or AMPRACIA, an important town of ancient Epirus, on the left bank of the river Arachthus, about eight miles from the Ambracian Gulf. It was well fortified by walls of about three miles in circumference, besides being defended on the one side by the river Arachthus, and on the other by steep and craggy hills, on one of which stood the Acropolis. It was originally a Thesprotian town, but tradition stated that it was founded by Ambrax son of Thesprotus, or by Ambracia daughter of Augæus. About the year B.C. 635, a colony of Corinthians settled here, on which it became a Greek city. It soon became the most important Corinthian colony on the Ambracian Gulf, and about the time of the Peloponnesian war the Ambraciens had attained their highest importance. They then had possession of the whole of Amphillocha, including its town named Argos. A colony from Ambracia had settled here, and after a time drove out the original inhabitants, and took possession of the town. The expelled Amphillochians threw themselves under the protection of the Acanthians, who, with the assistance of the Athenians, retook Argos. The Ambraciens two years after (about B.C. 430) made an unsuccessful attack on the town. Having obtained the assistance of Eurylochus the Macedonian general, they again determined to attack the town (B.C. 426), but were repulsed with great slaughter by the conjoined armies of the Amphillochians and Acanthians under the command of Demosthenes, their general Eurylochus being left dead on the field. Being greatly weakened by this last defeat, they for some time took no active part in the affairs of Greece. Ambracia subsequently fell into the hands of the Macedonians, and at a later period became subject to Pyrrhus, who made it the capital of his dominions, and enriched it with numerous works of art. It afterwards came into the possession of the Ætolians, and in the war between them and the Romans it sustained the siege for which it is so celebrated. In B.C. 189, the Roman consul M. Fulvius Nobilior resolved to attack the town, and formed two camps, one on each side of the river, but with a communication between them; the Romans being posted in one, and the Epirots, their allies, in the other. He then threw up two lines, one of circumvallation, the other of contravallation; and built a wooden tower in form of a castle, over against the citadel.

The lines being completed, the city was attacked in five different places at once. The battering-rams shook the wall on all sides; and the Romans, from their moveable towers, pulled down the battlements with a kind of scythes, which they fastened to long beams. The besieged made a vigorous defence. They were night and day on the walls, and indefatigable in preventing the effects of the rams and scythes. The strokes of the former they deadened by letting down upon them beams, large stones, lumps of lead, &c., by means of pulleys, when they were in motion; the others they rendered useless, by pulling the beams to which they were fastened into the city with hooks contrived for the purpose.

But while these operations were going on, the Ætolians concluded a peace with the Romans, and the city thereupon opened its gates to the besiegers, who removed many of its valuable works of art to Rome. Its ruin was afterwards completed by Augustus, who removed its inhabitants to Nicopolis, a city which he founded in commemoration of his victory at Actium.

The modern Arta occupies the site of the ancient Ambracia, where remains of its fortifications are still to be seen. From this time the city of Ambracia made no figure in history.