emperor, he was received into the senate. During the reign of Commodus, Dion continued to practise as an advocate at the Roman bar, and held the offices of aedile and quaestor. He was raised to the praetorship by Pertinax, but did not assume office till the reign of Septimius Severus, with whom he was for a long time on the most intimate footing. By Macrinus he was intrusted with the administration of Pergamus and Smyrna ; and on his return to Rome he was raised to the consulship about 220. After this he obtained the proconsulship of Africa, and again on his return was sent as legate successively to Dalmatia and Pannonia. He was raised a second time to the consulship by Alexander Severus, in 229; but under pretext of suffering from a diseased foot, he soon after retired to Nicaea, where he died. The date of his death is unknown. Previous to writing his history Dion Cassius had inscribed to the Emperor Severus an account of various dreams and prodigies which had presaged his elevation to the throne, and had also written a biography of the Emperor Commodus, which was afterwards incorporated into his larger work. The history of Rome, which consisted of 80 books, and, after the example of Livy, was divided into decades, began with the landing of JEneas in Italy, and was continued as far as the opening of the reign of Alexander Severus. The first 24 books exist only in fragments ; from the 36th to the 54th, the work is extant complete ; from the 55th to the 60th, it is probably an abridgment, and besides these, parts of the 71st and 75th books have ialso beenrecovered. The diligence of Dion as an historian is undoubted, and the various important offices which he held under the emperors gave him valuable opportunities for historical investigation. Although more philosophical than the compilations of the mere annalist, his work is not remarkable for vigour of judgment or critical acumen. His style is far clearer than that of Thucydides, whom he took
as his model ; but his diction is full of Latinisms.
His history was first published in a Latin translation by N. Lconiccnus, Venice, 1526. The best modern edition is that of Stnrz, Leipsic, 1824–43, which contains the Exccrpta Vaticana. Various other writings, such as a History of Persia, Enodia or ItinT- aries, a Life of Arridn, Gctica, and a work on the Emperor Trajan, are attributed to Dion Cassius, but in all probability without founda tion. The substance of his history is reproduced in the annals of Zonaras.
DION CHRYSOSTOM (i.e., golden mouthed}, (c. 50–117), was born at Prusa, in Bithynia, about the middle of the 1st century. He visited Egypt with his father at an early period of his life, and went to Rome during the reign of Domitian. Being implicated in a plot against the tyrant, Dion fled from the capital, and wandered about in Thrace, Mysia, Scythia, and the other countries of the Getae, with only Plato s 1 hcedo and Demosthenes On the Embassy in his possession, till the accession of Nerva, when he was allowed to return. With Nerva and Trajan he continued on the most friendly footing. He retired to Prusa for a short time ; but having been accused of peculation and treason, he returned to Rome, where he remained till his death. Eighty orations of bis are extant entire, and there are fragments of about fifteen others. They are written in a lucid and elegant style, and treat mostly of political, ethical, and mythological subjects.
DIONYSIA, or Bacchanalia, were festivals in honour of Dionysus (q.v.) generally, but in particular the term refers to the festivals celebrated in Attica and by the branches of the Attic-Ionic race in the islands and in Asia Minor. In Attica there were two festivals annually. (1) The lesser Dionysia, or TO, KO.T aypovs, were held in the country places where the vine was grown in the month of December. This was a vintage festival, and was accompanied by songs, dance, phallus processions, and the impromptu performances of itinerant players, who with others from the city thronged to take part in the excitement of the rustic sports. (2) The greater Dionysia, or TO. lv acrrei, were held in the city of Athens in the month of March. This was a festival of joy at the departure of winter and the promise of summer, Dionysus being regarded as having delivered the people from the wants and troubles of winter. The religious act of the festival was the conveying of the ancient image of the god, which had been brought from Eleutherae to Athens, from the ancient sanctuary of the Lensen to another sanctuary, with a chorus of boys and a procession carrying masks and singing the dithyrambiis. The culmination of the festival was in the production of tragedies, comedies, and satiric dramas in the great theatre of Dionysus. Besides the Dionysia strictly so called, there were also the Lencea and Anthesteria, both held in honour of this god, the former in January and the latter in February.
DIONYSIUS, the Elder (c. 430–367 B.C.), tyrant of Syracuse, was born about 430 B.C. He began life as a clerk in a public office, and first took part in political affairs during the dissensions that followed the destruction of the Athenian expedition. He was wounded in the attempt of Hermocrates to seize upon Syracuse; and, during the disasters inflicted by the Carthaginians who had invaded the island, he succeeded, along with Philistus and Hipparinus, in procuring the deposition of the Sicilian generals, and was himself included in the number appointed in their stead. By intriguing with the inhabitants of Gela, which he had been sent to relieve, and spreading insinuations of treachery in regard to his colleagues, he was ultimately invested with the supreme command; and by the help of a large body-guard he soon made himself independent of the popular opinion. Pestilence having thinned the Carthaginian army, Dionysius, in spite of his ill success, found no difficulty in procuring peace (405 B.C.). In the stronghold of Ortygia he defied the machinations of his enemies, until, partly from defeats and partly from dissensions, the opposition died away. After a successful expedition against Naxos, Catana, and Leontini, his efforts were directed against Carthage. (See Carthage). He also carried an expedition against Rhegium and its allied cities in Magna Graecia. In one campaign, in which he was joined by the Lucanians, he devastated the territories of Thurii, Croton, and Locri. After a protracted siege he took Rhegium, 387 B.C., and sold the inhabitants as slaves. He joined the Illyrians in an unsuccessful attempt to plunder the temple of Delphi, and also pillaged the temple of Caere on the Etruscan coast. In the Peloponnesian war he espoused the side of the Spartans. Not content with his military renown, Dionysius aspired also to poetical glory. His poems were hissed at the Olympic games; but having gained a prize for tragic poetry at Athens, he was so elated that he engaged in a debauch which proved fatal (367 B.C.) His life was written by Philistus, but the work has unfortunately perished.
DIONYSIUS, the Younger, ascended the throne of Syracuse at his father s death, in 367 B.C. He was driven from the kingdom by Dion, and fled to Locri ; but during the commotions which followed the assassination of that leader, he managed to make himself master of Syracuse. On the arrival of Timoleon be was compelled to surrender and retire to Corinth (343 B.C.), where he spent the rest of his days in poverty.
Alexander. From the introduction to his great work we learn that he went to Italy after the termination of the civil wars, and spent twenty-two years in preparing materials for his history, which is entitled Archceologia,
and embraced the history of Rome from the mythical period
