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BYZANTIUM 519 and Poussines, the Dominicans Goar and Com- betis, Prof. Fabrotti, Du Cange, Allacci, the librarian of the Vatican, Banduri, librarian at Florence, Boivin, the royal librarian at Paris, and Bouilliaud, a mathematician. An- other edition, with additions, was published at Venice (23 vols., 1729-'33). Some, not in- cluded in either collection, have been pub- lished separately since. Niebuhr entertained a high opinion of the value of the Byzantine historians in a general history of mankind, and projected a new edition of them, which was commenced in 1828, under the title Corpus Seriptorum Histories Byzantina, Editio emen- datior et eopiosior (Bonn). Of this edition 48 volumes were published. Bekker, the two Dindorfs, Schopen, Meinecke, and Lachmann were the principal editors. The best key to the language of these writers is the "Greek Lexicon of the Roman and Byzantine Periods," by Prof. E. A. Sophocles of Harvard univer- sity (Boston, 1870). BYZANTIUM, an ancient Greek city on the shores of the Bosporus, on a part of the site of the modern Constantinople. It was origi- nally settled by a band of Megarian colo- nists before the middle of the 7th century B. C., but it was destroyed by Otanes, the Per- sian satrap, in the time of Darius Hystaspis. After the defeat of the Persians at Plataaa (479), Pausanias. the general of the confede- rate Greeks, recolonized it with a body of Dorians and lonians. From this heteroge- neous constitution endless disputes arose, and Spartan and Athenian parties always existed within the walls. The fine harbor and advan- tageous position soon made it of great com- mercial importance. It obtained possession of the corn traffic between the shores of the Euxine and Greece and Egypt, and its fisheries were abundant. The wealth of its commerce procured for the harbor of Byzantium the name of the Golden Horn. It remained under the regency of the Lacedaemonians until Oimon captured it for the Athenians; but it soon re- turned to its original allegiance. Alcibiades got possession of it by the aid of the Athe- nian party within the city, in 408 ; but it was retaken by Lysander the Lacedaemonian in 405. Xenophon, with the remnant of his 10,000 men, passed through it on his way homeward. ' In 390 Thrasybulus expelled the pro-Lacedasmonian oligarchy, and established the power of the democracy. Byzantium put itself at the head of a league consist- ing of Rhodes, Chios,' Cos, and Caria, threw off the Athenian supremacy, and remained for a space entirely independent. As the com- mercial importance of Athens declined, that of Byzantium was augmented. When, how- ever, Philip of Macedon besieged it, it return- ed to its Athenian allegiance, and called upon Athens for succor. Owing to the anti-Mace- donian eloquence of Demosthenes, the aid was granted, and Phocion compelled Philip to raise the siege. The Byzantines erected a monument in honor of the event, and granted the rights of Byzantine citizenship to the Athe- nians. During the progress of this siege the city was saved from capture by surprise, through a flash of light which illumined the northern horizon and betrayed the proximity of the besiegers. A crescent was stamped on the Byzantine coins in honor of this miracu- lous event; and when the Turks took Con- stantinople in the loth century, they adopted this municipal symbol as their own national device. In the reign of Alexander the Great Byzantium acknowledged the Macedonian su- premacy. In the dissensions of Alexander's generals, Byzantium sided with Antigonus against Polysperchon, and with Lysimachus against Seleucus. It was at this period much exposed to the incursions of the Thra- cians, Scythians, and other barbarians, on the land side. The Gauls made it pay heavy tribute, which caused the citizens to retali- ate upon the commerce of the world, by levy- ing a toll upon all vessels passing through the Bosporus. This tax brought them into a war with the island of Rhodes, 221 B. C. Attalus, king of Pergamus, sided with the Byzantines; Prusias, king of Bithynia, with the Rhodians. The latter were successful, and commerce remained unburdened. An- cient writers give a very bad character to the Byzantines. Their morals were not above the standard of other large seaport towns. They preferred the sound of a flute to that of a war trumpet; and when Philip of Maeedon was besieging the place, the Byzantine general, Leo, found that the only means of maintaining the courage of the Byzantines, and holding them to their duty, was to plant a range of cook shops along the ramparts. Byzantium was fortunate in allying itself with Rome from the first against the Macedonian kings, Anti- ochus of Syria and Mithridates of Pontus. In acknowledgment of its fidelity, the Romans allowed it to remain a free confederate city. In consequence of some popular disturbances, however, the emperor Vespasian deprived the citizens of their civic liberties and sent them a governor. In the civil war between Pescen- nius Niger and Severus, Byzantium sided with the losing claimant. The emperor Severus besieged the town, which defended itself for three years, and then capitulated from famine. The chief citizens were put to death and the massive walls razed to the ground. Subse- quently he repented of this severity, embel- lished the town, and gave it the name of Augusta Antonina, in honor of his son Anto- ninus. Caracalla restored some of its former civic privileges, but Gallienus gave it up to pillage, and massacred many of the citizens. The inhabitants repelled the invading Goths in the time of Claudius II. Byzantium was the last refuge of Licinius in his war with Constantine. After its surrender to Constan- tine, he resolved to build a new city on its site and make it the capital of the Roman empire.