he drew up his epistle dedicatory for his translation of Thucydides." Jonson, in his conversation with Drummond of Hawthornden, is found to make the remark that "Sir Robert Ayton loved him dearly." In his Latin poems there are some epitaphs and epigrams in which the names of other distinguished men of the day, who appear to have been his friends, are commemorated. The latest event to which any of these productions refers is the assassination of the Duke of Buckingham, "In obitum ducis Buckingamii à Filtono cultro extincti, 1628," a poem in hexameters and pentameters. He died in the palace of Whitehall, in March, 1638. The vernacular poems of Ayton, for which alone his personal history is now an object of any curiosity, appear to have never been considered by him worthy of preservation, though many of his Latin poems were twice published during his lifetime. Vernacular composition of any kind was then unpopular with Scotsmen, who found it easier to use a dead language than to acquire a dialect so different from their own as the English, which was then becoming the literary language of Britain. With a trifling exception, such of his English poems as have reached us have come down almost traditionally, and have not retained their original orthography. Aubrey says, "Mr. John Dryden has seen verses of his, some of the best of that age, printed with some other verses;" but if this alludes to his English poems, it would appear that they must have been printed anonymously. During the last century some pieces of poetry which found their way into poetical selections were attributed on imperfect testimony to Sir Robert Ayton-a collection of these was printed in the miscellany of the Bannatyne Club. A student of St. Andrews lately accidentally purchased a MS. at a sale of books which bore the title "The Poems of that worthy gentleman Sir Robert Ayton, Knight, Secretary to Anna and Mary, Queens of Great Britain," &c.; but this version is also of comparatively late date, and in modern orthography. It contains some pieces which are not in the Bannatyne collection, and has been very creditably edited by the discoverer. Burns was a great admirer of some of the poems attributed to Ayton. One of them, which he rendered, without certainly improving it, into the modern Scottish dialect, begins with the following melodious and expressive lines :"I do confess thou'rt smooth and fair, And I might have gone near to love thee, I do confess thou'rt sweet, yet find Thy favours are but like the wind, And since thou canst love more than one, Another of his poems at once associates On old langsyne?" He indulges, though rarely, in satire. Thus, in addressing a lady who painted herself, he sarcastically praises the modesty which will make her decline all credit for the skill with which she has imitated the bloom of nature. A monument to Ayton's memory, with an inscription detailing some of the events of his life, stands in the south side of the choir of Westminster Abbey, at the corner of Henry V.'s chapel. It is a brass-gilt bust, with a character in the attitude and features which makes it appear to have been copied from a portrait by Vandyke, surrounded by emblematic sculpture in black marble. (Delitiæ Poetarum Scotorum; Miscellany of the Bannatyne Club; Dempster, Historia Ecclesiastica; The Poems of Sir Robert Ayton, edited by Charles_ Roger, 8vo. 1844.) J. H. B. AYTTA. [AYTA.] AYYU'B IBN HABIB AL-LAKHMI', third governor of Mohammedan Spain under the khalifs, was a noble Arab of the tribe of Lakhm. Trained to arms from his youth, he served in all the African wars, and accompanied Músa Ibn Nosseyr, whose relative he was, to the conquest of Spain. He was present at the sieges of Merida and Saragossa, where he gained great renown by his courage and skill. In A.H. 95 (A.D. 713) Músa was summoned to Damascus by the khalif Suleyman, and Ayyub obtained the command of a division of troops stationed on the Ebro, with orders to prosecute the conquest. In concert with Mugheyth Ar-rumí, another Arabian officer, Ayyub made several incursions into the provinces beyond the Ebro, reduced many important fortresses, and defeated the Goths wherever they dared to show themselves. 'Abdu-l'-azíz, son of Músa, who commanded in Spain during his father's absence, seeing the success which attended his arms, supplied Ayyub with men and provisions, and enabled him to carry the Moslem banners to the foot of the Pyrenees. When Suleyman, who had in the meanwhile imprisoned and fined Músa, sent secret orders to Spain to have 'Abdu-l'-azíz deprived of the government of this country and put to death, Ayyub was consulted by the agents of the khalif as to the best means of carrying the royal mandate into execution. They addressed themselves to him, and, having exhibited the letters they had received from the khalif, proceeded to represent 'Abdu-l'-azíz as a traitor and an apostate who had secretly embraced the by his son Saláhu-d-dín, who offered to re- Christian religion, and who was about to been besieged by the troops of Damascus, revolt against the commander of the faithful; | Ayyub consented to surrender it on condithey concluded by calling upon him to aid tions highly advantageous to himself. Both them in their undertaking. Ayyub, who was he and his brother Shirkúh continued to the cousin of 'Abdu-l'-azíz, and who owed his serve under Núru-d-dín Mahmúd, son of promotion to his father Músa, hesitated at 'Imádu-d-dín Zinki, whose confidence they first; but the offer which Habib Al-fehrí, one enjoyed. In A.H. 558 (A.D. 1162-3) Núru-dof the khalif's agents, made him of the govern- dín determined upon sending a body of ment of Spain, in case they succeeded with troops to Egypt, to the assistance of the vizír his assistance in putting 'Abdu-l'-azíz to death, Shawár, and Shirkúh was chosen to comovercame his scruples, and he gave his conmand the expedition. This event laid the sent. That governor was assassinated in the foundation of the future prosperity of the Dhí-l-hajjah, A.H. 97 (A.D. 716), whilst saying Ayyúbites; for Shirkúh, having in the course his prayers in the mosque [ABDU-L'-azı'z, son of time become vizír to Al-'ádhed the Faof Músa]; and Ayyub was accordingly in- timite, was succeeded at his death by Savested with the command. He did not, how- láhu-d-dín, the son of Ayyub, who ultimately ever, retain it long. The news of 'Abdu-l'- obtained the sovereignty of Egypt. Ayyub aziz's death had no sooner reached Damascus, remained at Damascus until A.H. 565 (A.D. than Suleyman, who had conceived a mortal 1170), when, at the request of his son, he set hatred against all the members of Músa's fa- out for Egypt. He arrived at Cairo on the 24th mily, deprived Ayyub of the government, and of Rejeb (April, A.D. 1171), and was met outappointed in his stead Al-horr Ibn 'Abdi-r-side of that city by the khalif Al-'ádhed, and rahmán Ath-thakefí, who landed at Algesiras in the month of Dhí-l-hajjah, A.H. 98 (July or August, A.D. 717). Ayyúb made no resistance, and retired into private life. The year of his death is unknown. (Almakkarí, Moham. Dyn. ii. 32, and App. p. iii.; Borbon, Cartas para ilustrar la historia de la España Arabe, p. lxxxii., et seq.; Casiri, Bib. Arab. Hisp. Esc. ii. 105, 234, 323; Conde, Hist. de la Dom. i. 18.) P. de G. AYYUB IBN SHA'DHI, surnamed Abú-sh-shukr and Malek Al-afdhal Nejmud-dín (the excellent prince, the star of religion), father of Salahu-d-dín, or Saladin, the founder of the dynasty of the Ayyubites, was born in Sejestán, or, according to other accounts, at Jebal Júr, in Armenia. Ibn Khallikán, who gives his life among those of his illustrious Moslems, says that Ayyub was a native of Duwín (Tovin), and the son of Shádhi Ibn Merwán. Other writers, as Ibnu-l-athír and Ibn-Shohnah, add that he was a Kurd of the tribe of Rawadiyah. Having accompanied his father Shádhi to 'Irák, Ayyub and a brother of his, named Shirkúh, entered the service of Bihrúz, at that time governor of Baghdad for the Seljúkides. After some years spent in the service of that governor, Ayyub and his brother Shirkúh obtained from him the government, or rather the feudal tenure of a castle, called Tekrit, in the province of Diyár-Bekr; but Shirkúh, having some time after put to death one of Bihrúz's officers, and fearing the vengeance of that governor, the two brothers left Tekrit, and fled to Mosul, at that time the court of ’Imádu-d-dín Zinki, by whom they were kindly received and hospitably entertained. In A.H. 534 (A.D. 1139), when 'Imádu-d-dín took Ba'lbek, he intrusted its custody to Ayyub, whose fidelity and courage he had experienced on several occasions. After the death of his benefactor, Ayyub retained possession of Ba'lbek until A.H. 541 (A.D. 1146), when the place having AYYU'BIAH, or AYYU'BITES, is the name of an Egyptian dynasty founded about A.H. 567 (A.D. 1171) by the celebrated Saláhu-d-dín (Saladin), who was the son of Ayyub Ibn Shádhi. On the death of Saladin, which happened in Safar, A.H. 589 (July, A.D. 1193), his vast dominions were divided among his sons, brothers, and nephews. Núru-d-dín 'Ali, surnamed Almalek Al-fádhil (the virtuous king), who was the eldest son, had for his share all the territory of Damascus and the whole of Palestine. Malek Al-'azíz 'Othmán, who was the second, had Egypt, of which country he had been governor during his father's lifetime. Malek Adh-dháher Ghiyáthu-d-dín, another son of Saladin, remained master of Aleppo and Upper Syria, whilst others among the brothers and nephews established themselves in various parts of Syria and Yemen, and founded many dynasties which are all known by the generic appellation of Ayyúbiah, or the descendants of Ayyúb, although they were distinguished by the name of the countries over which they ruled, as the Ayyubites of Egypt, the Ayyubites of Damascus, the Ayyubites of Aleppo, &c. Among the above-mentioned those of Egypt, nine in number, were the most celebrated. Malek Al-'azíz 'Othmán was succeeded in A.H. 595 (A.D. 1198) by his son Malek Al-mansúr, who was shortly after dethroned by his uncle Malek Al-'ádil. This last-named prince, who was likewise Lord of Damascus, died in A.H. 615 (A.D. 1218), and was succeeded by his eldest son Malek Alkámil, whose death took place in A.H. 635 (A.D. 1237). Malek Al-kámil was succeeded by his son Malek Al-'ádil, surnamed Assaghír, that is, the younger or the second, to distinguish him from his grandfather, but he had scarcely reigned two years when he was dethroned by his brother Malek Assáleh Nejmu-d-din, who was governor of Kark in Syria. Malek As-sáleh died in Sha'bán, A.H. 647 (A.D. 1249), and was succeeded by his son Malek Al-mo'adhem Turán Shah, who was put to death by his Baharite mamluks in A.H. 648 (A.D. 1250). Shajarud-dorr, mother of Turán Shah, held for some time the power conjointly with the mamluk Aibek, who became afterwards the founder of the dynasty known in history as the dynasty of the Baharite Mamluks. [AIBEK AZADED-DIN.] Malek An-násir, son of Malek Al-'azíz, who reigned at Aleppo and Damascus, tried, though in vain, to re-establish the power of his family in Egypt; he was obliged to return into his own dominions, where he was soon attacked and put to death by Huláku Khán, the Tatar, in A.H. 658 (A.D. 1259). There are various histories of the Ayyubites of Egypt, among which the most celebrated are:-1. "Shefá-l-kolúb fí manákib Bení Ayyub” (“The remedy of the heart on the high deeds of the Bení Ayyub"), a copy of which is in the Library of the British Museum, among the Rich MSS. No. 7311. 2. "Solúk lima'refati dowali-lmolúk" ("The trodden paths to the knowledge of the different dynasties of Egypt"), by the celebrated Al-makrízí. This work, one of the most important in Arabian literature, is not confined to a history of the Ayyubites; it contains likewise that of all the Mamluk dynasties of Egypt. 3. "Mufarraju1-korúb fi tawarikh Bení Ayyub" ("The dispeller of sorrow: on the history of the Bení Ayyub"), in the Library of the University of Cambridge. (D'Herbelot, Bib. Or., “Aiubiah" Quatremère, Histoire des Sultans Mamelouks d'Egypte; Price, Chron. Retrospect of Moham. Hist. vol. ii. p. 206, 316; Al-makrízí, Khittát, MS.) P. de G. AZA'D KHA'N, an Afghan chief, who served with distinction under Nádir Sháh, by whom he was rewarded for his services with the government of Azerbaijan. About six years after the death of Nádir, A.D. 1753, Azád Khán became a competitor for the throne of Persia, then occupied by Karím Khán Zend. The rival chiefs met near Kazwín, each accompanied with a numerous army, and after a desperate battle the Persian ruler was totally defeated, and compelled to abandon all the western provinces of the kingdom. Karim Khán was further disheartened by the desertion of a great number of his followers; so much, that he meditated flight into India, leaving the crown to his successful rival. From this scheme he was dissuaded by the remonstrances of Rustam Sultan, a petty chief of a mountainous district named Khisht, through which the army of Azád Khán must march. The shrewd mountaineer represented how easy it would be to annihilate the army of Azád Khán when entangled in the narrow and difficult passes which they had to traverse; and he readily undertook the task with his own men. The pass of Kumárij, which leads into the valley of Khisht, is about two miles long, and the path extremely narrow, so as to admit of troops marching only in single file. The hills on both sides are very steep, and in the most inaccessible parts of these mountains Rustam Sultan posted his men, while Karím Khán waited for the enemy in the valley below. Azád Khán, unsuspicious of the vicinity of an enemy, entered this dangerous pass with all his army, when they were immediately attacked and thrown into irremediable confusion. They were entirely exposed to the destructive fire of the mountaineers, who took aim at them with all the coolness inspired by security. Those who rushed forward to gain the open valley, were instantly destroyed, before they could form in any numbers, by the troops of Karím Khán. All who remained for any time in the pass were killed in detail; but retreat was impossible, as those in the rear, when the action commenced, rushed forward to support their comrades. A few brave men, rendered desperate by their situation, made an attempt to reach their enemies by scaling the steep mountains, but they merely hastened their own destruction. In short, the defeat of Azád Khán's army was complete, and he himself with great difficulty escaped. Karím Khán, attended by the chief of Khisht, pursued the fugitives, and in a very short time succeeded in re-establishing himself the undisputed ruler of Persia. Azád Khán gradually lost all his possessions, and was obliged to fly for safety, first to Baghdad, and afterwards to Georgia. At length, wearied of a wandering life, he came and threw himself upon the clemency of his conqueror. Karím Khán received his once formidable rival with the utmost kindness and generosity. He promoted Azád Khán to the first rank among his nobles, and ever treated him with such friendly confidence, that this most dangerous of his enemies became the most attached and the most devoted of his friends. We know not how long Azád that the khalíf himself read the prayers prescribed by the Korán at his funeral. His name is still fondly cherished in a country over which he made it his endeavour, during a reign of thirty-three years, to diffuse prosperity and happiness. Unfortunately his virtues and abilities were not transferred to successors. From the moment of his death his possessions became a subject of contention between his cousins and nephews, none of whom are deserving of any notice in history. Not many years after Azad-ud-daulah's death this brief dynasty was swept away before the victorious arms of Mahmud of Ghizni. (Malcolm, History of Persia; Price, Mahommedan History; Labb-ul-Tawarikh, MS.) D. F. Khán enjoyed his prosperity, as his name no more appears in history. Karim Khán died in A.D. 1779, at the age of eighty. (Malcolm, History of Persia.) D. F. AZAD-UD-DAULAH, the second prince of the Dílamí family, who ruled over the western portions of the Persian empire in the tenth century of our æra. His grandfather, Abu Shujá Búyah, was an obscure fisherman of the district of Dilam, a part of the province of Tabristán. Ali Buyah, the eldest son of Abu Shuja, was enabled by his valour to acquire a considerable kingdom along the eastern bank of the Tigris; and on his deathbed, having no children of his own, he appointed as his successor Azad-ud-daulah, the eldest son of his brother Rukn-ud-daulah. This young prince was appointed ruler of 'AZA'IRI OF RAI, a Persian poet who Shiraz about A.D. 950, and was soon after no- lived at the close of the tenth century of our minated vizír to the khalif of Baghdad. By | æra. He was brought up at the court of the all the neighbouring princes he was treated Dilami or Búyah family, to the princes of as an absolute sovereign, which he in fact which many of his earlier pieces are dediwas; although respect for the prejudices of cated. At length when Mahmud of Ghizni the age made him call himself the slave of took possession of Western Persia, and the the Lord of the Faithful. During thirty-three race of Buyah ceased to reign, the poet folyears he was the actual ruler of a portion of lowed the fortunes of the conqueror, whom Arabia, and of the finest provinces of Persia, he accompanied to the court of Ghizni. though he modestly appeared as the vice-There he became distinguished, even in that gerent of the pageant khalif. The memory of this prince has been handed to posterity with every claim to admiration and gratitude. He was a generous patron of learning, and became the copious theme of the poet's eulogy and the historian's approbation. He greatly improved the capital of the empire, carefully repairing all the damages it had sustained from sieges. He discontinued a vexatious tax then levied on religious pilgrimages; and restored the sacred buildings at Medina, Kerbela, and Nujuff. He also built hospitals for the poor at Baghdad, to which he appointed physicians with regular salaries, and furnished them with necessary medicines. Nor was he less attentive to the prosperity of the Persian provinces, which, under his long reign, were completely alleviated from the evils which they had suffered from previous wars. The most remarkable of his works remaining is a dyke over the river Kair (or Kír), which passes through the plain of Mardasht. This dyke, still called Bandi-Amir, is situated at a short distance from the ruins of Persepolis, and when entire it fertilized a vast tract of fine country. Price, in his Mahommedan History, speaks of this dyke as existing "between Armenia and Georgia," having read for Kair (or Kŭr, as some authors have it) the word Kúr applied to the river Cyrus. Indeed Sir John Malcolm reads the word Kúr, though apparently not satisfied with the name. In a fine manuscript (Labb-ul-Tawarikh) to which we have frequent occasion to allude, the word is Kair or Kír, which is most probably the correct reading. Azad-ud-daulah died in March, A.D. 983; and we are told tuneful assembly, consisting of all the poets AZAÏS, PIERRE HYACINTHE, was born in 1743, at Ladern, a village in Languedoc, and entered the choir in the cathedral of Carcassonne as a boy. At the age of fifteen he was placed under the organist of the metropolitan church at Auch, whence, after a few years, he went to Marseille, and was appointed director of the concerts there. Two years afterwards he went to Paris, where he pursued his musical studies under Gossec, and produced several Motets which were performed at the Concerts Spirituels. By Gossec he was recommended as musical instructor to the students of the military college at Sorèze, where he continued seventeen years. In 1783 he finally settled at Toulouse, where he produced several compositions for the church, and died in 1796. He published in 1776 a work which was much esteemed in France, entitled "Méthode de Musique sur un nouveau plan, à l'usage des élèves de l'école militaire." It contained a "studio" for the violin, and an elementary work on singing, with a short but well-ar-| ranged treatise on harmony. In 1780 he published 12 violoncello solos, 6 duets for the same instrument, and 6 trios for different instruments. His sacred compositions were never printed, and were lost by his son in the time of the Revolution. (Fétis, Biographie Universelle des Musiciens.) E. T. AZAMBUʼZA, DIO'GO DE, was a Portuguese commander, who was intrusted by Joam II., King of Portugal, with the charge of an expedition from that country to the western coast of Africa. Father Labat and other French writers claim for their countrymen of Dieppe the honour of the first discovery of Guinea; but it is now generally conceded to some Portuguese navigators despatched for that purpose by Prince Henry of Portugal, who was a patron of geographical science and maritime discovery, and one of the most enlightened men of the age. The Portuguese immediately recognised the importance of the discovery, and during a series of years carried on an advantageous commerce with the natives. This, however, was liable to frequent interruptions, and it was necessary for its protection that a permanent establishment should be formed upon the coast. During the reign of Alfonso V., who was all his life engaged in foreign wars, no steps were taken for the accomplishment of this object; but his son Joam II. resolved to prosecute it, as a means of encouraging a spirit of enterprise in his subjects. An effective armament was accordingly fitted out for the purpose. It consisted of ten caravels and two smaller vessels, completely furnished with arms, ammunition, and provisions. The number of men is not stated; but as it carried out a large body of masons and artisans of various kinds, it may be supposed to have contained altogether upwards of a thousand persons. Several missionaries accompanied the expedition, and the whole was placed under the command of Azambuza, with orders to erect a fort and persuade the natives to embrace Christianity. time on the shore of Western Africa. The flag of Portugal was unfurled, and Azambuza, magnificently attired in a robe of cloth of gold glistening with precious stones, and with a chain of gold round his neck, sat in a chair of state surrounded by his principal officers. A sound of gongs and other savage music indicated the approach of Casamense, attended by an immense body of negroes armed with spears and bows and arrows. Casamense was in the centre, conspicuous by a profusion of gold rings and bracelets on his legs and arms. As he advanced slowly to the sound of the music, the Portuguese opened their ranks, and Azambuza rising, advanced a few paces to receive him. Casamense shook his hand cordially, snapped his fingers according to the custom of his country, and cried "Bére, Bére," several times, to indicate his desire for peace. After various ceremonies on both sides, Azambuza proceeded to state the object of his voyage. He began by enlarging upon the power and grandeur of the King of Portugal, who was delighted with the friendly intercourse maintained between his subjects and the natives of the coast of Guinea; but the king, his master, he said, being a very religious prince, was much shocked at the idolatrous practices of King Casamense's subjects, and had accordingly despatched some teachers to instruct them in the truths of Christianity. He impressed upon Casamense the propriety of setting a good example to his followers by allowing himself first to be baptized; in which event he said the King of Portugal would acknowledge him as his friend and brother. He next informed him that he had brought with him a large supply of articles of merchandise, and as several other vessels similarly laden would shortly follow, the King of Portugal was anxious to establish a permanent colony of his subjects on the coast, which would be for the mutual advantage of the two nations. He concluded by requesting the king's permission to erect a fort on the eminence which he had selected for the purpose. In 1481 the expedition sailed from Lisbon, and, after a prosperous voyage of twelve Casamense, in his reply, remarked on the days, arrived at the small port of Besequichi. splendour and magnificence of Azambuza, Azambuza immediately notified his arrival who, he concluded, must be either the father to Casamense, the king of the country, and or brother of the King of Portugal; he dexrequested an interview for the purpose of terously evaded the subject of religion; and, communicating the object of his voyage. with respect to the erection of the fort, intiCasamense sent word that he would visit mated a wish that Azambuza should not him the following day, and the Portuguese press the matter, but rather suffer the relacommander determined to receive him with tions of the two countries to remain on the a display of pomp and magnificence calcu- same footing as before. Upon further solicilated to impress him with the importance of tation, however, he yielded his consent to the his mission. Accordingly on the morning erection of the fort; the king took his deof the next day, the anniversary of St. Se-parture; and the masons proceeded to work bastian, the whole of the expedition disembarked; Azambuza fixed upon a spot for the erection of a fort, an eminence not far from the king's residence; an altar was erected at its base, and mass was celebrated for the first VOL. IV. on the following day. The consent of Casamense, however, was not sufficient in itself to protect the workmen in their task. The principal negro chiefs were from the first opposed to Azambuza's 2 C |