Megara

MEGARA, an ancient Greek town on the Saronic gulf, be tween Attica and Corinth. Its district, 111E-yapts or rl Meyapuci, is bounded by Attica, Boeotia, Corinth, and the two gulfs, Mount Geraneia extending across the country from east to west, forms a barrier between continental Greece and the Peloponnesus. The shortest passage of this range is along the eastern side of the mountains, through the celebrated Scironian rocks, where Theseus destroyed the robber Sciron. The only lowland was the White Plain, in which was the city, Megara. The modern town occupies two low hills within the ancient site; it is the chief town of the eparchy of Megaris; pop. (192o) 9,531. Its Easter dances at tract visitors. There are remains of the aqueduct made by the architect Eupalinus for the tyrant Theagenes.

History.

In prehistoric days Megara had intercourse with the southern Aegean. The early inhabitants were extirpated in the Dorian migration, for in historic times the city had a homo geneous Dorian population. Favoured by its proximity to two great waterways and by its two ports, Nisaea on the Saronic and Pegae on the Corinthian Gulf, Megara took a prominent part in commerce from the 8th century. Its trade was with Sicily, where Megarian colonies were established at Hybla (Megara Hyblaea) and Selinus, and with the Black sea, in which region the Megarians were pioneers of Greek commerce. In the Sea of Marmora they had to face the competition of the Samians and of Miletus; but on the Bosporus they established themselves by means of settle ments at Chalcedon (675 B.c.) and Byzantium (658 B.c.). In the Black sea they exploited the shores of Pontus and Scythia. Their chief colonies were Astacus and Heracleia in Bithynia, and another Heracleia in the Crimea. Later this trade dwindled in face of the commercial activity of Miletus, and that of Athens on the Hellespont. Megarian commerce in Sicily was supplanted

by Corinth and Corcyra.

Megara's economic development entailed a change in political power. The land-holding aristocracy began to lose its grip upon the community of artizans. A short tyranny followed. The power of the nobles was broken in a war with Athens, in which Megara lost the island of Salamis (about 57o B.C. ; see SoLoN); after a period of democracy the constitution was fixed as an oligarchy of a moderate type. During the Persian wars the state, which joined the Peloponnesian League, could muster 3,00o hoplites. But the expansion of Athens ruined the commerce of Megara. In 459 an attack by Corinth induced the people to summon the aid of the Athenians, who secured Megara in battle and by the construction of long walls between the capital and its port Nisaea. In 445 the Megarians massacred their Athenian garrison. The Athenians retaliated by placing an embargo upon Megarian trade throughout their empire (432), and in the Peloponnesian War, reduced their neighbours to misery by blockade and devastations. In 424 they nearly captured Megara, in collusion with a demo cratic party within the town, and secured Nisaea, which they held until 410. In the 4th century Megara recovered some measure of prosperity, but played an insignificant part in politics, and finally was incorporated in the Achaean League (q.v.). Megara suffered severely in the civil war of 48 B.C. It main tained itself as a place of some size in subsequent centuries, but was depopulated by the Venetians in A.D. I 500. The inhabitants of the modern village are mostly of Albanian origin.