Philip V of Macedon was the sixth Antigonid king of Macedon, reigning from 221 to 179 BCE; a most ambitious king famed for his unsuccessful struggles with the Roman Republic, as Philip wanted to expand Macedonian influence beyond Greece into Asia. Though, his venturous attitude attracted hostile reactions from neighbors and, most importantly, the Roman Republic. The Romans declared themselves champions of “Greek Freedom” and fought against Philip, in which they were victorious. After this defeat Philip was forced to absolved his control of Greece and gained Asian territories, reducing Macedon back to its borders. Philip was a dashing and courageous warrior, so much so that he was compared to Alexander the Great, an example he tried to emulate.
Philip V is perhaps the most celebrated Antigonid king as his ambitions and resolve were remembered as the conquering policies of Alexander, though he was defeated. The last Macedonian king who held hegemony over the Greek states, Philip was called the “beloved of the Greeks” due to his charitable inclination.
Now, let’s look at Philip’s life and legacy.
Coin depicting Philip V of Macedon
Philip was born in 238 BCE, the son and heir of the Macedonian king Demetrius II Aetolicus (“of Aetolia”) and his fourth wife Chryseis. Demetrius II was distinguished for his defiance to invading neighbors and his success at expanding into the Greek mainland, greatly enlarging the Macedonian kingdom. King Demetrius died in 229 BCE when Philip was 9 years-old, resulting in the appointment of his elder cousin Antigonus as regent until Philip came of age. Antigonus was soon regarded as king and ruled Macedon as such, yet still considered himself as a caretaker of Philip. Antigonus III Doson (“given great promise”) faced threats from the southern Greek states, but chose to invoke diplomacy in order to calm the Greeks and achieve victory. In 221 BCE Antigonus died from illness and complications while campaigning against the Illyrians, leaving the Macedonian kingdom to the 17 year-old Philip. For a brief time the courtier Apelles acted as regent for Philip, but he was soon cast aside for Philip to take the reins of his kingdom and the Greek world.
In 220 BCE war broke out amongst the Greek states and leagues. Called the Social War (or the Aetolian War), the Aetolian League had become defensive as many of its rivals had become stronger with expansionist policies and secure alliances. The Aetolian League was the only power that hindered Macedon’s complete control of Greece, though they were known for peaceful and cautious policies. However, Sparta and Elis allied themselves with the Aetolian’s cause, raising alarm amongst the other Greek states. Philip V gathered the head members of the Hellenic League at Corinth to discuss how to proceed with the Aetolian League’s defiance to their presence. Philip, as the leader of the Hellenic League, declared war and soon the Aetolian League sent armies to attack the holdings of the Achaean League and pending an invasion of Macedon. With the Achaean League near collapse due to the attacks by the Spartans and Aetolians, Philip marched south with an army and won victory after victory against the Eleans. Philip then took a fleet to the coasts of Aetolia and began to raid cities, moving inward to Thermum and subsequently devastated the city. Philip sailed to Corinth and marched against the Spartans where he gained more victories, though he was forced to go back to Corinth as his soldiers were dissatisfied with their plunder. During the war Philip became a famed and respected military leader, with Macedon becoming the premier military power of Greece.
In 217 BCE Philip received news of Hannibal Barca’s victory over the Romans at the Battle of Lake Trasimene. Hannibal’s success against the Romans caused Philip to turn his interests westward, aspiring to replace the newfound Roman influence amongst the Adriatic Sea. Philip quickly called an end to the Social War and made peace with the Aetolian League. With Rome preoccupied with Carthage, this allowed Philip to extend his influence to islands and cities who were under Roman “protection”. It was at the urging of his advisor Demetrius of Pharos that Philip was persuaded to take action against the Romans and invade Illyria, a protectorate of the Roman Republic. Philip spent the winter of 217-216 BCE building a large fleet to assault the coasts of Illyria and, if needed, to repel the Romans. Though, word of a Roman fleet sailing towards Greece caused panic and Philip returned to Macedon “without loss indeed, but with considerable dishonor.”
By 215 BCE Philip and Hannibal allied with each other after the Battle of Cannae (216 BCE). They agreed to mutually support each other against their own enemies, and that if any peace with Rome was struck then they would have to relinquish major Balkan cities into Philip’s domain. Philip’s alliance with Hannibal provoked immediate alarm from the Romans, as they were under great stress from Hannibal’s presence in Italy. By the late summer of 214 BCE Philip once again attempted to invade Illyria by the sea, capturing a few cities before the Romans intervened by sending the propraetor Marcus Valerius Laevinus with a fleet and legions to “rescue” the besieged Illyrian cities. He reached Apollonia and in the night commanded his army to attack Philip’s camp, quickly secured a victory as Philip was compelled to flee back to Macedon as he burned his remaining ships and left thousands of soldiers at the mercy of Laevinus. Philip spent the next two years carefully making advancements in Illyria by land, taking the inland towns and defeating various tribes. Philip finally gained access to the Adriatic by capturing the city of Lissus and its seemingly impenetrable citadel. The surrounding territories surrendered to Philip, though the fear of a Roman invasion still clouded Philip’s mind and he now relied on Carthage for a fleet just in case.
The Romans sought out allies in Greece due to the possibility of Philip sending reinforcements to Hannibal in Italy. Laevinus attempted to coerce the Aetolian League to join the Romans, but they were war-weary and had made peace with Philip. Though, five years later the Aetolian League decided to take up arms against Macedon due to Rome’s rising fortunes in the Second Punic War. In 211 BCE a treaty was signed between the Roman Republic and the Aetolian League in which the Romans would collect any slaves or plunder while the Aetolians would receive conquered territory. The treaty also included the assistance of of allies such as the states of Elis, Sparta, Messenia, and, most importantly, Attalus I Soter (“the Savior”), King of Pergamon. Attalus supported the Aetolian League years before during their struggle with Philip, and now he was elected as one of the two strategoi (“generals”) of the Aetolian League. Laevinus campaigned in Greece in which he captured several islands before alerting Philip. Upon hearing of Laevinus’ campaign, Philip secured his northern borders by conducting raids in Illyria, Dardania, and possibly Paeonia. He then attacked the Thracian Maedi before returning to Macedon, though he soon received an urgent plea for help from the Acarnanians as the Aetolians under their general Scopas had decided to mobilize and prepared to invade Acarnania. Ill-prepared and outnumbered, the Acarnanians were still determined to resist which halted the Aetolian’s ambitions. Hearing of Philip’s army marching to aid the Acarnanians, the Aetolian League abandoned their invasion plans and Philip returned to Pella, the Macedonian capital, for the winter.
There were concerns over Rome’s intentions and methods, nevertheless the coalition against Philip grew and with the help of Attalus’ fleets the sea was secured and forced Philip to fight on land where his enemies became more prevalent. Laevinus returned to Rome to assume his consulship, confident in the Roman strategy to pit the Greek states against Philip. However, the Greek coalition remained passive as Philip continued to advance on the Greek mainland, capturing city after city. In the spring 0f 209 BCE the Achaean League requested help from Philip as they were being attacked by the Spartans and Aetolians. Knowing of Attalus’ involvement and fearing he might cross from Asia Minor into Greece, Philip gathered an army and advanced into southern Greece. At Lamia Philip met with an Aetolian army supported by Roman and Pergamene auxiliaries, in which he defeated them in two decisive battles. The Aetolian force retreated inside the walls of Lamia, allowing Philip to go to Phalara where he met with representatives from Egypt, Athens, Rhodes, and Chios. The ambassadors intended to convince Philip to end the war as it was hurting trade in the Mediterranean. A truce of thirty days was struck and a peace conference was set up at Achaea. Philip went to the town of Aegium for the peace conference, though it was disrupted with reports that Attalus had arrived at Aegina and a Roman fleet was at Naupactus. The Aetolian representatives then demanded Philip renounce several of his captured cities to their respective states. Angry and disrespected, Philip quit the negotiations.
With the Roman fleet now commanded by the proconsul Publius Sulpicius Galba, he and Attalus attended a meeting in Heraclea Trachinia in which representatives from Aetolia, Egypt, and Rhodes were still trying to negotiate a peace settlement. Hearing of this council, Philip swiftly marched south in an attempt to break up the meeting but arrived too late. As he was now encompassed by enemies, Philip adopted a defensive policy and set up a beacon system to alert of enemy movements. When Attalus sacked the city of Opus, a signal fire notified Philip and he attacked Attalus’ army as they were gathering their plunder. Attalus had barely managed to escape to his ships and fled to Asia. Philip considered Attalus’ escape a bitter defeat, though Attalus would be confined to Pergamon as King Prusias I Cholus (“the Lame”) of Bithynia, related to Philip via marriage to his sister Apama III, intended to move against Attalus. Philip now went on the offensive, occupying several cities and towns in central and western Greece. In 207 BCE the same ambassadors from Egypt and Rhodes tried to convince Philip to make peace, but to no avail as the war was going Philip’s way. Abandoned by Rome and Pergamon, the Aetolian League sued for peace in 206 BCE. Philip demanded immense sums of gold, he also burned down temples and public buildings of the Aetolians.
Bust of Philip V
The following spring the censor Publius Sempronius Tuditanus was sent to Dyrrachium to spur the tribes to revolt against Philip. Philip soon arrived and forced Sempronius to retreat. The Romans had no more allies in Greece, yet they succeeded in preventing Philip from aiding Hannibal. In 205 BCE the so-called Peace of Phoenice was signed, formally ending the First Macedonian War. Though, this did not stop Philip from stirring up trouble as later that same year Philip pressed Crete into attacking Rhodes. Having defeated Pergamon, the major Greek state of Asia Minor, and formed an alliance with the Aetolian League, Philip was opposed by no one save Rhodes. Wishing to be master of the Greek world, Philip sought to disrupt Rhodian dominance of the sea. Enlisting the help of the Cretans and Spartan pirates, Philip commanded them to raid Rhodian ships and other territories. Weakened by these continuous raids, Rhodes asked the Roman Republic for help, though the Second Punic War had just ended and the Romans were too tired to lend aid. The Rhodians did, however, gain the allegiance of Pergamon, Cyzicus, and Byzantium.
Philip’s plan was to control the Aegean Sea as he was not allowed to expand westward due to the Peace of Phoenice. So, Philip decided to raze several cities of Asia Minor and gift them to Prusias I. In return, Prusias promised to put pressure on Pergamon as he expanded his kingdom. Philip’s razing of these cities enraged the Aetolian League as two of them were members of said confederation. However, the Aetolian League continued to support and provide for Philip as they were afraid of him, and this incident only worsened their relationship. Sailing back to Macedon, Philip visited the island of Thasos off the coast of Thrace where he received envoys from the eponymous capital. The envoys said they would surrender the city to the Macedonians only if there was no garrison placed, they did not have to pay tribute, and they lived by their own laws. Philip agreed to these terms, though once he and his army were inside the city walls Philip ordered his soldiers to enslave the citizens and pillage the city. This action caused Philip’s reputation among the Greek states to drastically deteriorate as they viewed his raids as savage and no better than the Aetolians and Romans during the First Macedonian War.
In 204/203 BCE Philip was approached by ministers of the 5 year-old pharaoh Ptolemy V Epiphanes (“God-Manifest”). The diplomats attempted to create an alliance with Philip by offering a marriage contract with Philip’s daughter, Apama, and Ptolemy. The reason for this alliance was to hinder the ambitions of Antiochus III Megas (“the Great”), King of the Seleucid Empire. Antiochus was seeking to enlarge his empire at Egypt’s expense, also with the desire to increase his power and reputation among the Greek world. Philip declined the offer and instead forged an alliance with Antiochus and concluded a secret pact in which they would wage war against Egypt and divide the Ptolemaic possessions amongst themselves. Antiochus would take Egypt and Cyrene while Philip was awarded the Ptolemaic holdings in the Aegean. In 202 BCE the Aetolians sent ambassadors to Rome in order to create an alliance against Philip, as Philip’s aggressive policies induced them to seek outside protection. The Romans refused them, still seething from the fact that the Aetolian League allied with Philip at the conclusion of the First Macedonian War. This attitude from the Romans encouraged Philip to continue his campaign in the Aegean, considering it key to maintaining his dominance in the Greek world. By controlling the Aegean he would be able to restrict Roman interference in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Philip attacked Ptolemaic territories in Thrace, though he soon heard of Attalus’ alliance with Rhodes which enraged him. Philip then invaded Pergamese territory, seeking to besiege Attalus’ capital, though Attalus had strengthened the city’s walls which resulted in Philip retreating only after destroying a few temples. Philip and the Macedonian fleet then subdued the Cyclades, capturing the island of Samos which was under Ptolemaic protection. Philip planned to use the northern Aegean islands as stepping-stones as he worked his way down to Rhodes. However, as he was besieging the island of Chios a combined Pergamese-Rhodian fleet interrupted Philip’s operations, with Attalus at the head of the fleet. The Battle of Chios commenced, resulting in Philip’s defeat. Historian Peter Green describes the battle as “crippling and costly” as Philip sustained more casualties than any of his previous battles. After the battle, the Rhodian admirals decided to sail back home, though Philip attacked them as they entered the straits between Lade and Miletus. Philip defeated the Rhodian fleet, and the Milesians were so impressed that they awarded Philip garlands of victory when he entered the city of Hiera Cone.
Philip then campaigned in Asia Minor, plundering numerous cities and towns, though he halted his attacks when he heard of Attalus building a new fleet. Meanwhile, Philip’s allies the Acarnanians waged war against Athens after the Athenians murdered two Acarnanian athletes. Philip lent his help to the Acarnanians by sending his general Nicanor the Elephant and an army to pillage Attica before moving on Athens. However, Roman ambassadors in the city ordered the Macedonians to stop their assault or face war with Rome. Philip continued to press on Athens, though his orders were halted by another Pergamese-Rhodian fleet that forced the Macedonians to abandon their assault. The Athenians were so pleased by this rescue that they established a new tribe in honor of Attalus. Attalus and the Rhodians then convinced the Athenians to declare war on Macedon.
Delegations from Pergamon, Egypt, Rhodes, and Athens appeared in the Roman Senate to appeal for help. They informed the Senate of the pact between Philip and Antiochus, complaining about Philip’s aggressive actions. Meanwhile, Philip campaigned in Thrace and captured more Ptolemaic holdings. Advancing on the Thracian Chersonese, Philip besieged Abydos which was protected by a Pergamese-Rhodian garrison. The situation soon became grave for the citizens of Abydos, and they sent envoys to Philip offering to surrender the city to him only if the garrison and citizens were permitted to leave without harm. Philip replied that they should “surrender at discretion or fight like men.” Informed of Philip’s response, the Abydenians swore to fight or die trying. A young Roman ambassador named Marcus Aemilius Lepidus approached Philip, informing him that if he attacked any Greek state, Ptolemaic possession, or territory belonging to Pergamon and Rhodes, then Rome would ignite war. Philip rebuffed the young ambassador and continued his siege. Philip eventually breached the walls of Abydos and while he was walking in the city he saw people killing themselves and their families by methods of stabbing, burning, hanging, and jumping off roofs. Philip, shocked by these acts of suicide, proclaimed a three day truce in which any Abydenian wishing to commit suicide or surrender they could.
Philip’s reputation was now blemished by the atrocities he committed during his conquest of Greek cities. No longer the “beloved of the Greeks”, Philip realized he had few active allies in Greece, although there was little enthusiasm for the Romans as well. The Roman Senate declared war on Philip for his aggressive expansion, though the first two years of campaigning proved little to nothing until the Roman offensive was handed to the general Titus Quinctius Flamininus. A known philhellene, Flamininus demanded Philip remove his garrisons in the Greek cities and limit his influence to the original Macedonian borders. In 198 BCE Flamininus led a vivacious and unwavering campaign against Philip, forcing him to retreat to Thessaly while many of the pro-Macedonian cities soon declared for Rome. Philip announced his willingness to make peace with the Romans, though it came at a critical time when elections were being held in Rome and Flamininus did not know if his command would be prolonged. Later that year Flamininus and Philip met at Nicaea to discuss terms of peace, in which Flamininus demanded Philip should withdraw completely from Greece and confine himself to Macedon. Philip was willing to give up his conquests in Thrace and Asia Minor, but he refused to absolve his influence on Greece.
Flamininus’ command was extended and so he continued the war against Philip. In 197 BCE the Battle of Cynoscephalae took place, in which Philip was decisively defeated by Flamininus. The battle proved the superiority of the Roman legion to the Greek phalanx, forever changing warfare in the Mediterranean. Philip then sued for peace on Roman terms. Philip agreed to evacuate the whole of Greece, relinquish his recent conquests, and return to Macedon. The Roman Senate added further that Philip must pay a war indemnity and surrender his navy, as well as hand over his younger son Demetrius as a hostage. In 196 BCE at the Isthmian Games Flamininus declared the Greeks “free”.
Philip was forced to ally himself with the Roman Republic, supporting the Romans in their war against Antiochus. Philip spent the rest of his reign restructuring the kingdom’s internal affairs as well as securing its borders. Though, the Romans were always suspicious of Philip, and when Philip felt threatened by a possible Roman invasion he extended his influence in the Balkans by means of diplomacy and force. Philip’s efforts, however, were undermined by his son Demetrius who was pro-Roman as a result of his time spent in Rome as a hostage. Demetrius was endorsed by Rome to be Philip’s successor, as his eldest son Perseus was seen as illegitimate, being that his mother was a concubine. In 180 BCE Perseus staged a plot where it appeared that Demetrius was planning on making Macedon a full client-state of Rome, in which Philip reluctantly executed Demetrius for treason. This had a great effect on Philip’s health, as Philip died a year later. He was succeeded by Perseus, the last king of Macedon.
Philip V wanted to be a conquering king in the mold of Alexander, though perhaps his ambitions were too grand for him to accomplish. After nearly a century and a half of dominance the Macedonian hegemony was finally lifted, the Greek states once again “free”. In his efforts to expand his kingdom Philip ultimately crippled it. Once the “beloved of the Greeks”, Philip aggressive policies made him the enemy of the Greeks he was once so beloved by. Certainly the most memorable Antigonid king, apart from Demetrius I Poliorcetes (“the Besieger”), Philip V goes down in history as a formidable but essentially unfit enemy of the Romans. The last great Macedonian king. Had he not allied with Hannibal, would the Romans go so far to defeat him?
Recommended Reading:
The Histories, Polybius
Alexander to Actium, Peter Green
A History of Macedonia, Robert Malcom Errington
The Classical World, Robert Lane Fox
Michael's Desk 