the instrument in anunseen Hand for hammering out the shield which shouldone day defend Europe from Tartar robbers such as hewas. The Turanian poison secreted the future antidoteto itself, and the name of that antidote was Venice.

JOHN RUSKIN

In the olden days of travelling, now to return nomore, in which distance could not be vanquished withouttoil, but in which that toil was rewarded, partlyby the power of deliberate survey of the countriesthrough which the journey lay, and partly by the happinessof the evening hours, when, from the top of the lasthill he had surmounted, the traveller beheld the quietvillage where he was to rest, scattered among themeadows beside its valley stream; or, from the long-hoped-forturn in the dusty perspective of the causeway, saw,

for the first time, the towers of some famed city,faint in the rays of sunset—­hours of peacefuland thoughtful pleasure, for which the rush of thearrival in the railway station is perhaps not always,or to all men, an equivalent—­in those days,I say, when there was something more to be anticipatedand remembered in the first aspect of each successivehalting-place, than a new arrangement of glass roofingand iron girder, there were few moments of which therecollection was more fondly cherished by the travellerthan that which brought him within sight of Venice,as his gondola shot into the open Lagoon from the canalof Mestre.

Not but that the aspect of the city itself was generallythe source of some slight disappointment, for, seenin this direction, its buildings are far less characteristicthan those of the other great towns of Italy; butthis inferiority was partly disguised by distance,and more than atoned for by the strange rising ofits walls and towers, out of the midst, as it seemed,of the deep sea, for it was impossible that the mindor the eye could at once comprehend the shallownessof the vast sheet of water which stretched away inleagues of rippling lustre to the north and south,or trace the narrow line of islets bounding it to theeast. The salt breeze, the white moaning sea-birds,the masses of black weed separating and disappearinggradually, in knots of heaving shoal, under the advanceof the steady tide, all proclaimed it to be indeedthe ocean on whose bosom the great city rested socalmly; not such blue, soft, lake-like ocean as bathesthe Neapolitan promontories or sleeps beneath themarble rocks of Genoa, but a sea with the bleak powerof our own northern waves, yet subdued into a strangespacious rest, and changed from its angry pallor intoa field of burnished gold, as the sun declined behindthe belfry tower of the lonely island church, fitlynamed “St. George of the Sea-weed.”

As the boat drew nearer to the city, the coast whichthe traveller had just left sank behind him into onelong, low, sad-colored line, tufted irregularly withbrushwood and willows: but, at what seemed itsnorthern extremity, the hills of Arqua rose in a darkcluster of purple pyramids, balanced on the brightmirage of the Lagoon; two or three smooth surges ofinferior hill extended themselves about their roots,and beyond these, beginning with the craggy peaksabove Vicenza, the chain of the Alps girded the wholehorizon to the north—­a wall of jagged blue,here and there showing through its clefts a wildernessof misty precipices, fading far back into the recessesof Cadore, and itself rising and breaking away eastward,where the sun struck opposite upon its snow, intomighty fragments of peaked light, standing up behindthe barred clouds of evening, one after another, countless,the crown of the Adrian Sea, until the eye turnedback from pursuing them, to rest upon the nearer burningof the campaniles of Murano, and on the great city,

where it magnified itself along the waves, as thequick silent pacing of the gondola drew nearer andnearer. And at last, when its walls were reached,and the outmost of its untrodden streets was entered,not through towered gate or guarded rampart, but asa deep inlet between two rocks of coral in the Indiansea; when first upon the traveller’s sight openedthe long ranges of columned palaces—­eachwith its black boat moored at the portal—­eachwith its image cast down, beneath its feet, upon thatgreen pavement which every breeze broke into new fantasiesof rich tessellation; when first, at the extremityof the bright vista, the shadowy Rialto threw itscolossal curve slowly forth from behind the palaceof the Camerlenghi; that strange curve, so delicate,so adamantine, strong as a mountain cavern, gracefulas a bow just bent; when first, before its moonlikecircumference was all risen, the gondolier’scry, “Ah! Stali,” struck sharp uponthe ear, and the prow turned aside under the mightycornices that half met over the narrow canal, wherethe plash of the water followed close and loud, ringingalong the marble by the boat’s side; and whenat last that boat darted forth upon the breadth ofsilver sea, across which the front of the Ducal Palace,flushed with its sanguine veins, looks to the snowydome of Our Lady of Salvation, it was no marvel thatthe mind should be so deeply entranced by the visionarycharm of a scene so beautiful and so strange as toforget the darker truths of its history and its being.

Well might it seem that such a city had owed her existencerather to the rod of the enchanter than the fear ofthe fugitive; that the waters which encircled herhad been chosen for the mirror of her state ratherthan the shelter of her nakedness; and that all whichin nature was wild or merciless—­Time andDecay, as well as the waves and tempests—­hadbeen won to adorn her instead of to destroy, and mightstill spare, for ages to come, that beauty which seemedto have fixed for its throne the sands of the hour-glassas well as of the sea.

And although the last few eventful years, fraughtwith change to the face of the whole earth, have beenmore fatal in their influence on Venice than the fivehundred that preceded them; though the noble landscapeof approach to her can now be seen no more, or seenonly by a glance, as the engine slackens its rushingon the iron line; and though many of her palaces areforever defaced and many in desecrated ruins, thereis still so much of magic in her aspect that the hurriedtraveller, who must leave her before the wonder ofthat first aspect has been worn away, may still beled to forget the humility of her origin and to shuthis eyes to the depth of her desolation. They,at least, are little to be envied in whose heartsthe great charities of the imagination lie dead, andfor whom the fancy has no power to repress the importunityof painful impressions or to raise what is ignobleand disguise what is discordant in a scene so richin its remembrances, so surpassing in its beauty.But for this work of the imagination there must beno permission during the task which is before us.

The impotent feelings of romance, so singularly characteristicof this century, may indeed gild, but never save,the remains of those mightier ages to which they areattached like climbing flowers; and they must be tornaway from the magnificent fragments, if we would seethem as they stood in their own strength. Thosefeelings, always as fruitless as they are fond, arein Venice not only incapable of protecting, but evenof discerning, the objects to which they ought tohave been attached. The Venice of modern fictionand drama is a thing of yesterday, a mere efflorescenceof decay, a stage dream which the first ray of daylightmust dissipate into dust. No prisoner, whose nameis worth remembering, or whose sorrow deserved sympathy,ever crossed that “Bridge of Sighs,” whichis the centre of the Byronic ideal of Venice; no greatmerchant of Venice ever saw that Rialto under whichthe traveller now passes with breathless interest:the statue which Byron makes Faliero address as ofone of his great ancestors was erected to a soldierof fortune a hundred and fifty years after Faliero’sdeath; and the most conspicuous parts of the cityhave been so entirely altered in the course of thelast three centuries that if Henry Dandolo or FrancisFoscari could be summoned from his tomb, and stoodeach on the deck of his galley at the entrance ofthe Grand Canal, that renowned entrance, the painter’sfavorite subject, the novelist’s favorite scene,where the water first narrows by the steps of theChurch of La Salute—­the mighty doges wouldnot know in what spot of the world they stood, wouldliterally not recognize one stone of the great city,for whose sake, and by whose ingratitude, their grayhairs had been brought down with bitterness to thegrave.

The remains of their Venice lie hidden behindthe cumbrous masses which were the delight of thenation in its dotage; hidden in many a grass-growncourt and silent pathway and lightless canal, wherethe slow waves have sapped their foundations for fivehundred years, and must soon prevail over them forever.It must be our task to glean and gather them forth,and restore out of them some faint image of the lostcity, more gorgeous a thousandfold than that whichnow exists, yet not created in the day-dream of theprince nor by the ostentation of the noble, but builtby iron hands and patient hearts, contending againstthe adversity of nature and the fury of man, so thatit* wonderfulness cannot be grasped by the indolenceof imagination, but only after frank inquiry intothe true nature of that wild and solitary scene whoserestless tides and trembling sands did indeed shelterthe birth of the city, but long denied her dominion.

When the eye falls casually on a map of Europe, thereis no feature by which it is more likely to be arrestedthan the strange sweeping loop formed by the junctionof the Alps and Apennines, and enclosing the greatbasin of Lombardy. This return of the mountainchain upon itself causes a vast difference in thecharacter of the distribution of its debrison its opposite sides. The rock fragments andsediment which the torrents on the north side of theAlps bear into the plains are distributed over a vastextent of country, and, though here and there lodgedin beds of enormous thickness, soon permit the firmsubstrata to appear from underneath them; but allthe torrents which descend from the southern sideof the High Alps and from the northern slope of theApennines meet concentrically in the recess or mountain-baywhich the two ridges enclose; every fragment whichthunder breaks out of their battlements, and everygrain of dust which the summer rain washes from theirpastures, is at last laid at rest in the blue sweepof the Lombardic plain; and that plain must have risenwithin its rocky barriers as a cup fills with wine,but for two contrary influences which continuallydepress, or disperse from its surface, the accumulationof the ruins of ages.

I will not tax the reader’s faith in modernscience by insisting on this singular depression ofthe surface of Lombardy, which appears for many centuriesto have taken place steadily and continually; the mainfact with which we have to do is the gradual transport,by the Po and its great collateral rivers, of vastmasses of the finer sediment to the sea. Thecharacter of the Lombardic plains is most strikinglyexpressed by the ancient walls of its cities, composedfor the most part of large rounded Alpine pebblesalternating with narrow courses of brick, and wascuriously illustrated in 1848 by the ramparts of thesesame pebbles thrown up four or five feet high roundevery field, to check the Austrian cavalry in thebattle under the walls of Verona.

The finer dust among which these pebbles are dispersedis taken up by the rivers, fed into continual strengthby the Alpine snow, so that, however pure their watersmay be when they issue from the lakes at the footof the great chain, they become of the color and opacityof clay before they reach the Adriatic; the sedimentwhich they bear is at once thrown down as they enterthe sea, forming a vast belt of low land along theeastern coast of Italy. The powerful stream ofthe Po of course builds forward the fastest; on eachside of it, north and south, there is a tract of marsh,fed by more feeble streams, and less liable to rapidchange than the delta of the central river. Inone of these tracts is built Ravenna, and in the otherVenice.

What circ*mstances directed the peculiar arrangementof this great belt of sediment in the earliest times,it is not here the place to inquire. It is enoughfor us to know that from the mouths of the Adige tothose of the Piave there stretches, at a variabledistance of from three to five miles from the actualshore, a bank of sand, divided into long islands bynarrow channels of sea. The space between thisbank and the true shore consists of the sedimentarydeposits from these and other rivers, a great plainof calcareous mud, covered, in the neighborhood ofVenice, by the sea at high water, to the depth in mostplaces of a foot or a foot and a half, and nearlyeverywhere exposed at low tide, but divided by anintricate network of narrow and winding channels, fromwhich the sea never retires.

In some places, according to the run of the currents,the land has risen into marshy islets, consolidated,some by art, and some by time, into ground firm enoughto be built upon or fruitful enough to be cultivated:in others, on the contrary, it has not reached thesea-level; so that, at the average low water, shallowlakelets glitter among its irregularly exposed fieldsof seaweed. In the midst of the largest of these,increased in importance by the confluence of severallarge river channels toward one of the openings inthe sea-bank, the city of Venice itself is built,on a crowded cluster of islands; the various plotsof higher ground which appear to the north and southof this central cluster have at different periodsbeen also thickly inhabited, and now bear, accordingto their size, the remains of cities, villages, orisolated convents and churches, scattered among spacesof open ground, partly waste and encumbered by ruins,partly under cultivation for the supply of the metropolis.

The average rise and fall of the tide are about threefeet—­varying considerably with the seasons—­butthis fall, on so flat a shore, is enough to causecontinual movement in the waters, and in the main canalsto produce a reflux which frequently runs like a mill-stream.At high water no land is visible for many miles tothe north or south of Venice, except in the form ofsmall islands crowned with towers or gleaming withvillages; there is a channel, some three miles wide,between the city and the mainland, and some mile anda half wide between it and the sandy breakwater calledthe Lido, which divides the Lagoon from the Adriatic,but which is so low as hardly to disturb the impressionof the city’s having been built in the midstof the ocean, although the secret of its true positionis partly, yet not painfully, betrayed by the clustersof piles set to mark the deep-water channels, whichundulate far away in spotty chains like the studdedbacks of huge sea-snakes, and by the quick glitteringof the crisped and crowded waves that flicker and dancebefore the strong winds upon the unlifted level ofthe shallow sea.

But the scene is widely different at low tide.A fall of eighteen or twenty inches is enough to showground over the greater part of the Lagoon; and atthe complete ebb the city is seen standing in the midstof a dark plain of sea-weed, of gloomy green, exceptonly where the larger branches of the Brenta and itsassociated streams converge toward the port of theLido. Through this salt and sombre plain the gondolaand the fishing-boat advance by tortuous channels,seldom more than four or five feet deep, and oftenso choked with slime that the heavier keels furrowthe bottom till their crossing tracks are seen throughthe clear sea-water like the ruts upon a wintry road,and the oar leaves blue gashes upon the ground atevery stroke, or is entangled among the thick weedthat fringes the banks with the weight of its sullenwaves, leaning to and fro upon the uncertain swayof the exhausted tide.

The scene is often profoundly oppressive, even atthis day, when every plot of higher ground bears somefragment of fair building: but, in order to knowwhat it was once, let the traveller follow in his boatat evening the windings of some unfrequented channelfar into the midst of the melancholy plain; let himremove, in his imagination, the brightness of thegreat city that still extends itself in the distance,and the walls and towers from the islands that arenear; and so wait, until the bright investiture andsweet warmth of the sunset are withdrawn from thewaters, and the black desert of their shore lies inits nakedness beneath the night, pathless, comfortless,infirm, lost in dark languor and fearful silence,except where the salt runlets plash into the tidelesspools, or the sea-birds flit from their margins witha questioning cry; and he will be enabled to enterin some sort into the horror of heart with which thissolitude was anciently chosen by man for his habitation.

They little thought, who first drove the stakes intothe sand, and strewed the ocean reeds for their rest,that their children were to be the princes of thatocean, and their palaces its pride; and yet, in thegreat natural laws that rule that sorrowful wilderness,let it be remembered what strange preparation hadbeen made for the things which no human imaginationcould have foretold, and how the whole existence andfortune of the Venetian nation were anticipated orcompelled, by the setting of those bars and doorsto the rivers and the sea. Had deeper currentsdivided their islands, hostile navies would again andagain have reduced the rising city into servitude;had stronger surges beaten their shores, all the richnessand refinement of the Venetian architecture must havebeen exchanged for the walls and bulwarks of an ordinaryseaport. Had there been no tide, as in other partsof the Mediterranean, the narrow canals of the citywould have become noisome, and the marsh in whichit was built pestiferous. Had the tide been onlya foot or eighteen inches higher in its rise, the wateraccess to the doors of the palaces would have beenimpossible; even as it is, there is sometimes a littledifficulty, at the ebb, in landing without settingfoot upon the lower and slippery steps: and thehighest tides sometimes enter the court-yards, andoverflow the entrance halls.

Eighteen inches more of difference between the levelof the flood and ebb would have rendered the doorstepsof every palace, at low water, a treacherous massof weeds and limpets, and the entire system of water-carriagefor the higher classes, in their easy and daily intercourse,must have been done away with. The streets ofthe city would have been widened, its network of canalsfilled up, and all the peculiar character of the placeand the people destroyed.

The reader may perhaps have felt some pain in thecontrast between this faithful view of the site ofthe Venetian throne, and the romantic conception ofit which we ordinarily form; but this pain, if he havefelt it, ought to be more than counterbalanced by thevalue of the instance thus afforded to us at onceof the inscrutableness and the wisdom of the waysof God. If, two thousand years ago, we had beenpermitted to watch the slow settling of the slime ofthose turbid rivers into the polluted sea, and thegaining upon its deep and fresh waters of the lifeless,impassable, unvoyageable plain, how little could wehave understood the purpose with which those islandswere shaped out of the void, and the torpid watersenclosed with their desolate walls of sand! Howlittle could we have known, any more than of what nowseems to us most distressful, dark, and objectless,the glorious aim which was then in the mind of Himin whose hand are all the corners of the earth!How little imagined that in the laws which were stretchingforth the gloomy margins of those fruitless banks,and feeding the bitter grass among their shallows,there was indeed a preparation, and the only preparationpossible, for the founding of a city which wasto be set like a golden clasp on the girdle of theearth, to write her history on the white scrolls ofthe sea-surges, and to word it in their thunder, andto gather and give forth, in world-wide pulsation,the glory of the West and of the East, from the burningheart of her Fortitude and Splendor.

CLOVIS FOUNDS THE KINGDOM OF THE FRANKS: IT BECOMES CHRISTIAN

A.D. 486-511

FRANCOIS P.G. GUIZOT

Clovis, the sturdy Frank, wrought marvellouschanges in Gaul. His marriage to the Christianprincess Clotilde was followed by the conversionof himself and, gradually, that of his people.With a well-disciplined army he pulled down andswept away the last pillars of Roman power outof Gaul. Guizot gives a graphic account ofthe transition of the Franks, during two hundred andfifty years, from being isolated wandering tribes,each constantly warring against the other, toa well-ordered Christian kingdom, which led tothe establishment of the French monarchy. Theclimax of this period of transition came in thereign of Clovis, with whom commences the realhistory of France. Under his strong hand thevarious tribes were gradually brought under hissole rule.

When Clovis, at the age of fifteen,succeeded his father, Childeric, as king of theSalian tribe, his people were mainly pagans;the Salian domain was very limited, the treasury empty,and there was no store of either grain or wine.But these difficulties were overcome by him;he subjugated the neighboring tribes, and madeChristianity the state religion. The new faithwas accorded great privileges and means of influence,in many cases favorable to humanity and showingrespect to the rights of individuals. So greatan advance in civilization is an early milestoneon the path of progress.

About A.D. 241 or 242 the Sixth Roman legion, commandedby Aurelian, at that time military tribune, and thirtyyears later emperor, had just finished a campaignon the Rhine, undertaken for the purpose of drivingthe Germans from Gaul, and was preparing for easternservice, to make war on the Persians. The soldierssang:

“We have slain a thousandFranks and a thousand
Sarmatians; we want a thousand,thousand,
Thousand Persians.”

That was, apparently, a popular burthen at the time,for on the days of military festivals, at Rome andin Gaul, the children sang, as they danced:

“We have cut off theheads of a thousand, thousand, thousand
Thousand;
One man hath cut off the headsof a thousand, thousand, thousand,
Thousand thousand;
May he live a thousand thousandyears, he who
Hath slain a thousand thousand!
Nobody hath so much of wineas he
Hath of blood poured out.”

Aurelian, the hero of these ditties, was indeed muchgiven to the pouring out of blood, for at the approachof a fresh war he wrote to the senate:

“I marvel, conscript fathers, that ye have somuch misgiving about opening the Sibylline books,as if ye were deliberating in an assembly of Christians,and not in the temple of all the gods. Let inquirybe made of the sacred books, and let celebration takeplace of the ceremonies that ought to be fulfilled.Far from refusing, I offer, with zeal, to satisfyall expenditure required with captives of everynationality, victims of royal rank. It isno shame to conquer with the aid of the gods; it isthus that our ancestors began and ended many a war.”

Human sacrifices, then, were not yet foreign to paganfestivals, and probably the blood of more than oneFrankish captive on that occasion flowed in the templeof all the gods.

It is the first time the name of Franks appearsin history; and it indicated no particular, singlepeople, but a confederation of Germanic peoplets,settled or roving on the right bank of the Rhine, fromthe Main to the ocean. The number and the namesof the tribes united in this confederation are uncertain.A chart of the Roman Empire, prepared apparently atthe end of the fourth century, in the reign of theemperor Honorius—­which chart, called tabulaPeutingeri, was found among the ancient MSS. collectedby Conrad Peutinger, a learned German philosopher,in the fifteenth century—­bears, over a largeterritory on the right bank of the Rhine, the wordFrancia, and the following enumeration:“The Chaucians, the Ampsuarians, the Cheruscans,and the Chamavians, who are also called Franks;”and to these tribes divers chroniclers added severalothers, “the Attuarians, the Bructerians, theCattians, and the Sicambrians.”

Whatever may have been the specific names of thesepeoplets, they were all of German race, called themselvesFranks, that is “freemen,” and made, sometimesseparately, sometimes collectively, continued incursionsinto Gaul—­especially Belgica and the northernportions of Lyonness—­at one time plunderingand ravaging, at another occupying forcibly, or demandingof the Roman emperors lands whereon to settle.From the middle of the third to the beginning of thefifth century the history of the Western Empire presentsan almost uninterrupted series of these invasionson the part of the Franks, together with the differentrelationships established between them and the imperialgovernment. At one time whole tribes settledon Roman soil, submitted to the emperors, enteredtheir service, and fought for them even against theirown German compatriots. At another, isolatedindividuals, such and such warriors of German race,put themselves at the command of the emperors, andbecame of importance. At the middle of the thirdcentury the emperor Valerian, on committing a commandto Aurelian, wrote, “Thou wilt have with theeHartmund, Haldegast, Hildmund, and Carioviscus.”

Some Frankish tribes allied themselves more or lessfleetingly with the imperial government, at the sametime that they preserved their independence; otherspursued, throughout the empire, their life of incursionand adventure. From A.D. 260 to 268, under thereign of Gallienus, a band of Franks threw itselfupon Gaul, scoured it from northeast to southeast,plundering and devastating on its way; then it passedfrom Aquitania into Spain, took and burned Tarragona,gained possession of certain vessels, sailed away,and disappeared in Africa, after having wandered aboutfor twelve years at its own will and pleasure.There was no lack of valiant emperors, precarious andephemeral as their power may have been, to defend theempire, and especially Gaul, against those enemies,themselves ephemeral, but forever recurring; Decius,Valerian, Gallienus, Claudius Gothicus, Aurelian,and Probus gallantly withstood those repeated attacksof German hordes. Sometimes they flattered themselvesthey had gained a definitive victory, and then theold Roman pride exhibited itself in their patrioticconfidence. About A.D. 278, the emperor Probus,after gaining several victories in Gaul over the Franks,wrote to the senate:

“I render thanks to the immortal gods, conscriptfathers, for that they have confirmed your judgmentas regards me. Germany is subdued throughoutit* whole extent; nine kings of different nations havecome and cast themselves at my feet, or rather atyours, as suppliants with their foreheads in the dust.Already all those barbarians are tilling for you,sowing for you, and fighting for you against the mostdistant nations. Order ye, therefore, accordingto your custom, prayers of thanksgiving, for we haveslain four thousand of the enemy; we have had offeredto us sixteen thousand men ready armed; and we havewrested from the enemy the seventy most importanttowns. The Gauls, in fact, are completely delivered.The crowns offered to me by all the cities of GaulI have submitted, conscript fathers, to your grace;dedicate ye them with your own hands to Jupiter, all-bountiful,all-powerful, and to the other immortal gods and goddesses.All the booty is retaken, and, further, we have madefresh captures, more considerable than our first losses;the fields of Gaul are tilled by the oxen of the barbarians,and German teams bend their necks in slavery to ourhusbandmen; divers nations raise cattle for our consumption,and horses to remount our cavalry; our stores arefull of the corn of the barbarians—­in oneword, we have left to the vanquished naught but thesoil; all their other possessions are ours. Wehad at first thought it necessary, conscript fathers,to appoint a new governor of Germany; but we have putoff this measure to the time when our ambition shallbe more completely satisfied, which will be, as itseems to us, when it shall have pleased divine Providenceto increase and multiply the forces of our armies.”

Probus had good reason to wish that “divineProvidence might be pleased to increase the forcesof the Roman armies,” for even after his victories,exaggerated as they probably were, they did not sufficefor their task, and it was not long before the vanquishedrecommenced war. He had dispersed over the territoryof the empire the majority of the prisoners he hadtaken. A band of Franks, who had been transportedand established as a military colony on the Europeanshore of the Black Sea, could not make up their mindsto remain there. They obtained possession ofsome vessels, traversed the Propontis, the Hellespont,and the Archipelago, ravaged the coasts of Greece,Asia Minor, and Africa, plundered Syracuse, scouredthe whole of the Mediterranean, entered the oceanby the Straits of Gibraltar, and, making their wayup again along the coasts of Gaul, arrived at lastat the mouths of the Rhine, where they once more foundthemselves at home among the vines which Probus, inhis victorious progress, had been the first to haveplanted, and with probably their old taste for adventureand plunder.

After the commencement of the fifth century, fromA.D. 406 to 409, it was no longer by incursions limitedto certain points, and sometimes repelled with success,that the Germans harassed the Roman provinces; a veritabledeluge of divers nations forced, one upon another,from Asia, into Europe, by wars and migration in mass,inundated the empire and gave the decisive signalfor its fall. St. Jerome did not exaggerate whenhe wrote to Ageruchia: “Nations, countlessin number and exceeding fierce, have occupied allthe Gauls; Quadians, Vandals, Sarmatians, Alans, Gepidians,Herulians, Saxons, Burgundians, Allemannians, Pannonians,and even Assyrians have laid waste all that there isbetween the Alps and the Pyrenees, the ocean and theRhine. Sad destiny of the Commonwealth!Mayence, once a noble city, hath been taken and destroyed;thousands of men were slaughtered in the church.Worms hath fallen after a long siege. The inhabitantsof Rheims, a powerful city, and those of Amiens, Arras,Terouanne, at the extremity of Gaul, Tournay, Spires,and Strasburg have been carried away to Germany.All hath been ravaged in Aquitania (Novempopulania),Lyonness, and Narbonensis; the towns, save a few,are dispeopled; the sword pursueth them abroad andfamine at home. I cannot speak without tearsof Toulouse; if she be not reduced to equal ruin,it is to the merits of her holy bishop Exuperus thatshe oweth it.”

Then took place throughout the Roman Empire, in theEast as well as in the West, in Asia and Africa aswell as in Europe, the last grand struggle betweenthe Roman armies and barbaric nations. Armiesis the proper term; for, to tell the truth, therewas no longer a Roman nation, and very seldom a Romanemperor with some little capacity for government orwar. The long continuance of despotism and slaveryhad enervated equally the ruling power and the people;everything depended on the soldiers and their generals.It was in Gaul that the struggle was most obstinateand most promptly brought to a decisive issue, andthe confusion there was as great as the obstinacy.Barbaric peoplets served in the ranks and barbaricleaders held the command of the Roman armies; Stilichowas a Goth; Arbogastes and Mellobaudes were Franks;Ricimer was a Suevian. The Roman generals, Bonifacius,Aetius, AEgidius, Syagrius, at one time fought thebarbarians, at another negotiated with such and suchof them, either to entice them to take service againstother barbarians, or to promote the objects of personalambition; for the Roman generals also, under the titlesof patrician, consul, or proconsul, aspired to andattained a sort of political independence, and contributedto the dismemberment of the empire in the very actof defending it.

No later than A.D. 412 two German nations, the Visigothsand the Burgundians, took their stand definitivelyin Gaul, and founded there two new kingdoms:the Visigoths, under their kings Ataulph and Wallia,in Aquitania and Narbonensis; the Burgundians, undertheir kings Gundichaire and Gundioch, in Lyonnais,from the southern point of Alsatia right into Provence,along the two banks of the Saone and the left bankof the Rhone, and also in Switzerland. In 451the arrival in Gaul of the Huns and their king Attila—­alreadyfamous, both king and nation, for their wild habits,their fierce valor, and their successes against theEastern Empire—­gravely complicated the situation.The common interest of resistance against the mostbarbarous of barbarians, and the renown and energyof Aetius, united, for the moment, the old and newmasters of Gaul; Romans, Gauls, Visigoths, Burgundians,Franks, Alans, Saxons, and Britons formed the armyled by Aetius against that of Attila, who also hadin his ranks Goths, Burgundians, Gepidians, Alans,and beyond-Rhine Franks, gathered together and enlistedon his road. It was a chaos and a conflict ofbarbarians, of every name and race, disputing onewith another, pell-mell, the remnants of the RomanEmpire torn asunder and in dissolution.

Attila had already arrived before Orleans, and waslaying siege to it. The bishop, St. Anianus,sustained awhile the courage of the besieged by promisingthem aid from Aetius and his allies. The aid wasslow to come; and the bishop sent to Aetius a message:“If thou be not here this very day, my son,it will be too late.” Still Aetius camenot. The people of Orleans determined to surrender;the gates flew open; the Huns entered; the plunderingbegan without much disorder; “wagons were stationedto receive the booty as it was taken from the houses,and the captives, arranged in groups, were dividedby lot between the victorious chieftains.”Suddenly a shout reechoed through the streets:it was Aetius, Theodoric, and Torismund, his son,who were coming with the eagles of the Roman legionsand with the banners of the Visigoths. A fighttook place between them and the Huns, at first on thebanks of the Loire, and then in the streets of thecity. The people of Orleans joined their liberators;the danger was great for the Huns, and Attila ordereda retreat.

It was the 14th of June, 451, and that day was fora long while celebrated in the church of Orleans asthe date of a signal deliverance. The Huns retiredtoward Champagne, which they had already crossed attheir coming into Gaul; and when they were before Troyes,the bishop, St. Lupus, repaired to Attila’scamp, and besought him to spare a defenceless city,which had neither walls nor garrison. “Sobe it,” answered Attila; “but thou shaltcome with me and see the Rhine; I promise then tosend thee back again.” With mingled prudenceand superstition the barbarian meant to keep the holyman as a hostage. The Huns arrived at the plains

hard by Chalons-sur-Marne; Aetius and all his allieshad followed them; and Attila, perceiving that a battlewas inevitable, halted in a position for deliveringit. The Gothic historian Jornandes says thathe consulted his priests, who answered that the Hunswould be beaten, but that the general of the enemywould fall in the fight. In this prophecy Attilasaw predicted the death of Aetius, his most formidableenemy; and the struggle commenced. There is noprecise information about the date; but “itwas,” says Jornandes, “a battle whichfor atrocity, multitude, horror, and stubbornness hasnot the like in the records of antiquity.”

Historians vary in their exaggerations of the numbersengaged and killed: according to some, threehundred thousand, according to others one hundredand sixty-two thousand, were left on the field of battle.Theodoric, king of the Visigoths, was killed.Some chroniclers name Meroveus as king of the Franks,settled in Belgica, near Tongres, who formed partof the army of Aetius. They even attribute tohim a brilliant attack made on the eve of the battleupon the Gepidians, allies of the Huns, when ninetythousand men fell according to some, and only fifteenthousand according to others. The numbers arepurely imaginary, and even the fact is doubtful.However, the battle of Chalons drove the Huns outof Gaul, and was the last victory in Gaul, gainedstill in the name of the Roman Empire, but in realityfor the advantage of the German nations which hadalready conquered it. Twenty-four years afterwardthe very name of Roman Empire disappeared with Augustulus,the last of the emperors of the West.

Thirty years after the battle of Chalons the Frankssettled in Gaul were not yet united as one nation;several tribes with this name, independent one ofanother, were planted between the Rhine and the Somme;there were some in the environs of Cologne, Calais,Cambrai, even beyond the Seine and as far as Le Mans,on the confines of the Britons. This is one ofthe reasons of the confusion that prevails in the ancientchronicles about the chieftains or kings of thesetribes, their names and dates, and the extent andsite of their possessions. Pharamond, Clodion,Meroveus, and Childeric cannot be considered as kingsof France and placed at the beginning of her history.If they are met with in connection with historicalfacts, fabulous legends or fanciful traditions aremingled with them; Priam appears as a predecessor ofPharamond; Clodion, who passes for having been thefirst to bear and transmit to the Frankish kings thetitle of “long-haired,” is representedas the son, at one time of Pharamond, at another ofanother chieftain named Theodemer; romantic adventures,spoilt by geographical mistakes, adorn the life ofChilderic.

All that can be distinctly affirmed is that, fromA.D. 450 to 480, the two principal Frankish tribeswere those of the Salian Franks and the RipuarianFranks, settled, the latter in the east of Belgica,on the banks of the Moselle and the Rhine; the formertoward the west, between the Meuse, the ocean, andthe Somme. Meroveus, whose name was perpetuatedin his line, was one of the principal chieftains ofthe Salian Franks; and his son Childeric, who residedat Tournai, where his tomb was discovered in 1655,was the father of Clovis, who succeeded him in 481,and with whom really commenced the kingdom and historyof France.

Clovis was fifteen or sixteen years old when he becameking of the Salian Franks of Tournai. Five yearsafterward his ruling passion, ambition, exhibiteditself, together with that mixture of boldness andcraft which was to characterize his whole life.He had two neighbors: one, hostile to the Franks,the Roman patrician Syagrius, who was left masterat Soissons after the death of his father AEgidius,and whom Gregory of Tours calls “king of theRomans”; the other, a Salian-Frankish chieftain,just as Clovis was, and related to him, Ragnacaire,who was settled at Cambrai. Clovis induced Ragnacaireto join him in a campaign against Syagrius. Theyfought, and Syagrius was driven to take refuge inSouthern Gaul, with Alaric, king of the Visigoths.

Clovis, not content with taking possession of Soissons,and anxious to prevent any troublesome return, demandedof Alaric to send Syagrius back to him, threateningwar if the request were refused. The Goth, lessbellicose than the Frank, delivered up Syagrius tothe envoys of Clovis, who immediately had him secretlyput to death, settled himself at Soissons, and fromthence set on foot, in the country between the Aisneand the Loire, plundering and subjugating expeditionswhich speedily increased his domains and his wealth,and extended far and wide his fame as well as hisambition. The Franks who accompanied him werenot long before they also felt the growth of his power;like him they were pagans, and the treasures of theChristian churches counted for a great deal in thebooty they had to divide. On one of their expeditionsthey had taken in the church of Rheims, among otherthings, a vase “of marvellous size and beauty.”

The bishop of Rheims, St. Remi, was not quite a strangerto Clovis. Some years before, when he had heardthat the son of Childeric had become king of the Franksof Tournai, he had written to congratulate him.“We are informed,” said he, “thatthou hast undertaken the conduct of affairs; it isno marvel that thou beginnest to be what thy fathersever were;” and, while taking care to put himselfon good terms with the young pagan chieftain, thebishop added to his felicitations some pious Christiancounsel, without letting any attempt at conversionbe mixed up with his moral exhortations. Thebishop, informed of the removal of the vase, sentto Clovis a messenger begging the return, if not ofall his church’s ornaments, at any rate of that.“Follow us as far as Soissons,” said Clovisto the messenger; “it is there the partitionis to take place of what we have captured; when thelots shall have given me the vase, I will do whatthe bishop demands.”

When Soissons was reached, and all the booty had beenplaced in the midst of the host, the king said:“Valiant warriors, I pray you not to refuseme, over and above my share, this vase here.”At these words of the king, those who were of soundmind among the assembly answered: “Gloriousking, everything we see here is thine, and we ourselvesare submissive to thy commands. Do thou as seemethgood to thee, for there is none that can resist thypower.” When they had thus spoken, a certainFrank, light-minded, jealous, and vain, cried out aloudas he struck the vase with his battle-axe, “Thoushalt have naught of all this save what the lots shalltruly give thee.” At these words all wereastounded; but the king bore the insult with sweetpatience, and, accepting the vase, he gave it to themessenger, hiding his wound in the recesses of hisheart. At the end of a year he ordered all hishost to assemble fully equipped at the March parade,to have their arms inspected. After having passedin review all the other warriors, he came to him whohad struck the vase. “None,” saidhe, “hath brought hither arms so ill-kept asthine; nor lance, nor sword, nor battle-axe are incondition for service.” And wresting fromhim his axe he flung it on the ground. The manstooped down a little to pick it up, and forthwiththe King, raising with both hands his own battle-axe,drove it into his skull, saying, “Thus didstthou to the vase of Soissons!” On the death ofthis fellow he bade the rest begone, and by this actmade himself greatly feared.

A bold and unexpected deed has always a great effecton men: with his Frankish warriors, as well aswith his Roman and Gothic foes, Clovis had at commandthe instincts of patience and brutality in turn; hecould bear a mortification and take vengeance in dueseason. While prosecuting his course of plunderand war in Eastern Belgica, on the banks of the Meuse,Clovis was inspired with a wish to get married.He had heard tell of a young girl, like himself ofthe Germanic royal line, Clotilde, niece of Gondebaud,at that time king of the Burgundians. She wasdubbed beautiful, wise, and well-informed; but hersituation was melancholy and perilous. Ambitionand fraternal hatred had devastated her family.Her father, Chilperic, and her two brothers, had beenput to death by her uncle Gondebaud, who had causedher mother, Agrippina, to be thrown into the Rhone,with a stone round her neck, and drowned. Twosisters alone had survived this slaughter: theelder, Chrona, had taken religious vows; the other,Clotilde, was living almost in exile at Geneva, absorbedin works of piety and charity.

The principal historian of this epoch, Gregory ofTours, an almost contemporary authority, for he waselected bishop sixty-two years after the death ofClovis, says simply: “Clovis at once senta deputation to Gondebaud to ask Clotilde in marriage.Gondebaud, not daring to refuse, put her into thehands of the envoys, who took her promptly to the King.Clovis at sight of her was transported with joy, andmarried her.” But to this short accountother chroniclers, among them Fredegaire, who wrotea commentary upon and a continuation of Gregory ofTours’ work, added details which deserve reproduction,first as a picture of manners, next for the betterunderstanding of history. “As he was notallowed to see Clotilde,” says Fredegaire, “Clovischarged a certain Roman, named Aurelian, to use allhis wit to come nigh her. Aurelian repaired aloneto the spot, clothed in rags and with his wallet uponhis back, like a mendicant. To insure confidencein himself he took with him the ring of Clovis.On his arrival at Geneva, Clotilde received him asa pilgrim charitably, and while she was washing hisfeet Aurelian, bending toward her, said, under hisbreath, ’Lady, I have great matters to announceto thee if thou deign to permit me secret revelation.’She, consenting, replied, ‘Say on.’‘Clovis, king of the Franks,’ said he,’hath sent me to thee: if it be the willof God, he would fain raise thee to his high rankby marriage; and that thou mayest be certified thereof,he sendeth thee this ring.’ She acceptedthe ring with great joy, and said to Aurelian, ’Takefor recompense of thy pains these hundred sous in goldand this ring of mine. Return promptly to thylord; if he would fain unite me to him by marriage,let him send without delay messengers to demand meof my uncle Gondebaud, and let the messengers who shallcome take me away in haste, so soon as they shallhave obtained permission; if they haste not I fearlest a certain sage, one Aridius, may return fromConstantinople, and, if he arrive beforehand, all thismatter will by his counsel come to naught.’

“Aurelian returned in the same disguise underwhich he had come. On approaching the territoryof Orleans, and at no great distance from his house,he had taken as travelling companion a certain poormendicant, by whom he, having fallen asleep from sheerfatigue, and thinking himself safe, was robbed ofhis wallet and the hundred sous in gold that it contained.On awakening, Aurelian was sorely vexed, ran swiftlyhome, and sent his servants in all directions in searchof the mendicant who had stolen his wallet. Hewas found and brought to Aurelian, who, after drubbinghim soundly for three days, let him go his way.He afterward told Clovis all that had passed and whatClotilde suggested. Clovis, pleased with hissuccess and with Clotilde’s notion, at once senta deputation to Gondebaud to demand his niece in marriage.Gondebaud, not daring to refuse, and flattered atthe idea of making a friend of Clovis, promised togive her to him. Then the deputation, having offeredthe denier and the sou, according to the custom ofthe Franks, espoused Clotilde in the name of Clovis,and demanded that she be given up to them to be married.

“Without any delay the council was assembledat Chalons, and preparations made for the nuptials.The Franks, having arrived with all speed, receivedher from the hands of Gondebaud, put her into a coveredcarriage, and escorted her to Clovis, together withmuch treasure. She, however, having already learnedthat Aridius was on his way back, said to the Frankishlords, ’If ye would take me into the presenceof your lord, let me descend from this carriage, mountme on horseback, and get you hence as fast as ye may;for never in this carriage shall I reach the presenceof your lord.’

“Aridius, in fact, returned very speedily fromMarseilles, and Gondebaud, on seeing him, said tohim, ’Thou knowest that we have made friendswith the Franks, and that I have given my niece toClovis to wife.’ ‘This,’ answeredAridius, ’is no bond of friendship, but thebeginning of perpetual strife. Thou shouldst haveremembered, my lord, that thou didst slay Clotilde’sfather, thy brother Chilperic, that thou didst drownher mother, and that thou didst cut off her brothers’heads and cast their bodies into a well. If Clotildebecome powerful she will avenge the wrongs of herrelatives. Send thou forthwith a troop in chase,and have her brought back to thee. It will beeasier for thee to bear the wrath of one person thanto be perpetually at strife, thyself and thine, withall the Franks.’ And Gondebaud did sendforthwith a troop in chase to fetch back Clotildewith the carriage and all the treasure; but she, onapproaching Villers, where Clovis was waiting forher, in the territory of the Troyes, and before passingthe Burgundian frontier, urged them who escorted herto disperse right and left over a space of twelveleagues in the country whence she was departing, toplunder and burn; and that having been done with thepermission of Clovis, she cried aloud, ’I thankthee, God omnipotent, for that I see the commencementof vengeance for my parents and my brethren!’”

The majority of the learned have regarded this accountof Fredegaire as a romantic fable, and have declinedto give it a place in history. M. Fauriel, oneof the most learned associates of the Academy of Inscriptions,has given much the same opinion, but he neverthelessadds: “Whatever may be their authorship,the fables in question are historic in the sense thatthey relate to real facts of which they are a poeticalexpression, a romantic development, conceived withthe idea of popularizing the Frankish kings amongthe Gallo-Roman subjects.” It cannot, however,be admitted that a desire to popularize the Frankishkings is a sufficient and truth-like explanation ofthese tales of the Gallo-Roman chroniclers, or thatthey are no more than “a poetical expression,a romantic development” of the real facts brieflynoted by Gregory of Tours; the tales have a graverorigin and contain more truth than would be presumedfrom some of the anecdotes and sayings mixed up withthem. In the condition of minds and parties in

Gaul at the end of the fifth century the marriageof Clovis and Clotilde was, for the public of theperiod, for the barbarians and for the Gallo-Romans,a great matter. Clovis and the Franks were stillpagans; Gondebaud and the Burgundians were Christians,but Arians; Clotilde was a Catholic Christian.To which of the two, Catholics or Arians, would Clovisally himself? To whom, Arian, pagan, or Catholic,would Clotilde be married?

Assuredly the bishops, priests, and all the Gallo-Romanclergy, for the most part Catholics, desired to seeClovis, that young and audacious Frankish chieftain,take to wife a Catholic rather than an Arian or apagan, and hoped to convert the pagan Clovis to Christianitymuch more easily than an Arian to orthodoxy.The question between Catholic orthodoxy and Arianismwas, at that time, a vital question for Christianityin its entirety, and St. Athanasius was not wrong inattributing to it supreme importance. It may bepresumed that the Catholic clergy, the bishop of Rheims,or the bishop of Langres was no stranger to the repeatedpraises which turned the thoughts of the FrankishKing toward the Burgundian princess, and the idea oftheir marriage once set afloat, the Catholics, priesthoodor laity, labored undoubtedly to push it forward,while the Burgundian Arians exerted themselves toprevent it.

Thus there took place between opposing influences,religious and national, a most animated struggle.No astonishment can be felt, then, at the obstaclesthe marriage encountered, at the complications mingledwith it, and at the indirect means employed on bothsides to cause its success or failure. The accountof Fredegaire is but a picture of this struggle andits incidents, a little amplified or altered by imaginationor the credulity of the period; but the essential featuresof the picture, the disguise of Aurelian, the hurryof Clotilde, the prudent recollection of Aridius,Gondebaud’s alternations of fear and violence,and Clotilde’s vindictive passion when she isonce out of danger—­there is nothing inall this out of keeping with the manners of the timeor the position of the actors. Let it be addedthat Aurelian and Aridius are real personages whoare met with elsewhere in history, and whose partsas played on the occasion of Clotilde’s marriageare in harmony with the other traces that remain oftheir lives.

The consequences of the marriage justified beforelong the importance which had on all sides been attachedto it. Clotilde had a son; she was anxious tohave him baptized, and urged her husband to consent.“The gods you worship,” said she, “arenaught, and can do naught for themselves or others;they are of wood or stone or metal.” Clovisresisted, saying: “It is by the commandof our gods that all things are created and broughtforth. It is plain that your God hath no power;there is no proof even that he is of the race of thegods.” But Clotilde prevailed; and she

had her son baptized solemnly, hoping that the strikingnature of the ceremony might win to the faith the fatherwhom her words and prayers had been powerless to touch.The child soon died, and Clovis bitterly reproachedthe Queen, saying: “Had the child beendedicated to my gods he would be alive; he was baptizedin the name of your God, and he could not live.”Clotilde defended her God and prayed. She hada second son who was also baptized, and fell sick.“It cannot be otherwise with him than with hisbrother,” said Clovis; “baptized in thename of your Christ, he is going to die.”But the child was cured, and lived; and Clovis waspacified and less incredulous of Christ.

An event then came to pass which affected him stillmore than the sickness or cure of his children.

In 496 the Alemannians, a Germanic confederation likethe Franks, who also had been, for some time past,assailing the Roman Empire on the banks of the Rhineor the frontiers of Switzerland, crossed the riverand invaded the settlements of the Franks on the leftbank. Clovis went to the aid of his confederationand attacked the Alemannians at Tolbiac, near Cologne.He had with him Aurelian, who had been his messengerto Clotilde, whom he had made duke of Melun, and whocommanded the forces of Sens. The battle wasgoing ill; the Franks were wavering and Clovis wasanxious. Before setting out he had, accordingto Fredegaire, promised his wife that if he were victorioushe would turn Christian.

Other chroniclers say that Aurelian, seeing the battlein danger of being lost, said to Clovis, “Mylord King, believe only on the Lord of heaven whomthe Queen, my mistress, preacheth.” Cloviscried out with emotion: “Christ Jesus,thou whom my queen Clotilde calleth the Son of theliving God, I have invoked my own gods, and they havewithdrawn from me; I believe that they have no power,since they aid not those who call upon them.Thee, very God and Lord, I invoke; if thou give mevictory over these foes, if I find in thee the powerthat the people proclaim of thee, I will believe onthee, and will be baptized in thy name.”The tide of battle turned; the Franks recovered confidenceand courage; and the Allemannians, beaten and seeingtheir King slain, surrendered themselves to Clovis,saying: “Cease, of thy grace, to cause anymore of our people to perish; for we are thine.”

On the return of Clovis, Clotilde, fearing he shouldforget his victory and his promise, “secretlysent,” says Gregory of Tours, “to St. Remi,bishop of Rheims, and prayed him to penetrate the King’sheart with the words of salvation.” St.Remi was a fervent Christian and able bishop; and“I will listen to thee, most holy father,”said Clovis, “willingly; but there is a difficulty.The people that follow me will not give up their gods.But I am about to assemble them, and will speak tothem according to thy word.” The King foundthe people more docile or better prepared than hehad represented to the bishop. Even before heopened his mouth the greater part of those presentcried out: “We abjure the mortal gods;we are ready to follow the immortal God whom Remipreacheth.”

About three thousand Frankish warriors, however, persistedin their intention of remaining pagans, and desertingClovis betook themselves to Ragnacaire, the Frankishking of Cambrai, who was destined ere long to paydearly for this acquisition. So soon as St. Remiwas informed of this good disposition on the partof king and people, he fixed Christmas Day of thisyear, 496, for the ceremony of the baptism of thesegrand neophytes. The description of it is borrowedfrom the historian of the church of Rheims, Frodoardby name, born at the close of the ninth century.He gathered together the essential points of it fromthe Life of Saint Remi, written, shortly beforethat period, by the saint’s celebrated successorat Rheims, Archbishop Hincmar. “The bishop,”says he, “went in search of the King at earlymorn in his bed-chamber, in order that, taking himat the moment of freedom from secular cares, he mightmore freely communicate to him the mysteries of theholy word. The King’s chamber-people receivehim with great respect, and the King himself runsforward to meet him. Thereupon they pass togetherinto an oratory dedicated to St. Peter, chief of theapostles, and adjoining the King’s apartment.

“When the bishop, the King, and the Queen hadtaken their places on the seats prepared for them,and admission had been given to some clerics and alsosome friends and household servants of the King, thevenerable bishop began his instructions on the subjectof salvation.

“Meanwhile preparations are being made alongthe road from the palace to the baptistery; curtainsand valuable stuffs are hung up; the houses on eitherside of the street are dressed out; the baptisteryis sprinkled with balm and all manner of perfume.The procession moves from the palace; the clergy leadthe way with the holy gospels, the cross, and standards,singing hymns and spiritual songs; then comes the bishop,leading the King by the hand; after him the Queen,lastly the people. On the road, it is said thatthe King asked the bishop if that were the kingdompromised him. ‘No,’ answered the prelate,’but it is the entrance to the road that leadsto it.’

“At the moment when the King bent his head overthe fountain of life, ‘Lower thy head with humility,Sicambrian,’ cried the eloquent bishop; ‘adorewhat thou hast burned; burn what thou hast adored.’The King’s two sisters, Alboflede and Lantechilde,likewise received baptism; and so at the same timedid three thousand of the Frankish army, besides alarge number of women and children.”

When it was known that Clovis had been baptized bySt. Remi, and with what striking circ*mstance, greatwas the satisfaction among the Catholics. Thechief Burgundian prelate, Avitus, bishop of Vienne,wrote to the Frankish King: “Your faithis our victory; in choosing for you and yours, youhave pronounced for all; divine Providence hath givenyou as arbiter to our age. Greece can boast of

having a sovereign of our persuasion; but she is nolonger alone in possession of this precious gift;the rest of the world doth share her light.”Pope Anastasius hastened to express his joy to Clovis.“The Church, our common mother,” he wrote,“rejoiceth to have born unto God so great a king.Continue, glorious and illustrious son, to cheer theheart of this tender mother; be a column of iron tosupport her, and she in her turn will give thee victoryover all thine enemies.”

Clovis was not a man to omit turning his Catholicpopularity to the account of his ambition. Atthe very time when he was receiving these testimoniesof good-will from the heads of the Church he learnedthat Gondebaud, disquieted, no doubt, at the conversionof his powerful neighbor, had just made a vain attempt,at a conference held at Lyons, to reconcile in hiskingdom the Catholics and the Arians. Clovisconsidered the moment favorable to his projects ofa*ggrandizement at the expense of the Burgundian King;he fomented the dissensions which already prevailedbetween Gondebaud and his brother Godegisile, assuredto himself the latter’s complicity, and suddenlyentered Burgundy with his army. Gondebaud, betrayedand beaten at the first encounter at Dijon, fled tothe south of his kingdom, and went and shut himselfup in Avignon. Clovis pursued, and besieged himthere. Gondebaud in great alarm asked counselof his Roman confidant Aridius, who had but latelyforetold to him what the marriage of his niece Clotildewould bring upon him. “On every side,”said the King, “I am encompassed by perils, andI know not what to do. Lo! here be these barbarianscome upon us to slay us and destroy the land.”“To escape death,” answered Aridius, “thoumust appease the ferocity of this man. Now, ifit please thee, I will feign to fly from thee andgo over to him. So soon as I shall be with him,I will so do that he ruin neither thee nor the land.Only have thou care to perform whatsoever I shallask of thee, until the Lord in his goodness deignto make thy cause triumph.” “All thatthou shalt bid will I do,” said Gondebaud.So Aridius left Gondebaud and went his way to Clovis,and said: “Most pious King, I am thy humbleservant; I give up this wretched Gondebaud and comeunto thy mightiness. If thy goodness deign tocast a glance upon me, thou and thy descendants willfind in me a servant of integrity and fidelity.”

Clovis received him very kindly and kept him by him,for Aridius was agreeable in conversation, wise incounsel, just in judgment, and faithful in whateverwas committed to his care. As the siege continuedAridius said to Clovis: “O King, if theglory of thy greatness would suffer thee to listento the words of my feebleness, though thou needestnot counsel, I would submit them to thee in all fidelity,and they might be of use to thee, whether for thyselfor for the towns by the which thou dost propose topass. Wherefore keepest thou here thine army whilst

thine enemy doth hide himself in a well-fortified place?Thou ravagest the fields, thou pillagest the corn,thou cuttest down the vines, thou fellest the olive-trees,thou destroyest all the produce of the land, and yetthou succeedest not in destroying thine adversary.Rather send thou unto him deputies, and lay on hima tribute to be paid to thee every year. Thusthe land will be preserved, and thou wilt be lordforever over him who owes thee tribute. If herefuse, thou shalt then do what pleaseth thee.”Clovis found the counsel good, ordered his army toreturn home, sent deputies to Gondebaud, and calledupon him to undertake the payment every year of afixed tribute. Gondebaud paid for the time, andpromised to pay punctually for the future. Andpeace appeared made between the two barbarians.

Pleased with his campaign against the Burgundians,Clovis kept on good terms with Gondebaud, who wasto be henceforth a simple tributary, and transferredto the Visigoths of Aquitania and their King, AlaricII, his views of conquest. He had there the samepretexts for attack and the same means of success.Alaric and his Visigoths were Arians, and betweenthem and the bishops of Southern Gaul, nearly all orthodoxCatholics, there were permanent ill-will and distrust.Alaric attempted to conciliate their good-will:in 506 a council met at Agde; the thirty-four bishopsof Aquitania attended in person or by delegate; theKing protested that he had no design of persecutingthe Catholics; the bishops, at the opening of thecouncil, offered prayers for the King; but Alaricdid not forget that immediately after the conversionof Clovis, Volusian, bishop of Tours, had conspiredin favor of the Frankish King, and the bishops ofAquitania regarded Volusian as a martyr, for he hadbeen deposed, without trial, from his see, and takenas a prisoner first to Toulouse, and afterward intoSpain, where in a short time he had been put to death.In vain did the glorious chief of the race of Goths,Theodoric the Great, king of Italy, father-in-law ofAlaric, and brother-in-law of Clovis, exert himselfto prevent any outbreak between the two kings.In 498 Alaric, no doubt at his father-in-law’ssolicitation, wrote to Clovis, “If my brotherconsent thereto, I would, following my desires andby the grace of God, have an interview with him.”

The interview took place at a small island in theLoire, called the Ile d’Or or de St. Jean, nearAmboise. “The two kings,” says Gregoryof Tours, “conversed, ate, and drank together,and separated with mutual promises of friendship.”The positions and passions of each soon made the promisesof no effect. In 505 Clovis was seriously ill;the bishops of Aquitania testified warm interest inhim; and one of them, Quintian, bishop of Rodez, beingon this account persecuted by the Visigoths, had toseek refuge at Clermont, in Auvergne. Clovis nolonger concealed his designs. In 507 he assembledhis principal chieftains; and “It displeasethme greatly,” said he, “that these Ariansshould possess a portion of the Gauls; march we forthwith the help of God, drive we them from that land,for it is very goodly, and bring we it under our ownpower.”

The Franks applauded their King; and the army setout on the march in the direction of Poitiers, whereAlaric happened at that time to be. “Asa portion of the troops was crossing the territoryof Tours,” says Gregory, who was shortly afterwardits bishop, “Clovis forbade, out of respectfor St. Martin, anything to be taken, save grass andwater. One of the army, however, having foundsome hay belonging to a poor man, said, ‘Thisis grass; we do not break the King’s commandsby taking it’; and, in spite of the poor man’sresistance, he robbed him of his hay. Clovis,informed of the fact, slew the soldier on the spotwith one sweep of his sword, saying, ’What willbecome of our hopes of victory, if we offend St. Martin?’”Alaric had prepared for the struggle; and the twoarmies met in the plain of Vouille, on the banks ofthe little river Clain, a few leagues from Poitiers.The battle was very severe. “The Goths,”says Gregory of Tours, “fought with missiles;the Franks sword in hand. Clovis met and withhis own hand slew Alaric in the fray; at the momentof striking his blow two Goths fell suddenly upon Clovis,and attacked him with their pikes on either side,but he escaped death, thanks to his cuirass and theagility of his horse.”

Beaten and kingless, the Goths retreated in greatdisorder; and Clovis, pursuing his march, arrivedwithout opposition at Bordeaux, where he settled downwith his Franks for the winter. When the war seasonreturned he marched on Toulouse, the capital of theVisigoths, which he likewise occupied without resistance,and where he seized a portion of the treasure of theVisigothic kings. He quitted it to lay siege toCarcassonne, which had been made by the Romans intothe stronghold of Septimania.

There his course of conquest was destined to end.After the battle of Vouille he had sent his eldestson, Theodoric, in command of a division, with ordersto cross Central Gaul from west to east, to go andjoin the Burgundians of Gondebaud, who had promisedhis assistance, and in conjunction with them to attackthe Visigoths on the banks of the Rhone and in Narbonensis.The young Frank boldly executed his father’sorders, but the intervention of Theodoric the Great,king of Italy, prevented the success of the operation.He sent an army into Gaul to the aid of his son-in-lawAlaric; and the united Franks and Burgundians failedin their attacks upon the Visigoths of the easternprovinces. Clovis had no idea of compromisingby his obstinacy the conquests already accomplished;he therefore raised the siege of Carcassonne, returnedfirst to Toulouse, and then to Bordeaux, took Angouleme,the only town of importance he did not possess inAquitania; and feeling reasonably sure that the Visigoths,who, even with the aid that had come from Italy, hadgreat difficulty in defending what remained to themof Southern Gaul, would not come and dispute withhim what he had already conquered, he halted at Tours,and stayed there some time, to enjoy on the very spotthe fruits of his victory and to establish his powerin his new possessions.

It appears that even the Britons of Armorica tenderedto him at that time, through the interposition ofMelanius, bishop of Rennes, if not their actual submission,at any rate their subordination and homage.

Clovis at the same time had his self-respect flatteredin a manner to which barbaric conquerors always attachgreat importance. Anastasius, emperor of theEast, with whom he had already had some communication,sent to him at Tours a solemn embassy, bringing himthe titles and insignia of patrician and consul.“Clovis,” says Gregory of Tours, “puton the tunic of purple and the chlamys and the diadem;then mounting his horse, he scattered with his ownhand and with much bounty gold and silver among thepeople, on the road which lies between the gate ofthe court belonging to the basilica of St. Martinand the church of the city. From that day hewas called consul and augustus. On leaving thecity of Tours he repaired to Paris, where he fixedthe seat of his government.”

Paris was certainly the political centre of his dominions,the intermediate point between the early settlementsof his race and himself in Gaul and his new Gallicconquests; but he lacked some of the possessions nearestto him and most naturally, in his own opinion, his.To the east, north, and south-west of Paris were settledsome independent Frankish tribes, governed by chieftainswith the name of kings. So soon as he had settledat Paris, it was the one fixed idea of Clovis to reducethem all to subjection. He had conquered theBurgundians and the Visigoths; it remained for himto conquer and unite together all the Franks.The barbarian showed himself in his true colors, duringthis new enterprise, with his violence, his craft,his cruelty, and his perfidy. He began with themost powerful of the tribes, the Ripuarian Franks.He sent secretly to Cloderic, son of Sigebert, theirKing, saying: “Thy father hath become old,and his wound maketh him to limp o’ one foot;if he should die, his kingdom will come to thee ofright, together with our friendship.” Cloderichad his father assassinated while asleep in his tent,and sent messengers to Clovis, saying: “Myfather is dead, and I have in my power his kingdomand his treasures. Send thou unto me certainof thy people, and I will gladly give into their handswhatsoever among these treasures shall seem like toplease thee.” The envoys of Clovis came,and, as they were examining in detail the treasuresof Sigebert, Cloderic said to them, “This isthe coffer wherein my father was wont to pile up hisgold pieces.” “Plunge,” saidthey, “thy hand right to the bottom, that noneescape thee.” Cloderic bent forward, andone of the envoys lifted his battle-axe and clefthis skull.

Clovis went to Cologne and convoked the Franks ofthe canton. “Learn,” said he, “thatwhich hath happened. As I was sailing on the riverScheldt, Cloderic, son of my relative, did vex hisfather, saying I was minded to slay him; and as Sigebertwas flying across the forest of Buchaw, his son himselfsent bandits, who fell upon him and slew him.Cloderic also is dead, smitten I know not by whom ashe was opening his father’s treasures.I am altogether unconcerned in it all, and I couldnot shed the blood of my relatives, for it is a crime.But since it hath so happened, I give unto you counsel,which ye shall follow if it seem to you good; turnye toward me, and live under my protection.”And they who were present hoisted him on a huge bucklerand hailed him king.

After Sigebert and the Ripuarian Franks came the Franksof Terouanne, and Chararic, their King. He hadrefused, twenty years before, to march with Clovisagainst the Roman Syagrius. Clovis, who had notforgotten it, attacked him, took him and his son prisoners,and had them both shorn, ordering that Chararic shouldbe ordained priest and his son deacon. Chararicwas much grieved. Then said his son to him:“Here be branches which were cut from a greentree, and are not yet wholly dried up: soon theywill sprout forth again. May it please God thathe who hath wrought all this shall die as quickly!”Clovis considered these words as a menace, had bothfather and son beheaded, and took possession of theirdominions. Ragnacaire, king of the Franks of Cambrai,was the third to be attacked. He had served Clovisagainst Syagrius, but Clovis took no account of that.Ragnacaire, being beaten, was preparing for flight,when he was seized by his own soldiers, who tied hishands behind his back, and took him to Clovis alongwith his brother Riquier. “Wherefore hastthou dishonored our race,” said Clovis, “byletting thyself wear bonds? ’Twere betterto have died,” and cleft his skull with onestroke of his battle-axe; then turning to Riquier,“Hadst thou succored thy brother,” saidhe, “he had assuredly not been bound,”and felled him likewise at his feet. Rignomer,king of the Franks of Le Mans, met the same fate,but not at the hands, only by the order, of Clovis.So Clovis remained sole king of the Franks, for allthe independent chieftains had disappeared.

It is said that one day, after all these murders,Clovis, surrounded by his trusted servants, cried:“Woe is me! who am left as a traveller amongstrangers, and who have no longer relatives to lendme support in the day of adversity!” Thus dothe most shameless take pleasure in exhibiting shamsorrow after crimes they cannot disavow.

It cannot be known whether Clovis ever felt in hissoul any scruple or regret for his many acts of ferocityand perfidy, or if he looked as sufficient expiationupon the favor he had bestowed on the churches andtheir bishops, upon the gifts he lavished on them,and upon the absolutions he demanded of them.In times of mingled barbarism and faith there arestrange cases of credulity in the way of bargains madewith divine justice. We read in the life of St.Eleutherus, bishop of Tournai, the native land ofClovis, that at one of those periods when the conscienceof the Frankish King must have been most heavily laden,he presented himself one day at the church. “Mylord King,” said the bishop, “I know whereforethou art come to me.” “I have nothingspecial to say unto thee,” rejoined Clovis,“Say not so, O King,” replied the bishop;“thou hast sinned, and darest not avow it.”The King was moved, and ended by confessing that hehad deeply sinned and had need of large pardon.St. Eleutherus betook himself to prayer; the King cameback the next day, and the bishop gave him a paperon which was written by a divine hand, he said, “thepardon granted to royal offences which might not berevealed.”

Clovis accepted this absolution, and loaded the churchof Tournai with his gifts. In 511, the very yearof his death, his last act in life was the convocationat Orleans of a council, which was attended by thirtybishops from the different parts of his kingdom, andat which were adopted thirty-one canons that, whilegranting to the Church great privileges and meansof influence, in many cases favorable to humanityand respect for the rights of individuals, bound theChurch closely to the state, and gave to royalty,even in ecclesiastical matters, great power.The bishops, on breaking up, sent these canons to Clovis,praying him to give them the sanction of his adhesion,which he did. A few months afterward, on the27th of November, 511, Clovis died at Paris, and wasburied in the church of St. Peter and St. Paul, nowadaysSt. Genevieve, built by his wife, Queen Clotilde,who survived him.

It was but right to make the reader intimately acquaintedwith that great barbarian who, with all his vicesand all his crimes, brought about, or rather began,two great matters which have already endured throughfourteen centuries and still endure; for he foundedthe French monarchy and Christian France. Suchmen and such facts have a right to be closely studiedand set in a clear light by history. Nothing similarwill be seen for two centuries, under the descendantsof Clovis, the Merovingians; among them will be encounterednone but those personages whom death reduces to insignificance,whatever may have been their rank in the world, andof whom Vergil thus speaks to Dante:

“Waste we no words onthem: one glance and pass thou on.”

PUBLICATION OF THE JUSTINIAN CODE

A.D. 529-534

EDWARD GIBBON

The richest legacy ever left by onecivilization to another was the Justinian Code.This compilation of the entire body of the Roman civillaw (Corpus Juris Civilis), as evolved duringthe thousand years after the Decemvirate legislationof the Twelve Tables, comprises perhaps the mostvaluable historical data preserved from ancienttimes. It presents a vivid and authentic pictureof the domestic life of the Romans and the ruleswhich governed their relations to each other.This phase of history is considered by modernhistorians as of far greater importance than the chroniclesof battles and court intrigues.

The importance of the Justinian Code,however, is not that of mere history. Itsinfluence as a living force is what compels the admirationand gratitude of mankind. It forms the basis ofthe systems of law in all the civilized nationsof the world, with the exception of those ofthe English-speaking peoples, and even in thesethe principles of the civil law—­as the Romanlaw is called in contradistinction to the commonand statute law of these nations—­formthe most important part of the regulations concerningpersonal property.

For this monumental work the worldis indebted to Justinian I (Flavius Anicius Justinianus),the most famous of the emperors of the EasternEmpire since Constantine. He was born a Slavonianpeasant. Uprawda, his original name, wasLatinized into Justinian when he became an officerin the Imperial Guard. He was adopted, educated,and trained by Justin I, whom he succeeded as emperor.His long reign (527-565) was disturbed by thesanguinary factions of the Circus—­theGreens and the Blues, so named from the colors ofthe competing charioteers in the games—­thesuppression of the schools of philosophy at Athens,and by various wars. Nevertheless it wasmarked by magnificent works, the administrative organizationof the empire, and the great buildings at Constantinople.The Church of Santa-Sophia, the first great Christianchurch, although used as a Mahometan mosque since1459, still stands at Constantinople, with itsplain exterior but impressive interior, a monumentof Justinian’s reign.

His two great masters of war, foreignersin origin like himself, were Belisarius the Thracianand Narses the Armenian. Africa was wrestedfrom the Vandals; Italy from the successors of Theodoric;and much of Spain from the Western Goths.Under Justinian the Byzantine or Eastern Empireresumed much of the majesty and power of ancientRome. But the crowning glory of his career wasthe Code. One of the greatest historianssays of his reign: “Its most instructivelesson has been drawn from the influence which itslegislation has exercised on foreign nations.The unerring instinct of mankind has fixed onthis period as one of the greatest eras in man’sannals.”

The Code was a digest of the wholemass of Roman law literature, compiled and annotatedat the command of Justinian, under the supervisionof the great lawyer Tribonian, who, with his helpers,reduced the chaotic mass to a logical system containingthe essence of Roman law. The first partof the Codex Constitutionem, preparedin less than a year, was published in April, 529.The second part, the Digest or Pandects,appeared in December, 533. To insure conformity,both were revised and issued in November, 534,the Institutiones, an elementary text-book,founded on the Institutiones of Gaius,who lived A.D. 110-180, being added, and thewhole, as a complete body of law, given to the lawschools at Constantinople, Rome, Alexandria,Berytus, and Caesarea, for use in their graduatecourse. Later the Novellae Constitutione,or Novels, most of them in Greek, comprisingstatutes of Justinian arranged chronologically,completed the Code.

Forgotten or ignored during the lawlessdays of the Dark Ages, an entire copy of thisfamous code was discovered when Amalphi was takenby the Pisans in 1137. Its publication immediatelyattracted the attention of the learned world.Gratian, a monk of Bologna, compiled a digestof the canon law on the model of that work, and soonafterward, incorporating with his writings the collectionsof prior authors, gave his “decretum”to the public in 1151. From that time thetwo codes, the civil and canon laws, were deemed theprincipal repositories of legal knowledge, andthe study of each was considered necessary tothrow light on the other.

Justinian’s example in the codificationof laws was followed by almost every Europeannation after the eighteenth century; the Code Napoleon(1803-04), regulating all that pertains “to thecivil rights of citizens and of property,”being the most brilliant parallel to the JustinianCode. The reader familiar with the life ofNapoleon will recall that all of his historians quotehis frequent allusion to the Code Napoleon asthe one great work which would be a living monumentof his career, when the glory of all his otherachievements would be dimmed by time or forgotten.

Gibbon’s examination of the JustinianCode is justly regarded as one of the most importantfeatures of the historian’s great work, andin several of the leading universities of Europe haslong been used as a text-work on civil law.

When Justinian ascended the throne, the reformationof the Roman jurisprudence was an arduous but indispensabletask. In the space of ten centuries, the infinitevariety of laws and legal opinions had filled manythousand volumes, which no fortune could purchase andno capacity could digest. Books could not easilybe found; and the judges, poor in the midst of riches,were reduced to the exercise of their illiterate discretion.

The subjects of the Greek provinces were ignorant ofthe language that disposed of their lives and properties;and the barbarous dialect of the Latins wasimperfectly studied in the academies of Berytus andConstantinople. As an Illyrian soldier, thatidiom was familiar to the infancy of Justinian; hisyouth had been instructed by the lessons of jurisprudence,and his imperial choice selected the most learnedcivilians of the East, to labor with their sovereignin the work of reformation. The theory of professorswas assisted by the practice of advocates and theexperience of magistrates, and the whole undertakingwas animated by the spirit of Tribonian.

This extraordinary man, the object of so much praiseand censure, was a native of Side in Pamphylia; andhis genius, like that of Bacon, embraced as his ownall the business and knowledge of the age. Triboniancomposed, both in prose and verse, on a strange diversityof curious and abstruse subjects; a double panegyricof Justinian and the life of the philosopher Theodotus;the nature of happiness and the duties of government;Homer’s catalogue and the four-and-twenty sortsof metre; the astronomical canon of Ptolemy; the changesof the months; the houses of the planets; and theharmonic system of the world. To the literatureof Greece he added the use of the Latin tongue; theRoman civilians were deposited in his library andin his mind; and he most assiduously cultivated thosearts which opened the road of wealth and preferment.From the bar of the praetorian prefects he raised himselfto the honors of quaestor, of consul, and of masterof the offices: the council of Justinian listenedto his eloquence and wisdom, and envy was mitigatedby the gentleness and affability of his manners.

The reproaches of impiety and avarice have stainedthe virtues or the reputation of Tribonian. Ina bigoted and persecuting court the principal ministerwas accused of a secret aversion to the Christianfaith, and was supposed to entertain the sentimentsof an atheist and a pagan, which have been imputed,inconsistently enough, to the last philosophers ofGreece. His avarice was more clearly proved andmore sensibly felt. If he were swayed by giftsin the administration of justice, the example of Baconwill again occur: nor can the merit of Tribonianatone for his baseness, if he degraded the sanctityof his profession; and if laws were every day enacted,modified, or repealed, for the base considerationof his private emolument. In the sedition ofConstantinople his removal was granted to the clamors,perhaps to the just indignation, of the people; butthe quaestor was speedily restored, and, till thehour of his death, he possessed above twenty yearsthe favor and confidence of the Emperor. Hispassive and dutiful submission has been honored withthe praise of Justinian himself, whose vanity wasincapable of discerning how often that submission degeneratedinto the grossest adulation. Tribonian adoredthe virtues of his gracious master: the earthwas unworthy of such a prince; and he affected a piousfear, that Justinian, like Elijah or Romulus, wouldbe snatched into the air and translated alive to themansions of celestial glory.

If Caesar had achieved the reformation of the Romanlaw, his creative genius, enlightened by reflectionand study, would have given to the world a pure andoriginal system of jurisprudence. Whatever flatterymight suggest, the Emperor of the East was afraid toestablish his private judgment as the standard ofequity; in the possession of legislative power, heborrowed the aid of time and opinion; and his laboriouscompilations are guarded by the sages and legislatorsof past times. Instead of a statue cast in asimple mould by the hand of an artist, the works ofJustinian represent a tessellated pavement of antiqueand costly, but too often of incoherent, fragments.In the first year of his reign he directed the faithfulTribonian and nine learned associates to revise theordinances of his predecessors, as they were contained,since the time of Adrian, in the Gregorian, Hermogenian,and Theodosian codes; to purge the errors and contradictions,to retrench whatever was obsolete or superfluous,and to select the wise and salutary laws best adaptedto the practice of the tribunals and the use of hissubjects. The work was accomplished in fourteenmonths; and the Twelve books or Tables,which the new decemvirs produced, might be designedto imitate the labors of their Roman predecessors.

The new Code of Justinian was honored withhis name and confirmed by his royal signature:authentic transcripts were multiplied by the pensof notaries and scribes; they were transmitted to themagistrates of the European, the Asiatic, and afterwardthe African provinces; and the law of the empire wasproclaimed on solemn festivals at the doors of churches.A more arduous operation was still behind—­toextract the spirit of jurisprudence from the decisionsand conjectures, the questions and disputes of theRoman civilians. Seventeen lawyers, with Tribonianat their head, were appointed by the Emperor to exercisean absolute jurisdiction over the works of their predecessors.If they had obeyed his commands in ten years, Justinianwould have been satisfied with their diligence; andthe rapid composition of the Digest or Pandectsin three years will deserve praise or censure, accordingto the merit of the execution.

From the library of Tribonian they chose forty, themost eminent civilians of former times: two thousandtreatises were comprised in an abridgment of fiftybooks; and it has been carefully re-reduced in thisabstract to the moderate number of one hundred andfifty thousand. The edition of this great workwas delayed a month after that of the Institutes,and it seemed reasonable that the elements should precedethe digest of the Roman law. As soon as the Emperorhad approved their labors, he ratified by his legislativepower the speculations of these private citizens:their commentaries on the Twelve Tables, theperpetual edict, the laws of the people, and the decreesof the senate succeeded to the authority of the text;

and the text was abandoned as a useless, though venerable,relic of antiquity. The Code, the Pandects,and the Institutes were declared to be the legitimatesystem of civil jurisprudence; they alone were admittedin the tribunals, and they alone were taught in theacademies of Rome, Constantinople, and Berytus.Justinian addressed to the senate and provinces hiseternal oracles; and his pride, under the maskof piety, ascribed the consummation of this greatdesign to the support and inspiration of the Deity.

Since the Emperor declined the fame and envy of originalcomposition, we can only require at his hands method,choice, and fidelity, the humble, though indispensable,virtues of a compiler. Among the various combinationsof ideas it is difficult to assign any reasonablepreference; but as the order of Justinian is differentin his three works, it is possible that all may bewrong; and it is certain that two cannot be right.In the selection of ancient laws he seems to haveviewed his predecessors without jealousy and with equalregard: the series could not ascend above thereign of Adrian; and the narrow distinction of paganismand Christianity, introduced by the superstition ofTheodosius, had been abolished by the consent of mankind.But the jurisprudence of the Pandects is circ*mscribedwithin a period of a hundred years, from the perpetualedict to the death of Severus Alexander: thecivilians who lived under the first Caesars are seldompermitted to speak, and only three names can be attributedto the age of the republic. The favorite of Justinian(it has been fiercely urged) was fearful of encounteringthe light of freedom and the gravity of Roman sages.Tribonian condemned to oblivion the genuine and nativewisdom of Cato, the Scaevolas, and Sulpicius; whilehe invoked spirits more congenial to his own, theSyrians, Greeks, and Africans, who flocked to theimperial court to study Latin as a foreign tongue andjurisprudence as a lucrative profession. Butthe ministers of Justinian were instructed to labor,not for the curiosity of antiquarians, but for theimmediate benefit of his subjects. It was theirduty to select the useful and practical parts of theRoman law; and the writings of the old republicans,however curious or excellent, were no longer suitedto the new system of manners, religion, and government.

Perhaps, if the preceptors and friends of Cicero werestill alive, our candor would acknowledge that, exceptin purity of language, their intrinsic merit was excelledby the school of Papinian and Ulpian. The scienceof the laws is the slow growth of time and experience,and the advantage both of method and materials isnaturally assumed by the most recent authors.The civilians of the reign of the Antonines had studiedthe works of their predecessors: their philosophicspirit had mitigated the rigor of antiquity, simplifiedthe forms of proceeding, and emerged from the jealousy

and prejudice of the rival sects. The choice ofthe authorities that compose the Pandects dependedon the judgment of Tribonian; but the power of hissovereign could not absolve him from the sacred obligationsof truth and fidelity. As the legislator of theempire, Justinian might repeal the acts of the Antonines,or condemn as seditious the free principles whichwere maintained by the last of the Roman lawyers.But the existence of past facts is placed beyond thereach of despotism; and the Emperor was guilty of fraudand forgery when he corrupted the integrity of theirtext, inscribed with their venerable names the wordsand ideas of his servile reign, and suppressed by thehand of power the pure and authentic copies of theirsentiments. The changes and interpolations ofTribonian and his colleagues are excused by the pretenceof uniformity: but their cares have been insufficient,and the antinomies, or contradictions, of the Codeand Pandects still exercise the patience andsubtlety of modern civilians.

A rumor devoid of evidence has been propagated bythe enemies of Justinian, that the jurisprudence ofancient Rome was reduced to ashes by the author ofthe Pandects, from the vain persuasion thatit was now either false or superfluous. Withoutusurping an office so invidious, the Emperor mightsafely commit to ignorance and time the accomplishmentof this destructive wish. Before the inventionof printing and paper, the labor and the materialsof writing could be purchased only by the rich; andit may reasonably be computed that the price of bookswas a hundredfold their present value. Copieswere slowly multiplied and cautiously renewed:the hopes of profit tempted the sacrilegious scribesto erase the characters of antiquity,[26] and Sophoclesor Tacitus were obliged to resign the parchment tomissals, homilies, and the Golden Legend.If such was the fate of the most beautiful compositionsof genius, what stability could be expected for thedull and barren works of an obsolete science?The books of jurisprudence were interesting to fewand entertaining to none: their value was connectedwith present use, and they sunk forever as soon asthat use was superseded by the innovations of fashion,superior merit, or public authority. In the ageof peace and learning, between Cicero and the lastof the Antonines, many losses had been already sustained,and some luminaries of the school or Forum were knownonly to the curious by tradition and report.Three hundred and sixty years of disorder and decayaccelerated the progress of oblivion; and it may fairlybe presumed that of the writings which Justinian isaccused of neglecting many were no longer to be foundin the libraries of the East. The copies of Papinianor Ulpian, which the reformer had proscribed, weredeemed unworthy of future notice; the Twelve Tablesand praetorian edicts insensibly vanished, and themonuments of ancient Rome were neglected or destroyedby the envy and ignorance of the Greeks.

Even the Pandects themselves have escaped withdifficulty and danger from the common shipwreck, andcriticism has pronounced that all the editionsand manuscripts of the West are derived from oneoriginal. It was transcribed at Constantinoplein the beginning of the seventh century, was successfullytransported by the accidents of war and commerce toAmalphi, Pisa, and Florence,[27] and is now depositedas a sacred relic in the ancient palace of the republic.[28]

It is the first care of a reformer to prevent anyfuture reformation. To maintain the text of thePandects, the Institutes, and the Code,the use of ciphers and abbreviations was rigorouslyproscribed; and as Justinian recollected, that theperpetual edict had been buried under the weight ofcommentators, he denounced the punishment of forgeryagainst the rash civilians who should presume to interpretor pervert the will of their sovereign. The scholarsof Accursius, of Bartolus, of Cujacius, should blushfor their accumulated guilt, unless they dare to disputehis right of binding the authority of his successorsand the native freedom of the mind. But the Emperorwas unable to fix his own inconstancy; and while heboasted of renewing the exchange of Diomede, of transmutingbrass into gold, discovered the necessity of purifyinghis gold from the mixture of baser alloy. Sixyears had not elapsed from the publication of theCode before he condemned the imperfect attemptby a new and more accurate edition of the same work,which he enriched with two hundred of his own lawsand fifty decisions of the darkest and most intricatepoints of jurisprudence. Every year or, accordingto Procopius, each day of his long reign was markedby some legal innovation. Many of his acts wererescinded by himself; many were rejected by his successors;many have been obliterated by time; but the numberof sixteen Edicts and one hundred and sixty-eightNovels has been admitted into the authenticbody of the civil jurisprudence. In the opinionof a philosopher superior to the prejudices of hisprofession, these incessant and, for the most part,trifling alterations, can be only explained by thevenal spirit of a prince who sold without shame hisjudgments and his laws.

Monarchs seldom condescend to become the preceptorsof their subjects; and some praise is due to Justinian,by whose command an ample system was reduced to ashort and elementary treatise. Among the variousinstitutes of the Roman law those of Caius were themost popular in the East and West; and their use maybe considered as an evidence of their merit.They were selected by the imperial delegates, Tribonian,Theophilus, and Dorotheus, and the freedom and purityof the Antonines were incrusted with the coarser materialsof a degenerate age. The same volume which introducedthe youth of Rome, Constantinople, and Berytus tothe gradual study of the Code and Pandectsis still precious to the historian, the philosopher,and the magistrate. The Institutes ofJustinian are divided into four books: they proceed,with no contemptible method, from (1), Persons,to (2) Things, and from things to (3) Actions;and the Article IV of Private Wrongs is terminatedby the principles of Criminal Law.[29]

I. The distinction of ranks and persons isthe firmest basis of a mixed and limited government.The perfect equality of men is the point in whichthe extremes of democracy and despotism are confounded;since the majesty of the prince or people would beoffended, if any heads were exalted above the levelof their fellow-slaves or fellow-citizens. Inthe decline of the Roman Empire, the proud distinctionsof the republic were gradually abolished, and thereason or instinct of Justinian completed the simpleform of an absolute monarchy. The Emperor couldnot eradicate the popular reverence which always waitson the possession of hereditary wealth or the memoryof famous ancestors. He delighted to honor withtitles and emoluments his generals, magistrates, andsenators; and his precarious indulgence communicatedsome rays of their glory to the persons of their wivesand children. But in the eye of the law all Romancitizens were equal, and all subjects of the empirewere citizens of Rome. That inestimable characterwas degraded to an obsolete and empty name. Thevoice of a Roman could no longer enact his laws orcreate the annual ministers of his power: hisconstitutional rights might have checked the arbitrarywill of a master, and the bold adventurer from Germanyor Arabia was admitted, with equal favor, to the civiland military command which the citizen alone had beenonce entitled to assume over the conquests of hisfathers. The first Caesars had scrupulously guardedthe distinction of ingenuous and servilebirth, which was decided by the condition of the mother;and the candor of the laws was satisfied if herfreedom could be ascertained during a single momentbetween the conception and the delivery. The slaveswho were liberated by a generous master immediatelyentered into the middle class of libertinesor freedmen; but they could never be enfranchisedfrom the duties of obedience and gratitude: whateverwere the fruits of their industry, their patron andhis family inherited the third part, or even the wholeof their fortune if they died without children andwithout a testament.

Justinian respected the rights of patrons, but hisindulgence removed the badge of disgrace from thetwo inferior orders of freedmen: whoever ceasedto be a slave obtained without reserve or delay thestation of a citizen; and at length the dignity ofan ingenuous birth, which nature had refused, wascreated or supposed by the omnipotence of the Emperor.Whatever restraints of age, or forms, or numbers hadbeen formerly introduced to check the abuse of manumissionsand the too rapid increase of vile and indigent Romans,he finally abolished; and the spirit of his laws promotedthe extinction of domestic servitude. Yet theeastern provinces were filled in the time of Justinianwith multitudes of slaves, either born or purchasedfor the use of their masters; and the price, fromten to seventy pieces of gold, was determined by theirage, their strength, and their education. Butthe hardships of this dependent state were continuallydiminished by the influence of government and religion,and the pride of a subject was no longer elated byhis absolute dominion over the life and happinessof his bondsman.

The law of nature instructs most animals to cherishand educate their infant progeny. The law ofreason inculcates to the human species the returnof filial piety. But the exclusive, absolute,and perpetual dominion of the father over his childrenis peculiar to the Roman jurisprudence and seems tobe coeval with the foundation of the city. Thepaternal power was instituted or confirmed by Romulushimself; and after the practice of three centuriesit was inscribed on the fourth table of the decemvirs.In the Forum, the senate, or the camp the adult sonof a Roman citizen enjoyed the public and private rightsof a person: in his father’s househe was a mere thing;[30] confounded by thelaws with the movables, the cattle, and the slaves,whom the capricious master might alienate or destroywithout being responsible to any earthly tribunal.The hand which bestowed the daily sustenance mightresume the voluntary gift, and whatever was acquired,by the labor or fortune of the son was immediatelylost in the property of the father. His stolengoods (his oxen or his children) might be recoveredby the same action of theft; and if either had beenguilty of a trespass, it was in his own option tocompensate the damage or resign to the injured partythe obnoxious animal.

At the call of indigence or avarice the master ofa family could dispose of his children or his slaves.But the condition of the slave was far more advantageous,since he regained by the first manumission his alienatedfreedom: the son was again restored to his unnaturalfather; he might be condemned to servitude a secondand a third time, and it was not till after the thirdsale and deliverance that he was enfranchised fromthe domestic power which had been so repeatedly abused.According to his discretion, a father might chastisethe real or imaginary faults of his children by stripes,by imprisonment, by exile, by sending them to thecountry to work in chains among the meanest of hisservants. The majesty of a parent was armed withthe power of life and death; and the examples of suchbloody executions, which were sometimes praised andnever punished, may be traced in the annals of Romebeyond the times of Pompey and Augustus. Neitherage nor rank, nor the consular office, nor the honorsof a triumph could exempt the most illustrious citizenfrom the bonds of filial subjection: his owndescendants were included in the family of their commonancestor; and the claims of adoption were not lesssacred or less rigorous than those of nature.Without fear, though not without danger of abuse,the Roman legislators had reposed an unbounded confidencein the sentiments of paternal love, and the oppressionwas tempered by the assurance that each generationmust succeed in its turn to the awful dignity of parentand master.

The first limitation of paternal power is ascribedto the justice and humanity of Numa, and the maidwho, with his father’s consent, had espouseda freeman, was protected from the disgrace of becomingthe wife of a slave. In the first ages, whenthe city was pressed and often famished by her Latinand Tuscan neighbors, the sale of children might bea frequent practice; but as a Roman could not legallypurchase the liberty of his fellow-citizen, the marketmust gradually fail, and the trade would be destroyedby the conquests of the republic. An imperfectright of property was at length communicated to sons;and the threefold distinction of profectitious,adventitious, and professional was ascertainedby the jurisprudence of the Code and Pandects.Of all that proceeded from the father, he impartedonly the use, and reserved the absolute dominion;yet if his goods were sold, the filial portion wasexcepted by a favorable interpretation from the demandsof the creditors. In whatever accrued by marriage,gift, or collateral succession, the property was securedto the son; but the father, unless he had been speciallyexcluded, enjoyed the usufruct during his life.

As a just and prudent reward of military virtue, thespoils of the enemy were acquired, possessed, andbequeathed by the soldier alone; and the fair analogywas extended to the emoluments of any liberal profession,the salary of public service, and the sacred liberalityof the emperor or empress. The life of a citizenwas less exposed than his fortune to the abuse ofpaternal power. Yet his life might be adverseto the interest or passions of an unworthy father:the same crimes that flowed from the corruption weremore sensibly felt by the humanity of the Augustanage; and the cruel Erixo, who whipped his son tillhe expired, was saved by the Emperor from the justfury of the multitude. The Roman father, fromthe license of servile dominion, was reduced to thegravity and moderation of a judge. The presenceand opinion of Augustus confirmed the sentence ofexile pronounced against an intentional parricideby the domestic tribunal of Arius. Adrian transportedto an island the jealous parent who, like a robber,had seized the opportunity of hunting to assassinatea youth, the incestuous lover of his step-mother.A private jurisdiction is repugnant to the spirit ofmonarchy; the parent was again reduced from a judgeto an accuser, and the magistrates were enjoined bySeverus Alexander to hear his complaints and executehis sentence. He could no longer take the lifeof a son without incurring the guilt and punishmentof murder; and the pains of parricide, from whichhe had been excepted by the Pompeian law, were finallyinflicted by the justice of Constantine.

The same protection was due to every period of existence;and reason must applaud the humanity of Paulus forimputing the crime of murder to the father who strangles,or starves, or abandons his new-born infant; or exposeshim in a public place to find the mercy which he himselfhad denied. But the exposition of children wasthe prevailing and stubborn vice of antiquity:it was sometimes prescribed, often permitted, almostalways practised with impunity by the nations who neverentertained the Roman ideas of paternal power; andthe dramatic poets who appeal to the human heart representwith indifference a popular custom which was palliatedby the motives of economy and compassion. If thefather could subdue his own feelings, he might escape,though not the censure, at least the chastisem*ntof the laws; and the Roman Empire was stained withthe blood of infants, till such murders were includedby Valentinian and his colleagues in the letter andspirit of the Cornelian law. The lessons of jurisprudenceand Christianity had been insufficient to eradicatethis inhuman practice, till their gentle influencewas fortified by the terrors of capital punishment.

Experience has proved that savage are the tyrantsof the female sex, and that the condition of womenis usually softened by the refinements of social life.In the hope of a robust progeny, Lycurgus had delayedthe season of marriage: it was fixed by Numaat the tender age of twelve years, that the Romanhusband might educate to his will a pure and obedientvirgin. According to the custom of antiquity,he bought his bride of her parents, and she fulfilledthe coemption by purchasing, with three piecesof copper, a just introduction to his house and householddeities. A sacrifice of fruits was offered bythe pontiffs in the presence of ten witnesses; thecontracting parties were seated on the same sheepskin;they tasted a salt-cake of far or rice; andthis confarreation, which denoted the ancient foodof Italy, served as an emblem of their mystic unionof mind and body.

But this union on the side of the woman was rigorousand unequal; and she renounced the name and worshipof her father’s house to embrace a new servitude,decorated only by the title of adoption: a fictionof the law, neither rational nor elegant, bestowedon the mother of a family (her proper appellation)the strange characters of sister to her own children,and of daughter to her husband or master, who was investedwith the plenitude of paternal power. By his judgmentor caprice her behavior was approved or censured orchastised; he exercised the jurisdiction of life anddeath, and it was allowed that in the cases of adulteryor drunkenness the sentence might be properly inflicted.She acquired and inherited for the sole profit ofher lord; and so clearly was woman defined, not asa person, but as a thing, that if theoriginal title were deficient, she might be claimed,like other movables, by the use and possessionof an entire year. The inclination of the Romanhusband discharged or withheld the conjugal debt, soscrupulously exacted by the Athenian and Jewish laws;but as polygamy was unknown, he could never admitto his bed a fairer or more favored partner.

After the Punic triumphs the matrons of Rome aspiredto the common benefits of a free and opulent republic;their wishes were gratified by the indulgence of fathersand lovers, and their ambition was unsuccessfullyresisted by the gravity of Cato the Censor. Theydeclined the solemnities of the old nuptials; defeatedthe annual prescription by an absence of three days;and, without losing their name or independence, subscribedthe liberal and definite terms of a marriage contract.Of their private fortunes they communicated the useand secured the property; the estates of a wife couldneither be alienated nor mortgaged by a prodigal husband;their mutual gifts were prohibited by the jealousyof the laws; and the misconduct of either party mightafford under another name a future subject for an actionof theft. To this loose and voluntary compactreligious and civil rights were no longer essential;and between persons of similar rank, the apparentcommunity of life was allowed as sufficient evidenceof their nuptials.

The dignity of marriage was restored by the Christians,who derived all spiritual grace from the prayers ofthe faithful and the benediction of the priest orbishop. The origin, validity, and duties of theholy institution were regulated by the tradition ofthe synagogue, the precepts of the gospel, and thecanons of general or provincial synods; and the conscienceof the Christians was awed by the decrees and censuresof their ecclesiastical rulers. Yet the magistratesof Justinian were not subject to the authority ofthe Church; the Emperor consulted the unbelievingcivilians of antiquity, and the choice of matrimoniallaws in the Code and Pandects is directedby the earthly motives of justice, policy, and thenatural freedom of both sexes.

Besides the agreement of the parties, the essenceof every rational contract, the Roman marriage requiredthe previous approbation of the parents. A fathermight be forced by some recent laws to supply thewants of a mature daughter; but even his insanity wasnot generally allowed to supersede the necessity ofhis consent. The causes of the dissolution ofmatrimony have varied among the Romans; but the mostsolemn sacrament, the confarreation itself, might alwaysbe done away by rites of a contrary tendency.In the first ages the father of a family might sellhis children, and his wife was reckoned in the numberof his children; the domestic judge might pronouncethe death of the offender, or his mercy might expelher from his bed and house; but the slavery of thewretched female was hopeless and perpetual, unlesshe asserted for his own convenience the manly prerogativeof divorce. The warmest applause has been lavishedon the virtue of the Romans, who abstained from theexercise of this tempting privilege above five hundredyears; but the same fact evinces the unequal termsof a connection in which the slave was unable to renounceher tyrant, and the tyrant was unwilling to relinquishhis slave.

When the Roman matrons became the equal and voluntarycompanions of their lords, a new jurisprudence wasintroduced, that marriage, like other partnerships,might be dissolved by the abdication of one of theassociates. In three centuries of prosperity andcorruption this principle was enlarged to frequentpractice and pernicious abuse. Passion, interest,or caprice suggested daily motives for the dissolutionof marriage; a word, a sign, a message, a letter, themandate of a freedman declared the separation; themost tender of human connections was degraded to atransient society of profit or pleasure. Accordingto the various conditions of life, both sexes alternatelyfelt the disgrace and injury; an inconstant spousetransferred her wealth to a new family, abandoninga numerous, perhaps a spurious progeny to the paternalauthority and care of her late husband; a beautifulvirgin might be dismissed to the world, old, indigent,and friendless; but the reluctance of the Romans,when they were pressed to marriage by Augustus, sufficientlymarks that the prevailing institutions were leastfavorable to the males. A specious theory isconfuted by this free and perfect experiment, whichdemonstrates that the liberty of divorce does notcontribute to happiness and virtue. The facilityof separation would destroy all mutual confidence,and inflame every trifling dispute; the minute differencebetween a husband and a stranger, which might so easilybe removed, might still more easily be forgotten;and the matron, who in five years can submit to theembraces of eight husbands, must cease to reverencethe chastity of her own person.

Insufficient remedies followed with distant and tardysteps the rapid progress of the evil. The ancientworship of the Romans afforded a peculiar goddessto hear and reconcile the complaints of a married life;but her epithet of viriplaca, the appeaser ofhusbands, too clearly indicates on which side submissionand repentance were always expected. Every actof a citizen was subject to the judgment of the censors;the first who used the privilege of divorce assignedat their command the motives of his conduct; and asenator was expelled for dismissing his virgin spousewithout the knowledge or advice of his friends.Whenever an action was instituted for the recoveryof a marriage portion, the praetor, as the guardianof equity, examined the cause and the characters,and gently inclined the scale in favor of the guiltlessand injured party. Augustus, who united the powersof both magistrates, adopted their different modesof repressing or chastising the license of divorce.

The presence of seven Roman witnesses was requiredfor the validity of this solemn and deliberate act:if any adequate provocation had been given by thehusband, instead of the delay of two years, he wascompelled to refund immediately, or in the space ofsix months; but if he could arraign the manners ofhis wife, her guilt or levity was expiated by theloss of the sixth or eighth part of her marriage portion.The Christian princes were the first who specifiedthe just causes of a private divorce; their institutions,from Constantine to Justinian, appear to fluctuatebetween the custom of the empire and the wishes ofthe Church, and the author of the Novels toofrequently reforms the jurisprudence of the Codeand Pandects. In the most rigorous laws,a wife was condemned to support a gamester, a drunkard,or a libertine, unless he were guilty of homicide,poison, or sacrilege, in which cases the marriage,as it should seem, might have been dissolved by thehand of the executioner.

But the sacred right of the husband was invariablymaintained, to deliver his name and family from thedisgrace of adultery: the list of mortalsins, either male or female, was curtailed and enlargedby successive regulations, and the obstacles of incurableimpotence, long absence, and monastic profession wereallowed to rescind the matrimonial obligation.Whoever transgressed the permission of the law wassubject to various and heavy penalties. The womanwas stripped of her wealth and ornaments, withoutexcepting the bodkin of her hair: if the manintroduced a new bride into his bed, her fortunemight be lawfully seized by the vengeance of his exiledwife. Forfeiture was sometimes commuted to afine; the fine was sometimes aggravated by transportationto an island or imprisonment in a monastery; the injuredparty was released from the bonds of marriage; butthe offender during life or a term of years was disabledfrom the repetition of nuptials. The successorof Justinian yielded to the prayers of his unhappysubjects, and restored the liberty of divorce by mutualconsent: the civilians were unanimous, the theologianswere divided, and the ambiguous word, which containsthe precept of Christ, is flexible to any interpretationthat the wisdom of a legislator can demand.

The freedom of love and marriage was restrained amongthe Romans by natural and civil impediments.An instinct, almost innate and universal, appearsto prohibit the incestuous commerce of parents andchildren in the infinite series of ascending and descendinggenerations. Concerning the oblique and collateralbranches nature is indifferent, reason mute, and customvarious and arbitrary. In Egypt the marriage ofbrothers and sisters was admitted without scrupleor exception: a Spartan might espouse the daughterof his father, an Athenian that of his mother; andthe nuptials of an uncle with his niece were applaudedat Athens as a happy union of the dearest relations.

The profane law-givers of Rome were never temptedby interest or superstition to multiply the forbiddendegrees: but they inflexibly condemned the marriageof sisters and brothers, hesitated whether first cousinsshould be touched by the same interdict; revered theparental character of aunts and uncles, and treatedaffinity and adoption as a just imitation of the tiesof blood. According to the proud maxims of therepublic, a legal marriage could only be contractedby free citizens; an honorable, at least an ingenuousbirth, was required for the spouse of a senator:but the blood of kings could never mingle in legitimatenuptials with the blood of a Roman; and the name ofStranger degraded Cleopatra and Berenice to live theconcubines of Mark Antony and Titus. Thisappellation, indeed, so injurious to the majesty, cannotwithout indulgence be applied to the manners of theseoriental queens. A concubine, in the strict senseof the civilian, was a woman of servile or plebeianextraction, the sole and faithful companion of a Romancitizen, who continued in a state of celibacy.Her modest station, below the honors of a wife, abovethe infamy of a prostitute, was acknowledged and approvedby the laws: from the age of Augustus to the tenthcentury, the use of this secondary marriage prevailedboth in the West and East; and the humble virtuesof a concubine were often preferred to the pomp andinsolence of a noble matron. In this connectionthe two Antonines, the best of princes and of men,enjoyed the comforts of domestic love; the examplewas imitated by many citizens impatient of celibacy,but regardful of their families. If at any timethey desired to legitimate their natural children,the conversion was instantly performed by the celebrationof their nuptials with a partner whose fruitfulnessand fidelity they had already tried.[31] By this epithetof natural, the offspring of the concubinewere distinguished from the spurious brood of adultery,prostitution, and incest, to whom Justinian reluctantlygrants the necessary aliments of life; and these naturalchildren alone were capable of succeeding to a sixthpart of the inheritance of their reputed father.According to the rigor of law, bastards were entitledto the name and condition of their mother, from whomthey might derive the character of a slave, a stranger,or a citizen. The outcasts of every family wereadopted without reproach as the children of the State.

The relation of guardian and ward, or in Roman wordsof tutor and pupil, which covers somany titles of the Institutes and Pandects,is of a very simple and uniform nature. The personand property of an orphan must always be trusted tothe custody of some discreet friend. If the deceasedfather had not signified his choice, the agnats,or paternal kindred of the nearest degree, were compelledto act as the natural guardians: the Athenianswere apprehensive of exposing the infant to the power

of those most interested in his death; but an axiomof Roman jurisprudence has pronounced that the chargeof tutelage should constantly attend the emolumentof succession. If the choice of the father andthe line of consanguinity afforded no efficient guardian,the failure was supplied by the nomination of thepraetor of the city or the president of the province.But the person whom they named to this publicoffice might be legally excused by insanity or blindness,by ignorance or inability, by previous enmity or adverseinterest, by the number of children or guardianshipswith which he was already burdened and by the immunitieswhich were granted to the useful labors of magistrates,lawyers, physicians, and professors.

Till the infant could speak and think he was representedby the tutor, whose authority was finally determinedby the age of puberty. Without his consent noact of the pupil could bind himself to his own prejudice,though it might oblige others for his personal benefit.It is needless to observe that the tutor often gavesecurity, and always rendered an account, and thatthe want of diligence or integrity exposed him to acivil and almost criminal action for the violationof his sacred trust. The age of puberty had beenrashly fixed by the civilians at fourteen; but asthe faculties of the mind ripen more slowly than thoseof the body, a curator was interposed to guardthe fortunes of a Roman youth from his own inexperienceand headstrong passions. Such a trustee had beenfirst instituted by the praetor, to save a family fromthe blind havoc of a prodigal or madman; and the minorwas compelled by the laws to solicit the same protection,to give validity to his acts till he accomplishedthe full period of twenty-five years. Women werecondemned to the perpetual tutelage of parents, husbands,or guardians; a sex created to please and obey wasnever supposed to have attained the age of reasonand experience. Such, at least, was the sternand haughty spirit of the law, which had been insensiblymollified before the time of Justinian.

II. The original right of property can only bejustified by the accident or merit of prior occupancy;and on this foundation it is wisely established bythe philosophy of the civilians. The savage whohollows a tree, inserts a sharp stone into a woodenhandle, or applies a string to an elastic branch becomesin a state of nature the just proprietor of the canoe,the bow, or the hatchet. The materials were commonto all, the new form, the produce of his time andsimple industry, belong solely to himself. Hishungry brethren cannot, without a sense of their owninjustice, extort from the hunter the game of the forestovertaken or slain by his personal strength and dexterity.If his provident care preserves and multiplies thetame animals, whose nature is tractable to the artsof education, he acquires a perpetual title to theuse and service of their numerous progeny, which derivesits existence from him alone. If he enclosesand cultivates a field for their sustenance and hisown, a barren waste is converted into a fertile soil;the seed, the manure, the labor, create a new value,and the rewards of harvest are painfully earned bythe fatigues of the revolving year.

In the successive states of society the hunter, theshepherd, the husbandman, may defend their possessionsby two reasons which forcibly appeal to the feelingsof the human mind: that whatever they enjoy isthe fruit of their own industry; and that every manwho envies their felicity may purchase similar acquisitionsby the exercise of similar diligence. Such, intruth, may be the freedom and plenty of a small colonycast on a fruitful island. But the colony multiplies,while the space still continues the same; the commonrights, the equal inheritance of mankind, are engrossedby the bold and crafty; each field and forest is circ*mscribedby the landmarks of a jealous master; and it is thepeculiar praise of the Roman jurisprudence that itasserts the claim of the first occupant to the wildanimals of the earth, the air, and the waters.In the progress from primitive equity to final injustice,the steps are silent, the shades are almost imperceptible,and the absolute monopoly is guarded by positive lawsand artificial reason. The active, insatiableprinciple of self-love can alone supply the arts oflife and the wages of industry; and as soon as civilgovernment and exclusive property have been introduced,they become necessary to the existence of the humanrace.

Except in the singular institutions of Sparta, thewisest legislators have disapproved an agrarian lawas a false and dangerous innovation. Among theRomans the enormous disproportion of wealth surmountedthe ideal restraints of a doubtful tradition and anobsolete statute; a tradition that the poorest followerof Romulus had been endowed with the perpetual inheritanceof two jugera; a statute which confined the richestcitizen to the measure of five hundred jugera, or threehundred and twelve acres of land. The originalterritory of Rome consisted only of some miles ofwood and meadow along the banks of the Tiber, anddomestic exchange could add nothing to the nationalstock. But the goods of an alien or enemy werelawfully exposed to the first hostile occupier; thecity was enriched by the profitable trade of war, andthe blood of her sons was the only price that waspaid for the Volscian sheep, the slaves of Britain,to the gems and gold of Asiatic kingdoms. Inthe language of ancient jurisprudence, which was corruptedand forgotten before the age of Justinian, these spoilswere distinguished by the name of manceps or mancipium,taken with the hand; and whenever they were sold oremancipated, the purchaser required some assurancethat they had been the property of an enemy and notof a fellow-citizen.

A citizen could only forfeit his rights by apparentdereliction, and such dereliction of a valuable interestcould not easily be presumed. Yet, accordingto the Twelve Tables, a prescription of oneyear for movables, and of two years for immovables,abolished the claim of the ancient master, if theactual possessor had acquired them by a fair transactionfrom the person whom he believed to be the lawfulproprietor.[32] Such conscientious injustice, withoutany mixture of fraud or force could seldom injurethe members of a small republic; but the various periodsof three, of ten, or of twenty years, determined byJustinian, are more suitable to the latitude of a greatempire. It is only in the term of prescriptionthat the distinction of real and personal fortunehas been remarked by the civilians; and their generalidea of property is that of simple, uniform, and absolutedominion. The subordinate exceptions of use,of usufruct, of servitudes, imposed for the benefitof a neighbor on lands and houses, are abundantly explainedby the professors of jurisprudence. The claimsof property, as far as they are altered by the mixture,the division, or the transformation of substances,are investigated with metaphysical subtlety by thesame civilians.

The personal title of the first proprietor must bedetermined by his death: but the possession,without any appearance of change, is peaceably continuedin his children, the associates of his toil and thepartners of his wealth. This natural inheritancehas been protected by the legislators of every climateand age, and the father is encouraged to perseverein slow and distant improvements, by the tender hopethat a long posterity will enjoy the fruits of hislabor. The principle of hereditary successionis universal; but the order has been variouslyestablished by convenience or caprice, by the spiritof national institutions, or by some partial examplewhich was originally decided by fraud or violence.The jurisprudence of the Romans appears to have deviatedfrom the equality of nature much less than the Jewish,the Athenian, or the English institutions. Onthe death of a citizen all his descendants, unlessthey were already freed from his paternal power, werecalled to the inheritance of his possessions.The insolent prerogative of primogeniture was unknown;the two sexes were placed on a just level; all thesons and daughters were entitled to an equal portionof the patrimonial estate; and if any of the sons hadbeen intercepted by a premature death, his personwas represented and his share was divided by his survivingchildren.

On the failure of the direct line, the right of successionmust diverge to the collateral branches. Thedegrees of kindred are numbered by the civilians,ascending from the last possessor to a common parent,and descending from the common parent to the nextheir: my father stands in the first degree, mybrother in the second, his children in the third,and the remainder of the series may be conceived byfancy, or pictured in a genealogical table. Inthis computation a distinction was made, essentialto the laws and even the constitution of Rome; theagnats, or persons connected by a line of males,were called, as they stood in the nearest degree,to an equal partition; but a female was incapable oftransmitting any legal claims; and the cognatsof every rank, without excepting the dear relationof a mother and a son, were disinherited by the TwelveTables, as strangers and aliens. Among theRomans a gens or lineage was united by a commonname and domestic rites; the various cognomensor surnames of Scipio or Marcellus distinguishedfrom each other the subordinate branches or familiesof the Cornelian or Claudian race: the defaultof the agnats, of the same surname, was suppliedby the larger denomination of gentiles; andthe vigilance of the laws maintained in the same namethe perpetual descent of religion and property.

A similar principle dictated the Voconian law, whichabolished the right of female inheritance. Aslong as virgins were given or sold in marriage, theadoption of the wife extinguished the hopes of thedaughter. But the equal succession of independentmatrons supported their pride and luxury, and mighttransport into a foreign house the riches of theirfathers. While the maxims of Cato were revered,they tended to perpetuate in each family a just andvirtuous mediocrity: till female blandishmentsinsensibly triumphed, and every salutary restraintwas lost in the dissolute greatness of the republic.The rigor of the decemvirs was tempered by the equityof the praetors. Their edicts restored and emancipatedposthumous children to the rights of nature; and uponthe failure of the agnats they preferred theblood of the cognats to the name of the gentiles,whose title and character were insensibly coveredwith oblivion. The reciprocal inheritance of mothersand sons was established in the Tertullian and Orphitiandecrees by the humanity of the senate. A newand more impartial order was introduced by the Novelsof Justinian, who affected to revive the jurisprudenceof the Twelve Tables. The lines of masculineand female kindred were confounded: the descending,ascending, and collateral series was accurately defined;and each degree, according to the proximity of bloodand affection, succeeded the vacant possessions ofa Roman citizen.

The order of succession is regulated by nature, orat least by the general and permanent reason of thelaw-giver: but this order is frequently violatedby the arbitrary and partial wills, which prolongthe dominion of the testator beyond the grave.In the simple state of society this last use or abuseof the right of property is seldom indulged; it wasintroduced at Athens by the laws of Solon; and theprivate testaments of a father of a family are authorizedby the Twelve Tables. Before the timeof the decemvirs a Roman citizen exposed his wishesand motives to the assembly of the thirty curiae orparishes, and the general law of inheritance was suspendedby an occasional act of the legislature. Afterthe permission of the decemvirs, each private law-giverpromulgated his verbal or written testament in thepresence of five citizens, who represented the fiveclasses of the Roman people; a sixth witness attestedtheir concurrence; a seventh weighed the copper money,which was paid by an imaginary purchaser, and the estatewas emancipated by a fictitious sale and immediaterelease.

This singular ceremony, which excited the wonder ofthe Greeks, was still practised in the age of Severus,but the praetor had already approved a more simpletestament, for which they required the seals and signaturesof seven witnesses, free from all legal exception andpurposely summoned for the execution of that importantact. A domestic monarch, who reigned over thelives and fortunes of his children, might distributetheir respective shares according to the degrees oftheir merit or his affection; his arbitrary displeasurechastised an unworthy son by the loss of his inheritance,and the mortifying preference of a stranger.But the experience of unnatural parents recommendedsome limitations of their testamentary powers.A son or, by the laws of Justinian, even a daughter,could no longer be disinherited by their silence;they were compelled to name the criminal and to specifythe offence; and the justice of the Emperor enumeratedthe sole causes that could justify such a violationof the first principles of nature and society.Unless a legitimate portion, a fourth part, had beenreserved for the children, they were entitled to institutean action or complaint of inofficious testament;to suppose that their father’s understandingwas impaired by sickness or age, and respectfully toappeal from his rigorous sentence to the deliberatewisdom of the magistrate.

In the Roman jurisprudence an essential distinctionwas admitted between the inheritance and the legacies.The heirs who succeeded to the entire unity, or toany of the twelve fractions of the substance of thetestator, represented his civil and religious character,asserted his rights, fulfilled his obligations, anddischarged the gifts of friendship or liberality,which his last will had bequeathed under the nameof legacies. But as the imprudence or prodigality

of a dying man might exhaust the inheritance and leaveonly risk and labor to his successor, he was empoweredto retain the Falcidian portion; to deduct, beforethe payment of the legacies, a clear fourth for hisown emolument. A reasonable time was allowedto examine the proportion between the debts and theestate, to decide whether he should accept or refusethe testament; and if he used the benefit of an inventory,the demands of the creditors could not exceed thevaluation of the effects. The last will of acitizen might be altered during his life or rescindedafter his death; the persons whom he named might diebefore him, or reject the inheritance, or be exposedto some legal disqualification. In the contemplationof these events he was permitted to substitute secondand third heirs, to replace each other according tothe order of the testament; and the incapacity ofa madman or an infant to bequeath his property mightbe supplied by a similar substitution. But thepower of the testator expired with the acceptanceof the testament; each Roman of mature age and discretionacquired the absolute dominion of his inheritance,and the simplicity of the civil law was never cloudedby the long and intricate entails which confine thehappiness and freedom of unborn generations.

Conquest and the formalities of law established theuse of codicils. If a Roman was surprised bydeath in a remote province of the empire he addresseda short epistle to his legitimate or testamentary heir,who fulfilled with honor, or neglected with impunity,this last request, which the judges before the ageof Augustus were not authorized to enforce. Acodicil might be expressed in any mode, or in any language;but the subscription of five witnesses must declarethat it was the genuine composition of the author.His intention, however laudable, was sometimes illegal;and the invention of fidei-commissa, or trusts,arose from the struggle between natural justice andpositive jurisprudence. A stranger of Greeceor Africa might be the friend or benefactor of a childlessRoman, but none, except a fellow-citizen, could actas his heir.

The Voconian law, which abolished female succession,restrained the legacy or inheritance of a woman tothe sum of one hundred thousand sesterces, and anonly daughter was condemned almost as an alien in herfather’s house. The zeal of friendship andparental affection suggested a liberal artifice:a qualified citizen was named in the testament, witha prayer or injunction that he would restore the inheritanceto the person for whom it was truly intended.Various was the conduct of the trustees in this painfulsituation; they had sworn to observe the laws of theircountry, but honor prompted them to violate their oath;and if they preferred their interest under the maskof patriotism, they forfeited the esteem of everyvirtuous mind. The declaration of Augustus relievedtheir doubts, gave a legal sanction to confidential

testaments and codicils, and gently unravelled theforms and restraints of the republican jurisprudence.But as the new practice of trusts degenerated intosome abuse, the trustee was enabled, by the Trebellianand Pegasian decrees, to reserve one-fourth of theestate, or to transfer on the head of the real heirall the debts and actions of the succession. Theinterpretation of testaments was strict and literal;but the language of trusts and codicils was deliveredfrom the minute and technical accuracy of the civilians.

III. The general duties of mankind are imposedby their public and private relations: but theirspecific obligations to each other can onlybe the effect of (1) a promise, (2) a benefit, or (3)an injury; and when these obligations are ratifiedby law, the interested party may compel the performanceby a judicial action. On this principle the civiliansof every country have erected a similar jurisprudence,the fair conclusion of universal reason and justice.

1. The goddess of faith (of human and socialfaith) was worshipped, not only in her temples, butin the lives of the Romans; and if that nation wasdeficient in the more amiable qualities of benevolenceand generosity, they astonished the Greeks by theirsincere and simple performance of the most burdensomeengagements. Yet among the same people, accordingto the rigid maxims of the patricians and decemvirs,a naked pact, a promise, or even an oath, did notcreate any civil obligation, unless it was confirmedby the legal form of a stipulation. Whatevermight be the etymology of the Latin word, it conveyedthe idea of a firm and irrevocable contract, whichwas always expressed in the mode of a question andanswer. Do you promise to pay me one hundredpieces of gold? was the solemn interrogation of Seius.I do promise, was the reply of Sempronius. Thefriends of Sempronius, who answered for his abilityand inclination, might be separately sued at the optionof Seius; and the benefit of partition, or order ofreciprocal actions, insensibly deviated from the stricttheory of stipulation. The most cautious anddeliberate consent was justly required to sustain thevalidity of a gratuitous promise; and the citizen whomight have obtained a legal security, incurred thesuspicion of fraud and paid the forfeit of his neglect.But the ingenuity of the civilians successfully laboredto convert simple engagements into the form of solemnstipulations. The praetors, as the guardians ofsocial faith, admitted every rational evidence ofa voluntary and deliberate act, which in their tribunalproduced an equitable obligation, and for which theygave an action and a remedy.

2. The obligations of the second class, as theywere contracted by the delivery of a thing, are markedby the civilians with the epithet of real. Agrateful return is due to the author of a benefit;and whoever is intrusted with the property of anotherhas bound himself to the sacred duty of restitution.In the case of a friendly loan, the merit of generosityis on the side of the lender only; in a deposit, onthe side of the receiver; but in a pledge, and therest of the selfish commerce of ordinary life, thebenefit is compensated by an equivalent, and the obligationto restore is variously modified by the nature of thetransaction. The Latin language very happily expressesthe fundamental difference between the commodatumand the mutuum, which our poverty is reducedto confound under the vague and common appellationof a loan. In the former, the borrower was obligedto restore the same individual thing with which hehad been accommodated for the temporary supply ofhis wants; in the latter it was destined for his useand consumption, and he discharged this mutual engagementby substituting the same specific value accordingto a just estimation of number, of weight, and ofmeasure. In the contract of sale, the absolutedominion is transferred to the purchaser, and he repaysthe benefit with an adequate sum of gold or silver,the price and universal standard of all earthly possessions.

The obligation of another contract, that of location,is of a more complicated kind. Lands or houses,labor or talents, may be hired for a definite term;at the expiration of the time the thing itself mustbe restored to the owner, with the additional rewardfor the beneficial occupation and employment.In these lucrative contracts, to which may be addedthose of partnership and commissions, the civilianssometimes imagine the delivery of the object, andsometimes presume the consent of the parties.The substantial pledge has been refined into the invisiblerights of a mortgage or hypotheca; and the agreementof sale, for a certain price, imputes from that momentthe chances of gain or loss to the account of thepurchaser. It may be fairly supposed that everyman will obey the dictates of his interest; and ifhe accepts the benefit, he is obliged to sustain theexpense of the transaction. In this boundlesssubject, the historian will observe the locationof land and money, the rent of the one and the interestof the other, as they materially affect the prosperityof agriculture and commerce.

The landlord was often obliged to advance the stockand instruments of husbandry, and to content himselfwith a partition of the fruits. If the feebletenant was oppressed by accident, contagion, or hostileviolence, he claimed a proportionable relief fromthe equity of the laws; five years were the customaryterm, and no solid or costly improvements could beexpected from a farmer who at each moment might beejected by the sale of the estate. Usury, the

inveterate grievance of the city, had been discouragedby the Twelve Tables, and abolished by the clamorsof the people. It was revived by their wantsand idleness, tolerated by the discretion of the praetors,and finally determined by the Code of Justinian.Persons of illustrious rank were confined to the moderateprofit of 4 per cent. 6 was pronounced to be the ordinaryand legal standard of interest; 8 was allowed forthe convenience of manufacturers and merchants; 12was granted to nautical insurance, which the wiserancients had not attempted to define; but, except inthis perilous adventure, the practice of exorbitantusury was severely restrained.[33] The most simpleinterest was condemned by the clergy of the East andWest; but the sense of mutual benefit, which had triumphedover the laws of the republic, had resisted with equalfirmness the decrees of the Church, and even the prejudicesof mankind.[34]

3. Nature and society impose the strict obligationof repairing an injury; and the sufferer by privateinjustice acquires a personal right and a legitimateaction. If the property of another be intrustedto our care, the requisite degree of care may riseand fall according to the benefit which we derivefrom such temporary possession; we are seldom maderesponsible for inevitable accident, but the consequencesof a voluntary fault must always be imputed to theauthor. A Roman pursued and recovered his stolengoods by a civil action of theft; they might passthrough a succession of pure and innocent hands, butnothing less than a prescription of thirty years couldextinguish his original claim. They were restoredby the sentence of the praetor, and the injury wascompensated by double, or threefold, or even quadrupledamages, as the deed had been perpetrated by secretfraud or open rapine, as the robber had been surprisedin the fact or detected by a subsequent research.The Aquilian law defended the living property of acitizen, his slaves and cattle, from the stroke ofmalice or negligence: the highest price was allowedthat could be ascribed to the domestic animal at anymoment of the year preceding his death; a similarlatitude of thirty days was granted on the destructionof any other valuable effects. A personal injuryis blunted or sharpened by the manners of the timesand the sensibility of the individual: the painor the disgrace of a word or blow cannot easily beappreciated by a pecuniary equivalent.

The rude jurisprudence of the decemvirs had confoundedall hasty insults, which did not amount to the fractureof a limb by condemning the aggressor to the commonpenalty of twenty-five asses. But the samedenomination of money was reduced in three centuriesfrom a pound to the weight of half an ounce:and the insolence of a wealthy Roman indulged himselfin the cheap amusem*nt of breaking and satisfying thelaw of the Twelve Tables. Veratius ranthrough the streets striking on the face the inoffensive

passengers, and his attendant purse-bearer immediatelysilenced their clamors by the legal tender of twenty-fivepieces of copper, about the value of one shilling.The equity of the praetors examined and estimatedthe distinct merits of each particular complaint.In the adjudication of civil damages the magistrateassumed the right to consider the various circ*mstancesof time and place, of age and dignity, which may aggravatethe shame and sufferings of the injured person:but if he admitted the idea of a fine, a punishment,an example, he invaded the province, though, perhaps,he supplied the defects of the criminal law.

IV. The execution of the Alban dictator, whowas dismembered by eight horses, is represented byLivy as the first and the last instance of Roman crueltyin the punishment of the most atrocious crimes.But this act of justice, or revenge, was inflictedon a foreign enemy in the heat of victory and at thecommand of a single man. The Twelve Tablesafford a more decisive proof of the national spirit,since they were framed by the wisest of the senate,and accepted by the free voices of the people; yetthese laws, like the statutes of Draco, are writtenin characters of blood. They approve the inhumanand unequal principle of retaliation; and the forfeitof an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a limbfor a limb, is rigorously exacted, unless the offendercan redeem his pardon by a fine of three hundred poundsof copper. The decemvirs distributed with muchliberality the slighter chastisem*nts of flagellationand servitude; and nine crimes of a very differentcomplexion are adjudged worthy of death.

1. Any act of treason against the state, or ofcorrespondence with the public enemy. The modeof execution was painful and ignominious: thehead of the degenerate Roman was shrouded in a veil,his hands were tied behind his back, and after hehad been scourged by the lictor, he was suspendedin the midst of the Forum on a cross or inauspicioustree.

2. Nocturnal meetings in the city; whatever mightbe the pretence, of pleasure, or religion, or thepublic good.

3. The murder of a citizen; for which the commonfeelings of mankind demand the blood of the murderer.Poison is still more odious than the sword or dagger;and we are surprised to discover in two flagitiousevents how early such subtle wickedness has infectedthe simplicity of the republic, and the chaste virtuesof the Roman matrons.[35] The parricide, who violatedthe duties of nature and gratitude, was cast intothe river or the sea, enclosed in a sack; and a co*ck,a viper, a dog, and a monkey were successively addedas the most suitable companions. Italy producesno monkeys; but the want could never be felt tillthe middle of the sixth century first revealed theguilt of a parricide.[36]

4. The malice of an incendiary. After theprevious ceremony of whipping, he himself was deliveredto the flames; and in this example alone our reasonis tempted to applaud the justice of retaliation.

5. Judicial perjury. The corrupt or maliciouswitness was thrown headlong from the Tarpeian Rockto expiate his falsehood, which was rendered stillmore fatal by the severity of the penal laws and thedeficiency of written evidence.

6. The corruption of a judge who accepted bribesto pronounce an iniquitous sentence.

7. Libels and satires, whose rude strains sometimesdisturbed the peace of an illiterate city. Theauthor was beaten with clubs, a worthy chastisem*nt,but it is not certain that he was left to expire underthe blows of the executioner.

8. The nocturnal mischief of damaging or destroyinga neighbor’s corn. The criminal was suspendedas a grateful victim to Ceres. But the sylvandeities were less implacable, and the extirpation ofa more valuable tree was compensated by the moderatefine of twenty-five pounds of copper.

9. Magical incantations; which had power, inthe opinion of the Latian shepherds, to exhaust thestrength of an enemy, to extinguish his life, andto remove from their seats his deep-rooted plantations.The cruelty of the Twelve Tables against insolventdebtors still remains to be told; and I shall dareto prefer the literal sense of antiquity to the speciousrefinements of modern criticism. After the judicialproof or confession of the debt, thirty days of gracewere allowed before a Roman was delivered into thepower of his fellow-citizen. In this privateprison twelve ounces of rice were his daily food; hemight be bound with a chain of fifteen pounds weight,and his misery was thrice exposed in the market-place,to solicit the compassion of his friends and countrymen.At the expiration of sixty days the debt was dischargedby the loss of liberty or life; the insolvent debtorwas either put to death or sold in foreign slaverybeyond the Tiber; but, if several creditors were alikeobstinate and unrelenting, they might legally dismemberhis body and satiate their revenge by this horrid partition.

The advocates for this savage law have insisted thatit must strongly operate in deterring idleness andfraud from contracting debts which they were unableto discharge; but experience would dissipate thissalutary terror by proving that no creditor could befound to exact this unprofitable penalty of life orlimb. As the manners of Rome were insensiblypolished, the criminal code of the decemvirs was abolishedby the humanity of accusers, witnesses, and judges;and impunity became the consequence of immoderaterigor. The Porcian and Valerian laws prohibitedthe magistrates from inflicting on a free citizen anycapital, or even corporal, punishment, and the obsoletestatutes of blood were artfully, and perhaps truly,ascribed to the spirit, not of patrician but of regaltyranny.

In the absence of penal laws and the insufficiencyof civil actions, the peace and justice of the citywere imperfectly maintained by the private jurisdictionof the citizens. The malefactors who replenishour jails are the outcasts of society, and the crimesfor which they suffer may be commonly ascribed toignorance, poverty, and brutal appetite. For theperpetration of similar enormities, a vile plebeianmight claim and abuse the sacred character of a memberof the republic; but on the proof or suspicion ofguilt, the slave or the stranger was nailed to a cross:and this strict and summary justice might be exercisedwithout restraint over the greatest part of the populaceof Rome. Each family contained a domestic tribunal,which was not confined, like that of the praetor, tothe cognizance of external actions; virtuous principlesand habits were inculcated by the discipline of education,and the Roman father was accountable to the Statefor the manners of his children, since he disposed,without appeal, of their life, their liberty, and theirinheritance. In some pressing emergencies thecitizen was authorized to avenge his private or publicwrongs. The consent of the Jewish, the Athenian,and the Roman laws approved the slaughter of the nocturnalthief; though in open daylight a robber could not beslain without some previous evidence of danger andcomplaint. Whoever surprised an adulterer inhis nuptial bed might freely exercise his revenge;the most bloody and wanton outrage was excused bythe provocation; nor was it before the reign of Augustusthat the husband was reduced to weigh the rank ofthe offender, or that the parent was condemned to sacrificehis daughter with her guilty seducer.

After the expulsion of the kings the ambitious Romanwho should dare to assume their title or imitate theirtyranny, was devoted to the infernal gods; each ofhis fellow-citizens was armed with the sword of justice;and the act of Brutus, however repugnant to gratitudeor prudence, had been already sanctified by the judgmentof his country. The barbarous practice of wearingarms in the midst of peace, and the bloody maxims ofhonor were unknown to the Romans; and during the twopurest ages, from the establishment of equal freedomto the end of the Punic wars, the city was never disturbedby sedition, and rarely polluted with atrocious crimes.The failure of penal laws was more sensibly felt, whenevery vice was inflamed by faction at home and dominionabroad. In the time of Cicero each private citizenenjoyed the privilege of anarchy; each minister ofthe republic was exalted to the temptations of regalpower, and their virtues are entitled to the warmestpraise, as the spontaneous fruits of nature or philosophy.After a triennial indulgence of lust, rapine, andcruelty, Verres, the tyrant of Sicily, could only besued for the pecuniary restitution of three hundredthousand pounds sterling; and such was the temperof the laws, the judges, and perhaps the accuser himself,that on refunding a thirteenth part of his plunderVerres could retire to an easy and luxurious exile.[37]

The first imperfect attempt to restore the proportionof crimes and punishments was made by the dictatorSylla, who, in the midst of his sanguinary triumph,aspired to restrain the license rather than to oppressthe liberty of the Romans. He gloried in the arbitraryproscription of four thousand seven hundred citizens.But in the character of a legislator he respectedthe prejudices of the times; and instead of pronouncinga sentence of death against the robber or assassin,the general who betrayed an army, or the magistratewho ruined a province, Sylla was content to aggravatethe pecuniary damages by the penalty of exile, or,in more constitutional language, by the interdictionof fire and water. The Cornelian and afterwardthe Pompeian and Julian laws introduced a new systemof criminal jurisprudence; and the emperors, fromAugustus to Justinian, disguised their increasingrigor under the names of the original authors.

But the invention and frequent use of extraordinarypains proceeded from the desire to extend andconceal the progress of despotism. In the condemnationof illustrious Romans the senate was always preparedto confound, at the will of their masters, the judicialand legislative powers. It was the duty of thegovernors to maintain the peace of their provinceby the arbitrary and rigid administration of justice;the freedom of the city evaporated in the extent ofempire, and the Spanish malefactor, who claimed theprivilege of a Roman, was elevated by the commandof Galba on a fairer and more lofty cross. Occasionalrescripts issued from the throne to decide the questionswhich, by their novelty or importance, appeared tosurpass the authority and discernment of a proconsul.Transportation and beheading were reserved for honorablepersons; meaner criminals were either hanged, or burned,or buried in the mines, or exposed to the wild beastsof the amphitheatre. Armed robbers were pursuedand extirpated as the enemies of society; the drivingaway of horses or cattle was made a capital offence,but simple theft was uniformly considered as a merecivil and private injury. The degrees of guiltand the modes of punishment were too often determinedby the discretion of the rulers, and the subject wasleft in ignorance of the legal danger which he mightincur by every action of his life.

A sin, a vice, a crime, are the objects of theology,ethics, and jurisprudence. Whenever their judgmentsagree, they corroborate each other; but as often asthey differ a prudent legislator appreciates the guiltand punishment according to the measure of social injury.On this principle the most daring attack on the lifeand property of a private citizen is judged less atrociousthan the crime of treason or rebellion, which invadesthe majesty of the republic; the obsequiouscivilians unanimously pronounced that the republicis contained in the person of its chief; and the edgeof the Julian law was sharpened by the incessant diligence

of the emperors. The licentious commerce of thesexes may be tolerated as an impulse of nature, orforbidden as a source of disorder and corruption;but the fame, the fortunes, the family of the husband,are seriously injured by the adultery of the wife.The wisdom of Augustus, after curbing the freedomof revenge, applied to this domestic offence the animadversionof the laws; and the guilty parties, after the paymentof heavy forfeitures and fines, were condemned to longor perpetual exile in two separate islands.

Religion pronounces an equal censure against the infidelityof the husband; but, as it is not accompanied by thesame civil effects, the wife was never permitted tovindicate her wrong; and the distinction of simpleor double adultery, so familiar and so important inthe canon law, is unknown to the jurisprudence ofthe Code and the Pandects. I touchwith reluctance and despatch with impatience a moreodious vice, of which modesty rejects the name, andnature abominates the idea. The primitive Romanswere infected by the example of the Etruscans andGreeks; in the mad abuse of prosperity and power, everypleasure that is innocent was deemed insipid; andthe Scatinian law, which had been extorted by an actof violence, was insensibly abolished by the lapseof time and the multitude of criminals.

By this law the rape, perhaps the seduction, of aningenuous youth was compensated as a personal injuryby the poor damages of ten thousand sesterces, orfourscore pounds; the ravisher might be slain by theresistance or revenge of chastity; and I wish to believethat at Rome, as in Athens, the voluntary and effeminatedeserter of his sex was degraded from the honors andthe rights of a citizen. But the practice ofvice was not discouraged by the severity of opinion;the indelible stain of manhood was confounded withthe more venial transgressions of fornication andadultery, nor was the licentious lover exposed to thesame dishonor which he impressed on the male or femalepartner of his guilt. From Catullus to Juvenalthe poets accuse and celebrate the degeneracy of thetimes; and the reformation of manners was feebly attemptedby the reason and authority of the civilians till themost virtuous of the Caesars proscribed the sin againstnature as a crime against society.

A new spirit of legislation, respectable even in itserror, arose in the empire with the religion of Constantine.The laws of Moses were received as the divine originalof justice, and the Christian princes adapted theirpenal statutes to the degrees of moral and religiousturpitude. Adultery was first declared to bea capital offence: the frailty of the sexes wasassimilated to poison or assassination, to sorceryor parricide; the same penalties were inflicted onthe passive and active guilt of pederasty, and allcriminals of free or servile condition were eitherdrowned or beheaded, or cast alive into the avengingflames. The adulterers were spared by the commonsympathy of mankind; but the lovers of their own sexwere pursued by general and pious indignation:the impure manners of Greece still prevailed in thecities of Asia, and every vice was fomented by thecelibacy of the monks and clergy.

Justinian relaxed the punishment at least of femaleinfidelity: the guilty spouse was only condemnedto solitude and penance, and at the end of two yearsshe might be recalled to the arms of a forgiving husband.But the same Emperor declared himself the implacableenemy of unmanly lust, and the cruelty of his persecutioncan scarcely be excused by the purity of his motives.In defiance of every principle of justice he stretchedto past as well as future offences the operations ofhis edicts, with the previous allowance of a shortrespite for confession and pardon. A painfuldeath was inflicted by the amputation of the sinfulinstrument, or the insertion of sharp reeds into thepores and tubes of most exquisite sensibility; andJustinian defended the propriety of the execution,since the criminals would have lost their hands hadthey been convicted of sacrilege. In this stateof disgrace and agony two bishops, Isaiah of Rhodesand Alexander of Diospolis, were dragged through thestreets of Constantinople, while their brethren wereadmonished by the voice of a crier to observe thisawful lesson, and not to pollute the sanctity of theircharacter. Perhaps these prelates were innocent.A sentence of death and infamy was often founded onthe slight and suspicious evidence of a child or aservant; the guilt of the green faction, of the rich,and of the enemies of Theodora was presumed by thejudges, and pederasty became the crime of those towhom no crime could be imputed. A French philosopher[38]has dared to remark that whatever is secret must bedoubtful, and that our natural horror of vice may beabused as an engine of tyranny. But the favorablepersuasion of the same writer, that a legislator mayconfide in the taste and reason of mankind, is impeachedby the unwelcome discovery of the antiquity and extentof the disease.

V. The free citizens of Athens and Rome enjoyed inall criminal cases the invaluable privilege of beingtried by their country.

1. The administration of justice is the mostancient office of a prince: it was exercisedby the Roman kings and abused by Tarquin, who alone,without law or council, pronounced his arbitrary judgments.The first consuls succeeded to this regal prerogative;but the sacred right of appeal soon abolished thejurisdiction of the magistrates, and all public causeswere decided by the supreme tribunal of the people.But a wild democracy, superior to the forms, too oftendisdains the essential principles of justice:the pride of despotism was envenomed by plebeian envy,and the heroes of Athens might sometimes applaud thehappiness of the Persian, whose fate depended on thecaprice of a single tyrant. Some salutaryrestraints, imposed by the people on their own passions,were at once the cause and effect of the gravity andtemperance of the Romans. The right of accusationwas confined to the magistrates. A vote of thethirty-five tribes could inflict a fine; but the cognizance

of all capital crimes was reserved by a fundamentallaw to the assembly of the centuries, in which theweight of influence and property was sure to preponderate.Repeated proclamations and adjournments were interposedto allow time for prejudice and resentment to subside:the whole proceeding might be annulled by a seasonableomen or the opposition of a tribune; and such populartrials were commonly less formidable to innocence thanthey were favorable to guilt. But this union ofthe judicial and legislative powers left it doubtfulwhether the accused party was pardoned or acquitted;and in the defence of an illustrious client the oratorsof Rome and Athens address their arguments to the policyand benevolence, as well as to the justice, of theirsovereign.

2. The task of convening the citizens for thetrial of each offender became more difficult as thecitizens and the offenders continually multiplied,and the ready expedient was adopted of delegating thejurisdiction of the people to the ordinary magistratesor to extraordinary inquisitors. In the firstages these questions were rare and occasional.In the beginning of the seventh century of Rome theywere made perpetual: four praetors were annuallyempowered to sit in judgment on the state offencesof treason, extortion, peculation, and bribery; andSylla added new praetors and new questions for thosecrimes which more directly injure the safety of individuals.By these inquisitors the trial was prepared and directed;but they could only pronounce the sentence of themajority of judges. To discharge this importantthough burdensome office, an annual list of ancientand respectable citizens was formed by the praetor.After many constitutional struggles they were chosenin equal numbers from the senate, the equestrian order,and the people; four hundred and fifty were appointedfor single questions, and the various rolls or decuriesof judges must have contained the names of some thousandRomans who represented the judicial authority of theState. In each particular cause a sufficientnumber was drawn from the urn; their integrity wasguarded by an oath; the mode of ballot secured theirindependence; the suspicion of partiality was removedby the mutual challenges of the accuser and defendant;and the judges of Milo, by the retrenchment of fifteenon each side, were reduced to fifty-one voices ortablets of acquittal, of condemnation, or of favorabledoubt.[39]

3. In his civil jurisdiction the praetor of thecity was truly a judge, and almost a legislator; butas soon as he had prescribed the action of law heoften referred to a delegate the determination of thefact. With the increase of legal proceedings,the tribunal of the centumvirs in which he presidedacquired more weight and reputation. But whetherhe acted alone, or with the advice of his council,the most absolute powers might be trusted to a magistratewho was annually chosen by the votes of the people.

The rules and precautions of freedom have requiredsome explanation; the order of despotism is simpleand inanimate. Before the age of Justinian, orperhaps of Diocletian, the decuries of Roman judgeshad sunk to an empty title: the humble adviceof the assessors might be accepted or despised, andin each tribunal the civil and criminal jurisdictionwas administered by a single magistrate, who was raisedand disgraced by the will of the emperor.

A Roman accused of any capital crime might preventthe sentence of the law by voluntary exile or death.Till his guilt had been legally proved his innocencewas presumed, and his person was free: till thevotes of the last century had been countedand declared, he might peaceably secede to any ofthe allied cities of Italy, or Greece, or Asia.[40]His fame and fortunes were preserved, at least tohis children, by this civil death; and he might stillbe happy in every rational and sensual enjoyment,if a mind accustomed to the ambitious tumult of Romecould support the uniformity and silence of Rhodesor Athens. A bolder effort was required to escapefrom the tyranny of the Caesars; but this effort wasrendered familiar by the maxims of the Stoics, theexample of the bravest Romans, and the legal encouragementsof suicide. The bodies of condemned criminalswere exposed to public ignominy, and their children,a more serious evil, were reduced to poverty by theconfiscation of their fortunes. But if the victimsof Tiberius and Nero anticipated the decree of theprince or senate, their courage and despatch wererecompensed by the applause of the public, the decenthonors of burial, and the validity of their testaments.The exquisite avarice and cruelty of Domitian appearto have deprived the unfortunate of this last consolation,and it was still denied even by the clemency of theAntonines.

A voluntary death which, in the case of a capitaloffence, intervened between the accusation and thesentence, was admitted as a confession of guilt, andthe spoils of the deceased were seized by the inhumanclaims of the treasury. Yet the civilians havealways respected the natural right of a citizen todispose of his life; and the posthumous disgrace inventedby Tarquin,[41] to check the despair of his subjects,was never revived or imitated by succeeding tyrants.The powers of this world have indeed lost their dominionover him who is resolved on death, and his arm canonly be restrained by the religious apprehension ofa future state. Suicides are enumerated by Vergilamong the unfortunate rather than the guilty;[42]and the poetical fables of the infernal shades couldnot seriously influence the faith or practice of mankind.But the precepts of the gospel, or the Church, haveat length imposed a pious servitude on the minds ofChristians, and condemn them to expect, without amurmur, the last stroke of disease or the executioner.

The penal statutes form a very small proportion ofthe sixty-two books of the Code and Pandects;and in all judicial proceeding the life or death ofa citizen is determined with less caution or delaythan the most ordinary question of covenant or inheritance.This singular distinction, though something may beallowed for the urgent necessity of defending thepeace of society, is derived from the nature of criminaland civil jurisprudence. Our duties to the stateare simple and uniform: the law by which he iscondemned is inscribed not only on brass or marble,but on the conscience of the offender, and his guiltis commonly proved by the testimony of a single fact.But our relations to each other are various and infinite;our obligations are created, annulled, and modifiedby injuries, benefits, and promises; and the interpretationof voluntary contracts and testaments, which are oftendictated by fraud or ignorance, affords a long andlaborious exercise to the sagacity of the judge.The business of life is multiplied by the extent ofcommerce and dominion, and the residence of the partiesin the distant provinces of an empire is productiveof doubt, delay, and inevitable appeals from the localto the supreme magistrate. Justinian, the Greekemperor of Constantinople and the East, was the legalsuccessor of the Latian shepherd who had planted acolony on the banks of the Tiber. In a periodof thirteen hundred years the laws had reluctantlyfollowed the changes of government and manners, andthe laudable desire of conciliating ancient nameswith recent institutions destroyed the harmony andswelled the magnitude of the obscure and irregularsystem.

The laws which excuse on any occasions the ignoranceof their subjects confess their own imperfections.The civil jurisprudence, as it was abridged by Justinian,still continued a mysterious science and a profitabletrade, and the innate perplexity of the study was involvedin tenfold darkness by the private industry of thepractitioners. The expense of the pursuit sometimesexceeded the value of the prize, and the fairest rightswere abandoned by the poverty or prudence of the claimants.Such costly justice might tend to abate the spiritof litigation, but the unequal pressure serves onlyto increase the influence of the rich, and to aggravatethe misery of the poor. By these dilatory andexpensive proceedings, the wealthy pleader obtainsa more certain advantage than he could hope from theaccidental corruption of his judge. The experienceof an abuse, from which our own age and country arenot perfectly exempt, may sometimes provoke a generousindignation, and extort the hasty wish of exchangingour elaborate jurisprudence for the simple and summarydecrees of a Turkish cadi. Our calmer reflectionwill suggest that such forms and delays are necessaryto guard the person and property of the citizen; thatthe discretion of the judge is the first engine oftyranny, and that the laws of a free people shouldforesee and determine every question that may probablyarise in the exercise of power and the transactionsof industry. But the government of Justinianunited the evils of liberty and servitude; and theRomans were oppressed at the same time by the multiplicityof their laws and the arbitrary will of their master.

FOOTNOTES:

[26] Among the works which have been recovered, bythe persevering and successful endeavors of M. Maiand his followers to trace the imperfectly erasedcharacters of the ancient writers on these palimpsests,Gibbon at this period of his labors would have hailedwith delight the recovery of the Institutesof Gaius, and the fragments of the Theodosian Code,published by M. Peyron of Turin.

[27] Pisa was taken by the Florentines in the year1406; and in 1411 the Pandects were transportedto the capital. These events are authentic andfamous.

[28] They were new bound in purple, deposited in arich casket, and shown to curious travellers by themonks and magistrates bareheaded and with lightedtapers.

[29] Gibbon, dividing the Institutes into fourparts, considers the appendix of the criminal lawin the last title as a fourth part.

[30] This parental power was strictly confined tothe Roman citizen. The foreigner, or he who hadonly jus Latii, did not possess it. Ifa Roman citizen unknowingly married a Latin or a foreignwife, he did not possess this power over his son,because the son, following the legal condition ofthe mother, was not a Roman citizen. A man, however,alleging sufficient cause for his ignorance, mightraise both mother and child to the rights of citizenship.

[31] The edict of Constantine first conferred thisright; for Augustus had prohibited the taking as aconcubine a woman who might be taken as a wife; andif marriage took place afterward, this marriage madeno change in the rights of the children born beforeit; recourse was then had to adoption, properly calledarrogation.

[32] The Roman laws protected all property acquiredin a lawful manner. They imposed on those whohad invaded it, the obligation of making restitutionand reparation of all damage caused by that invasion;they punished it moreover, in many cases, by a pecuniaryfine. But they did not always grant a recoveryagainst the third person, who had become bona fidepossessed of the property. He who had obtainedpossession of a thing belonging to another, knowingnothing of the prior rights of that person, maintainedthe possession. The law had expressly determinedthose cases, in which it permitted property to be reclaimedfrom an innocent possessor. In these cases possessionhad the characters of absolute proprietorship.To possess this right, it was not sufficient to haveentered into possession of the thing in any manner;the acquisition was bound to have that character ofpublicity, which was given by the observation of solemnforms, prescribed by the laws, or the uninterruptedexercise of proprietorship during a certain time:the Roman citizen alone could acquire this proprietorship.Every other kind of possession, which might be namedimperfect proprietorship, was called in bonis habere.It was not till after the time of Cicero that thegeneral name of dominium was given to all proprietorship.

[33] Justinian has not condescended to give usurya place in his Institutes; but the necessaryrules and restrictions are inserted in the Pandectsand the Code.

[34] Cato, Seneca, Plutarch, have loudly condemnedthe practice or abuse of usury. According toetymology, the principal is supposed to generatethe interest: “A breed for barren metal,”exclaims Shakspeare—­and the stage is anecho of the public voice.

[35] Livy mentions two remarkable and flagitious eras,of three thousand persons accused, and of one hundredand ninety noble matrons convicted, of the crime ofpoisoning. Hume discriminates the ages of privateand public virtue. Rather say that such ebullitionsof mischief (as in France in the year 1680) are accidentsand prodigies which leave no marks on the mannersof a nation.

[36] The first parricide at Rome was L. Ostius, afterthe Second Punic War. During the Cimbric, P.Malleolus was guilty of the first matricide.

[37] Verres lived near thirty years after his trial,till the Second Triumvirate, when he was proscribedby the taste of Mark Antony for the sake of his Corinthianplate.

[38] Montesquieu, that eloquent philosopher, conciliatesthe rights of liberty and of nature, which shouldnever be placed in opposition to each other.

[39] We are indebted for this interesting fact toa fragment of Asconius Pedianus, who flourished underthe reign of Tiberius. The loss of his Commentarieson the Orations of Cicero has deprived us of avaluable fund of historical and legal knowledge.

[40] The extension of the Empire and city ofRome obliged the exile to seek a more distant placeof retirement.

[41] When he fatigued his subjects in building theCapitol, many of the laborers were provoked to despatchthemselves: he nailed their dead bodies to crosses.

[42] The sole resemblance of a violent and prematuredeath has engaged Vergil to confound suicides withinfants, lovers, and persons unjustly condemned.Some of his editors are at a loss to deduce the ideaor ascertain the jurisprudence of the Roman poet.

AUGUSTINE’S MISSIONARY WORK IN ENGLAND

A.D. 597

THE VENERABLE BEDE[43] JOHN RICHARD GREEN

St. Augustine was the first archbishopof Canterbury. He was educated in Rome underPope Gregory I, by whom he was sent to Britainwith forty monks of the Benedictine order, for thepurpose of converting the English to Christianity.Bertha, wife of Ethelbert, king of Kent, wasa Christian. She was a daughter of Charibert,king of Paris, and had brought her chaplain with her,who held services in the ruined church of St.Martin, near Canterbury.

There seemed little prospect, however,of the faith spreading among the wild islandersuntil Augustine arrived on the Isle of Thanet A.D.596. The occasion of his being sent on this missionaryerrand is said to have been connected with anincident which has often been related, whereinit appears that Gregory, while yet a monk, struckwith the beauty of some heathen Anglo-Saxon youthsexposed for sale in the slave market at Rome,inquired concerning their nationality. Beingtold that they were Angles, he said: “NonAngli sed angeli [’Not Angles, butangels’], and well may, for their angel-likefaces it becometh such to be coheirs with the angelsin heaven. In what province of England dothey live?” “Deira” was the reply.“From Dei ira [’God’s wrath’]are they to be freed?” answered Gregory.“How call ye the king of that country?”“AElla.” “Then Alleluiasurely ought to be sung in his kingdom to the praiseof that God who created all things,” saidthe gracious and clever monk.

“The conversion of the Englishto Christianity,” says Freeman, “at oncealtered their whole position in the world. Hithertoour history had been almost wholly insular; ourheathen forefathers had had but little to do,either in war or peace, with any nations beyondtheir own four seas. We hear little of any connectionbeing kept up between the Angles and Saxons whosettled in Britain, and their kinsfolk who abodein their original country. By its conversionEngland was first brought, not only within the paleof the Christian Church, but within the paleof the general political society of Europe.But our insular position, combined with the eventsof our earlier history, was not without its effecton the peculiar character of Christianity asestablished in England. England was thefirst great territorial conquest of the spiritualpower, beyond the limits of the Roman Empire,beyond the influence of Greek and Roman civilization.”

The following account from the EcclesiasticalHistory of the Venerable Bede, the “fatherof English history,” and foremost scholarof England in his age, is in the modern English renderingby Thomson, of King Alfred’s famous translation,made for the instruction of the English peopleas the best work of that period on their ownhistory.

As a contrast John RichardGreen’s treatment of the same episode is
appended.

THE VENERABLE BEDE

When according to forthrunning time [it] was aboutfive hundred and ninety-two years from Christ’sh*thercoming, Mauricius, the Emperor, took to thegovernment, and had it two-and-twenty years. Hewas the fifty-fourth from Augustus. In the tenthyear of that Emperor’s reign, Gregory, the holyman, who was in lore and deed the highest, took tothe bishophood of the Roman Church, and of the apostolicseat, and held and governed it thirteen years andsix months and ten days. In the fourteenth yearof the same Emperor, about a hundred and fifty yearsfrom the English nation’s hithercoming into Britain,he was admonished by a divine impulse that he shouldsend God’s servant Augustine, and many othermonks with him, fearing the Lord, to preach God’sword to the English nation.

When they obeyed the bishop’s commands, andbegan to go to the mentioned work, and had gone somedeal of the way, then began they to fear and dreadthe journey, and thought that it was wiser and saferfor them that they should rather return home thanseek the barbarous people, and the fierce and theunbelieving, even whose speech they knew not; and incommon chose this advice to themselves; and then straightwaysent Augustine (whom they had chosen for their bishopif their doctrines should be received) to the Pope,that he might humbly intercede for them, that theymight not need to go upon a journey so perilous andso toilsome, and a pilgrimage so unknown.

Then St. Gregory sent a letter to them, and exhortedand advised them in that letter: that they shouldhumbly go into the work of God’s word, and trustin God’s help; and that they should not fearthe toil of the journey, nor dread the tongues ofevil-speaking men; but that, with all earnestness,and with the love of God, they should perform the goodthings which they by God’s help had begun todo; and that they should know that the great toilwould be followed by the greater glory of everlastinglife; and he prayed Almighty God that he would shieldthem by his grace; and that he would grant to himselfthat he might see the fruit of their labor in theheavenly kingdom’s glory, because he was readyto be in the same labor with them, if leave had beengiven him.

Then Augustine was strengthened by the exhortationof the blessed father Gregory, and with Christ’sservants who were with him returned to the work ofGod’s word, and came into Britain. Thenwas at that time Ethelbert king in Kent, and a mightyone, who had rule as far as the boundary of the riverHumber, which sheds asunder the south folk of theEnglish nation and the north folk. Then [there]is on the eastward of Kent a great island [Thanetby name], which is six hundred hides large, afterthe English nation’s reckoning. The isleis shed away from the continuous land by the streamWantsum, which is three furlongs broad, and in twoplaces is fordable, and either end lies in the sea.On this isle came up Christ’s servant Augustineand his fellows—­he was one of forty.They likewise took with them interpreters from Frankland[France], as St. Gregory bade them; and he sent messengersto Ethelbert, and let him know that he came from Rome,and brought the best errand, and whosoever would beobedient to him, he promised him everlasting gladnessin heaven, and a kingdom hereafter without end, withthe true and living God.

When [he then] the King heard these words, then orderedhe them to abide in the isle on which they had comeup; and their necessaries to be there given them untilhe should see what he would do to them. Likewisebefore that a report of the Christian religion hadcome to him, for he had a Christian wife, who wasgiven to him from the royal kin of the Franks—­Berthawas her name; which woman he received from her parentson condition that she should have his leave that shemight hold the manner of the Christian belief, andof her religion, unspotted, with the bishop whom theygave her for the help of that faith; whose name wasLuidhard.

Then [it] was after many days that the King came tothe isle, and ordered to make a seat for him out [ofdoors], and ordered Augustine with his fellows tocome to his speech (a conference). He guardedhimself lest they should go into any house to him;he used the old greeting, in case they had any magicwhereby they should overcome and deceive him.But they came endowed—­not with devil-craft,but with divine might. They bore Christ’srood-token—­a silvern cross of Christ anda likeness of the Lord Jesus colored and delineatedon a board; and were crying the names of holy men;and singing prayers together, made supplication tothe Lord for the everlasting health of themselves andof those to whom they come.

Then the King bade them sit, and they did so; andthey soon preached and taught the word of life tohim, together with all his peers who were there present.Then answered the King, and thus said: Fair wordsand promises are these which ye have brought and sayto us; but because they are new and unknown, we cannotyet agree that we should forsake the things whichwe for a long time, with all the English nation, haveheld.

But because ye have come hither as pilgrims from afar,and since it seems and is evident to me that ye wishedto communicate to us also the things which ye believedtrue and best, we will not therefore be heavy to you,but will kindly receive you in hospitality, and giveyou a livelihood, and supply your needs. Norwill we hinder you from joining and adding to thereligion of your belief all whom you can through yourlore.

Then the King gave them a dwelling and a place inCanterbury, which was the chief city of all his kingdom,and as he had promised to give them a livelihood andtheir worldly needs, he likewise gave them leave thatthey might preach and teach the Christian faith.It is said that when they went and drew nigh to thecity, as their custom was, with Christ’s holycross, and with the likeness of the great King ourLord Jesus Christ, they sung with a harmonious voicethis Litany and Antiphony: Deprecamur te,etc. “We beseech thee, Lord, in allthy mercy, that thy fury and thy wrath be taken offfrom this city and [from] thy holy house, becausewe have sinned. Alleluia.”

Then it was soon after they had entered into the dwellingplace which had been granted to them in the royalcity, when they began to imitate the apostolic lifeof the primitive church—­that is, servedthe Lord in constant prayers, and waking and fasting,and preached and taught God’s word to whom theymight, and slighted all things of this world as foreign;but those things only which were seen [to be] needfulfor their livelihood they received from those whomthey taught; according to that which they taught,they [themselves] through everything lived; and theyhad a ready mind to suffer adversity, yea likewisedeath [it] self, for the truth which they preachedand taught. Then was no delay that many believedand were baptized. They also wondered at the simplicityof [their] harmless life and the sweetness of theirheavenly lore.

There was by east well-nigh the city a church builtin honor of St. Martin long ago, while the Romansyet dwelt in Britain [in which church the Queen (was)wont to pray, of whom we said before that she was aChristian]. In this church at first the holy teachersbegan to meet and sing and pray, and do mass-song,and teach men and baptize, until the King was convertedto the faith, and they obtained more leave to teacheverywhere, and to build and repair churches.

Then came it about through the grace of God that theKing likewise among others began to delight in thecleanest life of holy [men] and their sweetest promises,and they also gave confirmation that those were trueby the showing of many wonders; and he then, beingglad, was baptized. Then began many daily tohasten and flock together to hear God’s word,and to forsake the manner of heathenism, and joinedthemselves, through belief, to the oneness of Christ’sholy Church. Of their belief and conversion [it]is said that the King was so evenly glad that he,however, forced none to the Christian manner [of worship],but that those who turned to belief and to baptismhe more inwardly loved, as they were fellow-citizensof the heavenly kingdom. For he had learnt fromhis teachers and from the authors of his health thatChrist’s service should be of good will, notof compulsion. And he then, the King, gave andgranted to his teachers a place and settlement suitableto their condition, in his chief city, and theretogave their needful supplies in various possessions.

During these things the holy man Augustine fared oversea, and came to the city Arles, and by AEtherius,archbishop of the said city, according to the behestand commandment of the blessed father St. Gregory,was hallowed archbishop of the English people, andreturned and fared into Britain, and soon sent messengersto Rome, that was Laurence a mass-priest and Petera monk, that they should say and make known to theblessed St. Gregory that the English nation had receivedChrist’s belief, and that he had been consecratedas bishop. He likewise requested his advice aboutmany causes and questions which were seen by him [tobe] needful; and he soon sent suitable answers of them.

Asked by St. Augustine, bishop of the church of Canterbury:First, of bishops, how they shall behave and livewith their fellows. Next, on the gifts of thefaithful which they bring to holy tables and to God’schurches—­how many doles of them shall be?

Answered by Pope St. Gregory: Holy writ makesit known, quoth he, which I have no doubt thou knowest,and sunderly the blessed Paul’s epistle, whichhe wrote to Timothy, in which he earnestly trainedand taught him how he should behave and do in God’shouse. For it is the manner of the apostolicseat, when they hallow bishops, that they give themcommandments, and that of all the livelihood whichcomes in to them there shall be four doles. One,in the first place, to the bishop and his family for

food, and entertainment of guests and comers; a seconddole to God’s servants; a third to the needy;the fourth to renewing and repair of God’s church.But because thy brotherliness has been trained andtaught in monastic rules, thou shalt not, however,be asunder from thy fellows in the English church,which now yet is newly come and led to the faith ofGod. This behavior and this life thou shalt setup, which our fathers had in the beginning of thenew-born church, when none of them said aught of thatwhich they owned was his in sunder; but they all hadall things common. If, then, any priests or God’sservants are settled without holy orders, let thosewho cannot withhold themselves from women take themwives, and receive their livelihood outside. Forof the same fathers, of whom we spoke before, [it]is written that they dealt their worldly goods tosundry men as every [one] had need.

Likewise concerning their livelihood it is to be thoughtand foreseen (i.e., provided) that they livein good manners under ecclesiastical rules, and singpsalms and keep wakes and hold their hearts and tonguesand bodies clean from all forbidden [things] to AlmightyGod. But, as to those living in common life,what have we to say how they deal their alms, or exercisehospitality, and fulfil mercy? since all that is leftover in their worldly substance is to be reached andgiven to the pious and good, as the master of all,our Lord Christ, taught and said: Quod superest,etc. “What is over and left, give alms,and to you are all [things] clean.”

Asked by St. Augustine: Since there is one faith,and are various customs of churches, there is onecustom of mass-song in the holy Roman Church, andanother is had in the kingdom of Gaul.

Answered by Pope St. Gregory: Thou thyself knowestthe manner and custom of the Roman Church, in whichthou wert reared; but now it seems good, and is moreagreeable to me, that whatsoever thou hast found eitherin the Roman Church or in Gaul, or in any other [church],that was more pleasing to Almighty God, thou shouldcarefully choose that, and set it to be held fastin the Church of the English nation, which now yetis new in the faith. For the things are not tobe loved for places; but the places for good things.Therefore what things thou choosest as pious, good,and right from each of sundry churches, these gatherthou together, and settle into a custom in the mindof the English nation.

Asked by Augustine: I pray thee, what punishmentshall he suffer—­whosoever takes away anythingby stealth from a church?

Answered by Gregory: This may thy brotherlinessdetermine from the thief’s condition, how hemay be corrected. For there are some who haveworldly wealth, and yet commit theft; there are somewho are in this wise guilty through poverty.Therefore need is that some be corrected by waningof their worldly goods, some by stripes; some moresternly, some more mildly. And though the punishmentbe inflicted a little harder or sterner, yet it isto be done of love, not of wrath nor of fury; becausethrough the throes of this is procured to the man thathe be not given to the everlasting fires of hell-torments.For in this manner we ought to punish men, as thegood fathers are wont [to do] their fleshly children,whom they chide and swinge for their sins; and yetthose same whom they chide and chastise by these painsthey also love, and wish to have for their heirs,and for them hold their worldly goods which they possess,whom they seem in anger to persecute and torment.For love is ever to be held in the mind, and it dictatesand determines the measure of the chastisem*nt, sothat the mind does nothing at all beside the rightrule. Thou likewise addest in thy inquiry, howthose things should be compensated which have beentaken away from a church by theft. But, oh! farbe it that God’s Church should receive with increasewhat she seems to let alone of earthly things, andseek worldly gain by vain things.

Asked by Bishop St. Augustine: At what generationshall Christian people be joined among themselvesin marriage with their kinsfolk?... Answeredby St. Gregory: ... But because there aremany in the English nation [who], while they werethen yet in unbelief, are said to have been joinedtogether in this sinful marriage,[44] now they areto be admonished, since they have come to the faith,that they hold themselves off from such iniquities,and understand that it is a heavy sin, and dread theawful doom of God, lest they for fleshly love receivethe torments of everlasting death. They are not,however, for this cause to be deprived of the communionof Christ’s body and blood, lest this thingmay seem to be revenged on them, in which they throughunwittingness sinned before the bath of baptism.For at this time the Holy Church corrects some thingsthrough zeal, bears with some through mildness, overlookssome through consideration, and so bears and overlooksthat often by bearing and overlooking she checks theopposing evil. All those who come to the faithof Christ are to be reminded that they may not dareto commit any such thing. But, if any shall committhem, then are they to be deprived of Christ’sbody and blood; for, as some little is to be bornewith in regard to those men who through unwittingnesscommit sin, so on the other hand it is to be stronglypursued in those who dread not to sin wittingly.

Asked by Bishop St. Augustine: If a great distanceof journey lies between, so that bishops may not easilycome, whether may a bishop be hallowed without thepresence of other bishops.

Answered by Gregory: In the English Church, indeed,in which thou alone as yet art found a bishop, thoucanst not hallow a bishop otherwise than without otherbishops; but bishops must come to thee out of the kingdomof Gaul, that they may stand as witness at the bishop’shallowing, for the hallowing of bishops must not beotherwise than in the assembling and witnessing ofthree or four bishops, that they may send [up] andpour [forth] their petitions and prayers to the AlmightyGod for his favor.

Asked by Augustine: How must we do with the bishopsof Gaul and Britain?

Answered by Pope Gregory: Over the bishops ofGaul we give thee no authority, because from the earliertimes of my predecessors the bishop of the city Arlesreceived the pallium, whom we ought not to degradenor to deprive of the received authority. But,if thou happen to go into the province of Gaul, havethou a conference and consultation with the said bishopwhat is to be done, or, if any vices are found in bishops,how they shall be corrected and reformed; and if therebe a supposition that he is too lukewarm in the vigorof his discipline and chastisem*nt, then is he tobe inflamed and abetted by thy brotherliness’slove,[45] that he may ward off those things whichare contrary to the behest and commands of our Maker,from the manners of the bishops. Thou mayest notjudge the bishops of Gaul without their own authority;but thou shalt mildly admonish them, and show themthe imitation of thy good works. All the bishopsof Britain we commend to thy brotherliness, in orderthat the unlearned may be taught, the weak strengthenedby thy exhortation, and the perverse corrected bythy authority.[46]

Augustine likewise bade [his messengers] acquainthim that a great harvest was here present and fewworkmen. And he then sent with the aforesaidmessengers more help to him for divine learning, amongwhom the first and greatest were Mellitus and Justusand Paulinus and Rufinianus, and by them generallyall those things which were needful for the worshipand service of the Church—­communion vessels,altar-cloth, and church ornaments, and bishops’robes, and deacons’ robes, as also reliquesof the apostles and holy martyrs, and many books.He likewise sent to Augustine the bishop a pallium,and a letter in which he intimated how he should hallowother bishops, and in what places [he should] setthem in Britain.

The blessed Pope Gregory likewise at the same timesent a letter to King Ethelbert, and along with itmany worldly gifts of diverse sorts. He wishedlikewise by these temporal honors to glorify the King,to whom he had, by his labor and by his diligencein teaching, opened and made known the glory of theheavenly kingdom.

And then St. Augustine, as soon as he received thebishop-seat in the royal city, renewed and wrought,with the King’s help, the church which he hadlearnt was wrought long before by old Roman work, andhallowed it in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;and he there set a dwelling-place for himself andall his after-followers. He likewise built a monasteryby east of the city, in which Ethelbert the King, byhis exhortation and advice, ordered to build a churchworthy of the blessed apostles Peter and Paul, andhe enriched it with various gifts, in which churchthe body of Augustine, and of all the Canterbury bishopstogether, and of their kings, might be laid.The church, however, not Augustine, but Bishop Laurentius,his after-follower, hallowed.

The first abbot at the same monastery was a mass-priestnamed Peter, who was sent back as a messenger intothe kingdom of Gaul, and then was drowned in a bayof the sea, which was called Amfleet, and was laidin an unbecoming grave by the inhabitants of the place.But the Almighty God would show of what merit theholy man was, and every night a heavenly light wasmade to shine over his grave, until the neighbors,who saw it, understood that it was a great and holyman who was buried there; and they then asked whoand whence he was: they then took his body, andlaid and buried it in a church in the city of Boulogne,with the honor befitting so great and so holy a man.

Then it was that Augustine, with the help of KingEthelbert, invited to his speech the bishops and teachersof the Britons, in the place which is yet named Augustine’sOak, on the borders of the Hwiccii and West Saxons.And he then began, with brotherly love, to advise andteach them, that they should have right love and peacebetween them, and undertake, for the Lord, the commonlabor of teaching divine lore in the English nation.And they would not hear him, nor keep Easter at itsright tide, and also had many other things unlike andcontrary to ecclesiastical unity. When they hadheld a long conference and strife about those things,and they would not yield any things to Augustine’sinstructions, nor to his prayers, nor to his threats,and [those] of his companions, but thought their owncustoms and institutions better than [that] they shouldagree with all Christ’s churches throughout theworld; then the holy father Augustine put an end tothis troublesome strife, and thus spoke:

“Let us pray Almighty God, who makes the one-mindedto dwell in his Father’s house, that he vouchsafeto signify to us by heavenly wonders which institutionwe ought to follow, by what ways to hasten to theentrance of his kingdom. Let an infirm man bebrought hither to us, and, through whose prayer soeverhe be healed, let his belief and practice be believedacceptable to God, and to be followed by all.”

When his adversaries had hardly granted that, a blindman of English kin was led forth: he was firstled to the bishops of the Britons, and he receivedno health nor comfort through their ministry.Then at last Augustine was constrained by righteousneed, arose and bowed his knees, [and] prayed Godthe Almighty Father that he would give sight to theblind man, that he through one man’s bodily enlighteningmight kindle the gift of ghostly light in the heartsof many faithful Then soon, without delay, the blindman was enlightened, and received sight; and the truepreacher of the heavenly light, Augustine, was proclaimedand praised by all. Then the Britons also acknowledgedwith shame that they understood that it was the wayof truth which Augustine preached; they said, however,that they could not, without consent and leave of theirpeople, shun and forsake their old customs. Theybegged that again another synod should be [assembled],and they then would attend it with more counsellors.

When that accordingly was set, seven bishops of theBritons came, and all the most learned men, who werechiefly from the city Bangor: at that time theabbot of that monastery was named Dinoth. Whenthey then were going to the meeting, they first cameto a [certain] hermit, who was with them holy andwise. They interrogated and asked him whetherthey should for Augustine’s lore forsake theirown institutions and customs. Then answered hethem, “If he be a man of God, follow him.”Quoth they to him, “How may we know whetherhe be so?” Quoth he: “[Our] Lordhimself hath said in his gospel, Take ye my yoke uponyou, and learn from me that I am mild and of lowlyheart. And now if Augustine is mild and of lowlyheart, then it is [to be] believed that he bears Christ’syoke and teaches you to bear it. If he then isunmild and haughty, then it is known that he is notfrom God, nor [should] ye mind his words.”Quoth they again, “How may we know that distinctly?”Quoth he, “See ye that he come first to thesynod with his fellows, and sit; and, if he risestoward you when ye come, then wit ye that he is Christ’sservant, and ye shall humbly hear his words and hislore. But if he despise you, and will not risetoward you since there are more of you, be he thendespised by you.” Well, they did so as hesaid.

When they had come to the synod-place, the archbishopAugustine was sitting on his seat. When theysaw that he rose not for them, they quickly becameangry, and upbraided him [as being] haughty, and gainsaidand withstood all his words. The archbishop saidto them: “In many things ye are contraryto our customs and so to [those] of all God’schurches; and yet if ye will be obedient to me in thesethree things—­that first ye celebrate Easterat the right tide; that ye fulfil the ministry ofbaptism, through which we are born as God’s children,after the manner of the holy Roman and apostolic Church;and that, thirdly, ye preach the word of the Lord

to the English people together with us—­wewill patiently bear with all other things which yedo that are contrary to our customs.” Theysaid that they would do none of these things, norwould have him for an archbishop; they said amongthemselves, “If he would not now rise for us,much more, if we shall be subjected to him, will hecontemn us for naught.” It is said thatthe man of God, St. Augustine, in a threatening mannerforetold, “if they would not receive peace withmen of God, that they should receive unpeace and warfrom their foes; and, if they would not preach amongthe English race the word of life, they should throughtheir hands suffer the vengeance of death.”

And through everything, as the man of God had foretold,by the righteous doom of God it came to pass; andvery soon after this Ethelfrith, king of the English,collected a great army, and led it to Legcaster, andthere fought against the Britons, and made the greatestslaughter of the faithless people. While he wasbeginning the battle, King Ethelfrith saw their priestsand bishops and monks standing aloof in a safer place,that they should pray and make intercession to Godfor their warriors: he inquired and asked whatthat host was, and what they were doing there.When he understood the cause of their coming, thensaid he, “So! I wot if they cry to theirGod against us, though they bear not a weapon, theyfight against us, for they pursue us with their hostileprayers and curses.” He then straightwayordered to turn upon them first, and slay them.Men say that there were twelve hundred of this host,and fifty of them escaped by flight; and he so thendestroyed and blotted out the other host of the sinfulnation, not without great waning of his [own] host;and so was fulfilled the prophecy of the holy bishopAugustine, that they should for their trowlessnesssuffer the vengeance of temporal perdition, becausethey despised the skilful counsel of their eternalsalvation.

After these things Augustine, bishop [of Britain],hallowed two bishops: the one was named Mellitus,the other Justus. Mellitus he sent to preachdivine lore to the East Saxons, who are shed off fromKentland by the river Thames, and joined to the eastsea. Their chief city is called Lundencaster(now London), standing on the bank of the foresaidriver; and it is the market-place of land and sea comers.The King in the nation at that time was Seabright(or Sabert), Ethelbert’s sister-son,and his vassal. Then he and the nation of theEast Saxons received the word of truth and the faithof Christ through Mellitus, the bishop’s lore.Then King Ethelbert ordered to build a church in London,and to hallow it to St. Paul the apostle, that he andhis after-followers might have their bishop-seat inthat place. Justus he hallowed as bishop in Kentit*elf at Rochester, which is four-and-twenty milesright west from Canterbury, in which city likewiseKing Ethelbert ordered to build a church, and to hallowit to St. Andrew the apostle; and to each of thesebishops the King gave his gifts and bookland and possessionsfor them to brook with their fellows.

After these things, then, Father Augustine, belovedof God, departed [this life], and his body was buriedwithout [doors], nigh the church of the blessed apostlesPeter and Paul, which we mentioned before, becauseit was not then yet fully built nor hallowed.As soon as it was hallowed, then his body was putinto it, and becomingly buried in the north porchof the church, in which likewise the bodies of allthe after-following archbishops are buried but two;that is, Theodorus and Berhtwald, whose bodies arelaid in the church itself, because no more might [beso] in the foresaid porch. Well-nigh in the middleof the church is an altar set and hallowed in nameof St. Gregory, on which every Saturday their memoryand decease are celebrated with mass-song by the mass-priestof that place. On St. Augustine’s tomb iswritten an inscription of this sort: Here restethSir[47] Augustine, the first archbishop of Canterbury,who was formerly sent hither by the blessed Gregory,bishop of the Roman city; and was upheld by God withworking of wonders. King Ethelbert and his peoplehe led from the worship of idols to the faith of Christ,and, having fulfilled the days of his ministry inpeace, departed on the 26th day of May in the sameKing’s reign.

JOHN RICHARD GREEN

Years had passed by since Gregory pitied the Englishslaves in the market-place of Rome. As bishopof the imperial city he at last found himself in aposition to carry out his dream of winning Britainto the faith, and an opening was given him by Ethelbert’smarriage with Bertha, a daughter of the Frankish kingCharibert of Paris. Bertha, like her Frankishkindred, was a Christian; a Christian bishop accompaniedher from Gaul; and a ruined Christian church, thechurch of St. Martin beside the royal city of Canterbury,was given them for their worship.

The King himself remained true to the gods of hisfathers; but his marriage no doubt encouraged Gregoryto send a Roman abbot, Augustine, at the head of aband of monks to preach the Gospel, to the Englishpeople. The missionaries landed in 597 in theIsle of Thanet, at the spot where Hengist had landedmore than a century before; and Ethelbert receivedthem sitting in the open air, on the chalk-down aboveMinster where the eye nowadays catches miles awayover the marshes the dim tower of Canterbury.

The King listened patiently to the long sermon ofAugustine as the interpreters the abbot had broughtwith him from Gaul rendered it in the English tongue.“Your words are fair,” Ethelbert repliedat last with English good sense, “but they arenew and of doubtful meaning.” For himself,he said, he refused to forsake the gods of his fathers,but with the usual religious tolerance of his racehe promised shelter and protection to the strangers.

The band of monks entered Canterbury bearing beforethem a silver cross with a picture of Christ, andsinging in concert the strains of the litany of theirchurch. “Turn from this city, O Lord,”they sang, “thine anger and wrath, and turnit from thy holy house, for we have sinned.”And then in strange contrast came the jubilant cryof the older Hebrew worship, the cry which Gregoryhad wrested in prophetic earnestness from the nameof the Yorkshire king in the Roman market-place, “Alleluia!"[48]

It was thus that the spot which witnessed the landingof Hengist became yet better known as the landing-placeof Augustine. But the second landing at Ebbsfleetwas in no small measure a reversal and undoing ofthe first. “Strangers from Rome” wasthe title with which the missionaries first frontedthe English King. The march of the monks as theychanted their solemn litany was in one sense a returnof the Roman legions who withdrew at the trumpet-callof Alaric. It was to the tongue and the thoughtnot of Gregory only, but of the men whom his Jutishfathers had slaughtered or driven out that Ethelbertlistened in the preaching of Augustine.

Canterbury, the earliest royal city of German England,became a centre of Latin influence. The Romantongue became again one of the tongues of Britain,the language of its worship, its correspondence, itsliterature. But more than the tongue of Rome returnedwith Augustine. Practically his landing renewedthat union with the western world which the landingof Hengist had destroyed. The new England wasadmitted into the older commonwealth of nations.The civilization, art, letters, which had fled beforethe sword of the English conquerors returned with theChristian faith. The great fabric of the Romanlaw indeed never took root in England, but it is impossiblenot to recognize the result of the influence of theRoman missionaries in the fact that codes of the customaryEnglish law began to be put in writing soon after theirarrival.

A year passed before Ethelbert yielded to the preachingof Augustine. But from the moment of his conversionthe new faith advanced rapidly and the Kentish mencrowded to baptism in the train of their King.The new religion was carried beyond the bounds ofKent by the supremacy which Ethelbert wielded overthe neighboring kingdoms. Sebert, king of theEast Saxons, received a bishop sent from Kent, andsuffered him to build up again a Christian churchin what was now his subject city of London, whilethe East Anglian king Redwald resolved to serve Christand the older gods together.

FOOTNOTES:

[43] Translated by King Alfred the Great.

[44] That is, with their near kinsfolk.

[45] A brother is here styled “his brotherliness,”as a pope “his holiness.”

[46] The remainder of this is not translated here.

[47] “Sir” in English (Schir, Scottish)equal to Dominus, Latin, was five or six centuriesago prefixed to the name of every ordained priest.

[48] See introduction to Augustine’s MissionaryWork in England.

THE HEGIRA

CAREER OF MAHOMET: THE KORAN: AND MAHOMETAN CREED

A.D. 622

IRVING OCKLEY

The flight of Mahomet from Mecca toMedina occurred June 20, 622, and was calledthe hegira, or departure of the prophet.That event marks the commencement of the Mahometanera, which is called there-from the Hegira.According to the civil calculation it is fixedat Friday, July 16th, the date of the Mahometans, althoughastronomers and some historians assign it to theday preceding. While primarily referringto the flight of Mahomet, the term is appliedalso to the emigration to Medina, prior to the captureof Mecca (630) of those of Mahomet’s disciples,who henceforth were known as Mohajerins—­Emigrantsor Refugees—­which became a title of honor.

A scion of the family of Hashem andof the tribe of Koreish, the noblest race inArabia, and the guardians of the ancient temple andidols of the Kaaba, Mahomet was born at Mecca,August 20, A.D. 570. He acquired wealthand influence by his marriage with Kadijah, a richwidow, but, about his fortieth year, by announcinghimself as an apostle of God, sent to extirpateidolatry and to restore the true faith of theprophets Abraham, Moses, and Jesus, he and his convertswere exposed to contumely and persecution.

It was, as Irving’s recital shows,necessary for the preservation of his life—­whichwas threatened by his own tribe, the Koreish*tes—­thatMahomet should leave Mecca, and he escaped none toosoon. It must also be observed that by this goingout he found ampler means for the spread of hisdoctrine and the increase of his followers.His very presence among strangers drew multitudes tothe support of his cause, and the enthusiasmaroused by the prophet at Medina made that citythe centre of his first great propaganda. ThereMahomet died; in the Great Mosque is his tomb, andMedina is sometimes called the “City ofthe Prophet.” From this centre began thedevelopment and spread of Islam into a world-religion,which has flourished to the present day, whenits followers are estimated at nearly two hundredmillions, having large empire and still wider influenceamong some of the most important races of the East.

WASHINGTON IRVING

The fortunes of Mahomet were becoming darker and darkerin his native place. Kadijah, his original benefactress,the devoted companion of his solitude and seclusion,the zealous believer in his doctrines, was in hergrave; so also was Abu-Taleb, once his faithful andefficient protector. Deprived of the shelteringinfluence of the latter, Mahomet had become, in amanner, an outlaw in Mecca; obliged to conceal himself,and remain a burden on the hospitality of those whomhis own doctrines had involved in persecution.If worldly advantage had been his object, how hadit been attained? Upward of ten years had elapsedsince first he announced his prophetic mission; tenlong years of enmity, trouble, and misfortune.Still he persevered, and now, at a period of life whenmen seek to enjoy in repose the fruition of the past,rather than risk all in new schemes for the future,we find him, after having sacrificed ease, fortune,and friends, prepared to give up home and country also,rather than his religious creed.

As soon as the privileged time of pilgrimage arrived,he emerged once more from his concealment, and mingledwith the multitude assembled from all parts of Arabia.His earnest desire was to find some powerful tribe,or the inhabitants of some important city, capableand willing to receive him as a guest, and protecthim in the enjoyment and propagation of his faith.

His quest was for a time unsuccessful. Thosewho had come to worship at the Kaaba[49] drew backfrom a man stigmatized as an apostate; and the worldly-mindedwere unwilling to befriend one proscribed by the powerfulof his native place.

At length, as he was one day preaching on the hillAl Akaba, a little to the north of Mecca, he drewthe attention of certain pilgrims from the city ofYathreb. This city, since called Medina, was abouttwo hundred and seventy miles north of Mecca.Many of its inhabitants were Jews and heretical Christians.The pilgrims in question were pure Arabs of the ancientand powerful tribe of Khazradites, and in habits offriendly intercourse with the Keneedites and Naderites,two Jewish tribes inhabiting Mecca, who claimed tobe of the sacerdotal line of Aaron. The pilgrimshad often heard their Jewish friends explain the mysteriesof their faith and talk of an expected messiah.They were moved by the eloquence of Mahomet, and struckwith the resemblance of his doctrines to those ofthe Jewish law; insomuch that when they heard him proclaimhimself a prophet, sent by heaven to restore the ancientfaith, they said, one to another, “Surely thismust be the promised messiah of which we have beentold.” The more they listened, the strongerbecame their persuasion of the fact, until in theend they avowed their conviction, and made a finalprofession of their faith.

As the Khazradites belonged to one of the most powerfultribes of Yathreb, Mahomet sought to secure theirprotection, and proposed to accompany them on theirreturn; but they informed him that they were at deadlyfeud with the Awsites, another powerful tribe of thatcity, and advised him to defer his coming until theyshould be at peace. He consented; but on thereturn home of the pilgrims, he sent with them MusabIbn Omeir, one of the most learned and able of hisdisciples, with instructions to strengthen them inthe faith, and to preach it to their townsmen.

Thus were the seeds of Islamism first sown in thecity of Medina. For a time they thrived but slowly.Musab was opposed by the idolaters, and his life threatened;but he persisted in his exertions and gradually madeconverts among the principal inhabitants. Amongthese were Saad Ibn Maads, a prince or chief of theAwsites, and Osaid Ibn Hodheir, a man of great authorityin the city. Numbers of the Moslems of Mecca also,driven away by persecution, took refuge in Medina,and aided in propagating the new faith among its inhabitants,until it found its way into almost every household.

Feeling now assured of being able to give Mahometan asylum in the city, upward of seventy of the convertsof Medina, led by Musab Ibn Omeir, repaired to Meccawith the pilgrims in the holy month of the thirteenthyear of “the mission,” to invite him totake up his abode in their city. Mahomet gavethem a midnight meeting on the hill Al Akaba.His uncle Al Abbas, who, like the deceased Abu-Taleb,took an affectionate interest in his welfare, thoughno convert to his doctrines, accompanied him to thissecret conference, which he feared might lead him intodanger. He entreated the pilgrims from Medinanot to entice his nephew to their city until moreable to protect him; warning them that their openadoption of the new faith would bring all Arabia inarms against them.

His warnings and entreaties were in vain; a solemncompact was made between the parties. Mahometdemanded that they should abjure idolatry, and worshipthe one true God openly and fearlessly. For himselfhe exacted obedience in weal and woe; and for thedisciples who might accompany him, protection; evensuch as they would render to their own wives and children.On these terms he offered to bind himself to remainamong them, to be the friend of their friends, theenemy of their enemies.

“But, should we perish in your cause,”asked they, “what will be our reward?”

“Paradise,” replied the prophet.

The terms were accepted; the emissaries from Medinaplaced their hands in the hands of Mahomet, and sworeto abide by their compact. The latter then singledout twelve from among them, whom he designated as hisapostles; in imitation, it is supposed, of the exampleof our Saviour. Just then a voice was heard fromthe summit of the hill, denouncing them as apostatesand menacing them with punishment. The sound ofthis voice, heard in the darkness of the night, inspiredtemporary dismay. “It is the voice of thefiend Iblis,” said Mahomet scornfully; “heis the foe of God; fear him not.” It wasprobably the voice of some spy or eavesdropper ofthe Koreish*tes; for the very next morning they manifesteda knowledge of what had taken place in the night, andtreated the new confederates with great harshnessas they were departing from the city.

It was this early accession to the faith, and thistimely aid proffered and subsequently afforded toMahomet and his disciples, which procured for theMoslems of Medina the appellation of Ansarians, orauxiliaries, by which they were afterward distinguished.

After the departure of the Ansarians, and the expirationof the holy month, the persecutions of the Moslemswere resumed with increased virulence, insomuch thatMahomet, seeing a crisis was at hand, and being resolvedto leave the city, advised his adherents generallyto provide for their safety. For himself he stilllingered in Mecca with a few devoted followers.

Abu Sofian, his implacable foe, was at this time governorof the city. He was both incensed and alarmedat the spreading growth of the new faith, and helda meeting of the chief of the Koreish*tes to devisesome means of effectually putting a stop to it.Some advised that Mahomet should be banished the city;but it was objected that he might gain other tribesto his interest, or perhaps the people of Medina, andreturn at their head to take his revenge. Othersproposed to wall him up in a dungeon, and supply himwith food until he died; but it was surmised thathis friends might effect his escape. All theseobjections were raised by a violent and pragmaticalold man, a stranger from the province of Nedja, who,say the Moslem writers, was no other than the devilin disguise, breathing his malignant spirit into thosepresent.

At length it was declared by Abu-Jahl that the onlyeffectual check on the growing evil was to put Mahometto death. To this all agreed, and as a meansof sharing the odium of the deed, and withstandingthe vengeance it might awaken among the relativesof the victim, it was arranged that a member of eachfamily should plunge his sword into the body of Mahomet.

It is to this conspiracy that allusion is made inthe eighth chapter of the Koran:

“And call to mind how the unbelievers plottedagainst thee, that they might either detain thee inbonds, or put thee to death, or expel thee the city;but God laid a plot against them; and God is the bestlayer of plots.”

In fact, by the time the murderers arrived beforethe dwelling of Mahomet, he was apprised of the impendingdanger. As usual, the warning is attributed tothe angel Gabriel, but it is probable it was givenby some Koreish*te, less bloody-minded than his confederates.It came just in time to save Mahomet from the handsof his enemies. They paused at his door, buthesitated to enter. Looking through a crevicethey beheld, as they thought, Mahomet wrapped in hisgreen mantle, and lying asleep on his couch.They waited for a while, consulting whether to fallon him while sleeping or wait until he should go forth.At length they burst open the door and rushed towardthe couch. The sleeper started up; but, insteadof Mahomet, Ali stood before them. Amazed andconfounded they demanded, “Where is Mahomet?”“I know not,” replied Ali sternly, andwalked forth; nor did anyone venture to molest him.Enraged at the escape of their victim, however, theKoreish*tes proclaimed a reward of a hundred camelsto anyone who should bring them Mahomet alive or dead.

Divers accounts are given of the mode in which Mahometmade his escape from the house after the faithfulAli had wrapped himself in his mantle and taken hisplace upon the couch. The most miraculous accountis, that he opened the door silently, as the Koreish*tesstood before it, and, scattering a handful of dustin the air, cast such blindness upon them that hewalked through the midst of them without being perceived.This, it is added, is confirmed by the verse of thethirtieth chapter of the Koran: “Wehave thrown blindness upon them, that they shall notsee.” The most probable account is thathe clambered over the wall in the rear of the house,by the help of a servant, who bent his back for himto step upon it.[50]

He repaired immediately to the house of Abu-Bekr,and they arranged for instant flight. It wasagreed that they should take refuge in a cave in MountThor, about an hour’s distance from Mecca, andwait there until they could proceed safely to Medina;and in the mean time the children of Abu-Bekr shouldsecretly bring them food. They left Mecca whileit was yet dark, making their way on foot by the lightof the stars, and the day dawned as they found themselvesat the foot of Mount Thor. Scarce were they withinthe cave when they heard the sound of pursuit.Abu-Bekr, though a brave man, quaked with fear.

“Our pursuers,” said he, “are many,and we are but two.”

“Nay,” replied Mahomet, “there isa third; God is with us!”

And here the Moslem writers relate a miracle, dearto the minds of all true believers. By the time,say they, that the Koreish*tes reached the mouth ofthe cavern, an acacia-tree had sprung up before it,in the spreading branches of which a pigeon had madeits nest and laid its eggs, and over the whole a spiderhad woven its web. When the Koreish*tes beheldthese signs of undisturbed quiet, they concluded thatno one could recently have entered the cavern; so theyturned away, and pursued their search in another direction.

Whether protected by miracle or not, the fugitivesremained for three days undiscovered in the cave,and Asama, the daughter of Abu-Bekr, brought themfood in the dusk of the evenings.

On the fourth day, when they presumed the ardor ofpursuit had abated, the fugitives ventured forth,and set out for Medina, on camels which a servantof Abu-Bekr had brought in the night for them.Avoiding the main road usually taken by the caravans,they bent their course nearer to the coast of theRed Sea. They had not proceeded far, however,before they were overtaken by a troop of horse headedby Soraka Ibn Malec. Abu-Bekr was again dismayedby the number of their pursuers; but Mahomet repeatedthe assurance, “Be not troubled; Allah is withus.” Soraka was a grim warrior, with shaggediron-gray locks and naked sinewy arms rough with hair.As he overtook Mahomet, his horse reared and fell withhim. His superstitious mind was struck with itas an evil sign. Mahomet perceived the stateof his feeling, and by an eloquent appeal wrought uponhim to such a degree that Soraka, filled with awe,entreated his forgiveness, and turning back with histroop suffered him to proceed on his way unmolested.

The fugitives continued their journey without furtherinterruption, until they arrived at Kobe, a hill abouttwo miles from Medina. It was a favorite resortof the inhabitants of the city, and a place to whichthey sent their sick and infirm, for the air was pureand salubrious. Hence, too, the city was suppliedwith fruit; the hill and its environs being coveredwith vineyards and with groves of the date and lotus;with gardens producing citrons, oranges, pomegranates,figs, peaches, and apricots, and being irrigated withlimpid streams.

On arriving at this fruitful spot Al Kaswa, the camelof Mahomet, crouched on her knees, and would go nofarther. The prophet interpreted it as a favorablesign, and determined to remain at Koba, and preparefor entering the city. The place where his camelknelt is still pointed out by pious Moslems, a mosquenamed Al Takwa having been built there to commemoratethe circ*mstance. Some affirm that it was actuallyfounded by the prophet. A deep well[51] is alsoshown in the vicinity, beside which Mahomet reposedunder the shade of the trees, and into which he droppedhis seal ring. It is believed still to remainthere, and has given sanctity to the well, the watersof which are conducted by subterraneous conduits toMedina. At Koba he remained four days, residingin the house of an Awsite named Colthum Ibn Hadem.While at this village he was joined by a distinguishedchief, Boreida Ibn al Hoseib, with seventy followers,all of the tribe of Saham. These made professionof faith between the hands of Mahomet.

Another renowned proselyte who repaired to the prophetat this village was Salman al Parsi—­orthe Persian. He is said to have been a nativeof a small place near Ispahan, and that, on passingone day by a Christian church, he was so much struckby the devotion of the people, and the solemnity ofthe worship, that he became disgusted with the idolatrousfaith in which he had been brought up. He afterwardwandered about the East, from city to city and conventto convent, in quest of a religion, until an ancientmonk, full of years and infirmities, told him of aprophet who had arisen in Arabia to restore the purefaith of Abraham.

This Salman rose to power in after years, and wasreputed by the unbelievers of Mecca to have assistedMahomet in compiling his doctrine. This is alludedto in the sixteenth chapter of the Koran:“Verily, the idolaters say, that a certain manassisted to compose the Koran; but the languageof this man is Ajami—­or Persian—­andthe Koran is indited in the pure Arabian tongue.”

The Moslems of Mecca, who had taken refuge some timebefore in Medina, hearing that Mahomet was at hand,came forth to meet him at Koba; among these were theearly convert Talha, and Zobeir, the nephew of Kadijah.These, seeing the travel-stained garments of Mahometand Abu-Bekr, gave them white mantles, with whichto make their entrance into Medina. Numbers ofthe Ansarians, or auxiliaries, of Medina, who had madetheir compact with Mahomet in the preceding year,now hastened to renew their vow of fidelity.

Learning from them that the number of proselytes inthe city was rapidly augmenting, and that there wasa general disposition to receive him favorably, heappointed Friday, the Moslem Sabbath,[52] the sixteenthday of the month Rabi, for his public entrance.

Accordingly on the morning of that day he assembledall his followers to prayer; and after a sermon, inwhich he expounded the main principles of his faith,he mounted his camel Al Kaswa, and set forth for thatcity, which was to become renowned in after ages ashis city of refuge.

Boreida Ibn al Hoseib, with his seventy horsem*n ofthe tribe of Saham, accompanied him as a guard.Some of the disciples took turns to hold a canopyof palm leaves over his head, and by his side rodeAbu-Bekr. “O apostle of God!” criedBoreida, “thou shalt not enter Medina withouta standard”; so saying, he unfolded his turban,and tying one end of it to the point of his lance,bore it aloft before the prophet.

The city of Medina was fair to approach, being extolledfor beauty of situation, salubrity of climate, andfertility of soil; for the luxuriance of its palm-trees,and the fragrance of its shrubs and flowers.At a short distance from the city a crowd of new proselytesto the faith came forth in sun and dust to meet thecavalcade. Most of them had never seen Mahomet,and paid reverence to Abu-Bekr through mistake; butthe latter put aside the screen of palm leaves, andpointed out the real object of homage, who was greetedwith loud acclamations.

In this way did Mahomet, so recently a fugitive fromhis native city, with a price upon his head, enterMedina, more as a conqueror in triumph than an exileseeking an asylum. He alighted at the house ofa Khazradite, named Abu-Ayub, a devout Moslem, towhom moreover he was distantly related; here he washospitably received, and took up his abode in thebasem*nt story.

Shortly after his arrival he was joined by the faithfulAli,[53] who had fled from Mecca, and journeyed onfoot, hiding himself in the day and travelling onlyat night, lest he should fall into the hands of theKoreish*tes. He arrived weary and way-worn, hisfeet bleeding with the roughness of the journey.

Within a few days more came Ayesha, and the rest ofAbu-Bekr’s household, together with the familyof Mahomet, conducted by his faithful freedman Zeid,and by Abu-Bekr’s servant Abdallah.

SIMON OCKLEY

Mahomet had hitherto propagated his religion by fairmeans only. During his stay at Mecca he had declaredhis business was only to preach and admonish; andthat whether people believed or not was none of hisconcern. He had hitherto confined himself to thearts of persuasion, promising, on the one hand, thejoys of paradise to all who should believe in him,and who should, for the hopes of them, disregard thethings of this world, and even bear persecution withpatience and resignation; and, on the other, deterringhis hearers from what he called infidelity, by settingbefore them both the punishments inflicted in thisworld upon Pharaoh and others, who despised the warningsof the prophets sent to reclaim them; and also thetorments of hell, which would be their portion inthe world to come. Now, however, when he hadgot a considerable town at his command, and a goodnumber of followers firmly attached to him, he beganto sing another note. Gabriel now brings himmessages from heaven to the effect that, whereas other

prophets had come with miracles and been rejected,he was to take different measures, and propagate Islamismby the sword. And accordingly, within a yearafter his arrival at Medina he began what was calledthe holy war. For this purpose he first of allinstituted a brotherhood, joining his Ansars or helpers,and his Mohajerins or refugees together in pairs;he himself taking Ali for his brother. It wasin allusion to this that Ali, afterward when preachingat Cufa, said, “I am the servant of God, andbrother to his apostle.”

In the second year of the Hegira, Mahomet changedthe Kebla of the Mussulman, which before this timehad been toward Jerusalem, ordering them henceforthto turn toward Mecca when they prayed. In thesame year he also appointed the fast of the monthRamadan.

Mahomet having now a pretty large congregation atMedina found it necessary to have some means of callingthem to prayers; for this purpose he was thinkingof employing a horn, or some instrument of wood, whichshould be made to emit a loud sound by being struckupon. But his doubts were settled this year bya dream of one of his disciples, in which a man appearingto him in a green vest recommended as a better way,that the people should be summoned to prayers by acrier calling out, “Allah acbar, Allah acbar,”etc.; “God is great, God is great, thereis but one God, Mahomet is his prophet;[54] come toprayers, come to prayers.” Mahomet approvedof the scheme, and this is the very form in use tothis day among the Mussulmans; who, however, in thecall to morning prayers, add the words, “Prayeris better than sleep, prayer is better than sleep”—­asentiment not unworthy the consideration of thosewho are professors of a better religion.

The same year the apostle sent some of his peopleto plunder a caravan going to Mecca; which they did,and brought back two prisoners to Medina. Thiswas the first act of hostility committed by the Mussulmansagainst the idolaters. The second was the battleof Beder. The history of the battle is thus givenby Abulfeda: “The apostle, hearing thata caravan of the Meccans was coming home from Syria,escorted by Abu Sofian at the head of thirty men,placed a number of soldiers in ambuscade to interceptit. Abu Sofian, being informed thereof by hisspies, sent word immediately to Mecca, whereupon allthe principal men except Abu Laheb—­who,however, sent Al Asum son of Hesham in his stead—­marchedout to his assistance, making in all nine hundred andfifty men, whereof two hundred were cavalry. Theapostle of God went out against them with three hundredand thirteen men, of whom seventy-seven were refugeesfrom Mecca, the rest being helpers from Medina; theyhad with them only two horses and seventy camels,upon which they rode by turns. The apostle encampednear a well called Beder, from the name of the personwho was owner of it, and had a hut made where he andAbu-Bekr sat. As soon as the armies were in sight

of each other, three champions came out from amongthe idolaters, Otha son of Rabia, his brother Shaiba,and Al Walid son of Otha; against the first of these,the prophet sent Obeidah son of Hareth, Hamza againstthe second, and Ali against the third: Hamzaand Ali slew each his man and then went to the assistanceof Obeidah, and having killed his adversary, broughtoff Obeidah, who, however, soon after died of a woundin his foot.

“All this while the apostle continued in hishut in prayer, beating his breast so violently thathis cloak fell off his shoulders, and he was suddenlytaken with a palpitation of the heart; soon recovering,however, he comforted Abu-Bekr, telling him God’shelp was come. Having uttered these words, heforthwith ran out of his hut and encouraged his men,and taking a handful of dust threw it toward the Koreish*tes,and said, ‘May their faces be confounded,’and immediately they fled. After the battle,Abdallah, the son of Masud, brought the head of AbuJehel to the apostle, who gave thanks to God; Al As,brother to Abu Jehel, was also killed; Al Abbas also,the prophet’s uncle, and Ocail son of Abu Taleb,were taken prisoners. Upon the news of this defeatAbu Laheb died of grief within a week.”

Of the Mussulmans died fourteen martyrs (for so theycall all such as die fighting for Islamism).The number of idolaters slain was seventy; among whommy author names some of chief note, Hantala son ofAbu Sofian, and Nawfal, brother to Kadijah. Alislew six of the enemy with his own hand.

The prophet ordered the dead bodies of the enemy tobe thrown into a pit, and remained three days uponthe field of battle dividing the spoil; on occasionof which a quarrel arose between the helpers and therefugees, and to quiet them the eighth chapter of theKoran was brought from heaven. It beginsthus, “They will ask thee concerning the spoils:say, The spoils belong to God and his apostle”:and again in the same chapter, “And know thatwhenever ye gain any, a fifth part belongeth to God,and to the apostle, and his kindred, and the orphans,and the poor.” The other four-fifths areto be divided among those who are present at the action.The apostle, when he returned to Safra in his wayto Medina, ordered Ali to behead two of his prisoners.

The victory at Beder was of great importance to Mahomet;to encourage his men, and to increase the number ofhis followers, he pretended that two miracles werewrought in his favor, in this, as also in severalsubsequent battles: first, that God sent his angelsto fight on his side; and second, made his army appearto the enemy much greater than it really was.Both these miracles are mentioned in the Koran,chapter viii. Al Abbas said he was taken prisonerby a man of a prodigious size (an angel, of course);no wonder, then, he became a convert.

As soon as the Mussulmans returned to Medina the Koreish*tessent to offer a ransom for their prisoners, whichwas accepted, and distributed among those who hadtaken them, according to the quality of the prisoners.Some had one thousand drachms for their share.Those who had only a small or no part of the ransomMahomet rewarded with donations, so as to contentthem all.

The Jews had many a treaty with Mahomet, and livedpeaceably at Medina; till a Jew, having affrontedan Arabian milk-woman, was killed by a Mussulman.In revenge for this the Jews killed the Mussulman,whereupon a general quarrel ensued. The Jewsfled to their castles; but after a siege of fifteendays were forced to surrender at discretion. Mahometordered their hands to be tied behind them, determinedto put them all to the sword, and was with great difficultyprevailed upon to spare their lives and take all theirproperty. Kaab, son of Ashraf, was one of themost violent among the Jews against Mahomet. Hehad been at Mecca, and, with some pathetic versesupon the unhappy fate of those who had fallen at Beder,excited the Meccans to take up arms. Upon hisreturn to Medina he rehearsed the same verses amongthe lower sort of people and the women. Mahomet,being told of these underhand practices, said, oneday, “Who will rid me of the son of Ashraf?”when Mahomet, son of Mosalama, one of the helpers,answered, “I am the man, O apostle of God, thatwill do it,” and immediately took with him Salcanson of Salama, and some other Moslems, who were tolie in ambush. In order to decoy Kaab out ofhis castle, which was a very strong one, Salcan, hisfoster-brother, went alone to visit him in the duskof the evening; and, entering into conversation, toldhim some little stories of Mahomet, which he knewwould please him. When he got up to take his leave,Kaab, as he expected, attended him to the gate; and,continuing the conversation, went on with him tillhe came near the ambuscade, where Mahomet and hiscompanions fell upon him and stabbed him.

Abu Sofian, meditating revenge for the defeat at Beder,swore he would neither anoint himself nor come nearhis women till he was even with Mahomet. Settingout toward Medina with two hundred horse, he posteda party of them near the town, where one of the helpersfell into their hands and was killed. Mahomet,being informed of it, went out against them, but theyall fled; and, for the greater expedition, threw awaysome sacks of meal, part of their provision. Fromwhich circ*mstance this was called the meal-war.

Abu Sofian, resolving to make another and more effectualeffort, got together a body of three thousand men,whereof seven hundred were cuirassiers and two hundredcavalry; his wife Henda, with a number of women, followedin the rear, beating drums, and lamenting the fateof those slain at Beder, and exciting the idolatersto fight courageously. The apostle would havewaited for them in the town, but as his people wereeager to advance against the enemy, he set out at oncewith one thousand men; but of these one hundred turnedback, disheartened by the superior numbers of theenemy. He encamped at the foot of Mount Ohud,having the mountain in his rear. Of his nine hundredmen only one hundred had armor on; and as for horses,there was only one besides that on which he himselfrode. Mosaab carried the prophet’s standard;Kaled, son of Al Walid, led the right wing of theidolaters; Acrema, son of Abu Jehel, the left; thewomen kept in the rear, beating their drums. Hendacried out to them: “Courage, ye sons ofAbdal Dari; courage! smite with all your swords.”

Mahomet placed fifty archers in his rear, and orderedthem to keep their post. Then Hamza fought stoutly,and killed Arta, the standard-bearer of the idolaters;and as Seba, son of Abdal Uzza, came near him, Hamzastruck off his head also; but was himself immediatelyafter run through with a spear by Wabsha, a slave,who lurked behind a rock with that intent. ThenEbn Kamia slew Mosaab, the apostle’s standard-bearer;and taking him for the prophet cried out, “Ihave killed Mahomet!” When Mosaab was slainthe standard was given to Ali.

At the beginning of the action the Mussulmans attackedthe idolaters so furiously that they gave ground,fell back upon their rear, and threw it into disorder.The archers seeing this, and expecting a completevictory, left their posts, contrary to the expressorders that had been given them, and came forwardfrom fear of losing their share of the plunder.In the mean time Kaled, advancing with his cavalry,fell furiously upon the rear of the Mussulmans, cryingaloud at the same time that Mahomet was slain.This cry, and the finding themselves attacked on allsides, threw the Mussulmans into such consternationthat the idolaters made great havoc among them, andwere able to press on so near the apostle as to beathim down with a shower of stones and arrows. Hewas wounded in the lip, and two arrow-heads stuck inhis face. Abu Obeidah pulled out first one andthen the other; at each operation one of the apostle’steeth came out. As Sonan Abu Said wiped the bloodfrom off his face, the apostle exclaimed, “Hethat touches my blood, and handles it tenderly, shallnot have his blood spilt in the fire” (of hell).In this action, it is said, Telhah, while he was puttinga breast-plate upon Mahomet, received a wound uponhis hand, which maimed it forever. Omar and Abu-Bekrwere also wounded. When the Mussulmans saw Mahometfall, they concluded he was killed and took to flight;and even Othman was hurried along by the press ofthose that fled. In a little time, however, findingMahomet was alive, a great number of his men returnedto the field; and, after a very obstinate fight, broughthim off, and carried him to a neighboring village.The Mussulmans had seventy men killed, the idolaterslost only twenty-two.

The Koreish*tes had no other fruit of their victorybut the gratification of a poor spirit of revenge.Henda, and the women who had fled with her upon thefirst disorder of the idolaters, now returned, andcommitted great barbarities upon the dead bodies ofthe apostle’s friends. They cut off theirears and noses, and made bracelets and necklaces ofthem; Henda pulled Hamza’s liver out of his body,and chewed and swallowed some of it. Abu Sofian,having cut pieces off the cheeks of Hamza, put themupon the end of his spear, and cried out aloud, “Thesuccess of war is uncertain; after the battle of Bedercomes the battle of Ohud; now, Hobal,[55] thy religionis victorious!” Notwithstanding this boasting,he decamped the same day. Jannabi ascribes hisretreat to a panic; however that may have been, AbuSofian sent to propose a truce for a year, which wasagreed to.

When the enemy were retreated toward Mecca, Mahometwent to the field of battle to look for the body ofHamza. Finding it shamefully mangled, in themanner already related, he ordered it to be wrappedin a black cloak, and then prayed over it, repeatingseven times, “Allah acbar,” etc.("God is great,” etc.). In the samemanner he prayed over every one of the martyrs, namingHamza again with every one of them; so that Hamzahad the prayers said over him seventy-two times.But, as if this were not enough, he declared thatGabriel had told him he had been received into theseventh heaven, and welcomed with this eulogium, “Hamza,the lion of God, and the lion of his prophet.”

The Mussulmans were much chagrined at this defeat.Some expressed a doubt of the prophet being as highin the divine favor as he pretended, since he hadsuffered such an overthrow by infidels. Othersmurmured at the loss of their friends and relations.To pacify them he used various arguments, tellingthem the sins of some had been the cause of disgraceto all; that they had been disobedient to orders, inquitting their post for the sake of plunder; thatthe devil put it into the minds of those who turnedback; their flight, however, was forgiven, becauseGod is merciful; that their defeat was intended totry them, and to show them who were believers andwho not; that the event of war is uncertain; thatthe enemy had suffered as well as they; that otherprophets before him had been defeated in battle; thatdeath is unavoidable. And here Mahomet’sdoctrine of fate was of as great service to him asit was afterward to his successors, tending as itdid to make his people fearless and desperate in fight.For he taught them that the time of every man’sdeath is so unalterably fixed that he cannot die beforethe appointed hour; and, when that is come, no cautionwhatever can prolong his life one moment;[56] so thatthey who were slain in battle would certainly havedied at the same time, if they had been at home intheir houses; but, as they now died fighting for thefaith, they had thereby gained a crown of martyrdom,and entered immediately into paradise, where theywere in perfect bliss with their Lord.

In the beginning of the next year the prophet hada revelation, commanding him to prohibit wine andgames of chance. Some say the prohibition wasowing to a quarrel occasioned by these things amonghis followers.[57]

In the fifth year of the Hegira, Mahomet, informedby his spies of a design against Medina, surroundedit with a ditch, which was no sooner finished thanthe Meccans, with several tribes of Arabs, sat downbefore it, to the number of ten thousand men.The appearance of so great a force threw the Mussulmansinto a consternation. Some were ready to revolt;and one of them exclaimed aloud, “Yesterday theprophet promised us the wealth of Khusrau (Cosroes)and Caesar, and now he is forced to hide himself behind

a nasty ditch.” In the mean time Mahomet,skilfully concealing his real concern, and settingas good a face upon the matter as he could, marchedout with three thousand Mussulmans, and formed hisarmy at a little distance behind the intrenchment.The two armies continued facing each other for twentydays, without any action, except a discharge of arrowson both sides. At length some champions of theKoreish*tes, Amru son of Abdud, Acrema son of Abu Jehel,and Nawfal son of Abdallah, coming to the ditch leapedover it; and, wheeling about between the ditch andthe Moslem army, challenged them to fight. Alireadily accepted the challenge, and came forward againsthis uncle Amru, who said to him, “Nephew, whata pleasure am I now going to have in killing you.”Ali replied, “No; it is I that am to have a muchgreater pleasure in killing you.” Amruimmediately alighted, and, having hamstrung his horse,advanced toward Ali, who had also dismounted and wasready to receive him. They immediately engaged,and, in turning about to flank each other, raisedsuch a dust that they could not be distinguished,only the strokes of their swords might be heard.At last, the dust being laid, Ali was seen with hisknee upon the breast of his adversary, cutting histhroat. Upon this, the other two champions wentback as fast as they came. Nawfal, however, inleaping the ditch, got a fall, and being overwhelmedwith a shower of stones, cried out, “I had ratherdie by the sword than thus.” Ali hearinghim, leaped into the ditch and despatched him.He then pursued after Acrema, and having wounded himwith a spear, drove him and his companions back tothe army. Here they related what had happened;which put the rest in such fear that they were readyto retreat; and when some of their tents had beenoverthrown by a storm, and discord had arisen amongthe allies, the Koreish*tes, finding themselves forsakenby their auxiliaries, returned to Mecca. Mahometmade a miracle of this retreat; and published uponit this verse of the Koran, “God senta storm and legions of angels, which you did not see.”

Upon the prophet’s return into the town, whilehe was laying by his armor and washing himself, Gabrielcame and asked him, “Have you laid by your arms?we have not laid by ours; go and attack them,”pointing to the Koraidites, a Jewish tribe confederatedagainst him. Whereupon Mahomet went immediately,and besieged them so closely in their castles thatafter twenty-five days they surrendered at discretion.He referred the settlement of the conditions to Saad,son of Moad; who being wounded by an arrow at theditch, had wished he might only live to be revenged.Accordingly, he decreed that all the men, in numberbetween six and seven hundred, should be put to thesword, the women and children sold for slaves, andtheir goods given to the soldiers for a prey.Mahomet extolled the justice of this sentence, asa divine direction sent down from the seventh heaven,and had it punctually executed. Saad, dying ofhis wound presently after, Mahomet performed his funeralobsequies, and made a harangue in praise of him.

One Salam, a Jew, having been very strenuous in stirringup the people against the prophet, some zealous Casregitesdesired leave to go and assassinate him. Permissionbeing readily granted, away they went to the Jew’shouse, and being let in by his wife, upon their pretendingthey were come to buy provisions, they murdered himin his bed, and made their escape.

Toward the end of this year Mahomet, going into thehouse of Zaid, did not find him at home, but happenedto espy his wife Zainab so much in dishabille as todiscover beauties enough to touch a heart so amorousas his was. He could not conceal the impressionmade upon him, but cried out, “Praised be God,who turneth men’s hearts as he pleases!”Zainab heard him, and told it to her husband whenhe came home. Zaid, who had been greatly obligedto Mahomet, was very desirous to gratify him, andoffered to divorce his wife. Mahomet pretendedto dissuade him from it, but Zaid easily perceivinghow little he was in earnest, actually divorced her.Mahomet thereupon took her to wife, and celebratedthe nuptials with extraordinary magnificence, keepingopen house upon the occasion. Notwithstanding,this step gave great offence to many who could notbring themselves to brook that a prophet should marryhis son’s wife; for he had before adopted Zaidfor his son. To salve the affair, therefore,he had recourse to his usual expedient: Gabrielbrought him a revelation from heaven, in which Godcommands him to take the wife of his adopted son,on purpose that forever after believers might haveno scruple in marrying the divorced wives or widowsof their adopted sons; which the Arabs had beforelooked upon as unlawful. The apostle is evenreproved for fearing men in this affair, whereas heought to fear God. (Koran, chapter xxxiii.)

In the sixth year he subdued several tribes of theArabs. Among the captives was a woman of greatbeauty, named Juweira, whom Mahomet took to wife and,by way of dowry, released all her kindred that weretaken prisoners.

When Mahomet went upon any expedition, it was generallydetermined by lots which of his wives should go withhim; at this time it fell to Ayesha’s lot toaccompany him. Upon their return to Medina, Ayeshawas accused of intriguing with one of the officersof the army, and was in great disgrace for about amonth. The prophet was exceedingly chagrinedto have his best-beloved wife accused of adultery;but his fondness for her prevailed over his resentment,and she was restored to his favor, upon her own protestationof her innocence. This, however, did not quitesatisfy the world, nor, indeed, was the prophet’smind perfectly at ease on the subject, until Gabrielbrought him a revelation, wherein Ayesha is declaredinnocent of the crime laid to her charge; while thosewho accuse believers of any crime, without proof,are severely reproved, and a command given, that whosoeveraccuses chaste women, and cannot produce four eye-witnessesin support of the charge, shall receive eighty stripes.(Koran, chapter xxiv.) In obedience to thiscommand, all those who had raised this report uponAyesha were publicly scourged, except Abdallah, sonof Abu Solul, who was too considerable a man to beso dealt with, notwithstanding he had been particularlyindustrious in spreading the scandal.[58]

Mahomet, being now increased in power, marched hisarmy against Mecca, and a battle being fought on themarch, wherein neither side gaining the advantage,a truce was agreed upon for ten years, on the followingconditions: All within Mecca, who were disposed,were to be at liberty to join Mahomet; and those whohad a mind to leave him and return to Mecca, wereto be equally free to do so; but, for the future, ifany Meccans deserted to him, they should be sent backupon demand; and that Mahomet or any of the Mussulmansmight come to Mecca, provided they came unarmed, andtarried not above three days at a time.

Mahomet was now so well confirmed in his power thathe took upon himself the authority of a king, andwas, by the chief men of his army, inaugurated undera tree near Medina; and having, by the truce obtainedfor his followers, free access to Mecca, he ordainedthey should henceforward make their pilgrimages thither.[59]Among the Arabs it had been an ancient usage to visitthe Kaaba once a year, to worship there the heathendeities. Mahomet, therefore, thought it expedientto comply with a custom with which they were pleased,and which, besides, was so beneficial to his nativeplace, by bringing a great concourse of pilgrims toit, that when he afterward came to be master of Mecca,he enforced the pilgrimage with most of the old ceremoniesbelonging to it, only taking away the idols and abolishingthis worship. Though he now took upon himselfthe sovereign command and the insignia of royalty,he still retained the sacred character of chief pontiffof his religion, and transmitted both these powersto his caliphs or successors, who, for some time,not only ordered all matters of religion, but used,especially upon public occasions, to officiate in prayingand preaching in their mosques. In process oftime this came to be all the authority the caliphshad left, for, about the year of the Hegira 325, thegovernors of provinces seized the regal authority andmade themselves kings of their several governments.They continued, indeed, to pay a show of deferenceto the caliph, who usually resided at Bagdad, whom,however, they occasionally deposed. At this presenttime most Mahometan princes have a person in theirrespective dominions who bears this sacred character,and is called the mufti in Turkey, and in Persiathe sadre. He is often appealed to asthe interpreter of the law; but, as a tool of state,usually gives such judgment as he knows will be mostacceptable to his prince.

Mahomet used at first, when preaching in his mosqueat Medina, to lean upon a post of a palm-tree driveninto the ground; but being now invested with greaterdignity, by the advice of one of his wives he hada pulpit built, which had two steps up to it and aseat within. When Othman was caliph he hung itwith tapestry, and Moawiyah raised it six steps higher,that he might be heard when he sat down, as he wasforced to do, being very fat and heavy; whereas hispredecessors all used to stand.

Mahomet had now a dream that he held in his hand thekey of the Kaaba, and that he and his men made thecircuits round it and performed all the ceremoniesof the pilgrimage. Having told his dream nextmorning, he and his followers were all in high spiritsupon it, taking it for an omen that they should shortlybe masters of Mecca. Accordingly, great preparationswere made for an expedition to this city. Theprophet gave it out that his only intent was to makethe pilgrimage. He provided seventy camels forthe sacrifice, which were conducted by seven hundredmen, ten to each camel; as, however, he apprehendedopposition from the Koreish*tes, he took with himhis best troops, to the number of fourteen hundredmen, besides an incredible number of wandering Arabsfrom all parts. The Koreish*tes, alarmed at themarch of the Mussulmans, got together a considerableforce and encamped about six miles from Mecca.Mahomet continued his march, but finding, by his spies,the enemy had posted their men so as to stop the passesin his feints and counter-marches, came to a placewhere his camel fell upon her knees. The peoplesaid she was restive, but the prophet took it for adivine intimation that he should not proceed any fartherin his intended expedition, but wait with resignationtill the appointed time. He therefore turnedback, and encamped without the sacred territory, atHodaibia. The Koreish*tes sent three several messengers,the two last men of consequence, to demand what washis intention in coming thither. He answeredthat it was purely out of a devout wish to visit thesacred house, and not with any hostile design.Mahomet also sent one of his own men to give themthe same assurance; but the Koreish*tes cut the legsof his camel, and would also have killed the man hadnot the Ahabish*tes interposed and helped him to escape.Upon this he wished Omar to go upon the same errand;but he excused himself, as not being upon good termswith the Koreish*tes. At last Othman was sent;who delivered his message, and was coming away, whenthey told him he might, if he wished, make his circuitsround the Kaaba. But upon his replying he wouldnot do so until the apostle of God had first performedhis vow to make the holy circuits, they were so greatlyprovoked that they laid him in irons. In theMussulman army it was reported that he was killed,at which Mahomet was much afflicted and said aloud,“We will not stir from hence till we have givenbattle to the enemy.” Thereupon the wholearmy took an oath of obedience and fealty to the prophet,who, on his part, by the ceremony of clapping hishands one against the other, took an oath to standby them as long as there was one of them left.

The Koreish*tes sent a party of eighty men towardthe camp of the Mussulmans to beat up their quarters.Being discovered, by the sentinels, they were surrounded,taken prisoners, and brought before Mahomet; who,thinking it proper at that time to be generous, releasedthem. In return, Sohail son of Amru was sent tohim with proposals of peace, which he agreed to accept.

Mahomet, pretending he had a divine promise of a greatbooty, returned to Medina and, having concluded apeace for ten years with the Koreish*tes, was thebetter enabled to attack the Jews, his irreconcilableenemies. Accordingly, he went to Khaibar, a strongtown about six days’ journey northeast of Medina,and took that and several other strong places, wheretothe Jews had retired, and carried a vast deal of treasure;this all fell into the hands of the Mussulmans.Being entertained at Khaibar, a young Jewess, to try,as she afterward said, whether he were a prophet ornot, poisoned a shoulder of mutton, a joint Mahometwas particularly fond of. One of those who partookof it at the table, named Basher, died upon the spot;but Mahomet, finding it taste disagreeable, spat itout, saying, “This mutton tells me it is poisoned.”The miracle-mongers improve this story, by making theshoulder of mutton speak to him; but if it did, itspoke too late, for he had already swallowed someof it; and of the effects of that morsel he complainedin his last illness, of which he died three years after.

In this year, Jannabi mentions Mahomet’s beingbewitched by the Jews. Having made a waxen imageof him, they hid it in a well, together with a comband a tuft of hair tied in eleven knots. The prophetfell into a very wasting condition, till he had adream that informed him where these implements ofwitchcraft were, and accordingly had them taken away.In order to untie the knots Gabriel read to him thetwo last chapters of the Koran, consistingof eleven verses; each verse untied a knot, and, whenall were untied, he recovered.[60]

This year Mahomet had a seal made with this inscription,“Mahomet, the apostle of God.” Thiswas to seal his letters, which he now took upon himto write to divers princes, inviting them to Islamism.His first letter to this effect was sent to Badham,viceroy of Yemen, to be forwarded to Khusrau, kingof Persia. Khusrau tore the letter, and orderedBadham to restore the prophet to his right mind orsend him his head. Khusrau was presently aftermurdered by his son Siroes; Badham with his peopleturned Mussulmans, and Mahomet continued him in hisgovernment.

He also sent a letter of the same purport to the Romanemperor Heraclius. Heraclius received the letterrespectfully, and made some valuable presents to themessenger. He sent another to Maka*wkas, viceroyof Egypt, who returned in answer he would considerof the proposals, and sent, among other presents,two young maidens. One of these, named Mary,of fifteen years of age, Mahomet debauched. Thisgreatly offended two of his wives, Hafsa and Ayesha,and to pacify them he promised, upon oath, to do sono more. But he was soon taken again by them transgressingin the same way. And now, that he might not standin awe of his wives any longer, down comes a revelationwhich is recorded in the sixty-sixth chapter of theKoran, releasing the prophet from his oath,and allowing him to have concubines, if he wished.[61]And the two wives of Mahomet, who, upon the quarrelabout Mary, had gone home to their fathers, beingthreatened in the same chapter with a divorce, wereglad to send their fathers to him to make their peacewith him, and obtain his permission for their return.They were fain to come and submit to live with himupon his own terms.

[Illustration: Mahomet, preaching the unity ofGod, enters Mecca at the head of his victorious followers

Painting by A. Mueller.]

Mahomet sent letters at the same time to the kingof Ethiopia, who had before professed Islamism, andnow in his answer repeated his profession of it.He wrote to two other Arabian princes, who sent himdisagreeable answers, which provoked him to cursethem. He sent also to Al Mondar, king of Bahrain,who came into his religion, and afterward routed thePersians and made a great slaughter of them. Andnow all the Arabians of Bahrain had become convertsto his religion.

Among the captives taken at Khaibar was Safia, betrothedto the son of Kenana, the king of the Jews. Mahomettook the former to wife, and put Kenana to the tortureto make him discover his treasure. In the actionat Khaibar, it is said, Ali, having his buckler struckout of his hand, took one of the gates off its hinges,and used it for a buckler till the place was taken.The narrator of this story asserts that he and sevenmen tried to stir the gate, and were not able.

One of the articles of the peace being, that any Mussulmanmight be permitted to perform his pilgrimage at Mecca,the prophet went to that city to complete the visitationof the holy places, which he could not do as he intendedwhen at Hodaiba. Hearing, upon this occasion,the Meccans talking of his being weakened by the longmarches he had made, to show the contrary, in goinground the Kaaba seven times, he went the first threerounds in a brisk trot, shaking his shoulders the while,but performed the four last circuits in a common walkingpace. This is the reason why Mussulmans alwaysperform seven circuits round the Kaaba in a similarmanner.

In the eighth year of the Hegira, Kaled son of AlWalid, Amru son of Al As, and Othman son of Telha,who presided over the Kaaba, became Mussulmans; thiswas a considerable addition to Mahomet’s powerand interest. The same year Mahomet, having senta letter to the governor of Bostra in Syria, as hehad to others, and his messenger being slain there,sent Zaid, son of Hareth, with three thousand men toMuta in Syria, against the Roman army, which, withtheir allies, made a body of nearly one hundred thousandmen. Zaid being slain, the command fell to Jaafar,and, upon his death, to Abdallah son of Rawahas, whowas also killed.[62] Thereupon the Mussulmans unanimouslychose Kaled for their leader, who defeated the enemy,and returned to Medina with a considerable booty,on which account Mahomet gave him the title of the“Sword of God.”

The same year the Koreish*tes assisted some of theirallies against the Kozaites, who were in alliancewith Mahomet. This the latter resented as aninfraction of the peace. Abu Sofian was sent totry to make up matters, but Mahomet would not vouchsafeto receive his explanation. But having made hispreparation to fall upon them before they could beprepared to receive him, he advanced upon Mecca withabout ten thousand men. Abu Sofian having comeout of the town in the evening to reconnoitre, hefell in with Al Abbas, who, out of friendship to hiscountrymen, had ridden from the army with the hopeof meeting some straggling Meccans whom he might sendback with the news of Mahomet’s approach, andadvise the Meccans to surrender. Al Abbas, recognizingAbu Sofian’s voice, called to him, and advisedhim to get up behind him, and go with him, and inall haste make his submission to Mahomet. Thishe did, and, to save his life, professed Islamism,and was afterward as zealous in propagating as hehad hitherto been in opposing it.

Mahomet had given orders to his men to enter Meccapeaceably, but Kaled meeting with a party who dischargedsome arrows at him, fell upon them, and slew twenty-eightof them. Mahomet sent one of his helpers to bidhim desist from the slaughter; but the messenger deliveredquite the contrary order, commanding him to show themno mercy. Afterward, when Mahomet said to thehelper, “Did not I bid you tell Kaled not tokill anybody in Mecca?”

“It is true,” said the helper, “andI would have done as you directed me, but God wouldhave it otherwise, and God’s will was done.”

When all was quiet, Mahomet went to the Kaaba, androde round it upon his camel seven times, and touchedwith his cane a corner of the black stone with greatreverence. Having alighted, he went into the Kaaba,where he found images of angels, and a figure of Abrahamholding in his hand a bundle of arrows, which hadbeen made use of for deciding things by lot.All these, as well as three hundred and sixty idolswhich stood on the outside of the Kaaba, he causedto be thrown down and broken in pieces. As heentered the Kaaba, he cried with a loud voice, “Allahacbar,” seven times, turning round to all thesides of the Kaaba. He also appointed it to bethe Kebla, or place toward which the Mussulmans shouldturn themselves when they pray. Remounting hiscamel, he now rode once more seven times round theKaaba, and again alighting, bowed himself twice beforeit. He next visited the well Zem-zem, and fromthence passed to the station of Abraham. Herehe stopped awhile, and ordering a pail of water tobe brought from the Zem-zem, he drank several largedraughts, and then made the holy washing called wodhu.Immediately all his followers imitated his example,purifying themselves and washing their faces.After this, Mahomet, standing at the door of the Kaaba,made a harangue to the following effect: “Thereis no other god but God, who has fulfilled his promise

to his servant, and who alone has put to flight hisenemies, and put under my feet everything that isvisible, men, animals, goods, riches, except only thegovernment of the Kaaba and the keeping of the cupfor the pilgrims to drink out of. As for you,O ye Koreish*tes, God hath taken from you the prideof paganism, which caused you to worship as deitiesour fathers Abraham and Ishmael, though they weremen descended from Adam, who was created out of theearth.” Having a mind to bestow on one ofhis own friends the prefecture of the Kaaba, he tookthe keys of it from Othman the son of Telha, and wasabout to give them to Al Abbas, who had asked for them,when a direction came to him from heaven, in thesewords, “Give the charge to whom it belongs.”Whereupon he returned the keys by Ali to Othman, who,being agreeably surprised, thanked Mahomet, and madea new profession of his faith. The pilgrim’scup, however, he consigned to the care of Al Abbas,in whose family it became hereditary.

The people of Mecca were next summoned to the hillAl Safa, to witness Mahomet’s inauguration.The prophet having first taken an oath to them, themen first, and then the women, bound themselves byoath to be faithful and obedient to whatsoever heshould command them. After this he summoned anextraordinary assembly, in which it was decreed thatMecca should be henceforward an asylum or inviolablesanctuary, within which it should be unlawful to shedthe blood of man, or even to fell a tree.

After telling the Meccans they were his slaves byconquest, he pardoned and declared them free, withthe exception of eleven men and six women, whom, ashis most inveterate enemies, he proscribed, orderinghis followers to kill them wherever they should findthem. Most of them obtained their pardon by embracingIslamism, and were ever after the most zealous ofMussulmans. One of these, Abdallah, who had greatlyoffended Mahomet, was brought to him by Othman, uponwhose intercession Mahomet pardoned him. Beforehe granted his pardon, he maintained a long silence,in expectation, as he afterward owned, that some ofthose about him would fall upon Abdallah and killhim. Of the women, three embraced Islamism andwere pardoned, the rest were put to death, one beingcrucified.

Mahomet now sent out Kaled and others to destroy theidols which were still retained by some of the tribes,and to invite them to Islamism. Kaled executedhis commission with great brutality. The Jodhamiteshad formerly robbed and murdered Kaled’s uncleas he journeyed from Arabia Felix. Kaled havingproposed Islamism to them, they cried out, “theyprofessed Sabaeism.” This was what he wanted.He immediately fell upon them, killing some, and makingothers prisoners: of these, he distributed someamong his men, and reserved others for himself.As for the latter, having tied their hands behindthem, he put them all to the sword. On hearingof this slaughter Mahomet lifted up his eyes and protestedhis innocence of this murder, and immediately sentAli with a sum of money to make satisfaction for thebloodshed, and to restore the plunder. Ali paidto the surviving Jodhamites as much as they demanded,and generously divided the overplus among them.This action Mahomet applauded and afterward reprovedKaled for his cruelty.

Upon the conquest of Mecca, many of the tribes ofthe Arabs came and submitted to Mahomet; but the Hawazanites,the Thakish*tes, and part of the Saadites, assembledto the number of four thousand effective men, besideswomen and children, to oppose him. He went againstthem at the head of twelve thousand fighting men.At the first onset the Mussulmans, being receivedwith a thick shower of arrows, were put to flight;but Mahomet, with great courage, rallied his men,and finally obtained the victory. The next considerableaction was the siege of Taif, a town sixty miles eastfrom Mecca. The Mussulmans set down before itand, having made several breaches with their engines,marched resolutely up to them, but were vigorouslyrepulsed by the besieged. Mahomet, having bya herald proclaimed liberty to all the slaves who shouldcome over to him, twenty-three deserted, to each ofwhom he assigned a Mussulman for a comrade. Soinconsiderable a defection did not in the least abatethe courage of the besieged; so that the prophet beganto despair of reducing the place, and, after a dream,which Abu-Bekr interpreted unfavorably to the attempt,determined to raise the siege. His men, however,on being ordered to prepare for a retreat, began tomurmur; whereupon he commanded them to be ready foran assault the next day. The assault being madethe assailants were beaten back with great loss.To console them in their retreat, the prophet smiled,and said, “We will come here again, if it pleaseGod.” When the army reached Jesana, whereall the booty taken from the Hawazanites had been left,a deputation arrived from that tribe to beg it mightbe restored. The prophet having given them theiroption between the captives or their goods, they choseto have their wives and children again. Theirgoods being divided among the Mussulmans, Mahomet,in order to indemnify those who had been obliged togive up their slaves, gave up his own share of theplunder and divided it among them. To Malec,however, son of Awf, the general of the Hawazanites,he intimated that if he would embrace Islamism heshould have all his goods as well as his family, anda present of one hundred camels besides. By thispromise Malec was brought over to be so good a Mussulmanthat he had the command given him of all his countrymenwho should at any time be converts, and was very serviceableagainst the Thakish*tes.

The prophet, after this, made a holy visit to Mecca,where he appointed Otab, son of Osaid, governor, thoughnot quite twenty years of age; Maad, son of Jabal,imam, or chief priest, to teach the peopleIslamism, and direct them in solemnizing the pilgrimage.Upon his return to Medina his concubine, Mary, broughthim a son, whom he named Ibrahim, celebrating hisbirth with a great feast. The child, however,lived but fifteen months.

In the ninth year of the Hegira envoys from all partsof Arabia came to Mahomet at Medina, to declare thereadiness of their several tribes to profess his religion.

The same year Mahomet, with an army of thirty thousandmen, marched toward Syria, to a place called Tobuc,against the Romans and Syrians, who were making preparationagainst him, but, upon his approach, retreated.The Mussulmans, in their march back toward Medina,took several forts of the Christian Arabs, and madethem tributaries. Upon his return to Medina theThakish*tes, having been blockaded in the Taif bythe Mussulman tribes, sent deputies offering to embraceIslamism, upon condition of being allowed to retaina little longer an idol to which their people werebigotedly attached. When Mahomet insisted uponits being immediately demolished, they desired to beat least excused from using the Mussulmans’prayers, but to this he answered very justly, “Thata religion without prayers was good for nothing.”At last they submitted absolutely.

During the same year Mahomet sent Abu-Bekr to Mecca,to perform the pilgrimage, and sacrifice in his behalftwenty camels. Presently afterward he sent Alito publish the ninth chapter of the Koran,which, though so placed in the present confused copy,is generally supposed to have been the last that wasrevealed. It is called “Barat,” orImmunity; the purport of it is that the associatorswith whom Mahomet had made a treaty must, after fourmonths’ liberty of conscience, either embraceIslamism or pay tribute. The command runs thus:“When those holy months are expired, kill theidolaters wherever ye shall find them.”Afterward come these words, “If they repent,and observe the times of prayer and give alms, theyare to be looked upon as your brethren in religion.”The same chapter also orders, “That nobody should,not having on the sacred habit, perform the holy circuitsround the Kaaba; and that no idolater should makethe pilgrimage to Mecca.” In consequence,no person except a Mahometan may approach the Kaaba,on pain of death.

The following account of Mahomet’s farewellpilgrimage is from Jaber, son of Abdallah, who wasone of the company: “The apostle of Godhad not made the pilgrimage for nine years (for whenhe conquered Mecca he only made a visitation).In the tenth year of the Hegira, he publicly proclaimedhis intention to perform the pilgrimage, whereupona prodigious multitude of people (some make the numbernear one hundred thousand) flocked from all partsto Medina. Our chief desire was to follow theapostle of God, and imitate him. When we cameto Dhul Holaifa, the apostle of God prayed in themosque there; then mounting his camel he rode hastilyto the plain Baida, where he began to praise God inthe form that professes his unity, saying, ’HereI am, O God, ready to obey thee; thou hast no partner,’etc. When he came to the Kaaba, he kissedthe corner of the black stone, went seven times round—­threetimes in a trot, four times walking—­thenwent to the station of Abraham, and coming again tothe black stone, reverently kissed it. Afterward

he went through the gate of the sons of Madhumi tothe hill Safa, and went up it till he could see theKaaba; when, turning toward the Kebla, he professedagain the unity of God, saying, ’There is noGod but one, his is the kingdom, to him be praises,he is powerful above everything,’ etc.After this profession he went down toward the hillMerwan, I following him all the way through the valley;he then ascended the hill slowly till he came to thetop of Merwan; from thence he ascended Mount Arafa.It being toward the going down of the sun, he preachedhere till sunset; then going to Mosdalefa, betweenArafa and the valley of Mena, he made the eveningand the late prayers, with two calls to prayer, andtwo risings up. Then he lay down till the dawn,and, having made the morning prayer, went to the enclosureof the Kaaba, where he remained standing till it grewvery light. Hence he proceeded hastily, beforethe sun was up, to the valley of Mena; where, throwingup seven stones, he repeated at each throw, ‘Godis great,’ etc. Leaving now the valley,he went to the place of sacrifice. Having madefree sixty-three slaves, he slew sixty-three victims[63]with his own hand, being then sixty-three years old,and then ordered Ali to sacrifice as many more victimsas would make up the number to one hundred. Thenext thing the apostle did was to shave his head,beginning on the right side of it, and finishing iton the left. His hair, as he cut it off, he castupon a tree, that the wind might scatter it among thepeople. Kaled was fortunate enough to catch apart of the fore-lock, which he fixed upon his turban;the virtue whereof he experienced in every battle heafterward fought. The limbs of the victims beingnow boiled, the apostle sat down with no other companionbut Ali to eat some of the flesh and drink some ofthe broth. The repast being over, he mounted hiscamel again and rode to the Kaaba; where he made thenoon-tide prayer, and drank seven large draughts ofthe well Zem-zem, made seven circuits round the Kaaba,and concluded his career between the hills Safa andMerwan.

“The ninth day of the feast he went to performhis devotions on Mount Arafa. This hill, situatedabout a mile from Mecca, is held in great venerationby the Mussulmans as a place very proper for penitence.Its fitness in this respect is accounted for by atradition that Adam and Eve, on being banished outof paradise, in order to do penance for their transgressionwere parted from each other, and after a separationof sixscore years met again upon this mountain.”

At the conclusion of this farewell pilgrimage, asit was called, being the last he ever made, Mahometreformed the calendar in two points: In the firstplace, he appointed the year to be exactly lunar, consistingof twelve lunar months; whereas before, in order toreduce the lunar to the solar year, they used to makeevery third year consist of thirteen months.And secondly, whereas the ancient Arabians held fourmonths sacred, wherein it was unlawful to commit anyact of hostility, he took away that prohibition, bythis command, “Attack the idolaters in all themonths of the year, as they attack you in all.”(Koran, ix.)

In the eleventh year of the Hegira there arrived anembassy from Arabia Felix, consisting of about onehundred who had embraced Islamism. The same yearMahomet ordered Osama to go to the place where Zaidhis father was slain at the battle of Muta, to revengehis death. This was the last expedition he everordered, for, being taken ill two days after, he diedwithin thirteen days. The beginning of his sicknesswas a slow fever, which made him delirious. Inhis frenzy he called for pen, ink, and paper, andsaid he “would write a book that should keepthem from erring after his death.” ButOmar opposed it, saying the Koran is sufficient,and that the prophet, through the greatness of hismalady, knew not what he said. Others, however,expressing a desire that he would write, a contentionarose, which so disturbed Mahomet that he bade themall begone. During his illness he complainedof the poisoned meat he had swallowed at Khaibar.Some say, when he was dying, Gabriel told him theangel of death, who never before had been, nor wouldever again be, so ceremonious toward anybody, waswaiting for his permission to come in. As soonas Mahomet had answered, “I give him leave,”the angel of death entered and complimented the prophet,telling him God was very desirous to have him, buthad commanded he should take his soul or leave it,just as he himself should please to order. Mahometreplied, “Take it, then.” [According tothe testimony of all the Eastern authors Mahomet diedon Monday the 12th Reby 1st, in the year 11 of theHegira, which answers in reality to the 8th of June,A.D. 632.]

His grave was dug under the bed whereon he lay, inthe chamber of Ayesha. The Arabian writers arevery particular to tell us everything about the washingand embalming his body; who dug his grave, who puthim in, etc.[64]

The person of Mahomet is minutely described by Arabianwriters. He was of a middle stature, had a largehead, thick beard, black eyes, hooked nose, wide mouth,a thick neck, flowing hair. They also tell usthat what was called the seal of his apostleship,a hairy mole between his shoulders, as large as apigeon’s egg, disappeared at his death.Its disappearance seems to have convinced those whowould not before believe it that he was really dead.His intimate companion Abu Horaira said he never sawa more beautiful man than the prophet. He wasso reverenced by his bigoted disciples they wouldgather his spittle up and swallow it.

The same writers extol Mahomet as a man of fine partsand a strong memory, of few words, of a cheerful aspect,affable and complaisant in his behavior. Theyalso celebrate his justice, clemency, generosity,modesty, abstinence, and humility. As an instanceof the last virtue, they tell us he mended his ownclothes and shoes. However, to judge of him byhis actions as related by these same writers, we cannothelp concluding that he was a very subtle and crafty

man, who put on the appearance only of those goodqualities, while the governing principles of his soulwere ambition and lust. For we see him, as soonas he found himself strong enough to act upon theoffensive, plundering caravans, and, under a pretenceof fighting for the true religion, attacking, murdering,enslaving, and making tributaries of his neighbors,in order to aggrandize and enrich himself and hisgreedy followers, and without scruple making use ofassassination to cut off those who opposed him.Of his lustful disposition we have a sufficient proof,in the peculiar privileges he claimed to himself ofhaving as many wives as he pleased, and of whom hechose, even though they were within forbidden degreesof affinity. The authors who give him the smallestnumber of wives own that he had fifteen; whereas theKoran allows no Mussulman more than four.As for himself, Mahomet had no shame in avowing thathis chief pleasures were perfumes and women.

THE KORAN

The Koran is held by the Mahometans in thegreatest veneration. The book must not be touchedby anybody but a Mussulman, nor even by a believerexcept he be free from pollution. Whether theKoran be created or uncreated has been thesubject of a controversy fruitful of the most violentpersecutions. The orthodox opinion is that theoriginal has been written from all eternity on thepreserved table. Of this they believe a completetranscript was brought down to the lower heaven (thatof the moon) by the angel Gabriel, and thence takenand shown to Mahomet, once every year of his mission,and twice in the last year of his life. Theyassert, however, that it was only piecemeal, that theseveral parts were revealed by the angel tothe prophet, and that he immediately dictated whathad been revealed to his secretary, who wrote it down.Each part, as soon as it was thus copied out, was communicatedto his disciples, to get by heart, and was afterwarddeposited in what he called the chest of his apostleship.This chest the prophet left in the custody of hiswife Hafsa.

When we consider the way in which the Koranwas compiled, we cannot wonder that it is so incoherenta piece as we find it. The book is divided intochapters; of these some are very long; others again,especially a few toward the end, very short. Eachchapter has a title prefixed, taken from the firstword, or from some one particular thing mentionedin it, rarely from the subject-matter of it; for ifa chapter be of any length, it usually runs into varioussubjects that have no connection with each other.A celebrated commentator divides the contents of theKoran into three general heads: 1.Precepts or directions, relating either to religion,as prayers, fasting, pilgrimages, or to civil polity,as marriages, inheritances, judicatures. 2. Histories—­whereofsome are taken from the Scriptures, but falsified

with fabulous additions; others are wholly false, havingno foundation in fact. 3. Admonitions: underwhich head are comprised exhortations to receive Islamism;to fight for it, to practise its precepts, prayers,alms, etc.; the moral duties, such as justice,temperance, etc., promises of everlasting felicityto the obedient, dissuasives from sin, threateningsof the punishments of hell to the unbelieving anddisobedient. Many of the threatenings are levelledagainst particular persons, and those sometimes ofMahomet’s own family, who had opposed him inpropagating his religion.

In the Koran God is brought in saying, “Wehave given you a book.” By this it appearsthat the impostor published early, in writing, someof his principal doctrines, as also some of his historicalrelations. Thus, in his life of himself we findhis disciples reading the twentieth chapter of theKoran, before his flight from Mecca; after whichhe pretended many of the revelations in other chapterswere brought to him. Undoubtedly, all those saidto be revealed at Medina must be posterior to whathe had then published at Mecca; because he had notyet been at Medina. Many parts of the Koranhe declared were brought to him by the angel Gabriel,on special occasions, of which we have already metwith several instances in his biography. Accordingly,the commentators on the Koran often explainpassages in it by relating the occasion on which theywere first revealed. Without such a key many ofthem would be perfectly unintelligible.

There are several contradictions in the Koran.To reconcile these, the Mussulman doctors have inventedthe doctrine of abrogation, i.e., that whatwas revealed at one time was revoked by a new revelation.A great deal of it is so absurd, trifling, and fullof tautology that it requires no little patience toread much of it at a time. Notwithstanding, theKoran is cried up by the Mussulmans as inimitable;and in the seventeenth chapter of the KoranMahomet is commanded to say, “Verily if menand genii were purposely assembled, that they mightproduce anything like the Koran, they couldnot produce anything like unto it, though they assistedone another.” Accordingly, when the impostorwas called upon, as he often was, to work miraclesin proof of his divine mission, he excused himselfby various pretences, and appealed to the Koranas a standing miracle.[65] Each chapter of the Koranis divided into verses, that is, lines of differentlength, terminated with the same letter, so as to makea different rhyme, but without any regard to the measureof the syllables.

The Mahometan religion consists of two parts, faithand practice. Faith they divide into six articles:1. A belief in the unity of God, in oppositionto those whom they call associators; by which namethey mean not only those who, besides the true God,worship idols or inferior gods or goddesses, but theChristians also, who hold our blessed Saviour’sdivinity and the doctrine of the Trinity. 2. Abelief of angels, to whom they attribute various shapes,names, and offices, borrowed from the Jews and Persians.3. The Scriptures. 4. The prophets:on this head the Koran teaches that God revealedhis will to various prophets, in divers ages of theworld, and gave it in writing to Adam, Seth, Enoch,Abraham, etc.; but these books are lost:that afterward he gave the Pentateuch to Moses, thePsalms to David, the Gospel to Jesus, and the Koranto Mahomet. The Koran speaks with greatreverence of Moses and Jesus, but says the Scripturesleft by them have been greatly mutilated and corrupted.Under this pretence it adds a great many fabulousrelations to the history contained in those sacredbooks, and charges the Jews and Christians with suppressingmany prophecies concerning Mahomet (a calumny easilyrefuted, the Scriptures having been translated intovarious languages long before Mahomet was born). 5.The fifth article of belief is the resurrection andday of judgment, while about the intermediate stateMahometan divines have various opinions. Thehappiness promised to the Mussulmans in paradise iswholly sensual, consisting of fine gardens, rich furnituresparkling with gems and gold, delicious fruits, andwines that neither cloy nor intoxicate; but aboveall, affording the fruition of all the delights oflove in the society of women having large black eyesand every trait of exquisite beauty, who shall evercontinue young and perfect. Some of their writersspeak of these females of paradise in very lofty strains;telling us, for instance, that if one of them wereto look down from heaven in the night she would illuminatethe earth as the sun does; and if she did but spitinto the ocean, it would be immediately turned as sweetas honey. These delights of paradise were certainly,at first, understood literally; however Mahometandivines may have since allegorized them into a spiritualsense. As to the punishments threatened to thewicked, they are hell-fire, breathing hot winds, thedrinking of boiling and stinking water, eating briersand thorns, and the bitter fruit of the tree Zacom,which in their bellies will feel like boiling pitch.These punishments are to be everlasting to all exceptthose who embrace Islamism; for the latter, aftersuffering a number of years, in proportion to theirdemerits, will then, if they have had but so much faithas is equal to the weight of an ant, be released bythe mercy of God, and, upon the intercession of Mahomet,admitted into paradise.

The sixth article of belief is that God decrees everythingthat is to happen, not only all events, but the actionsand thoughts of men, their belief or infidelity; thateverything that has or will come to pass has been,from eternity, written in the preserved or secret table,which is a white stone of an immense size, preservedin heaven, near the throne of God. Agreeableto this notion one of their poets thus expresses himself:“Whatever is written against thee will come topass; what is written for thee shall not fail; resignthyself to God, and know thy Lord to be powerful;his decrees will certainly take place; his servantsought to be silent.”

Of their four fundamental points of practice, thefirst is prayer. This duty is to be performedfive times in the twenty-four hours: 1. Inthe morning before sunrise. 2. When noon is past.3. A little before sunset. 4. A little aftersunset. 5. Before the first watch of the night.Previous to prayer they are to purify themselves bywashing. Some kinds of pollution require thewhole body to be immersed in water, but commonly itis enough to wash some parts only—­the head,the face and neck, hands and feet. In the latterablution, called wodhu, fine sand or dust maybe used when water cannot be had; in such case thepalm of the hand, being first laid upon the sand,is then to be drawn over the part required to be washed.The Mahometans, out of respect to the divine Majestybefore whom they are to appear, are required to beclean and decent when they go to public prayers intheir mosques; but are yet forbidden to appear therein sumptuous apparel, particularly clothes trimmedwith gold or silver, lest they should make them vainand arrogant. The women are not allowed to bein their mosques at the same time with the men; thisthey think would make their thoughts wander from theirproper business there. On this account they reproachthe Christians with the impropriety of the contraryusage. The next point of practice is alms-giving,which is frequently enjoined in the Koran andlooked upon as highly meritorious. Many of themhave been very exemplary in the performance of thisduty. The third point of practical religion isfasting the whole month Ramadan, during which theyare every day to abstain from eating or drinking,or touching a woman, from daybreak to sunset; afterthat they are at liberty to enjoy themselves as atother times. From this fast an exception is madein favor of old persons and children. Those alsothat are sick or on a journey, and women pregnantor nursing, are also excused in this month. Butthen, the person making use of this dispensation mustexpiate the omission by fasting an equal number ofdays in some other month and by giving alms to thepoor. There are also some other days of fasting,which are, by the more religious, observed in themanner above described. The last practical dutyis going the pilgrimage to Mecca, which every manwho is able is obliged to perform once in his life.In the ceremonies of it they strictly copy those observedby Mahomet. A pilgrimage can be made only in themonth Dulhagha; but a visitation to Mecca may be madeat any other time of the year.

THE MAHOMETAN CREED

As an illustration of the Mahometan creed and practiceI have thought it advisable to insert their famousDr. Al-Gazali’s interpretation of the two articlesof their faith, viz., “There is no God butGod; Mahomet is the apostle of God”:

“Praise be to God the Creator and Restorer ofall things: who does whatsoever he pleases, whois master of the glorious throne and mighty force,and directs his sincere servants into the right wayand the straight path; who favoreth them who haveonce borne testimony to the unity, by preserving theirconfessions from the darkness of doubt and hesitation;who directs them to follow his chosen apostle, uponwhom be the blessing and peace of God; and to go afterhis most honorable companions, to whom he hath vouchsafedhis assistance and direction which is revealed tothem in his essence and operations by the excellencesof his attributes, to the knowledge whereof no manattains but he that hath been taught by hearing.To these, as touching his essence, he maketh knownthat he is one, and hath no partner: singular,without anything like him: uniform, having nocontrary: separate, having no equal. Heis ancient, having no first: eternal, having nobeginning: remaining forever, having no end:continuing to eternity, without any termination.He persists, without ceasing to be, remains withoutfailing, and never did cease, nor ever shall cease,to be described by glorious attributes, nor is subjectto any decree so as to be determined by any preciselimits or set times, but is the First and the Last,and is within and without.

“What God is not.] He (glorified be hisname) is not a body endued with form, nor a substancecirc*mscribed with limits or determined by measure;neither does he resemble bodies, as they are capableof being measured or divided. Neither is he asubstance, neither do substances exist in him; neitheris he an accident, nor do accidents exist in him.Neither is he like to anything that exists, neitheris anything like to him; nor is he determinate inquantity nor comprehended by bounds, nor circ*mscribedby the differences of situation nor contained in theheavens. He sits upon the throne, after that mannerwhich he himself hath described, and in that samesense which he himself means, which is a sitting farremoved from any notion of contact, or resting upon,or local situation; but both the throne itself, andwhatsoever is upon it, are sustained by the goodnessof his power, and are subject to the grasp of hishand. But he is above the throne, and above allthings, even to the utmost ends of the earth; butso above as at the same time not to be a whit nearerthe throne and the heaven; since he is exalted by(infinite) degrees above the throne no less than heis exalted above the earth, and at the same time isnear to everything that hath a being; nay, nearerto men than their jugular veins, and is witness to

everything; though his nearness is not like the nearnessof bodies, as neither is his essence like the essenceof bodies. Neither doth he exist in anything,neither doth anything exist in him; but he is too highto be contained in any place, and too holy to be determinedby time; for he was before time and place were created,and is now after the same manner as he always was.He is also distinct from the creatures by his attributes,neither is there anything besides himself in his essence,nor is his essence in any other besides him. Heis too holy to be subject to change, or any localmotion; neither do any accidents dwell in him norany contingencies befall him, but he abides throughall generations with his glorious attributes, freefrom all danger of dissolution. As to the attributeof perfection, he wants no addition of his perfection.As to being, he is known to exist by the apprehensionof the understanding; and he is seen as he is by anocular intuition, which will be vouchsafed out ofhis mercy and grace to the holy in the eternal mansion,completing their joy by the vision of his gloriouspresence.

“His Power.] He, praised be his name,is living, powerful, mighty, omnipotent, not liableto any defect or impotence, neither slumbering norsleeping, nor being obnoxious to decay or death.To him belong the kingdom, and the power, and themight. His is the dominion, and the excellency,and the creation, and the command thereof. Theheavens are folded up in his right hand, and all creaturesare crouched within his grasp. His excellencyconsists in his creating and producing, and his unityin communicating existence and a beginning of being.He created men and their works, and measured out theirmaintenance and their determined times. Nothingthat is possible can escape his grasp, nor can thevicissitudes of things elude his power. The effectsof his might are innumerable, and the objects of hisknowledge infinite.

“His Knowledge.] He, praised be his name,knows all things that can be understood, and comprehendswhatsoever comes to pass, from the extremities ofthe earth to the highest heavens, even the weight ofa pismire could not escape him either in earth orheaven; but he would perceive the creeping of theblack pismire in the dark night upon the hard stone,and discern the motion of an atom in the open air.He knows what is secret and conceals it, and viewsthe conceptions of the minds, and the motions of thethoughts, and the inmost recesses of secrets, by aknowledge ancient and eternal, that never ceased tobe his attribute from eternal eternity, and not byany new knowledge, superadded to his essence, eitherinhering or adventitious.

“His Will.] He, praised be his name,doth will those things to be that are, and disposesof all accidents. Nothing passes in the empire,nor the kingdom, neither little nor much, nor smallnor great, nor good nor evil, nor profitable nor hurtful,nor faith nor infidelity, nor knowledge nor ignorance,nor prosperity nor adversity, nor increase nor decrease,nor obedience nor rebellion, but by his determinatecounsel and decree, and his definite sense and will.Nor doth the wink of him that seeth, nor the subtletyof him that thinketh, exceed the bounds of his will:but it is he who gave all things their beginning; heis the creator and restorer, the sole operator ofwhat he pleases; there is no reversing his decreenor delaying what he hath determined, nor is thereany refuge to man from his rebellion against him, butonly his help and mercy; nor hath any man any powerto perform any duty toward him, but through his loveand will. Though men and genii, angels and devils,should conspire together either to put one single atomin motion, or cause it to cease its motion, withouthis will and approbation they would not be able todo it. His will subsists in his essence amongthe rest of his attributes, and was from eternityone of his eternal attributes, by which he willedfrom eternity the existence of those things that hehad decreed, which were produced in their proper seasonsaccording to his eternal will, without any before orafter, and in agreement both with his knowledge andwill, and not by methodizing of thoughts, nor waitingfor a proper time, for which reason no one thing isin him a hinderance from another.

“His Hearing and Sight.] And he, praisedbe his name, is hearing and seeing, and heareth andseeth. No audible object, how still soever, escapethhis hearing; nor is anything visible so small as toescape his sight; for distance is no hinderance tohis hearing, nor darkness to his sight. He seeswithout pupil or eyelids, and hears without any passageor ear, even as he knoweth without a heart, and performshis actions without the assistance of any corporeallimb, and creates without any instrument, for hisattributes (or properties) are not like those of men,any more than his essence is like theirs.

“His Word.] Furthermore, he doth speak,command, forbid, promise, and threaten by an eternal,ancient word subsisting in his essence. Neitheris it like to the word of the creatures, nor doth itconsist in a voice arising from the commotion of theair and the collision of bodies, nor letters whichare separated by the joining together of the lips orthe motion of the tongue. The Koran, theLaw, the Gospel, and the Psalter, are books sent downby him to his apostles, and the Koran, indeed,is read with tongues, written in books, and kept inhearts; yet as subsisting in the essence of God, itdoth not become liable to separation and divisionwhile it is transferred into the hearts and the papers.Thus Moses also heard the word of God without voiceor letter, even as the saints behold the essence ofGod without substance or accident. And that sincethese are his attributes, he liveth and knoweth, ispowerful and willeth and operateth, and seeth and speaketh,by life and knowledge, and will and hearing, and sightand word, not by his simple essence.

“His Works.] He, praised be his name,exists after such a manner that nothing besides himhath any being but what is produced by his operation,and floweth from his justice after the best, most excellent,most perfect, and most just model. He is, moreover,wise in his works and just in his decrees. Buthis justice is not to be compared with the justiceof men. For a man may be supposed to act unjustlyby invading the possession of another; but no injusticecan be conceived of God, inasmuch as there is nothingthat belongs to any other besides himself, so thatwrong is not imputable to him as meddling with thingsnot appertaining to him. All things, himselfonly excepted, genii, men, the devil, angels, heaven,earth, animals, plants, substance, accident, intelligible,sensible, were all created originally by him.He created them by his power out of mere privation,and brought them into light, when as yet they werenothing at all, but he alone existing from eternity,neither was there any other with him. Now he createdall things in the beginning for the manifestationof his power, and his will, and the confirmation ofhis word, which was true from all eternity. Notthat he stood in need of them, nor wanted them; buthe manifestly declared his glory in creating, andproducing, and commanding, without being under anyobligation, nor out of necessity. Loving-kindness,and to show favor, and grace, and beneficence, belongto him; whereas it is in his power to pour forth uponmen a variety of torments, and afflict them with variouskinds of sorrows and diseases, which, if he were todo, his justice could not be arraigned, nor wouldhe be chargeable with injustice. Yet he rewardsthose that worship him for their obedience on accountof his promise and beneficence, not of their meritnor of necessity, since there is nothing which he canbe tied to perform; nor can any injustice be supposedin him, nor can he be under any obligation to anyperson whatsoever. That his creatures, however,should be bound to serve him, ariseth from his havingdeclared by the tongues of the prophets that it wasdue to him from them. The worship of him is notsimply the dictate of the understanding, but he sentmessengers to carry to men his commands, and promises,and threats, whose veracity he proved by manifestmiracles, whereby men are obliged to give credit tothem in those things that they relate.

“The signification of the second article;that is, the testimony concerning the Apostle.]He, the Most High, sent Mahomet, the illiterate prophetof the family of the Koreish, to deliver his messageto all the Arabians and barbarians and genii and men;and abrogated by his religion all other religions,except in those things which he confirmed; and gavehim the preeminence over all the rest of the prophets,and made him lord over all mortal men. Neitheris the faith, according to his will, complete by thetestimony of the unity alone; that is, by simply saying,

There is but one God, without the addition of thetestimony of the apostle; i.e., without thefurther testimony, Mahomet is the apostle of God.And he hath made it necessary to men to give creditto Mahomet in those things which he hath related, bothwith regard to this present world and the life tocome. For a man’s faith is not acceptedtill he is fully persuaded of those things which theprophet hath affirmed shall be after death. Thefirst of these is the examination of Munkir and Nakir.These are two angels, of a most terrible and fearfulaspect, who shall place [every] man upright in hisgrave, consisting again both of soul and body, andask him concerning the unity and the mission [of theapostle], saying, Who is thy Lord? and, What is thyreligion? and, Who is thy prophet? For these arethe searchers of the grave, and their examinationthe first trial after death. Everyone must alsobelieve the torment of the sepulchre, and that itis due and right and just, both upon the body and thesoul, being according to the will of God.

“He shall also believe in the balance with twoscales and a beam, that shall equal the extent ofthe heavens and the earth; wherein the works [of men]shall be weighed by the power of God. At whichtime weights not heavier than atoms, or mustard-seeds,shall be brought out, that things may be balancedwith the utmost exactness, and perfect justice administered.Then the books of the good works, beautiful to behold,shall be cast into the balance of light, by which thebalance shall be depressed according to their degrees,out of the favor of God. But the books of evildeeds, nasty to look upon, shall be cast into the balanceof darkness, with which the scale shall lightly ascendby the justice of the most high God.

“He must also believe that there is a real way,extended over the middle of hell, which is sharperthan a sword and finer than a hair, over which allmust pass. In this passage of it, while the feetof the infidels, by the decree of God, shall slip,so as they shall fall into hell-fire, the feet ofthe faithful shall never stumble, but they shall arrivesafely into the eternal habitation.

“He shall also believe the pond where they godown to be watered, that is the pond of Mahomet (uponwhom be the blessing and peace of God), out of whichthe faithful, after they have passed the way, drinkbefore they enter into paradise; and out of whichwhosoever once drinketh shall thirst no more forever.Its breadth is a month’s journey, it is whiterthan milk and sweeter than honey. Round aboutit stand cups as innumerable as the stars, and ithath two canals, by which the waters of the [river]Cauthar flow into it.

“He shall also believe the [last] account, inwhich men shall be divided into those that shall bereckoned withal with the utmost strictness, and thosethat shall be dealt withal more favorably, and thosethat shall be admitted into paradise without any mannerof examination at all; namely, those whom God shallcause to approach near to himself. Moreover, heshall believe that God will ask any of his apostles,whomsoever he shall please, concerning their mission;of the infidels, and whomsoever he shall please, whatwas the reason why, by their unbelief, they accusedthose that were sent to them of lying. He willalso examine the heretics concerning tradition, andthe faithful concerning their good works.

“He shall also believe that all who confessone God shall, upon the intercession of the prophets,next of the doctors, then of the martyrs, and finallyof the rest of the faithful—­that is, everyoneaccording to his excellency and degree—­atlength go out of the fire after they have undergonethe punishment due to their sins.

“And if besides these remain any of the faithful,having no intercessor, they shall go out by the graceof God; neither shall any one of the faithful remainforever in hell, but shall go out from thence thoughhe had but so much faith in his heart as the weightof an atom. And thus, by the favorable mercyof God, no person shall remain in hell who in lifeacknowledge the unity of the Godhead.

“It is also necessary that every true believeracknowledge the excellency of the companions [of Mahomet]and their degrees; and that the most excellent ofmen, next to Mahomet, is Abu-Bekr, then Omar, thenOthman, and then Ali. Moreover, he must entertaina good opinion of all the companions, and celebratetheir memories, according as God and his apostleshath celebrated them. And all these things arereceived by tradition, and evinced by evident tokens;and he that confesseth all these things, and surelybelieveth them, is to be reckoned among the numberof those that embrace truth, and of the congregationof those that walk in the received way, separatedfrom the congregation of those that err, and the companyof heretics.

“These are the things that everyone is obligedto believe and confess that would be accounted worthyof the name of a Mussulman; and that, according tothe literal meaning of the words, not as they may bemade capable of any sounder sense; for, says the authorof this exposition, some pretending to go deeper haveput an interpretation upon those things that are deliveredconcerning the world to come, such as the balance,and the way, and some other things besides, but itis heresy.”

FOOTNOTES:

[49] This famous structure (in the Arabic, Kef’bah—­asquare building) for over twelve hundred years hasbeen the cynosure of the Moslem peoples. It isundoubtedly of great antiquity, being mentioned byDiodorus the historian in the latter part of the firstcentury, at which time its sanctity was acknowledgedand its idols venerated by the Arabians and kindredtribes who paid yearly visits to the shrine to offertheir devotions.

According to the Arabian legend Adam, after his expulsionfrom the Garden, worshipped Allah on this spot.A tent was then sent down from heaven, but Seth substituteda hut for the tent. After the Flood, Abrahamand Ishmael rebuilt the Kaaba.

At present it is a cube-shaped, flat-roofed buildingof stone in the Great Mosque at Mecca. In itssoutheast corner next to the silver door is the famousblack stone “hajar al aswud,” droppedfrom paradise. It was said to have been originallya white stone (by other accounts a ruby), but thetears—­or more probably the kisses—­ofpilgrims have turned it quite black.

[50] Palmer has it: “In the mean time Mahometand Abu-Bekr escaped by a back window in the houseof the latter.”

[51] Zem-sem, the name of this well, is saidby the Moslems to be the spring which Hagar had revealedto her when driven into the wilderness with her son,Ishmael.

[52] Friday remains the Sabbath of the Moslems.

[53] His nephew and son-in-law, surnamed “theLion-hearted.”

[54] The Persians add these words, “and Aliis the friend of God.” Kouli Khan, havinga mind to unite the two different sects, ordered themto be omitted.—­Fraser’s Life ofKouli Khan, p. 124.

[55] An Arab of Kossay, named Ammer Ibn Lahay, issaid to have first introduced idolatry among his countrymen;he brought the idol called Hobal, from Hyt in Mesopotamia,and set it up in the Kaaba. It was the Jupiterof the Arabians, and was made of red agate in the formof a man holding in his hand seven arrows withoutheads or feathers, such as the Arabs use in divination.At a subsequent period the Kaaba was adorned withthree hundred and sixty idols, corresponding probablyto the days of the Arabian year.—­Burckhardt’sArabia, pp. 163, 164.

[56] An opinion as ancient as Homer.—­Iliad,vi. 487.

[57] Several stories have been told as the occasionof Mahomet’s prohibiting the drinking of wine.Busbequius says: “Mahomet, making a journeyto a friend at noon, entered into his house, wherethere was a marriage feast; and sitting down withthe guests, he observed them to be very merry andjovial, kissing and embracing one another, which wasattributed to the cheerfulness of their spirits raisedby the wine; so that he blessed it as a sacred thingin being thus an instrument of much love among men.But returning to the same house the next day, he beheldanother face of things, as gore-blood on the ground,a hand cut off, an arm, foot, and other limbs dismembered,which he was told was the effect of the brawls andfightings occasioned by the wine, which made them mad,and inflamed them into a fury, thus to destroy oneanother. Whereon he changed his mind, and turnedhis former blessing into a curse, and forbade wineever after to all his disciples.” (Epist. 3.)“This prohibition of wine hindered many of theprophet’s contemporaries from embracing his

religion. Yet several of the most respectableof the pagan Arabs, like certain of the Jews and earlyChristians, abstained totally from wine, from a feelingof its injurious effects upon morals, and, in theirclimate, upon health; or, more especially, from thefear of being led by it into the commission of foolishand degrading actions. Thus Keys, the son ofAsim, being one night overcome with wine, attemptedto grasp the moon, and swore that he would not quitthe spot where he stood until he had laid hold ofit. After leaping several times with the viewof doing so, he fell flat upon his face; and when herecovered his senses, and was acquainted with thecause of his face being bruised, he made a solemnvow to abstain from wine ever after.”—­Lane’sArab. Nights, vol. i. pp. 217, 218.

[58] The following elucidation of the above circ*mstanceis given by Sale: “Mahomet having undertakenan expedition against the tribe of Mostalek, in thesixth year of the Hegira, took his wife Ayesha withhim. On their return, when they were not far fromMedina, the army removing by night, Ayesha, on theroad, alighted from her camel, and stepped aside ona private occasion; but on her return, perceiving shehad dropped her necklace, which was of onyxes of Dhafar,she went back to look for it; and in the mean timeher attendants, taking it for granted that she wasgot into her pavilion, set it again on the camel,and led it away. When she came back to the roadand saw her camel was gone, she sat down there, expectingthat when she was missed some would be sent back tofetch her; and in a little time she fell asleep.Early in the morning, Safwan Ebu al Moattel, who hadstayed behind to rest himself, coming by, perceivedsomebody asleep, and found it was Ayesha; upon whichhe awoke her, by twice pronouncing with a low voicethese words, ‘We are God’s, and unto himmust we return.’ Ayesha immediately coveredherself with her veil; and Safwan set her on his owncamel, and led her after the army, which they overtookby noon, as they were resting. This accidenthad like to have ruined Ayesha, whose reputation waspublicly called in question, as if she had been guiltyof adultery with Safwan.”—­Sale’sKoran, xxiv. note.

[59] He once thought to have ordered the pilgrimageto Jerusalem; but finding the Jews so inveterate againsthim, thought it more advisable to oblige the Arabs.

[60] “An implicit belief in magic is entertainedby almost all Mussulmans. Babil, or Babel, isregarded by the Mussulmans as the fountain-head ofthe science of magic, which was, and, as most think,still is, taught there to mankind by two fallen angels,named Haroot and Maroot, who are there suspended bythe feet in a great pit closed by a mass of rock.”—­Lane’sArab. Nights, vol. i. pp. 66, 218.

“From another fable of these two magicians,we are told that the angels in heaven, expressingtheir surprise at the wickedness of the sons of Adam,after prophets had been sent to them with divine commissions,God bid them choose two out of their own number, tobe sent down to be judges on earth. Whereuponthey pitched upon Haroot and Maroot, who executedtheir office with integrity for some time, in the provinceof Babylon; but while they were there, Zohara, orthe planet Venus, descended, and appeared before themin the shape of a beautiful woman, bringing a complaintagainst her husband. As soon as they saw her theyfell in love with her, whereupon she invited them todinner, and set wine before them, which God had forbiddenthem to drink. At length, being tempted by theliquor to transgress the divine command, they becamedrunk, and endeavored to prevail on her to satisfytheir desires; to which she promised to consent uponcondition that one of them should first carry herto heaven, and the other bring her back again.They immediately agreed to do so, but directly thewoman reached heaven she declared to God the wholematter, and as a reward for her chastity she was madethe morning star. The guilty angels were allowedto choose whether they would be punished in this lifeor in the other; and upon their choosing the former,they were hung up by the feet by an iron chain ina certain pit near Babylon, where they are to continuesuffering the punishment of their transgression untilthe day of judgment. By the same tradition wealso learn that if a man has a fancy to learn magic,he may go to them and hear their voice, but cannotsee them.”—­Sale’s Koran,ii. and notes

[61] Moore thus alludes to the circ*mstance in LallaRookh:—­

“And here Mahomet,born for love and guile,
Forgets the Koranin his Mary’s smile,
Then beckons some kindangel from above,
With a new text to consecratetheir love!”
—­VeiledProphet of Khorassan.

[62] “The death of Jaafar was heroic and memorable;he lost his right hand, he shifted the standard tohis left, the left was severed from his body, he embracedthe standard with his bleeding stumps, till he wastransfixed to the ground with fifty honorable wounds.‘Advance,’ cried Abdallah, who steppedinto the vacant place, ’advance with confidence;either victory or paradise is our own.’The lance of a Roman decided the alternative; butthe falling standard was rescued by Kaled, the proselyteof Mecca; nine swords were broken in his hand; andhis valor withstood and repulsed the superior numbersof the Christians. To console the afflicted relativesof his kinsman Jaafar, Mahomet represented that, inparadise, in exchange for the arms he had lost, hehad been furnished with a pair of wings, resplendentwith the blushing glories of the ruby, and with whichhe was become the inseparable companion of the archangelGabriel, in his volitations through the regions ofeternal bliss. Hence, in the catalogue of themartyrs he has been denominated Jaaffer teyaur(’the winged Jaaffer’).”—­Milman’sGibbon, 1.

[63] Mahomet’s victims were camels; they may,however, be sheep or goats, but in this case theymust be male; if camels or kine, female.—­Sale,Prelim. Dis., p. 120.

[64] There are many ridiculous stories told of Mahomet,which, being notoriously fabulous, are not introducedhere. Two of the most popular are: Thata tame pigeon used to whisper in his ear the commandsof God. [The pigeon is said to have been taught tocome and peck some grains of rice out of Mahomet’sear, to induce people to think that he then receivedby the ministry of an angel the several articles ofthe Koran.] The other is that after his deathhe was buried at Medina, and his coffin suspended,by divine agency or magnetic power, between the ceilingand floor of the temple.

[65] Mirza Ibrahim (translated by Lee) states, however,that the miracles recorded of Mahomet almost exceedenumeration. “Some of the doctors of Islamismhave computed them at four thousand four hundred andfifty, while others have held that the more remarkableones were not fewer than a thousand, some of whichare almost universally accredited: as his dividingthe moon into two parts; the singing of the gravelin his hand; the flowing of the water from betweenhis fingers; the animals addressing him, and complainingbefore him; his satisfying a great multitude witha small quantity of food, and many others. Themiracle of the speaking of the moon is thus relatedby Gagnier: On one occasion Mahomet accepteda challenge to bring the moon from heaven in presenceof the whole assembly. Upon uttering his command,that luminary, full-orbed, though but five days old,leaped from the firmament, and, bounding through theair, alighted on the top of the Kaaba, after havingencircled it by seven distinct evolutions. Itis said to have paid reverence to the prophet, addressinghim in elegant Arabic, in set phrase of encomium,and concluding with the formula of the Mussulman faith.This done, the moon is said to have descended fromthe Kaaba, to have entered the right sleeve of Mahomet’smantle, and made its exit by the left. Afterhaving traversed every part of his flowing robe, theplanet separated into two parts, as it mounted to theair. Then these parts reunited in one round andluminous orb as before.”

THE SARACEN CONQUEST OF SYRIA

A.D. 636

SIMON OCKLEY

Abu-Bekr was chosen caliph, or khalif(signifying successor) to Mahomet, but died aftera reign of two years. His successor, Caliph Omar,continued with unabated ardor the efforts for the spreadof Islam which Abu-Bekr had initiated by sendingan invading expedition into Persia, and anotherinto the Roman provinces of Syria.

The victorious armies of the Crescentwere by this time far advanced beyond the frontiersof Arabia, and with fanatic zeal endeavoringto obey the prophet’s injunction to Islamizemankind. “Allah il Allah!”("God is God!”) was their inspiring war-cry,and “Mahomet is the prophet of God”their watchword. With cimeter and Koranin either hand they offered the conquered “Infidels”“Islam or the sword.”

The Oxus, which alone separated Saracenterritory from that of Syria, was easily passed.Damascus was conquered, and the impetuous spiritof the Moslems led them rapidly on to Heliopolis, thento Hems or Emesa. In subtlety they wereno less practised than they were well provedin courage, and by many arts they succeeded in creatingdiversions among their adversaries, and often in enlistingthem under the Saracen standard. By makingthe Syrians understand something of their language,customs, and religion, they prepared them forassimilation when once subjected. In some casesdissensions among the Syrians led them to invokethe intervention of those who came to subjugatethem.

In less than two years the Saracenshad conquered the Syrian plain and valley, butstill they reproached themselves for loss of time,and with redoubled zeal pressed on to new victories.The forces arrayed against them were greatlyaugmented both from Asia and Europe, but thedisciplined veterans of the Roman emperor Heraclius,and the recruits from the provinces, vainly confrontedthe Arabs, whose valor was of the nature of religiousfrenzy, which no assault could cause to quail.They won, at fearful cost to themselves, butwith greater loss to their enemies at the battle ofYermouk, and there caused the Roman army to abandonactive warfare against them.

It was then open to the victors toselect their own objective among the Syrian cities,and following the counsel of Ali, they entered atonce upon the siege of Jerusalem, although they heldthat city next to Mecca and Medina in veneration.

After a siege of four months Jerusalemcapitulated, her defenders having no rest fromthe ceaseless assaults of the besiegers. Hardwork still lay before the Saracens in Syria; butafter the reduction of Aleppo, which cost severalmonths’ siege, with great loss of livesto the invaders, they passed on to Antioch and otherstrongholds, until, one by one, all had been subdued;the surrender of Caesarea completing the greatconquest and the subjection of Syria to the ruleof the Caliph.

Heraclius, wearied with a constant and uninterruptedsuccession of ill news, which like those of Job cameevery day treading upon the heels of each other, grievedat the heart to see the Roman Empire, once the mistressof the world, now become the scorn and spoil of barbarianinsolence, resolved, if possible, to put an end tothe outrages of the Saracens once for all. Withthis view he raised troops in all parts of his dominions,and collected so considerable an army as since thefirst invasion of the Saracens had never appeared

in Syria—­not much unlike one engaged insingle combat who, distrustful of his own abilitiesand fearing the worst, summons together his wholestrength in hopes of ending the dispute with one decisiveblow. Troops were sent to every tenable placewhich this inundation of the Saracens had not as yetreached, particularly to Caesarea and all the sea-coastof Syria, as Tyre and Sidon, Accah, Joppa, Tripolis,Beyrout, and Tiberias, besides another army to defendJerusalem. The main body, which was designed togive battle to the whole force of the Saracens, wascommanded by one Mahan, an Armenian, whom I take tobe the very same that the Greek historians call Manuel.To his generals the Emperor gave the best advice,charging them to behave themselves like men, and especiallyto take care to avoid all differences or dissensions.Afterward, when he had expressed his astonishmentat this extraordinary success of the Arabs, who wereinferior to the Greeks, in number, strength, arms,and discipline, after a short silence a grave manstood up and told him that the reason of it was thatthe Greeks had walked unworthily of their Christianprofession, and changed their religion from what itwas when Jesus Christ first delivered it to them,injuring and oppressing one another, taking usury,committing fornication, and fomenting all manner ofstrife and variance among themselves. The Emperoranswered, that he was “too sensible of it.”He then told them that he had thoughts of continuingno longer in Syria, but, leaving his army to theirmanagement, he purposed to withdraw to Constantinople.In answer to which they represented to him how muchhis departure would reflect upon his honor, what alessening it would be to him in the eyes of his ownsubjects, and what occasion of triumph it would affordto his enemies the Saracens. Upon this they tooktheir leave and prepared for their march. Besidesa vast army of Asiatics and Europeans, Mahan was joinedby Al Jabalah Ebn Al Ayham, King of the Christian Arabs,who had under him sixty thousand men. These Mahancommanded to march always in the front, saying thatthere was nothing like diamond to cut diamond.This great army, raised for the defence of Christianpeople, was little less insupportable than the Saracensthemselves, committing all manner of disorder andoutrage as they passed along; especially when theycame to any of those places which had made any agreementwith the Saracens, or surrendered to them, they sworeand cursed and reviled the inhabitants with reproachfullanguage, and compelled them by force to bear themcompany. The poor people excused their submissionto the Saracens by their inability to defend themselves,and told the soldiers that if they did not approveof what they had done, they ought themselves to havecome sooner to their relief.

The news of this great army having reached the Saracenswhile they were at Hems, filled them full of apprehensions,and put them to a very great strait as to the bestcourse to pursue in this critical juncture. Someof them would very willingly have shrunk back and returnedto Arabia. This course, they urged, presenteda double advantage: on the one hand they wouldbe sure of speedy assistance from their friends; andon the other, in that barren country the numerousarmy of the enemy must needs be reduced to great scarcity.But Abu Obeidah, fearing lest such a retreat mightby the Caliph be interpreted cowardice in him, durstnot approve of this advice. Others would ratherdie in the defence of those stately buildings, fruitfulfields, and pleasant meadows they had won by the sword,than voluntarily to return to their former starvingcondition. They proposed therefore to remain wherethey were and wait the approach of the enemy.But Kaled disapproved of their remaining in theirpresent position, as it was too near Caesarea, whereConstantine, the Emperor’s son, lay with fortythousand men; and recommended that they should marchto Yermouk, where they might reckon on assistance fromthe Caliph. As soon as Constantine heard of theirdeparture, he sent a chiding letter to Mahan, andbade him mend his pace. Mahan advanced, but madeno haste to give the Saracens battle, having receivedorders from the Emperor to make overtures of peace,which were no sooner proposed than rejected by AbuObeidah. Several messages passed between them.The Saracens, endeavoring to bring their countrymanJabalah Ebn Al Ayham, with his Christian Arabs, toa neutrality, were answered that they were obligedto serve the Emperor, and resolved to fight. Uponthis Kaled, contrary to the general advice, preparedto give him battle before Mahan should come up, althoughthe number of his men—­who, however, werethe elite of the whole army—­wasvery inconsiderable, urging that the Christians, beingthe army of the devil, had no advantage by their numbersagainst the Saracens, the army of God. In choosinghis men, Kaled had called out more Ansers[66] thanMohajerins,[67] which, when it was observed, occasionedsome grumbling, as it then was doubted whether itwas because he respected them most or because he hada mind to expose them to the greater danger, thathe might favor the others. Kaled told them thathe had chosen them without any such regard, only becausethey were persons he could depend upon, whose valorhe had proved, and who had the faith rooted in theirhearts. One Cathib, happening to be called afterhis brother Sahal, and looking upon himself to be thebetter man, resented it as a high affront, and roundlyabused Kaled. The latter, however, gave him verygentle and modest answers, to the great satisfactionof all, especially of Abu Obeidah, who, after a shortcontention, made them shake hands. Kaled, indeed,was admirable in this respect, that he knew no less

how to govern his passions than to command the army;though, to most great generals, the latter frequentlyproves the easier task of the two. In this hazardousenterprise his success was beyond all expectation,for he threw Jabalah’s Arabs into disorder andkilled a great many, losing very few of his own menon the field, besides five prisoners, three of whomwere Yezid Ebn Abu Sofian, Rafi Ebn Omeira, and DerarEbn Al Alzwar, all men of great note. Abu Obeidahsent Abdallah Ebn Kort with an express to Omar, acquaintinghim with their circ*mstances, begging his prayersand some fresh recruits of Unitarians, a title theyglory in, as reckoning themselves the only assertersof the unity of the Deity. Omar and the wholecourt were extremely surprised, but comforted themselveswith the promises made to them in the Koran,which seemed now to be all they had left to trustto. To encourage the people, he went into thepulpit and showed them the excellency of fightingfor the cause of God, and afterward returned an answerto Abu Obeidah, full of such spiritual consolationas the Koran could afford. Omar commandedAbdallah, as soon as ever he came near the camp andbefore he delivered the letter, to cry out, “Goodnews!” in order to comfort the Mussulmans andease them in some measure of the perplexing apprehensionsthey labored under. As soon as he received thisletter and message, together with Omar’s blessing,he prepared to set out on his return to the army;but suddenly he remembered that he had omitted topay his respects at Mahomet’s tomb, which itwas very uncertain whether he should ever see again.Upon this he hastened to Ayesha’s house (theplace where Mahomet was buried), and found her sittingby the tomb with Ali and Abbas, and Ali’s twosons, Hasan and Hosein, one sitting upon Ali’slap, the other upon Abbas’. Ali was readingthe chapter of beasts, being the sixth of the Koran,and Abbas the chapter of Hud, which is the eleventh.Abdallah, having paid his respects to Mahomet, Aliasked him whether he did not think of going? Heanswered, “Yes,” but he feared he shouldnot get to the army before the battle, which yet hegreatly wished to do, if possible. “If youdesired a speedy journey,” answered Ali, “whydid not you ask Omar to pray for you? Don’tyou know that the prayers of Omar will not be turnedback? Because the apostle of God said of him:’If there were a prophet to be expected afterme, it would be Omar, whose judgment agrees with thebook of God.’ The prophet said of him besides,’If an [universal] calamity were to come fromheaven upon mankind, Omar would escape from it.’Wherefore, if Omar prayed for thee, thou shalt notstay long for an answer from God.” Abdallahtold him that he had not spoken one word in praiseof Omar but what he was very sensible of before.Only he desired to have not only his prayers but alsothose of all the Mussulmans, and especially of thosewho were at the tomb of the prophet. At thesewords all present lifted up their hands to heaven,and Ali said, “O God, I beseech thee, for thesake of this chosen apostle, in whose name Adam prayed,and thou answeredst his petition and forgavest hissins, that thou wouldst grant to Abdallah Ebn Korta safe and speedy return, and assist the followersof thy prophet with help, O thou who alone art greatand munificent!” Abdallah set out immediately,and afterward returned to the camp with such incrediblespeed that the Saracens were surprised. But theiradmiration ceased when he informed them of Omar’sblessing and Ali’s prayers at Mahomet’stomb.

Recruits were instantly raised in every part of Arabiato send to the army. Said Ebn Amir commandedthem, having received a flag of red silk at the handsof Omar, who told him that he gave him that commissionin hopes of his behaving himself well in it; advisinghim, among other things, not to follow his appetites,and not forgetting to put him in hopes of furtheradvancement if he should deserve it. Said thankedhim for his advice, adding that if he followed ithe should be saved. “And now,” saidSaid, “as you have advised me, so let me adviseyou.” “Speak on,” said Omar.“I bid you then [added the other] fear God morethan men, and not the contrary; and love all the Mussulmansas yourself and your family, as well those at a distanceas those near you. And command that which ispraiseworthy, and forbid that which is otherwise.”Omar, all the while he spoke, stood looking steadfastlyupon the ground, leaning his forehead upon his staff.Then he lifted up his head, and the tears ran downhis cheeks, and he said, “Who is able to do thiswithout the divine assistance?” Ali bade Saidmake good use of the Caliph’s advice and dismissedhim. Said, as he marched toward the army, losthis way, which turned out very unfortunate for theChristians, for by that means he fell in with theprefect of Amman with five thousand men. Saidhaving cut all the foot to pieces, the prefect fledwith the horse, but was intercepted by a party whichhad been sent out under Zobeir from the Saracen campto forage. Said at first thought they had fallentogether by the ears, and were fighting among themselves,but when he came up and heard the techir, hewas well satisfied. Zobeir ran the prefect throughwith a lance; of the rest not a single man escaped.The Saracens cut off all their heads, then flayedthem, and so carried them upon the points of theirlances, presenting a most horrible spectacle to allthat part of the country, till they came to the army,which received fresh courage by the accession of thisreinforcement, consisting of eight thousand men.

However, their satisfaction was greatly lessened bythe loss of the five prisoners whom Jabalah Ebn AlAyham had taken. Now it happened that Mahan desiredAbu Obeidah to send one of his officers to him fora conference. This being complied with, Kaledproffered his services, and being accepted by AbuObeidah, by his advice he took along with him a hundredmen, chosen out of the best soldiers in the army.Being met and examined by the out-guards, the chiefof whom was Jabalah Ebn Al Ayham, they were orderedto wait till the general’s pleasure should beknown. Mahan would have had Kaled come to himalone and leave his men behind him. But as Kaledrefused to hear of this, they were commanded as soonas they came near the general’s tent to alightfrom their horses and deliver their swords; and whenthey would not submit to this either, they were atlast permitted to enter as they pleased. Theyfound Mahan sitting upon a throne, and seats preparedfor themselves. But they refused to make useof them, and, removing them, sat down upon the ground.Mahan asked them the reason of their doing so, andtaxed them with want of breeding. To which Kaledanswered that that was the best breeding which wasfrom God, and what God has prepared for us to sitdown upon is purer than your tapestries, defendingtheir practice from a sentence of their prophet Mahomet,backed with this text of the Koran, “Outof it [meaning the earth] we have created you, andto it we shall return you, and out of it we shallbring you another time.” Mahan began thento expostulate with Kaled concerning their coming intoSyria, and all those hostilities which they had committedthere. Mahan seemed satisfied with Kaled’sway of talking, and said that he had before that timeentertained a quite different opinion of the Arabs,having been informed that they were a foolish, ignorantpeople. Kaled confessed that that was the conditionof most of them till God sent their prophet Mahometto lead them into the right way, and teach them todistinguish good from evil, and truth from error.During this conference they would argue very coollyfor a while, and then again fly into a violent passion.At last it happened that Kaled told Mahan that he shouldone day see him led with a rope about his neck toOmar to be beheaded. Upon this Mahan told himthat the received law of all nations secured ambassadorsfrom violence, which he supposed had encouraged himto take that indecent freedom; however, he was resolvedto chastise his insolence in the persons of his friends,the five prisoners, who should instantly be beheaded.At this threat Kaled, bidding Mahan attend to whathe was about to say, swore by God, by Mahomet, andthe holy temple of Mecca, that if he killed them heshould die by his hands, and that every Saracen presentshould kill his man, be the consequences what theymight, and immediately rose from his place and drewhis sword. The same was done by the rest of theSaracens. But when Mahan told him that he would

not meddle with him for the aforesaid reasons, theysheathed their swords and talked calmly again.And then Mahan made Kaled a present of the prisoners,and begged of him his scarlet tent, which Kaled hadbrought with him, and pitched hard by. Kaled freelygave it him, and refused to take anything in return(though Mahan gave him his choice of whatever he likedbest), thinking his own gift abundantly repaid by theliberation of the prisoners.

Both sides now prepared for that fight which was todetermine the fate of Syria. The particularsare too tedious to be related, for they continuedfighting for several days. Abu Obeidah resignedthe whole command of the army to Kaled, standing himselfin the rear, under the yellow flag which Abu-Bekrhad given him at his first setting forth into Syria,being the same which Mahomet himself had fought underat the battle of Khaibar. Kaled judged this themost proper place for Abu Obeidah, not only becausehe was no extraordinary soldier, but because he hopedthat the reverence for him would prevent the flightof the Saracens, who were now like to be as hard putto it as at any time since they first bore arms.For the same reason the women were placed in the rear.The Greeks charged so courageously and with such vastnumbers that the right wing of the Saracen horse wasquite borne down and cut off from the main body ofthe army. But no sooner did they turn their backsthan they were attacked by the women, who used themso ill and loaded them with such plenty of reproachesthat they were glad to return every man to his post,and chose rather to face the enemy than endure thestorm of the women. However, they with much difficultybore up, and were so hard pressed by the Greeks thatoccasionally they were fain to forget what their generalshad said a little before the fight, who told themthat paradise was before them and the devil and hell-firebehind them. Even Abu Sofian, who had himselfused that very expression, was forced to retreat,and was received by one of the women with a heartyblow over the face with a tent-pole. Night atlast parted the two armies at the very time when thevictory began to incline to the Saracens, who hadbeen thrice beaten back, and as often forced to returnby the women. Then Abu Obeidah said at once thoseprayers which belonged to two several hours.His reason for this was, I suppose, a wish that hismen, of whom he was very tender, should have the moretime to rest. Accordingly, walking about thecamp he looked after the wounded men, oftentimes bindingup their wounds with his own hands, telling them thattheir enemies suffered the same pain that they did,but had not that reward to expect from God which theyhad.

Among other single combats, of which several werefought between the two armies, it chanced that SerjabilEbn Shahhnah was engaged with an officer of the Christians,who was much too strong for him. The reason whichour author assigns for this is, because Serjabil waswholly given up to watching and fasting. Derar,thinking he ought not to stand still and see the prophet’ssecretary killed, drew his dagger, and while the combatantswere over head and ears in dust, came behind the Christianand stabbed him to the heart. The Saracens gaveDerar thanks for his service, but he said that hewould receive no thanks but from God alone. Uponthis a dispute arose between Serjabil and Derar concerningthe spoil of this officer. Derar claimed it asbeing the person that killed him; Serjabil as havingengaged him and tired him out first. The matterbeing referred to Abu Obeidah, he proposed the caseto the Caliph, concealing the names of the personsconcerned, who sent him word that the spoil of anyenemy was due to him that killed him. Upon whichAbu Obeidah took it from Serjabil and adjudged itto Derar.

Another day the Christian archers did such executionthat besides those Saracens which were killed andwounded in other parts there were seven hundred whichlost each of them one or both of their eyes, upon whichaccount the day in which that battle was fought iscalled Yaumo’ttewir, “The Day of Blinding.”And if any of those who lost their eyes that day wereafterward asked by what mischance he was blinded, hewould answer that it was not a mischance, but a tokenof favor from God, for they gloried as much in thosewounds they received in the defence of their superstitionas our enthusiasts do in what they call persecution,and with much the same reason. Abdallah Ebn Kort,who was present in all the wars in Syria, says thathe never saw so hard a battle as that which was foughton that day at Yermouk; and though the generals foughtmost desperately, yet after all they would have beenbeaten if the fight had not been renewed by the women.Caulah, Derar’s sister, being wounded, felldown; but Opheirah revenged her quarrel and struckoff the man’s head that did it. Upon Opheirahasking her how she did, she answered, “Verywell with God, but a dying woman.” However,she proved to be mistaken, for in the evening shewas able to walk about as if nothing had happened,and to look after the wounded men.

In the night the Greeks had another calamity addedto their misfortune of losing the victory in the day.It was drawn upon them by their own inhuman barbarity.There was at Yermouk a gentleman of a very ample fortune,who had removed thither from Hems for the sake of thesweet salubrity of its air. When Mahan’sarmy came to Yermouk this gentleman used to entertainthe officers and treat them nobly. To requitehim for his courtesy, while they were this day revellingat his house, they bade him bring out his wife tothem, and upon his refusing they took her by force

and abused her all night, and to aggravate their barbaritythey seized his little son and cut his head off.The poor lady took her child’s head and carriedit to Mahan, and having given him an account of theoutrages committed by his officers, demanded satisfaction.He took but little notice of the affair, and put heroff with a slight answer; upon which her husband,resolved to take the first opportunity of being revenged,went privately over to the Saracens and acquaintedthem with his design. Returning back to the Greeks,he told them it was in his power to do them singularservice. He therefore takes a great number ofthem, and brings them to a great stream, which wasvery deep, and only fordable at one place. Byhis instructions five hundred of the Saracen horsehad crossed over where the water was shallow, and afterattacking the Greeks, in a very little time returnedin excellent order by the same way they came.The injured gentleman calls out and encourages theGreeks to pursue, who, not at all acquainted with theplace, plunged into the water confusedly and perishedin great numbers. In the subsequent engagementsbefore Yermouk (all of which were in November, 636),the Christians invariably were defeated, till at last,Mahan’s vast army being broken and dispersed,he was forced to flee, thus leaving the Saracens mastersof the field, and wholly delivered from those terribleapprehensions with which the news of his great preparationshad filled them.

A short time after Abu Obeidah wrote to the Caliphthe following letter:

“In the name ofthe most merciful God, etc.

“This is to acquaint thee thatI encamped at Yermouk, where Mahan was near uswith such an army as that the Mussulmans never behelda greater. But God, of his abundant graceand goodness, overthrew this multitude and gaveus the victory over them. We killed of them abouta hundred and fifty thousand, and took forty thousandprisoners. Of the Mussulmans were killedfour thousand and thirty, to whom God had decreedthe honor of martyrdom. Finding some heads cutoff, and not knowing whether they belonged to the Mussulmansor Christians, I prayed over them and buriedthem. Mahan was afterward killed at Damascusby Nooman Ebn Alkamah. There was one Abu Joaidthat before the battle had belonged to them, havingcome from Hems; he drowned of them a great numberunknown to any but God. As for those thatfled into the deserts and mountains, we have destroyedthem all, and stopped all the roads and passages,and God has made us masters of their country,and wealth, and children. Written afterthe victory from Damascus, where I stay expecting thyorders concerning the division of the spoil.Fare thee well, and the mercy and blessing ofGod be upon thee and all the Mussulmans.”

Omar, in a short letter, expressed his satisfaction,and gave the Saracens thanks for their perseveranceand diligence, commanding Abu Obeidah to continue

where he was till further orders. As Omar hadmentioned nothing concerning the spoil, Abu Obeidahregarded it as left to his own discretion and dividedit without waiting for fresh instructions. Toa horseman he gave thrice as much as to a footman,and made a further difference between those horseswhich were of the right Arabian breed (which theylooked upon to be far the best) and those that werenot, allowing twice as much to the former as to thelatter. And when they were not satisfied withthis distribution, Abu Obeidah told them that theprophet had done the same after the battle of Khaibar;which, upon appeal made to Omar, was by him confirmed.Zobeir had at the battle of Yermouk two horses, whichhe used to ride by turns. He received five lots,three for himself and two for his horses. If anyslaves had run away from their masters before the battle,and were afterward retaken, they were restored totheir masters, who nevertheless received an equalshare of the spoil with the rest.

The Saracens having rested a month at Damascus, andrefreshed themselves, Abu Obeidah sent to Omar toknow whether he should go to Caesarea or Jerusalem.Ali being present when Omar was deliberating, said,to Jerusalem first, adding that he had heard the prophetsay as much. This city they had a great longingafter, as being the seat and burying place of a greatmany of the ancient prophets, in whom they reckonednone to have so deep an interest as themselves.Abu Obeidah having received orders to besiege it,sent Yezid Ebn Abu Sofian thither first with fivethousand men; and for five days together sent afterhim considerable numbers of men under his most experiencedand trustworthy officers. The Ierosolymites expressedno signs of fear, nor would they vouchsafe so muchas to send out a messenger to parley; but, plantingtheir engines upon the walls, made preparation fora vigorous defence. Yezid at last went near thewalls with an interpreter, to know their minds, andto propose the usual terms. When these were rejected,the Saracens would willingly have assaulted the townforthwith, had not Yezid told them that the generalhad not commanded them to make any assault, but onlyto sit down before the city; and thereupon sent toAbu Obeidah, who forthwith gave them order to fight.The next morning the generals having said the morningprayer, each at the head of his respective division,they all, as it were with one consent, quoted thisversicle out of the Koran, as being very appositeand pertinent to their present purpose: “Opeople! enter ye into the holy land which God hathdecreed for you,” being the twenty-fourth verseof the fifth chapter of the Koran, where theimpostor introduces Moses speaking to the childrenof Israel, and which words the Saracens dexterouslyinterpreted as belonging no less to themselves thanto their predecessors, the Israelites. Nor haveour own parts of the world been altogether destituteof such able expositors, who apply to themselves,

without limitation or exception, whatever in Scriptureis graciously expressed in favor of the people ofGod; while whatever is said of the wicked and ungodly,and of all the terrors and judgments denounced againstthem, they bestow with a liberal hand upon their neighbors.After their prayers were over, the Saracens began theirassault. The Ierosolymites never flinched, butsent them showers of arrows from the walls, and maintainedthe fight with undaunted courage till the evening.Thus they continued fighting ten days, and on the eleventhAbu Obeidah came up with the remainder of the army.He had not been there long before he sent the besiegedthe following letter:

“In the name ofthe most merciful God.

“From Abu Obeidah Ebn Aljerahh,to the chief commanders of the people of AEliaand the inhabitants thereof, health and happiness toeveryone that follows the right way and believesin God and the apostle. We require of youto testify that there is but one God, and Mahometis his apostle, and that there shall be a day of judgment,when God shall raise the dead out of their sepulchres;and when you have borne witness to this, it isunlawful for us either to shed your blood ormeddle with your sustenance or children.If you refuse this, consent to pay tribute and be underus forthwith; otherwise I shall bring men againstyou who love death better than you do the drinkingof wine, or eating hogs’ flesh: norwill I ever stir from you, if it please God, till Ihave destroyed those that fight for you and madeslaves of your children.”

The eating swine’s flesh and drinking wine areboth forbidden in the Koran, which occasionedthat reflection of Abu Obeidah upon the practice ofthe Christians. The besieged, not a whit daunted,held out four whole months entire, during all whichtime not one day passed without fighting; and it beingwinter time, the Saracens suffered a great deal ofhardships through the extremity of the weather.At last, when the besieged had well considered theobstinacy of the Saracens; who, they had good reasonto believe, would never raise the siege till theyhad taken the city, whatever time it took up or whateverpains it might cost them, Sophronius the patriarchwent to the wall, and by an interpreter discoursedwith Abu Obeidah, telling him that Jerusalem was theholy city, and whoever came into the Holy Land withany hostile intent would render himself obnoxiousto the divine displeasure. To which Abu Obeidahanswered: “We know that it is a noble city,and that our prophet Mahomet went from it in one nightto heaven, and approached within two bows’ shotof his Lord, or nearer; and that it is the mine ofthe prophets, and their sepulchres are in it.But we are more worthy to have possession of it thanyou are; neither will we leave besieging it till Goddelivers it up to us, as he hath done other placesbefore it.” At last the patriarch consentedthat the city should be surrendered upon condition

that the inhabitants received the articles of theirsecurity and protection from the Caliph’s ownhands, and not by proxy. Accordingly, Abu Obeidahwrote to Omar to come, whereupon he advised with hisfriends. Othman, who afterward succeeded him inthe government, dissuaded him from going, in orderthat the Ierosolymites might see that they were despisedand beneath his notice. Ali was of a very differentopinion, urging that the Mussulmans had endured greathardship in so long a siege, and suffered much fromthe extremity of the cold; that the presence of theCaliph would be a great refreshment and encouragementto them, and adding that the great respect which theChristians had for Jerusalem, as being the place towhich they went on pilgrimage, ought to be considered;that it ought not to be supposed that they would easilypart with it, but that it would soon be reinforcedwith fresh supplies. This advice of Ali beingpreferred to Othman’s, the Caliph resolved uponhis journey; which, according to his frugal style ofliving, required no great expense or equipage.When he had said his prayers in the mosque and paidhis respects at Mahomet’s tomb, he appointedAli his substitute, and set forward with a small retinue,the greatest part of which, having kept him companya little way, returned back to Medina.

Omar, having all the way he went set things arightthat were amiss, and distributed justice impartially,for which he was singularly eminent among the Saracens,came at last into the confines of Syria; and when hedrew near Jerusalem he was met by Abu Obeidah, andconducted to the Saracen camp, where he was welcomedwith the liveliest demonstrations of joy.

As soon as he came within sight of the city he criedout, “Allah acbar [O God], give us an easy conquest.”Pitching his tent, which was made of hair, he satdown in it upon the ground. The Christians hearingthat Omar was come, from whose hands they were toreceive their articles, desired to confer with himpersonally; upon which the Mussulmans would have persuadedhim not to expose his person for fear of some treachery.But Omar resolutely answered, in the words of the Koran:“Say, ’There shall nothing befall us butwhat God hath decreed for us; he is our Lord, andin God let all the believers put their trust.’”After a brief parley the besieged capitulated, andthose articles of agreement made by Omar with theIerosolymites are, as it were, the pattern which theMahometan princes have chiefly imitated.

The articles were these: “1. The Christiansshall build no new churches, either in the city orthe adjacent territory. 2. They shall not refusethe Mussulmans entrance into their churches, eitherby night or day. 3. They should set open thedoors of them to all passengers and travellers. 4.If any Mussulman should be upon a journey, they shallbe obliged to entertain him gratis for the space ofthree days. 5. They should not teach their children

the Koran, nor talk openly of their religion,nor persuade anyone to be of it; neither should theyhinder any of their relations from becoming Mahometans,if they had an inclination to it. 6. They shallpay respect to the Mussulmans, and if they were sittingrise up to them. 7. They should not go like theMussulmans in their dress, nor wear the same caps,shoes, nor turbans, nor part their hair as they do,nor speak after the same manner, nor be called by thenames used by the Mussulmans. 8. They shall notride upon saddles, nor bear any sort of arms, noruse the Arabic tongue in the inscriptions of theirseals. 9. They shall not sell any wine. 10.They shall be obliged to keep to the same sort ofhabit wheresoever they went, and always wear girdlesupon their waists. 11. They shall set no crossesupon their churches, nor show their crosses nor theirbooks openly in the streets of the Mussulmans. 12.They shall not ring, but only toll their bells; norshall they take any servant that had once belongedto the Mussulmans. 13. They shall not overlookthe Mussulmans in their houses: and some saythat Omar commanded the inhabitants of Jerusalem tohave the foreparts of their heads shaved, and obligedthem to ride upon their pannels sideways, and notlike the Mussulmans.”

Upon these terms the Christians had liberty of conscience,paying such tribute as their masters thought fit toimpose upon them; and Jerusalem, once the glory ofthe East, was forced to submit to a heavier yoke thanever it had borne before. For though the numberof the slain and the calamities of the besieged weregreater when it was taken by the Romans, yet the servitudeof those that survived was nothing comparable to this,either in respect of the circ*mstances or the duration.For however it might seem to be utterly ruined anddestroyed by Titus, yet by Hadrian’s time ithad greatly recovered itself. Now it fell, asit were, once for all, into the hands of the mostmortal enemies of the Christian religion, and hascontinued so ever since, with the exception of a briefinterval of about ninety years, during which it washeld by the Christians in the holy war.

The Christians having submitted on these terms, Omargave them the following writing under his hand:

“In the name ofthe most merciful God.

“From Omar Ebn Al Khattab, tothe inhabitants of AElia. They shall beprotected and secured both in their lives and fortunes,and their churches shall neither be pulled downnor made use of by any but themselves.”

Upon this the gates were immediately opened, and theCaliph and those that were with him marched in.The Patriarch kept them company, and the Caliph talkedwith him familiarly, and asked him many questionsconcerning the antiquities of the place. Amongother places which they visited, they went into theTemple of the Resurrection, and Omar sat down in themidst of it. When the time of prayers was come

(the Mahometans have five set times of prayer in aday), Omar told the patriarch that he had a mind topray, and desired him to show him a place where hemight perform his devotion. The Patriarch badehim pray where he was; but this he positively refused.Then taking him out from thence, the Patriarch wentwith him into Constantine’s Church, and laida mat for him to pray there, but he would not.At last he went alone to the steps which were at theeast gate of St. Constantine’s Church, and kneeledby himself upon one of them. Having ended hisprayers, he sat down and asked the Patriarch if heknew why he had refused to pray in the church.The Patriarch confessed that he could not tell whatwere his reasons. “Why, then,” saysOmar, “I will tell you. You know I promisedyou that none of your churches should be taken awayfrom you, but that you should possess them quietlyyourselves. Now If I had prayed in any one ofthese churches, the Mussulmans would infallibly takeit away from you as soon as I had departed homeward.And notwithstanding all you might allege, they wouldsay, This is the place where Omar prayed, and we willpray here, too. And so you would have been turnedout of your church, contrary both to my intentionand your expectation. But because my prayingeven on the steps of one may perhaps give some occasionto the Mussulmans to cause you disturbance on thisaccount, I shall take what care I can to prevent that.”So calling for pen, ink, and paper, he expressly commandedthat none of the Mussulmans should pray upon the stepsin any multitudes, but one by one. That they shouldnever meet there to go to prayers; and that the muezzin,or crier, that calls the people to prayers (for theMahometans never use bells), should not stand there.This paper he gave to the patriarch for a security,lest his praying upon the steps of the church shouldhave set such an example to the Mussulmans as mightoccasion any inconvenience to the Christians—­anoble instance of singular fidelity and the religiousobservance of a promise. This Caliph did notthink it enough to perform what he engaged himself,but used all possible diligence to oblige others todo so too. And when the unwary patriarch haddesired him to pray in the church, little consideringwhat might be the consequence, the Caliph, well knowinghow apt men are to be superstitious in the imitationof their princes and great men, especially such asthey look upon to be successors of a prophet, madethe best provision he could, that no pretended imitationof him might lead to the infringement of the securityhe had already given.

In the same year that Jerusalem was taken, Said EbnAbi Wakkas, one of Omar’s captains, was makingfearful havoc in the territories of Persia. Hetook Madayen, formerly the treasury and magazine ofKhusrau (Cosroes), King of Persia; where he foundmoney and rich furniture of all sorts, inestimable.El-makin says that they found there no less than threethousand million of ducats, besides Khusrau’scrown and wardrobe, which was exceedingly rich, hisclothes being all adorned with gold and jewels ofgreat value. Then they opened the roof of Khusrau’sporch, where they found another considerable sum.They also plundered his armory, which was well storedwith all sorts of weapons. Among other thingsthey brought to Omar a piece of silk hangings, sixtycubits square, all curiously wrought with needle-work.That it was of great value appears from the pricewhich Ali had for that part of it which fell to hisshare when Omar divided it; which, though it was noneof the best, yielded him twenty thousand pieces ofsilver. After this, in the same year, the Persianswere defeated by the Saracens in a great battle nearJaloulah.

Omar, having taken Jerusalem, continued there aboutten days to put things in order.

Omar now thought of returning to Medina, having firstdisposed his affairs after the following manner:Syria he divided into two parts, and committed allthat lies between Hauran and Aleppo to Abu Obeidah,with orders to make war upon it till he had completelysubdued it. Yezid Ebn Abu Sofian was to takethe charge of all Palestine and the sea-shore.Amrou Ebn Al Aas was sent to invade Egypt, no inconsiderablepart of the Emperor’s dominions, which werenow continually mouldering away. The Saracensat Medina had almost given Omar over, and began toconclude that he would never stir from Jerusalem,but be won to stay there from the richness of thecountry and the sweetness of the air; but especiallyby the thought that it was the country of the prophetsand the Holy Land, and the place where we must allbe summoned together at the resurrection. Atlast he came, the more welcome the less he had beenexpected. Abu Obeidah, in the mean time, reducedKinnisrin and Alhadir, the inhabitants paying downfive thousand ounces of gold, and as many of silver,two thousand suits of clothes of several sorts of silk,and five hundred asses’ loads of figs and olives.Yezid marched against Caesarea in vain, that placebeing too well fortified to be taken by his littlearmy, especially since it had been reinforced by theEmperor, who had sent a store of all sorts of provisionby sea, and a reinforcement to the garrison of twothousand men. The inhabitants of Aleppo were muchdisheartened by the loss of Kinnisrin and Alhadir,well knowing that it would not be long before theirturn would come to experience themselves what, tillthen, they had known only by report. They hadtwo governors, brothers, who dwelt in the castle (thestrongest in all Syria), which was not at that time

encompassed by the town, but stood out of it, at alittle distance. The name of one of these brethren,if my author mistakes not, was Youkinna, the otherJohn. Their father held of the emperor Heracliusall the territory between Aleppo and Euphrates, afterwhose decease Youkinna managed the affairs; John, nottroubling himself with secular employments, did notmeddle with the government, but led a monkish life,spending his time in retirement, reading, and deedsof charity. He tried to persuade his brotherto secure himself, by compounding with the Arabs fora good round sum of money; but he told him that hetalked like a monk, and did not understand what belongedto a soldier; that he had provisions and warlike meansenough, and was resolved to make the best resistancehe could. Accordingly the next day he calledhis men together, among whom there were several ChristianArabs, and having armed them, and for their encouragementdistributed some money among them, told them thathe was fully purposed to act offensively, and, ifpossible, give the Saracens battle before they shouldcome too near Aleppo. He was informed that theSaracen army was divided and weakened, a part beinggone to Caesarea, another to Damascus, and a thirdinto Egypt. Having thus inspirited his men, hemarched forward with twelve thousand. Abu Obeidahhad sent before him Kaab Ebn Damarah with one thousandmen, but with express orders not to fight till hehad received information of the strength of the enemy.Youkinna’s spies found Kaab and his men restingthemselves and watering their horses, quite secureand free from all apprehension of danger; upon whichYoukinna laid an ambuscade, and then, with the restof his men, fell upon the Saracens. The engagementwas sharp, and the Saracens had the best of it atfirst; but the ambuscade breaking in upon them, theywere in great danger of being overpowered with numbers;one hundred and seventy of them being slain, and mostof the rest being grievously wounded that they wereupon the very brink of despair, and cried out, “YaMahomet! Ya Mahomet!” ("O Mahomet!O Mahomet!”) However, with much difficulty theymade shift to hold up till night parted them, earnestlyexpecting the coming of Abu Obeidah.

In the mean time while Youkinna was going out withhis forces to engage the Saracens, the wealthy andtrading people of Aleppo, knowing very well how hardit would go with them if they should stand it outobstinately to the last and be taken by storm, resolvedupon debate to go and make terms with Abu Obeidah,that, let Youkinna’s success be what it would,they might be secure.

As they were going back they chanced to meet withone of Youkinna’s officers, to whom they gavean account of the whole transaction. Upon thishe hastened with all possible speed to his master,who was waiting with impatience for the morning, thathe might despatch Kaab and his men, whom the comingof the night had preserved; but hearing this newshe began to fear lest an attempt should be made uponthe castle in his absence, and thought it safest tomake the best of his way homeward. In the morningthe Saracens were surprised to see no enemy, and wonderedwhat was the matter with them. Kaab would havepursued them, but none of his men had any inclinationto go with him; so they rested themselves, and ina little time Kaled and Abu Obeidah came up with therest of the army.

Abu Obeidah reminded Kaled of the obligation theywere under to protect the Aleppians, now their confederates,who were likely to be exposed to the outrage and crueltyof Youkinna, for, in all probability, he would severelyresent their defection. They therefore marchedas fast as they could, and when they drew near Aleppofound that they had not been at all wrong in theirapprehensions. Youkinna had drawn up his soldierswith the design to fall upon the townsmen, and threatenedthem with present death unless they would break theircovenant with the Arabs and go out with him to fightthem, and unless they brought out to him the firstcontriver and proposer of the convention. At lasthe fell upon them in good earnest and killed aboutthree hundred of them. His brother John, whowas in the castle, hearing a piteous outcry and lamentation,came down from the castle and entreated his brotherto spare the people, representing to him that JesusChrist had commanded us not to contend with our enemies,much less with those of our own religion. Youkinnatold him that they had agreed with the Arabs and assistedthem; which John excused, telling him, “Thatwhat they did was only for their own security, becausethey were no fighting men.” In short, hetook their part so long till he provoked his brotherto that degree that he charged him with being thechief contriver and manager of the whole business;and at last, in a great passion, cut his head off.While he was murdering the unhappy Aleppians, Kaled(better late than never) came to their relief.Youkinna, perceiving his arrival, retired with a considerablenumber of soldiers into the castle. The Saracenskilled that day three thousand of his men. However,he prepared himself to sustain a siege, and plantedengines upon the castle walls.

Abu Obeidah next deliberated in a council of war whatmeasures were most proper to be taken. Some wereof opinion that the best way would be to besiege thecastle with some part of the army, and let the restbe sent out to forage. Kaled would not hear ofit, but was for attacking the castle at once withtheir whole force; that, if possible, it might betaken before fresh supplies could arrive from the Emperor.

This plan being adopted, they made a vigorous assault,in which they had as hard fighting as any in all thewars of Syria. The besieged made a noble defence,and threw stones from the walls in such plenty thata great many of the Saracens were killed and a greatmany more maimed. Youkinna, encouraged with hissuccess, determined to act on the offensive and turneverything to advantage. The Saracens looked uponall the country as their own, and knowing that therewas no army of the enemy near them, and fearing nothingless than an attack from the besieged, kept guardnegligently. In the dead of night, therefore,Youkinna sent out a party who, as soon as the fireswere out in the camp, fell upon the Saracens, andhaving killed about sixty, carried off fifty prisoners.Kaled pursued and cut off about a hundred of them,but the rest escaped to the castle with the prisoners,who by the command of Youkinna were the next day beheadedin the sight of the Saracen army. Upon this Youkinnaventured once more to send out another party, havingreceived information from one of his spies (most ofwhich were Christian Arabs) that some of the Mussulmanswere gone out to forage. They fell upon the Mussulmans,killed a hundred and thirty of them, and seized alltheir camels, mules, and horses, which they eitherkilled or hamstrung, and then they retired into themountains, in hopes of lying hid during the day andreturning to the castle in the silence of the night.In the mean time some that had escaped brought thenews to Abu Obeidah, who sent Kaled and Derar to pursuethe Christians. Coming to the place of the fight,they found their men and camels dead, and the countrypeople making great lamentation, for they were afraidlest the Saracens should suspect them of treachery,and revenge upon them their loss. Falling downbefore Kaled, they told him they were altogether innocent,and had not in any way, either directly or indirectly,been instrumental in the attack; but that it was madesolely by a party of horse that sallied from the castle.Kaled, having made them swear that they knew nothingmore, and taking some of them for guides, closely watchedthe only passage by which the sallying party couldreturn to the castle. When about a fourth partof the night was passed, they perceived Youkinna’smen approaching, and, falling upon them, took threehundred prisoners and killed the rest. The prisonersbegged to be allowed to ransom themselves, but theywere all beheaded the next morning in front of thecastle.

The Saracens pressed the siege for a while very closely,but perceiving that they made no way, Abu Obeidahremoved the camp about a mile’s distance fromthe castle, hoping by this means to tempt the besiegedto security and negligence in their watch, which mighteventually afford him an opportunity of taking thecastle by surprise. But all would not do, forYoukinna kept a very strict watch and suffered nota man to stir out.

The siege continued four months, and some say five.In the mean time Omar was very much concerned, havingheard nothing from the camp in Syria. He wrote,therefore, to Abu Obeidah, letting him know how tenderhe was over the Mussulmans, and what a great griefit was to him to hear no news of them for so longa time. Abu Obeidah answered that Kinnisrin,Hader, and Aleppo were surrendered to him, only thecastle of Aleppo held out, and that they had losta considerable number of men before it; that he hadsome thoughts of raising the siege, and passing forwardinto that part of the country which lies between Aleppoand Antioch; but only he stayed for his answer.About the time that Abu Obeidah’s messengersreached Medina, there also arrived a considerable numberof men out of the several tribes of the Arabs, toproffer their service to the Caliph. Omar orderedseventy camels to help their foot, and despatched theminto Syria, with a letter to Abu Obeidah, in whichhe acquainted him “that he was variously affected,according to the different success they had met, butcharged them by no means to raise the siege of thecastle, for that would make them look little, andencourage their enemies to fall upon them on all sides.Wherefore,” adds he, “continue besiegingit till God shall determine the event, and foragewith your horse round about the country.”

Among those fresh supplies which Omar had just sentto the Saracen camp, there was a very remarkable man,whose name was Dames, of a gigantic size, and an admirablesoldier. When he had been in the camp forty-sevendays, and all the force and cunning of the Saracensavailed nothing toward taking the castle, he desiredAbu Obeidah to let him have the command of thirtymen, and he would try his best against it. Kaledhad heard much of the man, and told Abu Obeidah along story of a wonderful performance of this Damesin Arabia, and that he looked upon him as a very properperson for such an undertaking. Abu Obeidah selectedthirty men to go with him, and bade them not to despisetheir commander because of the meanness of his condition,he being a slave, and swore that, but for the careof the whole army which lay upon him, he would be thefirst man that should go under him upon such an enterprise.To which they answered with entire submission andprofound respect. Dames, who lay hid at no greatdistance, went out several times, and brought in withhim five or six Greeks, but never a man of them understoodone word of Arabic, which made him angry and say:“God curse these dogs! What a strange,barbarous language they use.”

At last he went out again, and seeing a man descendfrom the wall, he took him prisoner, and by the helpof a Christian Arab, whom he captured shortly afterward,examined him. He learned from him that immediatelyupon the departure of the Saracens, Youkinna beganto ill use the townsmen who had made the conventionwith the Arabs, and to exact large sums of money ofthem; that he being one of them had endeavored to makehis escape from the oppression and tyranny of Youkinna,by leaping down from the wall. Upon this theSaracens let him go, as being under their protectionby virtue of the articles made between Abu Obeidahand the Aleppians, but beheaded all the rest.

In the evening, after having sent two of his men toAbu Obeidah, requesting him to order a body of horseto move forward to his support about sunrise, Dameshas recourse to the following stratagem: Takingout of a knapsack a goat’s skin, he coveredwith it his back and shoulders, and holding a drycrust in his hand, he crept on all-fours as near tothe castle as he could. When he heard a noise,or suspected anyone to be near, to prevent his beingdiscovered he began to make a noise with his crust,as a dog does when gnawing a bone; the rest of hiscompany came after him, sometimes skulking and creepingalong, at other times walking. When they camenear to the castle, it appeared almost inaccessible.However Dames was resolved to make an attempt uponit. Having found a place where the walls seemedeasier to scale than elsewhere, he sat down upon theground, and ordered another to sit upon his shoulders;and so on till seven of them had mounted up, each sittingupon the other’s shoulders, and all leaning againstthe wall, so as to throw as much of their weight aspossible upon it. Then he that was uppermostof all stood upright upon the shoulders of the second,next the second raised himself, and so on, all inorder, till at last Dames himself stood up, bearingthe weight of all the rest upon his shoulders, whohowever did all they could to relieve him by bearingagainst the wall. By this means the uppermostman could just make a shift to reach the top of thewall, while in an undertone they all cried, “Oapostle of God, help us and deliver us!” Whenthis man had got up on the wall, he found a watchmandrunk and asleep. Seizing him hand and foot, hethrew him down among the Saracens, who immediatelycut him to pieces. Two other sentinels, whomhe found in the same condition, he stabbed with hisdagger and threw down from the wall. He then letdown his turban, and drew up the second, they twothe third, till at last Dames was drawn up, who enjoinedthem to wait there in silence while he went and lookedabout him. In this expedition he gained a sightof Youkinna, richly dressed, sitting upon a tapestryof scarlet silk flowered with gold, and a large companywith him, eating and drinking, and very merry.On his return he told his men that because of thegreat inequality of their numbers, he did not thinkit advisable to fall upon them then, but had ratherwait till break of day, at which time they might lookfor help from the main body. In the mean timehe went alone, and privately stabbing the sentinels,and setting open the gates, came back to his men,and bade them hasten to take possession of the gates.This was not done so quietly, but they were at lasttaken notice of and the castle alarmed. Therewas no hope of escape for them, but everyone expectedto perish. Dames behaved himself bravely, but,overpowered by superior numbers, he and his men wereno longer able to hold up, when, as the morning beganto dawn, Kaled came to their relief. As soon as

the besieged perceived the Saracens rushing in uponthem, they threw down their arms, and cried, “Quarter!”Abu Obeidah was not far behind with the rest of thearmy. Having taken the castle, he proposed Mohametanismto the Christians. The first that embraced itwas Youkinna, and his example was followed by someof the chief men with him, who immediately had theirwives and children and all their wealth restored tothem. Abu Obeidah set the old and impotent peopleat liberty, and having set apart the fifth of thespoil (which was of great value), divided the restamong the Mussulmans. Dames was talked of andadmired by all, and Abu Obeidah, in order to pay himmarked respect, commanded the army to continue intheir present quarters till he and his men should beperfectly cured of their wounds.

Obeidah’s next thoughts, after the capture ofthe castle of Aleppo, were to march to Antioch, thenthe seat of the Grecian Emperor. But Youkinna,the late governor of the castle of Aleppo, having,with the changing of his religion, become a deadlyenemy of the Christians, persuaded him to defer hismarch to Antioch, till they had first taken the castleof Aazaz.

The armies before Antioch were drawn out in battlearray in front of each other. The Christian general,whose name was Nestorius, went forward and challengedany Saracen to single combat. Dames was the firstto answer him; but in the engagement, his horse stumbling,he was seized before he could recover himself, and,being taken prisoner, was conveyed by Nestorius tohis tent and there bound. Nestorius, returningto the army and offering himself a second time, wasanswered by one Dehac. The combatants behavedthemselves bravely, and, the victory being doubtful,the soldiers were desirous of being spectators, andpressed eagerly forward. In the jostling andthronging both of horse and foot to see this engagement,the tent of Nestorius, with his chair of state, wasthrown down. Three servants had been left in thetent, who, fearing they should be beaten when theirmaster came back, and having nobody else to help them,told Dames that if he would lend them a hand to setup the tent and put things in order they would unbindhim, upon condition that he should voluntarily returnto his bonds again till their master came home, atwhich time they promised to speak a good word for him.He readily accepted the terms; but as soon as he wasat liberty he immediately seized two of them, onein his right hand, the other in his left, and dashedtheir two heads so violently against the third man’sthat they all three fell down dead upon the spot.Then opening a chest and taking out a rich suit ofclothes, he mounted a good horse of Nestorius’,and having wrapped up his face as well as he couldhe made toward the Christian Arabs, where Jabalah,with the chief of his tribe, stood on the left handof Heraclius. In the mean time Dehac and Nestorius,being equally matched, continued fighting till both

their horses were quite tired out and they were obligedto part by consent to rest themselves. Nestorius,returning to his tent, and finding things in suchconfusion, easily guessed that Dames must be the causeof it. The news flew instantly through all thearmy, and everyone was surprised at the strangenessof the action. Dames, in the mean time, had gottenamong the Christian Arabs, and striking off at oneblow the man’s head that stood next him, madea speedy escape to the Saracens.

Antioch was not lost without a set battle; but throughthe treachery of Youkinna and several other personsof note, together with the assistance of Derar andhis company, who were mixed with Youkinna’s men,the Christians were beaten entirely. The peopleof the town, perceiving the battle lost, made agreementand surrendered, paying down three hundred thousandducats; upon which Abu Obeidah entered into Antiochon Tuesday, being the 21st day of August, A.D. 638.

Thus did that ancient and famous city, the seat ofso many kings and princes, fall into the hands ofthe infidels. The beauty of the site and abundanceof all things contributing to delight and luxury wereso great that Abu Obeidah, fearing his Saracens shouldbe effeminated with the delicacies of that place,and remit their wonted vigor and bravery, durst notlet them continue there long. After a short haltof three days to refresh his men, he again marchedout of it.

Then he wrote a letter to the Caliph, in which hegave him an account of his great success in takingthe metropolis of Syria, and of the flight of Heracliusto Constantinople, telling him withal what was thereason why he stayed no longer there, adding thatthe Saracens were desirous of marrying the Grecianwomen, which he had forbidden. He was afraid,he said, lest the love of the things of this worldshould take possession of their hearts and draw themoff from their obedience to God.

Constantine, the emperor Heraclius’ son, guardedthat part of the country where Amrou lay, with a considerablearmy. The weather was very cold, and the Christianswere quite disheartened, having been frequently beatenand discouraged with the daily increasing power ofthe Saracens, so that a great many grew weary of theservice and withdrew from the army. Constantine,having no hopes of victory, and fearing lest the Saracensshould seize Caesarea, took the opportunity of a tempestuousnight to move off, and left his camp to the Saracens.Amrou, acquainting Abu Obeidah with all that had happened,received express orders to march directly to Caesarea,where he promised to join him speedily, in order togo against Tripoli, Acre, and Tyre. A short timeafter this, Tripoli was surprised by the treacheryof Youkinna, who succeeded in getting possession ofit on a sudden, and without any noise. Withina few days of its capture there arrived in the harborabout fifty ships from Cyprus and Crete, with provisionsand arms which were to go to Constantine. Theofficers, not knowing that Tripoli was fallen intothe hands of new masters, made no scruple of landingthere, where they were courteously received by Youkinna,who proffered the utmost of his service, and promisedto go along with them, but immediately seized boththem and their ships, and delivered the town intothe hands of Kaled, who was just come.

With these ships the traitor Youkinna sailed to Tyre,where he told the inhabitants that he had broughtarms and provisions for Constantine’s army;upon which he was kindly received, and, landing, hewas liberally entertained with nine hundred of hismen. But being betrayed by one of his own soldiers,he and his crew were seized and bound, receiving allthe while such treatment from the soldiers as theirvillanous practices well deserved. In the meantime Yezid Ebn Abu Sofian, being detached by Abu Obeidahfrom the camp before Caesarea, came within sight ofTyre. The governor upon this caused Youkinnaand his men to be conveyed to the castle, and theresecured, and prepared for the defence of the town.Perceiving that Yezid had with him but two thousandmen in all, he resolved to make a sally. In themean time the rest of the inhabitants ran up to thewalls to see the engagement. While they were fighting,Youkinna and his men were set at liberty by one Basil,of whom they give the following account, viz.:That this Basil going one day to pay a visit to Bahirathe monk, the caravan of the Koreish*tes came by, withwhich were Kadija’s camels, under the care ofMahomet. As he looked toward the caravan, hebeheld Mahomet in the middle of it, and above himthere was a cloud to keep him from the sun. Thenthe caravan having halted, as Mahomet leaned againstan old, withered tree, it immediately brought forthleaves. Bahira, perceiving this, made an entertainmentfor the caravan, and invited them into the monastery.They all went, leaving Mahomet behind with the camels.Bahira, missing him, asked if they were all present.“Yes,” they said, “all but a littleboy we have left to look after their things and feedthe camels.” “What is his name?”says Bahira. They told him, “Mahomet EbnAbdallah.” Bahira asked if his father andmother were not both dead, and if he was not broughtup by his grandfather and his uncle. Being informedthat it was so, he said: “O Koreish!Set a high value upon him, for he is your lord, andby him will your power be great both in this worldand that to come; for he is your ornament and glory.”When they asked him how he knew that, Bahira answered,“Because as you were coming, there was nevera tree nor stone nor clod but bowed itself and worshippedGod.” Moreover, Bahira told this Basilthat a great many prophets had leaned against thistree and sat under it since it was first withered,but that it never bore any leaves before. AndI heard him say, says this same Basil: “Thisis the prophet concerning whom Isa (Jesus) spake.Happy is he that believes in him and follows him andgives credit to his mission.” This Basil,after the visit to Bahira, had gone to Constantinopleand other parts of the Greek Emperor’s territories,and upon information of the great success of the followersof this prophet was abundantly convinced of the truthof his mission. This inclined him, having so fairan opportunity offered, to release Youkinna and his

men; who, sending word to the ships, the rest of theirforces landed and joined them. In the mean timea messenger in disguise was sent to acquaint Yezidwith what was done. As soon as he returned, Youkinnawas for falling upon the townsmen upon the wall; butBasil said, “Perhaps God might lead some of theminto the right way,” and persuaded him to placethe men so as to prevent their coming down from thewall. This done, they cried out, “La Ilaha,”etc. The people, perceiving themselves betrayedand the prisoners at liberty, were in the utmost confusion,none of them being able to stir a step or lift upa hand. The Saracens in the camp, hearing thenoise in the city, knew what it meant, and, marchingup, Youkinna opened the gates and let them in.Those that were in the city fled, some one way andsome another, and were pursued by the Saracens andput to the sword. Those upon the wall cried,“Quarter!” but Yezid told them that sincethey had not surrendered, but the city was taken byforce, they were all slaves. “However,”said he, “we of our own accord set you free,upon condition you pay tribute; and if any of youhas a mind to change his religion, he shall fare aswell as we do.” The greatest part of themturned Mahometans. When Constantine heard ofthe loss of Tripoli and Tyre his heart failed him,and taking shipping with his family and the greaterpart of his wealth he departed for Constantinople.All this while Amrou ben-el-Ass lay before Caesarea.In the morning when the people came to inquire afterConstantine, and could hear no tidings of him nor hisfamily, they consulted together, and with one consentsurrendered the city to Amrou, paying down for theirsecurity two thousand pieces of silver, and deliveringinto his hands all that Constantine had been obligedto leave behind him of his property. Thus wasCaesarea lost in the year of our Lord 638, being theseventeenth year of the Hegira and the fifth of Omar’sreign, which answers to the twenty-ninth year of theemperor Heraclius. After the taking of Caesareaall the other places in Syria which as yet held out,namely, Ramlah, Acre, Joppa, Ascalon, Gaza, Sichem(or Nablos), and Tiberias, surrendered, and in a littletime after the people of Beiro Zidon, Jabalah, andLaodicea followed their example; so that there remainednothing more for the Saracens to do in Syria, who,in little more than six years from the time of theirfirst expedition in Abu-Beker’s reign, had succeededin subduing the whole of that large, wealthy, andpopulous country.

Syria did not remain long in the possession of thosepersons who had the chief hand in subduing it, forin the eighteenth year of the Hegira the mortalityin Syria, both among men and beasts, was so terrible,particularly at Emaus and the adjacent territory, thatthe Arabs called that year the year of destruction.By that pestilence the Saracens lost five-and-twentythousand men, among whom were Abu Obeidah, who wasthen fifty-eight years old; Serjabil Ebn Hasanah,formerly Mahomet’s secretary; and Yezid EbnAbu Sofian, with several other officers of note.Kaled survived them about three years, and then died;but the place of his burial—­consequentlyof his death, for they did not use in those days tocarry them far—­is uncertain; some say atHems, others at Medina.

FOOTNOTES:

[66] Those of Medina are called by that name becausethey helped Mahomet in his flight from Mecca.

[67] Those that fled with him are called Mohajerins;by these names the inhabitants of Mecca and Medinaare often distinguished.

SARACENS CONQUER EGYPT

DESTRUCTION OF THE LIBRARY AT ALEXANDRIA

A.D. 640

WASHINGTON IRVING

Who shall estimate the loss to civilizationand the world that has been caused by the destructionof accumulated stores of books, through the crassignorance or stupid bigotry of benighted rulers?The chronicles record a number of such vandalacts. Hwangti, one of China’s greatestmonarchs, he who built the Great Wall of China, attemptedthe complete extinction of literature in that country,B.C. 213. That prince, being at one timestrongly opposed by certain men of letters, expressedhis hatred and contempt, not only of the literaryclass, but of literature itself, and resorted to extrememeasures of coercion. All books were proscribed,and orders issued to burn every work except thoserelating to medicine, agriculture, and science.The destruction was carried out with terriblecompleteness. The burning of the books was accompaniedby the execution of five hundred of the literatiand by the banishment of many thousands.

The destruction of theAlexandrian Library, by command of Omar, was
as complete as the extinctionof literature in China by Hwangti, as
head of the Moslem religion.

Omar, using the intrepidAmru, was vicariously proselyting in true
Mahometan style—­inone hand offering the Koran, the while the
other extended the sword.

After a successful campaign in Palestine,Omar’s victorious banners were plantedin the historic soil of the Pharaohs. A protractedsiege of seven months found Amru master of theroyal city of Alexandria. The library therewas famed as the greatest magazine of literature.But this availed nothing with the ruthless Omar, forhe doomed it to annihilation.

Prof. Thomas Smith says:“The library had been collected at fabulousexpense of labor and money, from all countries of theworld. Its destruction was a wanton act;but its perpetrator showed, like the loving spouse’of another noted personage, that ‘thoughon pleasure he was bent, he had a frugal mind.’He did not consume the books on their shelves,or in whatever repositories contained them, althoughdoubtless they would have made a beautiful blaze.He utilized them as fuel for heating the baths of thecity; and we are told that they sufficed to heatthe water for four thousand such baths for sixmonths. With an average share of persuasibility,when it is not against our will to be convinced, westagger at the statement that seven hundred andthirty thousand furnaces could have been suppliedwith fuel from the contents of even that magnificentpalace, and therefore venture to suggest that thepapyri and palm-leaf manuscripts were used rather asfire-lighters than as fuel. Even this isa rather large order; but undoubtedly the collectionwas enormous. The reason tradition ascribesto Omar for this act has never, so far as we know,been disputed till quite recently, when ‘historicalcriticism’ has taken it in hand. ’Thecontents of these books are either in accordance withthe teaching of the Koran or they are opposedto it. If in accord, then they are useless,since the Koran itself is sufficient;and if in opposition, they are pernicious and mustbe destroyed.’

“But the piecemeal destructionof many hundreds of thousands of manuscriptswas no trifling task, even for a despotic caliph.A few escaped their doom; how, we do not know.Perhaps some officer annexed for himself somemanuscript that struck him as specially beautiful;or perhaps some stoker at some bath rejected one asslow of ignition. At all events a few—­probablyvery few—­were preserved, and amongthem must have been copies of the writings of Euclidand Ptolemy, the Elements of the one, the Almagestof the other.”

A proof of the religious infatuation, or the blindconfidence in destiny, which hurried the Moslem commandersof those days into the most extravagant enterprises,is furnished in the invasion of the once proud empireof the Pharaohs, the mighty, the mysterious Egypt,with an army of merely five thousand men. Thecaliph Omar himself, though he had suggested thisexpedition, seems to have been conscious of its rashness,or rather to have been chilled by the doubts of hisprime counsellor Othman; for, while Amru was on themarch, he despatched missives after him to the followingeffect: “If this epistle reach thee beforethou hast crossed the boundary of Egypt, come instantlyback; but if it find thee within the Egyptian territory,march on with the blessing of Allah, and be assuredI will send thee all necessary aid.”

The bearer of the letter overtook Amru while yet withinthe bounds of Syria; that wary general either hadsecret information or made a shrewd surmise as tothe purport of his errand, and continued his marchacross the border without admitting him to an audience.Having encamped at the Egyptian village of Arish,he received the courier with all due respect, andread the letter aloud in the presence of his officers.When he had finished, he demanded of those about himwhether they were in Syria or Egypt. “InEgypt,” was the reply. “Then,”said Amru, “we will proceed, with the blessingof Allah, and fulfil the commands of the Caliph.”

The first place to which he laid siege was Farwak,or Pelusium, situated on the shores of the Mediterranean,on the isthmus which separates that sea from the ArabianGulf, and connects Egypt with Syria and Arabia.It was therefore considered the key to Egypt.A month’s siege put Amru in possession of theplace; he then examined the surrounding country withmore forethought than was generally manifested by theMoslem conquerors, and projected a canal across theisthmus, to connect the waters of the Red Sea andthe Mediterranean. His plan, however, was condemnedby the Caliph as calculated to throw open Arabia toa maritime invasion of the Christians.

Amru now proceeded to Misrah, the Memphis of the ancients,and residence of the early Egyptian kings. Thiscity was at that time the strongest fortress in Egypt,except Alexandria, and still retained much of itsancient magnificence. It stood on the westernbank of the Nile, above the Delta, and a little eastof the pyramids. The citadel was of great strengthand well garrisoned, and had recently been surroundedwith a deep ditch, into which nails and spikes hadbeen thrown, to impede assailants.

The Arab armies, rarely provided with the enginesnecessary for the attack of fortified places, generallybeleaguered them, cut off all supplies, attacked allforaging parties that sallied forth, and thus destroyedthe garrison in detail or starved it to a surrender.This was the reason of the long duration of theirsieges. This of Misrah, or Memphis, lasted sevenmonths, in the course of which the little army ofAmru was much reduced by frequent skirmishings.At the end of this time he received a reinforcementof four thousand men, sent to him at his urgent entreatiesby the Caliph. Still his force would have beeninsufficient for the capture of the place had he notbeen aided by the treachery of its governor, Moka*wkas.

This man, an original Egyptian, or Copt, by birth,and of noble rank, was a profound hypocrite.Like most of the Copts, he was of the Jacobite sect,who denied the double nature of Christ. He haddissembled his sectarian creed, however, and deceivedthe emperor Heraclius by a show of loyalty, so asto be made prefect of his native province and governorof the city. Most of the inhabitants of Memphiswere Copts and Jacobite Christians, and held theirGreek fellow-citizens, who were of the regular CatholicChurch of Constantinople, in great antipathy.

Moka*wkas, in the course of his administration, hadcollected, by taxes and tribute, an immense amountof treasure, which he had deposited in the citadel.He saw that the power of the Emperor was coming toan end in this quarter, and thought the present agood opportunity to provide for his own fortune.Carrying on a secret correspondence with the Moslemgeneral, he agreed to betray the place into his handson condition of receiving the treasure as a rewardfor his treason. He accordingly, at an appointedtime, removed the greater part of the garrison fromthe citadel to an island in the Nile. The fortresswas immediately assailed by Amru, at the head of hisfresh troops, and was easily carried by assault, theCopts rendering no assistance.

The Greek soldiery, on the Moslem standard being hoistedon the citadel, saw through the treachery, and, givingup all as lost, escaped in their ships to the mainland;upon which the prefect surrendered the place by capitulation.An annual tribute of two ducats a head was levied onall the inhabitants of the district, with the exceptionof old men, women, and boys under the age of sixteenyears. It was further conditioned that the Moslemarmy should be furnished with provisions, for whichthey would pay, and that the inhabitants of the countryshould forthwith build bridges over all the streamson the way to Alexandria. It was also agreedthat every Mussulman travelling through the countryshould be entitled to three days’ hospitality,free of charge.

The traitor Moka*wkas was put in possession of hisill-gotten wealth. He begged of Amru to be taxedwith the Copts and always to be enrolled among them,declaring his abhorrence of the Greeks and their doctrines;urging Amru to persecute them with unremitting violence.He extended his sectarian bigotry even into the grave,stipulating that at his death he should be buriedin the Christian Jacobite church of St. John at Alexandria.

Amru, who was politic as well as brave, seeing theirreconcilable hatred of the Coptic or Jacobite Christiansto the Greeks, showed some favor to that sect, inorder to make use of them in his conquest of the country.He even prevailed upon their patriarch Benjamin toemerge from his desert and hold a conference withhim, and subsequently declared that “he hadnever conversed with a Christian priest of more innocentmanners or venerable aspect.” This pieceof diplomacy had its effect, for we are told thatall the Copts above and below Memphis swore allegianceto the Caliph.

Amru now pressed on for the city of Alexandria, distantabout one hundred and twenty-five miles. Accordingto stipulation, the people of the country repairedthe roads and erected bridges to facilitate his march;the Greeks, however, driven from various quarters bythe progress of their invaders, had collected at differentposts on the island of the Delta and the channelsof the Nile, and disputed with desperate but fruitlessobstinacy the onward course of the conquerors.The severest check was given at Keram al Shoraik,by the late garrison of Memphis, who had fortifiedthemselves there after retreating from the island ofthe Nile. For three days did they maintain a gallantconflict with the Moslems, and then retired in goodorder to Alexandria. With all the facilitiesfurnished to them on their march, it cost the Moslemstwo-and-twenty days to fight their way to that greatcity.

Alexandria now lay before them, the metropolis ofwealthy Egypt, the emporium of the East, a place stronglyfortified, stored with all the munitions of war, openby sea to all kinds of supplies and reinforcements,and garrisoned by Greeks, aggregated from variousquarters, who here were to make the last stand fortheir Egyptian empire. It would seem that nothingshort of an enthusiasm bordering on madness couldhave led Amru and his host on an enterprise againstthis powerful city.

The Moslem leader, on planting his standard beforethe place, summoned it to surrender on the usual terms,which being promptly refused, he prepared for a vigoroussiege. The garrison did not wait to be attacked,but made repeated sallies and fought with desperatevalor. Those who gave greatest annoyance to theMoslems were their old enemies, the Greek troops fromMemphis. Amru, seeing that the greatest defencewas from a main tower, or citadel, made a gallantassault upon it and carried it, sword in hand.The Greek troops, however, rallied to that point fromall parts of the city; the Moslems, after a furiousstruggle, gave way, and Amru, his faithful slave Werdan,and one of his generals, named Moslema Ibn al Mokalled,fighting to the last, were surrounded, overpowered,and taken prisoners.

The Greeks, unaware of the importance of their captives,led them before the governor. He demanded ofthem, haughtily, what was their object in thus overrunningthe world and disturbing the quiet of peaceable neighbors.Amru made the usual reply that they came to spreadthe faith of Islam; and that it was their intention,before they laid by the sword, to make the Egyptianseither converts or tributaries. The boldnessof his answer and the loftiness of his demeanor awakenedthe suspicions of the governor, who, supposing himto be a warrior of note among the Arabs, ordered oneof his guards to strike off his head. Upon thisWerdan, the slave, understanding the Greek language,seized his master by the collar, and, giving him abuffet on the cheek, called him an impudent dog, andordered him to hold his peace, and let his superiorsspeak. Moslema, perceiving the meaning of theslave, now interposed, and made a plausible speechto the governor, telling him that Amru had thoughtsof raising the siege, having received a letter tothat effect from the Caliph, who intended to send ambassadorsto treat for peace, and assuring the governor that,if permitted to depart, they would make a favorablereport to Amru.

The governor, who, if Arabian chronicles may be believedon this point, must have been a man of easy faith,ordered the prisoners to be set at liberty; but theshouts of the besieging army on the safe return oftheir general soon showed him how completely he hadbeen duped.

But scanty details of the siege of Alexandria havereached the Christian reader, yet it was one of thelongest, most obstinately contested, and sanguinaryin the whole course of the Moslem wars. It enduredfourteen months with various success; the Moslem armywas repeatedly reinforced and lost twenty-three thousandmen. At length their irresistible ardor and perseveranceprevailed; the capital of Egypt was conquered andthe Greek inhabitants were dispersed in all directions.Some retreated in considerable bodies into the interiorof the country, and fortified themselves in strongholds;others took refuge in the ships and put to sea.

Amru, on taking possession of the city, found it nearlyabandoned; he prohibited his troops from plundering,and, leaving a small garrison to guard the place,hastened with his main army in pursuit of the fugitiveGreeks. In the mean time the ships, which hadtaken off a part of the garrison, were still lingeringon the coast, and tidings reached them that the Moslemgeneral had departed and had left the captured citynearly defenceless. They immediately made sailback for Alexandria, and entered the port in the night.The Greek soldiers surprised the sentinels, got possessionof the city, and put most of the Moslems they foundthere to the sword.

Amru was in full pursuit of the Greek fugitives whenhe heard of the recapture of the city. Mortifiedat his own negligence in leaving so rich a conquestwith so slight a guard, he returned in all haste,resolved to retake it by storm. The Greeks, however,had fortified themselves strongly in the castle andmade stout resistance. Amru was obliged, therefore,to besiege it a second time, but the siege was short.The castle was carried by assault; many of the Greekswere cut to pieces, the rest escaped once more totheir ships and now gave up the capital as lost.All this occurred in the nineteenth year of the Hegira,and the year 640 of the Christian era.

On this second capture of the city by force of arms,and without capitulation, the troops were clamorousto be permitted to plunder. Amru again checkedtheir rapacity, and commanded that all persons andproperty in the place should remain inviolate, untilthe will of the Caliph could be known. So perfectwas his command over his troops that not the mosttrivial article was taken. His letter to the Caliphshows what must have been the population and splendorof Alexandria, and the luxury and effeminacy of itsinhabitants at the time of the Moslem conquest.It states the city to have contained four thousandpalaces, five thousand baths, four hundred theatresand places of amusem*nt, twelve thousand gardenerswhich supply it with vegetables, and forty thousandtributary Jews. It was impossible, he said, todo justice to its riches and magnificence. Hehad hitherto held it sacred from plunder, but histroops, having won it by force of arms, consideredthemselves entitled to the spoils of victory.

The caliph Omar, in reply, expressed a high senseof his important services, but reproved him for evenmentioning the desire of the soldiery to plunder sorich a city, one of the greatest emporiums of theEast. He charged him, therefore, most rigidlyto watch over the rapacious propensities of his men;to prevent all pillage, violence, and waste; to collectand make out an account of all moneys, jewels, householdfurniture, and everything else that was valuable, tobe appropriated toward defraying the expenses of thiswar of the faith. He ordered the tribute also,collected in the conquered country, to be treasuredup at Alexandria for the supplies of the Moslem troops.

The surrender of all Egypt followed the capture ofits capital. A tribute of two ducats was laidon every male of mature age, besides a tax on alllands in proportion to their value, and the revenuewhich resulted to the Caliph is estimated at twelvemillions of ducats.

It is well known that Amru was a poet in his youth;and throughout all his campaigns he manifested anintelligent and inquiring spirit, if not more highlyinformed, at least more liberal and extended in itsviews than was usual among the early Moslem conquerors.He delighted, in his hours of leisure, to conversewith learned men, and acquire through their meanssuch knowledge as had been denied to him by the deficiencyof his education. Such a companion he found atAlexandria in a native of the place, a Christian ofthe sect of the Jacobites, eminent for his philologicalresearches, his commentaries on Moses and Aristotle,and his laborious treatises of various kinds, surnamedPhiloponus, from his love of study, but commonly knownby the name of John the Grammarian.

An intimacy soon arose between the Arab conquerorand the Christian philologist; an intimacy honorableto Amru, but destined to be lamentable in its resultto the cause of letters. In an evil hour, Johnthe Grammarian, being encouraged by the favor shownhim by the Arab general, revealed to him a treasurehitherto unnoticed, or rather unvalued, by the Moslemconquerors. This was a vast collection of booksor manuscripts, since renowned in history as the AlexandrianLibrary. Perceiving that in taking an accountof everything valuable in the city, and sealing upall its treasures, Amru had taken no notice of thebooks, John solicited that they might be given tohim. Unfortunately the learned zeal of the Grammariangave a consequence to the books in the eyes of Amru,and made him scrupulous of giving them away withoutpermission of the Caliph. He forthwith wrote toOmar, stating the merits of John, and requesting toknow whether the books might be given to him.The reply of Omar was laconic, but fatal. “Thecontents of those books,” said he, “arein conformity with the Koran, or they are not.If they are, the Koran is sufficient withoutthem; if they are not, they are pernicious. Letthem, therefore, be destroyed.”

Amru, it is said, obeyed the order punctually.The books and manuscripts were distributed as fuelamong the five thousand baths of the city; but sonumerous were they that it took six months to consumethem. This act of barbarism, recorded by Abulpharagius,is considered somewhat doubtful by Gibbon, in consequenceof its not being mentioned by two of the most ancientchroniclers, Elmacin in his Saracenic history, andEutychius in his annals, the latter of whom was patriarchof Alexandria and has detailed the conquest of thatcity. It is inconsistent, too, with the characterof Amru as a poet and a man of superior intelligence;and it has recently been reported, we know not onwhat authority, that many of the literary treasuresthus said to have been destroyed do actually existin Constantinople. Their destruction, however,is generally credited and deeply deplored by historians.Amru, as a man of genius and intelligence, may havegrieved at the order of the Caliph, while, as a loyalsubject and faithful soldier, he felt bound to obeyit.

The fall of Alexandria decided the fate of Egypt andlikewise that of the emperor Heraclius. He wasalready afflicted with a dropsy, and took the lossof his Syrian and now that of his Egyptian dominionsso much to heart that he underwent a paroxysm, whichended in his death, about seven weeks after the lossof his Egyptian capital. He was succeeded byhis son Constantine.

While Amru was successfully extending his conquests,a great dearth and famine fell upon all Arabia, insomuchthat the caliph Omar had to call upon him for suppliesfrom the fertile plains of Egypt; whereupon Amru despatchedsuch a train of camels laden with grain that it issaid, when the first of the line had reached the cityof Medina, the last had not yet left the land of Egypt.But this mode of conveyance proving too tardy, atthe command of the Caliph he dug a canal of communicationfrom the Nile to the Red Sea, a distance of eightymiles, by which provisions might be conveyed to theArabian shores. This canal had been commencedby Trajan, the Roman emperor.

The able and indefatigable Amru went on in this manner,executing the commands and fulfilling the wishes ofthe Caliph, and governed the country he had conqueredwith such sagacity and justice that he rendered himselfone of the most worthily renowned among the Moslemgenerals.

The life and reign of the caliph Omar, distinguishedby such great and striking events, were at lengthbrought to a sudden and sanguinary end. Amongthe Persians who had been brought as slaves to Medina,was one named Firuz, of the sect of the Magi, or fire-worshippers.Being taxed daily by his master two pieces of silverout of his earnings, he complained of it to Omar asan extortion. The Caliph inquired into his condition,and, finding that he was a carpenter, and expert inthe construction of windmills, replied that the manwho excelled in such a handicraft could well affordto pay two dirhems a day. “Then,”muttered Firuz, “I’ll construct a windmillfor you that shall keep grinding until the day ofjudgment.” Omar was struck with his menacingair. “The slave threatens me,” saidhe, calmly. “If I were disposed to punishanyone on suspicion, I should take off his head”;he suffered him, however, to depart without furthernotice.

Three days afterward, as he was praying in the mosque,Firuz entered suddenly and stabbed him thrice witha dagger. The attendants rushed upon the assassin.He made furious resistance, slew some and woundedothers, until one of his assailants threw his vestover him and seized him, upon which he stabbed himselfto the heart and expired. Religion may have hadsome share in prompting this act of violence; perhapsrevenge for the ruin brought upon his native country.“God be thanked,” said Omar, “thathe by whose hand it was decreed I should fall was nota Moslem!”

The Caliph gathered strength sufficient to finishthe prayer in which he had been interrupted; “forhe who deserts his prayers,” said he, “isnot in Islam.” Being taken to his house,he languished three days without hope of recovery,but could not be prevailed upon to nominate a successor.“I cannot presume to do that,” said he,“which the prophet himself did not do.”Some suggested that he should nominate his son Abdallah.“Omar’s family,” said he, “hashad enough in Omar, and needs no more.”He appointed a council of six persons to determineas to the succession after his decease, all of whomhe considered worthy of the caliphate; though he gaveit as his opinion that the choice would be eitherAli or Othman. “Shouldst thou become caliph,”said he to Ali, “do not favor thy relativesabove all others, nor place the house of Haschem onthe neck of all mankind “; and he gave the samecaution to Othman in respect to the family of Omeya.

Ibn Abbas and Ali now spoke to him in words of comfort,setting forth the blessings of Islam, which had crownedhis administration, and that he would leave no onebehind him who could charge him with injustice.“Testify this for me,” said he, earnestly,“at the day of judgment.” They gavehim their hands in promise; but he exacted that theyshould give him a written testimonial, and that itshould be buried with him in the grave.

Having settled all his worldly affairs, and givendirections about his sepulture, he expired, the seventhday after his assassination, in the sixty-third yearof his age, after a triumphant reign of ten years andsix months.

Three days after the death of Omar, Othman Ibn Affanwas elected as his successor. He was seventyyears of age at the time of his election. Hewas tall and swarthy, and his long gray beard was tingedwith henna. He was strict in his religious duties,but prone to expense and lavish of his riches.

“In the conquests of Syria, Persia, and Egypt,”says a modern writer, “the fresh and vigorousenthusiasm of the personal companions and proselytesof Mahomet was exercised and expended, and the generationof warriors whose simple fanaticism had been inflamedby the preaching of the pseudo-prophet was in a greatmeasure consumed in the sanguinary and perpetual toilsof ten arduous campaigns.”

We shall now see the effect of those conquests onthe national character and habits; the avidity ofplace and power and wealth superseding religious enthusiasm;and the enervating luxury and soft voluptuousnessof Syria and Persia sapping the rude but masculinesimplicity of the Arabian desert. Above all,the single-mindedness of Mahomet and his two immediatesuccessors is at an end. Other objects besidesthe mere advancement of Islamism distract the attentionof its leading professors; and the struggle for worldlywealth and worldly sway, for the advancement of privateends, and the aggrandizement of particular tribesand families, destroy the unity of the empire, andbeset the caliphate with intrigue, treason, and bloodshed.

It was a great matter of reproach against the caliphOthman that he was injudicious in his appointments,and had an inveterate propensity to consult the interestsof his relatives and friends before that of the public.One of his greatest errors in this respect was theremoval of Amrou ben-el-Ass from the government ofEgypt, and the appointment of his own foster-brother,Abdallah Ibn Saad, in his place. This was thesame Abdallah who, in acting as amanuensis to Mahomet,and writing down his revelations, had interpolatedpassages of his own, sometimes of a ludicrous nature.For this and for his apostasy he had been pardonedby Mahomet at the solicitation of Othman, and hadever since acted with apparent zeal, his interestcoinciding with his duty.

He was of a courageous spirit, and one of the mostexpert horsem*n of Arabia; but what might have fittedhim to command a horde of the desert was insufficientfor the government of a conquered province. Hewas new and inexperienced in his present situation;whereas Amru had distinguished himself as a legislatoras well as a conqueror, and had already won the affectionsof the Egyptians by his attention to their interests,and his respect for their customs and habitudes.His dismission was, therefore, resented by the people,and a disposition was manifested to revolt againstthe new governor.

The emperor Constantine, who had succeeded to hisfather Heraclius, hastened to take advantage of thesecirc*mstances. A fleet and army were sent againstAlexandria under a prefect named Manuel. The Greeksin the city secretly cooperated with him, and themetropolis was, partly by force of arms, partly bytreachery, recaptured by the imperialists withoutmuch bloodshed.

Othman, made painfully sensible of the error he hadcommitted, hastened to revoke the appointment of hisfoster-brother, and reinstated Amru in the commandin Egypt. That able general went instantly againstAlexandria with an army, in which were many Copts,irreconcilable enemies of the Greeks. Among thesewas the traitor Moka*wkas, who, from his knowledgeof the country and his influence among its inhabitants,was able to procure abundant supplies for the army.

The Greek garrison defended the city bravely and obstinately.Amru, enraged at having thus again to lay siege toa place which he had twice already taken, swore, byAllah, that if he should master it a third time, hewould render it as easy of access as a brothel.He kept his word, for when he took the city he threwdown the walls and demolished all the fortifications.He was merciful, however, to the inhabitants, andchecked the fury of the Saracens, who were slaughteringall they met. A mosque was afterward erectedon the spot at which he stayed the carnage, calledthe Mosque of Mercy. Manuel, the Greek general,found it expedient to embark with all speed with suchof his troops as he could save, and make sail forConstantinople.

Scarce, however, had Amru quelled every insurrectionand secured the Moslem domination in Egypt, when hewas again displaced from the government, and AbdallahIbn Saad appointed a second time in his stead.

Abdallah had been deeply mortified by the loss ofAlexandria, which had been ascribed to his incapacity;he was emulous, too, of the renown of Amru, and feltthe necessity of vindicating his claims to commandby some brilliant achievement. The north of Africapresented a new field for Moslem enterprise.We allude to that vast tract extending west from thedesert of Libya or Barca to Cape Non, embracing morethan two thousand miles of sea-coast; comprehendingthe ancient divisions of Mamarica, Cyrenaica, Carthage,Numidia, and Mauritania; or, according to modern geographicaldesignations, Barca, Tripoli, Tunis, Algiers, andMorocco.

Toward this rich land of promise, yet virgin of Islamitishseed, Abdallah, at the head of the victorious Saracens,now hopefully bent his ambitious steps.

EVOLUTION OF THE DOGESHIP IN VENICE

A.D. 697

WILLIAM CAREW HAZLITT

The early authentic history of Veniceis intimately connected with that of the Lombards,of whom the first mention is made by Paterculus,the Roman historian, who wrote during the first quarterof the first century of our era. He speaksof the Langobardi[68] (Lombards) as dwellingon the west bank of the Elbe. Tacitus also mentionsthem in his Germany. From the Elbe theywandered to the Danube, and there encounteredthe Gepidae, a branch of the Goths. TheLombards subdued this tribe, after a contest of thirtyyears.

By this victory Alboin, the young LombardKing, rose to great power and fame. Hisbeauty and renown were sung by German peasants evenin the days of Charlemagne. His name “crossedthe Alps and fell, with a foreboding sound, uponthe startled ears of the Italians,” andtoward Italy he turned for conquest. From Scythiaand Germany adventurous youth flocked to hisstandard. Many clans and various religionswere represented in his ranks, but these diversitieswere overshadowed by a common devotion to thehero-leader.

In 568 the Lombards marched from Pannoniainto Italy, conquered the northern part, stillcalled Lombardy, and founded the kingdom of thatname, which was afterward greatly extended, and existeduntil overthrown by Charlemagne in 774.

Before the invading hosts of Alboin,wealthy inhabitants of the larger cities of theprovince of Venetia fled to the islands of Venice,where earlier fugitives had sought shelter from KingAttila and his Huns. A thriving maritimecommunity had been established, which about thistime had developed into a semi-independent protectorateof the Byzantine or Eastern Empire, attached to theexarchate of Ravenna.

Afterward Venice underwent many politicalchanges, among which one of the most interestingto students of history is that of the institutionof the dogeship, as hereafter related. This stepwas taken for more than one reason of internalorganization and policy, and it was also madeurgent by the encroachments of the Lombards, whichhad become a menace to Venetian territory and commerce.

The republic (Venetian) on her part contemplated withinquietude the rise of one monarchy after anotheron the skirts of the Lagoon, for the Venetians notunnaturally feared that as soon as these fresh usurpershad established themselves, they might form the designof adding the islands of the Adriatic to their dominion,and of acquiring possession of the commercial advantageswhich belonged to the situation held by the settlers.For the Lombards, though not ranking among maritimecommunities, were not absolutely strangers to the lawsof navigation, or to the use of ships, which mightplace them in a position to reduce to their controla small, feeble, and thinly peopled area, separatedfrom their own territories only by a narrow and terraqueousstrait. Moreover, the predatory visits of Leupus,duke of Friuli, whose followers traversed the canalsat low tide on horseback, and despoiled the churchesof Heraclia, Equilo, and Grado, soon afforded sufficientproof that the equestrian skill of the strangers wascapable of supplying to some extent any deficiencyin nautical knowledge.

Venice at present formed a federative state, unitedby the memory of a common origin and the sense ofa common interest; the arrengo, which met atHeraclia, the parent capital, at irregular intervalsto deliberate on matters of public concern, was toonumerous and too schismatical to exercise immediatecontrol over the nation; and each island was consequentlygoverned, after the abolition of the primeval consulate,in the name of the people, by a gastaldo ortribune, whose power, nominally limited, was virtuallyabsolute. This administration had lasted nearlytwo centuries and a half, during which period therepublic passed through a cruel ordeal of anarchy,oppression, and bloodshed. The tribunes conspiredagainst each other; the people rebelled against thetribunes. Family rose against family, clan againstclan. Sanguinary affrays were of constant occurrenceon the thinly peopled lidi, and amid the pine-woods,with which much of the surface was covered; and itis related that in one instance at least the bodiesof the dead were left to be devoured by beasts andbirds of prey, which then haunted the more thicklyafforested parts.

Jealousy and intolerance of the pretensions of Heracliato a paramount voice in the policy of the communitymay be securely assigned as the principal and permanentsource of friction and disagreement; but the predominanceof that township seems to have resisted every effortof the others to supplant its central authority andwide sphere of influence; and during centuries itpreserved its power, through its ostensible choiceas the residence of the most capable and influentialcitizens.

The scandalous and destructive outrages attendanton the rule of the tribunes had become a vast constitutionalevil. They sapped the general prosperity; theyobstructed trade and industries; they made havoc onpublic and private property; they banished safety andrepose, and they impoverished and scandalized theChurch.

The depredations of the Lombards, which grew in thecourse of time bolder and more systematic in theircharacter, certainly indicated great weakness on thepart of the government. Yet it was equally certainthat the weakness proceeded less from the want thanfrom the division of strength.

The sacrilegious inroads were not without their beneficialresult; for they afforded those who might be disposedto institute reforms an admirable ground not onlyfor bringing the matter more closely and immediatelyunder the public observation, but they enlisted inthe cause the foremost ecclesiastics, who might recognizein this internal disunion a danger of interminableattacks and depredations from without, if not an eventualloss of political independence; and, accordingly, inthe course of the spring of 697-698, the patriarchof Grado himself submitted to the arrengo at Heracliaa scheme, which had been devised by him and his friends,for changing the government. The proposal of themetropolitan was to divest the tribunes of the sovereignty,and to have once more a magistrate (capo dei tribuni),in whom all power might be concentrated. Histitle was to be duke. His office was to be forlife. With him was to rest the whole executivemachinery. He was to preside over the synod aswell as the arrengo, either of which it was competentfor him to convoke or dissolve at pleasure; merelyspiritual matters of a minor nature were alone, infuture, to be intrusted to the clergy; and all actsof convocations, the ordination of a priest or deacon,the election of a patriarch or bishop, were to besubject to the final sanction of the ducal throne.In fact, the latter became virtually, and in all materialrespects, autocrat of Venice, not merely the tribunes,but even the hierarchy, which was so directly instrumentalin creating the dignity, having now no higher functionthan that of advisers and administrators under hisdirection; and it was in matters of general or momentousconcern only that the republic expected her First Magistrateto seek the concurrence or advice of the national convention.

In a newly formed society, placed in the difficultsituation in which the republic found herself at theclose of the seventh century, and where also a superstitiousreverence for the pontiff might at present exist,apart from considerations of interest, it ought tocreate no surprise that the patriarch and his supportersshould have formed a unanimous determination, andhave taken immediate steps to procure the adhesionof the Holy See, before the resolutions of the popularassembly were definitively carried into effect.

This measure simply indicates the character of theopinions which were received at the time in Europe,as well as the strong consciousness on the part ofthe patriarch, and those who acted with him, of theexpediency of throwing the voice and countenance ofthe Church into the scale alike against the tribunitialoligarchy and against local jealousies and prejudices.There was perhaps in this case the additional inducementthat the proposal to invest the doge with supreme powerand jurisdiction over the Church, as well as overthe state, might seem to involve an indirect surrender,either now or hereafter, on the part of the Holy Seeof some of its power, as a high-priest or grand pontiff,who was also a secular prince, might prove less pliantthan an ordinary liegeman of the Church. Butthe men of 697 acted, as we must allow, sagaciouslyenough, when they presented their young country tothe consideration of the papacy as possessing a partyof order, into which the Church entered, and fromwhich it now stood conspicuously and courageouslyout to take this very momentous initiative.

The creation of an ecclesiastical system had beenone of the foremost aims of the first founders, whodiscerned in the transplantation of the churches ofthe terra firma, and their familiar pastorsto the islands the most persuasive reconcilement ofthe fugitives to a hard and precarious lot; and afterall the intervening years it was the elders of theChurch who once more stepped forward and deliveredtheir views on the best plan for healing discord,and making life in the lagoons tolerable for all.They sought some system of rule, after trying several,which would enable them to live in peace at home, andto gain strength to protect themselves from enemies.They would have been the most far-seeing of humanbeings if they had formed a suspicion of what kindof superstructure they were laying on the foundation.The nearest model for their adoption or imitationwas the Lombard type of government almost under theirvery eyes; and so far as the difference of local postulatessuffered, it was that to which they had recourse, whenthey vested in their new chieftain undivided jurisdiction,but primarily military attributes and a title thenrecognized as having, above all, a military significance.

On the receipt of the desired reply, the patriarchlost no time in calling on the national assembly tofollow up their late vote to its legitimate consequences;and the choice of the people fell on Pauluccio Anafesto,a native of Heraclia, whose name occurs here for thefirst time, but who may be supposed to have had someprominent share in promoting the late revolution.Anafesto was conducted to a chair which had been preparedfor him in his parish church, and solemnly investedby the metropolitan with the insignia of authority,one of which is said to have been an ivory sceptre—­asymbol and a material borrowed from the Romans.

It is not an unusual misconception that this organicchange in the government involved the simultaneousextinction of the tribunitial office and title.But the truth is that the tribunes continued to exercisemunicipal and subordinate functions many generationsafter the revolution of 697; each island of importance,such as Malamocco and Equilo, had its own tribune,while of the smaller islands several contributed toform a tribunate or governorship; and office, thoughneither strictly nor properly hereditary, still preservedits tendency to perpetuate itself in a limited numberof families. It is only subsequently to the twelfthcentury that less is heard of the tribunes; and theprogress of administrative reform led to the gradualdisappearance of this old feudal element in the constitution.

In the time of Anafesto, the larger islands of thedogado formed the seats of powerful factions;the disproportion in point of influence between theCrown and the tribune of Malamocco or the tribune ofEquilo was but slightly marked; and the abolitionof that magistracy was a much more sweeping measurethan the first makers of a doge would have dared topropose.

The military complexion of the ducal authority wasnot confined to the personal character of the supremeofficer of state, for under him, not as a novel elementin the constitution, but as one which preexisted sideby side with the tribunitial system, served a masterof the soldiers, whom there is a fairly solidground for regarding as second to the doge or dukein precedence, and above the civil tribunes of therespective townships.

To find in so small and imperfectly developed a statethe two leading functionaries or ingredients derivingtheir appellations from a command and control overthe rude feudal militia, might alone warrant the conclusionthat the most essential requirement of Venice, evenwhen it had so far modified the form of administration,was felt to be the possession, under responsible direction,of a means of securing internal order and withstandingexternal aggression, if it were not the case thatfrom the Gothic era onward we hear of scholae militiaecum patronis, manifestly the schools of instructionfor the body over which the magister militumpresided. These seminaries existed in the daysof the exarch Narses, generations before a doge wasgiven to Venice. Yet, through all the time whichhas now elapsed since the first erection of a separatepolitical jurisdiction, not only the Church, on whichsuch stress was at the very outset laid, but a civilgovernment, and regulations for trade and shipping,must have been active forces, always tending to growin strength and coherence.

The Venetians, in constructing by degrees, and evensomewhat at random, a constitutional fabric, verynaturally followed the precedents and models whichthey found in the regions which bordered on them, andfrom which their forefathers had emigrated. TheLombard system, which was of far longer duration thanits predecessors on the same soil, borrowed as muchas possible from that which the invaders saw in useand favor among the conquered; and the earliest institutionsof the only community not subjugated by their armswere counterparts either of the Lombard, the Roman,or the Greek customary law. The doge, in somerespects, enjoyed an authority similar to that whichthe Romans had vested in their ancient kings; but,while he was clothed with full ecclesiastical jurisdiction,he did not personally discharge the sacerdotal functionsor assume a sacerdotal title. The Latins had hadtheir magistri populi; and in the Middle Agesthey recognized at Naples and at Amalfi a masterof the soldiers; at Lucca, Verona, and elsewhere,a captain of the people. But all thesemagistrates were in possession of the supreme power,were kings in everything save the name; and the interestingsuggestion presents itself that in the case of Venicethe master of the soldiers had been part ofthe tribunitial organization, if not of the consularone, and that one of the tribunes officiated by rotation,bearing to the republic the same sort of relationshipas the bretwalda bore to the other Anglo-Saxonreguli. There can be no doubt that Venicekept in view the prototypes transmitted by Rome, andlearned at last to draw a comparison between the twoempires; and down to the fifteenth century the odorof the Conscript Fathers lingered in the Venetianfancy.

Subsequently to the entrance of the dux, duke,or doge on the scene, and the shrinkage ofthe tribunitial power to more departmental or municipalproportions, the master of the soldiers, whateverhe may have been before, became a subordinate elementin the administration. His duties must have certainlyembraced the management of the militia and the maintenanceof the doge’s peace within the always wideningpale of the ducal abode. He was next in rankto the crown or throne.

Thus we perceive that, after a series of trials, theVenetians eventually reverted to the form of governmentwhich appeared to be most agreeable, on the whole,to their conditions and genius.

The consular triumviri, not perhaps quite independentof external influences, were originally adopted asa temporary expedient. The tribunes, who nextsucceeded, had a duration of two hundred and fiftyyears. Their common fasti are scanty andobscure; and we gain only occasional glimpses of abarbarous federal administration, which barely sufficedto fulfil the most elementary wants of a rising societyof traders. They were alike, more or less, a

machinery of primitive type, deficient in centralforce, and without any safeguards against the abuseof authority, without any definite theory of legislationand police. The century and a half which intervenedbetween the abrogation of monarchy in the person ofa tribune, and its revival in the person of a doge(574-697), beheld the republic laboring under the feebleand enervating sway of rival aristocratic houses,on which the sole check was the urban body subsequentlyto emerge into importance and value as the militiaof the six wards, and its commandant, the masterof the soldiers.

But while the institution of the dogeship broughtwith it a certain measure of equilibrium and security,it left the political framework in almost every otherrespect untouched. The work of reform and consolidationhad merely commenced. The first stone only hadbeen laid of a great and enduring edifice. Thefirst permanent step had been taken toward the unificationof a group of insular clanships into a hom*ogeneoussociety, with a sense of common interests.

The late tribunitial ministry has transmitted to usas its monument little beyond the disclosure of achronic disposition to tyranny and periodical fluctuationsof preponderance. The so-called chair of Attilaat Torcello is supposed to have been the seat wherethe officer presiding over that district long heldhis court sub dio.

The doge Anafesto appears to have pacified, by hisenergy and tact, the intestine discord by which hiscountry had suffered so much and so long, and theEquilese, especially—­who had risen in openrevolt, and had refused to pay their proportion oftithes—­were persuaded, after some fiercestruggles in the pineto or pine woods, whichstill covered much of the soil, to return to obedience.The civil war which had lately broken out betweenEquilo and Heraclia was terminated by the influentialmediation of one of the tribunes, and the Lombardsnow condescended to ratify a treaty assigning to theVenetians the whole of the territory lying betweenthe greater and lesser Piave, empowering the republicto erect boundary lines, and prohibiting either ofthe contracting parties from building a strongholdwithin ten miles of those lines. A settlementof confines between two such close neighbors was ofthe highest importance and utility. But a stillmore momentous principle was here involved.

The republic had exercised a clear act of sovereignindependence. It had made its first Italian treaty.This was a proud step and a quotable precedent.

FOOTNOTE:

[68] Some modern writers question the etymology whichin the name of the Langobardi finds a reference tothe length of their beards. Sheppard thinks that“long-spears,” rather than “long-beards”was the original signification. Since, on thebanks of the Elbe, Boerde or Bord stillmeans “a fertile plain beside a river,”others derive their name from the district they inhabited.Langobardi would thus signify “people of thelong bord of the river.”

SARACENS IN SPAIN: BATTLE OF THE GUADALETE

A.D. 711

AHMED IBN MAHOMET AL-MAKKARI

When assailed by the Saracen power,the Gothic kingdom in Spain, which had enduredfor three centuries, had long been suffering a decline.Political disorders and social demoralization had madeits condition such as might well invite the Moslemarmies, flushed with victories on the Africanside, to cross the narrow Strait of Gibraltarfor new conquests.

The final subjection of North Africahad been accomplished by the Arab general, MusaIbn Nosseyr, only the fortress of Ceuta, on the shoreof the strait, still remaining in possession of theGoths. The Saracens knew that a fresh revolutionin Spain had placed on the throne Roderic—­whoproved to be the last of the Gothic kings. AtCeuta the commandant, Count Ilyan (Julian), when hewas attacked, made a feeble defence, virtuallybetraying the post into the hands of the Moslems.The reason, according to some authorities, forthe defection of Ilyan was his desire to avenge aninjury inflicted upon him by Roderic, who is saidto have dishonored Ilyan’s daughter, theLady Florinda. Others attribute the treasonof Ilyan to his real loyalty to the rivals of Roderic,the latter being regarded by him as a usurper.

It is recorded that Ilyan proposedto Musa the conquest of Andalusia, whose wealthin productiveness and other natural attractionshe glowingly described. The people, Ilyan declared,were enervated by reason of prolonged peace, andwere destitute of arms. He was induced entirelyto desert the Gothic cause and join the Moslems,and made a successful incursion into the country ofhis former friends, returning to Africa loadedwith spoil. From this time Ilyan servedunder the Moslem standard.

Another invasion was made by the Saracenswith like results, and then Musa, having receivedauthority from the Caliph, prepared to enterupon the conquest of Spain. The events which followedwere not only of great moment in the affairsof that country, but foreshadowed others whichseemed to involve the fate of Europe and of Christendomin the outcome of the Mahometan advance.

Musa strengthened himself in his intention of invadingAndalusia; to this effect he called a freed slaveof his, to whom he had on different occasions intrustedimportant commands in his armies, and whose name wasTarik Ibn Zeyad Ibn Abdillah, a native of Hamdan, inPersia, although some pretend that he was not a freedmanof Musa Ibn Nosseyr, but a free-born man of the tribeof Sadf, while others make him a mauli of Lahm.It is even asserted that some of his posterity, wholived in Andalusia, rejected with indignation thesupposition of their ancestor having ever been a liberatedslave of Musa Ibn Nosseyr. Some authors, andthey are the greatest number, say that he was a Berber.

To this Tarik, therefore, the Arabian governor ofAfrica committed the important trust of conqueringthe kingdom of Andalusia, for which end he gave himthe command of an army of seven thousand men, chieflyBerbers and slaves, very few only being genuine Arabs.To accompany and guide Tarik in this expedition, Musasent Ilyan, who provided four vessels from the portsunder his command, the only places on the coast wherevessels were at that time built. Everything beinggot ready, a division of the army crossed that armof the sea which divides Andalusia from Africa, andlanded with Tarik at the foot of the mountain, whichafterward received his name, on a Saturday, in themonth of Shaban, of the year [of the Hegira] 92 (July,711), answering to the month of Agosht (August); andthe four vessels were sent back, and crossed and recrosseduntil the rest of Tarik’s men were safely puton shore.

It is otherwise said that Tarik landed on the 24thof Rejeb (June 19th, A.D. 711), in the same year.Another account makes the number of men embarked onthis occasion amount to twelve thousand, all but sixteen,a number consisting almost entirely of Berbers, therebeing but few Arabs among them; but the same writeragrees that Ilyan transported this force at varioustimes to the coast of Andalusia in merchant vessels—­whencecollected, it is not known—­and that Tarikwas the last man on board.

Various historians have recorded two circ*mstancesconcerning Tarik’s passage, and his landingon the coast of Andalusia, which we consider worthyof being transcribed. They say that while he wassailing across that arm of the sea which separatesAfrica from Andalusia, he saw in a dream the prophetMahomet, surrounded by Arabs of the Muhajirm and Anssar,who with unsheathed swords and bended bows stood closeby him, and that he heard the prophet say: “Takecourage, O Tarik! and accomplish what thou art destinedto perform”; and that having looked round himhe saw the messenger of God, who with his companionswas entering Andalusia. Tarik then awoke fromhis sleep, and, delighted with this good omen, hastenedto communicate the miraculous circ*mstance to hisfollowers, who were much pleased and strengthened.Tarik himself was so much struck by the apparitionthat from that moment he never doubted of victory.

The same writers have preserved another anecdote,which sufficiently proves the mediation of the Almightyin permitting that the conquest of Andalusia shouldbe achieved by Tarik. Directly after his landingon the rock Musa’s freedman brought his forcesupon the plain, and began to overrun and lay wastethe neighboring country. While he was thus employed,an old woman from Algesiras presented herself to him,and among other things told him what follows:“Thou must know, O stranger! that I had oncea husband, who had the knowledge of future events;and I have repeatedly heard him say to the peopleof this country that a foreign general would cometo this island and subject it to his arms. Hedescribed him to me as a man of prominent forehead,and such, I see, is thine; he told me also that theindividual designated by the prophecy would have ablack mole covered with hair on his left shoulder.Now, if thou hast such a mark on thy body, thou artundoubtedly the person intended.”

When Tarik heard the old woman’s reasoning,he immediately laid his shoulder bare, and the markbeing found, as predicted, upon the left one, bothhe and his companions were filled with delight at thegood omen.

Ibnu Hayyan’s account does not materially differfrom those of the historians from whom we have quoted.He agrees in saying that Ilyan, lord of Ceuta, incitedMusa Ibn Nosseyr to make the conquest of Andalusia;and that this he did out of revenge, and moved by thepersonal enmity and hatred he had conceived againstRoderic. He makes Tarik’s army amount onlyto seven thousand, mostly Berbers, which, he says,crossed in four vessels provided by Ilyan. Accordingto his account, Tarik landed on a Saturday, in themonth of Shaban, of the year 92, and the vessels thatbrought him and his men on shore were immediatelysent back to Africa, and never ceased going backwardand forward until the whole of the army was safelylanded on the shores of Andalusia.

On the other side, Ibnu Khaldun reckons the army underthe orders of Tarik at three hundred Arabs and tenthousand Berbers. He says that before startingon his expedition, Tarik divided his army into twocorps, he himself taking the command of one, and placingthe other under the immediate orders of Tarif An-najai.Tarik, with his men, landed at the foot of the rocknow called Jebalu-l-fatah, “the mountainof the entrance,” and which then received hisname, and was called Jebal-Tarik, “themountain of Tarik”; while his companion, Tarif,landed on the island afterward called after him Jezirah-Tarif,“the island of Tarif.” In order toprovide for the security of their respective armies,both generals selected, soon after their landing, agood encampment, which they surrounded with walls andtrenches, for no sooner had the news of their landingspread than the armies of the Goths began to marchagainst them from all quarters.

No sooner did Tarik set his foot in Andalusia thanhe was attacked by a Goth named Tudmir (Theodomir),to whom Roderic had intrusted the defence of thatfrontier. Theodomir, who is the same general whoafterward gave his name to a province of Andalusia,called Belad Tudmir, “the country ofTheodomir,” having tried, although in vain, tostop the impetuous career of Tarik’s men, despatchedimmediately a messenger to his master, apprising himhow Tarik and his followers had landed in Andalusia.He also wrote him a letter thus conceived: “Thisour land has been invaded by people whose name, country,and origin are unknown to me. I cannot even tellwhence they came—­whether they fell fromthe skies or sprang from the earth.”

When this news reached Roderic, who was then in thecountry of the Bashkans (Basques), making war in theterritory of Banbilonah (Pamplona), where seriousdisturbances had occurred, he guessed directly thatthe blow came from Ilyan. Sensible, however, ofthe importance of this attack made upon his dominions,he left what he had in hand, and, moving toward thesouth with the whole of his powerful army, arrivedin Cordova, which is placed in the centre of Andalusia.There he took up his abode in the royal castle, whichthe Arabs called after him Roderic’s castle.In this palace Roderic took up his residence for afew days, to await the arrival of the numerous troopswhich he had summoned from the different provincesof his kingdom.

They say that while he was staying in Cordova he wroteto the sons of Wittiza to come and join him againstthe common enemy; for, although it is true that Roderichad usurped the throne of their father, and persecutedthe sons, yet he had spared their lives; since thesetwo sons of Wittiza are the same who, when Tarik attackedthe forces of King Roderic on the plains of Guadalete,near the sea, turned back and deserted their ranks,owing to a promise made them by Tarik to restore themto the throne of their father, if they helped him againstRoderic. However, when Roderic arrived in Cordova,the sons of Wittiza were busily engaged in some distantprovince collecting troops to march against the invaders,and he wrote to them to come and join him with theirforces, in order to march against the Arabs; and, cautioningthem against the inconvenience and danger of privatefeuds at that moment, engaged them to join him andattack the Arabs in one mass. The sons of Wittizareadily agreed to Roderic’s proposition, andcollecting all their forces, came to meet him, andencamped not far from the village of Shakandah, onthe opposite side of the river, and on the south ofthe palace of Cordova.

There they remained for some time, not daring to enterthe capital or to trust Roderic, until at last, havingascertained the truth of the preparations, and seeingthe army march out of the city and him with it, theyentered Cordova, united their forces to his, and marchedwith him against the enemy, although, as will be seenpresently, they were already planning the treacherywhich they afterward committed. Others say thatthe sons of Wittiza did not obey the summons sent themby the usurper Roderic; on the contrary, that theyjoined Tarik with all their forces.

When Tarik received the news of the approach of Roderic’sarmy, which is said to have amounted to nearly onehundred thousand men, provided with all kinds of weaponsand military stores, he wrote to Musa for assistance,saying that he had taken Algesiras, a port of Andalusia,thus becoming, by its possession, the master of thepassage into that country; that he had subdued itsdistricts as far as the bay; but that Roderic wasnow advancing against him with a force which it was

not in his power to resist, except it was God Almighty’swill that it should be so. Musa, who since Tarik’sdeparture for this expedition had been employed inbuilding ships, and had by this time collected a greatmany, sent by them a reinforcement of five thousandMoslems, which, added to the seven thousand of thefirst expedition, made the whole forces amount totwelve thousand men, eager for plunder and anxiousfor battle. Ilyan was also sent with his armyand the people of his states to accompany this expedition,and to guide it through the passes in the country,and gather intelligence for them.

In the mean while Roderic was drawing nearer to theMoslems, with all the forces of the barbarians, theirlords, their knights, and their bishops; but the heartsof the great people of the kingdom being against him,they used to see each other frequently, and in theirprivate conversations they uttered their sentimentsabout Roderic in the following manner: “Thiswretch has by force taken possession of the throneto which he is not justly entitled, for not only hedoes not belong to the royal family, but he was onceone of our meanest menials; we do not know how farhe may carry his wicked intentions against us.There is no doubt but that Tarik’s followersdo not intend to settle in this country; their onlywish is to fill their hands with spoil, and then return.Let us then, as soon as the battle is engaged, giveway, and leave the usurper alone to fight the strangers,who will soon deliver us from him; and, when theyshall be gone, we can place on the throne him whom*ost deserves it.”

In these sentiments all agreed, and it was decidedthat the proposed plan should be put into execution;the two sons of Wittiza, whom Roderic had appointedto the command of the right and left wings of his army,being at the head of the conspiracy, in the hope ofgaining the throne of their father.

When the armies drew nearer to each other, the princesbegan to spin the web of their treason; and for thispurpose a messenger was sent by them to Tarik, informinghim how Roderic, who had been a mere menial and servantto their father, had, after his death, usurped thethrone; that the princes had by no means relinquishedtheir rights, and that they implored protection andsecurity for themselves. They offered to desert,and pass over to Tarik with the troops under theircommand, on condition that the Arab general would,after subduing the whole of Andalusia, secure to themall their father’s possessions, amounting tothree thousand valuable and chosen farms, the samethat received after this the name of Safaya-l-moluk,“the royal portion.” This offer Tarikaccepted; and, having agreed to the conditions, onthe next day the sons of Wittiza deserted the ranksof the Gothic army in the midst of battle, and passedover to Tarik, this being, no doubt, one of the principalcauses of the conquest.

Roderic arrived on the banks of the Guadalete witha formidable army, which most historians compute atone hundred thousand cavalry; although Ibnu Khaldunmakes it amount to forty thousand men only. Rodericbrought all his treasures and military stores in carts:he himself came in a litter placed between two mules,having over his head an awning richly set with pearls,rubies, and emeralds. On the approach of thisformidable host the Moslems did not lose courage, butprepared to meet their adversary. Tarik assembledhis men, comforted them by his words, and after renderingthe due praises to the Almighty God, and returningthanks for what had already been accomplished, proceededto implore his mighty help for the future. Hethen encouraged the Moslems, and kindled their enthusiasmwith the following address:

“Whither can you fly?—­the enemy isin your front, the sea at your back. By Allah!there is no salvation for you but in your courage andperseverance. Consider your situation: hereyou are on this island, like so many orphans castupon the world; you will soon be met by a powerfulenemy, surrounding you on all sides like the infuriatedbillows of a tempestuous sea, and sending againstyou his countless warriors, drowned in steel, andprovided with every store and description of arms.What can you oppose to them? You have no otherweapons than your swords, no provisions but thosethat you may snatch from the hands of your enemies;you must therefore attack them immediately, or otherwiseyour wants will increase; the gales of victory mayno longer blow in your favor, and perchance the fearthat lurks in the hearts of your enemies may be changedinto indomitable courage.

“Banish all fear from your hearts, trust thatvictory shall be ours, and that the barbarian kingwill not be able to withstand the shock of our arms.Here he comes to make us the master of his cities andcastles, and to deliver into our hands his countlesstreasures; and if you only seize the opportunity nowpresented, it may perhaps be the means of your becomingthe owners of them, besides saving yourselves fromcertain death. Do not think that I impose uponyou a task from which I shrink myself, or that I tryto conceal from you the dangers attending this ourexpedition. No; you have certainly a great dealto encounter, but know that if you only suffer fora while, you will reap in the end an abundant harvestof pleasures and enjoyments. And do not imaginethat while I speak to you I mean not to act as I speak;for as my interest in this affair is greater, so willmy behavior on this occasion surpass yours. Youmust have heard numerous accounts of this island, youmust know how the Grecian maidens, as handsome ashouris, their necks glittering with innumerable pearlsand jewels, their bodies clothed with tunics of costlysilks, sprinkled with gold, are waiting your arrival,reclining on soft couches in the sumptuous palacesof crowned lords and princes.

“You know well that the caliph Abdu-l-MalekIbnu-l-walid has chosen you, like so many heroes,from among the brave; you know that the great lordsof this island are willing to make you their sons andbrethren by marriage, if you only rush on like somany brave men to the fight, and behave like truechampions and valiant knights; you know that the recompensesof God await you if you are prepared to uphold hiswords, and proclaim his religion in this island; and,lastly, that all the spoil shall be yours, and ofsuch Moslems as may be with you.

“Bear in mind that God Almighty will select,according to this promise, those that distinguishthemselves most among you, and grant them due reward,both in this world and in the future; and know likewisethat I shall be the first to set you the example,and to put in practice what I recommend you to do;for it is my intention, on the meeting of the twohosts, to attack the Christian tyrant Roderic, andkill him with my own hand, if God be pleased.When you see me bearing against him, charge alongwith me; if I kill him, the victory is ours; if I amkilled before I reach him, do not trouble yourselvesabout me, but fight as if I were still alive and amongyou, and follow up my purpose; for the moment theysee their King fall, these barbarians are sure to disperse.If, however, I should be killed, after inflictingdeath upon their King, appoint a man from among youwho unites both courage and experience and may commandyou in this emergency and follow up the success.If you attend to my instructions, we are sure of thevictory.”

When Tarik had thus addressed his soldiers and exhortedthem to fight with courage and to face the dangersof war with a stout heart—­when he had thusrecommended them to make a simultaneous attack uponRoderic’s men, and promised them abundant rewardif they routed their enemies—­their countenanceswere suddenly expanded with joy their hopes were strengthened,the gales of victory began to blow on their side, andthey all unanimously answered him: “We areready to follow thee, O Tarik! We shall all,to one man, stand by thee and fight for thee; norcould we avoid it were we otherwise disposed—­victoryis our only hope of salvation.”

After this Tarik mounted his horse, and his men didthe same; and they all passed that night in constantwatch for fear of the enemy. On the followingmorning, when day dawned, both armies prepared forbattle; each general formed his cavalry and his infantry,and, the signal being given, the armies met with ashock, similar to that of two mountains dashing againsteach other.

King Roderic came, borne on a throne, and having overhis head an awning of variegated silk to guard himfrom the rays of the sun, surrounded by warriors,cased in bright steel, with fluttering pennons anda profusion of banners and standards.

Tarik’s men were differently arrayed; theirbreasts were covered with mail armor; they wore whiteturbans on their heads, the Arabian bow slung acrosstheir backs, their swords suspended in their girdles,and their long spears firmly grasped in their hands.

They say that when the two armies were advancing uponeach other, and the eyes of Roderic fell upon themen in the first ranks, he was horror-stricken, andwas heard to exclaim: “By the faith of theMessiah! These are the very men I saw paintedon the scroll found in the mansion of science at Toledo;”and from that moment fear entered his heart; and whenTarik perceived Roderic, he said to his followers,“This is the King of the Christians,”and he charged with his men, the warriors who surroundedRoderic being on all sides scattered and dispersed;seeing which, Tarik plunged into the ranks of theenemy until he reached the King, and wounded him withhis sword on the head and killed him on his throne;and when Rodericks men saw their King fall, and hisbodyguard dispersed, the rout became general, andvictory remained with the Moslems.

The rout of the Christians was complete, for insteadof rallying on one spot, they fled in all directions,and, their panic being communicated to their countrymen,cities opened their gates, and castles surrenderedwithout resistance.

The preceding account we have borrowed from a writerof great note, but we deem it necessary to warn thereaders that the assertion that Roderic died by thehands of Tarik has been contradicted by several historians,since his body, although diligently sought on the fieldof battle, could nowhere be found.

We shall proceed to recount in detail that memorablebattle, when Almighty God was pleased to put KingRoderic’s army to flight and grant the Moslemsa most complete victory. Several authors who havedescribed at large this famous engagement state thatTarik encamped near Roderic, toward the middle ofthe month of Ramadan of the year 92 (September, A.D.711), and although there is some difference as to thedates, all agree that the battle was fought on thebanks of the Guadalete. They say also that whileboth armies were encamped in front of each other, thebarbarian King, wishing to ascertain the exact amountof Tarik’s forces, sent one of his men, whosevalor and strength he knew, and in whose fidelityhe placed unbounded confidence, with instructions topenetrate into Tarik’s camp, and bring him anaccount of their number, arms, accoutrements, andvessels.

The Christian proceeded to execute his commission,and reached a small elevation, whence he had a commandingview of the whole camp. However, he had not remainedlong in his place of observation before he was discoveredby some Moslems, who pursued him; but the Christianfled before them, and escaped through the swiftnessof his horse.

Arrived at the Christian camp, he addressed Rodericin the following words: “These people,O King! are the same that thou sawest painted on thescroll of the enchanted palace. Beware of them!for the greatest part of them have bound themselvesby oath to reach thee or die in the attempt; theyhave set fire to their vessels, to destroy their lasthope of escape; they are encamped along the sea-shore,determined to die or to vanquish, for they know wellthat there is not in this country a place whitherthey can fly.” On hearing this account,King Roderic was much disheartened, and he trembledwith fear. However, the two armies engaged nearthe lake or gulf; they fought resolutely on both sidestill the right and left wings of Roderic’s army,under the command of the sons of Wittiza, gave way.The centre, in which Roderic was, still held firmfor a while, and made the fate of the battle uncertainfor some time; they fled at last, and Roderic beforethem. From that moment the rout became general,and the Moslems followed with ardor the pursuit ofthe scattered bands, inflicting death wherever theywent.

Roderic disappeared in the midst of the battle, andno certain intelligence was afterward received ofhim. It is true that some Moslems found his favoritesteed, a milk-white horse, bearing a saddle of gold,sparkling with rubies, plunged in the mud of the river,as also one of his sandals, adorned with rubies andemeralds, but the other was never found; nor was Roderic,although diligently searched for, ever discoveredeither dead or alive, a circ*mstance which led theMoslems to believe that he perished in the stream,the weight of his armor preventing him from strugglingagainst the current, and he was drowned; but God onlyknows what became of him.

According to Ar-razi, the contest began on Sunday,two days before the end of Ramadan, and continuedtill Sunday, the 5th of Shawal; namely, eight wholedays; at the end of which God Almighty was pleasedto put the idolaters to flight, and grant the victoryto the Moslems; and he adds that so great was thenumber of the Goths who perished in the battle thatfor a long time after the victory the bones of theslain were to be seen covering the field of action.

They say also that the spoil found by the Moslemsin the camp of the Christians surpassed all computation,for the princes and great men of the Goths who hadfallen were distinguished by the rings of gold theywore on their fingers, those of an inferior class bysimilar ornaments of silver, while those of the slaveswere made of brass. Tarik collected all the spoiland divided it into five shares or portions, when,after deducting one-fifth, he distributed the restamong nine thousand Moslems, besides the slaves andfollowers.

When the people on the other side of the straits heardof this success of Tarik, and of the plentiful spoilshe had acquired, they flocked to him from all quarters,and crossed the sea on every vessel or bark they couldlay hold of. Tank’s army being so considerablyreinforced, the Christians were obliged to shut themselvesup in their castles and fortresses, and, quittingthe flat country, betake themselves to their mountains.

BATTLE OF TOURS

A.D. 732

SIR EDWARD SHEPHERD CREASY

When the Saracens hadcompleted the conquest of Spain and all that
country was wholly undertheir dominion, they determined to extend
their authority overthe neighboring country of the Franks.

Having crossed the Pyrenees they metwith but slight opposition and soon succeededin making themselves masters of Southern France, therebyfurthering and encouraging their boastful ambitionto conquer and Islamize the whole world.

Already had Africa,Asia Minor, and Eastern Europe acknowledged
their rule, and thefinal subjugation of all Christendom by the
Mahometan sword seemedcertain and imminent.

Their long and uninterrupted careerof success had fed their arrogance and filledthem with a proud confidence in the invincibilityof their arms, and their farther advance into theheart of Europe seemed, in the eyes of Christianand pagan alike, to be the irresistible marchof destiny.

The Saracen host had not penetratedfar into the Frankish territory when they encountered“a lion in the path,” in the person ofCharles (or Karl), the great palace-mayor—­socalled, but who was in reality the defactosovereign of the Frankish kingdoms.

To Charles, famous for his militaryskill and prestige, came the recently defeatedEudes, the count of Aquitaine, and the remnant ofhis force, craving his protection and leadershipagainst the advancing Saracen horde.

Charles’ signal victory overthe Saracen invaders proved to be the turning-pointin the Moslem career of conquest. The questionwhether the Koran or the Bible, the Crescentor the Cross, Mahomet or Christ, should ruleEurope and the western world was decided foreverupon the bloody field of Tours.

The broad tract of champaign country which intervenesbetween the cities of Poitiers and Tours is principallycomposed of a succession of rich pasture lands, whichare traversed and fertilized by the Cher, the Creuse,the Vienne, the Claine, the Indre, and other tributariesof the river Loire. Here and there the groundswells into picturesque eminences, and occasionallya belt of forest land, a brown heath, or a clusteringseries of vineyards breaks the monotony of the widespreadmeadows; but the general character of the land is thatof a grassy plain, and it seems naturally adaptedfor the evolutions of numerous armies, especiallyof those vast bodies of cavalry which principallydecided the fate of nations during the centuries thatfollowed the downfall of Rome and preceded the consolidationof the modern European powers.

This region has been signalized by more than one memorableconflict; but it is principally interesting to thehistorian by having been the scene of the great victorywon by Charles Martel over the Saracens, A.D. 732,which gave a decisive check to the career of Arab conquestin Western Europe, rescued Christendom from Islam,preserved the relics of ancient and the germs of moderncivilization, and reestablished the old superiorityof the Indo-European over the Semitic family of mankind.

Sismondi and Michelet have underrated the enduringinterest of this great Appeal of Battle between thechampions of the Crescent and the Cross. But,if French writers have slighted the exploits of theirnational hero, the Saracenic trophies of Charles Martelhave had full justice done to them by English andGerman historians. Gibbon devotes several pagesof his great work[69] to the narrative of the battleof Tours, and to the consideration of the consequenceswhich probably would have resulted if Abderrahman’senterprise had not been crushed by the Frankish chief.Schlegel speaks of this “mighty victory”in terms of fervent gratitude, and tells how “thearm of Charles Martel saved and delivered the Christiannations of the West from the deadly grasp of all-destroyingIslam”; and Ranke points out, as “one ofthe most important epochs in the history of the world,the commencement of the eighth century, when on theone side Mahometanism threatened to overspread Italyand Gaul, and on the other the ancient idolatry ofSaxony and Friesland once more forced its way acrossthe Rhine. In this peril of Christian institutions,a youthful prince of Germanic race, Charles (or Karl)Martel, arose as their champion, maintained them withall the energy which the necessity for self-defencecalls forth, and finally extended them into new regions.”

Arnold ranks the victory of Charles Martel even higherthan the victory of Arminius, “among those signaldeliverances which have affected for centuries thehappiness of mankind.” In fact, the morewe test its importance, the higher we shall be ledto estimate it; and, though all authentic detailswhich we possess of its circ*mstances and its heroesare but meagre, we can trace enough of its generalcharacter to make us watch with deep interest thisencounter between the rival conquerors of the decayingRoman Empire. That old classic world, the historyof which occupies so large a portion of our earlystudies, lay, in the eighth century of our era, utterlyexanimate and overthrown. On the north the German,on the south the Arab, was rending away its provinces.At last the spoilers encountered one another, eachstriving for the full mastery of the prey. Theirconflict brought back upon the memory of Gibbon theold Homeric simile, where the strife of Hector andPatroclus over the dead body of Cebriones is comparedto the combat of two lions, that in their hate andhunger fight together on the mountain tops over thecarcass of a slaughtered stag; and the reluctant yieldingof the Saracen power to the superior might of thenorthern warriors might not inaptly recall those otherlines of the same book of the Iliad, where thedownfall of Patroclus beneath Hector is likened tothe forced yielding of the panting and exhausted wildboar, that had long and furiously fought with a superiorbeast of prey for the possession of the scanty fountainamong the rocks at which each burned to drink.

Although three centuries had passed away since theGermanic conquerors of Rome had crossed the Rhine,never to repass that frontier stream, no settled systemof institutions or government, no amalgamation of thevarious races into one people, no uniformity of languageor habits had been established in the country at thetime when Charles Martel was called to repel the menacingtide of Saracenic invasion from the south. Gaulwas not yet France. In that, as in other provincesof the Roman Empire of the West, the dominion of theCaesars had been shattered as early as the fifth century,and barbaric kingdoms and principalities had promptlyarisen on the ruins of the Roman power. But fewof these had any permanency, and none of them consolidatedthe rest, or any considerable number of the rest,into one coherent and organized civil and politicalsociety.

The great bulk of the population still consisted ofthe conquered provincials, that is to say, of RomanizedCelts, of a Gallic race which had long been underthe dominion of the Caesars, and had acquired, togetherwith no slight infusion of Roman blood, the language,the literature, the laws, and the civilization ofLatium. Among these, and dominant over them,roved or dwelt the German victors; some retainingnearly all the rude independence of their primitivenational character, others softened and disciplinedby the aspect and contact of the manners and institutionsof civilized life; for it is to be borne in mind thatthe Roman Empire in the West was not crushed by anysudden avalanche of barbaric invasion. The Germanconquerors came across the Rhine, not in enormoushosts, but in bands of a few thousand warriors at atime. The conquest of a province was the resultof an infinite series of partial local invasions,carried on by little armies of this description.The victorious warriors either retired with theirbooty or fixed themselves in the invaded district,taking care to keep sufficiently concentrated formilitary purposes, and ever ready for some fresh foray,either against a rival Teutonic band or some hithertounassailed city of the provincials.

Gradually, however, the conquerors acquired a desirefor permanent landed possessions. They lost somewhatof the restless thirst for novelty and adventure whichhad first made them throng beneath the banner of theboldest captains of their tribe, and leave their nativeforests for a roving military life on the left bankof the Rhine. They were converted to the Christianfaith, and gave up with their old creed much of thecoarse ferocity which must have been fostered in thespirits of the ancient warriors of the North by amythology which promised, as the reward of the braveon earth, an eternal cycle of fighting and drunkennessin heaven.

But, although their conversion and other civilizinginfluences operated powerfully upon the Germans inGaul, and although the Franks—­who wereoriginally a confederation of the Teutonic tribes thatdwelt between the Rhine, the Maine, and the Weser—­establisheda decisive superiority over the other conquerors ofthe province, as well as over the conquered provincials,the country long remained a chaos of uncombined andshifting elements. The early princes of the Merovingiandynasty were generally occupied in wars against otherprinces of their house, occasioned by the frequentsubdivisions of the Frank monarchy; and the ablestand best of them had found all their energies taskedto the utmost to defend the barrier of the Rhine againstthe pagan Germans who strove to pass that river andgather their share of the spoils of the Empire.

The conquests which the Saracens effected over thesouthern and eastern provinces of Rome were far morerapid than those achieved by the Germans in the North,and the new organizations of society which the Moslemsintroduced were summarily and uniformly enforced.Exactly a century passed between the death of Mahometand the date of the battle of Tours. During thatcentury the followers of the prophet had torn awayhalf the Roman Empire; and besides their conquestsover Persia, the Saracens had overrun Syria, Egypt,Africa, and Spain, in an unchecked and apparentlyirresistible career of victory. Nor, at the commencementof the eighth century of our era, was the Mahometanworld divided against itself, as it subsequently became.All these vast regions obeyed the Caliph; throughoutthem all, from the Pyrenees to the Oxus, the name ofMahomet was invoked in prayer and the Koranrevered as the book of the law.

It was under one of their ablest and most renownedcommanders, with a veteran army, and with every apparentadvantage of time, place, and circ*mstance, that theArabs made their great effort at the conquest of Europenorth of the Pyrenees. The victorious Moslem soldieryin Spain,

“Acountless multitude,

Syrian, Moor, Saracen, Greek renegade,
Persian, and Copt, and Tartar, in one bond
Of erring faith conjoined—­strong inthe youth
And heat of zeal—­a dreadful brotherhood,”

were eager for the plunder of more Christian citiesand shrines, and full of fanatic confidence in theinvincibility of their arms.

“Norwere the chiefs

Of victory less assured, by long success
Elate, and proud of that o’erwhelming strength
Which, surely they believed, as it had rolled
Thus far unchecked, would roll victorious on,
Till, like the Orient, the subjected West
Should bow in reverence at Mahomet’s name;
And pilgrims from remotest arctic shores
Tread with religious feet the burning sands
Of Araby and Mecca’s stony soil.”

—­Southey’sRoderick,

It is not only by the modern Christian poet, but bythe old Arabian chroniclers also, that these feelingsof ambition and arrogance are attributed to the Moslemswho had overthrown the Visigoth power in Spain.And their eager expectations of new wars were excitedto the utmost on the reappointment by the Caliph ofAbderrahman Ibn Abdillah Alghafeki to the governmentof that country, A.D. 729, which restored them a generalwho had signalized his skill and prowess during theconquests of Africa and Spain, whose ready valor andgenerosity had made him the idol of the troops, whohad already been engaged in several expeditions intoGaul, so as to be well acquainted with the nationalcharacter and tactics of the Franks, and who was knownto thirst, like a good Moslem, for revenge for theslaughter of some detachments of the “true believers,”which had been cut off on the north of the Pyrenees.

In addition to his cardinal military virtues Abderrahmanis described by the Arab writers as a model of integrityand justice. The first two years of his secondadministration in Spain were occupied in severe reformsof the abuses which under his predecessors had creptinto the system of government, and in extensive preparationsfor his intended conquest in Gaul. Besides thetroops which he collected from his province, he obtainedfrom Africa a large body of chosen Berber cavalry,officered by Arabs of proved skill and valor; and inthe summer of 732 he crossed the Pyrenees at the headof an army which some Arab writers rate at eightythousand strong, while some of the Christian chroniclersswell its numbers to many hundreds of thousands more.Probably the Arab account diminishes, but of the twokeeps nearer to the truth.

It was from this formidable host, after Eudes, thecount of Aquitaine, had vainly striven to check it,after many strong cities had fallen before it, andhalf the land had been overrun, that Gaul and Christendomwere at last rescued by the strong arm of Prince Charles,who acquired a surname (Martel, the “Hammer”)like that of the war-god of his forefathers’creed, from the might with which he broke and shatteredhis enemies in the battle.

The Merovingian kings had sunk into absolute insignificance,and had become mere puppets of royalty before theeighth century. Charles Martel, like his father,Pepin Heristal, was duke of the Austrasian Franks,the bravest and most thoroughly Germanic part of thenation, and exercised, in the name of the titularking, what little paramount authority the turbulentminor rulers of districts and towns could be persuadedor compelled to acknowledge. Engaged with hisnational competitors in perpetual conflicts for power,and in more serious struggles for safety against thefierce tribes of the unconverted Frisians, Bavarians,Saxons, and Thuringians, who at that epoch assailedwith peculiar ferocity the Christianized Germans onthe left bank of the Rhine, Charles Martel added experiencedskill to his natural courage, and he had also formeda militia of veterans among the Franks.

Hallam has thrown out a doubt whether, in our admirationof his victory at Tours, we do not judge a littletoo much by the event, and whether there was not rashnessin his risking the fate of France on the result ofa general battle with the invaders. But when weremember that Charles had no standing army, and theindependent spirit of the Frank warriors who followedhis standard, it seems most probable that it was notin his power to adopt the cautious policy of watchingthe invaders, and wearing out their strength by delay.So dreadful and so widespread were the ravages ofthe Saracenic light cavalry throughout Gaul that itmust have been impossible to restrain for any lengthof time the indignant ardor of the Franks. And,even if Charles could have persuaded his men to looktamely on while the Arabs stormed more towns and desolatedmore districts, he could not have kept an army togetherwhen the usual period of a military expedition hadexpired. If, indeed, the Arab account of thedisorganization of the Moslem forces be correct, thebattle was as well timed on the part of Charles asit was, beyond all question, well fought.

The monkish chroniclers, from whom we are obligedto glean a narrative of this memorable campaign, bearfull evidence to the terror which the Saracen invasioninspired, and to the agony of that great struggle.The Saracens, say they, and their King, who was calledAbdirames, came out of Spain, with all their wives,and their children, and their substance, in such greatmultitudes that no man could reckon or estimate them.They brought with them all their armor, and whateverthey had, as if they were thenceforth always to dwellin France.

“Then Abderrahman, seeing the land filled withthe multitude of his army, pierces through the mountains,tramples over rough and level ground, plunders farinto the country of the Franks, and smites all withthe sword, insomuch that when Eudes came to battlewith him at the river Garonne, and fled before him,God alone knows the number of the slain. ThenAbderrahman pursued after Count Eudes, and while hestrives to spoil and burn the holy shrine at Tourshe encounters the chief of the Austrasian Franks,Charles, a man of war from his youth up, to whom Eudeshad sent warning. There for nearly seven daysthey strive intensely, and at last they set themselvesin battle array, and the nations of the North, standingfirm as a wall and impenetrable as a zone of ice,utterly slay the Arabs with the edge of the sword.”

The European writers all concur in speaking of thefall of Abderrahman as one of the principal causesof the defeat of the Arabs; who, according to onewriter, after finding that their leader was slain,dispersed in the night, to the agreeable surprise ofthe Christians, who expected the next morning to seethem issue from their tents and renew the combat.One monkish chronicler puts the loss of the Arabs atthree hundred and seventy-five thousand men, whilehe says that only one thousand and seven Christiansfell; a disparity of loss which he feels bound toaccount for by a special interposition of Providence.I have translated above some of the most spiritedpassages of these writers; but it is impossible tocollect from them anything like a full or authenticdescription of the great battle itself, or of the operationswhich preceded and followed it.

Though, however, we may have cause to regret the meagrenessand doubtful character of these narratives, we havethe great advantage of being able to compare the accountsgiven of Abderrahman’s expedition by the nationalwriters of each side. This is a benefit whichthe inquirer into antiquity so seldom can obtain thatthe fact of possessing it, in the case of the battleof Tours, makes us think the historical testimonyrespecting that great event more certain and satisfactorythan is the case in many other instances, where wepossess abundant details respecting military exploits,but where those details come to us from the annalistof one nation only, and where we have, consequently,no safeguard against the exaggerations, the distortions,and the fictions which national vanity has so oftenput forth in the garb and under the title of history.The Arabian writers who recorded the conquests andwars of their countrymen in Spain have narrated alsothe expedition into Gaul of their great Emir, andhis defeat and death near Tours, in battle with thehost of the Franks under “King Caldus,”the name into which they metamorphose Charles Martel.

They tell us how there was war between the count ofthe Frankish frontier and the Moslems, and how thecount gathered together all his people, and foughtfor a time with doubtful success. “But,”say the Arabian chroniclers, “Abderrahman drovethem back; and the men of Abderrahman were puffedup in spirit by their repeated successes, and theywere full of trust in the valor and the practice inwar of their Emir. So the Moslems smote theirenemies, and passed the river Garonne, and laid wastethe country, and took captives without number.And that army went through all places like a desolatingstorm. Prosperity made these warriors insatiable.At the passage of the river Abderrahman overthrewthe count, and the count retired into his stronghold,but the Moslems fought against it, and entered itby force and slew the count; for everything gave wayto their cimeters, which were the robbers of lives.

“All the nations of the Franks trembled at thatterrible army, and they betook them to their king‘Caldus,’ and told him of the havoc madeby the Moslem horsem*n, and how they rode at theirwill through all the land of Narbonne, Toulouse, andBordeaux, and they told the King of the death of theircount. Then the King bade them be of good cheer,and offered to aid them. And in the 114th year[70]he mounted his horse, and he took with him a hostthat could not be numbered, and went against the Moslems.And he came upon them at the great city of Tours.And Abderrahman and other prudent cavaliers saw thedisorder of the Moslem troops, who were loaded withspoil; but they did not venture to displease the soldiersby ordering them to abandon everything except theirarms and war-horses. And Abderrahman trusted inthe valor of his soldiers, and in the good fortunewhich had ever attended him. But, the Arab writerremarks, such defect of discipline always is fatalto armies.

“So Abderrahman and his host attacked Toursto gain still more spoil, and they fought againstit so fiercely that they stormed the city almost beforethe eyes of the army that came to save it, and thefury and the cruelty of the Moslems toward the inhabitantsof the city were like the fury and cruelty of ragingtigers. It was manifest,” adds the Arab,“that God’s chastisem*nt was sure to followsuch excesses, and Fortune thereupon turned her backupon the Moslems.

“Near the river Owar,[71] the two great hostsof the two languages and the two creeds were set inarray against each other. The hearts of Abderrahman,his captains, and his men, were filled with wrath andpride, and they were the first to begin the fight.The Moslem horsem*n dashed fierce and frequent forwardagainst the battalions of the Franks, who resistedman-fully, and many fell dead on either side, untilthe going down of the sun. Night parted the twoarmies, but in the gray of the morning the Moslemsreturned to the battle. Their cavaliers had soonhewn their way into the centre of the Christian host.But many of the Moslems were fearful for the safetyof the spoil which they had stored in their tents,and a false cry arose in their ranks that some of theenemy were plundering the camp; whereupon several squadronsof the Moslem horsem*n rode off to protect their tents.But it seemed as if they fled, and all the host wastroubled.

“And while Abderrahman strove to check theirtumult and to lead them back to battle, the warriorsof the Franks came around him, and he was piercedthrough with many spears, so that he died. Thenall the host fled before the enemy and many died inthe flight. This deadly defeat of the Moslems,and the loss of the great leader and good cavalierAbderrahman, took place in the hundred and fifteenthyear."[72]

It would be difficult to expect from an adversarya more explicit confession of having been thoroughlyvanquished than the Arabs here accord to the Europeans.The points on which their narrative differs from thoseof the Christians—­as to how many days theconflict lasted, whether the assailed city was actuallyrescued or not, and the like—­are of littlemoment compared with the admitted great fact that therewas a decisive trial of strength between Frank andSaracen, in which the former conquered. The enduringimportance of the battle of Tours in the eyes of theMoslems is attested not only by the expressions of“the deadly battle” and “the disgracefuloverthrow” which their writers constantly employwhen referring to it, but also by the fact that nomore serious attempts at conquest beyond the Pyreneeswere made by the Saracens.

Charles Martel and his son and grandson were leftat leisure to consolidate and extend their power.The new Christian Roman Empire of the West, whichthe genius of Charlemagne founded, and throughout whichhis iron will imposed peace on the old anarchy of creedsand races, did not indeed retain its integrity afterits great ruler’s death. Fresh troublescame over Europe, but Christendom, though disunited,was safe. The progress of civilization, and thedevelopment of the nationalities and governments ofmodern Europe, from that time forth went forward innot uninterrupted, but ultimately certain, career.

FOOTNOTES:

[69] Gibbon remarks that if the Saracen conquestshad not then been checked, “perhaps the interpretationof the Koran would now be taught in the schoolsof Oxford, and her pulpits might demonstrate to acircumcised people the sanctity and truth of the revelationof Mahomet.”

[70] Of the Hegira.

[71] Probably the Loire.

[72] An. Heg.

FOUNDING OF THE CARLOVINGIAN DYNASTY

PEPIN THE SHORT USURPS THE FRANKISH CROWN

A.D. 751

FRANCOIS P.G. GUIZOT

The Merovingians, the first dynastyof the Frankish kings in Gaul, was founded bythe greatest of their kings, Clovis, who in 486 overthrewthe Gallo-Roman sway under Syagrius, near Soissons.After his death in 511 his kingdom was dividedamong four sons who were mere boys ranging fromtwelve to eighteen years of age. The young princesextended the conquests of their father until they hadsecured from the emperor Justinian title to thewhole of Gaul. The last survivor of thebrother-kings was Clotaire I. Under his rule thewhole Frankish empire had been united in one; but onhis decease it was again divided among sons.This division cut the kingdom into three separatesovereignties.

The reign of these brothers was oneof horrible cruelty and bloodshed. A secondClotaire survived them and brought the monarchy underone sceptre. But power slipped fast from thisroyal representative of the Merovingian race,and the mayor of the palace (major-domus)began to exercise an authority which in time resultedin supremacy. When Pepin of Heristal, the greatestterritorial lord of Austrasia, took upon himselfthe office of major-domus, he compelled the MerovingianKing, at the battle of Testry in 687, to investhim with the powers of that office in the threeFrankish states, Neustria, Austrasia, and Burgundy.This being accomplished Pepin was practicallydictator, and the Merovingians, though allowedto remain on the throne, were simply figure-headsfrom that time forth. Charles Martel was a sonworthy of Pepin of Heristal. His most notableachievement was the defeat of the Saracen invadersat the battle of Tours, A.D. 732, which endedthe advance of Mahometanism through Western Europe.

Charles Martel died October 22, 741, at Kiersey-sur-Oise,aged fifty-two years, and his last act was the leastwise of his life. He had spent it entirely intwo great works: the reestablishment throughoutthe whole of Gaul of the Franco-Gallo-Roman Empire,and the driving back, from the frontiers of his empire,of the Germans in the North and the Arabs in the South.The consequence, as also the condition, of this doublesuccess was the victory of Christianity over paganismand Islamism.

Charles Martel endangered these results by fallingback into the groove of those Merovingian kings whoseshadow he had allowed to remain on the throne.He divided between his two legitimate sons, Pepin,called the Short, from his small stature, and Carloman,this sole dominion which he had with so much toilreconstituted and defended. Pepin had Neustria,Burgundy, Provence, and the suzerainty of Aquitaine;Carloman, Austrasia, Thuringia, and Alemannia.They both, at their father’s death, took onlythe title of mayor of the palace, and, perhaps, ofduke. The last but one of the Merovingians, ThierryIV, had died in 737. For four years there hadbeen no king at all.

But when the works of men are wise and true, thatis, in conformity with the lasting wants of peoplesand the natural tendency of social facts, they getover even the mistakes of their authors. Immediatelyafter the death of Charles Martel, the consequencesof dividing his empire became manifest. In theNorth, the Saxons, the Bavarians, and the Alamanniansrenewed their insurrections. In the South, theArabs of Septimania recovered their hopes of effectingan invasion; and Hunald, duke of Aquitaine, who hadsucceeded his father Eudes after his death in 735,made a fresh attempt to break away from Frankish sovereigntyand win his independence. Charles Martel hadleft a young son, Grippo, whose legitimacy had beendisputed, but who was not slow to set up pretensionsand to commence intriguing against his brothers.

Everywhere there burst out that reactionary movementwhich arises against grand and difficult works whenthe strong hand that undertook them is no longer byto maintain them; but this movement was of short durationand to little purpose. Brought up in the schooland in the fear of their father, his two sons, Pepinand Carloman, were inoculated with his ideas and example;they remained united in spite of the division of dominions,and labored together, successfully, to keep down, inthe North the Saxons and Bavarians, in the South theArabs and Aquitanians, supplying want of unity byunion, and pursuing with one accord the constant aimof Charles Martel—­abroad the security andgrandeur of the Frankish dominion, at home the cohesionof all its parts and the efficacy of its government.

Events came to the aid of this wise conduct.Five years after the death of Charles Martel, in 746in fact, Carloman, already weary of the burden ofpower, and seized with a fit of religious zeal, abdicatedhis share of sovereignty, left his dominions to hisbrother Pepin, had himself shorn by the hands of PopeZachary, and withdrew into Italy to the monasteryof Monte Cassino. The preceding year, in 745,Hunald, duke of Aquitaine, with more patriotic andequally pious views, also abdicated in favor of hisson Waifre, whom he thought more capable than himselfof winning the independence of Aquitaine, and wentand shut himself up in a monastery in the island of

Rhe, where was the tomb of his father Eudes.In the course of divers attempts at conspiracy andinsurrection, the Frankish princes’ young brother,Grippo, was killed in combat while crossing the Alps.The furious internal dissensions among the Arabs ofSpain, and their incessant wars with the Berbers, didnot allow them to pursue any great enterprise in Gaul.Thanks to all these circ*mstances, Pepin found himself,in 747, sole master of the heritage of Clovis, andwith the sole charge of pursuing, in state and church,his father’s work, which was the unity and grandeurof Christian France.

Pepin, less enterprising than his father, but judicious,persevering, and capable of discerning what was atthe same time necessary and possible, was well fittedto continue and consolidate what he would, probably,never have begun and created. Like his father,he, on arriving at power, showed pretensions to moderationor, it might be said, modesty. He did not takethe title of king; and, in concert with his brotherCarloman, he went to seek, heaven knows in what obscureasylum, a forgotten Merovingian, son of ChildericII, the last but one of the sluggard kings, and madehim king, the last of his line, with the title ofChilderic III, himself, as well as his brother, takingonly the style of mayor of the palace. But atthe end of ten years, and when he saw himself aloneat the head of the Frankish dominion, Pepin consideredthe moment arrived for putting an end to this fiction.In 751 he sent to Pope Zachary at Rome Burchard, bishopof Wuerzburg, and Fulrad, abbot of St. Denis, “toconsult the pontiff,” says Eginhard, “onthe subject of the kings then existing among the Franks,and who bore only the name of king without enjoyinga tittle of royal authority.”

The Pope, whom St. Boniface, the great missionaryof Germany, had prepared for the question, answeredthat “it was better to give the title of kingto him who exercised the sovereign power “; andnext year, in March, 752, in the presence and withthe assent of the general assembly of “leudes”and bishops gathered together at Soissons, Pepin wasproclaimed king of the Franks, and received from thehand of St. Boniface the sacred anointment. Theycut off the hair of the last Merovingian phantom,Childeric III, and put him away in the monastery ofSt. Sithiu, at St. Omer. Two years later, July28, 754, Pope Stephen II, having come to France toclaim Pepin’s support against the Lombards,after receiving from him assurance of it, “anointedhim afresh with the holy oil in the church of St.Denis, to do honor in his person to the dignity ofroyalty,” and conferred the same honor on theking’s two sons, Charles and Carloman.The new Gallo-Frankish kingship and the papacy, inthe name of their common faith and common interests,thus contracted an intimate alliance. The youngCharles was hereafter to become Charlemagne.

The same year, Boniface, whom six years before PopeZachary had made archbishop of Mayence, gave up oneday the episcopal dignity to his disciple Lullus,charging him to carry on the different works himselfhad commenced among the churches of Germany, and touphold the faith of the people. “As forme,” he added, “I will put myself on myroad, for the time of my passing away approacheth.I have longed for this departure, and none can turnme from it; wherefore, my son, get all things ready,and place in the chest with my books the winding-sheetto wrap up my old body.” And so he departedwith some of his priests and servants to go and evangelizethe Frisons, the majority of whom were still pagansand barbarians. He pitched his tent on their territory,and was arranging to celebrate their Lord’ssupper, when a band of natives came down and rushedupon the archbishop’s retinue. The servitorssurrounded him, to defend him and themselves, and abattle began.

“Hold, hold, my children!” cried the archbishop;“Scripture biddeth us return good for evil.This is the day I have long desired, and the hourof our deliverance is at hand. Be strong in theLord: hope in him, and he will save your souls.”The barbarians slew the holy man and the majorityof his company. A little while after, the Christiansof the neighborhood came in arms and recovered thebody of St. Boniface. Near him was a book whichwas stained with blood and seemed to have droppedfrom his hands; it contained several works of the fathers,and among others a writing of St. Ambrose, On theBlessing of Death. The death of the piousmissionary was as powerful as his preaching in convertingFriesland. It was a mode of conquest worthy ofthe Christian faith, and one of which the historyof Christianity had already proved the effectiveness.

St. Boniface did not confine himself to the evangelizationof the pagans; he labored ardently in the ChristianGallo-Frankish Church to reform the manners and ecclesiasticaldiscipline, and to assure, while justifying, the moralinfluence of the clergy by example as well as precept.The councils, which had almost fallen into desuetudein Gaul, became once more frequent and active there:from 742 to 753 there may be counted seven, presidedover by St. Boniface, which exercised within the Churcha salutary action. King Pepin, recognizing theservices which the archbishop of Mayence had renderedhim, seconded his reformatory efforts at one timeby giving the support of his royal authority to thecanons of the councils, held often simultaneouslywith and almost confounded with the laic assembliesof the Franks; at another by doing justice to theprotests of the churches against the violence and spoliationto which they were subjected.

“There was an important point,” says M.Fauriel, “in respect of which the position ofCharles Martel’s sons turned out to be prettynearly the same as that of their father: it wastouching the necessity of assigning warriors a portionof the ecclesiastical revenues. But they, beingmore religious, perhaps, than Charles Martel, or moreimpressed with the importance of humoring the priestlypower, were more vexed and more anxious about thenecessity under which they found themselves of continuingto despoil the churches and of persisting in a systemwhich was putting the finishing stroke to the ruinof all ecclesiastical discipline. They were moreeager to mitigate the evil and to offer the Churchcompensation for their share in this evil to whichit was not in their power to put a stop. Accordingly,at the March parade, held at Leptines in 743, it wasdecided, in reference to ecclesiastical lands appliedto the military service: 1st, that the churcheshaving the ownership of those lands should share therevenue with the lay holder; 2d, that on the deathof a warrior in enjoyment of an ecclesiastical benefice,the benefice should revert to the Church; 3d, thatevery benefice, by deprivation whereof any churchwould be reduced to poverty, should be at once restoredto her.

“That this capitular was carried out, or evencapable of being carried out, is very doubtful; butthe less Carloman and Pepin succeeded in repairingthe material losses incurred by the Church since theaccession of the Carlovingians, the more zealous theywere in promoting the growth of her moral power andthe restoration of her discipline ... That wasthe time at which there began to be seen the spectacleof the national assemblies of the Franks, the gatheringsat the March parades transformed into ecclesiasticalsynods under the presidency of the titular legateof the Roman pontiff, and dictating, by the mouth ofthe political authority, regulations and laws withthe direct and formal aim of restoring divine worshipand ecclesiastical discipline, and of assuring thespiritual welfare of the people.”

Pepin, after he had been proclaimed king and had settledmatters with the Church as well as the warlike questionsremaining for him to solve permitted, directed allhis efforts toward the two countries which, afterhis father’s example, he longed to reunite tothe Gallo-Frankish monarchy, that is, Septimania,still occupied by the Arabs, and Aquitaine, the independenceof which was stoutly and ably defended by Duke Eudes’grandson, Duke Waifre. The conquest of Septimaniawas rather tedious than difficult. The Franks,after having victoriously scoured the open countryof the district, kept invested during three years itscapital, Narbonne, where the Arabs of Spain, much weakenedby their dissensions, vainly tried to throw in reinforcements.Besides the Mussulman Arabs, the population of thetown numbered many Christian Goths, who were tiredof suffering for the defence of their oppressors,

and who entered into secret negotiations with the chiefsof Pepin’s army, the end of which was that theyopened the gates of the town. In 759, then, afterforty years of Arab rule, Narbonne passed definitivelyunder that of the Franks, who guaranteed to the inhabitantsfree enjoyment of their Gothic or Roman law and oftheir local institutions. It even appears that,in the province of Spain bordering on Septimania,an Arab chief, called Soliman, who was in command atGerona and Barcelona, between the Ebro and the Pyrenees,submitted to Pepin, himself and the country underhim. This was an important event, indeed, inthe reign of Pepin, for here was the point at whichIslamism, but lately aggressive and victorious inSouthern Europe, began to feel definitively beatenand to recoil before Christianity.

The conquest of Aquitaine and Vasconia was much morekeenly disputed and for a much longer time uncertain.Duke Waif re was as able in negotiation as in war;at one time he seemed to accept the pacific overturesof Pepin, or, perhaps, himself made similar, withoutbringing about any result; at another, he went toseek and found even in Germany allies who caused Pepinmuch embarrassment and peril. The population ofAquitaine hated the Franks; and the war, which fortheir duke was a question of independent sovereignty,was for themselves a question of passionate nationalfeeling.

Pepin, who was naturally more humane and even moregenerous, it may be said, in war than his predecessorshad usually been, was nevertheless induced, in hisstruggle against the Duke of Aquitaine, to ravagewithout mercy the countries he scoured, and to treatthe vanquished with great harshness. It was onlyafter nine years’ war and seven campaigns fullof vicissitudes that he succeeded, not in conqueringhis enemy in a decisive battle, but in gaining oversome servants who betrayed their master. In themonth of July, 759, “Duke Waifre was slain byhis own folk, by the King’s advice,” saysFredegaire; and the conquest of all Southern Gaulcarried the extent and power of the Gallo-Frankishmonarchy farther and higher than it had ever yet been,even under Clovis.

In 753 Pepin had made an expedition against the Britonsof Armorica, had taken Vannes and “subjugated,”add certain chroniclers, “the whole of Brittany.”In point of fact, Brittany was no more subjugated byPepin than by his predecessors; all that can be saidis that the Franks resumed under him an aggressiveattitude toward the Britons, as if to vindicate aright of sovereignty.

Exactly at this epoch Pepin was engaging in a matterwhich did not allow him to scatter his forces hitherand thither. It has been stated already, thatin 741 Pope Gregory III had asked aid of the Franksagainst the Lombards who were threatening Rome, andthat, while fully entertaining the Pope’s wishes,Charles Martel had been in no hurry to interfere bydeed in the quarrel. Twelve years later, in 753,

Pope Stephen, in his turn threatened by Astolphus,King of the Lombards, after vain attempts to obtainguarantees of peace, repaired to Paris, and renewedto Pepin the entreaties used by Zachary. It wasdifficult for Pepin to turn a deaf ear; it was Zacharywho had declared that he ought to be made king; Stephenshowed readiness to anoint him a second time, himselfand his sons; and it was the eldest of these sons,Charles, scarcely twelve years old, whom Pepin, onlearning the near arrival of the Pope, had sent tomeet him and give brilliancy to his reception.

Stephen passed the winter at St. Denis, and gainedthe favor of the people as well as that of the King.Astolphus peremptorily refused to listen to the remonstrancesof Pepin, who called upon him to evacuate the townsin the exarchate of Ravenna, and to leave the Popeunmolested in the environs of Rome as well as in Romeitself. At the March parade held at Braine, inthe spring of 754, the Franks approved of the waragainst the Lombards; and at the end of the summerPepin and his army descended into Italy by Mount Cenis,the Lombards trying in vain to stop them as they debouchedinto the valley of Suza. Astolphus, beaten, and,before long, shut up in Pavia, promised all that wasdemanded of him; and Pepin and his warriors, ladenwith booty, returned to France, leaving at Rome thePope, who conjured them to remain awhile in Italy,for to a certainty, he said, King Astolphus would notkeep his promises. The pope was right. Sosoon as the Franks had gone, the King of the Lombardscontinued occupying the places in the exarchate andmolesting the neighborhood of Rome.

The Pope, in despair and doubtful of his auxiliaries’return, conceived the idea of sending “to theKing, the chiefs, and the people of the Franks, aletter written, he said, by Peter, apostle of JesusChrist, Son of the living God, to announce to themthat, if they came in haste, he would aid them asif he were alive according to the flesh among them,that they would conquer all their enemies and makethemselves sure of eternal life!” The plan wasperfectly successful: the Franks once more crossedthe Alps with enthusiasm, once more succeeded in beatingthe Lombards, and once more shut up in Pavia KingAstolphus, who was eager to purchase peace at anyprice. He obtained it on two principal conditions:(1) That he would not again make a hostile attack onRoman territory, or wage war against the Pope or peopleof Rome; (2) that he would henceforth recognize thesovereignty of the Franks, pay them tribute, and cedeforthwith to Pepin the towns and all the lands belongingto the jurisdiction of the Roman Empire, which wereat that time occupied by the Lombards. By virtueof these conditions Ravenna, Rimini, Pesaro, thatis to say, the Romagna, the duchy of Urbino, and aportion of the Marches of Ancona, were at once givenup to Pepin, who, regarding them as his own directconquest, the fruit of victory, disposed of them forthwithin favor of the popes, by that famous deed of giftwhich comprehended pretty nearly what has since formedthe Roman States, and which founded the temporal independenceof the papacy, the guarantee of its independence inthe exercise of the spiritual power.

At the head of the Franks as mayor of the palace from741, and as king from 752, Pepin had completed inFrance and extended in Italy the work which his father,Charles Martel, had begun and carried on, from 714to 741, in state and church. He left France reunitedin one and placed at the head of Christian Europe.He died at the monastery of St. Denis, September 18,768, leaving his kingdom and his dynasty thus readyto the hands of his son, whom history has dubbed Charlemagne.

CAREER OF CHARLEMAGNE

A.D. 772-814

FRANCOIS P.G. GUIZOT

In Charles, the son of Pepin the Short,later known as Charlemagne, or Charles the Great,the Carlovingians saw the culminating glory oftheir line, while in French history the splendor ofhis name outshines that of all other rulers.It seemed an act of fate that his brother andjoint heir to the Frankish kingdom should die andleave the monarchy wholly in his hands, for hisgenius was to prove equal to its field of action.

The kingdom which Charlemagne inheritedwas great in extent, lying mainly between theLoire and the Rhine, including Alemannia and Burgundy,while his sphere of influence—­to use themodern phrase—­covered many provincesand districts over which his rule was whollyor in part acknowledged—­Aquitaine, Bavaria,Brittany, Frisia, Thuringia, and others.

To enlarge still further the boundsof his kingdom was the task to which the youngmonarch at once addressed himself, and upon whichhe entered with all the advantages of family prestige,a commanding and engaging personality, provencourage and skill in war, as well as talent andaccomplishments in civil affairs.

The central purpose of Charlemagne,to the service of which all his policies andhis conduct were directed, was the maintenance of theChristian religion as embodied in the WesternChurch, whose great champion he became, and inthat character occupies his lofty place in thehistory of Europe and of the world. At this periodthe two great powers in the Christian world werethe Roman pontiff and the Frankish king; andwhen, on Christmas Day, A.D. 800, Pope Leo III crownedCharlemagne emperor of the Romans, and in the HolyRoman Empire restored the Western Empire, extinctsince 476, he welded church and state in whatlong proved to be indissoluble bonds, somewhat—­itmust be added—­to the chagrin of the Byzantineemperors of the Eastern Roman Empire at Constantinople.This was an event the significance of which onlylater times could learn to estimate. TheHoly Roman Empire henceforth held a leading part inthe world’s affairs, the influence of whichis still active in the survivals of its poweramong nations.

Charlemagne served the Church and fulfilledhis own purposes through the military subjugationof all whom he could overcome among the barbariansand heathens of his time. And the powers whichhe gained as conqueror he exercised with equalability and steadfastness of purpose in his capacityas foremost secular ruler in the world.By the union of the Teutonic with the Roman interests,and of northern vigor with the culture of the South,it is considered by the historians of our ownday that Charlemagne proved himself the beginnerof a new era—­in fact, as Bryce declares,of modern history itself.

Gibbon has said thatof all the heroes to whom the title of “the
Great” has beengiven, Charlemagne alone has retained it as a
permanent addition tohis name.

The most judicious minds are sometimes led blindlyby tradition and habit, rather than enlightened byreflection and experience. Pepin the Short committedat his death the same mistake that his father, CharlesMartel, had committed: he divided his dominionsbetween his two sons, Charles and Carloman, thus destroyingagain that unity of the Gallo-Frankish monarchy whichhis father and he had been at so much pains to establish.But, just as had already happened in 746 through theabdication of Pepin’s brother, events dischargedthe duty of repairing the mistake of men. Afterthe death of Pepin, and notwithstanding that of DukeWaifre, insurrection broke out once more in Aquitaine;and the old duke, Hunald, issued from his monasteryin the island of Rhe to try and recover power andindependence. Charles and Carloman marched againsthim; but, on the march, Carloman, who was jealous andthoughtless, fell out with his brother, and suddenlyquitted the expedition, taking away his troops.Charles was obliged to continue it alone, which hedid with complete success. At the end of thisfirst campaign, Pepin’s widow, the queen-motherBertha, reconciled her two sons; but an unexpectedincident, the death of Carloman two years afterwardin 771, reestablished unity more surely than the reconciliationhad reestablished harmony. For, although Carlomanleft sons, the grandees of his dominions, whetherlaic or ecclesiastical, assembled at Corbeny, betweenLaon and Rheims, and proclaimed in his stead his brotherCharles, who thus became sole king of the Gallo-Franco-Germanicmonarchy. And as ambition and manners had becomeless tinged with ferocity than they had been underthe Merovingians, the sons of Carloman were not killedor shorn or even shut up in a monastery: theyretired with their mother, Gerberge, to the courtof Didier, King of the Lombards. “KingCharles,” says Eginhard, “took their departurepatiently, regarding it as of no importance.”Thus commenced the reign of Charlemagne.

The original and dominant characteristic of the heroof this reign, that which won for him, and keeps forhim after more than ten centuries, the name of great,is the striking variety of his ambition, his faculties,and his deeds. Charlemagne aspired to and attainedto every sort of greatness—­military greatness,political greatness, and intellectual greatness; hewas an able warrior, an energetic legislator, a heroof poetry. And he united, he displayed all thesemerits in a time of general and monotonous barbarismwhen, save in the church, the minds of men were dulland barren. Those men, few in number, who madethemselves a name at that epoch, rallied round Charlemagneand were developed under his patronage. To knowhim well and appreciate him justly, he must be examinedunder those various grand aspects, abroad and at home,in his wars and in his government.

From 769 to 813, in Germany and Western and NorthernEurope, Charlemagne conducted thirty-one campaignsagainst the Saxons, Frisians, Bavarians, Avars, Slavons,and Danes; in Italy, five against the Lombards; inSpain, Corsica, and Sardinia, twelve against the Arabs;two against the Greeks; and three in Gaul itself,against the Aquitanians and the Britons; in all, fifty-threeexpeditions; among which those he undertook againstthe Saxons, the Lombards, and the Arabs were long anddifficult wars. It were undesirable to recountthem in detail, for the relation would be monotonousand useless; but it is obligatory to make fully knowntheir causes, their characteristic incidents, and theirresults.

Under the last Merovingian kings, the Saxons were,on the right bank of the Rhine, in frequent collisionwith the Franks, especially with the Austrasian Franks,whose territory they were continually threatening andoften invading. Pepin the Short had more thanonce hurled them back far from the very uncertainfrontiers of Germanic Austrasia; and, on becomingking, he dealt his blows still farther, and entered,in his turn, Saxony itself. “In spite ofthe Saxon’s stout resistance,” says Eginhard,“he pierced through the points they had fortifiedto bar entrance into their country, and, after havingfought here and there battles wherein fell many Saxons,he forced them to promise that they would submit tohis rule; and that every year, to do him honor, theywould send to the general assembly of Franks a presentof three hundred horses. When these conventionswere once settled, he insisted, to insure their performance,upon placing them under the guarantee of rites peculiarto the Saxons; then he returned with his army to Gaul.”

Charlemagne did not confine himself to resuming hisfather’s work; he before long changed its characterand its scope. In 772, being left sole masterof France after the death of his brother Carloman,he convoked at Worms the general assembly of the Franks,“and took,” says Eginhard, “theresolution of going and carrying war into Saxony.He invaded it without delay, laid it waste with fireand sword, made himself master of the fort of Ehresburg,and threw down the idol that the Saxons called Irminsul.”And in what place was this first victory of Charlemagnewon? Near the sources of the Lippe, just where,more than seven centuries before, the German Arminius(Herman) had destroyed the legions of Varus, and whitherGermanicus had come to avenge the disaster of Varus.This ground belonged to Saxon territory; and this idol,called Irminsul, which was thrown down by Charlemagne,was probably a monument raised in honor of Arminius(Hermann-Seule, or Herman’s pillar),whose name it called to mind. The patriotic andhereditary pride of the Saxons was passionately rousedby this blow; and, the following year, “thinkingto find in the absence of the King the most favorableopportunity,” says Eginhard, they entered thelands of the Franks, laid them waste in their turn,and, paying back outrage for outrage, set fire tothe church not long since built at Fritzlar, by Boniface,martyr. From that time the question changed itsaspect; it was no longer the repression of Saxon invasionsof France, but the conquest of Saxony by the Franksthat was to be dealt with; it was between the Christianityof the Franks and the national paganism of the Saxonsthat the struggle was to take place.

For thirty years such was its character. Charlemagneregarded the conquest of Saxony as indispensable forputting a stop to the incursions of the Saxons, andthe conversion of the Saxons to Christianity as indispensablefor assuring the conquest of Saxony. The Saxonswere defending at one and the same time the independenceof their country and the gods of their fathers.Here was wherewithal to stir up and foment, on bothsides, the profoundest passions; and they burst forth,on both sides, with equal fury. WhithersoeverCharlemagne penetrated he built strong castles andchurches; and, at his departure, left garrisons andmissionaries. When he was gone the Saxons returned,attacked the forts, and massacred the garrisons andthe missionaries. At the commencement of thestruggle, a priest of Anglo-Saxon origin, whom St.Willibrod, bishop of Utrecht, had but lately consecrated—­St.Liebwin, in fact—­undertook to go and preachthe Christian religion in the very heart of Saxony,on the banks of the Weser, amid the general assemblyof the Saxons. “What do ye?” saidhe, cross in hand; “the idols ye worship livenot, neither do they perceive: they are the workof men’s hands; they can do naught either forthemselves or for others. Wherefore the one God,

good and just, having compassion on your errors, hathsent me unto you. If ye put not away your iniquity,I foretell unto you a trouble that ye do not expect,and that the King of Heaven hath ordained aforetime:there shall come a prince, strong and wise and indefatigable,not from afar, but from nigh at hand, to fall uponyou like a torrent, in order to soften your hard heartsand bow down your proud heads. At one rush heshall invade the country; he shall lay it waste withfire and sword, and carry away your wives and childreninto captivity.” A thrill of rage ran throughthe assembly; and already many of those present hadbegun to cut, in the neighboring woods, stakes sharpenedto a point to pierce the priest, when one of the chieftains,named Buto, cried aloud: “Listen, ye whoare the most wise. There have often come untous ambassadors from neighboring peoples, Northmen,Slavons, or Frisians; we have received them in peace,and when their messages had been heard, they have beensent away with a present. Here is an ambassadorfrom a great God, and ye would slay him!” Whetherit were from sentiment or from prudence, the multitudewas calmed, or, at any rate, restrained; and for thistime the priest retired safe and sound.

Just as the pious zeal of the missionaries was ofservice to Charlemagne, so did the power of Charlemagnesupport and sometimes preserve the missionaries.The mob, even in the midst of its passions, is notthroughout or at all times inaccessible to fear.The Saxons were not one and the same nation, constantlyunited in one and the same assembly, and governedby a single chieftain. Three populations of thesame race, distinguished by names borrowed from theirgeographical situation, just as had happened amongthe Franks in the case of the Austrasians and Neustrians,to wit, Eastphalian or Eastern Saxons, Westphalianor Western, and Angrians, formed the Saxon confederation.And to them was often added a fourth people of thesame origin, closer to the Danes, and called North-Albingians,inhabitants of the northern district of the Elbe.These four principal Saxon populations were subdividedinto a large number of tribes, who had their own particularchieftains, and who often decided, each for itself,their conduct and their fate. Charlemagne, knowinghow to profit by this want of cohesion and unity amonghis foes, attacked now one and now another of the largeSaxon peoplets or the small Saxon tribes, and dealtseparately with each of them, according as he foundthem inclined to submission or resistance. Afterhaving, in four or five successive expeditions, gainedvictories and sustained checks, he thought himselfsufficiently advanced in his conquest to put his relationswith the Saxons to a grand trial. In 777, heresolved, says Eginhard, “to go and hold, atthe place called Paderborn (close to Saxony) the generalassembly of this people. On his arrival he foundthere assembled the senate and people of this perfidious

nation, who, conformably to his orders, had repairedthither, seeking to deceive him by a false show ofsubmission and devotion.... They earned theirpardon, but on this condition, however, that, if hereafterthey broke their engagements, they would be deprivedof country and liberty. A great number amongthem had themselves baptized on this occasion; butit was with far from sincere intentions that theyhad testified a desire to become Christians.”

There had been absent from this great meeting a Saxonchieftain, called Wittikind, son of Wernekind, Kingof the Saxons at the north of the Elbe. He hadespoused the sister of Siegfried, King of the Danes;and he was the friend of Ratbod, King of the Frisians.A true chieftain at heart as well as by descent, hewas made to be the hero of the Saxons just as, sevencenturies before, the Cheruscan Herman (Arminius) hadbeen the hero of the Germans. Instead of repairingto Paderborn, Wittikind had left Saxony, and takenrefuge with his brother-in-law, the King of the Danes.Thence he encouraged his Saxon compatriots, some topersevere in their resistance, others to repent themof their show of submission. War began again;and Wittikind hastened back to take part in it.In 778 the Saxons advanced as far as the Rhine; but,“not having been able to cross this river,”says Eginhard, “they set themselves to lay wastewith fire and sword all the towns and all the villagesfrom the city of Duitz (opposite Cologne) as far asthe confluence of the Moselle. The churches aswell as the houses were laid in ruins from top tobottom. The enemy, in his frenzy, spared neitherage nor sex, wishing to show thereby that he had invadedthe territory of the Franks, not for plunder, butfor revenge!” For three years the struggle continued,more confined in area, but more and more obstinate.Many of the Saxon tribes submitted; many Saxons werebaptized; and Siegfried, King of the Danes, sent toCharlemagne a deputation, as if to treat for peace.Wittikind had left Denmark; but he had gone acrossto her neighbors, the Northmen; and, thence reenteringSaxony, he kindled there an insurrection as fierceas it was unexpected. In 782 two of Charlemagne’slieutenants were beaten on the banks of the Weser,and killed in the battle, “together with fourcounts and twenty leaders, the noblest in the army;indeed, the Franks were nearly all exterminated.At news of this disaster,” says Eginhard, “Charlemagne,without losing a moment, reassembled an army and setout for Saxony. He summoned into his presenceall the chieftains of the Saxons, and demanded of themwho had been the promoters of the revolt. Allagreed in denouncing Wittikind as the author of thistreason. But as they could not deliver him up,because immediately after his sudden attack he hadtaken refuge with the Northmen, those who, at hisinstigation, had been accomplices in the crime, wereplaced, to the number of four thousand five hundred,in the hands of the King; and, by his order, all hadtheir heads cut off the same day, at a place calledWerden, on the river Aller. After this deed ofvengeance the King retired to Thionville to pass thewinter there.”

But the vengeance did not put an end to the war.For three years Charlemagne had to redouble his effortsto accomplish in Saxony, at the cost of Frankish aswell as Saxon blood, his work of conquest and conversion:“Saxony,” he often repeated, “mustbe Christianized or wiped out.” At last,in 785, after several victories which seemed decisive,he went and settled down in his strong castle of Ehresburg,“whither he made his wife and children come,being resolved to remain there all the bad season,”says Eginhard, and applying himself without cessationto scouring the country of the Saxons and wearingthem out by his strong and indomitable determination.But determination did not blind him to prudence andpolicy. “Having learned that Wittikind andAbbio, another great Saxon chieftain, were abidingin the part of Saxony situated on the other side ofthe Elbe, he sent to them Saxon envoys to prevail uponthem to renounce their perfidy, and come, without hesitation,and trust themselves to him. They, consciousof what they had attempted, dared not at first trustto the King’s word; but having obtained fromhim the promise they desired of impunity, and, besides,the hostages they demanded as guarantee of their safety,and who were brought to them, on the King’sbehalf, by Amalwin, one of the officers of his court,they came with the said lord and presented themselvesbefore the King in his palace of Attigny [Attigny-sur-Aisne,whither Charlemagne had now returned], and there receivedbaptism.”

Charlemagne did more than amnesty Wittikind; he namedhim Duke of Saxony, but without attaching to the titleany right of sovereignty. Wittikind, on his side,did more than come to Attigny and get baptized there;he gave up the struggle, remained faithful to his newengagements, and led, they say, so Christian a lifethat some chroniclers have placed him on the listof saints. He was killed in 807, in a battleagainst Gerold, Duke of Suabia, and his tomb is stillto be seen at Ratisbon. Several families of Germanyhold him for their ancestor; and some French genealogistshave, without solid ground, discovered in him thegrandfather of Robert the Strong, great-grandfatherof Hugh Capet. However that may be, after makingpeace with Wittikind, Charlemagne had still, for severalyears, many insurrections to repress and much rigorto exercise in Saxony, including the removal of certainSaxon peoplets out of their country, and the establishmentof foreign colonists in the territories thus becomevacant; but the great war was at an end, and Charlemagnemight consider Saxony incorporated in his dominions.

He had still, in Germany and all around, many enemiesto fight and many campaigns to reopen. Even amongthe Germanic populations, which were regarded as reducedunder the sway of the King of the Franks, some, theFrisians and Saxons, as well as others, were continuallyagitating for the recovery of their independence.Farther off, toward the north, east, and south, peoplediffering in origin and language—­Avars,Huns, Slavons, Bulgarians, Danes, and Northmen—­werestill pressing or beginning to press upon the frontiersof the Frankish dominion, for the purpose of eitherpenetrating within or settling at the threshold aspowerful and formidable neighbors. Charlemagnehad plenty to do, with the view at one time of checkingtheir incursions, and at another of destroying orhurling back to a distance their settlements; and hebrought his usual vigor and perseverance to bear onthis second struggle. But by the conquest ofSaxony he had attained his direct national object:the great flood of population from east to west came,and broke against the Gallo-Franco-Germanic dominionas against an insurmountable rampart.

This was not, however, Charlemagne’s only greatenterprise at this epoch, nor the only great strugglehe had to maintain. While he was incessantlyfighting in Germany, the work of policy commenced byhis father Pepin in Italy called for his care andhis exertions. The new King of the Lombards,Didier, and the new Pope, Adrian I, had entered upona new war; and Didier was besieging Rome, which wasenergetically defended by the Pope and its inhabitants.In 773, Adrian invoked the aid of the King of theFranks, whom his envoys succeeded, not without difficulty,in finding at Thionville. Charlemagne could notabandon the grand position left him by his fatheras protector of the papacy and as patrician of Rome.The possessions, moreover, wrested by Didier fromthe Pope were exactly those which Pepin had won byconquest from King Astolphus, and had presented tothe Papacy. Charlemagne was besides, on his ownaccount, on bad terms with the King of the Lombards,whose daughter, Desiree, he had married, and afterwardrepudiated and sent home to her father, in order tomarry Hildegarde, a Suabian by nation. Didier,in dudgeon, had given an asylum to Carloman’swidow and sons, on whose intrigues Charlemagne kepta watchful eye. Being prudent and careful ofappearances, even when he was preparing to strike aheavy blow, Charlemagne tried, by means of specialenvoys, to obtain from the King of the Lombards whatthe Pope demanded. On Didier’s refusal heat once set to work, convoked the general meetingof the Franks, at Geneva, in the autumn of 773, gainedthem over, not without encountering some objections,to the projected Italian expedition, and forthwithcommenced the campaign with two armies. One wasto cross the Valais and descend upon Lombardy by MountSt. Bernard; Charlemagne in person led the other,by Mount Cenis. The Lombards, at the outlet of

the passes of the Alps, offered a vigorous resistance;but when the second army had penetrated into Italyby Mount St. Bernard, Didier, threatened in his rear,retired precipitately, and, driven from position toposition, was obliged to go and shut himself up inPavia, the strongest place in his kingdom, whitherCharlemagne, having received on the march the submissionof the principal counts and nearly all the towns ofLombardy, came promptly to besiege him.

To place textually before the reader a fragment ofan old chronicle will serve better than any moderndescription to show the impression of admiration andfear produced upon his contemporaries by Charlemagne,his person and his power. At the close of thisninth century a monk of the abbey of St. Gall, inSwitzerland, had collected, direct from the mouthof one of Charlemagne’s warriors, Adalbert, numerousstories of his campaigns and his life. Thesestories are full of fabulous legends, puerile anecdotes,distorted reminiscences and chronological errors, andthey are written sometimes with a credulity and exaggerationof language which raise a smile; but they reveal thestate of men’s minds and fancies within thecircle of Charlemagne’s influence and at thesight of him. This monk gives a naive accountof Charlemagne’s arrival before Pavia, and ofthe King of the Lombard’s disquietude at hisapproach. Didier had with him at that time oneof Charlemagne’s most famous comrades, Ogierthe Dane, who fills a prominent place in the romancesand epopaeias, relating to chivalry, of thatage. Ogier had quarrelled with his great chiefand taken refuge with the King of the Lombards.It is probable that his Danish origin and his relationswith the King of the Danes, Gottfried, for a longtime an enemy of the Franks, had something to do withhis misunderstanding with Charlemagne. Howeverthat may have been, “when Didier and Ogger (forso the monk calls him) heard that the dread monarchwas coming, they ascended a tower of vast height whencethey could watch his arrival from afar off and fromevery quarter. They saw, first of all, enginesof war such as must have been necessary for the armiesof Darius or Julius Caesar. ‘Is not Charles,’asked Didier of Ogger, ‘with his great army?’But the other answered, ‘No.’ TheLombard, seeing afterward an immense body of soldierygathered from all quarters of the vast empire, saidto Ogger, ’Certes, Charles advanceth in triumphin the midst of this throng.’ ’No,not yet; he will not appear so soon,’ was theanswer. ‘What should we do, then,’rejoined Didier, who began to be perturbed, ’shouldhe come accompanied by a larger band of warriors?’‘You will see what he is when he comes,’replied Ogger, ‘but as to what will become ofus, I know nothing.’ As they were thusparleying appeared the body of guards that knew norepose; and at this sight the Lombard, overcome withdread, cried, ’This time ‘tis surely Charles.’‘No,’ answered Ogger, ‘not yet.’

In their wake came the bishops, the abbots, the ordinariesof the chapels royal, and the counts; and then Didier,no longer able to bear the light of day or to facedeath, cried out with groans, ’Let us descendand hide ourselves in the bowels of the earth, farfrom the face and the fury of so terrible a foe.’Trembling the while, Ogger, who knew by experiencewhat were the power and might of Charles, and who hadlearned the lesson by long consuetude in better days,then said, ’When ye shall behold the crops shakingfor fear in the fields, and the gloomy Po and the Ticinooverflowing the walls of the city with their wavesblackened with steel (iron), then may ye think thatCharles is coming.’ He had not ended thesewords when there began to be seen in the west, as itwere a black cloud, raised by the northwest wind orby Boreas, which turned the brightest day into awfulshadows. But as the Emperor drew nearer and nearer,the gleam of arms caused to shine on the people shutup within the city a day more gloomy than any kindof night. And then appeared Charles himself,that man of steel, with his head encased in a helmetof steel, his hands garnished with gauntlets of steel,his heart of steel and his shoulders of marble protectedby a cuirass of steel, and his left hand armed witha lance of steel which he held aloft in the air, foras to his right hand he kept that continually on thehilt of his invincible sword. The outside ofhis thighs, which the rest, for their greater easein mounting a-horseback, were wont to leave unshackledeven by straps, he wore encircled by plates of steel.What shall I say concerning his boots? All thearmy were wont to have them invariably of steel; onhis buckler there was naught to be seen but steel;his horse was of the color and the strength of steel.All those who went before the monarch, all those whomarched at his side, all those who followed after,even the whole mass of the army had armor of the likesort, so far as the means of each permitted.The fields and the high-ways were covered with steel:the points of steel reflected the rays of the sun;and this steel, so hard, was borne by a people withhearts still harder. The flash of steel spreadterror throughout the streets of the city. ‘Whatsteel! alack, what steel!’ Such were the bewilderedcries the citizens raised. The firmness of manhoodand of youth gave way at sight of the steel; and thesteel paralyzed the wisdom of graybeards. Thatwhich I, poor tale-teller, mumbling and toothless,have attempted to depict in a long description, Oggerperceived at one rapid glance, and said to Didier,‘Here is what ye have so anxiously sought’:and while uttering these words he fell down almostlifeless.”

The monk of St. Gall does King Didier and his peoplewrong. They showed more firmness and valor thanhe ascribes to them; they resisted Charlemagne obstinately,and repulsed his first assaults so well that he changedthe siege into an investment, and settled down beforePavia, as if making up his mind for a long operation.His camp became a town; he sent for Queen Hildegardeand her court; and he had a chapel built where hecelebrated the festival of Christmas. But on thearrival of spring, close upon the festival of Easter,774, wearied with the duration of the investment,he left to his lieutenants the duty of keeping it up,and, attended by a numerous and brilliant following,set off for Rome, whither the Pope was urgently pressinghim to come.

On Holy Saturday, April 1, 774, Charlemagne found,at three miles from Rome, the magistrates and thebanner of the city, sent forward by the Pope to meethim; at one mile all the municipal bodies and the pupilsof the schools carrying palm branches and singinghymns; and at the gate of the city, the cross, whichwas never taken out save for exarchs and patricians.At sight of the cross Charlemagne dismounted, enteredRome on foot, ascended the steps of the ancient basilicaof St. Peter, repeating at each step a sign of respectfulpiety, and was received at the top by the Pope himself.All around him and in the streets a chant was sung,“Blessed be he that cometh in the name of theLord!” At his entry and during his sojourn atRome, Charlemagne gave the most striking proofs ofChristian faith and respect for the head of the Church.According to the custom of pilgrims he visited allthe basilicas, and in that of Sta. Maria Maggiorehe performed his solemn devotions. Then, passingto temporal matters, he caused to be brought and readover, in his private conferences with the Pope, thedeed of territorial gift made by his father Pepinto Stephen II, and with his own lips dictated theconfirmation of it, adding thereto a new gift of certainterritories which he was in course of wresting byconquest from the Lombards. Pope Adrian, on hisside, rendered to him, with a mixture of affectionand dignity, all the honors and all the services whichcould at one and the same time satisfy and exalt theKing and the priest, the protector and the protected.He presented to Charlemagne a book containing a collectionof the canons written by the pontiffs from the originof the Church, and he put at the beginning of thebook, which was dedicated to Charlemagne, an addressin forty-five irregular verses, written with his ownhand, which formed an anagram: “Pope Adrianto his most excellent son, Charlemagne, king”(Domino excellentissimo filio Carolo Magno regi,Hadrianus papa). At the same time he encouragedhim to push his victory to the utmost and make himselfking of the Lombards, advising him, however, not toincorporate his conquest with the Frankish dominions,as it would wound the pride of the conquered people

to be thus absorbed by the conquerors, and to takemerely the title of “King of the Franks andLombards.” Charlemagne appreciated and acceptedthis wise advice; for he could preserve proper limitsin his ambition and in the hour of victory. Threeyears afterward he even did more than Pope Adrianhad advised. In 777 Queen Hildegarde bore hima son, Pepin, whom in 781 Charlemagne had baptizedand anointed King of Italy at Rome by the Pope, thusseparating not only the two titles, but also the twokingdoms, and restoring to the Lombards a nationalexistence, feeling quite sure that so long as he livedthe unity of his different dominions would not beimperilled. Having thus regulated at Rome hisown affairs and those of the Church, he returned tohis camp, took Pavia, received the submission of allthe Lombard dukes and counts, save one only, Aregisius,Duke of Beneventum, and entered France again, takingwith him, as prisoner, King Didier, whom he banishedto a monastery, first at Liege and then at Corbie,where the dethroned Lombard, say the chroniclers,ended his days in saintly fashion.

The prompt success of this war in Italy, undertakenat the appeal of the head of the Church, this firstsojourn of Charlemagne at Rome, the spectacles hehad witnessed and the homage he had received, exercisedover him, his plans and his deeds, a powerful influence.This rough Frankish warrior, chief of a people whowere beginning to make a brilliant appearance uponthe stage of the world, and issue himself of a newline, had a taste for what was grand, splendid, ancient,and consecrated by time and public respect; he understoodand estimated at its full worth the moral force andimportance of such allies. He departed from Romein 774, more determined than ever to subdue Saxony,to the advantage of the Church as well as of his ownpower, and to promote, in the South as in the North,the triumph of the Frankish Christian dominion.

Three years afterward, in 777, he had convoked atPaderborn, in Westphalia, that general assembly ofhis different peoples at which Wittikind did not attend,and which was destined to bring upon the Saxons amore and more obstinate war. “The SaracenIbn-al-Arabi,” says Eginhard, “came tothis town, to present himself before the King.He had arrived from Spain, together with other Saracensin his train, to surrender to the King of the Frankshimself and all the towns which the King of the Saracenshad confided to his keeping.” For a longtime past the Christians of the West had given theMussulmans, Arab or other, the name of Saracens.Ibn-al-Arabi was governor of Saragossa, and one ofthe Spanish-Arab chieftains in league against Abdel-Rhaman,the last offshoot of the Ommiad caliphs, who, withthe assistance of the Berbers, had seized the governmentof Spain. Amid the troubles of his country andhis nation, Ibn-al-Arabi summoned to his aid, againstAbdel-Rhaman, the Franks and the Christians, justas, but lately, Maurontius, Duke of Arles, had summonedto Provence, against Charles Martel, the Arabs andthe Mussulmans.

Charlemagne accepted the summons with alacrity.With the coming of spring in the following year, 778,and with the full assent of his chief warriors, hebegan his march toward the Pyrenees, crossed the Loire,and halted at Casseneuil, at the confluence of theLot and the Garonne, to celebrate there the festivalof Easter, and to make preparations for his expeditionthence. As he had but lately done for his campaignin Italy against the Lombards, he divided his forcesinto two armies: one composed of Austrasians,Neustrians, Burgundians, and divers German contingents,and commanded by Charlemagne in person, was to enterSpain by the valley of Roncesvalles, in the westernPyrenees, and make for Pampeluna; the other, consistingof Provencals, Septimanians, Lombards, and other populationsof the South, under the command of Duke Bernard, whohad already distinguished himself in Italy, had ordersto penetrate into Spain by the eastern Pyrenees, toreceive on the march the submission of Gerona andBarcelona, and not to halt till they were before Saragossa,where the two armies were to form a junction, andwhich Ibn-al-Arabi had promised to give up to the Kingof the Franks. According to this plan, Charlemagnehad to traverse the territories of Aquitaine and Vasconia,domains of Duke Lupus II, son of Duke Waifre, so longthe foe of Pepin the Short, a Merovingian by descent,and, in all these qualities, little disposed to favorCharlemagne. However, the march was accomplishedwithout difficulty. The King of the Franks treatedhis powerful vassal well; and Duke Lupus swore to himafresh, “or for the first time,” saysM. Fauriel, “submission and fidelity; but theevent soon proved that it was not without umbrage orwithout all the feelings of a true son of Waifre thathe saw the Franks and the son of Pepin so close tohim.”

The aggressive campaign was an easy and a brilliantone. Charles with his army entered Spain by thevalley of Roncesvalles without encountering any obstacle.On his arrival before Pampeluna the Arab governorsurrendered the place to him, and Charlemagne pushedforward vigorously to Saragossa. But there fortunechanged. The presence of foreigners and Christianson the soil of Spain caused a suspension of interiorquarrels among the Arabs, who rose in mass, at allpoints, to succor Saragossa. The besieged defendedthemselves with obstinacy; there was more scarcityof provisions among the besiegers than inside theplace; sickness broke out among them; they were incessantlyharassed from without; and rumors of a fresh risingamong the Saxons reached Charlemagne. The Arabsdemanded negotiation. To decide the King of theFranks upon an abandonment of the siege, they offeredhim “an immense quantity of gold,” saythe chroniclers, hostages, and promises of homageand fidelity. Appearances had been saved; Charlemagnecould say, and even perhaps believe, that he had pushedhis conquests as far as the Ebro; he decided on retreat,

and all the army was set in motion to recross thePyrenees. On arriving before Pampeluna Charlemagnehad its walls completely razed to the ground, “inorder that,” as he said, “that city mightnot be able to revolt.” The troops enteredthose same passes of Roncesvalles which they had traversedwithout obstacle a few weeks before; and the advance-guardand the main body of the army were already clear ofthem. The account of what happened shall be givenin the words of Eginhard, the only contemporary historianwhose account, free from all exaggeration, can beconsidered authentic. “The King,”he says, “brought back his army without experiencingany loss, save that at the summit of the Pyreneeshe suffered somewhat from the perfidy of the Vascons(Basques). While the army of the Franks, embarrassedin a narrow defile, was forced by the nature of theground to advance in one long close line, the Basques,who were in ambush on the crest of the mountain—­forthe thickness of the forest with which these partsare covered is favorable to ambuscade—­descendand fall suddenly on the baggage-train and on thetroops of the rear-guard, whose duty it was to coverall in their front, and precipitate them to the bottomof the valley. There took place a fight in whichthe Franks were killed to a man. The Basques,after having plundered the baggage-train, profitedby the night which had come on to disperse rapidly.They owed all their success in this engagement tothe lightness of their equipment and to the natureof the spot where the action took place; the Franks,on the contrary, being heavily armed and in an unfavorableposition, struggled against too many disadvantages.Eginhard, master of the household of the King; Anselm,count of the palace; and Roland, prefect of the marchesof Brittany, fell in this engagement. There wereno means, at the time, of taking revenge for thischeck; for, after their sudden attack, the enemy dispersedto such good purpose that there was no gaining anytrace of the direction in which they should be soughtfor.”

History says no more; but in the poetry of the peoplethere is a longer and a more faithful memory thanin the court of kings. The disaster of Roncesvallesand the heroism of the warriors who perished there,became in France the object of popular sympathy andthe favorite topic for the exercise of the popularfancy. The Song of Roland, a real Homeric poemin its great beauty, and yet rude and simple as becameits national character, bears witness to the prolongedimportance attained in Europe by this incident inthe history of Charlemagne. Four centuries laterthe comrades of William the Conqueror, marching tobattle at Hastings for the possession of England,struck up The Song of Roland, “to preparethemselves for victory or death,” says M. Vitelin his vivid estimate and able translation of thispoetical monument of the manners and first impulsestoward chivalry of the Middle Ages. There is no

determining how far history must be made to participatein these reminiscences of national feeling; but, assuredly,the figures of Roland and Oliver, and Archbishop Turpin,and the pious, unsophisticated, and tender characterof their heroism are not pure fables invented by thefancy of a poet or the credulity of a monk. Ifthe accuracy of historical narrative must not be lookedfor in them, their moral truth must be recognized intheir portrayal of a people and an age.

The politic genius of Charlemagne comprehended morefully than would be imagined from his panegyrist’sbrief and dry account all the gravity of the affairof Roncesvalles. Not only did he take immediatevengeance by hanging Duke Lupus of Aquitaine, whosetreason had brought down this mishap, and by reducinghis two sons, Adalric and Sancho, to a more feebleand precarious condition; but he resolved to treatAquitaine as he had but lately treated Italy, thatis to say, to make of it, according to the correctdefinition of M. Fauriel, “a special kingdom,an integral portion, indeed, of the Frankish empire,but with an especial destination, which was that ofresisting the invasions of the Andalusian Arabs, andconfining them as much as possible to the soil ofthe peninsula.” This was, in some sort,giving back to the country its primary task as anindependent duchy; and it was the most natural andmost certain way of making the Aquitanians useful subjects,by giving play to their national vanity, to theirpretensions of forming a separate people, and to theirhopes of once more becoming, sooner or later, an independentnation. Queen Hildegarde, during her husband’ssojourn at Casseneuil, in 778, had borne him a sonwhom he called Louis, and who was afterward Louisthe Debonair. Charlemagne, summoned a secondtime to Rome, in 781, by the quarrels of Pope AdrianI with the imperial court of Constantinople, broughtwith him his two sons, Pepin, aged only four years,and Louis, only three years, and had them anointedby the Pope—­the former King of Italy, andthe latter King of Aquitaine. On returning fromRome to Austrasia, Charlemagne sent Louis at once totake possession of his kingdom. From the banksof the Meuse to Orleans the little prince was carriedin his cradle; but once on the Loire, this mannerof travelling beseemed him no longer; his conductorswould that his entry into his dominions should havea manly and warrior-like appearance; they clad himin arms proportioned to his height and age; they puthim and held him on horseback; and it was in such guisethat he entered Aquitaine. He came thither accompaniedby the officers who were to form his council of guardians,men chosen by Charlemagne, with care, among the FrankishLeudes, distinguished not only for bravery andfirmness, but also for adroitness, and such as theyshould be to be neither deceived nor scared by thecunning, fickle, and turbulent populations with whomthey would have to deal. From this period to the

death of Charlemagne, and by his sovereign influence,though all the while under his son’s name, thegovernment of Aquitaine was a series of continuedefforts to hurl back the Arabs of Spain beyond theEbro, to extend to that river the dominion of theFranks, to divert to that end the forces as well asthe feelings of the populations of Southern Gaul,and thus to pursue, in the South as in the North, againstthe Arabs as well as against the Saxons and Huns,the grand design, of Charlemagne, which was the repressionof foreign invasions and the triumph of ChristianFrance over Asiatic paganism and Islamism.

Although continually obliged to watch, and often stillto fight, Charlemagne might well believe that he hadnearly gained his end. He had everywhere greatlyextended the frontiers of the Frankish dominions andsubjugated the populations comprised in his conquests.He had proved that his new frontiers would be vigorouslydefended against new invasions or dangerous neighbors.He had pursued the Huns and the Slavons to the confinesof the Empire of the East, and the Saracens to theislands of Corsica and Sardinia. The centre ofthe dominion was no longer in ancient Gaul; he hadtransferred it to a point not far from the Rhine,in the midst and within reach of the Germanic populations,at the town of Aix-la-Chapelle, which he had founded,and which was his favorite residence; but the principalparts of the Gallo-Frankish kingdom, Austrasia, Neustria,and Burgundy, were effectually welded in one singlemass. What he had done with Southern Gaul hasjust been pointed out; how he had both separated itfrom his own kingdom, and still retained it underhis control. Two expeditions into Armorica, withouttaking entirely from the Britons their independence,had taught them real deference, and the great warriorRoland, installed as count upon their frontier, warnedthem of the peril any rising would encounter.The moral influence of Charlemagne was on a par withhis material power; he had everywhere protected themissionaries of Christianity; he had twice enteredRome, also in the character of protector, and he couldcount on the faithful support of the Pope at leastas much as the Pope could count on him. He hadreceived embassies and presents from the sovereignsof the East, Christian and Mussulman, from the emperorsof Constantinople and the caliphs of Bagdad.Everywhere, in Europe, in Africa, and in Asia, he wasfeared and respected by kings and people. Such,at the close of the eighth century, were, so far ashe was concerned, the results of his wars, of thesuperior capacity he had displayed, and of the successeshe had won and kept.

In 799 he received, at Aix-la-Chapelle, news of seriousdisturbances which had broken out at Rome; that PopeLeo III had been attacked by conspirators, who, afterpulling out, it was said, his eyes and his tongue,had shut him up in the monastery of St. Erasmus, whencehe had with great difficulty escaped, and that hehad taken refuge with Winigisius, Duke of Spoleto,announcing his intention of repairing thence to theFrankish King. Leo was already known to Charlemagne;at his accession to the pontificate, in 795, he hadsent to him, as to the patrician and defender of Rome,the keys of the prison of St. Peter, and the bannerof the city. Charlemagne showed a dispositionto receive him with equal kindness and respect.The Pope arrived, in fact, at Paderborn, passed somedays there, according to Eginhard, and returned toRome on the 30th of November, 799, at ease regardinghis future, but without knowledge on the part of anyoneof what had been settled between the King of the Franksand him. Charlemagne remained all the winter atAix-la-Chapelle, spent the first months of the year800 on affairs connected with Western France, at Rouen,Tours, Orleans, and Paris, and, returning to Mayencein the month of August, then for the first time announcedto the general assembly of Franks his design of makinga journey to Italy. He repaired thither, in fact,and arrived on the 23d of November, 800, at the gatesof Rome. The Pope “received him there ashe was dismounting; then, the next day, standing onthe steps of the basilica of St. Peter and amid generalhallelujahs, he introduced the King into the sanctuaryof the blessed apostle, glorifying and thanking theLord for this happy event.” Some days werespent in examining into the grievances which had beenset down to the Pope’s account, and in receivingtwo monks arrived from Jerusalem to present to theKing, with the patriarch’s blessing, the keysof the Holy Sepulchre and Calvary, as well as thesacred standard. Lastly, on the 25th of December,800, “the day of the Nativity of our Lord,”says Eginhard, “the King came into the basilicaof the blessed St. Peter, apostle, to attend the celebrationof mass. At the moment when, in his place beforethe altar, he was bowing down to pray, Pope Leo placedon his head a crown, and all the Roman people shouted,’Long life and victory to Charles Augustus, crownedby God, the great and pacific Emperor of the Romans!’After this proclamation the Pontiff prostrated himselfbefore him and paid him adoration, according to thecustom established in the days of the old emperors;and thenceforward Charles, giving up the title of patrician,bore that of emperor and augustus.”

Eginhard adds, in his Life of Charlemagne:“The King at first testified great aversionfor this dignity, for he declared that, notwithstandingthe importance of the festival, he would not on thatday have entered the church if he could have foreseenthe intentions of the sovereign Pontiff. However,this event excited the jealousy of the Roman emperors(of Constantinople), who showed great vexation at it;but Charles met their bad graces with nothing butgreat patience, and thanks to this magnanimity whichraised him so far above them, he managed, by sendingto them frequent embassies and giving them in his lettersthe name of brother, to triumph over their conceit.”

No one, probably, believed, in the ninth century,and no one, assuredly, will nowadays believe thatCharlemagne was innocent beforehand of what took placeon the 25th of December, 300, in the basilica of St.Peter. It is doubtful, also, if he were seriouslyconcerned about the ill-temper of the emperors ofthe East. He had wit enough to understand thevalue which always remains attached to old traditions,and he might have taken some pains to secure theircountenance to his title of emperor; but all his contemporariesbelieved, and he also undoubtedly believed, that hehad on that day really won and set up again the RomanEmpire.

What, then, was the government of this empire of whichCharlemagne was proud to assume the old title?How did this German warrior govern that vast dominionwhich, thanks to his conquests, extended from the Elbeto the Ebro, from the North Sea to the Mediterranean;which comprised nearly all Germany, Belgium, France,Switzerland, and the north of Italy and of Spain,and which, sooth to say, was still, when Charlemagnecaused himself to be made emperor, scarce more thanthe hunting-ground and the battle-field of all theswarms of barbarians who tried to settle on the ruinsof the Roman world they had invaded and broken to pieces?The government of Charlemagne in the midst of thischaos is the striking, complicated, and transitoryfact which is now to be passed in review.

A word of warning must be first of all given touchingthis word government with which it is impossibleto dispense. For a long time past the word hasentailed ideas of national unity, general organization,and regular and efficient power. There has beenno lack of revolutions which have changed dynastiesand the principles and forms of the supreme powerin the State; but they have always left existing,under different names, the practical machinery wherebythe supreme power makes itself felt and exercisesits various functions over the whole country.Open the Almanac, whether it be called the Imperial,the Royal, or the National, and you will find therealways the working system of the government of France;all the powers and their agents, from the lowest tothe highest, are there indicated and classed accordingto their prerogatives and relations. Nor havewe there a mere empty nomenclature, a phantom of theory;things go on actually as they are described—­thebook is the reflex of the reality. It were easyto construct, for the empire of Charlemagne, a similarlist of officers; there might be set down in it dukes,counts, vicars, centeniers, and sheriffs (scabini),and they might be distributed, in regular gradation,over the whole territory; but it would be one hugelie, for most frequently, in the majority of places,these magistracies were utterly powerless and themselvesin complete disorder. The efforts of Charlemagne,either to establish them on a firm footing or to makethem act with regularity, were continual but unavailing.

In spite of the fixity of his purpose and the energyof his action the disorder around him was measurelessand insurmountable. He might check it for a momentat one point; but the evil existed wherever his terriblewill did not reach, and wherever it did the evil brokeout again as soon as it had been withdrawn. Howcould it be otherwise? Charlemagne had not tograpple with one single nation or with one single systemof institutions; he had to deal with different nations,without cohesion, and foreign one to another.The authority belonged, at one and the same time,to assemblies of free men, to landholders over thedwellers on their domains, and to the king over theleudes and their following. These three powersappeared and acted side by side in every locality aswell as in the totality of the State. Their relationsand their prerogatives were not governed by any generallyrecognized principle, and none of the three was investedwith sufficient might to habitually prevail againstthe independence or resistance of its rivals.Force alone, varying according to circ*mstances andalways uncertain, decided matters between them.Such was France at the accession of the second line.The coexistence of and the struggle between the threesystems of institutions and the three powers justalluded to had as yet had no other result. Outof this chaos Charlemagne caused to issue a monarchy,strong through him alone and so long as he was by,but powerless and gone like a shadow when the manwas lost to the institution.

Whoever is astonished either at this triumph of absolutemonarchy through the personal movement of Charlemagne,or at the speedy fall of the fabric on the disappearanceof the moving spirit, understands neither what canbe done by a great man, when, without him, societysees itself given over to deadly peril, nor how unsubstantialand frail is absolute power when the great man isno longer by, or when society has no longer need ofhim.

It has just been shown how Charlemagne by his wars,which had for their object and result permanent andwell-secured conquests, had stopped the fresh incursionsof barbarians, that is, had stopped disorder comingfrom without. An attempt will now be made to showby what means he set about suppressing disorder fromwithin and putting his own rule in the place of theanarchy that prevailed in the Roman world which layin ruins, and in the barbaric world which was a preyto blind and ill-regulated force.

A distinction must be drawn between the local andcentral governments.

Far from the centre of the State, in what have sincebeen called the provinces, the power of the Emperorwas exercised by the medium of two classes of agents,one local and permanent, the other despatched fromthe centre and transitory.

In the first class we find:

1st. The dukes, counts, vicars of counts, centeniers,sheriffs (scabini), officers or magistrates residingon the spot, nominated by the Emperor himself or byhis delegates, and charged with the duty of actingin his name for the levying of troops, rendering ofjustice, maintenance of order, and receipt of imposts.

2d. The beneficiaries or vassals of the Emperor,who held of him, sometimes as hereditaments, moreoften for life, and more often still without fixedrule or stipulation, lands; domains, throughout theextent of which they exercised, a little bit in theirown name and a little bit in the name of the Emperor,a certain jurisdiction and nearly all the rights ofsovereignty. There was nothing very fixed or clearin the position of the beneficiaries and in the natureof their power; they were at one and the same timedelegates and independent owners and enjoyers of usufruct,and the former or the latter character prevailed amongthem according to circ*mstances. But, altogether,they were closely bound to Charlemagne, who, in agreat number of cases, charged them with the executionof his orders in the lands they occupied.

Above these agents, local and resident, magistratesor beneficiaries, were the missi dominici,temporary commissioners, charged to inspect, in theEmperor’s name, the condition of the provinces;authorized to penetrate into the interior of the freelands as well as of the domains granted with the titleof benefices; having the right to reform certain abuses,and bound to render an account of all to their master.The missi dominici were the principal instrumentsCharlemagne had, throughout the vast territory ofhis empire, of order and administration.

As to the central government, setting aside for amoment the personal action of Charlemagne and of hiscounsellors, the general assemblies, to judge by appearancesand to believe nearly all the modern historians, occupieda prominent place in it. They were, in fact, duringhis reign, numerous and active; from the year 770to the year 813 we may count thirty-five of thesenational assemblies, March-parades and May-parades,held at Worms, Valenciennes, Geneva, Paderborn, Aix-la-Chapelle,Thionville, and several other towns, the majority situatedround about the two banks of the Rhine. The numberand periodical nature of these great political reunionsare undoubtedly a noticeable fact. What, then,went on in their midst? What character and weightmust be attached to their intervention in the governmentof the State? It is important to sift this matterthoroughly.

There is extant, touching this subject, a very curiousdocument. A contemporary and counsellor of Charlemagne,his cousin-german Adalbert, abbot of Corbie, had writtena treatise entitled “Of the Ordering of thePalace” (de Ordine Palatii), and designedto give an insight into the government of Charlemagne,with especial reference to the national assemblies.This treatise was lost; but toward the close of theninth century Hincmar, the celebrated archbishop ofRheims, reproduced it almost in its entirety, in theform of a letter of instructions, written at the requestof certain grandees of the kingdom who had asked counselof him with respect to the government of Carloman,one of the sons of Charles the Stutterer. Weread therein:

“It was the custom at this time to hold twoassemblies every year.... In both, that theymight not seem to have been convoked without motive,there was submitted to the examination and deliberationof the grandees ... and by virtue of orders from theKing, the fragments of law called capitula,which the King himself had drawn up under the inspirationof God or the necessity for which had been made manifestto him in the intervals between the meetings.”

Two striking facts are to be gathered from these words:the first, that the majority of the members composingthese assemblies probably regarded as a burden thenecessity for being present at them, since Charlemagnetook care to explain their convocation by declaringto them the motive for it, and by always giving themsomething to do; the second, that the proposal ofthe capitularies, or, in modern phrase, the initiative,proceeded from the Emperor. The initiative isnaturally exercised by him who wishes to regulateor reform, and, in his time, it was especially Charlemagnewho conceived this design. There is no doubt,however, but that the members of the assembly mightmake on their side such proposals as appeared to themsuitable; the constitutional distrusts and artificesof our time were assuredly unknown to Charlemagne,who saw in these assemblies a means of governmentrather than a barrier to his authority. To resumethe text of Hincmar:

“After having received these communications,they deliberated on them two or three days or more,according to the importance of the business.Palace messengers, going and coming, took their questionsand carried back the answers. No stranger camenear the place of their meeting until the result oftheir deliberations had been able to be submitted tothe scrutiny of the great prince, who then, with thewisdom he had received from God, adopted a resolutionwhich all obeyed.”

The definite resolution, therefore, depended uponCharlemagne alone; the assembly contributed only informationand counsel.

Hincmar continues, and supplies details worthy ofreproduction, for they give an insight into the imperialgovernment and the action of Charlemagne himself amidthose most ancient of the national assemblies:

“Things went on thus for one or two capitularies,or a greater number, until, with God’s help,all the necessities of the occasion were regulated.

“While these matters were thus proceeding outof the King’s presence, the prince himself,in the midst of the multitude, came to the generalassembly, was occupied in receiving the presents, salutingthe men of most note, conversing with those he sawseldom, showing toward the elder a tender interest,disporting himself with the youngsters, and doingthe same thing, or something like it, with the ecclesiasticsas well as the seculars. However, if those whowere deliberating about the matter submitted to theirexamination showed a desire for it, the King repaired

to them and remained with them as long as they wished;and then they reported to him, with perfect familiarity,what they thought about all matters, and what werethe friendly discussions that had arisen among them.I must not forget to say that, if the weather werefine, everything took place in the open air; otherwise,in several distinct buildings, where those who hadto deliberate on the King’s proposals were separatedfrom the multitude of persons come to the assembly,and then the men of greater note were admitted.The places appointed for the meeting of the lordswere divided into two parts, in such sort that thebishops, the abbots, and the clerics of high rank mightmeet without mixture with the laity. In the sameway the counts and other chiefs of the State underwentseparation, in the morning, until, whether the Kingwas present or absent, all were gathered together;then the lords above specified, the clerics on theirside, and the laics on theirs, repaired to the hallwhich had been assigned to them, and where seats hadbeen with due honor prepared for them. When thelords laical and ecclesiastical were thus separatedfrom the multitude, it remained in their power tosit separately or together, according to the natureof the business they had to deal with, ecclesiastical,secular, or mixed. In the same way, if they wishedto send for anyone, either to demand refreshment orto put any question, and to dismiss him after gettingwhat they wanted, it was at their option. Thustook place the examination of affairs proposed tothem by the King for deliberation.

“The second business of the King was to askof each what there was to report to him or enlightenhim touching the part of the kingdom each had comefrom. Not only was this permitted to all, butthey were strictly enjoined to make inquiries duringthe interval between the assemblies, about what happenedwithin or without the kingdom; and they were boundto seek knowledge from foreigners as well as natives,enemies as well as friends, sometimes by employingemissaries, and without troubling themselves muchabout the manner in which they acquired their information.The King wished to know whether in any part, in anycorner, of the kingdom, the people were restless,and what was the cause of their restlessness; or whetherthere had happened any disturbance to which it wasnecessary to draw the attention of the council-general,and other similar matters. He sought also toknow whether any of the subjugated nations were inclinedto revolt; whether any of those who had revolted seemeddisposed toward submission; and whether those thatwere still independent were threatening the kingdomwith any attack. On all these subjects, wheneverthere was any manifestation of disorder or danger,he demanded chiefly what were the motives or occasionof them.”

There is need of no great reflection to recognizethe true character of these assemblies: it isclearly imprinted upon the sketch drawn by Hincmar.The figure of Charlemagne alone fills the picture:he is the centre-piece of it and the soul of everything.’Tis he who wills that the national assembliesshould meet and deliberate; ’tis he who inquiresinto the state of the country; ’tis he who proposesand approves of, or rejects the laws; with him restwill and motive, initiative and decision. Hehas a mind sufficiently judicious, unshackled, andelevated to understand that the nation ought not tobe left in darkness about its affairs and that hehimself has need of communicating with it, of gatheringinformation from it, and of learning its opinions.But we have here no exhibition of great politicalliberties, no people discussing its interests andits business, interfering effectually in the adoptionof resolutions, and, in fact, taking in its governmentso active and decisive a part as to have a right tosay that it is self-governing, or, in other words,a free people. It is Charlemagne and he alonewho governs; it is absolute government marked by prudence,ability, and grandeur.

When the mind dwells upon the state of Gallo-Frankishsociety in the eighth century, there is nothing astonishingin such a fact. Whether it be civilized or barbarian,that which every society needs, that which it seeksor demands first of all in its government, is a certaindegree of good sense and strong will, of intelligenceand innate influence, so far as the public interestsare concerned; qualities, in fact, which suffice tokeep social order maintained or make it realized, andto promote respect for individual rights and the progressof the general well-being. This is the essentialaim of every community of men; and the institutionsand guarantees of free government are the means ofattaining it. It is clear that, in the eighthcentury, on the ruins of the Roman and beneath theblows of the barbaric world, the Gallo-Frankish nation,vast and without cohesion, brutish and ignorant, wasincapable of bringing forth, so to speak, from itsown womb, with the aid of its own wisdom and virtue,a government of the kind. A host of differentforces, without enlightenment and without restraint,were everywhere and incessantly struggling for dominion,or, in other words, were ever troubling and endangeringthe social condition. Let there but arise, inthe midst of this chaos of unruly forces and selfishpassions, a great man, one of those elevated mindsand strong characters that can understand the essentialaim of society, and then urge it forward, and at thesame time keep it well in hand on the roads that leadthereto, and such a man will soon seize and exercisethe personal power almost of a despot, and peoplewill not only make him welcome, but even celebratehis praises, for they do not quit the substance forthe shadow, or sacrifice the end to the means.

Such was the empire of Charlemagne. Among annalistsand historians, some, treating him as a mere conquerorand despot, have ignored his merits and his glory;others, that they might admire him without scruple,have made of him a founder of free institutions, aconstitutional monarch. Both are equally mistaken:Charlemagne was, indeed, a conqueror and a despot;but by his conquests and his personal power he, solong as he was by, that is, for six-and-forty years,saved Gallo-Frankish society from barbaric invasionwithout and anarchy within. That is the characteristicof his government and his title to glory.

What he was in his wars and his general relationswith his nation has just been seen; he shall now beexhibited in all his administrative activity and hisintellectual life, as a legislator and as a friendto the human mind. The same man will be recognizedin every case; he will grow in greatness, withoutchanging, as he appears under his various aspects.

There are often joined together, under the title ofCapitularies (capitula—­smallchapters, articles) a mass of acts, very differentin point of dates and objects, which are attributedindiscriminately to Charlemagne. This is a mistake.The Capitularies are the laws or legislative measuresof the Frankish kings, Merovingian as well as Carlovingian.Those of the Merovingians are few in number, and ofslight importance, and among those of the Carlovingians,which amount to 152, 65 only are due to Charlemagne.When an attempt is made to classify these last accordingto their object, it is impossible not to be struckwith their incoherent variety; and several of themare such as we should nowadays be surprised to meetwith in a code or in a special law. Among Charlemagne’s65 Capitularies, which contain I,151 articles, maybe counted 87 of moral, 293 of political, 130 of penal,no of civil, 85 of religious, 305 of canonical, 73of domestic, and 12 of incidental legislation.And it must not be supposed that all these articlesare really acts of legislation, laws properly so called;we find among them the texts of ancient national lawsrevised and promulgated afresh; extracts from andadditions to these same ancient laws, Salic, Lombard,and Bavarian; extracts from acts of councils; instructionsgiven by Charlemagne to his envoys in the provinces;questions that he proposed to put to the bishops orcounts when they came to the national assembly; answersgiven by Charlemagne to questions addressed to himby the bishops, counts, or commissioners (missi dominici);judgments, decrees, royal pardons, and simple notesthat Charlemagne seems to have had written down forhimself alone, to remind him of what he proposed todo; in a word, nearly all the various acts which couldpossibly have to be framed by an earnest, far-sighted,and active government. Often, indeed, these Capitularieshave no imperative or prohibitive character; they aresimple counsels, purely moral precepts. We readtherein, for example:

“Covetousness doth consist in desiring thatwhich others possess, and in giving away naught ofthat which oneself possesseth; according to the apostle,it is the root of all evil.”

And,

“Hospitality must be practised.”

The Capitularies which have been classed under theheads of political, penal, and canonicallegislation are the most numerous, and are thosewhich bear most decidedly an imperative of prohibitivestamp; among them a prominent place is held by measuresof political economy, administration, and police;you will find therein an attempt to put a fixed priceon provisions, a real trial of a maximum forcereals, and a prohibition of mendicity, with thefollowing clause:

“If such mendicants be met with, and they labornot with their hands, let none take thought aboutgiving unto them.”

The interior police of the palace was regulated thereby,as well as that of the empire:

“We do will and decree that none of those whoserve in our palace shall take leave to receive thereinany man who seeketh refuge there and cometh to hidethere, by reason of theft, homicide, adultery, or anyother crime. That if any free man do break throughour interdicts and hide such malefactor in our palace,he shall be bound to carry him on his shoulders tothe public quarter, and be there tied to the same stakeas the malefactor.”

Certain Capitularies have been termed religiouslegislation, in contradistinction to canonicallegislation, because they are really admonitions,religious exhortations, addressed not to ecclesiasticsalone, but to the faithful, the Christian people ingeneral, and notably characterized by good sense and,one might almost say, freedom of thought.

For example:

“Beware of venerating the names of martyrs falselyso called, and the memory of dubious saints.”

“Let none suppose that prayer cannot be madeto God save in three tongues [probably Latin, Greek,and Germanic, or perhaps the vulgar tongue; for thelast was really beginning to take form], for God isadored in all tongues, and man is heard if he do butask for the things that be right.”

These details are put forward that a proper idea maybe obtained of Charlemagne as a legislator, and ofwhat are called his laws. We have here, it willbe seen, no ordinary legislator and no ordinary laws:we see the work, with infinite variations and in disconnectedform, of a prodigiously energetic and watchful master,who had to think and provide for everything, who hadto be everywhere the moving and the regulating spirit.This universal and untiring energy is the grand characteristicof Charlemagne’s government, and was, perhaps,what made his superiority most incontestable and hispower most efficient.

It is noticeable that the majority of Charlemagne’sCapitularies belong to that epoch of his reign whenhe was Emperor of the West, when he was invested withall the splendor of sovereign power. Of the 65Capitularies classed under different heads, 13 onlyare previous to the 25th of December, 800, the dateof his coronation as Emperor at Rome; 52 are comprisedbetween the years 801 and 804.

The energy of Charlemagne as a warrior and a politicianhaving thus been exhibited, it remains to say a fewwords about his intellectual energy. For thatis by no means the least original or least grand featureof his character and his influence.

Modern times and civilized society have more thanonce seen despotic sovereigns filled with distrusttoward scholars of exalted intellect, especially suchas cultivated the moral and political sciences, andlittle inclined to admit them to their favor or topublic office. There is no knowing whether, inour days, with our freedom of thought and of the press,Charlemagne would have been a stranger to this feelingof antipathy; but what is certain is that in his day,in the midst of a barbaric society, there was no inducementto it, and that, by nature, he was not disposed toit. His power was not in any respect questioned;distinguished intellects were very rare; Charlemagnehad too much need of their services to fear theircriticisms, and they, on their part, were more anxiousto second his efforts than to show, toward him, anythinglike exaction or independence. He gave rein, therefore,without any embarrassment or misgiving, to his spontaneousinclination toward them, their studies, their labors,and their influence. He drew them into the managementof affairs. In Guizot’s History of Civilizationin France there is a list of the names and worksof twenty-three men of the eighth and ninth centurieswho have escaped oblivion, and they are all foundgrouped about Charlemagne as his own habitual advisers,or assigned by him as advisers to his sons Pepin andLouis in Italy and Aquitaine, or sent by him to allpoints of his empire as his commissioners, or chargedin his name with important negotiations. Andthose whom he did not employ at a distance formed,in his immediate neighborhood, a learned and industrioussociety, a school of the palace, accordingto some modern commentators, but an academyand not a school, according to others, devotedrather to conversation than to teaching.

It probably fulfilled both missions; it attended Charlemagneat his various residences, at one time working forhim at questions he invited them to deal with, atanother giving to the regular components of his court,to his children, and to himself lessons in the differentsciences called liberal: grammar, rhetoric, logic,astronomy, geometry, and even theology, and the greatreligious problems it was beginning to discuss.Two men, Alcuin and Eginhard, have remained justlycelebrated in the literary history of the age.Alcuin was the principal director of the school ofthe palace, and the favorite, the confidant, the learnedadviser of Charlemagne. “If your zeal wereimitated,” said he one day to the Emperor, “perchanceone might see arise in France a new Athens, far moreglorious than the ancient—­the Athens ofChrist.”

Eginhard, who was younger, received his scientificeducation in the school of the palace, and was headof the public works to Charlemagne, before becominghis biographer, and, at a later period, the intimateadviser of his son Louis the Debonair. Other scholarsof the school of the palace, Angilbert, Leidrade,Adalhard, Agobard, Theodulph, were abbots of St. Riquieror Corbie, archbishops of Lyons, and bishops of Orleans.They had all assumed, in the school itself, names illustriousin pagan antiquity: Alcuin called himself Flaccus;Angilbert, Homer; Theodulph, Pindar.Charlemagne himself had been pleased to take, in theirsociety, a great name of old, but he had borrowed fromthe history of the Hebrews—­he called himselfDavid; and Eginhard, animated, no doubt, bythe same sentiments, was Bezaleel, that nephewof Moses to whom God had granted the gift of knowinghow to work skilfully in wood and all the materialswhich served for the construction of the ark and thetabernacle. Either in the lifetime of their royalpatron or after his death all these scholars becamegreat dignitaries of the Church, or ended their livesin monasteries of note; but, so long as they lived,they served Charlemagne or his sons not only with thedevotion of faithful advisers, but also as followersproud of the master who had known how to do them honorby making use of them.

It was without effort and by natural sympathy thatCharlemagne had inspired them with such sentiments;for he, too, really loved sciences, literature, andsuch studies as were then possible, and he cultivatedthem on his own account and for his own pleasure, asa sort of conquest. It has been doubted whetherhe could write, and an expression of Eginhard’smight authorize such a doubt; but, according to otherevidence, and even according to the passage in Eginhard,one is inclined to believe merely that Charlemagnestrove painfully, and without much success, to writea good hand. He had learned Latin, and he understoodGreek. He caused to be commenced, and, perhaps,himself commenced the drawing up of the first Germanicgrammar. He ordered that the old barbaric poems,in which the deeds and wars of the ancient kings werecelebrated, should be collected for posterity.He gave Germanic names to the twelve months of theyear. He distinguished the winds by twelve specialterms, whereas before his time they had but four designations.He paid great attention to astronomy. Being troubledone day at no longer seeing in the firmament one ofthe known planets, he wrote to Alcuin: “Whatthinkest thou of this Mars, which, last year,being concealed in the sign of Cancer, was interceptedfrom the sight of men by the light of the sun?Is it the regular course of his revolution? Isit the influence of the sun? Is it a miracle?Could he have been two years about performing thecourse of a single one?”

In theological studies and discussions he exhibiteda particular and grave interest. “It isto him,” say Ampere and Haureau, “thatwe must refer the honor of the decision taken in 794by the council of Frankfort in the great dispute aboutimages; a temperate decision which is as far removedfrom the infatuation of the image-worshippers as fromthe frenzy of the image-breakers.” Andat the same time that he thus took part in the greatecclesiastical questions, Charlemagne paid zealousattention to the instruction of the clergy whose ignorancehe deplored. “Ah,” said he one day,“if only I had about me a dozen clerics learnedin all the sciences, as Jerome and Augustin were!”With all his puissance it was not in his power tomake Jeromes and Augustins; but he laid the foundation,in the cathedral churches and the great monasteries,of episcopal and cloistral schools for the educationof ecclesiastics, and, carrying his solicitude stillfurther, he recommended to the bishops and abbotsthat, in those schools, “they should take careto make no difference between the sons of serfs andof free men, so that they might come and sit on thesame benches to study grammar, music, and arithmetic.”Thus, in the eighth century, he foreshadowed the extensionwhich, in the nineteenth, was to be accorded to primaryinstruction, to the advantage and honor not only ofthe clergy, but also of the whole people.

After so much of war and toil at a distance, Charlemagnewas now at Aix-la-Chapelle, finding rest in this workof peaceful civilization. He was embellishingthe capital which he had founded, and which was calledthe king’s court. He had built there a grandbasilica, magnificently adorned. He was completinghis own palace there. He fetched from Italy clericsskilled in church music, a pious joyance to which hewas much devoted, and which he recommended to thebishops of his empire. In the outskirts of Aix-la-Chapelle“he gave full scope,” says Eginhard, “tohis delight in riding and hunting. Baths of naturallytepid water gave him great pleasure. Being passionatelyfond of swimming, he became so dexterous that nonecould be compared with him. He invited not onlyhis sons, but also his friends, the grandees of hiscourt, and sometimes even the soldiers of his guard,to bathe with him, insomuch that there were oftena hundred and more persons bathing at a time.”

When age arrived, he made no alteration in his bodilyhabits; but, at the same time, instead of puttingaway from him the thought of death, he was much takenup with it, and prepared himself for it with sternseverity. He drew up, modified, and completedhis will several times over. Three years beforehis death he made out the distribution of his treasures,his money, his wardrobe, and all his furniture, inthe presence of his friends and his officers, in orderthat their voice might insure, after his death, theexecution of this partition, and he set down his intentions

in this respect in a written summary, in which hemassed all his riches in three grand lots. Thefirst two were divided into twenty-one portions, whichwere to be distributed among the twenty-one metropolitanchurches of his empire. After having put thesefirst two lots under seal, he willed to preserve tohimself his usual enjoyment of the third so long ashe lived. But after his death, or voluntary renunciationof the things of this world, this same lot was tobe subdivided into four portions. His intentionwas that the first should be added to the twenty-oneportions which were to go to the metropolitan churches;the second set aside for his sons and daughters, andfor the sons and daughters of his sons, and redividedamong them in a just and proportionate manner; thethird dedicated, according to the usage of Christians,to the necessities of the poor; and, lastly, the fourthdistributed in the same way, under the name of alms,among the servants, of both sexes, of the palace fortheir lifetime. As for the books which he hadamassed, a large number in his library, he decidedthat those who wished to have them might buy them attheir proper value, and that the money which theyproduced should be distributed among the poor.

Having thus carefully regulated his own private affairsand bounty, he, two years later, in 813, took themeasures necessary for the regulation, after his death,of public affairs. He had lost, in 811, his oldestson, Charles, who had been his constant companionin his wars, and, in 810, his second son, Pepin, whomhe had made King of Italy; and he summoned to hisside his third son, Louis, King of Aquitaine, who wasdestined to succeed him. He ordered the convocationof five local councils which were to assemble at Mayence,Rheims, Chalons, Tours, and Aries, for the purposeof bringing about, subject to the King’s ratification,the reforms necessary in the Church. Passingfrom the affairs of the Church to those of the State,he convoked at Aix-la-Chapelle a general assemblyof bishops, abbots, counts, laic grandees, and of theentire people, and, holding council in his palacewith the chief among them, “he invited themto make his son Louis king-emperor; whereto all assented,saying that it was very expedient, and pleasing, also,to the people. On Sunday in the next month, August,813, Charlemagne repaired, crown on head, with hisson Louis to the cathedral of Aix-la-Chapelle, laidupon the altar another crown, and, after praying,addressed to his son a solemn exhortation respectingall his duties as king toward God and the Church,toward his family and his people, asked him if he werefully resolved to fulfil them, and, at the answerthat he was, bade him take the crown that lay uponthe altar, and place it with his own hands upon hishead, which Louis did amid the acclamations of allpresent, who cried, ‘Long live the emperor Louis!’Charlemagne then declared his son emperor jointlywith him, and ended the solemnity with these words:’Blessed be thou, O Lord God, who hast grantedme grace to see with mine own eyes my son seated onmy throne!’” And Louis set out again immediatelyfor Aquitaine.

He was never to see his father again. Charlemagne,after his son’s departure, went out hunting,according to his custom, in the forest of Ardenne,and continued during the whole autumn his usual modeof life. “But in January, 814, he was takenill,” says Eginhard, “of a violent fever,which kept him to his bed. Recurring forthwithto the remedy he ordinarily employed against fever,he abstained from all nourishment, persuaded thatthis diet would suffice to drive away or at the leastassuage the malady; but added to the fever came thatpain in the side which the Greeks call pleurisy;nevertheless the Emperor persisted in his abstinence,supporting his body only by drinks taken at long intervals;and on the seventh day after that he had taken to hisbed, having received the holy communion,” heexpired about 9 A.M., on Saturday, the 28th of January,814, in his seventy-first year.

“After performance of ablutions and funeralduties, the corpse was carried away and buried, amidthe profound mourning of all the people, in the churchhe had himself had built; and above his tomb therewas put up a gilded arcade with his image and thissuperscription: ’In this tomb reposeththe body of Charles, great and orthodox Emperor, whodid gloriously extend the kingdom of the Franks, anddid govern it happily for forty-seven years.He died at the age of seventy years, in the year ofthe Lord 814, in the seventh year of the Indiction,on the 5th of the Kalends of February.’”

If we sum up his designs and his achievements, wefind an admirably sound idea and a vain dream, a greatsuccess and a great failure.

Charlemagne took in hand the work of placing upona solid foundation the Frankish Christian dominionby stopping, in the North and South, the flood ofbarbarians and Arabs, paganism and Islamism. Inthat he succeeded; the inundations of Asiatic populationsspent their force in vain against the Gallic frontier.Western and Christian Europe was placed, territorially,beyond reach of attacks from the foreigner and infidel.No sovereign, no human being, perhaps, ever renderedgreater service to the civilization of the world.

Charlemagne formed another conception and made anotherattempt. Like more than one great barbaric warrior,he admired the Roman Empire that had fallen, its vastnessall in one, and its powerful organization under thehand of a single master. He thought he could resuscitateit, durably, through the victory of a new people anda new faith, by the hand of Franks and Christians.With this view he labored to conquer, convert, andgovern. He tried to be, at one and the same time,Caesar, Augustus, and Constantine. And for amoment he appeared to have succeeded; but the appearancepassed away with himself. The unity of the empireand the absolute power of the emperor were buried inhis grave. The Christian religion and human libertyset to work to prepare for Europe other governmentsand other destinies.

EGBERT BECOMES KING OF THE ANGLO-SAXON HEPTARCHY

A.D. 827

DAVID HUME

From the time that the Britons calledupon the Saxons to assist them against the Pictsand Scots, about A.D. 410, the domination of thehardy Teutonic people in England was a foregone conclusion.The Britons had become exhausted through theirlong exposure to Roman influences, and in theirstate of enfeeblement were unable to resist theattacks of the rude highland tribes.

The Saxons rescued the Britons fromtheir plight, but themselves became masters ofthe country which they had delivered. They werejoined by the Angles and Jutes, and divided theterritory into the kingdoms known in historyas the Saxon Heptarchy,[73] which had an existenceof about two hundred and fifty years. The variousmembers were involved in endless controversieswith each other, often breaking out into savagewars, and the Saxons were also exposed to conflictswith their common enemies, the Britons. Theirpower was greatly impaired by the civil strifeswhich distracted them.

This condition continued until it becameessential that under a strong hand a more solidunion of the Saxons should be formed. And itwas to Egbert, King of the West Saxons, the son ofEalhmund, King of Kent, that this great constructivetask was committed. He took the throne ofWessex in 802, for twelve years enjoyed a peacefulreign, then became involved in wars, first with theCornish and afterward with the Mercians.His victories in these wars resulted in the finalestablishment of his authority over the entireheptarchy, and this made him in fact, though not inname, the first real king of England.

When Brithric obtained possession of the governmentof Wessex, he enjoyed not that dignity without inquietude.Eoppa, nephew to King Ina, by his brother Ingild,who died, before that prince, had begot Eata, fatherto Alchmond, from whom sprung Egbert, a young man ofthe most promising hopes, who gave great jealousyto Brithric, the reigning prince, both because heseemed by his birth better entitled to the crown andbecause he had acquired, to an eminent degree, theaffections of the people. Egbert, sensible ofhis danger from the suspicions of Brithric, secretlywithdrew into France, where he was well received byCharlemagne. By living in the court, and servingin the armies of that prince, the most able and mostgenerous that had appeared in Europe during severalages, he acquired those accomplishments which afterwardenabled him to make such a shining figure on the throne.And familiarizing himself to the manners of the French,who, as Malmesbury observes, were eminent both forvalor and civility above all the western nations,he learned to polish the rudeness and barbarity ofthe Saxon character; his early misfortunes thus provedof singular advantage to him.

It was not long ere Egbert had opportunities of displayinghis natural and acquired talents. Brithric, Kingof Wessex, had married Eadburga, natural daughterof Offa, King of Mercia, a profligate woman, equallyinfamous for cruelty and for incontinence. Havinggreat influence over her husband, she often instigatedhim to destroy such of the nobility as were obnoxiousto her; and where this expedient failed, she scruplednot being herself active in traitorous attempts againstthem. She had mixed a cup of poison for a youngnobleman, who had acquired her husband’s friendship,and had on that account become the object of her jealousy;but unfortunately the King drank of the fatal cup alongwith his favorite, and soon after expired. Thistragical incident, joined to her other crimes, renderedEadburga so odious that she was obliged to fly intoFrance; whence Egbert was at the same time recalledby the nobility, in order to ascend the throne ofhis ancestors. He attained that dignity in thelast year of the eighth century.

In the kingdoms of the heptarchy, an exact rule ofsuccession was either unknown or not strictly observed;and thence the reigning prince was continually agitatedwith jealousy against all the princes of the blood,whom he still considered as rivals, and whose deathalone could give him entire security in his possessionof the throne. From this fatal cause, togetherwith the admiration of the monastic life, and the opinionof merit attending the preservation of chastity evenin a married state, the royal families had been entirelyextinguished in all the kingdoms except that of Wessex;and the emulations, suspicions, and conspiracies,which had formerly been confined to the princes ofthe blood alone, were now diffused among all the nobilityin the several Saxon states. Egbert was the soledescendant of those first conquerors who subdued Britain,and who enhanced their authority by claiming a pedigreefrom Woden, the supreme divinity of their ancestors.But that prince, though invited by this favorablecirc*mstance to make attempts on the neighboring Saxons,gave them for some time no disturbance, and ratherchose to turn his arms against the Britons in Cornwall,whom he defeated in several battles. He was recalledfrom the conquest of that country by an invasion madeupon his dominions by Bernulf, King of Mercia.

The Mercians, before the accession of Egbert, hadvery nearly attained the absolute sovereignty in theheptarchy: they had reduced the East Angles undersubjection, and established tributary princes in thekingdoms of Kent and Essex. Northumberland wasinvolved in anarchy; and no state of any consequenceremained but that of Wessex, which, much inferiorin extent to Mercia, was supported solely by the greatqualities of its sovereign. Egbert led his armyagainst the invaders; and encountering them at Ellandun,in Wiltshire, obtained a complete victory, and, bythe great slaughter which he made of them in theirflight, gave a mortal blow to the power of the Mercians.While he himself, in prosecution of his victory, enteredtheir country on the side of Oxfordshire, and threatenedthe heart of their dominions, he sent an army intoKent, commanded by Ethelwulf, his eldest son, and,expelling Baldred, the tributary King, soon made himselfmaster of that country.

The kingdom of Essex was conquered with equal facility,and the East Angles, from their hatred of the Merciangovernment, which had been established over them bytreachery and violence, and probably exercised withtyranny, immediately rose in arms and craved the protectionof Egbert. Bernulf, the Mercian King, who marchedagainst them, was defeated and slain; and two yearsafter, Ludican, his successor, met with the same fate.These insurrections and calamities facilitated theenterprises of Egbert, who advanced into the centreof the Mercian territories and made easy conquestsover a dispirited and divided people. In orderto engage them more easily to submission, he allowedWiglef, their countryman, to retain the title of king,while he himself exercised the real powers of sovereignty.The anarchy which prevailed in Northumberland temptedhim to carry still further his victorious arms; andthe inhabitants, unable to resist his power, and desirousof possessing some established form of government,were forward, on his first appearance, to send deputies,who submitted to his authority and swore allegianceto him as their sovereign. Egbert, however, stillallowed to Northumberland, as he had done to Merciaand East Anglia, the power of electing a king, whopaid him tribute and was dependent on him.

Thus were united all the kingdoms of the heptarchyin one great state, near four hundred years afterthe first arrival of the Saxons in Britain; and thefortunate arms and prudent policy of Egbert at lasteffected what had been so often attempted in vain byso many princes. Kent, Northumberland, and Mercia,which had successfully aspired to general dominion,were now incorporated in his empire; and the othersubordinate kingdoms seemed willingly to share thesame fate. His territories were nearly of thesame extent with what is now properly called England;and a favorable prospect was afforded to the Anglo-Saxonsof establishing a civilized monarchy, possessed oftranquillity within itself, and secure against foreigninvasion. This great event happened in the year827.

The Saxons, though they had been so long settled inthe island, seem not as yet to have been much improvedbeyond their German ancestors, either in arts, civility,knowledge, humanity, justice, or obedience to thelaws. Even Christianity, though it opened theway to connections between them and the more polishedstates of Europe, had not hitherto been very effectualin banishing their ignorance or softening their barbarousmanners. As they received that doctrine throughthe corrupted channels of Rome, it carried along withit a great mixture of credulity and superstition,equally destructive to the understanding and to morals.The reverence toward saints and relics seems to havealmost supplanted the adoration of the Supreme Being;monastic observances were esteemed more meritoriousthan the active virtues; the knowledge of naturalcauses was neglected, from the universal belief of

miraculous interpositions and judgments; bounty tothe Church atoned for every violence against society;and the remorses for cruelty, murder, treachery, assassination,and the more robust vices, were appeased, not by amendmentof life, but by penances, servility to the monks, andan abject and illiberal devotion.[74] The reverencefor the clergy had been carried to such a height thatwherever a person appeared in a sacerdotal habit,though on the highway, the people flocked around him,and, showing him all marks of profound respect, receivedevery word he uttered as the most sacred oracle.Even the military virtues, so inherent in all theSaxon tribes, began to be neglected; and the nobility,preferring the security and sloth of the cloister tothe tumults and glory of war, valued themselves chieflyon endowing monasteries, of which they assumed thegovernment. The several kings, too, being extremelyimpoverished by continual benefactions to the Church,to which the states of their kingdoms had weakly assented,could bestow no rewards on valor or military services,and retained not even sufficient influence to supporttheir government.

Another inconvenience which attended this corruptspecies of Christianity was the superstitious attachmentto Rome, and the gradual subjection of the kingdomto a foreign jurisdiction. The Britons, havingnever acknowledged any subordination to the Roman pontiff,had conducted all ecclesiastical government by theirdomestic synods and councils; but the Saxons, receivingtheir religion from Roman monks, were taught at thesame time a profound reverence for that see, and werenaturally led to regard it as the capital of theirreligion. Pilgrimages to Rome were representedas the most meritorious acts of devotion. Notonly noblemen and ladies of rank undertook this tediousjourney, but kings themselves, abdicating their crowns,sought for a secure passport to heaven at the feetof the Roman pontiff. New relics, perpetuallysent from that inexhaustible mint of superstition,and magnified by lying miracles, invented in convents,operated on the astonished minds of the multitude.And every prince has attained the eulogies of the monks,the only historians of those ages, not in proportionto his civil and military virtues, but to his devotedattachment toward their order, and his superstitiousreverence for Rome.

The sovereign pontiff, encouraged by this blindnessand submissive disposition of the people, advancedevery day in his encroachments on the independenceof the English churches. Wilfrid, bishop of Lindisferne,the sole prelate of the Northumbrian kingdom, increasedthis subjection in the eighth century, by his makingan appeal to Rome against the decisions of an Englishsynod, which had abridged his diocese by the erectionof some new bishoprics. Agatho, the pope, readilyembraced this precedent of an appeal to his court;and Wilfrid, though the haughtiest and most luxuriousprelate of his age, having obtained with the peoplethe character of sanctity, was, thus able to lay thefoundation of this papal pretension.

The great topic by which Wilfrid confounded the imaginationsof men was that St. Peter, to whose custody the keysof heaven were intrusted, would certainly refuse admittanceto everyone who should be wanting in respect to hissuccessor. This conceit, well suited to vulgarconceptions, made great impression on the people duringseveral ages, and has not even at present lost allinfluence in the Catholic countries.

Had this abject superstition produced general peaceand tranquillity, it had made some atonement for theills attending it; but besides the usual avidity ofmen for power and riches, frivolous controversies intheology were engendered by it, which were so muchthe more fatal as they admitted not, like the others,of any final determination from established possession.The disputes, excited in Britain, were of the mostridiculous kind, and entirely worthy of those ignorantand barbarous ages. There were some intricacies,observed by all the Christian churches, in adjustingthe day of keeping Easter, which depended on a complicatedconsideration of the course of the sun and moon; andit happened that the missionaries who had convertedthe Scots and Britons had followed a different calendarfrom that which was observed at Rome, in the age whenAugustine converted the Saxons.

The priests also of all the Christian churches wereaccustomed to shave part of their head; but the formgiven to this tonsure was different in the formerfrom what was practised in the latter. The Scotsand Britons pleaded the antiquity of theirusages; the Romans and their disciples, the Saxons,insisted on the universality of theirs.That Easter must necessarily be kept by a rule whichcomprehended both the day of the year and age of themoon, was agreed by all; that the tonsure of a priestcould not be omitted without the utmost impiety wasa point undisputed; but the Romans and Saxons calledtheir antagonists schismatics, because they celebratedEaster on the very day of the full moon in March,if that day fell on a Sunday, instead of waiting tillthe Sunday following; and because they shaved thefore part of their head from ear to ear, instead ofmaking that tonsure on the crown of the head, andin a circular form. In order to render their antagonistsodious they affirmed that once in seven years theyconcurred with the Jews in the time of celebratingthat festival: and that they might recommendtheir own form of tonsure they maintained that it imitatedsymbolically the crown of thorns worn by Christ inhis passion; whereas the other form was invented bySimon Magus, without any regard to that representation.

These controversies had from the beginning excitedsuch animosity between the British and Romish prieststhat, instead of concurring in their endeavors toconvert the idolatrous Saxons, they refused all communiontogether, and each regarded his opponent as no betterthan a pagan. The dispute lasted more than acentury, and was at last finished, not by men’sdiscovering the folly of it, which would have beentoo great an effort for human reason to accomplish,but by the entire prevalence of the Romish ritualover the Scotch and British. Wilfrid, bishopof Lindisferne, acquired great merit, both with thecourt of Rome and with all the southern Saxons, byexpelling the “quartodeciman” schism,as it was called, from the Northumbrian kingdom, intowhich the neighborhood of the Scots had formerly introducedit.

Theodore, Archbishop of Canterbury, called, in theyear 680, a synod at Hatfield, consisting of all thebishops in Britain, where was accepted and ratifiedthe decree of the Lateran council, summoned by Martin,against the heresy of the Monothelites. The counciland synod maintained, in opposition to these heretics,that, though the divine and human nature in Christmade but one person, yet had they different inclinations,wills, acts, and sentiments, and that the unity ofthe person implied not any unity in the consciousness.This opinion it seems somewhat difficult to comprehend;and no one, unacquainted with the ecclesiastical historyof those ages, could imagine the height of zeal andviolence with which it was then inculcated. Thedecree of the Lateran council calls the Monothelitesimpious, execrable, wicked, abominable, and even diabolical,and curses and anathematizes them to all eternity.

The Saxons, from the first introduction of Christianityamong them, had admitted the use of images; and perhapsthat religion, without some of those exterior ornaments,had not made so quick a progress with these idolaters;but they had not paid any species of worship or addressto images; and this abuse never prevailed among Christianstill it received the sanction of the second councilof Nice.

The kingdoms of the heptarchy, though united by sorecent a conquest, seemed to be firmly cemented intoone state under Egbert; and the inhabitants of theseveral provinces had lost all desire of revoltingfrom that monarch or of restoring their former independentgovernments. Their language was everywhere nearlythe same, their customs, laws, institutions, civiland religious; and as the race of the ancient kingswas totally extinct in all the subjected states, thepeople readily transferred their allegiance to a princewho seemed to merit it by the splendor of his victories,the vigor of his administration, and the superiornobility of his birth. A union also in governmentopened to them the agreeable prospect of future tranquillity;and it appeared more probable that they would thenceforthbecome formidable to their neighbors than be exposedto their inroads and devastations. But theseflattering views were soon overcast by the appearanceof the Danes, who, during some centuries, kept theAnglo-Saxons in perpetual inquietude, committed themost barbarous ravages upon them, and at last reducedthem to grievous servitude.

FOOTNOTES:

[73] The seven kingdoms founded in England by sevendifferent Saxon invaders. They were Kent, Sussex,Wessex, Essex, Northumbria, East Anglia, and Mercia.

[74] These abuses were common to all the Europeanchurches; but the priests in Italy, Spain, and Gaulmade some atonement for them by other advantages whichthey rendered society. For several ages they werealmost all Romans, or, in other words, the ancientnatives; and they preserved the Roman language andlaws, with some remains of the former civility.But the priests in the heptarchy, after the firstmissionaries, were wholly Saxons, and almost as ignorantand barbarous as the laity. They contributed,therefore, little to the improvement of society inknowledge or the arts.

CHRONOLOGY OF UNIVERSAL HISTORY

EMBRACING THE PERIOD COVERED IN THIS VOLUME

A.D. 410-842

JOHN RUDD, LL.D.

Events treated at length are here indicated in largetype; the numerals following give volume and page.

Separate chronologies of the various nations, andof the careers of famous persons, will be found inthe INDEX VOLUME, with volume and page referencesshowing where the several events are fully treated.

A.D.

410. Britain is abandoned by the Roman Empire.Franks join in the Barbarian attack on Gaul.

Siege, capture, and pillage of Rome by Alaric; hedies and is succeeded by Adolphus. See “VISIGOTHSPILLAGE ROME,” iv, I.

411. Count Gerontius makes Constans prisonerand slays him; he besieges Constantine in Aries, wherehe, is put to flight by Constantius, Honorius’general, and, after being deserted by his soldiers,he stabs himself. Constantine surrenders to Constantius,is sent to Ravenna and beheaded.

Jovinus revolts at Mainz.

Conference between Catholics and Donatists at Carthage,after which more severe laws are enacted against thelatter.

412. Jovinus makes his brother Sebastian hiscolleague. The Visigoths enter Gaul.

413. Adolphus overcomes Jovinus and Sebastianand sends their heads to Honorius.

Title of augusta taken by Pulcheria at Constantinople;she governs in the East in the name of her brotherTheodosius.

415. Adolphus lays the foundation of the Visigothdominion in Spain.

Brutal murder of Hypatia, a lovely woman and a Neo-Platonicphilosopher of Alexandria.

Persecution of Jews at Alexandria.

Adolphus assassinated at Barcelona by Sigeric, whousurps the throne, but is killed seven days afterward,and Wallia chosen king by the Visigoths.

418. Wallia relinquishes a part of his conquestsin Spain to Honorius, and receives the province ofAquitaine in Gaul.

420. St. Jerome dies in Palestine.

A persecution of the Christians in Persia leads towar between that nation and the Eastern Empire.

422. Peace concluded with Persia. Incursionof the Huns into Thrace.

423. Death of Honorius; usurpation of Joannesthe Notary.

425. Joannes is beheaded. The young Valentinianis proclaimed emperor, and his mother, Placidia, regent.

A synod at Carthage forbids appeals to the Bishopof Rome. The revenues of the Church are becomevery large.

428. Conquests of the Vandals in Spain.

Nestorius, Bishop of Constantinople, founds the sectof Nestorians, which still subsists in Persia andTurkey.

429. Wild Moors join the Vandals who have invadedAfrica.

430. Bonifacius unsuccessfully opposes the Vandalsin Africa; they besiege Hippo Regius. St. Augustinedies there in the third month of the siege.

431. Hippo Regius falls.

Third general council of the Church, held at Ephesus;one of the most turbulent in history.

432. Bonifacius, although victorious, perishesin the conflict with his rival Aetius.

433. Attila, King of the Huns, begins his reign.[75]St. Patrick preaches in Ireland.

435. Nestorius exiled to the Libyan desert.

439. The Vandals, under Genseric, take Carthage.

440. Leo the Great elected pope.

441. Attila and his Huns pass the Danube; theyinvade Illyricum. See “HUNS INVADE THEEASTERN ROMAN EMPIRE,” iv, 28.

442. Valentinian by a treaty of peace cedes Africato Genseric. A comet is visible.

444. Attila murders his brother, Bleda, and rulesalone over the Huns.

446. Britons in vain apply to Aetius for aidagainst the Picts and Scots.

Thermopylae passed by the Huns; the Eastern Emperormakes humiliating terms of peace with Attila.See “HUNS INVADE THE EASTERN ROMAN EMPIRE,”iv, 28.

Pope Leo assumes a tone of high authority, and assertsthe supremacy of the Roman Pontiff over all otherbishops.

449. Landing of the Jutes under Hengist and Horsain Britain, called there to repel the Picts and Scots.See “THE ENGLISH CONQUEST OF BRITAIN,”iv, 55.

The “Robber Synod” meets at Ephesus.It reinstates Eutyches in the office of priest andarchimandrite, from which he had been expelled, andexposes Flavian, Patriarch of Constantinople, who isso roughly attacked that he dies soon afterward ofhis injuries.

A synod at Rome reverses the acts at Ephesus.

450. Death of Theodosius II; by a nominal marriagehis sister Pulcheria raises Marcian to the throne.

Attila demands the princess Honoria in marriage.

451. Gaul invaded by Attila; battle of Chalons.See “ATTILA INVADES WESTERN EUROPE,” iv,72.

Fourth general council of the Church, held at Chalcedon;the acts of the “Robber Synod” are annulled.

452. Attila, after withdrawing from Gaul, ravagesItaly; he besieges and destroys Aquileia; its inhabitantsflee to the marshes; Rome is saved by its Bishop,Leo the Great. Venice is founded. See “FOUNDATIONOF VENICE,” iv, 95.

453. Death of Attila; dissolution of his empire.Death of the empress Pulcheria.

454. Hengist founds the kingdom of Kent.

455. Maximus murders Valentinian III and usurpsthe throne of the Western Empire; at the end of threemonths Maximus is killed by the people.

The Vandals pillage Rome. Avitus is proclaimedemperor of the West.

456. Ricimer, commander of the Barbarian mercenariesin the West, destroys a Vandal fleet near Corsica;he declares against Avitus, who abdicates.

457. Majorian placed on the throne of the Westby Ricimer and the senate.

Leo I ascends the throne in the East.

460. Genseric destroys Majorian’s fleetat Carthagena. Peace is made between them.

461. Majorian is assassinated by Ricimer, whoplaces his puppet Severus on the throne, exercisingthe Imperial power himself.

465. Death of Severus; Ricimer still wields thesupreme power in Rome.

467. Anthemius made emperor of the West.

The Vandals ravage the coasts of Italy and Sicily.

468. Leo I, Emperor of the East, aided by theWestern Empire, makes an earnest but ineffectual effortagainst the Vandals under Genseric.

472. Ricimer besieges and storms Rome; deathof Ricimer and of Anthemius; Olybrius and Glyceriusare emperors successively.

473. Invasion of Italy by the Ostrogoths divertedto Gaul. Glycerius emperor of the West.

474. Julius Nepos becomes emperor of the West.Zeno rules the Eastern Empire.

475. Romulus Augustulus emperor of the West.Zeno and his wife flee to Isauria.

476. Odoacer, a leader of German mercenaries,dethrones Augustulus and puts an end to the WesternEmpire for three centuries. The title of kingof Italy assumed by Odoacer.

486. Clovis founds the kingdom of the Franks.He defeats Syagrius at Soissons, and thus puts anend to Roman dominion in Gaul. See “CLOVISFOUNDS THE KINGDOM OF THE FRANKS,” iv, 113.

488. The Eastern Emperor commissions Theodoric,King of the Ostrogoths, to invade Italy.

489. Theodoric defeats Odoacer at Verona.

490. Odoacer is again defeated; he retires toRavenna.

491. Anastasius becomes emperor of the East bymarrying the widow of Zeno, who had recently died.

The South Saxons capture Anderida.

492. Anastasius grants liberty of conscienceand remits oppressive taxes.

493. Theodoric besieges Odoacer in Ravenna; heis captured and murdered; Theodoric becomes king ofthe whole of Italy.

494. An earthquake overthrows the cities of Laodicea,Hierapolis, and Tripolis.

Pope Gelasius makes the distinction between the canonicaland apocryphal books of the Scriptures. He assertshis divine right, as Bishop of Rome, to universalsupremacy.

495.[76] Cerdic and his band of Saxons, who sail infive ships, land in Britain.

496. Clovis vanquishes the Alemanni; he is baptized.See “CLOVIS FOUNDS THE KINGDOM OF THE FRANKS,”iv, 113.

497. The Arabs (Saracens) invade Syria; theyare repulsed by Eugenius.

Many Athanasian bishops are banished from Africa toSardinia.

498. Publication of the Babylonian Talmudor Gemaras.

Violent contest between Symmachus and Laurentius forthe episcopal throne at Rome, decided by Theodoricin favor of the former.

500. Clovis, King of the Franks, defeats theBurgundians near Dijon.

502. Syria and Palestine ravaged by the Saracens.The Bulgarians again devastate Thrace.

504. Expulsion by the Franks of the Alemannifrom the Middle Rhine. Theodoric defeats theBulgarians and retakes Sirmium, which they had captured.

505. Peace is declared between the Eastern Empireand Persia, ending desultory conflicts that had continuedsome years.

507. Clovis overthrows the Visigoths near Poitiers;he becomes master of nearly the whole of Aquitania.See “CLOVIS FOUNDS THE KINGDOM OF THE FRANKS,”iv, 113.

Amalarich, Alaric’s infant son, and Giselich,his natural son, are proclaimed joint kings of theVisigoths by Theodoric; he preserves for them allSpain and a part of Gaul.

508. Natanleod, a British prince, is defeatedand slain, in a desperate battle, by Cerdic the Saxon.

510. Clovis adds the territory of certain minorFrank princes to his own territory; he makes Parishis capital. See “CLOVIS FOUNDS THE KINGDOMOF THE FRANKS,” iv, 113.

511. Death of Clovis; the Frankish kingdom isdivided equally among his four sons: TheodoricI (Thierry), Metz; Clodomir, Orleans; Childebert I,Paris; and Clotair, Soissons.

Monophysite riot at Constantinople, caused by thecontroversy respecting the nature of Christ.

512. Second Monophysite riot at Constantinople.

515. A body of Huns breaks through the Caspiangates and invades Cappadocia.

Publication of St. Benedict’s monastic rule.

518. Death of Anastasius, the Eastern Emperor,and accession of Justin I.

519. Cerdic gives the name of Wessex to thatpart of Britain conquered by him; he assumes the titleof king; Cynric is his coadjutor.

523. Sigismund, the Burgundian King, assumesthe monastic habit, but is betrayed into the handsof the Franks, who throw him, with his wife and children,into a well at Orleans. His brother, Gondemar,is elected king.

525. Theodoric, King of Italy, orders the executionof Boethius and Symmachus.

526. Death of Theodoric and accession of Athalaric.

Great earthquake at Antioch, which destroys the city;250,000 persons perish.

The Eastern Empire begins war with Persia.

527. Justinian proclaimed joint augustus, soonafter which, by the death of Justin, he becomes soleemperor.

Use of the Christian era introduced by Dionysius Exiguus.

528. Thuringia conquered by the Franks.

529. Julian, leader of a Jewish and Samaritanrevolt, is made prisoner and beheaded.

Justinian issues edicts against philosophers, heretics,and pagans. See “PUBLICATION OF THE JUSTINIANCODE,” iv, 138. Closing of the schools atAthens.

530. Benedict founds his new monastic order;the principal seat is Monte Casino, Campania.[77]

Belisarius, the greatest general of the Byzantineempire, defeats the Persians at Dara.

531. Alamundarus, at the head of the Persiansand Saracens, defeats Belisarius, who maintains hisground against their nearly overwhelming force.

Accession of Khusrau to the throne of Persia.

532. End of the war between the Eastern Empireand Persia.

533. Justinian’s general, Belisarius, destroysthe Vandal kingdom in Africa.

Publication of the Pandects and Institutesof Justinian. See “PUBLICATION OF THE JUSTINIANCODE,” iv, 138.

Philosophers, who were driven from Constantinopleby Justinian’s orders, return disappointed fromPersia.

534. Overthrow of the Burgundian kingdom by theFranks, who divide the dominions between the threeFrankish kings.

Solomon, left by Belisarius to command in Africa,defeats the Moors.

535. Belisarius is sent by Justinian to recoverItaly from the Ostrogoths; he occupies Sicily.

536. Rome is occupied by Belisarius.

537. Vitiges unsuccessfully besieges Belisariusin Rome; great distress in the city.

538. Vitiges retreats from before Rome and takesshelter in Ravenna.

539. The Franks, under Theodebert, invade Italyand plunder Genoa; attacked by disease they returninto Gaul.

540. Vitiges surrenders Ravenna and is sent aprisoner to Constantinople. Justinian recallsBelisarius from Italy.

Khusrau, King of Persia, invades Syria and takes Antioch.

A total eclipse of the sun, June 20th.

Justinian makes a formal relinquishment of Gaul tothe Franks.

541. Belisarius takes the command of the Romanforces against the Persians; he defeats Khusrau.

Totila, King of the Ostrogoths, is successful in Italy.End of the succession of Roman consuls.

542. Belisarius compels the Persians to recrossthe Euphrates.

The great plague spreads from Egypt and rages formany years in Asia and Europe.

543. Naples surrenders to Totila, who then advancesagainst Rome. Belisarius recalled from the East,after which the Persians again advance and defeatthe Romans.

Moors renew the war in Africa; Solomon is slain inbattle against them; Sergius, his successor, is incompetent.

Spain invaded by the Franks.

544. Again Belisarius is sent into Italy, butwithout supplies and with very inadequate forces.

Stotzas, leader of the Moors, defeats the Romans,but is slain in the battle.

545. While Belisarius awaits reinforcements Totilatakes Asculum and Spoletum, and lays siege to Rome.

546. Rome is betrayed to Totila; Belisarius isjoined by fresh troops, but arrives too late to preventthe capture and pillage.

547. Rome is utterly deserted for six weeks;it is retaken by Belisarius, who repairs the walls.

Ida founds the kingdom of Bernicia, in Northumberland,and builds Bamborough.

Bavaria becomes subject to the Franks.

548. Death of Theodora, Empress of the East.

Crotona and Tarentum are captured by Belisarius, afterwhich he is recalled to the East.

549. Second siege and capture of Rome by Totila.

The Lazic War begins—­a contest of Romeand Persia on the Phasis; called
Lazic from the Lazi, a tribe which still subsists.

550. Vigilius, at Constantinople, urges Justinianto rescue Italy from the dominion of Arians.

Illyrium is freed of the Slavonians.

551. Totila restores the senate at Rome.

Silkworms said to have been first reared in Europefrom eggs brought out of the East.

552. Totila defeated and slain by Narses, Belisarius’successor, to whom the greater part of Italy submits.

Teias is appointed their king by the Ostrogoths.

Cyric puts the Britons to flight at the battle ofSearobyrig (Sarum).

553. Narses puts an end to the power of the Ostrogothsin Italy, and annexes it to the Eastern Empire.

Fifth general council of the Church at Constantinople.The exarch is established at Ravenna, representingthe Emperor of the East.

554. Italy is invaded by the Franks and Alemanni;they are defeated by Narses.

555. Tzathes declared king of the Lazi; the Persiansare defeated by the Romans at Phasis.

War between Clotaire and the Saxons.

558. Death of Childebert; the Salic Law preventshis daughters reigning; their brother, Clotaire, becomessole king of the Franks.

559. Belisarius’ last achievement is toexpel the Bulgarians, who advanced to within twentymiles of Constantinople.

561. Death of Clotaire; the Frankish kingdomagain divided.

The services of Belisarius excite the jealousy ofJustinian and his courtiers.

562. Conspiracy of Marcellus and Sergius againstJustinian; Belisarius unjustly accused of having takenpart in the plot.

563. Belisarius is acquitted of the charges broughtagainst him; he is restored to his honors.

St. Columba founds the monastery of Iona in Scotland.

565. Death of Belisarius, also of the emperorJustinian. Justin II succeeds to the throne.

566.[78] Alboin, at the head of the Lombards, andaided by the Avars, destroys the kingdom of the Gepidaein Pannonia.

War in Britain between the kings of Kent and Wessex.

567. Austrasia, Neustria, and Burgundy formedby the division of the Frankish kingdom.

568. Invasion of Italy by the Lombards; Paviabesieged. Longinus, the successor of Narses,is styled the exarch of Ravenna by the Byzantines.

570.[79] Birth of Mahomet. See “THE HEGIRA,”iv, 198. Death of Narses.

571. Khusrau persecuting the Armenians, theyplace themselves under the protection of Justin; thisleads to war between the Persians and Romans.

Uffa founds the kingdom of East Anglia in Britain.

572. Marcianus is sent by Rome to conduct thewar against the Persians.

Alboin, Lombardy, grants allotments of territory tohis chief captains, with titles of princes or dukes,for which they are to render military service.

573. Alboin, King of the Lombards, is murderedby Rosamond, his wife; she flees to Ravenna with herlover Helmichis, where she poisons him; before hedies he compels her to drain the cup. Cleoph iselected king of Lombardy.

The Visigoths subjugate the Suevi in Spain.

574. Tiberius is appointed Caesar at Rome; heconcludes a peace with the Persians. He is defeatedby the Avars on the Danube.

Cleoph, the Lombard King, is slain; his son beinga child, many of the dukes assume royal power andgreat anarchy prevails.

575. Justinian, son of Germanus, defeats thePersians and advances to the Araxes.

576. Armenia is occupied by the Persians; Justinianarrives too late to prevent it.

578. Death of Justin. Accession of the emperorTiberius Constantinus in the East.

579. Maurice, commanding the Romans, is victoriousover the Persians.

580. Further successes of Maurice in Mesopotamia.

582. Death of Tiberius and accession of Maurice,Emperor in the East.

584. Many native Gauls retire into Armorica,where they preserve their Celtic tongue.

586. Cridda founds the last Saxon kingdom ofMercia. The Britons retire to the western sideof the island, unite in a general league, and callthemselves Cymri.

588. Northumberland is founded by the union ofthe kingdoms of Bernicia and Deira, under Ethelric.

589. Arianism is abandoned by the Visigoths inSpain. 591. Peace between Persia and the EasternEmpire.

597. Augustine sent by Gregory the Great to preachChristianity to the Anglo-Saxons. See “AUGUSTINE’SMISSIONARY WORK IN ENGLAND,” iv, 182.

602. Revolt in Constantinople; Phocas is proclaimedemperor; flight of Maurice with his family; they aretaken and put to death.

603. Khusrau, the Persian ruler, declares waragainst Phocas to revenge the death of his benefactor,Maurice.

605. Phocas begins his cruelties; Constantina,the widow of Maurice, is tortured and afterward beheadedwith her daughters; Narses is decoyed to Constantinopleand there burned alive. The hippodrome is defacedby the heads and mangled remains of the tyrant’svictims.

607. Phocas concedes to Boniface III the supremacyof Rome over all Christian churches.

608. Boniface IV consecrates the Pantheon—­builtby Agrippa to the memory of his divine ancestors B.C.27—­as the Church of Santa Maria Rotunda.

Khusrau II, King of Persia, invades Asia Minor.

610. Phocas is given up to Heraclius and beheaded;Heraclius declared emperor of the East.

Venetia has an incursion of the Avars.

612. Caesarea, Cappadocia, taken by the Persians.

Syria is invaded by the Saracens.

613. Clotaire unites under his rule all the territoriesof the Franks.

The youthful Ali becomes Mahomet’s vizier.

614. Damascus and Jerusalem are taken by thePersians under Khusrau II.

616. Alexandria and Egypt conquered by the Persians;another army encamps at Chalcedon. Their general,Saen, introduces to Khusrau an embassy from Heraclius,for which he is flayed alive, and the ambassador imprisoned.

Death of Ethelbert; his son Eadbald succeeds him andrestores the pagan worship to England; he is afterwardconverted to Christianity.

First expulsion of the Jews from Spain.

619. Heraclius, while holding a conference withBaian, is treacherously attacked by the Avars; heescapes with difficulty.

622. Roused from his apathy, Heraclius leavesConstantinople and lands at Alexandria; he defeatsthe Persians, recovers Cilicia, and places his armyin secure winter quarters.

Flight of Mahomet from Mecca to Medina: the eraof the Hegira commences, July 16th. See “THEHEGIRA,” iv, 198.

623. Heraclius occupies Armenia, takes Thebarma(Ooramiah), the birthplace of Zoroaster, reconquersColchis and Iberia, and winters in Albania, havingreleased 50,000 captives.

Suintilla takes the few remaining places in Spainthat were still held by the Greek empire.

624. Ispahan, Persia, is taken by Heraclius;he defeats Sarbaraza at Salban.

625. Heraclius carries away an immense bootyfrom Persia; he recovers Amida and Samosata.

626. Constantinople is besieged by the Persiansand Avars; the siege fails. The emperor Heracliuscontracts an alliance with the Turks, who, passingthe Caspian gates, invade Persia.

627. Khusrau II is overwhelmed by Heraclius andhis Turkish allies.

King Edwin, of Northumberland, embraces Christianityand builds the first minster of wood, at York.

628. Recovery of Jerusalem and of the presumedtrue Cross by Heraclius from the Persians.

Khusrau 11 deposed and slain; by treaty all the possessionscaptured by the Persians are restored to Rome.

630 (629). Mecca surrenders to Mahomet; he invadesPalestine.

631. After many revolutions in Persia, Cesrais made king.

Dagobert I reunites the Frankish empire.

632. Death of Mahomet; his successor, Abu-Bekr,sends an army into Syria. See “THE SARACENCONQUEST OF SYRIA,” iv, 247.

Oswald builds the first minster of stone at York.

634. Death of Abu-Bekr; accession of Omar ashead of the Saracens.

635. Defeat of the Welsh by the English at Heavenfield.

636. The Roman army is overcome by the Saracens.See “THE SARACEN CONQUEST OF SYRIA,” iv,247.

637. Emesa, Balbec, and Jerusalem taken by theSaracens.

638. Heraclius, unable to resist the Mahometans,retires to Constantinople, where he publishes hisEcthesis.

Death of Dagobert; his two sons succeed, Clovis toNeustria and Burgundy, Sigebert to Austrasia.

640. Capture of Caesarea. Invasion of Egyptby Amru, the general of Omar. See “SARACENSCONQUER EGYPT,” iv, 278.

641. Death of Heraclius, Emperor of the East;three rival emperors succeed; accession of ConstansII.

The Sassanian kingdom ends.

642. Victory at Nehavend by the Saracens; thisplaces Persia in their power.

Istria and Dalmatia invaded by the Slavonians.

643. Rotharis publishes the Lombard code of laws.

644. Assassination of Omar; Othman succeeds.See “SARACENS CONQUER EGYPT,” iv, 278.

646. Alexandria recaptured by the Greeks andagain lost.

647. Abdallah advances, at the head of the Saracens,from Egypt to Roman Africa.

648. Constans II issues his Type, or modelof faith.

649. Constans II orders the new exarch Olympiusto enforce the adoption of his Type by theWestern Church; it is rejected by the First LateranCouncil.

650. The Moslems conquer Merv, Balkh, and Herat.[80]

Many orthodox churches are plundered by Constans II.

651. Death of Yezdejerd and end of the Persiankingdom.

652. Conversion of the East Saxons in England.

653. Pope Martin I is seized and banished byConstans II.

654. Martin, in Constantinople, is stripped ofhis pontifical robes and imprisoned; after long hesitationEugenius is elected pope in his stead.

656. Assassination of Caliph Othman; Ali succeeds;Moawiyah revolts against him; he is supported by Ayeshathe widow of Mahomet, Amru, Telhar, and Zobeir.These dissensions suspend the conquests of the Saracens.Ali is victorious on “the Day of the Camel”;Telhar and Zobeir are slain; Ayesha is made prisonerand sent to Medina.

657. Kufa is made the seat of government by CaliphAli.

658. Constans takes the field against the Slavoniansand repulses them.

Amru is sent by Moawiyah into Egypt and expels Ali’spartisans. The two caliphs publicly pray foreach other while waging fierce war.

660. Ali is assassinated; Hasan, his eldest son,is elected caliph.

661. Hasan resigns the caliphate; Moawiyah, thefirst of the Ommiads, becomes undisputed ruler ofthe Moslems; he makes Damascus his capital.

Death of Aribert; Lombardy is divided between histwo sons. Constans, detested by all classes,leaves Constantinople and goes to Italy; the senatedetains the Empress and his sons.

663. Constans visits Rome and carries away muchspoil and retires to Syracuse.

664. Caliph Moawiyah appoints as his lieutenantin Persia, India, and the East his half-brother, Ziyad,“the greatest man of the age.”

668. Constans is assassinated in a bath at Syracuse;Constans IV succeeds to the throne of the EasternEmpire.

The Sicilians set up Mecezius as emperor. Constantinopleis first besieged by the Saracens.

669. Sicily is invaded by the Saracens, who captureSyracuse.

670. Kairwan, or Kayrawan, a holy Mahometan cityin Northern Africa, founded.

Death of Clotaire III; Theodoric, or Thierry III,becomes king of Neustria and Burgundy.

671. Ebroin and Thierry are compelled by theFranks to retire into a monastery; Childeric for atime reigns alone.

672. Death of Ziyad; his son, appointed by CaliphMoawiyah lieutenant of Khorassan, penetrates intoBokhara and defeats the Turks.

673. First council of the Anglo-Saxon Church,at Hereford.

Year after year the Saracens repeat their attackson Constantinople; Callinicus invents the Greek fireused successfully in its defence.

Thierry III and Ebroin leave their monastery and resumethe government of Neustria.

Birth of the Venerable Bede.[81]

674. Revolts of the Gascons and Duke Paulus repressedby Wamba, King of the Visigoths in Spain.

The Bavarians, Thuringians, and other German subjectsof Austrasia regain their independence.

677. Siege of Constantinople raised by the Mahometans;peace concluded.[82]

Domnus restores the authority of Rome over the Churchat Ravenna.

678. Bulgarians establish themselves in the northof Thrace. Egfrid expels Wilfrid from York anddivides his diocese; Wilfrid goes to Rome and obtainsfrom Pope Agatho an order for his restoration.Egfrid resists the papal interference. A largecomet visible for three months.

679. A council held at Rome for the reunion ofthe Greek and Latin churches.

680. Sixth general council of the Church, atConstantinople; Monothelite heresy condemned.

Establishment of a kingdom in Maesia (modern Bulgaria)by the Bulgarians.[83]

Hoseyn, son of Ali, and his followers massacred atKerbela.

Murder of Dagobert II, after which Pepin of Heristaland Martin rule Austrasia with the title of dukes.

Attempt to poison Wamba; he resigns his crown andretires into a monastery; Ervigius succeeds him asking of the Visigoths.

683. For twelve months the papacy is vacant afterthe death of Leo II.

684. Constantine sends to Rome locks of the hairof his two sons, in token of their adoption by theChurch.

Egfrid sends Beort with an army into Ireland and layswaste the country.

685. Justinian II becomes emperor of the Easton the death of Constantine IV.

The Picts defeat the Angles of Northumbria under KingEcgfrith, at Nactansmere.

687. Battle of Testri; the victory of Pepin ofHeristal gives him the sway over the whole Frankishempire.

688. Caedwalla resigns the crown of Wessex toIna and goes to Rome; he dies there one year later.

690. On the death of Theodore, Berthwald becomesthe first archbishop of Canterbury.

Two Anglo-Saxon bishops, Kilian and Wilbrord, preachin Germany. Pepin allows Clovis III to succeedThierry III as nominal ruler of Neustria.

691. Council of Constantinople, called “Quinisextumin Trullo”; not acknowledged by the WesternChurch.

692. The Mahometans defeat the army collectedby Justinian at Sebastopolis.

Armenia is conquered by the Mahometans.

694. Justinian’s two ministers provokehis subjects by their oppressions; Leontius imprisoned.

695. Leontius, released from prison, is proclaimedemperor of the East; Justinian, with his nose cutoff, is banished.

696. Pepin favors the preaching of the Anglo-Saxonmissionaries among the Franks and Frisians; he appointsWilbrord, under the name of Clemens, bishop of Utrecht.

697. Election of the first doge, with a councilof tribunes and judges, in Venice. See “EVOLUTIONOF THE DOGESHIP IN VENICE,” iv, 292.

698. Hasan, at the head of the Saracens, stormsand destroys Carthage.

699. At Mount Atlas the Berbers, or wild shepherds,successfully resist the advance of the Mahometans.

705. An army of Bulgarians, under Terbelis, restoresJustinian to his throne; he inflicts bloody vengeancefor his expulsion.

Accession of Caliph Welid.

706. Pope John VII refuses to accept, or evenrevise, the acts of the Council of Constantinople,A.D. 691, which Justinian requires him to adopt.

707. The Mahometans, under Musa, overcome theBerbers and are masters of all Northern Africa; theyestablish themselves in the valley of the Indus andconquer Karisme, Bokhara, and Samarkand, whence theyintroduce the manufacture of paper.

708. Justinian, unmindful of his obligationsto Terbelis, attacks the Bulgarians, but is defeated.

709. Roderic ascends the Gothic throne in Spain.

Theodorus, by order of the Emperor Justinian, plundersRavenna and sends the principal inhabitants to Constantinople,where they are cruelly murdered.

711. Tarik, with a large force of Arab-Moors,lands in Spain. See “SARACENS IN SPAIN,”iv, 301.

Justinian’s continued cruelties provoke a revoltat Ravenna; he sends a fleet and army to destroy Chersonand massacre its inhabitants. The citizens ofCherson proclaim Bardanes emperor, under the name ofPhilippicus; his cause is espoused by both the fleetand army, which conduct him to Constantinople, wherehe is acknowledged, and Justinian is put to death.

713. Musa, at the head of the Saracens, crossesthe Pyrenees.

715. Charles Martel gains the ascendency in Austrasia;he contends against Chilperic II, the successor ofDagobert in Neustria.

717. Leo the Isaurian ascends the throne of theEastern Empire. Constantinople is again besiegedby the Moslems.

The Saracens suffer a disastrous defeat at the Caveof Covadonga, Spain.

718. Charles Martel is victorious at Soissons;both Frankish kingdoms acknowledge him.

719. Narbonne is captured and occupied by theSaracens under Zana.

721. Zana defeated and slain at the battle ofToulouse. Egbert, Abbot of Iona, translates thefour gospels into Anglo-Saxon.

726. Iconoclastic edicts by Leo the Isaurian,against the worship of images, causes tumult and insurrectionin Constantinople.

730. Image worship prohibited throughout theEastern Empire.

731. Last confirmation of a papal election bythe Eastern Emperor, the occasion being the electionof Gregory III.

732. Battle of Tours, when Charles Martel utterlyrouts the Saracens and saves the empire of the Franks.See “BATTLE OF TOURS,” iv, 313.

Pope Gregory III calls a council at Rome; an edictis issued against the iconoclasts.

733. Emperor Leo marries his son Constantineto a Tartar or Turkish princess, who at her baptismtakes the name of Irene.

740. The Saracens are expelled from the greaterpart of France by Charles Martel and his ally, Lieutprand.

Death of Leo the Isaurian; accession of ConstantineV as emperor of the East.

742. Birth of Charlemagne.

744. Carloman defeats the Saxons; they are forcedinto baptism.

746. King Carloman relinquishes the throne ofthe Franks, and retires into a monastery. See“FOUNDING OF THE CARLOVINGIAN DYNASTY,”iv, 324.

747. Great plague in Constantinople.

748. Venetian merchants having purchased slavesto be sold in Africa to the Saracens, Pope Zacharyforbids the traffic.

Virgilius, a priest, convicted of heresy for believingin the existence of the antipodes.

750. End of the Ommiad and rise of the Abbassidedynasty of caliphs; all the family of the former,except Abderrahman, put to death.

751. Pepin the Short founds the Carlovingiandynasty of the Franks. See “FOUNDING OFTHE CARLOVINGIAN DYNASTY,” iv, 324.

752. Extinction of the exarchate of Ravenna bythe Lombards under Astolphus.

753. Pope Stephen II journeys to France.

754. Pepin the Short is crowned by Stephen II.See “FOUNDING OF THE CARLOVINGIAN DYNASTY,”iv, 324.

755. Pepin the Short defeats Astolphus, Kingof the Lombards, and invests Pope Stephen II withRavenna, and other places taken from the Lombards.The Papal States founded.

St. Boniface is martyred in Germany.

756. Abderrahman founds the kingdom of the Ommiadsat Cordova.

757. Emperor Constantine courts the favor ofPepin; among other presents he sends him the firstorgan known in France.

759. Pepin conquers Narbonne and expels the lastSaracens from France.

762.[84] Founding of Bagdad, the capital of the easterncaliphs.

767. Death of Pope Paul I; usurpation of Constantine,antipope.

768. Pepin dies and is succeeded by his sonsCharles (Charlemagne) and Carloman. See “CAREEROF CHARLEMAGNE,” iv, 334.

769. Council of Rome annuls all acts of the deposedpope Constantine; he, although blinded by the populace,is led into the assembly, insulted, and beaten.Laymen are declared incapable of being made bishops.

771. Death of Carloman; Charlemagne becomes soleking of the Franks. See “CAREER OF CHARLEMAGNE,”iv, 334.

772. Charlemagne begins his long war againstthe Saxons.

774. Charlemagne visits Rome; he captures Paviaafter a siege of eight months; and also puts an endto the kingdom of Lombardy. The papal temporalitiesare increased by Charlemagne. Forgery of the “Donationof Constantine” used as a plea to urge Charlemagnestill more to aggrandize the see of Rome.

778. Spain is invaded by Charlemagne; on hisreturn to repel the Saxons his rear-guard is surprised;there ensues the “Dolorous Rout” of Roncesvalles.See “CAREER OF CHARLEMAGNE,” iv, 334.

780. The government of the Eastern Empire isassumed by Irene in the name of her son, ConstantineVI.

781. Charlemagne visits Rome; his two sons arecrowned by the Pope—­one king of Italy,the other of Aquitaine.

785. Irene proposes a general council to establishthe worship of images.

Fierce struggle of the Saxons against Charlemagne;Wittikind and Alboin submit and profess Christianity.

786. On the death of Al Hadi, the famous Harun-al-Rashidsucceeds to the eastern caliphate.

787. Second Council of Nice—­the seventhgeneral council of the Church; it decrees the worshipof images.

788. Bavaria is brought completely under thesway of Charlemagne.

789.[85] The first recorded inroad of the Northmen(Danes) into England.

790.[86] Publication of the Caroline Books,being the judgments of the general council of thebishops of the West on certain religious dogmas.

791. First campaign of Charlemagne against theAvars or Huns; they are defeated.

792. King Offa murders Ethelbert and annexesEast Anglia to Mercia; in atonement for his crimehe levies a tax on his subjects to support the schoolfounded at Rome by Ina; this is afterward convertedinto “Peter’s pence.”

797. Irene deposes and puts out the eyes of herson, Emperor Constantine VI of the Eastern Empire.

799. Charlemagne finally conquers the Avars orHuns.

800. Pope Leo III presides at the coronationof Charlemagne as emperor of the West. See “CAREEROF CHARLEMAGNE,” iv, 334.

Egbert is recalled from France by the West Saxons,who make him their king; the name of England is givento his dominions.

801. Barcelona is conquered from the Moors bythe Franks.

802. Harun-al-Rashid murders the Barmecides,a powerful Persian family of high renown.

807. Harun-al-Rashid founds public schools; hesends an embassy to Charlemagne with rich presents,among which is a curious clock of brass.

The Saracens of Spain repulsed in their attempt onSardinia and Corsica.

812. Civil war ensues between the sons of Harun-al-Rashid,who had died three years previously.

813. Constantinople menaced by the Bulgariankhan Krumn.

814. Death of Charlemagne; Louis le Debonnaire,his only surviving son, succeeds.

815. Louis exacts an apology from Pope Leo forhaving exercised civil judicial power at Rome.

817. Partition of the Frankish empire by Louisle Debonnaire.

826. Harold of South Jutland baptized; he receivesfrom Louis a grant of land in Friesland.

827. The Saxon heptarchy founded by Egbert, Kingof Wessex. See “EGBERT BECOMES KING OFTHE ANGLO-SAXON HEPTARCHY,” iv, 372.

Beginning of the Saracen conquest of Sicily.

828. Syracuse and a great part of Catalonia capturedby the Saracens.

829. North Wales submits to Egbert. Dungallo,a monk who had written a book in defence of image-worship,is placed over the school of Pavia.

830. First rebellion of the sons of Louis leDebonnaire.

832. Danes land on the Isle of Sheppey, England.

833. Louis is a prisoner in the hands of hisson Lothair, who assumes full imperial power afterthe “Field of Lies.”

Danes land in Wessex from thirty-five ships, and defeatEgbert.

The regular succession of Scottish kings begins withAlpine.

834. Continuance of the differences between theAnglo-Saxon and Roman clergy in England. See“EGBERT BECOMES KING OF THE ANGLO-SAXON HEPTARCHY,”iv, 372.

Lothair compelled by his brother to restore theirfather, Louis, to his throne.

835. Egbert defeats a combined army of Danesand Cornish Britons at Hengston.

Danes invade the Netherlands and sack Utrecht.

836. Antwerp is burned and Flanders ravaged bythe Danes.

Death of the first English king, Egbert.

837. First incursion of the Danes up the Rhine.

838. The Danes sail up the Loire and ravage thecountry as far as Tours.

Caliph Montassem invades Asia Minor.

839. Venetians repress the piracy of the Dalmatians,but lose their ships in an attack on the Saracensat Tarento.

840. Death of Louis le Debonnaire at Ingelheim;his empire divided into three separate states:Lothair (Emperor), taking Italy; Charles, France;Louis, Bavaria or Germany. Disputes follow.

841. Louis and Charles unite to resist the pretensionsof Lothair; he is defeated at the battle of Fontenailles(Fontenay).

Rouen plundered by the Danes under Hastings.

842. A final sanction to image-worship is givenby the Council of Constantinople.

The “Oath of Strasburg,” a valuable matterof philology and history, which shows that in 841the distinctions of race and language were beginningto make themselves felt. It sealed the pact madebetween Louis of Austrasia and Charles of Neustria.

FOOTNOTES:

[75] Date uncertain.

[76] Date uncertain.

[77] Date uncertain.

[78] Date uncertain.

[79] Date uncertain.

[80] Date uncertain.

[81] Date uncertain.

[82] Date uncertain.

[83] Date uncertain.

[84] Date uncertain.

[85] Date uncertain.

[86] Date uncertain.

END OF VOLUME IV