Outlines of the world's history, ancient, mediæval, and modern, with special relation to the history of civilization and the progress of mankind ...

Front matter

Glass JS^A

>Sg\n

OUTLINES

Section II. History Of Greece

CHAPTER PAGE

I. General Sketch 73

II. History of the First Period : From the Dorian Migration to the beginning of the Persian Wars,

1. Beginnings of Greek History .... 81

2. Growth of Sparta and Athens .... 85

III. History of the Second Period : From the beginning

of the .Persian War to the Victory of Philip of

Macedon at Chseronea, B. C. 500-338 ... 91

1. The Persian Invasions 91

2. The Age of Pericles 98

3. The Peloponnesian War 100

4. Period of Spartan and Theban Supremacy . . loi

IV. History of the Third Period: From the Victory of

Philip to the Absorption of Greece by the Romans 103

1. Supremacy of Macedon. — Philip .... 103

2. Career of Alexander the Great .... 104

3. Alexander's Successors 108

4. Later History of Macedon and Greece . . 109

V. Grecian Civilization 114

I. Political Ideas 1 14

2 Religion 114

3. Grecian Festivals 117

4. Greek Literature and Philosophy . . , . iig

5. Grecian Art 125

6. Greek Life, Manners, etc. ..... 128

Contents

IX

Section III. History Of Rome

CHAPTER

I. Geography and Races

II. Primeval Rome. — Period of the Kings

III. The Roman Republic . . . '

1. Epoch of the Struggle for Existence .

Great Names of Early Rome

2. Epoch of the Roman Conquest of Italy

3. Epoch of Foreign Conquest .

4. Epoch of Civil Strife ....

IV. Rome as an Empire ....

1. Age of Augustus .....

2. Political History ....

3. Spread of Christianity

5. Last Days of Rome ....

PAGE

130 133 136 136

Section IV. Medieval History

I. The New Races . 213

11. Three Centuries of History 221

I. The Byzantine Empire . . . . . 221

2. Italy down to Charlemagne

3. Beginnings of France

4. Beginnings of England .

222 224 225 227

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER PAGE

III. Empire of Charlemagne 234

IV. The Feudal System 240

V. Growth of the Papal Power . . . • . 247

VI. The Crusades 253

2. The First Crusade 256

3. The Second Crusade 261

4. The Third Crusade 262

5. The Later Crusades 264

6. Results of the Crusades 265

VII. Chivalry, — its Rise and Decay .... 267

VIII. Civilization in the Middle Ages . . , 272

1. The Dark Ages .272

2. The Age of Revival. — Cities and Commerce . 276

IX. Political Outline : From Charlemagne to the Close of

the Middle Ages 285

1. The German Empire 285

2. France 287

3. England 291

5. Spain 2g8

Section V. . Modern History

I. Transition to Modern History .... 305

2. Fall of the Eastern Empire 306

3. Maritime Discoveries 308

4. The Revival of Learning ..... 312

5. Decline of Feudalism 314

6. Rise of Great Monarchies 3^5

CONTENTS.

XI

CHAPTBR II

V. Page

Great Events of the Sixteenth Century , .317

1. Age of Charles V. ^ 317

2. England under Henry VIII 325

4. Civil and Religious Wars of France

5. Age of Queen Elizabeth . . . .

Great Names of the Sixteenth Centv ry

Great Events of the Seventeenth Century

331 334 339 347

I. England under the Stuarts . . . ... 350

2. The Thirty Years' War

Great Names of the Seventeenth Century .

Great Events of the Eighteenth Century

1. England under the Georges

3. The Rise of Russia

5. Progress of Civilization ....

Great Names of the Eighteenth Century

Great Events of the Nineteenth Century

2. Modern English Politics

3. Revolutions in French Politics .

4. The Unification of Italy ....

5. The German Empire Restored .

Great Names of the Nineteenth Century

364 368

379 387

473 483

Page

Ancient Oriental Monarchies. {Double page!) ... 8

Historic Era at the Beginning of Records ... ii Egypt at the Time of Persian Conquest . . . -13

Dominion of Solomon 39

Phcenicia and her Colonies 44

Persian Empire. {Double page.) 54

Routes of Ancient Commerce . . ' . . . '65

Greece and her Colonies. {Double page ^ .... 72

Greece before Dorian Migration 77

Greek Races after Dorian Migration .... 83

Persian Invasions of Greece .92

Vicinity of Marathon and Athens 93

Thermopylae 96

Races of Ancient Italy 131

Latium, or Primeval Rome 133

The Punic Wars 148

MiTHRiDATic Wars 161

Campaigns of C^sar 167

Roman Empire. {Double page.) '. 182

Plan of Ancient Rome 186

Europe, Close of 6th Century 220

Original Home of the English 226

Map of the Crusades . 252

Iberian Peninsula, 1491 « . 298

Europe, i6th Century. {Double page) .... 304

Globular View of Geographic Discoveries . . . 308

Europe, Time of Napoleon. {Double page. \ . . . 440

OUTLINES OF HISTORY

Introduction

1. History may be defined, in a general way, as the record of the Hfe of mankind. In a more special History deview, it is the narrative of the rise and progress ^^^^'

of those famous peoples whose doings constitute the history of civilization.

2. In this its proper and highest sense history presupposes the races advanced beyond the natural its relation to

'or primitive, state, and gathered in political nati°ns. communities, or nations; and it confines itself to those nations whose achievements have influenced the genera) current of the world's affairs, and made the condition of the world what we now see it.

3. Respecting mankind outside of nations, there is much interesting and valuable knowledge, supplied Aids to

by various sciences. Among these are, — history.

Ethnol'ogy, or the science of the several races, or types of mankind,

ARCHiEOL'oGY, or the science of the ancient works of man.

Philol'ogy, or the science of language.

By the aid of these sciences much is now known regarding humanity in its lower stages of progress. In our own times a vast amount of inquiry has been made into the condition of the primeval races ; interesting studies have been made also on the customs, manners, arts, languages, and religions of savage tribes.

2 OUTLINES OF GENERAL HISTORY.

4. These researches belong to Anthropol'ogy, which Difference be- deals with man in natural history, rather than poiogy^and'^"' ^o HiSTORY proper, which deals with nations, History. that is to Say, with man in civilizatio7i.

5. Viewing history as confined to the series of leading The real his- civilizcd natioHS, we observe that it has to do toric race. ya'Cix but onc grand division of the human family, namely, with the Caucasian, or white race. To this division belonged the people of all the elder nations, — the Egyptians, Assyr'ians and Babylo'nians, the Hebrews and the Phoeni'cians, the Hin'doos, the Persians, the Greeks, and the Romans. Of course, the modern European nations, as also the states founded by European colonists, all belong to this ethnological division. Thus we see that history proper concerns itself with but one highly developed type of mankind ; for though the great bulk of the population of the globe has, during the whole recorded period, belonged, and does still belong, to other types of mankind, yet the Caucasians form the only truly historical race. Hence we may say that civilization is the product of the brain of this race.

Of the peoples outside of the Caucasian race that have made some figure in civilization, the Chinese, Mexicans, and Peruvians stand alone. But though those races rose considerably above the savage state, their civilization was stationary, and they had no marked influence on -fhe general current of the viforld's progress.

6. Modern scholars divide this historical stock — the Its three di- Caucasian race — into three main branches: visions. J 'pj^g A'ryan, or Indo-European branch; IL The Semit'ic branch ; III. The Hamific branch. This classification is a linguistic one, — that is to say, it is a division based on the nature of the languages spoken by the three families of nations, — but at the same time it represents three distinct civilizations.

INTROD UCTION.

7. The Aryan branch is that division to which we ourselves belong : it includes nearly all the pres-

1 • i- T- ^^ r^ ^ The Aryans.

ent and past nations of Europe, — the Greeks, Latins, Germans or Teu'tons, Celts, and Slavo'nians, — together with two ancient Asiatic peoples, namely, the Hin* doos and the Persians.

8. The evidence of language shows that the Celtic, German, Slavonian, Greek, and Latin tongues all Their unity, bear a remarkable family likeness, and that ^°^ proved, they share this likeness with the Sanscrit, which was the ancient language of India, and with the Zend, the ancient language of Persja. It is quite certain that the forefathers of the Persians and of the Hindoos and the forefathers of all the European nations were once one people, and lived together somewhere in Western Asia. This was at a time long before the beginning of recorded history (for we know nothing of the Greeks, Latins, Germans, Celts, etc., as such, until we find them in Europe) ; but still it is proved by the evidence of language that their original home and native seat was Asia.

9. The Semitic branch includes the ancient inhabitants of Syria, Arabia, and the Tigris and Euphrates „ .

countries. The leading historical representatives of the Semitic branch are the Hebrews, Phoenicians, Assyrians, and Arabs.

10. The Hamitic branch has but one prominent representative, — the Egyptians. It is probable,

however, that the ancient Chaldse'ans also belonged to this race.

11. The history of the civilized world is the history of the Aryan, Semitic, and Hamitic races. It is comparison of of interest to know that the race to which we *^^ Tca.c&&. belong, the Aryan, has always played the leading part in the great drama of the world's progress. The Hamitic nations, the Egyptians and Chaldaeans, though they devel-

4 OUTLINES OF GENERAL HISTORY.

oped a peculiar type of civilization, yet grew up and remained in a great degree apart from the rest of the world, having no considerable influence on the main current of history. As to the Semites, there is one respect in which they have the greatest place in the story of mankind, namely, in religious development; for the three religions that have taught men that there is but one God — namely, the Jewish, the Christian, and the Mahom'etan — have all come from among them. But, aside from this, the Semites do not make nearly so important or so conspicuous a figure in history as do the Aryans, or Indo-Europeans. They have never been greatly progressive. They have generally shown a conservative disposition that has, in the main, kept them fixed to their native seat, in the small tract of country between the Tigris, the Mediterranean, and the Red Sea. Thus they have not, like the Aryans, been the planters of new nations ; and they have never attained a high intellectual development, or that progress in political freedom, in science, art, and literature, which is the glory of the Aryan nations.

12. If we trace back the present civilization of the ad- The Aryans in vauccd nations of the world, ■ — our own civilhistory, ization, and that of England, Germany, France, Italy, etc., — we shall find that much of it is connected by direct and unbroken line with the Roman. The Romans, in turn, were heirs of the Greeks. Now, all this is Aryan ; and when we go back to the primitive age of the undivided Aryans in Asia, we see that this race must even then have been placed far above the condition of mere savages, and that they had made good beginnings in government, and social life, and religion, and the simple mechanical arts. Thus we are fully authorized to say that the Aryans are peculiarly the race of progress ; and a very large part of the history of the world must be taken up with an account of the contributions which the Aryan nations have made to the common stock of civilization.

13. In these Outlines of the world's history we shall

\ake up : Divisions of

I. The groups of ancient Oriental nations, *^*^ ''°°'^- including, i. The Egyptians ; 2. The Assyro-Babylonians ; 3. The Hebrews; 4. The Phoenicians; 5. The Hindoos; 6. The Persians.

II. The history of Greece.

III. The history of the Roman Dominion.

IV. The history of the Middle Ages.

V. The history of the modern European states and nations.

14. The entire historical period, commencing with the early Empires of the East, and coming down chronologic to our own times, is usually divided into dis- p^''»°«1stinct portions, sometimes two and sometimes three ; that is to say, some historians make a double division, into Ancient history and Modern history ; and others a triple division, into Ancieni, Mediceval, and Modern history. In either case Ancient history ends with the breaking up of the Dominion of Rome, in the fifth century a. d. (fall of the Western Roman Empire, 476 a. d.). Then, if we make the double division, Modern Kistory will begin with the downfall of Rome ; but if the t7-iple division, the interval from the fifth to the fifteenth century will be regarded as a period by itself, called Medieval history, or the history of the Middle Ages ; while Modern history, according to this method, will be confined to the centuries between the fifteenth and the present time.

15. Such divisions of the historic period into portions are merely arbitrary, seeing that history forms Nature of tha in reality an unbroken whole. We shall adopt divisions, the triple division for practical convenience, though perhaps the double division is the more philosophical ; for while we think of the ages as forming a continuous stream, tlie Roman Dominion may still be regarded as a reservoir

OUTLINES OF GENERAL HISTORY into which all the currents of history from the anterior ages were gathered, and from which, in turn, the ampler currents of Modern history have flowed. It was out of the breaking up of the great Dominion of Rome in the fifth century a. d. (when the Western Roman Empire fell, under the attacks of the Gothic invaders, and of other new races f.oosely called "Northern barbarians") that the modern states of Europe — that is, Italy, Spain, France, England,. '(Germany, etc. — ■ gradually took their rise.

l6. In the largest sense, however, hi£.(.ory is a tinit : its epochs form but acts in one grand Provi-

History a unit. , . , , , i r i • i

dential drama ; one thread of progress bmds nation to nation ; and, looking at humanity as a whole, we see that

Through the ages one increasing purpose runs, And the thoughts of men are widened with the process of

THE SUNS.

Tennyson.

ANALYTIC SYNOPSIS FOR REVIEW, I. Definition of History. (IT i.)

AN/HftOPOLOGY, ) how distinguished. (114.1 History proper, j

TI. Aids to History.

Ethnology, \

Archeology, [ how defined. (IT 3.)

Philology, )

III. Divisions of the Caucasian Race.

' Hindoos,

Aryan (Indo-European) Branch. (IT 7.)

Persians, Greeks, Latin Germans, Celts, ,. Slavonians,

IN TROD UCTION.

•ty^^iL^

Semitic Branch. (IT 9.)

Hebrews, Phoenicians, Assyrians, Arabs.

Egyptians,

HAMiTic Branch. (Hio.) j E«™^^«'

^ I CHALDiEANS.

IV. Divisions of History. (IT 13.)

1. Oriental Nations.

2. Greece.

3. Rome.

4. The Middle Ages.

V. Chronologic Periods. (^ 14.)

Ancient History, from the earliest period to the fall of the

Western Roman Empire, 476 A. D.

Medieval History, from the fall of the Western Roman

Empire to the close of the 15th century. Modern History, from the. close of the 15th century to the

present time.

Chapter I. Geographical Sketch

1. The ancient Oriental civilizations to be treated of in Oriental na- this section Comprise the monarchies of Egypt, *'°"®- Ass3n:'ia and Babylo'nia, Judae'a, Phoeni'cia, India, and Persia.

2. With the single exception of Egypt, the seat of all the

ancient Oriental nations was in Asia. And of this grand division of the globe it is to be observed that only a small part has any connection with history proper. Historical Asia is in reality Southwestern Asia.

3. All that part of Asia north of the Altai range is a com- „ ^ . . paratively barren waste. It was almost wholly

Northern Asia. , -^ . . . -^

unknown in antiquity. 4- Central Asia, extending between the 50th and the 40th c t 1 A • parallels of north latitude, — known to ancient writers as Scyth'ia, — is a region of vast plateaus. Being destitute of arable land, it is a mere country of pasture. It has always supported a great population, but a population of nomads without fixed habitations or cities, and with no other form of political association than patriarchal government. Accordingly, the races of this region have played no part in history, except that the Mongolian or Tartar races, inhabiting the great steppes, have at times poured dowji upon and conquered the civilized countries.

GEOGRAPBICAL SKETCH. 9

5. The real theater of Asiatic history, namely, Southwestern Asia, may be subdivided into three Division of regions : i. that west of the Euphra'tes ; 2. the 'Western Asia. valleys of the Euphrates and Ti'gris ; 3. the region between the Zagros Mountains and the In'dus basin inclusive.

6. West of the Euphrates we have : i. The peninsula of Asia Minor, the seat of several nationalities (of which that of Lyd'ia was the most important) ind of various Grecian colonies ; their history is, however, connected as much with Europe as with Asia. 2. Syr'ia, bordering on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea, and comprising three distinct parts : (i). Syria proper ; (2) Phoenicia, including the narrow strip of coast between Leb'anon and the sea ; (3) Palestine, south of Phoenicia. 3. The peninsula of Arabia, stretching southeastward. This last is of comparatively little importance in ancient history.

7. In the basins of the Tigris and the Euphrates were several distinct territorial divisions: i. Arme'-

nia, or the highland region between Asia Minor egion.

and the Caspian Sea. 2. Assyria proper, which lay east of the Tigris River and west of the Zagros Mountains. 3. Babylonia, comprising the great alluvial plain between the lower course of the Tigris and of the Euphrates, and stretching westward to the Syrian Desert. 4. Chaldae'a, the country at the head of the Persian Gulf, stretching westward from the lower waters of the Euphrates to the Syrian Desert. 5. Mesopota'mia, or the district between the two great rivers. 6. Susia'na, including the country lying along the Tigris east of Babylonia.

, 8. It must not be supposed that these territories were severally the seat of distinct nations. We may Nations in say that three great monarchies ruled in the ^^'^""'^ region, valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates, down to the time when these territories were absorbed in Persia (6th century b. c). These were the Chaldsean, Babylonian, and Assyrian kinglO ANCIENT ORIENTAL MONARCHIES.

doms ; and of these the last, at the height of its power, held sway over nearly the entire region between the Zagros Mountains and the Mediterranean Sea.

9. The table-land of ancient Iran (Persia) lay to the east Eastern di- of the Zagros chain of mountains, which sep- ^'^*°''- arated it from the Tigris and Euphrates basins. In the north, toward the Caspian Sea, was Media ; to the south, and reaching to the Persian Gulf, was ancient Persia proper. Farther eastward, and stretching to the south, was the peninsula of India, forming the eastern limit of ancient Asiatic civilization.

10. The earliest nations recorded in history arose in the Civilization three alluvial plains of the Nile, of the Tigris and geography. ^^^ Euphrates, and of the Indus. This fact was wholly due to physical causes. In a primitive state of society, population can gather into nations only in regions where a fertile soil produces abundant food. Now the three alluvial basins just named are distinguished for their extraordinary fertility. Here nature spontaneously produces certain important articles of food, such as dates, rice, etc., which, being easily cultivated and yielding immense returns, made a large population possible. Accordingly, we find that in these countries men had adopted fixed habitations (a great advance on the pastoral or nomad state) and formed themselves into political associations at a dme long antedating recorded history.

11. As the physical conditions that favor the formation of human society are, so far as the Old World goes, found only in the alluvial plains of Southwest Asia (taking in Cradle of na- Egypt), as the earliest nations appear in these tions. regions, and as philology proves that all the European races came from Western Asia, — we may safely consider that here was, if not the cradle of the human race, at least the cradle of civilization.

12. We shall begin with these earliest nations of civilized

GEOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.

II

Origin of man.

man. With the origin of the humeri race, its first seats and earliest distribution, history proper does not undertake to deal. History commences when historical records commence. Hence we must leave to revelation and to science the consideration of primitive humanity, and take up our studies with those ancient Oriental nations that appear on the stage of human affairs when historic records begin;

13. When the curtain goes up on antiquity, — say in the 23d century b. c, — we have disclosed to view Earliest histhe venerable figures of two civilizations : that *°"'^ theater, in the Nile Valley and that in Chaldaea. And beyond this narrow region the fore-world is to us shrouded in impenetrable darkness.

t^ jo

ANCIENT ORIENTAL MONARCHIES.

Chapter II. Egypt

1. HISTORICAL OUTLINE.

The Great Pyramids.

14. Egypt is the country in which we first find a gov- Antiquity of emment and political institutions established. Egypt. Egypt itself may not have been the oldest nation, but Egyptian history is certainly the oldest history. Its monuments, records, and literature surpass in antiquity those of Chaldjea and India, the two next oldest nations.

15. It is natural to suppose that the banks of the Nile must have been one of the primitive seats of human society', for the condition already mentioned as favoring the Wh old ^^^* formation of nations — namely, cheap

and abundant food — was here present in a remarkable degree.

EGYPT.

16. Egypt itself has been called from the earliest antiquity " the Physical ge- Giftofthe ography. .

Nile." This mighty river, flowing from the highlands of Abyssinia and the great lakes of equatorial Africa, forms in Egypt a strip * of fertility in the midst of the desert waste.

In its annual overflow (due to the immense rainfalls in the Abyssinian mountains), the Nile, by its mud deposits, renews every year the soil of this strip, so that all the people had to do was to plant, and nature produced,

17. In Egypt the date - palm grew spontaneously, nished the people with a cheap and abun-

Food-plants.

and fur-

MAP STUDY.

Ancient Egypt comprised three divisions, — Lower Egypt, or the Delta ; Middle Egypt, or the Heptanomis ; Upper Egypt, or the Thebais.

I. In which division was Memphis ? 2. On which bank of the Nile was Memphis ? 3. In which division was Thebes "i 4. Near which city are the Great Pyramids .^ 5. What seaport at the mouth of the eastern branch of the Nile ? 6. Where was the land of Goshen? 7. What sea north of Egypt ? 8. What is the general course of the Nile ? 9. What sea east of Egypt ? 10. What celebrated rnountain in this vipinity ?

dant article of food. The fertility of the soil also yielded, with slight labor, large crops of cereals (especially d/iourra, a sort of maize), and the " granaries of Egypt " were the storehouse whence all the peoples of the Mediterranean were wont to draw supplies in seasons of scarcity.

18. The cheapness of living in Egypt led to a great mul- Effect on the tiplication of the population. A Greek writer, people. Diodo'rus Sic'ulus, who traveled there nineteen centuries ago, says that to bring up a child to manhood did not cost more than twenty drachmas (less than four dollars of our money), — and he notices this fact as a cause of the populousness of Egypt.

19. Information in regard to ancient Egypt was, until the Old sources of present century, derived chiefly from the narinformation. rativcs of the Greek historians, and especially from that of Herod'otus,* who traveled in Egypt in the 5 th century B. c, and from some fragments of a history written in Greek by Man'etho, an Egyptian priest, in the 3d century b. c.

20. But in modern times our knowledge of the ancient The new land has been greatly extended by the discovsources. gj-y ^f ^j^g ^j-^ Qf reading the inscriptions which the Eg5qDtians of old with great lavishness carved on their buildings and monuments, especially their obelisks, painted on the frescoed interiors of their tombs, and indeed placed on almost every object of use or art. These writings were in the character called hieroglyphics, which is a Greek term meaning sacred carvings, or priestly writing. Now, the knowledge of the reading of these died out with the decline of Egypt, and " hieroglyphics " became a synonym for everything that is mysterious.

21. It was an interesting accident that led to the unveil- Deciphering of ing of this mystery. During the expedition of the hieroglyph- ^j^g French to Egypt, under Napoleon, at the

* Herodotus, called the father of history, was born at Halicamassus, a Greek colony in Caria (Asia Minor), B. c. 484.

EGYPT. i%

close of the last century, an engineer in digging the foundation of a fort near the Rosetta mouth of the Nile found a stone tablet about three feet long, on which was an inscription in three different characters. This was the famous " Rosetta stone." One of the three texts (the lower one) was Greek, and of course was readily translated ; the text at the head was in the mystic hieroglyphic character ; the intermediate text was in a character since called demotic {demos, the people), that is, the writing of the common people. This inscription was copied and circulated among scholars, and after long and ingenious efforts the alphabet of the hieroglyphics was made out ; so that now these carvings are read with ease and certainty, and a new flood of light has been thrown on the history of ancient Egypt.

Note on the Rosetta Stone. — The Greek text, when translated, showed that the inscription was an ordinance of the priests decreeing certain honors to Ptol'emy Epiph'anes on the occasion of his coronation, l^^iwB. c. (Ptolemy Epiphanes was one of a line of Gceek, sovereigns whh^ruled over Egypt from the time of its conquest by Alexander, 4th century, to the ist century B. c.) It contains a command that the decree should be inscribed in the sacred letters (hieroglyphics), the letters of the country (demotic), and Greek letters, — and this for the convenience of the mixed population of Egypt under its Greek rulers. It was natural to conclude that the three texts were the same in substance, and accordingly earnest efforts were made to decipher the hieroglyphics by aid of the Greek. The first clew was obtained by noticing that certain groups of the hieroglyphic characters were inclosed in oval rings, and that these groups corresponded in relative position with certain proper names, such as Ptolemy, etc., in the Greek text. The following line presents a few of the characters with a group in the oval ring. (The words and groups of words are read from right to left.)

m'm\tm m3\n

(Ptolemy eternal beloved of Phtabi of Egypt king of statue l6 ANCIENT ORIENTAL MONARCHIES.

It was by comparison of the group judged on strong grounds to be the name Ptolemy, with another group (found on another stone) supposed to stand for the name Cleopatra, that the first great advance was made. The groups were as follows : —

Supposed to be Ptolemy.

Supposed to be Cleopatra.

In Greek Ptolemy is Ptolemaios, and Cleopatra is Kleopatra. If now the hieroglyphic characters were /i?z'/^;'-signs, the characters i, 2, 3, 4, in Ptolemaios should correspond respectively with 5, 7, 4, 2, in Kleopatra (the yfrj/* letter in Ptolemaios being ihtjiftk in Kleopatra, etc.). In this way several letters were discovered ; by means of other groups the whole alphabet was made out, and finally it was proved that by this phonetic alphabet the characters and groups could be resolved into the Coptic language of Egypt, which was already understood by scholars. It should not be forgotten that the great work of deciphering was mainly effected by the French savant, Champollion.

22. The Egyptians were not Africans, as we understand that term. They belonged to the Caucasian race. Still, they were neither Aryans nor Semites, and hence scholars call them by a special designation, namely, Ha77iites, or Khaniites.^ They bore a greater resemblance to the ancient Chaldagans than to any other Asiatic people ; both peoples showed a wonderful building instinct, and the Egyptian language seems to be a sort of primitive Semitic. Hence some scholars believe that the Egyptians were originally immigrants into the Nile Valley from the alluvial plain at the head of the Persian Gulf ; but if this was the case, the Egyptians must have left

* KhaTTii (literally the Black Land) was the native name of Egypt

EGYPT.

Asia at a period before there was that sharp division of Semites and Aryans which we find in historical times.

23. The origin of Egyptian civiHzation is hidden in the darkness of antiquity ; but by the aid of certain ascertained facts we may establish at Egfp't^s'ws" least an approximate starting-point. Thus, it ^°^^' is known that Abraham visited Egypt in the 20th century B. c, and that he then found a flourishing monarchy existing. Now at this remote period the Great Pyramids were standing, and modern scholars are agreed that these structures were reared by kings of the fourth dynasty, — at a time not later than the middle of the 25th century B.C. It is evident from the monuments that the civilization of Egypt at this early date was in many respects of an advanced order, and hence we must seek its origin still farther back. But how far back? According to the native historian Manetho, twenty-six dynasties of kings ruled the country from Me'nes, the first king of the first dynasty, down to the conquest of Egypt by the Persians in the 6th century B. c. The accession of Menes is placed by some scholars (as Bunsen) at 3906; others bring it down as late as 2700. Later than that date we cannot bring it, and it would doubtless be quite correct to say that Egypt was a civilized counry three thousand years before the Christian era. ^