500 ATT 
Mneftheus reigned twenty-four years, but loft bis life at 
the liege of Troy ; and was fucceeded by Demophon one 
of thefonsof Thefeusby Phaedra, who was likewife at 
the liege of Troy, but had the good fortune to return in 
fafety. In his reign was ereCted the famous court of the 
Tphetse ; conlifting originally of fifty Athenians and as 
many Argives, for trying wilful murder. By this court 
the king himfelf afterwards fubmitted to be tried for ha¬ 
ving accidentally killed one of his fubjefts. He reigned 
thirty-three years, and was fucceeded by his fon, accord¬ 
ing to fome, or according to others his brother, Oxyntes, 
v\ ho reigned twelve years. Oxyntes was fucceeded by his 
fon Aphydas, who was murdered by Thymaetes, the bal- 
tard foil of Oxyntes. 
1 his king difcovered many bafe qualities unworthy of 
Ins dignity; and at laft was depoled by his fubjedls on the 
following occalion: Xanthus, king of Bceotia, had a con- 
teft with the Athenians, about one of their frontier towns. 
He offered to decide the matter by lingle combat with the 
king; but this was declined by Thymaetes. It happened, 
that at that time Melantluis a Meflenian, wlio had been 
driven out of his country by the Heraclidte, was come to 
Athens; w'ho accepted the king of Bceotia’s challenge. 
At the firft onfet, Melantluis aiked his adverfary, why he 
had, contrary to the articles, brought a fecond into the 
field with him ? and, as Xanthus immediately looked about 
to fee who was behind him, Melantluis run him through 
with his lance. This victory, though it did little honour 
to him who gained it, was fo agreeable to the Athenians, 
that they depofed their cowardly king Thymaetes, after 
he had reigned eight years; and appointed Melanthus in 
his Head, who, after a reign of thirty-feven years, left the 
kingdom to his fon Codrus. This prince reigned about 
twenty-one years; during which time the Dores and He- 
raclidne had regained all Peloponnefus, and were upon the 
point of -entering into Attica. Codrus, being informed 
that the oracle had promifed them victory provided they 
did not kill the king of the Athenians, came immediately 
to a resolution of dying for his country. Difguiling him¬ 
felf, therefore, like a peafant, lie went into the enemy’s 
camp, and, quarrelling with fome of the foldiers, was 
killed by them. On the morrow, the Athenians, knowing 
what was done, fent to demand the body of their king ; 
at w hich the invaders were fo terrified, that they decamp¬ 
ed without ftriking a blow. 
Upon the death of Codrus, a difpute wdiich happened 
among his Ions concerning the fuccellion, furniftied the 
Athenians with a pretence for ridding themfelves of their 
kings altogether, and changing the monarchical form of 
government into a republican one. It was improbable, 
they laid, that they fitoulu ever have fo good a king as 
Codrus; and, to prevent their having a worfe, they refolv- 
ed to have no king but Jupiter. That they might not, 
however, feeni ungrateful to the family of Codrus, they 
made his fon Medon their fupreme magiftrate, with the 
title of archcn. They afterwards rendered that office de¬ 
cennial, but continued it ftill in the family of Codrus. 
The extinction of the Medontidas at laft left them with¬ 
out reftraint; upon w hich they not only made this office 
annual, but created nine archons. By the latter inven¬ 
tion they provided again ft the too great power of a fingle 
perfon, as by the former they took away all apprehenfion 
of the archons having time to eftablifh themfelves, lb as 
to change the conftitution. In a word, they now attained 
what they had long fought, viz. the making the fupreme 
snagiftrates dependent on the people. 
There is a lift of thefe archons for upw ards of 600 years, 
beginning w ith Creon, who lived about 684 years before 
Chrift, to Herodes, who lived only lixty years before that 
era. The firft archon is named Draco. He reigned in the 
fecond, or, as others (ay, in the laft, year of the 39th Olym¬ 
piad, when, it is fuppofed, he publiffied his laws: but, 
though his name is very frequently mentioned in hiftory, 
yet no connected account can be found either of him or 
fes- institutions, only, in general, his laws were exceedingly 
I C A. 
fevere, inflicting death for the fmalleft faults; which gave 
occafion to Demades the orator to obferve, that the laws 
of Draco were written with blood, and not with ink. For 
this extraordinary feverity he gave no other reafon, than 
that finall faults feemed to him to be worthy of death, 
and lie could find no higher puniffiment for the greateft. 
He was far advanced in years when he gave laws to 
Athens; and, to give his inftitutions the greater weight, 
lie would not fuller them to be called nomoi, or laws, but 
thcfmoi, or fanftions proceeding from more than human 
wifdom. The extreme feverity of thefe laws, however, 
foon made the Athenians weary of the author of them; 
upon w hich Draco was obliged to retire to ABgina. Here 
he was received with the higheft honours: but the favour 
of the inhabitants of this place proved more fatal to him 
than the hatred of the Athenians ; for, coming one day 
into the theatre, the audience, tofhew their regard, threw, 
as the cuftom then was, their cloaks upon him; and the 
multitude of thefe being very great, they ftifled the old 
man, who was too weak to difengage himfelf from them. 
After the expullion of Draco, nothing remarkable Hap¬ 
pened at Athens till the year before Chrift 606, when the 
republic engaged in a war with the Mitylenians about the 
city Sigaeum, fituated near the mouth of the river Sca- 
mander. The Athenian army was commanded by Phry- 
non, a perfon equally remarkable for the comeiinefs of 
his perfon and the generality of his mind. The Mityle¬ 
nians were commanded by Pittacus, one of the celebrated 
lages of Greece. As thefe commanders looked upon the 
honour of their refpeftive countries to be concerned, 
they exerted themfelves to the utmoft. At laft they met 
in fingle combat: w herein Phrynon depended on his va¬ 
lour only ; but Pittacus concealed behind his fiiield a net, 
wherewith he fuddenly entangled his antagonift, and eafily 
flew him. This, however, not putting an end to the war, 
Periander tyrant of Corinth interpofed ; and, both parties 
having fubmitted to his arbitration, he decreed that Sigae- 
um ffiould belong to the Athenians. 
About feven years after this war, a confpiracy was form¬ 
ed by Cylon, fon-in-law to Theagenes tyrant of Megara, 
who, having by his affable behaviour procured many 
friends, formed a deiign of feizing the fovereignty of A- 
thens. Having confulted tiie oracle as to the moft proper 
time, he was directed to make the attempt when the citi¬ 
zens of Athens were employed in celebrating their Higheft 
feafts to Jupiter. When moft of the citizens therefore 
were gone to the Olympic games, Cylon and his affociates 
made themfelves matters of the citadel. Here they were 
belieged by Megacles, at that time archon, and foon redu¬ 
ced to great d i ft re Is for want of water. The chief, toge¬ 
ther with his brother, found means to make their efcape, 
but the meaner iort were left to fhift for themfelves. I11 
this extremity they fled to the temple of Minerva; from 
whence Megacles prevailed upon them to come down and 
fubmit themfelves to the mercy of their country. Hav¬ 
ing at laft aflented to this, they tied a cord to the image 
of the goddels, and carried the clue with them, todemon- 
ttrate, that though they were out of the temple they were 
flill tinder Minerva’s protection. Unfortunately for them, 
however, as they patted the temple of the furies, the line 
fnapped of itfelf; which Megacles conltru.ing into a re¬ 
nunciation by thegoddefs,caufed hismen to fall upon them 
and difpatch as many as they could find. Such as were 
without the temple w ere immediately mafiacred, and thofe 
who fled thither again were murdered in their fanttuary. 
In fiiort, none efcaped but fuch as bribed the wives of the 
foldiers. This carnage, however, did not put an end to 
the fedition. The remains of Cylon’s faClion created great 
ditturbances, by infinuating that the violation of Miner¬ 
va’s fanfhtary had drawn down the anger of the gods; 
and thefe difeourfes had fuch an efteCJ, that Megacles and 
his officers were ttyled execrable, and held to be perfons 
under the difpleafure of heaven. During the time of this 
confufion, the Megarenfians attacked Nifea, which they 
took, as well as Salamis; and fo completely routed the 
Athenians 
