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THE HISTORY
OF SYRIA
 ADVISORY BOARD

John T. Alexander
Professor of History and Rus­sian and Eu­ro­pean Studies,
University of Kansas
Robert A. Divine
George W. Littlefield Professor in American History Emeritus,
University of Texas at Austin
John V. Lombardi
Professor of History,
University of Florida
 THE HISTORY
OF SYRIA
John A. Shoup

The Greenwood Histories of the Modern Nations

Frank W. Thackeray and John E. Findling, Series Editors
Copyright © 2018 by ABC-­CLIO, LLC

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording, or other­wise, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a
review, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-­in-­Publication Data

Names: Shoup, John A.

Title: The history of Syria / John A. Shoup.
Description: Santa Barbara, California : Greenwood, 2018. | Series: Greenwood histories
of the modern nations | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2018020377 (print) | LCCN 2018021018 (ebook) | ISBN 9781440858352
(ebook) | ISBN 9781440858345 (hardcopy : alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Syria—­Juvenile lit­er­a­t ure.
Classification: LCC DS93 (ebook) | LCC DS93 .S56 2018 (print) | DDC 956.91—­dc23
LC rec­ord available at https://­lccn​.­loc​.­gov​/­2018020377

ISBN: 978-1-4408-5834-5 (print)

978-1-4408-5835-2 (ebook)

22 21 20 19 18   1 2 3 4 5

This book is also available as an eBook.

Greenwood
An Imprint of ABC-­CLIO, LLC

ABC-­CLIO, LLC
130 Cremona Drive, P.O. Box 1911
Santa Barbara, California 93116​-­1911
www​.­abc​-­clio​.­com

This book is printed on acid-­free paper

Manufactured in the United States of Amer­i­ca

 Contents

Series Foreword vii

by Frank W. Thackeray and John E. Findling

Preface xi

Timeline of Historical Events xv

1 Overview and Introduction to Syrian History 1

2 Prehistory to the Byzantine Period 13

3 Rise of Islam to the Ottoman Conquest 37

4 Ottoman Period ­until the 18th C

­ entury 63

5 ­Later Ottoman Period u

­ ntil the Tanzimat 73

6 The 19th ­Century 85

7 From 1900 to World War II 95

8 World War II to 1970 109

viContents

9 Hafiz al-­Asad’s Syria: 1970–2000 119

10 Bashar al-­Asad’s Syria: 2000–­Present 135

Notable ­People in the History of Syria 151

Glossary189

Bibliographic Essay 193

Index203
 Series Foreword

The Greenwood Histories of the Modern Nations series is intended to

provide students and interested laypeople with up-­to-­date, concise,
and analytical histories of many of the nations of the con­temporary
world. Not since the 1960s has t­ here been a systematic attempt to pub-
lish a series of national histories, and as series editors, we believe that
this series w
­ ill prove to be a valuable contribution to our understand-
ing of other countries in our increasingly interdependent world.
At the end of the 1960s, the Cold War was an accepted real­ity of global
politics. The pro­cess of decolonization was still in pro­gress, the idea of
a unified Eu­rope with a single currency was unheard of, the United
States was mired in a war in Vietnam, and the economic boom in Asia
was still years in the ­future. Richard Nixon was president of the United
States, Mao Tse-­tung (not yet Mao Zedong) ruled China, Leonid
Brezhnev guided the Soviet Union, and Harold Wilson was prime min-
ister of the United Kingdom. Authoritarian dictators still controlled
most of Latin Amer­i­ca, the ­Middle East was reeling in the wake of the
Six-­Day War, and Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was at the height of
his power in Iran.
Since then, the Cold War has ended, the Soviet Union has vanished,
leaving 15 in­de­pen­dent republics in its wake, the advent of the com-
puter age has radically transformed global communications, the rising
viii Series Foreword

demand for oil makes the M ­ iddle East still a dangerous flashpoint, and
the rise of new economic powers like the P ­ eople’s Republic of China
and India promises to bring about a new world order. All of ­these devel-
opments have had a dramatic impact on the recent history of ­every
nation of the world.
For this series, which was launched in 1998, we first selected nations
whose po­liti­cal, economic, and sociocultural affairs marked them as
among the most impor­tant of our time. For each nation, we found an
author who was recognized as a specialist in the history of that nation.
­These authors worked cooperatively with us and with Greenwood Press
to produce volumes that reflected current research on their nations and
that are in­ter­est­ing and informative to their readers. In the first de­cade
of the series, close to 50 volumes w ­ ere published, and some have now
moved into second editions.
The success of the series has encouraged us to broaden our scope to
include additional nations, whose histories have had significant effects
on their regions, if not on the entire world. In addition, geopo­liti­cal
changes have elevated other nations into positions of greater impor-
tance in world affairs and, so, we have chosen to include them in this
series as well. The importance of a series such as this cannot be under-
estimated. As a superpower whose influence is felt all over the world,
the United States can claim a “special” relationship with almost e­ very
other nation. Yet many Americans know very l­ ittle about the histories
of nations with which the United States relates. How did they get to be
the way they are? What kind of po­liti­cal systems have evolved t­ here?
What kind of influence do they have on their own regions? What are
the dominant po­liti­cal, religious, and cultural forces that move their
leaders? T­ hese and many other questions are answered in the volumes
of this series.
The authors who contribute to this series write comprehensive his-
tories of their nations, dating back, in some instances, to prehistoric
times. Each of them, however, has devoted a significant portion of their
book to events of the past 40 years b ­ ecause the modern era has contrib-
uted the most to con­temporary issues that have an impact on U.S. pol-
icy. Authors make e­ very effort to be as up-­to-­date as pos­si­ble so that
readers can benefit from discussion and analy­sis of recent events.
In addition to the historical narrative, each volume contains an intro-
ductory chapter giving an overview of that country’s geography, po­liti­
cal institutions, economic structure, and cultural attributes. This is
meant to give readers a snapshot of the nation as it exists in the con­
temporary world. Each history also includes supplementary infor-
mation following the narrative, which may include a timeline that
Series Forewordix

represents a succinct chronology of the nation’s historical evolution, bio-

graphical sketches of the nation’s most impor­tant historical figures, and
a glossary of impor­tant terms or concepts that are usually expressed in a
foreign language. Fi­nally, each author prepares a comprehensive bibliog-
raphy for readers who wish to pursue the subject further.
Readers of ­these volumes w ­ ill find them fascinating and well writ-
ten. More importantly, they w ­ ill come away with a better understand-
ing of the con­temporary world and the nations that comprise it. As
series editors, we hope that this series ­will contribute to a heightened
sense of global understanding as we move through the early years of
the twenty-­first ­century.

Frank W. Thackeray and John E. Findling

Indiana University Southeast
This page intentionally left blank
 Preface

This book ­will help the reader make sense of what seems to be the
“mess” of the ­Middle East and pres­ent as clearly as pos­si­ble the main
course of Syrian events. The author has made use of sections from
the book Culture and Customs of Syria (Greenwood Press, 2008), which
included a section on history, and direct excerpts have been borrowed
and modified for this text. In addition, the previous publication cov-
ered events through 2008, three years before the 2011 civil war started,
and this book w ­ ill cover events up through 2017, including the fall of
the rebel-­held parts of Homs and Aleppo and the rise of the Islamic
State of Iraq and the Sham (ISIS or the so-­called Islamic State, IS, or
ISIL) in 2013. In Arabic, ISIS is called Da‘ish (from al-­D awalah al-­
Islamiyyah fi al-­‘Iraq wa-­al-­Sham, or the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria),
and it chose the Syrian city of al-­Raqqah as its capital in 2014. IS broke
its affiliation with al-­Qaeda (al-­Qa‘idah) in 2014, though it had been part
of the Sunni fundamentalist organ­ization in Iraq fighting “foreign
invaders” since 2003.
This book w ­ ill start in the Neolithic period and with what archeolo-
gists call the Natufian culture (12500–9500 BCE) that emerged in the Fer-
tile Crescent. Named for Wadi al-­Natuf near Jerusalem, this culture
existed through much of the central part of the Fertile Crescent. As previ-
ously noted, the expanse of Syrian history is long and among the longest
xiiPreface

written (recorded) anywhere. Syria has been a place of state and empire
expansion and the first place where ­people from one culture actively
interfered po­liti­cally, eco­nom­ically, and religiously in the affairs of ­others.
The first empires in the world w ­ ere founded in ancient Syria, The mod-
ern events involving ISIS follow in the footsteps of ­others from the past,
such as the economic expansion of the Sumerian city of Uruk (in modern
Iraq) in the fourth millennium BCE.1 ISIS was founded in Iraq ­under the
leadership of Ibrahim ‘Awad Ibrahim al-­Badri al-­Samarani al-­Baghdadi,
who is an Iraqi. As ­will be shown in this book, Syria ­today is part of the
same region of the first empire in the fourth millennium BCE.
Perhaps the closeness of the heartlands of the Ottoman Empire gave
Syrians the sophistication of the imperial capital of Istanbul. Damascus
and Aleppo w ­ ere like smaller versions of Istanbul u ­ ntil the civil war of
2011. Foods are common to Anatolia and Syria with many shared dishes
and even shared names of foods. The Ottoman period saw the develop-
ment of domestic architecture that became an impor­tant yet distinctive
feature of both Damascus and Aleppo, which again stresses the high
level of culture in Syrian families. The close connection with Turkey and
the Ottoman past was perhaps best seen in Aleppo before the 2011 war.
Located close to the Turkish border, Aleppo had an ethnically mixed
population of Armenians, Kurds, Turks, and Arabs. Religiously, it had a
majority of Sunni Muslims with Christians, Shi‘ites (of both the main
Twelvers and Isma‘ilis, or Seveners), and ‘Alawis (also called Nusayris).
The legacy of the Ottoman period could be seen in the tolerance of o ­ thers.
Before delving into Syria’s past, the author would like to explain to
the reader why Syria holds such a place in the hearts of ­those who have
visited the country and why I jumped at the offer of Culture and Cus-
toms of Syria and then this text. I first went to Syria in 1976 and imme-
diately fell ­ u nder the sophisticated charm of Damascus. When
encountering Syria and Syrians, one is impressed with their politeness,
their proper be­hav­ior, and their charm. It is easy to understand why
the Prophet Muhammad compared the city to paradise. Diana Darke,
author of the Bradt Travel Guide: Syria, states:

Syria has always been my favourite Arab country . . . ​In Syria I found,
and continue to find, every­thing I like best about the Arab world . . . ​
Due to its po­liti­cal regime it has been typecast by Western Powers as
evil and dangerous. Anyone who visits t­ oday [in 2010] ­will see some-
thing quite dif­fer­ent.2

Syria’s spell over visitors is not unique to me; most p ­ eople who vis-
ited it in the “good days,” before the 2011 uprising, fell u
­ nder the spell.
Prefacexiii

­ eople mention the food and the traditional architecture; even the
P
clothes and spoken dialect seem to encompass high levels of education
and sophistication, politeness, and urbane genteelism.3 Damascus,
though, is not alone in conveying such a positive image of the country.
Throughout the country, before the civil war, visitors encountered a
highly educated population that, though modern, was not Westernized.
Syrians took g ­ reat pride in the role their ancestors played in the advance-
ment in civilization, not just in the advancement of Islamic civilization
but also in the development of Mediterranean culture. The deep aware-
ness by the Syrian p ­ eople gave them a confidence in meeting visitors
from other cultures, and t­ here was no issue of inferiority/superiority
complex that seems to plague many recently colonized ­peoples. Syri-
ans rejected the French Mandate, and French influence is barely recog-
nizable in Syria, unlike Morocco where even a­ fter some 60 years of
in­de­pen­dence, the French language still dominates commerce and poli-
tics. Syrians may speak French, but Arabic is the default language on the
street with every­one. When in the past it was pos­si­ble to study Arabic in
Syria, all of the gradu­ates from ­these programs emerged with excellent
levels of spoken and written Arabic. Unfortunately, the civil war seems
to have destroyed the mutual re­spect ­there used to be in the country.
This volume attempts to give the reader an account of what happened
to Syria, what it used to be, and hopefully what it can be again.
Modern Syrian history began with the Tanzimat, or reform programs
of the Ottoman Empire, the rise of Arab nationalism, Arab participa-
tion in World War I, the betrayal of the Arabs by the Sykes-­Picot Agree-
ment, and the subsequent Eu­ro­pean mandates following the war. As
the author stated in the publication Culture and Customs of Syria:

Following the end of the First World War, Syrians expected to be in­de­
pen­dent and manage their own affairs. The Allied Powers, however,
had a dif­fer­ent plan and had already divided up the Ottoman Empire
into their own spheres even before the fighting concluded. Syrian
hopes ­were briefly sustained by the American King-­Crane Commis-
sion that ­after a visit to the region recommended full and immediate
in­de­pen­dence for most of the former Ottoman provinces including
Syria. It is hard to say what would have happened if Syria, Lebanon,
Palestine and Jordan had become the Kingdom of Syria ­under King
Faysal ibn Husayn al-­Hashimi, but what did occur was continued
unrest, wars, and po­liti­cal radicalization of the M
­ iddle East . . . ​Syria
began the twentieth ­century as a friend of the United States and began
the twenty first ­century as part of American President George Bush’s
‘axis of evil’; how much ­things have changed.4
xivPreface

As of 2017, Syria is fighting a vicious civil war, and, unfortunately,

the war has not been reported evenhandedly. The “rebels” are painted
with a positive image, and the Syrian government is seen in the nightly
news in most Western countries as killing “innocent victims.” This sim-
plistic version of the events in Syria makes it impossible to understand
the nature of the conflict, and the basic conflict between secularism and
Islamic fundamentalism is lost on viewers. As in all m ­ atters about the
­Middle East, the Syrian situation is not so easy or ­simple. ­There are rea-
sons why the previous president of Syria (Hafiiz al-­Asad) did not trust
democracy, and, yes, Syrians wanted something ­else other than a con-
tinuation of the old version of government. This publication ­will pres­
ent to the reader a more detailed analy­sis of the events in Syria’s long
history that w
­ ill, hopefully, help put current events into perspective.

NOTES
1. Warwick Ball, Syria: A Historical and Architectural Guide (Northhamp-
ton, MA: Interlink Publishing Group, 2010), 17.
2. Diana Darke, Bradt Travel Guide: Syria (Guilford, CT: The Globe
Pequot Press, 2101), i.
3. Ninety-­three ­percent of males and 85 p ­ ercent of females are literate.
Dan Smith, The State of the ­Middle East: An Atlas of Conflict and Resolution
(Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2006), 125.
4. John Shoup, Culture and Customs of Syria (Westport, CT: Greenwood
Press, 2008), Preface.
 Timeline of Historical Events

NEOLITHIC
12500–9500 BCE Natufian culture found throughout Greater Syria from
Palestine to northern Syria—­first sedentary living
before the domestication of plants and animals.
11,500–7370 Göbekli Tepe (1.6 kilo­meters [7 miles] northeast of San-
liurfa in southern Turkey), the oldest known religious
­temple before domestication of plants and animals.
8000–4000 Neolithic period characterized by the domestication of
plants (wheat, barely, and legumes) and livestock (pigs,
sheep, goats, c­ attle, and donkeys). ­People begin to live
in permanent settlements, many of which form the
basis for large urban centers, such as Damascus and
Aleppo.

EARLY ANTIQUITY
3100–2150 BCE Early Bronze Age.
2900 Founding of Mari on the ­middle Euphrates and of Ebla
on the northern Syrian plains.
xvi Timeline of Historical Events

2500 Expansion of Mari as a major trade center between Iraq

and Syria.
2400–2250 Ebla becomes a major urban center based on agricul-
ture and trade.
2250 Both Mari and Ebla sacked and razed by Sargon of
Akkad (2340–2284).
2150–1600 ­Middle Bronze Age
2100 Arrival of the Amorites (western Semites), who estab-
lish control over much of Syria, including Damascus
and Aleppo.
2000 Ebla rebuilt ­under the Yamkhad dynasty of Aleppo.
1900–1757 Mari recovers u
­ nder the Amorite dynasty, one of a
number of small Amorite states in northern Syria.
1759–1757 Hammurabi of Babylon conquers Mari and destroys it,
but the other Amorite states are able to remain outside
direct Babylonian rule.
1674–1567 Hyksos period. Much of coastal Syria is devastated by
the Hyksos.
1600 Hittites from Anatolia destroy Ebla.
1600–1200 Late Bronze Age.
1660–1500 Rise of Hittite power in Anatolia and conquest of Mes-
opotamia; rise of the New Kingdom in Egypt; rise of
the Mitanni in northeastern Syria. All three vie for con-
trol of Syria.
1400–1365 Ugarit on the Mediterranean coast flourishes, becomes
a major center for international trade, and develops the
first alphabet, which its merchants spread throughout
the eastern Mediterranean.
1400–1300 Egypt tries to include Syria in its sphere of influence
and comes into conflict with the Hittites.
1350 Hittites eliminate the Mitanni as a serious rival.
1286 ­Battle of Qadesh between Pha­raoh Ramses II and the
Hittite ruler Muwatallis. The Egyptian and Hittite
spheres of influence are established by formal treaty
two years l­ ater.
1200–539 Iron Age.
Timeline of Historical Eventsxvii

1200 Sea P­ eoples invade Syria and devastate much of the

Mediterranean coast. Ugarit is destroyed by the Sea
­Peoples.
1200–1150 Arameans, another wave of Semitic ­peoples, arrive in
Syria and establish control over much of the interior.
900–800 Rise of Aramean Neo-­Hittite states in the North. The
Aramean Kingdom of Aram-­Damascus in the south
blocks expansion of Israel u
­ nder David and Solomon.
856–612 Assyria dominates Syria.
853 ­Battle of Qarqar. The Assyrians defeat co­ali­tion of
Aramean states.
732 Assyrians conquer Damascus and destroy Aram-­
Damascus.
605–562 Neo-­Babylonian control of Syria.

­M IDDLE ANTIQUITY
539–333 BCE Persian period. Persian rule is marked by a degree of
local control ­u nder Persian governors. Jews taken to
Babylon are allowed to return to Palestine and rebuild
the ­temple in Jerusalem.
333–323 Alexander the ­Great conquers the Persian Empire.
323 Alexander dies in Babylon, and his empire is divided
among his generals.
311 Seleucus I Nicator establishes Seleucid rule (301 BCE)
and ­settles 50,000 Greek soldiers in what ­will come to
be known as the Decapolis, or Ten Cities, in order to
spread Hellenistic culture. Syria is contested between
the Seleucids and the Ptolemies of Egypt.
198 Seleucid Antiochus III, known as the G
­ reat, seizes
southern Syria from the Ptolemies.
164–138 Civil wars weaken Seleucid control. The Maccabee
Revolt in Palestine results in a new Jewish state.
Nabatean Arabs push north from their base in Jordan.
The rise of a new Persian state u
­ nder the Parthians
threatens the eastern borders.
xviii Timeline of Historical Events

LATE ANTIQUITY
64 BCE Pompey formally abolishes the Seleucid state and cre-
ates Syria as a Roman province ruled by a Roman leg-
ate in Antioch. The Arab Nabateans of Petra (in ­today’s
Jordan) control Damascus.
43–36 Mark Anthony, governor of Syria, conspires with
Cleopatra VII Philopater Ptolemy of Egypt.
31 ­Battle of Actium. Augustus defeats the combined forces
of Mark Anthony and Cleopatra.
20 The treaty between Rome and Parthia sets the bound-
ary between the two empires.
98–117 CE Trajan, emperor of Rome, annexes the Nabatean king-
dom as Provincia Arabia, pushes the Parthians back
from the Euphrates, and briefly occupies Mesopotamia.
117–138 Hadrian is emperor of Rome. The Parthians push the
border back to the Euphrates. Hadrian visits Syria.
193–211 Septimius Severus, emperor of Rome, begins a short-­
lived Syrian dynasty and reorganizes Syria into five
provinces.
224 Ardashir takes power in Persia. He is the first of the
Sasanian rulers who pursue an aggressive policy
­toward the Romans.
244–249 A native of Syria, Philip the Arab is emperor of Rome.
256 Sasanians take Dura Europus on the Euphrates.
260 Sasanians push west as far as Antioch. The Roman
Emperor Valerian is captured and executed by Shah
Shapur I. The new Emperor Gallienus seeks help from
the Arab king of Palmyra (Tadmur) Odenathus, who
pushes the Sasanians back across the Euphrates.
267–272 Odenathus killed, and his wife, Zenobia, takes the
throne. Zenobia challenges Roman control of Syria and
Egypt.
272 Emperor Aurelian takes Palmyra and captures Zeno-
bia, The city rises in rebellion, which is put down by
Aurelian one year ­later.
Fourth ­century Bani Ghassan Arabs arrive in and become clients of the
Byzantines, while the Arab Lakhamids play a similar
role for the Sasanians. They both serve as an impor­tant
Timeline of Historical Eventsxix

buffer between the Byzantines and the Persians u

­ ntil
the coming of Islam.
306–337 Constantine I is emperor and dedicates Constantino-
ple as the new capital of the empire (330 BCE).
395–636 Byzantine period. Numerous ecumenical councils fail
to end the split between factions within the Christian
Church, resulting in the persecution of t­hose who do
not follow the official line as endorsed by the emperors.
Syria becomes a place of refuge for dissident factions.
Tensions remain between Byzantium and Persia, despite
treaties of peace.
395 The Roman Empire formally splits into Western (Rome)
and Eastern (Constantinople) Empires.
527–565 Justinian is emperor.
573 Khosrow I raids Syria as far west as Antioch.
590–627 Khosrow II is made Shah of Persia with the help of Byz-
antine Emperor Maurice. When Maurice is murdered
by Phocas in 602, Khosrow breaks the treaty of peace
with Byzantium and raids Syria.
610–641 Heraclius is emperor.
611–614 Persians campaign in Syria and conquer most of it.
622–628 A Byzantine counteroffensive pushes Persians back
into Iraq.
635 The Arab Muslim army captures Damascus for the first
time.
636 The ­Battle of the Yarmuk results in the defeat of the
Byzantines and their withdrawal from all of Syria.
Damascus is taken for the second time.
637 Aleppo is taken by the Arab Muslims. The Persians are
defeated at the ­Battle of Qadisiyah in Iraq by the Arab
Muslims, ending the Sasanian Empire.

ISLAMIC PERIOD TO WORLD WAR I

Rise of Islam to the Umayyads
632–661 Period of the Rightly Guided Khalifahs follows the death
of the Prophet Muhammad in 632. The initial period of
Muslim expansion into Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Egypt.
xx Timeline of Historical Events

640–661 Mu’awiyah is governor of Syria (656–661). The strug­gle

between Mu’awiyah and ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib over who
should be the khalifah, ends in 661 when ‘Ali is assassi-
nated by one of his former followers.
661–681 Mu’awiyah is the first Umayyad khalifah and moves the
capital to Damascus (672) and lays the first Muslim
siege of Constantinople.
705–714 al-­Walid is khalifah. The Muslim conquest of North
Africa is secured, and Byzantine enclaves are taken, fol-
lowed by the Muslim conquest of Spain. Construction is
begun on the Umayyad Mosque (formerly the Church of
John the Baptist) in Damascus.
744–750 Marwan II is the last Umayyad khalifah.

The ‘Abbasids to the Saljuqs

750–754 Abu al-­‘Abbas al-­Safah defeats Marwan II, declares
himself the new khalifah, and o­ rders the massacre of
the Umayyad ­family. Only one young prince, ‘Abd al-­
Rahman, is able to escape and eventually founds the
Umayyads of Spain. The capital is moved from Damas-
cus to Kufah in Iraq.
754–775 Al-­Mansur is the khalifah, builds Baghdad as the new
capital, builds al-­Raqqah on the Euphrates, and desig-
nates his son Harun al-­Rashid as its governor.
813 Syria revolts against the ‘Abbasids.
842 Revolts in Syria begin a period of general unrest and
the spread of Shi’ism, especially in the rural regions.
868–969 Syria is generally ruled by ‘Abbasid governors in Egypt,
first the Tulunids and then the Ikhshidids. Neither are
able to effectively control Syria, with most of southern
Syria controlled by the radical Qaramitah Shi’ites.
944–1003 The Hamdanid dynasty, based in Aleppo, rules north-
ern Syria.
969 The Fatimids establish themselves as a rival khalifat to
the ‘Abbasids, spreading east from Tunisia and con-
quering Egypt. Cairo is built as their new capital.
969–997 Byzantines take advantage of the unstable conditions
in Syria and attempt to regain parts of northern and
Timeline of Historical Eventsxxi

coastal Syria. In the end, Byzantines are forced out by

the Fatimids.
978–1076 Fatimids take control of southern Syria.
1023–1079 Bedouin Mirdasids control Aleppo and the nearby
region.
1037 Saljuq Turks (Sunnis) take control of the ‘Abbasid khali-
fah in Baghdad, ending Buyid (Shi’ite) dominance.
1055 Saljuqs able to take northern Syria in the name of the
‘Abbasid khalifah.
1070–1092 Malik Shah I Saljuq is sultan. Saljuq power is lost a­ fter
his death.
1071 ­Battle of Manzikert. Saljuqs defeat the Byzantines and
open Anatolia to Turkish expansion, as well as secur-
ing Saljuq control over all of Syria including Palestine.
1095 Pope Urban II preaches the First Crusade.
1098 First Crusade takes Edessa and Antioch.
1099 First Crusade takes Jerusalem with ­g reat slaughter;
establishes the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem.
1108 Crusaders are able to take the Syrian coastal city of Lat-
akia (al-­Ladhaqiyah).
1109 Crusaders able to take the coastal city of Tripoli (Tarabu-
lus al-­Sham).
1116–1154 Atabek Tughtagin establishes a short-­lived dynasty in
Damascus and rules on behalf of the Fatimids.
1119 ­Battle of Sarmadah (in Latin, Ager Sanguinis [Field of
Blood]), the first major defeat for the Crusaders by the
Saljuqs of Aleppo.
1124–1125 A crusader attempt to conquer Aleppo fails.

The Zangids to the Ayyubids

1128–1146 Atabek ‘Imad al-­Din Zangi, established in Aleppo, is
asked to help repel a Crusader attempt to take Damas-
cus. ‘Imad al-­Din begins Sunni resurgence in Syria and
forces the Isma’ili Shi’ites into the Jabal al-­Nasariyah.
He retakes Edessa, the first Crusader state to fall to the
Muslims, in 1144.
xxii Timeline of Historical Events

1146–1174 Nur al-­Din Zangi consolidates all of Syria u

­ nder his
rule.
1147–1149 Second Crusade defeated by Nur al-­Din outside of
Damascus.
1171 Nur al-­Din’s general, Salah al-­Din al-­Ayyubi, restores
Egypt to nominal ‘Abbasid rule, ending the Fatimid
dynasty.
1176–1193 Salah al-­Din unites Syria, Egypt, and Iraq u ­ nder his
rule in 1186. In 1187, he defeats the King of Jerusalem at
the ­Battle of the Horns of Hattin in Palestine; Jerusa-
lem falls.
1187–1192 The Third Crusade ends in keeping a small part of the
Mediterranean coast, and Christians are allowed to
visit Jerusalem,
1193 Following Salah al-­Din’s death, his kingdom is divided
among his ­brothers and sons, who feud over territory.
13th c­ entury Period of brilliant urban architecture in Syria u
­ nder
Ayyubid patronage.
1217–1221 The Fifth Crusade tries to regain Jerusalem by con-
quering Egypt, the major center of Ayyubid power,
but fails; Ayyubid Sultan al-­Kamil gives Jerusalem
back to the Christians through negotiations with
German Emperor Frederick.
1244 Jerusalem is recovered by the Muslims.
1248–1250 Sixth Crusade once more tries to take Egypt but is
defeated. The last Ayyubid Sultan dies, and the power
vacuum is filled first by his wife Shajarat al-­Durr and
then by his Mamluks.
1258 Mongols ­u nder Hülegü Khan take Baghdad and kill
the ‘Abbasid khalifah.

MAMLUK PERIOD
Bahri Mamluks (1260–1382)
1260 The Mamluks defeat the Mongols at the B
­ attle of ‘Ayn
Jalut in Palestine.
1260–1277 Sultan Al-­Zahir Baybars installs a distant relative of the
dead ‘Abbasid khalifah as the new ‘Abbasid khalifah in
Timeline of Historical Eventsxxiii

Cairo, campaigns against the remaining Crusader

­castles, and takes Antioch and Krak des Chevalers.
1280–1290 Mamluk Sultan Qalawun defeats second Mongol inva-
sion in 1281 and takes the Crusader c­ astles of Marqab,
Latakia, and Tripoli.
1291 Mamluk Sultan al-­Ashraf Khalil takes Acre, forcing the
King of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem to seek refuge
on Cyprus.
1300–1303 The third Mongol invasion. Damascus is occupied.
1302 Arwad Island off the coast of Tartus, the last Crusader
holding in Syria, falls to the Mamluk Sultan al-­Nasir
Muhammad.

Burji Mamluks (1382–1516)

1400–1401 Timur Lang invades Syria, takes Damascus, and forces
skilled Syrian craftsmen to move to his capital, Samar-
qand in Central Asia.
1453 Constantinople falls to the Ottoman Turks ­under Fethi
Mehmed (Muhammad the Conqueror), ending the Byz-
antine Empire.
1500–1516 Sultan Qansuh al-­Ghawri is the last of the Mamluk
sultans.

OTTOMAN PERIOD
1516 Ottomans defeat the Mamluks at the B ­ attle of Marj
Dabiq outside of Aleppo and quickly consolidate con-
trol of Syria.
1517 Ottomans inflict the final defeat on the Mamluks on the
outskirts of Cairo and take Egypt.
1520–1566 Sulayman is known in the West as The Magnificent
and in the East as The Lawgiver. It is the period of the
­great architect Sinan and major building proj­ects. A
new pilgrimage road from Damascus to Makkah is
constructed.
1590–1635 The rise of Fakhr al-­Din Ma‘ani. The Druze prince is
able to rule much of Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, and Jor-
dan as a nearly autonomous region.
xxiv Timeline of Historical Events

1831–1840 Muhammad ‘Ali, Ottoman governor of Egypt, is able

to challenge Ottoman control of much of the M ­ iddle
East. Eu­ro­pean powers force him to return to Egypt.
1840–1870 Ottomans slowly reassert their authority over Syrian
provinces by establishing new administrative districts.
The Egyptian withdrawal provokes tensions between
Druze and Christians in Lebanon, which in 1860 fi­nally
erupt into massacres that spread to Damascus.
1876 The first Ottoman Constitution is issued as part of a
greater attempt to reform the empire and fuels Arab
hopes for a greater share in po­liti­cal power.
1876–1909 Sultan ‘Abd al-­Hamid II tries to thwart the reform move-
ment. 1900–1908: The Hijaz Railway is built, linking
Damascus with Madinah. 1908: The Young Turks take
control of the government and (in 1909) defeat ‘Abd al-­
Hamid’s attempt to regain real control the state. ‘Abd
al-­Hamid II is replaced as sultan by Muhammad V
al-­Rashad.
1914–1918 World War I. Turkey sides with Germany and Austria.
1916–1918 The Arab Revolt against the Turks is led by Sharif Hus-
sein ibn ‘Ali, sharif of Makkah.
1918 Damascus is liberated by the Arab army led by Sultan
Pasha al-­Atrash, the Druze lord of Jabal Druze, T.E.
Lawrence, and Bedouin shaykhs. The Turkish army
retreats north into Anatolia.

MANDATE PERIOD
1918–1919 Faysal ibn Hussein, son of the Sharif of Makkah, is
named King of Syria with Damascus as the capital.
­Syrian hopes for in­de­pen­dence are dashed at the Ver-
sailles Peace Conference, and Britain and France set
themselves up as mandate powers in the Arab prov-
inces of the Ottoman Empire.
1920 The French defeat the Syrians at the ­Battle of Maysalun
outside Damascus and impose the mandate. The San
Remo Conference confirms the British and French man-
dates. The French high commissioner detaches parts
of Syria and creates Greater Lebanon (the modern bor-
ders of the country).
Timeline of Historical Eventsxxv

1925–1927 The Syrian Revolt begins in the Hawran in southern

Syria and spreads quickly to Jabal Druze and eventu-
ally to Damascus. The revolt is crushed by the French in
1927.
1936 France agrees to Syrian in­de­pen­dence in princi­ple.
1939 France cedes Antioch and Alexandretta to Turkey, an
act that is never recognized by in­de­pen­dent Syria.
1941 The British and F
­ ree French occupy Syria. The F
­ ree
French promise an end to the mandate.

IN­D E­P EN­D ENCE TO PRES­E NT

1943 Shukri Quwwatli is elected the first president of
Syria.
1945 Syria is granted its in­de­pen­dence, joins the United
Nations, and becomes a founding member of the Arab
League.
1946 The last French troops leave Syria.
1948 First Arab-­Israeli War.
1949 Adib al-­Shishakli seizes power in the third coup of the
year.
1954 Shishakli is deposed by military coup. Syria returns to
a civilian government.
1955 Skukri al-­Quwatli is elected president for the second
time.
1958 Unity between Syria and Egypt as the United Arab
Republic. Egyptian President Gamal Abdul Nasser
(Jamal ‘Abd al-­Nasir) is head of the new state.
1961 The military seizes power in a coup and dissolves the
­union between Egypt and Syria.
1963 Military coup. A Ba’athist cabinet is formed u
­ nder Pres-
ident Amin al-­Hafiz.
1966 Salah Jadid heads a military coup and overthrows
Amin al-­Hafiz. Hafiz al-­Asad is appointed minister of
defense.
1967 In the Six-­Day War, Syria loses the Golan (Jawlan)
Heights to Israel.
xxvi Timeline of Historical Events

1970 Hafiz al-­Asad seizes power from Salah Jadid and Pres-
ident Nur al-­Din Atasi.
1973 The October War with Israel.
1976 Syria interferes in the Lebanese Civil War to support
the Maronite Christians and maintain the po­liti­cal sta-
tus quo.
1980 The Ira­nian revolution inspires Muslim groups in Syria,
who stage riots in Aleppo, Homs, and Hama. The
attempted assassination of al-­Asad by a member of the
Muslim Brotherhood. The Iran–­Iraq War begins, and
Syria sides with Iran.
1982 The Muslim Brotherhood uprising in Hama, Homs,
and Aleppo is crushed by the Syrian army. Israel
invades Lebanon to drive out the Palestine Liberation
Organ­ization.
1987 More Syrian troops are sent to Lebanon to enforce a
cease-­fire in Beirut.
1990–1991 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Syria joins United States–­led
co­ali­tion.
1991 Syria participates in the ­Middle East peace conference
in Madrid, Spain.
1994 Basil al-­Asad, al-­Asad’s eldest son and chosen heir of
Hafiz al-­Asad, dies in a car accident.
2000 Hafiz al-­Asad dies and is replaced by his son Bashar
al-­Asad. The new president begins a new era with
greater openness.
2001 The Muslim Brotherhood is allowed po­liti­cal participa-
tion ­after 20 years of oppression. Pope John Paul II vis-
its Syria and is the first pope to visit a mosque. Syrian
troops pull out of Beirut. Arrests of reformists dash
hopes for a more po­liti­cally open Syria. A visit by Brit-
ish Prime Minister Tony Blair.
2002 U.S. President George Bush includes Syria in his Axis
of Evil.
2003 United States invades Iraq and overthrows Saddam
Hussein’s regime.
2004 President al-­Asad is the first post-­independence Syrian
leader to visit Turkey.
Timeline of Historical Eventsxxvii

2005 Syrian troops are forced to leave Lebanon ­after the

assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq
al-­Hariri. Syria is blamed for the assassination.
2006 Israel invades southern Lebanon, and thousands of
Lebanese seek refuge in Syria from the bombing, join-
ing thousands of Iraqis fleeing the chaos in Iraq. Syria
and Iraq restore diplomatic relations a­fter nearly
25 years of hostility. The Iraq Study Group recommends
direct talks among the United States, Syria, and, Iran.
2007 U.S. President George Bush rejects Iraq Study Group
Report.
2008 The Syrian president meets with French President
Nicholas Sarkozy and officially ends the isolation
of Syria by the West ­
because of Rafiq al-­Hariri’s
assassination.
2009 The United States sends missions to Damascus, and the
Syrian stock market opens.
2010 The United States restores sanctions on Syria for its sup-
port of Hizb Allah.
2011 Uprisings against the government begin in Dera‘a and
spread to cities such as Homs.
2012 Homs is subjected to fierce bombardment. The F ­ ree
Syrian Army seizes parts of Aleppo, and a major fire
destroys the historic market and other buildings nearby.
The United States, Britain, France, Turkey, and the Arab
Gulf States recognize the Syrian opposition as “the true
voice” of the Syrian ­people.
2013 Syria is accused of using chemical weapons, but the
Syrian government denies this and allows the United
Nations to inspect and seize the Syrian stockpile of
weapons. The United States and Britain decide not to
supply the rebels with lethal supplies following the sei-
zure of a ­Free Syrian Army base by Islamists.
2014 The Syrian army and Hizb Allah fighters take the town
of Yabrud near the Lebanese border. ISIS declares itself
a modern caliphate in the area to the east of Aleppo,
and Raqqah is declared the capital.
2015 Kurdish forces push ­toward the border town of Kobane.
ISIS fighters take Palmyra. Rus­sia provides air strikes
xxviii Timeline of Historical Events

against ISIS. The Syrian army allows the last rebel

places in Homs to be evacuated.
2016 Turkish troops cross into Syria to help Syrian rebels
push back ISIS and Kurdish fighters. Syrian forces
recapture Aleppo. ISIS loses Palmyra.
2017 Rus­sia, Turkey, and Iran agree to a cease-­fire with non-­
Islamic rebel groups. U.S. President Donald Trump
­orders a missile strike against a Syrian government air
base ­after the claim of a chemical attack by government
forces. ISIS recaptures and loses Palmyra for the second
time ­after leaving ­great destruction to the site. The ISIS
capital falls to U.S.-­backed rebels. Dayr al-­Zor is taken
from ISIS by government forces.
2018 The Syrian army continues to win back areas from the
Islamists in Idlib province. Turkey, with assistance from
pro-­Turkish rebels, pushes the Kurds out of Afrin in
northern Syria. The rebel places in the Ghutah are evac-
uated and return to government control, but the gov-
ernment is accused by the United States, ­Great Britain,
and France of using chemical weapons, and three mili-
tary bases, one near Damascus and two near Homs, are
bombed using missiles. The Syrian army victory in the
Ghutah is carried further with attacks on rebel-­held
areas around Dera‘a, and they lose territory, but in
negotiations for surrender, they want to be transferred
to Idlib and not give up peacefully. Idlib remains the
only place in rebel hands.
Another random document with
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 NOTE 9.

Portius.
Licinius Portius, a Latin poet, who flourished about the year of
Rome 610: he excelled as an epigrammatist. Fragments only of his
writings now remain.

NOTE 10.

Furius.
Publius Furius, an eminent statesman, was the intimate friend of
Scipio and Lælius: he received the surname of Philus or the Lover.
Furius was elected the Consul Prior in the year of Rome 617.

NOTE 11.

While he is frequently carried to the Albanian villa.

There were in Latium two towns called Alba, each of which were
situated on the borders of a lake.
Alba Longa, now called Albano, was built by Ascanius, and distant
16 miles from Rome. Alba Fucentis, situated about three times that
distance from the capital, on lake Fucinus, is now known by the
name of Celano. The Albanian mountain, where Scipio, Lælius, or
Furius probably possessed a villa, was in the immediate vicinity of
Alba Longa. Portius might have alluded to Terence accompanying his
friends to the Latinæ Feriæ, or Latin games, which were celebrated
by the Consuls on the Alban mountain on the 27th of April.

NOTE 12.

And dies at Stymphalus, a town of Arcadia.

Stymphalus, a town of Arcadia, was situated about 25 miles S.W.
of Corinth, on the borders of a lake of the same name, which is said
to have been infested by a species of Harpies, who were called
Stymphalides. A festival called ΣΤΥΜΦΑΛΙΑ was celebrated at
Stymphalus in honour of Diana, who on that account received the
appellation of Stymphalia.

NOTE 13.

The Ædiles.
All plays, previous to their appearance on the Roman stage, were
submitted to the perusal of the Ædiles, who chose from the number
offered them those which (in their judgment) were best suited for
representation: they were bound by oath to an impartial decision.

NOTE 14.

Cærius.
Many have supposed Cæcilius the poet to have been the person
meant in this passage: this is a manifest error; as that poet died five
or six years before the representation of this play. Others read
Acilius, who was one of the Ædiles for the year in which the Andrian
was exhibited: this would be a plausible reading, but for one
circumstance, which must be considered as an insurmountable
objection to it, viz.—The Gens Acilia (of which Acilius was a member)
was a plebeian family: consequently, Acilius must have been a
plebeian Ædile, whereas the inspection of the Roman plays was the
office of the Curule Ædiles: who, in the time of Terence, were chosen
from the Patrician families.

NOTE 15.

The Couch of Cærius.

The Cœna of the Romans (their principal meal) was usually taken
at three o’clock in the afternoon: when they partook of it, instead of
sitting in the modern manner, they reclined on couches which were
placed round the table in the form of the letter C; a space was left
unoccupied that the slaves in placing and removing the dishes might
not incommode the guests. The number of the couches was
generally limited to three; each of which was occupied sometimes by
four, but usually by only three persons. The body was raised, and
supported by the left arm; the feet of him who reclined at the upper
end of the couch lay at the back of the person next him: (though
prevented from touching his clothes by cushions placed between
them) and the feet of the second at the back of the third. To place
more than three guests on one couch was accounted both mean and
vulgar. Cicero notices this in his oration against Piso, “Græci stipati,
quini in lectulis, sæpe plures,” speaking of “five, and often a greater
number crowded together on one small couch.” The Romans
indulged themselves with couches only at supper: no ceremony was
observed at their other meals, which were taken sitting or standing,
alone or in company, as inclination prompted. In the earlier ages both
Romans and Greeks sat upright at their meals: Homer expressly
mentions (in Odyss. B. 10.) “ἥμεθα δαινύμενοι,” “we sat feasting;”
also Virgil. Æn. 7. v. 176.

NOTE 16.

Volcatius.
Volcatius Sedigitus, a miscellaneous writer and poet, mentioned in
very high terms by the younger Pliny, flourished in the reign of one of
the 12 Cæsars: the exact time is unknown. His works are entirely
lost, with the exception of a few verses; amongst them are the
following, in which he classes ten of the most eminent Latin comic
poets.

“Multos incertos certare hanc rem vidimus,

Palmam poëtæ comico cui deferant:
Hunc meo judicio errorem dissolvam tibi;
Ut contra si quis sentiat, nihil sentiat.
Cæcilio palmam Statio do comico:
 Plautus secundus facile exsuperat cæteros:
Dein Nævius, qui servet pretium, tertius est:
Si erit quod quarto detur, dabitur Licinio:
Post insequi Licinium facio Atilium.
In sexto consequitur loco hos Terentius:
Turpilius septimum, Trabea octavum obtinet.
Nono loco esse facile facio Luscium.
Antiquitatis causâ, decimum addo Ennium.”
Au: Gell: B. 15. C 24.

“Madame Dacier very well observes, that Volcatius has injured the
reputation of his own judgment, and not the fame of Terence, by this
injudicious arrangement.” Terence yields to none of the above.

NOTE 17.

The Eunuch was acted twice in one day.

This circumstance is so much the more extraordinary, as a play
was seldom exhibited on the Roman stage oftener than on four or
five occasions, before it was laid aside; and new pieces were usually
provided for every festival: with what enthusiastic applause then,
must the Eunuch have been received, when the audience with the
loudest acclamations, called for a second representation of this
admirable comedy on the same day! It is necessary to explain that
the actors had sufficient time to repeat their performance, as
dramatic entertainments were usually frequented by the Romans, not
in the evening as among the moderns, but in the course of the day,
and generally previous to the hour of their principal repast.

NOTE 18.

Eight thousand sesterces.

Eight thousand sesterces were equal to 64l. 11s. 8d. sterling. The
Romans reckoned their money by sesterces: the sestertius, which
was a brass coin, worth 1. d. 3 qrs. ¾, must not be confounded with
the sestertium, which was no coin, but money of account, and equal
in value to one thousand sesterces.

NOTE 19.

Varro.
Marcus Terentius Varro was born at Rome in the year of the city
632; at the time of the sedition of Caius Gracchus. Varro was the
intimate friend of Pompey: and obtaining the consulship in the year
680, had the mortification to find the efforts of himself and his
colleague, inadequate to suppress the insurrection of Spartacus,
whose successes at the head of the rebellious gladiators, alarmed all
Rome. The military occupations of Varro did not prevent his close
attention to literature: his writings were very voluminous; and those of
them which remain are deservedly in high estimation.

NOTE 20.

And as for what those malicious railers say, who assert that certain
noble persons assist the poet.
The chief of those railers, and the arch-enemy of Terence, was the
Luscius Lanuvinus to whom Volcatius in his list of poets assigns the
ninth place;—and the same person whom Donatus designates by the
name of Lucius Lavinius. Luscius was not singular in this imputation
against our author. Valgius and others seem to consider Terence but
the mere nominal author of the six pieces which bear his name. That
Scipio and Lælius assisted him with their advice, is highly probable,
and his vanity might feel flattered by the insertion among his own
writings, of short passages of their composition; but when we call to
mind, that Africanus and his friend, two persons of the most refined
delicacy and taste, distinguished by their friendship, and selected as
a companion in their hours of retirement and relaxation, a freedman!
a man whose rank was infinitely inferior to their own; we must
naturally suppose that those eminent persons courted the society of
Terence, as admirers of his extraordinary genius, and elevation of
sentiment. As they could not have become thoroughly acquainted
with our author’s engaging qualifications, but from his dramatic
compositions, it is most probable that the Andrian at least, was
published, before he was honoured with the intimacy of either Scipio,
Lælius, or Furius. Indeed there can be but little doubt that the
success of this play, (which he wrote when he was too little known,
perhaps, to receive assistance from any one,) was the means of
drawing him from the obscurity of his low rank, and of obtaining the
notice and approbation of the great men of his age, and their
patronage for his future productions.

NOTE 21.

Quintus Memmius.
The oration alluded to by Suetonius was written by Memmius to
defend himself against a charge of bribery. The Memmii were a
plebeian family, though several of them attained to the highest
dignities. Quintus was nearly related to the Caius Memmius who was
assassinated by Lucius Apuleius Saturninus: and is supposed to
have been the son of the Memmius to whom Lucretius dedicated his
celebrated poem, “De Rerum naturâ.” Vide Cicero in Catilin. and
Florus, B. 3., c. 16.

NOTE 22.

Cornelius Nepos.
Cornelius Nepos, a celebrated biographer of the Augustan age,
was born on the banks of the Po, which he quitted in his youth; and,
attracted by the splendour and pleasures of a gallant and polite
court, removed to Rome, where his talents and taste for literature
procured him the friendship of Cicero, and many other eminent
persons. Of all his much-admired writings nothing remains but his
“Lives of the most illustrious Greeks and Romans.”
 NOTE 23.

Puteoli.
Puteoli, or, as it is now called, Puzzoli, was much frequented by
the Romans for the sake of its hot-wells: being at a convenient
distance from the capital, not more than a day’s journey. It is now
become comparatively inconsiderable, while Naples, in its vicinity,
has grown into importance. Puzzoli, however, still affords some
attraction to the curious; as there are the ruins of a temple of Jupiter
Apis, or Serapis, to be seen there. This town was originally called
Dicearchea: named, probably, after Dice, a daughter of Jupiter.

NOTE 24.

On the first of March.

The Roman ladies were allowed to exercise extraordinary
authority on this day, on which they celebrated the festival called
Matronalia, instituted in gratitude to Mars, who permitted a
termination of the war between the Romans and Sabines; in which
the women were particularly concerned. The privileges allowed to
ladies on the first of March, were, I believe, confined to the matrons,
in commemoration of the successful interference of the married
women, in the year 749, B. C., which put an end to the war between
the Romans and the Sabines, who had taken up arms to revenge the
rape of their women by the Romans, at a festival to which Romulus
had invited them. (Vide Note 28.)

NOTE 25.

Santra.
Little is known of Santra, but that he was cotemporary with Cicero,
and author of some biographical Memoirs, and “A Treatise on the
Antiquity of Words,” which are now entirely lost. His family, probably,
were plebeians, and of no great note.
 NOTE 26.

He would not have requested it from Scipio and Lælius, who were
then extremely young.
Santra’s argument is of no force: for when Terence published the
Andrian, in the year of Rome 587, at twenty-seven years of age,
Scipio was eighteen, and might, at that age, have been perfectly
capable of assisting Terence; for, independent of his excellent
education, on which his father had bestowed infinite care and pains,
he was possessed of a very superior genius: and nature had united
in him all the fine qualities of his father, and of his grandfather by
adoption, Scipio the Great. Velleius Paterculus wrote his eulogium as
follows, “Publius Scipio Æmilianus inherited the virtues of his
grandfather Publius Africanus, and of his father Lucius Paulus,
excelled all his cotemporaries in wit and learning, and in all the arts
of war and peace; and, in the course of his whole life never did, said,
or thought, any thing, but what was worthy of the highest praise.”
“We have seen princes in France, who, at the age of eighteen,
were capable of assisting a poet, as well with respect to the conduct
and arrangement of his subject; as in what related to the manners,
the diction, and the thoughts. Menander published his first piece at
twenty years of age. It is clear, then, that there have been persons of
eighteen, capable of assisting a poet. It appears, moreover, that the
enemies of Terence did not publish this imputation against him till the
latter years of his life, for the poet complains of it only in the
prologues to the Self-tormentor and the Brothers: the first of which
was played three years, and the last but one year before his death.
When the first appeared, he was thirty-one, and Scipio twenty-two:
and when the last was published, he was thirty-four, and Scipio was
twenty-five.”—Madame Dacier.

NOTE 27.

Cneus Sulpicius Gallus.

 Cneus Sulpicius Galba, surnamed Gallus, was by no means the
least illustrious member of the noble family of the Sulpicii, and filled
the office of Consul for the year in which the Andrian was acted. The
first of the Sulpicii took the name of Galba, from his diminutive
stature, that word signifying “a small insect;” and the name was
afterwards assumed by several of his descendants.

NOTE 28.

Who procured the representation of comedies at the Consular

Games.
The Ludi Consulares and Ludi Consuales were probably the
same, as we have no account of the institution of any games
particularly in honour of the Consuls, to be celebrated either at their
entering on, or resigning their office; for the Latinæ Feriæ, though
superintended particularly by the Consuls, and a part of their office,
were not called Consular Games. The Consual, or Consular Games
were instituted on the following occasion. Romulus, the first king of
Rome, had no sooner assumed the government of the small band of
adventurers who were the ancestors of that illustrious race of heroes,
who long held all the nations of the earth in subjection, than he found
his kingdom in danger of being totally destroyed in its birth; as none
of the inhabitants of the neighbouring states were willing to form a
matrimonial alliance with his subjects; many of whom were refuged
criminals and exiled foreigners. To obtain wives for his people, he
was compelled to have recourse to a stratagem, which Plutarch
describes as follows: “He (Romulus) circulated a report that he had
discovered, concealed under ground, the altar of a certain god,
whom they called Consus, the God of counsel, whose proper
appellation is Neptunus Equestris, or Neptune, the inventor of riding;
for, except at horse-races, when it is exposed to sight, this altar is
kept covered in the great circus; and, it was said, that it was not
improperly concealed, because all counsels ought to be kept secret
and hidden. Romulus, having found the altar, caused proclamation to
be made, that, on an appointed day, a magnificent sacrifice would be
offered; and public games and shows exhibited, which were to be
open to all who should choose to attend them. Upon this, great
numbers went there. The king, dressed in a purple robe, was seated
on high, surrounded by the chief patricians: he was to arise, take up
his robe, and throw it over him, as a signal for the attack: his
subjects, with ready weapons, kept their eyes intently fixed upon
their sovereign; and, when the sign was given, they drew their
swords with a shout, and seized, and carried off the daughters of the
Sabines, who fled, without offering resistance.”—Plutarch.
The games which were instituted on this singular occasion were
afterwards celebrated annually on the 12th of the calends of
September, and considered to be an imitation of the Olympian
Games of the Greeks. The Consuales, being celebrated in the Circus
were sometimes called Circenses. The conduct of the Romans in the
before-mentioned circumstances, and that of the Benjamites in a like
predicament is so uniformly similar, that whoever attentively
compares them, cannot think it very improbable that Romulus
derived the idea of his stratagem from that passage of Jewish
history. Vide Judges, C. 21.

NOTE 29.

Quintus Fabius Labeo.

If the accuracy of Plutarch may be depended on, Santra must
have been mistaken in supposing Quintus Fabius Labeo to be still
living at the time of the Andrian’s publication, or for several years
before its appearance. This conclusion is deduced from the following
circumstances: Quintus Fabius Maximus, whose prudent method of
delaying a battle, and harassing his enemy, (in his campaigns
against Hannibal,) procured him the surname of Cunctator, or
Delayer, enjoyed the dignity of the consulship five several times: he
was first chosen in the year of Rome 525, and, supposing that he
obtained that office in what Cicero calls suo anno, his own year, that
is, as soon as he had attained the age required by law, Fabius must
then have been forty-three years of age, and, as he died in his one
hundredth year, he could not have been alive after the year 582.
Quintus Fabius Labeo, who was the son of this hero, died (Plutarch
informs us) some years before his father; and, consequently, could
not have assisted Terence, even in his first play, the Andrian, which
did not appear till the year of Rome 587. That Quintus Fabius
Maximus Cunctator was the father of Quintus Fabius Labeo can
admit of no doubt, though some authors who have mentioned them
have omitted to notice their relationship. Plutarch expressly informs
us, that the son of Quintus Fabius Maximus was of consular dignity,
and, with the exception of the Cunctator, Quintus Fabius Labeo was
the only Fabius whose name appears on record as consul, from the
year of Rome 521 to the year 611.

NOTE 30.

Marcus Popilius Lænas.

Madame Dacier thinks that the person here meant was Caius
Popilius Lænas, who shared the consular government with Publius
Ælius Ligur in the year of Rome 581; but that learned and celebrated
lady assigns no reason why we should suppose either Suetonius or
Santra to have been incorrect in affirming Marcus the brother of
Caius to have been the reputed assistant of Terence. Marcus was a
man of high reputation, and eminent abilities: the following anecdote,
related by Velleius Paterculus, (Book I. Chap. 10.) will afford some
idea of the resolute decision of his character. “The king of Syria,
Antiochus Epiphanes, (or the illustrious) was at that time besieging
Ptolemy, king of Egypt. Marcus Popilius Lænas was sent
ambassador to Antiochus, to desire him to desist: he delivered his
message; the king replied that he would consider of it; upon which
Popilius drew a circle round him in the sand on which they stood, and
told him, that he insisted on his final answer before he quitted that
circumscribed space. This resolute boldness prevailed, and
Antiochus obeyed the Roman mandate.”
Marcus Popilius Lænas was the junior Consul for the year of
Rome 580: the name of his colleague was Lucius Posthumius
Albinus.
 NOTE 31.

Persons of Consular dignity.

Those who had filled the office of consul were afterwards always
called consulares, of Consular dignity; those who had been Prætors
were styled Prætorii, of Prætorian dignity; in a similar manner the
Censors took the title of Censorii, the Quæstors of Quæstorii, and
the Ædiles of Ædilitii, though it does not appear that they were very
strict in taking precedence accordingly.

NOTE 32.

Quintus Consentius.
If any Latin writer called Quintus Consentius ever existed, all
traces are lost both of his compositions and of his history; even the
name of his family is unknown. It is possible that instead of
Consentius, Cn. Sentius may be the person meant in this passage.
Several of the Sentii were authors of some celebrity.

NOTE 33.

Menander.
Menander was born at Athens, 345 B. C., and educated with great
care by Theophrastus the peripatetic, whose labours must have been
amply repaid, when he witnessed the proficiency of his pupil, who
distinguished himself by successful dramatic compositions before he
had attained his 21st year. With the exception of a few fragments, his
works are entirely lost. Comedy was invented at Athens, and divided
into three kinds; the old, the middle, and the new. The old comedy
was that in which both the names and the circumstances were real;
the middle, was where the circumstances were true, but the names
disguised. To these two kinds, Menander had the glory of adding a
third, which was called the new comedy, where both the plot and the
characters were wholly fictitious. His style is said to have been
elegant, and his ideas and sentiments refined. Dion Chrysostom
considers his writings to be an excellent model for orators. This great
poet wrote from 100 to 108 plays; from which Terence took four of
his, viz., his Andrian, Eunuch, Self-tormentor, and Brothers.
Menander obtained a poetical prize, eight several times; his chief
competitor was called Philemon.

NOTE 34.

Leucadia.
Leucadia, or as it is now called Santa Maura, or Lefcathia, is an
island about 50 miles in circumference, in that part of the
Mediterranean which was known among the ancients by the name of
the Ionian sea. This island was rendered famous by one of its
promontories called Leucas, and Leucate, which overhangs the sea
at a very considerable perpendicular height: a leap from this
promontory into the water beneath, was reckoned among the Greeks
as an infallible cure for unhappy lovers of either sex, and most of
those who made the experiment, found their love, and all the rest of
their cares effectually terminated by this wise step. The famous
poetess Sappho perished in this leap. Vide The Spectator, Nos. 223,
227, 233.

NOTE 35.

The consulate of Cneus Cornelius Dolabella, and Marcus Fulvius

Nobilior.
This was in the year of Rome 594, and about 7 years after the
appearance of our author’s first play. As his last production, The
Brothers had been published but one year before this period; this
circumstance alone, is sufficient to decide the degree of credit which
ought to be accorded to the absurd report of Terence having
translated 108 plays from Menander.
 NOTE 36.

A Roman Knight.
The Romans were divided into three classes. 1. The Patricians, or
nobility. 2. The Equites, or knights. 3. The Plebeians, or the
commons: that is, all who were not included in the two first ranks.
The Equites, or knights, were in fact the Roman cavalry, as they
usually had no other: though all of them were men of fortune; it being
required by law (at least under the Emperors, if not before) that each
Eques at his enrolment should possess 400 sestertia: a sum equal to
between 3,000l. and 4,000l. sterling: a person worth double that sum
might be chosen senator. Each knight was provided with a horse,
and a gold ring, at the public expense; and at a general review, which
took place every five years, the Censor was empowered
ignominiously to deprive of his horse, and degrade from his rank, any
knight who by disgraceful conduct had proved himself unworthy of
his dignity.

NOTE 37.

A garden of XX jugera.
The jugerum, or Roman acre, contained 28,800 feet;
consequently, Terence’s estate must have been equal to rather more
than 13 English acres: and (as a garden) must have been of
considerable value: land in Italy, especially in the vicinity of the
capital, bearing a high price; though not so high as in the reign of
Trajan, who passed a law that every candidate for an office should
hold a third part of his property in land. The Romans were particularly
partial to gardens; to improve and beautify them, they bestowed
great care, and expended large sums of money; some of these
gardens were of vast extent, and most magnificently embellished
with statues, paintings, aqueducts, &c., as were those of Cæsar and
Sallust.
 NOTE 38.

The Villa Martis.

The ancient Roman villas were built with extraordinary
magnificence, according to those descriptions of them which have
reached modern times, and are not unworthy of attention. The great
pleasure the Romans took in their villas, and gardens adjoining, may
be seen in the writings of many of the most eminent among them;
Varro, Cicero, Pliny, Cato, and others, have described these
delightful retirements in a particular manner. In the villas of the
richest, were concentred all the attractions that art or nature could be
made to yield; and magnificence was every where blended with
convenience. For the site of a villa of this description they chose the
centre of a fine park, well stocked with game and fish: the building
was generally lofty; (nearly 100 feet in height) for the advantage of
an extensive view; as the cœnatio where the family met at meals
was selected in the upper story. The villa was divided into two parts,
called urbana and rustica: the first contained the chambers used by
the family and guests, together with the places of amusement and
refreshment; as the baths, terraces, &c. The villa rustica was that
part allotted to the slaves and domestics, who were extremely
numerous. Those who wish for a minute description of the habits and
manners of the Romans, in the country, may be fully gratified by
consulting the following writers on the subject; Varro and Cato de re
rustica; Dickson on Roman agriculture; and the works of Columella,
and Dionysius Halicarnasseus.

NOTE 39.

Afranius.
Lucius Afranius, a comic writer, was contemporary with Terence,
and elevated himself into notice, by his imitations of that favourite
poet, and of his great prototype Menander. Fragments of the
compositions of Afranius are still extant: in his work quoted by
Suetonius he probably gave a poetical description of the festival
called Compitalia, or Compitalitia, and mentioned Terence as the
author of comedies, which had been represented at that festival.

NOTE 40.

Compitalia.
The Compitalia or Compitalitia were originally ceremonies, (for
nothing could be more improperly denominated festivals) of a nature
at once extraordinary, disgusting and barbarous. It was never
possible to ascertain where, or by whom, they were first instituted;
though it is generally agreed that they were revived by Servius
Tullius, the sixth king of Rome, who first introduced the observance
of them among his subjects about the year 200. They were
celebrated in honour of the goddess Mania, and of the Lares, who
were supposed to be her offspring. The Lares were the household
gods of the Romans, and placed in the innermost recesses of their
houses. These household gods were small images of their
ancestors, which they always kept wrapped in dog’s skin, (which was
intended for an emblem of watchfulness) as being for the protection
of the house and its inhabitants. They were also called the Manes of
their forefathers, from Mania. It was pretended, that on consulting an
oracle respecting the religious means to be employed for ensuring
domestic security, the oracular response commanded that Heads
should be sacrificed for Heads, meaning, that as divine vengeance
required the lives of the culprits, the people should offer the heads of
others instead of their own, and accordingly the Compitalia were
instituted on this occasion, and human victims were on this
preposterous pretence sacrificed with a sow, to ensure family safety.
The Romans, however, had too much good sense to suffer a long
continuance of this diabolical folly: and they threw off the yoke of the
tyrannical Tarquin, and this obnoxious custom at the same time.
Lucius Junius Brutus abolished the sacrifice of human beings; and as
the oracle required the offering of heads, he fulfilled its commands by
substituting the heads of onions and poppies. They afterwards made
figures of wool, which they suspended at their doors, imprecating all
misfortunes on the images, instead of themselves. Slaves were
allowed their liberty during the celebration of the Compitalia; and with
freedmen officiated as priests on the occasion. Being rendered
harmless by Brutus’ convenient interpretation of the oracle, the
Compitalia were continued till the reigns of the emperors. The word
Compitalia is by some derived from Compita, crossways, because
during the ceremonies, the statues of the Lares were placed in a spot
where several streets met, and crowned with flowers. I think it not
improbable that the original name was Capitalia, from capita, heads,
because heads were the requisite offerings.

NOTE 41.

Nævius.
Cneus Nævius flourished about the year 500, and acquired great
fame by some successful comedies which are now lost: he offended
Lucius Cæcilius Metellus, a man of great power, and consular dignity,
by whose influence the unfortunate poet was banished to Africa,
where he died. Volcatius assigns to Nævius the third place.

NOTE 42.

Plautus.
Marcus Accius Plautus was a native of Sarsina, a town of Umbria,
near the Adriatic sea, and died at Rome, 182 B. C., at the age of
forty, leaving behind him a literary reputation which very few, of any
age or county, have ever been able to equal. Of those who refused to
allow Plautus the title of the First comic poet of Rome, scarcely any
have disputed his right to be second in the list, where Terence holds
the first place: some critics, indeed, have gone so far as to prefer
Plautus, even to Terence himself; but Volcatius Sedigitus, whose
judgment did Terence great injustice, makes Plautus second only to
Cæcilius. The saying of Ælius Stilo is worthy of being recorded;
“Musas Plautino sermone locuturas fuisse, si Latinè loqui vellent,”
that if the Muses wished to speak in Latin, they would speak in the
language of Plautus. This celebrated man wrote 27 or 28 comedies,
which, notwithstanding the change of manners, kept possession of
the stage for nearly 500 years; and were performed with applause as
late as the reigns of Carus and Numerian. Only 20 of them are now
extant. The following is the poet’s epitaph, written (as is supposed)
by Varro, though Pietro Crinito affirms it to be the production of
Plautus himself, of whom Crinito has written a biographical account.

“Postquam est morte captus Plautus,

Comœdia luget, scena est deserta,
Deinde risus, ludus jocusque et numeri
Innumeri simul omnes collacrymarunt.”

The comic muse bewails her Plautus dead,

And silence reigns o’er the deserted stage;
The joyous train that graced the scene are fled,
And weep to lose, the wittiest of his age.
While jests and sports their patron’s death deplore,
And even laughter, now can smile no more.

NOTE 43.

Cæcilius.
Cæcilius Statius was born in Gaul, and raised himself into
eminence, from the condition of a slave, by his poetical talents: he
died at Rome five or six years before the Andrian was first published.
Volcatius gives Cæcilius the first place: Horace draws a sort of
comparison between him and Terence in the following line,

“Vincere Cæcilius gravitate, Terentius arte.”

Cæcilius
Excelled in force, and grandeur of expression,
Terence in art.
 Quintilian tells us, “Cæcilium veteres laudibus serunt.” The
ancients resounded the praises of Cæcilius.—Also Varro, “Pathè
vero, Cæcilius facile moverat.” That Cæcilius knew how to interest
the passions.
Cæcilius wrote more than 30 comedies, now lost.

NOTE 44.

Licinius.
Publius Licinius Tegula, a comic poet, flourished during the
second Punic war. Aulus Gellius mentions him by the name of Caius
Licinius Imbrex, author of a comedy called Neæra, but there can be
little doubt but that Imbrex, and the Tegula above-mentioned were
the same person.

NOTE 45.

Cicero in his ΛΕΙΜΩΝ.

“Cicero wrote a poem, to which he affixed the title of λειμων, a
Greek word signifying a meadow; he gave it this name, probably,
because, as meadows are filled with various kinds of flowers, his
work was a numerous collection of flowers (of literature) affording an
agreeable variety. This poem, it seems, consisted entirely of
panegyrics on illustrious persons. Nothing can be more erroneous
than a supposition that these verses were the forgery of some
grammarian: the Latin is too elegant, and they are too finely written,
to allow us to suppose them a spurious production; and if Cicero had
never written any lines inferior to these; his fame as a poet, might
have equalled his fame as an orator. Ausonius had these verses in
his mind, when he wrote

Tu quoque qui Latium lecto sermone Terenti,

Comis, et astricto percurris pulpita socco.
 What is still more remarkable, Cæsar commences his lines on
Terence, in Cicero’s words, Tu quoque, &c., for there is not the least
doubt but that Cæsar undertook this work, merely with a view to
irritate, and to contradict Cicero.”
Madame Dacier.
The name of Cicero is too well known, to need any further
mention here; suffice it to say, that this great orator was totally
unsuccessful in his poetical attempts, the chief fault of which was
want of harmony in the measure: it may be remarked of Cicero, that
very frequently his prose was written with the music of verse, and his
verse with the roughness of prose.

NOTE 46.

Caius Julius Cæsar.

The poem, of which these lines formed a part, is entirely lost; what
remains of it, however, proves Julius Cæsar to have been no mean
poet, but he seems to have excelled in every art of war and peace;—

——————————quem Marte, togâque

Præcipium.
The first alike in war, and peace.
Ovid.

If the lines quoted by Suetonius were written in ridicule of Cicero,

they are another proof in support of an opinion that has been very
prevalent, that the orator was not very high in the good graces of
Cæsar, whose dislike of him may be easily traced to Marc Antony,
Cæsar’s intimate and favourite companion, and the most inveterate
enemy of Cicero.

NOTE 47.