Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology (1870) - Volume 3.djvu/183

Rh PEISISTRATUS. theundistxirbed possession of hissupremacy. Hetook a body of foreign mercenaries into his pay, and seized as hostages the children of several of the principal citizens, placing them in the custody of Lygdamis, rable accuracy, as also the relative lengths of the periods during which he was in possession of the tyranny and in exile. Aristotle {Pol. v, 12, p, 1315, ed. Bekk.) says, that in the space of thirty- tliree years he was in possession of the tyranny during 17 years ; his sons holding the tyranny after him for eighteen years, making thirty-five years .in all. His tyranny commenced in B. c. 560 ; his death happened in B. c. 5'27. He had three distinct periods of government, with two periods of exile, the latter amounting together to fifteen years. The second period of exile lasted ten years complete (Herod, i. 62). That would leave about five years for the first exile. Clinton {Fasti Helleia,. vol. ii. p. 203) assigns six years for the first period of go- vernment, one for the second, and ten for the third. In doing this he assumes that Hippias was born in the first year of the tyranny of Peisistratus, and that it was in the first period of his rule that Croesus sent to Greece to forai alliances against Cyrus. To this scheme it is objected by Vater (in Ersch and Gruber's Encydop. art. Peisistratus) that it is clear from the narrative of Herodotus (i. 69 ; comp. i, 65, init.), that it was in the third period of the government of Peisistratus that Croesus sent to Greece ; that Peisistratus was expelled shortly after he seized the citadel, before his power was firmly rooted (a strange mode of describing a period of six years) ; and that on the occasion of his mar- riage with the daughter of Megacles, Hippias (ac- cording to Clinton) would be only thirteen years old, his brother Hipparchus still younger ; and yet they are called veaj'iai by Herodotus, and Hip- parchus is stated to have married Phya ; and when Peisistratus shortly after retired to Eretria they were both old enough to assist him with their advice (Herod, i. 61). The mention of Hippias in connection with the battle of Marathon is not in the least inconsistent with his being eighty or eighty- five years old (his teeth were then so loose from age that one of them dropped out when he sneezed). That Hippias was born before the year b. c. 560 is also shown by the fragments of the poetry of Solon, in which, immediately after the capture of the citadel by Peisistratus. he reproaches the Athenians with having themselves aggrandized their tyrants (Plut. Sol. 30). The plural would indicate that Peisistratus had sons at that time. Vater places the commencement of the tyranny of Peisis- tratus in the latter part of b. c. 561 ; assigns half a year for the first period of government ; five years and a half for the first exile ; half a year for the second tyranny ; ten years and a quarter for the second exile ; and sixteen years for the third tyranny. The embassy of Croesus is the only point that cKn occasion any difiiculty ; but the same writer has shown that it is probable that the capture of Sardes is placed a few years too early by Clinton. That a much shorter interval than Clinton supposes elapsed between the embassy of Croesus to Greece and the capture of Sardes, is shown by the circumstance that the presents sent by the Lacedaemonians to Croesus did not reach him before he was taken prisoner. (Herod, i. 70 ; comp. Clin- ton, Fasti Hellen. ann. b. c. 560, 546, 527, and appendix c. 2, p. 201, &c.) PEISISTRATUS. 171 in Naxos. Others of the Athenians either fled or were exiled. Among the latter was Cimon, the father of Miltiades, who, however, was afterwards permitted to return [Cimon]. The revenues which Peisistratus needed for the pay of his troops, were derived partly from Attica (the produce, very likely, in part at least, of the mines at Laureion), partly from some gold mines on the Stryraon. How he became possessed of these we do not know. It is most likely that they were private property, and came into his hands during his second exile, somehow or other through his connection with the royal family of Macedonia, a connection of which we subsequently see a proof in the offer of the town of Anthemus made by Amyntas to Hippias. (Herod, v. 94.) It appears to have been shortly after his restoration, that Peisistratus purified the island of Delos, in accordance with the directions of an oracle, by removing all the dead bodies which had been buried within sight of the temple to another part of the island. (Herod, i. 64 ; Thucyd. iii. 104.) Besides the subjugation of >Jaxos, the only other foreign military expedition which we hear of his undertaking in this third period of his tyranny was the conquest of Sigeum, then in the hands of the Mytilenaeans. The Athenians had long before laid claim to the island, and had waged war with the Mytilenaeans for the possession of it, and it was awarded to them through the arbitra- tion of Periander. Peisistratus established his bastard son Hegesistratus as tyrant in the town. (Herod, v. 94, 95.) Polyaenus {Sirat. v. 14) mentions some operations conducted by his son Hippias, for the suppression of piracy. Having now firmly established himself in the government, Peisistratus maintained the form of Solon's institutions, only taking care, as his sons did after him (Thucyd. vi. 54), that the highest ofiices should always be held by some member of the family. He not only exacted obedience to the laws from his subjects and friends, but himself set the example of submitting to them. On one occa- sion he even appeared before the Areiopagus to answer a charge of murder, which however was not prosecuted. (Arist. Pol. v. 12, p. 1315, ed. Bekker; Plut. /Sb/ow. 31). His government seems to have been a wise admixture of stringency as regards the enforcement of the lavvs and the pre- vention of disorders, and leniency towards indi- viduals who offended him personally. (For anec- dotes illustrating this see Plutarch, Apophth. YleKTKTT. p. 189, b. c. ; Polyaen. Strat. v. 14 ; Val. Max. V. 1. ext. 2.) He enforced the law which had been enacted by Solon, or, according to Theo- phrastus (ap. Plut. Solon. 31) by himself, against idleness, and compelled a large number of the poorer class to leave Athens, and devote themselves to agricultural pursuits. (Aelian. V. H. ix. 25 ; Dion Chrysost. vii. p. 258, ed. Reiske. xxv. p. 520.) The stories of his compelling the people to wear the Catonace (Hesychius and Suidas s. v. KaruvaKT] ; Aristoph. Lysist. 1150, &c., Fccles. 724; Schol. ad 1. 755 ; Schol. ad Lysist. 619), probably have reference to this. Those who had no resources of their own he is said to have supplied with cattle and seed. His policy and taste combined also led him to employ the poorer Athenians in building. Athens was indebted to him for many stately and useful buildings. Among these may be mentioned a temple to the Pythian Apollo (Suidas s. v. Ilvdiou ; Hesych. s. v. Iv HvQicf x^o""". Vater has