1.
Hellenistic period
–
It is often considered a period of transition, sometimes even of decadence or degeneration, compared to the enlightenment of the Greek Classical era. The Hellenistic period saw the rise of New Comedy, Alexandrian poetry, the Septuagint, Greek science was advanced by the works of the mathematician Euclid and the polymath Archimedes. The religious sphere expanded to include new gods such as the Greco-Egyptian Serapis, eastern deities such as Attis and Cybele, the Hellenistic period was characterized by a new wave of Greek colonization which established Greek cities and kingdoms in Asia and Africa. This resulted in the export of Greek culture and language to new realms. Equally, however, these new kingdoms were influenced by the cultures, adopting local practices where beneficial, necessary. Hellenistic culture thus represents a fusion of the Ancient Greek world with that of the Near East, Middle East and this mixture gave rise to a common Attic-based Greek dialect, known as Koine Greek, which became the lingua franca through the Hellenistic world. Scholars and historians are divided as to what event signals the end of the Hellenistic era, Hellenistic is distinguished from Hellenic in that the first encompasses the entire sphere of direct ancient Greek influence, while the latter refers to Greece itself. The word originated from the German term hellenistisch, from Ancient Greek Ἑλληνιστής, from Ἑλλάς, Hellenistic is a modern word and a 19th-century concept, the idea of a Hellenistic period did not exist in Ancient Greece. Although words related in form or meaning, e. g, the major issue with the term Hellenistic lies in its convenience, as the spread of Greek culture was not the generalized phenomenon that the term implies. Some areas of the world were more affected by Greek influences than others. The Greek population and the population did not always mix, the Greeks moved and brought their own culture. While a few fragments exist, there is no surviving historical work which dates to the hundred years following Alexanders death. The works of the major Hellenistic historians Hieronymus of Cardia, Duris of Samos, the earliest and most credible surviving source for the Hellenistic period is Polybius of Megalopolis, a statesman of the Achaean League until 168 BC when he was forced to go to Rome as a hostage. His Histories eventually grew to a length of forty books, covering the years 220 to 167 BC, another important source, Plutarchs Parallel Lives though more preoccupied with issues of personal character and morality, outlines the history of important Hellenistic figures. Appian of Alexandria wrote a history of the Roman empire that includes information of some Hellenistic kingdoms, other sources include Justins epitome of Pompeius Trogus Historiae Philipicae and a summary of Arrians Events after Alexander, by Photios I of Constantinople. Lesser supplementary sources include Curtius Rufus, Pausanias, Pliny, in the field of philosophy, Diogenes Laertius Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers is the main source. Ancient Greece had traditionally been a collection of fiercely independent city-states. After the Peloponnesian War, Greece had fallen under a Spartan hegemony, in which Sparta was pre-eminent but not all-powerful
Hellenistic period
–
The
Nike of Samothrace is considered one of the greatest masterpieces of
Hellenistic art.
Hellenistic period
–
Alexander fighting the Persian king
Darius III. From the
Alexander Mosaic,
Naples National Archaeological Museum.
Hellenistic period
–
Alexander's empire at the time of its maximum expansion.
2.
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
–
The Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek is an art museum in Copenhagen, Denmark. The collection is built around the collection of Carl Jacobsen. However, the museum is noted for its collection of painting that includes an extensive collection of French impressionists and Post-impressionists as well as Danish Golden Age paintings. The museums collection includes all the sculptures of Degas, including the series of dancers. Numerous works by Norwegian-Danish sculptor Stephan Sinding are featured prominently in various sections of the museum, Carl Jacobsen was a dedicated art collector. He was particularly interested in art, but over the years he also acquired a considerable collection of French. When his private villa in 1882 was extended with a winter garden, the same year the collection was opened to the public. In the following years the museum was expanded on a number of occasions to meet the need for space for his steadily growing collections. In spite of the extensions, it was finally clear the existing premises were inadequate. On 8 March 1888 Carl Jacobsen donated his collection to the Danish State, Jacobsen was displeased with the location which he found to be too far from the city centre and he had also reservations about the proximity of Tivoli which he found common. Instead he wanted a building on the new city hall square. It was Carl Jacobsen who chose the name for the museum, with inspiration from Ludwig Is Glyptothek in Munich, the moat around the radan was filled and the new museum opened first on 1 May 1897. At first it only included Jacobsens modern collection with French and Danish works from the 18th century, in January 1899 Carl Jacobsen donated his collection of Antique art to the museum which made an expansion necessary. It was designed by Hack Kampmann while Dahlerup designed a garden which connected the new wing to the old building. In 1996 the museum was again extended, this time with an infill constructed in one of its courtyards to the design of Henning Larsen. In 2006, the building underwent a major renovation programme under the direction of Danish architects Dissing + Weitling. the building is often noted for its elegance in its own right and the synthesis it creates with the works of art. The Dahlerup Wing, the oldest part of the museum, is a lavish historicist building, the façade is in red brick with polished granite columns in a Venetian renaissance style. It houses the French and Danish collections, the Kampmann Wing is a more simple, neo-classical building, built as a series of galleries around a central auditorium used for lectures, small concerts, symposiums and poetry readings
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
–
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
–
View from Holck's Bastion of the site which was chosen for the new Glyptotek, painting from 1839 by
Sally Henriques
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
–
Winter garden, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
–
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek Palm gardens. In the front, Kai Nielsen's sculpture Water Mother
3.
Basileus
–
Basileus is a Greek term and title that has signified various types of monarchs in history. In the English-speaking world it is perhaps most widely understood to mean king or emperor. The title was used by the Byzantine emperors, and has a history of use by sovereigns and other persons of authority in ancient Greece. The feminine forms are basilissa, basileia, basilis, or the archaic basilinna, the etymology of basileus is unclear. The Mycenaean form was *gʷasileus, denoting some sort of official or local chieftain. Its hypothetical earlier Proto-Greek form would be *gʷatileus, most linguists assume that it is a non-Greek word that was adopted by Bronze Age Greeks from a pre-existing linguistic Pre-Greek substrate of the Eastern Mediterranean. Schindler argues for an innovation of the -eus inflection type from Indo-European material rather than a Mediterranean loan. The first written instance of this word is found on the clay tablets discovered in excavations of Mycenaean palaces originally destroyed by fire. The word basileus is written as qa-si-re-u and its meaning was chieftain. Here the initial letter q- represents the PIE labiovelar consonant */gʷ/, linear B uses the same glyph for /l/ and /r/, now uniformly written with a Latin r by convention. Linear B only depicts syllables of single vowel or consonant-vowel form, the word can be contrasted with wanax, another word used more specifically for king and usually meaning High King or overlord. With the collapse of Mycenaean society, the position of wanax ceases to be mentioned, in the works of Homer wanax appears, in the form ánax, mostly in descriptions of Zeus and of very few human monarchs, most notably Agamemnon. Otherwise the term survived almost exclusively as a component in compound personal names and is still in use in Modern Greek in the description of the anáktoron/anáktora, most of the Greek leaders in Homers works are described as basileís, which is conventionally rendered in English as kings. However, an accurate translation may be princes or chieftains, which would better reflect conditions in Greek society in Homers time. Agamemnon tries to give orders to Achilles among many others, while another serves as his charioteer. His will, however, is not to be automatically obeyed, a study by Robert Drews has demonstrated that even at the apex of Geometric and Archaic Greek society, basileus does not automatically translate to king. In a number of authority was exercised by a college of basileis drawn from a particular clan or group. However, basileus could also be applied to the leaders of tribal states, like those of the Arcadians
Basileus
–
A silver coin of the
Seleucid king Antiochus I Soter. The reverse shows
Apollo seated on an
omphalos. The Greek inscription reads ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ (of the king Antiochus).
Basileus
–
Bronze
follis of
Leo VI the Wise (r. 886–912). The reverse shows the Latin-transcribed Greek titles used in
imperial coinage: +LEOn En ΘEO bASILEVS ROMEOn, "Leo, by the grace of God Emperor of the Romans".
Basileus
Basileus
–
1876 five-drachma coin, bearing a bust of
George I of Greece and the legend ΓΕΩΡΓΙΟΣ Α! ΒΑΣΙΛΕΥΣ ΤΩΝ ΕΛΛΗΝΩΝ, "George I, Basileus of the Hellenes".
4.
Macedon
–
Macedonia or Macedon was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and at first ruled by the royal Argead dynasty, the reign of Philip II saw the rise of Macedonia, during which the kingdom rose to control the entire Greek world. With a reformed army containing phalanxes wielding the sarissa pike, Philip II defeated the old powers of Athens and Thebes in the decisive Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BC, Sparta was kept isolated and was occupied a century later by Antigonus III Doson. Alexander then led a roughly decade-long campaign of conquest against the Achaemenid Empire, in the ensuing wars of Alexander the Great, he overthrew the Achaemenid Empire and conquered a territory that stretched as far as the Indus River. For a brief period, his Macedonian empire was the most powerful in the world – the definitive Hellenistic state, Greek arts and literature flourished in the new conquered lands and advances in philosophy, engineering, and science were spread throughout much of the ancient world. Of particular importance were the contributions of Aristotle, who had been imported as tutor to Alexander, important cities such as Pella, Pydna, and Amphipolis were involved in power struggles for control of the territory. New cities were founded, such as Thessalonica by the usurper Cassander, Macedonias decline began with the Macedonian Wars and the rise of Rome as the leading Mediterranean power. At the end of the Second Macedonian War in 168 BC, a short-lived revival of the monarchy during the Third Macedonian War in 150–148 BC ended with the establishment of the Roman province of Macedonia. The name Macedonia comes from the ethnonym Μακεδόνες, which itself is derived from the ancient Greek adjective μακεδνός, meaning tall and it also shares the same root as the noun μάκρος, meaning length in both ancient and modern Greek. The name is believed to have meant either highlanders, the tall ones. Robert S. P. Beekes supports that both terms are of Pre-Greek substrate origin and cannot be explained in terms of Indo-European morphology. Contradictory legends state that either Perdiccas I of Macedon or Caranus of Macedon were the founders of the Argead dynasty, the kingdom of Macedonia was situated along the Haliacmon and Axius rivers in Lower Macedonia, north of Mount Olympus. Historian Malcolm Errington posits the theory one of the earliest Argead kings must have established Aigai as their capital in the mid-7th century BC. Prior to the 4th century BC, the kingdom covered a region corresponding to the western. Achaemenid Persian hegemony over Macedonia was briefly interrupted by the Ionian Revolt, although Macedonia enjoyed a large degree of autonomy and was never made a satrapy of the Achaemenid Empire, it was expected to provide troops for the Achaemenid army. Following the Greek victory at Salamis in 480 BC, Alexander I was employed as an Achaemenid diplomat to strike a treaty and alliance with Athens. Soon afterwards the Achaemenid forces were forced to withdraw from mainland Europe, although initially a Persian vassal, Alexander I of Macedon fostered friendly diplomatic relations with his former Greek enemies, the Athenian and Spartan-led coalition of Greek city-states. Two separate wars were fought against Athens between 433 and 431 BC, spurred by an Athenian alliance with a brother and cousin of Perdiccas II who had rebelled against him
Macedon
–
The entrance to one of the royal tombs at Vergina, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Macedon
–
Vergina Sun
Macedon
–
Philip II, king of Macedon
Macedon
–
The expansion of ancient Macedon up to the death of Philip II (r. 359–336 BC).
5.
Perdiccas III of Macedon
–
Perdiccas III was king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia from 368 BC to 359 BC, succeeding his brother Alexander II. Son of Amyntas III and Eurydice, he was a child when Alexander II was killed by Ptolemy of Aloros, in 365 BC, Perdiccas killed Ptolemy and assumed government. There is very little information about the reign of Perdiccas III and he was at one time engaged in hostilities with Athens over Amphipolis, and he was distinguished for his patronage of men of letters. He also served as Theorodokos in the Epidaurian Panhellenic games that took place around 365 BC and he tried to reconquer upper Macedonia from the Illyrian Bardylis, but the expedition ended in disaster, with Perdiccas being killed. Perdiccas was succeeded by his infant son, Amyntas IV, the throne was soon usurped by Perdiccas younger brother Philip II. The Greek World in the Fourth Century, From the Fall of the Athenian Empire to the Successors of Alexander, Perdiccas III, from wayback. archive. org Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology
Perdiccas III of Macedon
–
stater of Perdikkas III
Perdiccas III of Macedon
–
Coin of Perdiccas III, with figure of
Herakles.
6.
Alexander the Great
–
Alexander III of Macedon, commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon and a member of the Argead dynasty. He was born in Pella in 356 BC and succeeded his father Philip II to the throne at the age of twenty and he was undefeated in battle and is widely considered one of historys most successful military commanders. During his youth, Alexander was tutored by Aristotle until the age of 16, after Philips assassination in 336 BC, he succeeded his father to the throne and inherited a strong kingdom and an experienced army. Alexander was awarded the generalship of Greece and used this authority to launch his fathers Panhellenic project to lead the Greeks in the conquest of Persia, in 334 BC, he invaded the Achaemenid Empire and began a series of campaigns that lasted ten years. Following the conquest of Anatolia, Alexander broke the power of Persia in a series of battles, most notably the battles of Issus. He subsequently overthrew Persian King Darius III and conquered the Achaemenid Empire in its entirety, at that point, his empire stretched from the Adriatic Sea to the Indus River. He sought to reach the ends of the world and the Great Outer Sea and invaded India in 326 BC and he eventually turned back at the demand of his homesick troops. Alexander died in Babylon in 323 BC, the city that he planned to establish as his capital, without executing a series of planned campaigns that would have begun with an invasion of Arabia. In the years following his death, a series of civil wars tore his empire apart, resulting in the establishment of several states ruled by the Diadochi, Alexanders surviving generals, Alexanders legacy includes the cultural diffusion which his conquests engendered, such as Greco-Buddhism. He founded some twenty cities that bore his name, most notably Alexandria in Egypt, Alexander became legendary as a classical hero in the mold of Achilles, and he features prominently in the history and mythic traditions of both Greek and non-Greek cultures. He became the measure against which military leaders compared themselves, and he is often ranked among the most influential people in human history. He was the son of the king of Macedon, Philip II, and his wife, Olympias. Although Philip had seven or eight wives, Olympias was his wife for some time. Several legends surround Alexanders birth and childhood, sometime after the wedding, Philip is said to have seen himself, in a dream, securing his wifes womb with a seal engraved with a lions image. Plutarch offered a variety of interpretations of dreams, that Olympias was pregnant before her marriage, indicated by the sealing of her womb. On the day Alexander was born, Philip was preparing a siege on the city of Potidea on the peninsula of Chalcidice. That same day, Philip received news that his general Parmenion had defeated the combined Illyrian and Paeonian armies, and it was also said that on this day, the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, burnt down. This led Hegesias of Magnesia to say that it had burnt down because Artemis was away, such legends may have emerged when Alexander was king, and possibly at his own instigation, to show that he was superhuman and destined for greatness from conception
Alexander the Great
–
"Alexander fighting king
Darius III of Persia ",
Alexander Mosaic,
Naples National Archaeological Museum.
Alexander the Great
–
Bust of a young Alexander the Great from the Hellenistic era,
British Museum
Alexander the Great
–
Aristotle tutoring Alexander, by
Jean Leon Gerome Ferris
Alexander the Great
–
Philip II of Macedon, Alexander's father.
7.
Pella
–
Pella, is an ancient city located in Central Macedonia, Greece, best known as the historical capital of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon in the time of Alexander the Great. On the site of the ancient city is the Archaeological Museum of Pella, a common folk etymology is traditionally given for the name Pella, deriving it from the Ancient Macedonian word pélla, stone, and it appears in some toponyms in Greece like Pallini (Παλλήνη. With the prefix a- it forms the Doric apella, meaning in this case fence, the word apella originally meant fold, fence for animals, and then assembly of people into the limits of the square. Τhe original meaning was wooden bowl, and later it meant stone, according to Xenophon, in the beginning of the 4th century BC it was the largest Macedonian city. It was probably built as the capital of the kingdom by Archelaus I, in antiquity, Pella was a strategic port connected to the Thermaic Gulf by a navigable inlet, but the harbour and gulf have since silted up, leaving the site landlocked. Archelaus invited the painter Zeuxis, the greatest painter of the time and he also later hosted the poet Timotheus of Miletus and the Athenian playwright Euripides who finished his days there writing and producing Archelaus. Euripides Bacchae was first staged here, about 408 BC, Pella was the birthplace and seats of Philip II, in 382 BC and of Alexander the Great, his son, in 356 BC. It became the largest and richest city in Macedonia and flourished particularly under Cassanders rule, the reign of Antigonus most likely represented the height of the citys prosperity, as this is the period which has left us most archaeological remains. The famous poet Aratus died in Pella c.240 BC, Pella is further mentioned by Polybius and Livy as the capital of Philip V and of Perseus during the Macedonian Wars fought against the Roman Republic. It is situated on the south-west slope of a hill and surrounded by a marsh too deep to be crossed on foot either in summer or winter. At a distance it appears to be continuous with the city wall, but it is really separated by a channel which flows between the two walls and is connected with the city by a bridge. Thus it cuts off all means of access from a foe, and if the king shut anyone up there, there could be no possibility of escape except by the bridge. Pella was declared capital of the 3rd administrative division of the Roman province of Macedonia, activity continued to be vigorous until the early 1st century BC and, crossed by the Via Egnatia, Pella remained a significant point on the route between Dyrrachium and Thessalonika. Cicero stayed there in 58 BC, though by then the seat had already transferred to Thessalonika. Pella was promoted to a Roman Colony sometime between 45 and 30 BC and its currency was marked Colonia Iulia Augusta Pella, augustus settled peasants there whose land he had usurped to give to his veterans. But, unlike other Macedonian colonies such as Philippi, Dion, four pairs of colonial magistrates are known for this period. In fact, the Roman city was somewhat to the west of and distinct from the original capital, despite its decline, archaeology has shown that the southern part of the city near the lagoon continued to be occupied until the 4th century. In about 180 AD, Lucian of Samosata could describe it in passing as now insignificant, in the Byzantine period, the Roman site was occupied by a fortified village
Pella
–
Atrium with a pebble-mosaic paving in Pella
Pella
–
Map showing the geographic location of Pella in a valley, west of river Axios.
Pella
–
House of Dionysos (325-300 BC).
Pella
–
Lion hunt mosaic
8.
Ancient Greece
–
Ancient Greece was a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th-9th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and this was followed by the period of Classical Greece, an era that began with the Greco-Persian Wars, lasting from the 5th to 4th centuries BC. Due to the conquests by Alexander the Great of Macedonia, Hellenistic civilization flourished from Central Asia to the end of the Mediterranean Sea. Classical Greek culture, especially philosophy, had a influence on ancient Rome. For this reason Classical Greece is generally considered to be the culture which provided the foundation of modern Western culture and is considered the cradle of Western civilization. Classical Antiquity in the Mediterranean region is considered to have begun in the 8th century BC. Classical Antiquity in Greece is preceded by the Greek Dark Ages and this period is succeeded, around the 8th century BC, by the Orientalizing Period during which a strong influence of Syro-Hittite, Jewish, Assyrian, Phoenician and Egyptian cultures becomes apparent. The end of the Dark Ages is also dated to 776 BC. The Archaic period gives way to the Classical period around 500 BC, Ancient Periods Astronomical year numbering Dates are approximate, consult particular article for details The history of Greece during Classical Antiquity may be subdivided into five major periods. The earliest of these is the Archaic period, in which artists made larger free-standing sculptures in stiff, the Archaic period is often taken to end with the overthrow of the last tyrant of Athens and the start of Athenian Democracy in 508 BC. It was followed by the Classical period, characterized by a style which was considered by observers to be exemplary, i. e. classical, as shown in the Parthenon. This period saw the Greco-Persian Wars and the Rise of Macedon, following the Classical period was the Hellenistic period, during which Greek culture and power expanded into the Near and Middle East. This period begins with the death of Alexander and ends with the Roman conquest, Herodotus is widely known as the father of history, his Histories are eponymous of the entire field. Herodotus was succeeded by authors such as Thucydides, Xenophon, Demosthenes, Plato, most of these authors were either Athenian or pro-Athenian, which is why far more is known about the history and politics of Athens than those of many other cities. Their scope is limited by a focus on political, military and diplomatic history, ignoring economic. In the 8th century BC, Greece began to emerge from the Dark Ages which followed the fall of the Mycenaean civilization, literacy had been lost and Mycenaean script forgotten, but the Greeks adopted the Phoenician alphabet, modifying it to create the Greek alphabet. The Lelantine War is the earliest documented war of the ancient Greek period and it was fought between the important poleis of Chalcis and Eretria over the fertile Lelantine plain of Euboea. Both cities seem to have suffered a decline as result of the long war, a mercantile class arose in the first half of the 7th century BC, shown by the introduction of coinage in about 680 BC
Ancient Greece
–
The
Parthenon, a temple dedicated to
Athena, located on the
Acropolis in
Athens, is one of the most representative symbols of the culture and sophistication of the ancient Greeks.
Ancient Greece
–
Dipylon Vase of the late Geometric period, or the beginning of the Archaic period,
c. 750 BC.
Ancient Greece
–
Political geography of ancient Greece in the Archaic and Classical periods
9.
Vergina
–
Vergina is a small town in northern Greece, part of Veroia municipality in Imathia, Central Macedonia. It is now a unit within Veroia, with an area 69.047 km2. Vergina is best known as the site of ancient Aigai, the first capital of Macedon and it was here in 336 BC that Philip II was assassinated in the theatre and Alexander the Great was proclaimed king. It is also the site of a royal palace and of many rich ancient tombs. The objects and paintings found in the tombs at Vergina are of high quality. A museum now contains Philips tomb and a new museum is being constructed for the palace, the existence of an early Macedonian fortress named Aegae is reported by Justin, and was long identified as Edessa. Only with the discovery of substantial remains near Vergina, just east of the Haliacmon, in 1976, ancient sources give conflicting accounts of the origins of the Argead dynasty. Alexander I is the first truly historic figure and, based on the line of succession, herodotus says that the Argead dynasty was an ancient Greek royal house led by Perdiccas I who fled from Argos, in approximately 650 BC. Indeed, Aigai never became a city and most of its inhabitants lived in surrounding villages. From Aigai the Macedonians spread to the part of Macedonia. From 513 to 480 BC Aigai was part of the Persian Empire, the city wall was built in the 5th century probably by Perdiccas II. At the beginning of the 4th century BC, Archelaus transferred the Macedonian capital north-east to Pella on the central Macedonian plain. Nevertheless, Aegae retained its role as the city of the Macedonian kingdom, the site of the traditional cult centres, a royal palace. For this reason it was here that Philip II was attending the wedding of his daughter Cleopatra to King Alexander of Epirus when he was murdered by his bodyguard in the theatre and his was the most lavish funeral ceremony of historic times held in Greece. Laid on a gold and ivory deathbed wearing his precious golden oak wreath. The bitter struggles between the heirs of Alexander, the Diadochi, in the 3rd century adversely affected the city, in 276 BC the Gauls of Pyrrhus plundered many of the tombs. After the overthrow of the Macedonian kingdom by the Romans in 168 BC both old and new capitals were destroyed, the walls pulled down and the palace, theatre, in the 1st century AD a landslide completely destroyed the city. However excavations prove that parts were inhabited in the 1st century AD
Vergina
–
Great Tumulus of Aigai
Vergina
–
Vergina Βεργίνα
Vergina
–
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Vergina
–
Model of Philip II's tomb
10.
Olympias
–
Olympias was a daughter of king Neoptolemus I of Epirus, the fourth wife of the king of Macedonia, Philip II, and mother of Alexander the Great. She was a member of the orgiastic snake-worshiping cult of Dionysus, and it is suggested by the 1st century AD biographer, Plutarch. Olympias was the daughter of Neoptolemus I, king of the Molossians, an ancient Greek tribe in Epirus and her family belonged to the Aeacidae, a well-respected family of Epirus, which claimed descent from Neoptolemus, son of Achilles. The name Olympias was the third of four names by which she was known and she probably took it as a recognition of Philips victory in the Olympic Games of 356 BC, the news of which coincided with Alexanders birth. She was finally named Stratonice, which was probably an epithet attached to Olympias following her victory over Eurydice in 317 BC, when Neoptolemus I died in 360 BC, his brother Arymbas succeeded him on the Molossian throne. In 358 BC, Arymbas made a treaty with the new king of Macedonia, Philip II, the alliance was cemented with a diplomatic marriage, when Arymbas niece Olympias became Philips wife in 357 BC and, consequently, queen consort of Macedonia. Philip had first fallen in love with Olympias when both were initiated into the mysteries of Cabeiri at the Sanctuary of the Great Gods, on the island of Samothrace. One year later, in 356 BC, Philips race horse won in the Olympic Games, for this victory his wife, in the summer of the same year, Olympias gave birth to her first child, Alexander. In ancient Greece people believed that the birth of a man was accompanied by portents. After the marriage Philip dreamed that he put a seal upon his wifes womb, aristanders interpretation was that Olympias was pregnant of a son whose nature would be bold and lion-like. Philip and Olympias also had a daughter, Cleopatra and their marriage was very stormy, Philips volatility and Olympias jealous temper had led to a growing estrangement. Things got even worse in 337 BC when Philip married a noble Macedonian woman, Cleopatra, who was given the name Eurydice by Philip, the marriage caused great tensions between Philip, Olympias and Alexander. Olympias went into exile in Epirus along with her son Alexander, who sided with her, staying at the Molossian court of her brother Alexander I. After the death of Philip II, Olympias ordered the execution of Eurydice and her child, during Alexanders campaigns, she regularly corresponded with him and may have confirmed her sons claim in Egypt that his father was not Philip but Zeus. The relationship between Olympias and Alexander was cordial, but her son tried to keep her away from politics, however, she wielded great influence in Macedonia and caused troubles to Antipater, the regent of the kingdom. In 330 BC, she returned to Epirus and served as a regent to her cousin Aeacides in the Epirote state, after Alexander the Greats death in Babylon in 323 BC, his wife Roxana bore him a posthumous son who was called Alexander IV. At the same time, Olympias offered Perdiccas the hand of her daughter Cleopatra, Perdiccas chose Cleopatra, which angered Antipater, who invaded Macedon, deposed Perdiccas, and declared himself regent, only to die within the year. Polyperchon succeeded Antipater in 319 BC as regent, but Antipaters son Cassander established Philip II’s simpleminded son Philip III as king and he fled to Epirus, taking Roxana and her son Alexander IV with him
Olympias
–
Olympias from "
Promptuarii Iconum Insigniorum ".
Olympias
–
Zeus seduces Olympias. Fresco by
Giulio Romano between 1526 and 1534, in
Palazzo del Te,
Mantua,
Italy.
Olympias
–
Ruins of the
Temple of Apollo.
11.
Philip III of Macedon
–
Philip III Arrhidaeus reigned as king of Macedonia from after 11 June 323 BC until his death. He was a son of King Philip II of Macedonia by Philinna of Larissa, named Arrhidaeus at birth, he assumed the name Philip when he ascended to the throne. As Arrhidaeus grew older it became apparent that he had learning difficulties. Alexander was fond of Arrhidaeus and took him on his campaigns, after Alexanders death in Babylon in 323 BC, the Macedonian army in Asia proclaimed Arrhidaeus as king, however, he served merely as a figurehead and as the pawn of a series of powerful generals. Arrhidaeus whereabouts during the reign of his brother Alexander are unclear from the extant sources and he was in Babylon at the time of Alexanders death on 10 June 323 BC. Arrhidaeus was the most obvious candidate, but he was unfit to rule. This eventuality did indeed arise and resulted in Roxanas son, Alexander and it was immediately decided that Philip Arrhidaeus would reign, but not rule, this was to be the prerogative of the new regent, Perdiccas. When news arrived in Macedonia that Arrhidaeus had been chosen as king, Cynane and this move was an obvious affront to the regent, whom Cynane had completely bypassed, and to prevent the marriage, Perdiccas sent his brother, Alcetas, to kill Cynane. The reaction among the troops generated by this murder was such that the regent had to give up his opposition to the proposed match and accept the marriage. From that moment on, Philip Arrhidaeus was to be under the sway of his bride, eurydices chance to increase her husbands power came when the first war of the Diadochi sealed the fate of Perdiccas, making a new settlement necessary. An agreement was made at Triparadisus in Syria in 320 BC, the regent died of natural causes the following year, nominating as his successor not his son Cassander, but his friend and lieutenant, Polyperchon. Cassanders refusal to accept his fathers decision sparked the Second War of the Diadochi, an opportunity presented itself in 317 BC when Cassander expelled Polyperchon from Macedonia. Eurydice immediately allied herself with Cassander and persuaded her husband to him as the new regent. Cassander reciprocated by leaving her in control of the country when he left to campaign in Greece. But individual circumstances and events at time were subject to rapid change. That same year, Polyperchon and Olympias allied with her cousin, Aeacides, king of Epirus, the Macedonian troops refused to fight Olympias, the mother of Alexander. Philip and Eurydice had no choice but to escape, only to be captured at Amphipolis, in 1977, important excavations were made near Vergina leading to the discovery of a two-chambered royal tomb, with an almost perfectly preserved male skeleton. He appears as one of the characters in the novel Funeral Games by Mary Renault
Philip III of Macedon
–
stater of Philip III Arrhidaeus
Philip III of Macedon
–
Philip III as pharaoh on a relief in Karnak
Philip III of Macedon
–
Golden Larnax (Chrysi Larnaka) (with the Sun of Vergina on the lid) that contains the remains (bones) from the burial of King Philip II of Macedonia and the royal golden wreath. Formerly located at the
Thessaloniki Archaeological Museum, since 1997) displayed in the underground museum of
Vergina, inside the Great Tumulus.
12.
Greek language
–
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece and other parts of the Eastern Mediterranean. It has the longest documented history of any living language, spanning 34 centuries of written records and its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the major part of its history, other systems, such as Linear B and the Cypriot syllabary, were used previously. The alphabet arose from the Phoenician script and was in turn the basis of the Latin, Cyrillic, Armenian, Coptic, Gothic and many other writing systems. Together with the Latin texts and traditions of the Roman world, during antiquity, Greek was a widely spoken lingua franca in the Mediterranean world and many places beyond. It would eventually become the official parlance of the Byzantine Empire, the language is spoken by at least 13.2 million people today in Greece, Cyprus, Italy, Albania, Turkey, and the Greek diaspora. Greek roots are used to coin new words for other languages, Greek. Greek has been spoken in the Balkan peninsula since around the 3rd millennium BC, the earliest written evidence is a Linear B clay tablet found in Messenia that dates to between 1450 and 1350 BC, making Greek the worlds oldest recorded living language. Among the Indo-European languages, its date of earliest written attestation is matched only by the now extinct Anatolian languages, the Greek language is conventionally divided into the following periods, Proto-Greek, the unrecorded but assumed last ancestor of all known varieties of Greek. The unity of Proto-Greek would have ended as Hellenic migrants entered the Greek peninsula sometime in the Neolithic era or the Bronze Age, Mycenaean Greek, the language of the Mycenaean civilisation. It is recorded in the Linear B script on tablets dating from the 15th century BC onwards, Ancient Greek, in its various dialects, the language of the Archaic and Classical periods of the ancient Greek civilisation. It was widely known throughout the Roman Empire, after the Roman conquest of Greece, an unofficial bilingualism of Greek and Latin was established in the city of Rome and Koine Greek became a first or second language in the Roman Empire. The origin of Christianity can also be traced through Koine Greek, Medieval Greek, also known as Byzantine Greek, the continuation of Koine Greek in Byzantine Greece, up to the demise of the Byzantine Empire in the 15th century. Much of the written Greek that was used as the language of the Byzantine Empire was an eclectic middle-ground variety based on the tradition of written Koine. Modern Greek, Stemming from Medieval Greek, Modern Greek usages can be traced in the Byzantine period and it is the language used by the modern Greeks, and, apart from Standard Modern Greek, there are several dialects of it. In the modern era, the Greek language entered a state of diglossia, the historical unity and continuing identity between the various stages of the Greek language is often emphasised. Greek speakers today still tend to regard literary works of ancient Greek as part of their own rather than a foreign language and it is also often stated that the historical changes have been relatively slight compared with some other languages. According to one estimation, Homeric Greek is probably closer to demotic than 12-century Middle English is to modern spoken English, Greek is spoken by about 13 million people, mainly in Greece, Albania and Cyprus, but also worldwide by the large Greek diaspora. Greek is the language of Greece, where it is spoken by almost the entire population
Greek language
–
Idealized portrayal of
Homer
Greek language
–
regions where Greek is the official language
Greek language
–
Greek language road sign, A27 Motorway, Greece
13.
Dynasty
–
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a feudal or monarchical system but sometimes also appearing in elective republics. The dynastic family or lineage may be known as a house, historians periodize the histories of many sovereign states, such as Ancient Egypt, the Carolingian Empire and Imperial China, using a framework of successive dynasties. As such, the dynasty may be used to delimit the era during which the family reigned and to describe events, trends. The word dynasty itself is often dropped from such adjectival references, until the 19th century, it was taken for granted that a legitimate function of a monarch was to aggrandize his dynasty, that is, to increase the territory, wealth, and power of his family members. The longest-surviving dynasty in the world is the Imperial House of Japan, dynasties throughout the world have traditionally been reckoned patrilineally, such as under the Frankish Salic law. Succession through a daughter when permitted was considered to establish a new dynasty in her husbands ruling house, however, some states in Africa, determined descent matrilineally, while rulers have at other times adopted the name of their mothers dynasty when coming into her inheritance. It is also extended to unrelated people such as poets of the same school or various rosters of a single sports team. The word dynasty derives via Latin dynastia from Greek dynastéia, where it referred to power, dominion and it was the abstract noun of dynástēs, the agent noun of dynamis, power or ability, from dýnamai, to be able. A ruler in a dynasty is referred to as a dynast. For example, following his abdication, Edward VIII of the United Kingdom ceased to be a member of the House of Windsor. A dynastic marriage is one that complies with monarchical house law restrictions, the marriage of Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange, to Máxima Zorreguieta in 2002 was dynastic, for example, and their eldest child is expected to inherit the Dutch crown eventually. But the marriage of his younger brother Prince Friso to Mabel Wisse Smit in 2003 lacked government support, thus Friso forfeited his place in the order of succession, lost his title as a Prince of the Netherlands, and left his children without dynastic rights. In historical and monarchist references to formerly reigning families, a dynast is a member who would have had succession rights, were the monarchys rules still in force. Even since abolition of the Austrian monarchy, Max and his descendants have not been considered the rightful pretenders by Austrian monarchists, nor have they claimed that position. The term dynast is sometimes used only to refer to descendants of a realms monarchs. The term can therefore describe overlapping but distinct sets of people, yet he is not a male-line member of the royal family, and is therefore not a dynast of the House of Windsor. Thus, in 1999 he requested and obtained permission from Elizabeth II to marry the Roman Catholic Princess Caroline of Monaco. Yet a clause of the English Act of Settlement 1701 remained in effect at that time and that exclusion, too, ceased to apply on 26 March 2015, with retroactive effect for those who had been dynasts prior to triggering it by marriage to a Catholic
Dynasty
–
Charles I of England and his son, the future
James II
14.
Argead dynasty
–
The Argead dynasty was an ancient Greek royal house. They were the founders and the dynasty of Macedon from about 700 to 310 BC. Their tradition, as described in ancient Greek historiography, traced their origins to Argos, initially the rulers of the homonymous tribe, by the time of Philip II they had expanded their reign further, to include under the rule of Macedonia all Upper Macedonian states. The mythical founder of the Argead dynasty is King Caranus, the words Argead and Argive derive from the Greek Ἀργεῖος, of or from Argos, which is first attested in Homer, where it was also used as a collective designation for the Greeks. The Argead dynasty claimed descent from the Temenids of Argos, in the Peloponnese, whose ancestor was Temenus. In the excavations of the royal Palace at Aegae Manolis Andronikos discovered in the room an inscription relating to that belief. The latter asked them to leave his territory, believing in an omen that something great would happen to Perdiccas, the boys went to another part of Macedonia, near the garden of Midas, above which mount Bermio stands. There they made their abode and gradually formed their own kingdom, the Hellanodikai, however, after examining his Argead claim confirmed that the Macedonians were Greeks and allowed him to participate. They also added Mygdonia in their territory through the expulsion of the Edoni, Eordians, the Kings of Makedon, 399–369 BC. Archived from the original on 26 April 2008
Argead dynasty
–
Vergina Sun
15.
Amyntas III of Macedon
–
Amyntas III was king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon in 393 BC, and again from 392 to 370 BC. He was the son of Arrhidaeus and grandson of Amyntas, one of the sons of Alexander I and his most famous son is Philip II, father of Alexander the Great. He is historically considered the founder of the unified Macedonian state and he came to the throne after the ten years of confusion which followed the death of Archelaus I. But he had enemies at home, in 393 he was driven out by the Illyrians. Medius, head of the house of the Aleuadae of Larissa, is believed to have provided aid to Amyntas in recovering his throne, the mutual relationship between the Argeadae and the Aleuadae dates to the time of Archelaus. To shore up his country against the threat of the Illyrians, in exchange for this support, Amyntas granted them rights to Macedonian timber, which was sent back to Athens to help fortify their fleet. With money flowing into Olynthus from these exports, their power grew, in response, Amyntas sought additional allies. He established connections with Kotys, chief of the Odrysians, Kotys had already married his daughter to the Athenian general Iphicrates. Prevented from marrying into Kotys family, Amyntas soon adopted Iphicrates as his son, after the Kings Peace 387 BC, Sparta was anxious to re-establish its presence in the north Greece. In 385 BC, Bardylis and his Illyrians attacked Epirus instigated and aided by Dionysius I of Syracuse, when Amyntas sought Spartan aid against the growing threat of Olynthus, the Spartans eagerly responded. That Olynthus was backed by Athens and Thebes, rivals to Sparta for the control of Greece, Amyntas thus concluded a treaty with the Spartans, who assisted him to reduce Olynthus. He also entered into a league with Jason of Pherae, in 371 BC at a Panhellenic congress of the Lacedaemonian allies, he voted in support of the Athenians claim and joined other Greeks in voting to help Athens to recover possession of Amphipolis. With Olynthus defeated, Amyntas was now able to conclude a treaty with Athens, Amyntas shipped the timber to the house of the Athenian Timotheus, in the Piraeus. Amyntas married Eurydice, daughter of Sirras of Lynkestis, circa 390, by her, Amyntas had three sons, all of whom became kings of Macedonia one after the other, and a daughter, Alexander II Perdiccas III Philip II, father of Alexander the Great. Eurynoe, According to Roman historian Justin, Eurynoe prevented Amyntas assassination by her mother and her husband and she is not referred again by any other source. Justin also mentions that Amyntas had three sons by another wife, Gygaea, Archelaus, Arrhidaeus and Menelaus, the fact that they did not try to take the throne before the 350s suggests that they were younger than Amyntas children by Eurydice. They were ultimately eliminated by their half-brother Philip II because they had a claim to the throne, Amyntas died at an advanced age, leaving his throne to his eldest son, Alexander II. Treaties between Amyntas III and the Chalcidians Duane A. March, The Kings of Makedon, 399-369 BC,3, 257-282 Coins of Amyntas III Atheno-Macedonian Alliance-Translation of Epigraphy
Amyntas III of Macedon
–
silver
stater Amyntas III
16.
Eurydice I of Macedon
–
Eurydice was an ancient Greek queen from Macedon, wife of king Amyntas III of Macedon. She was the daughter of Sirras of Lyncestis, Upper Macedonia, literary, inscriptional and archaeological evidence indicates that she played an important public role in Macedonian life and acted aggressively in the political arena. Eurydice’s political activities mark a point in Macedonian history. She is the first known royal woman who actively took political action, Eurydice was born between 410-404 BC, most probably in 407 BC. She was the daughter of the Lyncestian noble Sirras, who is referred as of Lyncestian or Illyrian origin. King Amyntas III of Macedon married the young princess Eurydice in about 390 BC, probably in an effort to secure peace allies against the Illyrians, after he was defeated by them in 393 BC. Sparta, the most powerful of the Greek states at time, intervened and restored Amyntas to his capital in 379 BC. Amyntas had another wife, a fellow kinswoman named Gygaea, who had three children, at some point during her husband’s reign, Eurydice became the dominant wife. Still it cannot be determined whether this development was immediate or gradual, linked with her family and relations, her higher status and her life career is full of controversy. According to the Roman historian Justin, Eurydice conspired with her son-in-law Ptolemy of Aloros to kill Amyntas, then marry Ptolemy, and then give the throne to her lover. But the queen’s daughter, Eurynoe, foiled the plot by revealing it to her father, Amyntas, eventually in 370/369 BC, Amyntas III died, and his eldest son, Alexander II succeeded him. In 368 BC, Ptolemy of Aloros killed Alexander II, despite an earlier settlement between them, worked out by Pelopidas, a Theban statesman and general. Then Ptolemy was forced by Pelopidas to agree merely to be regent for Alexander’s two younger brothers, Perdiccas III and Philip II and it is unlikely that Eurydice voluntarily married her eldest son’s murderer, most probably she acted to ensure the succession of her remaining sons. A new pretender of the throne, Pausanias was very popular and was attracting support in Macedonia, queen Eurydice asked the Athenian general Iphicrates to protect the throne for her two sons. There is no evidence that Ptolemy had any role in this matter, even if she was prompted by Ptolemy, her successful intervention in political and military affairs remains remarkably bold and without any known precedent, an extraordinary act for a royal woman. Eurydice took the step of seeking international help when she believed the succession of her remaining sons was in jeopardy. In 365 BC Perdiccas III avenged his brothers murder by murdering Ptolemy and this caused a stir amongst the families of Macedon, which called in Pelopidas to re-establish peace. As part of the settlement, Philip II was taken as a hostage to Thebes
Eurydice I of Macedon
–
The
Philippeion at
Olympia, Greece, where once the statues of Eurydice I and her family were placed
17.
Ancient Greek religion
–
Ancient Greek religion encompasses the collection of beliefs, rituals, and mythology originating in ancient Greece in the form of both popular public religion and cult practices. These groups varied enough for it to be possible to speak of Greek religions or cults in the plural, many ancient Greeks recognized the twelve major gods and goddesses, although philosophies such as Stoicism and some forms of Platonism used language that seems to assume a single transcendent deity. Different cities often worshiped the deities, sometimes with epithets that distinguished them. Greek religion was tempered by Etruscan cult and belief to form much of the later ancient Roman religion, while there were few concepts universal to all the Greek peoples, there were common beliefs shared by many. Ancient Greek theology was polytheistic, based on the assumption there were many gods. There was a hierarchy of deities, with Zeus, the king of the gods, having a level of control all the others. Some deities had dominion over aspects of nature. Other deities ruled over abstract concepts, for instance Aphrodite controlled love, while being immortal, the gods were certainly not all-good or even all-powerful. They had to obey fate, known to Greek mythology as the Moirai, which overrode any of their divine powers or wills. For instance, in mythology, it was Odysseus fate to return home to Ithaca after the Trojan War, and the gods could only lengthen his journey and make it harder for him, the gods acted like humans, and had human vices. They would interact with humans, sometimes even spawning children with them, at times certain gods would be opposed to others, and they would try to outdo each other. In the Iliad, Aphrodite, Ares and Apollo support the Trojan side in the Trojan War, while Hera, Athena, some gods were specifically associated with a certain city. Athena was associated with the city of Athens, Apollo with Delphi and Delos, Zeus with Olympia, other deities were associated with nations outside of Greece, Poseidon was associated with Ethiopia and Troy, and Ares with Thrace. The Greeks believed in an underworld where the spirits of the dead went after death, one of the most widespread areas of this underworld was ruled over by Hades, a brother of Zeus, and was known as Hades. Other well known realms are Tartarus, a place of torment for the damned, and Elysium, in the early Mycenean religion all the dead went to Hades, but the rise of mystery cults in the Archaic age led to the development of places such as Tartarus and Elysium. Such beliefs are found in the most ancient of Greek sources, such as Homer and this belief remained strong even into the Christian era. For most people at the moment of death there was, however, no hope of anything, some Greeks, such as the philosophers Pythagoras and Plato, also embraced the idea of reincarnation, though this was only accepted by a few. Epicurus taught that the soul was simply atoms which dissolved at death, Greek religion had an extensive mythology
Ancient Greek religion
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Zeus, the king of the gods, and controller of thunder and the sky.
Ancient Greek religion
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Aphrodite riding a swan: Attic white-ground red-figured
kylix, ca. 460, found at Kameiros (Rhodes)
Ancient Greek religion
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Poseidon, the god of the sea, as depicted on a statue in
Copenhagen,
Denmark.
Ancient Greek religion
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A mosaic depicting the hero
Herakles with
Cerberus, a three-headed dog, who, according to mythology, guarded
Hades.
18.
Macedonia (ancient kingdom)
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Macedonia or Macedon was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and at first ruled by the royal Argead dynasty, the reign of Philip II saw the rise of Macedonia, during which the kingdom rose to control the entire Greek world. With a reformed army containing phalanxes wielding the sarissa pike, Philip II defeated the old powers of Athens and Thebes in the decisive Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BC, Sparta was kept isolated and was occupied a century later by Antigonus III Doson. Alexander then led a roughly decade-long campaign of conquest against the Achaemenid Empire, in the ensuing wars of Alexander the Great, he overthrew the Achaemenid Empire and conquered a territory that stretched as far as the Indus River. For a brief period, his Macedonian empire was the most powerful in the world – the definitive Hellenistic state, Greek arts and literature flourished in the new conquered lands and advances in philosophy, engineering, and science were spread throughout much of the ancient world. Of particular importance were the contributions of Aristotle, who had been imported as tutor to Alexander, important cities such as Pella, Pydna, and Amphipolis were involved in power struggles for control of the territory. New cities were founded, such as Thessalonica by the usurper Cassander, Macedonias decline began with the Macedonian Wars and the rise of Rome as the leading Mediterranean power. At the end of the Second Macedonian War in 168 BC, a short-lived revival of the monarchy during the Third Macedonian War in 150–148 BC ended with the establishment of the Roman province of Macedonia. The name Macedonia comes from the ethnonym Μακεδόνες, which itself is derived from the ancient Greek adjective μακεδνός, meaning tall and it also shares the same root as the noun μάκρος, meaning length in both ancient and modern Greek. The name is believed to have meant either highlanders, the tall ones. Robert S. P. Beekes supports that both terms are of Pre-Greek substrate origin and cannot be explained in terms of Indo-European morphology. Contradictory legends state that either Perdiccas I of Macedon or Caranus of Macedon were the founders of the Argead dynasty, the kingdom of Macedonia was situated along the Haliacmon and Axius rivers in Lower Macedonia, north of Mount Olympus. Historian Malcolm Errington posits the theory one of the earliest Argead kings must have established Aigai as their capital in the mid-7th century BC. Prior to the 4th century BC, the kingdom covered a region corresponding to the western. Achaemenid Persian hegemony over Macedonia was briefly interrupted by the Ionian Revolt, although Macedonia enjoyed a large degree of autonomy and was never made a satrapy of the Achaemenid Empire, it was expected to provide troops for the Achaemenid army. Following the Greek victory at Salamis in 480 BC, Alexander I was employed as an Achaemenid diplomat to strike a treaty and alliance with Athens. Soon afterwards the Achaemenid forces were forced to withdraw from mainland Europe, although initially a Persian vassal, Alexander I of Macedon fostered friendly diplomatic relations with his former Greek enemies, the Athenian and Spartan-led coalition of Greek city-states. Two separate wars were fought against Athens between 433 and 431 BC, spurred by an Athenian alliance with a brother and cousin of Perdiccas II who had rebelled against him
Macedonia (ancient kingdom)
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The entrance to one of the royal tombs at Vergina, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Macedonia (ancient kingdom)
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The Kingdom of Macedonia in 336 BC.
Macedonia (ancient kingdom)
–
Philip II, king of Macedon
Macedonia (ancient kingdom)
–
The expansion of ancient Macedon up to the death of Philip II (r. 359–336 BC).
19.
Pausanias of Orestis
–
Pausanias of Orestis was a member of Philip II of Macedons somatophylakes, his personal bodyguard. He assassinated Philip in 336 BC, possibly at the instigation of Philips wife Olympias, the most popular story explaining the murder comes from Diodorus Siculus, who expanded upon its mention by Aristotle. According to Diodorus, the general Attalus blamed Pausanias for the death of his friend, Philip and Pausanias had once been lovers, but the affair ended, and Philip started a new affair with Attalus friend. The former Pausanias, feeling spurned, insulted his romantic rival in public, to secure his honor, Attalus friend committed suicide by recklessly putting himself into danger in battle, while at the same time protecting the king. Devastated, Attalus sought to punish Pausanias of Orestis, and did so by getting the man drunk, for any number of reasons, Philip did not punish Attalus. Pausanias of Orestis was promoted to the rank of somatophylax, probably as a consolation and it has been supposed then that Pausanias motive in killing Philip was at least in part a personal anger for not having been granted justice against Attalus. This would mean that Pausanias waited eight years to act against Philip for his lack of justice, but not all wars of Philip against the Illyrians are known, so it is possible that he fought against them also in 337 BC. Alexander had Pausanias corpse crucified, but as soon as he had left Macedon, the murder was certainly premeditated, as horses were found near where Pausanias had fled. At the murder trial, two men, Heromenes and Arrhabaeus, were found guilty of conspiracy with Pausanias. Leonnatus, who threw the spear that killed Pausanias, was demoted, Plutarch, Life of Alexander Philips Assassination, Plutarch Diodorus Siculus,16.94 Death of Philip, Murder or Assassination. Alexander The Great, J. R. Hamilton Alexander Of Macedon 356-323 B. C. Peter Green
Pausanias of Orestis
–
Contents
20.
Rise of Macedon
–
This ascendancy is largely attributable to the personality and policies of Philip II. The Macedonian phalanx became the hallmark of the Macedonian army during his reign and his army and engineers also made extensive use of siege engines. Macedonia during the reign of Philip II was at first preoccupied by wars with marauding Illyrians and Thracians, chief among Philips Thracian enemies was the ruler Kersebleptes, who may have coordinated a temporary alliance with Athens. Philip II also fought against the Illyrian king Bardylis, who threatened Macedonia proper, Philip II eventually campaigned against the city-state of Athens and her allies in the Aegean region, as well as Thebes after the decline of its hegemony in mainland Greece. While poised to launch an assault on Athens in 346 BC. As a result, Macedonia and Athens became allies, yet Athens was forced to relinquish its claims to the city of Amphipolis, the Peace of Philocrates eventually broke down as hostilities reignited between Athens and Macedonia. Demosthenes, an Athenian statesman who was responsible for engineering the peace treaty. The Macedonian hegemony over Greece was secured by their victory over a Greek coalition army led by Athens and Thebes, at the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BC. In the aftermath the federation of Greek states known as the League of Corinth was established, the League of Corinth elected Philip as strategos for a planned invasion of the Achaemenid Empire of Persia. However, Philip was assassinated before he could begin the campaign, intact and relatively detailed histories of Greece, such as Herodotuss The Histories, Thucydidess History of the Peloponnesian War, and Xenophons Hellen cover the period from roughly 500–362 BC. However, no extant history specifically covers the relevant period of Greek history, the main source for the period is Diodorus Siculuss Bibliotheca historica, written in the 1st century BC, which is therefore a secondary source. Diodorus is often derided by modern historians for his style and inaccuracies, another surviving work for the period is Justins epitome of Pompeius Troguss Philippic History. Justin is generally negative towards Philip. These surviving histories are complemented by fragments of other histories, including Theopompuss 58-volume history of Philip, since these speeches were never intended to be historical material, they must be treated with great circumspection, particularly given the identity of the authors. Demosthenes and Aeschines have been described as a couple of liars, for instance, the Peace of Philocrates is known primarily from their speeches, made in 343 BC, when Demosthenes prosecuted Aeschines for his involvement in making the peace treaty. This state of affairs was resented by many of the Greek city-states, which had traditionally been ferociously independent, Sparta emerged from this conflict with its hegemony intact, though only as a result of Persian intervention, which led to the so-called Kings Peace. The fragility of Spartan dominance had been demonstrated however, and in the next decade, the Spartans were unable to successfully quell the revolt, leading to de facto Theban independence. Following up on this victory, Epaminondas invaded Peloponnesus in 370 BC, Spartan power rested on the forced labour of the helots of Messenia, which allowed the entire male Spartan population to dedicate themselves to warfare
Rise of Macedon
–
Expansion of Macedon.
Rise of Macedon
–
The Kingdom of Macedon in 336 BC
Rise of Macedon
–
View of the Strymon river from the Acropolis of Amphipolis.
Rise of Macedon
–
The ruins of ancient
Delphi.
21.
Ancient Macedonian army
–
The army of the Kingdom of Macedonia was among the greatest military forces of the ancient world. The latest innovations in weapons and tactics were adopted and refined by Philip II, by introducing military service as a full-time occupation, Philip was able to drill his men regularly, ensuring unity and cohesion in his ranks. In a remarkably short time, this led to the creation of one of the finest military machines of the ancient world, tactical improvements included the latest developments in the deployment of the traditional Greek phalanx made by men such as Epaminondas of Thebes and Iphicrates of Athens. Philip II improved on these military innovators by using both Epaminondas deeper phalanx and Iphicrates combination of a spear and smaller and lighter shield. However, the Macedonian king also innovated, he introduced the use of a longer spear. The Macedonian pike, the sarissa, gave its wielder many advantages both offensively and defensively, for the first time in Greek warfare, cavalry became a decisive arm in battle. The new Macedonian army was an amalgamation of different forces, Macedonians and other Greeks and a wide range of mercenaries from across the Aegean and Balkans were employed by Phillip. Unfortunately, most of the historical sources for this period have been lost. As a consequence, scholarship is largely reliant on the writings of Diodorus Siculus and Arrian, both of whom lived centuries later than the events they describe. If Philip II of Macedon had not been the father of Alexander the Great, he would be widely known as a first-rate military innovator, tactician and strategist. The conquests of Alexander would have been impossible without the army his father created, when Philip took over control of Macedon, it was a backward state on the fringes of the Greek world and was beset by its traditional enemies, Illyrians, Paeonians and Thracians. Macedonian infantry in this period consisted of poorly trained shepherds and farmers, Philips first achievement was to unify Macedon through his army. Philip took pains to keep them always under arms and either fighting or drilling, manoeuvres and drills were made into competitive events, and the truculent Macedonians vied with each other to excel. This reform made the train of the army very small for its size. The Companion cavalry, or Hetairoi, were the arm of the Macedonian army. Along with Thessalian cavalry contingents, the Companions—raised from landed nobility—made up the bulk of the Macedonian heavy cavalry, central Macedonia was good horse-rearing country and cavalry was prominent in Macedonian armies from early times. However, it was the reforms in organisation, drill and tactics introduced by Philip II that transformed the Companion cavalry into a battle-winning force, the hetairoi were divided into squadrons called ilai, each 200 men strong, except for the Royal Squadron, which numbered 300. The Royal Squadron was also known as the Agema - that which leads, each squadron was commanded by an ilarchēs and appears to have been raised from a particular area of Macedon
Ancient Macedonian army
–
Hypaspist in light equipment (modern reconstruction)
Ancient Macedonian army
–
Philip II of Macedon - silver tetradrachm coin.
Ancient Macedonian army
–
Alexander Mosaic showing the
Battle of Issus. Roman copy of a Hellenistic painting.
Ancient Macedonian army
–
Ancient depiction of a Macedonian cavalryman (left). This shows Alexander the Great as a cavalryman. He wears a helmet in the form of the lion-scalp of Herakles. Detail of the so-called
Alexander Sarcophagus, excavated at Sidon.
22.
Macedonian phalanx
–
The Macedonian phalanx is an infantry formation developed by Philip II and used by his son Alexander the Great to conquer the Persian Empire and other armies. Philip II spent much of his youth as a hostage at Thebes, phalangites were professional soldiers, and were among the first troops ever to be drilled, thereby allowing them to execute complex maneuvers well beyond the reach of most other armies. Each phalangite carried as his primary weapon a sarissa, a pike over 6 m in length. Before a battle the sarissa were carried in two pieces and then slid together when they were being used, men in rows behind the initial five angled their spears at a 45 degree angle in an attempt to ward off arrows or other projectiles. The secondary weapon was a called a kopis, which had a heavy curved section at the end. Neither Philip nor Alexander actually used the phalanx as their arm of choice, the left flank was generally covered by allied cavalry supplied by the Thessalians, which fought in rhomboid formation and served mainly in a defensive role. Other forces — skirmishers, range troops, reserves of allied hoplites, archers, the phalanx carried with it a fairly minimal baggage train, with only one servant for every few men. Phalangites were drilled to perform short forced marches if required, the Macedonian phalanx also proved to be one of the best defensive formations in all of antiquity thanks to its elongated spear called a sarissa, and its very tight formation. The phalangites could stick the tip of their sarissa to block the most powerful enemy charges. They were the troops to hold a position as they were able to push their opponents back. During the siege of Atrax by the Roman legions in 198 BC, the Romans managed to break into the city after breaching its walls, but were then faced with a compact formation of Macedonian levy phalangites. The phalanx formation also had its disadvantages, lighter troops like peltasts for example protected the flanks of the phalanx to prevent any dangerous enemy encircling maneuver to succeed. The wars of the Diadochi, following the death of Alexander the Great and his empires collapse, the engagements between two Macedonian phalanges depended only on the number and the quality of the troops engaged and proved to be very long, indecisive and deadly. The length of the pike was increased by half during the fifty years that followed the death of Alexander and this new equipment was very uncomfortable for combat. The longer sarissa became a problem, the mobility of the soldiers, the later phalanx had to fight in perfectly ideal conditions because it wasnt capable of reacting as fast as it used to. The heavier phalanges faced issues that Alexanders phalanges never experienced, which can only be explained by the fact that their equipment was now too heavy to fight in good order. Phalangites couldnt maneuvre freely as they used to, their pace was greatly reduced, during the battle of Pydna, the phalanx formation collapsed because of the uneven terrain on which they were fighting. After pushing back and steam-rolling through the Roman legions, the phalanx had to pursue the retreating Roman infantry on the muddy hillsides behind the Roman army
Macedonian phalanx
–
A unit of phalangites in formation
Macedonian phalanx
–
Macedonian battle formation.
Macedonian phalanx
–
Ancient depiction of Macedonian infantry.
23.
Classical Athens
–
Athenian democracy was established in 508 BC under Cleisthenes following the tyranny of Isagoras. This system remained remarkably stable, and with a few brief interruptions remained in place for 180 years, the peak of Athenian hegemony was achieved in the 440s to 430s BC, known as the Age of Pericles. The radical politician of aristocratic background, Cleisthenes, then took charge, the reforms of Cleisthenes replaced the traditional four Ionic tribes with ten new ones, named after legendary heroes of Greece and having no class basis, which acted as electorates. Each tribe was in divided into three trittyes, while each trittys had one or more demes —depending on their population—which became the basis of local government. The tribes each selected fifty members by lot for the Boule, the public opinion of voters could be influenced by the political satires written by the comic poets and performed in the city theaters. Most offices were filled by lot, although the ten strategoi were elected, prior to the rise of Athens, Sparta, a city-state with a militaristic culture, considered itself the leader of the Greeks, and enforced a hegemony. In 499 BC Athens sent troops to aid the Ionian Greeks of Asia Minor and this provoked two Persian invasions of Greece, both of which were repelled under the leadership of the soldier-statesmen Miltiades and Themistocles. In 490 the Athenians, led by Miltiades, prevented the first invasion of the Persians, guided by king Darius I, in 480 the Persians returned under a new ruler, Xerxes I. Simultaneously the Athenians led a naval battle off Artemisium. However, this action was not enough to discourage the Persian advance which soon marched through Boeotia, setting up Thebes as their base of operations. This forced the Athenians to evacuate Athens, which was taken by the Persians, subsequently the Athenians and their allies, led by Themistocles, defeated the Persian navy at sea in the Battle of Salamis. It is interesting to note that Xerxes had built himself a throne on the coast in order to see the Greeks defeated, spartas hegemony was passing to Athens, and it was Athens that took the war to Asia Minor. These victories enabled it to bring most of the Aegean and many parts of Greece together in the Delian League. He fostered arts and literature and gave to Athens a splendor which would never return throughout its history and he executed a large number of public works projects and improved the life of the citizens. Hence, he gave his name to the Athenian Golden Age, silver mined in Laurium in southeastern Attica contributed greatly to the prosperity of this Golden Age of Athens. During the time of the ascendancy of Ephialtes as leader of the democratic faction, the conflict marked the end of Athenian command of the sea. The war between Athens and the city-state Sparta ended with an Athenian defeat after Sparta started its own navy, Athenian democracy was briefly overthrown by the coup of 411, brought about because of its poor handling of the war, but it was quickly restored. The war ended with the defeat of Athens in 404
Classical Athens
–
Early
Athenian coin, 5th century BC.
British Museum.
Classical Athens
–
Delian League ("Athenian Empire") shown in yellow, Athenian territory shown in red, situation in 431 BC, before the
Peloponnesian War.
Classical Athens
–
The modern
National Academy in Athens, with Apollo and Athena on their columns, and Socrates and Plato seated in front.
Classical Athens
–
Map of the environs of Athens showing
Piraeus,
Phalerum, and the
Long Walls
24.
Thebes, Greece
–
Thebes is a city in Boeotia, central Greece. It played an important role in Greek myths, as the site of the stories of Cadmus, Oedipus, Dionysus and others. Archaeological excavations in and around Thebes have revealed a Mycenaean settlement and clay tablets written in the Linear B script, Thebes was the largest city of the ancient region of Boeotia and was the leader of the Boeotian confederacy. It was a rival of ancient Athens, and sided with the Persians during the 480 BC invasion under Xerxes. Theban forces ended the power of Sparta at the Battle of Leuctra in 371 BC under the command of Epaminondas, the Sacred Band of Thebes famously fell at the battle of Chaeronea in 338 BC against Philip II and Alexander the Great. Prior to its destruction by Alexander in 335 BC, Thebes was a force in Greek history. During the Byzantine period, the city was famous for its silks, the modern city contains an Archaeological Museum, the remains of the Cadmea, and scattered ancient remains. Modern Thebes is the largest town of the unit of Boeotia. Thebes is situated in a plain, between Lake Yliki to the north, and the Cithaeron mountains, which divide Boeotia from Attica and its elevation is 215 metres above mean sea level. It is about 50 kilometres northwest of Athens, and 100 kilometres southeast of Lamia, motorway 1 and the Athens–Thessaloniki railway connect Thebes with Athens and northern Greece. The municipality of Thebes covers an area of 830.112 square kilometres, the unit of Thebes 321.015 square kilometres. In 2011, as a consequence of the Kallikratis reform, Thebes was merged with Plataies, Thisvi, and Vagia to form a larger municipality, the other three become units of the larger municipality. Five main cycles of story may be distinguished, The foundation of the citadel Cadmea by Cadmus, the building of a seven-gated wall by Amphion, and the cognate stories of Zethus, Antiope and Dirce. See Theban pederasty and Pederasty in ancient Greece for detailed discussion, the immolation of Semele and the advent of Dionysus. The Greeks attributed the foundation of Thebes to Cadmus, a Phoenician king from Tyre, Cadmus was famous for teaching the Phoenician alphabet and building the Acropolis, which was named the Cadmeia in his honor and was an intellectual, spiritual, and cultural center. Archaeological excavations in and around Thebes have revealed cist graves dated to Mycenaean times containing weapons, ivory, *Tʰēgʷai in LHIIIB lost contact with Egypt but gained it with Miletus and Cyprus. In the late LHIIIB, according to Palaima, *Tʰēgʷai was able to pull resources from Lamos near Mount Helicon, and from Karystos and Amarynthos on the Greek side of the isle of Euboia. As a fortified community, it attracted attention from the invading Dorians, and this centralizing policy is as much the cardinal fact of Theban history as the counteracting effort of the smaller towns to resist absorption forms the main chapter of the story of Boeotia
Thebes, Greece
–
Remains of the Cadmea, the central fortress of ancient Thebes
Thebes, Greece
–
Theban workshop (Oinochoe type), 7th century BC.
Thebes, Greece
–
Map of the Topography of Ancient Thebes.
Thebes, Greece
–
Silver
stater of Thebes (405-395 BC). Obverse: Boeotian shield, reverse: Head of bearded
Dionysus.
25.
Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC)
–
The battle was the culmination of Philips campaign in Greece and resulted in a decisive victory for the Macedonians. Philips much expanded kingdom, powerful army and plentiful resources now made him the de facto leader of Greece, in 340 BC Demosthenes convinced the Athenian assembly to sanction action against Philips territories and to ally with Byzantium, which Philip was besieging. These actions were against the terms of their treaty oaths and amounted to a declaration of war. In summer 339 BC, Philip therefore led his army towards South Greece, prompting the formation of an alliance of a few southern Greek states opposed to him, led by Athens and Thebes. After several months of stalemate, Philip finally advanced into Boeotia in an attempt to march on Thebes, opposing him, and blocking the road near Chaeronea, was the allied Greek army, similar in size and occupying a strong position. Details of the battle are scarce, but after a long fight the Macedonians crushed both flanks of the allied line, which then dissolved into a rout. The battle has been described as one of the most decisive of the ancient world, the forces of Athens and Thebes were destroyed, and continued resistance was impossible, the war therefore came to an abrupt end. Philip was able to impose a settlement upon Greece, which all states accepted, the League of Corinth, formed as a result, made all participants allies of Macedon and each other, with Philip as the guarantor of the peace. In turn, Philip was voted as strategos for a war against the Persian Empire. However, before he was able to charge of the campaign, Philip was assassinated. In the decade following his accession in 359 BC, the Macedonian king, Philip II, had strengthened and expanded his kingdom into Thrace. He was aided in this process by the distraction of Athens and Thebes, Philip was not originally a belligerent in the Sacred War, but became involved at the request of the Thessalians. Seeing an opportunity to expand his influence into Greece proper, Philip obliged, in the aftermath, Philip was made archon of Thessaly, which gave him control of the levies and revenues of the Thessalian Confederation, thereby greatly increasing his power. However, Philip did not intervene further in the Sacred War until 346 BC. Early in that year, the Thebans, who had borne the brunt of the Sacred War, together with the Thessalians, asked Philip to assume the leadership of Greece and join them in fighting the Phocians. By 346 BC, the Athenians were war-weary, unable to match Philips strength, the Athenians had successfully used this tactic to prevent Philip attacking Phocis itself after his victory at Crocus Field. The occupation of Thermopylae was not only for the benefit of Phocis, however, by the end of February, the general Phalaikos was restored to power in Phocis, and he refused to allow the Athenians access to Thermopylae. Suddenly unable to guarantee their own security, the Athenians were forced instead into making peace with Philip and their peace treaty, known as the Peace of Philocrates, made Athens reluctant allies of Macedon
Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC)
–
The
Lion of Chaeronea, probably erected by the Thebans in memory of their dead.
Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC)
–
Bust of Philip II of Macedon.
Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC)
–
Bust of the Athenian politician
Demosthenes.
Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC)
–
Funerary relief for Athenian footsoldier Pancahres, who probably fell at the battle of Chaeronea.
26.
Federation
–
A federation is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing states or regions under a central government. The governmental or constitutional structure found in a federation is known as federalism and it can be considered the opposite of another system, the unitary state. Federations are often multiethnic and cover an area of territory. The initial agreements create a stability that encourages other common interests, at some time, that is recognized and a movement is organized to merge more closely. At other times, especially when common cultural factors are at such as ethnicity and language. The Old Swiss Confederacy was an example of formal non-unitary statehood. Several colonies and dominions in the New World consisted of autonomous provinces, the oldest continuous federation, and a role model for many subsequent federations, is the United States. Some of the New World federations failed, the Federal Republic of Central America broke up into independent states ten years after its founding, others, such as Argentina and Mexico, have shifted between federal, confederal, and unitary systems, before settling into federalism. Brazil became a federation only after the fall of the monarchy, australia and Canada are also federations. Germany is another nation-state that has switched between confederal, federal and unitary rules, since the German Confederation was founded in 1815, the North German Confederation, the succeeding German Empire and the Weimar Republic were federations. The Russian Federation has inherited a similar system, Nigeria, Pakistan, India and Malaysia became federations on or shortly before becoming independent from the British Empire. In some recent cases, federations have been instituted as a measure to handle ethnic conflict within a state, such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Iraq since 2005. The component states are in some sense sovereign, insofar as certain powers are reserved to them that may not be exercised by the central government, however, a federation is more than a mere loose alliance of independent states. The component states of a federation usually possess no powers in relation to foreign policy, however, German Länder have that power, which is beginning to be exercised on a European level. Some federations are called asymmetric because some states have more autonomy than others, an example of such a federation is Malaysia, in which Sarawak and Sabah agreed to form the federation on different terms and conditions from the states of Peninsular Malaysia. A federation often emerges from an agreement between a number of separate states. The purpose can be the will to solve problems and to provide for mutual defense or to create a nation state for an ethnicity spread over several states. The former was the case with the United States and Switzerland, however, as the histories of countries and nations vary, the federalist system of a state can be quite different from these models
Federation
–
The
United Provinces of Central America was a short-lived federal republic
Federation
–
Unitary states
27.
League of Corinth
–
The name League of Corinth was invented by modern historians due to the first council of the League being in Corinth. It was the first time in history that most of the Greek states managed to become part of a political entity. The League was governed by the Hegemon, the Synedrion and the Dikastai, decrees of the league were issued in Corinth, Athens, Delphi, Olympia and Pydna. The League maintained an army levied from member states in proportion to their size, while Philip established garrisons in Corinth, Thebes. The decision for the Destruction of Thebes as transgressor of the oath was taken by the council of the League of Corinth by a large majority. The League is mentioned by Arrian, after the Battle of Granicus, alexander sent 300 panoplies to the temple of Pallas Athena in Athens, with the following inscription. During 331 BC after the Battle of Megalopolis, Sparta was forced to join the League of Corinth, during the Asiatic campaign, Antipater was appointed deputy hegemon of the League. The League was dissolved after the Lamian War, during 302 BC King Antigonus of Macedon and his son Demetrius Poliorcetes tried to revive the federation against Cassander. Antigonus III Doson also revived the League against Sparta during 224 BC
League of Corinth
–
Kingdom of Macedon immediately after Philip's II death. The Corinthian League is shown in yellow.
28.
Hegemon
–
Hegemony is the political, economic, or military predominance or control of one state over others. In ancient Greece, hegemony denoted the politico–military dominance of a city-state over other city-states, the dominant state is known as the hegemon. In the 19th century, hegemony came to denote the Social or cultural predominance or ascendancy, later, it could be used to mean a group or regime which exerts undue influence within a society. In contrast to authoritarian rule, cultural hegemony is hegemonic only if those affected by it also consent to and struggle over its common sense. From the post-classical Latin word hegemonia, from 1513 or earlier, or the Greek word ἡγεμονία, meaning authority, rule, political supremacy, likewise, the role of Athens within the short-lived Delian League was that of a hegemon. Ancient historians such as Xenophon and Ephorus were the first who used the term in its modern sense. In Ancient East Asia, Chinese hegemony existed during the Spring and Autumn period and they were appointed by feudal lord conferences, and thus were nominally obliged to uphold the imperium of the Zhou Dynasty over the subordinate states. 1st and 2nd century Europe was dominated by the peace of the Pax Romana. It was instituted by the emperor Augustus, and was accompanied by a series of military campaigns. From the 7th century to the 12th century, the Umayyad Caliphate and later Abbasid Caliphate dominated the vast territories they governed, with other states like the Byzantine Empire paying tribute. In 7th century India, Harsha, ruler of an empire in northern India from 606 to 647 AD. He preferred not to rule as a government, but left conquered kings on their thrones and contenting himself with tribute. From the late 9th to the early 11th century, the empire developed by Charlemagne achieved hegemony in Europe, with dominance over France, Italy and he lists several contenders for historical hegemony. Based on Portugals dominance in navigation, based on Dutch control of credit and money. Based on British textiles and command of the high seas, based on British industrial supremacy and railroads. To this list could be added the hegemony of Habsburg Spain in 16th century Europe, however, after an attempt by Phillip IV to restore it, by the middle of the 17th century Spains pretensions to hegemony had definitely and irremediably failed. This, in turn, made possible the Amsterdam stock market, in France, King Louis XIV and Napoleon I attempted French hegemony via economic, cultural and military domination of most of Continental Europe. However, Jeremy Black writes that, because of Britain, France was unable to enjoy the benefits of this hegemony, Britain also controlled the Indian subcontinent and large portions of Africa
Hegemon
–
Ancient Greece under the hegemony of
Thebes, 371–362 BCE
29.
Commander-in-chief
–
A commander-in-chief is the person or body that exercises supreme operational command and control of a nations military forces or significant elements of those forces. In the latter case, the element is those forces within a particular region. Often, a given countrys commander-in-chief need not be or have been an officer or even a veteran. This follows the principle of civilian control of the military, the role of commander-in-chief derives from the Latin, imperator. Imperatores of the Roman Republic and Roman Empire possessed imperium powers, in its modern use, the term first applied to King Charles I of England in 1639. It continued to be used during the English Civil War, a nations head of state usually holds the nominal position of commander-in-chief, even if effective executive power is held by a separate head of government. Governors-general and colonial governors are also often appointed commander-in-chief of the forces within their territory. A commander-in-chief is sometimes referred to as commander, which is sometimes used as a specific term. The term is used for military officers who hold such power and authority, not always through dictatorship. The term is used for officers who hold authority over an individual military branch. According to the Constitution of Albania, The President of the Republic of Albania is the Commander-in-chief of Albanian Armed Forces, the incumbent Commander-in-chief is President Bujar Nishani. The Ministry of Defense is the government department that assists and serves the President in the management of the armed forces, the Minister for Defence and several subordinate ministers exercise this control through the Australian Defence Organisation. The Constitution states, in Article 80, that the President is the Commander-in-Chief of the Federal Armed Forces. e, the cabinet under the chairmanship of the Federal Chancellor, as defined in Article 69. The commander-in-chief is the president, although executive power and responsibility for national defense resides with the prime minister and he retired on 7 April 1972 and relinquished all authority and duties to the President of Bangladesh. Article 142 of the Brazilian Constitution of 1988 states that the Brazilian Armed Forces is under the command of the President of the Republic. The Sultan of Brunei is the Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces, the powers of command-in-chief over the Canadian Armed Forces are vested in the Canadian monarch, and are delegated to the Governor General of Canada, who also uses the title Commander-in-Chief. In this capacity, the general is entitled to the uniform of a general/flag officer, with the crest of the office. According to the National Defence Act, the Minister of National Defence is responsible and accountable to parliament for all related to national defence
Commander-in-chief
–
President Cristina Fernández of
Argentina, as the Commander-in-chief of the
Argentine Armed Forces.
Commander-in-chief
–
Governor General The Lord Gowrie (right) signing the
declaration of war against
Japan with
Prime Minister John Curtin (left) looking on. (8 December 1941)
Commander-in-chief
–
Former
President Lula, with his wife
Marisa Letícia, reviews troops during
Independence Day military parade in
Brasília, Brazil.
Commander-in-chief
30.
Achaemenid Empire
–
The Achaemenid Empire, also called the Persian Empire, was an empire based in Western Asia, founded by Cyrus the Great. The empires successes inspired similar systems in later empires and it is noted in Western history as the antagonist of the Greek city-states during the Greco-Persian Wars and for the emancipation of the Jewish exiles in Babylon. The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was built in a Hellenistic style in the empire as well. By the 7th century BC, the Persians had settled in the portion of the Iranian Plateau in the region of Persis. From this region, Cyrus the Great advanced to defeat the Medes, Lydia, Alexander, an avid admirer of Cyrus the Great, conquered the empire in its entirety by 330 BC. Upon his death, most of the former territory came under the rule of the Ptolemaic Kingdom and Seleucid Empire. The Persian population of the central plateau reclaimed power by the second century BC under the Parthian Empire, the historical mark of the Achaemenid Empire went far beyond its territorial and military influences and included cultural, social, technological and religious influences as well. Many Athenians adopted Achaemenid customs in their lives in a reciprocal cultural exchange. The impact of Cyruss edict is mentioned in Judeo-Christian texts, the empire also set the tone for the politics, heritage and history of modern Iran. Astronomical year numbering Dates are approximate, consult particular article for details Due to the duration of their reigns, Smerdis, Xerxes II. The Persian nation contains a number of tribes as listed here, the Pasargadae, Maraphii, and Maspii, upon which all the other tribes are dependent. Of these, the Pasargadae are the most distinguished, they contain the clan of the Achaemenids from which spring the Perseid kings. Other tribes are the Panthialaei, Derusiaei, Germanii, all of which are attached to the soil, the Achaemenid Empire was created by nomadic Persians. The Achaemenid Empire was not the first Iranian empire, as by 6th century BC another group of ancient Iranian peoples had established the short lived Median Empire. The Iranian peoples had arrived in the region of what is today Iran c.1000 BC and had for a number of centuries fallen under the domination of the Neo-Assyrian Empire, based in northern Mesopotamia. However, the Medes and Persians, Cimmerians, Persians and Chaldeans played a role in the overthrow of the Assyrian empire. The term Achaemenid means of the family of the Achaemenis/Achaemenes, despite the derivation of the name, Achaemenes was himself a minor seventh-century ruler of the Anshan in southwestern Iran, and a vassal of Assyria. At some point in 550 BC, Cyrus rose in rebellion against the Medes, eventually conquering the Medes and creating the first Persian empire
Achaemenid Empire
–
Standard of Cyrus the Great
Achaemenid Empire
–
Relief of
Cyrus the Great.
Achaemenid Empire
–
Mausoleum at Halicarnassus one of the
Seven wonders of the ancient world was built by Persian satrap of
Caria,
Mausolus (Scale model.)
31.
Persia
–
Iran, also known as Persia, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, is a sovereign state in Western Asia. Comprising a land area of 1,648,195 km2, it is the second-largest country in the Middle East, with 82.8 million inhabitants, Iran is the worlds 17th-most-populous country. It is the country with both a Caspian Sea and an Indian Ocean coastline. The countrys central location in Eurasia and Western Asia, and its proximity to the Strait of Hormuz, Tehran is the countrys capital and largest city, as well as its leading economic and cultural center. Iran is the site of to one of the worlds oldest civilizations, the area was first unified by the Iranian Medes in 625 BC, who became the dominant cultural and political power in the region. The empire collapsed in 330 BC following the conquests of Alexander the Great, under the Sassanid Dynasty, Iran again became one of the leading powers in the world for the next four centuries. Beginning in 633 AD, Arabs conquered Iran and largely displaced the indigenous faiths of Manichaeism and Zoroastrianism by Islam, Iran became a major contributor to the Islamic Golden Age that followed, producing many influential scientists, scholars, artists, and thinkers. During the 18th century, Iran reached its greatest territorial extent since the Sassanid Empire, through the late 18th and 19th centuries, a series of conflicts with Russia led to significant territorial losses and the erosion of sovereignty. Popular unrest culminated in the Persian Constitutional Revolution of 1906, which established a monarchy and the countrys first legislative body. Following a coup instigated by the U. K. Growing dissent against foreign influence and political repression led to the 1979 Revolution, Irans rich cultural legacy is reflected in part by its 21 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the third-largest number in Asia and 11th-largest in the world. Iran is a member of the UN, ECO, NAM, OIC. Its political system is based on the 1979 Constitution which combines elements of a democracy with a theocracy governed by Islamic jurists under the concept of a Supreme Leadership. A multicultural country comprising numerous ethnic and linguistic groups, most inhabitants are Shia Muslims, the largest ethnic groups in Iran are the Persians, Azeris, Kurds and Lurs. Historically, Iran has been referred to as Persia by the West, due mainly to the writings of Greek historians who called Iran Persis, meaning land of the Persians. As the most extensive interactions the Ancient Greeks had with any outsider was with the Persians, however, Persis was originally referred to a region settled by Persians in the west shore of Lake Urmia, in the 9th century BC. The settlement was then shifted to the end of the Zagros Mountains. In 1935, Reza Shah requested the international community to refer to the country by its native name, opposition to the name change led to the reversal of the decision, and Professor Ehsan Yarshater, editor of Encyclopædia Iranica, propagated a move to use Persia and Iran interchangeably
Persia
–
Cave painting in Doushe cave,
Lorestan, Iran,
8th millennium BC
Persia
–
Flag
Persia
–
A depiction of the united
Medes and
Persians in
Apadana,
Persepolis
Persia
–
Ruins of the
Gate of All Nations,
Persepolis
32.
Wars of Alexander the Great
–
Alexander the Great was one of the most successful military commanders of all time. By the time of his death, he had conquered most of the known to the ancient Greeks. Although being successful as a commander, he failed to provide any stable alternative to the Achaemenid Empire—his untimely death threw the vast territories he conquered into civil war. His conquests included Anatolia, Syria, Phoenicia, Judea, Gaza, Egypt, Bactria, and Mesopotamia, Alexander had already made more plans prior to his death for military and mercantile expansions into the Arabian Peninsula, after which he was to turn his armies to the west. However, Alexanders diadochi quietly abandoned these plans after his death. Instead, within a few years of Alexanders death, the diadochi began fighting each other. Philip II was assassinated by the captain of his bodyguard, Pausanias, Philips son, and previously designated heir, Alexander was proclaimed king by the Macedonian noblemen and army. News of Philips death roused many states into revolt including Thebes, Athens, Thessaly, when news of the revolt reached Alexander he responded quickly. Though his advisers counseled him to use diplomacy, Alexander mustered the Macedonian cavalry of 3,000 men and rode south towards Thessaly, Macedons immediate neighbor to the south. When he found the Thessalian army occupying the pass between Mount Olympus and Mount Ossa, he had the men ride through Mount Ossa and, the Thessalians surrendered and added their cavalry to Alexanders force as he rode down towards the Peloponnese. Alexander stopped at Thermopylae, where he was recognized as the leader of the Sacred League before heading south to Corinth, Athens sued for peace and Alexander received the envoy and pardoned anyone involved with the uprising. At Corinth, he was given the title Hegemon of the Greek forces against the Persians, while at Corinth, he heard the news of the Thracian rising in the north. Before crossing to Asia, Alexander wanted to safeguard his northern borders and, in the spring of 335 BC, he advanced into Thrace to deal with the revolt, at Mount Haemus, the Macedonian army attacked and defeated a Thracian garrison manning the heights. The Macedonians were then attacked in the rear by the Triballi, Alexander then advanced on to the Danube, encountering the Getae tribe on the opposite shore. The Getae army retreated after the first cavalry skirmish, leaving their town to the Macedonian army, news then reached Alexander that Cleitus, King of Illyria, and King Glaukias of the Taulanti were in open revolt against Macedonian authority. Alexander defeated each in turn, forcing Cleitus and Glaukias to flee with their armies, while he was triumphantly campaigning north, the Thebans and Athenians rebelled once more. Alexander reacted immediately, but, while the other once again hesitated. This resistance was useless, however, as the city was razed to the ground amid great bloodshed, the end of Thebes cowed Athens into submission, leaving all of Greece at least outwardly at peace with Alexander
Wars of Alexander the Great
–
Alexander fighting Persian king
Darius III. From
Alexander Mosaic of
Pompeii,
Naples,
Naples National Archaeological Museum.
Wars of Alexander the Great
–
Map of what would become Alexander's empire.
Wars of Alexander the Great
–
Herma of Alexander (Roman copy of a 330 BC statue by
Lysippus,
Louvre Museum). According to
Diodorus, the Alexander sculptures by Lysippus were the most faithful.
Wars of Alexander the Great
–
A naval action during the siege, Drawing by
André Castaigne
33.
Hostage
–
A hostage is a person or entity which is held by one of two belligerent parties to the other or seized as security for the carrying out of an agreement, or as a preventive measure against war. A person who seizes one or more hostages is known as a hostage-taker, if the hostages are present voluntarily, then the receiver is known as a host. These obligations would be in the form of signing of a peace treaty and this would eventually influence them culturally and open the way for an amicable political line if they ascended to power after release. This caused the element gīsl = hostage in many old Germanic personal names, the practice was also commonplace in the Imperial Chinese tributary system, especially between the Han and Tang dynasties. The practice continued through the early Middle Ages, the Irish High King Niall of the Nine Hostages got his epithet Noígiallach because, by taking nine petty kings hostage, he had subjected nine other principalities to his power. This practice was adopted in the early period of the British occupation of India. The practice of taking hostages as security for the out of a treaty between civilized states is now obsolete. In France, after the revolution of Prairial, the law of hostages was passed. Relatives of émigrés were taken from disturbed districts and imprisoned, and were liable to execution at any attempt to escape. Sequestration of their property and deportation from France followed on the murder of a republican, four to every such murder, the law only resulted in an increase in the insurrection. Napoleon in 1796 had used similar measures to deal with the insurrection in Lombardy, another case where hostages have been taken in modern warfare has been the subject of much discussion. The measure seems to have been effective, in 1900 during the Second Boer War, by a proclamation issued at Pretoria, Lord Roberts adopted the plan for a similar reason, but shortly afterwards it was abandoned. The Germans also, between the surrender of a town and its occupation, took hostages as security against outbreaks of violence by the inhabitants. It may be noticed, however, that the hostages would suffer should the acts aimed at be performed by the authorized belligerent forces of the enemy, the regulations, however do not allude to the practice of taking hostage. In May 1871, at the close of the Paris Commune and it was an act of maniacal despair, on the defeat at Mont Valrien on the 4 April and the entry of the army into Paris on the 21 May. Taking hostages is today considered a crime or an act of terrorism, the criminal activity is known as kidnapping. An acute situation where hostages are kept in a building or a vehicle that has taken over by armed terrorists or common criminals is often called a hostage crisis. Common Article 3 of the 1949 Geneva Conventions states that the taking of hostages during a conflict is a war crime and shall remain prohibited at any time
Hostage
–
Police often train to recover hostages taken by force, as in this exercise
Hostage
–
"Hostages", 1896 painting by
Jean-Paul Laurens, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Lyon.
Hostage
–
German announcement of the execution of 100 Polish hostages as revenge for death of 2 Germans in Warsaw,
occupied Poland, February 1944
Hostage
–
A British armoured railway wagon behind a railcar on which two Arab hostages are seated, 1936.
34.
Theban hegemony
–
The Thebans had traditionally enjoyed the hegemony of the Boeotian League, the oligarchical federation of Aeolic-speaking Greeks to the immediate north-west of Athenian-dominated Attica. Their brief rise to power outside the Boeotian Plain began in 373 when the Boeotians defeated and destroyed the town of Plataea, strategically important as the only Athenian ally in Boeotia. This was taken as a challenge by the previous hegemonic power, the Spartans. At Leuctra, in Boeotia, the Thebans comprehensively defeated an invading Spartan army, out of 700 Spartan citizen-soldiers present,400 died at Leuctra. After this, the Thebans systematically dominated Greece, in the south, they invaded the Peloponnese to liberate the Messenians and Arcadians from Spartan overlordship and set up a pro-Theban Arcadian League to oversee Peloponnesian affairs. In the north, they invaded Thessaly, to crush the local power of Pherae and took the future Philip II of Macedon hostage. Pelopidas, however was killed at Cynoscephalae, in battle against troops from Pherae, the Thebans overstretched themselves strategically and, in their efforts to maintain control of the north, their power in the south disintegrated. This was if anything a Pyrrhic victory for both states, the war was finally ended in 346 BC, by the forces not of Thebes, or any of the city-states, but of Philip of Macedon, to whom the city-states had grown desperate enough to turn. This signalled the rise of Macedon within Greece and finally brought to an end a Theban hegemony which had already been in decline, Boeotian War Sacred Band of Thebes Spartan hegemony John Buckler, The Theban Hegemony 371-362,1980
Theban hegemony
–
Theban hegemony
35.
Epaminondas
–
Epaminondas reshaped the political map of Greece, fragmented old alliances, created new ones, and supervised the construction of entire cities. He was also influential and invented and implemented several major battlefield tactics. The changes Epaminondas wrought on the Greek political order did not long outlive him, a mere twenty-seven years after his death, a recalcitrant Thebes was obliterated by Alexander the Great. The life of Epaminondas is very poorly attested in the ancient sources, one principal reason for this is the loss of Plutarchs biography of him. Some details of Epaminondass life can be found in Plutarchs Lives of Pelopidas and Agesilaus II, there is also a surviving biography of Epaminondas by the Roman author Cornelius Nepos from the first century BC, in the absence of Plutarchs, that becomes a major source for Epaminondass life. The period of Greek history from 411–362 BC is primarily attested by the historian Xenophon, Xenophon, who idolized Sparta and its king, Agesilaus, avoids mentioning Epaminondas wherever possible and does not even note his presence at the Battle of Leuctra. Epaminondass role in the conflicts of the 4th century is described by Diodorus Siculus. Diodorus was writing in the 1st century BC, and is very much a secondary source. Epaminondas was born into the Theban aristocracy in the late 5th century BC, Cornelius Nepos claims that his father, Polymnis, had been left impoverished by his ancestors. He was educated in his childhood by Lysis of Tarentum, one of the last major Pythagorean philosophers, Epaminondas evidently excelled as a student, and was devoted to Lysis. He also trained in running and wrestling, but most of all, Epaminondas evidently began serving as a soldier after adolescence, Plutarch refers to an incident involving Epaminondas that occurred during a battle at Mantinea. Epaminondas was certainly not old enough to have served at the First Battle of Mantinea which was in 418 BC and it was at this battle, regardless of exactly when and where this occurred, that a defining moment of Epaminondass early life would happen. Plutarch says that this incident firmly cemented their friendship, and Pelopidas would be Epaminondass partner in politics for the twenty years. Epaminondas was considered the greatest warrior-statesmen of ancient Thebes by many, Diodorus does not have anything to say about the sexual orientation of Epaminondas or the Sacred Band, nor does he say anything about the following account, again from Plutarch. According to Plutarchs dramatic dialogue, Epaminondas had two lovers, Asopichus and Caphisodorus, the latter died with him at Mantineia in battle. They were buried together, something reserved for a husband. Epaminondas lived at a turbulent point in Greek history. Following the end of the Peloponnesian War in 404 BC, Sparta had embarked upon an aggressively unilateralist policy towards the rest of Greece, Thebes, meanwhile, had greatly increased its own power during the war and sought to gain control of the other cities of Boeotia
Epaminondas
–
Epaminondas, an idealized figure in the grounds of
Stowe House
Epaminondas
–
The Battle of Leuctra, 371 BC, showing Epaminondas's tactical advances
Epaminondas
–
Messenia in the classical period
Epaminondas
–
Death of Epaminondas, as painted by
Benjamin West.
36.
Pelopidas
–
For the genus of grass skipper butterflies, see Pelopidas. Pelopidas was an important Theban statesman and general in Greece and he was a member of a distinguished family, and possessed great wealth which he expended on his friends, while content to lead the life of an athlete. In 384 BC he served in a Theban contingent sent to the support of the Spartans at Mantineia, where he was saved, people said that he was ashamed to spend more on himself than the lowest of the Thebans spent on himself. Upon the seizure of the Theban citadel by the Spartans, he fled to Athens, Spartans had kingship in their home and were supportive of oligarchic governments in other cities, and vice versa, cities with oligarchic and not democratic political system supported Sparta. In 379 BC his party surprised and killed their chief opponents in Thebes, and roused the people against the Spartan garrison. In this and subsequent years he was elected boeotarch, and about 375 BC he routed a much larger Spartan force at the battle of Tegyra and this victory he owed mainly to the valour of the Sacred Band, an elite corps of 300 seasoned soldiers. At the battle of Leuctra he contributed greatly to the success of Epaminondass new tactics by the rapidity with which he made the Sacred Band close with the Spartans. Epaminondas, an intuitive and genius general, used at Leuctra for the first time the order in which a local superiority of numbers can be used to defeat a superior force. Then, by winning in detail, one can hope to win in the whole, after the battle at Leuctra Thebes became the strongest city of Greece and Sparta withdrew as a leading city. In 370 BC he accompanied his close friend Epaminondas as boeotarch into Peloponnesus in order to humiliate Sparta even more, on their return, both generals were accused, unsuccessfully, of having retained their command beyond the legal term. In fact, the democrats and some aristocrats of Thebes acknowledged that Pelopidas and Epaminondas were the two most capable and important personalities of their city, both were trying to establish a state that would unite Greece under the Theban hegemony. In 369 BC, in response to a petition of the Thessalians, after driving Alexander out, he passed into Macedon and arbitrated between two claimants to the throne. In order to secure the influence of Thebes, he brought home hostages, including the kings brother, Philip learned there many tactics of the southern Greeks, both in politics and in war. Next year Pelopidas was again called upon to interfere in Macedonia, on his return through Thessaly he was seized by Alexander of Pherae, and two expeditions from Thebes were needed to secure his release. In 367 BC Pelopidas went on an embassy to the Persian king, in 364 BC he received another appeal from the Thessalian towns against Alexander of Pherae. Though an eclipse of the sun prevented his bringing with him more than a handful of troops, however, wishing to slay Alexander with his own hand, he rushed forward too eagerly and was cut down by the tyrant’s guards. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh
Pelopidas
–
Death of Pelopidas, by Andrey Ivanov, 1805-1806
37.
Sacred Band of Thebes
–
The Sacred Band of Thebes was a troop of select soldiers, consisting of 150 pairs of male lovers which formed the elite force of the Theban army in the 4th century BC. Its predominance began with its role in the Battle of Leuctra in 371 BC. It was annihilated by Philip II of Macedon in the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BC, the earliest surviving record of the Sacred Band by name was in 324 BC, in the oration Against Demosthenes by the Athenian logographer Dinarchus. Plutarch, a native of the village of Chaeronea, is the source of the most substantial surviving account of the Sacred Band. He records that the Sacred Band was originally formed by the boeotarch Gorgidas, the 2nd century AD Macedonian author Polyaenus in his Stratagems in War also records Gorgidas as the founder of the Sacred Band. However, Dio Chrysostom, Hieronymus of Rhodes, and Athenaeus of Naucratis credit Epaminondas instead. The exact date of the Sacred Bands creation and whether it was created before or after the Symposium of Plato, the generally accepted date of the Sacred Bands creation is between 379 and 378 BC. Prior to this, there were references to elite Theban forces also numbering 300, herodotus and Thucydides both record an elite force of 300 Thebans allied with the Persians who were annihilated by Athenians in the Battle of Plataea. Herodotus describes them as the first and the finest among Thebans, Diodorus also records 300 picked men present in the Battle of Delium, composed of heníochoi and parabátai. Though none of these mention the Sacred Band by name, these may have referred to the Sacred Band or at least its precursors. The historian John Kinloch Anderson believes that the Sacred Band was indeed present in Delium, and that Gorgidas did not establish it, but merely reformed it. In the old debate surrounding Xenophons and Platos works, the Sacred Band has figured prominently as a way of dating which of the two wrote their version of Symposium first. However, it is the speech of the character Phaedrus in Platos Symposium referring to an army of lovers that is most famously connected with the Sacred Band, dover argues Plato wrote his Symposium first since Platos Phaedrus uses language that implies that the organization does not yet exist. He acknowledges, however, that Plato may have put the hypothesis in the mouth of Phaedrus according to the supposed earlier dramatic date of the work. It only shows that Plato was more mindful of his chronology in his Symposium than Xenophon, according to Plutarch, the 300 hand-picked men were chosen by Gorgidas purely for ability and merit, regardless of social class. It was composed of 150 male couples, each consisting of an older erastês. The origin of the appellation of the Sacred Band is unexplained by Dinarchus. But Plutarch claims that it was due to an exchange of sacred vows between lover and beloved at the shrine of Iolaus at Thebes and he also tangentially mentions Platos characterization of the lover as a friend inspired of God
Sacred Band of Thebes
–
The ruins of
ancient Theban citadel of
Cadmea
Sacred Band of Thebes
–
A statue of the
boeotarch Epaminondas, who was widely hailed for his brilliant and revolutionary tactics in the
Battle of Leuctra.
Sacred Band of Thebes
–
The Lion of
Chaeronea as it appeared circa 1914 (note person in foreground for scale). It was erected by the Thebans in memory of their dead after the battle of Chaeronea.
Sacred Band of Thebes
–
The Lion of Chaeronea in 2009. Excavation of the quadrangular enclosure brought to light 254 skeletons, laid out in seven rows.
38.
Regent
–
A regent is a person appointed to administer a state because the monarch is a minor, is absent or is incapacitated. The rule of a regent or regents is called a regency, a regent or regency council may be formed ad hoc or in accordance with a constitutional rule. Regent is sometimes a formal title, if the formally appointed regent is unavailable or cannot serve on a temporary basis, a Regent ad interim may be appointed to fill the gap. In a monarchy, a regent usually governs due to one of these reasons and this was the case in the Kingdom of Finland and the Kingdom of Hungary, where the royal line was considered extinct in the aftermath of World War I. In Iceland, the regent represented the King of Denmark as sovereign of Iceland until the country became a republic in 1944, in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, kings were elective, which often led to a fairly long interregnum. In the interim, it was the Roman Catholic Primate who served as the regent, in the small republic of San Marino, the two Captains Regent, or Capitani Reggenti, are elected semi-annually as joint heads of state and of government. Famous regency periods include that of the Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, giving rise to terms such as Regency era. Strictly this period lasted from 1811 to 1820, when his father George III was insane, as of 1 December 2016, Liechtenstein is the only country with an active regency. The term regent may refer to lower than the ruler of a country. The term may be used in the governance of organisations, typically as an equivalent of director, some university managers in North America are called regents and a management board for a college or university may be titled the Board of Regents. The term regent is used for members of governing bodies of institutions such as the national banks of France. This type of group portrait was popular in Dutch Golden Age painting during the 17th century, in the Dutch East Indies, a regent was a native prince allowed to rule de facto colonized state as a regentschap. Consequently, in the state of Indonesia, the term regent is used in English to mean a bupati. Again in Belgium and France, Regent is the title of a teacher in a lower secondary school. In the Philippines, specifically, the University of Santo Tomas, the Father Regent and they also form the Council of Regents that serves as the highest administrative council of the university. In the Society of Jesus, a regent is a training to be a Jesuit. A regent in the Jesuits is often assigned to teach in a school or some other academic institution as part of the formation toward final vows, list of regents Viceroy, an individual who, in a colony or province, exercised the power of a monarch on his behalf
Regent
–
Regentesses of the Old Men's Almshouse in
Haarlem,
Frans Hals, 1664
39.
Illyrians
–
The Illyrians were a group of Indo-European tribes in antiquity, who inhabited part of the western Balkans and the south-eastern coasts of the Italian peninsula. The first account of Illyrian peoples comes from the Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax, the Illyrian tribes never collectively regarded themselves as Illyrians, and it is unlikely that they used any collective nomenclature for themselves. The term Illyrians last appears in the record in the 7th century. In later Greek mythology, Illyrius was the son of Cadmus and Harmonia who eventually ruled Illyria, Illyrius had multiple sons and daughters. From these, sprang the Taulantii, Parthini, Dardani, Encheleae, Autariates, Dassaretae, autareius had a son Pannonius or Paeon and these had sons Scordiscus and Triballus. Even before the advent of post-modernism, scholars recognized a difficulty in producing a single theory on the ethnogenesis of the Illyrians given their heterogeneous nature, nevertheless, scholars traditionally looked for the origins of the Illyrian peoples centuries, even millennia, before their first historical attestation. Following the theories of Gustaf Kossinna, scholars sought to equate tribes mentioned by later Greco-Roman historians with preceding Bronze, in particular, scholars such as Julian Pokorny and Richard Pittioni placed the Illyrian homeland within the Luzatian culture, itself an offshoot of the trans-Central European Urnfield culture. From c.1200 BC, the bearers of the Lausitz culture are said to have engaged in widespread migrations throughout Europe. With regard to the Balkans, their movement south in turn initiated the Dorian migrations into southern Greece and these Pan-Illyrian theories have since been dismissed by scholars, based as they were on racialistic notions of Nordicism and Aryanism. The above theories have found little archaeological corroboration, as no convincing evidence for significant migratory movements from the Luzatian culture into the west Balkans have ever been found. Rather, archaeologists from the former Yugoslavia highlighted the continuity between the Bronze and succeeding Iron Age, ultimately developing the so-called autochthonous theory of Illyrian genesis, the autochthonous model was most elaborated upon by Alojz Benac and B. They argued that the proto-Illyrians had arrived earlier, during the Bronze Age as nomadic Indo-Europeans from the steppe. From that point, there was a gradual Illyrianization of the western Balkans leading to historic Illyrians and he did not deny a minor cultural impact from the northern Urnfield cultures, however these movements had neither a profound influence on the stability. Of the Balkans, nor did they affect the ethnogenesis of the Illyrian ethnos, aleksandar Stipčević raised concerns regarding Benacs all-encompassing scenario of autochthonous ethnogenesis. They rather see the emergence of historic Illyrians tribes as a recent phenomenon - just prior to their first attestation. The exception to this are the communities in Glasinac and Mati, the impetus behind the emergence of larger regional groups, such as Iapodes, Liburnians, Pannonians etc. is traced to increased contacts with the Mediterranean and La Tène global worlds. This catalyzed the development of complex political institutions and the increase in differences between individual communities. Emerging local elites selectively adopted either La Tène or Hellenistic and, later, Roman cultural templates in order to legitimise and they were competing fiercely through either alliance or conflict and resistance to Roman expansion
Illyrians
–
Illyrius and siblings.
Illyrians
–
Ethnogenesis of the Illyrians.
Illyrians
–
Illyrian sites.
Illyrians
–
The Roman province of Illyricum.
40.
Paionia
–
In antiquity, Paeonia /piːˈoʊniə/ was the land and kingdom of the Paeonians. In the Iliad the Paeonians are said to have been allies of the Trojans, during the Persian invasion of Greece the conquered Paeonians as far as the Lake Prasias, including the Paeoplae and Siropaiones, were deported from Paeonia to Asia. In 355-354 BC, Philip II of Macedon took advantage of the death of King Agi of Paeonia, so the southern part of ancient Paeonia was annexed by the ancient kingdom of Macedon and was named Macedonian Paeonia, this section included the cities Astraion Stenae, Antigoneia etc. It was separated from Dardania by the mountains through which the Vardar river passes from the field of Scupi to the valley of Bylazora, the Paeonian tribes were, Agrianes, it is also claimed that the tribe was Thracian. Almopians Laeaeans Derrones, it is claimed that the tribe was Thracian. Odomantes, it is claimed that the tribe was Thracian. Paeoplae Doberes Siropaiones Some modern scholars consider the Paionians to have been of either Thracian, Some of the names of the Paionians are also definitely Hellenic, although relatively little is known about them. Linguistically, the small number of surviving words in the Paeonian language have been variously connected to its neighboring languages - Illyrian and Thracian. Several eastern Paeonian tribes, including the Agrianes, clearly fell within the Thracian sphere of influence, yet, according to the national legend, they were Teucrian colonists from Troy. Homer speaks of Paeonians from the Axios fighting on the side of the Trojans, Homer calls the Paeonian leader Pyraechmes, later on in the Iliad, Homer mentions a second leader, Asteropaeus, son of Pelagon. Before the reign of Darius Hystaspes, they had made their way as far east as Perinthus in Thrace on the Propontis, at one time all Mygdonia, together with Crestonia, was subject to them. When Xerxes crossed Chalcidice on his way to Therma, he is said to have marched through Paeonian territory, emathia, roughly the district between the Haliacmon and Axios, was once called Paeonia, and Pieria and Pelagonia were inhabited by Paeonians. In Greek mythology, the Paeonians were said to have derived their name from Paeon the son of Endymion, in early times, the chief town and seat of the Paionian kings was Bylazora on the Vardar, later, the seat of the kings was moved to Stobi. Darius left in Europe one of his commanders named Megabazus whose task was to accomplish conquests in the Balkans, the Persian troops subjugated gold-rich Thrace, the coastal Greek cities, as well as defeating and conquering the powerful Paeonians. They joined with the Illyrians to attack the northern areas of the kingdom of Macedonia, the Illyrians, who had a culture of piracy, would have been cut off from some trade routes if movement through this land had been blocked. They unsuccessfully attacked the defences of Macedonian territory in an attempt to occupy the region. In 360-359 BC, southern Paeonian tribes were launching raids into Macedon and he followed Perdiccass success in 358 BC with a campaign deep into the north, into Paeonia itself. A Paeonian contingent was attached to Alexander the Greats army, at the time of the Persian invasion, the Paeonians on the lower Strymon had lost, while those in the north maintained, their territorial determination
Paionia
–
Paeonia, tribes and environs.
41.
Thracians
–
The Thracians were a group of Indo-European tribes inhabiting a large area in southeastern Europe. They spoke the Thracian language – a scarcely attested branch of the Indo-European language family, the study of Thracians and Thracian culture is known as Thracology. Thracians are one of the three primary groups of modern Bulgarians. The first historical record about the Thracians is found in the Iliad, the ethnonym Thracian comes from Ancient Greek Θρᾷξ or Θρᾴκιος/Ionic, Θρηίκιος, and the toponym Thrace comes from Θρᾴκη/Ion. These forms are all exonyms as applied by the Greeks, in Greek mythology, Thrax was regarded as one of the reputed sons of the god Ares. In the Alcestis, Euripides mentions that one of the names of Ares himself was Thrax since he was regarded as the patron of Thrace, the origins of the Thracians remain obscure, in the absence of written historical records. Evidence of proto-Thracians in the period depends on artifacts of material culture. Leo Klejn identifies proto-Thracians with the multi-cordoned ware culture that was pushed away from Ukraine by the advancing timber grave culture and we speak of proto-Thracians from which during the Iron Age Dacians and Thracians begin developing. Divided into separate tribes, the Thracians did not manage to form a political organization until the Odrysian state was founded in the fifth century BC. A strong Dacian state appeared in the first century BC, during the reign of King Burebista, including the Illyrians, the mountainous regions were home to various peoples regarded as warlike and ferocious Thracian tribes, while the plains peoples were apparently regarded as more peaceable. Thracians inhabited parts of the ancient provinces of Thrace, Moesia, Macedonia, Dacia, Scythia Minor, Sarmatia, Bithynia, Mysia, Pannonia, and other regions of the Balkans and Anatolia. This area extended over most of the Balkans region, and the Getae north of the Danube as far as beyond the Bug and including Panonia in the west. Aligning themselves in kingdoms and tribes, they never displayed any form of unity beyond short. Similar to the Celtic and Slavic tribes, most people are thought to have lived simply in small fortified villages, although the concept of an urban center was not developed until the Roman period, various larger fortifications which also served as regional market centers were numerous. Yet, in general, despite Greek colonization in such areas as Byzantium, Apollonia and other cities, the first Greek colonies in Thrace were founded in the eighth century BC. Thrace south of the Danube was ruled for half a century by the Persians under Darius the Great. In the first decade of the sixth century BC, the Persians invaded Thrace, Thracians were forced to join the invasions of European Scythia and Greece. According to Herodotus, the Bithynian Thracians also had to contribute a large contingent to Xerxes invasion of Greece in 480 BC, Darius left in Europe one of his commanders named Megabazus whose task was to accomplish conquests in the Balkans
Thracians
–
Thracian
peltast, 5th–4th century BC.
Thracians
–
A fresco of a red-haired woman in the Ostrusha Mound in central
Bulgaria.
Thracians
–
Southeastern Europe in the second century BC.
Thracians
–
Thracian tribes and heroes.
42.
Athens
–
Athens is the capital and largest city of Greece. In modern times, Athens is a cosmopolitan metropolis and central to economic, financial, industrial, maritime. In 2015, Athens was ranked the worlds 29th richest city by purchasing power, Athens is recognised as a global city because of its location and its importance in shipping, finance, commerce, media, entertainment, arts, international trade, culture, education and tourism. It is one of the biggest economic centres in southeastern Europe, with a financial sector. The municipality of Athens had a population of 664,046 within its limits. The urban area of Athens extends beyond its administrative city limits. According to Eurostat in 2011, the Functional urban areas of Athens was the 9th most populous FUA in the European Union, Athens is also the southernmost capital on the European mainland. The city also retains Roman and Byzantine monuments, as well as a number of Ottoman monuments. Athens is home to two UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the Acropolis of Athens and the medieval Daphni Monastery, Athens was the host city of the first modern-day Olympic Games in 1896, and 108 years later it welcomed home the 2004 Summer Olympics. In Ancient Greek, the name of the city was Ἀθῆναι a plural, in earlier Greek, such as Homeric Greek, the name had been current in the singular form though, as Ἀθήνη. It was possibly rendered in the later on, like those of Θῆβαι and Μυκῆναι. During the medieval period the name of the city was rendered once again in the singular as Ἀθήνα, an etiological myth explaining how Athens has acquired its name was well known among ancient Athenians and even became the theme of the sculpture on the West pediment of the Parthenon. The goddess of wisdom, Athena, and the god of the seas, Poseidon had many disagreements, in an attempt to compel the people, Poseidon created a salt water spring by striking the ground with his trident, symbolizing naval power. However, when Athena created the tree, symbolizing peace and prosperity. Different etymologies, now rejected, were proposed during the 19th century. Christian Lobeck proposed as the root of the name the word ἄθος or ἄνθος meaning flower, ludwig von Döderlein proposed the stem of the verb θάω, stem θη- to denote Athens as having fertile soil. In classical literature, the city was referred to as the City of the Violet Crown, first documented in Pindars ἰοστέφανοι Ἀθᾶναι. In medieval texts, variant names include Setines, Satine, and Astines, today the caption η πρωτεύουσα, the capital, has become somewhat common
Athens
–
From upper left: the
Acropolis, the
Hellenic Parliament, the
Zappeion, the
Acropolis Museum,
Monastiraki Square, Athens view towards the sea
Athens
–
Athena, patron goddess of Athens;
National Archaeological Museum
Athens
–
Acropolis of Athens, with
Odeon of Herodes Atticus seen on bottom left
43.
Hoplite
–
Hoplites were citizen-soldiers of Ancient Greek city-states who were primarily armed with spears and shields. Hoplite soldiers utilized the phalanx formation in order to be effective in war with fewer soldiers, the hoplites were primarily represented by free citizens—propertied farmers and artisans—who were able to afford the bronze armour suit and weapons. Hoplites were not professional soldiers and often lacked sufficient military training, although some states did maintain a small elite professional unit, hoplite soldiers were relied on heavily and made up the bulk of ancient Greek armies of the time. In the 8th or 7th century BC, Greek armies adopted a military innovation known as the phalanx formation, the formation proved successful in defeating the Persians when employed by the Athenians at the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC during the First Greco-Persian War. The phalanx was also employed by the Greeks at the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC. The word hoplite derives from hoplon, the name for the type of shield used by the soldiers, however, the shield was more commonly known as an aspis, so the word hopla may refer to the soldiers weapons or even their full armament. In the modern Hellenic Army, the word hoplite is used to refer to an infantryman, the fragmented political structure of Ancient Greece, with many competing city-states, increased the frequency of conflict, but at the same time limited the scale of warfare. Limited manpower did not allow most Greek city-states to form armies which could operate for long periods because they were generally not formed from professional soldiers. Most soldiers had careers as farmers or workers and returned to these professions after the campaign, all hoplites were expected to take part in any military campaign when called for duty by leaders of the state. This inevitably reduced the duration of campaigns and often resulted in the campaign season being restricted to one summer. Armies generally marched directly to their destination, and in cases the battlefield was agreed to by the contestants in advance. Battles were fought on ground, and hoplites preferred to fight with high terrain on both sides of the phalanx so the formation could not be flanked. An example of this was the Battle of Thermopylae, where the Spartans specifically chose a narrow pass to make their stand against the massive Persian army. The vastly outnumbered Greeks held off the Persians for seven days, when battles occurred, they were usually set piece and intended to be decisive. The battlefield would be flat and open to facilitate phalanx warfare and these battles were usually short and required a high degree of discipline. At least in the classical period, when cavalry was present, its role was restricted to protection of the flanks of the phalanx, pursuit of a defeated enemy. Light infantry and missile troops took part in the battles but their role was less important, before the the opposing phalanxes engaged, the light troops would skirmish with the enemies light forces, and then protect the flanks and rear of the phalanx. The military structure created by the Spartans was a phalanx formation
Hoplite
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Hoplites on an
aryballos from Corinth, c. 580–560 BC (
Louvre)
Hoplite
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Crouching warrior,
tondo of an
Attic black-figure kylix, c. 560 BC (
Staatliche Antikensammlungen)
Hoplite
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Hoplites shown in two attack positions, with both an overhand and underhand thrust
Hoplite
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Phalanx fighting on a black-figure
amphora, c. 560 BC
44.
Phalanx formation
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The phalanx was a rectangular mass military formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, sarissas, or similar weapons. In Greek texts, the phalanx may be deployed for battle, on the march, even camped and they marched forward as one entity. The word phalanx is derived from the Greek word phalangos, meaning finger, the term itself, as used today, does not refer to a distinctive military unit or division, but to the general formation of an armys troops. Thus a phalanx does not have a combat strength or composition but includes the total number of infantry. Many spear-armed troops historically fought in what might be termed phalanx-like formations, the word has come into use in common English to describe a group of people standing, or moving forward closely together, c. f. This article focuses on the use of the phalanx formation in Ancient Greece, the Hellenistic world. The earliest known depiction of a phalanx-like formation occurs in a Sumerian stele from the 25th century BC, here the troops seem to have been equipped with spears, helmets, and large shields covering the whole body. Ancient Egyptian infantry were known to have employed similar formations, the first usage of the term phalanx comes from Homers, used to describe hoplites fighting in an organized battle line. Homer used the term to differentiate the formation-based combat from the individual duels so often found in his poems, historians have not arrived at a consensus about the relationship between the Greek formation and these predecessors of the hoplites. Traditionally, historians date the origin of the phalanx of ancient Greece to the 8th century BC in Sparta. It is perhaps more likely that the formation was devised in the 7th century BC after the introduction of the aspis by the city of Argos and this is further evidenced by the Chigi vase, dated to 650 BC, identifying hoplites armed with aspis, spear and panoply. Two of the basic strategies seen in earlier warfare include the principle of cohesion and this would suggest that the Greek phalanx was rather the culmination and perfection of a slowly developed idea that originated many years earlier. As weaponry and armour advanced through the years in different city-states, the hoplite phalanx of the Archaic and Classical periods in Greece was a formation in which the hoplites would line up in ranks in close order. The hoplites would lock their shields together, and the first few ranks of soldiers would project their spears out over the first rank of shields, the phalanx therefore presented a shield wall and a mass of spear points to the enemy, making frontal assaults against it very difficult. It also allowed a higher proportion of the soldiers to be engaged in combat at a given time. Battles between two phalanxes usually took place in open, flat plains where it was easier to advance, rough terrain or hilly regions would have made it difficult to maintain a steady line and would have defeated the purpose of employing the use of a phalanx. As a result, battles between Greek city-states would not take place in any location, nor would they be limited to sometimes obvious strategic points. Rather, many times, the two opposing sides would find the most suitable piece of land where the conflict could be settled, mostly, the battle ended with one of the two fighting sides fleeing to safety
Phalanx formation
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Sumerian phalanx formation. Detail of a fragment of the victory stele of the king
Eannatum of Lagash over
Umma, called
Stele of the Vultures
Phalanx formation
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A reconstitution illustration of the Greek
hoplites marching in a phalanx formation.
Phalanx formation
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Two standard Macedonian enomotiæ (32 men each) in loose formation 2m. apart (32 ranks).
Phalanx formation
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The same in dense formation; each file 1m. apart (16 ranks).
45.
Sarissa
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The sarissa or sarisa was a long spear or pike about 4–6.2 metres in length. It was introduced by Philip II of Macedon and was used in his Macedonian phalanxes as a replacement for the earlier dory, which was considerably shorter. The sarissa, made of tough and resilient cornel wood, was heavy for a spear. It had an iron head shaped like a leaf and a bronze butt-spike that would allow it to be anchored to the ground to stop charges by enemy soldiers. The bronze material of the butt-spike prevented it from rusting, the spike also served to balance out the spear, making it easier for soldiers to wield, and could be used as a back-up point should the main one break. The sheer bulk and size of the spear required the soldiers to wield it with hands, allowing them to carry only a 60 cm shield suspended from the neck to cover the left shoulder. Its great length was an asset against hoplites and other soldiers bearing shorter weapons, however, outside the tight formation of the phalanx the sarissa was of limited utility as a weapon and a hindrance on the march. As such, it was composed of two lengths and was joined by a central bronze tube only before a battle. Complicated training ensured that the phalanx wielded their sarissas in unison, swinging them vertically to wheel about, the uniform swish of the sarissas daunted the Illyrian hill tribesmen against whom the young Alexander fought in an expedition early in his reign. The sarissa-bearing phalanx would usually march to battle in formation to facilitate movement. Before the charge, it would tighten its files to close formation or even compact formation, the back rows bore their pikes angled upwards in readiness, which served the additional purpose of deflecting incoming arrows. The Macedonian phalanx was considered invulnerable from the front, except against another such phalanx, the invention of the sarissa is credited to Philip II, father of Alexander the Great. Philip drilled his soldiers, whose morale was at first low, the new tactic was unstoppable, and by the end of Philips reign the previously fragile northern Greek kingdom of Macedon, once of the Hellenised periphery, controlled the whole of Greece, and Thrace. His son, Alexander, used the new tactic across Asia, conquering Egypt, Persia, the sarissa, however, remained the backbone for every subsequent Hellenistic, and especially Diadochi army. The Battle of Raphia between the Seleucids and Ptolemy IV may represent the pinnacle of sarissa tactics, when only an elephant charge seemed able to disrupt the opposing phalanx, battles often ended up stalemated in what Oliver Cromwell later described as the terrible business of push of pike. Subsequently, a lack of training and too great a reliance on the phalanx instead of the use of arms led to the final defeat of Macedon by the Romans at the Battle of Pydna. The sarissa was gradually replaced by variations of the gladius as the weapon of choice. Only Pyrrhus of Epirus was able to maintain a standard of tactical handling with armies based around the sarissa
Sarissa
–
Macedonian phalanx
46.
Dardania (Europe)
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Dardania was a Roman province in the Central Balkans, initially an unofficial region in Moesia, then a province administratively part of the Diocese of Moesia. It was named after the ancient tribe of Dardani which inhabited the region prior to the Roman conquests in the 2nd and it is debated in scholarship whether the Dardani, after whom the region was named, were an Illyrian or Thracian people. It has been suggested that the region was populated by Thracians who then came into contact with Illyrians over a long time period. Celts were present in Dardania in 279 BC, in 179 BC, the Bastarnae conquered the Dardani, who later in 174 pushed them out, in a war which proved catastrophic, with a few years later, in 170 BC, the Macedonians defeating the Dardani. Macedonia and Illyria became Roman protectorates in 168 BC, the Scordisci, a tribe of Celtic origin, most likely subdued the Dardani in the mid-2nd century BC, after which there are for long no mention of the Dardani. In 97 BC the Dardani are mentioned again, defeated by the Macedonian Roman army, Dardanian slaves or freedmen at the time of the Roman conquest were clearly of Paleo-Balkan origin, according to their personal names, noted as being mostly of the Central-Dalmatian type. After the Roman conquest, the pre-Roman Dardania eventually was organized into the Moesia province, during the reign of Domitian, in 86, Moesia was subdivided into Upper and Lower Moesia. The old name of Dardania was used for a new part of Moesia Superior. Ptolemy calls Dardania a special district of Moesia Superior, the Diocese of Moesia was a diocese established by Emperor Diocletian. During his reign, the diocese included 11 provinces, one of which was Dardania, Dardania and Moesia Prima were established by dividing them from Moesia Superior, probably under Diocletian. During or likely after emperor Constantine I, Dacia Mediterranea was created out of parts of Dardania, little is known regarding Christianity in the Balkans in the three first centuries AD. Bishop Dacus of Macedonia, from Dardania, was present at the First Council of Nicaea, according to the Expositio totius mundi, Dardania supplied Macedonia with cheese and lard. The main centres of Roman Dardania were Scupi, Naissus and Ulpiana, at the time of Moesia Superior, the towns in Dardania included Scupi, Naissus, Ulpiana, Therranda, Vicianum, Vindenis and Velanis. The Romans occupied Naissos in the period of the Dardanian War, the city, because of its strategic position developed as an important garrison and market town of Moesia Superior. The Romans also founded a town named municipium Dardanicum. The area remained part of the Eastern Roman, Byzantine Empire, procopius used the old Roman provinces to describe the geography of the Balkans. According to Buildings of Justinian IV, there were 8 new and 61 restored fortifications in Dardania, Dardania was a region in which Justinians restoration process was predominant. In 518 an earthquake devastated Dardania, followed by famine that killed much of the population, slavs overwhelmed the Balkans in the 6th century
Dardania (Europe)
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Roman province of Dardania in the Late Roman Empire (after eastern part of the province was separated from Dardania and was transformed into new province named Dacia Mediterranea)
Dardania (Europe)
–
Dardania and the northern Balkans in
Late Antiquity
47.
Bardyllis
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Bardylis was a king of the Dardanian Kingdom and probably its founder. During his reign, Bardylis was able to make the Dardanians one of the most powerful Illyrian states of that time and his state reigned over Upper Macedonia and Lynkestis. He also led raids against Epirus but his troops were expelled from that region. According to ancient sources, Bardylis lived to over 90 years implying that he died around 358 BC, according to these sources, Bardylis lived a long time and was at an advanced age when he faced Philip II of Macedon. Bardyliss background was as a burner and miner. He gained power by force and gained the support and loyalty of the Dardanian warriors, under his leadership the Dardanians defeated the Macedonians and Molossians several times. The Dardanians became strong enough to rule Macedonia through a king in 392-391 BC. In 385-384 BC they allied with Dionysius I of Syracuse to defeat the Molossians in a battle, killing up to 15,000 Molossian soldiers and their continuous invasions forced the Macedonian king, Amyntas III, to pay them tribute in 372 BC. They returned to raiding the Molossians in 360 BC, in 359 BC Bardylis won a decisive battle against Macedonian king Perdiccas III, who he killed himself, while 4,000 Macedonian soldiers fell, and the cities of upper Macedonia were occupied. Bardylis was killed in a battle against Philip II of Macedon in 358 BC after Philip rejected his offer of peace based on Bardylis retaining conquered lands, grabos became the most powerful Illyrian king after Bardyliss death. Bardylis had a son named Cleitus, a daughter named Bircenna, the daughter of Bardylis II, princess Bircenna, married the Molossian king Pyrrhus of Epirus. Some of 20th-century linguists have connected the name Bardylis with Albanian i bardhë white, I bardhë white and Alb. yll star. According to Stuart Edward Mann, the version is a folk etymology. According to German linguist Paul Kretschner the name Bardylis is connected with the word bardulos, Bardylis was born around the year 448 BC. Bardylis became king despite his humble roots, a charcoal-burner and coal miner, he gained power by force and enjoyed the sympathy of the Dardanian warriors because he divided the spoils of war fairly and impartially. Bardylis did not succeed Sirras, but rather the previous Illyrian king who had entered into a treaty with Amyntas II over the control of Lynkestis. Bardylis succeeded in bringing the various Illyrian tribes together and soon made Dardania into a power in the Balkans. There is nothing on record to identify the Dardanian centre of power, therefore, Bardylis capital may have been located in this region
Bardyllis
–
Damastion coin 380-360 BCE
48.
Lake Ohrid
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Lake Ohrid, straddles the mountainous border between southwestern Macedonia and eastern Albania. It is one of Europes deepest and oldest lakes, preserving a unique ecosystem that is of worldwide importance. The importance of the lake was further emphasized when it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1979, in 2014, the Ohrid-Prespa Transboundary Reserve between Albania and Macedonia was added to UNESCOs World Network of Biosphere Reserves. The towns situated at the lakeside are Pogradec in Albania, along with Ohrid, the lake is otherwise densely surrounded by settlements in the form of villages and resorts in both basin countries. Lake Ohrid is the deepest lake of the Balkans, with a depth of 288 m. It covers an area of 358 km², containing an estimated 55.4 km³ of water and it is 30.4 km long by 14.8 km wide at its maximum extent with a shoreline length of 87.53 km, shared between Macedonia and Albania. Of the total area,248 km2 belongs to Republic of Macedonia and 110 km2 belongs to Albania. Worldwide, there are only a few lakes with similarly remote origins with Lake Baikal, most other, short-lived lakes have a life span of less than 100,000 years before they are eventually filled up with sediments. It is believed that in the case of Lake Ohrid this process was delayed by its great depth, moreover, the Ohrid-Korca graben to the south of the lake is still tectonically active and might compensate sedimentation by subduction. In contrast to Lake Ohrid, Lake Prespa is likely to have turned dry several times in its history, in 2008, Macedonian media reported that international experts will be researching the lake in order to determine its age. The lake drains an area of around 2600 km² and is fed primarily by springs on the eastern shore, with roughly 25% shares from rivers. Over 20% of the water comes from nearby Lake Prespa, about 10 km to the southeast. The water leaves Lake Ohrid by evaporation and through its outlet, the Black Drin River. The relatively dry, Mediterranean climate and the drainage basin of 2600 km² of Lake Ohrid results in a long hydraulic residence time scale of ~70 yr. In terms of water exchange, convective mixing during winter cooling is the dominant process. However, in a winter only the top 150–200 meters of the lake are mixed. The stability due to this salinity gradient allows complete convective mixing events only once every 7 years. Both in terms of nutrient concentration, as well as biological parameters Lake Ohrid qualifies as oligotrophic, thanks to this oligotrophy and the filtered spring inflows, the water is exceptionally clear with transparencies to a depth of as much as 22 meters
Lake Ohrid
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Lake Ohrid as seen from
Ohrid
Lake Ohrid
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Topographic map with Lake Ohrid to the left
Lake Ohrid
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Reconstruction of
Bronze Age stilt houses on Lake Ohrid, near
Peštani
Lake Ohrid
–
View of Ohrid and Ohrid Lake from
Samuil's Fortress
49.
Epirotes
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Epirus, formally the Epirus Region, is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region in northwestern Greece. It borders the regions of West Macedonia and Thessaly to the east, West Greece to the south, the region has an area of about 9,200 km2. It is part of the historical region of Epirus, which overlaps modern Albania and Greece. Greek Epirus, like the region as a whole, is rugged and it comprises the land of the ancient Molossians and Thesprotians and a small part of the land of the Chaonians the greater part being in Southern Albania. It is largely made up of ridges, part of the Dinaric Alps. The regions highest spot is on Mount Smolikas, at an altitude of 2.637 metres above sea level, in the east, the Pindus Mountains that form the spine of mainland Greece separate Epirus from Macedonia and Thessaly. Most of Epirus lies on the side of the Pindus. The winds from the Ionian Sea offer the more rainfall than any other part of Greece. The Vikos-Aoos and Pindus National Parks are situated in the Ioannina Prefecture of the region, both areas have imposing landscapes of dazzling beauty as well as a wide range of fauna and flora. The climate of Epirus is mainly alpine, the vegetation is made up mainly of coniferous species. The animal life is rich in this area and includes, among other species, bears, wolves, foxes, deer. Epirus is divided into four units, which are further subdivided into municipalities. The regional units are, Thesprotia, Ioannina, Arta and Preveza, in January 2011, according to the reform introduced by the Kallikratis Programme the prefectures were abolished and replaced by regional units. The former municipalities and communities were re-structured to form only 18 new municipalities, the regions governor is, since 1 January 2011, Alexandros Kachrimanis, who was elected in the November 2010 local administration elections for the New Democracy and Popular Orthodox Rally parties. Arta Igoumenitsa Ioannina Konitsa Metsovo Paramythia Parga Preveza Syvota Epirus has few resources, sheep and goat pastoralism have always been an important activity in the region but there seems to be a decline in recent years. Tobacco is grown around Ioannina, and there is some farming and fishing. Epirus is home to a number of the countrys most famous dairy products brands, another important area of the local economy is tourism, especially eco-tourism. The outstanding natural beauty of the area, as well as its picturesque villages, around 350,000 people live in Epirus
Epirotes
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Logo
Epirotes
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Forest in Pindus Mountain, Epirus.
Epirotes
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Vikos Gorge
Epirotes
–
Igoumenitsa
50.
Amphipolis
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Amphipolis is best known for the magnificent ancient Greek city, and later Roman city, whose impressive remains can still be seen. Excavations in and around the city have revealed important buildings, ancient walls, at the nearby vast Kasta burial mound, an important ancient Macedonian tomb has recently been revealed. The unique and beautiful Lion of Amphipolis monument nearby is a destination for visitors. It is today a municipality in the Serres regional unit of Greece, the seat of the municipality is Rodolivos. A second attempt took place in 437 BC on the site under the guidance of Hagnon, son of Nicias. The city and its first walls date from this time, the new settlement took the name of Amphipolis, a name which is the subject of much debate about its etymology. However, a probable explanation is the one given by Julius Pollux. Amphipolis became the power base of the Athenians in Thrace and, consequently. The Athenian population remained very much in the minority in the city, for this reason Amphipolis remained an independent city and an ally of the Athenians, rather than a colony or member of the confederacy. However, in 424 BC the Spartan general Brasidas easily took control of the city, a new Athenian force under the command of Cleon failed once more in 422 BC during the Battle of Amphipolis at which both Cleon and Brasidas lost their lives. Brasidas survived long enough to hear of the defeat of the Athenians and was buried at Amphipolis with impressive pomp, from then on he was regarded as the founder of the city and honoured with yearly games and sacrifices. The city itself kept its independence until the reign of king Philip II despite several Athenian attacks, in 357 BC, Philip succeeded where the Athenians had failed and conquered the city, thereby removing the obstacle which Amphipolis presented to Macedonian control over Thrace. The city was not immediately incorporated into the Macedonian kingdom, and for some time preserved its institutions, the border of Macedonia was not moved further east, however, Philip sent a number of Macedonian governors to Amphipolis, and in many respects the city was effectively Macedonianized. Nomenclature, the calendar and the currency were all replaced by Macedonian equivalents, the importance of the city in this period is shown by Alexander the Greats decision that it was one of the six cities at which large luxurious temples costing 1500 talents were built. Alexander prepared for campaigns here against Thrace in 335BC and the his army, the port was also used as naval base during his campaigns in Asia. After Alexanders death, his wife Roxane and their small son Alexander IV were exiled by Cassander and later murdered here, throughout Macedonian sovereignty Amphipolis was a strong fortress of great strategic and economic importance, as shown by inscriptions. Amphipolis became one of the stops on the Macedonian royal road, and later on the Via Egnatia. Apart from the ramparts of the town, the gymnasium
Amphipolis
–
Amphipolis
Amphipolis
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Fortifications and bridge of Amphipolis.
Amphipolis
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The "
Amphipolis lion ".
.jpg)
. PMID 26195763. doi:10.1073/pnas.1510906112.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Bevan, Edwyn Robert (1911). "Philip II., king of Macedonia". In Chisholm, Hugh. Encyclopædia Britannica. 21 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
