Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume II.djvu/29

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ASIA MINOR ASMONEANS 17 were three other divisions : Mysia, including the plain of Troy and the royal city of Per- gamus, in the district of Teuthrania; Lydia (capital, Sardis), whose fonnders, the Lydi- ans, were probably a Semitic people, who established the first enduring empire of which we have authentic record in Asia Minor ; and Caria, settled, according to Herodotus, by col- onists from the islands of the ^Egean. On the W. coast also, and within the boundaries of the three divisions just named, were the famous Greek colonies of JJolis, lying principally in S. W. Mysia, Doris in southern Caria, and be- tween the two Ionia, with its confederation of twelve cities (Phocoea, Smyrna, Ephesus, Mile- tus, &c.), peopled by Greek colonists, accord- ing to tradition emigrants from Attica in the obscure time of Codrus, who here maintained the reputation of their race for progress and civilization. On the S. coast were Lycia ; Pamphylia, so called from the number of tribes composing its inhabitants (n.a/i$vfoi, people of all races); Pisidia, parallel with and just N. of the narrow coast strip of Pamphylia ; and Cili- cia, with the city of Tarsus, in ancient times peopled by the most formidable pirates of the East. The inland districts were Phrygia, whose inhabitants claimed to be autochtho- nous ; Galatia, named after the Gauls who de- serted the army of the later Brennus to settle here; Cappadocia (capital, Mazaca, now Kai- sariyeh), first ruled by the Medes, afterward by the Persians ; Isauria, peopled by a tribe of mountaineers dreaded as daring robbers ; and Lycaonia, first mentioned by Xenophon, and inhabited by an ancient tribe from whom it took its name. In reviewing its history Asia Minor cannot be treated as a united whole; for details concerning its different divisions the titles just given are referred to. The follow- ing outline, however, may serve to show how inextricably its fortunes are complicated with those of the great nations which for 3,000 years contended for its dominion. Though the traditions regarding its first settlement are ob- scure, it appears that the Lydians, coming from the east, were among the first inhabitants of the country. Their government is at all events the first of which we have any detailed record. It flourished until King Croesus was defeated by Cyrus, and the Persian empire gained the do- minion of the peninsula, holding it from about 554 to 333 B. C. The campaign which in the last-mentioned year ended with the battle of Issus now added the country to the conquests of Alexander. It remained under his various successors until the victories of L. Scipio (190) and Manlius (189), followed by the treaty with Antiochus in 188, the bequest of the kingdom of Pergamus to Rome by Attains III. (133), and the overthrow of Mithridates (65 B. C.) gave the territory to the Romans, in whose hands, and those of their followers of the By- zantine empire, it continued till its conquest by the Turks in the 13th century. Asia Minor now forms a part of Turkey in Asia ; its larger portion constitutes the district called Anatolia, or Natolia, from the old Greek name given to Asia Minor 'Avaro/l^, the east or land of the rising sun. Officially, it includes several eya- lets, but the name Anatolia is generally applied to the whole region. For details as to its present condition, see TUBKET. ASIXAIS, a tribe of Indians on Trinity river, Texas, frequently mentioned in accounts of La Salle's expedition and early Louisiana his- tory under the name of Cenis. They were a branch of the confederation known as the Tex- as, were sedentary, cultivating rudely maize, beans, squashes, melons, and tobacco, and mak- ing mats and earthenware. They lived in large beehive-shaped cabins, each holding 15 or 20 families, and at a very early day procured horses from the Spaniards to use in war and hunting. La Salle visited them in 1686, and the French subsequently, under La Harpe and St. Denis, tried to gain them; but the Span- iards established missions and posts among them in 1715. Before the close of the century they ceased to he noticed as a separate tribe, and are now apparently extinct, unless they are represented by the Arapahoes. ASKEW, Aseongh, or Avseongb, Anne, an Eng- lish Protestant lady, a native of Lincolnshire, who was burned at Smithfield, July 16, 1546. Her husband, named Kyme, was a'Strong Cath- olic, and turned her out of doors because she embraced the principles of the reformers. She went to London to sue for a separation, and at- tracted the sympathy of the queen, Catharine Parr, and many of the court ladies. Her denial of the corporeal presence of Christ's body in the eucharist caused her arrest and committal to prison. Burnet says that after much pains she signed a recantation, but this did not save her. She was recommitted to Newgate, and asked to disclose who were her correspondents at court. She refused to reply, though she was racked in the presence of the lord chan- cellor. As she was not able to stand after the torture, she was carried in a chair to the stake, and suffered along with four others, under- going this last trial with signal fortitude. ASMANNSHAUSEN, a village of Prussia, prov- ince of Hesse-Nassau, on the right bank of the Rhine, 2 m. below Rudesheim ; pop. about 600. It is famous for the wine of Asmannshausen, one of the best red Rhenish wines. .ts.MOIi.EI'S, or Asmodl (Heb. Ashmedai, from shamad, to destroy), an evil demon mentioned in the later Jewish writers. In the book of Tobit he is described as murdering the seven husbands of Sarah t one after the other. In consequence of this he has been facetiously termed the evil spirit of marriage, or the de- mon of divorce. In the Talmud he figures as the prince of demons, and is said to have driven Solomon out of his kingdom. Tobit got rid of him by prayer and fasting. Asmodaeus is the hero of Le Sage's novel Le diable lioite>/.r. ASMONEANS, or llnsmoncans (Heb. 'tttwhmo- naim), the name of a Jewish priestly family