a country of Asia, famous from the remote antiquity for the independency of its inhabitants during the vast conquests of the Assyrians, Persians, Greeks, and Romans; and, in latter times, for being the centre of an empire equal, if not superior, in extent to any that ever existed.

This country, or at least the greatest part of it, was in the earliest ages called *Arabah*: concerning the etymology of which word there are various conjectures; but the most probable is, that it is derived from the Hebrew word אָרֶץ, signifying, the *earth*, *mixture*, or *traffic*. In its largest extent, Arabia lies between the 12th and 35th degrees of N. Lat. and the 36th and 61st of E. Long. Its greatest length from north to south is about 1100 miles, and its breadth from east to west between 1300 and 1400. It is bounded on the west by Palestine, port of Syria, the isthmus of Suez, and the Red sea, called by the Arabs the sea *Al Khasan*; on the east by the Euphrates, the Persian gulf, and bay of Ormus; on the north by part of Syria, Diyar-Beer, Irak, and Khuzestan; and on the south by the straits of Babel Mandel, and the Indian ocean. It grows narrower as we approach the frontiers of Syria and Diyar-Beer; and, by reason of the proximity of the Euphrates to the Mediterranean, may be looked upon as a peninsula, and that one of the largest in the whole world.

—Arabia Proper, however, is much narrower, including little more than what was comprehended by the ancients under the name of Arabia Felix, which we shall presently describe; and here the Arabs have been settled almost since the flood.

The first division of the peninsula of Arabia was into *Arabah* and *Kedem*, as we learn from Scripture; the first of which implies the west, and the other the east, denoting the situation of the two countries.—Ptolemy was the first who divided the peninsula we speak of into three parts, Arabia Petraea, Arabia Deserta, and Arabia Felix, which division has generally prevailed since his time.

**Arabia Petraea**, on the east, was bounded by Syria and Arabia Deserta; on the west by Egypt, or rather the Isthmus of Suez which separates Asia from Africa, and the Heroopolitan gulph or western arm of the Red Sea. On the north it was bounded by Palestine, the lake Asphaltites, and Cœlophrysa; and on the south by Arabia Felix. This tract did not admit of much cultivation; the greatest part being covered with dry sands, or rising into rocks, interspersed here and there with some fruitful spots. Its metropolis was Petra, which by the Syrians was called Ratau, and in Scripture *Joktheel*. Several other cities of Arabia Petraea are mentioned by Ptolemy; but as it is very improbable such a barren country should abound with large cities, we must look upon them as inconsiderable places.

**Arabia Deserta** was bounded on the north by the Euphrates, which separated it from Melopotamia; on the west by Syria, Judæa, and Arabia Petraea; on the east, by a ridge of mountains which separated it from Babylonia and Chaldea; on the south, by Arabia Felix, from which it was likewise separated by several ridges of hills. By far the greatest part of this kingdom, as well as the former, was a lonefome desert, diversified only with plains covered with sand, or mountains consisting of naked rocks and precipices; nor were they ever, unless sometimes at the equinoxes, refreshed with rain. The few vegetables which they produced were stinted by a perpetual drought, and the nourishment afforded them by the nocturnal dews was greatly impaired by the heat of the sun in the day-time. Throughout the deserts were found huge mountains of sand, formed by the violence of the winds that continually blew over them in the day-time, though they ceased in the night. Wells and fountains were for the most part exceedingly rare; however, notwithstanding the sterility of these countries, the vast plains of sand just now mentioned were interspersed with fruitful spots, which appeared here and there like so many islands in the midst of the ocean. These being rendered extremely delightful by their verdure, and the more so by the neighbourhood of those frightful deserts, the Arabs encamped upon them; and having consumed everything they found upon one, removed to another, as is the custom of their descendants the Bedowens at this day. These fruitful spots were likewise frequent in Libya, and by the Egyptians called *ausufa*, or *abaifa*, as we learn from Strabo. The barren part of Arabia Felix, bordering upon the Red Sea, was in like manner interspersed with abafa; which probably gave the name of *Abafena* to a nation settled there, and in the adjacent fertile region. A body of these, it is said, crossing the straits of Babel-Mandel, passed into Ethiopia, which from them received the name of *Abafica*. From this account of Arabia Deserta, we may reasonably conclude, that the towns said by Ptolemy to have been situated in it were places of very little consequence.

**Arabia Felix** was bounded on the north by the two kingdoms just described; on the south, by the Red sea; on the east and west, by part of that sea, together with the Arabian and Persian gulfs. In Strabo's time, it was divided into five provinces, by the oriental historians called *Yaman*, *Hejaz*, *Tebina*, *Najd*, and *Ta'ama*; for a particular description of which, see those articles. In this district stood several towns, particularly Nyfa, famous for being the birth-place of Bacchus; and Mufa, or Muza, a celebrated emporium or harbour, where the Arabian merchants resorted with their frankincense, spices, and perfumes. These two were situated in the province of Yaman. In that of Hejaz stood the still more famous cities of Mecca and Medina; also Thaisa or Taifa, Gjudda or Jodda, Yanbo or Al Yanbo, and Madian, the Modiana of Ptolemy, and the Midian or Madian of Scripture.

At what time the abovementioned kingdoms were when profited peopled we have no certain accounts. The most considerable nations inhabiting Arabia Petraea, in the early ages, were the Ishmaelites, the Nabatei or Nabatheans, theans, the Cedraei or Kedareni, and the Agareni or Hagareni; and of these the Ishmaelites were the most powerful, if they did not comprehend all the rest; and if the Hagareni were not the same people with them, they must at least have been nearly related. Kimchi, an oriental historian, intimates, that they were originally the children of Hagar by an Arab, after she had left Abraham. In after ages, the names of all the nations situated here were absorbed in that of Saraceni, by which the Ishmaelites are distinguished in the Jerusalem Targum. A nation also is mentioned by Pliny, called Araceni, and Sarraceni by Ptolemy and Dioecordius, which was probably no other than the Ishmaelites above mentioned. In Arabia Deserta several tribes resided, all of whom were very obscure, except the Afitze and Agrezi. The former are supposed by Bochart to have been Job's countrymen, and the latter to have been the same with the Hagareni, Arraceni, or Sarraceni, above mentioned. Arabia Felix was inhabited by many different tribes; the most remarkable of which were the Sabaei, Gerrizi, Minazi or Minazi, Atramitei, Maranitei, Cata-bani, Afitze, Homeritei, Sapporitei, Omanitei, Saraceni, Nabathzei, Thamydeni, and Bnizomenei; but neither their limits nor situation can now be determined with any manner of precision.

According to the Oriental historians, the Arabs are to be divided into two classes; viz. the old lost Arabians, and the present. The most famous tribes among the former were those of Ad, Thamud, Tasm, Jades, Jorham, Amalek, Amtei, Hafoem, Abil, and Bar. Concerning these, though now entirely lost, and swallowed up among other tribes, there are some remarkable traditions, of which the following may serve as a specimen.

The tribe of Ad deduced their origin from Ad the son of Aws, or Uz, the son of Aram, the son of Shem, who, after the confusion of tongues, settled in Al Abkaf, or the winding sands in the province of Hadramant, on the confines of Yaman, where his posterity greatly multiplied. Their first king was Sheddad, the son of Ad, who built a stately palace and made a delightful garden in the deserts of Aden, which he designed as an imitation of the celestial paradise. This garden he called Irem; and when it was finished, he set out with a great retinue to take a view of it; but, having some thoughts of assuming divine honours, he was destroyed by a tempest from heaven, while yet a day's journey from his paradise. The garden and palace, however, were preserved, though invisible, as a monument of divine vengeance.

After the death of Sheddad, the kingdom of Ad was governed by a long series of princes, concerning whom many fables are related by the eastern writers. The conclusion of their history, however, is as follows.

"The Adites, in process of time falling from the worship of the true God, into idolatry, God sent the prophet Hud, supposed to be the same with Heber, to preach to and reclaim them. But they refusing to acknowledge his mission or to obey him, God sent an hot and suffocating wind, which blew seven nights and eight days, and, entering at their nostrils, passed thro' their bodies, and destroyed them all, a very few only excepted, who had listened to Hud, and retired with him to another place." Others relate, "that, before this terrible catastrophe, they had been previously chastised with a three years drought; and therefore sent Kail Ebn Ithar, and Morthed Ebn Saad, with 70 other principal men to Mecca, then in the hands of the tribe of Amalek, whose prince was Moawiyah Ebn Beer, to obtain of God some rain. Kail having begged of God that he would send rain to the people of Ad, three clouds appeared, a white, a red, and a black one; and a voice from heaven ordered him to choose which he would. Kail failed not to make choice of the last, thinking it would be laden with most rain; but when this cloud came over them, it proved to be fraught with the Divine vengeance, and a tempest broke forth from it which destroyed them all."

The present Arabs, according to their own historians, are sprung from Kahtan, the same with Joktan, whom the son of Eber; and Adaan, descended in a direct line from Ishmael the son of Abraham. The former of these they call the genuine or pure Arabs, and the latter the naturalized or infititious Arabs.

Joktan the son of Eber had 13 sons, who some time after the confusion of languages settled in Arabia, extending themselves from Medha to Sephar, a mountainous place in the south-eastern part of that peninsula. According to the Arabian historians, he had 31 sons, all of whom left Arabia and went into India, except two, viz. Yarab and Jorham; the former of whom, they say, gave the name both to their country and language. Ishmael and his mother Hagar having been dismissed by Abraham, entered into the wilderness of Paran, as related in the book of Genesis. The sacred historian informs us, that during his residence in the wilderness he married an Egyptian; and the Arabian writers say that he also took to wife the daughter of Modad king of Hejaz, lineally descended from Jorham the founder of that kingdom. By the Egyptian, he was probably the father of the Scenite or wild Arabs; and having allied himself to the Jorhamites, he is considered by the Arabians as the father of the greatest part of their nation.

Kahtan, or Joktan, is said to have first reigned, and Joktan the first king worn a diadem in Yaman; but the particulars of his reign we no where learn. He was succeeded by Yarab already mentioned, he by Yashhab, and Yashhab by Abd Shems. He was successful in his expeditions against his enemies, carried off great spoils, and took many of them prisoners. He is said to have built the city of Saba or Mareb, and above it a stupendous mound or building which formed a vast reservoir, containing all the water that came down from the mountains. By means of this reservoir the kings of Yaman not only supplied the inhabitants of Saba and their lands with water, but likewise kept the territories they had subdued in greater awe, as by cutting off their communication with it they could at any time greatly distress them.

Abd Shems was succeeded by his son Hamyar, from whom the tribe of Hamyar is said to take its name; and he by a series of 17 kings, concerning whom we have no remarkable particular, except that from one of them called Africus the continent of Africa took its name. The last of these was succeeded by a daughter named Balkis or Belkis, whom some will have to be posed to be the queen of Sheba who paid a visit to Solomon. After Balkis came Malea, surnamed Naftherolneam on account of his magnificence and liberality. Having had bad success in an expedition, where his army was over-whelmed. whelmed by torrents of sand, he caused a brazen statue to be erected with the following inscription in the old Hamyaritic character. "There is no passage behind me, no moving farther; the son of Sharhabil." He was succeeded by Shamor Yarafah, so called on account of his being affected with a constant tremor. To this prince the city of Samarcand is said to owe its existence.

After Shamor Yarafah we have a list of 15 kings, of whom nothing worth mentioning is recorded, except of one Abu Carb Afsad, who adorned the Caaba or temple of Mecca with tapestry, and first introduced Judaism among the Hamyarites. He was put to death by his subjects, probably on account of religion. The last of the 15 kings above-mentioned was called Abrahah, who was succeeded by his son Sabban. He had that famous sword called Sarmasah, which afterwards came into the hands of the Khalif Al-Rashid. This prince was succeeded by Dhu Shamarat, who had six fingers on each hand. He was abandoned to unnatural lust, and dethroned for abusing some of the noblest youths in the kingdom. To him succeeded Yufet, who lived about 70 years before Mahomet. He persecuted all those who would not turn Jews, putting them to death by various tortures, the most common of which was throwing them into a glowing pit of fire; whence he had the appellation of the lord of the pit. This persecution is taken notice of in the Koran. The last of the Hamyaritic monarchs was Dhu Jadan, according to Abdulfeza; but, according to others, the Yufet just mentioned, who was named Dhu Nowas on account of his flowing curls, and was the last who reigned in an uninterrupted succession. He was a bigotted Jew, as already mentioned; and treated his subjects with such barbarity, that they were obliged to ask the assistance of Elefbaan or Elefsaan, king of Ethiopia, against him. Dhu Nowas, not being able to make head against the Ethiopians, was at last driven to such extremity, that he forced his horse into the sea, and lost both his life and crown together.

The king of Ethiopia, having thus become master of Yaman, established there the Christian religion, and fixed upon the throne one Abrayat an Ethiopian. He was succeeded by Abraha-Ebn-Al-Sabah, furred with the slit-nostrils, from a wound he had formerly received in it. He was likewise filled lord of the elephant, from a story too ridiculous to deserve notice. He was succeeded by two other Ethiopian princes; but at last Seif Ebn Dhu Yazan, of the old royal family of Hamyar, having obtained assistance from the king of Persia which had been denied him by the emperor Heraclius, recovered his throne, and drove out the Ethiopians; but was himself slain by some of them who were left behind. The succeeding princes were appointed by the Persians, till Yaman fell into the hands of Mahomet.

We have already taken notice of the vast mound or reservoir made by Abd Shems, from which he supplied the city of Saba with water. This building stood like a mountain above the city, and was by the Sabaeans esteemed so strong, that they were under no fear of its ever falling. The water rose almost to the height of 20 fathoms; and was kept in on every side by a work so solid, that many of the inhabitants had their houses upon it. About the time of Alexander the Great, however, a terrible inundation happened. According to the Arabian historians, God being displeased at the pride and insolence of the inhabitants of this city, resolved to humble them; and for this purpose sent a mighty flood, which broke down the mound by night, while the inhabitants were asleep, and carried away the whole city with the neighbouring towns and people. This inundation is styled in the Koran the inundation of Al-Harem; and occasioned so terrible a destruction, that from thence it became a proverbial saying to express a total dispersion, "that they were gone and scattered like Saba."—By this accident no less than eight tribes were forced to remove their habitations, some of which gave rise to the kingdoms of Hira and Ghaffan.

The kingdom of Hira was founded by Malec, a descendant of Cahlan the brother of Hamyar; but after three defeats, the throne came by marriage to the Lakhmians, who were descendants of Lakham the son of Amru, the son of Abd Ems. These princes, whose general name was Mondar, preserved their dominion, notwithstanding some small interruption from the Persians, till the khalifat of Abubeker, when Al Mondar Maghrur, the last of them, lost his life and crown by the arms of Khaled-Ebn-Al-Walid. This kingdom continued 622 years and eight months, according to Ahmed Ebn Yufet. Its princes were under the protection of the kings of Persia, and were their lieutenants over the Arabs of Irak, as the kings of Ghaffan were for the Roman emperors over those of Syria.

The kingdom of Ghaffan was founded by the tribe of Azd, who, according to some, settling in Syria Damascus, near a water called Ghaffan, from thence took their name; but others say they went under this appellation before they left Yaman. Having driven out the Dajamian Arabs, who before possessed the country, they made themselves masters of a considerable territory. Here they maintained themselves, according to some 400, according to others 600, and according to Abdulfeza 613 years, when the last of their kings submitted to the khalif Omar, and embraced the Mahometan religion; but receiving afterwards a defeat, soon returned to Christianity, and took refuge in Constantinople.

The kingdom of Hejaz was founded by Jorham the son of Kaitan, where princes of his line reigned till the time of Ishmael, who married the daughter of Modad one of those princes. Some authors relate that Kidar, one of Ishmael's sons, had the crown resigned to him by his uncle the Jorhamites; but, according to others, the descendants of Ishmael expelled that tribe; who, retiring to Johainah, were after various adventures destroyed by an inundation. After the expulsion of the Jorhamites, the government of Hejaz seems not to have continued long in the hands of one prince, but to have been divided among the heads of tribes, almost in the same manner as the Arabs of the desert are governed at this day. The tribe of Khozaab, after the abovementioned inundation of Saba, fled into the kingdom of Hejaz, and settled themselves in a valley called Marri near Mecca. Here they founded an aristocracy, assuming to themselves both the government of the city of Mecca, and the custody of the Caaba or temple there. They continued masters of this city and territory, as well as presidents of the Caaba, for many ages; till at length one Koza, of the tribe of Koreith, circumvented Abu Gabihan, a weak and silly man, of whom, while in a drunken humour, he bought the keys of the temple for a bottle of wine; but when Abu Gabshān grew cool, and reflected on his imprudence, he sufficiently repented of what he had done; whence the Arabian proverb, "More vexed with late repentance than Abu Gabshān; More foolish than Abu Gabshān," &c. The tribe of Khozaab endeavoured afterwards to give some disturbance to the Koreish in the possession of the keys of the Caaba, which furnished the latter with a pretence for depriving them of the civil government of Mecca. After the Koreish had possessed themselves of this city, they kept up the same form of government which had prevailed there before. Besides these kingdoms there were many others of lesser note, of which we find nothing remarkable.

Thus we have briefly mentioned the most memorable events recorded by the Arabian historians previous to the time of Mahomet; but, before entering upon an account of that famous impostor and the kingdom founded by him, it will be proper to take notice of several circumstances in different parts of the world, which at that time concurred to facilitate Mahomet's scheme, and without which, in all probability, he would never have been able to accomplish it.

The first and greatest cause of Mahomet's success in propagating his infamous imposture, was the gross corruption and superstition with which the Christian religion was at that time obscured in all parts of the world. Had the pure doctrines of Christianity been then as publicly known, as the ridiculous fopperies which deformed the Eastern and Western churches, Mahometanism could never have got a hearing. But, along with the true religion, mankind seemed also to have lost the use of their rational faculties, so that they were capable of swallowing the grossest absurdities; such as it now appears almost incredible that any of the human race could receive as truths. Another cause was, the manner of government and way of life among the Arabs. Divided into small independent tribes, they never were capable of a firm union but by superstition; and had Mahomet attempted their conquest in any other way, it was impossible he could have succeeded. As there were also among them Jews, Pagans, and Christians of all sorts, this impostor, by adopting something out of every religion then extant, cunningly recommended himself to the professors of every one of them. Add to all this, that, by allowing of polygamy, and setting forth his paradise as consisting in the enjoyment of women, he adapted himself to the corrupt dispositions of mankind in general.

If the distracted state of religion favoured the designs of Mahomet on the one hand, the weakness of the Grecian and Persian monarchies assisted him no less powerfully on the other. Had those once formidable empires been in their vigour, either of them would have been sufficient to crush Mahometanism in its birth; but both of them were then strangely reduced. The Roman empire had continued to decline after the time of Constantine; the western parts of it were then entirely over-run by the Goths and other barbarous nations; and the eastern, or Greek empire, was so much reduced by the Huns on one hand, and the Persians on the other, as to be incapable of making any great effort. The Persian monarchy itself was in little better condition. It is true, they ravaged the dominions of the Greeks, and often overcame them in the field; but that was more owing to the weakness of the Grecian empire, than to the strength of the Persians; and so effectually did the intestine broils, which arose chiefly on account of religion, weaken the kingdom of Persia, that the most considerable part of it was annexed by the caliph Omar to his dominions.

As the Greeks and Persians were then in a languishing situation, so the Arabs were strong and flourishing. Their country had been peopled at the expense of the Grecian empire, whence the violent proceedings of the different religious sectaries forced many to take refuge in Arabia. The Arabs were not only a populous nation, but unacquainted with the luxuries and delicacies of the Greeks and Persians. They were inured to hardships of all kinds, and consequently much better fitted than their effeminate neighbours to endure the fatigues of war, as the event very fully verified.

Mahomet was born in the year of Christ 578. According to the Eastern historians, he was descended in a direct line from Ishmael. Kedar, or, as the Arabians seem, &c., call him, Kidr, after his father Ishmael's death, communicated his name to the greatest part of Arabia Petraea. He was succeeded in his authority and possessions by his son Hamal; Hamal by Nabet, and Nabet by Salaman. After Salaman came Al Homeifa, then Al Yafa, whose son Oded was succeeded by Odd the father of Adnan. Counting ten generations forward in the same line, we come at last to Fehr, who seems to have distinguished himself by some glorious actions, as he was denominated Koreish, on account of his bravery. He is to be considered as the root of the politest and most celebrated tribe of the Arabs. He had three sons, Galeb, Mohareb, and Al Harith. From Mohareb the Banu Mohareb, denominated likewise Sheibin, took their origin; from Al Harith, the Banu Al Kholoj; and from Galeb, in a direct line, the impostor Mahomet. Galeb was the father of Lowa; and he of Caab, whose son Morrah had for his immediate descendant Kelab the father of Kofa. It was this Kofa who aggrandized the tribe of the Koreish, by purchasing the keys of the Caaba from Abu Gabshān, as we have already related. By this he not only aggrandized his tribe, but became the prince of it himself. He was succeeded by his second son Abd Menaf, to whom the prophetic light, which is said to have manifested itself in his face, gave the right of primogeniture. Abd Menaf was succeeded by his son Amni, named Hashem, or one Hashem's that broke bread, on account of his singular generosity. During a famine at Mecca. Having amassed great sums of money, he took a journey into Syria, where he purchased a vast quantity of meal, which he made into cakes and divided with his own hands amongst the people of Mecca. He likewise killed a prodigious number of camels, with which he fed them, and relieved them in the time of their distress: and finding that the soil about Mecca was so barren as to produce no fruits but what are common in the deserts, and consequently no corn or grain, which the Meccans are obliged to bring from other places, he appointed two caravans to set out yearly for that purpose, the one in summer, and the other in winter; by means of which, the city was amply supplied with provisions of all kinds. The provisions brought by them were distributed twice a-year; and Hashem, by his prudent conduct, raised the glory of his people to the highest pitch; infomuch, that all the neighbouring great men, and heads of tribes made their court to him. Nay, so great veneration is the memory of Háthém held in by the Arabs, that from him the family of Mahomet among them are called Háthémites; and he who presides over Mecca and Medina, who must always be of the race of Mahomet, has to this day the title of the "Chief or Prince of the Háthémites."

Háthém died at Gaza in Syria, and was succeeded by his son Abdal Motalleb or Matleb. He is said to have been extremely affable and easy of access, as well as just and generous to a great degree; so that, in the beginning of the month Ramadan, he entertained the poor upon the flat roof of his house, and afterwards supplied the fowls of the air and wild beasts of the field with provisions of various kinds which he ordered his servants to leave upon the summits of the neighbouring mountains. The well which God shewed to Hagar in the wilderness is said to have been miraculously discovered to Abdal Motalleb, about 500 years after it had been filled up by Amru prince of the Jorhamites. This well is by the Arabs called Zemzem; which some derive from her calling to Ishmael, when she spied it, in the Egyptian tongue, Zem, Zem, i.e. Stay, Stay; though others ascribe it to a different origin. The water of this well, which is on the east-side of the Caaba, and covered with a small building and cupola, is highly reverenced; being not only drank with particular devotion by the pilgrims, but also sent in bottles as a great rarity to most parts of the Mahometan dominions.

Abdalla, the father of Mahomet, was a younger son of Abdal Motalleb; and so remarkable for his beauty, that several ladies of the tribe of Koreish fell desperately in love with him, and are said to have made the same attempt upon him that Potiphar's wife did upon Joseph. In his 24th or 25th year, he married Amena, the daughter of Wahab, the son of Abdal Menaf. She is represented as the most beautiful, prudent, and virtuous lady of her tribe; and consequently the most worthy of such an extraordinary person as Abdalla. He died young, and, in his father's life-time, left his widow and infant son in very mean circumstances; his whole substance consisting only of five camels, and one female Ethiopian slave. Abdal Motalleb was, therefore, obliged to take care of his grandson Mahomet; which he not only did during his life, but at his death enjoined his eldest son Abu Taleb to provide for him for the future. Abu Taleb was extremely kind to his nephew, and instructed him in the business of merchandise; for which purpose, he took him into Syria when he was but 13 years of age, recommending him to Khadijah, a noble and rich widow, for her factor; in whose service he behaved so well, that she married him, and thus raised him to an equality with the richest in Mecca.

Though Mahomet had probably formed a design of introducing his new religion pretty early, he did not think proper to avow it till the 40th year of his age. The grand article of his faith was, the unity of the divine nature, which he pretended was violated by the Jews and Christians no less than by the Pagans; for which reason, he resolved to make an attempt to reform the world from the ignorance and superstition which prevailed at that time. This reformation he intended should begin in his own family; and therefore, having retired with his household to a cave in Mount Harra, near Mecca, he there opened the secret of his mission to Khadijah; acquainting her that the angel Gabriel had just appeared to him, and told him that he was appointed the Apostle of God. He also repeated to her a passage which he said had been revealed to him by the ministry of the angel, with an account of many prodigies which happened at his birth*. This pretended revelation was received by Khadijah with the greatest joy; and in a kind of ecstasy she immediately communicated the good news to her cousin Waraka Ebn Nawfal, who, being a Christian, could write in the Hebrew character, and was pretty well versed in the Scriptures both of the Old and New Testament. He very readily came into her opinion, swore by God that what she said was true, and that "Mahomet was the great prophet foretold in the law by Moses the son of Amram."

Mahomet finding his first step so successful, as Waraka was a very considerable person, began to entertain great hopes of accomplishing his design. He next converted his servant Zeid, to whom he gave his liberty on the occasion, which afterwards became a rule to his followers; and then Ali the son of Abu Taleb, though at that time only nine or ten years of age. This last, however, making no account of the other two, he used to call the first of believers. The next person he applied to was Abu Beir, a man of very considerable authority among the Koreish. He was easily gained over, and by his influence several others, so that Mahomet now made his mission no longer a secret. To Abu Beir he gave the name of Al Saddik, or the faithful witness; because he not only vouched for everything he said, but also greatly increased the number of his followers. Mahomet likewise complimented him with the title of Atik, or predecessor; intimating thereby that he was certainly saved from hell-fire.

Having given out that he was commanded from heaven to admonish his near relations, Mahomet directed Ali to prepare an entertainment, and invite to it the sons and descendants of Abdal Motalleb. He intended to open his mind to them; but Abu Laheb, one of Mahomet's uncles, making the company break up before the prophet had an opportunity of speaking to them, he was obliged to invite them again the next day. Having now proposed the matter, he asked which of them would become his wazir, prime minister, or vicegerent. This was accepted by Ali; upon which Mahomet said to him, "This is my brother, my deputy, and my (khalif) successor, or vicar; therefore shew yourselves submissive and obedient to him." At this speech all the company fell a-laughing, telling Abu Taleb that he must now pay obedience and submission to his own son. Notwithstanding this repulse, however, Mahomet was so far from being discouraged, that he began to preach to the people in public. They heard him with some patience till he began to upbraid them with the idolatry, obstinacy, and perseverence of themselves and their fathers; which so highly provoked them, that they openly declared themselves his enemies, except some few who were converted. The prophet was now protected by the authority of his uncle Abu Taleb; who, however, was carefully solicited to persuade his nephew to desist, and at last threatened with an open rupture in case he could not prevail on him to do. This had such an effect upon Abu Taleb, that he advised advised his nephew not to push the matter any farther; representing the great danger he and his followers would otherwise run; but our prophet was not to be so intimidated; and told his uncle plainly, that "if they set against him the sun on his right hand, and the moon on his left, he would not abandon his enterprise." Abu Talib, therefore, finding him so firmly resolved, used no further arguments, but promised to stand by him to the utmost of his power: so that notwithstanding the people of his tribe came to a determination to expel both Mahomet and his followers, he found a powerful support in his uncle against all their machinations.

Mahomet now entered upon his apostolic function with uncommon diligence and application; and soon gained over his uncle Hamza, and Omar Ebn Al Khattab, a person very much esteemed, and who before had been his violent opposer. Notwithstanding this success, however, the Koreish continued their opposition, and came to a resolution to proscribe all who had embraced Mahomet's doctrine. In consequence of this resolution, the Muslims, as his followers were called, were now treated with such severity, that they found it no longer safe to continue in Mecca; nay, several of them in the fifth year of his mission found themselves obliged to fly into Ethiopia, where they were kindly received by the Nadjari or king of that country, who refused to deliver them up to those whom the Koreish sent to demand them. At this refusal they were so exasperated, that they came to a resolution to suppress effectually the new religion which had now made a considerable progress. In order to this, they entered into a solemn league or covenant against the Hâshemites, and the family of Abdal Motaleb in particular, engaging themselves to contract no marriages with them, nor to have any manner of communication with them otherwise; and, to give this the greater weight, they reduced it into writing, and laid it up in the Caaba. Upon this, the tribe became divided into two factions; and all the family of Hâshem, both Molesms and unbelievers, repaired to Abu Talib as their head; except only Abdal Uzza, surnamed Abu Labeh, the son of Abdal Motaleb, who, out of hatred to his nephew and his doctrine, went over to the opposite party. After this the authority of Abu Talib was scarce sufficient to protect Mahomet from the fury of the Koreish; who, according to Al Jannabi, made frequent attempts upon him; sometimes endeavouring to destroy him by force, at other times by secret wiles and machinations: nay, to compass their end, he tells us that they had recourse to magic, enchantments, and diabolical illusions. In short, they gave him at last so much trouble, that he was obliged to change his habitation, and seek a new asylum for himself and his companions. This he found in the house of one Orkam, which was advantageously situated on a hill called Safa. Here he converted Orkam's family, and the house was afterwards held in high estimation by the Molesms.

The two factions into which the tribe of Koreish was divided subsisted for five years, when they were put an end to by a very strange accident. Mahomet told his uncle Abu Talib, that God had manifestly shewed his disapprobation of the covenant entered into against them, by sending a worm to eat out every word of the instrument except the name of God. With this particular Abu Talib immediately acquainted the Koreish; offering, in case it proved false, to deliver up his nephew to them; but if it should prove true, he intimated that they ought to lay aside their animosity, and annul the league they had made against the Hâshemites. To this they acquiesced; and going to inspect the writing, found it to be as Abu Talib had told them; the words "In thy name O God," being the only ones which remained. On a remarkable proof of the divine displeasure, the league was immediately annulled, and all acts of hostility between the two parties ceased.

After this memorable event Mahomet remained with his uncle Abu Talib, who survived the reconciliation only about eight months. The same year also died Khadijah, Mahomet's wife. Her death, as well as that of his uncle, proved a great detriment to his affairs; for the Koreish, notwithstanding the former reconciliation, began now to persecute him with more violence than ever. He was therefore obliged to fly for shelter to Al Tayef; which he chose on account of its being the residence of his uncle Al Abbas, whose protection he imagined he would be able to secure. In this, however, he found himself mistaken; and though he staid a month in the city, during which time he gained over a few, yet at last the lower sort of people rose against him and obliged him to return to Mecca. This refusal, though it greatly discouraged the new converts, did not in the least abate the zeal of Mahomet; on the contrary, he continued to preach boldly to the public assemblies at the pilgrimage to Mecca, exclaiming against idolatry, and particularly against the worship of two idols Allah and Al Uzza, to which the tribes, especially the women of that of Thakif, were very much addicted. By this the prophet was often exposed to great danger; however, he gained some converts, and amongst them six of the inhabitants of Yathreby, of the Jewish tribe of Khazraj; who, on their return home, failed not to speak much in commendation of their new religion, and exhorted their fellow-citizens immediately to embrace it. These converts of the tribe of Khazraj were by the Arab writers called Al Anfar, Al Anfarii, or Anfars; that is, affilants, favourers, supporters, &c. because they assisted and supported the prophet when he was pursued to the very brink of destruction. They first met Mahomet on a little hill called Al Akaba, where a temple stood, and where they first took an oath to exert themselves in support of their new apostle and his religion. An uninterrupted friendship and harmony reigned for a long time amongst the members of the Jewish tribes of Khazraj, Koreishah, and Nadir, whose great progenitor, say the Arabs, was Aaron the son of Amran. Mahomet therefore infusing himself into the good graces of the Anfars, they readily embraced his religion, and proved of very considerable service.

The next remarkable thing recorded of Mahomet is Mahomet's invention of his night-journey to heaven. This he journey to heaven probably intended to supply the place of miracles; which, being performed by all other prophets, would no doubt have been considered as a capital defect in Mahomet's mission, had they been totally wanting. The absurdities contained in that relation, however, are so great, that when he related it to his uncle Al Abbas, and Omm Hanâ the daughter of Abu Talib, they endeavoured deavoured to dissuade him from making it public. This advice he was so far from following, that he related the whole to Abu Jahl, one of his most inveterate enemies, who ridiculed him for it. Nay, he placed this story in such a ridiculous light to the Koreish, that they were on the point of insulting him; several of his followers left him; and the whole design had probably been ruined, had not Abu Beer vouched for his veracity, and declared, that, if Mahomet affirmed it to be true, he firmly believed the whole. This happy incident not only retrieved the prophet's credit, but increased it to such a degree, that he was sure of making his disciples swallow whatever he pleased; and on this occasion it is said by some that he gave Abu Beer the name of the faithful witness, as we have already related.

In the twelfth year of Mahomet's mission, twelve men of Yathreb, or Medina, of whom ten were of the tribe of Khurai, and two of that of Awa, came to Mecca, and took an oath of fidelity to the prophet at the hill Al Akaba. When they had solemnly engaged to do all required of them, Mahomet sent one of his disciples, named Mafab Edin Omair, home with them, to instruct them more fully in the grounds of their new religion. Mafab being arrived at Medina, with the assistance of the new proficients, gained several others; and acquainting Mahomet with the success of his mission, desired leave to form a congregation of Moslems at Medina. This the prophet readily granted; in consequence of which, the new Moslems regularly assembled, to the number of forty persons, in the house of Saad Ebn Khaithama. The next year Mafab returned to Mecca, accompanied by seventy-three men and two women of Medina, who had professed Mahometanism, besides several others who were yet unbelievers. On their arrival they sent immediately to Mahomet, and offered him their assistance, of which he now stood in the greatest need; for his adversaries were by this time grown so powerful in Mecca, that he could not stay there much longer without imminent danger. He therefore accepted their proposal, and met them one night by appointment at the hill Al Akaba. At this interview he was attended by his uncle Al Abbas; who, though then an unbeliever, wished his nephew well, and made a speech to the people of Medina, wherein he told them, that as Mahomet was obliged to quit his native city and seek an asylum elsewhere, and as they had offered him their protection, they would do well not to deceive him; and if they were not firmly resolved to defend, and not to betray him, they had better declare their minds, and let him seek for protection somewhere else. Upon their professing their sincerity, Mahomet swore to be faithful to them, a part of the Koran being read to all present, on condition they should protect him against all insults, as heartily as they would do their own wives and families. They then asked him what recompense they were to expect if they should happen to be killed in his quarrel: he answered, Paradise; upon which they pledged their faith to him, after Mahomet had chosen twelve out of their number, who were to have the same authority under him that the twelve apostles had under Christ.

Finding now a confederacy formed in his favour, our prophet began to pull off the mask as to his true sentiments concerning the means of reformation. Hi- If any person had lately entered this cavern, "the eggs now before us would infallibly have been broken, and the spider's web demolished; there can therefore be no body in it:" after which, they immediately retired. As the prophet, therefore, and his friend, were now saved so miraculously, by means of the pigeon's eggs and the interposition of the spider's web, he afterwards enjoined his followers, in memory of so remarkable an event, to look upon pigeons as a kind of sacred animals, and never to kill a spider.

The prophet and Abu Beer having lain in this cave three days in order to recover a little from their consternation, set out for Medina; but the Koreish, being informed of the route they had taken, sent a party after them, under the command of Soraka Ebn Malec. These overtook them; and, as the Arab historians tell us, Soraka's horse fell down when he attempted to seize Mahomet. Upon this he recommended himself to the prophet's prayers, and remounted his horse without hurt; but, as he still continued the pursuit, his horse fell down with him a second time; upon which he returned to Mecca, without offering any further violence; and Mahomet, thus happily delivered from the greatest dangers, arrived without further molestation at Medina, where he was received with the greatest demonstrations of joy.—This flight of the prophet from Mecca to Medina was reckoned so remarkable by the Moors, that they made it the era from whence all their remarkable transactions were dated; calling it the Era of the Hegira, or flight. The beginning of the Hegira corresponded with the 16th of July, A.D. 622.

On Mahomet's arrival at Mecca, his first care was to build a mosque for his religious worship, and a house for himself. The city of Medina at that time was inhabited partly by Jews, and partly by heretical Christians, that formed two factions which persecuted one another with great violence. This gave the impostor such an opportunity of propagating his new religion, that in a short time the city was entirely at his devotion. Here he strengthened himself by marrying Aysha the daughter of Abu Beer, though then only seven years of age, and gave his own daughter Fatima in marriage to Ali the son of Abu Talib. The next point he had in view was the union of the Mohajerins, or those who fled from Mecca on account of their religion, with the Ansars above mentioned. To facilitate this, after his mosque and house were finished, he established among the Moors a fraternity, the principal statute of which was, that they should not only treat one another like brethren, but likewise most cordially love and mutually cherish one another to the utmost of their power. But, lest even this should prove insufficient, he coupled the individuals of the two bodies of Ansars and Mohajerins; and this was the last transaction of the first year of the Hegira.

The next year was ushered in, according to Abulfeda, with a change of the Kaba, or place whither the Mahometans were to turn their faces in prayer. At first it had been declared to be perfectly indifferent where they turned their faces. Afterwards he directed them to pray with their faces towards the temple of Jerusalem, probably with a view to ingratiate himself with the Jews; and now, in order to gain the Pagan Arabs, he ordered his followers to pray with their faces towards the east. This inconsistency gave great offence, and occasioned the apostacy of many of his disciples. About this time Mahomet receiving advice that a rich caravan of the Koreish was on the road from Syria to Mecca, he detached his uncle Hamza, at the head of 30 horse, to seize upon it; who accordingly lay in wait for it in one of the woods of Yamama, thro' which it was to pass; here, however, he was informed that the caravan was guarded by 300 men, so that he returned without making any attempt; but the prophet made the proper dispositions for acting hereafter against the Koreish with success. This year also Mahomet sent out a party of 60 or 80 horse, all Mohajerins, except one who was an Anfar, to make reprisals on the Koreish. They were met by a party of their enemies, and both sides immediately prepared for an engagement; however, they parted without bloodshed, except one of the Koreish, who was killed by an arrow shot by one of the Moors.

Mahomet, having now put himself into an offensive posture, began in earnest to make reprisals on the Koreish. His first exploit was the taking of a caravan attended by a small guard; and this being accomplished by a party consisting only of nine men, contributed greatly to encourage the Moors. But what most established the impostor's affairs, and was indeed the true foundation of all his future greatness, was his gaining the battle of Bedr, of which we have the following account.—The prophet being informed that Abu Sofian Ebn Harb escorted a caravan of the Koreish with only 30 or 40 men, resolved to advance at the head of a small detachment of his troops to intercept it. To this he was excited by the riches of the caravan, which consisted of a large quantity of merchandise, consisting of the riches of Syria, carried on the backs of a thousand camels. He therefore sent out a party to reconnoitre it, with orders to wait in some convenient place, where they might remain undiscovered. But Abu Sofian having notice of Mahomet's motions, dispatched a courier to Mecca, requesting succours from his countrymen, that he might be able to defend the caravan. Upon this Mahomet drew together all his forces, which amounted to no more than 313; while his enemies consisted of very near 1000, Abu Sofian having been reinforced by the Meccans with 950 men. The two armies did not long remain in a state of inaction; but before the battle three champions from each party engaged each other in single combat. In this the Moorish champions were victorious, and the event greatly discouraged the Koreish. Mahomet, in the mean time, taking advantage of this lucky event, offered up his prayers to God with great fervency and vehemence; after which, feigning himself in a trance, he pretended that God had assured him of victory. Then, throwing a handful of dust or gravel towards the enemy, he cried out, "May the faces of them be confounded;" and attacked the Koreish with such bravery, that they were soon put to flight, leaving 70 dead on the spot, and having as many taken prisoners. The loss on Mahomet's side was only 14 men, and among the prisoners was Al Abbas the prophet's uncle.

Though this action may seem of little consequence in itself, it was of very great advantage to Mahomet's affairs at that time. He was immediately treated with the highest respect by the Najashi, or king of Ethiopia. pia, who received a particular account of the victory soon after it was gained; while the superstitious Mo- lems did not fail to look upon it as an evident declara- tion of heaven in their favour. Nay, notwithstanding the small number of enemies to be overcome, and who were only mortal men, these ignorant bigots did not hesitate to own the assistance of no less than four thou- sand angels, who, according to them, rode on black and white horses, having on their heads white and yellow sashes, that hung down between their shoulders!

Notwithstanding this disaster, however, Abu Sofian made a pretty good retreat, and conducted the greatest part of the caravan to Mecca. This chagrined the Molems, though they found great spoils on the field of battle, the division of which had likely to have proved fatal to their cause, by the quarrels that it oc- casioned among them. So hot, indeed, were the dis- putes on this occasion, that the impostor was obliged to pretend an immediate revelation from heaven, em- powering him to retain a fifth part for religious pur- poses, and to distribute the rest equally. This became a law for his successors; but, with regard to himself, the prophet often took the liberty of infringing it; for which, no doubt, a new revelation was always a ready and convenient salvo. As for those who were slain on Mahomet's part in this battle, they were all looked upon by the Molems as martyrs; and the prophet per- ceiving among the prisoners two of his inveterate ene- mies, immediately caused their heads to be struck off.

The Koreish, in order to be revenged on Mahomet for their late defeat at Bedr, sent Amru Ebn Al As, who afterwards conquered Egypt, with some other of their principal people, on an embassy to the king of Ethiopia, in order to interest him in their quarrel. To do this the more effectually, they accused Mahomet and his followers of speaking disrespectfully of Jesus, and of his mother Mary; which accusation they ho- ped would likewise induce him to deliver up the Mos- lem refugees that were then at his court. But the bad success that had attended the arms of the Koreish hi- thereto, joined to the execrations made by the refugees, not only hindered the Najashi from delivering them up, but also prompted him to dismiss the ambassadors, and return the presents they had brought him. In the mean time, Abu Sofian, who had sworn never to use perfumes or enjoy women till he had another battle with Mahomet, set out from Mecca with a body of two hundred horse. He advanced to a post within three miles of Medina; from whence he sent a detachment, who burnt a barn, together with a man in it that was winnowing wheat. Mahomet, being informed of this outrage, moved immediately towards him with a de- tachment of cavalry; but Abu Sofian was so intimida- ted by his approach, that he fled with precipitation, leaving behind him all the sacks of flour or meal that had been brought for the subsistence of his troops. In- stead therefore of coming to an engagement with the impostor, as he had sworn, he contented himself with a- larming the country, and pillaging such as he suspec- ted of favouring Mahometanism.—This year also Ma- homet conquered the tribes called Bani Sela'im, Ghat- jan, and the Bani Kaisaka; plundering likewise a rich caravan belonging to the Koreish, and acquiring from thence 25,000 dirhems for his own share of the plunder.

In the year of Christ 625, being the third of the He- gira, the Koreish assembled an army of 3000 men, a- mong whom were 200 horse and 700 armed with coats of mail. The command of this army was given to Abu Sofian, who was attended by his wife Henda Bint Otha, and sat down at a village about five miles distant from Medina. Mahomet, being much inferior to the enemy, resolved at first to keep himself within the town, and receive them there; but afterwards, by the advice of his companions, marched out against them at the head of 1000, according to some, 1050 according to others, or, as some say, only 900 men. Of these 200 were cuirassiers; but he had only one horse besides his own in the whole army. He distri- buted three standards among his troops; of which one was given to the tribe of Aws, another to that of Khazraj, and the third to the Mohajerins. The grand standard was carried before the prophet by Mosaab Ebn Omair. With these forces Mahomet formed a Battle of camp in a village near Ohod, a mountain about four miles north of Medina, which he contrived to have on his back; and the better to secure his men from being surrounded, he placed 50 archers, the flower of his troops, in the rear, with strict orders not to quit their post. On the other hand, the army of the Koreish was drawn up in the form of a crescent, and made a very good appearance. The right wing was commanded by Khaled Ebn Al Walid, afterwards so terrible to the Greeks; the left by Acrema Ebn Abu Jahl; and the centre by Abu Sofian. The corps de reserve was headed by Abu Sofian's wife, accompanied by 15 other matrons, who performed the office of drummers, lamenting the fate of their countrymen slain at Bedr, in order to animate the troops who attended them. The attack was begun by the Molems, who fell upon the enemy with such fury, that their centre immedi- ately began to give way. Ali, or, according to Abul- feda, Hamza, flew Arta the enemy's great standard- bearer; which struck them with such terror, that they soon betook themselves to flight, falling foul upon their own corps de reserve. Victory had now been no longer doubtful, notwithstanding the vast inferiori- ty of Mahomet's troops, had not the 50 archers, con- trary to the prophet's express commands, quitted their post to pillage the enemy. Upon this, Khaled per- ceiving the Molem army to be greatly exposed, at- tacked them in the rear with such bravery, that he turned the fortune of the day. Not content with put- ting the troops there in disorder, he cried out with all his might " Mahomet is slain!"; and this had such an effect upon the Molems, that they immediately took to their heels, nor could the utmost endeavours of the prophet himself afterwards rally them. He therefore Mahomet found himself obliged to quit the field of battle, in defeated doing which he was very near losing his life; being struck down by a shower of stones, and wounded in the face by two arrows, which occasioned the loss of two of his fore-teeth. He likewise received a contu- sion on his upper lip; and had even been killed on the spot, had not one of his companions, named Telha, Abu Beer's nephew, received a blow that was levelled at him. On this occasion Telha received a wound in his hand, which deprived him ever after of the use of some of his fingers. Of the Molems 70 were slain; among whom were Hamza the prophet's uncle, and Mosaab the standard-bearer. Amongst the wounded were Abu Beccr, Omar, and Othman; but as soon as they understood that the prophet was safe, they returned to the charge with considerable body, and, after an obstinate dispute, carried him off. The good-tempered made by these champions so discouraged the troops of Abu Sofian, that they did not pursue the flying enemy, but contented themselves with remaining matters of the field of battle; nor did that general, tho' he excelled not a little in his victory, make any further use of it than to give Mahomet a challenge to meet him the next year at Bedr, which was accepted; and after his return to Mecca, he desired a truce with the Moslems, which was readily granted.

This defeat had like to have proved the total ruin of the impostor's affairs, and must inevitably have done so had the conquerors made the least use of their victory. Some of his followers now asserted, that, had he been really a prophet sent from God, he could not have been thus defeated; and others were exasperated on account of the loss of their friends and relations who had been slain in the late engagement. To fill the murmurs of the former, he laid the blame on the sins of those who had accompanied him; and, to pacify the latter, he pretended a revelation from heaven, wherein the period of all men's lives was said to be unalterably fixed without regard to their own actions, or to any external objects; so that those who were killed in battle behoved to have died, though they had remained at home in their own houses. By the assistance of this last doctrine he encouraged his followers to fight, without fear, for the propagation of their faith, as all their caution would not be sufficient to avert their death, or prolong their lives even for a single moment.

The next year, (A.D. 626), Mahomet, besides several other less considerable successes, reduced a fortress belonging to the Jewish tribe of Al Nadir, who had revolted on account of the defeat at Ohod; on this occasion, by an express revelation, as he pretended, he kept the whole booty to himself; and, about the same time, forbade his followers the use of wine, or to play at games of chance, on account of the disturbances and quarrels which were likely to be excited by that means among them. This year also he marched with a body of infantry to Bedr, to meet Abu Sofian, as he had promised the year before; but that general's heart failing him, he returned home without facing the prophet; and this piece of cowardice the Moslems did not fail to impute to a terror sent immediately from God.

The year following, however, the Koreish, in conjunction with the tribe of Ghaifan, and the Jews of Al Nadir and Koreidha, assembled an army of 12,000 men, with which they formed the siege of Medina; thus threatening the impostor and all his followers with utter destruction at once. On the enemies approach, Mahomet, by the advice of a Persian named Salman, ordered a deep ditch to be dug round the city, and went out to defend it with 3000 men. The Arabs having invested the town, both sides remained in a state of inactivity for some time, which was so well employed by the impostor, that he found means to corrupt some of the leading men in the enemy's camp. The good effects of this soon appeared; for a champion having advanced to the Moslem entrenchments, and challenged the best man in their army to fight him in single combat, the challenge was immediately accepted by Ali, who flew him and another that came to his assistance; after which, those who had been corrupted by Mahomet's agents so foured a considerable part of the forces, that they deserted their camp; upon which all the rest were obliged to raise the siege, and return home.

The prophet, being now happily delivered from the most powerful combination that had ever been formed against him, was visited by the angel Gabriel; who asked him whether he had suffered his men to lay down their arms, when the angels had not laid down theirs, ordering him at the same time to go immediately against the tribe of Koreidha, and assuring him that he himself would lead the way. Upon this, Mahomet immediately set out for the fortresses of the Koreidhites, and pushed on the siege with so much vigour, that, tho' it was deemed impregnable, he obliged the garrison to capitulate in twenty-five days. The Koreidhites, not daring to trust themselves to the impostor's mercy, surrendered at discretion to Saad Ebn Moaiddh, prince of the tribe of Aws, hoping that he, being one of their old friends and confederates, would have some regard for them. Here, however, they found themselves disappointed; for Saad, being highly provoked at them for afflicting the Koreish, while in league with Mahomet, ordered the men to be put to the sword, the women and children made slaves, and their goods divided among the Moslems. This sentence was no sooner heard by Mahomet, than he cried out that Saad had pronounced the sentence of God; and, in consequence of this decision, ordered the men, to the number of 600 or 700, to be immediately massacred. The women and children were also carried into captivity. Their immoveable possessions were given to the Mohajerin, and the goods divided equally.

Mahomet now continued to be successful, gradually reducing the Arab tribes one after another. In 628, he sent an agent to Constantinople, deiring leave of the Greek emperor to trade with his subjects; which was immediately granted. The same year also he concluded a peace for ten years with the inhabitants of Mecca, and obtained liberty the next year to perform his devotions at the Caaba. What tended considerably to bring about this pacification was an account brought to the Koreish by one whom they had sent with an actual defiance to Mahomet, of the prodigious veneration which his followers had for him. This messenger acquainted them that he had been at the courts both of the Roman emperors and of the kings of Persia, but never saw any prince so highly respected as Mahomet was by his companions. Whenever he made the ablution, in order to say his prayers, they ran and caught the water which he had used; whenever he spit, they licked it up, and gathered up every hair that fell from him, with great veneration. This intimated how desperately they would fight in his defence, and probably inclined his enemies to avoid hostilities. In 629, the impostor began to think of propagating his religion beyond the bounds of Arabia, and sent messengers to several neighbouring princes to invite them to embrace Mahometanism; but, before sending the letters, he caused a silver seal to be made, on which were engraved in three lines the following words, "Mahomet the Apostle of God." This seal, he believed, would procure the letters to which it was affixed a more favorable reception. vourable reception at the courts of those princes whether they were directed. The first to whom he applied was Khofru Parviz the king of Persia; but he, finding that Mahomet had put his own name before his, tore the letter in pieces, and sent away the messenger very abruptly. He also sent a letter to the same purpose to Constantinople; but though the emperor Heraclius disdained his messengers honourably, he refused to abandon the Christian faith. Besides these, he wrote five other letters, which he distributed among those who he thought would be most likely to acknowledge him for an apostle. However, we do not hear, that by means of letters he ever introduced his religion into a foreign country.

But while our impostor was thus going on in the full career of success, and industriously propagating his infamous falsehoods by all the means he could think of, he was poisoned by a maid, who wanted, as she said, to make an experiment whether he was a prophet or not. This was done by communicating some poison to a shoulder of mutton, of which one of his companions named Buthar Ebn Al Bara, eating heartily, died upon the spot; and Mahomet himself, though he recovered a little, and lived three years after, yet never enjoyed perfect health. Notwithstanding this misfortune, however, he still continued his enterprises. The year 630 proved remarkably fortunate. It was ushered in by the conversion of Khalid Ebn Al Walid, Amru Ebn Al As, and Othman Ebn Tella, three of the most considerable persons among the Koreish; and this soon enabled him to become master of the whole peninsula of Arabia. This year also the inhabitants of Mecca took it into their heads to violate the treaty concluded with Mahomet; for the tribe of Beer, who were the confederates of the Koreish, attacking those of Khozah, who were in alliance with Mahomet, massacred 20 of them, and afterwards retired; being supported in this action by a party of the Koreish themselves.

The consequence of this violation was soon apprehended; and Abu Sofian himself made a journey to Medina, in order to heal the breach, and renew the truce; but in vain; for Mahomet, glad of this opportunity, refused to see him. Upon this, he applied to Abu Beer, Ali, Omar, and Fatima, to intercede for their countrymen with the prophet; but some of these giving him rough answers, and others none at all, he was obliged to return to Mecca as he came. Mahomet immediately gave orders for the necessary preparations, that he might surprise the Meccans, who were by no means in a condition to receive him; but Hateb Ebn Abu Baltan, hitherto a faithful Moslem, attempted to give them notice of their danger by a letter, though without effect. His letter was intercepted; and he alleged in his excuse, that the only reason he had for his conduct was to induce the Koreish to treat his family with kindness. This excuse the prophet accepted, as he had greatly distinguished himself at the battle of Bedr, but strictly forbade any such practices for the future; which having done, he immediately made the necessary dispositions for setting forward.

Mahomet's army, on this occasion, was composed of Mohajerun, Anfars, and other Arabs, who had lately become proselytes. As they drew near to Mecca, he set up his standards, and advanced in order of battle to Mar Al Dhahrán, a place about four parasangs from Mecca, where the whole army encamped. Here he ordered 10,000 fires to be lighted, and committed the defence of the camp to Omar, who cut off all communication with the town, so that the Meccans could receive no certain advice of their approach. Among others that came from Mecca to reconnoitre the Moslem camp, Abu Sofian Ebn Harb, Hakim Ebn Hezam, and Bodail Ebn Warka, fell into Omar's hands; and being conducted to Mahomet, were obliged to embrace Mahometanism in order to save their lives.

The first rumour of this expedition had not a little terrified the Koreish, though they were not apprized that the prophet had resolved upon a war; but perceiving now, upon the report of Abu Sofian, who had been sent back to them, that the enemy was at their gates, they were thrown into the utmost consternation. Of this Mahomet being informed, he resolved to take advantage of the confusion that then reigned among them. He therefore first dispatched Hakim and Bodail to the Meccans, inviting them to take an oath of allegiance to him, and become converts to his new religion; after which, he made the following disposition of his forces. Al Zobeir was ordered to advance with a detachment towards the town on the side of mount Cada. Saad Ebn Obad, prince of the tribe Khazraj, marched by his order with another detachment towards the height of Codá, which commands the plain of Mecca. Ali commanded the left wing of the army, consisting of Anfars and Mohajerun. The prophet put into his hands the great standard of Mahometanism, with orders to post himself upon mount Al Hajan, and to plant the standard there; strictly enjoining him, however, not to stir from thence till he himself arrived, and till a proper signal should be given him from Saad for that purpose. Khaled led the right wing, consisting of the Arabs lately converted, with which he was to possess himself of the plain of Mecca. Abu Obaidah commanded in the centre, which consisted entirely of infantry: the prophet himself remained in the rear, from whence he could most easily dispatch his orders to all the generals as occasion should require. He expressly prohibited Khaled and all his other officers to act offensively unless they were first attacked. Things being in this situation, the army upon a signal given put itself immediately in motion. The prophet mounted his camel with great alacrity, and was that day clothed in red. Al Zobeir pursued the route assigned him without opposition; nor did Saad discover the faintest traces of an enemy: Ali took possession of his post without the loss of a man; and in like manner Abu Obaidah seized on the suburbs. Khaled, however, in his march to the plain, was met by a large body of the Koreish and their confederates, whom he immediately attacked and defeated, putting 28 of them to the sword. Not content with this, he pursued them into the town, and massacred a great number of the inhabitants; which so terrified the rest, that some shut themselves up in their houses, while others fled different ways in order to avoid the fury of the merciless and impious tyrant, who was now become master of the city. Thus was Mecca reduced, with the loss only of two men on the side of the impostor.

Mahomet, being now master of the city, made his public entry into it exactly at sun-rising. When the first tumult was over, he went in procession round the Caaba seven times, touching the corner of the black stone with the staff in his hand, as often as he passed it, with great devotion. Then he entered the Caaba, where observing several idols in the form of angels, and the statues of Abraham and Ishmael with the arrows of divination in their hands, he caused them all to be destroyed. He also broke in pieces with his own hands a wooden pigeon, that had long been esteemed a deity by the idolatrous Koreish. Afterwards entering into the interior part of the Caaba, he repeated with a loud voice the form used at this day by the Mahometans, "Allah Akbar, God is Great," &c., turning towards every part of the temple. Then he prayed between the two pillars there, with two inclinations, as well as without the Caaba; saying to those that attended him, "This is your Kebla, or the place towards which you are to turn your faces in prayer."

Having thus effectually subdued the Koreish, put an end to all commotions, and purged the Caaba of 360 idols, the prophet's next care was to ingratiate himself with the people. Sending therefore for some of the principal of them, he asked them what kind of treatment they expected from him, now he had conquered them? To this they replied, "None but what is favourable, O generous brother;" upon which he dismissed them, telling them they were free from that moment a free people. After this, pretending a new revelation, he restored the keys of the Caaba to Othman Ebn Talha, who was in possession of them before; and who was now so much affected by this piece of justice, that he immediately became a proflyte. Next day, the prophet declared Mecca an asylum, and publicly gave out that he would maintain to the utmost of his power the inviolable security of the place. He then was solemnly inaugurated; after which he proceeded, according to some, six men and four women, according to others, eleven men and one woman; but of these only three men and one woman were put to death; the rest being pardoned on their embracing Mahometanism, and one woman making her escape. The remainder of this year was spent in various expeditions against different tribes of the Arabs, which were in general attended with success.

The ninth year of the Hegira, being that of Christ 631, is called by the Mahometans the year of Embassies; for the Arabs, who had hitherto been expecting the issue of the war between Mahomet and the Koreish, no sooner saw that which was the most considerable of the whole submit to him, than they began to come in to him in great numbers, and to send embassies to make their submissions to him, both while at Mecca, and after his return to Medina, whether he had returned soon after the taking of Mecca; and thus good fortune continued without interruption to the year 632, when this famous impostor breathed his last, having just reduced under his subjection the whole peninsula of Arabia, and being ready to break into the neighbouring kingdoms in order to satisfy his ambition.

The death of Mahomet occasioned such a consternation in Mecca, that the governor hid himself, fearing to be called to an account for his former conduct; and the inhabitants, upon the first arrival of this melancholy news, considered themselves as destitute of all manner of protection. After the first impressions of their fear, however, were over, they began to meditate a revolt; but were prevented by one Sohail Ebn Amru, a principal man of the Koreish. The tumults at Medina, however, were not so easily appeased. The news of this sad event was no sooner published there, than a number of people assembled before his door, crying out, "How can our apostle be dead? Our intercessor, our mediator, has not entirely left us! He is taken up into heaven, as was Isa (Jesus); therefore he shall not be buried." This was confirmed by Omar; who drew his sword, and swore, that, if any person affirmed Mahomet to be dead, he would cut off his hands and his feet. "The apostle of God, says he, is not dead: he is only gone for a season, as Moses the son of Amran was gone from the people of Israel for forty days, and then returned to them again." The populace therefore kept the body above ground, even after the belly began to swell; nor could the prophet's uncle Al Abbas, notwithstanding this, convince them to the contrary. Upon hearing of these transactions, Abu Beer immediately posted from Al Sonah, another quarter of the city, and expostulated with them in the following manner: "Do you worship Mahomet, or the god of Mahomet? If the latter, he is immortal, and liveth for ever; but if the former, you are in a manifest error, for he is certainly dead." The truth of this assertion he immediately evinced from several passages of the Koran, in so clear and conclusive a manner, that he not only satisfied Omar, but gained the minds of all the people.

The prophet having left no directions concerning a successor, very warm disputes arose between the Mohajerins and the Ansars about the right of electing a khalif. The former insisted on having that right, because they had attended Mahomet in his flight to Medina; and the others, because they had supported him when expelled from his native city, &c. In short, the disputes became so hot, that an open rupture must have commenced, had not they been terminated by a proposal that each party should choose a khalif. This amused them a little for the present; but not proving perfectly agreeable to the Mohajerins, Abu Beer proposed two persons, Omar and Abu Obiedah, offering to swear allegiance to him on whom the suffrages of both parties should fall. But this producing no decision, Omar swore fealty to Abu Beer, and his example was followed by all the Moflems on the spot; upon which, he was acknowledged, both by the Mohajerins and Ansars, as the rightful successor of Mahomet.

These transactions, however, were not at all agreeable to Ali, who, as son-in-law to the prophet, had undoubtedly the best title to the succession. He expostulated with Abu Beer about the manner of his election, which had been effected without his knowledge; and received for answer, that the exigence of affairs would not admit of deliberation; and that, had not the election been so sudden, the opposite party would have wrestled the power entirely out of their hands. Ali was in Fatima's apartment when Abu Beer had the good luck to be elected khalif; and, upon the arrival of the news, expressed great dissatisfaction. He found himself, however, soon obliged to change his note, when the new khalif sent Omar with orders to burn the house where he and his friends were assembled, in case he did not concur in supporting the election. But notwithstanding his forced compliance on this occasion, it is not to be doubted that he reckoned himself injured; and his pretensions were thought to be just by a great number ber of Moslems: which notion is entertained by a very considerable party of Mahometans even at this day; and these are called Shiites, or sectaries.

Soon after Abu Beer's accession, many of the Arabs refused to pay the tribute imposed upon them by Mahomet, and even attempted to shake off his yoke altogether. This alarmed the khalif and his subjects at Medina, that, fearing a general revolt, they sent all not able to bear arms into the cavities of the rocks and mountains, and put themselves in as good a posture of defence as the short time would permit. In the mean time, Khaled was dispatched with an army of 4500 men, to reduce the rebels; and he soon coming up with them, gave them a total defeat, brought off a vast quantity of plunder, and made many of their children slaves. Nor was he content with this; for being sent by Abu Beer to Malec Ebn Noweirah, an eminent person among the Arabs, and famous for his skill in poetry, as well as his horsemanship and bravery, to bring him over by fair means, he immediately ordered his head to be cut off. By this means, indeed, he extinguished all the remains of rebellion; but rendered himself exceedingly obnoxious to Abu Beer, who would have put him to death, had not Omar strongly interceded for him; for Khaled had greatly exceeded his commission, as Malec had returned to Mahometanism, and had offered to pay the money. This was not, however, the only piece of service Khaled performed at this time; he also defeated and killed Mofellama, who had set up for a prophet in the time of Mahomet, and even wanted to take the grand impostor himself into company with him. The same general likewise defeated and dispersed the troops of another prophet, called Telaib Ebn Khawaid, obliging himself to remain concealed till after the death of Abu Beer. About the same time another body of rebels committed great disorders in the province of Bahrein. Against these, Abu Beer dispatched Al Ola at the head of a considerable army, who soon obliged them to return to Mahometanism; having put great numbers of them to the sword, and plundered their country in a dreadful manner.

Abu Beer having now no enemy to contend with in Arabia, and being free from all apprehensions of a competitor, resolved next to turn his arms against the Greek emperor. Some skirmishes had happened, in the time of Mahomet, between the Moslem and Greeks; in one of which, Zeid, a Moslem commander, had been killed. To revenge his death, his son Ofama was on the point of making an irruption into Syria at the time of Mahomet's decease. This enterprise the khalif ordered him to go on with, and it was executed by Ofama with great success. He entered Syria, and laid waste the country, doing the Greeks a good deal of damage; after which, he returned to Arabia without any considerable loss.

Soon after, the khalif sent Khaled at the head of a powerful army to invade Irak, and put an end to the kingdom of Hira. In this undertaking he was attended with his usual success. The king Al Mondar Al Maghrur lost his life in defence of his dominions; and the kingdom was totally destroyed, after it had continued 622 years and eight months, as we have already hinted. The inhabitants became tributaries; and, according to Eutychius, the tribute collected on this occasion amounted to 70,000 pieces of money. This, according to Al Makin, was the first tribute-money ever brought to Medina.

The exigence of the khalif's affairs in Syria, however, did not suffer Khaled long to remain in Irak. Before the departure of the army under his command, Abu Beer had come to a resolution to invade Syria; and finding his design approved by the principal officers of his court, he sent circular letters to the petty princes of Yaman, the chief men of Mecca, &c., informing them of his intention to take Syria out of the hands of the infidels; acquainting them, at the same time, that a war for the propagation of the true religion was an act of obedience to God. To these letters they paid a proper regard; and in a very short time appeared at Medina at the head of their respective troops, and pitched their tents round the city. Here they lay, till the Moslem army determined to act against the emperor was completely formed, and in a capacity to begin its march. The khalif, having viewed the troops from the top of an hill, and prayed to God for success, attended the generals a little way on foot. As the generals were on horseback, they could not forbear expressing their uneasiness at the khalif's thus demeaning himself; but he told them, that it lightened little whether they walked on foot or rode, as they had all the same views, viz., the service of God, and the propagation of religion. At parting, he addressed Yezid Ebn Abu Sofian, whom he had invested with the supreme command, in the following manner: "Take care, Yezid Ebn Abu Sofian, to treat your men with tenderness and lenity. Consult with your officers on all pressing occasions, and encourage them to face the enemy with bravery and resolution. If you shall happen to be victorious, destroy neither old people, women, nor children. Cut down no palm-trees, nor burn any fields of corn. Spare all fruit-trees, and slay no cattle but such as you shall take for your own use. Adhere always inviolably to your engagements, and put none of the religious persons you shall meet with in monasteries to the sword. Offer no violence to the places they serve God in. As for those members of the synagogue of Satan who shave their crowns, cleave their heads, and give them no quarter, except they embrace Islamism (Mahometanism), or pay tribute."

The Greek emperor was greatly alarmed at the approach of the Moslem army; however, he made all necessary preparations for his defence, and sent out a detachment to reconnoitre the enemy. These having fallen in with the Arabs, a battle ensued, in which the Greeks were defeated with the loss of 1200, while the Arabs lost only 120 men. This was succeeded by a great many skirmishes, in which the Moslems were generally victorious. The rich spoil taken on these occasions was sent as a present to the khalif; who having acquainted the inhabitants of Mecca with his good success, they were thereby so elated, that they furnished him with a strong reinforcement, which was immediately ordered into Syria. The Greek emperor, in the mean time, having ordered another body of his troops to advance towards the frontiers, they found an opportunity of engaging the Moslem army under Abu Obaidah, a person of great piety, but little experience in war. Him they totally defeated; and Abu Beer was so much provoked at his defeat, that he deprived him of the command, which was given to Khaled, who was for this purpose recalled from Irak. That general's first exploit was the reduction of Bofra, a very rich and populous city of Syria Damascus; which, however, he accomplished by treachery rather than by force of arms.

Having left a garrison of 400 men in Bofra, and being joined by Abu Obeidah's forces, he laid siege to Damascus with an army of 45,000 men. This so alarmed the emperor, that he dispatched an army of 100,000 men, commanded by one Werdan, to the relief of that city. Khaled, on hearing of the approach of this formidable army, was for marching immediately with all his forces, and giving them battle; but this was opposed by Abu Obeidah, as it would enable the inhabitants of Damascus to procure fresh supplies both of arms and provisions, and consequently render the reduction of the place more difficult. It was, therefore, at last agreed, that a body of troops should be detached under Derar Ebn Al Wazar, an excellent officer, and an implacable enemy to the Christians (as indeed were all the Moslem generals except Abu Obeidah), to fight the enemy, whilst the siege was carried on by the two generals.

Khaled, fearing lest Derar's furious zeal and hatred to the Christians should prove fatal to his troops, told him before his departure, that though they were commanded to fight for the propagation of their religion, yet they were not allowed to throw away the lives of their men; and therefore ordered him to retire to the main body of the army, in case he found himself pressed by a superior force. But Derar, deaf to this salutary admonition, with his small body of troops rushed upon the whole Christian army, notwithstanding the vast disproportion of numbers. He charged them, however, with such bravery, that he penetrated to the spot where the general gave his orders, killed the standard bearer, and carried off the standard itself, in which was a cross richly adorned with precious stones. Nay, he would in all probability have put Werdan's army to flight, had not that general's son, the commandant of Hems, arrived in the heat of the engagement with a body of 10,000 men; with which he attacked the Moslems so briskly in the rear, that he forced them to retire, and took Derar himself prisoner. This so discouraged them, that they would have taken to their heels, had not Rafi Ebn Omcirah animated them with the following words. "What! do not you know, that whoever turns his back upon his enemies offends God and his prophet? and that the prophet declared the gates of paradise should be open to none but such as fought for religion? Come on! I will go before you. If your captain be dead, or taken prisoner, yet your God is alive, and sees what you do." This exhortation had such an effect upon his troops, that, returning to the charge, they maintained their ground with unparalleled bravery, till Khaled arrived with a considerable body of infantry and 1000 horse. The arrival of this general soon turned the fortune of the day. A party of the imperial army went over to the Moslems, and the rest took to their heels. Derar also was retaken, and carried off in triumph. However, Werdan, having collected the shattered remains of his forces, and received a reinforcement from the emperor, found his army still to amount to 70,000 men, with which he resolved to make another attempt for the relief of Damascus. They were attended with still worse success in this second attempt than they had been before; being utterly defeated, with the loss of 50,000 men, so that they were no more in a condition to attempt any thing; and, in consequence of this, the city was soon taken, notwithstanding the utmost efforts of the besieged.

This disastrous event happened in the year 634; and the very day that Damascus was taken, Abu Beer died of a consumption in the 63rd year of his age. He was succeeded by Omar, who was proclaimed khalif that very day; and the first title assigned him was, The khalif of the khalif of the apostle of God. But the Arabs considering, that, by the additions to be continually made at the accession of every new khalif, the title would become too long, they with one voice saluted him, Emperor of the believers; which illustrious title descended afterwards to his successors by a kind of incontestable right.

The new khalif was no sooner settled than he replaced Abu Obeidah in the command of the army in Syria, being greatly displeased with the cruel and blood-thirsty disposition of Khaled. He also commanded Abu Obeidah to have an eye upon Palestine, and to invade it as soon as an opportunity offered. Khaled bore his disgrace with great magnanimity; and swore, that though he had always had the greatest regard for Abu Beer, and the utmost aversion to Omar, he would submit to God's will, and obey the new khalif as the lawful successor of Mahomet. The Moslem forces in the meantime having made all proper dispositions for improving the advantages they had gained, Abu Obeidah sent a detachment of 500 horse to a place called Dair Abil Kodor, about 30 miles from Damascus, to plunder the Christians there. In this place there lived a priest of eminent for his sanctity, that the neighbouring people of all ranks resorted to him for his blessing and instruction. When any person of distinction married, he took with him his new spouse, in order to receive this holy man's benediction. The fame of this priest's sanctity drew such numbers of people to that place every Easter, that a great fair was kept annually at his house, to which were brought vast quantities of the richest silks, plate, jewels, &c. When the Arabs drew near to this place, to which they were conducted by a Christian, they were informed that the governor of Tripoli had married his daughter to a person of distinction, who had carried his lady to the above-mentioned priest. She was attended by a guard of 5000 men; besides which the Jews, Greeks, Copts, and Armenians, at that time assembled about the monastery, amounted to 10,000. Notwithstanding this, the Moslem commander determined to carry off the lady; and having told his men, that they should either enjoy the riches of the Christians, or the pleasures of paradise, he commanded them to fall on the enemy. The impetuosity of these enthusiasts at first bore all down before them; but the Christians, perceiving they were but a handful of men, surrounded them on all sides, and resolved to make them pay dear for their temerity. But Abu Obeidah, being informed of their dangerous situation, immediately dispatched Khaled with a strong detachment to the relief of his distressed countrymen. The consequence of this was, that the Christians were entirely defeated, and the unhappy lady carried off, with 40 maids that waited upon her, as well as all the wealth brought to the above-mentioned fair; among which were many rich garments curiously curiously wrought, and in particular one adorned with the effigies of our Saviour. All these were sold for ten times their weight of gold to some of the opulent Arabs of Yaman. The young lady was given to Abdallah, who kept her to the reign of Yazid. Of this advantage Abu Obeidah sent notice to the khalif by a letter, in which he also acquainted him that some of his men had drunk wine. These delinquents, by the advice of Ali, had each of them 80 stripes bestowed upon the soles of their feet; after which, many others, who had never been suspected of drinking this prohibited liquor, made a voluntary confession, and received the same chastisement.

The Moslem general next set about reducing the principal fortresses in Syria, and soon became master of Kinninir, Baalbec, Adelain, Shairaz, and Hems; on the news of which, the Greek emperor Heraclius, resolving if possible to put a stop to the cruel and unprovoked ravages of these barbarians, sent against them an army of 240,000 men, commanded by one Manuel, whom the Arabs call Mahan. But this vast multitude was utterly defeated by Khaled; upon whom Abu Obeidah conferred the supreme command, on account of his superior skill in military affairs. This battle was fought near a village called Yermouk; and, according to the Arabian historians, the Christians had 150,000 men killed, and 40,000 taken prisoners, while the Moslems lost no more than 4030 men.

The defeat of Yermouk was immediately followed by the loss of the whole province of Palestine. The reduction of Jerusalem was one of its first consequences; and Omar, being apprised of the success of his arms, immediately set out to visit that holy place, at the request, it is said, of the inhabitants. The khalif was attended in his journey by a numerous retinue, most of whom afterwards returned home. He rode upon a red camel, and carried with him two sacks, one of which contained a sort of provision, consisting of barley, rice, or wheat, sodden and unhulled, and the other, fruits. Before him he had a leather bottle, very necessary in these desert countries to put water in; and behind him a wooden platter. Before he left the place where he had rested the preceding night, he constantly said the morning prayer; after which he addressed himself to his attendants in a devout strain, always uttering before them some pious ejaculations. Then he communicated his provision to them; every one of his fellow-travellers eating with him out of the same platter, without the least distinction. His clothes were made of camel's hair, and were in a very tattered condition; nor could any thing be more mean or forlorn than the figure he made. On the road he distributed justice among his subjects, concerning which we have several anecdotes; but that most to his honour is the following. Having observed some poor tributaries exposed to the heat of the sun, a very cruel punishment in those hot countries, for not being able to pay the sum demanded of them, he ordered them to be released; telling his attendants, that he once heard the apostle of God say, "Do not afflict men in this world; for those who do go, God shall punish in hell-fire at the day of judgment." His orders were immediately executed, to the great grief of the oppressors; and the khalif continued his route. On the confines of Syria he was met by Abu Obeidah attended by an escort, who conducted him to the Moslem camp, where he was received with the utmost demonstrations of joy; and from thence to Jerusalem. The morning after his arrival, he said prayers and preached to the troops. In his sermon he repeated the following passage out of the Koran, "Whomsoever God shall direct, he shall be rightly directed; and whomsoever he shall cause to err, thou shalt not find any to defend or to direct." Upon this a Christian rose up, and said aloud twice, "God causeth no one to err." Omar made no answer to him, but commanded the Moslems near him to strike off the infidel's head if he repeated those words again; but the priest took care to give him no further interruption. After the conclusion of his sermon, he pitched his tent made of hair, within sight of the city. Then he signed the articles of capitulation, by which the inhabitants were entitled to the free exercise of their religion, the possession of their properties, and his protection.

The articles of capitulation being signed, Omar, in pursuance of his engagements, gave the inhabitants a schedule, by which they were secured in the full possession of all that had been agreed upon; after which the gates were opened to him, and he entered the town, where he was waited upon by the patriarch Sophronius, with whom he conversed familiarly, and asked him many questions concerning the antiquities of the city. One of the first places they visited was the temple of the resurrection, in the midst of which Omar sat down, and when the hour of prayer was come, told the patriarch he had a mind to pray, and desired him to show him a place for that purpose. Sophronius told him he might do so where he was; but this he absolutely refused. Then the patriarch led him to St Constantine's church; but he likewise declined praying there. At last he said his prayers upon one of the steps of the east gate of the church; telling the patriarch afterwards, that, had he prayed in any of the churches, the Moslems would have infallibly have taken it from them, which he said they might attempt as it was, and therefore gave him a paper, wherein the Moslems were commanded not to pray on the steps of St Constantine's church in any numbers, but only one by one. After this he desired the patriarch to show him a place where he might erect a mosque; and was conducted to the place where Jacob's stone lay, on which he slept when he saw the vision of the ladder. This stone had been hitherto slighted, and no building suffered to be erected upon it, in order to fulfil our Saviour's prophecy, that the habitation of the Jews should be left unto them desolate, and that not one stone should be left upon another. In consequence of this neglect it was entirely covered with dirt, which the khalif immediately began to carry away in his vest; and the Moslems soon hastening to assist him, the stone was cleared in a very short time. We are told by Theophanes, that when Omar entered the temple of the resurrection, he was clad in such mean and dirty apparel, that the patriarch took great offence at his appearance, and with much difficulty at last prevailed upon him to put on some clean linen and clothes, till his own could be washed. The same author relates, that when the patriarch first saw Omar in that place, he could not forbear crying out, "This is of a truth the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place!" These words, as Mr Oc- kley imagines, being overheard by the Moslems, they trumped up a story of the patriarch's having owned that the conquest of Jerusalem by Omar was foretold by the prophet Daniel; and that an ancient prophecy was kept in Jerusalem concerning Omar, wherein his person was described, his name and religion specified, and he declared to be the only man that could reduce that city.

Before the khalif left Syria, he divided that country into two parts; one of which, that lay between Hauran or Auran and Aleppo, which was not perfectly conquered, he committed to the care of Abu Obeidah, giving him the firstest orders to reduce it as soon as possible. Yezid Ebn Abu Sofian was commanded to take upon him the care of the other, which comprehended Palestine, and the sea-coast, and to make himself absolute master of it, having a body of troops assigned him for that purpose. He also directed Amru Ebn Al As to invade Egypt, then in a very languishing condition, with a body of Moslem forces. After having made these dispositions for extending his conquests, Omar set out for Medina, where he arrived in perfect health, to the great joy of the inhabitants, who apprehended, from his long stay at Jerusalem, that he had intended to fix his residence there.

Soon after Omar's departure, Yezid advanced to Caesarea; but found the place so strong, that he was obliged to continue some time in a state of inaction. Abu Obeidah, in the mean time, advanced towards Aleppo, the citadel of which was at that time the strongest in Syria. The citizens were struck with the utmost consternation at his approach. They had at that time two governors, who were brothers, and resided in the castle, which was situated at a little distance from the city. The names of these two governors, who were of very different dispositions, were Youkinna and John. Their father, by the emperor Heraclius's appointment, presided over all that tract which lay betwixt Aleppo and the Euphrates; and, after his death, the chief management of affairs devolved upon Youkinna, his brother John spending his time mostly in devotion and acts of charity. He would therefore gladly have prevailed on Youkinna to purchase a peace from the Arabs with money, rather than make his country a scene of blood and ravages; but this not suiting the martial genius of Youkinna, he armed a considerable number of the citizens, among whom were several Christian Arabs, and distributed money among them. He then told his men that he intended to act offensively against the Arabs, and even to engage them if possible before they drew too near. To inspire them with the greater resolution, he observed, that the Moslem army was divided into several bodies; one of which had orders to besiege Caesarea, another to march to Damascus, and the third to invade Egypt. Having thus animated his troops, he put himself at the head of 12,000 of them, and marched forwards to get intelligence of the enemy's motions. Abu Obeidah, in the mean time, had sent before him Caab Ebn Damarah, with 1000 men; giving him express orders not to fight till he had received information of the enemy. Youkinna's spies discovered Caab and his men retreating themselves and watering their hordes without the least apprehension of danger; of which the general being apprised, he posted one part of his troops in ambuscade, and with the other attacked the Moslems. The Arabs behaved with their usual valour; and at first repulsed the Christians, notwithstanding their superiority in numbers; but being attacked by the troops that lay in ambush, they were at last forced to retire; having 170 killed, and almost all the rest wounded.

After Youkinna's departure, the inhabitants of Aleppo, considering the calamities that awaited them if their city should be taken by storm, submitted without delay to Abu Obeidah, and were taken under the protection of the khalif. This disagreeable news being communicated to Youkinna, he posted home with all possible expedition, lest an attempt should be made on the castle in his absence. On his arrival at Aleppo, he was so highly incensed against the inhabitants, that he threatened them with death if they did not disannul the treaty with the Arabs, and deliver up the authors of it into his hands. This demand not being immediately complied with, he fell upon the citizens with great fury, and killed 300 of them; among whom was his brother John, whose head he caused to be struck off, charging him with being the author and abettor of the late pernicious scheme. He would have made a much greater slaughter, had not the Moslem army at that instant arrived before the town; upon which Youkinna retired into the castle with a considerable body of troops; but before this could be effected, he was obliged to sustain an attack from the Arabs, in which he lost 3000 men. The action was no sooner ended than the inhabitants of Aleppo brought out forty of Youkinna's men, and as a proof of their fidelity delivered them into Abu Obeidah's hands. Of these, seven embraced Mahometanism, and the rest were beheaded.

Immediately after Youkinna had thus himself up in the castle, a council of war was held in the Moslem camp, wherein it was deliberated what measures were to be pursued on the present occasion. Khaled gave it as his opinion, that the castle ought immediately to be attacked with all the Arab forces, before the emperor had time to send them any assistance. This advice was followed by Abu Obeidah, who caused the citadel to be immediately invested, and soon after he had surrounded it with all his forces, made a most vigorous assault. The beleaguered defended themselves with great bravery, and after a very warm dispute drove the enemy into their camp; and as they threw a great many stones out of their military engines, many of the Moslems were killed, and a much greater number wounded. This encouraged Youkinna to make a fall with a strong party of the garrison the following night. The fires being then out in the Moslem camp, and the beleaguers not expecting such an unseasonable visit, 60 of them were killed on the spot, and 50 taken prisoners. Youkinna, however, being briskly attacked by Khaled, who soon drew together a body of troops to oppose him, lost about 100 men in his retreat. The next day, he caused the prisoners to be beheaded in sight of the Moslem camp; and, receiving advice that a strong party of Arabian cavalry was sent out to forage, he ordered a body of his horse to drive them to their camp; which they accordingly did, killed 130 of them, seized all their camels, horses, &c., and then retired to the mountains. Here they proposed to remain concealed till the following night, and then return to the castle; but Abu Obeidah, being informed of what had happened, detached detached Khaled and Derar with a body of troops to pursue the Greeks, and revenge the late affront. Khaled, being informed of the route the Christians had taken, posted himself at the only pass by which they could return to the castle; and, having posted there a body of his men whose courage he could depend upon, took 300 of the Greeks prisoners as they attempted to return, and put all the rest to the sword. The next morning, to retaliate Youkinnas cruelty, the prisoners were all brought out and beheaded in sight of the garrison.

Notwithstanding this disaster, Youkinnas made several sallies with good success, wherein he killed a great number of the enemy, and harassed them to such a degree, that Abu Obeidah found himself obliged, for his greater security, to remove his camp to about a mile's distance from the castle; by which manoeuvre he likewise hoped that Youkinnas would be less upon his guard. Herein, however, he found himself mistaken: for the Greek commander, by the prudent measures he took, eluded all surprise; and though Abu Obeidah continued the siege for four months after the last-mentioned blow given to the garrison by Khaled, yet he had scarce any hopes of making himself master of it at last. Having nothing material to write to the khalif, he remained a long time silent; at which Omar being very much concerned, wrote to him, desiring an account of the affairs in Syria. Abu Obeidah acquainted him that the city of Aleppo had submitted to him; and that the citadel was the only place which held out in all that country, before which he had lost a great number of men, which, he said, had induced him to think of raising the siege, and moving with his army in that track which lay between Antioch and Aleppo. This news was by no means agreeable to the khalif, who commanded his general to continue the siege at all events, and sent him a reinforcement of Arab troops, together with 70 camels, to assist the infantry in their march.

Among the troops sent by Omar on this occasion, there was an Arab of a gigantic size, called Dames, who was a man of great courage and resolution. He observing the little progress made by the Moors, thought himself of a stratagem by which that fortress might be reduced, which seemed so difficult to be accomplished by force. He therefore desired that Abu Obeidah would assign him the command of a party consisting only of thirty men, which at Khaled's request was readily granted. Then he begged the general to raise the siege, and retire to about three miles' distance from the castle, which was likewise immediately complied with. The following night Dames, who had posted himself with his party very near the citadel, found means to seize a Greek, from whom he learned that Youkinnas, after the siege was raised, had exacted large sums of money from the citizens, on account of the treaty they had concluded with the Arabs; and that he was one of those who had endeavoured to make their escape from the oppression of such a tyrant, by leaping down from the wall. This man Dames took under his protection; but beheaded five or six others who fell into his hands, and could give no good account of themselves. He then covered his head and shoulders with a goatskin, and took a dry crust in his hand, creeping on the ground till he got close to the foot of the wall. If he heard any noise, or suspected any person to be near, he made such a noise with his crust as a dog does when he is gnawing a bone; his companions sometimes walking, and sometimes creeping after him in the same manner. He had before dispatched two of his men to Abu Obeidah, to desire that a detachment of horse might be sent him by break of day, to support his small party, and facilitate the execution of the plan he had formed. At last Dames found an opportunity of raising seven men upon his shoulders, who stood one upon another's shoulders in such a manner that the highest reached the top of the wall. Here he soon placed himself, seized a watchman whom he found asleep, and threw him over the wall. Two others, whom he found in the same condition, he stabbed with his dagger, and threw them over likewise. Then he laid down his turban, and drew up the second of his brethren, as they two did the third, and by their help Dames himself and all the rest were enabled to mount the wall. He then privately stabbed the centry at each of the gates, and put his men in possession of every one of them. The soldiers of the garrison, however, were at last alarmed, and surrounded the Arabs, who were on the point of perishing, when Khaled appeared at the head of a detachment of cavalry. On sight of that general, who was now grown terrible to the Christians, the besieged threw down their arms and surrendered at discretion. Youkinnas and some of the principal officers turned Mahometans, in order to save their possessions; and the castle, being taken by storm, was pillaged by the Moors. Dames acquired great glory by this exploit; and, out of complaisance to him, the army did not decamp from Aleppo till he and his men were perfectly cured of their wounds.

After the reduction of the citadel of Aleppo, Abu Obeidah intended to march to Antioch; but was diverted by Youkinnas, who was now become a violent enemy to the Christians. He told the Moors general, that his conquest of that part of the country would not be complete without the reduction of Azaz, a place of great importance, where Theodorus, Youkinnas cousin-german, was commandant. This fortress he proposed to become master of, by putting himself at the head of 100 Arab horse drest in the Greek habit, who were to attend him to Azaz. Upon his arrival there, he was to assure Theodorus that he was still in reality a Christian, and had taken that opportunity to escape from the Moorish camp. But, to make his story more probable, Abu Obeidah was to send after him a detachment of 1000 horse, who were to pursue him as far as Morah, a village in the neighbourhood of Azaz, with orders to post themselves there; from whence, if such a measure should be found necessary, they might easily advance to Azaz, to facilitate the conquest of that place. To this scheme Abu Obeidah agreed; but Youkinnas with all his men were immediately taken prisoners by Theodorus, who had been informed of the whole affair by a spy in the Moorish camp, who had sent him a letter by a pigeon. The fortress, however, was soon reduced, and Youkinnas regained his liberty; but was soon after taken prisoner a second time, and brought before his old master Heraclius, who then resided at Antioch. He told the emperor, that he had only pretended to embrace Mahometanism, metanism, in order to be able to do his Imperial Majesty the more essential service; and so far gained upon him, that he was soon after appointed governor of that city; the consequence of which was, that the Arabs were put in possession of it by his treachery.

The emperor being quite disheartened at his continual bad success, it was suggested to him by the king of Ghassan, who had fled to him for refuge, as we have already observed, that, however desperate his affairs might be, they would be perfectly restored by the assassination of the khalif. This piece of service he undertook to perform for the emperor; and dispatched one Wathek Ebn Mofafer, an Arab of his tribe, and a resolute young man, to Medina for that purpose. Wathek, some time after his arrival there, having observed the khalif to fall asleep under a tree, on which he had placed himself so as not to be observed by any one, drew his dagger, and was upon the point of stabbing him; but, as the Arab writers tell us, he was deterred by a lion, who walked round the khalif, and licked his feet till he awoke, after which he instantly went away. This struck Wathek with a profound reverence for Omar; he came down from his tree where he had been confined by the lion, confessed his design, and embraced the Mahometan religion.

Soon after the reduction of Antioch, Abu Obeidah sent an account of his success to Omar; and receiving an order to invade the mountainous parts of Syria, he asked his general officers which of them would command the body of troops destined for that purpose. One Meifarrah Ebn Mefrouk having offered his service, the general gave him a black standard, with the following inscription upon it in white letters, "There is but one God; Mahomet is the Apostle of God." The body assigned him for this purpose consisted of 300 Arabs, and 1000 black slaves commanded by Dames. Meifarrah, at the head of his troops, with some difficulty attended the mountains, and, with much more, advanced to that part where the emperor's forces were posted. The cold was so intense on the summits of those mountains, that the Arabs, who had been accustomed to a warm climate, could hardly bear it. For some time they could not meet with a single person to give them intelligence of the enemy's motions; but at last they took a Greek prisoner, who informed them, that the imperial army, which consisted of 30,000 men, lay encamped on a spot not three leagues distant. The prisoner refusing to profess Mahometanism, they cut off his head, and then marched towards the imperial camp. The Greeks, hearing of their approach, advanced to meet them; and the Moors being surrounded on all sides, were on the point of being all cut off, when Khaled appeared at the head of 3000 horse, and after him Ayab Ebn Ganem with 2000 more. At the approach of the horse under the command of the terrible Khaled, the Greeks retired, leaving all their tents, together with their rich furniture and effects, to the Arabs. In this engagement, one of Omar's chief favourites, named Abdallah Ebn Haddaf, was taken prisoner, and sent directly to Constantinople. The khalif was so much concerned at this, that he sent a letter to Heraclius, deiring his release; which the emperor not only complied with, but made him many valuable presents, sending at the same time a jewel of immense value as a present to the khalif. This Omar offered to the jewellers of Medina, but they were ignorant of its value; the Moors therefore begged him to keep it for his own use; but this he said he could not be answerable for to the public. It was therefore sold, and the money deposited in the public treasury.

About this time also, Khaled advanced with a body of troops as far as the Euphrates, and took Manbij, Beras, Bales or Balis, exacting of the inhabitants 100,000 dinars for their present security, and imposing on them an annual tribute for the future. He also made himself master of Raaban, Dulouc, Koros, the Cyrus or Cyrrhus of the ancients, and several other fortified towns, nothing being now able to stand before him. Amru Ebn Al As now likewise prepared for the reducing some places in Palestine that still held out. While he remained in this province, he had a conference with Constantine the emperor's son, who endeavoured to persuade him to make peace with the Christians; but this he not agreeing to, unless they would consent to pay tribute, all hopes of an accommodation vanished, and the generals on both sides prepared to enter upon action. In the mean time an officer came from the Christian camp, dressed in very rich apparel, who challenged the stoutest man among the Moors to fight him in single combat. The challenge was accepted by a young Arab officer of Yaman; who being animated by a notion, derived from the prophet himself, that "the spirits of the martyrs fell in the crops of green birds, that eat of the fruits and drink of the rivers of paradise," discovered an uncommon eagerness to encounter his enemy. But the Christian officer not only killed this youth, but two or three more of the Moors who came to his assistance. He was then attacked by Serjabil Ebn Hofanah, one of the generals, but a man so weakened by fasting, that he could scarce stand before him, and would therefore have been undoubtedly killed, had not a Greek horseman very opportunely interposed, and with one blow of his scimitar cut off the Christian's head. Serjabil, greatly surprized at this deliverance, asked the horseman who he was, and from whence he came; to which he replied in the following terms: "I am the unfortunate Toleiha Ebn Khowaid, who set up for a prophet, and lying against God, pretended to inspiration." In consequence of having saved his life, Serjabil introduced him to Amru; and writing a letter to Omar, wherein he acquainted him with the signal proof Toleiha had given of his repentance, he obtained his pardon from the khalif.

Though the two armies did not come to a general engagement, yet they had frequent skirmishes, in which the Arabs always got the better, and in some the Greeks suffered very considerably. This, together with the severity of the season, which was then uncommonly cold, so dejected the soldiery, that they began to desert in great numbers. Constantine therefore, finding his troops to diminish daily, and the Arabs to grow stronger and stronger, took the advantage of a tempestuous night to escape to Cæsarea, which Yezid had not been able to take, leaving his camp to be plundered by the enemy. This city was soon after invested by Amru; and at the same time Youkinnah, having made himself master of Tripoli by treachery, seized 50 ships from Cyprus and Crete, which carried a supply of arms and provisions for the emperor's troops, and had entered the port without knowing that the Arabs were masters of the town. With these ships he undertook an expedition against Tyre; and, telling the inhabitants that he brought a supply of arms and provisions for Constantine's army, he was admitted into the town, and received with great kindness. Here, however, he had not been long before he was discovered by one of his own soldiers, and put under arrest, with 900 of his men. He was however set at liberty by those who were in charge of him; and then opened the gates of the town to Yezid, by whom it had been invested. Constantine, having got intelligence at Caesarea of the loss of Tripoli and Tyre, was so disheartened, that he set sail from that city with all his family and the greatest part of his wealth; and the citizens then thought proper to make the best terms they could with Amru. The surrender of this city was followed by that of all the other cities and fortresses in the province; and thus the Arabs drove the Greeks out of the whole country of Syria extending from the Mediterranean to the Euphrates. This conquest was completed in the 18th year of the Hegira, five years after it had been undertaken.

This year, there happened such violent storms of hail in the peninsula of the Arabs, that a considerable extent of territory was laid waste by them, and a great number of animals of various kinds destroyed. An epidemic distemper likewise raged at Medina, which spread itself all over the neighbouring territory, and swept away great numbers of people. Syria also was visited by a dreadful plague; so that the Moslems lost there 25,000 men, among whom were Abu Obeidah himself, Yezid Ebn Abu Sofian, Serjib, and many other persons of distinction. In short, so great was the mortality occasioned by the plague, both in Arabia and Syria, that the Arabs fled the 18th year of the Hegira the year of destruction.

Amru Ebn Al As, having now executed the khalif's orders in Syria, set out on his expedition against Egypt. His first attempt was on Tarma, a town situated on the isthmus of Suez. This he reduced after a month's siege; and having narrowly viewed its situation, he formed a design of cutting through the isthmus, and thus joining the Mediterranean and Red sea: but this project was not well relished by the khalif, who apprehended that it would facilitate the entrance of the Christians into the peninsula of Arabia. From Tarma he marched to Meir, the Memphis of the ancient geographers; which, after a siege of seven months, was delivered up to him by the treachery of Al Mokawas the governor. From Meir he continued his march towards Alexandria, and, having defeated the emperor's army, closely invested that city. While his army lay before this capital, Amru himself had the misfortune to be taken prisoner and carried into the town. Being brought before the governor, he asked him why he committed such ravages and depredations in the Christian territories? To this Amru resolutely answered, "We are come hither to oblige you either to profess Mahometanism, or pay an annual tribute to the khalif; to one of which conditions you must submit, or be all of you put to the sword." A Greek who stood by, hearing this, told the governor, that Amru was certainly the Moslem general, and therefore desired him to cut off his head. Upon this, Werdan, one of Amru's slaves, perceiving the extreme danger his master was in, gave him a box on the ear, exclaiming against his impudence for talking in such a manner. The governor, being imposed upon by this shallow artifice, not only saved his life, but, to show his generosity, dismissed him without ransom. This was soon followed by the loss of Alexandria, and that by the conquest of the whole kingdom: after which, Amru dispatched Okba Ebn Nafe, with a body of troops, to penetrate farther into Africa; and that general made himself master of all the country lying between Barka and Zoweilah, reducing under his dominion also that part of the continent which now forms the piratical kingdom of Tripoli in Barbary.

Soon after the Moslems had made themselves masters of Alexandria, a grievous famine raged in Arabia, particularly at Medina, then the residence of the khalif. This obliged Omar to write to Amru to send him a supply of corn, with which Egypt at that time abounded. In compliance with this order, Amru sent a train of camels laden with corn, in a continued line from Egypt to Medina, the first of which were entering Medina when the last were leaving Alexandria. But this method of conveying corn proving too tedious and expensive, he ordered him to clear the Amnis Trajanus of Ptolemy, now the Khala, which runs from one end of Cairo to the other, of the sand and gravel with which it was choked. This he accordingly did, and by that means rendered the communication between Egypt and Arabia much more easy than it had formerly been.

While the Arabs thus extended their conquests in the west, they were no less successful in the east. We have already taken notice of Khaled's having been sent into Irak to reduce the kingdom of Hira, and of his being recalled to assist in the conquest of Syria. As the kings of Hira were under the protection of the Persian monarchs, the destruction of that kingdom necessarily brought on a war with the Persians. After the departure of Khaled, the command of the forces was left with Abu Obeid Ebn Masud, together with Al Mothanna Ebn Haritha, Amru Ebn Hafem, and Salit Ebn Kis. Abu Obeid having passed a river, contrary to the advice of the other generals, was killed, and his troops in great danger; however, Al Mothanna made an excellent retreat, and repassed the river without any considerable loss. After this he fortified himself in his camp till he received a considerable reinforcement from the khalif; when the Moslem army marched to Dir Hind, and thence continued to make frequent excursions, ravaging that part of Irak that lay next to the Euphrates. A body of 12,000 chosen horse was now dispatched against those invaders, under the command of one Mahran. At first the Persians had the advantage, and obliged the Arabs to retire; but they were soon brought back by Al Mothanna, and the battle lasted from noon till sunset. At last Al Mothanna, engaging Mahran in single combat, laid him dead at his feet; upon which the Persians fled to Al Madayen, a town situated on the Tigris, about a day's journey from Baghdad. After this a powerful army was dispatched by the Persians under the command of one Rustam; but he also was killed, and his troops were entirely dispersed. At the same time, Abu Muia, another Moslem general, defeated a formidable body of troops under the command of Al Harzaman, a noble Persian, at Ahwaz. Not content with those victories, soon after the reduction of Damascus, the khalif dispatched Saad Ebn Abu Wakkas, to dilogge the Persians from some districts they possessed in the neighbourhood of the Euphrates. Saad having drawn together a body of 12,000 men, advanced to Kadefia, a city bordering upon the deserts of Irak; where having utterly defeated an army of 120,000 Persians, he made himself master of the opulent city of Al Madayan, and possessed himself of Yezdejerd's treasure; which was so rich, if we may believe the Arabian writers, that Saad took out of it three thousand millions of dinars, amounting to two thousand and twenty-five millions of pounds sterling, an enormous and almost incredible sum. From thence Saad went to that part of the palace where the king's plate was deposited, which he carried off, as well as an immense quantity of camphire with which another part of the palace was entirely filled. This last the Arabs seem to have carried off merely for the sake of plundering, as they were so much unacquainted with the nature of it, that they mixed it with their bread, which gave it a bitter and disagreeable taste. Afterwards the Arab general carried off the crown and royal garments, adorned with gold and jewels of inestimable value. He also plundered his armory, which was well stored with all sorts of weapons; after which he caused the roof of his porch to be opened, where he found another treasure equal in value to ten millions of crowns. He also found among the furniture of the palace, a piece of silk tapestry, 60 cubits square, which was adorned with a great variety of beautiful flowers, herbs, and plants, formed of gold, silver, and jewels the most valuable that could be procured. This being brought to Omar, he cut it in pieces, and distributed it among the Moaffens; and that part which fell to Ali's share, and which was yet none of the best, he sold for 20,000 crowns.

In the twentieth or twenty-first year of the Hegira, the Arabs, still unsatisfied with conquest, invaded Mesopotamia under Ayad Ebn Gamem, where the city of Edessa submitted on the first summons. From Edessa he marched to Conflantia, or Constantina, supposed to be the Nicephorium of the ancients. This he took by storm, as likewise Daras, where he massacred all the people he found in the place; and these repeated successes so terrified the rest of the fortified towns, that they all submitted without resistance. At the same time Al Mogheirah Ebn Shaima, one of the khalif's commanders, made himself master of Shiz, a place famous for the birth of Zerdusht the Persian philosopher, and over-ran the whole province of Adurbijan. He also possessed himself of all the country of Armenia bordering on mount Taurus; nay, he in a manner obliged the whole region to own the authority of the khalif, and penetrated into Cappadocia. The same year also Saad made himself master of Ahwaz, the capital of Khuzistan (the ancient Sufiana); in consequence of which he became master of the greatest part, if not the whole, of that province; at the same time that Al Noaman conquered the greatest part of Khorasan. But while Omar's troops were thus irresistibly over-running the finest countries in the known world, a period was put to his conquests and his life, by a Persian named Abu Lulua, who stabbed him thrice in the belly, while he was performing his devotions at Medina. The reason of this was because the khalif refused to remit him some part of the tribute which according to the Mahometan custom he was obliged to pay for the free exercise of his religion. The Arabs, perceiving that he had killed their sovereign, immediately rushed upon him; but the assassins defended himself so desperately, that he killed seven of them and wounded 13; but at last one of the khalif's attendants threw his veil over him, and seized him; upon which he stabbed himself, and soon after expired.

Omar, having languished three days after the wounds given him by the Persian, expired in the 10th, 11th, or 12th year of his reign, and after his death Othman Ebn Affan was chosen; though Ali had a better title, and by Othman seems indubitably to have been the most virtuous, if not the only virtuous person, as well as the bravest warrior among them. He was inaugurated in the 24th year of the Hegira, nearly coincident with the year of our Lord 645.

Othman was no sooner settled on the throne, than he commanded Al Mogheirah to complete the conquest of the territory of Hamadan; which he easily accomplished, and at the same time reduced Bira, a strong castle in Mesopotamia, which either had never submitted, or had revolted on the departure of the Moaffens troops out of that province. Another army, under Abdallah Ebn Amar, was also dispatched into Persia, to deprive Yezdejerd of the poor remains of his dominions; and this was done so effectually, that the unhappy monarch was obliged to fly to Sijistan and abandon Persia altogether.

In the 27th year of the Hegira, the island of Cyprus was reduced by Moawiyah; who soon after conquered the island of Aradus, and took Ancyra; after which he reduced the island of Rhodes, broke in pieces the famous Colossus, and sold the metal of it to a Jew of Edessa. In the mean time, another of the Arab commanders entered Iauria, where he committed dreadful depredations, plundering many towns and villages, putting a great number of people to the sword, and carrying off 5000 prisoners. In the 31st year of the Hegira, one Habib, having made an irruption into that part of Armenia which was still unconquered, defeated a body of the emperor's troops, pursuing them as far as Mount Caucasus, and laying waste all the neighbouring territory. About the same time also, Abul Abar, who had been constituted admiral by Moawiyah, gave the emperor Couhans a signal defeat by sea, on the coast of Lyca, in which such a number of Christians were killed, that the neighbouring sea was dyed with their blood.

But while Othman was thus carrying everything irresistible before him abroad, he neglected to secure the affections of his subjects at home, which soon proved his ruin. Sedition was industriously propagated through all the provinces of the empire, and articles of accusation brought against the khalif. The chief of these were, That he had recalled one who had been banished by the prophet; that he had removed Saad, an officer of distinguished bravery, and supplied his place by one who drank wine, and was otherwise of a scandalous life; that he had squandered away vast sums among his favourites; that he had removed Amru from the government of Egypt, to which he had preferred his own foster-brother; and, lastly, that he had pre- summed to fit on the top of Mahomet's pulpit, whereas Abu Beir had always sat on the highest step, and Omar on the lowest. To this formidable accusation the poor khalif pleaded guilty, and promised to make all the reparation in his power; but his concession only served to increase the influence of the rebels. They were however appeased by Ali; and public tranquility had undoubtedly been restored, had it not been for Ayetha, one of Mahomet's widows, who procured the destruction of the khalif by a scheme truly worthy of the wife of such an husband. That traitress, being desirous of raising one of her favourites named Telha to the dignity of khalif, prevailed on Merwan the secretary of state to write a letter to the prefect of Egypt, enjoining him to put to death Mahomet Ebn Abu Beir, with whom it was sent, and who was to be his successor. This letter Merwan took care should be discovered; and Mahomet taking it for a genuine order of the khalif, published the supposed injury all over the neighbouring countries. He then marched with a body of rebels to Medina, where the innocent khalif was besieged in his palace; and, notwithstanding all his protestations, nothing less than his death could satisfy the enraged multitude. In this deplorable situation, Othman sent to Ali for assistance, who commanded his two sons Hafan and Hosain to defend the palace-gates. This they did for some time with fidelity enough, till finding the khalif reduced to great straits for want of water, they abandoned their posts; upon which the rebels easily made themselves masters of the palace, and cruelly murdered the khalif, in the 82nd year of his age, after he had reigned 12 years. His body remained three days unburied; and was at last thrown into a hole made for it, without the usual ablution, or the least funeral solemnity.

The arms of the Moslems had hitherto been so successful, and their conquests so rapid, that they may seem not only to have vied with Alexander, but to have bid fairer for universal monarchy than any nation either before or since.—The ruin of mighty empires always originates from the impossibility of keeping them united. Divisions arise; civil wars break out; and the kingdom being weakened by these intestine feuds, the common enemies take advantage of them to ruin the whole fabric.—If we consider Mahomet, as in truth he was, not as an enthusiast, but as a politician, and the founder of an empire; we shall find him, in that capacity, superior perhaps to any that ever existed. The empire of Alexander the great, which arose with still more rapidity than that of the Arabs, had no support but from his own ambition and personal qualifications. While he lived, he was without a rival, because all were afraid of him; but when he died, the bands of union, whereby his empire had been held together, were immediately dissolved. His captains were not inspired with the same veneration for his son, who was unborn at the time of his death, that they had for his father; and therefore they fought not to conquer for him, but for themselves; and the consequence was, that the kingdom fell to pieces the moment that he died. The same thing happened to the empires of Jenghiz Khan, Tamerlane, and others, who made vast conquests in a short time. They erected mighty empires indeed; but their duration, we may say, was but momentary. The empire of the Romans was founded on a kind of enthusiastic desire of aggrandizing the city of Rome: patriotism became fashionable; and as the city never ceased to exist, those who conquered always had the same end in view, namely to exalt the republic more and more. This empire therefore was not only very extensive, but very durable; though, as it was impossible that mankind could always continue to venerate a city, the same divisions that ruined other empires, at last brought this to an end.—The foundation of Mahomet's empire seemed to be still more firm. He was not only the king, but, we may say, the God of his people. Whatever enthusiasm people may show in defending their country, nay even their nearest relations, experience has taught us, that it is greatly inferior to what is shown by those who fight in defence of religion. This enthusiasm Mahomet had taken care, not only to bring over to his side, but to exalt to its highest pitch, by inculcating upon his followers, that their rewards in the next world should be proportionable to the fury with which they fought in this. To live at peace, except with those who submitted to his will, did not at all enter into his plan; and he who made no conquests, or at least did not strive to make them, was no true believer. By this means, let his empire be ever so much extended, the temptation to making fresh conquests was still equally strong; and not only the commanders of armies, but every private person, had the most powerful motives to urge him towards the conquest of the whole world, had that been possible.—The only thing Mahomet seems to have failed in, was the appointment of the succession to the apostleship; and why he was deficient in this, is inconceivable. From this one source proceeded the divisions which ruined his empire when it was scarce erected, and of which we are now to give the history.

Tho' the prophet had been so deficient in providing for the safety of his kingdom as not to name a successor at his death; yet his son-in-law Ali was always of opinion, that the succession belonged of right to him; and that it ought to be, like that of other kingdoms, hereditary. This disposition to render the apostleship hereditary in his family, was, in all probability, what disquieted the Moslems with Ali; against whom they could otherwise have no objection: for he was endowed with every amiable quality; a firm believer in Mahomet; and of such unparalleled strength and courage, that he never declined a combat to which he was challenged, nor ever failed to come off victorious; for which reason he was styled by his countrymen, "the Lion of God."

On the death of Othman, however, notwithstanding the prejudices against Ali, as none could pretend to good a right to the khalifat as he, the Arabs immediately took the oath of allegiance to him, tho' with an intention to break it as soon as possible, as was fully evinced by the event. The disturbances which happened immediately on Ali's accession were owing partly to the machinations of Ayetha, who, having got Othman murdered on purpose to raise Telha to the dignity of khalif, and now finding Ali unanimously chosen, resolved to destroy him also. She therefore pretended great concern for the death of the late khalif, and accused Ali of being his murderer; but being reproved by one of the Moslems for endeavouring to blacken an innocent person, when she could not but know. know herself guilty; she replied, that Othman's insincerity had indeed made her his enemy, but that she had forgiven him upon his repentance. At the time of Ali's inauguration she was at Mecca, where she enjoyed a very considerable share of influence and authority.

At her instigation, Telha Ebn Obcidallah, and Zobeir Ebn Al Awam, began to represent to Ali, that the murderers of Othman ought to be brought to condign punishment; offering themselves at the same time for that purpose. This they did purely to sow dissension, for they themselves had been deeply concerned in the murder; and Ali, sufficiently aware of their intention, told them it was impossible till the empire should be more settled. Finding themselves disappointed in this attempt, they next begged the government of Cufa and Bafra, that they might with the greater facility extinguish any rebellion that should happen. Here again Ali was aware of their intention; and refused their request, under pretence that he stood in need of persons of their great capacity, as counsellors, about his person. Then they desired leave to perform a pilgrimage to Mecca, which the khalif could not refuse; and they were no sooner got there, than they set about raising an army against him without any provocation at all.

This, however, was not the only source of discord at present. Ali had been displeased with the governors of provinces appointed by Othman; and therefore dismissed them immediately upon his accession. This was very impolitic; but he was prompted to it by that rashness and want of prudence which is inseparable from, or rather is the very essence of, great courage. The consequence of this was, that Moawiyah, governor of Syria, was immediately upon his dismission by Ali, proclaimed khalif by the troops under his command.—Thus the Moalims were divided into two factions; the one, under Moawiyah and Ayetha, who adhered to the house of Omriyeh, to which Othman and Moawiyah belonged; and the other, to Ali. The adherents of the house of Omriyeh were called Motazalites, or separatists.

Ali finding how matters were situated, and that a very strong party was formed against him, endeavoured to ingratiate himself as much as possible with the Ko-reithi; and to raise an army against Ayetha, who had now taken the field, and even reduced the city of Bafra. He made a formal speech to the people on hearing this bad news, and desired their affiance. But tho' he was very much beloved on account of his personal merit, and the best orator of the age, he could not with all his eloquence for some time prevail on them to give a decisive answer in his favour. "At last Ziyad Ebn Hantalah slept to Ali of his own accord, and said, 'Whoever retreats, we will advance.'" Upon this two Anfars, doctors of the law, stood up, and pronounced Ali innocent of the death of Othman; which decision soon induced the Anfars and the body of the people to espouse his quarrel. He then left Medina with a body of 900 men, and advanced to Arrabah, where he was joined by several other parties. From this place he wrote to the people of Cufa and Medina, pressing them to send him farther affiance, and to dispel the Motazalites to an accommodation. From Medina he very soon obtained a large supply of horses, arms, and other necessaries; and from Cufa he obtained with difficulty a reinforcement of 8000 men.

Being greatly animated by this seasonable supply, Ali advanced towards Bafra, where the troops of Ayetha were ready to receive him. Both parties seemed adverse to an engagement; and Ayetha began to be very much intimidated at the sight of Ali's army, which, however, was inferior to her own; but, by some means or other, a battle was at last brought about, in which He defeats Ayetha was defeated and taken prisoner. The only remarkable effort that was made by the troops of Ayetha in this engagement, was in defence of her person. It is said, that no fewer than 70 men who held her camel by the bridle, had their hands cut off successively; and that the pavilion in which she sat was so full of darts and arrows, that it resembled a porcupine. Ayetha was treated very kindly by Ali, who at first set her at liberty, but afterwards confined her to her house at Medina, and commanded her to interfere no more with state-affairs, though he still allowed her to perform the pilgrimage to Mecca.

After this victory, Ali had no enemies to contend with either in Arabia, Irak, Egypt, Persia, or Khora- fan. A strong party, however, still remained in Sy- ria, headed by Moawiyah, who founded his claims to the khalifat on a pretended declaration of Othman that he should be his successor. In this defection he was joined by Amru Ebn Al As, who had obtained a promise of the government of Egypt, provided Moawiyah could be advanced to the dignity of khalif.

Ali, with his usual good-nature, endeavoured to bring the rebels to a sense of their duty, and often sent proposals of accommodation to Moawiyah; but he still remained inflexible. Perceiving, therefore, that it would be necessary to invade Syria, he entered that country with an army of 70,000 men, while Moawiyah advanced to meet him with 80,000; and by repeated reinforcements Ali's army at last amounted to 90,000, and Moawiyah's to 120,000. The two armies came in sight of each other towards the close of the 36th year of the Hegira, when they seemed ready to enter upon action; but only some skirmishes happened between them, wherein neither party sustained any considerable loss. The first month of the 37th year was spent in fruitless negotiations; but in the second month they began to fight in different parties, without ever hazarding a general engagement. These battles continued, according to some, for forty days, and according to others, an hundred and ten. Moawiyah's loss amounted to 45,000 men, and Ali's to 25,000, among whom were 26 who had been intimately acquainted with Mahomet himself, and were dignified with the title of The companions. The most famous of these was Ammar Ebn Yafer, Ali's general of horse, who was upwards of 90 years of age, and was highly esteemed by both parties. The loss of this general so exasperated Ali, that he charged the Syrians with a body of 12,000 men, broke them, and challenged Moawiyah to fight him in single combat. This challenge Moawiyah declined, insisting that it was not a fair one, as Ali could not but be sensible of his superiority in strength. As the challenge was given in the hearing of both armies, Amru insisted that Moawiyah could not in honour refuse it; but the coward made no other reply than that Amru aspired to the khalifat himself, and wanted to enjoy it after his death. The battle battle being now renewed with great fury, Moawiyah's forces were pushed to their camp; which had certainly been taken, had not Amru bethought himself of the following stratagem to retrieve Moawiyah's affairs, when he seemed on the very brink of destruction. He ordered some of his men to fix copies of the Koran to the points of their lances, and carry them to the front of the battle, crying out at the same time, "This is the book that ought to decide all differences between us; this is the book of God between us and you, that absolutely prohibits the effusion of Moslem blood."—This produced the desired effect. The khalif's troops threw down their arms, and even threatened him with death if he did not find a retreat; which he therefore found himself obliged to do, and thus had a decisive victory wrested out of his hands.

According to this new mode of decision, the two parties were each to choose their arbitrator; but even this was not allowed to Ali, though Moawiyah had liberty to choose Amru Ebn Al As. The troops of Irak, not content with offering to go an affront to the khalif, insisted on naming for his arbitrator Abu Musa Al Ashvi; a very weak man, and one who had already betrayed him. The consequence of this appointment was, that Ali was defeated by both the arbitrators; and he accordingly dropped his title to the khalifat, but without laying down his arms, or putting himself in Moawiyah's power.

After this decision, Ali retired to Cufa; where he was no sooner arrived, than 12,000 of these troops who had themselves forced him to accept of the arbitration, pretending to be offended with the step he had taken, revolted from him. These were called Kharejites, that is, rebels or revolters; and Mohakkemites, or judiciarians, because they affirmed that Ali had referred to the judgment of men what ought to have been only referred to the judgment of God; and, therefore, that instead of keeping the peace he had made with Moawiyah; he ought to pursue his enemies, who were likewise the enemies of God, without mercy. To this Ali replied, That as he had given his word, he ought to keep it; and, in so doing, he only followed what was preferred by the law of God. The Kharejites replied, That God was the only judge between him and Moawiyah, and that consequently he had committed an enormous sin, of which he ought sincerely to repent. This irritating Ali, he with some warmth replied, That if any sin had been committed on this occasion, it was by themselves, who had forced him to take the steps of which they now complained. This answer not proving agreeable, they chose for their general Abdallah Ebn Waheb, who appointed for their rendezvous Naharwan, a town seated between Wafet and Bagdad, about four miles to the eastward of the Tigris. Here they assembled an army of 25,000 men; and Ali, having tried gentle methods ineffectually, at last marched against them in person. Before he attacked them, however, he planted a standard without the camp, and made proclamation by sound of trumpet, that whoever would repair to it should have quarter, and whoever would retire to Cufa should find a sanctuary there. This had such an effect, that Abdallah's army was soon reduced to 4000 men, with whom he rushed upon the khalif's forces; but all of them were cut in pieces, except nine who escaped.

Had Ali marched against Moawiyah immediately after the defeat of the Kharejites, and while his troops were flushed with victory, he had probably reduced him entirely; but by allowing his troops to refresh themselves, they all deserted him, and Moawiyah's party had an opportunity of gathering still more strength; and though Moawiyah's troops often made incursions into the territories of Ali, the latter seems afterwards to have acted only on the defensive. At last They attacked the Kharejites, imagining that it would be for the good temper of the Moslem affairs that Moawiyah, Ali, and Amru were dead, dispatched assassins to murder all the three. Moawiyah was wounded, but recovered; Amru's secretary was killed by mistake; but Ali was wounded with a poisoned sword, which occasioned his death. The assassin was taken, and Ali would have pardoned Ali if he had recovered, but ordered him to be put to death; if he died, that he might, as he said, "have an immediate opportunity of accusing him before God." Even in this order he showed his usual clemency, as he ordered the assassin to be dispatched at one blow, and without torture of any kind.

Thus fell Ali, the most virtuous of all the Mahometan khalifs, after he had reigned near five years, and lived sixty-three. He was pressed by those about him to nominate a successor before he died; but this he declined, saying, he would follow the example of the Apostle of God, who had not named any; however, as his son succeeded Hafan inherited his father's piety, though not his courage, he was declared khalif without any scruple. Moawiyah, however, behaved in such a manner towards him, as shewed his hostile intentions; and those about Hafan pressed him to declare war immediately. This Hafan, who was of an exceeding mild and peaceable disposition, could hardly be persuaded to do; and tho' he at last took the field, yet he immediately perceived his incapacity to dispute the empire with Moawiyah; who refused and therefore resigned it, in spite of all the remonstrances of his friends, to a traitor, who caused him after some years to be poisoned by his wife.

Moawiyah, being thus left sole master of the Moslem empire, found himself under a necessity of reducing the Kharejites, who were his enemies as well as Ali's, and had now gathered together a considerable army. Against these rebels the khalif would have dispatched Hafan, but that prince refused; upon which he sent the Syrian troops against them, who were defeated; however the Cufans, being at last persuaded to take up arms, soon extinguished the rebellion, and settled Moawiyah more firmly than ever on the Moslem throne.

In the 48th year of the Hegira, the khalif sent his son Yezid with a powerful army to besiege Constantinople. In this expedition he was attended by three or four of the Companions, who, notwithstanding their age, were prompted by zeal to undergo incredible fatigues. The Moslem forces too, though they suffered extremely, were animated to surmount all difficulties by a tradition, according to which the prophet in his lifetime declared, "That the sins of the first army that took the city of Cesarea should be forgiven." Concerning the particulars of this expedition we are in the dark; only, in general, that it proved unsuccessful; and in it Abu Ayub, who had been with Mahomet at the battles of Bedr and Ohod, lost his life. His tomb is held in such veneration by the Moslems, that the Sultans of the Ottoman family gird their swords on at it, on their accession. In the 54th year of the Hegira, the Arabs made an irruption into Bukharia, and defeated a Turkish army that opposed them. The Turks lost a great number of men; and the queen, who commanded in person, with great difficulty made her escape. She had only time to put on one of her bulks; the other fell into the hands of the Arabs, who valued it at no less than 2000 dinars. About this time also, according to the Greek historians, a treaty was concluded between the emperor and the Moissians, whereby the latter were allowed to keep the territories they had seized; in consideration of which they were to pay 3000 pounds weight of gold, 50 slaves, and as many choice horses. To these dishonourable conditions they were obliged to submit, in consequence of their late unsuccessful expedition to Constantinople, and some other defeats they had received. This peace was to continue for 30 years. The next year, Moawiyah, having conferred the government of Khorasan upon Saad, Othman's grandson, that general, soon after his promotion, passed the Jihun, or Amu, the Oxus of the ancients, and advanced with a body of troops to Samarqand, which opened its gates to him on his approach; soon after which he defeated an army of Uzbek Tartars, and marched directly to Tarmud, or Tarmid, which also surrendered without opposition. The 57th year of the Hegira was remarkable for nothing but vast swarms of locusts, which did incredible damage in Syria and Mesopotamia; and great discontent on account of the khalifa's having nominated for his successor his son Yezid, a person of scandalous life, and no way worthy of the throne. The 58th year of the Hegira was rendered remarkable by the death of Ayesha, Mahomet's widow; and the 60th by that of Moawiyah, after having reigned, from Hafan's reignation, nineteen years, three months, and five days; but concerning his age authors are not agreed. He was interred at Damascus, which was made the residence of the khalifa as long as the house of Omariyah continued on the throne.

Yezid was proclaimed, in consequence of his nomination, the same day his father died. His inauguration was performed on the new moon of the month Rajab, corresponding to April 7th, 680. Immediately after his election, he wrote to Al Walid, governor of Medina, to seize Hosein the remaining son of Ali, and Abdallah Ebn Zobeir, in case they refused to acknowledge his right. He accordingly tendered the oath of allegiance to Hosein, who returned an evasive answer, and found means to escape to his own house. As for Abdallah, he delayed waiting upon the governor, under various pretences, for 24 hours; after which he made his escape to Mecca; hither Hosein followed him; but received an invitation from the people of Cufa, who promised to assist him in vindicating the rights of his father Ali and himself. In the mean time, Yezid, being informed of Al Walid's negligence in suffering Abdallah and Hosein to escape, removed him from his employment, appointing in his room Amru Ebn Saad, at that time commandant of Mecca. The new governor immediately dispatched against Abdallah Amer Ebn Zobeir, Abdallah's own brother, who mortally hated him; but Abdallah, having engaged Amer in the field, defeated and took him prisoner; which greatly raised his reputation at Medina, although Hosein's superior interest among them still rendered him incapable of aspiring to the khalifa by himself.

While Abdallah was thus strengthening himself at Mecca and Medina, Hosein was doing the same at Cufa. On the first notice of their inclinations, he had sent to them Moslem Ebn Okail, to whom, as representative of the son of Ali, they had taken an oath of allegiance, and were now very pressing on Hosein to honour their city with his presence. Besides this, Hosein was supported by the forces of Irak, who retained a great veneration for the memory of his father, and had all along considered the government of Moawiyah as a downright usurpation.

Notwithstanding all these steps taken at Cufa in favour of Hosein, the deliberations of the conspirators were carried on with such secrecy, that Al Noonan the governor continued a stranger to them, even after the Cufans had determined immediately to enter upon action with an army of 18,000 men. At last, however, he began to be roused from his lethargy; but Yezid being displeased with his conduct, removed him from his government, appointing for his successor Obeidallah Ebn Ziyad. This governor entered the city in the evening, and was received with all possible demonstrations of joy by the Cufans, who mistook him for Hosein, owing to a black turban which he had on his head, resembling that which Hosein usually wore. His first care was to extinguish the sedition that had been excited by Moslem. In order to this, he commanded a trusty servant to disguise himself, and personate a stranger come out of Syria to see the inauguration of Hosein; that he might get admission into Moslem's house, and penetrate all his councils. This commission was faithfully executed; and Obeidallah understanding that Moslem lodged in the house of one Sharik, who was then sick, sent a messenger to Sharik, letting him know that he intended to visit him on a certain day. Sharik immediately came to a resolution to receive him, and appointed Moslem a place in the corner of the room whence he might rush out upon Obeidallah and kill him. The visit was accordingly made; but Moslem's heart failing him, the governor escaped; Hani, however, in whose house Moslem had first lodged, was imprisoned by Obeidallah. Upon the news of this, Moslem assembled about 4000 men, and besiegged Obeidallah in the castle. The governor, however, not in the least dispirited, made a speech to Moslem's followers, which had such an effect upon them, that they all deserted him except about 30. By the favour of the night, Moslem escaped to a poor woman's cottage in the neighbourhood; but being betrayed by her son, Obeidallah sent a detachment of 80 horse to seize him. Moslem made a gallant resistance, and thrice cleared the house of them; but being at last overpowered with numbers, and grievously wounded, he was taken and brought to Cufa. While on the road, he endeavoured to send an account of his bad success to Hosein, then, as he supposed, on the road to Cufa; but without success. When arrived at the castle, he begged a draught of water; but those who stood by told him he should have none till he drank the hamim, or boiling liquor, which the Mahometans pretend is drunk by the damned in hell; and soon after this, being brought before the governor, he was beheaded along with Hani, and both their heads sent Hofsin, in the mean time, was preparing to set out for Cufa, having received the most favourable advice from Moflem, of whose fate he was ignorant; and who had sent him a lift of 140,000 men that were ready to obey his orders. This the wisest of his friends represented as a desperate enterprise, and intreated him to drop it, or at least to defer his journey till he should be better assured of success: but Hofsin was deaf to all salutary counsel; nay, he could not, by the most earnest entreaties, be prevailed upon to forbear taking his wives and children along with him. The consequences of this obstinacy may be easily imagined: Obeidallah dispatched first 1000, and then 5000 men against him; with orders, however, not to offer any violence to him, provided he submitted himself. To these terms the infatuated Hofsin would not agree: he offered indeed to return home, if Obeidallah would permit; but that not being granted, he desperately engaged the troops of Obeidallah, and was after long resistance cut in pieces with all his men. His head was brought to Obeidallah, who struck it over the mouth with a flick, and treated it with great contempt. He was also informed to have put his family to death; but probably feared an insurrection, as the people of Cufa expressed great resentment on account of Hofsin's death; nor was it at all agreeable to the khalif Yezid, who treated the family of the unfortunate Hofsin with the greatest kindness.

This year, the 61st of the Hegira, Yezid appointed Salem Ebn Ziyad governor of Khorasan; who, soon after entering upon the government, made an irruption into the Turkish territories. He took his wife along with him in this expedition, who was delivered of a child in the neighbourhood of Samarcand; on which occasion she is said to have borrowed some jewels from the prince of Sogd's lady, which she afterwards carried off with her. In the mean time, Salem detached Mohalleb with a considerable body of troops to Khwarazm, the principal city of the Turks or Tartars in those parts, from which he extorted the immense sum of 50,000,000 pieces of money; from whence advancing to Samarcand, he forced the inhabitants of that city also to pay him an immense sum; and then retired, with little loss, into the province he governed.

In the mean time, Abdallah Ebn Zebeir, finding himself, by the death of Hofsin, at the head of the partizans of the house of Hashem, who were greatly oppressed by Yezid, began in earnest to aspire to the khalifate. As he had therefore never owned the authority of Yezid, he now openly declared against him, and was proclaimed khalif at Medina soon after the arrival of Hofsin's family in that place. Soon after his inauguration, to render himself more popular, he expatiated on the circumstances of Hofsin's death, which indeed were very tragic, and represented the Cufans as the most abandoned and pernicious villains upon earth. This went so well down with the citizens of Mecca and Medina, that they flocked to him in great numbers, so that he soon found himself at the head of a considerable force. The khalif Yezid being informed of his progress, swore he would have him in chains; and accordingly sent a silver collar for him to Merwan, then governor of Medina: but the interest of Abdallah was now so strong, that he laughed at the menaces both of the khalif and Merwan. Nay, the governor of Mecca, though he secretly hated him, thought it good policy, as matters then stood, to keep up a good understanding with Abdallah; but this coming to the ears of Yezid, he deposed the governor; appointing in his place Walid Ebn Orbah, a man of known fidelity, and a bitter enemy of Abdallah. The new governor, therefore, immediately on his accession, used all his art and skill to circumvent Abdallah; but to no purpose, as the latter was always on his guard. This conduct, however, giving him great disgust, as well as terrible apprehensions, he wrote to the khalif, informing him that all the disturbances were owing to the untractable disposition of Walid; and that, if he would send a person of a different character, peace would soon be restored. This letter the khalif very judiciously gave ear to, and dismissed his faithful governor, appointing in his room one who was totally unqualified for that post. The people of Medina, now having fresh intelligence of Yezid's dissolute manner of life, renounced their allegiance to him, and formally deposed him in a very singular manner. After they had assembled in the mosque, about the pulpit there, fed one of them said, "I lay aside Yezid as I do this turban," and immediately threw his turban on the ground. Another said, "I put away Yezid as I do this shoe," casting away his shoe at the same time. These examples being followed by others, there was a large heap of shoes and turbans almost instantly formed upon the spot. They then dismissed Yezid's governor, and banished from the city all the friends and dependents of the house of Ommiyah. These, to the number of about 1000, took refuge in the house of Merwan Ebn Al Hakem, where they were so closely besieged by Abdallah's party, that they found themselves obliged to send to Yezid for immediate assistance; acquainting him, that if they were not succoured, they must all inevitably perish. The khalif, though he wondered that such a number of men should suffer themselves to be so cooped up without making the least resistance, dispatched Moflem Ebn Okba to Medina, with a considerable body of troops, to quell the disturbances. He ordered him to spare Ali the son of Hofsin and his family, as they had no hand at all in the disturbances; then he was to summon the town of Medina to surrender for three days successively; which if they refused, he was to take it by storm, and give it up to be plundered by the soldiers for three whole days.

The inhabitants of Medina, being now sensible of their danger, suffered the friends of the house of Ommiyah to withdraw quietly out of the city; tho', before they departed, a promise was extorted from them not to appear in arms against the reigning faction. Moflem, in the mean time, advanced towards the city at the head of 5000 foot and 12,000 horse; and having summoned it according to his instructions, upon its refusal, made the necessary preparations for an attack. The garrison, however, for a considerable time, made a vigorous defence; but at last, most of the Ansars and principal officers being killed, the Arabs proposed a capitulation. Moflem, however, would hearken to no terms, and insisted on their surrendering at discretion; which being refused, he entered the city after a faint resistance. Ali was treated with great respect; but all the men that had carried arms were put to the sword, sword, and Moslem suffered his troops to ravish 1000 women, and to pillage the city for three days successively. Those that escaped the slaughter he forced to acknowledge themselves the slaves and vassals of Yezid. For this extreme severity he was furnished by the Arabs, Al Mufrif, or the Extravagant, and ever after considered as an impious person, especially as the prophet had declared that the wrath of God should most certainly remain upon those who sacked or plundered the city of Medina.

After the reduction of Medina, Moslem directed his course to Mecca, where Abdallah then resided; but he died by the way, and the command of the troops devolved upon Hosein Ebn Thamir Al Schwi. This general advanced to Mecca, which he besieged for 40 days, battering the town with such fury, that he beat down a great part of the famous temple there, and burnt the rest; nor would the city itself have escaped the same fate, had not an end been put to the war by the arrival of certain accounts of the death of Yezid, who departed this life in the 64th year of the Hegira, answering to the year 684 of the Christian era, having lived 39, and reigned three years and six or eight months. On the news of his death, Hosein offered to take the oath of allegiance to Abdallah; but the latter at that time durst not trust him, of which he had afterwards sufficient reason to repent.

Yezid was succeeded by his son Moawiyah II. who was proclaimed khalif at Damascus the same day that his father died; but, being of a weakly constitution, and unable to bear the fatigues of government, resigned the crown six weeks after his inauguration, and died soon after, without naming a successor.

This abdication having left the Moslem empire absolutely without a master, great commotions ensued. On the death of Yezid, Obedallah Ebn Ziyad, governor of Bafran, represented to the citizens that they ought to choose a protector till a new khalif should be chosen; and if the person so chosen should be disagreeable to them, they might then remain in a state of independency under the protector whom they had chosen. The inhabitants, perceiving the drift of this speech, complimented him with that honour; which he accepted with seeming difficulty; but, sending a deputy to Cufa, the inhabitants of that city not only refused to acknowledge his authority, but threw dust and gravel at his messenger. This coming to the ears of the people of Bafran, they not only deprived Obedallah of the dignity they had newly conferred upon him, but even expelled him the city. Nor could he prevail upon the Najari, a tribe of Ansars, to espouse his quarrel, nor even upon his own relations, though he distributed among them great part of the fifteen millions of pieces of money which he had found in the treasury of Bafran, and kept the remainder to himself. Nay, so odious had he rendered himself to all ranks, on account of his cruelties, particularly the death of Hosein the son of Ali, that his brother Abdallah was unable to protect him from the fury of the populace, though he kept him concealed in women's cloths, and distributed among the mob 200,000 pieces of money. He was therefore at last constrained to leave the city, attended by a guard of 100 men. Immediately after his departure, the mob plundered his house, and pursued him, so that he was obliged to exchange his camel for an ass, and thus with the utmost difficulty escaped into Syria.

In the mean time, Hosein Ebn Thamir, being returned into Syria with the forces under his command, gave a faithful account of the situation of affairs in Arabia to Merwan Ebn Al Hakem. He also acquainted him of the offer he had made to Abdallah of the oath of allegiance, which the latter had refused, or at least would not come to Damascus in order to be invested with the supreme authority there. On this account he advised Merwan to take care of himself and the rest of the house of Omriyah, who had fled to Damascus after their expulsion from Medina. On this discourse, Merwan was inclined to submit to Abdallah; but was diverted from it by Obedallah, who insisted that no superior ought to be acknowledged by Merwan, who was at the head of the Koreish. The people of Damascus had constituted Dahak Ebn Kais their protector, who inclined to Abdallah. The Bafrans were at this juncture entirely in tumult and confusion, not being able to agree about a protector after the expulsion of Obedallah; so that at last they wrote to Abdallah, offering him the government of their territory. This he accepted, but could not be prevailed upon to flit from Mecca; nor could Merwan be persuaded to suffer any of the Syrians to perform the pilgrimage to Mecca, lest they should join Abdallah, and thereby contribute to his exclusion from the throne.

In the midst of this confusion Abdallah might have easily secured the khalifat to himself, had he not with the utmost imprudence as well as inhumanity given orders for the extermination of the house of Omriyah. This ruined his affairs; for they being now obliged to provide for their own safety, Merwan was proclaimed khalif at Damascus; and thus the whole Moslem empire was rent into two potent factions, the one under Merwan, and the other under Abdallah.

We have already observed, that Dahak Ebn Kais inclined to favour Abdallah. This he continued to do after Merwan was proclaimed khalif, infomuch that a battle soon ensued between his followers and those of Merwan, in which Dahak was defeated and killed; and thus Merwan became master of all the province of Syria. Soon after this victory, Merwan advanced with a considerable body of troops towards Egypt; but sent before him Amru Ebn Said with a detachment, in order to facilitate his passage. That general having defeated Abdalrahman, Abdallah's lieutenant, in several brisk actions, he at last surrendered the whole country to Merwan for a sum of money, and retired with the Arabs under his command to Hejaz. The Syrian troops, therefore, immediately took possession of that country, and obliged the inhabitants to take an oath of allegiance to Merwan, who, having appointed his son Abdalazziz to preside over Egypt, returned with the greatest part of his forces to Damascus. Here he was informed that Abdallah had dispatched against him Abdallah's brother Musab with a considerable army. Against forces defeated him Merwan dispatched Amru Ebn Said; who, having soon come up with him, gave him a total defeat, and dispersed his troops in such a manner, that Musab found it impossible to rally them again.

In the 65th year of the Hegira, the inhabitants of Cufa, pretending to be seized with remorse of conscience for their treachery to Hosein the son of Ali, revolted. raised an insurrection against both the khalifs, and therefore assembled a body of 16,000 men, under the command of one Soliman, who was to revenge the death of Hofcin upon Obedallah Ebn Ziyad and his adherents. But while Soliman and his troops remained yet inactive, Al Mokhtar, who had served under Abdallah, and was disgusted at not having been promoted as he expected, arrived at Cufa, and, representing the incapacity of Soliman, who indeed appears to have been totally unfit for such an enterprise, offered to take the command upon himself. This, however, was refused; and as Al Mokhtar had no opinion of Soliman's military capacity, he found means to draw off 2000 of his troops; while 10,000 more chose rather to violate the oaths they had taken, than run the risk of being cut to pieces by a superior enemy. Soliman, however, put a good face upon the matter; and, telling his troops that they were to fight for another world and not this, set forward to invade Syria with the 4000 who remained with him: but being advanced as far as Ekfas upon the Euphrates, he found that he had lost 1000 men by defection; nor was he joined by the Separatists of Bafra and Al Madayen, though they had promised him a reinforcement. Firmly persuaded, however, that his cause was the cause of heaven, Soliman continued his march all night, and next day arrived at the tomb of Hofcin, where his men performed their devotions with such enthusiasm of penitence, that one present swore he never saw such crowding about the black stone in the temple of Mecca itself.—Continuing still to advance, he received a friendly letter from Abdallah Ebn Zobeir in his pretensions to the khalifate, perfuming in his resolution of penetrating into Syria. He told his troops, that they would never be nearer the two Hofcins (Hofcin, and his brother Hafan, to whom also the Shiites give that name) than they were at present; and that, should they at this time meet with death, they would be in a state of repentance, and consequently could never die in a more proper time; and after this speech, continuing still to advance, he was at last met by Obedallah at the head of 20,000 horse, who, after an obstinate engagement, cut to pieces Soliman and all his troops.

Soon after this decisive action died the khalif Merwan, after he had reigned eleven months. He is said by some authors to have been poisoned by his wife Zeinab, Moawiyah's widow. Her he had married, with a promise that her son Khaled should succeed him; but afterwards altering the succession in favour of his own son Abdalmalec, young Khaled reproached him with his breach of promise: upon this, Merwan calling him Isfard, the child complained to his mother, who, to be revenged for this affront, is said to have poisoned him, or smothered him with a pillow.

In the beginning of the khalifate of Abdalmalec, Al Mokhtar, who had been imprisoned by the governor of Cufa, was released at the intercession of Abdallah Ebn Omar, who had married his sister. The year following, having put himself at the head of the Shiite sectaries, he sent proposals of alliance to Abdallah Ebn Zobeir; but he, justly suspecting his sincerity, by a stratagem cut off near 3000 of his men. Upon this disaster, Al Mokhtar, fearing the house of Ali might be intimidated, sent a letter to Mahomet Ebn Hanifyah, one of that family, in which he offered his assistance with a powerful army. This offer Mahomet declined, declaring himself only for pacific measures; but though he and all the rest of Ali's family behaved in the most peaceable manner, Abdallah did not think himself safe till they owned his authority. He therefore imprisoned them, together with 17 of the principal citizens of Cufa, whom he threatened to put to death, and afterwards burn their bodies, if they did not within a limited time take an oath of allegiance to him. Al Mokhtar, being informed of the distressed situation they were in, sent a body of 750 horse to Mecca, under Abu Abdallah, to release them. That general not only executed his orders with great bravery, but took Abdallah himself prisoner, whom he would have cut to pieces on the spot, had he not been released at the intercession of Mahomet, who for the present adjusted the differences to the mutual satisfaction of all parties. After this reconciliation, Abu Abdallah, or rather Mahomet himself, distributed among 4000 of Ali's friends a sum of money brought for that purpose, in order to indemnify them for the losses they had sustained. Thus the friends of Ali were happily delivered, when only two days of the time granted them by Abdallah remained, and a sufficient quantity of wood and other combustibles was collected, in order to consume their bodies. Notwithstanding the reconciliation, however, that had lately taken place, Mahomet Ebn Hanifyah thought proper to post himself on a mountain near Mecca with a body of 4000 men.

The Cufans having received advice before Merwan's death, that he had sent Obedallah, with a powerful army towards their city, and even given him permission to plunder it in case it should be taken, appointed Yezid Ebn Ares, a man of undaunted courage, to oppose him; but Merwan dying before Obedallah could execute his commission, an end was put for the present to this expedition. The memory of it, however, still remained; and Al Mokhtar, to whom Obedallah was personally obnoxious, assembled a body of troops to act offensively against him, and even against the Syrian khalif himself, in case he should support Obedallah. Among other preparations for this enterprise, Al Mokhtar caused a kind of portable throne to be made, telling his troops, that "it would be of the same use to them that the ark was to the children of Israel." It was therefore carried on a mule before the troops that were to march against Obedallah, and the following prayer said before it: "O God! grant that we may live long in thy obedience; help us, and do not forget us, but protect us." This expedient was so well adapted to the hot-headed enthusiasts who composed Al Mokhtar's army, that they attacked Obedallah's camp, defeated him, and gained a complete victory; Obedallah himself was killed in the action, his head sent to Al Mokhtar, and his body reduced to ashes.—By this victory the sectaries were rendered so formidable, that Nifbin or Nifibis, and several other cities, surrendered to them without opposition. They now began to entertain thoughts of deposing both the khalifs, and placing on the Moslem throne one of the family. mily of Ali; but all their towering hopes were soon frustrated by the defeat and death of Al Mokhtar by Mufab brother to Abdallah Ebn Zobeir. Al Mokhtar, after being defeated in a general engagement by Mufab, fled to the castle of Cufa, where he defended himself with great bravery for some time; but being at last killed, his men, to the number of 7000, surrendered at discretion, and were all of them put to the sword on account of the outrages they had committed.

The next year, the 68th of the Hegira, the Azarakites, so denominated from Nafe Ebn Al Azarak, the author of their feet, having assembled a considerable force, made an irruption into Irak. They advanced almost to the gates of Cufa, and penetrated to Al Madayen. Being sworn enemies of the house of Omariyah, and acknowledging no government spiritual or temporal, they committed terrible ravages in every part of the Moslem territories through which they passed. They carried their excesses to such a height as to murder all the people they met with, to rip open women with child, and commit every species of cruelty that could be invented upon the inhabitants without distinction. The governor of Mawfiel and Mepopotamia, being informed of these unparalleled outrages, marched against them with a body of troops, and carried on a brisk war with them for eight months. During this period their leader Nafe Ebn Al Azarak died; and was succeeded by Katri Ebn Al Fojat, under whose conduct they continued their depredations. Mufab not being pleased with his lieutenant's management of the war, recalled him, and sent in his place one Omar Ebn Abdallah Temimi, who gave the Azarakites a great overthrow at Naifabur in Khorasan, put many of them to the sword, and pursued the rest as far as Ifpahan and the province of Kerman. Here having received a reinforcement, they returned into the province of Ahwaz, and did incredible damage to the country through which they passed. But Omar advancing against them a second time, they retired at his approach to Al Madayen, ravaging the district belonging to the city in a dreadful manner. However, Omar pursuing them thither also, they fled into the province of Kerman, and thence gradually dispersed themselves. This year there was a grievous famine in Syria, which suspended all military operations.

The next year, being the 69th of the Hegira, Abdalmalec left Damascus, to march against Mufab. In his absence he left Amru Ebn Said governor of the city; but he immediately seized upon it for himself, which obliged the khalif to return. After several skirmishes had happened between some detachments of the khalif's troops with those of Amru, a pacification was concluded at the intercession of the women; but Abdalmalec barbarously put Amru to death with his own hand, notwithstanding his promise; and was immediately seized with such a tremor, that he lost the use of almost all his faculties, and was obliged to be laid in bed. In the mean time the palace was attacked by Yahya, Amru's brother, at the head of 1000 slaves. After a warm dispute, they forced open the gates, killed several of the guards, and were upon the point of entering the palace, when the people within threw Amru's head among them. This fo cooled their ardour, that they desisted from the attempt; and some money having been afterwards distributed among them, they retired. So great, however, was Abdalmalec's avarice, that, after the tumult was appeased, he recalled all the money which had been distributed, and commanded it to be deposited in the public treasury.

In the 70th year of the Hegira, the Greeks made an irruption into Syria; and Abdalmalec having occasion for all his forces to act against Abdallah Ebn Zobeir, was obliged to pay a tribute of 1000 dinars per day, according to Theophanes, and send every year 365 slaves and as many horses to Constantinople. In this treaty it was also stipulated, that the revenues of Cyprus, Armenia, and Iberia, should be equally divided between the khalif and the Greek emperor.

Abdalmalec, being now at leisure to pursue his intended expedition against Mufab, marched against him in person; and having arrived at Malken, a small town on the frontiers of Mepopotamia, where he was waited for by Mufab, the latter was defeated through the treachery of his troops, and himself killed. After the battle, Abdalmalec repaired to Cufa, where he was received with the utmost submission; and people of all ranks came in crowds to take the oath of allegiance to him. He then ordered vast sums of money to be distributed among them, and gave a splendid entertainment to his new subjects, to which even the meanest of them were not refused admittance. During this entertainment, the unfortunate Mufab's head was presented to the khalif; upon which one of the company took occasion to say to him, "I saw Hofein's head in this same cettle presented to Obeidallah; Obeidallah's to Al Mokhtar; Al Mokhtar's to Mufab; and now at last Mufab's to yourself." This observation so affected the khalif, that, either to avert the ill omen, or from some other motive, he ordered the castle to be immediately demolished. Abdallah Ebn Zobeir, in the mean time, having received the melancholy news of the defeat and death of his brother, assembled the people of Mecca, and from the pulpit made a speech suitable to the occasion. He also did his utmost to put Mecca in a proper posture of defence, expecting a speedy visit from his formidable competitor, who now gave law to Irak, Syria, and Egypt, without control.

Soon after Abdalmalec's return to Damascus, he appointed his brother Baithar governor of Cufa; and Khaled Ebn Abdallah, governor of Baitha. The latter had no sooner entered upon his office, than he indirectly removed from the command of the army Al Mohalleb, one of the greatest generals of the age; appointing in his room Abdalaziz, who was greatly his inferior in military skill. Of this dismission the Azarakites being informed, they immediately attacked Abdalaziz, entirely defeated him, and took his wife prisoner. A dispute arising among the victors about the price of that lady, one of them, to end it, immediately cut off her head. Upon this disaster, Khaled was commanded to replace Al Mohalleb, which he did; and having in conjunction with him attacked the Azarakites, forced their camp, and entirely defeated them.

In the 72nd year of the Hegira, Abdalmalec having no enemy to contend with but Abdallah Ebn Zobeir, made great preparations for an invasion of Hejaz, giving the command of the army to be employed on this occasion to Al Hejaj, one of his most warlike and eloquent captains. Before that general had put his army in march for Mecca, he offered his protection to all the

---

**Barbarity of Abdalmalec**

---

**Azarakites defeated** Arabs there that would accept of it. Abdallah being informed of the enemy's approach, sent out several parties of horse to reconnoitre, and give him intelligence of their motions. Between these and some of Al Hejaj's advanced guards several skirmishes happened, in which Abdallah's men had generally the worst. This encouraged Al Hejaj to send the khalif for a reinforcement, his troops amounting to no more than 2000 men, who were insufficient for reducing Mecca. He assured him at the same time, that Abdallah's forces was very much abated, and that his men deserted to him daily. The khalif, upon this, ordered a reinforcement of 5000 men under the command of Tharik Ebn Amer; but notwithstanding this additional strength, he made but little progress in the siege for some time. While he battered the temple of Mecca with his machines, it thundered and lightened so dreadfully, that the Syrians were struck with terror, and refused to play them any longer upon that edifice. Upon this, Al Hejaj flung the corner of his veil into his girdle, and putting into it one of the stones that was to be discharged out of the catapults, flung it into the town, and this occasioned the recommencement of the operations. The next morning, the Syrians were annoyed by fresh storms, which killed 12 men, and quite dispirited them. Al Hejaj, however, animated them, by observing that he was a son of Tchama; that this was the form of Tchama, and that their adversaries suffered as much as they. The day following, some of Abdallah's men were killed by a very violent storm, which gave Al Hejaj a farther opportunity of animating his troops. At last, Abdallah, having been deserted by most of his friends, 10,000 of the inhabitants of Mecca, and even by his own sons Hamza and Khobeib, desired to know his mother's sentiments as to what course he was to take. He represented to her, that he was almost entirely abandoned by his subjects and relations; that the few who persisted in their fidelity to him could scarce enable him to defend the city any longer; and that the Syrian khalif would grant him any terms he should think fit to demand. His mother, however, being of an inflexible resolution, and not able to bear the thoughts of seeing her son reduced to the rank of a private person, being herself the daughter of Abu Beer the first khalif, advised him by no means to survive the sovereignty, of which he was on the point of being deprived. This advice being agreeable to his own sentiments, he resolved to die in defence of the place. In pursuance of this resolution, he defended the city, to the amazement of the besiegers, for ten days, though destitute of arms, troops, and fortifications. At last, having taken a final leave of his mother, and being animated by despair, he made a fall upon the enemy, destroyed a great number of them with his own hand, and was at length killed fighting valiantly upon the spot. At the last interview he had with his mother, she is said to have desired him to put off a coat of mail he had on for his defence; and, in order to inspire him with the greater fortitude, she gave him a draught in which a whole pound of musk had been infused. Al Hejaj ordered his head to be cut off, and his body to be affixed to a cross; and by reason of the musk he had drank, the body emitted a grateful odour for several days.

By the reduction of Mecca, and the death of Abdallah Ebn Zobeir, Abdalmalec remained sole master of the Moslem empire; he sustained a great loss however next year, in having an army of 100,000 men totally cut off by the Khazarans in Armenia. The governor, however, having marched in person against them at the head of only 40,000 men, but all chosen troops, penetrated into the heart of Armenia, defeated and dispersed a large body of the Khazarans, drove them into their temples, and reduced them to ashes. One of his generals also defeated an army of 80,000 Khazarans at the Iron or Caspian gates, and destroyed a great number of them, obliging the rest to embrace the Mahometan religion.

Al Hejaj, in consequence of his services, was made governor, first of Medina, and then of Irak, Khorasan, and Sijistan; in all which places he behaved with the greatest cruelty. Having entered the city of Cufa muffled up in his turban, he was surrounded by crowds of people who pressed forward to see him. He told them their curiosity would soon be gratified; which he effectually did, by ascending the pulpit, and treating them in a very coarse manner; swearing that he would make the wicked bear his own burden, and fit him with his own shoe; and telling them, among other things, that "he imagined he saw the heads of men ripe and ready to be gathered, and turbants and beards be sprinkled with blood." At Bafra he made a speech much to the same purpose; and, to give the inhabitants a taste of his discipline, caused one of them who had been informed against as a rebel to be beheaded on the spot, without any trial. So great indeed was the abhorrence in which he was held by those over whom he presided, that having once recommended himself to the prayers of a religious Moslem, the latter instantly prayed that it would please God to kill Al Hejaj quickly; "for nothing," said he, "could be more advantageous for himself or the people." In consequence of these cruelties, rebellions were soon raised against him; but they were easily suppressed, and Al Hejaj continued in the full enjoyment of all his employments till he died.

In the 76th year of the Hegira, one Saleh Ebn Marj, Saleh and Shebib re-jeite, took up arms against the khalif. They had conspired against him the year before, when on a pilgrimage to Mecca; and Al Hejaj had been ordered to seize them; but at that time they found means to make their escape; and having now assembled about 120 men, Saleh was proclaimed emperor of the faithful at Daras in Mepopotamia. The governor soon received intelligence of their motions; and ordered a body of 500 men, under the command of one Adi, to march against them; but that general, being afraid to attack them notwithstanding his superiority in numbers, demanded a reinforcement. He therefore was supplied with 500 more troops, with which he advanced to Daras; but being still afraid of the rebels, he entered into negotiations with them; during which they attacked him, entirely defeated his army, and made themselves masters of his camp. Upon this the governor sent a detachment of Their bra-1500 horse against them; but the rebels, notwithstanding the smallness of their number, defended themselves in such a manner, that the khalif's troops were forced to dismount, and fight on foot. The engagement continued till night; when the rebels, finding themselves unable to contend with such numbers, reti- red to Mawsel. After this, Al Hejaj being informed that they had taken post at Dafcara, sent against them an army of 5000 men. The rebels, hearing of this formidable army, abandoned their camp; but were so closely pursued, that they found themselves obliged to stand an engagement at Modbaj, a small village on the Tigris. Saleh's forces, consisting only of three companies of 50 men each, were soon thrown into disorder, and himself killed: but Shebib made an excellent retreat to a neighbouring castle; from whence he fell out at midnight on the khalif's forces, penetrated to the very heart of the camp, where he wounded the general himself, and dispersed the greatest part of his army.

After this victory, the rebels became terrible even to Al Hejaj himself, whom they afterwards defeated in several engagements, and, taking advantage of his being at Bafra, made themselves masters of Cufa with little opposition. Al Hejaj was now constrained to write to the khalif for a strong detachment of the Syrian troops, with which he advanced against Shebib, whose army bearing no proportion to that of Al Hejaj, the former was totally defeated, had his wife's brother killed in the action, and was obliged to fly into Kerman. Having refreshed his men in this province, he again advanced to Ahwaz, where he met by one of Al Hejaj's generals at the head of the Syrian army. Shebib defended himself with incredible valour, and several times repulsed the khalif's forces; but being overpowered by numbers, as his army consisted of no more than 600 men, he was at last put to flight, and, in passing a bridge was thrown off by his horse and drowned. His body was drawn up by a net, and the head sent to Al Hejaj, who was not a little pleased at the sight. After his death, the rebels quarrelled among themselves, so that the khalif's troops cut off the greatest part of them. The remainder, under Katiri Ebn Fojat, fled to Tabreftan. Here they were kindly received by Ashid the king, who assigned them a part of his territories for their habitation. Here they had not been long settled, before they insisted upon Ashid's either embracing Mahometanism, or paying them an annual tribute; which he refusing, they drove him into Irak, where he implored the khalif's protection. Ashid afterwards conducted a body of Moslem troops into Tabreftan, where they fell upon the rebels with all such fury, that they killed Katiri himself, cut a great number of his men to pieces, and took all the rest prisoners.

This year also (the 76th of the Hegira), money was first coined in Arabia. Before this time, the dinars, or gold coins, had Greek inscriptions; and the dirhems, or silver ones, Peric inscriptions. The first erection of a mint in Arabia was occasioned by the following accident. Abdalmalec added to the letters he wrote to the Greek emperor, this short passage of the Koran, "Say, God is one," or "Say there is one God;" and then inserted the year of the Hegira, with the name of the prophet, in such a manner as gave the emperor great offence. Upon this, he wrote to Abdalmalec, desiring him to alter that manner of writing, or he would send him some coins in which the name of Mahomet should be mentioned in such a manner as every first would not prove very agreeable. Abdalmalec now resolved to coin money of his own; and accordingly some dirhems were this year stamped by Al Hejaj, with the inscription, Allah Samad, "God is eternal;" which gave great offence to the superstitious Moslems, as they imagined that the name of God would be thereby profaned by the touch of unclean persons.

In the 77th year of the Hegira, the Arabs made an incursion into the imperial territories, and had Lazica and Bercumium betrayed to them; and the next year they made themselves masters of Africa Provincia, demolishing the city of Carthage so effectually, that scarce Carthage a vestige of it was left. They were soon driven out, however, by John the Patrician, a man of great valour and experience in war; but returning with a superior force, they obliged John in his turn to fly to Constantinople.

The 79th year of the Hegira is remarkable for nothing but the rebellion of Abdalrahman in Persia; who drove the Khakan, or emperor of the Turks, Tartars, or Moguls, out of that country: but the following year, one of the Greek generals, named Heraclius, penetrated into Syria as far as Samosata, and destroyed 200,000 Arabs, ravaging the country in a terrible manner; and Abdalrahman was defeated and killed by Al Hejaj, after a great number of engagements. Heraclius, some say 81, and others 100. In the 83rd year of the Hegira, the nobility of Armenia revolting, drove the Arabs out of that province; but Mahomet, one of the khalif's generals, entering the country with a powerful army, got the authors of the revolt into his hands, and caused them all to be burnt alive. Encouraged by this success, the Moslems invaded Cilicia under one Azar; but were, to the number of 10,000, cut in pieces by Heraclius; and the next year, having again entered that country, 12,000 of them were destroyed by the same general, and the rest forced to fly into their own country.

In the 86th year of the Hegira died the khalif Abdalmalec, after a reign of 21 years. He is said to have had such a stinking breath, that the flies which accidentally settled on his lips, were almost instantly struck dead by it. He was succeeded by Al Walid, who greatly extended the Moslem dominions. The first year of his reign, one of his generals having passed the Oxus, (now the Jihum), defeated a numerous army of Turks and Tartars. He then over-ran and entirely reduced the countries of Sogd or Sogdiana, Bagrats, Shash, Targana, and the whole immense tract going under the name of Mawarahahr, or Great Bukharia. He also conquered the Khan of Khowarazm, obliging him to pay an annual tribute of two millions of dinars. About the same time another general, called Mahomet, made an irruption into India, and subdued a considerable part of that country. He also entirely subdued the kingdom of Al Sind, lying between Persia and India. In this expedition, Derar king of Al Sind was defeated and killed, and had his head cut off by Mahomet.

In the 90th year of the Hegira, the Moslems made an irruption into Cappadocia, defeated the emperor's army who opposed them, and took the city of Tyana. The next year they made another incursion into the imperial territories, whence they carried off vast numbers of slaves; and the year following, one Othman penetrated into the heart of Cilicia, where he made himself master of several cities, but does not appear to have long kept his conquests.

In the 93rd year of the Hegira, answering to that of Christ 712, Tarek Ebn Zarka made a descent in Spain. Spain, defeated Roderic the last king of the Goths, reduced the city of Toledo, and overran a considerable part of the kingdom. Being afterwards joined by Mula, commander of the African Moles, the two generals made themselves masters of most of the fortresses, subjugating in a manner the whole country, and obliging it to pay tribute to the khalif. In these expeditions the Moles acquired spoils of immense value; and, amongst other things, an exceeding rich table, called by the Arab writers "the table of Solomon the son of David." According to these writers, this table consisted entirely of gold and silver, and was adorned with three borders of pearls; but Roderic of Toledo, a Spanish historian, says it consisted of one entire stone, of a green colour, and of an immense size, having no less than 365 feet. He adds, that it was found in a certain village or town, near the mountain called in his days "Jabal Soliman," or "the mountain of Solomon."

After Mula and Tarik had committed dreadful depredations in Spain, they were both recalled by the khalif; but the next year, Tarik having undertaken another expedition into the same country, landed a body of 12,000 men at Gibraltar, with which he plundered the whole province of Bactria, and overran the greatest part of Lusitania. Roderic hearing of these depredations, sent against him an army of raw undisciplined troops, who were easily defeated, and most of them left dead on the spot; which so animated the Arab commander, that he resolved not to lay down his arms till he had made an absolute conquest of Spain. About the same time that Tarik made such progress in Spain, another Moles general entered Pifidia with a powerful army, took the city of Antioch, and, after having ravaged the country, retired into the khalif's territories with very little loss.

In the 95th year of the Hegira, died Al Hejaj governor of Irak, &c., after he had presided over that country 20 years. He exercised such cruelties upon those who were in subjection to him, that he is said to have killed 120,000 men, and to have suffered 50,000 men and 30,000 women to perish in prison. To excuse this cruelty, he used frequently to say, That a severe, or even violent government, is better than one too weak and indulgent; as the first only hurts particular persons, but the latter the whole community. This year also the Arabs gained a complete victory in Spain over Roderic king of the Goths, who perished in the action. In this campaign, Tarik possessed himself of immense treasures; by which means he was enabled to reward not only his officers, but common soldiers also. In the eastern parts of the world also, the Arabs were this year very formidable; Mollem, an Arab general, having entered the imperial territories, ravaged the whole province of Galatia, carrying off with him many rich spoils, and a vast number of prisoners. The Greek emperor, hearing that Al Walid designed to attack him both by sea and land, sent some of his nobles to treat of a peace; and, among other things, desired them to bring him a particular account of the force with which the khalif designed to invade the Greek empire. This they represented as so terrible, that it would be next to impossible to oppose it. The emperor therefore caused a great number of light ships to be built, the walls to be repaired, and ordered such of the citizens as had not laid up provisions for three years to depart the city. Al Walid, in the mean time, continued his warlike preparations with the utmost vigour, being determined to make himself master of Constantinople in a single campaign.

In the 96th year of the Hegira died the khalif Al Walid, and was succeeded by his brother Soliman. This year the Moles conquests on the east side were increased by the reduction of Tabretil and Jurjan or Georgiana. In Spain also, the city of Toledo which had revolted was reduced, and Cesar-Augusta, now Saragossa, as well as several others. The next year Mollem set out for Constantinople, which he besieged without success till the 99th year of the Hegira; at which time he was obliged to return, after having lost before it 120,000 men. The soldiers were reduced to the greatest extremities of hunger, being forced to live upon hides, the roots and bark of trees, the most noisome animals, and even the dead bodies of their companions. This year also (the 99th of the Hegira) is remarkable for the death of the khalif Soliman. According to some, he was poisoned by Yezid his brother, governor of Persia, who was displeased with his having appointed his cousin-german Omar Ebn Abdalaziz as his successor, to the exclusion of himself. According to others, he died of an indigestion; which is not greatly to be wondered at, if, as those authors say, he used to devour 100 pounds weight of meat every day, and dine very heartily after eating three lambs roasted for breakfast. In the latter part of his reign, the Moles were by no means successful in Spain; the kingdom of Navarre being founded at this time by Pelagius, or Pelayo, whom the Arabs were never able to reduce.

The new khalif Omar Ebn Abdalaziz was by no means of a martial character; but is said to have been very pious, and possessed of very amiable qualities. He suppressed the usual malediction, which was solemnly pronounced by the khalifs of the house of Ommiyah, against the house of Ali; and always showed great kindness to the latter. He was poisoned by Yezid, after a short reign of two years and five months. It is related, as an instance of this khalif's humility, that when Mollem visited him in his last sickness occasioned by the poison, he lay upon a bed of palm-tree leaves, supported by a pillow formed of beaks' skins, and covered with an ordinary garment. He had also on a dirty shirt; for which Mollem blamed his sister Fatima, Omar's wife; but she excused herself, by telling him that the emperor of the faithful had not another shirt to put on.

Concerning Yezid, the successor of Omar we find very little worth mentioning. He did not long enjoy the dignity he had so unjustly purchased, dying after a reign of little more than four years. He died of grief for a favourite concubine, named Hababah, who was accidentally choked by a large grape which stuck in her throat.

Yezid was succeeded by his brother Hesham, who ascended the throne in the 105th year of the Hegira. In the second and third year of his reign, several incursions were made into the imperial territories, but generally without success. In the 109th year of the Hegira, Mollem drove the Turks out of Armenia and Aderbijan, and again confined them within the Caspian gates. The next year, he obliged them to take an oath that they would keep their own country; but this they soon violated, and were again driven back by Moslem. About this time also the Arabs, having passed the Pyrenees, invaded France to the number 400,000, including women and slaves, under the command of one Abdalrahman. Having advanced to Arles upon the Rhone, they defeated a large body of French that opposed them; and having also defeated count Eudo, they pursued him through several provinces, waited the whole country with fire and sword, making themselves masters of the city of Tours, most of which they reduced to ashes. Here however a stop was put to their devastations by Charles Martel; who, coming up with them near the abovementioned city, engaged them for seven days together, and at last gave them a total overthrow. The French general made himself master of all their baggage and riches; and Abdalrahman, with the shattered remains of his army, reached the frontiers of Spain with the utmost difficulty. The following year also, according to some historians, the Arabs were overthrown at Illiberis, scarce any of them making their escape. To make amends for this bad fortune, however, the khalif's arms were successful against the Turks, who had again invaded some of the eastern provinces.

In the 125th year of the Hegira died the khalif Hesham, after a reign of 19 years, seven months, and eleven days. He was succeeded by Al Walid II., who is represented as a man of a most dissolute life, and was assassinated the following year on account of his professing Zendicism, a species of infidelity nearly resembling Sadducism. He was succeeded by Yezid the son of Al Walid I., who died of the plague after a reign of six months; and was succeeded by Ibrahim Ebn Al Walid, an imprudent and stupid prince. He was deposed in the 127th year of the Hegira by Merwan Ebn Mahomet, the governor of Mesopotamia; who gave out as an excuse for his revolt, that he intended to revenge the murder of the khalif Al Walid II. He was no sooner seated on the throne, than the people of Hems rebelled against him. Against them the khalif marched with a powerful army; and, asking them what could excite them to this rebellion, summoned them to surrender. They assured him that they were disposed to admit him into their city; and, accordingly, one of the gates being opened, Merwan entered with about 300 of his troops. The men that entered with him were immediately put to the sword; and the khalif himself escaped with great difficulty. However, he afterwards defeated them in a pitched battle, put a great number of them to the sword, dismantled the city, and crucified 600 of the principal authors of the revolt.

This however was far from quieting the commotions in different parts of the empire. The inhabitants of Damascus soon followed the example of those of Hems, and deposed the khalif's governor; but Merwan, immediately after the extinction of the former rebellion, marched to Damascus with great celerity, entered the city by force, and brought to condign punishment the authors of the revolt. Peace, however, was no sooner established at Damascus, than Soliman Ebn Hesham set up for himself at Bafra, where he was proclaimed khalif by the inhabitants. Here he assembled an army of 10,000 men, with whom he marched to Kinniffin, where he was joined by vast numbers of Syrians who flocked to him from all parts. Merwan, receiving advice of Soliman's rapid progress, marched against him with all the forces he could assemble, and entirely defeated him. In this engagement Soliman lost 30,000 men, so that he was obliged to fly to Hems, where 900 men took an oath to stand by him to the last. Having ventured however to attack the khalif's forces a second time, he was again defeated, and forced to fly to Hems. But being closely pursued by Merwan, he constituted his brother Said governor of the city, leaving with him the shattered remains of his troops, and himself fled to Tadmor. Soon after his departure Merwan appeared before the town, which he besieged for seven months; during which time he battered it incessantly with 80 catapults. The citizens being reduced to the last extremity, surrendered, and delivered Said into the khalif's hands. In consideration of this submission Merwan pardoned the rebels, and took them all under his protection. About the same time, another pretender to the khalifat appeared at Cufa; but Merwan took his measures so well, that he extinguished this rebellion before it could come to any height.

Notwithstanding the success, however, that had hitherto attended Merwan, a strong party was formed against him in Khorasan by the house of Al Abbas. The first of that house that made any considerable figure was named Mahomet, who flourished in the reign of Omar Ebn Abdalaziz. He was appointed chief of the house of Al Abbas, about the 100th year of the Hegira; and is said to have prophesied, that, after his death, one of his sons named Ibrahim should preside over them till he was killed, and that his other son Abdallah, surnamed Abul Abbas Al Safiah, should be khalif, and exterminate the house of Ommiyah. Upon this, Al Safiah was introduced as the future sovereign, and those present kissed his hands and feet.

After the decease of Mahomet, his son Ibrahim nominated as his representative in Khorasan one Abu Moflem, a youth of 19 years of age; who, beginning to raise forces in that province, Merwan despatched against him a body of horse under the command of Nafr Ebn Sayar; but that general was entirely defeated by Abu Moflem, and the greatest part of his men killed. The next year (the 128th of the Hegira), Merwan made vast preparations to oppose Abu Moflem, who after the late victory began to grow formidable to several parts of the empire. According to some authors, Merwan gained two victories over some of Ibrahim's generals; but the year following, Abu Moflem brought such a formidable army into the field, that the khalif's troops could not make head against them; his officers in Khorasan therefore were obliged either to take an oath of allegiance to Ibrahim, or to quit the province within a limited time.

In the 130th year of the Hegira, the khalif's general Nafr, having drawn together another army, was again defeated by Kahtaba another of Ibrahim's generals, and forced to fly to Raya, a town of Dylam, according to some, or of Khorasan, according to others. The next year Ibrahim, having foolishly taken it into Ibrahim put his head to go on a pilgrimage to Mecca, attended by a numerous retinue splendidly accoutred, was seized and put to death by Merwan; and the year following, Abul Abbas was proclaimed khalif at Cufa. As soon as the ceremony was ended, he sent his uncle Abdallah with a powerful army to attack Merwan's forces that were encamped near Tubar, at a small distance from Moful, where that khalif was then waiting for an account of the success of his troops under Yezid governor of Irak against Khataiba, one of Al Safiah's generals. Khataiba, receiving advice of Yezid's approach, immediately advanced against him, and entirely defeated him; but, in crossing the Euphrates, the waters of which were greatly swollen, he was carried away by the current, and drowned. The pursuit, however, was continued by his son Hamid, who dispersed the fugitives in such a manner that they could never afterwards be rallied. At the news of this disaster, Merwan was at first greatly dispirited; but soon recovering himself, he advanced to meet Abdallah. In the beginning of the battle, the khalif happened to dismount; and his troops perceiving their sovereign's horse without his rider, concluded that he was killed, and therefore immediately fled; nor was it in the power of the khalif himself to rally them again, so that he was forced to fly to Damascus: but the inhabitants of that city, fearing his condition desperate, shut their gates against him. Upon this he fled to Egypt, where he maintained himself for some time; but was at last attacked and killed by Salch, Abdallah's brother, in a town of Thebair, called Byfer Kurida. The citizens of Damascus, though they had shamefully deserted Merwan, refused to open their gates to the victors; upon which Salch entered the city by force, and gave it up to be plundered for three days by his soldiers.

By the total defeat and death of Merwan, Al Safiah remained sole master of the Moslem throne; but we hear of no very remarkable events that happened during his reign: only that he massacred great numbers of the partisans of the house of Ommiyah; and that Constantine Copronymus, taking advantage of the intestine divisions among the Moslems, ravaged Syria. The khalif died of the small-pox in the 136th year of the Hegira, in the 33rd year of his age; and was succeeded by his brother Al Manfur. In the beginning of Al Manfur's reign, hostilities continued against the house of Ommiyah, who still made resistance, but were always defeated. Abdallah, however, the khalif's uncle, caused himself to be proclaimed khalif at Damascus; and having assembled a powerful army in Arabia, Syria, and Mesopotamia, advanced with great expedition to the banks of the Mafius near Nibib, where he encamped. Al Manfur, being informed of this rebellion, dispatched Abu Moslem against Abdallah. This general, having harried him for five months together, at last brought him to a general action; and, having entirely defeated him, forced him to fly to Bafra. Notwithstanding all his services, however, Abu Moslem was soon after ungratefully and barbarously murdered by Al Manfur, on some ridiculous pretences of being deficient in respect towards him.

After the death of Abu Moslem, one Sinan a Magian, or adorer of fire, having made himself master of that general's treasures, revolted against the khalif; but he was soon defeated by Jamhur Ibn Morad, who had been sent against him with a powerful army. In this expedition Jamhur having acquired immense riches, the covetous disposition of the khalif prompted him to send a person express to the army to seize upon all the wealth. This so provoked Jamhur, that he immediately turned his arms against his master; but was soon defeated, and entirely reduced. The following year (the 139th of the Hegira), one Abdalrahman, of the house of Ommiyah, after the entire ruin of that family in Asia, arrived in Spain, where he was acknowledged khalif; nor did he or his descendants ever afterwards own subjection to the Arabian khalifs.

The 140th year of the Hegira is remarkable for an attempt to assassinate the khalif. This attempt was made by the Rawandians; an impious sect, who held the doctrine of metempsychosis or transmigration. They first offered Al Manfur divine honours, by going in procession round his palace, as the Moslems were wont to do round the Caab; but the khalif, highly incensed at this impiety, ordered 100 of the principal of them to be imprisoned. These however were soon released by their companions; who then went in a body to the palace with an intention to murder their sovereign: but he being a person of uncommon bravery, though he was surprized with very few attendants, mounted a mule, and advanced towards the mutineers with an intention to sell his life as dear as possible. In the mean time, Maan Ebn Zaidat, one of the chiefs of the Ommiyan faction, who had concealed himself in order to avoid the khalif's resentment, fell out of his retreat, and putting himself at the head of Al Manfur's attendants, charged the rebels with such fury, that he entirely defeated them. This generosity of Maan was so remarkable, that it afterwards passed into a proverb. On this occasion 6000 of the Rawandians were killed on the spot, and the khalif delivered from instant death: he was, however, so much disgusted with the Arabs on account of this attempt, that he resolved to remove the capital of his empire out of their peninsula; and accordingly founded a new city on the banks of the Tigris, which from that time to this has been known by the name of Bagdad. The foundations of it were laid in the 145th year of the Hegira, and finished four years after.

On the removal of the seat of government to Bagdad, the peninsula of the Arabs seems all at once to have lost its consequence, and in a short time the inhabitants seem even to have detached themselves from the jurisdiction of the khalifs: for, in the 156th year of the Hegira, while Al Manfur was yet living, they made irruptions into Syria and Mesopotamia, as if they had designed to conquer these countries over again for themselves; and though the Arabs, properly so called, continued nominally subject to the khalifs of Bagdad till the abolition of the khalifat by Hulaku the Tartar, yet they did not become subject to him when he became master of that city. Nay, we have strongest any foreign reason to believe that the Arabs (i.e. the inhabitants of the peninsula properly called Arabia) have remained independent, not only of Hulaku, but of every other conqueror that the world hath yet produced. To prove this will require no long time: for no governor of Arabia is mentioned in history but what was chosen by the Arabs themselves; which abundantly shews the futility of the pretences to conquests of Arabia made by Trajan, Severos, the Turks, &c. From the character of the Arabs in all ages, it is certain that no nation ever had more occasion for governors than they have; and if the princes who pretended to conquer them did not appoint point governors over those unruly subjects, we can only suppose it to have been because they were not able, i.e., because their pretended conquests were never made. As the history of Arabia, properly so called, therefore, is not to be found in the history of the khalifis of Bagdad, we must refer our readers for the history of those khalifis to the article Bagdad, and conclude this long article with some account of the manners, customs, &c., of the Arabs, and which, according to all accounts, seem now to be much the same with what they have always been.

With regard to the disposition of the ancient Arabs, it will be proper to remark, that they had their good and bad qualities, their excellencies and defects, as well as other nations. Hospitality was so habitual to them, that in this they seem to have exceeded all their neighbours. Agatharchides represents them as the most hospitable people in the world to all nations, but particularly some of the Greeks. Hatem of the tribe of Tay, and Hafn of that of Fezarah, were principally famous on this account: the latter of these, we are told, fell into as great a transport of joy when he conferred any signal favour upon a petitioner, as others did when they received such a favour. Nay, the contrary vice was so much in contempt among the Arabs, that a certain poet upbraids the inhabitants of Wafet, as with the greatest reproach, that none of their men had the heart to give, nor their women to deny. As a mark of their hospitable disposition, the Arabs used to light fires on the tops of hills, which in the night conducted travellers to their tents, and assured them of a kind reception. Every one of these fires they called the fire of hospitality; and the larger and higher it was, the greater honour and glory it reflected on the person or persons concerned in lighting it. The highest compliment that could be paid a man was to pass an encomium upon his munificence; as that most acceptable to a woman was, to celebrate her parsimony, and her beauty. The ancients likewise commend the Arabs for being exact to their words, and respectful to their kindred; and they have always been celebrated for their quickness of apprehension and penetration, as well as the vivacity of their wit; especially those of the Desert.

On the other hand, that the Arabs had a natural inclination to war, bloodshed, cruelty, and rapine, is acknowledged by their own writers. They had always been so much addicted to bear malice, that they scarce ever forgot an old grudge; which vindictive temper, some physicians say, ought to be attributed to their frequent feeding on camel's flesh, that creature being most malicious, and tenacious of anger. This account, according to Mr Sale, suggests a good reason for distinction of meats.

The present Arabs are of a middle stature, thin, and of a swarthy complexion, with black hair and black eyes, which however are common to them with other people in the same climate. Their voices are rather effeminate than strong. They are very swift of foot, and excellent horsemen; and are said to be a brave people, expert at the bow and lance, and, since they became acquainted with fire-arms, good marksmen.

The habit of the roving Arabs is a kind of blue shirt, tied about them with a white fah or girdle; and some of them have a vest of furs, or sheep-skins, over it. They wear also drawers, and sometimes slippers, but no stockings, and have a cap or turban on their heads. Many of them go almost naked; but the women are so wrapped up, that nothing can be discerned but their eyes.

Except those that live in the cities and towns on the sea-coasts, they have no settled habitation, but rove from place to place, with their flocks and herds, for the convenience of water and pasture. While they continue in any particular spot, they live and sleep in tents. They frequently rob or impose a tribute upon the caravans between Turkey and Persia; and the king of Muscat is little better than a pirate, having generally a squadron of cruisers, with which he takes all the defenceless ships he can meet with in the Persian and Arabian seas. They pretend, that God gave permission to Ishmael and his posterity to take whatever they could, especially from the Jews.

The food of the Arabs is chiefly rice, fish, herbs, venison, fowl, and most other sorts of flesh: but camel's flesh is most admired; and they take care to drain the blood from the flesh, as the Jews do, and, like them, abstain from such fish as have no scales. Their drink is chiefly water or sherbet; they have no strong liquors.

Dr Shaw says, the wild Arabs (by which we suppose he means the wandering Arabs) are a very fierce, rapacious, unpolished race, without the least literature among them: that Europeans have little or no converse with them; and, if they had, could learn but little of them.

Though the far greater part of the nation deserves the character given of them above, yet there are many of them, especially such as live in towns, that apply themselves to trades and commerce, arts and sciences, in which they often make a great progress; being naturally ingenious, subtle, and witty; and great admirers of poetry, music, and rhetoric. Many of the Arabian performances in physic, astronomy, and mathematics, shew the authors to have been men of great genius and application. Figures, and the curious disposition of them, so as to express any number whatsoever with ease and expedition, is allowed to be an invention of the Arabians. To conclude their character, both sexes are said to be very vindictive, and excessively given to lust, as the natives of hot climates generally are. How strong the Arab genius is tinged with enthusiasm and superstition, and consequently inclined to fable and romance, appears eminently in most of their compositions.

As the Arabs are one of the most ancient nations in the world, having inhabited the country they at present possess almost from the deluge, without intermixing with other nations, or being subjugated by any foreign power, their language must have been formed soon after, if not at, the confusion of Babel. The two principal dialects of it were, that spoken by the Hamyarites and other genuine Arabs, and that of the Koreish, in which Mahomet wrote the Koran. The first is styled by the Oriental writers the Arabic of Hamyar, and the other the pure or defected. As Yarab, grandfather of Hamyar, is supposed by the Oriental writers to have been the first whose tongue deviated from the Syriac to the Arabic; the Hamyaritic dialect, according to them, must have approached nearer to the purity of the Syriac; and consequently have been more remote from the true genius of the Arabic, than that of any other tribe. The dialect of the Koreish, termed by the Koran the perspicuous and clear Arabic, is referred to Ishmael as its author; who, say the above-mentioned writers, first spoke it; and, as Dr Pocock believes, after he had contracted an alliance with the family of Ishmael by marriage, formed it of their language and the original Hebrew. As, therefore, the Hamyaritic dialect partook principally of the Syriac, so that of the Koreish was supposed to consist chiefly of the Hebrew. But, according to Jallaluddin, the politeness and elegance of the dialect of the Koreish ought rather to be attributed to their having, from the remotest antiquity, the custody of the Kaaba, and dwelling in Mecca the centre of Arabia. The Arabs are full of the commendations of their language; which is very harmonious, expressive; and, as they say, so immensely copious, that no man uninspired can be a perfect master of it in its utmost extent. How much, in this last article, it is superior to the Greek and Latin tongues, in some measure appears from hence, that sometimes a bare enumeration of the Arabic names of one particular thing, and an explication of them, will make a considerable volume. Notwithstanding this, the Arabs believe the greatest part of their language to be lost; which will not seem improbable, when we consider how late the art of writing became generally practised among them. For though it was known to Job their countryman, to the Edomites, as well as the other Arabian nations bordering upon Egypt and Phoenicia, and to the Hamyarites many centuries before Mahomet, as appears from some ancient monuments said to be remaining in their character; yet the other Arabs, and those of Mecca in particular, unless such of them as were either Jews or Christians, were to the time of Moramer perfectly ignorant of it. It was the ancient Arabic language preceding the reign of Julianus, which so nearly resembled the Ethiopic; for since that time, and especially since the age of Mahomet, all the Arabic dialects have been not a little corrupted. This is now the learned language of the Mahometans, who study it as the European Christians do the Hebrew, Greek, and Latin.

The character used by them, the most ancient of any peculiar to the Arabs, wherein the letters were not distinctly separate, went by the appellation of Al Mofmod, from the mutual dependency of its letters or parts upon one another. This was neither publicly taught, nor suffered to be used, without permission first obtained. Could we depend upon what Al Firaouzabadius relates from Ebn Hathem, this character must have been of a very high antiquity; since an inscription in it, according to the last author, was found in Yemen, as old as the time of Joseph. Be that as it will, Moramer Ebn Morra of Anbar, a city of Irak, who lived not many years before Mahomet, was the inventor of the present Arabic character, which Bafhar the Kendian, who married the sister of Abu Sofan, is said to have learned from the house of Anbar, and to have introduced at Mecca but a little time before the institution of Mahometism. Moramer's alphabet the Oriental authors agree to have been very different from the ancient one of the Hamyarites, since they distinguish the Hamyaritic and Arabic pens. In Mahomet's time, the Moramerian alphabet had made so small a progress, that no one in Yemen could either write or read it; nay, Mahomet himself was incapable of doing either; for which reason, he was called the illiterate prophet. The letters of this alphabet were very rude; being either the same with, or very much like, the Cufic; which character is still found in inscriptions and the titles of ancient books; nay, for many years it was the only one used by the Arabs, the Koran itself being at first written therein. In order to perpetuate the memory of Moramer's invention, some authors call the Arabic letters al Moramer, i.e. the progeny of Moramer. The most remarkable specimens of the Cufic character (so denominated from Cufa, a city of Irak, where some of the first copies of the Koran were written) are the following: Part of that book in it on vellum, brought from Egypt by Mr Greaves; some other fragments of the same book in it published by Sir John Chardin; certain pages of a MS. in the Bodleian library; the legends on several Saracenice coins dug up not many years ago on the coast of the Baltic, not far from Dantzig; and, according to Mr Professor Hunt, those noble remains of it that are, or were lately, to be seen in Mr Joseph Ames's valuable collection of antique curiosities. As to the true origin of the ancient and modern Arabic alphabets, we must own ourselves pretty much in the dark.

The sciences chiefly cultivated by the ancient Arabians were three; that of their history and genealogies, such a knowledge of the stars as to foretell the changes of weather, and the interpretation of dreams. They valued themselves extremely on account of the nobility of their families; and so many disputes happened on that occasion, that it is no wonder if they took great pains in settling their decrees. Their knowledge of the stars was gathered from long experience, and not from any regular study or astronomical rules. The Arabians and Indians applied themselves to observe the fixed stars, contrary to other nations, whose observations were almost confined to the planets; and they foretold their effects from their influences, not their nature. The stars or asterisms they most usually foretold the weather by, were those they call Amwas, or the houses of the moon. These are 28 in number, and divide the zodiac into as many parts, through one of which the moon passes every night. As some of them set in the morning, others rise opposite to them, which happens every thirteenth night; and from their rising and setting, the Arabs, by long experience, observed what changes happened in the air; and at length came to ascribe divine power to them, saying, that their rain was from such or such a star. This expression Mahomet absolutely forbade them to use in the old sense, unless qualified in such a manner as to make the Supreme Being the director and manager of them. We find Al Rayeth, one of the kings of Yemen, furred the Philosopher, not so much on account of his learning, as of his great prudence and intellectual endowments. That the Arabs understood something of physic before the time of Mahomet, appears from hence, that the famous Arabian physician Al Harith Ebn Khalda, so celebrated amongst his countrymen, was older than that impostor. They seem to have made no farther progress in astronomy, which they afterwards cultivated with so much success and applause, than to observe the influence of the stars upon the weather, and to give them names; which it was obvious for them to do, by reason of their pastoral way of life, lying night and day in the open plains. The names they imposed on the flares... stars generally alluded to cattle and flocks; and they were so nice in distinguishing them, that no language has so many names of stars and asterisms as the Arabic.

That some of the Arabs had a good degree of knowledge in several mechanical arts, appears from Strabo, who informs us, that the people of Tamna and the adjacent provinces had magnificent temples, and elegant houses, built in the Egyptian taste. The same author likewise relates, that in Arabia Felix, besides the husbandmen, there were many artificers; and, amongst others, those which made palm-wine, which he intimates, was much used by the Arabs. As for the exercise of arms and horsemanship, they looked upon this as one of their principal accomplishments, being obliged to practise and encourage it by reason of the independency of their tribes, whose frequent jarring made wars almost continual amongst them, which for the most part ended in field-battles. Hence it became an usual saying amongst them, that God had bestowed four peculiar things on the Arabs, viz. turbans instead of diadems, tents instead of walls and houses, swords instead of intrenchments, and poems instead of written laws. The principal arms used by the ancient Arabs were bows and arrows, darts or javelins, and broad swords or scythes. The bows and arrows were the most ancient of these; being used by Ishmael himself, according to Scripture. It is probable also, that some of them were acquainted with every branch of the military art cultivated by their neighbours the Egyptians, Syrians, and Phoenicians.

The religion of the Arabs before Mahomet, which they call the state of ignorance, was chiefly gross idolatry; the Sabian religion having almost over-run the whole nation; though there were also great numbers of Christians, Jews, and Magians, amongst them. The idolatry of the Arabs, as Sabians, chiefly consisted in worshipping the fixed stars and planets, and the angels and their images; which they honoured as inferior deities, and whose intercession they begged as their mediators with God. For they acknowledged one Supreme God, the Creator and Lord of the universe, whom they called Allah Taala, the most high God; and their other deities, who were subordinate to him, they called simply Al Habat, i.e. the godesses.

Of the angels or intelligences which they worshipped, we find only three mentioned in the Koran, viz. Allat, Al-Uzzah, and Manah; these they called godesses, and the daughters of God; an appellation they gave not only to angels, but also to their images, which they believed either to be inspired with life by God, or else to become the tabernacles of the angels, and to be animated by them; and they paid them divine honours, because they believed them to intercede with God for their votaries. The Arab Sabians likewise, in common with those of other nations, imagined that the sun, moon, and fixed stars, were inhabited by intelligences of a middle nature between men and the supreme Being, who actuated their orbs in the same manner as the soul does the human body; and that this was the true cause of all their motions. These beings, they had a notion, became mediators between God and them; for the necessity of a mediator they clearly discovered from the beginning; and therefore to them, as God's mediators, directed divine worship. They first worshipped them by their tabernacles, i.e. their orbs themselves; but these, by their rising and setting, being as much under the horizon as above, they were at a loss how to address themselves to them in their absence. To remedy this, they had recourse to the invention of images, in which, after their consecration, they thought these inferior deities to be as much present by their influence as in the stars themselves, and therefore that all addresses were made as effectually before the one as before the other. Several of these idols were no other than large rude stones, the worship of which, according to Al Jannabius, was introduced by the posterity of Ishmael. Since the days of Mahomet, the only religion tolerated in the Arabian peninsula is what was invented by that impostor; for an account of which see the article Mahometanism.

Before the Portuguese interrupted the navigation of Commerce, the Red Sea, the Arabs were the factors of all the trade that passed through that channel. Aden, which is situated at the most southern extremity of Arabia upon the Indian ocean, was the mart in these parts. The situation of its harbour, which opened an easy communication with Egypt, Ethiopia, India, and Persia, had rendered it, for many ages, one of the most flourishing factories in Asia. Fifteen years after it had repulsed the great Albuquerque, who attempted to demolish it in 1513, it submitted to the Turks, who did not long remain masters of it. The king of Yemen, who possessed the only district in Arabia that merits the title of happy, drove them from thence, and removed the trade to Mocha, a place in his dominions which till then was only a village.

This trade was at first inconsiderable; consisting principally in myrrh, incense, aloes, balm of Mecca, some aromatics, and medicinal drugs. These articles, the exportation of which is continually retarded by exorbitant imposts, and does not exceed at present 30,625 l., were at that time more in repute than they have been since; but must have been always of little consequence. Soon after, a great change ensued from the introduction of coffee.

Though this article is generally used in the Arabian entertainments, none but the rich citizens have the pleasure of tasting the berry itself. The generality are obliged to content themselves with the shell and the husk of this valuable production. These remains, so much despised, make a liquor of a pretty clear colour, which has a taste of coffee without its bitterness and strength. These articles may be had at a low price at Betefagui, which is the general market for them. Here likewise is sold all the coffee which comes out of the country by land. The rest is carried to Mocha, which is 35 leagues distant, or to the nearer ports of Lobia or Hodeida, from whence it is transported in small vessels to Jidda. The Egyptians fetch it from the last mentioned place, and all other nations from the former.

The quantity of coffee exported may be estimated at twelve millions five hundred and fifty thousand weight. The European companies take off a million and a half; the Persians three millions and a half; the fleet from Suez six millions and a half; Indostan, the Maldives, and the Arabian colonies on the coast of Africa, fifty thousand; and the caravans a million.

As the coffee which is bought up by the caravans and the Europeans, is the best that can be procured, it costs about 8½ d. a pound. The Persians, who content themselves with that of an inferior quality, pay no more than about 6½ d. a pound. The Egyptians purchase it at the rate of about 8 d.; their cargoes being composed partly of good, and partly of bad coffee. If we estimate coffee at about 7½ d. a pound, which is the mean price, the profits accruing to Arabia from its annual exportation will amount to 384,343 l. 15 s.

This money does not go into their coffers; but it enables them to purchase the commodities brought from the foreign markets to their ports of Jodda and Mocha.

Mocha receives from Abyssinia, sheep, elephants' teeth, musk, and slaves. It is supplied from the eastern coast of Africa with gold, slaves, amber, and ivory; from the Persian gulf, with dates, tobacco, and corn; from Surat, with a vast quantity of coir; and a few fine, linens; from Bombay and Pondicherry, with iron, lead, copper, which are carried thither from Europe; from Malabar, with rice, ginger, pepper, Indian saffron, with coire, cardamom, and also with planks; from the Maldives, with gum, benzoin, aloeswood, and pepper, which these islands take in exchange; from Coromandel, with 400 or 500 bales of cottons, chiefly blue. The greatest part of these commodities, which may fetch 262,500 l., are consumed in the interior part of the country. The rest, particularly the cottons, are disposed of in Abyssinia, Socotra, and the eastern coast of Africa.

None of the branches of business which are managed at Mocha, as well as throughout all the country of Yemen, or even at Sanaa the capital, are in the hands of the natives. The extortions with which they are perpetually threatened by the government, deter them from interfering in them. All the warehouses are occupied by the Banians of Surat or Guzarat, who make a point of returning to their own country as soon as they have made their fortunes. They then resign their settlements to merchants of their own nation, who retire in their turn, and are succeeded by others.

The European companies, who enjoy the exclusive privilege of trading beyond the Cape of Good Hope, formerly maintained agents at Mocha. Notwithstanding it was stipulated by a solemn capitulation, that the imposts demanded should be rated at two and a quarter per cent., they were subject to frequent extortions: the governor of the place insisting on their making him presents, which enabled him to purchase the favour of the courtiers, or even of the prince himself. However, the profits they obtained by the sale of European goods, particularly clothes, made them submit to these repeated humiliations. When these several articles were furnished by Grand Cairo, it was then impossible to withstand the competition, and the fixed settlements were therefore given up.

The trade was carried on by ships that sailed from Europe with iron, lead, copper, and silver, sufficient to pay for the coffee they intended to buy. The supercargoes, who had the care of these transactions, settled the accounts every time they returned. These voyages, which at first were pretty numerous and advantageous, have been successively laid aside. The plantations of coffee, made by the European nations in their colonies, have equally lessened the consumption and the price of that which comes from Arabia. In process of time, these voyages did not yield a sufficient profit to answer the high charges of undertaking them on purpose. The companies of England and France then resolved, one of them to send ships from Bombay, and the other from Pondicherry, to Mocha, with the merchandise of Europe and India. They even frequently had recourse to a method that was less expensive. The English and French visit the Red Sea every year. Though they dispose of their merchandise there to good advantage, they can never take in cargoes from thence for their return. They carry, for a moderate freight, the coffee belonging to the companies who lade the vessels with it, which they dispatch from Malabar and Coromandel to Europe. The Dutch company, who prohibit their servants from fitting out ships, and who lend no vessels themselves, to the gulf of Arabia, are deprived of the share they might take in this branch of commerce. They have also given up a much more lucrative branch, that of Jodda.

Jodda is a port situated near the middle of the gulf of Arabia, 20 leagues from Mecca. The government there is of a mixed kind: the grand Signior and the Xerif of Mecca share the authority and the revenue of the customs between them. These imposts are levied upon the Europeans at the rate of 8 per cent., and upon other nations at 13. They are always paid in merchandise, which the managers oblige the merchants of the country to buy at a very dear rate. The Turks, who have been driven from Aden, Mocha, and every part of the Yemen, would long ago have been expelled from Jodda, if there had not been room to apprehend that they might revenge themselves in such a manner as to put an end to their pilgrimages and commerce.

The coins, which are current at Mocha, the principal port of the Red Sea, are dollars of all kinds; but they abate five per cent. on the pillar dollars, because they are reckoned not to be the purest silver, and the dollar weight with them is 17 drachms, 14 grains. All their coins are taken by weight, and valued according to their pieces. The gold coins current here are ducats of Venice, Germany, Turkey, Egypt, &c. The comafies are a small coin, which are taken at such a price as the government sets on them; and they keep their accounts in an imaginary coin, called calbers, of which 80 go to a dollar. For an account of the ancient coins called dinars and dirhems, see these two articles.

Gum ARABIC. See Gum.