Alexander & the First Greek Rebellion As soon as the Greek states heard of Phillip’s death, the city states prepared to rebel against Macedonia Demosthenes of Athens offered thanksgiving for the death Alexander was in the north when he heard of the rebellions. He made a sudden appearance in Greece immediately after conducting his fathers funeral Alexander knew that quick thinking was key, however he was determined to avoid fighting if possible – like his father, he wanted to befriend the Greeks

In order to reach the Greek states of the south quickly, Alexander had to go through Thessaly So as to avoid confrontation, rather than take the usual route through the Vale of Tempe (where the Thessalian cavalry were waiting), Alexander took a narrow path up the slopes of Mt Ossa and found his way into the city of Thessaly. The Thessalians had no choice but to welcome him. Alexander was recognised as their Archon (political leader) and was placed in control of their cavalry. Following this, members of the Corinthian League held a synhedrion and declared Alexander their Hegemon and Strategos autocrator Thessaly

Alexander & the Second Greek Rebellion In 336 BC, the new king of Persia, Darius III, decided to reclaim his authority over the Greek states. He sent agents to Greece with large amounts of gold in order to encourage the Greeks to rebel against Macedonia – Sparta accepted gold, Athens (under Demosthenes accepted 300 talents (1 talent= 25 kgs gold) A rumor was started claiming that Alexander had been killed in the north

The Theban Rebellion, Spring 335 BC The city of Thebes decided that it was a good time to rise against Macedonia Athens (under the rule of Demosthenes) promised to help the Thebans, as did an allied Peloponnesian army Demosthenes and Sparta both accepted the Persian gold. “Demosthenes even introduced a supposed eyewitness of Alexanders death to the Athenian assembly” - S. Pomeroy, et. al. Ancient Greece: A Political, Social and Cultural History p. 433

“Confident of Athenian aid, the Thebans rose in revolt, besieging the cities Macedonian garrison on the Cadmea – the acropolis of Thebes – and inviting other Greek states to join them in the struggle for freedom” - S. Pomeroy, et. al. Ancient Greece: A Political, Social and Cultural History p. 433

The battle took place in Thebes Thebes invited political exiles back and the Theban assembly voted to fight Macedonia The Thebans believed that Alexander was dead – only when he encamped outside their gated did they believe he was still alive The Athenians, who had voted military aid for Thebes, now hesitate, the Spartans also held back Alexander issues a proclamation offering the Thebans an amnesty, demanding only the surrender of the two rebel leaders The Thebans replied by demanding surrender of Philotas and Antipater and invited anyone to join them and the king of Persia in ‘freeing Greece from the tyrants’ Alexander was furious and ordered an attack

Initially the Thebans held their own in fierce fighting outside the walls Eventually the Macedonian Phalanx pushed into the city The fight turned into a massacre – 6,000 Thebans were killed. As news spread of the destruction of Thebes spread, active resistance to Macedonian rule ceased throughout Greece. For the second time in a little over a year, the Corinthian League acknowledged Alexander as its hegemon and affirmed its support for his policies.

Alexander treated the revolt as an infringement of the Common Peace of the Corinthian League. He handed over the decision about the fate of Thebes to representative of the allies who were there helping him. Their decision was that the city of Thebes be razed to the ground, its territory divided up among the allies and the survivors sold as slaves – 30,000 Thebans were enslaved: a “calculated act of terror” according to Jr Hamilton. The destruction of Thebes was remembered for centuries as one of the great atrocities of Greek history

Alexander used Thebes to teach the other Greek states a lesson This was an important step in the relationship of Alexander and the Greek states By destroying Thebes, Alexander removed the possibility of reaching understanding with the Greek states – they had no choice but to accept him as their leader One after another the Greek states hastened to apologise to Alexander Afterwards, Alexander returned to Macedonia to begin preparations for conquest of the Persian Empire

Alexanders and Athens Alexander’s treatment of Athens was more favourable than that of Thebes This could be because he was anxious to have a friend among the Greeks and because, in the early stages of his reign, he needed the Athenian fleet Following the Theban revolt, Athens was not punished (one of the rebel leaders was exiled) despite Athens promising support for Thebes – JR Hamilton said he treated Athens “with kid gloves.” Alexander left Macedonian garrisons in a number of Greek states to protect his interests – however he did not leave one in Athens

Activity Create a Diamond 9 of the Theban rebellion: Choose the 9 most important facts (1 fact on 1 post-it) Re-arrange the 9 post-its to be in order of importance

‘Facebooking’ Alexander You are to create a fake facebook account for Alexander the Great. Chose one of the Greek rebellions (Thessaly, Thebes, or Athens) and make ‘6 status updates’ for Alexander in response to your chosen rebellion. You have 10 minutes to complete this task

Topic/Event Modern Quote Ancient Quote Conclusion Phillip II & the Corinthian League Alexander & the Corinthian League Alexander & the Greek City States Alexander & the rebellions