240 A. D. 616. 



was the caufe, a mofl marvelous change took place, and the unfleady 

 and pufillanimous emperor Heraclius became all at once a vigorous and 

 intrepid hero. As the lands were defolated, and commerce ruined, it 

 was as impoflible to raii'e funds for carrying on a war as for purchafing 

 a peace. But Heraclius flill poflefled a fleet of gallies, to which the 

 unemployed merchant fhips were added ; and in his abfolute want he 

 prefumed to feize the hoarded wealth of the churches, promifing, however, 

 to return it with large intereft (a". 622). By a wonderful feries of vidories 

 the circumftances of the two empires were completely reverfed : the Ro- 

 man arms were carried into Perfia ; the haughty Chofroes adually be- 

 took himfelf to flight and concealment, and was foon after depofed. 

 Heraclius recovered Egypt and the other provinces wrefted from his 

 empire by the Perfians (a". 628); and he had the wifdom not to demand 

 any acceflion of territory from them, which would at once have weak- 

 ened himfelf and fown the feeds of future wars. But the arts, fcience, 

 and commerce, never recovered. The fplendid vidories of Heraclius 

 were the lafl bright gleam of the militai-y glory of the Roman, or Gre- 

 cian, empire, againft which there was now fpringing up in the deferts 

 of Arabia a new, and fl:ill more formidable, enemy, deftined with rapid 

 ftrides to fpread over the eaftern, and a great part of the weftern, world, 

 and to eftablifh a new empire, and a new religion, upon the ruins of 

 thofe of Conflantinople. 



It has already been obferved, that a great portion of the Oriental 

 commerce, which formerly enriched the Roman fubjeds in Egypt, had 

 pafl^ed into the hands of the Perfians, who appear to have eclipfed the 

 Arabians in the extent and adivity of their commerce : But when the 

 later in the rapid career of their conquefts reached the Euphrates, they 

 immediately perceived the advantages to be derived from an emporium 

 fituatcd upon a river, which opened on the one hand a fliorter route to 

 India than they had hitherto had, and on the other an extenfive inland 

 navigation through a wealthy country ; and Baflx)ra which they built on 

 the wefl: bank of the river (a". 6^6), foon became a great commercial city, 

 artd entirely cut off" the independent part of Perfla from the Oriental 

 trade. The Arabian merchants of Baflbra, extended their difcoveries to 

 the eaftward far beyond the trads of all preceding navigators, and im- 

 ported diredly from the places of their growth many Indian articles, 

 hitherto procured at fecond hand in Ceylon, which they furnifhed on 

 their own terms to the nations of the Wefl;. 



640 — The vidorious Arabs had now deprived Heraclius, who after 

 his Perfian triumph had relapfed into his former lethargy, of the wealthy, 

 and in fome degree commercial, province of Syria. The little com- 

 merce, now remaining to the Roman empire, alfo fell into their hands 

 with the city of Alexandria and the province of Egypt ; and the road 



