The Rise of Athens

The schools of Athens These achievements in higher education cemented the cultural dominance of Athens and more widely of Greece during the long centuries of the Roman Empire.

he guessed at the dizzying prospect Diod 16 1 5.

Archon or commander-in-chief for life I follow Green, Alex, p. 47; others place the appointment later in 344 or thereabouts.

lied to and tricked Just 8 3.

“made war by marriage” Athen 13 557b–e.

a good-looking boy Just 7 6.

No city was impregnable Green, Alex, p. 33.

shot an arrow that struck his right eye Just 7 6. In 1977 a richly furnished tomb was excavated at Vergina. The cremated remains of a bearded adult male were found, which were identified as those of Philip on the grounds that the right eye was seriously disfigured. More recently, this judgment has been contested.

Other injuries Dem 18 67.

“an impenetrable hedge of spears” Homer Il 13 131ff.

Philip established an engineering corps Worthington, Spear, p. 37.

taking a hot bath in camp Poly 4 2 1.

“Some of them used to shave” Ath 6 206e–f.

Philip admired the Theban Sacred Band Plut Pel 18 5.

nicknamed him Battalus Plutarch also suggests that in Attica the word was a slang term that signified “asshole.” See Plut Dem 4.

underwent a strict training regime For Demosthenes’ training, see Plut Ten Or 844d–f and Plut Dem 5.

a quotation from the Iliad Hom Il 2 517–19.

what the Greeks came to call a Sacred War A “sacred war” was one connected in some way with the oracle at Delphi. There were three of them, this one being the third. The first two are not mentioned in this book.

They even dug beneath the floor of the temple Diod 16 56 7.

the treasury of the long-ago king of Lydia Ibid., 16 56 6.

“I am retreating like the ram” Pol 2 38 2.

Onomarchus was carried out to sea Eus 8 14 33. There are different versions of Onomarchus’s death. I prefer this one.

Demosthenes succumbed to stage fright Aes 2 34–35.

A treaty was agreed It was called the Peace of Philocrates, after the Athenian lead negotiator.

“When we recently made our way to Delphi” Dem 19 65.

“You wage war on Philip” Ibid., 4 40.

“to go to war for the shadow at Delphi” Dem Peace 5 25.

He delivered a speech The Third Philippic. Philippic was the generic name given to a series of anti-Macedonian speeches made by Demosthenes.

“overwhelmed by Persian gold” Plut Dem 14 2.

the marble column Phil Atthis FGrH 328 54.

“From the spoils of Persians and Thebans” Aes 3 116.

“Nobody dared to mount” Plut Dem 18 1.

“Who wishes to speak?” Dem Steph 18 170.

on August 4, 338, battle commenced Plut Cam 19 5 states that the battle took place on 7 Metageitnion, for which August 4 is the most likely equivalent.

The two armies were more or less equal Information on the Battle of Chaeronea is scarce and vague (see Diodorus, Polyaenus, and Plutarch). I follow Hammond’s reconstruction, pp. 567–70. It is not at all clear what part if any the Greek cavalry played in the battle despite its numerical superiority.

“Let’s drive them back to Macedon!” Pol 4 2 2.

“in the most shameful fashion” Plut Dem 20 2.

“Take me alive” Plut Mor 845f. Perhaps this story, if not invented by his enemies, has grown in the telling.

“Demosthenes, son of Demosthenes” Plut Dem 20 3.

“Fortune has cast you as Agamemnon” Diod 16 87 2.

“Perish any man who suspects” Plut Pel 18 5.

“Philip to enter the Peloponnese”Polyb 18 14 6–7.

“The bull has been garlanded” Diod 16 91 2.

Philip repudiated Olympias Justin 11 11 2.

“You scum, are you saying I am a bastard” Plut Alex 9 4–11 for this complete episode.

he suspected his son and Olympias In this account of the obscure dissensions at Philip’s court I follow Green, Alex, p. 90ff.