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Aetolia

mountainous region of western Greece

19 dated entries naming Aetolia, drawn from 15 separate years between 314 BCE and 192 BCE. Nothing here is written by us: each line is the sentence a Wikipedia year article used, and the link beside it opens the exact revision.

Also written as Aetolians in the source articles; Wikipedia redirects those to the same subject, so their entries are on this page.

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4th century BC

  • 314 BCEThe Aetolians enter into an alliance with Antigonus, and the League of the Islanders is established under Antigonus' hegemony. Cassander marches against them with his allies Lysimachus, Ptolemy and Seleucus and destroys the city of Agrinio.source
  • 313 BCEAt the autumn meeting of the Aetolian League, Aristodemus of Miletus, Antigonus' top diplomat, is able to persuade the Aetolians to support Antigonus.source
  • 313 BCECassander, hearing of Aristodemus' success with the Aetolians, marches south in force, persuades the Acarnanians to ally with him, and campaigns successfully along the Adriatic coast; capturing Apollonia and defeating the Illyrian king Glaucius. At the end of the year Cassander returns to Macedon.source
  • 313 BCEBecoming tired of Macedonian rule, the people of Epirus recall their former king Aeacides (who until then had been campaigning with his old ally Polyperchon in the Peloponnese). Cassander immediately sends an army against him under his brother Philip, who is diverted from invading Aetolia.source
  • 313 BCEAristodemus and his mercenary army (recruited the year prior) cross over to the Peloponnese and fight Alexander, the son of Polyperchon, at Cyllene, and liberate Patrae and Aegium from Cassander's garrisons. Aristodemus then returns to Aetolia, leaving a sizeable force in the Pelopponese who help the city of Dyme eject its garrison, despite a failed intervention by Alexander.source
  • 313 BCEPhilip marches into Acarnania to prevent Aeacides from linking up with the Aetolians. Philip defeats Aeacides in battle, killing many Epirotes and capturing 50 leading supporters of Aeacides, sending them as prisoners to Macedon. Aeacides, with the remnant of his forces, joins the Aetolians. Philip catches up to Aeacides and the Aetolians at Oeniadae and defeats them in battle. Aeacides, who was wounded in the Battle of Oeniadae, dies a few days later. The remaining Aetolian army takes refuge in the surrounding mountains.source

3rd century BC

  • 279 BCEAn army of Gauls under Brennus invade Greece. A section of the army, commanded by Bolgios, crushes a Macedonian army led by Ptolemy Keraunos, who is killed in the battle. At the narrow pass of Thermopylae, on the east coast of Central Greece, Brennus' forces suffer heavy losses while trying to break through the Greek defence comprising the Phocians and the Aetolians. Eventually Brennus finds a way around the pass but the Greeks escape by sea. Brennus pushes on to Delphi where he is defeated and forced to retreat, after which he dies of wounds sustained in the battle. His army falls back to the river Spercheios where it is routed by Thessalians and Malians. Some of the survivors settle in a part of Asia Minor that will eventually be called Galatia, while some settle in Thrace, founding a short-lived city-state named Tylis.source
  • 253 BCEAlexander, Antigonus II's nephew and regent, leads a revolt in Corinth with Ptolemy II's help and declares himself an independent monarch. As a result, Antigonus loses Corinth and Chalcis, the two bases from which he has dominated southern Greece. As the Aetolians occupy Thermopylae, Antigonus II is cut off from Athens and the Peloponnese.source
  • 241 BCEThe Eurypontid King of Sparta, Agis IV, is called away from Sparta when Aratus of Sicyon, temporarily Sparta's ally, requests Agis' aid in his war against the Aetolians. Upon his return, Agis finds that his supporters are discontented with the rule of his uncle, Agesilaus, and are disillusioned by the delay in implementing Agis IV's reforms. As a result, the Agiad king of Sparta, Leonidas II, gains power, supported by mercenaries. Rather than engage in a war with Leonidas, Agis takes sanctuary in a temple, but is enticed out, summarily tried and then executed, along with his mother and grandmother.source
  • 239 BCEWith Aetolia now as its ally, the Achaean League under the command of Aratus of Sicyon repeatedly attacks Athens and Argos.source
  • 231 BCEDemetrius II, king of Macedonia, seeks military help from Agron, king of Illyria, a loosely organized state on the Adriatic coast north of Epirus, against the advancing Aetolians. The Illyrian army routs the Aetolians and returns home as the victor.source
  • 220 BCEAratus of Sicyon counters Aetolian aggression by obtaining the assistance of the Hellenic League now under the leadership of Philip V of Macedon. In the resulting Social War, the Hellenic League of Greek states is assembled in Corinth at Philip V's instigation. He then leads the Hellenic League in battles against Aetolia, Sparta and Elis.source
  • 219 BCEThe Cretan city of Kydonia joins the Aetolian alliance.source
  • 206 BCEPhilip V of Macedon is able to take advantage of Roman inactivity. After sacking Thermum, the religious and political centre of Aetolia, Philip is able to force the Aetolians to accept a peace treaty based on his terms.source
  • 205 BCEThe Peace of Phoenice prohibits Philip from expanding westward into Illyria or the Adriatic Sea, so the king turns his attentions eastwards to the Aegean Sea, where he starts to build a large fleet. After concluding the First Macedonian War, Philip of Macedon, seeing his chance to defeat Rhodes, forms an alliance with Aetolian and Spartan pirates who begin raiding Rhodian ships. The Cretan War begins between Philips' Macedonians, the Aetolian League, several Cretan cities (of which Olous and Hierapytna are the most important) and Spartan pirates against the forces of Rhodes and later Attalus I of Pergamum, Byzantium, Cyzicus, Athens and Knossos.source

2nd century BC

  • 198 BCEThe Battle of Panium is fought between Seleucid forces led by Antiochus III and Ptolemaic forces led by Scopas of Aetolia. The Seleucids win the battle which allows Antiochus III to obtain entire possession of Palestine and Coele-Syria from King Ptolemy V of Egypt. Though the Romans send ambassadors to Ptolemy V, they are unable to lend him any serious assistance against Antiochus III.source
  • 194 BCEWith the Roman legions under Flaminius returning to Italy, the Greek states are once again on their own. The Romans leave the dominant powers in the region; the kingdom of Macedonia, the Aetolians, the strengthened Achaean League and the weakened Sparta. The Aetolians, who have opposed the Roman intervention in Greek affairs, incite the Spartan leader, Nabis, to retake his former territories and regain his influence in Greek affairs.source
  • 193 BCEFlamininus attempts to rally the Greeks against Antiochus III and to counter the pro-Seleucid policy of the Aetolians. When the Aetolians call on Antiochus III for aid, Flamininus persuades the Achaean League to declare war on both parties. He also prevents Philopoemen from taking Sparta.source
  • 192 BCENabis then appeals to the Aetolians for help. They send 1,000 cavalry under the command of Alexamenus to Sparta. However, the Aetolians murder Nabis and temporarily occupy Sparta. The Aetolian troops seize the palace and set about looting the city, but the inhabitants of Sparta are able to rally and force them leave the city. Philopoemen, however, takes advantage of the Aetolian treachery and enters Sparta with his Achaean army. Now in full control of Sparta, Philopoemen forces Sparta to become a member state of the Achaean League.source

Named in the same entries