Macedonia (ancient kingdom)
The Kingdom of Macedonia ( Greek Μακεδονία ) was an ancient kingdom in northern Greece and was probably founded in the 7th century BC. Founded by the Argead dynasty . The high point of its history is the expansion of the empire under Alexander the Great (356–323 BC). Macedonia became 146 BC. To the Roman province of Macedonia , which meant the end of the kingdom.
history
Macedonia on the edge of the Greek world (7th century BC to 360 BC)
Whether ancient Macedonia belonged to Greece was a matter of dispute in ancient times and still is today. Historical questions are mixed up with current political problems: For many Greeks today, it is a hard-to-bear provocation not to regard the ancient Macedonians as Hellenes .
However, there are many indications that the Macedonians belonged to the Greek world until the 4th century BC. Was at least controversial. When Alexander I of Macedonia applied for a race at the ancient Olympic Games in the 5th century, the organizers initially rejected his application and stated that only Greeks were allowed to participate: obviously they did not count the Macedonians among the Hellenes . However, Alexander I argued that he was not a Macedonian at all, but belonged to the Argead dynasty and descended from Heracles , which means that according to ancient mythology, his family originally came from Argos, and thus convinced the priests at Olympia of his Greek ancestry . Towards the end of the 5th century BC Then the Macedonian King Archelaus I was crowned with an olive wreath for the victories of his teams in horse races both at Olympia (at the Olympic Games) and at Delphi (at the Pythian Games). End of the 4th century BC Then some ordinary Macedonians took part in competitions and won various Olympic Games. In addition to literary competitions, Alexander the Great then organized music and sports competitions in the Greek style throughout his empire in order to emphasize his affiliation to the Hellenic world. In the middle of the 4th century, however, Greek authors such as Demosthenes and Isocrates emphasized that the Macedonians were barbarians . However, it is disputed whether this was just a matter of polemics .
It is certain that the ancient Macedonians occupied the region of Macedonia at least since the seventh century BC. Inhabited. During this time they conquered several areas in this region (including Pieria , Bottiaia , Almopia , Mygdonia and Paionia ). The historical Macedonian king list ( handed down by Herodotus [8, 137]) does not go further than the seventh century BC. BC back. Whether rulers like Karanos mentioned in later sources as the first Macedonian king who, historically are is unclear, although the dynasty of Argead Dynasty, which he is said to have founded - supposedly descendants of from Argos coming Temeniden - even in historical times in Macedonia prevailed. Until the 4th century, the Argeadians faced numerous dynasts and local kings in their empire and therefore ruled large parts of Macedonia at best indirectly.
In the run-up to the Persian Wars (500–448 BC) Macedonia paid tribute to the Persian Great King Dareios I and submitted to the Achaemenids . After the end of the Persian Wars, in which Macedonia fought on the Persian side, the Macedonian King Alexander I regained complete independence for Macedonia. At the beginning of the Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC) Macedonia was an ally of Athens . However, when Potidaia fell away from the Attic League, the Macedonian King Perdiccas II supported this city as well as the other Chalcidian cities. This led to conflicts with Athens, which were supported by Perdiccas' brother Philip. A little later, however, Macedonia and Athens formed a new alliance. During Perdiccas's rule the political situation changed several times. When Archelaos I in 413 BC When he became king of Macedonia, he laid the foundation for the later great power of Macedonia. The state of Macedonia had been poorly managed until Archelaus took office and its organization was purely systematic. Archelaus initiated a series of internal reforms and greatly improved the administration, military and trade. He tried to increase the power of the crown, had a huge number of high-quality coins minted, improved the organization of his military and expanded cultural contacts with the Greeks. 392 BC Chr. Was Amyntas III. Macedonian king and waged wars against the Illyrians , whose invasions Macedonia barely survived. In the meantime, the Chalcidian federation had also become a significant power factor in northern Greece and border disputes with Macedonia ( First Olympian War ) arose . Macedonia now allied itself with Sparta and the Chalcidian league had to be in 379 BC. Surrender. Most of the cities of Chalkidike were incorporated into the Macedonian Empire.
Supremacy in Greece (359 BC to 337 BC)
359 BC Philip II ascended the throne of Macedonia. The incursion of the Phocians into Thessaly ( Third Holy War ) enabled Philip II to take part in the war and thus gain a foothold in central Greece. The Thessalians' call for help was a welcome pretext for moving Macedonian troops to central Greece. Philip II succeeded in defeating the Phocians in the battle on the crocus field , after which Macedonia was accepted into the Amphictyon League . By joining this religious association, Macedonia was practically accepted into the community of Greeks and was thus able to extend its rule to Thessaly. Philip forced the nobles and petty kings of Macedonia to submit; they had to hold their children hostage, who were brought up at the court of Argeade with his own offspring; many of them later followed Alexander the great to Persia. In the 370s BC BC the cities on the Chalkidike succeeded in renewing their alliance and the Chalkidische Bund gained influence again. However, he was in the middle of the Macedonian domain and was 349 BC. Again incorporated into the Macedonian Empire ( Second Olynthian War ). Philip's victory in the Second Olynthian War was an important stopover in the expansion of power by the Kingdom of Macedonia over all of Greece. How great the power of the Macedonians already was in Greece at this time could be seen in 339 BC. Recognize the participation in the fourth holy war , in which Philip II was appointed leader of the Amphictyonic states against Amfissa . Philip II began expanding outside of Greece by besieging Byzantium in Asia Minor . Thereby he endangered the grain supply of Athens, so that Macedonia declared war ( Battle of Chaeronea ). In August 338 BC In BC Philip II and his army destroyed the Allied Greek armies of Thebes, Athens and other city-states, making Macedonia an important position in central Greece.
The Alexander Empire (336–323 BC)
336 BC Philip II was murdered and his son Alexander III. who had already participated in the battle of Chaeronea, the new king of Macedonia. Alexander's father Philipp had already forged plans for an attack on the Persians, allegedly to take revenge for the invasion of Greece (Persian Wars) around 150 years earlier. However, power-political reasons are more likely to have tipped the balance. Alexander continued his father's plans and started in the spring of 334 BC. His campaign against the Achaemenid Empire , which was led by Great King Dareios III. was ruled. The original goal of the Persian campaign was actually only to conquer the west coast of Asia Minor, but when Alexander achieved this goal in the first year, he decided to continue his expansion and conquered the entire western part of the Achaemenid Empire. After that Alexander, whose reputation among the Greeks and Macedonians rose rapidly, conquered Phenicia and Palestine , from where he marched to Egypt , which he took without resistance, since the Egyptians saw him as a liberator from Persia. During Alexander 331 BC When Babylon was captured, the Spartians used his absence to rise in vain against Macedonian rule ( Battle of Megalopolis ). 330 BC The Achaemenid Empire was finally defeated by Alexander. Now he began to secure the Persian Empire by waging a campaign of revenge against Bessus , the murderer of the Achaemenid king, because he needed the support of the Persian nobles. After Bessos in 329 BC After being crucified, Alexander put down a Sogdian revolt and conquered the entire Persian Empire. Now Alexander tried to expand his empire further east and marched in 326 BC. To India (not identical with today's state of India , the Indian campaign was rather limited to today's Afghanistan and Pakistan ). Cities and villages were destroyed and their populations killed until at some point Alexander's men refused to move on. 323 BC Alexander died in Babylon.
The Diadoch period (322–281 BC)
After the death of Alexander the Great, Athens rose against the Macedonian rule in Greece ( Lamish War ). Athens quickly gained further allies, which, however, in 322 BC. Were conquered by Macedonia, so that Macedonia retained its position of power in Greece. 321 BC The first Diadoch war followed , in which it was a question of rule over the world empire conquered by Alexander. Alexander's companions in the Asian campaign, who are referred to as his "Diadochi" (successors), began to argue for the reign . On the one hand stood the legitimate representatives of the Macedonian kingship, who wanted to preserve the unity of the empire. On the other side stood the opponents who claimed reign over the Alexander Empire. Already after the second Diadoch war in 316 BC. BC five Diadochi had established their own domains in the area of the Alexander Empire, but formally the unity of the empire still existed. In the fourth diadoch war in 307 BC The Alexander empire was in fact disintegrated. 281 BC The sixth and last Diadoch war ended. As a result of the fighting, three great successor states had formed: the Ptolemaic Empire in Egypt, the Seleucid Empire in Asia and the Kingdom of Macedonia, which was taken over by the Antigonids .
Power struggles of the successor states of the Alexander Empire (280–216 BC)
Ptolemaic Egypt, the Seleucid Empire and the Kingdom of Macedonia were the dominant and mostly mutually hostile successor states of the Alexander Empire. 267 BC There were power struggles ( Chremonideic War ), with Macedonia having to assert itself against Athens and Sparta, which were used by the great powers to pretend to be the liberators of the Greeks from their respective opponents. 261 BC However, Athens had to capitulate and tolerate a Macedonian garrison in the city. As a result, it lost more of its political importance and finally ceased to exist as an independent power. Macedonia, on the other hand, under Antigonus II., With the end of the war, again reached the extent that it had in the time of Philip II. Just like the Seleucid Empire, however, it felt threatened by the growing Ptolemaic dominance, so that it was in 260 BC. The second Syrian war came about : Antigonus II. And Antiochus II. Allied with the aim of breaking Egypt's supremacy in the eastern Mediterranean. 253 BC The situation had calmed down again and a peace was made. Also in the third Syrian war in 246 BC Macedonia was involved since 243 BC. The coastal cities of Thrace by Ptolemy III. had been occupied. 228 BC Sparta tried to regain its supremacy in Greece ( Cleomenic War ). Sparta was financially supported by Pharaoh Ptolemy III during the war. supported. The Achaeans then changed in 225 BC Their hitherto anti-Macedonian policy and called the Macedonians for help. Bloody battles followed until Sparta in 222 BC. Was beaten. 220 BC Chr. There were clashes with Sparta (re Social War ), which this time with the Aetolian Confederation had allied. 217 BC Chr. Joined Philip V with the Aetolian Confederation the Peace of Naupactus .
Decline and Roman Conquest (215–146 BC)
After the Roman Republic in 217 BC. Chr. Had suffered heavy defeats against Hannibal during the Second Punic War , the Antigonid Philip V saw a favorable opportunity to seize the coastal cities of Illyria , which had come under Roman patronage , and to drive the Romans back from the Balkans ( First Macedonian-Roman War ) . This failed not least because the Romans succeeded in bringing Greek powers like the Aitolians into position against Philip. In 205 BC In the 4th century BC the Peace of Phoinike was finally concluded, in which the respective status quo was recognized. The Second Macedonian-Roman War (200–197 BC), which Rome began almost immediately after defeating Hannibal, however, lost Philip V, and he was forced to give up his fleet and bases as well as the hegemony over Greece. The king also had to forego any further expansion in Greece, and the Macedonian rule in Thrace and in Caria in Asia Minor now came to an end. Philip's son Perseus tried to save the Macedonian monarchy, but failed in the third war against the Romans in 168 BC. After which his empire came under Roman rule and the Antigonid monarchy perished. Instead, Rome organized the area as a federal state. The dissatisfaction of the population following the smashing of Macedonian independence probably formed the breeding ground for the Andriskos uprising , which ended in the Fourth Macedonian-Roman War (149–148 BC). Finally, Andriskos was 146 BC. Executed and Macedonia a Roman province.
State and currency
Macedonia was a monarchy ; the Macedonian kings were known as the basileus . Traditionally, the Macedonian kingdom was poorly developed until the time of Philip II. The king acted more as a primus inter pares and mainly as a supreme general. The strong position of the nobility also contributed to this. Only Philip II succeeded in strengthening the kingship significantly, integrating the nobility in his politics.
The currency in the Kingdom of Macedonia was later the ancient silver drachma . The drachma was widespread throughout the Hellenic culture and was minted in many cities.
Important cities
Until 410 BC Chr. Was Aigai , the capital of the Kingdom of Macedonia. The place also later served as a burial place for the Macedonian kings. Several sanctuaries and a theater belonged to the city, which was built in the 2nd half of the 4th century BC. Chr. Was built. At the time of Philip II and Alexander the Great, Pella was the capital; Alexander the Great was born here, among others. The Macedonian King Archelaus I had the Olympic Festival hosted in Dion for the first time, and later this place served as the military fortress of Kassander s. Other important cities were Philippi , Thessaloniki and Veria . Other cities that were significant enough to mint their own coins were Dionysioi , Eion am Strymon , Neapolis (Macedonia) , Orreskioi , Zaielioi , Ichnai , Lete , Bisaltae , Edones , Derrones , Thermai , Aineia , Akanthos (Chalkidike) , Aphytis , Dikaia , Mende (Macedonia) , Olophyxos near Mount Athos, Olynthos , the seat of the Chalcidian League , Orthagoria , Potidaia , Skione , Terone , Uranopolis , Amphipolis , Methone , Philippoi , Pydna and Tragilos .
population
Whether the ancient Macedonians were Greeks is an old dispute that remains emotionally charged to this day. The Macedonians spoke Macedonian , an Indo-European language now extinct . So far it is not clear whether Macedonian was a Greek dialect or a separate language that was only related to Greek. Obviously the affiliation of the Macedonians to the Hellenes in antiquity - especially of Athens - was doubted in many ways. The geographical works from the 4th century BC, handed down under the name of Pseudo-Skylax . For example, neither Macedonia nor Epirus belong to Greece. From 408 BC Their royal family, the Argeades , were admitted to the Olympic Games and thus recognized as Hellenes . All the inscriptions from Macedonia were written either in the Attic-Greek language (Koine) or in a Greek dialect related to both the north-western ("Doric") dialects of Epirus and the north-eastern ("Aeolian") dialects of Thessaly is. The religion in Macedonia was shaped by the Greek culture. There were temples of Hellenic deities in Macedonia. Nevertheless, the oldest surviving author who counts Macedonia to Hellas is the geographer Strabo , who wrote under Emperor Augustus (Strabo. 8 frg. 9).
literature
- Joseph M. Bryant: Moral Codes and Social Structure in Ancient Greece: A Sociology of Greek Ethics from Homer to the Epicureans and Stoics . State University of New York Press, Albany, New York 1996, ISBN 0-7914-3042-1 .
- George Cawkwell: Philip of Macedon . Faber & Faber, London, United Kingdom 1978, ISBN 0-571-10958-6 .
- François Chamoux: Hellenistic Civilization . Blackwell Publishing, Oxford, United Kingdom 2002, ISBN 0-631-22241-3 .
- Johannes Engels : Philip II and Alexander the Great. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 2006 (there also more recent literature on Philipp and Alexander).
- Robert Malcolm Errington : History of Macedonia. From the beginning to the fall of the kingdom. CH Beck, Munich 1986.
- Robert Malcolm Errington: A History of Macedonia . University of California Press, Berkeley and Los Angeles, California 1990, ISBN 0-520-06319-8 .
- John Van Antwerp Fine: The Ancient Greeks: A Critical History . Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts 1983, ISBN 0-674-03314-0 .
- Hans-Joachim Gehrke : History of Hellenism. 4th edition. Oldenbourg, Munich 2008.
- Jonathan M. Hall: Ethnic Identity in Greek Antiquity . Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom 2000, ISBN 0-521-78999-0 .
- JR Hamilton [1973]: Alexander the Great . University of Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 1974, ISBN 0-8229-6084-2 .
- Nicholas Geoffrey Lemprière Hammond: Collected Studies: Further Studies on Various Topics . Hakkert, Amsterdam, The Netherlands 2001.
- Nicholas Geoffrey Lemprière Hammond: Studies concerning Epirus and Macedonia before Alexander . Hakkert, Amsterdam, The Netherlands 1993.
- Nicholas GL Hammond, GT Griffith, Frank Walbank: A History of Macedonia. 3 volumes, Clarendon Press, Oxford 1972–1988 (important standard work).
- Nicholas Geoffrey Lemprière Hammond: The Macedonian State: Origins, Institutions, and History . Clarendon Press, Oxford, United Kingdom 1989, ISBN 0-19-814883-6 .
- Joint Association of Classical Teachers: The World of Athens: An Introduction to Classical Athenian Culture . Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom 1984, ISBN 0-521-27389-7 .
- Archer Jones: The Art of War in the Western World . University of Illinois Press, Champaign, Illinois 2001, ISBN 0-252-06966-8 .
- John Maxwell O'Brien [1992]: Alexander the Great: The Invisible Enemy - A Biography . Routledge (Taylor & Francis), New York, New York and London, United Kingdom 1994, ISBN 0-415-10617-6 .
- Robin Osborne : Greek History . Routledge, New York, New York and London, United Kingdom 2004, ISBN 0-415-31717-7 .
- Joseph Roisman, Ian Worthington (Eds.): A Companion to Ancient Macedonia. Blackwell, Oxford et al. a. 2010 (current specialist introduction to the history, political system and culture of ancient Macedonia).
- Samuel Perlman: Philip and Athens . Heffer, Cambridge, United Kingdom 1973, ISBN 0-85270-076-8 .
- Jakob Seibert : The Age of the Diadochi. Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 1983.
- Chester G. Starr: A History of the Ancient World . Oxford University Press, New York, New York 1991, ISBN 0-19-506628-6 .
- Arnold Joseph Toynbee: The Greeks and Their Heritages . Oxford University Press, Oxford, United Kingdom 1981.
- Ian Worthington: Philip II of Macedonia . Yale University Press, New Haven, Connecticut 2008, ISBN 0-300-12079-6 .
- Katerina Zacharia: Hellenisms: Culture, Identity, and Ethnicity from Antiquity to Modernity . Ashgate Publishing Limited, Hampshire, England 2008, ISBN 978-0-7546-6525-0 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ In the introduction to the discussion, see Peter van Nuffelen: Are the Macedonians Greeks? About nationalism and the history of research. In: Martin Lindner (Ed.): Antikenrezeption 2013 n. Chr. Heidelberg 2013, pp. 89–106.
- ↑ Badian 1982, p. 34, Anson 2010, p. 16, Sansone 2017, pp. 222-223.
- ↑ Hatzopoulos 2011b, page 59.
- ^ Anson 2010, page 19.
- ^ Worthington 2014, p. 186.
- ^ Szaivert / Sear, Greek Coin Catalog, Volume 1, pp. 205 to 218
- ^ Simon Hornblower: Greek Identity in the Archaic and Classical Periods. Pp. 55-58.