ΤΟ WILLIAM MARTIN LEAKE, F. R. S. LATE LIEUTENANT-COLONEL OF THE ROYAL ARTILLERY, HON. D. C. L. IN THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD, ONE OF THE VICE-PRESIDENTS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF LITERATURE, WHOSE LONG AND LABORIOUS EXERTIONS IN CLEARING THE ANCIENT HISTORY OF GREECE FROM OBSCURITY, AND THE MODERN FROM MISREPRESENTATION, HAVE MERITED THE APPLAUSE OF BRITAIN AND THE GRATITUDE OF GREECE, THE FOLLOWING PAGES ARE INSCRIBED AS A TESTIMONIAL OF PERSONAL RESPECT AND LITERARY HOMAGE, BY THE AUTHOR ADVERTISEMENT THIS work is an attempt to fill up a vacancy in English literature. It may, perhaps, form a useful supplementary volume to the work of Gibbon, until something more worthy to be placed beside the writings of the great historian shall replace it. The author has found it impossible to follow rigidly any fixed system in the orthography of Greek names. Our best authorities do not agree in their mode of writing them. Had a fixed rule been generally adopted, it would have been conformed to in this work. The names of the emperors of Trebizond are always written in their Greek form, as a convenient mode of distinguishing them from the Byzantine sovereigns. Other names are given in their English, Latin, or semi-Greek form, as accident may appear to render most suitable. A desire to avoid both confusion and singularity, has made etymology yield to sound in one case, and given sound a preference over etymology in another. ATHENS, June 1851. |