his souldiers to hide themselues in ambush he hauing but fewe souldiers prouoked them of the Towne to come out faining himself to flye the enemie following with great furie after Luc. Cornelius with all his hidden souldiers returned vpon the sudden with such a terrible crye that the enemies turned theyr backes and fled to the Towne and the Romanes followed after them close at the heeles and entred the Towne with them all together So Pompey the Consull Generall for the Romaine Army in Albania perceiuing the enemies both in horsmen and in footemen to be farre more in number then the Romanes practised this stratagem placed his footemen behind the horsemen being in a straight and commaunded his horsemen to couer their helmets least by the sight of the helmets they should be seene of the enemies and to take vpon them to flye to draw the enemies forwards into the midst of the Army of footemen and then the Romane horsemen to turne backe and deuide themselues and to set on both sides of the enemies By this stratagem Pompey got a great victorie ouer the Albanians Iphicrates the Athenian compared an Army in this sort the light horsemen to the hands the men of armes to the feete the battel of footemen to the stomacke and breast the captaine to the head But the Hebrewes for all the victories of Ioshuah of Iudah and of Gedeon were still vnthankful and wrought wickednesse in the sight of the Lord for all the battels that the Lord fought for them they were so well acquainted with the gods of the Gentiles yea they serued the gods of Acron the gods of Sydon the gods of Moab and the gods of the Philistines and forgat the god of Israel they serued straunge gods and attributed victories vnto their Idols and honoured them and gaue no glory vnto the Lord of Israel and therefore the Lord gaue them ouer and solde them to their enemies and were eighteene yeares sore tormented and vexed by the Ammonites and Philistines and the enemies proudly went ouer Iorden to fight against Iudah against Beniamin and against the house of Ephraim but they cryed vnto the Lorde according to theyr custome in extremitie and were aunswered by the Prophet from the Lorde Let the Gods whome you serue saue you and whom you trust vnto defend you for you waigh not me neither will I defend you and then they put away their straunge gods from among them Thus the Israelites did not onely rebell vpon the death of Ioshuah but also vpon the death of Iudah Ehud Deborah and others neither did they esteeme the victories which they got by Deborah a woman and by Gedeon a Husbandman who with three hundred souldiers slew a hundred and twentie thousand but euer forgetfull and vnthankefull to the Lord more willing to returne to Egipt to be slaues vnto Pharao then to stay in Canaan to serue the Lord. The name of Leonidas was famous among the Lacedemonians for his victorie at Thermopyle where Leonidas with three hundred ouerthrew twentie thousand of Xerxes Army being innumerable The Athenians gloried much for theyr great victorie at Marathon by Milciades and Callimachus hauing but 10000. Grecians in their army ouerthrew the generall of king Darius Army and made a great slaughter of the Persians to the number of two hundred thousand The Romanes bragge much of the victorie of Marius with fewe souldiers ouer the Cymbrians at the riuer of Xextas of Sylla ouer Mithridates at the battell of Orchomenon and of Lucullus ouer Tigranes king of Armenia being three great victories with infinite slaughter with the losse of fewe Romanes The very Schythians can boast and bragge of the ouerthrow of Cyrus hauing two hundred thousand in his Army and that by a woman which encreased the fame of the Scythians to the greatest infamy of the Persians All Nations can bragge and boast of theyr victories and be thankfull vnto their Idols and to their gods with sacrifices with vowes with games and playes with rearing of Aultars and building of Temples but the Hebrewes and the people of the Lord who had greatest cause and occasions to remember theyr victories and triumphes that they had ouer so many Kings and so many Nations before they came to the Land of Canaan by fire haile-stones thunder and great stones from heauen and though the Lords presence went before them in the Arke and the Arke among them in the midst of the campe yet were the Israelites stiffe necked people euer offensiue to the Lord seditious against theyr leaders and enuious one towardes an other so the Lord cryed out against them and said I haue nourished and brought vp children and they are fallen away from me the Oxe knoweth his Lord and the Asse his Maisters stall but Israel knoweth not me wicked children sinfull people a froward generation which are ouerladen with blasphemies Nothing could instruct them to obey the Lord neither the Arke of couenant neither the Tabernacle of Moses neither the pillar of fire where the Lord appeared vnto them and after the vse of the Tabernacle neither the Temple of Salomon nor the Prophets to whom the Lord manifested himselfe in Ierusalem yea euen in Samaria among the wicked Samaritans they had the Prophets of the Lord Elias and Elizeus to instruct them CHAP. XVIII Of Iepthas victories ouer the Ammonites and Ephraimites the ciuill warres the tyrannie of Sylla and Marius in Rome Of the slaughter of the Philistians by Sampson the reuenge of pulling out his eyes and of the battell of Saul at Mich-mash NOw after Gedeon the Lord sought out Ieptha beeing fledde and chased by his bretheren from his countrey to the Land of Tob from whence hee was called by the Lord who alwayes appointed a generall ouer Israell while they serued him to leade his people against the Ammonites which the Lord deliuered into Iepthas hand At that time Ieptha made a rash vowe to the Lorde that if hee should haue victorie ouer the Ammonites that which came out of the doores of his house when he returned home in peace shal be the Lords and he wil offer it vp a burnt offering He foolishly performed that which he rashly vowed Though some of the Rabines do excuse Ieptha that his daughter died not but was seperated to dwell by her selfe from common conuersation in a solitary place to bewaile her virginitie according to the custome and manner of the virgins of Israel to liue in prayers and to consecrate her selfe vnto the lord Yet some of 〈◊〉 best diuines as Augustine Ambrose which both were of a cōtrary opiniō that she was sacrificed according to Iepthas vow But the Lord gaue the victory to Ieptha ouer the Amonits with the ouerthrow of twentie cities and with exceeding great slaughter Ieptha againe after his first victory ouer the Ammonites had another victory ouer the Ephraimites who enuied the former victory of Ieptha most ambitiously as they before did vnto
So by these meanes Dauid and Ioshua before him brought the Moabites the Edomites and the Philistines and all theyr enemies round about to be vnder their gouernment So after Dauid all nations did the like a principall point in all good Generalls to strengthen themselues with garrison in strong places Herein the Remanes excelled all nations that whersoeuer or whosoeuer they subdued there they placed Romane Magistrates to gouerne As Scypio and Pompey the great did in Asia Titus and Sylla in Greece this made the Romanes to be feared and dreaded among all nations of the worde For after the Romaines had subdued the Carthagineans they made Carthage a prouince to bee gouerned vnder a Proconsull of Rome After they had subdued Numidia and Lybia they were made prouinces and gouerned vnder a Consul of Rome So Egipt and Mauritania were in like sort gouerned vnder Romane Presidents So Sardinia Cicilia Achaia and many others were made Praetorian prouinces and gouerned vnder the Romanes But wee will proceede forward with the warres of Dauid euery where vnder his Generall Abishai Ioabs brother who slue eighteene thousand of the Edomites in the salt valley and he put garrion in Edom and all the Edomites became Dauids seruants so that Dauids enterprises and his battels which hee fought against the enemies of the Lord had wheresoeuer he went good successe Dauid euer vsed martiall lawes vpon the Lords enemies when Rabbah was taken by Ioab he was presently commaunded by Dauid the king to put all the people to cruell death and for that they were malicious enemies vnto the Lord he put them to such tortures as vnder sawes Iron harrowes Iron axes and cast them into the tylekilne so cruell and greeuous were the punishments of the Lord vpon the cities of the Ammonites The fame of Dauid grew so great that all the kings about him enuied him much that Hamnon king of the Ammonites prepared an army against Dauid vnderstanding that Dauid would reuenge the iniury hee did vnto his Embassadors whome Dauid sent to Hamnon of meere kindnesse and courtesie the cause was that Dauids Embassadours by the King of Ammon and the counsell of his Princes and Lords had the halfe of their beards shaued and their garments cut off in the middle euen vnto their buttockes and so sent them away which among the Israelites was the greatest reproach that might be Thus the Embassadors of Dauid against the law of armes were disfigured to make them odious vnto others but they were commaunded by Dauid to stay in Iericho to auoid the obloquy of so fowle a fact vntill they were prouided for Alcibiades Generall ouer the Athenians laying siege to the chiefe citie of the Aggregentines which was so strongly euery way defended with forts and trenches that Alcibiades deuised a new stratageme and thereby sought meanes to haue a conuenient place of parley to talk with them before he would lay siege to the towne which being graunted Alcibiades appointed certaine captaines while hee held the Aggrentines in parley of peace to take the citie Ionathan after that Iud. Machabaeus his brother was slaine in the field by Bacchides and after that the children of Amri tooke Iohn Ionathans brother he vsed this pollicie to reuenge his brother vpon the mariage day of a daughter of one of the noblest Princes of Canaan Ionathan his men hid themselues and laie in ambush vnder the couert of a mountain that when the children of Amri came out of Medeba with tymbrels Instrumēts of musicke and great pompe Ionathan set vpon them slue the most part and the rest fled so that their mariage was turned into mourning and the noyse of their melodie to lamentation thus Ionathan reuenged his brother at Medeba Cymon the sonne of Milciades a noble Greeke Captaine at the besieging of a citie in Caria vsed this stratagem to burne the temple of Diana which goddesse the Carians most religiously worshipped the temple being builded without the walles of the towne all the citie ranne to defend Dianaes temple from burning Cymon with his Athenian armie entered and obtained the citie while they were busie about the temple The like policie vsed Demetrius to deceiue Ionathan who hearing that Ionathan came in the night time with his men armed Demetrius and all his armie feared and trembled in their hearts and kindled great fires in theyr Tents and fled away which Ionathan suspected not that they fled because they saw the fire burning in the tents and so Demetrius by this strageme of fire passed ouer the flood Eleutherus and escaped from Ionathan Many such stratagems haue bene vsed by fire to deceiue the enemie as Hannibal by fire tyed to Oxens hornes in the night time against the Romaines Sampson by tying of firebrands to Foxes tayles to burne the corne of the Philistines So Absolon vsed the like stratagem against Ioab with many such Now hauing heard that Ioabs chiefe captains came in that Dauid was comē ouer the riuer Iorden fiue kings came against Ioab and pitched their tents before Medeba a citie of the Tribe of Ruben but when the battell ioyned together the Ammonites and the Aramites fled and fell before Israel so that the victorie was Ioabs and yet had they two and thirtie thousand chariottes and fiue kings set in battell-raie to fight against Dauid but it was the Lords battell and therefore too fewe if they had had tenne times as many And therefore the Aramites the Ammonites were sore greeued at the good successe of Dauid that they gathered their whole force and power together and sent messengers beyond Iorden to draw all the enemies of Israel to fight another battell against Dauid and Dauid hearing of their great armies came ouer Iorden to Hel◅ and fought with them and the Aramites fled before him and Dauid destroyed of the Aramites seuen hundred chariots fortie thousand footemen and killed Sophach Generall of the hoste Dauid at length made a generall conquest of the Philistines destroyed the Ammonites and theyr chiefe citie Rabbah slue their King and Princes and cut the people in peeces with sawes with harrowes of Iron and with axes and Dauid requited fully the spitefull malicious wrong they did vnto his Embassadors And as Ioshua brought them ouer Iorden and placed them in Canaan and destroyed their enemies before them and gaue the Hebrewes the possession of Canaan so Dauid rooted these nations out and made a full conquest of them and left Israel in peace and quiet to his sonne Solomon and Salomon to his sonne Rehoboam so that the Edomites Moabites and Ammonites became Dauids seruants and paied tribute vnto Solomon during his whole life CHAP. II. Of tributes paide to the kings of Egipt And what manner of tributes the old Romanes and Persians receiued The rewards of adultery SO Ioseph made a lawe in Egipt that the first part of all the land of Egipt should be as a yearely
as in Egipt their horses asses oxen camels and sheepe and all their beasts were slaine with a mightie great morraine so the Romane generals their collonels captaines and all kind of souldiers were slain as wel in Rome and Italy as euery where throughout the Romane Empire as well with wars as with diuers sicknesses diseases yet not ceasing to persecute the Christians according to their custome but the martyrs of the Lord the souldiers of God increased still in number in euery country Such euer was the prouidence of the Lord that Septimius the like were either murdered slaine in their country or else banished died out of their country as this Septimius did or as the great Antiochus Epiphanis did being the only enemies of Gods people tyrannizing against Iudah forcing them with sword fire to forsake God their religion lawes strangling men hanging some womē with their childrē about their necks other women they cast downe headlong ouer the walls with their babes hanging at their breasts making search for the bookes of Moses and burning all that he could finde written of the law of Moses prophaned the temple sacrificed swines flesh against the law of the Iews compelled the Iews to eate swines flesh to forsake circumcisiō and to adore his gods his tyrannie was such that the Samaritans sent vnto him messengers for very feare denying themselues to be Iewes but a people comming out of the Meades and Persians therin they said the truth for they were not true Iewes requesting Antiochus that the Temple which they builded in Mount Garisim should be named the Temple of Iupiter and that they would bee gouerned by Appolonius and Nichanor his Lieftenants and become Antiochus seruants Yet the Lord raised those in Iudah that esteemed not his threatnings waighed not his commaundements feared not his tortures for so the Lord said to Elias that he reserued 7000. that neuer bowed nor bended knee to Baall which kept the lawes of the Lord as Mattathias and his fiue sonnes in Modin and diuers other in Iudah not weighing Antiochus nor his Lieftenants When this cursed and cruell Antiochus sawe how little the Iewes weighed his threatnings and how they stil increased in number and how forward they were in their religion he thereby fell sicke and confessed that the euill that he did to the Temple of Ierusalem and to the inhabitants of Iudah was the cause that he must die in a straunge land for before Antiochus had proudly promised to make Ierusalē a graue for al the Iewes burial we leaue Antiochus dead out of his Countrey in Persia and turne to Moses in Egipt This was euer the commaundement of the Lord to Moses rise and stand vp before Pharao and say thy wonted message thus saith the Lord let my people goe Yet nothing moued Pharao but as a sworne enemy against the Lord stiffe necked and hard hatred refused al graces and mercies offred and therfore Moses was commanded to take the ashes out of the furnace to sprinkle it vp into the aire before Pharaos face strait out of the same ashes there brake out sores with blaines botches swellings both in man beast so that Iamnes and Iambres all the Sorcerers of Egipt could not stand before Moses forthey thēselues were plagued with botches biles which Manetho an Egiptiā historiographer falsly fained a fable that these blaines and botches which the Egiptians had to be a leprousie on the Hebrues naming Moses Osarphis a Priest a law-giuer ouer the Hebrues Yet Cheremon named him Tisithes one contrary to another and both cōtrary to the truth and as Iosephus saith both Manetho and Cheremon affirmed that what Moses had done concerning the myracles in Egipt to be done by Magicke So Pliny held the like opinion that Moses was a great Magitian and did all those myracles before Pharao in Egipt by Magicke Pliny had no cause so to say for Nero the Emperour which was instructed with the best Magicians of all the East kingdomes which Tiridates king of Armenia brought with him to Rome yet it helped not Nero at his need neither the Emperor Iulianus Apostata being well learned and throughly instructed in Magick It could do him no good no more then Iamnes and Iambres to Pharao And therefore I will set downe the true History of Moses written by Iosephus a graue a learned Iew and a gouernour of all the countrey of Galiley farre to be preferred before Appian an Egiptian Schoolmaister in Alexandria Who after their fabulous lies most impudently blasphemed their Temple affirming an Asse head all of gold by the Iewes most religiously worshipped and honoured in their temple which was found in the time of Antiochus Epiphanis when he sacked Ierusalem spoyled the temple We wil passe ouer these false Egiptiās writers come to Moses This sixt plague is likened to the sixt persecution vnder Maximinus a most cruell Emperor being puffed vp with pride insolency and wearied with vulgar persecutions proceeded forward to persecute Bishops Doctors and other learned Christians that professed the name of Christ as Polycarpus Bishop of Smyrna Ignatius and such he spared no degrees within the Romain prouinces but as the Egiptians were plagued with soares botches blaines and biles so hee vexed the Christians with sword fire and extreame tortures And as nothing could moue Pharao in Egipt to acknowledge the Lorde to be God so nothing could moue this tyger Maximinus to acknowledge Christ to be the Lord but without mercy and compassion persecuted afflicted the Christians Thus not only the Emperors of Rome tyrannized against Christians but also the kings of Syria little inferiour to the Romans in tyrannie against whom the Lord did not only stirre men but women children to contemne their threatnings and to despise their crueltie as Antiochus king of Syria commanded caudrons brazen pots to be heated straitly charging that he that spake but a word with Moses law should haue his tongue cut out this could not terrifie a woman with her seuen sonnes who one after another denied the eating sacrificing of swines flesh the defiling of their temple with Images refusing to forsake the lawes of Moses and in this to liue and die The king straight commanded that the tongue of the eldest brother should be cut out to pull the skin ouer his head to pare off the edges of his hands feete and after these tortures while yet there was any life in him to be fried in the hote caudron and that in the sight of his mother and his other sixe brethren assuring them that they should suffer the like torments one after another vnlesse they would forsake the religion lawes of the Iewes eat swines flesh and offer sacrifice of swines flesh vnto Iupiter vpon the altars at Ierusalem Samaria but they esteemed the least iot of their lawe more then the greatest tortures that
stratagem against the Arcadians commaunded secretly in the night time certaine horses to goe round about his campe and in the morning hee shewed his souldiers the steps of the horses saying that it was Castor Pollux that would be readie in the next battell to take their parts and to fight with them against the Arcadians So did Epaminandas he caused the armor which did hang in the temples and were dedicated to their Gods secretly to be taken downe by this stratagem he perswaded his souldiers that the gods promised to be in those armors themselues to fight in the battell Pericles Generall for the Athenians vsed the like policie caused a comely tall man of great stature all in purple to sit on a high stately chariot drawne with goodly white horses standing in a thicke wood consecrated to Pluto where both the armies might behold him vntill the signe of the battell were giuen then he called to Pericles and willed him to goe forwards and said that the gods of Athens were at hand by this stratagem Pericles got a great victory for the enemies fled before the battell began The Gentiles the Heathens beleeued confessed that all victories good successe came to them by seruing of their gods and all their ouerthrowes calamities fell vpon them by offending their gods so much stood the Heathens in awe and feare of their gods And like as Ioshua Iosaphat Dauid returned to giue thankes to the Lord with violls harpes trumpets for their victories so the Lacedemonians with trumpets and flutes crowned with garlands made of all kinde of flowers and with a song to Castor Pollux for any victories which they had obtained The Romanes also and the Grecians not only with building of Temples and Aultars but with the great sacrifice Haecatombae did please their Gods for theyr victories In Hercules Temple in Sparta the Armours that were hanged vp and consecrated to Hercules seemed to make a sound and and a noise and at Thebes in the Temple of the same Hercules the gates of the Temple being shut were suddenly of themselues opened and the shields and the targets that were hanged vp in the roofe of the Temple dedicated to Hercules fel downe were found vpon the ground which foreshewed to the soothsayers the destruction both of Sparta and Thebes Now to the Hebrewes The Lord commaunded that hee that buildeth a new house and had not possessed it a yeare should be spared from warre Hee that planted a vineyard and not receiued the fruites thereof should also be spared from warre And he that betrothed himselfe to a wife and had not married her might in like case be spared from war After the Priest had ended his exhortation to the souldiers the Generall of the Army proclaimed that if any timerous or fainthearted souldier were within the Army hee should returne home least hee through his cowardlinesse should disanimate or discourage the rest of his Army Hence the Gentiles had the first instruction to vse the like long after this time for the lawe of Armes which the Lord gaue vnto his people the Hebrewes in the wildernesse were in all countries of the Gentiles afterwards imitated in all their warres As among the Romaines the Priestes Faeciales in like sort as the Hebrewes exhorted and encouraged the Romanes manfully to fight for their Countrey repeating the lawe of Armes of the Hebrewes So the Athenians before they cōmenced any battel their Priests called Mantes stood before the army made a speech to the souldiers of the iust cause of theyr wars and would bee further instructed by their Oracles to know of their victories The Persians likewise would take no warre nor battell in hand before they had consulted with their soothsayers which were their wise men called Magi. CHAP. X. Of the camp of the Hebrews of their exercise in the wildernesse and of the whole Army deuided vnder foure principal standarts and of placing of the Arke in the midst of the Camp THe Lord commaunded at the setting out of the Army vnto the battell that the Arke should be carried by the Leuites which Ark signified the presence of God the figure of Christ at what time Moses vsed alwaies these words at the lifting vp of the Ark rise vp Lord let thy enemies be scattered and let them that hate thee flee before thee And when the Arke rested Moses alwaies said these words Returne ô Lord to thee many thousands when the Arke was caried a cloude couered the Arke and where the cloud stayed there the Arke would rest and when the cloud remoued the Arke was also to be remoued for by the remouing of the cloud the Arke was also to be remoued The Lord commanded in the wildernesse of Sinai to Moses and Aaron with the twelue Princes of the Tribes of Israel to take muster to number thē that were able to goe to the wars frō twentie yeares vpward hence frō the Hebrewes the Gentiles tooke their instructions in numbring and mustring their souldiers Moses numbred the people and found six hundred three thousand fiue hundred fiftie able men to go to wars in the camp of the Hebrews beside the Leuites which were appointed to attend the Tabernacle For the Leuites were numbred three seuerall times the first time they were numbred at a moneth old when they were consecrated vnto the Lord The second time at 25. yeares olde when they were appointed to serue in the Tabernacle The third time at 30. yeares old to bear the burthens of the Tabernacle and to serue in the Tabernacle vntill 50. yeares and then to cease from bearing such heauie burthens and painful seruice But after that they should minister in the Tabernacle singing hymnes Psalmes instructing counselling keeping of things in order After that Moses had brought the Hebrews frō Egipt instructed them with military discipline giuen them martiall lawes then the Lord would not haue Moses to bring his people straight way to the land of Canaan but to lead them too and fro in the wildernesse to keep thē in cōtinual exercise to teach them military discipline by the law of Arms appointed for they might within 3. daies as Philo writeth haue passed frō Egipt to the lād of Canaan but that the Lord would haue thē to endure labour to be exercised in martiall discipline to become good souldiers therfore suffred the Amalekites Moabites Edomites the Philistines to be with thē as needles in their eies thornes in their sides being their professed enemies to warre to fight and to keepe them still in practise and exercise of armes The Lord suffered the Camp of the people to wander too and fro in the wildernesse backward forward to learne to endure cold and heate and all kind of hardnesse remouing their campe too and fro 42. mansions before they came to the land of Canaan Cai. Marius perceiuing his
king and his battell at Michmash AFter Sampson the last Iudge in Israel died Eli was appointed high Priest to gouerne them who though a godly man himselfe yet brought not vp his sonnes in vertue in the fear of God therefore the Lorde rebuked Eli and said to Samuel I haue sworne that the wickednesse of Eli his house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for euer for the Lord tooke away the priesthood from Eli and from his house for the transgression of his children Likewise the Prophet Samuels sonnes for that they followed not their fathers steps but looked after lucre and tooke rewards were reprehended for corruption and bribery For Samuel being olde not able for age to execute his office he appointed both his sonnes to be Iudges in Bersabe but they loued rewards and bribes and therefore the people complained to Samuel of his sonnes refusing to be gouerned by them but would be gouerned by a king as other nations were Therefore was the Priesthood taken away from the house of Eli for the wickednesse of his children Ophnes and Phineis So was the gouernment taken from Samuel and from his house for euer through the corruption and briberie of his sonnes Ioell and Abiah Who would thinke that so good a King as Dauid should haue so wicked a sonne as Absolon that kild his brother Ammon in his owne house and sought the crowne of Iudah euen from his fathers head a murtherer of his Brother and a notable Traytour to his Father Who would thinke that good king Ezechiah should haue so wicked a sonne as Manasses to succeed him that sawed the prophet Esay in the midst and filled the streets of Ierusalem with blood And againe who would iudge but Salomon being the onely wisest king of the world hauing a thousand Queenes and concubines yet had but one sonne Rhehoboham that he was so brought vp to offend the people that ten of the twelue Tribes forsooke him and went to Ieroboam his fathers seruant Such was the care of kings among all nations that Philip king of Macedonia was glad to haue a sonne born in Aristotles time by whom hee might learne to knowe how to be a king and of whome Alexander the great himselfe was wont to say that he was as much bound to Aristotle his maister for his learning as he was to Philip his father for his birth And therefore Cyrus commaunded his sonne Cambises at his going to warres to Scithia to followe the counsell of Craesus to be ruled and gouerned by him For Cyrus knew Craesus to be so wise that by naming of Solons name he saued his owne life In like sort king Antigonus commaunded his sonne Helenus to be aduised and counselled by Aratus whom he knew to be a great learned man a noble captaine for that he was chosen to be seuenteene times Generall ouer the Achaians The cares of the kings of Persia was such for their children that they made choise of foure principall men in all knowledge to instruct them and to bring them vp The first schoole-maister should teach them the seruice of the gods with their sacrifice and ceremonies The second should instruct their children in the auncient lawes and customes of the kings of Persia. The third should bring them vp in sobrietie temperancy to vanquish lust and incontinency And the fourth should learn them to be valiant and hardy and to be acquainted with military discipline And therfore Alexander the great brought vp three thousand Persian youthes in the martiall discipline of the Macedonians And so Sertorius brought vp all the noble mens sonnes in Hispaine in martiall discipline of the Romanes This much I thought good to write of the good bringing vp and education of children for by the wickednesse of Eli his sonnes and corruption of Samuels sonnes the Priesthood was taken from the one and the gouernment taken from the other and therefore Israel cried for a king therat Samuel was much displeased but the Lord said vnto him heare the voyce of the people they haue not cast thee away but me that I should not raigne ouer them yet saith the Lord Tell them the nature of a king that he will take their sonnes to runne before his chariots to eare his ground to gather in his haruest and the king wil take their daughters and make them dressers of his oyntments his cookes and bakers the king shall take the best of their fields of their vineyards and of their oliue trees and giue them to his seruants he shall take the tenth of their seed and of theyr vines the best of their men seruants and maid seruants their young men and their asses to doo his worke yet though Samuel told al this to Israel from the Lord they would haue a king much like the fable of the frogs The frogs would haue a king being refused of many they came to the storke and would haue him to be their king which he accepted he got him a block as a seate to sit on to heare their causes and to giue iudgement but when the frogs came before their king to complaine he began with his bill to pricke them and after to wound thē that some were wounded some slain some made hast away So Samuel spake to the Israelites to that effect as they found in Saul Ieroboam Achab Manasses others such wicked kings The Apology of Iothan may be now well mentioned who spake in a parable to the Sychemites that the trees would haue a king but the vine the figge and the oliue trees refused to be their king then would the trees haue a bush or a gorsse to be their king who did accept of it This bush or gorsse would easily take fire and burne all the Sychemites in Sychem and did not Abimelech so after hee killed 70. sonnes of Gedeon his bretheren he destroyed Sychem and slew all the Sychemites and sowed salt in that place to make it barren for euer for salt as Pliny saith makes ground barren and vnapt to bring any thing When the Philistines heard that Israel had a king they gathered themselues together to fight against Israel thirtie thousand chariots six thousand horsemen and the footemen were like the sand by the sea side in multitude and they pitched their camp in Michmash and the Philistines seemed so many vnto the Israelites that the Israelites hid themselues in holtes in towers caues rockes and pits and many of them fled ouer Iorden yet the Lord deliuered the Philistines into Ionathans hand Sauls sonne that Israel might know that victorie consists not in multitude nor armour of men but onely in the arme of the Lord and therfore Ionathan smote the Philistines and the Lord turned euery mans sword vpon his fellow so that there was a very great ouerthrow and the battell continued vntill they came that fled for feare of the Philistines
yeares space gaue diuers ouerthrows to some Romane Praetors Consuls as Cai. Vetulius Cai. Plantius and others that he waxed so proud and insolent of his victories ouer the Romans that he hanged vp the Romane Ensignes on high hilles and mountaines as trophies to shewe his victories ouer the Romanes but Viriatus was betrayed and slaine by some of his souldiers by meanes of Caepio the Consul against the manners of the olde Romanes which neuer allowed trechery thinking to haue a great reward of the Romanes for his trechery but they according to their manners sent him backe bound vnto Hispaine as a traytor to his captaine and countrey as they did to Timocheres Pirrhus Phisition who offered the Romanes if they would to poison his maister Pirrhus So Camillus sent the schoolemaister of the Phaelicians who brought all his schollers beeing noble mens sonnes to betray the Towne backe naked before his schollers euery scholler hauing a rodde in his hand to whip his master for betraying their fathers their frends and the citie so that neither Viriatus seruant that slew his maister neither Pirrhus Phisition that would haue poisoned his maister nor the schoolemaister that would betray his citie could get any rewards at the Romanes hands for trechery Now to Dauid whose example of warres and victories vpō the Amalekites Canaanites and the rest as in this the next booke shal be mentioned The end of the first booke The second Booke of the Stratagems of Ierusalem CHAP. I. Of Dauid the second King of Israel and his great victories and good successe which hee had in all his warres against the Canaanites Edomites Moabites Ammonites Philistines and others DAuid a man whom the Lord found to his owne heart a second Ioshuah of Israel hee fought many battels of the Lorde and wonne many victories for when the Philistines heard that Saul was dead they sought for Dauid to fight with him and Dauid asked counsell of the Lord before hee would take any battel in hand which made his victories so many and himselfe so famous that all his enemies feared him So should all Kings Generalls and Captaines hold that rule for a principall part of theyr charge and not to commence warre without a iust cause and lawful meanes to be executed Iosias had no good cause to fight with Necho king of Egipt who commaunded his souldiers not to fight with Iosias but against Charchemish a citie of the Assirians So the King of Syria charged his souldiers to fight with none but with Achab king of Israel at what time Iosaphat king of Iudah was spared and therefore returned safe and sound to Ierusalem by the counsell of the king of Syria Had Iosias followed the counsell of Necho king of Egipt as Iosaphat followed the counsell of the king of Syria Iosias had saued his life as Iosophat did Dauid fought with the Philistines smote scattered them and slew them that they fled before Dauids face in the valley of Gyants which is the plaine of diuision because of their victories and there they left their Images and Idols and Dauid burned them much like to the Iamnites who carried the Images of their Idols in theyr bosomes to the battell and tyed them about theyr neckes for they were so found after the Iamnites were slaine as in auntient time the Egiptians carried their gods and their Idols painted on their Ensignes and Banners into the field as their standarts Againe the Philistines gathered their force against Dauid at Rephaim which is called the valley of Gyants and Dauid ouerthrew the host of the Philistines chased them from Geba vnto Gazar An other battell of the Lord against the Philistines fought by Dauid and he againe subdued them tooke the strong citie of Gath which they called the bridle of bondage out of the hands of the Philistines This citie kept the countrey round about in subiection and bondage Thus all wise and skilfull generals ought to imitate Dauid herein to seize by all warlike policie vpon those strong citties and fortes that can commaund the countrey So Hanibal thought himself sure of Rome hauing gottē Capua and Tarentum two of the strongest citties in Italy into his hand So the Romanes hauing gotten Syracusa doubted not to take Carthage and hauing Carthage in their hands they soone cōquered all Affrike and hauing Affricke they made no account to win Asia for at that verie time the best souldiers of the worlde were in the West kingdomes For Antiochus the great the greatest king at that time in all Asia was soone ouerthrowne by a Consull of Rome So Dauid went forward in his victories after he had gotten the strong citie of Gath he smote Moab and measured them with a cord he slue them cast them down to the ground he ouercame whom he would and saued whom hee listed so that the Moabites became Dauids seruants and brought him gifts and presents that the Lord made Dauid famous throughout all the world During the time of Dauids warres against the Canaanites and other nations their associates there was no great warre then among the Syrians neither in any part of Asia and especially in Europe which was scant throughly inhabited in Dauids time and therfore there was no such warre to be written of as was thē between the Israelites and the Canaanites in the time of Dauid For as Ioshua slue the Canaanites and gaue the possession of the land vnto Israel so Dauid rooted them out slue their gyants and brought all the land tributary vnto Salomon his sonne who gouerned Israel fortie yeares in peace and quietnesse without warre Hadarezer king of Zobah hearing of the name and fame of Dauid went to establish his borders by the riuer Euphrates with a great army with him where Dauid gaue him battell fought with him ouerthrew him and tooke from him a thousand chariots seuen thousand horsmen and twentie thousand footemen Dauid destroyed all the chariots and hought all the horses but reserued an hundred chariots for himselfe so that the Lorde was with Dauid wheresoeuer he went and whatsoeuer he tooke in hand The Aramites hearing what great ouerthrow Hadarezer king of Zobah had by Dauid came from Damascus with a very great army to succor the king of Zobah for they knitted themselues against Israel with all theyr force and power but they had the like welcome as the Philistines the Moabites and the king of Zobah had Dauid slue of the Aramites two twenty thousand Dauid put a garrison in that part of Syria where Damascus was and the Aramites became Dauids seruants and brought him presents gifts Dauid so plagued the Aramites which are also named Siriās that they bare such mortall hatred to Iudah for they euer ioyned themselues after with the Ephraimites against ' the Tribe of Iudah Obserue the martiall proceedings of the Israelites to put garrison in euery strong Citie and fort where they had subdued
could bee as though he were their true and lawfull king but being brought to Rome before Caesar who found by the hardnesse of his hands and rudenesse of his behauiour that hee was not brought vp like a Kings sonne and therefore Caesar hauing found his falshood bound him all his life time as a galley slaue and commaunded all his counsellors and conspirators to bee killed with the sword This house continued vntill the last destruction of Ierusalem So that the Iewes after Christ his death beeing euery where afflicted and oppressed from Babilon were forced to flie to Zeleucia the chiefe Citie in all Syria which Zeleucus Nicanor builded a Towne where Greekes Macedonians and Syrians dwelt together there also the Greekes and the Syrians conspired together against the Iewes that there dwelt and slew trecherously of them to the number of 50000. So sedition also began between the Iewes in Alexandria and the Aegiptians in Samaria betweene the Samaritans and the Iewes and all the Iewes which dwelt in Rome in Sardinia other places of the Romaine Empire were from thence banished These Iewes had not so much as a place to rest vpon the earth but were scattered like rogues vagabounds euery where without credit or loue without Prince Priest law or religion the iust iudgement of the Lord for their blasphemy against the sonne of God saying his bloud be vpon vs and our children Thus the Iewes whom Moses Aaron brought out of Egipt to the number of six hundred thousand died all in the wildernesse for their rebellious mutinie Moses and Eleazer after Aarons death numbred the people in the wildernesse where all the other died and they found sixe hundred thousand seuenteen hundred and thirtie able and sufficient men for the warres and yet not one of them which Moses Aaron numbred in the desart of Sinai after they came out of Egipt sauing Ioshua Caleb but died in the wildernesse for disobedience and stubbernesse euer preferring the cucumbers melons oynions garlicks of Egipt before Māna quailes and sweete water which they had from euery rocke in the wildernesse where neither their cloathes were worne nor their shooes spent for fortie yeares yet Egipt which should be a hel to them was their paradice The tenne Tribes of Israel raigned in Samaria 240. yeares seuen moneths and seuen daies during which time they neither obeyed the lawes of the Lord nor heard the Prophets that forewarned them of these calamities which were to come and therfore the Lord gaue them ouer they were taken prisoners their last king Osea brought captiues by Salmanasser vnto Niniuie So the kingdome of Iudah and the house of Dauid was likewise taken by Nabuchodonozer in the eleuenth yeare of Zedechiah the last king of Iudah who was taken captiue his noble men his children slaine in his sight before his eyes were pluckt out and after led in a chaine vnto Babilon where he died in prison 133. yeares after the kingdome of Israel was destroyed by Salmanasser that was the cause of his miserable end for the contempt he had to the Prophet Ieremy disdaining either to hear him or to read his booke for before any king raigned in Israel Iudges by the Lord appointed ruled 370. yeares the kings of Iudah after Solomons death raigned 395. yeares which agreeth well with Iosephus account And so of the continuance of the Bishops or high Priests euen from the building of the temple of Solomon Sadoc being their first high Priest or Bishop were seuēteene high Priests or Bishops in Ierusalem by succession of the children after their fathers The end of the second booke The third Booke of the Stratagems of Ierusalem CHAP. I. Of the care and diligence which Kingdomes and Countries tooke in military discipline to exercise their souldiers THe Romanes most carefull in all military discipline in no wise trusted strangers but euery Romaine souldier should take a military oath by the Colonell The Persiās also were in this point like the Romains for not admitting of mercenary souldiers seldome is found any constancie or soundnesse in mercenary souldiers as by too many examples the Romanes and others found Iugurth by trechery of fewe Thracians that serued the Romanes in Affrike in the night time betraied the Romanes to Iugurth and made a great slaughter of them In like sort the Thessalians were trecherous to the Athenians whom they trusted but they forsooke the Athenians at the battel of Tanagra wherby through their falsehood and trecherie to the Athenians the victorie fell to the Lacedemonians therefore neither the Romanes nor the Persians trusted any mercenary souldiers for mercenary souldiers and strangers are not to be trusted for they doo not onely forsake their friends in any danger but ioyne with the enemy for any aduantage So did the Gaules in the warres of Carthage slew the watch of the Romanes and fled to Haniball The lawe of armes in euery countrey should holde and maintain the crowne dignity of the prince by the sword so most necessary it is that subiects should be looked vnto with great care and prouision to maintain the willing forward and good souldiers due punishmēts and sharpe corrections for euill leaud wicked disposed men carelesse of their countries good How carefull euery common-wealth hath bene of this you shall read first of euery kingdome country seueral punishments by law appointed after of the rewards honor dignities of good souldiers of which Plato saith Omnis respub paena Praemio continetur Agesilaus therefore appointed gifts and rewards to draw and encourage his souldiers to shoote to throwe the dart the sling to ride to runne and with diligence and care to keepe them seuerely from faults offences and to exercise them in martiall feates which kinde of exercise among the Greekes was most commonly vsed called Pentatlon in the games of Olympia Isthmia to honor Hercules and Thesius two protectors and principall captaines that loued souldiers Alexander the great was so seuere in martiall lawes towards his souldiers that if any souldier or captain shuld lye or be any way proued a lyer hee should be depriued frō his office and place of seruice banished from his camp for so was Antigenes though a valiant captaine otherwise yet was both casseerd banished for making of a lye Alexander after he had banished all bakers cookes brewers and such like frō his campe said that marching in their armour in the night they should prouide them a dinner a stomacke to eate theyr dinner against the next morning as for a supper he said they should not looke for wine nor flesh to sleepe after it but for bread and hee would prouide for water which is the onely foode of a souldier and the most necessary care of a generall Hereby his souldiers being brought vp by Philip king of Macedonia his father were hardned with continuall paine
losse of many countries prouinces and cities so the Turkes marched vpon the Romanes as the Romanes marched vpon others Cyrus the great king of Persia hauing an hundred and seuen and twentie prouinces after his conquest of many kingdomes and nations marched with two hundred thousand Persians to be slaine in Scythia and that by a woman so Cyrus lost Persia seeking to winne Scythia and lost his life to get more landes Zerxes marching into Greece with such an innumerable armie that they dranke and dried vp many riuers as Scamander in Thessalia the riuer Simois in Phrygia Clidorus in Beotia Lysus in Samothracia the riuer Menalia by Hellespont yet he came from Greece home to be murthered by Mardonius his seruant in his owne kingdom Alexander the great hauing subdued the most parts of the world he also for want of men marched to India to fight with Elephants and returned from India to Babilon where he was poysoned by his owne seruants Many such crooked marchings were as well among the Iewes as among the Gentiles Saul the first king of Israel marched not as he ought to haue done against Agag king of the Amalekites and therefore was he slaine with his three sonnes in the battell at mount Gilboa by the Philistines Ieroboam marched not rightly to the battel in mount Zemaraim against Abiah king of Iudah and therfore fiue hundred thousand Israelites were slaine of his soldiers The most part of the kings of Israel because I need not to name as Acha◅ Manasses Zedechiah the rest many of the kings of Iudah for that they marched not in the path of the Lord but followed Ieroboā which made Israel to sinne and therefore marched with Ieroboa◅ to their destruction These marched not with Moses who said to the God of Israel We will not goe hence if thou goe not before vs. Nor with king Dauid who would take no warre in hand before he had consulted with the Lord. Nor with Gedeon who would not goe to any battell vnlesse the Lord had giuen him a signe before he went so the captaines of the Lorde marched no where attempted no warre or battell without consulting with the Lorde by Vrim Thummim or with some Prophet of the Lord. The Gentiles likewise would take no warre in hand without consulting with their Oracles as the Romains besought the gods of Carthage promising them Temples Altars sacrifices feasts if they would forsake Carthage and come to Rome and therfore the Gentiles were so superstitious and blinde that in many countries they would binde the Images of Hercules and Mars lest they should forsake them and goe to other nations their enemies for no doubt it should seeme that either they read or heard of Moses bookes how the Lord forsooke the Israelites and gaue them ouer to the Canaanites Philistines and other nations about them and how the Arke was taken frō them by the Philistines Here hence grew the blindnesse of the Gentiles that the Arke being taken away from Israel they feared also lest their gods should be either allured by faire promises or taken away by strength of victories CHAP. VI. Of the maner and forme of vowes as well of the Iewes as of the Gentiles for their victories in warres A Bigail Nabals wife vsed a policie to please Dauid fearing least Dauid would be reuenged vpon her husband for his churlish deniall of reliefe to him and to his company went after Dauid with victualls gifts and rewards and pleased him with faire words as Iacob pleased his brother Esau who vsed the like stratagem to win his brother Esau to send him gifts and rewards to please his brother whom he much feared for Esau promised to kill his brother Iacob when his father should die For Iacob the Patriarke made a vow when he went to Mesopotamia after his vision in Luz which thē Iacob named Bethel and said If God be with me and helpe me this iourney and will giue me bread to eate and cloaths to put on he vowed of all things that the Lord would giue him that he would giue the tenth vnto the Lord. Iacobs vow is farre more godly then Absolons vow for Iacob sought but bread to eate and cloaths to put on and safe reture againe from Mesopotamia ouer Iorden but rebellious Absolon sought the kingdome of Israel from his father Dauid by a dissembling vowe saying I will goe and performe my vowes which I vowed vnto the Lorde in Hebron which vowe he made his father the king beleeue that hee vowed in Ieshur in Syria that if the Lord would bring him to Ierusalem he would performe his vowes in Hebron this is a rebellious vow like to the wicked vowes of the Iewes which vowed before they would either eate or drinke to kill Paul The Israelites after they were ouerthrowne in a great battell by Arad king of the Canaanites they vowed vnto the Lorde that if the Lorde would giue Arad and the Canaanites into theyr handes that they would truely ferue the Lorde and destroy the Canaanites theyr landes and theyr cities They bound the Lord to so many conditions that if they should obtaine victories they promised him true seruice and to fight manfully against the Cananites And againe for another victory that the Lord gaue them against the Canaanites they vowed the tenth and performed their vowe the Hebrewes wanted no victories vpon their obedience dutiful seruice to the Lord. Iephtha in his war◅es against the Ammonites vowed vnto the Lord if he should haue victory ouer the Ammonites that whatsoeuer first met him at his returne from his victory comming out of his house should be a sacrifice vnto the Lord. Asa king of Iudah vowed vnto the Lord as Abiah his father did when Shesac king of Egipt came with an infinite number Asa and all Iudah made a couenant to seeke the Lord promised sware that they that sought ◅ot the Lord small or great man or woman should die this with an oath he vowed that Iudah reioyced for the victory they had ouer Zerah king of Aethiope with all his army of tenne hundred thousand Ionas a Prophet of the Lord when he fled from Niniuie to Tharsis being in danger of shipwracke he tolde the Marriners that he was the cause of the perillous tempest and willed the Marriners to throwe him into the sea confessing the lot fell iustly vpon him saying I will performe the vow which I promised vnto the Lord. So Anna vowed vnto the Lord and said that if the Lord would bestowe a man childe vpon her she would giue him vnto the Lord and she vowed that neither razor or sheares should come vpon his head and so performed her vow and brought Samuel her sonne before the Lord. There was nothing so common among the Gentiles also as vows as you heard of the Hebrues of their vows to the gods of Israel so likewise among the Greekes and
presented by a poore husbandman with great treasure which he found in a vessel as he was digging in his owne ground Tamberlane demaunded whether his fathers name and Image were vpon thē causing the superscription of the money to be read being answered that it was Caesars the Romain Emperors he said thē they be not Tamberlanes and commanded that none of the souldiers should rob or spoile the poore man of the benefits of his good luck by his trauell This was that great Scythian Tamberlane that had six hundred thousand footmen foure hundred thousand horse against Pazaites the Turke and gaue him battell at mount Stella a place more famous for that there Pompey the great ouercame Mithridates king of Pontus there Tamberlane ouerthrew the Turks tooke Pazaites their Emperor kept him fed him in a cage vnder his table whom hee carried afterwards in a cage euery where in his warres The like infamy hapned to one of the Emperors of Rome by Sapor king of Persia who kept him al the dayes of his life as a blocke to mount on horse But Sesostris king of Egipt did farre passe the Scythian and the Persian kings in his victories for he caried those kings and princes whom hee subdued bound round about his coach from countrey to countrey from region to region as in a great triumph wherein Sesostris gloried much And yet all these three came short to Adonizebech who kept seuentie kings vnder his table whose toes and thumbes he cut off Thus cruell tyrants haue the like punishment oftentimes as others were by them punished CHAP. X. Of certaine noble Romane Captaines compared with Greeke Captaines Of the force of eloquence the commendations of diuers great Captaines and their stratagems PLato saith that from great minds great vertues or great vices do proceed and so it seemed in many noble and heroicall men as well of the Greekes as of the Romanes as Alcibiades might well bee compared to Lu. Sylla and Demetrius with Mar. Antonius al alike giuen to vertue and vice friendes and foes to theyr Countreys and yet all foure valiaunt and wise whose fortune seemed not much vnlike in all theyr victories Plutarch therefore very fitly compareth some Captaines of the Greekes with the Romanes as Lucullus compared with Cymon the Athenian both of equall fortune in great victories the one in Asia the other Persia. Mar. Cato surnamed the Demosthenes of Rome compared with Aristides surnamed the Iust in Athens So Hanibal is well compared to Philip of Macedon for false subtil deceitfull craftie stratagems they weyed not how they conquered so they might conquer they were in no wise to be trusted vnto either by their promise or by their oathes so farre differed Philip from his sonne Alexander that what Alexander wonne he wonne it onely by magnanimitie and Philip by fraud Demetrius after many victories of Ptolomeu king of Egipt and an other victory by sea in the I le of Cyprus ouer the same king the third victory against Cassander king of Macedonia at Thermopyle in Greece this Demetrius grew so fortunate and great that Seleucus Ptolomeus Lysimachus and Pirrhus foure mightie kings enuying Demetrius greatnesse conspired against him and ioyned their force together for they all feared and doubted his courage and enuied the greatnesse of his fortune Demetrius marching on with a great army to besiege Athens Crates a Philosopher carefull of his Countrey and fearefull of Demetrius least hee should destroy Athens the schoole of learning and the eye of Greece met Demetrius vpon the way with his Army whom he so entreated with sweet perswasions eloquent words that the fury of Demetrius was mitigated by Crates the Philosopher that he raised his siege and departed from Athens So Demades the Orator in like sort did perswade Alexander the great readie with his army to plague and to destroy all the cities of Greece So did Arius the Philosopher perswade Augustus Casar to spare the citie of Alexandria So had Cicero welnigh perswaded Caesar from the battel at Pharsalia with such pithie force of eloquence with such vehement words that Caesars countenance chaunged and his body so shooke that the booke which hee held fell out of his hand Cyrus spared Craesus for Solons sake and Alexander spared Thaebes for Pindarus sake the force therefore of eloquence is such that Philip king of Macedon euer doubted the tongue of Demosthenes more then the strength of the Athenians But againe to returne to Demetrius whose greatnesse grew so great in Macedonia in Asia and in Greece that in sumptuous building of ships framing of all sorts of engines of batterie this Demetrius excelled all Kings of his time For Aeropus King of Macedonia delighted onely to make fine tables and lampes Arsaces King of Parthia in making their arrowes heads keene and sharpe Attalus King of Asia in planting of phisicall hearbes but Demetrius might bee compared for his engines of batteries and his princely practise to Archimedes himselfe being the onely Geometrer of the world at that time whose death Marcellus lamented more then he reioyced for the winning of Syracusa For when Archimides was slaine in his studie and Syracusa taken by Marcellus souldiers hee sought no longer time to liue but till hee had ended certaine Geometricall conclusions which he had inuented for Marcellus that noble Romane feared more the Geometricall engines of Archimedes then all the force of Syracusa and therfore Pythagoras whē he found any new skill in Geometry he straight offered sacrifice to the Muses Demetrius grew so great in Greece that at a generall assembly of the states in Greece hee was chosen Lieutenant generall of all the Grecians where none were but foure before him Philip king of Macedon and his sonne Alexander the great before them none but Agesilaus and Agamemnon and yet died Demetrius a yeelded prisoner to Seleucus whom Demetrius in his greatnesse was wont to call but keeper of the Elephants Demetrius laughed them to scorne which called any other prince king but Antigonus his father and himself The orators in Athēs cōtended in orations who shuld exceed in preferring new titles of honors to Demetrius In so much they decreed that the moneth Munichian which is Ianuary should be called Demetrion and their feast Dyonisia should be called Demetria and that Demetrius and his father king Antigonus should haue their pictures carried with the pictures of Iupiter and Minerua in the tryumphe of Peplon in the holy banner of Athens This was the marching of Demetrius greatnesse to die a prisoner CHAP. XI Of the war like marching of diuers noble Captaines with their famous victories and stratagems Of the crueltie of Mithridates against the Romanes Of Marius and his reuenge ouer the Cymbrians TWo other great marchings of Epaminondas Agesilaus the emulation betweene these two Captaines was the cause of the ouerthrow of Sparta in the battell at Leuctres by Epaminondas at which
battell Cleombrotus the king with all his captains and chiefest of the Lacedemonians was slaine and that noble Greeke Cleomenes was slaine at the kinges foote with a thousand of the most valiāt Spartans about him at that time there was a great feast at Sparta when this newes came to the Ephories of the victorie of the Thaebans This battel was thirtie yeares after the ouerthrow of Athens by Lysander the Lacedemonian and now the ouerthrowe of Sparta by Epaminondas the Thaeban These two cities were named the two eyes the two legges of Greece and yet Sparta could not abide Athens nor Athens abide Sparta there was neuer such a victory heard of in Greece that the stout Lacedemonians the most skilfull souldiers warlikest people of all the Grecians should haue their king slaine in the field and the chiefe captaines and citizens of Sparta In this battell Pelopidas being neither Generall nor gouernour but Captaine of the holy band deserued as much honour and glorie of this victorie as Epaminondas did being then Generall of the whole armie and gouernor of Baeotia this great ouerthrow of the Lacedemonians fel iustly through the malice enuy that Agesilaus their king bare to the Thaebans being therevnto mooued by the stout answere of that most noble Captaine Epaminondas giuing no place to king Agesilaus greatnesse nor to his stout Lacedemonians Pelopidas the Thaeban laying siege to two great cities of Greece at one time wrought this stratageme caused foure Captaines to come all crowned with garlands of mirtle on their heads hauing brought some of their owne souldiers as fained captiues to Pelopidas and withall caused a whole wood which was betweene the two cities to be burnt as though it had bene that citie which they besieged which so terrified the towne that vpon the sight of that fire they yeelded to Pelopidas Epaminondas being readie to enter battell with the Lacedemonians his seate where he sate after he rose vp fell downe which the souldiers tooke for no good signe which he perceiued and said We are forbidden to sit going about to win victorie We must watch and pray we must not be idle for Satan is most busie when we thinke our selues most sure We must say as Epaminondas saide to his souldiers Vetamur sedere so Christ speakes vnto vs Videat qui stat nè cadat You that stand take heed lest you fall Another famous victorie at Mantinea the chiefe citie of Arcadia the glorie thereof fell to the Thaebans by the prowesse and courage of Epaminondas their General and yet died he of a wound he had in that battell When Epaminondas died died the honor and glory of the Thaebans for before him no great fame was heard of Baeotia and after him nothing esteemed so litle he weighed glorie as hee weighed wealth and so little he esteemed wealth that when Epaminondas died hee wanted mony to burie him In so much that Cicero said that he wondred that so great a Philosopher and so singularly learned should become so noble a captain that all Greece preferred him for both Many sought to imitate Epaminondas for Philopomen followed Epaminondas steppes in all his actions but chiefly in three things hee followed his hardinesse to enterprise any thing hee followed Epaminondas wisedome to execute all great matters and followed his integritie from corruption bribery and taking of money hereby came Philopomen to be the most renowned captaine of all Greece in his time Philopomen was eight times Generall of the Achaians being then seuentie yeares olde for Philopomen delighted from his youth in warre and martiall exercise and loued alwaies souldiers and armes for he was in his time one of the best and one of the last Captaines of Greece and therfore reputed a better Captaine for war then a wise gouernour for peace For at the battell by the riuer of Larissus Philopomen being Generall of the Achalans against the Aetolians where hee slue Demophantus Generall of the Aetolians in a combat fought betweene them both in the sight of the armie and after ouerthrew the whole hoste Philopomen grew so great in Greece that the name of Philopomen made the Baeotians to flie for feare from the siege of Maegara and made the Spartans after he had rased the towne to forsake Licurgus lawe and compelled the Lacedemonians to follow the Achaians maner and customes The Grecians so loued and so esteemed this Philopomen that Titus Flaminius enuyed him for his fame and greatnesse in Greece beeing then Consull of Rome and had restored all Greece to her former libertie Philopomen turned all curiositie and daintie fare to braue and rich armour to gallant and warlike horses Philopomen was the last famous man of the Grecians after whose death Greece decaied Hee was wont in his youth to reade Homers Illiads and especially Euangelus bookes of the discipline of warres for by reading and talking he became an excellent souldier So Lucullus by talking with souldiers by reading of bookes and by exercising of military discipline became one of the noblest Captaines that the Romaines had for at the battell at the riuer of Rindacus hee gaue the ouerthrow to Mithridates souldiers that fortie thousand were slain in the field fifteene thousand taken and sixe thousand horse of seruice besides an infinit number of beasts for carriage the ouerthrow was such that they which came frō the citie Appolonia had as great a spoyle while both armies were a fighting as Lucullus and his souldiers had after the victory was gotten Lucullus fought with Mithridates another battell at the riuer Granicus where Alexander the great gaue the first battell to Darius king of Persia. Here also Lucullus in a very great battell fought with his Romane armie so fiercely and with such courage that both the riuer of Granicus and the riuer of Asapus ranne all of blood and the number that were slaine of Mithridates souldiers as mentions are made were welnigh three hundred thousand men of all sorts of people This Mithridates was the greatest enemy that the Romanes had after Hannibal and yet Hannibal and all Affrica was subdued within seuenteene yeares by the Romanes and that most noble captaine Pirrhus who fought with the Tarentines Samnites others against the Romanes hee was driuen out of Italy within foure yeares but Mithridates endured the fury of the Romans fortie yeares vntill he was weakened by Sylla wearied by Lucullus and at last subdued by Pompey the great Mithridates king of Pontus fearing much the power and pollicies of the Romanes frequented hunting that he vsed no house in towne or country for seuen yeares that thereby he was able to endure any labour and to preuent any stratagem of his enemies So did Sertorius with many other Romane Greek captaines that Xenophon maketh a catologue of theyr names that became noble souldiers by hunting Hannibal laying siege to Tarentum beeing agreed with one Eoneus a Tarentine for a certain