A G R 
cos, baths, and many other fine buildings. The Britifli 
nobles had at length their fons educated in learning; and 
they, who before had the utmoft averfion to the Roman 
language, now began to lludy it with great afliduity : they 
wore likewife the Roman habit; and, as Tacitus obferves, 
they were brought to confider thofe things as marks of 
politenefs, which were only fo many badges of ilavery. 
Agricola, in his third campaign, advanced as far as the 
Tweed; and, in his fourth, he fubdued the nations be¬ 
twixt tire Tweed and the friths of Edinburgh and Dum- 
brittcn, into which the rivers Glotta and Bodotria dif- 
c'harge themfelves; and here he built fortrefles to fitut up 
the nations yet unconquered. In his fifth, he marched 
beyond the friths; where he made fome new acquifitions, 
ar.d fixed garrifons along the wedern coads, over ag'aind 
Ireland. In his tixth campaign he palled the river Bo¬ 
dotria, ordering his fleet, the fird which the Romans ever 
had in that country, to row along the coafts, and take a 
view of the northern parts. In the following fpring, the 
Britons railed an army of 30,000 men; and the command 
was given to Galgacus, who, according to Tacitus, made 
an excellent fpeech to-his countrymen on this occalion. 
Agricola likewife addrefied his men in very ftrong and 
eloquent terms. The Romans gained the victory, and 
j o,ogo of the Britons are laid to have been killed. This 
happened in the reign of the emperor Domitian ; who, 
growing jealous of the glory of Agricola, recalled him, 
under pretence of making him governor of Syria. Agri¬ 
cola died foon after; and his death is fufpedted to have 
been occafioned by poifon given him by that emperor. 
Tacitus the hiltcrian married his daughter, wrote his life, 
and laments his death in the mod pathetic manner. 
Agricola (George), a German phylician, famous for 
his Ikill in metals. He was born at Glaucha, in Mifnia, 
the 24th of March, 1494. The difeoveries which he 
made in the mountains of Bohemia, gave him fo great a 
defire of examining accurately into every thing relating to 
metals, that, though he had engaged in the practice of 
phyfic at Joachimdal by advice of his friends, he ftill pro¬ 
secuted his ftudy of foffils with great affiduity; and at 
length removed to Chemnitz, where he entirely devoted 
himfelf to this ftudy. He wrote leveral pieces upon this 
and other fubjeCts; and died at Chemnitz the 21ft of No¬ 
vember, 1555. 
Agricola (John), a Saxon divine, born at Iflebe, in 
1492. He went as chaplain to count Mansfield, when that 
nobleman attended the eleCdor of Saxony to the diet of 
Spire in 1526, and that of Aufburg in 1530. He was of 
a reftlefs ambitious temper, rivalled and wrote againd 
MelanCthon, and gave count Mansfield occalion to reproach 
him feverely. He obtained a profeflorfliip at Wittemberg, 
where he taught particular doCtrines, and became founder 
of the fe£t of Antinomians; which occafioned warm dif- 
putes between him and Luther, who had before been his 
very good friend. But, though he was never able to re¬ 
cover the favour either of the elector ot Saxony or of 
Luther, he received fome confolation from the fame he 
acquired at Berlin : where he became preacher at court; 
and was choferi in 1548, in conjunction with Julius Phlug 
and Michael Heldingus, to compofe the famous Interim , 
which made fo much noife in the world. He died at Ber¬ 
lin in 1566. 
AGR 1 COLATION,/ [from agricolare , Lat.] Culture 
of the ground. 
AGRICULTURE,/ [agrjcultura, Lat.] The art of 
hufbandry, tillage, cultivation, improvement of the land, 
&c. Fora complete Treatife on this important art, with 
all the late difeoveries and improvements, fee the article 
Husbandry. 
AGRIFOLIUM, or Aquifolium,/ in botany. See 
Ilex. 
AGRIGENTUM, anciently a city of Sicily, part of 
the (ite of which is now occupied by a town called Gir- 
genti. According to ancient authors, Dedalus, the molt 
famous mechanician of fabulous antiquity, fled to this 
Vol. I. No. 13. 
A G R 2o- 
fpot for prote&ibn againft Minos, and built many wonder¬ 
ful edifices for Cocalus king of the ifland. Long after 
his flight, the people of Gela fent a colony hither. 6oo 
years before the birth of Chrid; and from the name of a 
neighbouring dream called the new city Acragas, whence 
the Romans formed their word Agrigentum. Thefe 
Greeks converted the ancient abode of the Siculi into a 
citadel, to guard the magnificent city which they erected 
on the hillocks below. 
An advantageous fituation, a free government with all 
its happy effects, and an active commercial fpirit, exalted 
their commonwealth to a degree of riches and power un¬ 
known to the other Greek fettlements, Syracufe alone ex¬ 
cepted. But the profperity of Agrigentum appears tu 
have been but of Ihort duration, and tyranny foon dedroy- 
ed its liberties. 
Phalaris was the firft that reduced it to ilavery. His 
name is familiar to molt readers on account of his cruelty, 
and the brazen bull in which lie tortured his enemies. See- 
Phalaris. —Phalaris met with the common fate of ty¬ 
rants, and after his death the Agrigentines enjoyed their 
liberty for 150 years; at the expiration of which term 
There ufurped the fovereign authority. The moderation, 
juftice, and valour, of this prince, preferved him fromop- 
pofition while living, and have refeued his memory from 
the obloquy of poderity. He joined his fon-in-law Gelo, 
king of Syracufe, in a war againll the Carthaginians; in 
the courfe of which victory attended all his iteps, and Si¬ 
cily law herfelf for a time delivered from her African op- 
prellors. Soon after his deceafe, his fun Thrafydeus was 
defpoiled of the diadem, and Agrigentum redo red to her 
old democratical government. Ducetius next didurbed 
the general tranquillity. He was a chief of the moun¬ 
taineers, defeendants of the Siculi; and was an overmatch 
for the Agrigentines while they were unfupported by al¬ 
liances, but funk under the weight of their union with 
the Syracufans. Some trifling altercations difl'olved this 
union, and produced a war, in which the Agrigentines 
were worded, and compelled to fubmit to humiliating 
terms of peace. Refentment led them to embrace with 
joy the propofals of the Athenians, then meditating an 
attack upon Syracufe. Their new friends foon made them 
feel that the facrifice of liberty and fortune would be the 
price of their protection; and this confideration brought 
them fpeedily back to their old connections. But, as if it 
had been decreed that all friendlhip fliould be fatal to their 
repofe, this reconciliation and its effeCts drew upon them 
the anger of the Carthaginians. By this enemy their ar¬ 
mies were routed, their city taken, their race almod ex¬ 
tirpated, and fcarcely a veltige of magnificence was left. 
Agrigentum lay fifty years buried under its own ruins; 
when Timoleon, after triumphing over the Carthaginians, 
and redoring liberty to Sicily, collected the defeendants of 
the Agrigentines, and fent them to re-edablidi the dwel¬ 
lings of their forefathers. Their exertions were reward¬ 
ed with adonifhing fuccef's ; for Agrigentum rofefrom its 
adies with fuch a renewal of vigour, that in a very diort 
time we find it engaged in the bold fcheme of feizing a 
lucky moment, when Agathocles and Carthage "had redu¬ 
ced Syracufe to the lowed ebb, and arrogating t6 itfelf 
fupremacy over all the Sicilian republics. Xenodicus was 
appointed the leader of this arduous enterprife; and, had 
his latter operations been as fortunate as hio fird campaign, 
Agrigentum would have acquired fuch a preponderance 
of reputation and power, that the rival dates would not 
even have dared to attack it. But a few brilliant exploits 
were fucceeded by a fevere overthrow; the Agrigentines 
lod courage, difagreed in council, and humbly died tor 
peace to Agathocles. This commonwealth afterwards 
took a drong part wiih Pyrrhus; and,when heleft'Sicily 
to the mercy of her enemies, threw itfelf into the arms 
of Carthage. During the fird Punic war, Agrigentum 
was the hqad-quarters of the Carthagin’ans, and was be- 
deged by the Roman conful.% who after eight months 
blockade took it by dorm. It neverthelefs changed maf- 
3 G ters 
