Chalcidian League

Coordinates: 40°30′N 23°12′E / 40.5°N 23.2°E / 40.5; 23.2
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Coin minted by the Chalcidian League, depicting Apollo and a lyre with the Greek inscription ΧΑΛΚΙΔΕΩΝ, which means "of the Chalcidians"

The Chalcidian League (

Chalcidice peninsula, on the shores of the northwest Aegean Sea, from around 430 BCE until it was destroyed by Philip II of Macedon
in 348 BCE.

Origins

There are two theories on the origins of the Chalcidians:

Harrison's theory has been rejected by some historians such as Bradeen (1952) but has been adopted by other historians, such as U. Kahrsted (1953) and M. Zahrnt (1971).

Geometric pottery in Chalcidice like that of southern Greece, and sometimes having connections with Lefkandi, makes it certain that Chalcidice and southern Greece were in contact with one another".[7]

History

Further information: History of Macedonia (ancient kingdom)
Macedonia and the Chalcidice

In the spring of 432 BCE, during the first phase of the

Olynthos in an act of synoecism, forming a single state and adopting the demonym "Chalcidians".[8] Exactly what form it took is a matter of academic dispute.[9] By the terms of the Peace of Nicias of 421 BCE, Athens and Sparta agreed that it should be broken up, but it seems clear that Athens failed to enforce this.[9] Luckily for the Chalcidians, the attention of the two great powers was soon diverted away from them—indeed for this reason nothing is heard of Olynthos and the Chalcidians until 393/2 BCE — and the Spartan governors installed by Brasidas were soon withdrawn.[10]

In the aftermath of the Peace of Nicias, the city-states of

Stageira, as well as other unnamed ones, joined. The League continued to expand in the early 4th century BCE.[8] In 393/2 BCE, Amyntas III of Macedon temporarily transferred some territory to Olynthos, during a period when he was driven out of Macedon by the Illyrians. It was restored when Amyntas regained power. Eight years later, Amyntas, who was again in trouble, handed over territory, this time to the entire League. The League were not so ready to return what they held, which now included Pella, the Macedonian capital.[10] In 383 BCE, Amyntas appealed to Sparta and at the same time a similar appeal came from Akanthos and Apollonia, two League members who claimed that membership of the League was not voluntary but had been forced upon them at the point of the sword.[11] Sparta was keen to respond to the request. Among Sparta's allies there was no animosity against the Chalcidian League. Nevertheless, when the question was put, fear of annoying Sparta ensured that the proposal was carried, and a force of 10,000 was authorized to be sent.[12] An advance force of 2,000 was sent under Eudamidas which succeeded in separating Potidaea from the League.[13]

The fighting was long and arduous.[14] Teleutias, the half-brother of the Spartan king, Agesilaus II, was killed and King Agesipolis suffered heavy losses before dying of fever.[15] However, in 379 BCE the cities of the former League became "autonomous" and subject allies of Sparta.[16] Freeman regards the Spartan dissolution of the League as one of the most "calamitous events" in Hellenic history for, in his view, the League uniting the northern Greek cities with the most Hellenised cities of Macedonia would have prevented the rise of Philip II of Macedon.[17]

Already in 375 BCE the Chalcidians threw off Spartan control and re-established the League, joining the

Torone and Potidaea.[19] As a result the Chalcidians allied themselves with Philip II of Macedon, and the League once again expanded to include 34 cities, but in 348 BCE Philip captured and destroyed Olynthos, putting an end to the League.[19]

Internal organization

The actual form of the League is uncertain. It seems it was a genuinely federal state (

Boeotian League. Political rights are likely to have been reserved to a group of 8000 designated by a property qualification.[10] It included most but not all the Euboean colonies of Chalcidice. The symbol of the Chalcidians was the lyre
, struck upon the coins the League.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ In Greek and Roman historiography, during this period, Olynthians refers mainly to the League, rather the citizens of Olynthus (see Justin 7.4.6)
  2. ^ IG II² 36
  3. ^ Bakhuizen & Kreulen 1976, p. 14.
  4. S2CID 246874721
    .
  5. JSTOR 291740
    .
  6. ISBN 978-960-8145-07-8
    .
  7. S2CID 163662582
    .
  8. ^ a b Schwahn 1931, col. 1193.
  9. ^ a b Cartledge 1987, p. 268.
  10. ^ a b c Cartledge 1987, p. 269.
  11. ^ The Historians' History of the World, editor: Henry Smith Williams, vol. 4 pp. 129-30
  12. ^ History of Greece by G. Grote, 1862, vol. 9, p. 49
  13. ^ Xenophon, Hellenica 5.2
  14. ^ Cartledge 1987, p. 271.
  15. ^ Cartledge 1987, pp. 373–374.
  16. ^ Cartledge 1987, p. 279.
  17. ^ History of federal government, Edward Augustus Freeman, p. 191
  18. ^ Schwahn 1931, col. 1193–1194.
  19. ^ a b c Schwahn 1931, col. 1194.

Sources

External links

40°30′N 23°12′E / 40.5°N 23.2°E / 40.5; 23.2

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