Macedonia or
Macedon (from ,
) was an ancient
kingdomThe person who heads a monarchy is called a monarch. It was a common form of government in the world during the ancient and medieval times. A Monarchy is a form of government in which supreme power is absolutely or nominally lodged with an individual, who is the head of state, often for life or...
, centered in the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, bordered by
EpirusEpirus was an ancient Greek state, located in the geographical region of Epirus, in the western Balkans. The homeland of the ancient Epirotes was bordered by the Aetolian League to the south, Thessalia and Macedonia to the east and Illyrian tribes to the north...
to the west,
PaioniaPaionia or Paeonia was in ancient geography, the land of the Paeonians , the exact boundaries of which, like the early history of its inhabitants, are very obscure but they were in the region of Thrace...
to the north, the region of
ThraceThrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded on the north by the Balkan Mountains, on the south by the Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea and on the east by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara...
to the east and
ThessalyThessaly is one of the 13 peripheries of Greece, and is further sub-divided into 4 prefectures. The capital of the periphery and traditional geographical region is Larissa. Together with the regions of Macedonia and Thrace, it is often referred to unofficially as Northern Greece...
to the south. For a brief period, after the conquests of
Alexander the GreatAlexander III of Macedon, popularly known as Alexander the Great , was an Ancient Greek king of Macedon who created one of the largest empires in ancient history...
, it became the most powerful state in the world, controlling a territory that included most of
GreeceAncient Greece is the civilisation belonging to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca. 1100 BC and the Dorian invasion, to 146 BC and the Roman conquest of Greece after the Battle of Corinth. It is generally considered to be the seminal culture which provided the...
and Persia, stretching as far as the
Indus RiverThe Indus River is the longest river in...
; at that time it inaugurated the
Hellenistic periodThe Hellenistic period describes the era which followed the conquests of Alexander the Great. During this time, Greek cultural influence and power was at its zenith in Europe and Asia. It is often considered a period of transition, sometimes even of decline or decadence, between the brilliance of...
of
historyHistory is the study of the human past, with special attention to the written record. Scholars who write about history are called historians. It is a field of research which uses a narrative to examine and analyse the sequence of events, and it often attempts to investigate objectively the patterns...
.
Name
Further information: Makednos-Etymology
The name Macedonia is related to the ancient Greek word μακεδνός (
). It is commonly explained as having originally meant 'a tall one' or 'highlander', possibly descriptive of the
peopleThe Macedonians were an ancient Greek tribe which inhabited the alluvial plain around the rivers Haliacmon and lower Axius, north of Mount Olympus in Greece. Historians generally agree that the ancient Macedonians, whether they originally spoke a Greek dialect or a distinct language, came to...
. The shorter English name variant
Macedon developed in Middle English, based on a borrowing from the French form of the name,
Macédoine.
Early history and legend
The lands around Aegae, the first Macedonian capital, were home to various peoples. Macedonia was called Emathia (from king Emathion) and the city of Aiges was called Edessa, the capital of fabled king Midas. According to legend, Caranus, accompanied by a multitude of Greeks came to the area in search for a new homeland took Edessa and renamed it to Aegae. Subsequently, he expelled Midas and other kings off the lands and he formed his new kingdom.
According to Herodot, it was Dorus, the son of Hellen who led his people to Histaeotis, whence they were driven off by the Cadmeians into Pindus, where they settled as Macedonians. Later, a branch would migrate further south to be called Dorians .
It seems that the first
MacedonianThe Macedonians were an ancient Greek tribe which inhabited the alluvial plain around the rivers Haliacmon and lower Axius, north of Mount Olympus in Greece. Historians generally agree that the ancient Macedonians, whether they originally spoke a Greek dialect or a distinct language, came to...
state emerged in the
8thThe 8th century BC started the first day of 800 BC and ended the last day of 701 BC.- Overview :The 8th century BC was a period of great changes in civilizations. In Egypt, the 23rd and 24th dynasties led to rule from Nubia in the 25 Dynasty...
or early
7th century BCThe 7th century BC started the first day of 700 BC and ended the last day of 601 BC.The Assyrian Empire continued to dominate the near east during this century, exercising formidable power over neighbors like Babylon and Egypt. In the last two decades of the century, however, the empire began to...
under the
Argead DynastyThe Argead dynasty was the ancient Greek ruling house of Macedon from about 700 to 310 BC. Their tradition, as described in ancient Greek historiography, traced their origins to Argos, in southern Greece...
, who, according to legend, migrated to the region from the
Greek cityA polis -- plural: poleis --is a city, a city-state and also citizenship and body of citizens...
of
ArgosArgos is a city in Greece in the Peloponnese near Nafplion, which was its historic harbour .-Name:The region of Argos is known as the Argolis, Argolid, or Argeia...
in Peloponnesus (thus the name Argead). It should be mentioned that the Macedonian tribe ruled by the Argeads, was itself called Argead (which translates as "descended from Argos").
The kingdom was situated in the fertile alluvial plain, watered by the rivers
HaliacmonThe Haliacmon is the longest river in Greece, with a total length of 322 km . Haliacmon is the traditional English name for the river, but many sources cite the formerly official katharevousa version of the name, Aliákmon...
and
AxiusAxius is a genus of mud lobster....
, called
Lower Macedonia, north of the mountain
OlympusMount Olympus is the highest mountain range in Greece, its highest peak Mýtikas rising to 2,919 metres high . Since its base is located at sea level, it is one of the highest peaks in Europe in terms of topographic prominence, the relative altitude from base to top...
. Around the time of
Alexander I of MacedonAlexander I was ruler of Macedon from 498 BC to 454 BC. He was the son of Amyntas I king of Macedon and Eurydice.According to Herodotus he was unfriendly to Persia, and had the envoys of Darius I killed when they arrived at the court of his father during the Ionian Revolt...
, the Argead Macedonians started to expand into
Upper MacedoniaUpper Macedonia is a geographical and tribal term to describe the regions that became part of the kingdom of Macedon in the early 4th century BC. From that date, its inhabitants were politically equal to Lower Macedonians...
, lands inhabited by independent Macedonian tribes like the Lyncestae and the Elmiotae and to the West, beyond Axius river, into Eordaia,
BottiaeaBottiaea was a geographical region of ancient Macedonia and administrative district of Macedonian Kingdom. It was previously inhabited by the Bottiaeans, a people of uncertain origin, later expelled by Macedonians into Bottike...
, Mygdonia, and
AlmopiaAlmopia is a defunct eparchy of the Pella Prefecture in Macedonia, Greece. One of the regions of ancient Macedon,north-west of Bottiaea, it corresponds roughly to the Moglena region of medieval and modern times. Ancient towns of Almopia were Horma,Apsalos and Europos...
-, regions settled by, among others, many Thracian tribes. Near the modern city of
VeriaVeria is a city built at the foot of Vermion Mountains in Greece. It is a commercial center of Macedonia, the capital of the prefecture of Imathia, the province of Imathia and the seat of a bishop of the Greek Orthodox Church...
, Perdiccas I (or, more likely, his son,
Argaeus IArgaeus I of Macedon , was king of Macedon of the Argead dynasty from about 678 BC to about 640 BC. He succeeded in the throne his father Perdiccas I. Argaeus left as successor his son Philip I...
) built his capital, Aigai (modern
VerginaVergina is a small town in northern Greece, located in the prefecture of Imathia, Central Macedonia. The town became internationally famous in 1977, when the Greek archaeologist Manolis Andronikos unearthed what he claimed was the burial site of the kings of Macedon, including the tomb of Philip...
). After a brief period under Persian rule under
Darius HystaspesDarius I or Darius the Great , was a Zoroastrian Persian Shahanshah of Persia...
, the state regained its independence under King
Alexander IAlexander I was ruler of Macedon from 498 BC to 454 BC. He was the son of Amyntas I king of Macedon and Eurydice.According to Herodotus he was unfriendly to Persia, and had the envoys of Darius I killed when they arrived at the court of his father during the Ionian Revolt...
(
495- Roman Republic :* A temple is built on the Circus Maximus, between the Aventine and Palatine hills, in Rome, in honour of the god Mercury.- China :...
–
450 BC-Greece:* Athenian general Cimon sails to Cyprus with two hundred triremes of the Delian League. From there, he sends sixty ships to Egypt to help the Egyptians under Amyrtaeus, who is fighting the Persians in the Nile Delta. Cimon uses the remaining ships to aid an uprising of the Cypriot Greek...
).
In the long
Peloponnesian WarThe Peloponnesian War, 431 to 404 B.C., was an Ancient Greek war, fought by Athens and its empire against the Peloponnesian League, led by Sparta. Historians have traditionally divided the war into three phases...
Macedon was a secondary power that alternated in support between Sparta and Athens.
Involvement in the Greek world
Prior to the
4th century BCThe 4th century BC started the first day of 400 BC and ended the last day of 300 BC. It is considered part of the Classical era, epoch, or historical period.-Overview:This century marked the height of Classical Greek civilization in all of its aspects...
, the kingdom covered a region approximately corresponding to the
province of MacedoniaMacedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in southeastern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...
of modern
GreeceGreece , officially the Hellenic Republic , is a country in southeastern Europe, situated on the southern end of the Balkan Peninsula....
. A unified Macedonian state was eventually established by King Amyntas III (c.
393-Greece:* The Athenian general Conon and the Persian satrap Pharnabazus sail to mainland Greece, where they raid the coast of Laconia and seize the island of Cythera, where they leave a garrison and an Athenian governor....
–
370 BC-Greece:* Cleomenes II succeeds his brother Agesipolis II as Agiad king of Sparta.* The Spartans under King Agesilaus II invade Arcadia. After appealing in vain to the Athenians for help, Arcadia turns to the Thebans...
), though it still retained strong contrasts between the cattle-rich coastal plain and the fierce isolated tribal hinterland, allied to the king by marriage ties. They controlled the passes through which barbarian invasions came from
IllyriaIllyria was in Classical antiquity a region in the western part of today's Balkan Peninsula, inhabited by the Illyrians, a heterogeneous coalition of tribes, about whom very little is known, though a number of them are assumed to have been united by a common Illyrian language.Illyria and the...
to the north and northwest. It became increasingly
AtticisedAttic Greek is the prestige dialect of Ancient Greek that was spoken in Attica, which includes Athens. Of the ancient dialects, it is the most similar to later Greek, and is the standard form of the language studied in courses of "Ancient Greek"...
during this period, though prominent
AtheniansAthens , the capital and largest city of Greece, dominates the Attica periphery; as one of the world's oldest cities, its recorded history spans around 3,400 years....
appear to have regarded the Macedonians as uncouth. While the Macedonians apparently spoke a dialect of the Greek language, they were not considered to be fully Greek by many of the inhabitants of the southern city states as they did not fully share the culture and the
polisA polis -- plural: poleis --is a city, a city-state and also citizenship and body of citizens...
based style of government of the southerners..
HerodotusHerodotus of Halicarnassus was a Greek historian who lived in the 5th century BC and is regarded as the "Father of History" in Western culture. He was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...
, being one of the foremost biographer in antiquity who lived in Greece at the time when the Macedonian king
Alexander IAlexander I was ruler of Macedon from 498 BC to 454 BC. He was the son of Amyntas I king of Macedon and Eurydice.According to Herodotus he was unfriendly to Persia, and had the envoys of Darius I killed when they arrived at the court of his father during the Ionian Revolt...
was in power, mentioned: "I happen to know, and I will demonstrate in a subsequent chapter of this history, that these descendants of Perdiccas are, as they themselves claim, of Greek nationality. This was, moreover, recognized by the managers of the
Olympic gamesThe Olympic Games were a series of athletic competitions held for representatives of various city-states of Ancient Greece. Records indicate that they began in 776 BC in Olympia, Greece. They were celebrated until 393 AD. The Games were usually held every four years, or olympiad, as...
, on the occasion when
AlexanderAlexander I was ruler of Macedon from 498 BC to 454 BC. He was the son of Amyntas I king of Macedon and Eurydice.According to Herodotus he was unfriendly to Persia, and had the envoys of Darius I killed when they arrived at the court of his father during the Ionian Revolt...
wished to compete and his Greek competitors tried to exclude him on the ground that foreigners were not allowed to take part. Alexander, however, proved his Argive descent, and so was accepted as a Greek and allowed to enter for the foot-race. He came in equal first".
Over the 4th century Macedon became more politically involved with the south-central city-states of
Ancient GreeceAncient Greece is the civilisation belonging to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca. 1100 BC and the Dorian invasion, to 146 BC and the Roman conquest of Greece after the Battle of Corinth. It is generally considered to be the seminal culture which provided the...
, but it also retained more archaic features like the palace-culture, first at Aegae (modern Vergina) then at
PellaPella , an ancient city located in Pella Prefecture of Macedonia in Greece, was the capital of the ancient kingdom of Macedon. A common folk etymology is traditionally given for the name Pella, ascribing it to a form akin to the Doric Apella, originally meaning a ceremonial location where decisions...
, resembling
MycenaeanMycenaean Greece is a cultural period of Ancient Greece taking its name from the archaeological site of Mycenae in northeastern Argolis, in the Peloponnese of southern Greece. Athens, Pylos, Thebes, and Tiryns are also important Mycenaean sites...
culture more than classic
HellenicAncient Greece is the civilisation belonging to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca. 1100 BC and the Dorian invasion, to 146 BC and the Roman conquest of Greece after the Battle of Corinth. It is generally considered to be the seminal culture which provided the...
city-states, and other archaic customs, like Philip's multiple wives in addition to his Epirote queen
OlympiasOlympias was a Greek princess of Epirus, daughter of king Neoptolemus I of Epirus, the fourth wife of the king of Macedonia, Philip II, and mother of Alexander the Great...
, mother of Alexander.
Another archaic remnant was the very persistence of a hereditary
monarchyThe person who heads a monarchy is called a monarch. It was a common form of government in the world during the ancient and medieval times. A Monarchy is a form of government in which supreme power is absolutely or nominally lodged with an individual, who is the head of state, often for life or...
which wielded formidable sometimes absolute power, although this was at times checked by the landed aristocracy, and often disturbed by power struggles within the royal family itself. This contrasted sharply with the Greek cultures further south, where the ubiquitous city-states mostly possessed aristocratic or democratic institutions; the
de factoDe facto is a Latin expression that means "by [the] fact". In law, it is meant to mean "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but without being officially established"...
monarchy of
tyrantIn classical politics, a tyrant is one who has taken power by their own means as opposed to hereditary or constitutional power. This mode of rule is referred to as tyranny....
s, in which heredity was usually more of an ambition rather than the accepted rule; and the limited, predominantly military and sacerdotal, power of the twin hereditary
SpartaSparta was a city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the River Eurotas in the southern part of the Peloponnese. From c. 650 BC it rose to become the dominant military power in the region and as such was recognized as the overall leader of the combined Greek forces during the Greco-Persian Wars...
n kings. The same might have held true of feudal institutions like
serfdomSerfdom is the socio-economic status of unfree peasants under feudalism, and specifically relates to Manorialism. It was a condition of bondage or modified slavery which developed primarily during the High Middle Ages in Europe...
, which may have persisted in Macedon well into historical times. Such institutions were abolished by city-states well before Macedon's rise (most notably by the Athenian legislator
SolonSolon was an Athenian statesman, lawmaker, and elegiac poet. He is remembered particularly for his efforts to legislate against political, economic and moral decline in archaic Athens...
's famous
seisachtheiaSeisachtheia was a set of laws instituted by the Athenian lawmaker Solon in order to rectify the wide-spread serfdom and slavery that had run rampant in Athens by the 6th Century BC, by debt relief...
laws).
Balkan conquests
Amyntas had three sons; the first two,
Alexander IIAlexander II was king of Macedon from 370 – 368 BC, following the death of his father Amyntas II. He was the eldest of the three sons of Amyntas and Eurydice....
and Perdiccas III reigned only briefly. Perdiccas III's infant heir was deposed by Amyntas' third son,
Philip II of MacedonPhilip II of Macedon, Philip II of Macedon, Philip II of Macedon, ( — φίλος = friend + ίππος = horse — transliterated 382 – 336 BC, was an ancient Greek king (basileus) of Macedon from 359 BC until his assassination in 336. He was the father of Alexander the Great and Philip...
, who made himself king and ushered in a period of Macedonian dominance of Greece. Under Philip II, (
359-Macedonia:* The Macedonian King Perdiccas III is killed while defending his country against an Illyrian attack led by King Bardylis. He is succeeded by his infant son, Amyntas IV. The child's uncle, Philip II, assumes the regency....
–
336 BC-Persian Empire:* The young king of Persia, Arses, objects to being controlled by Bagoas and attempts to poison him. Instead, Arses and all his children are killed by Bagoas....
), Macedon expanded into the territory of the Paionians,
ThraciansThe ancient Thracians were a group of Indo-European tribes who spoke the Thracian language – a scarcely attested branch of the Indo-European language family...
, and
IllyriansThe Illyrians were a group of tribes who inhabited the Western Balkans during classical antiquity. The territory the tribes covered came to be known as Illyria to Greek and Roman authors, corresponding roughly to the area between Adriatic sea in west, Drava river in North, Morava river in east...
. Among other conquests, he annexed the regions of
PelagoniaPelagonia is a geographical region of Macedonia, with different borders between ancient and modern times....
and Southern
PaioniaPaionia or Paeonia was in ancient geography, the land of the Paeonians , the exact boundaries of which, like the early history of its inhabitants, are very obscure but they were in the region of Thrace...
.
Philip redesigned the army of Macedon adding a number of variations to the traditional
hopliteA hoplite was a citizen-soldier of the Ancient Greek City-states. They were primarily armed as spear-men and fought in a phalanx formation. The word hoplite A hoplite was a citizen-soldier of the Ancient Greek City-states. They were primarily armed as spear-men and fought in a phalanx formation....
force to make it far more effective. He added the
hetairoi, a well armoured heavy cavalry, and more light infantry, both of which added greater flexibility and responsiveness to the force. He also lengthened the spear and shrank the shield of the main infantry force, increasing its offensive capabilities.
Philip began to rapidly expand the borders of his kingdom. He first campaigned in the north against non-Greek peoples such as the
IllyriansThe Illyrians were a group of tribes who inhabited the Western Balkans during classical antiquity. The territory the tribes covered came to be known as Illyria to Greek and Roman authors, corresponding roughly to the area between Adriatic sea in west, Drava river in North, Morava river in east...
, securing his northern border and gaining much prestige as a warrior. He next turned east, to the territory along the northern shore of the Aegean. The most important city in this area was
AmphipolisAmphipolis was an ancient Greek city in the region once inhabited by the Edoni people in the present-day periphery of Central Macedonia. It was built on a raised plateau overlooking the east bank of the river Strymon where it emerged from Lake Cercinitis, about 3 m. from the Aegean Sea. Founded in...
, which controlled the way into
ThraceThrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded on the north by the Balkan Mountains, on the south by the Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea and on the east by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara...
and also was near valuable silver mines. This region had been part of the Athenian Empire, and Athens still considered it as in their sphere. The Athenians attempted to curb the growing power of Macedonia, but were limited by the outbreak of the Social War. They could also do little to halt Philip when he turned his armies south and took over most of
ThessalyThessaly is one of the 13 peripheries of Greece, and is further sub-divided into 4 prefectures. The capital of the periphery and traditional geographical region is Larissa. Together with the regions of Macedonia and Thrace, it is often referred to unofficially as Northern Greece...
.
Control of Thessaly meant Philip was now closely involved in the politics of central Greece. 356 BCE saw the outbreak of the
Third Sacred WarThe Third Sacred War was fought between the forces of Thebes and Phocis for control of Delphi. Compared to the Second Sacred War it was longer, more bitter and more violent.-Philomelus takes control of Delphi:...
that pitted
PhocisPhocis is an ancient district and a modern prefecture of Greece, located in Central Greece, stretching from the western mountainsides of Parnassus on the east to the mountain range of Vardousia on the west, upon the Gulf of Corinth.-Geography:Ancient Phocis was about 1,619 km² in area, bounded on...
against
ThebesThebes was a Boeotian city-state , situated to the north of the Cithaeron range, which divides Boeotia from Attica, and on the southern edge of the Boeotian plain...
and its allies. Thebes recruited the Macedonians to join them and at the
Battle of Crocus FieldThe Battle of Crocus Field was a battle between Philip II of Macedon and Onomarchus of Phocis in 352 BC. Philip had been defeated by Onomarchus the year before, but this time was victorious.-Summary:...
Phillip decisively defeated Phocis and its Athenian allies. As a result Macedonia became the leading state in the
Amphictyonic LeagueIn the Archaic period of ancient Greece, an amphictyony , a "league of neighbors", or Amphictyonic League was an ancient association of Greek tribes formed in the dim past, before the rise of the Greek polis...
and Phillip became head of the Pythian Games, firmly putting the Macedonian leader at the centre of the Greek political world.
In the continuing conflict with Athens Philip marched east through Thrace in an attempt to capture
ByzantiumByzantium was an ancient Greek city, which was founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and named after their king Byzas or Byzantas . The name "Byzantium" is a Latinization of the original name Byzantion...
and the Bosphorus, thus cutting off the Black Sea grain supply that provided Athens with much of its food. The siege of Byzantium failed, but Athens realized the grave danger the rise of Macedon presented and under
DemosthenesDemosthenes was a prominent Greek statesman and orator of ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual prowess and provide an insight into the politics and culture of ancient Greece during the 4th century BC. Demosthenes learned rhetoric by...
built a coalition of many of the major states to oppose the Macedonians. Most importantly Thebes, which had the strongest ground force of any of the city states, joined the effort. The allies met the Macedonians at the
Battle of ChaeroneaFor the later battle, see Battle of Chaeronea The Battle of Chaeronea 338 BC, fought near Chaeronea, in Boeotia, was the greatest victory of Philip II of Macedon...
and were decisively defeated, leaving Philip and the Macedonians the unquestioned master of Greece.
Empire
Philip's son,
Alexander the GreatAlexander III of Macedon, popularly known as Alexander the Great , was an Ancient Greek king of Macedon who created one of the largest empires in ancient history...
(
356-Persian Empire:* Having blamed the defeats by Philip II in Thessaly and Chalcidice on his colleagues, Chares is left as sole Athenian commander. Chares is in need of money for his war effort, but frowns upon asking it from the Athenians so, partly compelled by his mercenaries, he enters the...
–
323 BC-Macedonian Empire:* 10 June—In Babylon, Alexander the Great dies, ten days after being taken ill after a prolonged banquet and drinking bout.* The Partition of Babylon sets out the division of the territories conquered by Alexander the Great between his generals...
), managed to briefly extend Macedonian power not only over the central Greek city-states, but also to the Persian empire, including
EgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia...
and lands as far east as the fringes of
IndiaThe Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent and other terms, is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate south of the Himalayas, forming a peninsula which extends southward into the Indian Ocean...
. Alexander's adoption of the styles of government of the conquered territories was accompanied by the spread of Greek culture and learning through his vast empire. Although the empire fractured into multiple Hellenic regimes shortly after his death, his conquests left a lasting legacy, not least in the new Greek-speaking cities founded across Persia's western territories, heralding the
HellenisticHellenistic civilization represents the zenith of Greek influence in the ancient world from 323 BC to about 146 BC ; note, however that Koine Greek language and Hellenistic philosophy and religion are also indisputably elements of the Roman era till Late Antiquity...
period. In the partition of Alexander's empire among the
DiadochiThe Diadochi were the rival successors of Alexander the Great, and their Wars of the Diadochi followed Alexander's death...
, Macedonia fell to the
Antipatrid dynastyThe Antipatrid dynasty was a Macedonian dynasty founded by Cassander, the son of Antipater, who declared himself King of Macedon in 302 BC. This dynasty did not last long; in 294 BC it was overthrown by the Antigonid dynasty, whose members proved to be more effective rulers.Members of the...
, which was overthrown by the
Antigonid dynastyThe Antigonid dynasty was a dynasty of Hellenistic kings descended from Alexander the Great's general Antigonus I Monophthalmus .-History:...
after only a few years, in 294 BC.
Hellenistic era
AntipaterAntipater was a Macedonian general and a supporter of kings Philip II of Macedon and Alexander the Great. In 320 BC, he became regent of all of Alexander's empire.-Career under Philip and Alexander:...
and his son
CassanderCassander , King of Macedonia , was a son of Antipater, and founder of the Antipatrid dynasty.-Early history:...
gained control of Macedonia but it slid into a long period of civil strife following Cassander's death in
297 BC-Roman Republic:* Fabius Maximus Rullianus becomes consul for the fourth time. He defeats the Samnites in a battle near Tifernum.-Greece:* Following Cassander's death from illness, Philip IV, Cassander's eldest son, succeeds his father as King of Macedon, but soon after coming to the throne suffers...
. It was ruled for a while by
Demetrius IDemetrius I , called Poliorcetes , son of Antigonus I Monophthalmus and Stratonice, was a king of Macedon...
(
294-Greece:* Archidamus IV, king of Sparta, son of Eudamidas I and grandson of Archidamus III, is defeated by Demetrius Poliorcetes of Macedonia in a battle at Mantinea. Sparta is saved only because Demetrius is called away by the threatening activities of his rivals Lysimachus and Ptolemy.* Alexander...
–
288 BC-Greece:* The Macedonian King, Demetrius Poliorcetes, faces a combined attack from Lysimachus and Phyrrhus, king of Epirus, after Seleucus, Ptolemy and Lysimachus form a coalition to block plans by Demetrius to invade Asia Minor. Ptolemy's fleet appears off Greece, inciting the cities to revolt.*...
) but fell into civil war.
Demetrius' son, Antigonus II (
277-Greece:* Antigonus crosses the Hellespont and defeats the Celts under the command of Cerethrius near Lysimachia at the neck of the Thracian Chersonese. After this success, he is acknowledged by the Macedonians as their king.-Sicily:...
–
239 BC-Carthage:* Concerned that Hamilcar Barca's leniency in pardoning those who he has captured who have participated in the Mercenary War will encourage others to defect, Mathos and Spendius order the mutilation and execution of "about seven hundred" Carthaginian prisoners, including Gesco...
), defeated a
Galatian*of or relating to Galatia or its people*Galatian language...
invasion as a
condottiere, and regained his family's position in Macedonia; he successfully restored order and prosperity there, though he lost control of many of the Greek city-states. He established a stable monarchy under the
Antigonid dynastyThe Antigonid dynasty was a dynasty of Hellenistic kings descended from Alexander the Great's general Antigonus I Monophthalmus .-History:...
. Antigonus III (
239-Greece:* The First Illyrian War starts when the Roman Senate dispatches an army under the command of the consuls Lucius Postumius Albinus and Gnaeus Fulvius Centumalus to Illyria. Rome forces the withdrawal of Illyrian garrisons in the Greek cities of Epidamnus, Apollonia, Corcyra and Pharos and...
–
221 BC-Carthage:* The Carthaginian general Hasdrubal is murdered by a Celtic assassin while campaigning to increase the Carthaginian hold on Spain. Following the assassination of Hasdrubal, Hannibal, the son of the Carthaginian general, Hamilcar Barca, is proclaimed commander-in-chief by the army and his...
) built on these gains by re-establishing Macedonian power across the region.
What is notable about the Macedonian regime during the Hellenistic times is that it was the only successor state to the Empire that maintained the old archaic perception of Kingship, and never adopted the ways of the Hellenistic Monarchy. Thus the king was never deified in the same way that Ptolemies and Seleucids were in Egypt and Asia respectively, and never adopted the custom of
ProskynesisProskynesis, formed from the Ancient Greek words pros and kunyo literally means "kissing towards", and refers to the traditional Persian act of prostrating oneself before a person of higher social rank....
. The ancient Macedonians during the Hellenistic times were still addressing their kings in a far more casual way than the subjects of the rest of the Diadochi, and the Kings were still consulting with their aristocracy (Philoi) in the process of making their decisions.
Conflict with Rome
Under
Philip V of MacedonPhilip V was King of Macedon from 221 BC to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of Rome.-Early life:...
(
221-Carthage:* The Carthaginian general Hasdrubal is murdered by a Celtic assassin while campaigning to increase the Carthaginian hold on Spain. Following the assassination of Hasdrubal, Hannibal, the son of the Carthaginian general, Hamilcar Barca, is proclaimed commander-in-chief by the army and his...
–
179 BC-Roman Republic:* Tiberius Gracchus Major goes to Hispania as Roman governor to deal with uprisings there.* The Pons Aemilius is completed across the Tiber River in Rome...
) and his son
Perseus of MacedonPerseus was the last king of the Antigonid dynasty, who ruled the successor state in Macedon created upon the death of Alexander the Great...
(
179-Roman Republic:* Tiberius Gracchus Major goes to Hispania as Roman governor to deal with uprisings there.* The Pons Aemilius is completed across the Tiber River in Rome...
–
168 BC-Greece:* The king of Illyria, Gentius, is defeated at Scodra by a Roman force under Lucius Anicius Gallus and then brought to Rome as a captive to be interned in Iguvium...
), the kingdom clashed with the rising power of the
Roman RepublicThe Roman Republic was the phase of the ancient Roman civilization characterized by a republican form of government. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, c...
. During the
2ndThe 2nd century BC started the first day of 200 BC and ended the last day of 101 BC. It is considered part of the Classical era, although depending on the region being studied, other terms may be more proper .-Overview:Fresh from its victories in the Second Punic War, the...
and
1st centuries BCThe 1st century BC, also known as the last century BC or 1st century BCE started on the first day of 100 BC and ended on the last day of 1 BC.It is considered part of the Classical era, epoch, or historical period...
, Macedon fought a
series of warsThe Macedonian and Seleucid wars were a series of conflicts fought by Rome during and after the second Punic war, in the eastern Mediterranean, the Adriatic, and the Aegean...
with Rome. Two major losses that led to their inevitable defeat were in
197 BC-Greece:* The Spartan ruler, Nabis, acquires the important city of Argos from Philip V of Macedon, as the price of his alliance with the Macedonians. Nabis then defects to the Romans in the expectation of being able to hold on to his conquest....
when Rome defeated Philip V, and
168 BC-Greece:* The king of Illyria, Gentius, is defeated at Scodra by a Roman force under Lucius Anicius Gallus and then brought to Rome as a captive to be interned in Iguvium...
when Rome defeated Perseus. The overall losses resulted in the defeat of Macedon, the deposition of the Antigonid dynasty and the dismantling of the Macedonian kingdom.
AndriscusAndriscus, , also spelt Andriskos and often called the "pseudo-Philip", was the last King of Macedonia , and ruler of Adramyttium in Aeolis ....
' brief success at reestablishing the monarchy in
149 BC-Rome:* Third Punic War declared; Rome lands an army in Africa to begin the Battle of Carthage.* Servius Sulpicius Galba is prosecuted for corruption while serving in Spain, but is acquitted after he parades his weeping family members before the tribunal....
was quickly followed by his defeat the following year and the establishment of direct
RomanThe Roman Republic was the phase of the ancient Roman civilization characterized by a republican form of government. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, c...
rule and the organization of Macedon as the Roman province of Macedonia.
Institutions
The political organization of the Macedonian kingdom was a three-level pyramid: on the top, the King and the nation, at the foot, the civic organizations (cities and
éthnē), and between the two, the districts. The study of these different institutions has been considerably renewed thanks to
epigraphyEpigraphy is the study of inscriptions or epigraphs engraved into stone or other durable materials, or cast in metal, the science of classifying them as to cultural context and date, elucidating them and assessing what conclusions can be deduced from them...
, which has given us the possibility to reread the indications given us by ancient literary sources such as
LivyTitus Livius , known as Livy in English, was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
and
PolybiusPolybius was a Greek historian of the Hellenistic Period noted for his book called The Histories covering in detail the period of 220–146 BC...
. They show that the Macedonian institutions were near to those of the Greek federal states, like the
AetolianThe Aetolian League was a confederation of tribal communities and cities in ancient Greece centered on Aetolia in central Greece. Alternatively termed the Aitolian League, it was established probably during the early Hellenistic era in opposition to Macedon and the Achaean League. Two annual...
and
AchaeanThe Achaean League was a Hellenistic era confederation of Greek city states , on the northern and central Peloponnese, named after the Homeric Achaeans or rather the league that existed with the same name in the NW region of Achaea of unknown time of foundation.The regional Achaean League was...
leagues, whose unity was reinforced by the presence of the king.
The King
The
kingA monarch is the person who heads a monarchy, a form of government in which the country or entity usually ruled or controlled by an individual who usually rules for life or until abdication...
headed the central administration: he led the kingdom from its capital, Pella, and in his royal palace was conserved the state's archive. He was helped in carrying out his work by the Royal Secretary , whose work was of primary importance, and by the
CouncilSynedrion or Synhedrion is a Greek word for an assembly that holds formal sessions...
.
The king was commander of the army, head of the Macedonian religion, and director of diplomacy. Also, only he could conclude treaties, and, until
Philip VPhilip V was King of Macedon from 221 BC to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of Rome.-Early life:...
, mint coins.
The number of civil servants was limited: the king directed his kingdom mostly in an indirect way, supporting himself principally through the local magistrates, the epistates, with whom he constantly kept in touch.
Succession
Royal succession in Macedon was hereditary, male, patrilineal and generally respected the principle of
primogeniturePrimogeniture is the common law right of the first-born son to inherit the entire estate, to the exclusion of younger siblings. It is the tradition brought by the Normans to England in 1066. According to the Norman tradition, the first-born son inherited the entirety of a parent's wealth, estate,...
. There was also an elective element: when the king died, his designated heir, generally but not always the eldest son, had first to be accepted by the council and then presented to the general Assembly to be acclaimed king and obtain the oath of fidelity.
As can be seen, the succession was far from being automatic, more so considering that many Macedonian kings died violently, without having made dispositions for the succession, or having assured themselves that these would be respected. This can be seen with
Perdiccas IIIPerdiccas III was king of Macedonia from 368 to 359 BC, succeeding his brother Alexander II.Son of Amyntas III and Eurydice, he was underage when Alexander II was killed by Ptolemy of Aloros, who then ruled as regent. In 365, Perdiccas killed Ptolemy and assumed government.Of the reign of...
, slain by the
IllyriaIllyria was in Classical antiquity a region in the western part of today's Balkan Peninsula, inhabited by the Illyrians, a heterogeneous coalition of tribes, about whom very little is known, though a number of them are assumed to have been united by a common Illyrian language.Illyria and the...
ns,
Philip IIPhilip II of Macedon, Philip II of Macedon, Philip II of Macedon, ( — φίλος = friend + ίππος = horse — transliterated 382 – 336 BC, was an ancient Greek king (basileus) of Macedon from 359 BC until his assassination in 336. He was the father of Alexander the Great and Philip...
assassinated by Pausanias of Orestis,
Alexander the GreatAlexander III of Macedon, popularly known as Alexander the Great , was an Ancient Greek king of Macedon who created one of the largest empires in ancient history...
, suddenly died of malady, etc. Succession crises were frequent, especially up to the
4th century BCThe 4th century BC started the first day of 400 BC and ended the last day of 300 BC. It is considered part of the Classical era, epoch, or historical period.-Overview:This century marked the height of Classical Greek civilization in all of its aspects...
, when the magnate families of Upper Macedonia still cultivated the ambition of overthrowing the Argaead dynasty and to ascend to the throne.
Finances
The king was the simple guardian and administrator of the treasure of Macedon and of the king's incomes , which belonged to the Macedonians: and the tributes that came to the kingdom thanks to the treaties with the defeated people also went to the Macedonian people, and not to the king. Even if the king was not accountable for his management of the kingdom's entries, he may have felt responsible to defend his administration on certain occasions:
ArrianLucius Flavius Arrianus 'Xenophon , known in English as Arrian , and Arrian of Nicomedia, was a Roman historian , a public servant, a military commander and a philosopher of the Roman period...
tells us that during the
mutinyMutiny is a conspiracy among members of a group of similarly-situated individuals to openly oppose, change or overthrow an existing authority...
of Alexander's soldiers at
OpisOpis was an ancient Babylonian city on the Tigris, not far from modern Baghdad. The precise location of Opis has not been established, but from the Akkadian and Greek texts, it was located on the east bank of the Tigris, near the Diyala River.-History:Opis is mentioned for the first time at the...
in
324 BC-Macedonian Empire:* On returning to Susa, Persia, Alexander the Great punishes those who he considers to have failed in their duties in his absence in India, particularly those who have plundered tombs and temples. Alexander continues his policy of replacing senior officials and executing...
, Alexander detailed the possessions of his father at his death to prove he had not abused his charge.
It is known from Livy and Polybius that the
basiliká included the following sources of income:
- The mines of gold and silver (for example those of the Pangaeus), which were the exclusive possession of the king, and which permitted him to strike currency, as already said his sole privilege till Philip V, who conceded to cities and districts the right of coinage for the lesser denominations, like bronze.
- The forests, whose timber was very appreciated by the Greek cities to build their ships: in particular, it is known that Athens
Athens , the capital and largest city of Greece, dominates the Attica periphery; as one of the world's oldest cities, its recorded history spans around 3,400 years....
made commercial treaties with Macedon in the 5th century BCThe 5th century BC started the first day of 500 BC and ended the last day of 401 BC.-Overview:This century saw the beginning of a period of philosophical brilliance among Western civilizations, particularly the Greeks which would continue all the way through the 4th century until the time of...
to import the timber necessary for the construction and the maintenance of its fleet of war.
- The royal landed properties, lands that were annexed to the royal domain through conquest, and that the king exploited either directly, in particular through servile workforce made up of prisoners of war, or indirectly through a leasing system.
- The port duties on commerce (importation and exportation taxes).
The most common way to exploit these different sources of income was by leasing: the
Pseudo-AristotleAristotle was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. He wrote on many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology.Together with Plato and Socrates , Aristotle is one of...
reports in the
OeconomicaEconomics is a work ascribed to Aristotle. It is now usually attributed by modern scholars to a student of Aristotle or to a student of his succesor Theophrastus....
that
Amyntas IIIAmyntas III son of Arrhidaeus and father of Philip II, was king of Macedon in 393 BC, and again from 392 to 370 BC....
(or maybe Philip II) doubled the kingdom's port revenues with the help of
CallistratusCallistratus of Aphidnae was an Athenian orator and general in the 4th century BCE.For many years, as prostates, he supported Spartan interests at Athens, recognizing that Thebes posed a greater threat to Athens...
, who had taken refuge in Macedon, bringing them from 20 to 40
talentsThe talent is one of several ancient units of mass, as well as corresponding units of value equivalent to these masses of a precious metal. It was approximately the mass of water required to fill an amphora...
per year. To do this, the exploitation of the harbour taxes was given every year at the private offering the highest bidding. It is also known from Livy that the mines and the forests were leased for a fixed sum under Philip V, and it appears that the same happened under the Argaead dynasty: from here possibly comes the leasing system that was used in Ptolemaic Egypt.
Except for the king's properties, land in Macedon was free: Macedonians were free men and did not pay land taxes on private grounds. Even extraordinary taxes like those paid by the Athenians in times of war did not exist. Even in conditions of economic peril, like what happened to Alexander in
334 BC-Persian Empire:* The king of Caria, Pixodarus, dies and is succeeded by his son-in-law, Orontobates.* As the Persian satraps have gathered for a war council at Zeleia, Memnon argues that it is preferable for the Persians to avoid a pitched battle and adopt a scorched earth tactic...
and Perseus in
168 BC-Greece:* The king of Illyria, Gentius, is defeated at Scodra by a Roman force under Lucius Anicius Gallus and then brought to Rome as a captive to be interned in Iguvium...
, the monarchy did not tax its subjects but raised funds through loans, first of all by his Companions, or raised the cost of the leases.
The king could grant the
atelíē , a privilege of tax exemption, as Alexander did with those Macedonian families which had losses in the
battle of the GranicusThe Battle of the Granicus River in May 334 BC was the first of three major battles fought between Alexander the Great and the Persian Empire...
in May
334-Persian Empire:* The king of Caria, Pixodarus, dies and is succeeded by his son-in-law, Orontobates.* As the Persian satraps have gathered for a war council at Zeleia, Memnon argues that it is preferable for the Persians to avoid a pitched battle and adopt a scorched earth tactic...
: they were exempted from paying tribute for leasing royal grounds and commercial taxes.
Extraordinary incomes came from the spoils of war, which were divided between the king and his men. At the time of Philip II and Alexander, this was a considerable source of income. A considerable part of the gold and silver objects taken at the time of the European and Asian campaigns were melted in ingots and then sent to the monetary foundries of
PellaPella , an ancient city located in Pella Prefecture of Macedonia in Greece, was the capital of the ancient kingdom of Macedon. A common folk etymology is traditionally given for the name Pella, ascribing it to a form akin to the Doric Apella, originally meaning a ceremonial location where decisions...
and
AmphipolisAmphipolis was an ancient Greek city in the region once inhabited by the Edoni people in the present-day periphery of Central Macedonia. It was built on a raised plateau overlooking the east bank of the river Strymon where it emerged from Lake Cercinitis, about 3 m. from the Aegean Sea. Founded in...
, most active of the kingdom at that time: an estimate judges that during the reign of Alexander only the mint of Amphipolis struck about 13 million silver
tetradrachmsDrachma, pl. drachmas or drachmae is the name of the currency used in Greece during several periods in its history:...
.
The Assembly
All the kingdom's citizen-soldiers gather in a popular assembly, which is held at least twice a year, in spring and in autumn, with the opening and the closing of the campaigning season.
This assembly (
or
), of the army in times of war, of the people in times of peace, is called by the king and plays a significant role through the acclamation of the kings and in capital trials; it can be consulted (without obligation) for the foreign politics (declarations of war, treaties) and for the appointment of high state officials. In the majority of these occasions, the Assembly does nothing but ratify the proposals of a smaller body, the Council. It is also the Assembly which votes the honors, sends embassies, during its two annual meetings. It was abolished by the
RomansThe Roman Republic was the phase of the ancient Roman civilization characterized by a republican form of government. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, c...
at the time of their reorganization of Macedonia in
167 BC-Seleucid Empire:* King Antiochus IV Epiphanes of the Seleucid Empire, returning to Judea after the failure of his Egyptian campaign, and believing Judea to be in revolt, he ordered his soldiers to cut down without mercy those whom they met and to slay those who took refuge in their houses...
, to prevent, according to
LivyTitus Livius , known as Livy in English, was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
, that a demagogue could make use of it as a mean to revolt against their authority.
Council (Synedrion)
The Council was a small group formed among some of the most eminent Macedonians, chosen by the king to assist him in the government of the kingdom. As such it was not a representative assembly, but notwithstanding that on certain occasions it could be expanded with the admission of representatives of the cities and of the civic corps of the kingdom.
The members of the Council (
synedroi) belong to three categories:
- The somatophylakes
Somatophylakes , in its literal English translation from Greek, means "bodyguards".The most famous body of somatophylakes were those of Philip of Macedon and Alexander the Great...
(in Greek literally "bodyguards") were noble Macedonians chosen by the king to serve to him as honorary bodyguards, but especially as close advisers. It was a particularly prestigious honorary title. In the times of Alexander there were seven of them.
- The Friends (philoi
Philoi was a title to the royal friends, advisors of the king in ancient Macedonia. They were the personal choice of the king and they might have came from anywhere in the Greek world. The title became common among the Hellenistic kingdoms...
) or the king's Companions (basilikoi hetairoiThe Companions were the elite cavalry of the Macedonian army from the time of king Philip II of Macedon, and have been regarded as the best cavalry in the ancient world and the first shock cavalry unit...
) were named for life by the king among the Macedonian aristocracy.
- The most important generals of the army (hégémones tôn taxéôn), also named by the king.
The king had in reality less power in the choice of the members of the Council than appearances would warrant; this was because many of the kingdom's most important noblemen were members of the Council by birth-right.
The Council primarily exerted a probouleutic function with respect to the Assembly: it prepared and proposed the decisions which the Assembly would have discussed and voted, working in many fields such as the designation of kings and regents, as of that of the high administrators and the declarations of war. It was also the first and final authority for all the cases which did not involve capital punishment.
The Council gathered frequently and represented the principal body of government of the kingdom. Any important decision taken by the king was subjected before it for deliberation.
Inside the Council ruled the democratic principles of
iségoria (equality of word) and of
parrhésia (freedom of speech), to which even the king subjected himself.
After the removal of the
Antigonid dynastyThe Antigonid dynasty was a dynasty of Hellenistic kings descended from Alexander the Great's general Antigonus I Monophthalmus .-History:...
by the Romans in
167 BC-Seleucid Empire:* King Antiochus IV Epiphanes of the Seleucid Empire, returning to Judea after the failure of his Egyptian campaign, and believing Judea to be in revolt, he ordered his soldiers to cut down without mercy those whom they met and to slay those who took refuge in their houses...
, it is possible that the synedrion remained, unlike the Assembly, representing the sole federal authority in Macedonia after the country's division in four
merides.
Regional districts (Merides)
The creation of an intermediate territorial administrative level between the central government and the cities should probably be attributed to Philip II: this reform corresponded with the need to adapt the kingdom's institutions to the great expansion of Macedon under his rule. It was no longer practical to convene all the Macedonians in a single general assembly, and the answer to this problem was the creation of four regional districts, each with a regional assembly. These territorial divisions clearly did not follow any historical or traditional internal divisions; they were simply artificial administrative lines.
This said, it should be noted that the existence of these districts is not attested with certainty (by
numismaticsNumismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, and related objects. While numismatists are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, the discipline also includes the broader study of money and other payment media used to resolve debts and...
) before the beginning of the
2nd century BCThe 2nd century BC started the first day of 200 BC and ended the last day of 101 BC. It is considered part of the Classical era, although depending on the region being studied, other terms may be more proper .-Overview:Fresh from its victories in the Second Punic War, the...
.
See also
- Ancient Macedonians
The Macedonians were an ancient Greek tribe which inhabited the alluvial plain around the rivers Haliacmon and lower Axius, north of Mount Olympus in Greece. Historians generally agree that the ancient Macedonians, whether they originally spoke a Greek dialect or a distinct language, came to...
- Ancient Macedonian military
The Macedonian army or army of Macedon, was the army of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia. It is considered to be among the greatest military forces of the ancient world...
- Ancient Macedonian calendar
The Ancient Macedonian calendar is a lunisolar calendar that was in use in ancient Macedon in the 1st millennium BC. It consisted of 12 synodic lunar months , which needed intercalary months to stay in step with the seasons...
- Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is the civilisation belonging to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca. 1100 BC and the Dorian invasion, to 146 BC and the Roman conquest of Greece after the Battle of Corinth. It is generally considered to be the seminal culture which provided the...
- Vergina Sun
The Vergina Sun, Star of Vergina or Argead Star is the name given to a symbol of a stylised star or sun with sixteen rays. It was unearthed in 1977 during archaeological excavations in Vergina, in the northern Greek region of Macedonia, by Professor Manolis Andronikos...
- List of kings of Macedon
- Alexander the Great
Alexander III of Macedon, popularly known as Alexander the Great , was an Ancient Greek king of Macedon who created one of the largest empires in ancient history...
- Diadochi
The Diadochi were the rival successors of Alexander the Great, and their Wars of the Diadochi followed Alexander's death...
- Antigonid dynasty
The Antigonid dynasty was a dynasty of Hellenistic kings descended from Alexander the Great's general Antigonus I Monophthalmus .-History:...
- Seleucid Empire
The Seleucid Empire was a Hellenistic empire, i.e. a successor state of Alexander the Great's empire. The Seleucid Empire was centered in the near East and at the height of its power included central Anatolia, the Levant, Mesopotamia, Persia, today's Turkmenistan, Pamir and parts of Pakistan...
- Ptolemaic dynasty
The Ptolemaic dynasty was a Greek royal family which ruled the Ptolemaic Empire in Egypt during the Hellenistic period...
- Crestonia
Crestonia was an ancient region immediately north of Mygdonia. The Echeidorus river, which flowed through Mygdonia into the Thermaic Gulf, had its source in Crestonia...
- Lynkestis
Lynkestis was a region of Upper Macedonia on the southern borders of Illyria which was ruled by kings, lords and independent or semi-independent chieftains till the later Argead rulers of Macedon neutralized their independence with dynastic alliances and the practice of bringing up tribal...
- Orestis
For the modern municipality, see OrestidaOrestis was a region of Upper Macedonia, corresponding roughly to the modern Kastoria Prefecture, West Macedonia, Greece. Its inhabitants were the tribe Orestae. As most of Upper Macedonia, it became part of Macedon only after early 4th century BC; before...
- Deuriopus
Deuriopus was a subdivision of Paionia. Its exact limits are unclear, but the river Erigon watered the district. The towns Bryanium and Stymbara were located in Deuriopus...
- Tymphaia
- Elimiotis
Elimiotis or Elimeia was a region of Upper Macedonia that was located along the Haliacmon, north of Perrhaibia/Thessaly, west of Pieria, east of Parauaia, and south of Orestis...
- Almopia
Almopia is a defunct eparchy of the Pella Prefecture in Macedonia, Greece. One of the regions of ancient Macedon,north-west of Bottiaea, it corresponds roughly to the Moglena region of medieval and modern times. Ancient towns of Almopia were Horma,Apsalos and Europos...
- Eordaea
- Mygdonia
Mygdonia was an ancient territory, part of Ancient Thrace, later conquered by Macedon, which comprised the plains around Therma together with the valleys of Klisali and Besikia, including the area of the Axios river mouth and extending as far east as Lake Bolbe. To the north it was joined by...
- Paionia
Paionia or Paeonia was in ancient geography, the land of the Paeonians , the exact boundaries of which, like the early history of its inhabitants, are very obscure but they were in the region of Thrace...
- Pelagonia
Pelagonia is a geographical region of Macedonia, with different borders between ancient and modern times....
Further reading
- Eugene N. Borza: Before Alexander: constructing early Macedonia. Claremont, CA: Regina Books, 1999. Pp. 89. ISBN 0941690970 (pb)
- Robin Lane Fox, Alexander the Great, Penguin Books, 1973, ISBN 0-14-008878-4 (pb).
- Nicholas G. L. Hammond, The Macedonian State, Oxford University Press, 1989, ISBN 0-19-814883-6. Pg. 12-13.
- Macedonian Empire, 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica
External links