HISTORY OF MARINE ARCHITECTURE.

J93

attacked and made himself master of the whole island of Sicily, which he plun-dered and ravaged Avith all the implacable fury of a barbarian. Sardinia andCorsica being rapidly added to his conquests, he aspired to that of Greece also,Avhither he proceeded at the head of a fleet, consisting, according to report, ofthree hundred gallies, all properly fitted for war. The Goth, however, in themidst of his success, displayed a pacific temperance that would have donehonour to the most civilised warrior. He not only offered to accept of anyequitable terms of peace which Justinian might think it expedient and properto offer, but reminding the emperor, in the most complacent manner, ofthose treaties of amity which had before subsisted between the Roman emperorand the Gothic nation, offered, at the same time, the best services his armywas capable of affording, towards the protection of that empire whose armieshe had subdued.

Justinian, arrogant in the contemplation of his nominal rank, continued deafto these liberal offers. He equipped a fleet, formidable indeed in its appearance,but which, through the want of a sufficient commander, was incapable of ren-dering that service to the empire, which was naturally expected from it. Toso low an ebb had the naval power of the state fallen, that about the year552, when an army had, with the utmost difficulty, been levied, and put underthe orders of Narses, the eunuch, the empire found itself totally incapable ofproviding a fleet sufficient for its transport, though the voyage extended onlyfrom the eastern side of the Adriatic, to Italy. The victory of the Roman gene-ral, who, in defiance of every obstacle, forced his way like a cataract, annihilatedthe empire of the Goths ; but this success was effected by an operation entirelymilitary ; and no subsequent mention is made of any naval enterprises under-taken, either on the part of, or against the empire, subsequent to this time,till the year 579 : when Nurhirvan, or Chosroes, the Persian, having beendiscomfited by the Roman, or rather the Constantinopolitan general, the latterpenetrated to the Caspian sea, and if it could be said to deserve that name,equipped a fleet, with which he desolated Hyrcania; an awful lesson to thehuman race, that there is no spot, be it ever so secluded, and, as it may besupposed, consequently exempt from the horrors of war, but what may,be ren-dered subject to the ambition and the ravages of a triumphant army.

The next subsequent mention made of any naval force, is that of a fleetequipped by Heraclius, the emperor, about the year 620, for the purpose of

Yol. I. C c

conveying