Encyclopaedia Britannica, or, a Dictionary of arts, sciences, and miscellaneous literature : enlarged and improved. Illustrated with nearly six hundred engravings > Volume 19, Scripture-SUG

SPA [ 549 ] SPA
| *rtr fliould all fun together with Pluto, with one accord they
^ ' fet up a lh.' ..t of joy, as if they had been invited to a
j banquet.
I jiidas Xerxes, after pouring out a libation at the rifing of
kijli with fun? began to move with the whole body of his ar-
ajiis men. as he had been advifed by Epialtes. Upon their
approach, Leonidas advanced to the broadelt part of
the paifage, and fell upon the enemy with fuch undaunt¬
ed courage and refolution, that the Perlian officers were
obliged to Hand behind the divifions they commanded,
in order to prevent the flight of their men. Great num¬
bers of the enemy falling into the fea, were drowned 5
others wrere trampled under foot by their own men, and
a great many killed by the Greeks ; who knowing they
could not avoid death upon the arrival of thofe who
were advancing to fall upon their rear, exerted their
utmoft efforts. In this action fell the brave Leonidas j
which Abrocomes and Hyperanthes, two of the bro¬
thers of Xerxes, obferving, advanced with great refolu¬
tion to feize his body, and carry it in triumph to Xerxes.
But the Lacedsemonians, more eager to defend it than
their own lives, repulfed the enemy four times, killed
both the brothers of Xerxes, with many other command¬
ers of diftindtion, and refcued the body of their beloved
general out of the enemy’s hands. But in the mean
time, the army that was led by the treacherous Epialtes,
advancing to attack their rear, they retired to the nar-
nwveft place of the paffage, and drawing altogether
except the Thebans, polled themfelves on a rifing ground.
In this place they made head againfl the Perfians, who
poured in upon them on all fides, till at length, not
vanquifhed, but oppreffed and overwhelmed by numbers,
they all fell, except one who efcaped to Sparta, where
he was treated as a coward and traitor to his country j
but afterwards made a glorious reparation in the battle
of Plataea, where he diitinguilhed himfelf in an extraor¬
dinary manner. Some time after, a magnificent monu¬
ment was eredled at Thermopylae, in honour of thofe
brave defenders of Greece, with two infcriptions ; the
one general, and relating to all thofe who died on this
occafion, importing, that the Greeks of Peloponnefus,
to the number only of 4000, made head againft the Per-
fian army, confifling of 3,000,000. The other related
to the Spartans in particular, and was compofed by the
poet Simonides, to this purport : “ Go, palfenger, and
acquaint the Spartans that we died here in obedience to
their juft commands.” At thofe tombs a funeral oration
was yearly pronounced in honour of the dead heroes, and
| public games performed with great folemnity, wherein
none but the; Lacedaemonians and Thefpians had any
fhare, to fhow that they alone were concerned in the
j glorious defence of Thermopvlae.
Mindful At the end of the 77th Olympiad, a moft dreadful
wti uake earthquake happened at Sparta, in which, according to
111 1:ta- Diodorus, 20,000 perfons loft their lives ; and Plutarch
tells us, that only five houfes were left Handing in the
whole city. On this occafion the Helotes or Haves,
whom the Spartans had all along treated with the ut-
moft cruelty, attempted to revenge themfelves, by ta¬
king up arms, and marching dire&ly to the ruins of the
city, in hopes of cutting off at once thofe who had efca¬
ped from the earthquake. But in this they were pre¬
vented by the prudence of the Spartan king Archida-
mus j for he, obferving that the citizens were more de-
firous of preferving their effedls than taking care of
their own lives, caufed an alarm to be founded, as if he Sparta
had known that an enemy was at hand. On this the v—
citizens armed themfelves in halte with fuch weapons
as they could come at j and having marched a little
way from the city, met the Helotes, whom they loon ^
compelled to retire. The latter, however, knowing War with
that they had now no mercy to expert from thofe who the Helo-
had already treated them with fuch cruelty, reiblved totes*
defend themfelves to the laft. Having therefore feized
a fea-port town in Meffenia, they from thence made
fuch incurfions into the Spartan territories, that they
compelled thofe imperious mailers to alk afliltance from
the Athenians. This was immediately granted ; but
when the Spartans faw that the fldll of the Athenians
in befieging towns was much greater than their own,
they became jealous, and difmiffed their allies, telling
them that they had now no farther occalion for their
fervices. On this the Athenians left them in difguft j
and as the Helotes and Meffenians did not choofe to
come to an engagement with a Spartan army in the
field, but took Ihelter in their fortified places, the war
was protracted for ten years and upwards. At laft the
Helotes were reduced to their former mifery j and the
Meffenians were obliged to leave Peloponnefus, on pain
of being made flaves al£b. Thefe poor people were
then received by the Athenians, who granted them
Naupa&us for their refidence, and afterwards brought
them back to a part of their own country, from whence
in the courfe of the Peloponnefian war they had driven
the Spartans. ^
In the year 431 B. C. the Peloponnefian war com-With ths'
menced 4 of which a full account has been given under Atheniana
the article Attica, N° 116—165. It ended moft un- aT'd l>er-
fortunately for the Athenians ; their city being taken fiaaS‘
and difmantled, as related in the article above mention¬
ed. I bus were the Spartans raifed to the higheft pitch
of glory ; and in the reign of Agefilaus, they feemed
to be on the point of fubverting the Perfian empire, as
related under the article Persia, N° 34. But here
their good fortune and their views of empire were fud-
denly checked. Agefilaus had carried on the war in
Afia with the greateft fuccefs 5 and as he would heark¬
en to no terms of accommodation, a Perfian governor
named 'lit/iraujies, having firft attempted in vain to
bribe the king, difpatched Timocrates the Rhodian with
50 talents into Greece, in order to try whether he could
there meet with any perfons lefs incorruptible than the
Spartan monarch. This agent found many who inclined
to accept his offers •, particularly in Thebes, Corinth,
and Argos.. By diftributing the money in a proper
manner, he inflamed the inhabitants of thefi* three cities 9
againft the Spartans ; and of all others ihe Thebans general
came into his terms with the greateft readinefs. They™1' bina-
faw that their antagomfts would not of their own ac-tl0n a£ainft
cord break with any of the ftates of Greece, and did
not choofe to begin the war themfelves, beeaufe the
chiefs of the Perfian l&ftion tvere unwilling to be ac¬
countable for the event. For this reafon they perfua-
ded the Locrians to invade a fmall diftrid which lay in
difpute betvvixt the Pbocians and themfelves. On this
the Pbocians invaded Locus j the Locrians applied to
the Thebans, and the Phocians to the Spartans. The
la.tter were glad of an opportunity of breaking with th«
Thebans \ but met with a much warmer reception than
they expeded. Their old general Lyfander, who had
reduced
tparta.