Background
Philip II was born in 382 B. C. to King Amyntas III and his wife Eurydice I. He was their youngest son.
Philip II was born in 382 B. C. to King Amyntas III and his wife Eurydice I. He was their youngest son.
When Philip’s brother Alexander II took the throne, Philip was held a hostage in Thebes. During his time in captivity, Philip learned about different military strategies from Epaminondas, who was a great general of his era.
After the deaths of his elder brothers, King Alexander II and Perdiccas III, Philip took over the throne in 359 B. C. At first, he was appointed regent for his brother Perdiccas’ son, Amyntas IV, but later on, Philip succeeded in taking over the kingdom for himself.
Following the death of his brother King Perdiccas, Philip had to deal with the defeat against the Illyrians who had not only killed his brother, but had also worsened the economic and military situation of his country.
In 358 B. C. , Philip and his army invaded Paeonia and then Illyria, acquiring lost territories of Macedon. Philip’s army was powerful and equipped with sarissa, a pike which had greater reach than Greek weapons.
In order to strengthen his relations with the Illyrians, Philip married princess Audata who was great-granddaughter of the Illyrian king. In 357 B. C. , he conquered Amphipolis. Following this, he tasted victory for over two decades in the region.
In 356 B. C. , Philip captured the northern Greek cities of Potidaea and Pydna. In the same year, he became involved in the Third Sacred War. Philip also helped the combined forces of Macedonian army and Thessalian League crush the Phocians and their commander in the Battle of Crocus Field in 352 B. C.
He captured the city of Crenides and renamed it ‘Philippi’ in 356 B. C. He held control over the mines of the area which produced gold and later used the gold for his campaigns.
Philip led battles in Methone in 354 B. C. and in Olynthus on the Chalcidice peninsula in 348 B. C. During these battles, he was seriously injured leaving some permanent scars on his face and body – a lost eye, a broken shoulder, and a crippled leg.
With his power residing in most of the Greek cities, Philip sent a threatening message to the Spartans warning them of the perils if they failed to surrender before him. But the Spartans further challenged him and Philip decided to leave Sparta alone.
Philip was injured and sustained a wound on his right leg when he led a campaign against the Ardiaioi in 345 B. C.
He conducted a military expedition in 342 B. C. against the Scythians and conquered the Thracian settlement Eumolpia and renamed it by giving his name ‘Philippopolis’.
In 340 B. C. , Philip led two sieges. One of them was the siege of Perinthus and the other one was of the city of Byzantium. However both the sieges were unsuccessful due to which his influence over Greece was compromised.
In 338 B. C. , he came back to power once again by defeating an alliance of Thebans and Athenians at the Battle of Chaeronea. In addition he destroyed Amfissa, a small Greek town, expelling large parts of its population.
Philip II of Macedon formed many alliances with the other powerful kingdoms not just through his military skills but also through a number of marriages. His first wife was the Illyrian princess Audata who helped him in forming an alliance with the Illyrians.
His second wife was Phila, the princess of the Macedonian canton of Elimeia. His most memorable wife was the princess Olympias of the country of Epirus who gave him his successor, Alexander.
Philip also married Cleopatra, daughter of Hippostratus and renamed her Cleopatra Eurydice of Macedon and had two children with her.