Army of Macedon

"Macedonian army" redirects here. For the army of the modern state of the Republic of Macedonia, see Army of the Republic of Macedonia.

Alexander Mosaic showing the Battle of Issus

The army of the Ancient kingdom of Macedonia was among the greatest military forces of the ancient world. It became formidable under King Philip II of Macedon and his son, Alexander the Great.

The latest innovations in weapons and tactics, along with unique combination of military elements introduced by Philip II, came together into the army that won an intercontinental empire. By introducing the military as a full-time occupation, Philip was able to drill his men regularly, ensuring unity and cohesion in his ranks. In a remarkably short time, this led to one of the finest military machines that Asia or Greece had ever seen.

Tactical innovations included the latest tactics applied on the traditional Greek phalanx by men such as Epaminondas of Thebes (who twice defeated the Spartans), as well as coordinated attacks (early combined arms) between the various arms of his army—phalanx, cavalry, missile troops, and (under Alexander III) siege engines. Weapons introduced included the sarissa, a type of counter-weighted (like all Greek spears) long pike, which gave its wielder many advantages, both offensively and defensively.

The new Macedonian army was an amalgamation of different forces. Macedonians and other Greeks (especially Thessalian cavalry) and a wide range of mercenaries from across the Aegean were employed by Phillip. By 338 BC, more than a half of the army for his planned invasion of Persia came from outside the borders of Macedon--from all over the Greek world and the nearby barbarian tribes.

Origins

If Philip II had not been the father of Alexander the Great he would be more widely known as a first-rate military innovator, tactician, strategist and consummate politician. The conquests of Alexander would have been impossible without the army his father created. When Philip took over control of Macedon it was a backward state on the fringes of the Greek world and was beset by its traditional enemies, Illyrians, Paeonians and Thracians. Macedon itself was not unified, it consisted of a heartland inhabited by the Macedonians proper and many highland 'baronies' peopled by Illyrian tribesmen ruled by semi-hellenised chieftains who recognised the power of the king only when it was in their interest. Philip's first achievement was to unify Macedon through his army. He raised troops and made his army the single fount of wealth, honour and power in the land, the unruly chieftains of Macedonia became the officers and elite cavalrymen of the army.

Cavalry of the Macedonian army

Ancient depiction of a Macedonian cavalryman (left). This shows Alexander the Great as a cavalryman. He wears a helmet in the form of the lion-scalp of Herakles. Detail of the so-called Alexander Sarcophagus, excavated at Sidon.

Heavy Cavalry

The Companion Cavalry (Greek: 'Εταίροι)

Main article: Companion cavalry

The Companion cavalry, or Hetairoi, were the elite arm of the Macedonian army, and have been regarded as the best cavalry in the ancient world. Along with Thessalian cavalry contingents, the Companions—raised from landed nobility—made up the bulk of the Macedonian heavy cavalry.

The Companion cavalry (hetairoi, mounted noble 'companions'; like philoi (basilikoi) '(royal) friends', the term became an aulic title in the diadochi period) was divided into eight squadrons called ile, each 200 men strong, except for the Royal Squadron, which numbered 400. Each squadron seemed to have been raised from a particular area of Macedon. In Arrian for instance, we hear of squadrons from Bottiaea, Amphipolis, Apollonia and Anthemus. However, between 330 BC and 328 BC the Companions were reformed in to regiments (hipparchies) of 2-3 squadrons. In conjunction with this each squadron was divided into two lochoi. This was probably undertaken to allow for the increasing of size of each squadron as reinforcements and amalgamtions meant the Companion cavalry grew in size.

The Companion cavalry was usually deployed in wedges, a formation that facilitated both maneuverability and the shock of the charge. Their primary weapon was the xyston a double ended lance. This formation, the Macedonians copied from the Thracians, who in turn took it from the Scythians. Although the Companion cavalry is largely believed to be the first real shock cavalry of antiquity, it seems that Alexander was very wary with its use against infantry, as attested by Arrian in his account of the battle against the Malli, an Indian tribe he faced after Hydaspes. There, Alexander did not dare assault the dense infantry formation with his cavalry, but rather waited for his infantry to arrive, while he and his cavalry harassed their flanks. It is a common mistake to portray the Companion cavalry as a force able to burst through compact infantry lines. The Companions that accompanied Alexander to Asia numbered 1,800 men. This number steadily grew as the campaign progressed with reinforcements arrving from Macedon. They were usually arrayed on the right flank (this being the position of honour in Hellenic armies, where the best troops would be positioned), and typically carried out the decisive maneuver/assault of the battle under Alexander's direct leadership.

Thessalian Cavalry

A heavy cavalryman of Alexander the Great's army, possibly a Thessalian. He wears a cuirass (probably a linothorax) and a Boeotian helmet, and is equipped with a scabbarded xiphos straight-bladed sword. Alexander Sarcophagus.

Following the defeat of Lycophron of Pherae and Onomarchos of Phocis, Philip II of Macedon was appointed Archon of the Thessalian League; his death induced the Thessalians to attempt to throw off Macedonian hegemony, but a short bloodless campaign by Alexander restored them to allegiance. The Thessalians were considered the finest cavalry of Greece.

The Thessalian heavy cavalry accompanied Alexander the first half of his Asian campaign and was at times employed by the Macedonians as allies throughout the later years until Macedon's final demise under the Roman gladius. Its organization and weaponry were similar to the Companion Cavalry. However, shorter spears and javelins were wielded in conjunction with the xyston and rhomboid formations were employed. This formation was very efficient for manoeuvring as it allowed the formation to change direction at speed while still retaining cohesion. The numbers given for Alexander's invasion of the Persian Empire included 1,800 such men. This number would have risen no higher than 2,000. They were typically entrusted with the defensive role of guarding the left flank from enemy cavalry allowing the decisive attack to be launched on the right. They often faced tremendous opposition when in this role. At Issus and Gaugamela we see the Thessalians standing against far larger Persian formations.

At Ecbatana the Thessalians with Alexander's army were mustered out and sent home. Some remained with the army as mercenaries yet these too were sent home a year later when the army reached the Oxus River.

Other Greek cavalry

The Hellenic states allied to, or more accurately under the hegemony of, Macedon provided contingents of heavy cavalry and the Macedonian kings hired mercenaries of the same origins. Such cavalrymen would have been equipped very similarly to the Thessalians and Companions, but they deployed in a square formation eight deep and sixteen abreast. The Greek cavalry was not considered as effective or versatile as the Thessalian and Macedonian cavalry.

Light Cavalry

Main article: prodromoi

Of light cavalry, the prodromoi secured the wings of the army during battle and went on reconnaissance missions. They are sometimes referred to as sarissophoroi, which means pike-bearers, which leads to the conclusion that they sometimes were armed with an uncommonly long xyston, though certainly not an infantry pike.

Apart from these, several hundred allied horsemen, raised from a variety of places, filling various tactical roles and wielding different weapons, rounded out the cavalry. By the time he campaigned India and after, the cavalry had been drastically reformed, and included thousands of horse-archers from Iranian peoples such as the Dahae (prominent at the Battle of Hydaspes), other mounted missile troops, and Asiatic heavy cavalry.

Infantry

The Foot Companions

Development

The Macedonian foot soldiers were formed into an infantry formation developed by Philip II and used by his son Alexander the Great to conquer the Persian Empire and other armies. These infantrymen were called Pezhetairoi--the Foot Companions—and made up the dreaded Macedonian Phalanx.

Philip II spent much of his youth as a hostage at Thebes, where he studied under the renowned general Epaminondas, whose reforms were the basis for a good part of Phillip's tactics. The Foot Companions were levied from the peasantry of Macedon. Once levied they became professional soldiers. Discharge could only be granted by the King. Under Philip the Foot Companions received no regular pay. This seems to have changed by Alexander's time as during the mutiny at Opis in 324 BC the men were chastised by Alexander for having run up debts despite earning "good pay". Through extensive drilling and training the Foot Companions were able to execute complex maneuvers well beyond the reach of most contempary armies.

Phalanx

For more details on this topic, see Macedonian phalanx.

A drawing of a Macedonian phalanx (the shields are smaller and lighter than with a traditional hoplite phalanx, the sarissa is twice as long as the traditional spears and fully enclosed helmets weren't as widespread as the drawing suggests, though they did protect more than open face helmets.)

The size of the phalanx fielded by Macedon and its various successor states varied greatly. Alexander the Great, for example, fielded 9,000 Foot Companions throughout much of his campaign. These were divided into 1,500-man battalions, each raised from a separate district of Macedon. Phillip V fielded 16,000 phalangites at Cynoscephalae, and Perseus reputedly fielded over 20,000 at Pydna.

These soldiers fought in close-ranked rectangular or square formations, of which the smallest tactical unit was the 256 men strong syntagma or speira (also known as 'lochoi'). This formation typically fought eight or sixteen men deep and in a frontage of thirty-two or sixteen men accordingly. Each file of 16 men included two junior officers (one at the head and one at the rear) and a tertiary leader (at the middle of the file). Their role would have been to steady the ranks and maintain the cohesion of the formation, similar to modern day NCOs The commander of this unit theoretically fought at the head of the extreme far-right file. According to Aelian, a syntagma was accompanied by five additional individuals to the rear: a herald (to act as a messenger), a trumpeter (to sound out commands), an ensign (to hold the unit's standard), an additional officer (called ouragos), and a servant. This array of both audial and visual communication methods helped to make sure that even in the dust and din of battle orders could still be received and given.

Each phalangite carried as his primary weapon a sarissa, which was a type of pike. The length of these pikes was such that they had to be wielded with two hands in battle. The traditional Greek hoplite used his spear single-handed, as the large hoplon shield needed to be gripped by the left hand, therefore the Macedonian phalangite gained in both weapon reach and in the added force of a two handed thrust. At close range such large weapons were of little use, but an intact phalanx could easily keep its enemies at a distance; the weapons of the first five rows of men all projected beyond the front of the formation, so that there were more spearpoints than available targets at any given time. The men of the rear ranks raised their sarissas so as to provide protection from aerial missiles. A phalangite also carried a sword as a secondary weapon for close quarter fighting should the phalanx disintergrate. The phalanx however, was extremely vulnerable in the flanks and rear.

Alexander did not actually use the phalanx as the decisive arm of his battles, but instead used it to pin and demoralize the enemy while his heavy cavalry would charge selected opponents or exposed enemy unit flanks, most usually after driving the enemy horse they engaged from the field. An example of this is the Battle of Gaugamela, where, after maneuvering to the right to prevent a double envelopment from the Persian army and making Darius command his cavalry on his left flank to check the oblique movement of the Greeks by attacking their cavalry, Companion cavalry charged the weakened enemy center where Darius was posted and were followed by the hypaspists and the phalanx proper.

Other forces — skirmishers, missile troops, reserves of allied hoplites, Cretan archers, and artillery — were also employed. The phalanx carried with it a fairly minimal baggage train, with only one servant for every ten men. This gave it a marching speed that contemporary armies could not hope to match — on occasion forces surrendered to Alexander simply because they were not expecting him to show up for several more days. This was made possible thanks to the training Phillip instilled in his army, which included regular forced marches.

The Macedonian phalanx itself was thus not very different from the hoplite phalanx of other Greek states as a formation. As an evolution of the hoplite phalanx, it featured improved equipment, training, and tactics. In Phillip's and Alexander's time, the Macedonian phalanx had clear technical superiority.

Ancient depiction of Macedonian infantryman (right). He is equipped with a hoplon (Argive) shield, so probably is a Hypaspist. He also wears a linothorax cuirass and a Phrygian cap helmet.

Hypaspists

The Hypaspists (Hypaspistai) were the elite arm of the Macedonian infantry. The word 'hypaspists' translates into English as 'shield-bearers'. During a pitched engagement such as Gaugamela they acted as guard for the right flank of the phalanx and were used for a variety of irregular missions by Alexander, often in conjunction with the Agrianians (elite skirmishers), the Companions and select units of phalangites. We often see them at the forefront of Alexander's siege assaults in close proximity to Alexander himself. The Hypaspists were of privileged Macedonian blood and their senior chiliarchy formed the Agema foot bodyguard of Alexander III.

The Hypaspist regiment was divided into battalions (chilarchies) of 1,000 men which were then further sub-divided in a manner similar to the Foot Companions. Each battalion would be commanded by a chiliarch with the regiment as a whole under the command of an archihypaspist.

In terms of weaponry they were probably equipped in the style of a traditional Greek hoplite with a thrusting spear or dory (shorter and less unwieldy than the sarissa) and a large round shield (hoplon). As well as this they would have carried a sword, either a xiphos or a kopis. This would have made them far better suited to engagements where the fighting once formations and cohesion had broken down, making them well suited to siege assaults and special missions. Their armour appears to have varied depending on the type of mission they were conducting. When taking part in rapid forced marches or combat in broken terrain, so common in the eastern Persian Empire, it appears that they wore little more than a helmet and a cloak (exomis) so as to enhance their stamina and mobility. However, when engaging in heavy hand to hand fighting, for instance during a siege or pitched battle, they would have worn body armour of either linen or bronze. This variety of armaments made them an extremely versatile force.

In the last years of Alexander's reign the Hypaspists were renamed and became the Argyraspides, or Silver Shields.

Other Infantry Troops

Philip's control over the mines of northern Greece gave him access to unprecedented (for his part of the world) wealth in gold and silver, and enabled him to build his famous army. Philip and Alexander employed troops from the confederated Greek states and hired thousands of mercenaries from various nations to round-out their armies. Diodorus Siculus, a Greek historian, records troops as varied as archers from Crete, spearmen from Pontus and Phrygian peltasts. These mixed troops provided added strength and flexibility throughout Alexander's conquests.

Arms and Armour

Weapons

The hunter on the right is wielding a kopis cutting sword, the hunter on the left holds a scabbarded xiphos straight sword. Both types of sword were used by Macedonian cavalry and infantry. Lion Hunt mosaic from the Macedonian capital Pella.

Most troops would have carried a type of sword as a secondary weapon. The straight-bladed shortsword known as the xiphos (ξίφος) is depicted in works of art, and two types of single-edged cutting swords, the kopis and machaira, are shown in images and are mentioned in texts. The cutting swords are particularly associated with cavalry use, especially by Xenophon, but representations would suggest that all three sword types were used by cavalry and infantry without obvious distinction.

Each Companion cavalryman was equipped with a 3 metre double ended spear/lance called the xyston. The double end meant that should the xyston break during a battle the rider need only turn his xyston around to re-arm himself. The Thessalian and Greek cavalry would have been armed similarly to the Companions, though the Thessalians also used javelins. The xyston was used to thrust either overarm or underarm with the elbow flexed. During the reign of Alexander the Great, cavalrymen carried no shields. However, the Companion cavalry of the Antigonid dynasty did carry large, round bossed shields of Thracian origin.

The armament of the Phalangites is described in the Military Decree of Amphipolis. It lists the fines imposed upon the soldiers who fail to maintain their armament or produce it upon demand. Offensive weapons were a pike (sarissa) over 6 m (18 ft) in length, with a counterweight and spiked end at the rear called a sauroter, and a short sword (machaira). It should be stressed that the archaeological discoveries show that the phalangites also used the two-edged sword (xiphos) as well as the traditional Greek hoplite spear (doru/δόρυ), which was much shorter than the sarissa.

Hypaspists and allied and mercenary Greek heavy infantry were equipped as classic hoplites and would have employed the hoplite spear and a sword.

Light troops were provided by a number of subject and allied peoples. Various Balkan peoples such as Agrianes, Paeonians and Thracians provided either light infantry or cavalry or indeed both. Typical light infantry peltasts would be armed with a number of javelins. The individual javelin would have a throwing thong attached to the shaft at or near its point of balance. The thong was wound around the shaft and hooked over one or two fingers. The thong made the javelin spin in flight improving accuracy and the extra leverage increased the range achievable. Foot archers, notably mercenary Cretans, were also employed; Cretans were noted for the heavy, large-headed arrows they used. Light cavalry could use lighter types of lance, javelins and, in the case of Iranian horse archers, compact composite bows.

Helmets

A simple conical helmet of a type worn by some Macedonian infantrymen.

A phrygian cap helmet, it is missing its cheekpieces.

All helmets in use in the Greek world of the period were constructed of bronze. One helmet prominent in contemporary images was in the form of a Phrygian cap, that is it had a high and forward-projecting apex, this type of helmet, also known as a "Thracian helmet", had a projecting peak above the eyes and usually had large cheekpieces which were often decorated with stylised beards in embossing. Other, more simple, helmets of the conical 'konos' or 'Pylos' type, without cheekpieces, were also employed. These helmets were worn by the heavy infantry.

The Phrygian helmet was worn by Macedonian cavalry in King Philip's day but his son Alexander is said to have preferred the open-faced Beoetian helmet for his cavalry, as recommended by Xenophon. The Vergina Tomb contained a helmet of the phrygian type, which, if the tomb is that of Philip, would support its use by cavalry. The Beoetian helmet, though it did not have cheekpieces, had a flaring rim which was folded into a complex shape offering considerable protection to the face. The Alexander Mosaic suggests that officers of the heavy cavalry had rank badges in the form of laurel wreaths (perhaps painted or of metallic construction) on their helmets.

The Alexander Sarcophagous shows Alexander the Great wearing an elaborate helmet in the form of the lion scalp of Herakles. Alexander's cousin Pyrrhus of Epirus is described as wearing a helmet with cheekpieces in the shape of ram's heads. Many examples of helmets from the period have plume-holders attached, so that a high degree of martial finery could be achieved by the wearing of imposing headpieces.

Body Armour

Alexander the Great in battle. The king wears a composite cuirass which copies the shape of the linothorax. The shoulder elements and upper chest are of plate iron, whilst the waist is composed of scale armour for ease of movement. There are pteruges of leather or stiffened linen at the shoulders and hips. The king wears a xiphos sword. Detail of the Alexander Mosaic (A Roman copy of a Hellenistic painting).

Body armour in the Macedonian army was derived from a repertiore found throughout the the Greek-speaking world. The most common form of armour was the linothorax. This was a cuirass of stiff linen built up of glued layers of textile. It was composed of the 'girdle' a tubular section, often of four vertical panels, that enclosed the torso. A shoulder-piece was attached to the upper rear section of the girdle which split into two wings which were pulled forward over the top of the shoulder and laced to the chest-section of the girdle. Pteruges, strips of linen or leather protected the upper arms and hips of the wearer. The linothorax could be reinforced with plate bronze or bronze scale elements. Defences of a similar appearance composed of quilted textile are also described.

Less common, due to its expense, was the muscle cuirass. This was a defence made entirely of plate bronze consisting of a breast and backplate, usually with shoulder pieces, modelled in relief on the form a muscular male torso. This was often given pteruges to extend the area of the body covered.

The discovery of a complete cuirass of plate iron, decorated with gold, modelled on the form of the linothorax in the Macedonian royal burial at Vergina, plus the evidence of the depiction of Alexander the Great in the Alexander Mosaic, shows that the technology to make plate armour in iron existed at the time. It is to be doubted that this type of armour was worn by persons other than of royal or very exalted rank.

All of the above forms of armour could be described as thorakes (thorax). Other forms of armour are mentioned in original sources, such as the kotthybos and a type of "half-armour" the hemithorakion (ἡμιθωράκιον); the precise nature of these defences is not known but it would be reasonable to conclude that they were lighter and perhaps afforded less protection than the thorax.

The only piece of limb armour in use were bronze greaves, which protected he lower leg. Greaves could be worn by both heavy infantry and heavy cavalry, but they are not in great evidence in contemporary depictions. However, greaves are mentioned in the Military Decree of Amphipolis and a pair of greaves, one shorter than the other, were found in the Vergina Tomb.

Macedonian shields

Concerning shield dimensions, there are different interpretations by scholars. The most common decorative motif depicted on shields (from coins, ceramics, reliefs and other sculptural monuments) is a variation on solar symbols. Some scholars have noted that Asclepiodotus defined the Macedonian shield as being different to other Greek shields, in dimensions and construction. According to the descriptions of Antique sources, relief depictions as well and by several archaeological findings, it is known that the diameter of the Macedonian shield varied from 62 cm up to 74 cm. Ancient Macedonian Shields have been recently excavated in the village of Bonche, Prilep in the Republic of Macedonia.

The Macedonian phalangite shield was circular and displayed a slight convexity; its outer surface was faced by thin bronze sheet. The inner face of the shield was of wood or a multilayered leather construction, with a band for the forearm fixed to the centre of the shield. Plutarch noted that the phalangites (phalanx soldiers) carried a small shield on their shoulder. This probably meant that, as both hands were needed to hold the sarissa, the shield was worn suspended by a shoulder strap and steadied by the left forearm passing through the armband. The left hand would project beyond the rim of the shield to grip the sarissa. Recent reconstructions of the sarissa and phalangite shield showed that the shoulder strap supporting the shield effectively helps transfer some of the weight of the sarissa from the left arm to the shoulders when the sarissa is held horizontally in its fighting position. .

From pictorial sources it is probable that the Hypaspists, elite members of the infantry, including the Agema of the King's personal foot guard, employed a shield of larger dimensions, the traditional Greek hoplite shield called the hoplon or aspis (ἀσπίς), it is also referred to as the 'Argive shield'. This shield, also circular, was larger than the phalangite shield, it had sheet-bronze facing over a wooden base; it was held with the left forearm passing through a central armband with a hand-grip set just inside the rim. This shield was more much convex than the phalangite shield and had a projecting rim, both features precluding its use with a double handed pike. The style of shield used by cavalry is less clear, the heavy cavalry of Alexander's time did not employ shields.

Light infantry would have used a version of the pelte (Ancient Greek: πέλτη) shield, from whence their name, peltast, derived. This was a light shield made of leather-faced wicker. The shield was of Thacian origin and was originally shaped like a crescent, however, by the time of Macedonian greatness many depictions of pelte show them as being oval or round.

Siege warfare

See Polyidus of Thessaly, Diades of Pella

The Macedonians had developed their siege tactics under Philip. They had for the first time conducted successful sieges against strongly held and fortified positions. This was a dramatic shift from earlier warfare where Greek armies had lacked the ability to conduct an effective assault. The Spartans for instance, during the Peloponnesian War were never able to take Athens itself despite easily conquering her surrounding territory.

This dramatic change owed much to the development of effective artillery. This had begun around 400 BC in Syracuse under Dionysius I. By Alexander’s time the Macedonians had developed torsion and possessed a variety of stone throwing catapults and ballista like large crossbows. These weapons were constructed in a composite fashion from wood, sinew and horn which gave them tremendous power. This allowed them shower the defenders of the city with missiles and create a breach in the walls themselves.

In conjunction with this the Macedonians possessed an effective array of siege towers. These allowed men to approach and assault the enemy walls without being exposed to potentially withering missile fire. Equally they meant more men could put on the walls in a shorter period of time, as when using ladder the men were restricted to moving up in single file making the task of defending the walls far easier.

Combined Tactics

Macedonian battle formation. The hypaspists, elite heavy infantry, are mislabeled as elite heavy cavalry.

The Macedonian army was one of the first military forces to use tactics taking into account combined, varied forces, using a variety of troops to fulfill specific roles and form a greater whole.

The tactics used by the Macedonian armies throughout the eras of course varied.There were comparatively simplistic tactics, which form the most enduring image of this force: cavalry stationed on either wing of the army, or both, waiting for the phalanx to pin the enemy before charging the foes' flank or rear to devastating effect. There were also very elaborate tactics: at Gaugamela, Alexander used careful maneuver to overextend enemy lines, a variety of forces to pin his foes striking elements, and mobile elements to make a decisive attack in the weak point he had forced his foe to create.

Decline

The armies of the Diadochi period were equipped and fought mainly in the same style as Alexander's. Towards the end, however, there was a general slide away from the combined arms approach, and the phalanx once more became the arm of decision, much like in the days of the earlier hoplites. So long as everyone was using the same tactics these weaknesses were not immediately apparent, but against a varied force and complex tactics, the Hellenistic-era phalanx fell prey to its foes. The Phalanx finally met its end in the Ancient world when the more flexible Roman Hastati and Principi contributed to the end of Macedon in the 3rd and 2nd centuries B.C.

See also

• Military Decree of Amphipolis
• Antigonid Macedonian army
• List of Macedonian military personnel
• Hellenistic armies
• Seleucid army
• Hoplite
• Pezhetairoi
• Companion cavalry
• Phalanx
• Sarissa
• Xyston
• Wars of Alexander the Great, (Battle of Granicus, Battle of Gaugamela, Battle of Hydaspes)
• Battle of Pydna
• Battle of Cynoscephalae
• Aelianus Tacticus

References

• Diodorus Siculus, "Bibliotheca historica" (Historical Library) volumes XV - XVIII
• Ellis, J. R. (1976), "Philip II and Macedonian Imperialism"

Further reading

• The Seventy Great Battles of All Time, Edited by Jeremy Black, Thames & Hudson Ltd, 2005

External links

• Twilight of the Polis and the rise of Macedon (Philip, Demosthenes and the Fall of the Polis). Yale University courses, Lecture 24. (Introduction to Ancient Greek History)