P II M HILIP of ACEDONIA OTHER BOOKS BY RICHARDA. GABRIEL Thutmose III: The Military Biography of Egypt’s Greatest Warrior King Scipio Africanus: Rome’s Greatest General The Battle Atlas of Ancient Military History The Warrior’s Way: A Treatise on Military Ethics Muhammad: Islam’s First Great General Soldiers’ Lives Through History Jesus the Egyptian: The Origins of Christianity and the Psychology of Christ Empires at War: A Chronological Encyclopedia Subotai the Valiant: Genghis Khan’s Greatest General The Military History of Ancient Israel The Great Armies of Antiquity Sebastian’s Cross Gods of Our Fathers: The Memory of Egypt in Judaism and Christianity Warrior Pharaoh: A Chronicle of the Life and Deeds of Thutmose III, Great Lion of Egypt, Told in His Own Words to Thaneni the Scribe Great Captains of Antiquity The Culture of War: Invention and Early Development The Painful Field: Psychiatric Dimensions of Modern War No More Heroes: Madness and Psychiatry in War Military Incompetence: Why the U.S. Military Doesn’t Win To Serve with Honor: A Treatise on Military Ethics and the Way of the Soldier (1982) WITHDONALD BOOSE JR. Great Battles of Antiquity: A Strategic and Tactical Guide to Great Battles That Shaped the Development of War WITHKARENS. METZ A Short History of War: The Evolution of Warfare and Weapons History of Military Medicine, Vol. 1: From Ancient Times to the Middle Ages History of Military Medicine, Vol. 2: From the Renaissance Through Modern Times From Sumer to Rome: The Military Capabilities of Ancient Armies P II M HILIP of ACEDONIA Greater than Alexander RICHARD A. GABRIEL Potomac Books, Inc. Washington, D.C. Copyright © 2010 Potomac Books, Inc. Published in the United States by Potomac Books, Inc.All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permis- sion from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Library of CongressCataloging-in-PublicationData Gabriel,RichardA. Philip II of Macedonia : greater than Alexander / RichardA. Gabriel. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-59797-519-3 (hardcover : acid-free paper) 1. Philip II,King of Macedonia, 382-336 B.C. 2. Philip II,King of Macedonia, 382-336 B.C.—Military leadership. 3. Greece—History—Macedonian Expansion, 359-323 B.C. 4. Macedonia—History—To 168 B.C. 5. Macedonia—History, Military. 6. Greece—Kings and rulers—Biography. 7. Macedonia—Kings and rulers— Biography. I.Title. DF233.8.P59G33 2010 938’.07092—dc22 [B] 2010021519 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper that meets the American NationalStandardsInstituteZ39-48Standard. Potomac Books, Inc. 22841 Quicksilver Drive Dulles, Virginia 20166 FirstEdition 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 In Memoriam EstherD. Gabriel (1921–2010), my mother, who died at the age of 88, keeping her promise to outlive all her enemies and Anna Manning Dunn (1912–2001), a beautiful woman who brought love, strength, and integrity to her sons ✦ ForSuzi, as always This page intentionally left blank Contents List of Illustrations ......................................... ix Chronology ............................................... xi 1. Philippos Makedonios ..................................... 1 Philip’s Homeric World ................................. 5 Wounds and Injuries .................................... 10 Women, Wives, and Politics .............................. 14 Personality ............................................ 18 AHostage in Thebes ................................... 23 PhilipHimself ......................................... 28 2. TheStrategicEnvironment ................................. 33 TheLand and Its People ................................ 33 ExternalThreats ....................................... 39 The Macedonian State .................................. 44 Philip’s Strategy ........................................ 54 3. The Macedonian War Machine .............................. 61 The Macedonian Phalanx ............................... 62 Cavalry ............................................... 72 Manpower, Training, and Logistics ........................ 82 Siegecraft. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 Philip’s IntelligenceService .............................. 92 The Macedonian Navy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94 4. The Unification of Macedonia .............................. 97 The Battle at LivahdiRidge ............................. 100 vii viii Contents The Illyrian War ...................................... 105 The Siege of Amphipolis ............................... 110 Expansion to the East.................................. 112 5. Thessaly and the Sacred War............................... 117 Thessaly ............................................. 117 The Siege of Methone ................................. 121 The Sacred War....................................... 125 Ambush and Defeat ................................... 127 The Battle of the Crocus Field........................... 132 The Submission of Thessaly............................. 138 6. The Road to Empire ..................................... 143 Thrace .............................................. 143 Epirus .............................................. 146 The War with Olynthos ................................ 148 The End of the Sacred War ............................. 157 7. Warrior Diplomat ........................................ 167 The Amphictyonic Peace ............................... 168 Athens .............................................. 171 Illyria Again.......................................... 176 Trouble in Thessaly.................................... 178 Epirus............................................... 179 The Thracian Campaign ............................... 181 8. The War with Athens ..................................... 189 The Chersonese ...................................... 189 The Siege of Perinthus................................. 190 Byzantium ........................................... 194 The Scythian Campaign................................ 199 The Prelude to War.................................... 204 The Battle of Chaeronea ............................... 214 9. The End of Philip........................................ 223 The Aftermath of Victory............................... 223 Who Killed Philip? .................................... 234 Greater Than Alexander? .............................. 243 Notes................................................... 253 Selected Bibliography ....................................... 283 Index .................................................. 291 About the Author .......................................... 303 Illustrations FIGURES 1. Wax Bust of Philip Reconstructed from HisSkull Found at Vergina 31 2. Two Macedonian Infantry Phalanx Formations 68 3. Philip’s Attack on Bardylis’s IllyrianInfantry 107 4. Onomarchus’s Ambush of Philip 129 5. The Battle of the Crocus Field 137 6. Parmenio’s Capture of Amphissa 213 7. The Battle of Chaeronea 217 MAPS 1. Philip’s Greece 35 2. LogisticalRange of Philip’s Army 89 3. Macedonia and Its Occupied Territories (359 BCE) 99 4. Thessaly 119 5. Chalcidice 150 6. Macedonia and ItsConquests (348 BCE) 156 7. Thermopylae 165 8. Philip’s Zone of Operations in Thrace 184 9. The Macedonian Empire at the Time of Philip’s Death (336 BCE) 235 ix