GOTH S. 
the ea"er haftc of Alaric, who advanced to occupy the 
city of Athens, and the iinpoi tant harbour of the Piraeus. 
The fame iiupatietice urged iiim to prevent the delay 
and danger of a fiege, by the offer of a capitulation ; 
and as foon as the Athenians heard the voice of the 
Gothic, herald, they were cafily j)erfuadeil to deliver 
the greateff part of their wealth, as the ranlbin ot their 
city and its inhabitants. The treaty was ratified by fo- 
leinn oaths, and obferved with mutual fidelity. The 
Gothic prince, with a felecl train, was admitted within 
the walls ; he indulged himfelf in tlie rcfrefhnjciu ot tlic 
bath, accepted a fplendid banquet which was provided 
by the magiftrate, and affeited to ffiew that he was not 
ignorant of the manners of civilifed nations. But the 
whole territory of Attica, from the promontory of Su- 
nium to the town of Megara, was blailed by iiis baneful 
prefence ; and, if wc may irfe the comparifon of a con¬ 
temporary philofopher, Athens itfelf refcmbled the 
bleeding and empty ikin of a llaugluered vitfim. The 
dillance betw’een Megara and Corinth could not much 
exceed thirty utiles ; but fucli was the deep and rugged 
nature of tiie roads, that it miglit caliiy Itave been made 
impaffable for the march of an engmy. The thick and 
gloomy woods of mount Citliasron covered tlie inland 
country; the Scironian rocks approached the water’s 
edge, and hungover tlie narrotv and winding path, which 
Was confined above fix miles along the fea-lliore. Tlte 
paffage of thofe rocks was terminated by the iflhmus of 
Corinth ; and a fmall body of firm and intrepid foldiers 
Kiight have fuccefsfully defended a temporary intrench, 
nient of five or fix miles from the Ionian to the ./®gean fea. 
The confidence of the cities of Pcloponnefus in their na- 
Uiral rampart, had tempted them to neglect the care of 
their antique walis; and the avarice of tlie Roman go¬ 
vernors had betrayed the unhappy ^irovince. Corinth, 
Argos, Sparta, yielded witliout reliltance to the arms ot 
the Goths; and tlie moll fortunate of the inhabitants were 
faved, by death, from beholding the flavcry of their la- 
niiiies and the conflagration of their cities. 'I'he vafes 
and llatues were dillributed among the barbarians, with 
more regard to tlie value of the material, than to the 
elegance of the w orkmaiifliip ; the female captives fub- 
mitted to tiie laws of war; the enjoyment of beauty was 
the reward of valour; and the Greeks could not reafon- 
ably complain of an abufe, wliich was jultified by tlie ex¬ 
ample of the heroic times. The defeendanrs of that ex¬ 
traordinary people, who had confidered valour and difei- 
pline as the walls of Sparta, no longer remembered the 
generous reply of their aiicellors to an invader more for¬ 
midable than Alaric. “ If thou ,ii t a god, thou wilt not 
hurt tliofe who have never injured thee: if thou art a 
man, advance; and thou wilt find men equal to thyfelt.” 
From 1 hermopyhe to Sparta, the leadei of the Goths 
purfued his victorious itiarcli without encountering any 
mortal antagonill; wlien he received information of the 
approach of tlie renowned Stilicho. A numerous fleet 
was equipped in the ports of Italy ; and the troops, after 
a Ihort and prolperous navigation over tlie Ionian lea, 
were lafely difembai ked on the illhmus of Corintli, A.D. 
397. The woody and mountainous country of Arcadia, 
the fabulous relidence of Pan and the Dryads, now be¬ 
came tlie Icene of a long and doubtful conflict between 
two generals not unworthy of each other. 'Flic Ikill and 
perfeverance of the Romans at length pievailed; and the 
Goths, atier lultaining a conliderable lofs from difeale 
and del'ertion, gradually retreated to tlie lofty mountain 
of Pholoe, near the I'ources of tiie Peneus, and on the 
frontiers of fills. The camp of the barbarians was im¬ 
mediately befieged : the waters of the river v\ere di¬ 
verted into another channel; and while they laboured 
under the infupportable piefliue of tliirfi and hunger, 
a flrong line of circumvallation was formed to prevent 
their elcape. After thefe precautions, Stilicho, too 
confident ol victory, retired to enjoy his triumpli in the 
theatrical games and lalcivious dances of the Greeks; 
.\ql. VIII. No. 338. 
71 ? 
his foldiers, deferting their ffandards, fpread themfelves 
over the country of their allies, wiiich tliey ftripped of 
all that had been faved from tbe rapacious liands ot the 
Gotlis. Alaric appears to liave feized the favourable 
moment to execute one of tliofe hardy enterpriles, in 
wliicii the abilities of a general are difplayed with more 
genuine luftre, tlian in the precarious tumult of a d.iy 
ot battle. To extricate himfelf from the prifon of Pc- 
lopoimefus, it was neceffary that lie fliould pierce the 
liUiTnchinents which furrounded his camp ; that he 
fliould pertorni a difficult and dangerous march of tliirty 
miles, as tar as the Gulf of Corinth ; and tliat he fliould 
tianfport his troops, his captives, and his fpoil, over 
an arm of the lea, which, in the narrow interval between 
Rhiuiii and the oppolitc fliore, is at leaft half a mile in 
breadth. The operations of Alaric mull have been fe- 
cret, prudent, and rapid ; for the Roman geneial was 
confounded and aftoniflied by the intelligence tliat the 
Goths, wiio had eluded his efforts, were in full poffef- 
fion of the important province of Epirus. This unpar¬ 
donable negleit of dil'cipline, allowed Alaric fufficient 
time to conclude the treaty, which he fecretly negoci- 
ated, with the miiiifiers of Coiifraiitiiioplc ; wiiile the 
apprehenfioii of a civii war compelled Stilicho to retire, 
at the haughty mandate of his rivals, from the domi. 
nioiis of Arcadius. 
By the treaty which Alaric made with the emperor 
Arcadius, he was declared mafter-general of the Eaflern 
lllyricum, A.D. 398. The Gothic conqueror w'as to 
be received as a law fu! magifirate, in all the cities which 
he bad lo lately befieged. The fathers whole fons he 
had mafl'acred, the hulbaiids w'hofe v/ives he had vio¬ 
lated, were to be lubjeit to his authority : and the fuc- 
cefs of his rebellion encouraged the ambition ot every 
leader of the foreign mercenaries. The ule to which 
Alaric applied his new command, dillinguiflies the firm 
and judicious charatfer of his policy. He iffued his 
orders to the four magazines and manufafitures ot often, 
five and defenfivc arms, Margus, Ratiaria, Naifi'us, and 
Tliefl'alonica, to provide his troops with an extraordi¬ 
nary fupply of lliields, helmets, fwords, and fpears; the 
devoted provincials were compelled to forge the inltru- 
nients of their own deflruition; and the barbarians re¬ 
moved the only defect wliich had foiiietimes dilappoint- 
ed the efforts of their courage. The high birth of 
Alaric, the glory of his pall exploits, and the confi¬ 
dence in his future deflgns, infenlibly united the whole 
body of the Gothic nation under his victorious flaiid- 
ard ; and with the unanimous coiifent of tlie barbarian 
chieftains, the mailer-genera! of lllyricum was elevated, 
according to ancient ciiftom, on a lliield, and folemiily 
proclaimed king of the Viligotlis. Armed with this 
double power, I'cated oji the verge of tlie tw'o empires, 
he alternately lold his deceitful promifes to the coiir.rs" 
of Arcadius and Honorius; till he declaied and exe¬ 
cuted his relblution of invading the dominions of the 
Weft, 'f ile provinces of Europe which belonged to 
the Eaftern emperor, were already exhaufled ; thole of 
Alia were inaccellible ; and the Itrenglh of Conllaiitiiio- 
ple had relilted his attack. But he w'as tempted by the 
fame, the beauty, tlie wealth, of Italy, which he had 
twice viliced; and he fecretly afpired to plant the Gothic 
ftandard on the walls of Rome, and to emicli his army 
witli the accumulated fpoils of three hundred triumplis. 
Early in the year 403, Alaric afl'embled his miglity 
holt; and the march of the barbarian army rilled Italy 
with coniteniation and difmay. The emperor Honorius, 
educated in pride and luxury, did not lul'peft that there 
exilted on the earth any power prefumptuous enough to 
invade the repole of the lucccflor ot Auguflus. The 
arts of flattery concealed the impending danger, fill 
Alafic approached the palace of Milan. And when the 
found of war had awakened the young emperor, inliead 
of flying to arms, he eagerly liltcncd to thole timid 
couul'ellors, who propul'ed to convey his facred perlon 
8 U 
