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P A R T H I A. 
PARTHEN'OPE, one of the Syrens.—Alfo, a city of 
Campania, afterwards called Neapolis, or the New City, 
when it had been enlarged and beautified by a colony 
from Eubcea. It received its firft name, Parthenope, 
from one of the Syrens, whofe body was found on thefea- 
lhore there. Now Naples. 
PARTHENOP'OLIS, a town of Macedonia. Steph. 
Byz .—Alfo, a town of Alia, in Bithynia, which did not 
fubfift in the time of Pliny.—Alfo, a town of Upper Mcefia, 
fubjugated by Lucullus. 
PAR'THIA, a celebrated empire of antiquity in Alia, 
bounded on the well by Media, on the north by Hyrca- 
nia, on the eaft by Aria, on the fouth by Carmania the 
defert; furrounded on every fide by mountains, which 
Hill ferve as a boundary, though its name is now changed, 
having obtained that of Irac or Arac ; and, to diftinguifh 
it from Chaldaea, that of Irac Agemi. By Ptolemy it is 
divided into five diftri&s, viz. Caminfine, or Gamifene, 
Partheyne, Choroane, Atticene, andTabiene. The an¬ 
cient geographers enumerate a great many cities in this 
country. Ptolemy ih particular reckons twenty-five large 
cities ; and it certainly mull have been very populous, 
fince we have accounts of 2000 villages, befides a num¬ 
ber of cities, in this diftrift, being deftroyed by earth¬ 
quakes. Its capital was named Hecatompolis, from the 
circumftance of its having 100 gates. It was a noble 
and magnificent place ; and, according to fome, it {till 
remains under the name of Ifpahan, the capital of the 
prefen t Perfian empire. 
Parthia is by fome fuppofed to have been firft peopled 
by the Phetri or Pathri, often mentioned in Scripture ; 
and that the Parthians are defcended from Pathrufim 
the fon of Mifraim. But, however true this may be with 
regard to the ancient inhabitants, yet it is certain, that 
thofe Parthians who were fo famous in hiftory were ori¬ 
ginally Scythians, driven out of their own country, and 
obliged to fettle in this barren and inhofpitable region. 
They called themfeives, on their firfl fettling here, Par¬ 
ti dans; that is, in the old Scythian language, “ exiles ;” 
and hence, it is faid, originated the name of Parthia. 
The Parthians were a courageous and warlike people, 
not undefervedly efleetned the befl horfeman and archers 
in the world. They were accultomed, from their infancy, 
fays Dionyfius, (in Poem de Situ Orb.) to the warlike 
and manly exercifes of managing a horfe and handling a 
bow; and in both excelled all other nations. They had 
the art, peculiar to themfeives, of difcharging their 
arrows with incredible dexterity whilft they were retir¬ 
ing at full fpeed, fo that their retreat was more formi¬ 
dable than their attack. To thefe exercifes of horfe- 
manfhip and archery, the air and country very much 
contributed ; for the dry air, as Dio obferves, feafoned 
their bows, and their extenfive plains afforded them room 
for training their horfes. From the age of twenty to fifty, 
they were all, without exception, obliged to ferve in war, 
to attend the mutters, learn the military exercifes, and 
be ready, at a very fliort warning, to take the field. 
Perfons of any rank or diftin&ion among them, never ap¬ 
peared in public on foot, but always on horfeback, armed 
with fcimitars. In war they did not ufe trumpets like 
other nations, but large hollow veffels of brafs, covered 
with fkins, like our kettle-drums, which, being beat 
with hammers, yielded a very warlike found. The Ro¬ 
man poets often refer to the military character and evo¬ 
lutions of the Parthians. 
Their religion was much the fame with that of the 
Perfians, and they worlhipped the fun under the name of 
Mithras. They believed that thofe who fell in battle en¬ 
joyed perpetual happinefs; a dodlrine fuited to the genius 
of a warlike nation. They were religious obfervers of 
their promifes, thinking it highly dishonourable not to 
perform their engagements, or to deceive thofe who re- 
pofed confidence in them. 
As to their government, it was monarchical, and in the 
higheft degree abfolute. The kings treated their fubjedls 
as the tneanefl of (laves, and fcarcely as men, whilft they 
put themfeives on a level with the immortal gods. Their 
ufual titles were “ the king of kings, the great monarch, 
the brother of the fun and moon.” Thefe haughty titles 
they not only affumed in all the laws and edidls they 
enadted, but in their letters to other princes. Their con- 
dufl correfponded to the lofty titles which they af¬ 
fumed ; for they obliged all whom they vouchfafed to 
fee, to kifs the threfhold on their firfl entrance into the 
royal palace; to proflrate themfeives before them on the 
ground, and to acknowledge their majefly with fome of¬ 
fering. 
The hiftory of the Parthians is involved in great ob- 
fcurity before the time of Arfaces I. They were firft 
fubjedl to the Medes, afterwards to the Perfians, and 
laftly to Alexander the Great. Upon his death, Parthia 
fell to the (hare of Seleucus Nicator, whofe fucceffors held 
it till the reign of Antiochus Theus, when Arfaces, 
fhakingoff the Macedonian yoke, founded a new kingdom, 
which became much the mod powerful in the eaft. Ar¬ 
faces I. was properly the founder of the Parthian mo¬ 
narchy. Having induced the Parthians to revolt from 
Antiochus Theus, about the year 250 before Chrift, and 
having defeated and taken prifonerhis fon and fucceffor, 
Seleucus Callinicus, he affumed the title of king, and ef- 
tablifhed an empire in the Eaft, which counterbalanced 
the overgrown power of the Romans in the Weft. He 
reduced Hyrcania, and fome other neighbouring pro¬ 
vinces ; and was at lad killed in a battle againft Ariarathes 
IV. king of Cappadocia. From him all his fucceffors of 
the fame race took the name of Arfaces; fo that the Em¬ 
pire of the Parthians was fometimes denominated the Em¬ 
pire of the Arfacides. 
Arfaces II. fucceeded his father; and, entering Media, 
made himfelf mailer of that country, while Antiochus 
the Great was engaged in a war with Ptolemy Euergetes 
king of Egypt. Antiochus, however, was no fooner 
difengaged from that war, than he marched with all his 
forces againft Arfaces, and at firft drove him quite out of 
Media: but he foon returned with an army of 100,000 
foot and 20,000 horfe, with which he put a flop to the 
further progrefs of Antiochus; and a treaty was foon 
after concluded, in which it was agreed, that Arfaces 
fliould remain mailer of Parthia and Hyrcania, upon con¬ 
dition of aftifting him in his wars with other nations. 
Arfaces II. was fucceeded by his fon Priapatius, who 
reigned fifteen years, and left three fons, Phraates, Mi- 
thridates, and Artabanus. Phraates, the eldeft, fucceeded 
to the throne, and reduced under his fubje£lion the 
Mardi, who had never been conquered by any but Alex¬ 
ander the Great. After him, his brother Mithridates 
was inverted with the regal dignity. He reduced the 
Baftrians, Medes, Perfians, Elymeans, and overran in a 
manner all the eaft, penetrating beyond the boundaries of 
Alexander’s conquefts. Demetrius Nicator, who then 
reigned in Syria, endeavoured to recover thofe provinces; 
but his army was entirely deftroyed ; and himfelf taken 
prifoner, in which ftate he remained till his death. The 
reign of Mithridates is regarded by authors as the epoch 
of the Parthian grandeur; for, under him, that empire 
was by far the mod extenfive, as well as powerful, in the 
eaft : all the countries that lie between the Euphrates 
and Mount Caucafus receiving law from him; and moll 
of the princes of Ada being either fubdued, or obliged 
to enter into an alliance with him upon his own terms. 
Mithridates died in the thirty-feventh year of his reign, 
and left the throne to his fon Phraates II. who was fcarcely 
fettled in his kingdom, when Antiochus Sidetes, king of 
Syria, marched againft him at the head of a numerous 
army, under pretence of delivering his brother Deme¬ 
trius, who was ftill in captivity. Phraates was defeated 
in three pitched battles ; in confequence of which he loft 
all the countries conquered by his father, and was reduced 
within the limits of the ancient Parthian kingdom. An¬ 
tiochus did not, however, long enjoy bis good fortune; 
