Philip II of Macedon

Philip II (382-336 BCE), king of Macedon, who unified Greece under Macedonian leadership and prepared the invasion of Persia.

Category: Figures

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359 BCE
Philip II takes the Macedonian throne
Perdiccas III dies fighting the Illyrians in 359 BCE. Philip, named regent for his infant nephew Amyntas IV, takes the throne himself. He goes on to make Macedon the dominant power in Greece.
Macedon Philip II of Macedon
357 BCE
Philip takes Amphipolis
In 357 BCE Philip besieges and captures Amphipolis, which Athens had long claimed. He keeps it, though he had agreed to lease it to Athens, along with Pydna.
Macedon Philip II of Macedon Greek city-states Athens
356 BCE
Third Sacred War
The Amphictyonic League, dominated by Thebes, fines Phocis for farming sacred land, and in 356 BCE the Phocians seize Delphi and use its treasure to hire armies. The war draws in Philip II, who ends it in 346 on his own terms and gains Phocis's seats in the Amphictyonic council.
Greek city-states Macedon Philip II of Macedon War Thebes
c. 353 BCE
Battle of the Crocus Field
Philip II defeats the Phocian general Onomarchos in Thessaly, most likely in 353 BCE, though some place it in 352. Onomarchos dies and about 6,000 Phocians fall. Philip is made archon of Thessaly.
Macedon Philip II of Macedon Greek city-states War
c. 351 BCE
Demosthenes delivers the First Philippic
Around 351 BCE the Athenian orator Demosthenes urges Athens to prepare against Philip II. In 349 the Olynthiacs press Athens to help Olynthus.
Greek city-states Athens Macedon Philip II of Macedon
348 BCE
Philip destroys Olynthus
In 348 BCE Philip takes Olynthus, head of the Chalcidian League, after two leading citizens betray it. He razes the city and sells its people into slavery. Excavations of the abandoned houses have given a detailed picture of a Greek town.
Macedon Philip II of Macedon Greek city-states
346 BCE
Philip takes Thermopylae; peace with Athens
In 346 BCE Philip seizes Thermopylae, Phocis surrenders and its cities are broken up. Athens makes peace with him. Macedon takes the two Phocian seats in the Amphictyonic council.
Macedon Philip II of Macedon Greek city-states Athens
August 338 BCE
Battle of Chaeronea
In August 338 BCE Philip II defeats Athens and Thebes in Boeotia, with his 18-year-old son Alexander commanding the left wing. Thebes's Sacred Band is wiped out. Philip becomes master of Greece.
Macedon Philip II of Macedon Alexander the Great Greek city-states Athens Thebes War
337 BCE
League of Corinth
In late 338 or 337 BCE, after Chaeronea, Philip forms an alliance of Greek states, with garrisons as guarantors, that bars attacks and interference. The league declares war on Persia and makes Philip its leader (strategos). Sparta stays out.
Macedon Philip II of Macedon Greek city-states
October 336 BCE
Philip II is assassinated
In October 336 BCE, perhaps 25 October, Philip is stabbed by his bodyguard Pausanias at Aegae, at the wedding of his daughter Cleopatra. His planned Persian campaign passes to Alexander. The motive is disputed.
Macedon Philip II of Macedon Alexander the Great