Heraclea. Surnamed Minoa; in ancient geography, a Greek city of Sicily, at the mouth of the Halycus (now the Platani), 20 miles northwest from Agrigentum. The surname seems to have been originally the name of the town, which is first mentioned in history as a colony of Selinus. About the end of the 6th century it was recolonized by the Spartans, and had attained to great prosperity and power, when it was destroyed by the jealousy of the Carthaginians. After remaining in their power for about 200 years it fell into the hands of Agathocles, and then of Pyrrhus. It was next recovered by the Carthaginians, who retained it to the end of the first Punic war, when the whole of Sicily was made over to the Romans. In the second Punic war it reverted to the Carthaginian sway, but was finally attached to the Roman empire by Marcellus, shortly after the fall of Syracuse. After the servile war, Heraclea was repeopled by the Romans, and continued to flourish till the time of Cicero. It afterwards sunk into decay, and at this day its very ruins can hardly be traced.
Heracleidæ. This term means, in its widest sense, all the descendants of Heracles (Hercules), of whatever time, and in whatever district of Greece; but is specially applied to those adventurers who, founding their claims on their supposed descent from the great hero (to whom Zeus had promised a portion of the land), joined the Dorians in the conquest of the Peloponnesus. There were five different expeditions, the last and greatest occurring eighty years after the Trojan war. The story of the return of the Heracleidæ touches on the historical period, and though there is much of fable and tradition, yet there seems to be also a large substratum of truth in the records of the Greek historians.
Heracleum. A place near Gindarus, in the Syrian province of Cyrrhestice, where Ventidius, the legate of M. Antony, gained his great victory over the Parthians under Pacorus in 38 B.C.
Herald. An officer in the European courts, whose duty consists in the regulation of armorial bearings, the marshaling of processions, and the superintendence of pubic ceremonies. In the Middle Ages heralds were highly honored, and enjoyed important privileges; their functions also included the bearing of messages between royal personages, and registering all chivalric exercises; the computation of the slain after battle; and the recording of the valiant acts of the falling or surviving combatants. The office of herald is probably as old as the origin of coat-armor. In England the principal heraldic officers are designated kings-of-arms, or kings-at-arms, and the novitiates or learners are styled pursuivants. There are in England three kings-at-arms, named by their offices Garter, Clarencieux, and Norroy; six heralds,—Somerset, Chester, Windsor, Richmond, Lancaster, and York; and four pursuivants, called Rouge Dragon, Portcullis, Blue Mantle, and Rouge Croix. In Scotland the principal heraldic officer is the Lyon king-at-arms; and there are six heralds,—Snowdoun, Albany, Ross, Rothesay, Marchmont, and Ilay; and five pursuivants,—Unicorn, Carrick, Kintyre, Ormond, and Bute. Ireland has one king-at-arms, Ulster; two heralds, Cork and Dublin; and two pursuivants, of whom the senior bears the title of Athlone, and the other is called the pursuivant of St. Patrick.
Heraldry. The science of armorial bearings. The practice of wearing devices on the shields of knights was originated in the middle of the 12th century, and ever since families bear on their shield the arms of their progenitors, which at first had been adopted either arbitrarily or suggested by some striking episode in the life of the bearer.
Herald’s College, or College of Arms. A collegiate body, founded by Richard III. in 1483, consisting of the heraldic officers of England, who were assigned a habitation in the parish of Allhallows-the-Less, in London. Various charters confirmed the privileges of the College of Arms, and it was re-incorporated by Philip and Mary in 1554. The presidency of the college is vested in the earl marshal, an office hereditary in the family of Howard, duke of Norfolk. He nominates the three kings-of-arms, six heralds, and four pursuivants, who are the members of the collegiate chapter. The members of the college have salaries, but derive their principal income from fees charged for assistance in tracing pedigrees and titles, and for the granting and registration of arms. In Scotland the corresponding functions belong to the Lyon court. See [Lyon King-at-Arms].
Herat. A city of Afghanistan, the capital of an independent state, situated in a plain near the Hury River, 360 miles west from Cabul. This place has often been ravaged by various conquerors, who have claimed and won the empire of Asia. In 1220 it was taken by Genghis Khan, and in 1398 by Tamerlane. It was subsequently united to Persia; but the Afghans took possession of it in 1715. Nadir Shah retook it in 1737, and Ahmed Khan, an Afghan, and one of Nadir’s generals, added it to Afghanistan, after the assassination of Nadir Shah, in 1747. Mohammed Shah marched against Herat in 1836, and, after a long siege, the Persians were forced to withdraw. In 1855 the Persians again made an attempt to get possession of Herat; but, after a short war with England, desisted.
Hercotectonique (Fr.). A term in fortification signifying that branch of military architecture which specifically points out the best means of defense and the surest method of providing stores. This word is derived from the Greek.
Herculean. Very great, difficult, or dangerous; such as it would require the strength or courage of Hercules to encounter or accomplish.
Hercules, Pillars of. The name given by the ancients to the two rocks forming the entrance to the Mediterranean at the Strait of Gibraltar. Their erection was ascribed by the Greeks to Hercules, on the occasion of his journey to the kingdom of Geryon.