felf: it was he, that raised the Athenians to their greatness at fea, which he thought to be the true and conftant intereft of that commonwealth; and the famous naval victory over the Perfians at Salamais was owing to his conduct. It feems the people obferved fomewhat of haughtiness in his temper and behaviour, and therefore banifhed him for five years; but finding fome flight matter of accufation against him, they sent to seize his person, and he hardly escaped to the Perfian court; from whence, if the love of his country had not furmounted its base ingratitude to him, he had many invitations to return at the head of the Perfian fleet, and take a terrible revenge: but he rather chofe a voluntary death. The people of Athens impeached Pericles + for mifapplying the publick revenues to D 2 + Lord Halifax. He had a fine genius for poetry, and had employed his more youthful part of life in that fcience. He was diftinguished by the name of Moufe Mountague, having ridiculed, jointly with Mat. Prior, Mr. Dryden's famous poem of the Hind and bis Panther; the parody is drawn from Horace's fable of the city moufe and country moufe: but afterwards, upon Mr. Mountague's promotion to the chancellorship of the exchequer, Prior, with a good humoured indignation at feeing his friend preferred and himself neglect- ed, his own private use. He had been a perfon of great defervings from the republick, was an admirable Speaker, and very popular. His accounts were confufed, and he could not then give them up, therefore merely to divert that difficulty, and the confequences of it, he was forced to engage his country in the Peloponnefian war, the longeft that ever was known in Greece, and which ended in the utter ruin of Athens. The fame people having refolved to subdue Sicily, fent a mighty fleet under the command of Nicias, Lyfimachus, and Alcibiades; the two former perfons of age and experience; the last a young man of noble birth, excellent education, and a plentiful fortune. A little before the fleet fet fail, it feems one night the ftone-images of Mercury, placed in feveral parts of the city, were all pared in the face: this action the Athenians interpreted for a defign of deftroying the popular ftate; and Alcibiades, having been formerly noted for the ed, concludes an epifle writ. wood Shepherd, Efq; with ten in the year 1698, to Fleet- thefe three lines: My friend Charles Mountague's preferr'd," ORRERY. like frolicks and excurfions, was immediately accused of this. He, whether confcious of his innocence, or affured of the fecrecy, offered to come to his trial before he went to his command; this the Athenians refufed. But as foon as he was got to Sicily, they fent for him back, defigning to take the advantage, and profecute him in the absence of his friends, and of the army, where he was very powerful. It feems, he understood the refentments of a popular affembly too well to truft them; and therefore, inftead of returning, efcaped to Sparta; where his defires of revenge prevailing over his love to his country, he became its greatest enemy. Mean while the Athenians before Sicily, by the death of one commander, and the fuperftition, weakness, and perfect ill conduct of the other, were utterly destroyed, the whole fleet taken, and a miferable flaughter made of the army, whereof hardly one ever returned. Some time after this Alcibiades was recalled upon his own conditions by the neceffities of the people, and made chief commander at fea and land; but his lieutenant engaging against his pofitive orders, and being beaten by Lyfander, Alcibiades was again difgraced, and banished. However, the Athenians having loft all strength and heart fince their misfortune at Sicily, and now deprived of the only perfon that was able to recover their loffes, repent of their rashness, and endeavour in vain for his restoration; the Perfian lieutenant, to whofe protection he fled, making him a facrifice to the refentments of Lyfander the general of the Lacedemonians, who now reduces all the dominions of the Athenians, takes the city, razes their walls, ruins their works, and changes the form of their government; which though again restored for fome time by Thrafybulus (as their walls were rebuilt by Conon) yet here we muft date the fall of the Athenian greatnefs; the dominion and chief power in Greece from that period to the time of Alexander the Great, which was about fifty years, being divided between the Spartans and Thebans. Though Philip, Alexander's father (the most chriftian king of that age) had indeed fome time before begun to break in upon the republicks of Greece by conqueft or bribery; particularly dealing large money among Jome popular orators, by which be brought many of them, as the term of art was then, to Philippize. In the time of Alexander and his captains, the Athenians were offered an opportunity of recovering their liberty, and being restored to their former ftate; but the wife turn they thought to give the matter, was by an impeachment and facrifice of the author, to hinder the fuccefs. For, after the deftruction of Thebes by Alexander, this prince defigning the conqueft of Athens was prevented by ‡ Phocion the Athenian general, then ambassador from that ftate; who by his great wifdom and skill at negotiations diverted Alexander from his defign, and reftored the Athenians to his favour. The very fame fuccess he had with Antipater after Alexander's death, at which time the govern ment was new regulated by Solon's laws : But Polyperchon, in hatred to Phocion, having by order of the young king, whofe governor he was, reftored those whom *The earl of Portland, ORRERY. D 4 Phocion |