Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology (1870) - Volume 1.djvu/914

Rh 896 CROESUS. ratus was not with him. Cleomenes, being ob- liged to withdraw, consoled himself by a play on the words Kptoy and Kpios (a ram), advising the refractory Aeginetan to arm his horns with brass, as he would soon need all the defence he could get. (Herod, vi. 50; comp. v. 75.) It was supposed that the resistance had been privately encouraged by Demaratus (vi. 61, 64), and on the deposition of the latter, and the appointment of Leotychides to the throne (vi. 65, 66), Cleomenes again went to Aegina with his new colleague, and, having seized Crius and others, delivered them into the custody of the Athenians, (vi. 73; comp. 85, &c.) Polycritus, the son of Crius, distinguished himself at the battle of Salamis, b. c. 480, and wiped off the fproach of Medism. (viii. 92.) [E. E.J CRIXUS (Kpi^os), a GjiuI, was one of the two principal generals in the army of Spartacus, B. c. 73. Two Roman armies had already been de- feated by the revolted gladiators and slaves, when Crixus was defeated in a battle near mount Gar- ganus by the consul L. Gellius, in B. c. 7'2. Crixus himself was slain, and two-thirds of his army, which consisted of 30,000 men, were de- stroyed on the field of battle. Spartacus soon after sacrificed 300 Roman captives to the manes of Crixus. (Appian, B. C. i. 116, &c. ; Liv. Epit. 95, 96 ; Sail. Froffm. Hist. lib. iii.) [L. S.] CRO'BYLUS'(Kp«§uXos), an Athenian comic poet, who is reckoned among the poets of the new comedy, but it is uncertain whether he really be- longed to the middle or the new. About his age we only know for certain, that he lived about or after B. c. 324, but not how long after. Some writers have confounded him with Hegesippus. [Hkgrsippus.] The following titles of his plays, and a few lines, are extant : ' AirarYXotiffos, 'AiroXnrovaa, "VeuBv- Tro§oitxa7os{Mhen. iii. p. 10.9, d., 107,e., vi. p. 248, b., 258, b. c, viii. p. 364, f., ix. p. 384, c, x. p. 429, d., 443, f. ; Meineke, Fi-auf. Comm. (iraec. i. pp. 490, 491, iv. pp. 565—569.) [P. S.] CROC E' ATA S (KpoKearos), a surname of Zeus, derived from a place, Croceae, near Gythium in Laconia. (Pans. iii. 21. § 4.) [L. S.] CROCON {KpoKoiv), the husband of Saesara and father of Meganeira. (Apollod. iii. 9. § 1 ; Paus. i. S8. $ 2 ; comp. Arcas.) [Ti. S.J CROCUS, the beloved friend of Smilax, was changed by the gods into a saffron plant, because he loved without being loved again. According to another tradition, he was metamorphosed by his friend Hermes, who had killed him in a game of discus. (Ov. Met. iv. 283 ; Serv. ad Virq. Georg. iv. 182.) [L. S.J CROESUS {Kpoiaos), the last king of Lydia, of the family of the Mermnadae, was the son of Alyattes ; his mother was a Carian. At the age of thirty-five, he succeeded his father in the king- dom of Lydia. (b. c. 560.) Difficulties have been raised about this date, and there are very strong reasons for believing that Croesus was associated in the kingdom during his father's life, and that the earlier events of his reign, as recorded by Herodo- tus, belong to this period of joint government. (Clinton F. H. ii. pp. 297, 298.) We are ex- pressly told that he was made satrap of Adramyt- tium and the plain of Thebe about b. c. 574 or 572. (Nicol. Damasc. p. 243, ed. Cor., supposed lo be taken from the Lydian history of Xanthus ; Fischer, Griechisclie Zeiiiafeln, s. a. 572 B. c.) | He made war first on the Ephesians, and after- j CROESUS. wards on the other Ionian and Aeolian cities of Asia ]Minor, all of which he reduced to the pay- ment of tribute. He was meditating an attempt to subdue the insular Greeks also, when either Bias or Pittacus turned him from his purpose by a clever fable (Herod, i. 27); and instead of attacking the islanders he made an alliance with them. Croesus next turned his arms against the peoples of Asia Minor west of the river Halys, all of whom he subdued except the Lycians and Cilicians. His dominions now extended from the northern and western coasts of Asia Minor, to the Halys on the east and the Taurus on the south, and included the Lydians, Phrygians, Mysians, Mariandynians, Chalybes, Paphlagonians, the Thy- nian and Bithynian Thracians, the Carians, lo- nians, Dorians, Aeolians, and Pamphylians. The fame of his power and wealth drew to his court at Sardis all the wise men {(ro(pi<rTal) of Greece, and among them Solon. To him the king exhi- bited all his treasures, and then asked him who was the happiest man he had ever seen. The reply of Solon, teaching that no man should be deemed happy till he had finished his life in a happy way, may be read in the beautiful narra- tive of Herodotus. After the departure of Solon, Croesus was visited with a divine retribution for his pride. He had two sons, of whom one was dumb, but the other excelled all his comrades in manly accomplishments. His name was Atys. Croesus had a dream that Atys should perish by an iron-pointed weapon, and in spite of all his precautions, an accident fulfilled the dream. His other son lived to save his father's life by suddenly regainiiig the power of speech when he saw Croe- sus in danger at the taking of Sardis. Adrastus, the unfortunate slayer of Atys, killed himself on his tomb, and Croesus gave himself up to grief for two years. At the end of that time the growing power of Cyrus, who had recently subdued the Me- dian kingdom, excited the apprehension of Croesus, and he conceived the idea of putting down the Persians before their empire became firm. Before, however, venturing to attack Cyrus, he looked to the Greeks for aid, and to their oracles for coun- sel ; and in both points he was deceived. In addition to the oracles among the Greeks, he con- sulted that of Ammon in Lybia ; but first he put their truth to the test by sending messengers to inquire of them at a certain time what he was then doing. The replies of the oracle of Amphia- raiis and that of the Delphi at Pytho were cor- rect ; that of the latter is preserved by Herodotus. To these oracles, and especially to that at Pytho, Croesus sent rich presents, and charged the bearers of them to inquire whether he should march against the Persians, and whether there was any people whom he ought to make his allies. The reply of both oracles was, that, if he marched against the Persians, he would overthrow a great empire, and both advised him to make allies of the most powerful among the Greeks. He of course understood the response to refer to the Persian empire, and not, as the priests explained it after the event, to his own ; and he sent presents to each of the Delphians, who in return granted to him and his people the privileges of priority in consulting the oracle, exemption from charges, and the chief seat at festivals {irpofxavTrii-qv K(d art' Xi'nv Kal irpoedpl'nv), and that any one of them might at any time obtain certain rights of citizen-