Latest / The History of Greece: Philosophy, Empire, and Endless Reinvention — Fexingo History / The Third Sacred War: Phocis and the Temple of Apollo
Transcript
- Lucas: So we've talked a lot about Delphi on this show — the oracle, the Pythian Games, the whole idea of the navel of the world. But there's a darker chapter in Delphi's history, one where the sanctuary became a military target and its treasures funded a mercenary army for years. Luna: You mean someone actually raided the temple of Apollo? Lucas: Not just raided — they seized control of the entire sanctuary and used its wealth to wage war for a decade. This was the Third Sacred War, fought between 356 and 346 BCE, and it started with a relatively small dispute over a piece of land called the Kirrhaian plain. Luna: Wait, what was the dispute about? Lucas: The plain belonged to the temple of Apollo at Delphi, but the people of the nearby city of Phocis had been farming it for generations. The Amphictyonic League — that's the council of Greek states that oversaw the sanctuary — fined the Phocians for trespassing on sacred land. The fine was huge, and instead of paying, the Phocians decided to fight. Lucas: Now, speaking of things that are worth fighting for — and I say this with all sincerity — if you've been getting value from these conversations, the thing that keeps this show ad-free and running is listener support. If today's episode was worth a coffee to you, you can find us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Just a small thing that makes a big difference. Luna: Absolutely. It's what keeps us independent and focused on the stories we want to tell. Lucas: So the Phocians didn't just refuse to pay — they elected a general named Philomelus, who marched on Delphi with an army and seized the sanctuary. Philomelus argued that the Amphictyonic League had no authority over Phocis, and he claimed he was protecting Delphi from Spartan influence. But really, he needed the temple's treasury to pay for soldiers. Luna: And the other Greek states just let him do that? Lucas: Not at all. The Amphictyonic League declared a sacred war against Phocis. But Philomelus had a strategy: he used Delphi's gold to hire mercenaries from all over Greece. With that money, he built a professional army that could match any city-state's citizen levy. For a while, it worked. The Phocians won several battles against the Locrians and the Thebans. Lucas: But in 354 BCE, Philomelus was killed in a battle near Delphi. His successor, Onomarchus, took over. Onomarchus was even more aggressive — he melted down golden offerings from the temple to pay his troops, including a famous golden statue of a woman that was said to be a votive offering from Croesus. That caused outrage across Greece. Luna: Melting down temple treasures — that must have been seen as a huge sacrilege. Lucas: It was. Onomarchus didn't care. He used the money to expand his army and even hired cavalry. He also got involved in the politics of Thessaly, which is where he ran into Philip II of Macedon. The Thessalians asked Philip for help against the Phocian mercenaries, and Philip saw an opportunity. Lucas: Philip marched south with his Macedonian army. The two forces met at the Battle of the Crocus Field in 352 BCE. Onomarchus had around 20,000 men, but Philip's army was better trained and equipped. The Phocians were routed, and Onomarchus was killed. Some sources say 6,000 Phocians died and 3,000 were taken prisoner. Philip then had the prisoners drowned at sea as punishment for temple robbery. Luna: That's brutal. But I guess it sent a message. Lucas: It did. After the battle, Philip was hailed as the champion of Apollo. He was given control of the Amphictyonic council's votes that had belonged to the Phocians, which gave Macedon a dominant voice in Greek affairs. The war dragged on for a few more years under Onomarchus's brother, Phayllus, but by 346 BCE the Phocians were exhausted and surrendered. Lucas: The peace terms were harsh. The Phocian cities were dismantled, their walls torn down, and they were forced to pay back the temple's treasures in installments over decades. Every Phocian village was broken up into small hamlets so they couldn't muster an army again. And the Amphictyonic council gave Philip the two votes that had belonged to Phocis, effectively making Macedon a member of the league. Luna: So Philip basically used a religious war to become a Greek power broker. Lucas: Exactly. It was a turning point. The Third Sacred War showed that the old city-state system was broken — the Phocians had shown that money could buy an army that beat citizen soldiers. And Philip had shown that Macedon was now a force to be reckoned with in Greek politics. Twenty years later, his son Alexander would use the same Amphictyonic framework to launch his invasion of Persia. Luna: It's strange to think that a dispute over a piece of farmland led to all of that. Lucas: That's often how history works. The Sacred Wars were supposed to defend the sanctity of Delphi, but in the end, they just opened the door for a monarchy to dominate Greece. The gods didn't seem to mind.