A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

282 PHILIPPUS. PHILIPPUS.
The next summer (X. c. 209)*, the arms of Phi- and the Romans, whose attention was directed
lip were directed to the support of his allies, the wholly towards affairs in Spain and Africa, lent
Achaeans, who were unable to make head against no support to their Grecian allies. Meanwhile,
the Lacedaemonians, Messepians, and Eleans. the Achaeans, under Philopoemen, were victorious
Marching through Thessaly, he defeated the Aeto- in the Peloponnese over MIachanidas, and the
lian general Pyrrhias, though supported by some Aetolians, finding themselves abandoned by their
Roman troops furnished him by Galba, in two allies, and unable to cope single-handed with the
successive actions, forced the pass of Thermopylae, power of Philip, who had a second time carried
and made his way successfully to the Peloponnese, his ravages into the heart of their country, and
where he celebrated the Heraean games at Argos. plundered their capital city of Thermus, at length
The Rhodians and Chians, as well as the Athenians consented to peace upon the conditions dictated
and Ptolemy, king of Egypt, now again interposed by the conqueror. What these were we know
their good offices, to bring about a peace between not, but the treaty had hardly been concluded,
the contending parties, and negotiations were when a Roman fleet and army, under P. Semopened at Aegium, but these proved abortive in pronius Tuditanus, arrived at Dyrrhachium. Philip
consequence of the arrogant demands of the Aeto- hastened to oppose him, and offered him battle,
lians, in whom the arrival of Attalus at this junc- but the Roman general shut himself up within
ture had excited fresh hopes. Philip now invaded the walls of Apollonia; and meanwhile the EpeiElis in conjunction with the Achaean praetor rots, by their intervention, succeeded in bringing
Cycliadas, but was worsted in an engagement about a peace between the two parties. A preunder the walls of the city, in which, however, liminary treaty was concluded between Philip and
the king greatly distinguished himself by his per- Sempronius at Phoenice in Epeirus, B. c. 205, and
sonal bravery; and the inroads of the Dardanians, -was readily ratified by the Roman people, who
and other Barbarian tribes now compelled him to were desirous to give their undivided attention to
retlurn to Macedonia. (Liv. xxvii. 29-33; Justin. the war in Africa. (Liv. xxix. 12; Polyb. xi. 4,
xxix. 4.) 7; Appian. Mac. Exc. 2.)
At the opening of the campaign of 208, Philip It is probable that both parties looked upon the
found himself assailed on all sides by the formidable peace thus concluded as little more than a susconfederacy now organized against him. Sulpicius pension of hostilities. Such was clearly the view
with the Roman fleet, in conjunction with the king with which the Romans had accepted it, and
Attalus, commenced their attacks by sea, while Philip was evidently well aware of their sentithe Illyrian princes, Scerdilaidas and Pleuratus, ments in this respect. Hence he not only proand the Thracian tribe of the Maedi threatened ceeded to carry out his views for his own aggranhis northern frontiers, and his allies, the Achaeans, dizement and the humiliation of his rivals in Greece,
Acarnanians, and Boeotians, were clamorous for without any regard to the Roman alliances in that
support and assistance against the Aetolians and country, but he even went so far as to send a
Lacedaemonians. The energy and activity dis- strong body of auxiliaries to the Carthaginians in
played by the kirg under these trying circum- Africa, who fought at Zama under the standard
stances, is justly praised by Polybius: while he of Hannibal. (Liv. xxx. 26, 33, 42, xxxi. i.)
sent such support as his means enabled him to his Meanwhile, his proceedings in Greece were stained
various allies, he himself took up his post at De- by acts of the darkest perfidy and the most wanton
metrias in Thessaly, to watch the proceedings of aggression. The death of Ptolemy Philopator,
Sulpicius and. Attalus; and though he was unable king of Egypt (B. c. 205), and the infancy of his
to prevent the fall of Oreus, which was betrayed successor, at this time opened a new field to the
into their hands [PLATOR], he not only saved ambition of Philip, who concluded a league with
Chalcis from a similar fate, but narrowly missed Antiochus against the- Egyptian monarch, accordsurprising Attalus himself in the neighbourhood of ing to which the Cyclades, as well as the cities
Opus. The king of Pergamus was soon after re- and islands in Ionia subject to Ptolemy, were to
called to the defence of his own dominions against fall to the share of the Macedonian king. (Polyb.
Prusias, king of Bithynia, and Sulpicius, unable to iii. 2, xv. 20; Appian. M1lalc. Exc. 3; Justin. xxx. 2.)
keep the sea single-handed, withdrew to Aegina. In order to carry out this scheme, it was necesPhilip was thus left at liberty to act against the sary for Philip to establish his naval power firmly
Aetolians, and to support his own allies in the in the Aegaean, and to humble that of Attalus and
Peloponnese, where Machanidas, the Lacedaemo- the Rhodians, and the latter object he endeavoured
nian tyrant, retired on his approach. The king to effect by the most nefarious means, for which
was content with this success; and after taking he found ready instruments in Dicaearchus, an
part in the general assembly of the Achaeans at Aetolian pirate, and Heracleides, an exile from
Aegium, and ravaging the coasts of Aetolia, re- Tarentum, who seems at this period to have held
turned once more into his own dominions. (Polyb. the same place in the king's confidence previously
x. 41, 42; Liv. xxviii. 5-8; Justin. xxix. 4.) enjoyed by Demetrius of Pharos. While DicaeThe events of the succeeding years of the war archus, with a squadron of twenty ships, cruised
are very imperfectly known to us, but it is evident in the Aegaean, and made himself master of the
that matters took a turn decidedly favourable to principal islands of the Cyclades, Heracleides conPhilip and his allies. Attalus continued in Asia, trived to ingratiate himself with the Rhodians,
and then took an opportunity to set fire to their
* Concerning the chronology of these events, arsenal, and burn great part of their fleet. (Polyb.
and the error committed by Livy, who assigns xiii. 4, 5, xv. 20, xviii. 37; Diod. xxviii. Exc.
this campaign to the year 208, see Schorn (Gesch. Vales. pp. 572, 573; Polyaen. v. 17. ~ 2.) MeanGriechenl. p. 186, not.), and Thirlwall (Hist. of while, Philip himself had reduced under his domiGreece, vol. viii. p. 268, not.). Clinton (F. H. vol. nion the cities of Lysimachia and Chalcedon,
iii. p. 48) has followed Livy without comment. notwithstanding they were in a state of alliance