PERSIA. 
were adequate and accefiible, was born lets than half a 
century after the death of Cyrus : he fought with eager- 
nefs information on this fubjeft at Babylon ; and he af¬ 
firms, that he gave that account of the end of Cyrus which 
feemed molt confident with probability, though there 
were many other and different ones; meaning to refer to 
the concomitant circumftances of this cataftrophe, and 
not to the uncontroverted fa< 5 t of his being killed in battle, 
to which he repeatedly alludes, and of which he never 
intimates the lliadow of a doubt. The next authority, 
in point of time and weight, is that of Ctefias, who lived 
in the court of Cyrus the Younger, and afterwards in that 
ot Artaxerxes Mnemon; a fabulous author, unqueftion- 
ably, when treating of fabulous times, but not when 
fpeaking of fuch an event under fuch circumftances. 
Ctefias, far from aggravating an event which he would 
naturally be rather tempted to palliate, cautioufly relates 
that Cyrus the Great died of the wounds he received in a 
great battle fought on the fide of Hyrcania. Diodorus 
Siculus, and Juftin, the excellent epitomifer of Trogus 
Pompeius, and alfo the Jewifli hiftorian Jofephus, in his 
work on Jewifli Antiquities, recite the fame ftory with im¬ 
material variations. To thefe teftimonies, fupported by 
the uniform credence of antiquity, can the romance of 
Xenophon be gravely and fingly oppofed ? Plutarch and 
Arrian indeed fay, that the tomb of Cyrus was fliown to 
Alexander ; and, no doubt, Cyrus was faid to be buried 
at Pafargada, though the Scythians boafted that his body 
was found by them among the flain ; and this was the ac¬ 
count which appeared to Herodotus molt probable. 
Cyrus was, from his youth, inured to fcenes of blood and 
/laughter. His paflion for war refetnbled that of other 
conquerors ; and, had he been the vanquifher of the Scy¬ 
thians, no one would have talked of the raflinefs of the 
expedition. 
In the time of Cyrus, the Perfian empire extended from 
the river Indus to the vEgean Sea. On the north it was 
bounded by the Euxine and Cafpian Seas, and on the 
fouth by Ethiopia and Arabia. That monarch kept his 
retidence for the feven cold months at Babylon, by reafon 
of the warmth of that climate ; three months in the fpring 
he fpent at Sufa, and two at Ecbatana during the heat of 
fummer. On his death-bed he appointed bis fon Cam- 
byfes to fucceed him in the empire; and to his other fon, 
Smerdis, he gave feveral confiderabie governments. 
The new monarch immediately fet about the conqueft 
of Egypt; which he accompliflied in the manner related 
in the hiftory of that country, vol. vi. p. 296. Having- 
reduced Egypt, Cambyfes next refolved to turn his arms 
ngainft the Carthaginians, Hammonians, and Ethiopians. 
But he was obliged to drop the firft of thefe enterprifes, 
becatife the Phoenicians refufed to fupply him with fliips 
againft the Carthaginians, who were a Phoenician colony. 
However, he fent ambafiadors into Ethiopia with a deflgn 
to get intelligence of the flate and ftrength of the country. 
But the Ethiopian monarch, being well apprized of the 
errand on which they came, treated them with great con¬ 
tempt. In return for the prefents fent him by Cambyfes, 
he lent his own bow; and advifed the Perfians to make 
war upon the Ethiopians when they could bend fuch a 
ftrong bow as eafily as he did, and to thank the gods that 
the Ethiopians had no ambition to extend their domi¬ 
nions beyond their own country. Cambyfes was no 
fooner informed of this anfwer by bis ambaffadors, than 
he flew into a violent paflion ; and ordered his army im¬ 
mediately to begin their march, without confidering that 
they were neither furniflned with provisions nor any other 
neceflary. When he arrived at Thebes in Upper Egypt, 
he detached 50,000 men, with orders to deftroy the temple 
of Jupiter Ammon : but all thefe perifhed in the defert; 
not a Angle perfon either arriving at the oracle, or re¬ 
turning to Thebes. The reft of the army, led by Cani- 
byfes himfelf, experienced incredible hardftiips; for, 
being unprovided with any neceffaries, they had not 
Vol. XIX. No. 1333. 
659 
marched a fifth part of the way when they were obliged 
to kill and eat their beafts of burthen. When thefe 
failed, the foidiers fed on grafs and roots, as long as any 
could be found; and at laft were reduced to the dreadful 
neceffity of eating one another; every tenth man, on 
whom the lot fell, being condemned to ferve as food for 
his companions. The king, however, obftinately perfifted 
in his deflgn ; till, being apprehenfive of the danger he 
himfelf was in, he retreated to Thebes; after having loft 
the greateft part of his army. 
Cambyfes was a man of a very cruel and fufpicious 
temper, of which he gave many inftances; and the fol¬ 
lowing proved indirectly the caufe of his death. We 
have already obferved that the king of Ethiopia fent his 
bow in return for the prefents brought to him by the am- 
baftadors of Cambyfes. The only man in the Perfian 
army who could bend this bow was Smerdis, the king’s bro¬ 
ther ; and this inftance of his perfonal ftrength foalarmed 
the tyrant, that, without any crime alleged, he caufed 
him to be murdered. This gave occafion to one Smerdis, 
a tnagian, who greatly refembled the other Smerdis, to 
affume the name of the deceafed prince, and to raife a re¬ 
bellion againft Cambyfes, who was generally hated for his 
cruelty; and this he could the more eafily do, as the chief 
management of affairs had been committed to this Smerdis 
during the king’s abfence. Cambyfes, on receiving the 
news of this revolt, immediately ordered his army to 
march, in order to fupprefs it; but, as he was mounting 
his horfe, his fword, flipping out of its fcabbard, wounded 
him in the thigh. On this accident, he aflted the name 
of the city where he was; and being told that it was Ec¬ 
batana, he faid in the prefence of all his attendants, 
“Fate has decreed that Cambyfes the fon of Cyrus fhall 
die in this place.” For, having confulted the oracle of 
Burns, which was very famous in that country, he was 
told that he fliould die at Ecbatana. This he had always 
underftood of Ecbatana in Media, and had therefore re¬ 
folved to avoid it. Being now, however, convinced that 
his end approached, he affembied the chief Perfian lords 
who ferved in the army, and, having told them that his 
brother was certainly dead, he exhorted them never to 
fubmit to the impoftor, or fuft'er the fovereignty again to 
pafs from the Perfians to the Medes, to which nation 
Smerdis belonged, but to ufe their utmoft endeavours to 
place one of their own blood on the throne. The king 
lived but a few daysafter this; and theafl'embly, fuppofing 
that he had fpoken oniy out of hatred to his brother, 
quietly fubmitted to the impoftor, who was thus for a 
time ellablifiled on the throne. Indeed,from his conduct 
during the fhort time which he enjoyed the kingdom, he 
appears to have been not at all undeferving of a crown. 
He began with granting to all his fubjeCts an exemption 
from taxes and military fervice for three years, and treated 
nil of them in the moft beneficent manner. To fecure 
himfelf on the throne the more effectually, he married 
Atofia the daughter of Cyrus ; thinking that, in cafe of 
a difcovery, he might hold the empire by her title. She 
had before been married to her brother Cambyfes, on a 
decifion of the Magi, “[that a king of Perfia might do 
as he pleafed ;” and, by virtue of this decifion, Smerdis 
alfo married her. The extreme caution of Smerdis, 
however, promoted the difcovery of his impofture. He 
had married all his predeceflor’s wives, among whom was 
one Phedyma, the daughter of Otanes a Perfian nobleman 
of the firft rank. Otanes, wdio fufpeCted that the king 
was not Smerdis the fon of Cyrus, fent a fruity meflenger 
to his daughter, defiring to know whether he was fo or 
not; but Pliedyma, having never feen this Smerdis, could 
not give any anfwer. Her father then defired her to in¬ 
quire of Atofta, who could not but know her own brother. 
However, lie was again difappointed ; for Phedyma ac¬ 
quainted him that all the king’s wives were lodged in 
diftinft and feparate apartments, without being allowed 
to fee each other. This greatly increafed the fufpicions 
8 F of 
