4th Century BCE Greece

Agesilaus II

Agesilaus II ruled as king of Sparta from 400 to 359 BCE at a time when Sparta's reign of dominance was beginning to shift. He fought Sparta's enemies to a standstill in the Corinthian War (395 to 386 BCE) and thus secured a truce at the "King's Peace." Later, in 371, when Epaminondas of Thebes declared his desire to make Thebes the hegemon of Boeotia, Agesilaus rejected this move by declaring war on Thebes. However, at the Battle of Leuctra (371) the Spartans were decisively defeated by Epaminondas.

Battle of Leuctra (371)

At the Battle of Leuctra, Epaminondas led the Thebans to victory against the Spartans, forever spelling the doom of "Spartan hegemony".

Battle of Mantinea (362)

At the Battle of Mantinea, Thebes engaged a Spartan-led alliance of city-states to defend its hegemony over Greece. Though Thebes would be victorious, the death of Epaminondas convinced the Thebans to relinquish that title. Their rise and fall ultimately mirrors that of the Spartans. They both had to fight for survival, and were ultimately defeated (not so in the case of Thebes) by an angry alliance of Greek polis.

Peace of Philocrates (346)

By 347/6 BCE, Philip had seized everything to the north of Athens. As a result, the Athenians were pressured to make peace with Philip. According to the Peace of Philocrates, Athens became an ally of Philip. Demosthenes initially supported the peace. However, in fear of further Macedonian aggression, Demosthenes orchestrated an alliance with Thebes.

Demosthenes

Demosthenes, one of Athens' greatest orators, lived at a time when Athens was rekindling its old sea empire and glorious democracy. However, in contrast to popular opinion, he made many speeches (e.g.: Philippics) against the looming threat of Macedon in the north and moved for immediate military response to eliminate Philip II. In the end, he was only partially successful. He coordinated an alliance between the Thebans and the Athenians, but it was defeated at the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BCE. He continued opposing Macedonian rule throughout the rest of his life and participated in the Lamian War (323 BCE). But when it was also unsuccessful, he fled into exile and committed suicide.

Epaminondas

Epaminondas was a brilliant Theban politician and tactician of the 4th century BCE. At a peace council in 371 BCE, he demanded that Thebes be recognized as the sole hegemon of Boeotia. When Sparta responded by declaring war, Epaminondas defeated the Spartans at the Battle of Leuctra and followed up his victory by invading Sparta. He freed the helots of Messene, breaking the back of Sparta's economy and plunged the city-state into chaos. Since then, Thebes became the main hegemon of all Greece. However, in 367, an alliance led by Sparta engaged Thebes at Mantinea. Surprisingly, Thebes was victorious. However, Epaminondas was killed. Not long before that, he commanded the Thebans to end all hostilities with the other poleis. In other words, Theban hegemony was also over.

Battle of Chaeronea (338)

In 338 BCE, Philip II of Macedon supported by his son, Alexander, defeated an alliance of Greek city-states including Athens and Thebes. In response to their defeat, Philip II used his decisive victory to establish several policies. One of these was the creation of the League of Corinth which united all of the city-states together.

2nd Athenian Naval Confederacy

In the 4th century,Athens made great efforts to reestablish its democratic and naval power. One of its policies was the establishment of the 2nd Athenian Naval Confederacy. However, in light of the increasing threat of Macedonia in the north, the Athenians failed to pay attention to Philip II's conquests and were ultimately defeated.

Lamian War (323-322)

In the aftermath of Alexander the great's death in 323 BCE, an alliance of Greeks rebelled against Macedonian rule. It was initially very successful and the Greeks managed to besiege Antipater behind the walls of Lamia. But with their defeat at the Battle of Krannon in 322 BCE, the rebellion was soon over. Most significant of all, in the aftermath of the war, Antipater, governor of Macedonia, enacted a series of policies which really spelled the death of democracy in Greece. For example, in Athens, about 12,000 people lost their citizenship when Antipater enacted a policy declaring that only people with 2000 drachmas of land could serve in the government.

Philip II of Macedon

Philip II of Macedonia reformed Macedonia into a powerful state through clever politics, diplomacy and swift military action. He would take the same measures into governing Greece.

Sarissa

Philip II reformed phalanx warfare by arming Macedonian hoplites with longer spears.