SICILY. 



Pliny, Strabo, Diodorus, and many others, both hif- 

 torians and philofophers, are of the fame fentiments, and 

 pretend that the ftrata on the oppofite fides of the itraits 

 agree perfediy ; and feme imagine, that this feparation is 

 recorded in the name given to Rhegium, a town of Brutiura. 

 With regard to the breadth of the ftrait that feparates 

 Sicily from Italy, Sihiis fays, ubi fupra : 



" Sed fpatium, quod diflbciat confortia terrae, 

 Latratusfama ell {fie arfta intervenit unda), 

 Et matutinos volueruin tranfmittere cantus." 



And fome perfons have even affirmed, that not only the 

 crowing of a cock might be heard from one Ihore to another, 

 but that a llrong voice might be heard through this diftance. 

 Mariners have aflerted that this canal is not two miles 



broad. ■ , r 



Sicily, on account of its fomewhat triangular form, has 

 been called Trinacria, or Trinacia, and Trinquetra. Its 

 ancient name was Sicania, derived from its inhabitants the 

 Sicani; but when the Siculi took poffeflion of the greateft 

 part of the iiland, it afl'umed the name of Sicilia. The in- 

 terior of Sicily is full of mountains. The ancients, pro- 

 ceeding from tile welt to the eall, enumerated the following ; 

 ■viz. Eryx, near the fea and Drepanum, celebrated for a 

 temple of Venus ; Cratas, towards the north, in which are 

 the fources of the Eleutherus and Himera, and thofe of 

 Hypfa, which flowed towards the fouth ; the Gemelli colles, 

 more loutherly than the chain of Cratas, in which is the 

 fource of the Camicus, and of other rivers ; the Nebrodes, 

 northwards and eaft of the preceding ; Maro, Hill more to 

 the eaft ; the Herxi, from fouth to north, between the 

 fources of the Himera to the weft, and thofe of Simxtlius 

 to the eaft ; and alfo the famous mount /Etna ; which fee. 

 Among the rivers of Sicily noticed by the ancients, we 

 may enumerate, on the eaftern coaft, the Simsethus, which 

 rifes weft «)f ^tna, and fouth of the town called Engyum, 

 runs towards the fouth-eaft, receiving in its courfe the 

 Chryfas, and difcharges itfelf into the fea near to and north 

 of Murgentium ; and the Mela, fouth of the preceding, and 

 running in a ftraight direction from welt to eaft ; and on 

 the fouthern coalb, the Himera, which had its iource in 

 mount Artefinus, in the environs of Enna, and flowed into 

 the fea at Phiftia ; and the Hypfa, which proceeding from 

 the interior of the idand, flowed into the fea near to and 

 eaft of Selinus. 



The principal places in ancient Sicily are enumerated and 

 briefly defcribed under their appropriate names in different 

 parts of the Cyclopaedia. 



Sicily was celebrated among the ancients for its extraor- 

 dinary fertility. Its mines of lead, copper, and filver, and 

 its variety of Itones and volcanic produftions, have been re- 

 corded by ancient and modern writers ; and it has been ob- 

 ferved, that the furamits of its higheft mountains have fur- 

 nifticd a great number of different marine produftions. 



This iiland has undergone a variety of revolutions : it has 

 been denominated, in very remote times, the ifland of the Sun, 

 and the laud of the Cyclops, and of the Leftrygons. It 

 was afterwards called Sicania and Sicily, from tlie names of 

 its poil'cHors. The Phoenicians alfo had eftabhftiment;. in this 

 ifland, and carried on with it a confiderable commerce, in the 

 advantages of which the Trojans are faid to have partici- 

 pated. The Greeks eftabliihcd themfelves in Sicily for 

 the firft time after the fiege of Troy, and~kept polTefiion of 

 it for a long period, forming different republics, and tranf- 

 porting hither their manners and arts, and different opi- 

 nions, and erecting temples of ftone of the Doric order ; and 

 jn procefs of time they ftiared the government of it with the 



Carthaginians. Thefe new conquerors, who about 510 years 

 B. C. gained pofleffion of it, brought with them their com- 

 merce, their arms, and their gods. They occupied the 

 weftern and northern ftiores, whilft the Siculi retained the 

 midland country ; and the fouthern and eaftern coaft$ were 

 inhabited by the Greeks. The Mamertins arriving hither 

 from Italy took pofleflion of Meffina, and called over the 

 Romans, who, urged by their ambition, wanted only a pre- 

 text of taking up arms againft the Carthaginians. After a 

 variety of fucceflive contefts, they took pofleffion of the 

 ifland. The Romans occupied themfelves for fome years ia 

 eftablifliing peace, abundance, and even fplendour ; and thejr 

 erefted during the time of the republic fuperb edifices of 

 marble ; their power and ambition fetting no limits to their 

 magnificence. Under their dominion Sicily became more 

 flourifhing than it had been in the time of the Greeks, when 

 it was confidered as free. The Sicilians, under the govern- 

 ment of the Romans, loft their military genius, and thofe 

 mutual jealoufies which ferved only to accelerate their own 

 deftruftion. When the Romans made themfelves mafters 

 of Sicily, they permitted the inhabitants to retain the 

 temples, the deities, and the forms of worfliip which the 

 Greeks and other nations had eftablifticd among them, and 

 till the divifion of the Roman empire, they maintained a cer- 

 tain character of elegance and refinement. But at this pe- 

 riod the monuments of antiquity funk into negleft ; the 

 arts were no longer held in eftimation ; and talents difap- 

 peared on the accels of ignorance and barbarifm. To- 

 wards the end of the fourth century, Syracufe was the firft 

 town of Sicily that received Chriftianity, and foon after 

 other towns and the whole country followed its example ; 

 and this event was followed by a neglect of their temples and 

 public monuments. The ignorance of the prietts, no lefs 

 notorious than the fervour of their zeal, induced them to 

 make war againft the fciences and the arts, that they might 

 thus the more effectually and fpeedily deftroy Paganifm, which 

 cultivated thera. 



The Sicilians, having relinquiftied all martial ideas during 

 a long feries of generations, turned their attention folely 

 to the arts of peace, and the labours of agriculture. Their 

 pofition in the centre of the empire preferved them from 

 both civil and foreign foes, except in two inftances of a 

 fervile war. But the rapacity of their governors was a more 

 conftant and infupportable evil. In this ftate of apathy 

 and opulence, Sicily remained till the feventh century of our 

 era, when the Saracens began to dilturb its tranquillity. 

 The barbarous nations of the North had previoufly invaded 

 and ravaged its coafts, but had not long kept poffeffion. 

 The Saracens, however, were more fortunate. In the year 

 827 they availed themfelves of quarrels among the Sicihans 

 to fubdue the country ; and they chofe Palermo for their 

 capital. The ftandard of Mahomet triumphed about 200 

 years. In 1038 George Maniares was fent by the Greek 

 emperor with a great army to attack Sicily. He made good 

 his landing, and pufhed his oonquells with vigour, and, aided 

 by the valour of fome Norman troops, with luccefs. Mani- 

 ares recompenfed them with ingratitude ; and by his con- 

 duit allowed the Muffulmen an interval of tranquillity, and 

 the Normans an opportunity and pretext of invading the 

 imperial dominions in Italy. Robert and Roger of Haute- 

 ville afterwards conquered Sicily on their own account. 

 After a ftruggle often years, the Saracens, in 1072, as Swin- 

 burne fays, furrendered the rich prize ; though others fay, that 

 they loft the poffeffion of it A.D. 1058. Robert ceded it 

 to kis brother Roger, who aflumed the title of great earl of 

 Sicily. This firft fovereign fwayed the fceptre with wifdom 

 and glory, and defervedly ranks among the greateft charac- 

 ters 



