Capital of ancient Macedonia. His father was King Amyntas III, his mother Eurydice came from a noble family of Linkestids, who ruled independently for a long time in the north-west of Macedonia. After the death of Amyntas III, Macedonia slowly disintegrated under the onslaught of the Thracian and Illyrian neighbors, the Greeks also did not miss the opportunity to seize the weakening kingdom. Around 368-365 BC. e. Philip was held hostage in Thebes, where he got acquainted with the structure of the public life of Ancient Greece, learned the basics of military strategy and joined the great achievements of Hellenic culture. In 359 BC. e. the invading Illyrians captured part of Macedonia and defeated the Macedonian army, killing king Perdiccas III, Philip's brother, and another 4 thousand Macedonians. The son of Perdikkas III, Amyntas IV, was enthroned, but due to his infancy, Philip became his guardian. Starting to rule as a guardian, Philip soon won the trust of the army and, having pushed aside the heir, became the king of Macedonia at the age of 23 at a difficult moment for the country.
Demonstrating outstanding diplomatic talent, Philip quickly dealt with the enemies. He bribed the Thracian king and persuaded him to execute Pausanias, one of the pretenders to the throne. Then he defeated another pretender, Argey, who enjoyed the support of Athens. To protect himself from Athens, Philip promised them Amphipolis, and thus delivered Macedonia from internal unrest. Having strengthened and strengthened, he soon took possession of Amphipolis, managed to establish control over the gold mines and start minting a gold coin. Having created, thanks to these funds, a large standing army, the basis of which was the famous Macedonian phalanx, Philip at the same time built a fleet, one of the first to widely use siege and throwing machines, and also skillfully resorts to bribery (his expression is known: “ A donkey loaded with gold will take any fortress» ). This gave Philip the great advantages that, on the one hand, his neighbors were unorganized barbarian tribes, on the other, the Greek polis world, which was in deep crisis, as well as the Persian Achaemenid Empire, which was already decomposing at that time.
Having established his power on the Macedonian coast, Philip in 353 BC. e. for the first time intervenes in Greek affairs, speaking on the side of the Delphic coalition (the main members of which were Thebans and Thessalians) against the "blasphemers" of the Phocians and the Athenians who supported them in the "Holy War". The result was the subjugation of Thessaly, entry into the Delphic Amphictyony and the acquisition of the de facto role of arbiter in Greek affairs. This paved the way for the future conquest of Greece.
The chronology of Philip's wars and campaigns, as recorded by Diodorus Siculus, is as follows:
Twenty thousand women and children were taken prisoner, many cattle were captured; no gold or silver was found. Then I had to believe that the Scythians are really very poor. Twenty thousand of the best mares were sent to Macedonia to breed horses [of the Scythian breed]However, on the way home, the warlike Triballi attacked the Macedonians and recaptured all the trophies. "".
In this battle, Philip was wounded in the thigh, and moreover, so that the weapon, passing through the body of Philip, killed his horse.Barely recovering from his wounds, although the limp remained, the indefatigable Philip moved quickly to Greece.
Philip entered Greece not as a conqueror, but at the invitation of the Greeks themselves, in order to punish the inhabitants of Amfissa in central Greece for the unauthorized seizure of sacred lands. However, after the ruin of Amfiss, the king was in no hurry to leave Greece. He captured a number of cities from where he could easily threaten the main Greek states.
Thanks to the energetic efforts of Demosthenes, Philip's longtime opponent, and now also one of the leaders of Athens, an anti-Macedonian coalition was formed between a number of cities; through the efforts of Demosthenes, the strongest of them was attracted to the union - Thebes, who were still in alliance with Philip. The long-standing enmity of Athens and Thebes gave way to a sense of danger from the increased power of Macedonia. The combined forces of these states tried to squeeze the Macedonians out of Greece, but to no avail. In 338 B.C. e. there was a decisive battle at Chaeronea, which put an end to the splendor and grandeur of ancient Hellas.
The defeated Greeks fled from the battlefield. Anxiety, almost turning into panic, seized Athens. In order to stop the desire to escape, the people's assembly adopted a resolution according to which such acts were considered high treason and were punishable by death. Residents began to vigorously strengthen the walls of the city, accumulate food, the entire male population was called up for military service, freedom was promised to the slaves. However, Philip did not go to Attica, mindful of the unsuccessful siege of Byzantium and the fleet of Athens in 360 triremes. Having severely disposed of Thebes, he offered Athens relatively mild peace terms. The forced peace was accepted, although the words of the orator Lycurgus about the fallen in the fields of Chaeronea speak of the mood of the Athenians: ""
After all, when they lost their lives, Hellas was also enslaved, and the freedom of the rest of the Hellenes was buried along with their bodies.Philip determined the terms of peace for the whole of Greece in accordance with the merits of individual states and formed from all of them a common council, as it were, a single senate. Only the Lacedaemonians treated with contempt both the king and his institutions, considering not peace, but slavery, that peace, which was not agreed upon by the states themselves, but which was granted by the conqueror. Then the number of auxiliary detachments was determined, which were to be put up by individual states either to help the king in the event of an attack on him, or to be used under his command in case he himself declared war on someone. And there was no doubt that these preparations were directed against the Persian state. The number of auxiliary detachments was 200,000 infantry and 15,000 horsemen. At the beginning of spring, he sent forward to Asia, subject to the Persians, three commanders: Parmenion, Amyntas and Attalus ...However, an acute family crisis, caused by the king's human passions, got in the way of these plans. Namely, in 337 BC. e. he unexpectedly married the young Cleopatra, which brought to power a group of her relatives, led by Uncle Attalus. The result was the departure of the offended Olympias to Epirus to his brother, Tsar Alexander of Molos, and the departure of Philip's son, also Alexander, first after his mother, and then to the Illyrians. Philip eventually worked out a compromise, the result of which was the return of Alexander. Philip smoothed out the resentment of the king of Epirus for his sister by extraditing his daughter Cleopatra for him.
In the spring of 336 BC. e. Philip sent a 10,000-strong advance detachment to Asia under the command of Parmenion and Attalus and was going to go on a campaign in person after the wedding celebrations were over. But during these celebrations, he was killed by his bodyguard Pausanias.
The king's death was overgrown with various versions, based mainly on conjectures and conclusions on the principle of "who benefits." The Greeks suspected an indomitable Olympias; they also called the name of Tsarevich Alexander, and in particular they told (according to Plutarch) that he answered the complaints of Pausanias with a line from the tragedy: “To take revenge on everyone: father, bride, groom ...”. Modern scholars also pay attention to the figure of Alexander of Molossky, who had both political and personal interests in the murder. Alexander the Great executed two brothers from Lyncestis, sons of Aeropes, for complicity in the assassination attempt, but the grounds for the sentence remained unclear. Then the same Alexander blamed the death of his father on the Persians.
In an ancient burial site discovered in 1977 by the Greek archaeologist Manolis Andronikos - a Macedonian tomb in the Greek Vergina, remains were discovered, presumably belonging to Philip, which caused a scientific discussion and was subsequently confirmed.
“Philip always took a new wife in each of his wars. In Illyria, he took Audata and had a daughter, Kinana, from her. He also married Phil, the sister of Derda and Mahat. Wishing to lay claim to Thessaly, he had children from Thessalian women, one of them was Nikesipolis of Ther, who bore him Thessalonica, the other was Philinna of Larissa, from whom he had Arrhidaea. Further, he acquired the kingdom of the Molossians [Epirus] by marrying Olympias, from whom he had Alexander and Cleopatra. When he subjugated Thrace, the Thracian king Kofelay passed to him, who gave him his daughter Meda and a large dowry. By marrying her, he thus brought home a second wife after the Olympics. After all these women, he married Cleopatra, with whom he fell in love, the niece of Attalus. Cleopatra bore Philip a daughter, Europa.
Mark Junian Justin also mentions a certain Karan, the son of Philip, but there is no evidence for this. Justin often confuses names and events.
When Alexander the Great rebuked Philip for side children from different women, he answered like this: "". The fate of Philip's children was tragic. Alexander became the Macedonian king under the name of Alexander the Great and died of an illness at the age of 33. After him, the weak-minded Arrhidaeus nominally reigned under the name of Philip Arrhidaeus, until he was killed by order of the stepmother of Olympias. She also killed Europe, Philip's daughter from Cleopatra of Macedon, shortly after her birth. Kinana died in the war of the Diadochi, Cleopatra, having been the queen of Epirus, was killed on the orders of the Diadochi Antigonus. Thessalonica married Cassander and continued the royal dynasty, but was killed by her own son. Karan was killed by Alexander as an unwanted claimant to the throne.
This is so that you, seeing so many applicants for the kingdom, be good and kind and owe power not to me, but to yourself.Previously, the Lacedaemonians would invade for four or five months, just at the very best time of the year, they would devastate the country of their opponents with their hoplites, that is, with a civilian militia, and then go back home ... it was some kind of honest and open war. Now… traitors have ruined most of the affairs, and nothing is decided by marching on the battlefield or right battles… And I don’t even mention the fact that he [Philip] doesn’t care at all whether it’s winter at this time or summer, and he doesn’t make exceptions does not suspend its actions for any season and at any time.
It was Philip who had the merit of creating a regular Macedonian army. Previously, the Macedonian king, as Thucydides wrote about Perdikka II, had at his disposal a permanent cavalry squad of about a thousand soldiers and mercenaries, and the foot militia was called up in case of an external invasion. The number of cavalry increased due to the admission of new " getairs"For military service, thus the king tied the tribal nobility to himself personally, luring them with new lands and gifts. The cavalry of the hetairoi in the time of Alexander the Great consisted of 8 squadrons of 200-250 heavily armed horsemen. Philip was the first in Greece to use the cavalry as an independent strike force. At the Battle of Chaeronea, the Hetairoi under the command of Alexander the Great exterminated the invincible " Sacred Detachment of Thebans".
The foot militia, thanks to successful wars and tribute from the conquered peoples, turned into a permanent professional army, as a result of which the creation of the Macedonian phalanx, recruited according to the territorial principle, became possible. The Macedonian phalanx at the time of Philip consisted of regiments of about 1,500 people and could operate both in a dense monolithic formation and maneuver units, rebuild, change depth and front.
Philip also used other types of troops: shield-bearers (guards infantry, more mobile than the phalanx), the Thessalian allied cavalry (not much different in armament and numbers from the hetairoi), barbarian light cavalry, archers, allied foot units.
Philip accustomed the Macedonians to constant exercises, in peacetime as in real business. So he often forced them to march 300 furlongs, carrying with them helmets, shields, greaves and spears, and besides that, provisions and other utensils.
The tsar maintained discipline in the troops rigidly. When two of his generals drunkenly brought a girl from a brothel to the camp, he drove them both out of Macedonia.
Thanks to Greek engineers, Philip used mobile towers and throwing machines during the siege of Perinth and Byzantium (340-339 BC). Previously, the Greeks had taken cities, as in the case of the legendary Troy, mostly by starvation and smashing the walls with battering rams. Philip himself preferred bribery to assault. Plutarch ascribes to him the catch phrase - " a donkey loaded with gold will take an impregnable fortress».
At the beginning of his reign, Philip, at the head of the army, rushed into the thick of battle: under Methone, an arrow knocked out his eye, the tribals pierced his thigh through and through, and in one of the battles they broke his collarbone. Later, the king controlled the troops, relying on his generals, and tried to use a variety of tactics, and even better political ones. As Polien writes about Philip: "".
Justin repeats: Any trick that led to victory was not shameful in his eyes.».
Philip left controversial opinions of his contemporaries about himself. In some, he aroused hatred as a strangler of freedom, others saw in him a messiah sent to unite the fragmented Hellas. Insidious and generous at the same time. He won victories, but also suffered defeats. He invited philosophers to the court, while he himself indulged in unrestrained drunkenness. He had many children, but none of them died of age.
Philip, despite the years spent in Thebes in his youth, did not in any way resemble an enlightened sovereign, but was similar in manners and way of life to the barbarian kings of neighboring Thrace. Theopompus, who personally observed the life of the Macedonian court under Philip, left such a damning review:
“If there was anyone in all of Greece or among the barbarians, whose character was distinguished by shamelessness, he was inevitably attracted to the court of King Philip in Macedonia and received the title of “comrade of the king.” For it was Philip's custom to glorify and promote those who spent their lives in drunkenness and gambling... Some of them, being men, even shaved their bodies cleanly; and even bearded men did not shy away from mutual filth. They took with them two or three slaves for lust, while at the same time betraying themselves for the same shameful service, so it would be fair to call them not soldiers, but prostitutes.Drunkenness at the court of Philip amazed the Greeks. He himself often went to battle drunk, received Athenian ambassadors. The violent feasts of the kings were characteristic of the era of the decomposition of tribal relations, and the refined Greeks, who severely condemned drunkenness and depravity, also spent time in feasts and wars in their heroic era, which has come down to us in the legends of Homer. Polybius quotes an inscription on Philip's sarcophagus: He appreciated the joys of life».
Philip loved a cheerful feast with immoderate consumption of undiluted wine, appreciated the jokes of his comrades and, for his wit, brought not only the Macedonians, but also the Greeks closer. He also appreciated education, for the training and education of Alexander, heir to the throne, he invited Aristotle. Justin noted Philip's oratory:
“In conversations he was both flattering and cunning, in words he promised more than he fulfilled ... As a speaker, he was eloquently resourceful and witty; the sophistication of his speech was combined with ease, and this very ease was sophisticated.He respected his friends and generously rewarded him, treated his enemies with indulgence. He was not cruel to the vanquished, he easily released the captives and granted freedom to the slaves. In everyday life and communication, he was simple and accessible, although conceited. As Justin writes, Philip wanted his subjects to love him, and tried to judge fairly.
King Philip II of Macedonia became known in history as the conqueror of neighboring Greece. He managed to create a new army, consolidate the efforts of his own people and expand the borders of the state. The successes of Philip fade before the victories of his own son Alexander the Great, but it was he who created all the prerequisites for the great achievements of his successor.
early years
The ancient king Philip of Macedon was born in 382 BC. e. His hometown was the capital of Pella. The father of Philip Amyntas III was an exemplary ruler. He was able to unite his country, previously divided into several principalities. However, with the death of Aminta, the period of prosperity ended. Macedonia broke up again. At the same time, external enemies also threatened the country, including the Illyrians and Thracians. These northern tribes periodically made raids against their neighbors.
The Greeks also took advantage of Macedonia's weakness. In 368 BC. e. they traveled north. As a result, Philip of Macedon was captured and sent to Thebes. Paradoxical as it may seem, but staying there only benefited the young man. In the IV century. BC e. Thebes was one of the largest Greek cities. In this city, the Macedonian hostage got acquainted with the social structure of the Hellenes and their developed culture. He even mastered the basics of the military art of the Greeks. All this experience later influenced the policy that King Philip II of Macedon began to lead.
Rise to power
In 365 BC. e. the young man returned home. At this time, the throne belonged to his elder brother Perdiccas III. Quiet life in Pella was disrupted when the Macedonians were again under attack from the Illyrians. These formidable neighbors defeated the army of Perdicia in a decisive battle, while killing him and 4,000 of Philip's compatriots.
Power by inheritance passed to the son of the deceased - the young Amint. Philip was appointed regent. Despite his youth, he showed his outstanding leadership qualities and convinced the political elite of the country that at such a difficult moment, when the enemy is on the threshold, it is he who should be on the throne and protect civilians from aggressors. Aminth was deposed. So at the age of 23, Philip 2 of Macedon became the king of his country. As a result, he did not part with the throne until his death.
Diplomat and strategist
From the very beginning of his reign, Philip of Macedon demonstrated his remarkable diplomatic skills. He was not shy in front of the Thracian threat and decided to overcome it not with weapons, but with money. Having bribed a neighboring prince, Philip caused confusion there, thereby securing his own country. The monarch also took possession of the important city of Amphipolis, where gold mining was established. Having gained access to the noble metal, the treasury began to mint high-quality coins. The state got rich.
After that, Philip II of Macedon set about creating a new army. He hired foreign craftsmen who built the most modern catapults at that time, etc.). Using bribery of opponents and cunning, the monarch first recreated a united Macedonia, and then began external expansion. He was lucky in the sense that in that era Greece began to experience a protracted strife and enmity of policies. The northern barbarians were easily bribed with gold.
Reforms in the army
Realizing that the greatness of the state is based on the power of his troops, the king completely reorganized his armed forces. What was the army of Philip of Macedon? The answer lies in the phenomenon of the Macedonian phalanx. It was a new infantry fighting formation, which was a regiment of 1,500 people. The recruitment of phalanxes became strictly territorial, which made it possible to improve the interaction of soldiers among themselves.
One such formation consisted of many lochos - rows of 16 foot soldiers. Each line had its own task on the battlefield. The new organization made it possible to improve the fighting qualities of the troops. Now the Macedonian army was moving solidly and monolithically, and in case the phalanx needed to turn, the lochos responsible for this began the redeployment, giving a signal to the neighbors. The others followed him. The last lochos monitored the harmony of the regiments and the correct formation, correcting the mistakes of their comrades.
So what was the army of Philip of Macedon? The answer lies in the king's decision to combine the experience of foreign troops. In his youth, Philip lived in Thebes in honorable captivity. There, in local libraries, he got acquainted with the works of Greek strategists of different times. Considerations of many of them, a sensitive and capable student later brought to life on his own army.
Rearmament of the troops
Being engaged in military reform, Philip of Macedon paid attention to issues not only of organization, but also of weapons. Under him, the sarissa appeared in the army. So the Macedonians called the long spear. Foot soldiers of the Sarissophores received other weapons. During the assault on fortified enemy positions, they used throwing darts, which worked perfectly at a distance, inflicting deadly wounds on the enemy.
The Macedonian king Philip made his army highly disciplined. Soldiers learned how to handle weapons every day. A long spear occupied both hands, so Philip's army used copper shields that were hung on the elbow.
The armament of the phalanx emphasized its main task - to hold the enemy's blow. Philip II of Macedon, and later his son Alexander, used cavalry as the main attacking force. She beat the enemy army at the moment when it unsuccessfully tried to crack the phalanx.
Start of military campaigns
After the Macedonian king Philip was convinced that the transformations in the army had borne fruit, he began to interfere in the affairs of the Greek neighbors. In 353 BC. e. he supported the Delphic coalition in another civil war of the Hellenes. After the victory, Macedonia actually subjugated Thessaly, and also became a universally recognized arbitrator and arbitrator for numerous Greek policies.
This success proved to be a harbinger of the future conquest of Hellas. However, Macedonian interests were not limited to Greece. In 352 BC. e. the war with Thrace began. Its initiator was Philip of Macedon. The biography of this man is a vivid example of a commander who tried to protect the interests of his people. The conflict with Thrace began because of the uncertainty about the ownership of the border regions of the two countries. After a year of war, the barbarians ceded the disputed lands. So the Thracians learned what the army of Philip of Macedon was.
Olynthian War
Soon the Macedonian ruler resumed his intervention in Greece. The next on his path was the Chalcis Union, the main policy of which was Olynthus. In 348 BC. e. The army of Philip of Macedon began the siege of this city. The Chalcis League received the support of Athens, but their help came too late.
Olynthus was captured, burned and destroyed. So Macedonia further expanded its borders to the south. Other cities of the Chalcis Union were also attached to it. Only the southern part of Hellas remained independent. The reasons for the military successes of Philip of Macedon were, on the one hand, in the coordinated actions of his army, and on the other hand, in the political fragmentation of the Greek policies, which did not want to unite with each other in the face of external danger. A skilled diplomat deftly took advantage of the mutual hostility of his opponents.
Scythian campaign
While contemporaries puzzled over the question of what were the reasons for the military successes of Philip of Macedon, the ancient king continued his conquests. In 340 BC. e. he went to war against Perinth and Byzantium, the Greek colonies that controlled the strait separating Europe and Asia. Today it is known as the Dardanelles, but then it was called the Hellespont.
Under Perinth and Byzantium, the Greeks gave a serious rebuff to the invaders, and Philip had to retreat. He went to war against the Scythians. Just then, the relationship between the Macedonians and these people deteriorated noticeably. The leader of the Scythians, Atey, shortly before asked Philip for military assistance in order to repulse the attack of neighboring nomads. The Macedonian king sent him a large detachment.
When Philip was under the walls of Byzantium, unsuccessfully trying to capture this city, he himself found himself in a difficult position. Then the monarch asked Atey to help him with money in order to somehow cover the costs associated with a long siege. The leader of the Scythians mockingly refused his neighbor in a response letter. Philip did not tolerate such an insult. In 339 BC. e. he went north to punish the treacherous Scythians with a sword. These Black Sea nomads were indeed defeated. After this campaign, the Macedonians finally returned home, though not for long.
Battle of Chaeronea
In the meantime, they created an alliance directed against the Macedonian expansion. Philip was not embarrassed by this fact. He was going to continue his march south anyway. In 338 BC. e. there was a decisive basis of the Greek army in this battle consisted of the inhabitants of Athens and Thebes. These two policies were the political leaders of Hellas.
The battle is also notable for the fact that the 18-year-old heir to the tsar, Alexander, took part in it. He had to learn from his own experience what the army of Philip of Macedon was like. The monarch himself commanded the phalanxes, and his son had at his disposal the cavalry on the left flank. The trust was justified. The Macedonians defeated the opponents. The Athenians, along with their influential politician and orator Demosthenes, fled the battlefield.
Corinthian Union
After the defeat at Chaeronea, the Greek policies lost their last strength for an organized fight against Philip. Negotiations began on the future of Hellas. Their result was the creation of the Corinthian Union. Now the Greeks found themselves in a dependent position from the Macedonian king, although the old laws were formally preserved in them. Philip also occupied some cities.
The union was created under the pretext of a future struggle with Persia. The Macedonian army of Philip of Macedon could not cope with the Greek policies alone and agreed to provide the king with their own troops. Philip was recognized as the protector of all Hellenic culture. He himself transferred much of the Greek realities into the life of his own country.
Family conflict
After the successful unification of Greece under his rule, Philip was about to declare war on Persia. However, his plans were thwarted by family squabbles. In 337 BC. e. he married the girl Cleopatra, which led to a conflict with his first wife, Olympias. It was from her that Philip had a son, Alexander, who in the future was destined to become the greatest commander of antiquity. The offspring did not accept the act of his father and, following the offended mother, left his yard.
Philip of Macedon, whose biography was full of successful military campaigns, could not allow his state to fall apart from the inside due to a conflict with the heir. After lengthy negotiations, he finally reconciled with his son. Then Philip was going to go to Persia, but before that, the wedding celebrations were to end in the capital.
Murder
At one of the festive feasts, the king was unexpectedly killed by his own bodyguard, whose name was Pausanias. The rest of the guards immediately dealt with him. Therefore, it is still unknown what motivated the killer. Historians do not have any reliable evidence of anyone's involvement in the conspiracy.
It is possible that Philip's first wife Olympias stood behind Pausanias. Also, the version that Alexander planned the murder is not ruled out. Be that as it may, the tragedy that broke out in 336 BC. e., brought to power the son of Philip. He continued his father's work. Soon the Macedonian armies conquered the entire Middle East and reached the borders of India. The reason for this success was hidden not only in the military talent of Alexander, but also in Philip's many years of reforms. It was he who created a strong army and a stable economy, thanks to which his son conquered many countries.
Philip 2 created all the prerequisites so that his son could conquer half of the world. Philip began with an army defeated by the Illyrians, with a poor and weak state. Having strengthened the army and defeated the northern barbarians, Philip took control of the rich mines. Where by diplomacy, where by bribery, and where by decisive military action, Philip subjugated neighboring states, starting with Thessaly. Like Rome in the future, Philip divided and ruled Greece. The Battle of Chaeronea finally consolidated the hegemony of Macedon, allowed Philip to lead the Corinthian League and begin preparations for the invasion of Persia. Death prevented him from fulfilling his plan.
Information about Philip 2 of Macedon and the battle of Chaeronea can be found in Diodorus Siculus “Historical Library”, Polien “Strategems”, Plutarch “Comparative Lives” and Justin “History of Philip - Pompey Trogus”. Philip's preparation of 2 phalangites is described in the article.
Plutarch, Pelopidas
He (Pelopis) settled the strife, returned the exiles, and taking hostage Philip, the king's brother, and thirty other boys from the most noble families, sent them to Thebes to show the Greeks how far the influence of the Thebans extends thanks to the fame of their power and faith in their justice. This was the same Philip who subsequently challenged Greece with her freedom by force of arms. As a boy, he lived in Thebes with Pammenes, and on this basis was considered an ardent follower of Epaminondas. It is possible that Philip actually learned something, seeing his indefatigability in matters of war and command ...
Justin, 6.9
At the same time (the Athenians) began to divide the public funds, which used to contain soldiers and rowers, among the urban population. As a result of all this, it happened that, due to the fault of such licentiousness of the Greeks, a contemptible, unknown people, the Macedonians, rose from insignificance, and Philip, who was held in Thebes for three years as a hostage, brought up on the examples of the valor of Epaminondas and Pelopidas, imposed on all Greece and Asia like a yoke of slavery domination of Macedonia.
Diodorus, 16.2,3,8,35
Philip, son of Amyntas and father of Alexander, who defeated the Persians in war, received the Macedonian throne in the following way. When Amyntas was defeated by the Illyrians and forced to pay tribute to the conquerors, the Illyrians took Philip, Amyntas' youngest son, as a hostage and left him in the care of the Thebans. They, in turn, entrusted the boy to the father of Epaminondas and ordered him to carefully monitor his ward and direct his upbringing and education. When Epaminondas was given to the teacher of philosophy of the Pythagorean school, Philip, who was brought up with him, acquired a wide acquaintance with Pythagorean philosophy. Since both students showed natural ability and diligence, they proved their superiority by valor. Of the two, Epaminondas went through the most severe trials and battles and brought his fatherland, almost miraculously, to the leadership of Hellas, while Philip, using his exactly the same initial training, achieved no less than the glory of Epaminondas. After the death of Amyntas, Alexander, the eldest of the sons of Amyntas, succeeded to the throne. But Ptolemy of Alor killed him and succeeded to the throne, and then in a similar way Perdiccas dealt with him, and reigned as king. But when he was defeated in a great battle with the Illyrians and fell in battle, Philip, his brother, escaped from custody as a hostage, and received a kingdom in a bad state. The Macedonians lost more than four thousand men in battle, and the rest, seized with panic, became extremely afraid of the Illyrian army and lost courage to continue the war. At about the same time, the peons who lived near Macedonia began to plunder its lands, showing contempt for the Macedonians, the Illyrians began to raise a large army and prepare to invade Macedonia, while a certain Pausanias, who was associated with the royal family of Macedonia, plans to with the help of the Thracian king to join the struggle for the throne of Macedonia. Likewise, the Athenians, also hostile to Philip, tried to place Argaeus on the throne and dispatched the general Mantias with three thousand hoplites and a sizable naval force.
The Macedonians, because of the misfortunes suffered in battle and the great dangers that pressed upon them, were in great confusion. And yet, because of such fears and dangers that threatened him, Philip was not seized with panic at the significance of the expected works, but by calling the Macedonians together for a series of meetings and calling them in a vivid speech to be men, he raised their morale, improved organization of his forces and supplied the people with suitable weapons for war, he introduced constant exercises of people under arms and competitions in physical exercises. Indeed, he developed the close formation and equipment of the phalanx, imitating the closed battle formation with overlapping shields of the Trojan warriors, and was the first creator of the Macedonian phalanx.
Artist A.Karashchuk
... And since from these mines he soon accumulated wealth, with an abundance of money he raised the prestige of the Macedonian kingdom higher and higher flesh to the highest position, since the gold coins that he minted became known by his name as Philippiki, he organized a large detachment mercenaries, and with the help of this money, by bribes, incited many Greeks to become traitors to their native land.
After this, Philip, responding to the call of the Thessalians, brought his troops into Thessaly, and at first waged war against Lycophron, the tyrant of Fer, helping the Thessalians, but later, Lycophron called for auxiliary forces from his Phocian allies, Phaylus, brother of Onomarchus, was sent with seven thousand human. But Philip defeated the Phocians and drove them out of Thessaly. Then Onomarchus came in a hurry with all his military forces to support Lycophron, believing that he would achieve dominance over all of Thessaly. When Philip, together with the Thessalians, entered the battle against the Phocians, Onomarchus, having a numerical superiority, defeated him in two battles and killed many of the Macedonians. Philip, found himself in extreme danger, and his soldiers were so discouraged that they left him, but having aroused the courage of the majority, he forced them with great difficulty to obey his orders. Later, Philip withdrew troops to Macedonia, and Onomarchus, having gone to Boeotia, defeated the Boeotians in battle and took the city of Coronea. As for Thessaly, Philip just at that time returned with an army from Macedon and marched against Lycophron, the tyrant of Ther. Lycophron, however, since the balance of power was not in his favor, summoned the Phocians to reinforce his allies, promising to organize a government in Thessaly together with them. Therefore, when Onomarchus hurried to support him with twenty thousand foot and five hundred horse, Philip, having persuaded the Thessalians to wage war together, gathered a joint force of more than twenty thousand foot and three thousand horse. A hard-fought battle took place and, with the Thessalian cavalry outnumbering the enemy both in numbers and prowess, Philip was victorious. Since Onomarchus fled to the sea and Chares of Athens accidentally sailed on his triremes, a great massacre of the Phocians took place; people, trying to escape, took off their armor and tried to swim to the triremes, and among them was Onomarchus. As a result, more than six thousand Phocians and mercenaries were killed, among them the general himself, and no less than three thousand were taken prisoner. Philip hanged Onomarchus, he threw the rest into the sea as defilers of the temple.
Polyaene, 4.2.17
Philip, wishing to acquire Thessaly, himself did not openly fight with the Thessalians, but while the Pellineians fought with the Pharsalians and the Thereians fought with the Larissans, and the rest were divided along the warring sides, he always came to the aid of those who called him. In gaining the upper hand, he did not drive out the vanquished, did not take away weapons, did not destroy fortifications, but further intensified strife or unleashed them, supported the weak, overthrew the stronger, was a friend to the representatives of the people, rendered services to demagogues. It was with these stratagems, and not weapons, that Philip took possession of Thessaly.
2.38.2 (Philip's defeat by stone-throwers)
Onomarch, who was preparing for battle against the Macedonians, occupied a semicircular mountain in his rear and, hiding stones and stone-throwers on both peaks, led his army to the plain below. When the advancing Macedonians fired, the Phocians pretended to be running towards the middle of the mountain. The Macedonians were already pushing them, pursuing them with courage and pressure, the same, throwing stones from the peaks, crushed the Macedonian phalanx. It was then that Onomarchus gave the signal to the Phocians to turn and attack the enemy. The Macedonians, when some attacked them from behind, while others threw stones, fled with great difficulty, retreated. It is said that during this flight, King Philip of the Macedonians said: "I did not run, but retreated like a ram, in order to strike again with a stronger blow."
Plutarch, Demosthenes
... Then, traveling as an ambassador throughout Greece and delivering incendiary speeches against Philip, he (Demosthenes) rallied almost all states to fight Macedonia, so that it was possible to recruit an army of fifteen thousand foot and two thousand horsemen, in addition to detachments of citizens, and each the city willingly contributed money to pay the salaries of the mercenaries.
Demosthenes, Speeches
First of all, then, the Lacedaemonians, and indeed all the rest, within four or five months, just at the very best time of the year, would invade, devastate the country *opponents* with their hoplites, that is, the civilian militia, and then go back home. Now, on the contrary, you hear that Philip goes wherever he pleases, not with the help of an army of hoplites, but surrounding himself with lightly armed, cavalry, archers, mercenaries - in general, troops of this kind. When, with these troops, he attacks people suffering from internal ailments, and no one comes to the defense of his country due to mutual distrust, then he will set up military machines and begin a siege. And I'm not talking about the fact that it is completely indifferent to him whether it is winter at that time or summer, and he does not make exceptions for any season and does not suspend his actions at any time.
And look how it was with Philip, with whom we had a struggle. Firstly, he disposed of his subordinates himself with sovereignty, and this in matters of war is the most important thing of all. Then, his people never let go of their weapons. Further, he had an abundance of money, and he did what he himself found necessary, ... he did not have to give an account to anyone - in a word, he was himself over all the master, leader and master. Well, and I, put one on one against him (it’s fair to make out this too), over what did I have power? - Nothing! ... But nevertheless, despite such disadvantages in our position, I attracted the Euboeans, Achaeans, Corinthians, Thebans, Megarians, Leucadians, Corcyrians to an alliance with you - from all of them I managed to recruit a total of fifteen thousand mercenaries and two thousand horsemen other than civilian forces; I tried to raise as much money as I could.
Artist Johnny Shumate
Battle of Chaeronea, 338 BC
The description of the Battle of Chaeronea is very vague. Most later writers try to emphasize the role of Alexander. Even with the alignment of armies there is no complete clarity. Modern authors try to reconstruct the battle often from directly opposite points of view. Andrei Kurkin's reconstruction is peculiar, completely changing the disposition of the troops in comparison with the generally accepted interpretation of the sources. It is based on the location of the lion - a monument to the dead and explains many aspects of the battle, but does not agree with the fact that Philip directly fought the Athenians. In Hammond's reconstruction, the wing, led by the Thebans' sacred detachment, for some reason deviated back. Whereas Epaminondas, on the contrary, built an oblique battle formation with the strongest wing forward.
Diodorus, 16.85-86
He (Philip) waited for the last straggler of his allies to arrive and then entered Boeotia. His troops came with more than thirty thousand infantry and no less than two thousand cavalry. Both sides were on the battlefield, in good spirits and ardent, and were comparable in courage, but the king had the advantage both in numbers and in the gift of a commander. He fought many battles of various kinds and won in most cases, so he had a lot of experience in military operations. On the Athenian side, the best of their strategists were dead—Iphicrates, Chabrias, and Timothy included—and the best of those left, Chares, was no better than any average soldier in the energy and prudence required of a commander.
Artist Christos Gianopoulos
The armies turned around at dawn and the king placed his son Alexander, a young man in years, but marked by valor and speed of action, on one wing, placing his most experienced strategists next to him, and he himself commanded at the head of selected detachments on the other; separate units were placed where the case required. On the other hand, dividing the front by nations, the Athenians gave one wing to the Boeotians, and themselves took the lead on the other. As soon as the battle began, both sides competed fervently for a long time, and there were many fallen on both sides, so that for a while the course of the struggle gave hope of victory for both sides.
Then Alexander, whose soul forced him to show his father his prowess and indomitable will to win, skillfully supported by his people, was the first to break the solid front of the enemy line and, having killed many, he laid a heavy burden on the troops opposing him. The same success was achieved by his comrades, the gaps in the front line were constantly open. Heaping up the corpses, Alexander eventually pushed through the line and put his opponents to flight. Then the king also personally moved forward significantly and not inferior in honor to victory even to Alexander, he first pushed back the troops located in front of him, and then, forced them to flee, became the man who brought victory. Over a thousand Athenians fell in battle and no less than two thousand were captured. In addition, many of the Boeotians were killed, and many were taken prisoner. After the battle, Philip set up a victory trophy, gave out for the burial of the fallen, made sacrifices to the gods for the victory, and rewarded those of his people who distinguished themselves according to their merits.
Reconstruction of the battle, A. Kurkin
Polyene, 4.2.2.7
Philip, when he fought at Chaeronea with the Athenians, leaning back, retreated. Stratocles, the strategist of the Athenians, exclaiming: "We must keep up with the enemies until we drive them into Macedonia!" – continued to follow the Macedonians. “The Athenians do not know how to win,” said Philip and began to retreat facing the enemy, closing the phalanx and defending himself with weapons from the onslaught of the Athenians. A little later, having occupied the hills, he encouraged his army, made a turn and, resolutely rushing to the Athenians, brilliantly fought with them and won.
Philip under Chaeronea, knowing that the Athenians were impulsive and not accustomed to military exercises, and the Macedonians were experienced and trained, dragging out the battle a lot, soon tired the Athenians and thus easily defeated them.
Reconstruction of the battle, N. Hammond
Plutarch, Alexander
Alexander also participated in the battle with the Greeks at Chaeronea and, they say, was the first to rush into battle with the sacred band of the Thebans.
Justin, 9.3.5
However, as soon as Philip recovered from his wound, he began a war against the Athenians, which he had long secretly prepared. The Thebans sided with the Athenians, fearing that if the Athenians were defeated, the flames of war would spread to them. Between these two states, not long before so hostile to each other, an alliance was concluded, and they sent embassies throughout Greece: they consider [they said] that a common enemy must be repulsed by common forces, for Philip, if his first actions are successful , will not rest until he conquers all of Greece. Under the influence of this, some states joined the Athenians; some, however, were persuaded by the fear of the difficulties of war to the side of Philip. When it came to battle, the Athenians, though far outnumbering the enemy, were defeated by the prowess of the Macedonians, tempered in constant warfare. But they died, remembering their former glory; the wounds of all [the fallen] were on the chest, and each, [falling and] dying, covered with his body the place where he was placed by his commander. This day was for all Greece the end of her glorious dominion and her ancient freedom.
Artist Adam Hook
Philip, having put things in order in Greece, ordered to convene representatives from all states in Corinth in order to establish a certain order in the current state of affairs. Here Philip determined the conditions of peace for all Greece in accordance with the merits of individual states and formed from all of them a common council, as it were, a single senate. Only the Lacedaemonians treated with contempt both the king and his institutions, considering not peace, but slavery, that peace, which was not agreed upon by the states themselves, but which was granted by the conqueror. Then the number of auxiliary detachments was determined, which were to be put up by individual states either to help the king in the event of an attack on him, or to be used under his command in case he himself declared war on someone. And there was no doubt that these preparations were directed against the Persian state. The number of auxiliary detachments was two hundred thousand infantry and fifteen thousand horsemen. In addition to this number - the Macedonian army and detachments of barbarians from the neighboring tribes conquered by Macedonia. At the beginning of spring, he sent forward to Asia, subject to the Persians, three generals: Parmenion, Amyntas and Attalus
PHILIP II(c. 382-336 BC), king of Macedonia from 359 from the Argead dynasty. Father of Alexander the Great. Completed in 359 the unification of Macedonia. In 359-336 he conquered Thessaly, part of Illyria, Epirus, Thrace, etc. By 338 (after the Battle of Chaeronea) he established hegemony over Greece.After the death of his father Amyntas III in 369, a sharp struggle broke out for the Macedonian throne. Thebes, the strongest polis of Hellas at that time, became the arbitrator in the dispute between the two contenders for royal power. The Macedonian affairs were settled, but the guarantee of compliance with the agreement reached was the transfer by both litigants to the Thebans as hostages of boys from noble families. Among the latter was Philip. The young prince received a Greek education in Thebes and learned the lessons of military art under the guidance of Epaminondas, the best commander of that time.
Returning to his homeland, Philip in 359 became regent for his young nephew, and in 356 he took the royal throne. Having suppressed the internal opposition and eliminated the threat of attacks from the neighbors - the militant Illyrian and Thracian tribes, Philip II directed his further efforts to establish Macedonian hegemony in the entire south of the Balkans.
An important step towards achieving this goal was the reorganization of the army. It was replenished now according to the principle of regular recruiting. Philip changed the traditional formation of troops, improved weapons for soldiers, widely used the latest military equipment, established close interaction between infantry and cavalry, and the latter was now able to act independently. Innovations also affected the navy: ships of larger sizes than before appeared in it - with four and five rows of oars.
The first serious success of Philip in expanding the borders of the Macedonian state was the annexation of the large Hellenic policy of Amphipolis (on the northern coast of the Aegean Sea) and the gold-rich Pangean mines. Having established the minting of gold and silver coins, he was able to further strengthen the army by attracting detachments of experienced mercenaries.
A suitable occasion for intervention in Greek affairs presented itself during the Holy War (355-346), declared by Phocis for the robbery of the temple of Apollo at Delphi. This war ended with the defeat of the Phokians by the army of Philip and their complete surrender. At the same time, the Thracian coast of the Aegean Sea, including almost all the former possessions of Athens, came under the rule of Macedonia (Philocrates world 346).
Awareness of the Macedonian danger forced many policies of Hellas to rally for a joint rebuff. The main role in this coalition was played by Athens and Thebes. The allied army of the Greeks met with the army of Philip near the city of Chaeronea in Boeotia. There, in a general battle, the allies suffered a complete defeat (338). After that, Macedonian hegemony over Greece became a reality.
At the initiative of Philip, representatives of the Greek policies were gathered in Corinth. The Corinthian Congress proclaimed the creation of the Panhellenic (Panhellenic) Union (337). The main goal was the organization of a campaign against Persia in revenge for the previous devastating campaigns of its kings in Hellas, Philip became the head of the combined Greek-Macedonian forces. War was declared on the Persians, and the advanced military contingents of the Macedonians crossed into Asia Minor. Soon, however, Philip was killed at his daughter's wedding by a young Macedonian aristocrat in revenge for a personal offense. Phillip's plan was carried out by his son Alexander the Great.
A. A. Molchanov
Alexander the Great(Alexander III the Great) (356, Pella, Macedonia - June 13, 323 BC, Babylon), king of Macedonia since 336, commander, creator of the largest state of the ancient world, son of Philip II of Macedon.
Heir of Philip II
The son of the Macedonian king Philip II and the queen of Olympias, Alexander received an excellent education for his time, his tutor from the age of 13 was Aristotle. Alexander's favorite reading was the heroic poems of Homer. He underwent military training under the guidance of his father. Already in his youth, he demonstrated exceptional abilities for military leadership. In 338 Alexander's personal participation in the Battle of Chaeronea largely decided the outcome of the battle in favor of the Macedonians.The youth of the heir to the Macedonian throne was overshadowed by the divorce of his parents. Philip's remarriage to another woman (Cleopatra) caused a quarrel between Alexander and his father. After the mysterious assassination of King Philip in June 336 BC. e. 20-year-old Alexander was enthroned.
Hike to the East
The main task of the young king was to prepare for a military campaign in Persia. As a legacy from Philip, Alexander received the strongest army of Ancient Greece, but he understood that in order to defeat the huge power of the Achaemenids, the efforts of all Hellas would be needed. He managed to create a pan-Hellenic (general Greek) union and form a united Greek-Macedonian army.The elite of the army were the bodyguards of the king (hypaspists) and the Macedonian royal guard. The basis of the cavalry were horsemen from Thessaly. Foot soldiers wore heavy bronze armor, their main weapon was the Macedonian spear - sarissa. Alexander perfected his father's fighting tactics. He began to build the Macedonian phalanx at an angle, such a formation made it possible to concentrate forces to attack the right flank of the enemy, traditionally weak in the armies of the ancient world. In addition to heavy infantry, the army had a considerable number of lightly armed auxiliary detachments from different cities of Greece. The total number of infantry was 30 thousand people, cavalry - 5 thousand. Despite the relatively small number, the Greek-Macedonian army was well trained and armed.
In 334, the army of the Macedonian king crossed the Hellespont (modern Dardanelles), a war began under the slogan of revenge on the Persians for the desecrated Greek shrines of Asia Minor. At the first stage of hostilities, Alexander was opposed by the Persian satraps who ruled Asia Minor. Their 60,000-strong army was defeated in 333 at the Battle of the Granik River, after which the Greek cities of Asia Minor were liberated. However, the state of the Achaemenids possessed huge human and material resources. King Darius III, having gathered the best troops from all over his country, moved towards Alexander, but in the decisive battle of Issus near the border of Syria and Cilicia (the region of modern Iskanderun, Turkey), his 100,000th army was defeated, and he himself barely escaped.
Defeat of the Achaemenid Empire
Alexander decided to take advantage of the fruits of his victory and continued the campaign. The successful siege of Tire opened the way for him to Egypt, and in the winter of 332-331 the Greek-Macedonian phalanxes entered the Nile valley. The population of the countries enslaved by the Persians perceived the Macedonians as liberators. To maintain stable power in the occupied lands, Alexander took an extraordinary step - proclaiming himself the son of the Egyptian god Ammon, identified by the Greeks with Zeus, he became the legitimate ruler (pharaoh) in the eyes of the Egyptians.Another way to strengthen power in the conquered countries was the resettlement of Greeks and Macedonians in them, which contributed to the spread of the Greek language and culture over vast territories. For the settlers, Alexander specially founded new cities, usually bearing his name. The most famous of them is Alexandria (Egyptian).
After the financial reform in Egypt, Alexander continued his campaign to the East. Greco-Macedonian army invaded Mesopotamia. Darius III, having gathered all possible forces, tried to stop Alexander, but to no avail; On October 1, 331, the Persians were finally defeated in the battle of Gaugamela (near modern Irbil, Iraq). The victors occupied the original Persian lands, the cities of Babylon, Susa, Persepolis, Ecbatana. Darius III fled, but was soon killed by Bessus, satrap of Bactria; Alexander ordered to bury the last Persian ruler with royal honors in Persepolis. The Achaemenid state ceased to exist.
Alexander was proclaimed "King of Asia". After the occupation of Ecbatana, he sent home all the Greek allies who wanted this. In his state, he planned to create a new ruling class from the Macedonians and Persians, sought to win over the local nobility, which caused discontent among his associates. In 330, the oldest military leader Parmenion and his son, the head of the cavalry Philot, were executed, accused of involvement in a conspiracy against Alexander.
Completion of the campaign
Having crossed the eastern Iranian regions, Alexander's army invaded Central Asia (Bactria and Sogdiana), the local population of which, led by Spitamen, put up fierce resistance; he was suppressed only after the death of Spitamen in 328. Alexander tried to observe local customs, wore Persian royal clothes, and married the Bactrian Roxana. However, his attempt to introduce Persian court ceremonial (in particular, prostrating before the king) ran into rejection by the Greeks. Alexander dealt ruthlessly with the dissatisfied. His foster brother Clitus, who dared to disobey him, was immediately killed.After the Greek-Macedonian troops entered the Indus Valley, a battle took place between them and the soldiers of the Indian king Porus at Hydaspes (326). The Indians were defeated. Pursuing them, Alexander's army descended down the Indus to the Indian Ocean (325). The Indus Valley was annexed to the empire of Alexander. The exhaustion of the troops and the mutinies that broke out in them forced Alexander to turn west.
Returning to Babylon, which became his permanent residence, Alexander continued the policy of uniting the multilingual population of his state, rapprochement with the Persian nobility, which he attracted to govern the state. He arranged mass weddings of Macedonians with Persians, he himself married (in addition to Roxana) at the same time two Persians - Stateira (daughter of Darius) and Parisatida. Alexander was preparing to conquer Arabia and North Africa, but this was prevented by his sudden death from malaria. His body, delivered to Alexandria of Egypt by Ptolemy (one of the companions of the great commander), was placed in a golden coffin. Alexander's newborn son and his half-brother Arrhidaeus were proclaimed new kings of a huge power. In fact, Alexander's commanders, the Diadochi, began to rule the empire, who soon began a war for the division of the state among themselves. The political and economic unity that Alexander the Great sought to create in the occupied lands was fragile, but the Greek influence in the East turned out to be very fruitful and led to the formation of a Hellenistic culture. The personality of Alexander the Great was extremely popular both among European peoples and in the East, where he is known under the name Iskander Zulkarnein (or Iskandar Zulkarnain, which means Alexander the Two-horned).
M. Y. Thessaloniki
The king of ancient Macedonia, Philip II, took the throne very young - at 23 years old. In 359 BC. e. Macedonia was threatened by the invasion of the Illyrians. After the death of King Perdikka III, the country was left without a ruler, with the exception of the young son of Perdikka III Amyntas. "Compassionate" neighbors - Athens, whose influence extended to the north of the Balkan Peninsula, and the Thracians were ready to subjugate a small and weak state to their influence. However, the brother of the murdered king, Philip, managed to settle the matter by paying off the Thracians with gold, and from Athens - the city of Amphipolis, which they extremely needed. Thanks to this, the people proclaimed Philip the king instead of the young Amyntas.
Conscious of the need to expand the state, Philip began with the army. In his youth, having been a hostage in Thebes, he learned something from one of the best strategists of that time - Epaminondas. It was to Philip II that Macedonia owes the famous phalanx, which only the Roman legion could later surpass. The tsar also paid much attention to the artillery of that time, for the creation of which he invited the best mechanics from Syracuse.
With such a strong army in reserve, Philip II could seriously think about turning small Macedonia into a rich and influential state. Athens bitterly regretted that, seduced by a rich bribe, they left such a quick youth without attention. Philip took Amphipolis from them, taking a number of other cities subject to Athens, and immediately gave some of them to his eastern neighbors - the Chalkid Union led by Olynthus, preventing their intention to support Athens. Then Philip, taking advantage of the dispute between Athens and Thebes over the island of Euboea, captured it, along with the Pangean region and gold mines. Using the wealth that was in his hands, Philip began to build a fleet and, through trade, began to actively influence Greece. As a result of the swift actions of Philip II, the Chalcis Union was completely cut off from Central Greece.
In the IV century. BC e. Greece was weakened by the Peloponnesian War and the beginning of the expansion of the policy. No Greek state could claim to be a unifier or peacemaker. The Greeks made claims to each other with or without reason, each time creating new alliances and new enemies. In 355 BC. e. the Holy War broke out, which lasted until 346 BC. e. The inhabitants of the city of Phocis unexpectedly seized the lands belonging to the temple of Apollo. Thebes tried to curb the blasphemers. However, the Phocians responded by capturing the temple of Apollo at Delphi and using the money they stole, they hired an army of 20,000. Since in Macedonia and Hellas they believed in the same gods, Philip II, at the request of Thebes, immediately acted as an ardent defender of the offended Apollo. Despite a series of failures, Philip defeated the troops of the Phocians in Thessaly (352 BC) and liberated Delphi. 3 thousand captives were drowned in the sea to atone for sacrilege, and the body of their deceased commander Onomarch was crucified on the cross. Now it was time to punish the criminal city of Phocis. However, Athens, quickly realizing that the Macedonians just want to get into Central Greece, defended the only way - the Thermopylae passage.
Philip II, deciding not to tempt fate, turned north. For a long time he looked with interest at the rich Olynthus, who now found himself surrounded on all sides by Macedonian lands, and said: "Either the Olynthians must leave their city, or I must leave Macedonia." Having swiftly captured the small cities of the Chalkid Union, the Macedonians laid siege to Olynthos. The siege lasted a year. Thanks to the diplomacy of Philip, the help from Athens, for which the Chalcidians pleaded, was late, the city was taken and destroyed in 348 BC. e.
Now the Athenians, who valued the remnants of their influence in Thrace, agreed to make peace with Macedonia (the Peace of Philocrates - 346 BC) and withdrew the army from Thermopylae. All cunning plans to save Phokis were shattered by the deceit, treachery and gold of the Macedonian. Phocis fell, and their votes in Amphiktion (the union of Greek policies - guardians of the temple of Apollo in Delphi) went to Philip, who now, as a Hellene, could intervene in Greek affairs on legal grounds. In addition, part of the Greek fortifications on the border of Central Greece and Thermopylae passed to the Macedonian. From now on, the passage to Central Greece was always open to its new owner.
The habitual Hellenic world by the 4th century BC. e. started to crumble. And then, quite unexpectedly, Heraclid appeared - a descendant of Hercules (namely, Philip II counted his family from him), who could take on the role of a unifier or a common enemy, which would also rally the policies. After the victory over Phokis, Philip's popularity in the cities increased.
In all policies there was a struggle between supporters and opponents of the Macedonian king.
The best orators of Athens, Isocrates and Aeschines, supported Philip, believing that he was that great personality who would revive ancient Hellas if he united it under his rule. For the sake of the greatness of Greece, they were ready to say goodbye to the independence of their city. Isocrates argued that Philip's hegemony would be a blessing because he himself was a Greek and a descendant of Hercules. Philip II generously gave gold to his supporters, rightly believing that "there is no such high city wall that a donkey loaded with gold could not step over."
Philip's opponent, the leader of the anti-Macedonian party, the Athenian orator Demosthenes called on the Greeks to fight against the aggressive policy of the Macedonian king. He called Philip a treacherous barbarian, seeking to take over Greece. However, it was not for the Greeks, who had long forgotten what honor is, to reproach Philip for treachery, dishonesty, deceit, dishonesty and lust for power. How many loyal allies and opponents who believed false promises were left on their historical path by Athens, striving for power ...
Despite the successes of Philip's supporters, his opponents managed to gain the upper hand. Demosthenes was able to convince Athens, and with them other Greek cities, of the need to repulse the hypocritical and aggressive Macedonian. He achieved the creation of an anti-Macedonian coalition of Greek policies.
The cunning Philip decided to strike at the Thracian and Hellespont Bosporus straits in order to cut off Central Greece from its Black Sea possessions. He laid siege to Byzantium and the Iranian city of Perinth. However, this time, having neutralized the supporters of Macedonia, Athens managed to help Byzantium. Perinf was helped by the indignant Iranian king Darius III. Philip retreated (340 BC). It was a palpable defeat. Middle Greece could rejoice. Philip decided not to stir up this "hornet's nest" for the time being, leaving his supporters, gold and time to act. His patience was not in vain. Greece could not long live in peace. A new Holy War has begun. This time, the inhabitants of the city of Amfissa, supported by Athens, encroached on the lands of the Delphic temple. Amphiktyonia, at the suggestion of Aeschines, a Macedonian supporter, remembering the zealous defender of Delphi, turned to Philip II with a request to intercede for the offended deity. Philip, faster than the wind, rushed to Central Greece, effortlessly punished Amfissa and, unexpectedly for everyone, and even for his Thessalian friends, took possession of the city of Elatea at Cefiss, which was the key to Boeotia and Attica.
Panic broke out in the camp of the allies. Thebes, who were right in front of the army of Philip II, trembled with fear. However, Demosthenes, who was not taken aback, who arrived in the city, managed to raise the morale of the citizens and persuaded them to join the anti-Macedonian alliance, headed by ancient opponents of Thebes - Athens.
The united army moved against the Macedonian king. Philip II defined his tactics even earlier: "I retreated like a ram in order to hit harder with my horns." The opportunity to strike after two unsuccessful battles presented itself to him on August 2, 338 BC. e. at Chaeronea. Alexander, the future Tsar Alexander the Great, participated in this battle for the first time.
The Battle of Chaeronea ended the Macedonian conquest of Greece. All the Greeks, and above all the Athenians, expected a massacre and mourned their ancient cities in advance. But Philip dealt with the vanquished with surprising gentleness. He did not demand surrender and offered them an alliance. Greece looked at such a diplomatic, educated and generous Philip with admiration. The offensive nickname "barbarian" was forgotten, and everyone immediately remembered that he was Heraclid.
In 337 BC. e. on the initiative of Philip II, a pan-Greek "congress" was convened in Corinth (the dream of Pericles came true!), which formed the Pan-Hellenic Union - only Sparta was not included in it - and declared Philip the hegemon of Greece. And in vain did Demosthenes frighten the Athenians at one time: “He (Philip) hates our free institutions most of all ... because he knows perfectly well that if he subjugates all peoples to his power, he will not firmly own anything until you have democracy." Philip left the political system of the city-states unchanged, and the proclaimed Holy Peace (finally peace!) forbade them to interfere in each other's affairs. Moreover, for the triumph of the common Greek idea and the rallying of the Greeks, the Pan-Hellenic Union declared war on the Iranian state, appointing Philip II as an autocratic strategist.
But he did not have time to start a new campaign. In 336 BC. e. Philip was killed. Alexander, who looked so little like his father, was supposed to continue his work. If Philip was a genius of diplomacy, then Alexander became the deity of war.
Alexander was born at the end of July 356 BC. e. in the capital of Macedonia - Pella. The son of a fan of Greek culture, Alexander, in addition to military affairs and horseback riding, studied music, mathematics and Greek literature. The admiration for the great creations of the Hellenes by the young Macedonian was so great that he even carried Homer's Iliad with him on campaigns and laid it at the head of the bed next to the sword at night. True, he was inspired not by poems, but by the exploits of heroes. But even Greek literature could not soften the passionate and unbridled character of Alexander - he always compared himself with Achilles, from whom, by his mother, the frantic and power-hungry Olympias, he descended. The famous philosopher Aristotle, who, at the choice of his father, was to become a mentor to a 13-year-old teenager, could not cope with him either.
In addition to ethics and philosophy, Aristotle taught Alexander and the science of the state. But the ideal of a great teacher was far away. Macedonia was full of noble families who sought to control the king. Greece, after the death of Philip II, decided to win back its freedom.
Alexander began his reign by destroying all possible contenders for the throne, and then reminded Hellas of Macedonian rule. The initial demonstration of power at the borders made the Greeks change their minds, and they recognized Alexander for all the rights of the murdered Philip II: he was elected archon, strategist-autocrat of Hellas and recognized as hegemon. Alexander calmly departed north to fight the barbarians.
However, Thebes was the first to break down, instigated by Athens, who had a low opinion of the abilities of the young king. It is one thing to defeat some barbarian tribes, another thing is to take one of the most powerful cities in Greece. Is it possible for a boy? It turned out that yes. Alexander's army quickly marched (in 13 days) from Thrace to Thebes. And, despite the courageous resistance of the best Theban army in Greece, the city was taken. Alexander, in the words of the ancient Greek historian Diodorus, "brutalized soul." All the inhabitants of the city, with the exception of the priests and supporters of the Macedonians, were sold into slavery (30 thousand people), the male population was exterminated, and the city itself was wiped off the face of the earth. Apparently, as a tribute to Greek literature, the king left in the open field only the house of the poet Pindar. Only then did the Greeks appreciate the velvet policy of Philip II, when Alexander showed them the "iron fist".
Now that the Greeks, who had lost all hope, were pacified, Alexander finally decided to start a war with the Achaemenid power. This war was to be perceived by the Greeks as revenge for the desecration of the Hellenic shrines in the previous Greco-Persian wars. The desire of Alexander, who "dreamed of inheriting power, fraught not with luxury, pleasure and wealth, but with battles, wars and the struggle for glory" (Plutarch), seems to have been close to being realized. In order to cut off his way back, Alexander gave away most of his lands in Macedonia and turned his hopeful eyes on Iran, hungry for glory. In 334 BC. e. Alexander threw his spear into the Asian coast, thus declaring his rights to this territory, and landed on the coast of Asia Minor with an army of 50,000.
Alexander was so eager to fight that, having met the enemy at the Granik River, he immediately ordered his cavalry to swim across to the other (steep!) Bank of the river and attack the enemy (according to experienced commanders, this was a crazy plan). The battle that began in the water, with the Iranians who did not expect such pressure, was won! Inspired by the first success, the commander, plundering and ruining everything in his path, rushed through the cities of Asia Minor like a whirlwind, subjugating them and establishing democratic rule (but not granting them independence, however).
In Gordion, Alexander showed everyone how he solves complex problems. In this city there was a famous cart, to the drawbar of which, according to legend, the Phrygian king Gordius tied a yoke with a tangled knot (Gordian knot). The prediction said that whoever unties this knot will gain dominion over the world. Having fiddled with the intricacies of the ropes, Alexander, seeing the futility of his attempts, in a rage cut the knot with his sword.
The Iranian king Darius III Kodoman was looking for a meeting with the invader. Iran has long been famous for its cavalry, which was strong on flat ground. The Iranian king, no less than Alexander, was confident in his abilities and was in such a hurry to meet the uninvited guest that, without listening to any advice, he entered the rugged terrain of Cilicia, deciding to go to Alexander's rear. Now the Iranians could not take advantage of their famous cavalry and even numerical superiority (according to ancient historians, the army of Darius III outnumbered the Macedonian three times).
November 12, 333 BC e. The battle took place on the river Pindar near the city of Iss. The Macedonian troops slowly approached the enemy and immediately went on the attack. The Iranians began to retreat under the onslaught of the Greeks and Macedonians. Alexander, who fought in the forefront, noticed Darius on a gilded chariot in the center of the army and rushed towards him, not noticing the wound and destroying everything in his path. Fast, furious, impulsive, he sought to finish the job with one blow - the single combat of kings should decide which of them to rule in Asia. But Darius, standing among the fighting and dying bodyguards and nobles, seeing the Macedonian king so close intoxicated with battle, was the first of his army to rush to escape. After that, even the left flank of the Iranians, which had successfully pressed the Macedonians, fled. Panic began, which ended in a crushing defeat for the Iranian army. The whole family of the Iranian king was captured by Alexander.
Entering the camping tent of Darius, which rather resembled a palace, the half-impoverished Macedonian king, who did not see such luxury in meager Greece, said in puzzlement: "This, apparently, means to reign."
The escaped Iranian king was not dangerous in the near future, and Alexander went to Egypt. Along the way, he easily took luxurious Damascus, in which Darius's traveling treasury remained. It was then that the Macedonians felt a taste for luxury. But the commander did not give them enough to enjoy the eastern bliss and the brilliance of gold. He impatiently drove the army forward. On the way to Egypt, Alexander, accustomed to the rapid surrender of cities, was unexpectedly stopped by the rebellious inhabitants of the city of Tyre, who stubbornly did not want to give up. Tire forced the Macedonians into a long siege. Even the god Apollo, according to legend, who appeared in a dream to the persistent townspeople, could not persuade them to surrender to Alexander. The inhabitants of Tyre recognized Apollo as a traitor, entangled his statue with ropes, nailed it to the plinth (so as not to go to Alexander), and called him "Alexandrist". However, these measures did not help, and after a seven-month siege, the city was taken. Unforgiving resistance, enraged Alexander ordered the execution of 6 thousand prisoners, crucified 2 thousand and sold 30 thousand into slavery. The same fate befell the city of Gaza.
While Alexander carried out the massacre, Darius unsuccessfully sent assassins to him. When he failed to eliminate the rival, Darius sent ambassadors to Alexander with a proposal of peace and alliance. But in response, the Macedonian king demanded unconditional surrender. The ambassadors left with nothing, and Alexander went to Egypt.
Egypt, long hostile to Iran, surrendered without resistance. Alexander was proclaimed the son of the god Amun and "king of Lower and Upper Egypt".
The newly-appeared pharaoh did not stay long in Egypt. Against the "son of God" again came Darius III with a huge army. The two armies met at the village of Gaugamela (331 BC). This time, Alexander answered all the astonished questions of his friends who were accustomed to his attacks on the move: "I do not steal victory." The king ordered the soldiers to rest. And Darius with his millionth (according to the ancient Greek historian Arrian) army stood all night, waiting for an attack. And when the rested Macedonians went on the attack, the Iranian army, exhausted by night standing, offered them sluggish resistance. A large number turned out to be a disadvantage for them: because of their crowding, the Iranians were an excellent target for Macedonian spears and swords. And again, being in the thick of the fight, Darius III was the first to break down. Alexander, rushing towards him, managed to notice only the retreating back of the king. With a general panic in the Iranian army, the retreating Shih began to be beaten.
At the battle of Gaugamela, the Macedonians inflicted a decisive defeat on the Iranian troops. After this battle, only one ruler remained in Asia - Alexander the Great, who sat on the throne of the Achaemenids in Susa. The treasures of Susa were piled at the feet of the king: the royal treasury of Darius III in 50 thousand talents (1310 tons) of silver, Greek valuables, a tribute from almost all the peoples of the world.
But Susa and Babylon were not the ultimate goal of Alexander's Iranian campaign. There was still the capital of Persia - Persepolis. The two capitals of one state had a different fate! If in Babylon Alexander did not touch a single stone, then Persepolis gave his army to plunder. The swords of the Greeks and Macedonians knew no mercy. To top it all, inflamed with wine and the unreasonable speeches of the hetaera Thais from Athens, Alexander ordered the city to be set on fire.
After the conquest of the Achaemenid capital, Alexander released the Greek allies. The Hellenes' war with Iran is over. The war of Alexander the Great began for dominion over the ecumene - the world known to people.
But while Darius III was alive, Alexander could not calmly rule. The Iranian king still had enough satrapies - regions, sometimes including entire countries, where he could again gather troops. And Alexander rushed in pursuit of Darius, simultaneously subjugating the remaining parts of the Achaemenid state. In July 330 BC. e. The king overtook his rival. With joyful exclamations, urging his horse on, he literally flew to the place where he was pointed, and finally overtook Darius. He was dying, abandoned by everyone, treacherously slain by his satrap Bess. Dismounting from his horse, Alexander tried to hear his death rattle. When Darius III expired, Alexander announced to the army that the Iranian king had made him his successor. It was not in vain that he sat on the throne of the Achaemenids, made sacrifices to the god Marduk in Babylon and ordered the restoration of the tomb of Cyrus, the founder of the Persian state! Henceforth, Alexander became the "legitimate" successor and heir of Darius III on the Iranian throne.
Alexander with surprising ease adopted the barbaric methods of government and the barbaric habits of the former rulers of Iran. After all, he was not a Greek, but only touched the Greek culture, but did not absorb it, despite his love for Homer. He was much more attracted by the omnipotence and permissiveness of the ruler of Asia than by the simplicity and unpretentiousness of the king of Macedonia. Alexander put on Persian court clothes, which caused a lot of hidden fun and sidelong glances of the Macedonians; acquired a harem of 300 concubines. He demanded that they prostrate before him, that old friends asked him for an audience. Woe was to the one who did not accept the gifts of the king - he never forgave this. With a generous hand, he bestowed thirsty riches. The ruler of Asia arranged magnificent receptions and ordered that he be worshiped everywhere as a god.
The Macedonian nobility, who tried to criticize the "divine" Alexander, paid for their arrogance: the executions of the generals Permenion and Philot forced her to shut up. Unrestrained and stubborn, Alexander could not stand the attempt on his royal dignity - Clit, his childhood friend, who saved his life in the battle of Granik, became a victim of his unbridled and despotism. Infuriated by the impudent speeches of Clitus, the king killed him at a feast.
But the luxurious courtyard and magnificent ceremonies could not restrain Alexander, whose greedy gaze, not having time to look at what he had acquired, was already striving for new lands.
The reason for the new campaigns was that the murderer of Darius III Bess also proclaimed himself the king of Asia. The army of Alexander, having hardly crossed the mountains, occupied Bactria (Afghanistan) and, having overcome the waterless desert with incredible difficulties, entered Sogdiana. Bess was captured and died under terrible torture.
In Central Asia, Alexander showed himself even less human than before: Branchides, Central Asian Gaza, Kiropol were wiped off the face of the earth. Even the trees were not spared by the swords of the lord of Asia, who left behind a bare desert instead of oases. For a long time this ancient land remembered the heavy hand of Alexander the Great! Worse than the barbarians was this unfaithful student of the Greek philosophers. However, philosophers were not spared by Alexander's frenzied temper: the philosopher Callisthenes, who dared to criticize his eastern policy, died in prison.
From devastated Central Asia, Alexander the Great went to fabulous India (327 BC). Having conquered the Punjab and founded the cities of Nicaea and Bukefalia, Alexander was eager for the Indus to the last, as he hoped, the Eastern Sea. But the victory march was stopped by his own troops. The Macedonians, who tirelessly conquered the inhabited world for Alexander for eight years, could not stand it. They refused to cross the river Gefasis (Beas) in front of the Ganges valley (326 BC). Neither threats, nor persuasion, nor appeal to the gods and military honor, the king could not force his soldiers to take even a step forward. And the ruler of Asia turned back. But in the end, for the edification and intimidation of his descendants, he ordered to leave the "camp of giants" at the site of the last stop. Huge tents, weapons, stables and 12 grandiose altars were supposed to convince everyone that giants stopped here.
But Alexander did not go back the old way - he decided to reach the ocean, if not in the east, then in the south. Macedonian troops, descending the Indus, conquered the cities on its banks and destroyed the inhabitants.
Having reached the cherished expanse of the Indian Ocean, Alexander decided to return by land with part of the troops, and sent his friend and commander Nearchus with another part of the army to get home by sea. Perhaps later Alexander bitterly regretted that he had chosen such a path for himself. His path lay through the hot, treacherous and waterless sands of southeastern Iran. Three-quarters of the victorious army remained in the burning sands of the Gedrosian desert.
Having entered into his possessions, Alexander learned that not everything was calm in his vast kingdom. Many satraps, who had passed to him from Darius III and left by the king in their posts, willingly believed the rumor about the death of Alexander, decided to form their own states. Many heads of these newly appeared kings and heads of garrisons, guilty of abuse of power, rolled down. But Alexander did not manage to establish the final order in his huge power. He defeated the Iranian state, taking advantage of its main weakness - fragmentation, but did not eradicate this vice.
The army of Alexander now ceased to be purely Greek - more than half of it was made up of residents of conquered countries. Even the highest military posts could be received by Iranians.
Alexander the Great made Babylon the capital of his state. The new cities founded by Alexander were to become the backbone of the Greco-Macedonian rulers in Asia. The huge power created as a result of the conquests of Alexander the Great, stretched from the Danube to the Indus and was the largest state of the Ancient World.
In 324 BC. e. Alexander began to prepare for new campaigns. His next victim was to be the Mediterranean: Carthage, North Africa, Sicily, Spain, Italy. Alexander was going to send the Nearchus fleet to reconnoiter the western coast of Africa, which subsequently, having set off to fulfill Alexander's covenant, never returned.
But the king did not have time to complete what he started. 23 June 323 BC e. Alexander the Great, the ruler of half the world, died in Babylon of a fever, without realizing all his plans. After the death of Alexander the Great, his empire, deprived of a strong internal connection, fell apart like a house of cards. His commanders divided the world among themselves, and the coffin with the body of Alexander was taken to his part of the possessions by the satrap of Egypt, Ptolemy Lag, who made Alexander the patron god of his kind.
A long memory has remained for centuries about Alexander the Great. And the reason for this is not his power, which fell apart immediately after his death. Nor was he the founder of a new dynasty: his two sons, Alexander and Heracles, died young in bloody strife. His youth and the ease with which he conquered half the world caused delight and envy. How many future great commanders repeated the words of Alexander: "20 years - and nothing for immortality!" Caesar thought with admiration of the amazing fate of Alexander the Great. Napoleon and Suvorov read books about his campaigns. How many legends circulated around the world, and how many eastern rulers derived their family from Iskander the Two-horned (as Alexander was called in the East). Many of the cities he founded (more than 30) in different parts of the world, bearing his name, were reminiscent of the great conquests. Some of them have survived to our time: Iskenderun (Alexandria under Issus), Al-Iskandaria (Alexandria of Egypt), Herat (Alexandria in Aria), Kandahar (Alexandria in Arachosia), Khojent (Alexandria Extreme).
And let the Greeks, whom the king forced to venerate himself as an Olympian, mockingly declared: "Let us leave Alexander, if he so desires, to call himself a god." He still became one. He became the idol of young minds, the embodiment of good luck, a legend and an amazing story for his contemporaries and descendants.
Almost everyone knows about the feats of arms of Alexander the Great. The name of the great commander forever entered the history of civilization. However, what preceded his military and political glory and what served as the foundation for the implementation of Alexander's grandiose plans? Of course, the activities of his father Philip II, who was able to unite the scattered and eternally warring Greek policies within the framework of the Corinthian Union. Later, his son Alexander took advantage of the strong, battle-hardened army formed by Philip for great campaigns and the creation of a vast empire. Let's find out how it all began.
The king of ancient Macedonia, Philip II, took the throne very young - at 23 years old. In 359 BC. e. Macedonia was threatened by the invasion of the Illyrians. After the death of King Perdikka III, the country was left without a ruler, with the exception of the young son of Perdikka III Amyntas. "Compassionate" neighbors - Athens, whose influence extended to the north of the Balkan Peninsula, and the Thracians were ready to subjugate a small and weak state to their influence. However, the brother of the murdered king, Philip, managed to settle the matter by paying off the Thracians with gold, and from Athens - the city of Amphipolis, which they extremely needed. Thanks to this, the people proclaimed Philip the king instead of the young Amyntas.
Conscious of the need to expand the state, Philip began with the army. In his youth, having been a hostage in Thebes, he learned something from one of the best strategists of that time - Epaminondas. It was to Philip II that Macedonia owes the famous phalanx, which only the Roman legion could later surpass. The tsar also paid much attention to the artillery of that time, for the creation of which he invited the best mechanics from Syracuse.
With such a strong army in reserve, Philip II could seriously think about turning small Macedonia into a rich and influential state. Athens bitterly regretted that, seduced by a rich bribe, they left such a quick youth without attention. Philip took Amphipolis from them, taking a number of other cities subject to Athens, and immediately gave some of them to his eastern neighbors - the Chalkid Union led by Olynthus, preventing their intention to support Athens. Then Philip, taking advantage of the dispute between Athens and Thebes over the island of Euboea, captured it, along with the Pangean region and gold mines. Using the wealth that was in his hands, Philip began to build a fleet and, through trade, began to actively influence Greece. As a result of the swift actions of Philip II, the Chalcis Union was completely cut off from Central Greece.
In the IV century. BC e. Greece was weakened by the Peloponnesian War and the beginning of the expansion of the policy. No Greek state could claim to be a unifier or peacemaker. The Greeks made claims to each other with or without reason, each time creating new alliances and new enemies. In 355 BC. e. the Holy War broke out, which lasted until 346 BC. e. The inhabitants of the city of Phocis unexpectedly seized the lands belonging to the temple of Apollo. Thebes tried to curb the blasphemers. However, the Phocians responded by capturing the temple of Apollo at Delphi and using the money they stole, they hired an army of 20,000. Since in Macedonia and Hellas they believed in the same gods, Philip II, at the request of Thebes, immediately acted as an ardent defender of the offended Apollo. Despite a series of failures, Philip defeated the troops of the Phocians in Thessaly (352 BC) and liberated Delphi. 3 thousand captives were drowned in the sea to atone for sacrilege, and the body of their deceased commander Onomarch was crucified on the cross. Now it was time to punish the criminal city of Phocis. However, Athens, quickly realizing that the Macedonians just want to get into Central Greece, defended the only way - the Thermopylae passage.
Philip II, deciding not to tempt fate, turned north. For a long time he looked with interest at the rich Olynthus, who now found himself surrounded on all sides by Macedonian lands, and said: “Either the Olynthians must leave their city, or I must leave Macedonia.” Having swiftly captured the small cities of the Chalkid Union, the Macedonians laid siege to Olynthos. The siege lasted a year. Thanks to the diplomacy of Philip, the help from Athens, for which the Chalcidians pleaded, was late, the city was taken and destroyed in 348 BC. e.
Now the Athenians, who valued the remnants of their influence in Thrace, agreed to make peace with Macedonia (the Peace of Philocrates - 346 BC) and withdrew the army from Thermopylae. All cunning plans to save Phokis were shattered by the deceit, treachery and gold of the Macedonian. Phocis fell, and their votes in Amphiktion (the union of Greek policies - guardians of the temple of Apollo in Delphi) went to Philip, who now, as a Hellene, could intervene in Greek affairs on legal grounds. In addition, part of the Greek fortifications on the border of Central Greece and Thermopylae passed to the Macedonian. From now on, the passage to Central Greece was always open to its new owner.
The habitual Hellenic world by the 4th century BC. e. started to crumble. And then, quite unexpectedly, Heraclid appeared - a descendant of Hercules (namely, Philip II counted his family from him), who could take on the role of a unifier or a common enemy, which would also rally the policies. After the victory over Phokis, Philip's popularity in the cities increased.
In all policies there was a struggle between supporters and opponents of the Macedonian king. The best orators of Athens, Isocrates and Aeschines, supported Philip, believing that he was that great personality who would revive ancient Hellas if he united it under his rule. For the sake of the greatness of Greece, they were ready to say goodbye to the independence of their city. Isocrates argued that Philip's hegemony would be a blessing because he himself was a Greek and a descendant of Hercules. Philip II generously gave gold to his supporters, rightly believing that "there is no such high city wall that a donkey loaded with gold could not step over."
Philip's opponent, the leader of the anti-Macedonian party, the Athenian orator Demosthenes called on the Greeks to fight against the aggressive policy of the Macedonian king. He called Philip a treacherous barbarian, seeking to take over Greece. However, it was not for the Greeks, who had long forgotten what honor is, to reproach Philip for treachery, dishonesty, deceit, dishonesty and lust for power. How many loyal allies and opponents who believed false promises were left on their historical path by Athens, striving for power ...
Despite the successes of Philip's supporters, his opponents managed to gain the upper hand. Demosthenes was able to convince Athens, and with them other Greek cities, of the need to repulse the hypocritical and aggressive Macedonian. He achieved the creation of an anti-Macedonian coalition of Greek policies.
The cunning Philip decided to strike at the Thracian and Hellespont Bosporus straits in order to cut off Central Greece from its Black Sea possessions. He laid siege to Byzantium and the Iranian city of Perinth. However, this time, having neutralized the supporters of Macedonia, Athens managed to help Byzantium. Perinf was helped by the indignant Iranian king Darius III. Philip retreated (340 BC). It was a palpable defeat. Middle Greece could rejoice. Philip decided not to stir up this "hornet's nest" for the time being, leaving his supporters, gold and time to act. His patience was not in vain. Greece could not long live in peace. A new Holy War has begun. This time, the inhabitants of the city of Amfissa, supported by Athens, encroached on the lands of the Delphic temple. Amphiktyonia, at the suggestion of Aeschines, a Macedonian supporter, remembering the zealous defender of Delphi, turned to Philip II with a request to intercede for the offended deity. Philip, faster than the wind, rushed to Central Greece, effortlessly punished Amfissa and, unexpectedly for everyone, and even for his Thessalian friends, took possession of the city of Elatea at Cefiss, which was the key to Boeotia and Attica.
Panic broke out in the camp of the allies. Thebes, who were right in front of the army of Philip II, trembled with fear. However, Demosthenes, who was not taken aback, who arrived in the city, managed to raise the morale of the citizens and persuaded them to join the anti-Macedonian alliance, headed by ancient opponents of Thebes - Athens.
The united army moved against the Macedonian king. Philip II defined his tactics even earlier: "I retreated like a ram in order to hit harder with my horns." The opportunity to strike after two unsuccessful battles presented itself to him on August 2, 338 BC. e. at Chaeronea. Alexander, the future Tsar Alexander the Great, participated in this battle for the first time.
The Battle of Chaeronea ended the Macedonian conquest of Greece. All the Greeks, and above all the Athenians, expected a massacre and mourned their ancient cities in advance. But Philip dealt with the vanquished with surprising gentleness. He did not demand surrender and offered them an alliance. Greece looked at such a diplomatic, educated and generous Philip with admiration. The offensive nickname "barbarian" was forgotten, and everyone immediately remembered that he was Heraclid.
In 337 BC. e. on the initiative of Philip II, a pan-Greek “congress” was convened in Corinth (the dream of Pericles came true!), which formed the Pan-Hellenic Union - only Sparta was not included in it - and declared Philip the hegemon of Greece. And in vain did Demosthenes frighten the Athenians at one time: “He (Philip) hates our free institutions most of all ... because he knows perfectly well that if he subjugates all peoples to his power, he will not firmly own anything until you have there is democracy." Philip left the political system of the city-states unchanged, and the proclaimed Holy Peace (finally peace!) forbade them to interfere in each other's affairs. Moreover, for the triumph of the common Greek idea and the rallying of the Greeks, the Pan-Hellenic Union declared war on the Iranian state, appointing Philip II as an autocratic strategist.
But he did not have time to start a new campaign. In 336 BC. e. Philip was killed. Alexander, who looked so little like his father, was supposed to continue his work. If Philip was a genius of diplomacy, then Alexander became the deity of war.
According to the encyclopedia.
- In contact with 0
- Google Plus 0
- OK 0
- Facebook 0
