Social War (220–217 BC) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Social War |
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 Greece after the Cleomenean War |
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
| Macedonia, Achaean League, Acarnania, Boeotia, Epirus, Messene |
Aetolian League, Elis, Sparta |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
| Philip V of Macedon, Aratus of Sicyon |
Ariston of Trichonion, Scopas of Trichonion, Dorimachus of Trichonion, Lycurgus of Sparta |
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The Social War, also known as the War of the Allies or the Aetolian War, was a conflict fought in ancient Greece. It lasted from 220 BC to 217 BC. The war was mainly between the Hellenic League, led by Philip V of Macedon, and the Aetolian League, along with their allies Sparta and Elis. The war ended with a peace agreement called the Peace of Naupactus.
Contents
Why the War Started
The Greek historian Polybius wrote about the reasons behind this war. After the First Illyrian War in 228 BC, the Aetolian League had grown much larger. They wanted to keep expanding their territory. When they tried to move into Thessaly, Macedon reacted strongly. This created a lot of distrust between Macedon and the Aetolians.
During the Cleomenean War in the 220s BC, a new group of allies formed. This group included Macedon, the Achaean League, the Epirote League, the Boeotian League, and Acarnania. They called themselves the Hellenic League, or Symmachy.
The first leader of the Symmachy was Antigonus Doson, who was king of Macedon. When he died in 221 BC, his 17-year-old adopted son, Philip V, became king. Philip was guided by a Royal Council and the Achaean leader Aratus of Sicyon.
The Aetolians felt threatened by the growing power of the Symmachy. They were almost surrounded by its members. Aetolian leaders, like Scopas and Dorimachus, saw the young King Philip as a chance to stop their league from losing power. So, the Aetolians changed their policy to be more aggressive.
Aetolian Attacks Begin
In the spring of 220 BC, Sparta briefly joined the Symmachy. This made the Aetolians worried about Messenia, their last ally in the Peloponnese. To stop Messenia from switching sides, the Aetolian leader Ariston sent troops under Scopas and Dorimachus to Phigaleia.
On their way, these troops attacked and robbed the countryside of Achaean cities like Patras and Pharae. This made the Achaeans very angry. The Aetolians then entered Messenia and continued their looting. Because of this, the Messenians decided to leave their alliance with Aetolia and asked the Achaeans for help.
The Achaean general, Aratus, marched his army and demanded the Aetolians leave Messenia. Scopas and Dorimachus pretended to obey but then invaded Arcadia. There, they defeated the Achaean army in the Battle of Caphyae. Aratus realized the Achaeans could not fight alone. He told the Hellenic League allies what happened and asked them to accept Messenia into the Symmachy. Meanwhile, the Aetolians kept raiding, even burning the Arcadian city of Cynaetha.
War is Declared
At first, Philip V of Macedon seemed unsure about going to war. But after Aetolia made an alliance with the Illyrians, Philip marched south to the Peloponnese. He called a meeting of the Hellenic League members in Corinth.
At this meeting, Aratus and other leaders listed many complaints against the Aetolians. In the summer of 220 BC, the allies decided to declare war on the Aetolian League. Philip wanted this war to show he was a strong leader and to make Macedon more powerful in Greece. This was exactly what the Aetolians had tried to avoid.
Even though all members of the Hellenic League agreed to the war, only Philip, Achaea, and Acarnania were truly ready to fight. Other members were less interested. This might have been because Aetolia had been more peaceful in the years before.
One of the first actions of the war was Philip sending troops to Crete. He helped in the Lyttian War and took the island from the Aetolians. He also gained the support of the Illyrians and their navy. Philip then returned to Macedon for the winter. Meanwhile, news arrived that the Spartan king Cleomenes III had died. This led to political changes in Sparta. Aetolian envoy Machatas convinced the new Spartan king, Lycurgus, to ally with Aetolia.
Battles of 219 BC
In the summer of 219 BC, the war intensified. Sparta attacked Achaea from the south, Elis attacked from the west, and the Aetolians attacked from the north. The Aetolian general Euripidas defeated the Achaean general Miccus of Dyme and raided Western Arcadia. By the end of the summer, the Achaeans were almost defeated. Some Achaean cities even refused to pay taxes to the League and used their money to hire their own soldiers.
Meanwhile, the Aetolian general Scopas marched through Thessaly. He raided the holy place of Apollo at Dion in Pieria, near the Macedonian border. His cousin Dorimachus did the same at the oracle of Zeus and Dione in Dodona in Epirus.
Philip V wasted some time with a siege on the Gulf of Ambracia. But then he quickly marched down the coast through Western Aetolia. Starting from Epirus, he captured several cities, including Elaeus and Oeniadae. He reached Calydon, where he heard that the Dardanians might invade Macedon. He rushed back home, but the invasion never happened. On his way back, he met the Illyrian leader Demetrius of Pharos, who had been forced out of his kingdom by the Romans.
Battles of 218 BC
At the end of 219 BC and beginning of 218 BC, Philip secretly moved his army to Corinth. From there, he started a winter campaign in the Peloponnese. He chased Euripidas from a mountain pass near Stymphalos. Then he marched through Arcadia and Elis to Triphylia, winning many battles.
First, he stormed the city of Psophis and gave it to his Achaean ally Aratus the Younger. He did the same at Lasion. The village of Stration was given to the people of Thelpusa. From Olympia, Philip moved against Elis. He captured the fortress of Thalamas and the Elean leader Amphidamus.
Next, he fought the Aetolians in Triphylia. He took the city of Phigaleia and conquered the whole area in one week. Finally, he dealt with the fortress of Samicum. A combined force of 2,700 Aetolians, Eleans, and Spartans, including some Illyrian pirates, were allowed to leave peacefully.
In the summer of 218 BC, Philip and his allies sailed their fleet to the island of Cephalonia. But when the siege of Pale failed, Philip decided to attack the Aetolian heartland. He moved his army by ship to the Gulf of Ambracia. From there, he marched past the city of Stratos and Trichonis-Lake to Thermon. He destroyed the temples and statues in the Pan-Aetolian sanctuary there.
After a quick retreat westward, through the land he had conquered the previous summer, the young king sailed again from Amphilochia. From the Gulf of Ambracia, Philip sailed back to Corinth. Then he quickly marched to Sparta. He successfully raided many villages south of the city, reaching the port of Gythium. When the Spartan king Lycurgus tried to block his path north, Philip and Demetrius of Pharos drove the Spartans from the Menelaion hill. Aratus led the main army across the Eurotas River.
On his way back to Corinth, Philip had to deal with soldiers who were unhappy with the small amount of treasure they had gained. He also stopped a plot against him led by his tutor Apelles and other officers. After a failed attempt at peace talks, Philip returned home for the winter of 218/17 BC.
Final Year of War: 217 BC
After a difficult year under the general Eperatus of Pharae, Aratus of Sicyon returned to lead the Achaean League in 217 BC. With his experience, he reorganized the defenses to stop the Aetolian raids. While Aratus was away, Euripidas, the Aetolian general in Elis, tried to repeat his raids from the previous year. He went deep into Achaean land, even looting near the capital Aigion. But on his way back, he was stopped near Leontion by the Achaean general Lycus of Pharae. In the Battle of Leontion, the Achaeans killed 400 raiders and captured 200, including the former Olympic winner Evanoridas of Elis.
After this success, Lycus called the Achaean cavalry leader Demodocus. Together, they entered the territory of Elis, where they killed 200 more and captured 80. At the same time, Philip V captured the city of Thebes in Phthiotic Achaea, completing his control of Thessaly. However, he had to leave to deal with unhappy Illyrians who wanted more war spoils.
Peace of Naupactus
Around this time, King Philip received news that the Romans had been defeated by Hannibal at the Battle of Lake Trasimene. Demetrius of Pharos, who hoped to get his kingdom back, advised Philip to end the war with Aetolia. This would allow him to focus on Rome.
Philip used a clever move to get the tired Aetolians to agree to peace talks. He offered a deal where each side would keep the land they currently controlled. The peace conference was held in the city of Naupactus, which is why the treaty is named after it.
What Happened After the War
The Social War was the second major success for the Hellenic League. The first was their victory over Cleomenes of Sparta. However, the Achaean forces did not perform well, and other allies did not get very involved. This led to Macedon becoming much more powerful within the league.
Also, King Philip's personality changed during the war. He became more ambitious. The good relationship between Aratus and Philip was damaged beyond repair. Philip's growing power made Macedon the main military force in Greece. But his ambition also threatened to break apart the unity of the Symmachy, which his stepfather and former tutor had worked to create.
See also
- Agelaus of Naupactus
- Machatas of Aetolia
- Aetolian War
