An. 356, much trouble. But when he began his revolt, or when it ended, is no where clearly expressed. But, by what is written of him by Cornelius Nepos and Polyænus, it appears, he maintained himself in both these provinces in rebellion against the king of Persia a long while: and it was not till the time of Ochus, and some years after he had been king, that he was, by the treachery of Mithridates, one of his confidents at length cut off. In the first year of the 106th Olympiad, about the middle of the summer quarter, Alexander the Great, who overthrew the Persian empire, was ochus 3. born at Pella in Macedonia. Plutarch and Justing tell us, that, at the time of his birth, king Philip his father had the news that his horse had won the victory in the horse race at the Olympic games, which proves him to be born a little after the celebrating of those games. And Arrianb telling us out of Aristobulus (who accompanied Alexander in all his expeditions,) that he died in the 114th Olympiad, in the year when Hegesias was archon at Athens, (which was the first year of that Olympiad,) after having lived thirty-two years and eight months, these thirty-two years and eight months being reckoned backward from the said first year of the 114th Olympiad, and the month Dæsius, in which he died, will lead us directly to the same time for his birth which I have said. But i Eusebius, and the Parian chronicle, place it one year later, that is, in the second year of the said 106th Olympiad. On the same day in which he was born, the famous temple of Diana at Ephesus was designedly burned by one Erostratus;m when he was put upon the rack to make him confess his inducements, he acknowledged it was, that, by destroying so excellent a work, he might perpetuate his name, and make it to be remembered in after ages. Whereon the common council of Asia made a decree, that d In Vita Datamis. e Stratagem. lib 7. f In Vita Alexandri. g Lib 12, c. 16. h Lib. 7. i In Chronico. p. 175. Plutarch in Alexandro. Cicero de Natura Deorum, lib. 2, & de Divinatione, lib. 1. m Valerius Maximus, lib. 8, c, 14. Aulus Gellius, lib. 2, c. 6. Solinus, c. 40: no one should ever name him; but this made him so much the more remembered; so remarkable an extravagance scarce escaping any of the historians that have written of those times. Artabazus, governour of one of the Asian provinces, being in rebellion against the king, drew Chares the Athenian to join him with such forces as he then commanded in those parts, and, by his assistance, overthrew an army of seventy thousand of the king's forces, which were sent to reduce him; for the reward of which service Artabazus gave unto Chares as much money as paid all his fleet, and the army which he had on board it. This greatly offended the king; and the Athenians being then engaged in a war against the Chians, Rhodians, Coans, and Byzantines, who were associated in a revolt against them, threats were given out, that the king, to be revenged of them, was preparing a fleet of three hundred sail to help their enemies in this war: whereon the Athenians not only recalled Chares, but came also to an accommodation with their revolted subjects, that thereby, being freed from all embarrassments at home, they might be in a better posture to defend themselves from all such invasions as might be made upon them from abroad. Artabazus, therefore, being thus deserted by the Athenians, applied himself to the Thebans; An. 354. from whom having obtained a band of auxiliOchus 5. aries, to the number of five thousand men, under the command of Pammenes, he did, by their assistance, gain two great victories over the king's forces; which redounded much to the honour of the Thebans and their general that commanded in this expedition. About the same time? happened the death of Mausolus king of Caria, which was rendered famous by the great grief which Artemisia (who was both his sister and his wife,) expressed hereat. For she having gathered together his ashes, and beaten his bones to powder, took a potion of them every day in her drink, o Diodorus Siculus, lib. 16, p 527, 528 p Diodorus Siculus, lb 16, p. 529. Plin lib. 36, c. 5, 6, Valerius Maximus, lib. 4, c. 6. Aulus Gellius, lib. 10, c. 18. till she had in this manner drunk them all down, aiming hereby to make her body the sepulchre of her dead husband, and in two years time pined herself to death in sorrowing for him. But, before she died, she took care for the erecting of that famous monument for him at Halicarnassus, which was reckoned among the seven wonders of the world, and from whence all monuments of more than ordinary magnificence are called mausoleums. Ochus 8. An 351. As Artemisia succeeded Mausolus in the kingdom, so, on her death, she was succeeded by Idrieus her brother, who married Ada his sister, in the same manner as Mausolus had married Artemisia, it being usual for the Carian kings to marry their sisters, and for those sisters, on the death of their husbands, to succeed them in the kingdom, before their brothers or children. The Sidonians and other Phoenicians, being oppressed and ill used by those whom the king of Persia had set over them, revolted from him, and entered into confederacy with Nectanebus, king of Egypt, against him. The Persians had long waged war with Nectanebus, in order to reduce Egypt again under their yoke, and were then preparing a great army to invade him. But there being no other way for them to enter Egypt but through Phoenicia, the revolt of that country happened very opportune for him; and therefore, to encourage them to stand out in it, he sent Mentor the Rhodian with four thousand of the Grecian mercenaries to their assistance, hoping thereby to make Phoenicia a barrier to Egypt, and there keep the war out of his own country. The Phoenicians, strengthened by these auxiliaries, took the field, and, by their assistance, overthrew the governours of Syria and Cilicia, two of the king's lieutenants that were sent to reduce them, and drove the Persians wholly out of Phoenicia. r Cicero Tusc. Quest. lib. 3. Strabo, lib. 14, p. 656. c. 18. Pausanias in Arcadicis. A. Gellius, lib. 10, s Diod. Sic. lib. 16, p. 534. Arrian. de Expeditione Alexandri, lib. 1. Strabo, lib. 14, p. 656. The Cyprians, being provoked by the like ill usage, were encouraged by the success of the Phoenicians u to revolt also; and therefore they joined with them and the Egyptians in the same confederacy. Hereon Ochus despatched his orders to Idrieus king of Caria to make war upon them; who, having accordingly got ready a fleet, sent it with eight thousand Grecian mercenaries, under the command of Phocion the Athenian, and Euagoras, to invade that island; who having there landed, and augmented their army to double its number by other forces which came to them from Syria and Cilicia, besieged Salamine by sea and land. Another Euagoras had formerly reigned in that city, of whom we have above spoken; on his death he was succeeded by Nicocles his son, andy this Euagoras seems to have been the son of Nicocles, and to have succeeded him in that kingdom; but, being driven out by Protagoras his uncle, was in banishment when this war began, and therefore gladly joined in it, as hoping thereby again to recover his crown. And the knowledge which he had of the country, and the party which he might still have in it, made him thought a very proper person to command in this expedition. Cyprus had then nine chief cities, and each of them had its king, but subject to the king of Persia. All these joined together in this confederacy, with a view of getting rid of the Persian yoke, and making themselves each supreme in his own city. Ochus finding his wars with the Egyptians to have been unfortunately managed, and that this proceeded from the ill conduct of his lieutenants, a resolved thenceforth to lead his forces in person; and therefore, having gotten together an army of three hundred thousand foot, and thirty thousand horse, marched with them into Phoenicia. Mentor, who was then in Sidon with the Grecian mercenaries, being terrified u Diod. Sic. lib. 16, p. 532. This being a petty prince, was subject to the king of Persia, and reign. ed under his protection, and therefore was obliged to obey his orders. y Vide Isocratem in Nicocle & Euagora, & Usserii Annales ad. A. M 3630, 3654. z Diod. Sic. lib. 16, p. 532. a Diod. Sic. lib. 16, p. 531, 532, &c. with the approach of so great an army, sent privately to Ochus to make his peace with him, offering not only to deliver Sidon into his hands, but also to give him his assistance in his wars with Egypt, where, through his knowledge of the country, he was enabled to do him great services. Ochus, glad of this proffer, spared no promises to engage Mentor in his service. And he accordingly having received such assurances from Ochus as he desired, engaged Tennes, king of Sidon, in the same treason, and, by his assistance, delivered Sidon into his hands. The Sidonians, on his approach to lay siege to their city, had designedly burned all their ships, that none might make use of any of them to withdraw from the defence of their country. And therefore, when they found they were betrayed, and that the enemy was within their walls, having no way now left to escape either by sea or land, they retired into their houses, and, setting fire to them over their heads, were all consumed with them, to the number of forty thousand men, besides women and children; and Tennes escaped not any better than the rest; for Ochus, after he had thus subdued Sidon, having no more need of him, caused him to be put to death also; which was a reward the traitor sufficiently deserved, for thus selling his country to destruction; and may all those who practise the like courses meet with the like fate! There were vast riches of gold and silver in Sidon when this calamity happened to it, which being all melted down by the flames, Ochus sold the ashes of the city for great sums of money. The terrible destruction of this city frightening the rest of the Phoenicians, they all submitted, and made their peace with the king upon the best terms they could; and Ochus was the willinger to compound with them, that he might be no longer retarded from the designs which he had upon Egypt. But, before he marched thither, b he was recruited with ten thousand mercenaries which were sent him out of Greece; for in the beginning of this expedi b Diod. Sic. lib. 16, p. 533. |