A Manual of Ancient History. M. E. Thalheimer
Our First Book treats of the Hamitic and Semitic empires. With the rise of the Medo-Persian monarchy, the Aryan race came upon the scene, and it has ever since occupied the largest place in History. The Hamitic nations were distinguished by their material grandeur, as exemplified by the enormous masses of stone employed in their architecture, and even in their sculpture; the Semitic, by their religious enthusiasm; the Indo-Germanic, by their intellectual activity, as exhibited in the highest forms of art, literature, and political organization.
7. History is divided into three great portions or periods: Ancient, Mediæval, and Modern.
Ancient History narrates the succession of empires which ruled Asia, Africa, and Europe, until the Roman dominion in Italy was overthrown by northern barbarians, AD 476.
Mediæval History begins with the establishment of a German kingdom in Gaul, and ends with the close of the fifteenth century, when the revival of ancient learning, the multiplication of printed books, and the expansion of ideas by the discovery of a new continent, occasioned great mental activity, and led to the Modern Era, in which we live.
8. Ancient History may be divided into five books:
| I. | History of the Asiatic and African nations, from the earliest times to the foundation of the Persian Empire, | BC 558. |
| II. | History of the Persian Empire, from the accession of Cyrus the Great to the death of Darius Codomannus, | BC 558–330. |
| III. | History of the States and Colonies of Greece, from their earliest period to the accession of Alexander of Macedon, | BC 336. |
| IV. | History of the Macedonian Empire, and the kingdoms formed from it, until their conquest by the Romans. | |
| V. | History of Rome from its foundation to the fall of the Western Empire, | A. D. 476. |
9. In the study of events, the two circumstances of time and place constantly demand our attention. Accordingly, Chronology and Geography have been called the two eyes of History. It is only by the use of both that we can gain a complete and life-like impression of events.
10. For the want of the former, a large portion of the life of man upon the globe can be but imperfectly known. There is no detailed record of the ages that preceded the Deluge and Dispersion; and even after those great crises, long periods are covered only by vague traditions. We have no complete chronology for the Hebrews before the building of Solomon’s Temple, BC 1004; for the Babylonians before Nabonassar, BC 748; or for the Greeks before the first Olympiad, BC 776. When its system of computation was settled, each nation selected its own era from which to date events; but we reduce all to our common reckoning of time before and after the Birth of Christ.
11. The study of Geography is more intimately connected with that of History than may at first appear. The growth and character of nations are greatly influenced, if not determined, by soil and climate, the position of mountains, and the course of rivers.
Note.—It is recommended to Teachers that the Geographical sections which precede Parts 1 and 2 of Book I, Book III, and Book V, be read aloud in the class, each pupil having his or her eye upon the map, and pronouncing the name of each locality mentioned, only when it is found. By this means the names will become familiar, and questions upon the peculiarities of each country can be afterward combined with the lessons. Many details necessarily omitted from maps I., II., IV., and VI., will be found on maps III. and V.
Pupils are strongly urged to study History with the map before them; if possible, even a larger and fuller map than can be given in this book. Any little effort which this may cost, will be more than repaid in the ease with which the lesson will be remembered, when the places where events have occurred are clearly in the mind.
BOOK I.
Nations of Asia and Africa from the Dispersion at Babel to the Foundation of the Persian Empire.
BC (about) 2700–558.
PART I. ASIATIC NATIONS.
VIEW OF THE GEOGRAPHY OF ASIA.
12. Asia, the largest division of the Eastern Hemisphere, possesses the greatest variety of soil, climate, and products. Its central and principal portion is a vast table-land, surrounded by the highest mountain chains in the world, on whose northern, eastern, and southern inclinations great rivers have their rise. Of these, the best known to the ancients were the Tigris and Euphra´tes, the Indus, Etyman´der, Arius, Oxus, Jaxar´tes, and Jordan.
13. Northern Asia, north of the great table-land and the Altai range, is a low, grassy plain, destitute of trees, and unproductive, but intersected by many rivers abounding in fish. It was known to the Greeks under the general name of Scythia. From the most ancient times to the present, it has been inhabited by wandering tribes, who subsisted mainly upon the milk and flesh of their animals.
14. Central Asia, lying between the Altai on the north, and the Elburz, Hindu Kûsh, and Himala´ya Mountains on the south, has little connection with ancient History. Three countries in its western part are of some importance: Choras´mia, between the Caspian and the Sea of Aral; Sogdia´na to the east, and Bac´tria to the south of that province. The modern Sam´arcand is Maracan´da, the ancient capital of Sogdiana. Bactra, now Balkh, was probably the first great city of the Aryan race.
15. Southern Asia may be divided into eastern and western sections by the Indus River. The eastern portion was scarcely known to the Persians, Greeks, and Romans; and materials are yet lacking for its authentic history: the western, on the contrary, was the scene of the earliest and most important events.
16. South-western Asia may be considered in three portions: (1) Asia Minor, or the peninsula of Anato´lia; (2) The table-land eastward to the Indus, including the mountains of Arme´nia; (3) The lowland south of this plateau, extending from the base of the mountains to the Erythræ´an Sea.
17. Asia Minor, in the earliest period, contained the following countries: Phry´gia and Cappado´cia, on its central table-land, divided from each other by the river Ha´lys; Bithy´nia and Paphlago´nia on the coast of the Euxine; Mysia, Lydia, and Caria, on that of the Æge´an; Lycia, Pamphyl´ia, and Cilic´ia, on the borders of the Mediterranean. It possessed many important islands: Proconne´sus, in the Propon´tis; Ten´edos, Les´bos, Chi´os, Sa´mos, and Rhodes, in the Ægean; and Cy´prus, in the Levant´.
18. Phrygia was a grazing country, celebrated from the earliest times for its breed of sheep, whose fleece was of wonderful fineness, and black as the plumage of the raven. The Ango´ra goat and the rabbit of the same region were likewise famed for the fineness of their hair. Cappadocia was inhabited by the White Syrians, so called because they were of fairer complexion than those of the south. The richest portion of Asia Minor lay upon the coast of the Ægean; and of the three provinces, Lydia, the central, was most distinguished for wealth, elegance, and luxury. The Lydians were the first who coined money. The River Pacto´lus brought from the recesses of Mt. Tmolus a rich supply of gold,