was commanded by Samuel to take armes against the Amalekites to spare neither man woman or child cattell or beasts but for sauing of Agag the king and few of the fattest beasts for sacrifice Saul lost his kingdome disobedience was the cause thereof Some may thinke the cause to be small that Saul did to be reiected from his kingdome the sparing of a kings life So likewise may they iudge of the men of Bethshemesh who because they had looked into the Arke of the Lord he slew 50. thousand three score and ten men for it was not lawfull for any either to touch the Arke or to looke within it saue only to Aaron the high priest and to difobey GOD and to breake Gods commaundement is a thing most terrible Now though Saul spared Agag disobeying God yet Samuel most zealously without any further delay hewed him in pieces After this Samuel returned to his house to Bethleem where he was commaunded to annoint one of the sonnes of Ishai king of Israel and hauing all the seuen sonnes of Ishai before him saue the yongest which was Dauid who kept his fathers sheepe in the fieldes Samuel commaunded Dauid to be sent for at whose comming the Lord said to Samuel Arise annoint him for this is hee And Samuel tooke the horne of oile and annointed him king in the middest of his brethren and the spirite of the Lord came vpon Dauid from that time forward and the spirite of the Lord departed from Saul And now though Dauid was annointed king by Samuel the Prophet yet GOD would haue Dauid to be exercised in many things before hee should haue the vse of the kingdome After this Samuel went to Ramah to his house and came no more to see Saul vntill Saul died Samuel loued Saul much and mourned much for him and God therefore reprooued Samuel Samuel was a godly Iudge ouer Israel who with great care and diligence serued God and gouerned his people keeping his circuite once euery yeere from Bethel to Galgala and from Galgala to Masphat and from Masphat to all townes vpon his wayes to Ramah where Samuel dwelt and there hee set vp an altar vnto the Lord and iudged Israel Euen so did Debora sit vnder a Palme tree betweene Ramah and Bethel iudging and determining causes of the people This Prophet gouerned Israel fortie yeeres Saul being deposed and throwen from his kingdome hee fell vnto great melancholie imagining how he might compasse and bring things to passe with troubled minde for the euill spirite of the Lord came vpon him that hee oftentimes was molested and vexed with troublesome thoughts And to ease the king of these agonies instruments of Musike with all kind of harmonie were thought very necessarie of his counsell Dauid was called and sent for by Saul to plaie vpon the harpe before Saul for hee was skilfull in Musike so Saul loued Dauid and made him his armour bearer While Saul was in this melancholie moode the Philistines were againe in armes against Israel wasted their countrey destroyed their Cities and prouoked the Hebrewes to warre Saul made readie his hoste but while yet they were preparing for the battell Goliah a mightie huge man a great Giaunt vaunted forward from the hoste of the Philistines by himselfe cried and called for a combate if any one man of the Hebrewes durst defying Israel and blaspheming their God But GOD prepared Dauids heart mightie and valiant and with a sling to bee able to ouerthrowe this Giant for Dauid by the experience which hee had in time past by Gods helpe nothing doubteth the danger of Goliah sithence hee killed a Lion and a Beare before this time being but a shepeheard in the field Hee was fullie perswaded by Gods spirite to haue the victorie ouer Goliah being mooued with a feruent zeale to be reuenged vpon this blasphemer But true it is Comes virtuti inuidia Here Saul began to enuie Dauid and to laie snares to kill him for great actions are full of dangers But there is no danger where God defendeth and saueth the vertues of Dauid purchased much enuie much daunger which Dauid escaped by the prouidence of God But Saul still deuised his destruction vsing all policies and inuenting many stratagemes to ouerthrow Dauid promising Dauid his daughter Michol to wife seeking at Dauids handes nothing but valiant courage and seruice agaynst the Philistines But the more victories Dauid wanne the more danger ensued him the greater seruice he did the more he was enuied and hated for Saul feared Dauid seeing the Lord was with him and Ionathan the sonne of Saul told Dauid the wicked purpose of his father so that Dauid was driuen to flee from Saul and to hide himselfe in a Caue Samuel the Prophet about this time died and was buried in Ramah his owne citie Dauid being still persecuted of Saul wandred and fled from Saul to Achis king of Gath where hee should haue a charge vnder the king to fight against Israel which troubled him not a litle yet such was the infirmitie of Dauid that he durst not denie the king Now Saul all this while following his wicked purpose consulted with a witch to know of Samuels spirite the successe of his kingdome by whom I meane not Samuels spirit but the spirit of Satan he was fully certified of his ruine and of the end of his kingdom which happened to Saul and to his children for it fell out that Saul killed himselfe and his children were slaine in the battell a cruell life hath a desperate end After the Philistines found Saul Ionathan Abinadab and Malchishua his three sonnes lying dead in mount Gilboa after the victorie and the Philistines cut off Sauls head and stripped him out of his armour and they laied vp his armour in the house of Ashtaroth their idole and hanged his bodie on the wall of Bethshan in token of victorie and triumph Saul died after the deliuerance of Israel from Egypt 473. yeeres after the calling of Ioseph into dignitie in Egypt 660. yeeres and after the flud 1234. yeeres Thus the wicked in their pompe and pleasure consider not the iudgement of God During this time raigned Dircillus ouer the Assyrians the 31. king and Aeneas Siluius the 4. king of the Latines In Athens this time raigned Codrus the last king of the Athenians betweene whom and the Peloponesians grew great warres and continued vnto the last destruction of all Greece In the time of Saul certaine people were driuen out of Thessalia called Boeotij they found a land to inhabite which at this day is called Boeotia before named Cadmeia The The kings of Sicyonum called otherwise Peloponesus ended in Sauls dayes euen when Israel began their kingdom About this time the kingdom of Lacedemonia began where first raigned Euristhenes of whom descended Leonidas and Cleomenes two valiant captains which ouerthrew the Persians in the great battell at Thermophila About this time descended the stocke of
last by the Romans Cornelius Festus Sillas sonne and Furus Centurio entred first the Citie and after the whole Romane armie rushed in and slew 22. thousand Iewes spared the temple and the sacred treasures therein defiled not the Sanctuarie neither touched Pompey the golden table neither tooke away with him one penie of the 2000. talents which was the treasure of the temple But Crassus in short time after going against the Parthians in his voyage spared neither treasure nor the temple Ierusalem was builded in Iudea by Sem the sonne of Noah and was by him first named Solima or Salem a citie most famous and the soile it selfe most fertile and so by God blessed and preserued from the first building in the time of Sem vnto the last ouerthrowe of the same by Titus the Romane Emperour being 2177. yeeres Iosephus doeth describe the situation and building of this towne that it was builded vpon two hilles the one hill higher then the other Dauid the first king of the tribe of Iuda in whose time for that he fortified the higher hill after his dayes it was called Castellum Dauid the lower hil was called Acra ouer against this hil Acra they began afterwards to drawe another hill to enlarge this citie and to ioyne the temple within the same for the temple was builded on a hard high rocke for that it might the better be seene that the state and magnificence thereof might be beholden and seene aboue the towne and aboue the high towres of the walles for Hierusalem was compassed with three seuerall walles fronted one against another with such high strong towers that some of them were 70. cubites higher then the walles as the tower called Psephina likewise the tower of Hippicos was fourescore and fiue cubites high The second towre called Phasaelis after Herods brothers name was fourescore and tenne cubites high the thirde named after his wiues name Mariannes which farre excelled the rest whose large descriptions you shall reade in Iosephus a Iewe borne and brought vp in Ierusalem vntil the destruction thereof where he was taken prisoner by Titus there it is set forth to the ful the situation of the citie the beautie of the temple the strength of the walles the height and largenesse of the towres the port and state of the gates the full description of the foure hilles which Hierusalem was builded on and other things which now I omit for the circuite of Hierusalems walles was no more but thirtie and nine furlongs This towne was nothing like in bignesse to Babylon or to Niniue but farre greater in fame and in victories for Hierusalem had triumphed and sawe the ende and last destruction of the Caldeans Assyrians Egyptians Arabians and Persians for litle Iudea endured the force and power of the three first Monarchies which was the Assyrians the Persians and the Grecians though it was before conquered fiue seuerall times by the iust iudgement of God for their transgression and sinne yet by the mercie of God saued and preserued as is before mentioned vntil thirtie eight yeres after Christs death All that while that they serued God and followed the steppes of their forefathers I meane Abraham Isaac Iaacob Daniel Iosaphat Ezechias and Iosias they preuailed against all nations they conquered all Countreys and brought all the kingdomes of the worlde to admire their vertues to feare their force and to seeke fauour and friendship at their handes though they were sometime touched for their stiffenecked stubbernes and too much iniquities as in Egypt in the wildernes and after they had possessed the land of Promes for still they offended the Lorde for the which these seuerall fiue conquests were had ouer them The first was by Nabuchodonosor the great king of Babylon the second by Asocheus king of Egypt the thirde time by Antiochus the great king of Syria the fourth by Pompeius the great and the fift and last was by Titus Vespatian In the which last subuersion and ouerthrowe of Hierusalem wee reade in Iosephus being then a present souldier in the warres the calamities and great miseries that then fel on the citie of Ierusalem and on the inhabitants thereof Their hunger and famine was so great that one did eate an others vomite the fathers did eate their children and the mothers fed on their owne babes in the cradle in so much that stinking carions and dead bodies which died for hunger in the streete was meate of great daintines in Ierusalem They were constrained to eate beastes dung dried leather girdles shoes and skinnes which couered their shields yea they sought their foode in Iakeses many slewe and butchered one another in the citie Besides this the plague was so hote amongst them that lodgings houses temples and all the streetes in Ierusalem were filled with dead bodies The slaughter was such as within 18. moneths siege 110000. were slaine within the citie and most of them strangers and Gentiles which came vp to the feast according to the custome of the Iewes where suddenly they were taken and besieged you must thinke by famine and by the sword During which time 97000. were taken prisoners and captiues there were found of the Iewes in priuies and Iakeses and hiding themselues in caues sinkes and holes of the earth aboue 2000. Some sent of these to the nomber of 70. thousand to Egypt as bond slaues there to moile like beastes in intollerable toile some solde more cheape then dogs for Egesippus witnesseth that 30. Iewes were solde for a penie and those were yong boyes vnder sixteene yeeres OF THE FIRST ORIGInall of the CHALDEANS first called Arphaxades after the name of Arphaxad the thirde sonne of SEM which was the first kingdome of the world of their continuance gouernment and last destruction by Darius Medius and Cyrus NOw hauing ended the historie of the Hebrewes the posteritie of Arphaxad the thirde sonne of Sem I will followe Assur the second sonne of Sem who builded Niniue from whom and after whose name the Assyrians are called whose history I haue now in hand In the hundreth thirtie and one yeere after the flood when people had multiplied in the land of Shinear olde Noah taught the people to seeke new seates and dwellings instructed the newe worlde the first age after the flood in the course of the Sunne the Moone and the starres and in all other things wherein Noah was most perfite hee declared to his people what he knewe and sawe in the first age and deuided the world into three parts Asia Africke and Europe and sent his sonnes to seeke aduentures Cham he sent to Egypt and to Africke with his company Sem to Asia and Iaphet with his people to Europe of whom I will speake where their historie is handled Now I will begin the historie of the Chaldeans who after that the people were dispersed at the building of Babel and had scattered into euery partes of the worlde were the first that
Egypt so that the king of Egypt came no more out of his lande as it is written against the king of Babylon hee layde siege to Tire and wasted all the regions there about he brought vnder the king of Babylon all Libya the most part of Asia vnto the land of Armenia This king grewe so great that Philostratus doeth so set him in his histories that he passed Hercules in force and power Strabo saith that the Chaldeans esteemed more of Nabuchodonosor then the Grecians did of Hercules Nabuchodonosor made kingdomes to shake the earth to tremble and the whole worlde a forest and left almost no where vnconquered but Iudea where after all his other warres and conquests hee sendeth his deputie Nabuzaradan generall of his armie he commeth with a huge armie of the Chaldeans a great band of Aramites of Moabites of Ammonites for Nabuchodonosor had heard that Iehoiakim had rebelled after hee had payed tribute for three yeeres This was the cause of the destruction of Iehoiakim after he had raigned three yeres he was deceiued much trusting to haue ayde by Necho king of Egypt and so lost both the kingdome and himselfe This was the iudgement of God for the sinnes of Manasses and the idolatrie of Iuda not weighing the crying out of Ieremie though night and day he perswaded them to yeelde vp the Citie and to followethe Lorde for Ierusalem was full of innocent blood and therefore God vsed these wicked tyrants to execute his commandement After this Iehoiakin the sonne of Iehoiakim when he had reigned three moneths being 18. yeeres of age Nabuchodonosor fearing least he shoulde become false and so reuenge his fathers death came against him he and his mother his princes and his seruants yeelded to Nabuchodonosor by the councell of Ieremie And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah king in stead of his nephewe Iehoiakin and changed his name to Zedechia who likewise offended the Lord and would not be councelled by Ieremie but hee and his people mocked the messengers of God despised his word and misused his Prophets so long that Nabuchodonosor came and slue their young men with the sworde kild all and spared none But for the rest of Nabuchodonosors tyranny his crueltie and slaughter specially of Iewes they are read in the fourth booke of Kings Chap. 24. and 25. in in Esai in Ieremie This king is euery where mentioned with the Prophets and in Ecclesiasticall histories Likewise Iosephus orderly setteth downe his seuerall warres against Ierusalem first in the eleuenth yere of Iechonias he came with great force and slue the most part in Ierusalem killed the king and buried him in sepulchro asini threw him dead vnburied out of the Citie according to the prophecie of Ieremie saying Iehoiakim shal be buried as an asse is buried euen drawne and cast foorth without the gates of Ierusalem like a carrion neither shall any lament him neither mourne for him he tooke also the chiefe men of the Citie euen 3000. and carried them vnto Babylon amongst whom Ezechiel being yet a very young man was lead likewise captiue This was before tolde of by Ieremie the Prophet but not beleeued The second time hee came against Iehoiakin whom Nabuchodonosor aduaunced vnto his fathers seate but fearing hee would reuoult by being mindfull of his fathers death hee tooke him his mother his familie his nobles and others to the number of tenne thousand eight hundred thirtie and two and carried them vnto Chaldea yet Nabuchodonosor sware to the king to his counsell that he would spare them vpon their submission to the which the king by the perswasions of the Prophet Ieremie yelded but the tyrant kept no promise With this king Daniel Anania Azaria and Misael being of the kings stocke were taken prisoners and commaunded by the king that they shoulde bee brought vp in the Chaldean tongue to serue the king afterward The third and last comming of Nabuchodonosor was against Zedechia the last king of Iuda hee layde siege to Ierusalem eighteene moneths during which time great famine and plague with manifolde miseries more befell them and at last the destruction of the Citie men women and children slaine before the King his Princes and Nobles put to the sworde the wealth and treasure of the Citie caried to Babylon the Temple burned the King himselfe taken his children killed before the kings face then his eyes put out and caried in chaines to Babylon where hee died most miserably in prison Thus God did put his sworde in Nabuchodonosors hand as an instrument of his wrath to punish sinne Of this matter more is spoken of in the historie of the Iewes otherwayes called the Hebrewes When Nabuchodonosor had reigned fourtie three yeeres Metasthenes saith fourtie fiue yeeres the Chaldean historie reporteth that hee prophecied the destruction of Babylon being by Daniel taught and by God called to bee one of his chiefe instruments in his Church In a little before hee died hee confessed the glory and maiestie of God saying I giue thankes vnto the most High I prayse and honour him that liueth for euer who restored vnto me my kingdome my honour and my vnderstanding whose works are all trueth and his wayes iudgements for nowe I confesse that he is able to abase those that walke in pride he liued in Tarquinius Priscus time the fift king of Rome and in the eighteene Iubilee of the Iewes and in the fourtie nine Olympiads In the time of Nabuchodonosors father Dracos lawes was written in Athens Solon Thales Milesius florished the seuen Sages of Greece liued this time the Prophet Ezechiel beganne to prophecie in Babylon the fift yeere of the captiuitie For as you shall reade of the Medes and Persians and of the Romanes that they were made by God executours instruments and hammers for so the Lord spake of them saying Thou art my hammer and weapons of warre for with thee will I breake the nations and with thee will I destroy kingdomes by thee will I breake man and woman and by thee will I breake young olde you shall finde this phrase often rehearsed by God in the mouthes of the Prophets so God calles Nabuchodonosor his seruant saith I wil put my sword in Nabuchodonosors hand so Senaherib so Salmanasser and so Satan himselfe is Gods seruant to worke his will to obey his commandement and to execute his iudgements After this Nabuchodonosor succeeded his sōne Euilmerodach he reigned 30. yeres he reigned one yere together with his father it seemeth that this Euilmerodach was instructed by Daniel to feare God for after that Nabuchodonosor had turned to the Lord began to be a benefactor to the Church to the mēbers thereof this his sonne likewise when he became king of Babylon after his father in the first yere of his reigne brought Iehoiakin king of Iuda out of prison hee restored him to libertie and aduanced him to
being the eight king of the Assyrians before the Athenians as long as Iacob was before Moses for in Athens raigned Cecrops the first king which king was of one time with Moses But let vs proceede The ninth king in Peloponesus was named Mesapius who raigned fourtie and seuen yeeres Philo Iudeus affirmeth that Iob about this time liued and that after his punishment and afflictions he maried Dina the daughter of Iacob but this is thought to be false and found otherwise that Iob and Dina were not of one time not by foure discents for that Iobab which is written in Genesis was of Iacobs time this Iobab was the second king that raigned in the lande of Edom as one of the stocke of Esau and therefore some writers erred herein Now foloweth in Peloponesus Heratus the 10. king in whose time one Hispalus the sonne of Heroules sirnamed Libius raigned in Celtiberia who at that time builded a city after his owne name and called it Hispalis You must vnderstand where you reade Celtiberia or Iberia that then that countrey was so called which is now named Spaine as it is in the treatise of Spaine more at large written when and how long Celtiberia or Iberia continued by that name and when the name of Spaine beganne The kings of Egypt beganne now to be called Pharaones a generall name of dignitie alwayes vnto their kings afterward for their proper names were not so The eighteenth Dynasteia of the Egyptians likewise beganne this time which continued three hundreth fourtie and eight yeres in the which gouernment Amasis was the first king Sparta a very famous citie amongst the Lacedemonians was nowe builded by one Spartus the sonne of Phoroneus the second king of the Argiues whome a litle before you read of Mar. Scot. sayeth that Greece was not tilled before this time that corne being brought then from Phoenicia to Greece was first at that time sowen but I will bee briefe in passing ouer the names of the kings of Poloponesus because I might come to the ripenesse of Greece which was many hundreth yeeres after this time The eleuenth king was named Plemneus and their twelft king named Orthopolis of these two wee haue nothing to write more then of the rest but in respect of the time and of the gouernment to open the naked state and weake Empires of the world at that time wherein there was no action done worthy of writing for scant armes were then knowen this onely wee finde what kings raigned then and in what partes of the worlde they gouerned hauing their those names which they haue not nowe for then the Frenchmen were called Celtae the Spaniards Celtiberi or Iberi and so of other nations But nowe raigned in Assyria Mammitus the thirteenth king and Crassus raigned ouer the Argiues the fift king This time Cath begate Amram Moses father and about this time Ioseph died in Egypt after which time the children of Israel were sore afflicted by the Egyptians vnder another Pharao sirnamed Amenophis a cruell tyrant ouer the Hebrewes then being vnder his subiection in Egypt This king made an Edict and charged the midwiues that all children of the Hebrewes should bee slaine or else cast into Nilus as soone as they were borne Of some this king is called Memnon About this time gouerned in certaine partes of Celtes one Lugdus after whome the place and the people were called Lugdunenses and likewise one named Narbon by whose name the countrey is to this day called Narbonensis which are two prouinces within Gallia now called Fraunce About this time flourished the great Astrologer Atlas which is of Poets fained to sustaine the skies vpon his shoulders for his skil and knowledge therein In the two and twentieth yeere of this king Orthopolis Amram married Iochabed and begate Aaron and three yeeres after begate Moses In Moses time beganne the kingdome of Thessalia where Emon the first king raigned and together with Thessalia sprang vp the kingdome of Athens three hundreth seuentie and fiue yeeres before the destruction of Troy and about seuentie yeeres before Israel was deliuered from the bondage of Pharao for from Cecrops the first king of Athens vnto the first Olympiad raigned in Athens seuenteene kings and twentie princes or Iudges first called Metondidae after called Decennales principes after the kings Of this king it is written that hee first named Iupiter a god and honoured him he erected the first altar in Greece found images and offered vp sacrifices which were not before Cecrops time seene in Greece for Castor and Pollux Liber and Mercurius with diuers ancient gods of the Gentiles were after the time of Cecrops But I will leaue Athens for a while and I will speake of the Sicyonians and Argiues for these two regions of Greece were the first regions that were gouerned by kings but such kings as then that time yeelded called Reguli but the state and regiment of the Argiues after the succession of foureteene kings was caried by Perseus into Mycena which kingdome of Mycena was established in Euristheus after whome raigned sixe kings and ended together at one time with the kingdome of Sicyonum as you shall reade after in the next chapter But now I wil set downe the names of the kings of the Sicyonians in order as I finde them in Ruffinus and in Functius tables 1 Egialeus after whose name the countrey was called Egialea raigned 52 yeeres 2 Europs 45. 3 Stelchin 20. 4 Apis after whose name the countrey was named Apia 25. 5 Thelassion 52. 6 Aegidius 34. 7 Thurimachus 14. In this kings time began the kingdome of the Argiues 8 Leucippus 53. 9 Messapius 47. 10 Heratus 46. 11 Plemneus 12. 12 Orthopolis 63. 13 Merathius 30. In whose time the kingdom of Athens began 14 Maretus 20. CHAP. II. Of the building of Athens of their beginning and of their first lawes vnder 17 kings being the thirde kingdome of Greece in antiquitie after the Sicionians and the Argiues CEcrops of whom mention is made before builded Athens in Achaia and hereof it was named first Cecropia after that it was called of one Ati Attica and last of all it was named of Minerua Athens for in the Greeke tongue Athenae is called Minerua though in ancient time it had other names as Mopsopia or Ionia Diadas and Orchomenon and now at this time of no great fame but a poore fisher towne which Mahomet the eight Emperour of the Turkes hath brought vnder In the dayes of Cecrops raigned that Pharao which was with all his nobilitie and chiualrie of Egypt drowned in the read sea for his wickednes and tyrannie against God and his people he was by his proper name called Chencres There happened in Cecrops time two great wonders in Greece the one a great deluge in Thessalia called Deucaleons floud the other that great harme of fire called
corne nor any other fruite to strangers sauing oyle hee ordeyned a law that no stranger should be free Denizen within Athens he appointed a lawe for welles for that Attica is a drye soyle wanting springs and riuers vsing onely welles therefore hee ordeined that all within foure furlongs which is halfe a myle should come to one well he made a lawe to forbid ioynters and dowries not to vse marchandize for mariage neither shoulde they buye their husbande to gayne thereby but that man and woman shoulde marrie for issue for pleasure and for loue hee made a lawe for womens going abroade what time they shoulde goe to walke appointing to them the time of their feasting of their sacrificing and also appointed a time of mourning to plucke from women all disorder and wilfull libertie which by nature they seeke he made lawes against idle persons those that did not labour charging the Councell of the Areopagites to enquire howe euery man liued within Athens and to punish them to their deserts likewise he made a lawe for clearing of debts called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and afterward that no man should lende money vpon vsurie and a lawe against the same made in this law he raysed the value of money of 73. drachmes which was then a pounde to a hundred drachmes Solon made a lawe to forbid euill speach of the dead Nowe after that Solon had made these lawes and many more he cause'd them to be written in tables by Plutarch called Axones by Aristotle called Cyrbes but the Athenians being still very seditious and quarelling within themselues Solon to auoide the braules secretly tooke his voiage but with licence giuen to Egypt there a while he studied and conferred with Psenophis and Souchis two of the wisest priestes at that time in Egypt from Egypt he went to Cyprus After this Solon went to Sardis the chiefe Citie of Lydia where Croesus kept then his Court with whome hee questioned touching happinesse Croesus supposing himselfe most happie for his great honour wealth fame and dignitie and his great triumphes which he had ouer great nations but Solon preferred poore vertuous and quiet men before Croesus as Tellus in Athens and Biton in Argos so that this good man did much good in Athens for yet the glorie and libertie of Greece was not subiect to straungers though they had sundrie bickeringes and contencions betweene themselues All this while Themistocles was not knowen in Athens neither Lysander in Sparta neither Leonides in Thebes neither as I saide a little before was Persia knowen to Greece nor Greece to Persia for before Cyrus time the Persians were of no great fame neither before the warre of Xerxes were the Grecians of any great glorie CHAP. V. Of the huge armie of Xerxes of his preparation both by lande and by sea of the pompe and pride of Xerxes in his iourney to Greece of his shamefull great ouerthrowe and ignominious flight from Greece againe into Persia and of the flourishing state of Greece at that time TThis Xerxes was the fourth king after Cyrus ouer whome Greece had the greatest victorie that euer Greece had For Cambyses the sonne of Cyrus and the second king of Persia was skant knowen in Greece but Darius surnamed Hydaspis to whom Cyrus daughter named Atossa was maried this Darius was the third king of Persia and the first that made preparation against Athens and nowe hauing a great armie hee appointed Hippias the sonne of Pisistratus who being banished from Athens fledde from Greece vnto Persia to bee lieutenant ouer Darius armie The Athenians hearing of Darius comming sent to haue some ayde of the Lacedemonians but being deceiued of their long expectation hauing Miltiades their captaine stayed not but with furie proceeded and gaue him the ouerthrowe in the battell of Marathon and in the seuentie two Olympiad Nowe Darius hauing some intelligence of troubles in Egypt altered his purpose from Greece and turned his armie to Egypt in the which warres after he had pacified and had set in order all things he returned to Persia where shortly after he died whose place of gouernment his sonne Xerxes had who bestowed fiue yeeres in gathering his huge force and armies together thinking rather to eate Greece then to fight with Greece his power was so great and his force so much for so Iustine saith Herodot and Thucydides with others that when Xerxes had demaunded of some of his captaines what they thought of his armie some answered that all Greece was not able to receiue them to land others say that the Ocean sea had not roome sufficient for his nauies and thus Xerxes was flattered by his captaines that he went forwarde towardes Greece with a farre greater force then his father Darius had Some write that Xerxes had seuentie hundred thousand footemen as both Iustine and Ruffinus affirme and three thousand nauies Iustine writeth tenne thousand and fourtie hundred thousand horsemen But as his comming to Greece was most terrible vnto Greece so his flight from Greece was most shamefull to the Persians for at his first entring vnto Creece Leonidas king of Sparta passed the streightes of Thermopyla with foure thousand souldiers kept him play there to the losse of twentie thousand Persians they of Sparta being animated by their king to stand like stoute Lacedemonians against such rude and barbarous people a thing easely perswaded to them that alreadie were perswaded to die they entred to the number of sixe hundred into the tentes of the Persians thought it more value to die before Xerxes face wasted and spoiled euery tent and making diligent searche for Xerxes through all the tents of the Persians killing them and destroying from the beginning of the night vntill the next morning Xerxes herewith being frighted escaped Nowe Themistocles being appointed generall of the Athenians against Xerxes in this warre hauing bene before in the battell of Marathon being then very young but very much enflamed with desire of glorie to see the worthinesse and to heare the report and great fame of Miltiades which was then generall ouer Athens it tickled Themistocles to studie to deuise to take some new matter in hand to gaine glorie for Themistocles was of that opinion that the last ouerthrowe of the Persians at Marathon was but a beginning of further troubles though others thought the contrary he was euer most carefull to perswade the Athenians to the seas and to make gallies for the warres of Greece All the Athenians were most cruell because the Athenians were lordes of the seas Themistocles mused euery way and studied dayly to preuent dangers before they were offered he could not be quiet he would take no rest for the safetie of his countire of Greece and being asked of his familiar friendes why hee tooke such paines he answered that Miltiades victorie would not let him sleepe Themistocles was the
and Horace the Poet were borne but the historie of the kings of Syria is set forth with the kings of Israel and Iuda and also in the Machabees for in the sacred histories of the scripture much mencion is made of the kings of Aram by the names of Aram Soba Aram Padan Aram Damasci Aram Naharaim by the which names Syria is better described in Genesis in the Kings in Paralipomenon and in Deuteronomiū then by Ptolome Strabo Pomponius Mela or Solinus for the kings of Aram which is Syria haue diuers names in Scripture as Aram Naharaim which is that part of Syria which is betweene Euphrates and Tygris the region thereof is called Mesopotamia reade the 3. of the Iudges Likewise Aram Padan which is a coūtrie in Mesopotamia often taken for al Mesopotamia where Iacob mēcioneth of Rahels death his wife when he came from Padan Aram. Againe Aram Damasci where Benadad king of Aram being sicke sent Hazael to the man of God Elisha to knowe whether Benahad should recouer his health To be short Aram Macat Aram Soba Aram Rhohab and Aram Damasci are regions and countries in Mesopotamia Coelosyria in the higher Syria farre from Perela and Galaad the countrie of Ruben and Gad and of the halfe tribe of Manasses But these names of Syria were long before any prophane writer wrote of Syria fewe prophane histories were before king Philips time Alexander the great his father all true antiquities are conteined in sacred histories in Moses in the Chronicles of the kings of Israel and Iuda and in the Prophets late writers began in the time of Cyrus to write of the Monarchies of Persia of the Greciās and of the Romanes of whom Daniel before had spoken and likewise gaue light vnto prophane writers to write their histories These kings of Aram then were the most cruell tyraunts and most furious enemies of Iudea of the people of God and of his Church likewise these last by the names of the kings of Syria which continued no longer then from Alexander the great which was the first vntill the time of Pompe the great which was the last that brought all Syria a prouince to the Romanes As God dealed with the kings of Aram in the behalfe of Iuda then so he wrought with the kings of Syria now in the behalfe of his Church who euer preuailed against all kingdomes of the world as God caused Senaheribs armie one to kill an other to the number of 185. thousande in one day and night So hee likewise raised one king against an other in Syria that from Antiochus the great vntill the last king there was nothing but killing and murthering in Syria for the tyraunt Antiochus Epiphanes his sonne after he fomed in blood died most miserably his sonne likewise Antiochus Eupator was slaine by his vncle Demetrius Demetrius was slaine by Alexander which fained himselfe to be Antiochus Epiphanes sonne Alexander was slaine by the king of Parthia and his head sent to Syria After Demetrius Nicanor was kept out of Syria by his owne brother Antiochus Sedetes this Sedetes was killed by Tryphon againe Tryphon was slaine quickly of his owne people Then Antiochus Gryphus Nicanors sonne and Antiochus Sedetes sonne killed one an other in such sort that Syria wanted heires of Seleucus house to be kings also Syria was brought so lowe and so poore by these ciuill warres that the Romanes prayed ouer them after they had reigned two hundred eightie nine yeeres and brought Syria a prouince subiect to Rome All the names of the kings of Syria and Asia since Alexander the great his time are these 1 Seleucus Nica. reigned 31. 2 Antiochus Soter 19. 3 Antiochus Theos 15. 4 Seleucus Gallinicus 20. 5 Seleucus Ceraunus 9. 6 Antiochus magnus 36. 7 Seleucus Philopator 12. 8 Antiochus Epiphanes 12. 9 Antiochus Eupator 2. 10 Demetrius Soter 10. 11 Alexander Prōpalus 5. 12 Demetrius Nicanor 2. 13 Antiochus Sedetes 3. 14 Trypho reigned 3. 15 Demetrius againe Nicanor 4. 16 Antiochus Griphus 29. 17 Antiochus Cizicoenus 18. 18 Philipus the sonne of Griphus 2. Functius doeth varie a litle from Iustine in the yeeres of these kings OF THE FIRST AFFRICAN warres betweene the Carthagineans and the Romanes which continued 24. yeeres and of the victories of the Romanes ouer them HAuing something entreated of the kings of Asia Syria and yet nothing so largely as the historie required howe be it the kings of Asia and Syria are spoken of both in sacred prophane histories haue also an intercourse betweene the kings of Assyria and of Egypt I will therefore passe to the kings of Affrike and Libya and speake of their warres with the Romanes This Countrie as Pomponius Mela describeth is on the East part bounded with the riuer Nilus inclosed North with the sea Libicke on the South with the Ethiopian sea and on the West with the Antlantike sea Affrike is shorter then Europe and farre lesser then Asia it is more in length then in breadth the breadth of Affrike is thirteene thousand furlōgs which is a thousand sixe hūdred miles and more the length as Strabo writeth is as much againe which is 3200 miles and all that part of Affrike which is beyond the Mores called the Nigrites Pharusians doe extend into Ethiope The Ethiopians possesse thence vnto the borders of Asia also the white Ethiopiās Libyaegyptiās dwelling aboue those places before recited then the Numidians and the Mores of whō the Mores extend to the Antlantike sea I thinke it a worke needles to describe Affrike more amplie then it is by Iulius Solinus Pōponius Mela written in Latine the rest is set forth by Strabo of whom for that hee writes more large I note him chiefely for mine authour dearth hapened amongst the Affricanes that the Romans could no longer remaine there but they returned to Rome with their victorious nauies in great pompe and glorie hauing 484. ships sailing in braue sort towards Rome with infinite wealth and treasure Beholde in the midst of this great pompe the euents of fortune a very great tempest rose so that they suffred such shipwracke about the coast of Sicile that scant were saued 80. ships of the 484. yet the inuincible and stoute courage of the Romanes were such that their minds were nothing dismayd with these missehaps though it was the very greatest shipwracke that euer the Romanes had or any other nation in the world New supplies and other captaines were straight appointed with 260. ships to take voyage to Affrike who likewise when they had wonne certaine cities and townes in Affrike returned to Rome with great spoile but sustained the like shipwracke againe The Senate finding these continual dangers of sailing and seafight thought good to forsake the sea and to fight vpon the land for hauing wonne the victories of foure battels vpon the sea with infinit treasures ouer the Affricanes they lost by three shipwracks
figure thereof he said by the spirite of prophesie that vvhen his sonne Noah vvas borne this should comfort vs concerning our vvorke and sorovv of our hands as concerning the earth vvhich the Lord hath cursed The last man of the first age vvas Noah a iust and vpright man in his time before God hee likevvise vvalked vvith and obeied GOD in all things and therefore found fauour vvith God vvith vvhom God made his couenant established the same vvith a signe for thee only haue I found iust and righteous in this age vpon the earth for Noah vvas called the righteous preacher preaching vnto the vvicked for amendment of life and because they vvere luld in all kind of securities and feared not God Noah departed from them and vvent to another land for hee vvas vvarned of God of things that vvere not seene as yet concerning the Arke God vvas so much offended vvith the vvickednesse of the vvorld that his vvrath vvas kindled to see such iniquitie vpon earth for the whole world was corrupt before God and vvas filled with crueltie all flesh had corrupted his way and all imaginations of mans thoughts were so euil and wicked that it repented the Lorde to haue made man and as it were disauowing man to be his creature they were so addicted to intemperancie lust gluttonie and securitie the foure principall causes of the flood which for sinne destroied man and beast and yet in mercie God spared man 120. yeeres to repent before he woulde destroy the worlde No dout many things haue bene written of the olde Patriarches in the first age and thought of many writers that Adam and his sonne Seth had made two tables of stone wherein they wrote many goodly things to their posterity The best warrant is read in Iosephus for that he trauailed much in the historie of the Iewes and their other histories called Drash for their Rabbies heape many fables beside the historie of Moses in their Chronicles called Drash so Philo Iudaeus Herodot and Melancton from them affirme It is written againe that Adam and Seth foreseeing the deluge of the world caused two pillars to be set vp the one of brickes the other of brasse one to resist the violence of the water the other to endure the rage of the fire but I see no reason that Adam should prophecie the same to be from God and yet he being man sought meanes by naturall reason and waies by arte to preuent the euerlasting decree of the Almighty Iosephus might wel erre in that I thinke that many things are written of the Iewes which doe not agree with the purpose of Gods prouidence nor his counsell for the Iewes recorded in their bookes of histories called Drash any thing that might be coniectured true and which they themselues supposed in opinion to be true as the maners of their Talmudists were Iosephus a great writer of the Iewes antiquities the best Historiographer of Chaldean histories who wrote more and is more to be commended then any other and because he thinketh much amisse for any man to seeke recordes of antiquities amongest the Graecians men of late knowledge hauing their beginning and first originall from Egypt and Chaldea specially Assyria and Chaldea the first seate of man after the flood for the Greekes began to flourish in the declining age of the world when that Assyria Chaldea Egypt and other places of the East were wasted consumed with sword and fire for so it seemeth by the Philosopher Calisthenes report then being with Alexander the Great at the siege of Babylon writing vnto his cosin Aristotle who had bene his preferrer vnto Alexander to that purpose he might search out the Libraries of Babylon and to certifie Aristotle of those antiquities specially of Astrologie wherein the Chaldeans past and of their monuments wherein the Greekes were ignorant for Calisthenes sent vnto Aristotle howe that Babylon was farre more famous for all kind of learning and knowledge twelue hundred yeeres past then it was when Alexander the Great did besiege it certifying him with recordes of 19. hundred yeeres before Alexanders time Berosus an ancient writer and a man of great authoritie amongst the Chaldeans saith that Arphaxad one of the sonnes of Sem whose birth vvas 2. yeeres after the flood christened the first name of this Countrey after his ovvne name aftervvarde it vvas called Cephem and novve last named Chaldea of the situation of this Countrey and the seate of Babylon I vvill let the reader reade of it in Ptolom◅us and in Pomponius Mela. I vvill goe on vvith my historie When C ham the second sonne of Noah had begotten a sonne named Chus and Chus had begotten a sonne named Nemrad this began to take armes and to become great in his doings he became mightie in earth vsing violence and force against all people framing himselfe to be first Emperour of the vvorlde so full of crueltie and tyrannie that it grevve vnto a prouerbe as it is in the Genesis as Nemrod the mightie hunter before the Lorde his oppression vvas such that he passed not to commit crueltie euen in Gods presence This Nemrad began to rule in Babel in the land of Shinear aftervvard called Chaldea vvhere he and his companie returning from Armenia vvhere they after the flood began to build vp an high tower whose top should reach vnto heauen to get them a name vpon earth least they should be scattered ouer the whole earth thinking through pride and ambition to preferre their owne glory before Gods honor but vaine is the helpe of man their wicked enterprise was ouerthrowen for God sawe their follie and so confounded them in their deuises in their speach that one could not vnderstand another Then were they deuided and scattered then confusion of tongues began which was then in the house of Heber onely the Hebrew tongue then began people to seeke out countries and to inhabite the earth The posteritie of Sem to great Asia Persia Assyria and Chaldea and all the regions about Euphrates towards the East part of the world The posteritie of Cham went to Egypt Aethiope Libya and possessed all places about Nilus and reached towards the South vnto the furthest part of Affrica and the posteritie of Iaphet possessed all the Westcountrey the lesser Asia and all Europa of whom all the Gentiles sprang out Thus much for the first age from Adam vnto Noah 1656. Now I meane particularlie to follow my historie as the reason is offered vnto me by following the sonnes of Noah their children and posterities frō the land of Senaah vnto euery part of the earth CHAP. I. Of the most ancient and true historie of the Hebrewes after called Israel of their lawes and originall gouernment called Oligarchia from Abraham vnto Moses THE historie of the Hebrewes for that it is most ancient from Hebers time the fourth from Noah and most true for that it is written by Moses and confirmed by the
Prophets but most of all in dignitie and honour for that lineally from Sem which first builded Hierusalem the Messias and Sauiour of the world according to the flesh descended though the historie taketh no beginning but frō the calling of Abraham out of Chaldea into the land of Canaan so called first after the land of Israel thirdly of Iudea fourthly last called after Christ our Sauiours death The holy land or the land of Palestina the inhabitants thereof were called accordingly Cananites Hebrewes Israelites Iewes of whom either to speake or to write of their lawes their Iudges their Kings or of their ceremonies or of their common wealth it was not lawfull neither for the Graecians nor for the Romanes and so affirmed by Iosephus that Demetrius Phalerius did auere before Philodelphus king of Alexandria that the Greekes nor the Latinists might translate handle or so much as to presume to write of any Hebrew historie being but prophane men as Theopompus Theodecta with others which were made blind by their arrogancie and became mad An other cause doeth Eusebius alleage that neither Greekes nor Latines were in time to write of the Hebrues histories for the greatest brag of the Greekes as Iosephus saieth and the most ancient historie of the Graecians is Homers worke they began to flourish in the time of Cyrus after that the Assyrians the Chaldeans and the Egyptians and many other kingdoms of the East were decaied and their empires lost at which time the temple in Ierusalem was by Cyrus permitted to be reedified 80. yeeres before the last permission by Artaxerxes surnamed Longimanus for Plato of whom Numenius the Pithagorean doth report is called of him Moses Attica lingua loquens euen that learned Philosopher doth confesse that the Graecians had their knowledge frō the Chaldeans and from the Egyptians and began to be famous and great after these great kingdomes were destroyed The seuen Sages were the first wise men knowen or commended in Greece which was in Cyrus time at what time Solon liued 200. yeres before Plato which was the infancie of Greece and the first schoole of their Philosophie Now the Hebrewes being the most auncientest people euen from Hebers birth vntill Christes death which was after Christes death 2000. yeeres odde they inhabited the land called Syria called likewise Phoenicia and now in latter yeeres called Iudea of this countrey doeth Iosephus write at large both of the nature of the people and of the goodnesse of the soile Hecateus the Abederit a good Philosopher and a great writer flourishing in the time of Alexander the great made a booke in describing and commending of Iudaea I wil them to read the 16. booke of Strabo that would know the situation of Iudea where the Reader shall be satisfied with the ful description of Iudea Iosephus a Iew borne being taken prisoner by Vespasian the Emperor at the last destructiō of Ierusalem at the which time he wrote a great volume containing 20. bookes of the antiquities of the Iewes he wrote other 7. bookes of the warres of the Iewes a man of great industrie learned in the Hebrew and Greeke tongue and very expert in the Iewish histories saieth that Egyptians were enuious to the children of Israel for so were they called after Iacobs time which by long wrastling with the Angel of the Lord was named Israel for first they were called Hebrewes from Hebers time vntil Iacob which was 478. yeeres and odde secondarily Israel from Iacob vntill the destruction of Samaria at what time ten tribes of Israel were by Salmanassar king of Assyria Senacheribs father brought captiue vnto Assyria in the time of Osea the last king of Israel 1026. yeeres as Bucholcerus affirmeth and from the destruction of Samaria vntill the last destruction of Ierusalem by Titus Vespasian they were called Iewes 786. yeeres Now the malice of Egypt towards Israel was such that they kept them in bondage 430. yeeres and euer after they were by God deliuered they still wrought euil against them and persecuted them with continuall hatred disliking their religion abhorring their ceremonies disdaining and much enuying the felicitie of the Iewes with the which the God of Israel by power and great miracles did aduance them to the abolishing of idolatrie and contemning of their false gods which the Egyptians the Chaldeans the Assyrians did adore and therfore the blessing of God was according to the promise vpon the Hebrewes first afterwards called Israel Iewes and continued frō Abraham to whom the promise was made vntill the time of the Messias the full accomplishment of the promise So these people bathed in blisse and being but a litle countrey few people from Dan to Berseba and of no estimation became by Gods fauour strong mightie conquerors of the greatest kings of the world So he said the Lord of all out of Sion shall my Law proceed and from Ierusalem my word This litle citie of Ierusalem chosen of God to be his seate though often for sinne destroyed and the people plagued yet still comforted to the stay of Gods Church It is written that Dauid the second king of Israel gaue these words to Salomon his sonne before he died Behold Praeparaui impensas domus Domini auritalenta centum millia argenti mille millia talentûm And againe it is writtē in the Chronicles that gold and siluer were as plentie in Ierusalem as stones in the street in the time of Salomō for there was in the temple of Salomon as Budaeus noteth 27. millions in ready coyne This made other kingdomes to enuie the prosperitie of the Hebrewes for by iust account of Budaeus there was left before vnto Salomon by Dauid his father ten times more treasures and substance in Ierusalem then Darius the great king of Persia left vnto Alexander the great in Babylon when he conquered it this was the promise which God performed to Abraham and to his seed for euer This godly Patriarch to whom the promise was made was 50. yeeres of age when Noah died 40. yeeres before Sodome and Gomorrha were destroied At 75. yeeres was Abraham called from Vr a towne of Chaldea in the last yeeres of Ninus the first king of the Assyrians Now while Abraham obeied God from time to time from place to place exercising himselfe in the obedience of GOD famine grew in the land of Canaan so that he with few Hebrewes were forced to flee into Egypt where hee continued three yeeres at what time he taught them knowledge of the starres read Astronomie and taught in Egypt Artes and Sciences as Iosephus saieth for Abraham was brought vp in Astrologie with the Chaldeans where hee dwelt with his father Thare in Vr and from whence the Egyptians had their learning and knowledge for Egypt was as yet scant in the world knowen where some of the Hebrewes staied after Abrahams departure and multiplied in
singular man of God Moses to whome the lawe in Mount Sinai was giuen and by whome the lawe had full execution with whome GOD talked so familiarly that hee alone continued with GOD fourtie dayes in Mount Sinai the moste auncient Chronographer of the worlde the verye light of prophane Histories and the onely teacher of time as by his 5. bookes appeare but for that Moses must be spoken of almost in euery place for the recourse and triall of time I will nowe goe forward with the historie Nowe reigned ouer the Assyrians Ascatades the 18. king in Niniue and in the 8. yeere of this Ascatades Cancres Pharaoh the king of Egypt with all his great armie were drowned in the red sea In Moses time happened two great floods the one called Deucalion flood 784. yeeres after Noahs flood the other in Thessalia after which followed such earthquakes in Thessalie that many thousands of beasts men women and children townes and cities were destroied as both Berosus and Xenophon doe agree After which earthquake fire wasted many townes and cities in Greece called incendium Phaetontis In Moses time the kingdome of Athens beganne wherein Cecrops was the first king of Athens 350. yeeres before the destruction of Troy From Abraham to Moses 450. from Moses to the first building of the Temple 480. yeeres Thus farre Berosus writeth euen from the beginning of Noah out of the arke vntil the going of the Israelites out of Egypt yet a litle farther vntill the falling of Dathan with 250. more which held with Abiran and Chore for their murmuring against Moses After this went Moses vp from the plaine of Moab to mount Nebo where the Lorde shewed vnto Moses all the lande of Canaan according to his promise saying thou shalt see the lande of Canaan with thine eies but thou shalt not goe ouer thither and there Moses the seruant of the Lorde died for whome Israel wept 30. daies and after whome Iosua succeeded Moses was 120. yeeres of age when he died Nowe you must vnderstande that when Ioseph was dead and the Hebrewes began to be multiplied the Egyptians both feared and hated them oppressed them as you heard with all toile and slauerie and not yet contented but a law was made among the Egyptians that euery male childe of the Hebrewes should be throwen to Nilus This lawe continued from Moses birth and before vntill their God deliuered them by Moses God had appointed with Moses and after with Iosua wise and graue men as Elders Iudges Magistrates to gouerne the Common-wealth of the Hebrewes vnder Moses as Iethro his father in lawe had councelled him the head of any tribe or of any citie Conuocauit populos Israel Senatum eorum principes eorum iudices eorum Ios. 23. Hee had also the Leuites the Priest and the high Bishop a state of Common-wealth chaunged from Oligarchia which was in Abrahams time into Aristocratia by the expresse commandements of God in all the lawes of the Hebrewes Morall and Iudiciall And after God gaue the Ceremoniall Lawes to Moses at mount Sinai for the Common-wealth of the Hebrewes were of all others most principally to be allowed for that God ordeined all their lawes ordered their Iudges al their Kings and their high Priestes for these three states gouerned the Hebrewes from Moses the first Iudge vntil the last high Priest though by Moses other officers were appointed as Tribunes Centurions and Captaines some ouer a 1000. some ouer a 100. some ouer 50. by the Greekes named Chiliarchi Hecatontarchi Pentecontarchi Decatarchi The offerings which were gold siluer and brasse blewe silke purple and scarlet fine linnen Goates haire and Rammes skinnes coloured red oile spices perfumes of sweete sauour the Tabernacle the Arke the stone table and the rod of Aaron and Manna which were testimonies of Gods presence Read of these Ceremoniall lawes in Exod. 25. About this time reigned in Egypt Ramesses afterwards hauing vanquished his brother Danaus from Egypt Egyptus vsurped the kingdom of Egypt named it Egyptus after his owne name Amongst the Argiues Stelenus their 9. King and after him succeeded Danaus being driuen out of Egypt by the foresaid Egyptus his brother giuing that name to the Countrey of Egypt being before named Mizraim Nowe in Creete gouerned Axit and in Athens the 4. king Ericthonius in these daies Nowe Memphis in Egypt of one Epaphus as Eusebius doth name was builded Dardanus builded Dardania in the sixt yeere of this king Egyptus this afterwarde was called Troy-Cyrene at this time was likewise builded in Libya and Nisa a great citie in India by Dionysius In Niniue Amintes the 19. king of the Assyrians gouerned It is written by Orosius that Danaus king at this time of the Argiues hauing fiftie daughters who being married to fiftie brethren sonnes to his owne brother Egyptus wrought meanes by these his daughters to requite the iniurie of his brother they agreeing with their father conspired the deathes of their husbandes and slewe them all in one night This historie is diuersly written which I leaue to euery mans iudgement After that Moses had gouerned the people of God 40. yeeres in the wildernes hee made choise of Iosua as you heard to be their Gouernour and Iudge for there was no succession of Gouernors no election of states no Prince no Iudge to claime right amongest the people of Israel but the lawe of God was the Iudge that gouerned Israel So Gedeon saide Non dominabor vestri nec dominabitur vestri filius meus sed Dominus he was the onely ruler so they prospered all the time of good Iudges This Iosua the second Iudge of Israel whome God raised after Moses was adorned with excellent giftes as with counsell to gouerne Israel and with strength to defend Israel this bringeth them after all difficulties vnto the land of Canaan which Iosua diuided among the people he appointed their borders he established lawes and ordinances assuring them of Gods fauour if they would obey God and contrariwise of his plague and vengeance by disobedience To this good Iosua God saide my seruant Moses is dead nowe therefore arise goe ouer Iordan thou and all this people vnto the lande which I gaue them for euery place where you shall tread vpon haue I giuen you there shall be no man able to withstande thee all the daies of thy life bee thou strong and be of good courage I will not leaue thee nor forsake thee This was great comfort to Iosua to haue God to be with him to assist him to strengthen him to defend him Then Iosua commanded his hoste with their Captaines and officers to passe ouer Iordan he exhorteth the Rubenites the Gadites and the halfe tribe of Manasses to execute their charge saying the Lord your God hath giuē you this land which was somtime in the possession of Sihon king of the Amorites and in the hands of Og king of Bashan goe you
forward God shal go before you and cast out the Cananites the Hittites the Iebusites Girgashites Perisites and the Amorites so they passed ouer Iordan drie the water staied and gaue them place in like sort as the red sea did The walles of Iericho fell downe and gaue them place to enter vnto the citie without strokes Nowe Iericho being burned diuers kings countreies and cities hearing how Iericho and Ai were destroied gathered their forces together one to helpe an other but in vaine for the Lorde fought for Israel for fiue kings rose against Iosua which were destroied and discomfited and as it is written in the 12. of Iosua thirtie kings were vanquished ouerthrowen and slaine whose names you may reade in Iosua This godly Iosua was an other Moses ruled Israel in all obedience of the Lorde conquered and possessed the land of promise and kept Gods people all his time in peace liued 110. yeeres and gouerned Israel two and thirtie yeeres Eusebius saieth thirtie and hee died two hundred yeeres after Iosephs death CHAP. III. Of the Iudges of Israel after Iosuas death vntill Saul the first king of Israel of their gouernment warres and continuance THe Hebrewes had none to gouerne them 8. yeeres after so long inter regnum continued whereby the Israelites euer rebelling against God cōtemned the lawes despised religiō quiteforgat Moses Iosua the benefits of God toward thē a thing almost incredible that so soonefrō God they would fall hauing tasted of his goodnes and mercie so long for after they had entred into the lande of Canaan and had seene the promise of God performed insteed of thanks for the same they rebelled and prouoked God to anger for he suffered them to be vexed and tormented by tyrants he tooke their libertie away from them and left them destitute of all comfort and helpe yet God raised from time to time such as should defend them if they would be obedient and thankefull vnto God and although the Israelites fell to idolatrie after Iosuas death and thereby were giuen vnto their enemies handes as the tribe of Beniamin 1005. in one day slaine and so the tribe of Dan with others yet God left them not for all their ingratitude but stirred good and godly Iudges as Othoniel Ehud Gedeon and others to deliuer them in extremities The Lorde pitied them and raised Othoniel of the tribe of Iuda the yonger brother of Caleb which gouerned the Israelites 8. yeeres animated them againe to goe to warre against the king of Syria whom God deliuered to the hands of Othoniel and brought them to the fauour of God that Israel had rest 40. yeeres 32. vnder Iosua and 8. vnder Othoniel yet still Israel offended God and committed wickednes before the Lord so long vntill that Eglon king of Moab was by God appointed to bee their scourge Hee smote them and afflicted them and kept them vnder him 18. yeeres vntill Ehud of the tribe of Beniamin a man whome God appointed to defende and to deliuer his people euen he ouerthrewe the Moabites slewe 10000. at one time and killed Eglon the king of Moab and caused Israel to haue rest 80. yeeres the whole time of his gouernment But when this good Iudge died the children of Israel againe fell from the Lord. Then Iabin the king of Canaan had them in his power troubled and persecuted them extremely for God had sold them for their wickednes vnto the handes of Iabin and Sisera his Generall yet still his mercie continued with them for Debora and Barach of the tribe of Nephthali were of God appointed to defend the Hebrewes for Israel preuailed against Iabin king of Canaan and prospered vnder Debora and Barach while Debora and Barach gouerned which was fourtie yeeres Some writers doe interpose Shamgar to be the thirde Iudge of Israel compting Othoniel to be first Iudge that deliuered Israel after Iosua Ehud the seconde Iudge that killed Eglon and then Shamgar which slewe of the Philistims sixe hundred with an Oxe goade Nowe while these thinges were done amongest the Israelites reigned in Niniue Pannias in Athens reigned Pandion the 8. king of the Athenians About this time Bithinia was builded Gedeon the first Iudge one of the tribe of Manasses after that Israel committed wickednes was sent by God to deliuer them from the Madianites who at that time oppressed Israel miserably but they alwaies in great extremities at the last pinch when necessitie forced them and miserie oppressed them according to their wonted maner cried vnto the Lorde and he heard them and helped them by Moses in Egypt and in the wildernes by Iosua to come to the lande of Canaan and in the lande by Othoniel in often deliuering Israel from the king of Syria by Ehud in sauing them from Eglon the king of Moab whome Ehud most boldely and zealously killed in his priuie chamber by Shamgar in defending them from the Philistims of whome he slewe sixe hundred with an Oxe goade by Barach and Debora from Iabin king of Canaan and Sisera and nowe by Gedeon whom God raised to defend them and to deliuer them from the Madianites who preuailed much against Israel for both the Madianites and the Amalekites brought Israel into so great misery that they made them dennes in the mountaines and caues to hide themselues from the Madianites After seuen yeeres oppression and affliction then they cried vnto God when they were most afflicted and persecuted and not before But the mercie of God was with them for all their vilenes and stubbornes Gedeon was called by God to be their aide who ouerthrewe the Madianites and ouercame the Amalekites not by strength or force of Israel but by the workes and wonders of God as you may reade in the Iudges at large for with three hundred Gedeon slewe one hundred and twentie thousand of the Amalekites Madianites and Arabians And though Ephraim murmured against Gedeon yet he appeased them and reuenged him selfe on them of Succoth and Penuel Reade the 8. of the Iudges you shall be satisfied By Gedeon nowe againe Israel was restored to the former libertie and dignitie hauing vanquished the Madianites and slaine Oreb and Zeeb two of their princes and their heads brought to Gedeon beyond Iordan Nowe reigned Panninas in Niniue the fiue and twentieth king of the Assyrians Pandayon of that name the second king after Cecrops reigned in Athens Euristheus the first king of Mycena this was that king whose fame was great in Greece he brought the Argiues and their kingdome subiect vnto Mycena which kingdome continued from Iacobs birth vntill Gedeons time fiue hundred and fiftie yeeres during which time reigned foureteene kings ouer the Argiues About this time reigned in Troy Ilus the fourth king of this kings name Troy was called Ilion being first called Dardania by Dardanus who first builded it in the last yeere of
Heraclides into Peloponesus Read of this further in Herodotus Homerus surnamed Chius a great Magitiā flourished in Sauls time the kingdom of Corinth together with the Lacedemonians began a litle before the eight Iubilee in the yeere of the world 2865. But to goe forward in the historie Saul being dead and Dauid the last time annointed the kingdome of Israel not yet came to Dauids handes for some of Sauls sonnes liued and withstood Dauid as heires to Saul and held all the tribes of Israel saue the tribe of Iuda ouer whom Dauid was the second time annointed king and Dauid dwelt in Hebron 7. yeeres Ishboseth the sonne of Saul was likewise annointed king ouer the house of Israel hence grew great warres betweene the house of Saul and the house of Dauid for Abner the chiefe captaine of Saul and the master of Sauls horses thought it not fit that any should gouerne Israel but Sauls sonne who was right heire to the kingdome perswading the people thereunto and gathering force together and would by the sword make Ishboseth king of Israel who kept then his court at Manahim vnder whom all the Hebrewes sauing the tribe of Iuda were ruled Dauid this time lying in Hebron and hearing of Abners preparation to warres consulted with the Lord and sollicited his owne cause carefully he appointed Ioab to be his Lieutenant These two great captains Abner and Ioab full of indignation and willing to trie the kingdome by battell they met by the poole of Gibeon where Abner and Ioab fell to the sword and the battell was exceeding sore that same day But Abner and the men of Israel fell before Ioab so that 360. men were slaine Thus God would confirme Dauid in his kingdome by ouerthrowing of his aduersaries These warres continued long for Abner made all his power for the house of Saul But God wrought otherwise to bring his purpose to passe while Saul liued hee had a concubine named Rizpha with whom Abner kept companie and consumed more time with Rizpha then he did in the seruice of Ishboseth The king being moued with some choler charged Abner with his fault concerning his fathers concubine this checke could not be wel disgested of Abner and therefore he communed with the elders of Israel and perswaded them to take Dauid for their king and after that Abner went to Hebron to Dauid and promised him that he would bring all Israel vnder his gouernment and all this Abner did rather for malice hatred that he bare to Ishboseth then for any good will he bare to Dauid Notwithstanding Dauid accepted in good part his cōming to him thogh Ioab would haue had the king to slay Abner for his priuate grudge which was the killing of Asahel Ioabs brother which within a while after Ioab reuenged for he killed Abner vnknowing to Dauid whose deth Dauid lamēted much When these newes came to Sauls sonne that Abner was dead in Hebron he was discouraged and all Israel was afraid with him and so within a while after he was slaine by Banah and Rechab two men that were captaines of bands this they both did in hope of lucre and fauour with Dauid and they were rewarded as he that slew Saul for in as much as neither the example of him nor dutie to their master nor innocencie of the person nor the reuerence of the place did feare them they died for it Now Dauid was made king ouer all Israel after he had raigned seuen yeeres ouer Iuda in Hebron he went with all his armie to Ierusalem vnto the Iebusites the inhabitants of the land at that time and tooke the forte of Zion and dwelt there and builded round about it Hiram king of Tyrus sent Cedar trees and carpenters and masons they builded a house for Dauid Againe the Philistines came vp against Dauid and he smote them from Geba to Gazer The arke was not yet come from the house of Abinadab in Gibeah whither Dauid with 3000. chosen men of Israel went to bring the arke to the citie of Dauid When Dauid had subdued the Iebusites Philistines other diuers nations as the Syrians Phoenicians Edomites Ammonites Moabites and Mesopotamia vntill the riuer of Euphrates so that Dauids fame spred farre his kingdome prospered his people grew strong and himselfe in all his enterprises most happy Then Dauid ruled and raigned ouer all Israel and executed iudgement and iustice to his people And being at rest from his enemies with great quietnes in Ierusalē behold both his fortune and his great fame forsooke him for he committed adulterie with Bethsabe Vrias wife and wrote his letters to Ioab his lieutenant with Vrias in this sort Put Vrias in the forefront of the battell and cause the souldiers to recule backe from Vrias that he may be smitten and die Which being done the king was glad and tooke Vrias wife to his house and maried her but the Lord was angry with Dauid and sent Nathan to accuse him of adulterie and murther What grew of this cruell dissention betweene Dauid and his children God gaue ouer Dauid to be afflicted and tormented on both sides inward and outward For Amnon defiled his sister Tamar and Absalon killed Amnon such was the wrath of God vpon the house of Dauid that one wickednesse fell on the necke of another Absalon fled vpon the killing of his brother and went to Geshur and then Absalon practised to aspire to the kingdom and laid snares to entrap his father the king Absalon gathered force to dispossesse Dauid for Achitophels councell is alwayes readie in matters of treason Now Dauid felt the anger of God for sinne hee confessed that he had deserued this plague for Dauid was faithful and obedient to God and shewed himselfe contented with these afflictions Absalon goeth forward with his armie and Dauid fled ouer Iordan to Mahanaim Absalon passeth likewise ouer Iordan and followed fast as Achitophel had councelled him so Israel and Absalon pitched in the land of Gilead God raised fauorers vnto Dauid in euery place where he came for certain of the Reubenites and Gadites could not beare the insolencie of the sonne against the father and therefore with all the power they had they ioined with Dauid and the battell began so there was a great slaughter of Absalons side to the nūber of 2000. Israel fled before Ioab and Absalon was caught by the haire of his head vnder a bough of an oke where he hanged till Ioab came and killed him and so Dauid againe was restored to his kingdom being persecuted of Achitophel for his counsell of Semei for his threatning and cursing and of Absalon for his treason Now this warre being ended new warres againe began betweene Iuda and the tenne tribes of Israel more cruel then the warres of Absalon for Sheba a man of Ephraim he now again raised Israel against Dauid and made the Israelites to forsake Dauid and to follow Sheba but his head was caried
erected vp a kingdome and was the first place that was inhabited as both Zenophon and Berosus affirme for the Caldeans knew that before the flood that men liued and that the continuance of them were before the flood one thousande sixe hundreth and fiftie yeeres and more for that then Noah and his sonnes taught the second age of things done in the former age and how for sinne God had destroied the world for the Egyptians and the Phoenicians long after the flood were taught by the Chaldeans of the flood and of the former time and after more perfectly instructed by Abraham which in the time of famine trauailed from Canaan into Egypt where for a time hee read Arithmeticke to the Egyptians then rude and ignorant of any great knowledge that hearing of these things they beganne very obscurely and darkely to set downe many things which they then not perfectly knewe and yet are vnperfect for that they were ignorant of the Genesis The goodnesse of God spared Noah for 350. yeres and more to instruct the second age to preach vnto them the wonderfull workes and mercies of God before the flood and to warne the world after the flood from sinne the onely cause of Gods wrath towards man and to bring them vp in the true religion of God not as prophane writers affirme that hee wandered all the countreys of the world by diuers and sundry names as by the name of Ogyges Ianus Coelus Oenotrius Geminus pater and many such fabulous names of his lawes in euery countrey of his religion and ceremonies in euery kingdome of his being in Italy in Spaine and in other countreys cleane contrary to the nature and trueth of the history which came after the flood vnto the place where he yet liued with his forefathers Lamech Methusalem Enoch and so foorth before the flood the land of Shinear where by the consent and opinion of the best learned he liued vntil he died I wil not therefore follow Caldean fables in the antiquities of their Caldean and Assyrian kings for that they haue no sound warrant for their historie but that which Berosus setteth downe which Manethon an Egyptian priest much commendeth and maketh many supplies of Berosus lies and so doeth Io. Annius a priest in Whitenberge in his Commentaries vpon Berosus and so doth Diodorus in his bookes of Fabulous antiquitie But leauing Berosus Menathon and Annius to forge their fables I wil as briefly as I can runne through this historie for that I can finde nothing true of them but that which I reade in the Bible from the time of Phul assur vntill Balsaars time which were but 10. kings whose names I set here downe 1 Phul assur named in the Scripture Tiglat Phul-assur 2 Salmanassar which destroyed Samaria and toke the 10. tribes of Israel vnto Niniue captiue 3 Saneherib who came against Ezechias to Hierusalem with an huge armie folowing his fathers tyrannie Saneherib 4 Merodach the first king of Babylon againe broght Niniue vnder Babylon 5 Berodach his sonne 6 Nabuchodonosor which destroied Hierusalem and tooke the tribe of Iuda captiue into Babylon 7 Euilmerodach Nabuchodonosors sonne this restored Iehoakim king of Iuda vnto his libertie againe after that Nebuchodonosor his father died 8 The last of these Kings was Balsaar of these many kings in this the history of the Prophetes make mention and so much of the historie is true I will therefore set downe the continuance the nombers of their kings the change and varietie of this Kingdome for after that Nimrod had drawen people together he first laide the foundation of the Empire made lawes began to builde a great Citie and named it Babylon the first Citie after the flood which Citie though Nimrod began it his sonne Belus amplified it and last of al Semiramis finished it in such forme and stately shewe as he that is desirous to knowe the length the breadth the compasse situation the strength and beautie of Babylō let him read Herodotus Solinus where it is largely described Though it is thought that Herodotus and others in this do erre for Iosephus lib. 1. contr App. and Beroaldus 3. Chr. affirme that the olde writers erred much about the building of Babylon and of Niniue for that which Nabuchodonosor claimed to be his owne saying Nonne haec est Babylon quam ego aedificaui in robore fortitudinis meae Is not this Babylon which I haue builded the Grecians and all olde writers attribute to Nimrod to Belus and to Semiramis The like fable is of Niniue which was builded first by Assur the sonne of Semi by writers is attributed to Nynus Herein both Greeke and Lataine Historians are ouer seene aswell in the time as in the persons in that they were ignorant of the Prophetes histories howbeit Babylon was begun by Nimrod and Belus and somewhat enlarged and beautified by Semiramis but the dignitie and chiefe soueraigntie of Babylon must be graunted to Nabuchodonosor vnder whom the Caldeans onely florished ouer all Kingdomes and enioyed aureum seculum So this Countrey florished first before all other Countreis Babylon the first towne the first seate of the Empire of the world being the chiefest palace of the king for so were they called kings of Babylon and the first kings in the worlde after the flood and so continued almost two hundred yeres vntill the time of Ninus who after he had builded Niniue in the plaine of Aturia a farre greater Towne then Babylon though before it was begunne by Assur one of the sonnes of Sem yet fully by Nynus finished This Nynus waxed great and strong layed siege to Babylon subdued it and brought the Empire of Caldea subiect vnto Assyria then both Caldea and Assyria became one Monarchie and then the kings of Babylon were called kings of Assyria and then Assyria hauing conquered Babylon began to be chiefe and continued from Belus time the first king of Assyria vntill Sardanapalus time the last king of Assyria which as Eusebius writeth was 12. hundred fourtie yeeres from the first reigne of Nynus vntill the last of Sardanapalus so long the seede of Sem continued kings and helde the Monarchie of Assyria As the kingdome of Babylon was translated then from the posteritie of Cham after the first 200. yeeres vnto the posteritie of Sem so nowe againe Niniue is made subiect to Babylon as it shal be hereafter shewed when the historie of the kings of Assyria is handled Thus Assyria sometime subiect to Chaldea and Chaldea to Assyria Niniue to Babylon and Babylon to Niniue vntill both were subdued by the Medes and after by the Persians so God doth appoint and God doth disappoint states and common wealthes according to the decree of his eternall will sinne being the onely cause of Gods anger and wrath his wrath the cause of all calamities destruction and subuersion of kingdomes as Sirach saith Regnum à gente in gentem transferetur propter iniustitiam
cities and countreis hauing 24. kings by succession which continued vntil 75. yeeres after the destruction of Troy continued so vntil the Carthaginians began to flourish whom the Romanes afterward cōquered At this time one Pypinus gouerned the Thuscanes and raigned as Manethon writes 56. yeres In the last yeres of this king Tyneus the Prophet Dauid was borne 407. yeres after the children of Israels going out of Egypt and in the 7. Iubile after Moses then began to raigne in Assyria Dercillus he raigned 40. yeres In his dayes began the kingdome of Lacedemonia 83. yeres after Troys destruction the first king of Lacedemonia was called Euristenes who raigned 42. yeeres of him came lineally 2. noble and valiant captains Cleomenes and Leonidas who in their time were most famous for they inuaded the Persians and ouerthrew them at Thermophila About the same yere the Corinthians began likewise to establish a kingdome for the Lacedemonians and the Corinthians began at one time to raigne the first king of Corinth was Alethes and he raigned 35. yeres In the 10. yere of king Dercillus the Arke of the Lord was taken by the Philistines and caried vnto Ashdod one of their fiue principal cities they kept the Arke 7. moneths For when the Israelites were ouercome by the Philistines and the arke taken away Ely the priest hearing that the Israelites were ouerthrowen the arke taken and his two sonnes slaine fel down frō his stoole brake his necke for so the Lord told Samuel before what should become vpō Ely his house Israel stil offended God now not contented with the gouernmēt which God appointed them but cried out for a king God cōmanded Samuel to anoint Saul their king About this time great warres grew betwene the Peloponesians and the Athenians Codrus at that time liued was the last king of Athens for after Codrus there was no king there but gouernours called Metontidae Codrus sonne called Medon was the first Iudge in Athens after the kings Codrus according to the Oracle giuen that the Athenians should haue no victories vnlesse their king were slaine in the battell he disguised himselfe like a common souldier rushed into the midst of the battaile purposely to be slaine that his countrey might haue victorie being the last of the 17. kings hauing ruled Athens 21. yeeres ended his life and his kingdome About this time Samuel was commanded to anoint Dauid king ouer Israel and many learned men would haue Homer about this time to be borne some controuersie is of Homers time Eratosthenes thought it within 100. yeeres after the destruction of Troy and so saith Aristarchus and Cornelius Nepos both affirme that Homer flourished 100. yeeres before the first Olympiad Budaeus saith that Homer liued in the latter yeres of king Dauid so they square about 80. yeres of Homers birth During this time raigned ouer the Latines AEneas Siluius their fourth king After this raigned in Assyria Eupales 38. yeeres in whose time the Peloponesians againe mooued warres against the Athenians Now about this time the promise is made to Dauid that the continuance of his kingdome should for euer endure but with crosses and afflictions for Absalon killed his brother Amnon a litle after and fled vnto the king of Gessur and taried there three yeere By this time Salomon was borne of Bethsaba the wife of Vrias Nathan and Gad were in those dayes Prophets of the Lord. Now raigned in Athens Medon the first Iudge the sonne of Codrus the last king of Athens in Lacedemonia Argis the second king raigned one yeere Arcestratus succeeded the third king of Lacedemonia and gouerned the Lacedemonians 35. yeeres in Corinth likewise Ixon the second king raigned 37. yeeres for both these kingdomes had one beginning and therefore their kingdome is accordingly to be handled for in the last yeres of the kings of Assyrians histories the Grecians began for this vnderstand that the Caldeans Assyrians Egyptians and all the East part of the world which were first inhabited after the flood were euen consumed with sworde and fire before the Grecians or the Romanes were acquainted with the world and therefore the lesse to be spoken of these olde auncient people for want of authorities and had not the holy Ghost lightened prophane histories with true records of the Scripture all antiquities had almost bene put to obliuion for all that are in trueth learned in histories take their light from Moses he is the grand scholemaster of all writers About this time Nicius Fesulanus gouerned the Thuscanes 47. yeres he expelled the people called Phocenses out of Corsica and Nicius builded a towne and named it Nicea after his owne name By this time Salomon grewe great in Gods fauour began to make the temple in Ierusalem excelled all the princes of the world in wisdome gouernment Hiram king of Tyrus at that time sendeth to Salomon and Salomon to him purposing to builde the house of God which temple began to be builded the fourth yeere of Salomons raigne and the 12. of Hiram king of Tyre Salomons friend who procured workemen to worke in Libanon and after the going of Israel out of Egypt 480. yeeres Some thinke that Carthage was builded by Charcedon at that time some thinke of Dido others say otherwise both of the building of Carthage and of the time of building as in the building of Troy and in the building of Rome the like controuersie is that sub iudice lis est Laosthenes the 33. king of the Assyrians is the next king after Eupales and is now in hand to be spoken of in whose time Alba Siluius gouerned the Latines the sixt king for the sirnames of the Latin kings were called Siluij as the kings of Alexandria were called Ptolomei as before I told you of the Caesars of Rome and Pharaos of Egypt About this time the kingdome of Israel for the idolatrie of Salomon was deuided and the ten tribes caried from Rehoboam the sonne of Salomon king of Iuda vnto Ieroboam king of Israel who inuented many wicked things in Israel idolatrie new religion contempt of the true God putting vp for their god the golden calfe thus he and his posterities continued from the fourth yeere of Rehoboam vntil the 19. yeere of Nabuchodonosor which was 390. yeeres at what time the last destruction of Ierusalem and the captiuitie of Iuda was Archippus the third Iudge atthis time ruled Athens where he gouerned 19. yeeres vnder whom flourished Sextus Homerus a citizen of Athens this man gaue new lawes to the Athenians The Thracians were strong by this time and became great on land and seas Smendes king of Egypt to whom Ieroboam fled and with whome he staied vntil Salomon died this Smendes is named in Scripture Sesac this came vp against Ierusalem the fift yere of Rehoboam destroyed the citie spoiled the temple and
pleasures he commaunded fire to be put to his pallace I meane that pile of wood which he made for his graue and so ended his life and the Empire together in fire to escape his enemies thus ended the monarchie of Assyria after one thousand two hundreth and fourtie yeeres continuance Behold the euents of the kingdoms of the world how God gaue them alwayes vp to the enemies when they flourished most in glory and were most in force power Euen so was Chaldea and Assyria the only empires of the world which farre excelled all other kingdomes when it was ouerthrowen by Cyrus insomuch that the great and mightie king Nabuchodonosor the onely Hercules by Megasthenes so named of the East kingdomes who aduanced himselfe vp vnto the heauens who was compared for his great magnificence and glorious pompe of his huge empire for the pride of his minde and insolencie of his state to the starre Lucifer for the brightnes beautie and glorie of his Empire his greatnes was such that hee had diuine honours done vnto him but his pride and pompe was layde in the pitte For in the time of Nabuchodonosor the Chaldeans and Assyrians flourished for they were kings of the Arabians of the Egyptians of all Syria and for the glorie and greatnes of their kingdome it passed all others farre and being the first kingdome of the world was called the golden kingdome aureum seculum the other three Monarchies were called Argenteum seculum the siluer age beganne in Cyrus time in Persia the brasen age in Macedonia in the time of Alexander and last the Iron age among the Romanes beganne in Iulius Caesars time described in Daniel by the foure beastes For all Nabuchodonosors power strength states and kingdomes lost all within threescore and tenne yeeres of this his great possession and power Euen so the kings of Egypt which flourished in like strength and claimed the like maiestie lost their kingdome in the midest of their glory and were ouerthrowen by Cambyses To bee short because God would bee knowen vnto his people whom the wicked neuer confessed to bee the God of victorie he deliuered Pharao and all Egypt into the handes of Nabuchodonosor and for his pompe and pride herein thinking that it was his owne strength his owne force and power hee deliuered Nabuchodonosor and his posterities with all the Empire of Assyria and Chaldea into the handes of Cyrus whose kingdome flourished much aboue the rest vntil Darius sirnamed Codomanus whose wealth force and kingdomes were such that he made nothing of all the world beside God gaue him ouer into the handes of Alexander the great whose greatnesse continued not long for the like vnthankefulnesse to God for his kingdome passed to the Romanes Thus God appointed the weakest sometime to vanquish the strongest and raised vp the meanest to ouercome the mightiest Thus was Egypt subdued by the Chaldeans the Chaldeans by the Persians the Persians by the Macedonians the Macedonians by the Romanes and the long empire of the Romans their pompe and their glorie taken away by the Germanes and the Germanes rather prouinces to be called then an Empire so wickednesse preuailed that Turkes Canes Sophies with such infidels of long time flourished Then Arbaces and Phul Belochus deuided these Empires Phul Belochus helde Babylon and Niniue Arbaces possessed Media and Persia for his part But to write of Chaldea first this Phul Belochus though he dwelt in Babylon and raigned asking there eight and fourtie yeeres yet the name of the Monarchie continued still in Assyria for that the most part of the other Kings had their mansion in Niniue and therefore after Sardanapalus time called the newe kingdome of Assyria Nowe Belochus being settled king in Babylon called also the king of Assur hee came against the lande of Israel and mooued warres against Manahem then king but being pacified with a thousand talents of siluer he returned to Babylon without any harme done and there died when he had raigned eight and fourtie yeeres After him succeeded his sonne Phul Assur named in Scripture Tyglat Phul Assur this infidel God stirred vp against Israel for their sinnes hee tooke all these Cities and coastes Aron Abel Bethmecha Asor Gilead and Galilee and all the land of Nepthali and caried them vnto Assyria this king raigned three and twentie yeeres as both Functius and Melancthon write yet Metasthenes would haue him to raigne twentie and fiue yeeres After this succeeded Salmanasser the thirde king of newe Assyria hee likewise was by God appointed a scourge for the sinâ—…s of Israel and the idolatrie of Samaria hee came from Niniue vnto Samaria besieged it three yeeres and tooke it and caried all Israel captiue vnto Assyria and put them in Halah and in Habor cities of the Medes for at that time the Medes and the Persians were subiect vnto the Assyrians Thus were the 10. tribes caried captiue away from Samaria vnto Assyria in the ninth yeere of Hosea king of Israel after the building of Samaria 210. yeres the whole kingdome of Israel was destroyed when it had continued from the first yeere of Roboam the sonne of Salomon to the last yeere of king Hosea two hundreth fiftie and three yeeres as Functius affirmeth Then Salmanassar filled al the cities of Samaria with men from Babylon and from Hamath in stead of the children of Israel for the kings of Samaria enuied so much the kings of Iuda the state of Ierusalem the pompe of the high priest and the magnificence of Salomons temple that the kings of Samaria builded temples erected two idolatrous altars in Dan and Bethel where they sacrificed vnto the golden calfe and honoured idols of Baal yet God raised good men as Elias and Elizeus Amos and Osea by whom the Church of God in this wicked kingdome was still preserued This king Salmanasser brought the Medes and Persians subiect vnto Assyria and destroyed the Moabites as the Prophet Esay afore tolde there is mention made of this king in the tenth chapter of Osea where the Prophet sayeth As Salmanasser destroyed Betharbell in the day of battaile the mother with the children was dashed in pieces so shall Bethel doe vnto you Vnder this king Salmanasser was Israel scattered like sheepe for the Lyons dispersed them first the king of Ashur that was Salmanasser hath deuoured him and last Nabuchodonosor hath taken his bones the one caried the tenne tribes of Israel the other caried the two tribes of Iuda prisoners vnto Babylon This Salmanasser is named of Ptolome Nabonasser he raigned in the eight Olympiad when Romulus was king in Rome Ezechias was king in Iuda and Osea king in Israel before the captiuitie of Iuda one hundreth thirtie and three yeeres so long was betweene the destruction of Ierusalem and Samaria for Salmanasser did raigne seuen yeeres king in Assyria before hee had besieged Samaria which is to bee noted to auoyde errours in accompt From the
changed betweene 12. Princes which should equally gouerne the whole kingdome of Egypt so did for 15. yeres as Diodorus affirmeth After this one of the 12. princes obtained into his owne hand the whole kingdome and gouerned 54. yeres after augmenting the confines of Egypt by the ayde of certaine Grecians which against their wils were driuen into Egypt by a tempest with whom Psammiticus entred into friendship and came thereby to be king of Egypt To these Grecians did the king giue a countrey to dwell in farre from Nilus with these Greekes Psammiticus cōmaunded that certaine yong gentlemen of Egypt should be brought vp in the Greeke tongue which afterward made Egypt acquainted therewith While yet Psammiticus was one of the 12. magistrats before he became king these 12. consented to make some monument in memory of their gouernment therefore they erected many huge strange works as pillars porches labirinths Piramides temples other sumptuous buildings they also studying how to passe these monuments inuented to make a Labirinth vpō the lake of Meris not far frō the city of Crocodiles for so the Egyptians had cities according to the names of those fowles fishes and beastes which they had honored for their gods and had erected temples for sacrifices in these cities and though the temple of Diana in Ephesus the temple of Iuno in Samos were huge monstrous for their bignes yet the Piramides of Egypt were farre more greater But the Labirinth far excelled this greatest Piramides for within this Labirinth were chambers parlers halles and other roomes to the number of three thousand whereof an hundreth and fiftie were made vnder the ground and the other aboue ground with such artificiall worke with the pictures and likenes of all kinde of creatures that it farre excelled all the monuments of Egypt and the place whereupon it was made and builded was a lake of three thousand sixe hundreth furlongs which are three hundreth seuentie and fiue miles which is more wonderfull then the Labirinth it selfe Herodoti fabula But now to the king Psammiticus againe who hauing long layd siege to Azotum a citie of Syria and after many yeeres ouerthrowen for it was the longest siege that euer endured which may be read of Psammiticus died after whom succeeded his sonne Necho of whom the Prophets make true mention and therefore Herodotus Diodorus and others may be the better spared being prophane writers because hee and his doings is mentioned in the sacred histories of whom the Prophets write that the wrath of God was ripe to giue iudgement against Egypt at this time for Egypt had so long offended the Lorde with their vaine superstition and idolatrie Now Necho was cried out vpon by the Prophet Ezechiel which was by the riuer Perath and gaue sentence against all Egypt in this sort Howle and crie woe be vnto Egypt the sworde shall come vpon Egypt and feare shall come vpon Aethiopia Pathros shall be desolate and fire shall be in Zoan which is Taphnis Thus the Prophet cried out againe I will powre out my wrath vpon Shin which is named in histories Pelusium and I will destroy the multitude of No the yong men of Auen which is otherwise called Heliopolis and of Phibeseth which is also named of olde Pubastum shall fall by the sworde CHAP. III. Of the last kings of Egypt by the name of Pharaos which continued a thousand two hundreth yeres and of the first conquering of Egypt by Cambyses the second king of Persia. THis time great warres grewe betweene the Assyrians and the Egyptians the greatnes of both these kingdomes which then were the onely kingdomes of the world were destroyed by the sword for so the Prophet saide that Egypt should be the reward of the king of Babylon for his labour which he tooke against Tyrus and so it was performed in Necho after much mischiefe that he had done to Israel he was deliuered into the hands of Nabuchodonosor for so the Lord said I will strengthen the armes of Nabuchodonosor and the armes of Pharao shal be weakened Of this Necho and Aprie the last Pharaos mentioned in Scripture had full triall for Necho raigned seuenteene yeeres and left behind him a sonne named Psammis which raigned 6. yeeres and making warre with the Aethiopians died About this time Phaortes king of the Medes with al his army was ouerthrowen by the Assyrians at what time the Scithians entred into Asia spoiled and wasted almost to the countrey of Palestina Tullus Hostilius the third king of Rome died in the beginning of the raigne of Necho Herodotus doth place Apries the sonne of this Psammis This king for a time prospered like his grandfather Psammiticus but I wil admit Herodotus to speake of this king Apries for the like cause as before for I finde that he is called in Ieremie Hophra To this king many of Ierusalem fled from the hand of Nabuchodonosor where they were as well entertained as with Nabuchodonosor for so the Prophet said that the sword should follow them into Egypt and Pharao should destroy all that fled from Nabuchodonosor who at that very time tooke the citie and brought all Iuda captiue into Babylon though Ieremie perswaded the contrary yet they of Iuda vowed to burne incense vnto the Queene of heauen and vnto the gods of Egypt but the God of Abraham and Isaac gaue them ouer to the sworde and destroyed them with famine And after that Apries had fedde his tyrannie against the Iewes and had slaine the Prophet Ieremie afterward he ouerthrew Sidon besieged Tyre and had done great harme in Iudea and the word of the Lord came vnto him saying I will giue Pharao Hophra king of Egypt into the handes of his enemies and into the hands of them that seeke his life euen into the hands of Nabuchodonosor Though Herodotus affirmeth as other prophane histories doe that Apries was after the ouerthrow of Sydon forsaken of his people and vanquished by Amasis at Memphis and caried captiue from Memphis into Sais into his owne pallace before But now Amasis raigned king in Egypt and ruler of Apries throne thus Apries after he had raigned thirtie fiue yeeres died by the handes of his enemies During the raignes of these two last kings Necho and Apries which was fiftie three yeres many destructions of countreys and cities happened as the destruction of Niniue and also Assyria by Ciaxeres king of the Medes the destruction of Hierusalem and all Iudea by Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon and the warres betweene the Chaldeans and the Egyptians which continued seuen and twentie yeeres the victorie whereof fell to the king of Babylon as the Prophet before had sayde I will giue the lande of Egypt into the hande of Nabuchodonosor for wages to his Armie This time raigned in Rome Ancus Martius the fourth king and Tarquinius Priscus the fifth king Europus raigned now the seuenth king of Macedonia
fire vestall virgines and religious men and priestes of diuers orders as Salij Faeciales and Flamines which he instituted to serue his gods for hee was vertuous and good for when Rome was builded by Romulus Numa was borne The Cimmerians were now at this time ouerthrowen by the Scythians the Scythians entred vnto Asia and tooke Sardis the chiefest citie of the Medes and came conquering countreys and regions as farre as Palestina About this time Necho king of Egypt who a little before ouerthrewe the good and godly king Iosias is now by Nabuchodonosor king of the Assyrians vanquished by the riuer of Euphrates CHAP. II. Of the rest of the kings of Lydia from Ardis the sixt king vntill Craesus the last king of Lydia and of their destruction by Cyrus and the kingdome brought subiect to Persia. NOw succeeded Ardis his sonne named Sadaites the 7. king of the Lydians who as Herodot saith raigned 12. yeres but Functius saith 15. yeres Of this king nothing is mentioned with Historiographers but that in his time Ancus Martius the fourth king of Rome brought a huge armie against the Veientines which being by Martius ouerthrowen had his triumph graunted vnto him by the Senators This Martius made vpon Tiber a hauen called Hostia foure or fiue leagues from Rome and a passage frō thence to the sea The Sabines were ouerthrowen by this king as before oftentimes by his predecessors This time was Dirachium builded and Perosina Aulus Gelius an ancient writer reporteth an historie of one Arion a Lesbian borne a man of great skil in musicke a deare friend of Periander king of Corinth trauailing Sicilia and Italy he grew in great fauour with all men in all countreys and hauing in time heaped great wealth by his arte longed againe to be with Periander in Corinth Now being shipped and well forward toward Greece the mariners vnderstanding that he had much money spoyled and robbed him of his money and after being ready to kill him he befought them with teares to spare him so much time vntil he had attired himselfe in his best apparell and to licence him to play vpon his lute and to sing two or three songs before he died to the Muses which being graunted he prepared to play and sing very loude and in the midst of his song he leapt as farre as he could into the sea where the great Dolphine a fish as histories record very much entised with musicke greatly delighted with mans voyce caried him cleane vpon his backe from the water and brought him vnto an hauen of Lacedemonia called Tenarum from whence he trauailed to Corinth and opened to Periander the king the whole course of his fortune About this time Tarquinius Priscus the fift king of Rome began his gouernment in the 41. Olympiad as Dionysius writeth in the which Olympiad Cleonides a captaine of Thebes got the victorie in the games of Olympia After Sadaites folowed Haliates the 8 king of Lydia he raigned 49. yeeres in whose time though he himselfe did nothing worth the writing yet the most part of the kings of the worlde were busie the king of Assyria was in warie with the king of Egypt This time raigned in Babylon Nabuchodonosor to whose gouernment not only Assyria but al the East kings were broght vnder his becke Likewise about this time a great band of the Scythians were driuen to flee to the Medes where they were kindly harboured much made of and well intertained vntil such time as by some cōspiracie they were found rebellious vnto the king of the Medes then they fled from thence vnto Lydia to this king Haliates and being by him there succoured great warres grew thereof betweene the king of Media and the king of Lydia and continued vntil Astiages maried the daughter of Haliates vpon the which peace and great affinitie began to be betweene the Medes and the Lydians Herodotus who writeth this historie is thought of Functius and others to erre in the time In Egypt there raigned Apries whom Ieremie calleth Hophra whose name he ought to knowe for by this king Ieremie was put to death in Egypt In the 7. yeere of this king Haliates this Apries king of Egypt in the middest of his tyrannie God gaue him into the hands of his enemies so the Lord said I wil giue Pharao Hophra king of Egypt into the hands of his enemies as I gaue Zedechias king of Iuda And in another place the Lord saith I will giue the land of Egypt vnto Nabuchodonosort king of Babylon and Egypt shal be the wages for his armie to spoyle her spoyle and to take her praye For to Egypt flead Iuda for succour where they were put to the sword and not one escaped Now againe in Rome beganne Tarquinius Priscus the fift king of the Romanes he on the other side beganne to lay on about him with the Latins and with the Sabines that after he had brought the Latines with long warre to seeke fauour at his hande and being driuen out of the countrey by Tarquinius were forced to intreate for peace and to craue the Romanes friendship who by this time waxed so strong that all the West part of the world began to heare of the Romanes Now after that the Latins were vanquished the Sabines againe being olde auncient enemies of Rome a very warlicke nation with all force came against Tarquinius at what time their bridge was burned their tentes taken and themselues slaine and forced to intreat for truce for six yeres After the Sabines the Hetruscanes armed them against Tarquinius whose warre continued 9. yeres About this time the seuen sages of Greece florished whose names I thought good to put downe together for that they liued at one time Solon of Athens Thales of Milesia Pitacus of Mitilena Periander of Corinth Bias of Prienna Chilo of Sparta and Cleobulus of Lindia These singular wise men were in those dayes esteemed the rarest men of the world In this time the kingdome of Corinth failed in Periander the last king or rather the last tyrant and the gouernment was altered to a popular estate About that time Polymnestor a very yong man and as the historie hath termed him a boy being a feeding his fathers goats a hare by chance rūning by the boy folowed ranne so swiftly that he ouertooke the hare and brought her home to his father declaring the race the running betweene him and the hare to his father The matter being spread abroad the yong man was brought to the games Olympical where he wanne the victory in running and had a garland on his head as Solinus doth write Ciaxeres sōne vnto Astiages some say his father as Zonoras in his first booke but Zenophon likewise affirmeth with Iosephus that this Ciaxeres was Astiages sōne called by the name of Darius Medus of Daniel and of Iosephus but the Grecians named
was so full of renowmed cities famous riuers notable mountaines a countrey of singular rarenesse in althings that it were to much labour to write the due praise of Greece But I referre him that would reade the setting forth of Greece to the eight ninth booke of Strabo to the second booke of Pomponius Mela where all Greece is particularly described at large and I will proceede to the seuerall gouernment of Greece in seuerall countreis and will set downe the continuance of euery Region with the names of the kings where and how long they raigned and for that the countrey of Morea is the first inhabited countrey of Greece and the largest region of the same called in Strabo Arxtotius Greciae I wiâ—… beginne with their common wealth This region was first named Aegialia by the name of Aegialeus their first king and continued so vntill the time of Apis the 4. king after whom this region was named Apia which name continued vnto the time of Sicyon the 19. king of Morea After this king Sicyons time the countrey was called Sicyonium and continued vntill Pelops time by whom againe the countrey was called Peloponesus and now at this time is called Morea so that Peloponesus had fiue seueral change of names from the first gouernment vnder Aegialeus the first king vntill Xeuxippus raigne the last king of the Peloponesians And although the kings of that region did nothing worth the memorie hauing bene twentie and sixe kings successiuely yet they are the very way to come further vnto Greece for all this while the whole countrey of Greece was inhabited with barbarous people and was farre from the fame which they gained afterwarde therefore I will briefly passe ouer the historie of their kings and their raigne because I might speake of other countreys in Greece which flourished together with Morea For the first king of this region was named Aegialeus he gouerned that part of Greece at what time Ninus raigned in Assyria and as Eusebius writeth Thebaei ruled Egypt in the yeere of the world two thousand one hundreth and seuen yet Bibliander would not allow so many yeeres by two hundreth and odde which is rather to bee followed for that it doeth with the Genesis agree For in the fiue and twentieth yere of this king Ninus was Abraham borne which was within two hundreth and ninetie yeeres after the flood and therefore better agreeth with Ninus time The second king after Aegialeus was named Europs hee raigned fiue and fourtie yeeres this time flourished Zoroastes the great king of the Bactrians he was thought to be the first that read Astrologie and taught to others Astronomie in whose time Tribeta the sonne of Ninus by Semiramis was expulsed out of the kingdome of Assyria and hee builded a towne in the coast of Gallia and called it Treueris The thirde king of Sicyonium was named Stelchium hee raigned twentie yeres at what time the kingdome of Creete beganne and had for the first king one named Cres after whose name the countrey of Creete was called This Cres builded a citie in Creete and named it Nosus in the which he also builded a temple to the goddesse Cybeles After him succeeded Apis the fourth king of that region after whom as I haue written before it was called Apia hee raigned then when Ninus the sonne of Ninus and Semiramis gouerned the Assyrians After him followed the fift king named Telasion in whose time died Noah the righteous preacher and patriarch and at which time Abraham begate Ismael vpon Agar the bond woman of this Ismael came all the Ismaelites a wicked nation that offended the Lorde In time afterward they were called Agareni after the name of Agar and now are called Saraceni which are infidels and heathens Now succeeded Telasion the sixt king of Peloponesus named Aegidius at what time raigned in Assyria Analius About this season Isaac the sonne of Abraham begate two twinnes vpon Rebecca his wife Esau which was also called Edom of whom the Idumeans came and Iacob afterwarde called Israel of whom issued the twelue tribes of Israel In this kings time Sodom Gomorrha Zeboim Adama and Zoar fiue principal great cities in the lande of Palestine were destroyed and burned with fire and brimstone from heauen the iust iudgement of God for sinne Thurimachus the eight king raigned 45. yeres in this kings gouernment Eusebius noteth the seuenteenth Dynastia of the Egyptians to begin where Shepheards gouerned as chiefe rulers for the space of 103. yeeres soueraigntie About which time the kingdome of the Argiues first sprang vp where Inachus raigned the first king within the kingdome of Argiue and afterwarde continued from Inachus vnto the time of Tenelanthus the last king of the Argiues as Marianus Scotus writeth foure hundreth yeeres After this Leucippus succeeded Messapius in Peloponesus at what time Bellochus raigned King in Assyria and Thelassus gouerned the countrey of Thessalia Among the Argiues raigned now Phoroneus the sonne of Inachus and Niobes the second king after his father this made lawes first to the Argiues and instituted orders in gouernment and wrote decrees for his subiects and ruled the Argiues to his great fame as Eusebius in his histories setteth forth In Licippus time Sem the sonne of Noah died after hee had liued sixe hundreth yeeres and had seene much miserie and great calamitie but not so much as his father before him had seene he liued after Abrahams dayes thirtie and fiue yeeres Osiris whom the Egyptians call Apis and sometime Serapis for that they adored this as their God liued about this time and destroyed that monster in Thracia called Licurgus Reade more of this in Herodotus Ismael Abrahams base sonne by Agar the bondwoman died now and left behinde him twelue sonnes great princes ouer many tribes and nations which began in time to grow enemies to the Church of God and to persecute the people of God and were named Ismaelites In this time raigned in Assyria Bellochus sirnamed Priscus their twelft king and in Egypt gouerned Menam the first king that taught the Egyptians many ceremonies as newe sacrifices to their gods religions and seruice and instructed them in many things for this time Egypt was raw and rude in skil and knowledge This Menam was thought of Functius to be that which is read in Scripture to be Mizraim and of Berosus called Oceanus There is nothing to be written of these kings worth the memorie of man for all this while Greece was inhabited with barbarous people nay the most of Greece was not yet inhabited Athens was not builded neither Sparta nor Corinth for the kingdom of Lacedemonia and the kingdome of Corinth began about Dauids birth The Argiues were the most ancient people in Greece next after the Peloponesians for they beganne to raigne in Argos in the time of Iacob the Patriarch at what time Baleus sirnamed Xerxes gouerned in Assyria
most ambitious man in the world Nowe when hee had wonne the Citizens to bende their force to the sea while this preparation was in Greece newes came howe that king Leonidas was killed in the countrie of Thermopilis of whose courage and exploites you heard a little before and that Xerxes had nowe that entrie into Greece by land and had Embassadours to demaunde the Empire of Greece both by sea and by land and that all Greece shoulde acknowledge obedience to king Xerxes but Themistocles hanged vp the interpretour that came with Xerxes Embassadour for that hee being a Grecian woulde vse the Greeke tongue in the seruice and commandement of the barbarous king This stoutnesse of Themistocles pleased more the Athenians then the suffering of Eurybiades the Lacedemonian to be Admirall of all Greece for the Athenians woulde not set saile vnder any other Admirall then their owne aswell because they had the greatest number of shippes in their armie as also they thought them farre more worthie then any other Countrie of Greece but Themistocles foreseeing the daunger that was likely to fall out betweene themselues did willingly yeelde the whole authoritie vnto Eurybiades and gote the Athenians to agree thereunto This time Aristides after he had bene banished fiue yere by meanes of Themistocles was nowe by a decree of Themistocles called home againe for Aristides was a good iust man and well beloued in Athens By this time the fleete of Xerxes shewed on the coastes of Attica and couered all the seas and Xerxes in person came with an army by land to campe by the sea side The Grecians hauing the sight of so monstrous an armie both by sea and by lande forgate all Themistocles perswasions and beganne to retire to the Peloponesians and there to recouer the gulfe of Peloponesus Themistocles perceiuing their determination was in his mind angrie that the Grecians would thus disperse themselues asunder leauing the aduauntage which both lande and seas offered them he suddenly vsed this stratageme to sende to king Xerxes a trustie friende of his owne named Sicinus a Persian borne taken in the warres before by Themistocles and kept by him as a scholemaster in his house for his children this hee sent secretly to Xerxes to aduertise him that Themistocles generall of the Athenians was very desirous to become Xerxes seruaunt and for that the Grecians were determined to flie hee wished the king not to let them scape but to set vpon them while they were farre from their armie by land Xerxes being glad of Themistocles message the next morning by breake of day placed himselfe on a huge hill where hee might beholde his whole fleete and discerne the ordering of his armie by sea there did Xerxes set vp a throne of golde and had about him many secretaries to write all that was done in the battell Themistocles with no lesse skill had chosen his time and place the gallies drewe neere to the other armies Xerxes Admirall a man of great valure bestowed arrowes and dartes charging the Grecians gallies hotely they ioyned and grappled together the battell beganne so fiercely that the dead bodies being thrust ouer boorde into the sea altered the collour of the water into blood The Grecians by reason of the streightnesse of the sea wherein they fought preassed sore vpon the Persians who with ouer great a multitude hindred them selues much being so many laide one an other a boorde in such disorderly sort that they were constrayned to flie by night in which flight many of their gallies were drowned and many taken more running secretly into Persia for feare of Xerxes being a cruell man This famous victorie gotten by the Grecians made Xerxes starke madde his losse was so great and his shame was more Being thus amazed what to doe Mardonius his lieutenant did perswade him to returne to Persia and to leaue him with three hundred thousand souldiers behind Xerxes resolued to followe Mardonius councell and was forced to scape in a poore fisher mans bote most cowardly and shamefully who before thought that land and seas had not roome sufficient for his armie The victorie which the Greekes had ouer Xerxes at Salamina was the greatest that euer Greekes had for in trueth the Greekes this time florished being after this great victorie much enriched with the golde of Persia for Mardonius Xerxes lieutenant had the like successe as his master had for he was ouerthrowen in a battell in Boetia leauing behinde him all the kings treasures which was infinite and did more hurt to Greece then good This Mardonius was driuen with like shame to followe his master into Persia. Among the Greekes which euer contended more for vaine glory then for profit as by this victory appeareth grew great enuie the Lacedemonians affirming that they their Admirall Euribiades deserued the glory and honour of this victorie the Atheniās chalenging the praise fame to thēselues to their generall Themistocles of whō all Greece spake much honour who by common iudgement deserued most praise Skant was Xerxes in Persia but ciuil discentiō began in Greece and Themistocles by whose seruice principally the glorie of Greece shined at the victorie of Salamina was banished from Athens and went from place to place vntill he came to Persia to this king Xerxes whom hee made to flee from Greece as both Heraclides and Clitarchus affirme yet Thucydides saith Xerxes was dead before Themistocles comming but he meant to his sonne Artaxerxes surnamed the long handed Herodot ended his historie in Xerxes time where Thucydides beginneth and therefore is best herein to be beleeued Nowe Themistocles in Persia by drinking bulles blood did poyson himselfe to auoide the seruice which Artaxerxes appointed him against Greece he knowing the valour of Cimon and fearing his courage who lay with an armie there at Cyprus to haue giuen battell to Themistocles but Themistocles preuented that with death for after this great victorie of the Grecians ouer the Persians at Salamina Greece florished vntill ciuill discord beganne within Greece and so continued one Citie contending with another vntill it brake out into publike warres which began fiftie yeeres after the ouerthrow of Xerxes After him succeeded in Athens Pericles a man of great valure but he had an associate ioyned with him a singular rare man he was the sonne of that valiant captaine Miltiades who ouercame Darius Xerxes father in the battell at Marathon Of his seruice and courage you shal heare more for as Themistocles had Aristides surnamed the iust his collegue as a touchstone to reprehend Themistocles for his ambition so nowe Pericles had Phocion surnamed the good called home being banished from Athens fortenne yeeres to ioyne in gouernment with Pericles for when Aristides died and Themistocles was banished Cimon had bene of long time in seruice as generall in forreine countries out of Greece Then Pericles beganne to deale in the
furie of Cyrus souldiers and Artaxerxes himselfe had a wound giuen him by Cyrus his one hande but afterwarde Cyrus was taken and was bound with fetters of golde and had at that time died if his mother had not most earnestly entreated for him Cyrus by his mothers meanes being let at libertie with great furie followed his first purpose gathered a farre greater armie wherein were tenne thousand Grecians vvell and strongly furnished which came out of Greece to ayde Cyrus To be short it was in vaine Cyrus was slaine in that battell and his armie ouerthrowen yet Iustine saith that the Grecians valiantly stoode to it vnconquered in that wing of the battell where they stood Of this warre doeth Xenophon most amplie entreate with whom Cyrus the yonger himselfe was brought vp of this Cyrus and of his actes Xenophon wrote sixteene bookes eight of discipline militarie and other eight of his warres Now to Athens againe where tyrannie all this while gouerned but Thrasibulus was not carelesse how to represse these tyrants whome Ismenias a prince of Thebes secretly ayded and when that Sparta had made a decree that no citie of Greece should suffer any exiled Athenians to enter into it the Thebans resisted the decree and they also made not onely a decree within Thebes and in all Boetia that no house should be shut to the Athenians but ayded them with men and money Likewise Lysias an oratour of Syracusa bestowed 500. readie and well furnished souldiers to ayde Athens When this preparation was heard of in Athens the Tyrants sent to Pausanias king of Sparta to defende them which hee with some conscience refused for the which afterwarde Pausanias was accused by the Lacedemonians In the meane season Thrasybulus gaue battell to the thirtie Tyrants ouerthrewe them and tooke the citie of Athens restored libertie to the citizens at what time hee brought in Solons lawe to forget the iniuries past of friendes of parents and of children which were slaine in Athens vnder these thirtie Tyrants This lawe of Thrasybulus was reuiued by the Senatours of Rome which were in the time of Trium viri which were Octauius Augustus Marcus Antonius Lepidus Aemilius when Iulius Caesar was slaine to forget the reuenge of Caesars death to auoyde ciuill warres within Rome A litle after this Conon againe scattered the force of Sparta and after much hurt to the Lacedemonians he came to Athens and ioyned with Thrasybulus by whose courage and valure Athens by degrees reuiued for yet the ciuill warres in Greece were not ended for as these afflictions and miseries happened to Athens by ciuill warres so after to euery citie of Greece the like happened that of the onely countrey of the worlde it was brought into a most miserable destruction And for that you may reade the strength and force of Greece while they held together I wil set downe the warres and the victories which the Grecians haue had ouer the Persian kings and ouer all other barbarous princes in Asia and in all partes of the East at that time when that the Persians were lords and princes of the whole worlde and helde the Monarchie onely without resistance of any king or countrey yet in the most flourishing time of the Persians the Grecians had these victories of them which are layde downe before you viz. THe great battell at Marathon where Miltiades got the victorie ouer Darius Histaspis the thirde king of Persia. The famous enterprise and victorie of Leonidas at Thermopila where hee slewe twentie thousande Persians with three hundred Grecians The two terrible battels at Salamina where Themistocles and Aristides had the victorie against Xerxes both by sea and land The battell fought before Platea against Mardonius where was slaine sixe and twentie thousande and Mardonius the king of Persias lieutenant The victorie hereof was giuen to the Athenians yet the honour of the victorie by common report yeelded to the Plateans at what time Aristides was generall of Athens and Pausanias king of Sparta was generall of all Greece The warres of Chalcedon against Pharnabasus where Alcibiades wanne the victorie The warres betweene Ptolomey king of Egypt and Alexander king of Macedon the sonne of Amintas pacified and ended by Pelopidas and tooke the kings brother called Philippe which was Alexander the great his Father and thirtie more of the noblest mens sonnes in Macedon to Ostage and brought them to Thebes to let the worlde see the reputation of Greece then The victorie of Aristides gotten at Psittalia where he tooke three Persian lordes sonnes to Sandauce king Xerxes sister and the Grecians were of one minde and thought with such courage to bring Asia vnder the Empire of Greece The victorie of Cimon in the countrie of Thracia where he vanquished certeine great men of Persia allied to the king himselfe and kept the Citie of Eronea vpon the riuer of Strymon ouerthrewe the barbarous people inuaded the Thracians droue the Persians away and possessed al Thracia and appointed Grecians to inhabite the Countrie thus had the Greekes victorie out of Greece before their ciuill warres began this Cimon plagued the Persians past into Asia and returned with diuers victories into Greece againe When Nicias wanne the hauen of Syracusa and besieged the Citie in such sort that Euripides made an Epitaph vpon the graue of Nicias and had gotten eight seuerall victories ouer the Cicilians The victorie which Agesilaus had of Sardis the chiefe Citie of Lydia and the victorie ouer Tisaphernes lieutenant of all Persia who gaue battell to the Nation that dwell in Acarnea ouerthrewe them and destroyed them and had victorie and after went to Egypt being an olde man to Tachos king of Egypt where hee vsed a Stratageme that hee gote victorie of Tachos vnto Nectanebus nowe when Persia Asia Egypt Lydia felt the force of Greece then was Greece renowmed The victorie of Phocion in the Isle of Naxes in a battell by sea and another victorie of the Macedonians in a battell that Phocion had with Antipater where Leonatus who came out of Asia to ioyne with Antipater was killed The battell at Mantinea the chiefe Citie of Arcadia the victorie hereof fell to Epaminondas and to the Thebans CHAP. VII Of the last destruction of Greece by the Macedonians by meanes of ciuill discorde and the Peleponesian warres the onely cause of their ruine and confusion at what time king Philip brake their backes and his sonne Alexander their neckes and after them the Romanes kept them in perpetuall seruitude WHat should I write of the victories of Epaminondas Agis Cleomenes or of others which fell before the ciuil dissension of Greece I meane chiefely the Peloponesian warres though some of those victories were after the warres of Peloponesus yet certeinely while the Grecians helde as some time they woulde then was Xerxes driuen out of Greece and beaten in his owne
made his Court and gathered together the scattered Macedonians into one place and began to reigne there as a king At what time Procas Siluius reigned ouer the Latines Ozias reigned ouer the Hebrewes Ieroboam in Israel was king and Alexander reigned king in Corinth this time Arbaces translated the Monarchie of Assyria vnto the Medes hauing giuen the ouerthrow to Sardanapalus whereby both the kingdomes of the Medes and of Macedonia beginne at one time for nowe the kings of Lacedemonia ended 〈◊〉 gouernment and these kingdomes beganne to florish 37â—… yeeres after the destruction of Troy in the beginning of the thirteene Iubilee of the Iewes before the Olympiads the space of one whole Iubilee which is fiftie yeeres This Cranaus the first king of the Macedonians reigned twentie eight yeeres whose successor I reade in Eusebius and Glareanus was Caenus he reigned the second king of Macedonia twelue yeeres at what time Amulius Siluius the fifteene king of the Latines reigned this Amulius the yonger sonne of Procas Siluius draue Numitor his elder brother out of his Countrie and also Numitor had a daughter whom hee caused to be a vestall virgine to auoyde mariage but notwithstanding shee was gotten with childe of two children in steade of one which were called Romulus and Remus of whose education and strange bringing vp how they slue Amulius and restored their graundfather Numitor to the kingdome againe and howe they both builded Rome you may reade in the histories of the Romane kings after whom succeeded the Romane kings In Egypt reigned this time Sabachus this is named in Scripture Sech the third king of Macedonia was Tyrimas who succeeded in the kingdome in the time of the second Olympiad as Eusebius and Glareanus do witnesse whom I folow chiefely in placing the kings of Macedonia though Iustine Sabelicus say otherwaies that one Telegonus reigning in Paeonia which is a piece of Macedonia and one Europus who likewise on the other side of Paeonia gouerned These two bare most sway in Macedonia vntil Caranus came with a great number of Greekes by the Oracle commaunded to seeke a seate in Macedon who by force expelled Mida which gouerned in a part of Macedon and forced other gouernours which then ruled diuers countries about Macedonia which was no large kingdome in the beginning but Caranus by this meanes augmented much the Countrie of Macedon After this Caranus Iustine setteth downe Perdiccas with whom agreeth Soliâ—… and saith that this Perdiccas was the first that bare the 〈◊〉 of a king in the twentie two Olympiad who liued in such liking and loue of his subiects that his life seemed a lawe and his death an oracle for which hee died being an olde man hee called his sonne named Argeus and shewed him a secrete place where hee woulde haue his body buried and his successours the kings of Macedonia after him This superstitious buriall the kings of Macedonia helde as by an oracle commaunded vntill the time of Alexander the great who was the ninteenth king after this Perdiccas Argeus succeeded his father and was a modest prince hee did minister iustice to his subiectes and liued in Ioue and fauour with his people leauing behinde him to gouerne the Macedonians his heire Philip who died in his youth and left the kingdome to Europus a young childe in whose time the Thracians and the Illyrians had continuall warres with the Macedonians The Illyrians vexed and ouerthrewe the Macedonians in a great battel despising the infancie of their king and litle waiing the Macedonians in respect of their king they were hereby much mooued to fight againe and gathered a huge hoste brought their king in his cradle to the field and gaue battell to the Illyrians ouerthrewe them vanquished them and slue the most of them for the sight of their young king made them like lyons hungrie of their praye with double courage to fight But I will returne to Eusebius and Glareanus where I beganne and whom I chiefely imitate though Solinus and Iustine wrote otherwaies for it is no rare thing to haue writers to varie specially in histories of long time for here Perdiccas is placed to be the fourth king which both Iustine and Solinus wrote to be the first king of Macedonia in this Functius in his table of the kings of Macedon a singular Chronographer following the best learned and next agreeing with the Scripture doth set this Perdiccas to be the 4. king who came of a meane state to be a king of Macedon where he reigned 51. yeeres This time Romulus had great warres with the Sabines which continued three yeeres with whom Tatius Sabinus reigned in Rome together with Romulus fiue yeeres About this verie season Saneherib was ouerthrowen for his great blasphemie against God with a hundred fourescore and fiue thousand slaine in one night by the Angel of the Lord while this Perdicas reigned in Macedon Merodach the sonne of Baladan after hee had gouerned Babylon twelue yeeres and ouercame the Assyrians and brought the Monarchie againe to the Chaldeans about the thirtie yeere of Perdicas Egypt was gouerned by twelue Magistrates of equall authoritie After Perdicas succeeded Argeus his sonne the fifth king of Macedonia of whom you reade before by Iustine set downe to be the second king Philip the sixt king of Macedon reigned thirtie eight yeeres in the 34. Olympiad in whose time happened in Rome great warres betweene Tullius Hostilius the third king of Rome and the Sabines The Latines likewise beganne warres with the Romanes which continued fiue yeeres this time reigned in Egypt Necho who had warres with the Chaldeans at what time hee ouercame the Syrians and slue Iosias in Mageddo the Messenians reuoulted from the Lacedemonians and the rude barbarous Scythians entred into Asia spoyled and wasted all the Countrie vntill they came vnto the land of Palestine This time Periander reigned in Corinth whose life you may reade in Herodot of whom is also written a historie of this time of Phaortes the sixth king of the Medes who was slaine at the siedge of Niniue by the Assyrians with all his companie In these dayes Tullius Hostilius with al his familie were burned in his owne house in the thirtie fiue Olympiad many great warres and blooddy battels fell in the time of this Philip for both Ieconia with all his friendes likewise Daniel with his fellowes were caried away captiue vnto Babylon and within a while after Ierusalem was besieged and made euen to the ground and the Iewes caried captiues vnto Chaldea Againe Ciaxeres which is by Daniel and others named to be Darius Medus had great warres thus the Assyrians tooke the citie of Niniue and reuenged the death of Phaortes and so the Assyrians were quite destroyed brought the monarchie vnto the Medes All the warres that Ancus Martius the fourth king of Rome had with the Latins Fidenats the Sabins the Veiens the Volscans and
sword for few people knew then contention for they had more countreys then they had men to inhabite but with people for no warre was yet knowen any where but with the Assyrians who first vsed to trespasse vpon other nations about them euen from Nimrads time In Iubaldas time Hercules Libyus florished before the Hercules of the Greekes welnigh 700. yeres In this Iubaldas time died Noah the righteous preacher whom prophane writers cal Bifrons Ianus and so is in euery countrey painted and set forth in histories This Noah forsaw the great miserie and calamitie of Gods iustice for sinne in the first age the general plague that folowed the destructiō of the whole world with a flood and after he sawe himselfe dispised of his wicked sonne Cham and cōtemned of his posterities in the second age at the building of the tower of Babylon where he saw the pride disobedience and impietie of his owne people that came out of his owne bodie who to seeke immortalitie vpon earth sought to auoyd God and his power and to seeke to skale through too much follie the skies but they were cōfounded and their deuises brought to nothing No doubt hee sawe more miserie come to man and more wickednes committed by man against God then any man euer could see He died 350. yeres after the flood In Assyria raigned Zamisnenias which in Genesis is called Amraphael the fift king of Assyria Abraham was called from Vr in Chaldea to the land of Palestina and after three yeeres driuen to Egypt for that the famine was so great in the land of Canaan This time gouerned in Egypt Osiris which was that Pharao that tooke Sara Abrahams wife away but was warned in his sleepe not to touch her and cōmanded by God to restore her to her husband againe During the time of this king Iubalda Sodom Gomorrha Zeboim Adama and Segor fiue noble cities of Canaan were destroyed by fire frō heauen for their abominable wickednes and there remaineth in memorie of their filthie vitious liues in the place of these fiue cities a stinking horrible great lake called Stagnum Asphaltidis The 4. king that succeeded Iubalda in Celtiberia was named Brigus he began to raigne in the 4. yeere of Arius the 6. king of Assyria at what time Hyarbas Priscus beganne to gouerne in Libya a stout and a fierce king in armes and therfore the Numidians would be called after him Hyarbae for stoute and warlike people This Brigus builded many strong castles in Celtiberia in that prouince of Lusitania he builded 2. great castles and called them after his owne name Laccobryga and Mirobriga and he builded also Brygantum in the prouince of Taracon This time gouerned the Celtes an expert skilful man a man in those dayes of most honor for his wisdome and iudgement in all things named Drius after whose death the priests of the Celtes were named Druydes of whom mention is made in Caesar and in Plini The authoritie and credite of these priestes in their dayes was great they were honoured and reuerenced of all people their wordes were had in such estimation as though they had bene Oracles giuen for at this time it was rare to see a wise man or to talke with a learned man for the Magi of Chaldea and the priests were not heard of no philosophie spoken of no Art taught few scholes or none knowen in so much that almost 300. yeeres after the flood there raigned no malice no pride no ambition no warre in the most part of the world and therefore it was called Aureum seculum for the simplicitie of the people and of the plentie of al things which was cōmon among all men sauing in Assyria where the first Monarchie began and quarrels grewe as you shall heare betweene the Chaldeans and the Assyrians and after betwene the Assyrians and the Egyptians So that nothing is to be written of any great exploit done in Celtiberia all this time neither in any place else sauing to set downe the names of those kings that then raigned and to know the agreement of time which is the touchstone of trueth In this Brygus time Abraham offered his sonne Isaac at what time God blessed all the nations of the worlde in the seede of Abraham One Bardus raigned this time in Celta which was of great authoritie with them for his first finding of Musike and meeter In this Brigus time Araunus the sōne of Cranus which was the sonne of Ianus builded a temple in Vetulonia and dedicated the same vnto Ianus which they also called Vertumnes and therein he erected vp the image of Ianus and after he builded a chapell to the god Razenus in Vetulonia so that now idolatrie began in euery countrey the nomber of the gods so encreased that superstition had the better hand of true religion euery where sauing in Gods owne Church those 2. Patriarches Abraham and his sonne for Sara was now dead But I wil passe to the fift king of Celtiberia named Tagus sirnamed Orma of this king the riuer Tagus taketh her first name Of this I reade nothing worth the nothing but as his predecessors he raigned by the name of a king without resistance with whom raigned together in other kingdoms Baleus Xerxes the eight king of Assyria this encreased the kingdome and conquered euery where vntill the Indians for he was valiant and couragious very fortunate in all his affaires In the beginning of this Tagus raigne the Argiues kingdome began where Inachus raigned their first king Phaeton came this time to Italy at what time many townes and cities were burnt about the riuer Ister and about the Cymerians and Vesunians and the places burned to this day are named Palestina that is to say the coūtrey burnt recorded with writers Phaetontis incendium Esau and Iacob were borne this time and a litle after their grandfather Abraham the patriarch died 101. yeres after he was called from the Chaldeans and in 175. yere of his age After Tagus succeeded Belus the 6. king of Celtiberia he began to raigne in the 482. yeere after the flood and raigned in Celtiberia 31. yeres at what time Eusebius setteth down the 17. Dynastia of the Egyptians where shepheards gouerned bare rule in Egypt which gouerment cōtinued 303. yeres in Egypt With this Belus began Armatrites to raigne the 9. king of Assyria a king giuen to idlenes to al kinde of pleasures About this time died Sem the sonne of Noah who likewise saw as his father did before much wickednes and abomination he died 35. yeres after Abraham was dead Sem liued 600. yeres Pharoneus the 2. king of the Argiues of whom Plato maketh mention in the beginning of his booke made lawes to the Argiues and was of them greatly honoured after his death In this kings time Nilus did ouerflowe all the countrey of Egypt and Osiris
after a while hee returned and got his kingdome and forced Cacus to flie into Italie beeyng nowe agayne in his kingdome placed hee founde the vse of yrons and taught first the Spaniardes to make diuers kindes of weapons I finde in Manethon that Palatinus raigned eighteene yeeres in the first time before he was forced by Cacus to flie into Italie and after hee wanne his kingdome agayne after that Cacus had raigned sixe and thirtie yeeres in Spayne hee gouerned Spayne sixe yeeres This Cacus was supposed of the auncient Spaniardes to bee the sonne of Vulcan for that hee taught to make weapons for to fight in the fielde and founde the vse of yron This Cacus was borne in Celtiberia a part of Spayne two and fourtie yeeres before Hercules was borne as Manethon affirmeth hee gouerned Spayne 222. yeeres after the going of Israel out of Egypt At what time raigned in Egypt Romascs the second Larthes 22 Nowe reigned Dedalus of whom the Poets fayned that he with his sonne Icarus fledde with winges for Greece into Creete for the passing celeritie of his sayle This time Abimelech gouerned Israel who slue his seuentie brethren and was slaine himselfe after in the thirde yeere of his reigne by a woman at Thebes Aegeus King Pandeons sonne and father to Theseus reigned in Athens this time 23 Erithrus the 23. king of Spaine succeeded Palatuus and Cacies hee reigned king in Spayne 66. yeeres During which time Iair iudged Israel and after Iair Ieptha Mytreus the 27. king of the Assyrians raigned in Niniue In the eleuenth yeere of this Erithrus reigne came Euander out of Arcadia into Italie to whome Faunus the gouernour and ruler of this scattered people that dwelt about Rome called Aborigines which yet had certaine dwellinges gaue a fielde and a little hill afterwarde called Mons Auentinus where Hercules slue Cacus at what time Hercules came from Spayne into Italie before Aeneas comming 55. yeeres Theseus gouerned Athens after hee had subdued the monster Minotaurus and conquered Creete This Erithrus reigned in Spayne vntill the verie yeere that Troy was by the Greekes destroyed 24 After him succeeded Gargorus Mellicola the 24. and last king of Spayne who reigned 75. yeeres vntill the first yeere of Aeneas Syluius the fourth king of the Latins at what time the Lacedemonians and the Corinthians beganne to set vp their kingdomes for as the Troianes the Peloponesians and the Spaniardes ended their kingdomes so they at that instant beganne to flourish in their newe kingdomes for the Peloponesians after they had had sixe and twentie kings they were gouerned by Priestes called Carin The Troianes also were ouerthrowen after sixe kinges reigne and their Countrey destroyed with sworde and fire so that the remnaunt were scattered to seeke newe kingdomes and other countreyes some to Greece some to Italie and some to other places and the Spaniardes euen so after 24. Kings their kingdome was turned into prouinces and other particular gouernements Thus Spaine after it reigned vnder kings for the space of 988. yeeres is nowe become into prouinces gouerned by seuerall magistrates during which time of 988. yeres which their kings raigned yet were they not herd of in any part of the East countreys their fame grewe no further then to the Confines of Italie and to the furthest precinct of Spaine Ephorus an ancient writer affirmeth that all Spaine was taken to be but a citie named Iberia of all the East countries and I can easily beleeue it for the Romanes during the time of their seuen kings were no where spokē of but within Italie not so much as the Grecians their next neighbours made any mencion of them neither Thucidides nor Herodot late writers neuer thought of them in all their histories specially Herodot who wrote generally of all Asia In like maner the Grecians were not knowen vnto the Persians before Xerxes time for so Strabo affirmeth saying nec Graeci Persas nec Persae Graecos nouerunt nisi perparum quantum fama percepissent What fragments Manethon and others found of the antiquitie of Spaine and of their first gouernement of their kings I haue briefly noted but the time onely omitting other things of those dayes as meere fables and trifles not worth the writing CHAP. III. From the dissolution and change of the kingdome of Hispaine into Prouinces and Dominions vntill they were subdued by the Carthagineans and Africans vnder whom they were subiects vntill Scipio Africanus time at what time both Africa Carthage and Hispaine were made tributaries vnto the Romanes NOwe after the kings of Spaine had finished their kingdomes and the countrey was changed into particular prouinces and seuerall dominions which so continued vntill Spaine was subdued by the Carthagineans vnder whom they liued vntill Afrike and Carthage were conquered by the Romanes While Spaine was quietly gouerned by their kings their wisemen called Turdetani wrote their chronicles their lawes and the antiquities of their Countrey in ancient Poemes of 600. yeeres olde as they write These Turdetani were so honoured of the olde Spaniardes as Magi were of the Chaldeans Gymnosophistae Of the Indians the Druydes of the olde Gaules after called French men and as the Priestes of Isis and Serapis were esteemed in Egypt for at that time they were led by oracles as the other countreys were The Spaniardes vsed to consult with the oracles of Mnestheus not farre from the high towre of Capio which was for that purpose builded as the towre of Pharaoh was in Egypt to giue light to the Mariners vpon the Sea in winters darke nights Many good things were in Spaine in the time of their first kings which were not found afterwards vntil the Romans came for when the Romanes became lordes of Afrike and of Spaine which was the first conquest that euer the Romanes had out of Italie and the onely hardest and most dangerous victorie almost to the ruine and confusion of the Romanes as at the battell of Trebeia of Cannes of Thrasimene and of other bloodie battels seene and proued when I say they subdued Spaine they founde the countrey so fertile and so rich that both land and water yeelded plentie of all things for the Romanes found mines within twentie furlongs of new Carthage and the mines were of circuite round about foure hundred furlongs where the Romanes kept foure centurions to worke and to digge for siluer they wrought so that it was worth to the Romanes day by day fiue and twentie thousand Drachmes The Romanes were so flesht with the conquest of Africa and Spaine that they left no hill vndigged no riuer vnsounded no place vnsought insomuch that Pluto had much to doe to escape the auarice of the Romanes So Hanibal seemed to iudge of them when hee answered Antiochus the great when he shewed Hanibal the abundance of his wealth and his infinite treasures this sayeth Hanibal will please the Romanes but not suffice the Romanes But I
the first king borne of those that were called Galli for hitherunto the lineal sucession of Francus endured 36 After him his sonne Robert raigned 34. yeeres In the beginning of whose time the kingdome of Hungarie beganne 37 Henry the sonne of Robert succeeded and raigned after his father 30. yeeres 38 Philippe the first of that name and sonne to Henry raigned 49. yeeres In whose time beganne the kingdome of Bohemia In the time of this Philippe the first two most famous men and worthie Captaines tooke their voyages the one named Godfrey of Bullen with an armie from Fraunce into the holy Land which was Ierusalem so called after Christs time on earth this warre is called bellum Sacrum the sacred warres against the Saracens Reade Tilius Chronicles of the French kings where you shall finde a Catalogue of the nobles peeres and gentlemen of France and of diuers other countreys that went on that voyage with Godfrey of Bullen to Hierusalem the other Captaine came to England William the bastarde of Normandie afterward called William Conquerour of whom our English chronicles can testifie But I wil briefly passe ouer the kings 39 Lewes sirnamed Crassus raigned 28. yeeres 40 Lewes sirnamed Iunior 43. yeeres 41 Philippus Augustus sirnamed Deodatus 43. yeeres In whose time the Iewes were banished out of Fraunce 42 Lewes the eight of that name 4. yeeres 43 Lewes the ninth sirnamed Holy 43. yeeres 44 Philip the 3. sirnamed Audax son to Lewes 9. 15. yeres 45 Philippus the 4. sirnamed Pulcher the faire and sonne to Philip the thirde raigned 28. yeeres In this kings raigne began the kingdome of Ottoman the Turke 46 Lewes the 10. sirnamed Vtinus king both of Fraunce and of Nauarre raigned almost 2. yeeres 47 Philip the 5. sirnamed Longus raigned 5. yeeres 48 Carolus Pulcher king of Fraunce and Nauarre 7. yeeres Now after this Philip the first of the house of Valois began in the 1328. yeere of our Sauiour whose line hath continued euen frō this Philip of Valois the first king of that house vntill Frances Valois last king of Fraunce and the last of that stocke which continued 263. yeres whose names successiuely are here set downe in Tilius Chronicles as followeth 49 Philip of Valots the first king of that name 22. yeres 50 Whose eldest sonne named Iohn was the first Dolphine of Fraunce which to this day doeth continue Hee raigned after his father king of Fraunce 14. yeeres 51 Carolus the 5. sirnamed the wise raigned 18. yeeres Whose brother named also Philip was made duke of Burgūdy About this time Iohn Wicleue opened much falshoode yet vnknown of Papistrie both disputing writing against it 52 Carolus the sixt sirnamed Bene amatus raigned 42. yeeres this ordeined first the 3. Floure deluce This time raigned in England Richard the second 53 Charles the seuenth raigned 38. yeeres This king commenced warre against England at what time Henry the 5. raigned who subdued all Fraunce and was crowned king in Paris 54 Lewes the eleuenth raigned 23. yeeres 55 Carolus the eight raigned 14. yeeres 56 Lewes the 12. raigned 17. yeres in France being the 1500. yeere of our Sauiour Christ Reade of this king Arnoldus Ferronus all his thirde booke which hee onely wrote of this Lewes the 12. At what time raigned in England Henry the 7. Thus farre briefly Iranne ouer the state of France omitting many thinges willingly and wittingly which I particularly touch in the historie of Spaine for I tooke not in hand to write at large or to set foorth great volumes of superfluous histories but onely as I saide before to note the antiquities and first beginning of kingdomes and to marke the errours of prophane histories in many things dissenting from Moses from Daniel and from the Propheticall writings who opened all Chronicles for they coulde not agree in the chiefest pointes of all true Chronicles neither the Romanes in the building of Rome from whence they ground their histories neither the Greekes by their Olympiads neither the Persians of Cyrus time neither Spaine in their accompt of A. E R. A neither the Arabians of their Hegyra In fine vnpossible it is to finde the trueth of Antiquities in prophane writers without conferring of the same with the Sacred histories of the Prophets who reueiled the trueth of time by their Iubilees A BRIEFE FOR BRITAINE SEeing that I haue written of other countreys I can not tell how to answere my countreymen well if I should not also somewhat speake of the Britains though in trueth many haue sufficiently written of the comming of Brutus vnto this land of his kingdome and succession of kings and continuance which though of some denied which do now as they then did in the time of Halicarnassaeus who after he had trauailed his histories from Sempronius Fabius Pictor and from M. Cato and proued euidently the comming of Aeneas into Italy of his kingdome and posteritie in Alba longa vntill Romulus being 17. discents after him yet some gens inuidiosa Traianis as Halicarnassaeus calleth them seemed not to allow the historie though they knewe it themselues also read it by so many proued because they would be named antiquaries and the credite of the histories should come from them Such was Polidor Virgil in his history of Britaine such was Berosus in the historie of Hetruria being two strangers and such was Manethon to write of Spaine So there were among the Iewes Talmudists who among other matters which they wrote for they were the onely men among the Iewes would also by this credit that they had amōg the people write what they listed that they became thereby very fabulous in their histories So among the Egyptians their superstitious priestes filled their bookes with lies and so of diuers other countreis men wrote rather fables then histories of their coūtreys But these are reiected from sound approued authors tanquam Mithici for in reading of histories I find nothing so readie as errors in antiquities of countreys and in original of nations And surely it is not to be wondered at concerning the antiquities of time euen from the beginning of the world and the late beginning of writers from Cyrus time or rather Alexanders time for in the first age from Adam to the flood no trueth is had nor knowen but onely by Moses in the Genesis and 1650. yeeres frō the flood vnto the time of the Olympiads men wandered in no true accompt of time nor of histories excepting that which is written in the bookes of Moses and the Prophets nothing seemed sound nor certaine but cōiectures and fained fables as in the historie of the Chaldeans Assyrians Aegyptians and diuers other nations many things are written which is named Mythycum very licentiously and to liberally and after the time of the Olympiads how vntrue prophane historians wrote vntil Daniels time who seeth it not Since which time a briefe of al true
himselfe sawe at Rome in the time of Augustus Caesar of bigger bodies and of taller stature then any Romane by halfe a foote for saith Strabo Vidimus puberes Britannos longissimi corporis nostris indigenis semipede celsiores But to be short as it was among the Iewes permitted to the Talmudistes to write their countrie histories to the Indians Gymnosophists to write of India the olde Gaules committed the olde recordes and Chronicles of their Countries to their wise men called Druydes the olde Hispaniards during the time of their kings and long after euen vnto the Romanes time had the antiquaries called Turdetani to write the Chronicles of their Countries and euen so among the olde Britaines were called Bardi to recorde their antiquitie and their histories men of like credite and estimation among the Britaines as were these before named in their Countries without whose consent and councell if any man wrote concerning the state and antiquitie of their countrie hee should be punished according to the custome of the Countrie It is easily spoken there was no Troy but all countries haue allowed it time hath confirmed it both Greeke and Latine histories haue written of it It is soone saide There was no such Brutus but continuance of time succession of kings possession of the countrie doe proue the contrary If neither Geraldus being of the time of Richard the second neither Gildas long before Geraldus liuing in the time of Claudius Augustus the Emperour both singularly learned if neither consent of time succession of kings the antiquitie of the historie nor the affinitie of tongues which no Grecian can denie for we holde the auncient names of riuers townes mountaines and other monuments euen from Brutus time in the selfe same tongue that Brutus spake Let them giue some credite to Pont. Varunnius Iulius Caesar who said Gens ex nostra prosapia est being proued by M. Coruinus and Halicarnassaeus lineally to descend from Aeneas What shoulde I write more Inuidia serra animae and truely is that spoken that three good vertuous mothers had three wicked vicious daughters Familiaritie the mother of contempt Peace and quietnesse the mother of idlenesse And Trueth the mother of hatred Yet in spite of that scorpion Suâ—…s ex merito quemque tuetur honor The historie of Belinus the great whose daughter named Cambra was maried to Marcomirus sonne the first king from whom the Frenchmen since their comming to Germany florished by the name of Sicambri after the name of Cambra the Britaine the historie of Brenus his brother are wel knoweÌ„ with forreigne writers so of Rodericus the great of Leoninus the great who are in the Britaine historie as much coÌ„mended as Pompey the great or Constantine the great among the Romanes for as Pyrrhus saide Italie was not to be subdued but by Italians neither Rome but by the Romanes euen so the Britaine 's were not to be ouerthrowen but by Britaines And here I end 10. Praep. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 CHAP. 1. 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 CAP. 1. 2 3 1 2 3 4 1 CAP. 1. 1 1 1 2 3 4 5 CAP. 1. 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 CAP. 1. 2 3 4 CAP. 1. 2 3 1 2 3 1 CHAP. 1. 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 CAP. 1. 2 3 4 CHAP. 1. 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 6 The creation of the world Isido lib. 5. â—…saedri Tetraedri Octoedri Dodecaedri Read Plato and Io. Phrig Cicero lib. denat deorum Iob 38. The creation of man Man placed in Eden â—…oph iâ—… 〈◊〉 Pisâ—…hon Giâ—…on Childekel Phrat Pytlâ—…go letter Plato in Craâ—… Iohn 7. Rom. 5. The opinion of the learned concerning Adams continuance in Paradise before his fall Clemens fol. 128 Gen. 4. Loar fol. 109. Midras 〈◊〉 Psal. 92. Rabbi Menahem fol. 9. vpon Moses Theoph. August sixe houres Thom. Aquinas nine houres Bochay twelue houres Rabbi Nathan Cedrenus Mariaenus Scotus Adam was buried in Golgatha Rabbi Isaac Our portion held by the first Adam Paul Gen. 3. The first sacrifice vnto God Gen. 4. Heb. â—…1 Henoch was borne Gen 4. Diodorus lib. 5. Iosephus Belus Image a sanctuary to all wickednes lib. 10. cap. 3. de prae Diodorus lib. 11. Genes 4. The sonnes of God maried with the daughters of men Melancthon Fregius in histo Adami Fregius in histo Adami Iud. 1. Heb 11. Henoch walked with God Genes 9. Noah the righteous preacher 〈◊〉 lib. 1. Zonaras lib. 1. Talmudists Ioseph lib. 1. cap. 14. Koâ—…rus lib. 1. cap. 4. Tabula 4. Asiae lib. 3. Genes cap. 10. Genes 1. The confusioÌ„ of tongues in the time of Peleg Sabellicuâ—… lib. 3. The antiquity of Greece The praise of Plato The infancie of Greece Ioseph lib. contra Reede Stabo 16. booke First Hebrewes 478 Then Israel 1026 Thirdly Iewish 786 A egyptians most enuious to the Iewish The mercie of God towardes his people The goodnes of God to his people 3. Regum cap. 10 De Asse 4. Ioseph 8. Abrahams age when Noah died Gene. 18. 20. 47. Abrahams going to Aegypt The bondage of Israel in Aegypt 430. yeeres Moses the fift from Abraham Gene. cap. 14. The kings of Sodom and Gomorrha ouerthrown by the king of Shinar Ismael borne by Agar the the bondwoman Lot with his two daughters escaped Iosephus lib. 1. cap. 12. Lots incest with his two daughters Genes 19. The birth of Isaac Isaac the child of promise borne 14. yeres after Ismael Ioseph lib. 1. cap. 15. Sara died and is buried in Hebron A ficide doth coâ—…tune 4. Dâ—…achmes Lib. cap 16. Abraham dieth Esau and Iacobâ—… birth Iacob was the true tipe of the Church Lib. 1. cap. 18. 19. Diodo de fab 〈◊〉 lib. 2. Functius in tabula patrum Isaac dieth and is buried in Hebron Isaac saw the prosperity of Esau and the affliction of Iacob Diodo lib. 1. Iustin. lib. 36. Bâ—…sius lib. 1. cap 8. Iustine lib 36. Orosius lib. 1. cap. 8. The 18. Denasâ—…na of Aegypt Sparta builded The going of Iacob vnto Egypt Ioseph died 65. yeeres before Moses was borne The maner of Moses birth Thermutis Pharaohs daughter Moses threwe the diademe of Aegypt to the dirt Moses made captaine ouer the Aegyptians against the Aethiopians Reade Fregius of Moses life Moses Aaron sent by God to Aegypt The tenne plagues of Aegypt Iosephs bones brought by Moses out of Aegypt Cancres king of Aegypt drowned in the red sea Deucalion flood The kingdome of Athens Berosus endeth his hystory Moses death Israelites toile and slauery Chiliarchi Hecatontarchi Pentecontarchi Decatarchi Ramesses was surnamed Egyptus Cornelius Tacitus lib. 2. Crosius lib. 1. cap. 11. Iosua deuideth the land of Chanaan Iosua made orders lawes Iosua coÌ„mandeth his host to passe Iorden Iordan gaue place to Iosua and to the Arke The walles of Iericho fell Iosua cap. 12. Melanthon 〈◊〉 de Hebreâ—…ruÌ„ admin The mutabiliue of the Israelites Eglon king of Moab afflicteth Israel Ehud killeth Eglon. Iabin
Aemil. l. b. 2. Clotarius the 3. of that name Eâ—…l de reg FraÌ„c Theodoricus by Bodillus slaine in hunting The Saracens held warres in diuers countries Clodouaeus Hildebertus Reade Tilius chron de reg Franc. Chilâ—…ericus by the aide of Martellu was crowned king of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Cala. 20. Gizid The Saracâ—…ns by cold and hunger driueÌ„ from Constantinople The gouernment of exarchie in Italie altered Beda this time liued Ceolulphus became a Moncke Edo and Abdimarus two kings of the Saracens Hildericus surnamed Stupidus Martellus died Pipinus the first anointed Salim The Popes authoritie first alowed in Fraunce Reade Pau. Aemilius lib. 3. of Charles the great Charles the great aduanced the fame of Fraunce I folowed in al points Paul Aenâ—…lius from PharamuÌ„dus vntil Henry the first and from theÌ„ce I folowed Arnol. Fernonus vnto Lewes the 12. the two onely best writers of the French The empire of Rome brought to Fraunce by Charles the great Though Clodouaeus the 2. of that name be the 12. king in number after Pharamundus yet because of the diuision of the histoâ—…e I begin froÌ„ him as from the first vnto Charles the great From Pharamundus to Clodouaeus the 2. and from him to Charles the great I vse not these Olympiads for any iust nuÌ„ber of yeeres for that there was error in them Charles the great made Emperour of Rome Popes florished after the Emperours The greatnes of the Popes of Rome The kingdoms of the North began now to flourish Beroaldus lib. 4. Gaul grekes Lodouicus pius succeeded his father Charles the great both in the kingdome and in the Empire Tilius de reg Francor The great slaughter in the ciuil warrs of Fraunce betweene brethren were such that all Carolus stocke was welnigh extinguished Carolus Caluus Lewes sirnamed Balbus Lewes the third and Carolomanus the 27. Carolus sirnamed Crassus the 28. Odo the 29. Carolus Simplex Lewes the 12. I follow Tilius table chiefly in setting downe the kings of France The kingdom of Polonia Reade Aemil. lib. 1. Hugo Capetus the first king of those that were naturally borne Galli 10. Tilius de reg Franc. Hierusalem called the Holy land Both Functius Beroaldus and Tilius agree in placing these kings in this sort The house of Valloys began I haue followed Paulus Aemilius and Alâ—… Ferranus since Faramundus vnto Lewes the 12. and haue also coÌ„ferred both them with Tilius Chron. Before Faramundus by Tritemius Sempron de Ital. Fabius Pictor de aureo seculo Mar. Cato de originibus Berosus and Manethon wrote vnknowen histories Talmudists fabulous The priestes of Egypt Mithici No prophane writers known before Cyrus time The vncertaintie of prophane histories Daniel a true Chronographer for the 3. last Monarchies The Greekes histories more fabulous then the Latines Fab. Pictor de orig M. Cato de orâ—…g Ital. Semp. de diu Ital. Myrsilus de bello Pelasgico Halicar lib. 1. Contention betweene the Scythians and the Egyptians Pythagoras authoritie with his schollers was no more but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Picts inuaded Britaine Pont. Virunnius Brutus from Italie Ianus from Chaldea Marcomirus from Scythia Albalonga builded by Ascanius Reade Dyonis Halicar of this historie lib. 1. Halic lib. 1. Origo Romani imperij Aeneas M. Cato de frag origo The Romanes come fromthe Troians Romanes not knowen to the Grecians before Alex. time nei ther the Grecians to the Persians vntill Xerxe time Strab. lib. 15. Berosus Ctesias Manethon Ioseph lib. cont App. on The proofe of Brutus coÌ„ming into Albion more plaine then of Francus into Fraunce or of Hispanus into Hispaine Reade Annius de frag Hispaniae of the sundry names of Hispaniards The Britaines neuer chaÌ„ged their names The diuers sundry names of the French men The Persians and the Egyptians were by diuers names called Britaine diuided for 50. yeeres into foure kingdoms From Elidurus vnto Belinus the great 185. yeeres Androgeus the onely cause of Caesars victorie The kings of Britaine continued 1800. yeeres Iu Caesars stock proceeded froÌ„ gens Iulia. Augusts Caesar desirous to knowe his genealogie Dardanus married the daugh ter of Teucer The successions of all the kings that reigned in Troy Dionys. Halicar lib. 2. Aeneas maried Latinus daugh ter Dionys Halycar Annius M. Coruinus set downe these kings in this sott Augustus Caesar lineally proceeded from Aeneas Dionys. Halicar lib. 〈◊〉 Diodor. lib. 2. Strab. lib. 4. Talmudists Gymnosophists Druydes Turdetani Bardi Belinus the great Rodericus the great Leoninus the great