Volume 1

A universal geographical dictionary; or, grand gazetter. Of general, special, antient and modern geography: including a comprehensive view of the various countries of Europe, Asia, Africa, and America; more especially of the British dominions and settlements throughout the world ... / by Andrew Brice.

  • Andrew Brice
Date:
1759
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A universal geographical dictionary; or, grand gazetter. Of general, special, antient and modern geography: including a comprehensive view of the various countries of Europe, Asia, Africa, and America; more especially of the British dominions and settlements throughout the world ... / by Andrew Brice. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    753/778 (page 729)
    5 Months took Jerufalem, with A Alliance of Soft us the Ro nan General. In Year bef. Xt. 37. he became abfolutely King of Judma. In Year bef. Xt. 31. a terrible Earthquake in this City deftroy’d a vaft Number of People, Cattle, Ac. In Year 30. this Herod went to Odlawus at Rhodes, offering Service againft Anthony ; and at Ptolemais treated him and his whole Army with great Magnificence and Prefents; and prefented him with 800 Talents in Money, befides Bread, Wine, (Ac. for his Army. This engaging Conduct quite gained Oflavius to him. In Year bef. Xt. 23. Herod having by Cruelty procur’d the Peoples Diflike, he fortified the Ci¬ ty, (Ac. for his Security. But in Yr. bef. Xt. 21. to ingra¬ tiate himfelf with ’em, he, in a fet Speech, propofed to pull down the 2d Temple, and to rebuild it equal or fuperior to the 1 ft; and, to convince them, engag’d alfo to have all the Materials ready upon the Spot before he pull'd down the old one. They confenting, he immediately fet 10,000 Men to work under Direction of 1000 Priefts; and 1000 Carts were employ’d in fetching Materials. So much Expedition was ufed, that in 2 Years Time they began to pull the old one down; and in but one Year and half more the Carcafe of the new one was erefted in a moft fumptuous Maimer, and in 8 Years the whole finifh’d for Ufe. In Year bef. Xt. 7. the Temple being finifhed, he caufed it to be dedicated with great Solemnity.——In the Year of or after Chrift 26, Pon¬ tius Pilate was made Governor of Jud.ra, and had confe- quently his Refidence in this its chief City. What pafs’d during his Government to An 37. the Scripture tells enough. In the Yr. of Xt. 37. Caligula gave Agrippa (Son of Arijlo* bulus, and Grandfon of Herod the Great aforefaid), whom Ti¬ berius had imprifon’d, his Liberty, and the Tetrarchy of his late Uncle Philip, with Title of King. Which good Fortune of Kingfhip being envied by Herod Antipas, Tetrarch of Ga¬ lilee (he who had beheaded John the Baptijl, 8c bef. whom it was that Christ appear’d), he went to Rome to folicit the like Favour; but by K. Agrippa's Management he was, in- ftead thereof, ftripp’d of his Tetrarchy, after enjoying it 43 Years, and fent Prifoner to Lyons in France, and it and his Treafure bellow’d upon Agrippa. Emp. Claudius further pro¬ moted Agrippa, A. D. 49. He fpent great Sums in rebuil¬ ding, beautifying, and llrengthening, a new Quarter of the N. Side of JcruJalem, intending to wall it in; but was for¬ bid by Claudius. He began to perfecute the Chrijlians by beheading James the lefs. Of his Speech it was that the People cried, 'Twas the Voice of God, and not of Man. He dying, Claudius turn’d the Kingdom again into a Roman Pro¬ vince; of which, in 53, Claudius Felix was made Governor in room of Ventidius Cumanus, who had fucceeded Alexander. The Land then fwarm’d with Robbers, Banditti, and Sica- rii, who committed horrid Murders even in the Temple it- felf. An. Dorn. 59. Fejlus fucceeded Felix, and Paul was 8 Y J & ft ysp brought before him, (Ac. (At. In Yr. 60. tefi us being de.tdj and Ananias, a proud Sadducee, having been £ iva .ccd to tile Priellhood by Agrippa, he Hon’d St. James, Ac. Delore that Albinus the new Governor could come. The Robbers now grew more and more defperately wicked. To be full fhort at once, the Jews abfolutely revolted; and thereupon Fins and Sword began to rage dreadfully, and went On raging horribly, under Zacharies! and Eleazar, who enter’d Jeru¬ falem, and garrifon’d the Temple, Ac. An. Vein. 67. Ve* fpafian the Roman General enter’d Judaea with Upwards of 60,000 difeiplin’d Men ; vvhofe various Tranfaftiohs there we mull pretermit. The feveral Parties of the Zealots form’d againft one another in this City interchangeably deftroy’d by Thoufands, committing the moft horrid Cruelties, Ac. imaginable. The Body of the Jews were, moft of them, for fubmitting immediately; but the Zealots would not hear of any Accommodation whatfoever, and murther’d, Ac. all Oppofers. One Party of them let in 20,000 Idumeans, who tortur’d and murther’d vaft Numbers, of whom 12000 were Perfons of Diftinftion. John of Gifchala [See GIS- CHALA] within, and. Simon without (now become 2 princi¬ pal Leaders of the Zealot Faftions), deftroy’d all that came in the Way. An. 70. Vefpafian, being himfelf chofen to the Empire, fent his Son Titus to befiege this City, and to utter¬ ly deftroy it. He accordingly went about it with the ut- moft Expedition. When he came and invefted the Place, he found 3 different 8c oppofite Factions within it, furioufly deftroying one another under the faid Eleazar, John, and Si¬ mon. Tr.efe pretended to make a Peace among themfelves » and, it being being the Feaft of the PalTover, Eleazar, who was poffeffed of the Temple, opened the Avenues of his Court to the great Concourfe that came to factifice; among whom fome of Johns Men went in privately armed, 8c cus off moft of Eleazar s Party, and took Poffeflion of the Place. Titus made Offers of Peace ; which the Defpei adoes rtjefted again and again. By their Inteftine Divifioiis ill their Pro- vifions were either burnt or eat, fo that the moft terrible [^] Famine perhaps ever heard of, and Continual Butche¬ ries, were within, and no poflible Efcape without. The Befiegers at length having taken the City, they fet Fire to the Temple Aug. 10. in the 2d Year of Vefpafian, being the fame Day and Month ’twas formerly burnt by Nebuchadnez¬ zar. This was follow’d by a moft bloody Slaughter of the People, and the Burning and Deftruftion of the City. In this whole War were faid in Judeta to be killed 1,854,490, and carried captive fr .Jerufalem, Ac. 108,000, and all the Buildings, were levell’d with the Ground.-A. D. 136. Emp. Adrian, having changed the Name of Jerufalem into TELIA CAPITOLINA [See the Article], after the Name [ASlius] of his own Family, and erected a Temple to Jupi¬ ter Capitolinus upon the Spot where the JewiJh Temple for¬ merly [A] This Famine was fo outragious, that it fwept away many whole Families at once. The Houfes were ftrewed with the Car- caffes of Women and Children, and the narrow Lanes with thofe of Old Men that lay dead there, whilft Young Men walk’d as if they were Ghofts. Some expired in the very Aft of burying others; lome haften’d away to their Grave? to make fure of them while yet living. Thofe that died laft flood gazing with dry Eyes and ghaftly Looks on thofe that were out of Pain before them. The City was all wrapt up in profound Silence. It was enough to create War in a Family to have but any Jealoufy of Meat in, it, and enough to break the tendered Friendfhips in Nature. Thofe that were evidently ftarv’d to Death could not yet be be¬ lieved at the laft Gafp that they died in Want; but they’d fearch the very Bofoms even of the Dead for Bread. Miffing what they look’d for, Defpair hurry’d them up and down raging l^ke mad Dogs, daggering as if drunk, ranfacking the fame Houfes, over and over again,* at every Hole and Corner. Nothing came amifs, which the fouleft Brutes themfelves would boggle at: Girdles, Shoe-leather, Skins, &V. Nay, one Handful of old Hay was fold for 4 Atticks. Eut wherefore do I trouble myfelf ((ays Jofe- phus) with illuftrating this dreadful Judgment by Things inanimate, having fuch an Inftance of Faft never known even among Barbarians ? And the Story is not to be reported without Horror. — There was a Woman beyond Jordan, Alary by Name, of the Village VeteZobra, rich and well born, who fled with others, and took Sanftuary in Jerufalem. The Seditious Parties ftript this Lady of all fhe brought publickly along with her that was precious; and for Things conceal’d. Goods or Provifions, her Houfc was daily broke up and rifled. She fell on the Faftion with the bittereft Language, yet could not prevail on the Monfters, cither in Rage or Pity, to rid her of Life. Having at the very laft Extremity nothing in Nature to keep Body and Soul together, fhe deliver’d herfelf up, thro’ the Gripes of madding Famine, to Fury and Neceffity, and the moft unnatural Refolution ever heard of. She had a Child fucking at her Ereaft, which fhe fnatch’d off, and looking tenderly upon it, IVhat, fays fhe, fall I fay unto thee, thou mofl unfortunate Infant, to be brought into the Id’or Id under a Complication of 3 fuch dreadful Judgments, as War, Famine, and Rebellion! Which of the 3 fall I referve thee for? The Romans will give thee Life perhaps,but not thy Liberty. Now Famine will prevent Slavery. But for our prefent Tyrants, thou wilt fnd them incomparably wovfe than the other Two. What canft thou do better, now, than to fupply the Want of a Meal's Meat to thy poor ftarving Mother, and hag out the Parties with the Horror of the FaB; and then finally crown the Hifiory of the Jews with the only execrable Abomination that is yet wanting to the perfecting of their Mifery?-With thefe Words fhe kill’d her Child and boil’d it. One Half fhe eat, and t’other Half fet by and kept co¬ ver’d. The Faftion had Flefh prefently in the Wind, and on Smell of the Cookery, came immediately in, with Menaces of Death without Mercy if fhe did not prefently bring out her Provifion. She fhew’d them the Remainder of her Child, and allur’d them it was all fhe had. They flood like Statues on the very Sight of it, and fo fell a trembling, and ran ftark mad. Look ye, .fays {he, this is really my own Son, and this Dip is of my own dreffing. I have eaten Half and pray do you eat the other. You will not pretend furely to be nicer than a Woman, or tenderer than a Mother. But if ye make Confcience of the Oblation, why, I have eat Part of it already, and you may leave the ref where you found it. The Noife of this {hocking Faft fpread all over the City fuch Abhorrence, as if every finple Perfon had had a Hand in it. The dread of the Famine made Men weary of their Lives, and the Living envy’d the Dead, that were taken away before the Extravagance came to this Height. The Streets were at length cover’d .with dead Bodies from one E^d of the City to the other* %