Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography Volume II.djvu/250

 234 MACEDONIA. times as they do now, accordin,s:ly as they dwelt in mountain or plain, or in soil or climate more or less kindly, though distinguished from each other, by having substantive names of their own, acknowledged one common nationality. Finally, the various sec- tions, such as the Elymiotae, Orestae, Lyncestae, and others, were swallowed up by those who were pre-eminently known as the JIacedonians, who had their original centre at Aegae or Edessa. (Comp. Grote, Hist, of Greece, c. ssv.) Macedonia in its proper sense, it will be seen, did not touch upon the sea, and must be distinguished into two parts, — Upper Macedonia, inhabited by people about the W. range of mountains extending from the N. as far as Pindus, and Lower JMace- DONiA about the rivers which flow into the Axius, La the earlier times, not, however, extending as far as the Axius, but only to Pella. From this district, the JIacedonians extended themselves, and partly re- pressed the original inhabitants. The whole of the sea-coast was occupied by other tribes who are mentioned by Thucydides (ii. 99) in his episode on the expedition of the Thracians against Macedonia. There is some little difficulty in harmonising his statements with those of Herodotus (viii. 138), as to the original series of occupants on the Thermaic gulf, anterior to the Macedonian conquests. So far as it can be made out, it would seem that in the seventh century b. c, the narrow strip between the Peneius and Haliacmon, was the original abode of the Pierian Thracians; N. of the Pierians, from the mouth of the Haliacmon to that of the Axius, dwelt the Bottiaeai, who, when they were expelled by the Macedonians, went to Chalcidice. Next followed the Paeonians, who occupied both banks of the Strymon, from its source down to the lake near its mouth, but were pushed away from the coast towards the interior. JMygdonia, the lowei' country E. of the Axius, about the Thermaic gulf, was, pre- viously to the extension of the Macedonians, in- habited by Thracian Edonians. While Upper Mace- donia never attained to any importance. Lower Macedonia has been famous in the history of the world. This was owing to the energy of the royal dynasty of Edessa, who called themselves Heracleids, and traced their descent to the Temenidae of Argos. Eespecting this family, there were two legends ; accord- ing to the one, the kings were descended from Caranus, and according to the other from Perdiccas : the latter tale which is given by Herodotus (viii. 137 — 139), bears much more the marks of a genuine local tra- dition, than the other which cannot be traced higher than Theopompus. (Dexippus up. Si/ncell. p. 2G2.) After the legend of the foundation of the Mace- donian kingdom, there is nothing but a long blank, until the reign of king Amyntas (about 520 — 500 B. c), and his son Alexander (about 480 b. c). Herodotus (/. c. ; comp. Thuc. ii. 100) gives a list of live successive kings between the founder Perdiccas and Alexander — Perdiccas, Argaeus, Philippus, Aeropas, Alcetas, Amyntas, and Alexander, the con- temporary, and to a certain extent ally, of Xerxes. During the reign of these two last princes, who were on friendly terms with the Peisistratidae, and after- wards with the emancipated Athenians, Macedonia becomes implicated in the affairs of Greece. (Herod, i. 59, V. 94, vii. 136.) Many barbarous customs, such as that of tattoo- ing, which prevailed among the Thracians and Illy- rians, must have fallen into disuse at a very early period. Even the usage of the ancient Macedonians, MACEDONIA. that every person who had not killed an enemy, should wear some disgraceful badge, had been dis- continued in the time of Aristotle. (Po/. vii. 2. § 6.) Yet at a very late date no one was permitted to lie down at table who had not slain a wild boar without the nets. (^Regesa.nder, ap. Aiken, i. p. 18.) On the other hand, a military disposition, personal valour, and a certain freedom of spirit, were the national characteristics of this people. Long before Philip organised his phalan.K, the cavalry of Macedon was greatly celebrated, especially that of the high- lands, as is shown by the tetradrachms of Alex- .ander I. In smaller niimbers they attacked the close array of the Thracians of Sitalces, relying on their skill in horsemanship, and on their defensive armour. (Thuc. ii. 100.) Teleutias the Spartan also admired the cavalry of Elimea (Xen. Hell. v. 2. § 41, v. 3. § 1); and in the days of the conquests of Asia, the custom remained that the king could not condemn any person without having first taken the voice of the people or of the army. (Polyb. v. 27; Q. Curt. vi. 8. § 25, vi. 9. § 34.) II. Macedonia in the historic period till the death of Alexander. This kingdom had acquired considerable power even before the outbreak of the Persian War, and Grecian refinement and civilisation must have gained considerable ground, when Alexander the Philhellene offered himself as a combatant at the Olympic games (Herod, v. 22; Justin, vii. 12), and honoured the poetry of Pindar (Solin. ix. 16). After that war Alexander and his son Perdiccas appear gradually to have extended their dominions, in consequence of the fall of the Persian power in Thrace, as far as the Strymon. Perdiccas from being the ally of Athens became her active enemy, and it was from his in- trigues that all the difficulties of Athens on the Thracian coast arose. The faithless Perdiccas, was succeeded by his son Archelaus, who first established fortresses and roads in his dominions, and formed a ilacedonian army (Thuc. ii. 100), and even intended to procure a navy (Solin. ix. 17), and had tragedies of Euripides acted at his court tmder the direction of that poet (Ael. V.E. ii. 21, xiii. 4), while his palace was adorned with paintings by Zeuxis (Ael. F. //■. xiv. 17). In B.C. 399, Archelaus perished by a violent death (Diod. xiv. 37; Arist. Pol. v. 8, 10—13; Plat. Akihiad. ii. p. 141, D.). A list of kings follows of whom we know little but the names. Orestes, son of Archelaus, a child, was placed upon the throne, under the guardianship of Aeropus. The latter, however, after about four years, made away with his ward, and reigned in his stead for two years; he then died of sickness, and was succeeded by his son Pausanias, who, after a reign of only one year, was assassinated and succeeded by Amyntas. (Diod. xiv. 84 — 89.) The power of Macedonia so declined with these frequent dethronements and as- sassinations of its kings, that Amyntas had to cede to Olynthus all the country about the Thermaic gulf. (Diod. xiv. 92, xv. 19.) Amyntas, who was dependant on, if not tributary to, Jason, the " tagus" of Thessaly, died nearly about the same time as that prince (Diod. xv. 60), and was succeeded by his youthful son Alexander. After a short reign of two years, b. c. 368, Alexander perished by assassination, the fate that so frequently befell the Macedonian kings. Euiydice, the widow of Amyntas, was left with her two younger children, Perdiccas, now a young man, and Philip, yet a youth ; Ptolemaeus of