Machine Learning For Absolute Beginners A Plain

English Introduction 2 edition Edition Oliver

Theobald

https://textbookfull.com/product/machine-learning-for-absolute-
beginners-a-plain-english-introduction-2-edition-edition-oliver-
theobald/

★★★★★ 4.6/5.0 (939 reviews) ✓ 385 downloads Customer Favorites

"Very helpful and well-organized content!" - David K.

textbookfull.com

Get PDF Instantly

EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS · STUDY SUPPLEMENTS · TESTING RESOURCES

 Machine Learning For Absolute Beginners A Plain English
Introduction 2 edition Edition Oliver Theobald

TEXTBOOK

Available Formats

■ PDF eBook Study Guide Ebook

EXCLUSIVE 2025 ACADEMIC EDITION – LIMITED RELEASE

Available Instantly Access Library

 Editor's Choice

Introduction to Google Analytics: A Guide for Absolute

Beginners Todd Kelsey
Link Product: https://textbookfull.com/product/introduction-to-goog
le-analytics-a-guide-for-absolute-beginners-todd-kelsey/

Introduction to Search Engine Optimization: A Guide for

Absolute Beginners Todd Kelsey
Link Product: https://textbookfull.com/product/introduction-to-sear
ch-engine-optimization-a-guide-for-absolute-beginners-todd-kelsey/

Introduction to Social Media Marketing: A Guide for

Absolute Beginners Todd Kelsey
Link Product: https://textbookfull.com/product/introduction-to-soci
al-media-marketing-a-guide-for-absolute-beginners-todd-kelsey/

Introduction to Search Engine Marketing and AdWords: A

Guide for Absolute Beginners Todd Kelsey
Link Product: https://textbookfull.com/product/introduction-to-sear
ch-engine-marketing-and-adwords-a-guide-for-absolute-beginners-t
odd-kelsey/
Modern C for Absolute Beginners A Friendly Introduction to
the C Programming Language Slobodan Dmitrovi■
Link Product: https://textbookfull.com/product/modern-c-for-absol
ute-beginners-a-friendly-introduction-to-the-c-programming-languag
e-slobodan-dmitrovic/

Modern C for Absolute Beginners A Friendly Introduction to

the C Programming Language Dmitrovi■ Slobodan
Link Product: https://textbookfull.com/product/modern-c-for-absol
ute-beginners-a-friendly-introduction-to-the-c-programming-languag
e-dmitrovic-slobodan/

Modern C for Absolute Beginners: A Friendly Introduction

to the C Programming Language 2nd Edition Slobodan
Dmitrovi■
Link Product: https://textbookfull.com/product/modern-c-for-absol
ute-beginners-a-friendly-introduction-to-the-c-programming-languag
e-2nd-edition-slobodan-dmitrovic/

Android Apps for Absolute Beginners Wallace Jackson

Link Product: https://textbookfull.com/product/android-apps-for-ab
solute-beginners-wallace-jackson/

C# Programming for Absolute Beginners Radek Vystav■l

Link Product: https://textbookfull.com/product/c-programming-for-
absolute-beginners-radek-vystavel/
 Machine Learning
For
Absolute Beginners:
A Plain English Introduction

Second Edition

Oliver Theobald
Second Edition
Copyright © 2017 by Oliver Theobald
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or
by any means, including photocopying, recording, or
other electronic or mechanical methods, without the
prior written permission of the publisher, except in
the case of brief quotations embodied in critical
reviews and certain other non-commercial uses
permitted by copyright law.

Edited by Jeremy Pederson and Red to Black Editing’s

Christopher Dino.

For feedback, media contact, omissions or errors

regarding this book, please contact the author at
[email protected]
TABLE OF CONTENTS

PREFACE
WHAT IS MACHINE LEARNING?
MACHINE LEARNING CATEGORIES
THE MACHINE LEARNING TOOLBOX
DATA SCRUBBING
SETTING UP YOUR DATA
REGRESSION ANALYSIS
CLUSTERING
BIAS & VARIANCE
ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORKS
DECISION TREES
ENSEMBLE MODELING
DEVELOPMENT ENVIRONMENT
BUILDING A MODEL IN PYTHON
MODEL OPTIMIZATION
NEXT STEPS
FURTHER RESOURCES
DOWNLOADING DATASETS
APPENDIX: INTRODUCTION TO PYTHON
1
PREFACE
Machines have come a long way since the onset of the Industrial
Revolution. They continue to fill factory floors and manufacturing
plants, but their capabilities extend beyond manual activities to
cognitive tasks that, until recently, only humans were capable of
performing. Judging song contests, driving automobiles, and
detecting fraudulent transactions are three examples of the complex
tasks machines are now capable of simulating.
But these remarkable feats trigger fear among some observers. Part
of this fear nestles on the neck of survivalist insecurities and
provokes the deep-seated question of what if? What if intelligent
machines turn on us in a struggle of the fittest? What if intelligent
machines produce offspring with capabilities that humans never
intended to impart to machines? What if the legend of the singularity
is true?
The other notable fear is the threat to job security, and if you’re a
taxi driver or an accountant, there’s a valid reason to be worried.
According to joint research from the Office for National Statistics and
Deloitte UK published by the BBC in 2015, job professions including
bar worker (77%), waiter (90%), chartered accountant (95%),
receptionist (96%), and taxi driver (57%) have a high chance of
becoming automated by the year 2035.[1] Nevertheless, research on
planned job automation and crystal ball gazing concerning the future
evolution of machines and artificial intelligence (AI) should be read
with a pinch of skepticism. In Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers,
Strategies, author Nick Bostrom discusses the continuous
redeployment of AI goals and how “two decades is a sweet spot…
near enough to be attention-grabbing and relevant, yet far enough to
make it possible that a string of breakthroughs…might by then have
occurred.”([2])([3])
While AI is moving fast, broad adoption remains an unchartered path
fraught with known and unforeseen challenges. Delays and other
obstacles are inevitable. Nor is machine learning a simple case of
flicking a switch and asking the machine to predict the outcome of
the Super Bowl and serve you a delicious martini.
Far from a typical out-of-the-box analytics solution, machine learning
relies on statistical algorithms managed and overseen by skilled
individuals called data scientists and machine learning engineers.
This is one labor market where job opportunities are destined for
growth but where supply is struggling to meet demand.
In fact, the current shortage of professionals with the necessary
expertise and training is one of the primary obstacles delaying AI’s
progress. According to Charles Green, the Director of Thought
Leadership at Belatrix Software:
“It’s a huge challenge to find data scientists, people with machine
learning experience, or people with the skills to analyze and use
the data, as well as those who can create the algorithms required
for machine learning. Secondly, while the technology is still
emerging, there are many ongoing developments. It’s clear that
AI is a long way from how we might imagine it.” [4]
Perhaps your own path to working in the field of machine learning
starts here, or maybe a baseline understanding is sufficient to fulfill
your curiosity for now.
This book focuses on the high-level fundamentals, including key
terms, general workflow, and statistical underpinnings of basic
machine learning algorithms to set you on your path. To design and
code intelligent machines, you’ll first need to develop a strong grasp
of classical statistics. Algorithms derived from classical statistics sit at
the heart of machine learning and constitute the metaphorical
neurons and nerves that power artificial cognitive abilities. Coding is
the other indispensable part of machine learning, which includes
managing and manipulating large amounts of data. Unlike building a
web 2.0 landing page with click-and-drag tools like Wix and
WordPress, machine learning is heavily dependent on Python, C++,
R, and other programming languages. If you haven’t learned a
relevant programming language, you will need to if you wish to make
further progress in this field. But for the purpose of this compact
starter’s course, the following chapters can be completed without any
programming experience.
While this book serves as an introductory course to machine
learning, please note it does not constitute an absolute beginner’s
introduction to mathematics, computer programming, and statistics.
A cursory knowledge of these fields or convenient access to an
Internet connection may be required to aid understanding in later
chapters.
For those who wish to dive into the coding aspect of machine
learning, Chapter 14 and Chapter 15 walk you through the entire
process of setting up a machine learning model using Python. A
gentle introduction to coding with Python has also been included in
the Appendix and information regarding further learning resources
can be found in the final section of this book.
2
WHAT IS MACHINE LEARNING?
In 1959, IBM published a paper in the IBM Journal of Research and
Development with an obscure and curious title for that time.
Authored by IBM’s Arthur Samuel, the paper investigated the
application of machine learning in the game of checkers “to verify the
fact that a computer can be programmed so that it will learn to play
a better game of checkers than can be played by the person who
wrote the program.” [5]

Figure 1: Historical mentions of “machine learning” in published books.

Source: Google Ngram Viewer, 2017

Although it wasn’t the first published work to use the term “machine
learning” per se, Arthur Samuel is regarded as the first person to
coin and define machine learning as the concept and specialized field
we know today. Samuel’s landmark journal submission, Some Studies
in Machine Learning Using the Game of Checkers, introduces
machine learning as a subfield of computer science that gives
computers the ability to learn without being explicitly programmed. [6]
While not directly treated in Arthur Samuel’s initial definition, a key
characteristic of machine learning is the concept of self-learning. This
refers to the application of statistical modeling to detect patterns and
improve performance based on data and empirical information; all
without direct programming commands. This is what Arthur Samuel
described as the ability to learn without being explicitly programmed.
Samuel didn’t infer that machines may formulate decisions with no
upfront programming. On the contrary, machine learning is heavily
dependent on code input. Instead, he observed machines can
perform a set task using input data rather than relying on a direct
input command.

Figure 2: Comparison of Input Command vs Input Data

An example of an input command is entering “2+2” in a

programming language such as Python and clicking “Run” or hitting
“Enter” to view the output.
>>> 2+2
4
>>>
This represents a direct command with a pre-programmed answer,
which is typical of most computer applications. Unlike traditional
computer programming, though, where outputs or decisions are pre-
defined by the programmer, machine learning uses data as input to
build a decision model. Decisions are generated by deciphering
relationships and patterns in the data using probabilistic reasoning,
trial and error, and other computationally-intensive techniques. This
means that the output of the decision model is determined by the
contents of the input data rather than any pre-set rules defined by a
human programmer. The human programmer is still responsible for
feeding the data into the model, selecting an appropriate algorithm
and tweaking its settings (called hyperparameters) in order to reduce
prediction error, but the machine and developer operate a layer apart
in contrast to traditional programming.
To draw an example, let’s suppose that after analyzing YouTube
viewing habits the decision model identifies a significant relationship
among data scientists watching cat videos. A separate model,
meanwhile, identifies patterns among the physical traits of baseball
players and their likelihood of winning the season’s Most Valuable
Player (MVP) award.
In the first scenario, the machine analyzed which videos data
scientists enjoy watching on YouTube based on user engagement;
measured in likes, subscribes, and repeat viewing. In the second
scenario, the machine assessed the physical attributes of previous
baseball MVPs among other features such as age and education.
However, at no stage was the decision model told or programmed to
produce those two outcomes. By decoding complex patterns in the
input data, the model uses machine learning to find connections
without human help. This also means that a related dataset gathered
from another period of time, with fewer or greater data points, might
lead the model to a slightly different output.
Another distinct feature of machine learning is the ability to improve
predictions based on experience. Mimicking the way humans base
decisions on experience and the success or failure of past attempts,
machine learning utilizes exposure to data to improve decision
outcomes. The socializing of data points provides experience and
enables the model to familiarize itself with patterns in the data.
Conversely, insufficient input data restricts the model’s ability to
deconstruct underlying patterns in the data and limits its capacity to
respond to potential variance and random phenomena found in live
data. Exposure to input data thereby helps to deepen the model’s
understanding of patterns, including the significance of changes in
the data, and to construct an effective self-learning model.
A common example of a self-learning model is a system for detecting
spam email messages. Following an initial serving of input data, the
model learns to flag emails with suspicious subject lines and body
text containing keywords that correlate highly with spam messages
flagged by users in the past. Indications of spam email may comprise
words like dear friend, free, invoice, PayPal, Viagra, casino, payment,
bankruptcy, and winner. However, as the machine is fed more data, it
might also find exceptions and incorrect assumptions that render the
model susceptible to bad predictions. If there is limited data to
reference its decision, the following email subject, for example, might
be wrongly classified as spam: “PayPal has received your payment
for Casino Royale purchased on eBay.”
As this is a genuine email sent from a PayPal auto-responder, the
spam detection system is lured into producing a false-positive based
on the initial input data. Traditional programming is highly
susceptible to this problem because the model is rigidly defined
according to pre-set rules. Machine learning, on the other hand,
incorporates exposure to data to refine its model, adjust its
assumptions, and respond appropriately to unique data points such
as the scenario described.
While data is used to source the self-learning process, more data
doesn’t automatically equate to better decisions; the input data must
be relevant to the scope of the model. In Data and Goliath: The
Hidden Battles to Collect Your Data and Control Your World, Bruce
Schneir writes that, “When looking for the needle, the last thing you
want to do is pile lots more hay on it.”[7] This means that adding
irrelevant data can be counter-productive to achieving a desired
result. In addition, the amount of input data should be compatible
with the processing resources and time that is available.

Training & Test Data

In machine learning, input data is typically split into training data and
test data. The first split of data is the training data, which is the
initial reserve of data used to develop your model. In the spam email
detection example, false-positives similar to the PayPal auto-response
message might be detected from the training data. Modifications
must then be made to the model, e.g., email notifications issued
from the sending address “[email protected]” should be
excluded from spam filtering. Applying machine learning, the model
can be trained to automatically detect these errors (by analyzing
historical examples of spam messages and deciphering their
patterns) without direct human interference.
After you have developed a model based on patterns extracted from
the training data and you are satisfied with the accuracy of its
prediction, you can test the model on the remaining data, known as
the test data. If you are also satisfied with the model’s performance
using the test data, the model is ready to filter incoming emails in a
live setting and generate decisions on how to categorize those
messages. We will discuss training and test data further in Chapter 6.

The Anatomy of Machine Learning

The final section of this chapter explains how machine learning fits
into the broader landscape of data science and computer science.
This includes understanding how machine learning connects with
parent fields and sister disciplines. This is important, as you will
encounter related terms in machine learning literature and courses.
Relevant disciplines can also be difficult to tell apart, especially
machine learning and data mining.
Let’s start with a high-level introduction. Machine learning, data
mining, artificial intelligence, and computer programming fall under
the umbrella of computer science, which encompasses everything
related to the design and use of computers. Within the all-
encompassing space of computer science is the next broad field of
data science. Narrower than computer science, data science
comprises methods and systems to extract knowledge and insights
from data with the aid of computers.
Figure 3: The lineage of machine learning represented by a row of
Russian matryoshka dolls

Emerging from computer science and data science as the third

matryoshka doll from the left in Figure 3 is artificial intelligence.
Artificial intelligence, or AI, encompasses the ability of machines to
perform intelligent and cognitive tasks. Comparable to how the
Industrial Revolution gave birth to an era of machines simulating
physical tasks, AI is driving the development of machines capable of
simulating cognitive abilities.
While still broad but dramatically more honed than computer science
and data science, AI spans numerous subfields that are popular and
newsworthy today. These subfields include search and planning,
reasoning and knowledge representation, perception, natural
language processing (NLP), and of course, machine learning.
Figure 4: Visual representation of the relationship between data-related
fields

For students interested in AI, machine learning provides an excellent

starting point because it provides a narrower and more practical lens
of study (in comparison to AI). Algorithms applied in machine
learning can also be used in other disciplines, including perception
and natural language processing. In addition, a Master’s degree is
adequate to develop a certain level of expertise in machine learning,
but you may need a PhD to make genuine progress in artificial
intelligence.
As mentioned, machine learning overlaps with data mining—a sister
discipline that is based on discovering and unearthing patterns in
large datasets. Both techniques rely on inferential methods, i.e.
predicting outcomes based on other outcomes and probabilistic
reasoning, and draw from a similar assortment of algorithms
including principal component analysis, regression analysis, decision
trees, and clustering techniques. To add further confusion, the two
techniques are commonly mistaken and misreported or even
explicitly misused. The textbook Data mining: Practical machine
learning tools and techniques with Java is said to have originally
been titled Practical machine learning but for marketing reasons
“data mining” was later appended to the title.[8]
Lastly, because of their interdisciplinary nature, experts from a
diverse spectrum of disciplines tend to define data mining and
machine learning differently. This has led to confusion, in addition to
a genuine overlap between the two disciplines. But whereas machine
learning emphasizes the incremental process of self-learning and
automatically detecting patterns through experience derived from
exposure to data, data mining is a less autonomous technique of
extracting hidden insight.
Like randomly drilling a hole into the earth’s crust, data mining
doesn’t begin with a clear hypothesis of what insight it will dig up.
Instead, it seeks out patterns and relationships that are yet to be
mined and is, thus, well-suited for understanding large datasets with
complex patterns. As noted by the authors of Data Mining: Concepts
and Techniques, data mining came as a result of advances in data
collection and database management beginning in the early 1980s[9]
and an urgent need to make sense of progressively larger and
complicated datasets.[10]
Whereas data mining focuses on analyzing input variables to
predict a new output, machine learning extends to analyzing
both input and output variables. This includes supervised
learning techniques that compare known combinations of input and
output variables to discern patterns and make predictions, and
reinforcement learning which randomly trials a massive number of
input variables to produce a desired output. A third machine learning
technique, called unsupervised learning, generates predictions based
on the analysis of input variables with no known target output. This
technique is often used in combination or in preparation for
supervised learning under the name of semi-supervised learning, and
although it overlaps with data mining, unsupervised learning tends to
deviate from standard data mining methods such as association and
sequence analysis.
Table 1: Comparison of techniques based on the utility of input and
output data/variables

To consolidate the difference between data mining and machine

learning, let’s consider an example of two teams of archaeologists.
One team has little knowledge of their target excavation site and
imparts domain knowledge to optimize their excavation tools to find
patterns and remove debris to reveal hidden artifacts. The team’s
goal is to manually excavate the area, find new valuable discoveries,
and then pack up their equipment and move on. A day later, they fly
to another exotic destination to start a new project with no
relationship to the site they excavated the day before.
The second team is also in the business of excavating historical sites,
but they pursue a different methodology. They refrain from
excavating the main pit for several weeks. In this time, they visit
other nearby archaeological sites and examine patterns regarding
how each archaeological site is constructed. With exposure to each
excavation site, they gain experience, thereby improving their ability
to interpret patterns and reduce prediction error. When it comes time
to excavate the final and most important pit, they execute their
understanding and experience of the local terrain to interpret the
target site and make predictions.
As is perhaps evident by now, the first team puts their faith in data
mining whereas the second team relies on machine learning. While
both teams make a living excavating historical sites to discover
valuable insight, their goals and methodology are distinctly different.
The machine learning team invests in self-learning to create a system
that uses exposure to data to enhance its capacity to make
predictions. The data mining team, meanwhile, concentrates on
excavating the target area with a more direct and approximate
approach that relies on human intuition rather than self-learning.
We will look more closely at self-learning specific to machine learning
in the next chapter and their treatment of input and output variables.
3
MACHINE LEARNING
CATEGORIES
Machine learning incorporates several hundred statistical-based
algorithms and choosing the right algorithm(s) for the job is a
constant challenge of working in this field. Before examining specific
algorithms, it’s important to consolidate one’s understanding of the
three overarching categories of machine learning and their treatment
of input and output variables.

Supervised Learning
As the first branch of machine learning, supervised learning
comprises learning patterns from labeled datasets and decoding the
relationship between input variables (independent variables) and
their known output (dependent variable). An independent variable
(expressed as an uppercase “X”) is the variable that supposedly
impacts the dependent variable (expressed as a lowercase “y”). For
example, the supply of oil (X) impacts the cost of fuel (y).
Supervised learning works by feeding the machine sample data
containing various independent variables (input) and the desired
solution/dependent variable (output). The fact that both the input
and output values are known qualifies the dataset as “labeled.” The
algorithm then deciphers patterns that exist between the input and
output values and uses this knowledge to inform further predictions.
Using supervised learning, for example, we can predict the market
value of a used car by analyzing other cars and the relationship
between car attributes (X) such as year of make, car brand, mileage,
etc., and the selling price of the car (y). Given that the supervised
learning algorithm knows the final price of the cars sold, it can work
backward to determine the relationship between a car’s value
(output) and its characteristics (input).
After the machine deciphers the rules and patterns between X and y,
it creates a model: an algorithmic equation for producing an outcome
with new data based on the underlying trends and rules learned from
the training data. Once the model is refined and ready, it can be
applied to the test data and trialed for accuracy.

Figure 5: Car value prediction model

Examples of commons algorithms used for supervised learning

include regression analysis (i.e. linear regression, logistic regression,
non-linear regression), decision trees, k-nearest neighbors, neural
networks, and support vector machines, each of which are
introduced in later chapters.

Unsupervised Learning
In the case of unsupervised learning, the output variables are
unlabeled, and combinations of input and output variables aren’t
known. Unsupervised learning instead focuses on analyzing
relationships between input variables and uncovering hidden patterns
that can be extracted to create new labels regarding possible
outputs.
If you group data points based on the purchasing behavior of SME
(Small and Medium-sized Enterprises) and large enterprise
customers, for example, you’re likely to see two clusters of data
points emerge. This is because SMEs and large enterprises tend to
have different procurement needs. When it comes to purchasing
 Another Random Document on
Scribd Without Any Related Topics
The text on this page is estimated to be only 29.44%
accurate

THEBAE ABOTPTt ef the Idngt' — whoee lenlptam ao

eopioiuljr fflaitnta Um hiartoy, the tii, and the loelml lift of AegTpt.
On this ride there are alao the nmains of templee, pelacee, and halla
of aaeemhly or judicature, with their rast eneloenn of walla and their
lonfr avenaea of sphinzee. Bnt the weetero quarter of Thebea was
reserved principally for the dead, and for the serrice of reUgion and
the state, while the mass of the popnlation was contained in the
eaatem. Tet the nnmbeta who inhabited the western side of the city
must hare been considerable, sinoe each temple had its own
establishment of prieeta, and each palace or public edifice ita proper
officers and servants. Still we shall probably be correct in describinf;
the eastern qnarter as the civil, and the western as the royal and
ecclesiastical, portion of Thebea. At present no obelisks have bean
discovered in the western quarter, but, with this exception, the
monnmeDts of GimrnA and Mediaet-Aboo yield little in gnndenr,
beanty, or interest to those of Luxor and Kantat, and in one respect
indeed are the more important of the two, stuce they aSbrd the best
existing spedmena of Aegyptian ooloasal or porttait Btatnea.
Beginning then with the weatam qnarter, — the Memnoneia of the
Ptolemaic times,— we find at the northern limit of the plain, aboot
three qnarters of a mile fnm the river, the remains of a building to
which ChampoUion has given the name of ifenepkthebm, because
the name of Setei-Uenephthah is inacribed upon its walla. It appean
to have been both • tample and a palace, and was approached by a
dnmiaa of 128 feet in length. Ita pillars belong to the oldest style of
Aegyptian architecture, and its bas-reliefs are singularly fine. The
next remarkable ruin is the Hemnoneium of Strabo (xvii. p. 728), the
tomb of Osymandyaa of Diodoms, now commonly called the
Aametetoii on the authority of ita seolpturea. The sitnation, the
extent, and the beauty of this relic of Thebea are adl equally
striking. It ocenpiea the first base of the hilla, as they rise from the
plain; and before the alluvial soil had encroached on the lower
ground, it must have been even a mote conapicuoos object from the
city than it now appears. The ineqaalities of the ground on which it
waa erected were overcame by flighta of stepa flram one court to
another, and the Bameieian acttially stood on a succession of natural
terraces improved by art. The main entrance from the city is flanked
by two pyramidal towers : tlie first court is open to the sky,
surrounded by m double colonnade, and 140 feet in length and 18 in
breadth. On the left of the staircase that ascends to the second
court still stands the pedestal of the statne of Kamesee, the krgest,
ao. cording to Diodoraa (L 49), of the colossi of Aegypt. From the
dimensions of its fbot, parts of which still nrnain, it is calcuhited that
this statne waa 54 te«t in height and 22 feet 4 inches in breadth
across the shoulders. The court is strewn with its fngments. How it
was erected, or how overthrown in a hnd not liable to earthquakes,
are alike subjects of wonder; since, withont mechanical aide wholly
beyond the reach of barbarians, it must have been almost as difficult
to cast it down from its pedestal as to transport it originally from the
qnairies. The walla
The text on this page is estimated to be only 15.24%
accurate

no THEBAK AXOTPTL IhtitatHi u* kntti m wwipi—t af • hard

bnacu, intannizad with agalind fMim, (BuMggar, Jtm-m, veL ii. |)t. I.
|Il 4ia) Th* Tiilig* «f jTadiiiit il*o» ftendi mboot on tUrd «r • Bih SW.
of Ktmm^BaUami, aim a Wky ■aoal totumi by lb* mini of Ibo ouot
aphmlJH atnwton in waatarn Theboa. It conaiitarl af two fortiaDi, a
tampla and a palaea, eaanaetad with each atbar bj a pflan and a
dnxnoa. Tba taopla waa tha vwk of aaoeaaiia monaicfaa of tha naoM
of Thoihmaa, and boioa baa raoaiTad tha nama of tha Thoih■iiatian.
Apgiarantlj thia aita {rand bTonr with tba aamnigna of Aagjpt in all
agaa, ainea, aitber on tha nuun building or an ita noncfou oatworka,
which aatand tooniida tba rivtr, an inacribad tha ■anaa of Tiifaakah
tba Aathit^ian, of Nadanabu, tba kat indapandaot king of Aag^ of
Ptolemy Satar IL, and of Antooiona Pina. Tha original ThatbmaaaioB
oaminaaB manly a aanctoary aornondad by gallarioa and aight
ehamban ; tha additiona to it rapraawl tha tUfiaraot pcrioda of iu
patnna and arehitacta. Tba pakoa of Bamaaaa — tha aantharn
Bamawinn of ChampoUioo— far aieaada in dimanainna and tha
aptandonr of ita daaoratiana tha ThatboMMioa. It aMsda a littla & af
tha tampla, aaanr tha fnt of tha hilla. Tha dramoa which •oonaeta
tham ia S65 ftat in langth. Tba aculptaraa an (ha pjlon nlata l» tha
oanoatkn af Bamaaaa IV. and hia rietarin anr tha Aathiofiana. A
portioo «f Iha aaathani Bamaaainn aaama to hara baan apINfriatad
to tba privata saaa of tha king. Tba Baial daoontiona of thia paction
an of aiagiilaf intoRM, inaamnoh aa thay lapnaant Tfamaara in hia
hoon af fritacy and ncnaiko. Tha walla af tha tontban ffamwaiwi
gnanlly an aorand bath oo tha inaida and tha o«t with npaaaotatiooa
of battlaa, aaorifisaa, nligiooa pnoaaaiana and oanmoniaa, nlating to
tha 18th dynaaty. A plain aaoeaada, hanndad by aand-hilb and hnpa
of Mila-mod. It ia Tariooaly daaaribai by modani tnvdlan aa tha aita
of a noa-eouna, af a camp or bamck, ar an artificial laka, orar which,
aooaiding to Sir Gardnar Wilkinaon, tha daad wan ftmad to tha
naigbbooring nacn^olia. Vhaiarar may ban baan ila pup<*>> ''>■*
V^ ia of eooaidanbla aztant, baing aomawhat laaa than a ■ilt and
half in kngth, and nan than half a mila iabraadth. Tbaoontraat
batwaan tha portka ofThabaaaooo arawdad with tha living, and that
whiafa waa aqoally thrauad with tha daad, ia laaa atiiking naw, when
tba wfaola city ia a daaart or occupied oily by a few Btraggliag
rillagaa. Bat nndar tha Pbaraoha tha ridnity oif Ufa and death moat
ban been moat aolamn aqd axpnaaira. Fnan OowwaA to
MtdimttAhao tiia Libyan hilla, along a curve of nearly 6 milea, an
honey-combed with aepolchna, and winapiffoona among them an
tha Tomfaa rf the Kings, aitnalad in the valley oC Bii-el-Mdook. The
Theban naeropolia ia excavatad in the native calcaiaooB rack. Tha
meaner dead wan inteired in the lower graond, when the limastcn ia
of a aofier grain, and mon aspoeed to deooDpoaition hy wind and
water. Thia portion of the cemetery has, aoeoidingly, fallen into
decay. But the upper and harder atiata af the hilla an of finer and
mon dur•hla textwa^ and hen the priaat>«ai>te and oobleB wan
intarrad. Tha tomba it the lower ordera an generally without
acalptoia, bat filled with mumniaa of animala aceoontad aacnd by
the Aegyptiaoa. A iiwoniiu rwiipaninn is death appaan to have baan
THKBAE ASQTFTL tke apa; and aoA nambaa of lUa aaiigal haia ha
ftnod ia an partka of the neorapolia that Ai lalir oantaining tbair
munmin baan the aame af tlx "Apee' Burial Plaob" Upon the gravw if
tin npper rlaiaaa painting and aeulptaie vo* laraM in a measnn
hardly inferior to that which aiit ikt Bepolehna of the kings. The
entire nek tr tannelled by them, and by the gaileiiea and ataiiaai
which led to the varion cbsmbas. The oitnneea to thna tomba an
rsctangnkr, aid opi iatt paaaagae whioh eithtr pieice thia rock is
itiiiglil linaa, or wind throngh it by aaeending and detoaiing ahafta.
When tba limeatone ia •■ decs ezpioreriL Hen icpoaed tha Thebaa
Fluda Iran the 18th to the Slat dynaaty. Tb ail tomba, hitherto
dieeoverad, eomplate an thaw d AmuDoph UL, HamiieM M«««™nn
and BUM UL To prepan a gmva aeama U> have be* ■• of the dntiee
or pleaanrea of Aegypoaa mp>Ji and ainoe the hmgast aarvivor of
theae nooncki reats in tha most aamptnons tomb^ it nay be iaierred
that the nayority of tham died brfn thg had completed their last
habitation. The qneena of Aegypt wen buried ^eitfins tb kinga, in a
apot about three- finrths of a DSe NV. of the temple of
ifedne(-.d&eo. Eadi of then bam the title of " Wife of Amun,'
indicating eilkc tbat their cooaorta combined with their
pnparnaiaislbet alao of tha great Theban deity, or tbM, ate dealb,
they wen dignified by apotheosia. Tmnty-tar tomba have at preeent
been discovered ia Ibii oeaatny, twel\-e of which an ascertained to
be tbne if the queens. The leaat injured of then by tin« violence
bean tha nama of Taia, wift of AoaaopbllL Oo the eastern bank of
the Nile, the mmuBiaatt ua even mon magnificeoL The villagaa of
£aiar ^ JTaraai occupy a email portion only of tha troe Dietpolia. Tba
miaa at Lmr atand cloaa to tha linrTha aneicDt badiiig fhua wu a
jat^ «f ataai^ <^ Digitized by Google
The text on this page is estimated to be only 24.82%
accurate

THEBAE AEOTPTL ■honrfad faibnaktInoiDTentoftlMitrHin.

The moat nnuurfaible monnmenta an two obdisks of Bameaea UL,
napectiTaly 70 and 60 ftet high, one of which atill nmaiiia there,
while the other haa been remored to the Plam da la Comeardt at
Paria. Their naaqoal height waa partially concealed fhxn the
apectator by the lower obeliak being placed npon the higher
pedeataL Behind them were two monolithal Btatoea of that
maoareh, in red Syenite granite. Theee are now oorered from the
braaat downwarda with mbbieh and flarial depcait, bat were,
originally, inclading their chairs or buea, 89 feet high. Next aocceeda
a ooort, anrroonded by a corridor of double oolotnna, 190 feet long
and 170 bniad. It ia entered throQgh a portal SI feet in height,
whoee pyramidal winga are inacribed with the battlea of Bameeea.
On the oppoaita aide of the coort a aeoond portal, erected by
Amnnoph IIL, opena npon a oolonnada which leads to a amallar
ooort, and this again termioatea with a portico compoaed of fbor
rows of colomna, •igbt in each row. Beyond the third portioo followa
a ctnsiderabla mimber of apartmsntg, flanking a sanctnary on the
walla of which are repreaented the Urth of Amonoph, and hia
preaentation to Arnon. A dromca of (mdro-tpbiiiau, and Tariooa
bnildiaga DOW oonred with sand and dried mad, formerly oonnactad
the quarter of eaatem Thebea, repreaented by Zacot, with that
repreiented by Kamak. Near to the btter plaoe ■ portioo of the
dromoa atill •ziaU, and s little to the right of it a aeoond ibmoa of
orw-fpimxe* brancbea oS^ which mnat ban bean ona of the moat
remarkable stractoraa in the city. It led op to the palace of the kings,
and oonsiatad of a doable row of itatoea, sixty or aerenty in nnmber,
each 1 1 feet distant irom the next, and each having a lion's body
and a nun's head. The SW. entrance of the palace ia a lofl^ portal,
followed by fbor epacioos oonrta with interTsning gatawaya. The
gnndear of the palace ia, in some degree, laeaened by later
additiona to ita plan, for on the i^ht side of the gnat ooort waa a
closter of ■man diambara, while oo ita left were only two
i^aitmeDts. Tlteir ol^jeet ia nnknown, hot they jmhably asrred as
lodgings or cfficea for the loy^ attendanta. In the fiiit of the two
main coorta stand two obeliaka of Thothmea L, one in fragmenta,
the other still eieot and nninjored. In a second court to the right of
the fint, there were two obelisks also : the tne which remaina is 93
feet high. The eldest portion of the palace of Kanak appears to be a
few chambera, and soma polygonal columns bearing the ahield
The text on this page is estimated to be only 21.79%
accurate

II44 THEBAK AEOTPTL TiNbM WM indebtad far iti giwttw

originillj to iti Iniag the principal entrt of Ammao-woriliip, — •
wordiip which, od Uw one hani, camweted it with Mem, and, on Uw
other, with the ialanda of the Libjan daaert The itranfcth which the
Thebaid and ita capital thna acquired not only enabled it to rise
anperior to Abjdoa in the eailier period, bat also to expel the
Aeajrian inraden Cram the Delta. It beonnea than an intereating
qoeetion which qaaiter of Thebea waa ita cradlef Did it apread itaelf
from the eaatetn or the weetera abore of the Nile? Both Diodonia
and Strabo an agreed in placing the * old town,' with ita Ammooian
temple, on the eastern bank of the river; and this aita too waa the
mora accessible of the two, whether ita popolation came from tha
left or, as it ia mors Ukdj thej did, from the right ahon. Between
Luxor ud Kamak lies the claim to be considered as the site of the
earlieet Dioapdia. Mow in the fbrmer place there ia no conapkaona
trace of Ammon •worship, whereaa the latter, in ita ram-beaded
dnmoi, abonnds with symbola * riroi, tbe Upper Coantiy, Pud. ir. iS. §
63), the modem Sait or iVitArof, and was one of the three principal
diriaiona of AegypL Ita frontiere to the & varied accordingly aa
Ae|;ypt or Aetfaiopia preponderated, the Theban Pharaohs at timea
ruling over the region above the Cataiacta as &r S. as Hiara
Sycamina lat. 23° 6' M.; while, at others, the kings of Heroe pUntad
their gairisons N. of Syene, and, at one period, occnpied the
Tfaebais itaelf. Bat the ordinary Itmita of Upper Aegypt were Syene
to S., lat. 34° 5' M.. and HermopoUs Magna to N., lat. 37° 45' M. On
the E. it was bounded by the Arabian, on the W. by the Libyan hills
and deserL As rain ■eldom blla in the Thebsis (Herod, iii. 10), and ax
ita general sarftce is rocky or sandy, the breadth of cnitivahle land
depends on the alluvial deposit of the Mile, and this again is
regulated by the confomiation of the banks on either side. For a
similar cause the population of the Thebaia was mostly gathered into
towns and large villages, both of which are often dignified by ancient
writers with the appellation of cities. But numeroas cities were
incooifatiUe with the pbyaical character of thia rsgion, I TfiEBAE
AEGTPTt anS its popniatien must hne been aOBiaUr below the
eetimate of it by the Greefa and Basu TheThebaiswas divided into
ten namcs(8lnli.xra. pi 787), and oonaeqaently ten halls m the
UlTiiici were appropriated to its Nonarchs. Bat this bbkber apparently
varied with the bonndiries ) tbe sandstone disappeare from the W.
bank d tbe river, and on the E. it extends bnt a littk btiw that city.
Foar miles below Eilithys, tbe Enestone region begins, and stretches
dom seeHj » the apex of the Delta,' descending m tbe Libne side in
temoes to the Hediterrsnean. it <^ point a greater breadth of land is
cultivable, lod s the Arabian hills deep gorgai open towards tbe Bn
Sea, the meet considenble of which sre the nil? that run from
Eilithya in a SE. direelioD to B«nice, and from Coptoa, past the
porphyry qonisi toCasseiron theBed.Sea. The tanks and atatiu for the
carevans which the Theban Pbanebe a tbe Ptolemies constructed in
these valleys an still «» aionally found buried in the sand. At
Latopob> ibi Nile-valley is nearly 5 milea wide, but it is >!»>
contracted by the rocks at Gebdem, where, ens; >• the precipitous
character of the banks, tbe road qiiiS> the river and croeaea tbe
eeatem desert to HennubO' The next material expansion of the Nile-
v>ll<7 ■ at the plain of Thebee. At this point both ebeioi of hills
curve boldly away from the river, and le>n an area of more than 5
milee in lei^ sal 3 a breadth. At the northern extremity cf this pi^
the banks again contract, and at GemnA m ahuost close to tha Mile^
Be-opesiag H>i>i '^ Digitized by Google
The text on this page is estimated to be only 29.55%
accurate

TflEBAE AEQTPTL borders of the Btr«*m as far aa

Hermopolis Uagna, the northern boundarj of the Thebaid, generally
extend inland on the E. side abont one mile and a half, on the W.
aboat two miles. They do not indeed obserre an unbroken line, bat
the allanal sdl, where the months of the collateral valleys permit,
occaaionally stretches mach farther into the eonntry. Canals and
dykes in the Phaiaonic period admitted and retained the Nile's
deposit to an extent nnknown either in Grecian, Roman, or modem
eras. Seen from tlie rirer the Thebaid, in the flonrishing periods of
Aegypt, presented a wide and animated spectacle of cultivation and
industry, wherever the banks admitted of room for cities or villages.
Of the scenery of the Nile, its teeming popnlation and mnltitndinons
rirer-craft, mention has already been made in the article NiLVS.
Among many others, the following objects were beheld I7 those who
travelled from Syene to Hermopolis. At first the general uppearanoe
of the shores is barren and dreary. Koum-Ombot, the ancient Ombi,
woald first arrest attention by the brilliant colonrs of its temples,
and, at certain seasons of the year, by the festivals held in hononr of
the crocodile-headed deity Sevak. At times also, if we may credit the
Soman satirist (Juvenal, Sat xv.}, the shore at OmM was the scene
of bloody frays with the crocodile exterminators from Tentyra.
Sixteen miles below Ombi was tha seat of the special worship of the
Nile, which at this pnnt, owing to the escarped form of its sandstone
banks, admits of a narrow road only on either aide^ and seems to
occupy the whole breadth of Aegypt. Here too, and on the eastern
bank especially are the vast quarries of stone which supplied the
Theban architects with their durable and beautiful materials. Various
landing-pUoes from the river gave access to those quarries: the
names of successive sovereigns and princes of the xviiith dynasty,
their wars and triumphs, are recorded on the rocks; and blocks of
stone and monolithal shrines an still visible in their galleries. Ihe
temples of Apollinopolis Magna (£((^), the hypogaea of EUithya,
Thebes occupying either bank, Ooptoe, long the seat of Aegyptian
commerce with India, the temples of Athor and Isis at Tentyra, the
month of the ancient branch of the Nile, the canal of Jv*itf at
Diospolia Parva, the necropolis of Abydoa, near which mna tha
highroad to the greater Oasis, the linen-works and stone-masons'
yards of Chemmia or Panopolis (£Mni>h), the sepulchral chambers
at Lycopolis, and, finally, the superb portico of Hermopolis Magna, all
evince, within a compass of about 380 nulea, the wealth, enterprise,
and teeming population of Upper Aegypt. The vegetation of this
region announces the approach to the tropica. The productions of
the desert, Btonted shmbs and trees, reeemble those of the Arabian
and Libyan wastes. But wherever the Nils fertilises, the trees and
plants bebng nther to Aethacqna than to the lower country. The
sycamore nearly disappears: the Theban palm and the date-palm
take its place. The btus (JVympAoea Latm and Ifj/mphtwa coervfea)
is aa abundant in the Thebais aa the pspyms in the Delta. It is the
symbol of the Upper Land : its blue and white cupe enliven the pools
and canals, and representations <^ them furnished ■ ftequent and
graceful ornament to architecture. Ita bolb affinded a plentiful and
nutritious diet to the poorer classes. The deserts of the Thebais,
which in Christian times swarmsd with monaateries aod bstmitagea,
caitaimid th^ wolf, hyaena, and THEBAG 30E0TIAE. 1145 jackal :
but tlie larger carnivorous animals of Libya were rarely seen in
Aegypt. (Herod, n. 65.) In the Pharaonic times the hippopotamns
was found in the Nile below the Cataracts : more recently it has
seldom been found N. of them. The crocodile, being an object of
warship in several of the Thebao nomea, was doubtiess more
abnndant than it is now. From both papyri and scnlptnrss we know
that the Theban landowners possessed homed cattle and sheep in
abundance, although they kept the latter for their wool and milk
principally; uid the chariots of Thebes attest the breeding and
training of hones. From extant drawings on the monnments we
know also that horticulture was a &vourite occupation in Upper
Aegypt. The population of the Thebus was pnbsbly of a purer
Aegyptian stamp than that of tiie Delta ; at least ita admixtures were
derived from Arabia or Meroe rather than fnm Phoenicia or Greece.
Its revolutions, too, proceeded firom the south, and it was
comparatively nnaffieted by those of the Lower Country. Even as late
as the age of Tiberius, A.i>. 14 — 37, the land was pnsperons, as is
proved by the extension and restoration of so many of its public
monnments ; and it was not until the reign of Diocletian that ita ruin
was consummated by the inroad of the Blemmyes, and other
barbarous tribes frem Nubia and the Anbian deeert. [W. B. D.]
THEBAE (e^Soi, orig. e^tfi). Dor. e^Sa : Etk. BtiScuos, fern. Bifiats,
Thebanus, fern. Thebais), the chief city in Boeotia, wss situated in
the southern plain of the country, which is divided £mn the northern
by the ridge of Onchestus. Both these plains are surroundnl by
mountains, and contained for a long time two separate
confederacies, of which Orchomenus in the north and Thebes in the
sonth were the two leading cities. L Hnrroirr. No i»ty in Greece
possessed such Icog oontinoed odebrity as Thebes. Athens and
Sparta, which were the centres of Grecian political life in the
historical period, wen poor in mythical renown; while Argoe and
Mycenae, whose mythical annala are full rf glorious recollections,
sank into comparative insignificance in historical times, and Mycenae
indeed was blotted out of the map of Greece soon aflar the Persian
wars. Bnt in the mythical ages Thebes shone pre-eminent, while in
hUer times she always maintuned her place aa the third city of
Greece; and after the battle of Lenctra was for a short period the
ruling dty. The most celebrated Grecian legends diuter round Thebes
as their centre; sod her two sieges, and the fortanes of her royal
honses, were tha &vaarite subjects of the trsgio muse. It was the
native city of the great seer Turesias and of the great musician
Amphion. It wae the reputed birthplace of the two deities Dionysus
snd Hercniee, whence Thebes is said by Sophocles to be " the only
dly where mortal women are the mothere of gods (ol Hi /jiAifoy
rUtrowruf al dnfrat dce^s, Fragm. €ga. Dicasaroh, § 17, ad. Hliller;
Mure, Tow m Greece, vol. L p. 853.) According to the generally
received tradition, Thebes was founded by Cadmus, the leader of a
Phoenician colony, who called the dty Cadheia (KoSftela), a name
which was afterwards confined to the dtadel. In the Odyssey,
Amphion and Zethus, the two ;ons of Antiope by Zens, ate
represented as the first fouaden (^ Thebes and the ficst Digitized by
Google
The text on this page is estimated to be only 5.88%
accurate

IIM THIBAB BOIOTUS. WUntriliiralli. (MxLMS.)

BntUialeso(■uhm fluid Amphioo taA Ziliini hmtr down U tt» mhm, M
w thril yatmtljma. Thmitpoit •■■Hltd wtth Uh fbnodatMO of the city
bj Cadimu mtwa^HiOmmhtn. [Diet. <^ Biogr. md ilgA. «t.CAiMniB.]
Tba fin S|«iti, who WW* the only ■■Tn«B of tt* WHiion ipniag Aon
th« dnwcn'o tHth, «■• tk* npnlod ueoaton of the nobkat tmSim m
Tkahoi, which bon ths hum of Sputi Amm *• th* klnt tiMi. It it
pnbaUo that the amtaf liairfMaliMgnvorigiBtDth* bhlaof the •nh( «r
Ihi dnpaV tMtk It appHn cirttto «lMth(«%iid jihiMtiKt of Thebes won
calkd o^Hi jErtii'ii, a. it. tan, a»i, *. 807, >. aw. Oi. xi. S7«) «
OiloiiMW (IUMmwi. /nhaieB Wmiieo. aad ' 1 an thaaaaa ai the
Wolekv Mdii te «eO wttflNaaeiitoQnecaL (MUkr, Wiii imii. pi
::i«^aeded.: TlMwdl, JKtf. V a«n, voL \».:::^ > ■
eiilM.hiiiiB.t»Mi»lBte the trf aalject THEBiAE BCffiOflUL OailM Jan
trnffly, «a it if *iafc ■ ^iHf. aad ha* has intamna by thi bfi^ifbn ak
the eerim of the Cadnou ^te. horiiv coocile the Bomorie aenoat af
ibe hi^^ ta a^byAmyWiaiandZethaairiathweifij* le^gnd of ita
fwindatiiii by Putai, f «y» aeatad by later WTitenth«,«Ue Um^bk tha
Cadmaa, AmpkinaadZiibaWileW city (rV x^'ur tV '^n''), aadpwaaeW
citytheaainearTfaebeB. CFkeaii.S.$§I,l After Amphiiai aad Zetbt%
Uiai kat is ofThrfn; and with Imat^aambanr Btny of Oedipus aad hia
foi^.aiiA a k n known to need repalitian hm. TksOi£|e(>. exiMlied
from Tlwbea, aftv diwawjn da a « maidered hie fetiier Laiiis ad i — '-
^ b ocJoeaata, hia two aoas Eirsda mi hrtn qnatieUed ftr their fiths^
ibHae. IbEuee led to the two Bagcs of TMei \h ^ i^ Mrestos, two of
themsst iiaimiHi iiiiii i legcadaiy history of Gnsce. Thiyiaailai^:jeetof
the twoefae iim mi, ealM ibTntKB the Epigooi, which wen tamdtai
arirav the Biad aad the OdyniiT. Frijankknc': drieaa ool of Tbebee by
Eteoda^ ntie *Land obtains tiie aid cf Admtes, ibe be i:city, to
iiiaatele tarn m his liEbai' FM« a. Adnstea an joined by fisa eibv bsiA
ac: the eoidadeney knowa aader tbi aae «' " Sana ^ninab Tkehaa.*
Ibe aaa tf » ■sieAv S-«l: tM-iLS-JU: W. Ck. CB.) Ik Imm that has Mn '
1 iTn III I -'"— • k^ Bto. V Aml ad- ti"' Digitized by Google
The text on this page is estimated to be only 26.74%
accurate

THEBAE BOKOTIAB. Tbera ie another iinpartant event in

the mytbic*! times of Tfaebea, which wu not interwoven with the
aeries of the legends klread/ reUted. This is the birth of Hercnles at
Thebes, and tlie important services which he rendered to his native
city bj liia war against Orchomenus. It was stated that tiie Thebans
were compelled to pay tribute to Erj;inni, linf; of Orchomenos; but
that they were delivered from the tribata by Hercnles, who marched
againet Orchamenas,and greatly reduced its power (Paus. iz. 37. §
2; Strabi ix. p. 414 ; Diod. iv. 18). This legend has probably ariaan
from the historiisal fact, that Orcbomenos wsa at one time the most
powerful city in Boeotia, and held even Thebes in aubjectioa. Tbebea
is 6reqiunt1y mentioned in Homer, who speaks of its celebrated
seven gates (_IL iv. 406, Od. zi. S63); but its name does not occur in
the catalogue of the Greek cities which fought against Troy, as it was
probably supposed not to have recovered from its recent devastation
by the Epigoni. Lat«r writers, however, related that Thenaoder, the
son of Folynicas, accompanied Agamemnon to Troy, and was slain in
Hysia by Telephus, before the commencement of the siege; and that
upon bis death the Thebans chose Feneleos as their leader, in
oonaequence of the tender age of Tisamenus, the son of Thenander.
(Pans. iz. 5. §§ 14, 15.) In the Iliad (ii. 494) Feneleos is mentioned
as one of the leaders of the Boeotians, but is not otherwise
connected with Thebes. Aocording to the ehronology of Tbncydidea,
the Cadmeians coutinsed in possessian of Thebes till 60 years after
the Trojan War, when they were driven ont of their city and oonntry
by the Boeotians, an Aeolian tribe, who migiated from Tbessaly.
(Thoci. 13; Strab. ix. f. 401.) This seems to have been the genuine
tiaditioD ; but as Homer gives the name of BoeoUana to the
inhabitants of the conntry called Boeotia in later times, Thncydides
endeavoars to reoanoile the authority of the poet with the other
tradition, by the suppositiaD that a portion of the Aeolio Boeotiuis
had settled in Boeotia previously, and that these were the Boeotians
who sailed against Troy. According to other aooooiits, Thebes was
taken by the Tluaciaaa and Pelaagians during the Trojan War, and its
inhabitants driven into ezile in Theasaly, whence they returned at a
later piriod. (Strab. iz. PL 401 ; Diod. ziz. 58,) Paosanias gives us a
list of the kings of Thebes, the suoeeaaors of Tiaamenne, till the
kingly dignity was abolished and a republic established in its place
(iz. 5. § 16). But, with the ezoeption of oneevent, we know
ainolutely nothing of Theban hiatoiy, till the dispute between Thebea
and Phtae* in the latter end of the aizth oenlniy b. c. The event to
which we allude ii the legislation of PhiloUns, the Corinthian, who
was enamoured of Diocles, also a Cotiothiao, and the vietor in the
Olymioan games, B. o. 738. Both Philolaus and Diodes left their
native oity and settled at Thebes, where the fonner drew up a code
of laws for the Tbebaas, ef which one or two particnian are
rocotiooed by Aristotle. (,PoL ii 9. §§ 6, 7.) At the time when Thebes
first appears in history, we find it under an oligarchical (nin of
government and the head of a political oonfiedsratiou of some
twelve or foartasn Boeotian eitie*. The greater cities of Boeotia were
members of this confederation, and the amaller towns were attached
to one or other of these oitiM in a (tat* of dapeodeoce.
[BoBoxu,p.419.J THEBAE BOEOTIAE. mr The a&irs of the
oonfederation were managed by certain magistrates or generala,
called Boeotarchs, of whom there were eleven at the time of the
battle of Delimn (b. c 434). two being elected by Thebes, and one
apparently by each of the other members of the confeoenition
(Thnc. iv. 91). But the real authority was vested in the hands of the
Thebans, who used the power of the confederation with an almcst
exclusive view to Theban interests, i)nd kept the other states in
virtual sobjecUon. The first well-known event ' in Grecian history ia
the dispute, already mentioned, between Thebes and Plataea. The
Flataeans, diicontented with the supremacy of Thebe., withdrew
from the Boeotian confederation, and surrendered their city to the
Athenians. This led to a war between the Thebana and Athenians, in
which the Thebans were defeated and compelled to cede to the
Pbtaeana the territory S. of the Asopua, which was made the
bonndaiy between the two states. (Herod, vi, 108; Thnc iii. 68.) The
interference of Athena upon this occasion was bitterly resented by
Thebes, and was the commencement of the long enmity between
the two states, which exercised an important influence npon the
conm of Grecian history. This event is usually placed in B.c. 519,
upon the authori^ of Thucydides (I. c); but Mr. Grota brings forward
strong reasons for believing that it must have taken place after the
expulsion of Hippies from Athena in B. c. 510. (flit (/ Greece, vol. iv.
p. 822.) The hatred which the Thebans felt against the Athenians
was probably one of the reasons which induced them to desert the
cause of Grecian liberty in the great struggle against the Feraian
power. But in the Faloponneaian War (b.o. 427) the Theban orator
pleaded that their alliance withFenia was not the fimlt of the nation,
bat of a few individuals who then exerdsed deapotie power. (Thnc.
iii. 63.) At the battle of FhOasa, however, the Thebans showed no
such reluctance, but fbnght reeolntely i^ainst the Athenians, who
were posted q)posite to them. (Herod, iz. 67.) Eleven days aftar the
batUe the victorious Greeks appeared before Thebea, and compelled
the inhabitants to surrender their aiedtn^ leaders, who were
immediately put to death, without any trial or other investigation.
(Herod, iz. 87, 88.) Thebea had lost so mnch credit by the part she
had taken in the Persian invasion, that she was unable to assert her
former snpremaoy over the other Boeotian towns, which were ready
to enter into alliance with Atheps, and would doobtleaa have
established their complete independence, had not Sparta supported
the Thebans in maintaining thnr ascendancy in the Boeotian
confederation, as the only means of securing the Boeotian cities as
the allies of Sparta against Athens. With this view the Spartans
assisted the Thebana in strengthening the fortifications of their city,
and compelled the BoaetiaB dtin by force of arms to acknowledge
the supremacy of Thebes. (Diod. zi. 81; Justin, iii. 6.) In B.G. 457
the Athenians sent an army into Boeotia to oppose the
Lacedaemonian finnes in that conntiy, but they were defeated by the
latter near Tanagra. Sixty-two days after this battle (B.a 456), when
the Lacedaemonians had returned home, the Athenians, under the
command of Uyrooidee, mvaded Boeotia a second time. This time
they met with the most signal success. At the battle of Oenophyta
they defeated the combined forces of the Thebans and Boeotians,
and obtained in opnaequence fosieatioD of Tbebes and ol Digitized
by Google
The text on this page is estimated to be only 20.38%
accurate

1IM TBKBAK BOGOTIAfi. th* othw Bowlian town*. A

dtmcorataal tarn of goTwnmnt wm utmbluiMd in the diflianiit eitiea,
and the oli|;wchieal loden were driven into exile (Thae. L 108; Diod.
xi. 81.) Thi* itete of tbinf^ luted buvlj Ian jnn; the democnuj
atablisheid mt Tbeine wu ili-oondacted (Arist. PoL r. 2. S S); end io
B.a 447 the rariooa Boaotjaa ezilee, oombioing their forces, nude
thenuelTea nuuten of OrehenMBDi, Cheeraneia, and some other
plaoes. The Atheniui eent an annjr into Boeotia nnder the wnnund of
Tolmidee; bnt this genrral waa sUin in hattle, together with nunj of
his men, while a still larger Bomber were taken priaonerB. To noorer
these priaoaars, the Athenians agreed to rslinqnish thar power orer
Thebea and the other Boeotian eitiea. The demoeratieal
goremments were oreithrown; the •ailaa were rastoi'ed ; and
Thebea again became the bitter aosnij of Athens. (Thno. L 113, iii.
6S; Diod. xii. 6.) The Thefaans were indeed more antiAtbaniao than
were the Spartans themaelres, and wen the first to commenee the
Peloponnesian War if their attempt to surprise FUtaea in the night,
B.a 441. The histoiy of this attempt, and of the ■absaqnaot aiege
and eaptnn of the citj, bdongs to the hist«7 cf Plataea. rPl.i.TAXA.]
Thranghoat the Peloponnesian War the Thebana continued the
•Gtive and bitter enemies of the Athenians ; and upon ill dots aftsr
the battle of Aegoipatami tbejr joined the CorintUans in urging the
Lacedaemonians to tetnjr Athaot, and sell its popnlatioii into slarery.
(Xen. All, ii. S. § 19.) Bat sow after this event the feelings of the
Tbebans towards Athens became materiallr changed in oonteqaenoe
of their jealoosj of Sparta, who had refuted ths allies all perticipation
in the spoilt ef the war, and who now openly aspired
tothetopcemtcyofGrsece. (Plot Zfis. S7 ; Justin, tL 10.) They
oonaequently viewed with boatility the Thir^ Tyrants at Athens aa
the topporters of the Spartan power, and gaTe a (Keodly wefcome to
the Athenian exilst. It was from Thebea that Thrssyboloi and the
other exilea atarted npon their enterprise of seising the Peiraeena;
and they were snpported upon this oocaaion by Ismenias and other
Thefaan dtizena. (Xen. HtU. iL 4. § a.) So important waa the
assistance rendered by the Thebans on this ooeanon that
Tbasybulns, after hia snoeeea, showed hit gratitude by dedicating in
the temple of Hercnlea ooloasal statnea of this god and Athena.
(Pans. ix. n. § 6.) The hostile feeUnga of Thebea towards Sparta
continued to increase, and aooo produced the most important
resnlts. When Agenkns was erossing orer into Asia in B.C. 397, in
order to carry on war against the Peniana, the Thebana refused to
take any part in the expedition, and they mdely interrupted
Agesilans when be was in tlie act of oSering taciificea at Aulis, in
imitatian of Agamemnon;—an insult which the Spartan king never
forgave. (Xen. Bell iii. 5. § 5; Pint. At/n. 6; Paus. iiL 9. §§ 3 — 5.)
During the aheeiMe of Agetilant in Aua, Tithranstes, the satrap of
Asia Minor, tent an envoy to Greece to diatribnta large sums of
money among the leaduig men in the Gredan cities, in order to
persuade them to make war against Sparta. But liefore a coalition
oonld be fbraied fbr this purpose, a separate war bn^e ont between
Thebes and Sparta, called by Diodomt (xiv. 81) ths Boeotian war. A
quarrel having aiiten between the Opnntian Locrians and the
Pfaociana respecting a strip of border land, the Thabaos espoused
the cause of ths former and THEBAE BOEOTIAN invadsd Phoeia.
Thereupon the Phodus isvdii the aid of the Lacedaananians, wbs
wen deli(tilri to have an opportunity of avenging the tSttat they had
received from the Thebans. (Xn. M iii. 5. §§ 3 — S; Pans. iii. 9. § 9.)
TbeL»iiaemonians made acUve prepantions to iindt Booiii Lysander,
who had been fornnost is fnmitf the war, was to lay siege to
HaSartns, mda tie walls of which town Pansanias was to jdi Im a a
given day with the nnited Lacedaomiim nd Prloponnesian {nrcea.
Thus menaced, the TMrn applied for assistance to their sndent
enemiai, tl> Atheniana, who readily responded to tbcir tffti, though
their city was still nndefeoded bjr nik dI they had no ships to resist
the msritime pov i Sputa. (Xen. Hett. iiL 5. § 16; Dem. deOr.f. SS8.)
Orchonnnua, however, seised the tffittariij to revolt from Thebes,
and joined Ijnsls in his attack upon Haliartna. (Xen.A£Ei S 17; Pint
Lyt. S8.) The death of Lnnis nnder the walla of Haliartna, which was
bDmi ^ the retreat of I^osanias fhim Boeotia, enUiiffii the enemiee
of Bpaita ; and not only Atheei. ha Corinth, Argoa, and some of tin
other Gnoaftiia joined Thebet in a leagne against Sfsits. b tt<
following year (b. a S94) tix war was tnnfan! to the territory of
Corinth ; and so poiraftl •« the oonfaderatea that the
I^oedsenionisnt mS^ Agtsihua from Asia. In the nxnth ef Anal
Agesilaua reached Boeotia on his hooienni mx^ and found the
confederate anny dren sp ii tit pbun of Coraosia to oppoae him. Ths
li^ •>( and centre of hia anny were victorunt, bit t^ Thebans
comidetely defieated the OtdauBa. who formed the left wing. The
victorioa Tlsi^ now bced about, in order to regain the net of i^
army, which bad retreated to Moont Hdcffi. Agesilans advanced to
meet them; and the cesSf which entned was one of the most itnilie
iba bad yet taken place in Gredan mrfus. TV Thebans at length
sncoeeded in bnaf tbemT thraogh, but not withont great loss. This
•« >^ first time that the Thebana had iinglit s fitcW battle with the
SparUns; and ths viloir vli«^ thej showed on this occasion was a
pnliide tt i^ vietociea which wen aoon to overthrew the SpBiB
sopnma^ in Gneoe. (Xen. BA 'f. i- § 15— SI.) We hava dwelt npoD
theee events MSoevW •> length in order to explain the rise of the
Ti^ power; bnt the subaeqnent history mast be i^e"" mcrebriefly.
After the battle of Oonmis the mi" of events appssrad at first to
deprive Thel» rf i^ sacendency she had lately acquired. The pan'
Antalddas (B.a 387), which was randoded v^ the influence of
Sparta, gnartnteed the indepeiiiiaa rf all the Grecian dtiea ; and
though theThl^ first claimed to take the oath, not in thoron >^
alone, but for the Boeotian oonfedency is !">">'< they wen
compelled by their enemy Agesilast} swear to the treaty for their
own dty sloae, iuo otherwise they would have had to eoitend a>i^
handed with the whde power of Sparta oi ^ allia. (Xen. BelL ▼. 1.
§§ 32. 33.) By tbii «ik the Thebans virtually renounced their »»F^
over the Boeotian dtiee; and Agesilaas batfaes » stert all the Spartan
power fir the jaf* ' weakening Thebes. Not only was tbs indepeadote
of the Boeotian dtiea predainied, and a legal (£^T organised in each
dty hostile to Thebes sad ft"*^ aUe to Sparta, hut i— »—-"-« ~itiMa
»■• Digitized by Google
 THEBAS BOEOTIAE. sUtionad in Oichonwaiu and Thospiae
for th« parpoae of OTenwing Boeotui,4Uid the city of FUtua wu
rebuilt to aerre a« an oatpoet of the Spartan power. (Fana. ix. I. §
4). A more direct blow vaa aimed at the independence of Thebea in
b. c. 388 by the aeizure of the Cadmeia, the citadel of the dtj, by the
Spartan commander, Fhoebidas, assisted by Leontiadee and a party
in Thebes favoarabla to Sparta. Though Fhoebidas appears to hare
acted nndar secret orders from the Ephors (Diod. xr. SO; Plat. Agetii
24), soch was the indignation excited tfarongbont Greece by this
treacherona act in time of peace, that the Ephors fonnd it necegaaiy
to disavow Fhoebidas and to remore him from his command; bot
they took cars to lei^ the froits of hia crime by retaining their
ganrison in the Cadmeia. (Sen. HiU. v. 2. § 23.) Many of the leading
dtizeng at Thebea took tefoge at Athena, and were received with the
same kindneaa which the Athenian exiles experienced at Thebea
after the close of the Feloponneeian War. Thebea remained in the
hands of the Spartan party for three yean ; bnt in B. c. 379 the
Spartan garrison was expelled from the Cadmeia, and the party of
Leontiades OTerthrowo by Pelc^idas and the other exiles. The
faistoiy of tbeee events is too well known to be repeated hen. In the
following year (b. c. 378) Thebes formed an allianoe with Athens,
and with the assistance of this state resisted with succeea the
attempts of the Lacedaemonians to reduce them to subjection; but
the continued increase of the power of the Thebans, and their
destruction e f the city of Plataea [Flataea] provoked the jealousy of
the Athenians, and finally induced them to conclude a treaty of
peace with Sparta, B.C 371. This treaty, nsually called the peace of
Callias from the name of the leading Athenian negotiator, included all
the parties in the late war with the exception of the Thebana, who
were thus left to contend single-handed with the might of Sparta. It
was nniversally believed that Thebes was doomed to destmctioo; but
only twenty days after the signing of the treaty all (jraeoe was
astounded at the news that a Lacedaemonian army had been utterly
defeated, and their king Cleombrotns slain, by the Thebans, under
the command of Epamioondas, npon the &tal field of Lenctra (b. c.
371). This battle not only destroyed the prestige of Sparta and gave
Thebes the ascendency of Greece, bat it stript Sparta of her
Peloponnesian allies, over whom she had exercised donuiiion for
oenturiee, and led to the eatablishmeot of two new political powers
in the Feloponneeus, which threatened her own independence.
These were the Arcadian confederation and the restoration of the
state of Messenia, both the work of Epaminondaa, who conducted
four expeditions into Peloponnesus, and directed the councils of
Thebes for the next 10 years. It was to the abilities and genins of
this extraordinary inan that Thebes owed her position at the head o[
the Grecian states; and upon his death, at the battle of Maiitiiiela (b.
c. 362), she lost the pre-eminence she had enjoy«l since the battle
of Lenctn. During their supremacy in Greece, the Thebana were of
coarse undisputed masters of Boeolia, and they availed themselves
of their power to wreak their vengeance upon Orchomenns and
Theepiae, the two towns which had been the most inimical to their
aathority, the one in the north and the other in the ■oath of Boeolia.
The Orchomenians had in b. c. 395 openly joined the Spartans and
fought oo their mde; and the Thespians bad withdrawn from the
THEBAE BOEOTIAE. 1149 Theban army jnst bafon the battle of
Leuctra, when Epaminondaa gave permisnon to any Boeotians to
retire who were averse to the Theban carua, (Pans, ix. 13. $ ^.) The
Thespians were expelled from their city and Boeotia soon after the
battle of Leuctra [Thesplab]; and Orchomenns in b. c. 368 was burnt
to the ground by the Thebans; the male inhabitants ware put to the
sword, and all the women and chiUrsn ddd into shivei7.
[ObchoMmnw.] The jeakosy which Athens had folt towards Thebes
before the peace of Callias bad been greatly increased by her
subssquent victories ; and the two states appear henceforward in
their old condition of hostility till they were persnaded by
Demosthenes to imite their arms for the porpoee of misting Philip of
Hacedon. After the battle of Uantineia their first open war was for
the poesession of Euboea. After the battle of Lenctra this islsnd had
passed under the supremacy of Thebes; but, in B.C. 358, discontent
having arisen against Thebes in several of the cities of Enboea, the
Thebans sent a powerful fura into the isUnd. The discontented cities
applied for aid to Athens, which was readily granted, and the
Thebans were expelled from Enboea. (Diod. xvi, 7 ; Dem. (fa
Chorion, p. 108, da Cor. p. 259, c Ciei^k. p. 397.) Shortly afterwards
the Thebana commanctd the war against the Phocians, usually
known as the Sacred War, and in which almost all the leading states
of Greece were eventually involved. Both Athens snd Sparta
supported the Phodans, as a coimterpcnse to Thebes, thongh they
did not reuder them much effectnal assistance. This war terminated,
as is well known, by the intervention of Philip, who destroyed the
Fhocian towns, snd restored to Boeotia Orchomenns and the other
towns which the Phocians bad taken away from them, b. c. 346. Tbs
Thebans were still the allies of Philip, when the lattsr seized Elateia
in Phocis towards the dose of b.o. 339, as preparatory to a march
throngh Boeotia against Athens, The old feeling of ill-will betweea
Thebes and Athens still oontinnsd: Philip calculated npon the good
wiahes, if not the active co-operation, of the Thebans agamst their
old enemies ; and probably never dreamt of a confederation
between tha two states as within the range of probability. This
union, however, was bnnght about by the eloquence of
Demosthenes, who was sent ss ambassador to Thebea, and who
persnaded the Thebans to form an alliance with the Athenians for
the purpose of resiEting the ambitious schemes of Philip. In the
following year (b. o. 338) Philip defeated the combined forcee of
Thebes and Athens at the battle of Cbaeroneia, which crashed the
liberties of Greece, and made it in reality a province of the
Macedonian monarchy. On this fatal field the Thebans maintained
the reputation they had won in their battles with the Spartans ; and
their Sacred Band was cat to pieces in their ranks. The battle was
followed by the surrender of Thebes, which Philip treated with great
ssverity. Many of the leading citizens were either banished or pnt to
death ; a Ibcedonian garrison was stationed in the Cadmeia; and the
government of the city was placed in the hands of 300 dtizens, the
partisans of Fhilipi The Thebana were also deprived of their
sovereignty over the Boeotian towna, and Orchomenns and Plataea
were restored, and again filled with a popuktion hostile to Thebes.
(Diodor. xvi. 87; Jnstin, ix. 4; Pans. iv. 87. | 10, ix. 1. § 8.) In the
Welcome to our website – the perfect destination for book lovers and
knowledge seekers. We believe that every book holds a new world,
offering opportunities for learning, discovery, and personal growth.
That’s why we are dedicated to bringing you a diverse collection of
books, ranging from classic literature and specialized publications to
self-development guides and children's books.

More than just a book-buying platform, we strive to be a bridge

connecting you with timeless cultural and intellectual values. With an
elegant, user-friendly interface and a smart search system, you can
quickly find the books that best suit your interests. Additionally,
our special promotions and home delivery services help you save time
and fully enjoy the joy of reading.

Join us on a journey of knowledge exploration, passion nurturing, and

personal growth every day!

textbookfull.com