Changes

Jump to: navigation, search
no edit summary
Phillip not only build a strong and stable state, he also built an empire. He expanded Macedonian territory and influence greatly. He conquered Thrace, Molossia, and Thessaly. This greatly expanded the resources of Macedonia and allowed Phillip to pay for his professional army. His great victory over the Greeks allowed him in the words of Demosthenes his great enemy, ‘to settle the destiny of Hellas’ <ref> Demosthenes, Philippics, 3.10</ref>. Phillip was so powerful that he could impose his own terms on Greece, with the exception of the defiant Spartans. He forced the defeated city-states to enter into the League of Corinth. The League bound the various city-states to Macedonia. They did not have an independent foreign policy and they had to provide military support if requested by the Macedonian monarch. Phillip II also imposed garrisons on key Greek cities. These garrisons ensured that the Greek city states complied with the terms of the League of Corinth. Phillip created a system that ensured that Greece was subjugated to Macedonia and that it was not a threat to it. Phillip II was able to neutralize any threat from Greece for many decades. This allowed Alexander to concentrate on the invasion of Persia, without worrying about the obedience and loyalty of the Greek City-States. The conquest of Greece effectively ended the autonomy of many of the Greek states and they increasingly became cultural and economic backwaters. The Macedonian victory at the Battle of Chaeronea effectively ended the age of the Greek city-states as independent powers and as the center of one of the most remarkable civilizations in western history<ref>Lewis, p. 118</ref>.
==Conclusion==
Phillip II was a remarkable ruler and his achievements have been eclipsed by his son, Alexander the Great. He created a strong Macedonian state that was stable and prosperous for many decades. He created a professional army that was arguably the best in the known world and conquered an empire. The army and the state that Phillip II created changed the history of Macedonia and Greece. His successes and policies also laid the foundation for the Macedonian domination of Greece that lasted almost two centuries. Phillip II conquest of Greece marked the end of the era of the Greek city-states and the end of a great period of cultural flourishingachievement <ref>Lewis, p 119</ref>. He also laid the foundation for the Empire of Alexander the Great and the great Hellenistic monarchies. Phillip II changed the Greek World and paved the way for his more famous son to change World History. ==References==

Navigation menu