Macedonia in ancient times by Antonije Škokljev-Dončo

Alexander II ( r. 370 – 368 BC) invaded Thessaly but failed to hold Larissa, which was captured by Pelopidas of Thebes, who made peace with Macedonia on condition that they surrender noble hostages, including the future king Philip II of Macedon ( r. 359 – 336 BC). The turbulent reign of Amyntas III of Macedon ( r. 393 – 370 BC) witnessed devastating invasions by both the Illyrian ruler Bardylis of the Dardani and the Chalcidian city-state of Olynthos, both of which were defeated with the aid of foreign powers, the city-states of Thessaly and Sparta, respectively. His reign brought peace, stability, and financial security to the Macedonian realm, yet his little-understood assassination (perhaps by a royal page) left the kingdom in peril and conflict. He eventually made peace with Athens, thus forming an alliance between the two that carried over into the reign of Archelaus I of Macedon ( r. 413 – 399 BC). His reign was also marked by conflict and temporary alliances with the Thracian ruler Sitalces of the Odrysian Kingdom. The period of Achaemenid Macedonia came to an end in roughly 479 BC with the ultimate Greek victory against the second Persian invasion of Greece led by Xerxes I and the withdrawal of Persian forces from the European mainland.ĭuring the age of Classical Greece, Perdiccas II of Macedon ( r. 454 – 413 BC) became directly involved in the Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC) between Classical Athens and Sparta, shifting his alliance from one city-state to another while attempting to retain Macedonian control over the Chalcidice peninsula. Led first by the Argead dynasty of kings, Macedonia became a vassal state of the Achaemenid Empire of ancient Persia during the reigns of Amyntas I of Macedon ( r. 547 – 498 BC) and his son Alexander I of Macedon ( r. 498 – 454 BC).

The kingdom of Macedonia was an ancient state in what is now the Macedonian region of northern Greece, founded in the mid-7th century BC during the period of Archaic Greece and lasting until the mid-2nd century BC.

Macedonia in ancient times by Antonije Škokljev-Dončo