Aetolian League
The
Aetolian League was a confederation in
ancient Greece centering on the cities of
Aetolia in central Greece. The league was established in
370 BC in opposition to
Macedon and the
Achaean League. It occupied
Delphi from
290 BC and gained territory steadily until, by the end of the
3rd century BC, it controlled the whole of central Greece outside
Attica. At its height, the league's territory included
Locris,
Malis,
Dolopes, part of
Thessaly,
Phocis, and
Acarnania.
The Aetolians were not highly regarded by other Greeks, who considered them as being almost semi-barbaric. However, their league had a complex political and administrative structure, and their armies were easily a match for the other Greek powers. The league had a federal structure consisting of a federal council in which the level of representation was proportional to the size of a community's contribution to the league's army, a popular assembly of all citizens which met twice a year, and an inner council equivalent to a federal government. It could raise armies and conduct foreign policy on a common basis. It also implemented economic standardisation, levying taxes, using a common currency and adopting a uniform system of weights and measures.
The league was the first Greek ally of the
Roman Republic, siding with the Romans during the
First Macedonian War, and helping to defeat
Philip V of Macedon at the
Battle of Cynoscephalae in
197 BC, during the
Second Macedonian War. However, it grew increasingly hostile to Roman involvement in Greek affairs and only a few years later sided with
Antiochus III, the anti-Roman king of
Syria. The defeat of Antiochus in
189 BC robbed the league of its principal foreign ally and made it inviable to stand alone in continued opposition to Rome. The league was forced to sign a peace treaty with Rome that made it a subject ally of the republic. Although it continued to exist in name, the power of the league was broken by the treaty and it never again constituted a significant political or military force.
*Krzysztof Kęciek "Kynoskefalaj 197 p.n.e" Serie Historic Battles Published in Warsaw by Bellona in 2002
