The History of Ancient Europe Author:William Russell Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: -. -i I".' .: ' -K A LETTER IV. f General flew of the Affairs ef Greece from tlit final Invajion, and Conqueft of Peloponnesus ly the Heraclid.s, to... more » the Abolition of Regal Power at Athens ; with an Account of the Settlement sf tht Grecian Colonies in Asia Minor. WE have formerly feen x in what manner Hercules was excluded the fucceffion to the kingdom of Mycenae, by the felfifli policy of his grand- uncle Sthenelus, who gave the princely inheritance to his own fon, Euryftheus. The toils and perils to which Euryftheus expofed this hero, in hopes of getting rid of fo dangerous a rival, are well known under the name of the Labours of Hercules. The reputed fon of Jove, however, furmounted every difficulty. But not being proof againft the fhafts of fate, he died in great agony about the fiftieth year of his age, in confe- quence of a poifoned fhirt, ignorantly fent him by his wife Deianeira, and left behind him many children by various mothers z. The children of Hercules were reared by different princes, who refpected the memory of their father but his legitimate fons folely by Ceix, king of Tra- chine. Unfortunately, however, the generous guar- dianihip of Ceix, and the youthful valour of the fons of Hercules, awaked the jealoufy of Euryftheus, who ned to make war upon that prince, mould he .ii ?. ': I. Lett. H, . Apollod. lib. ii. Diod. Sicul. lib. iv- yield yield them any longer an afiylum at his court3. The Letter Herach'dsefawthenecefiity of quitting Trachine; and, " in this extremity of their affairs, they applied for protection to all the ftates.of Greece. Athens alone durft afford them fhelter 4. Euryftheus led an army againft that city. He was met by the Heraclidx, fupported by the Athenians, and commanded by Hyl- lus, the eldeft fon of Hercu...« less