ABSTRACT
The kingdom of Macedonia in 359 Macedonia, lying to the north of Thessaly, had hitherto played only a secondary part in the affairs of the Aegean world. From 359 onwards the dominant factor in the history of Athens is her conflict, at first indirect then increasingly overt, with the ruler of a barbarian kingdom lying on the borders of the Hellenic world: Philip of Macedonia. During the Persian wars, Macedonia was subjugated by the Great King, but it was Alexander I of Macedonia who, after Salamis, conveyed Mar-donios' proposals to Athens. Master of Macedonia, Philip was to set himself a twofold aim: to strengthen the authority of the throne in his own country, and to make Macedon the arbiter of the Greek world. The Congress of Corinth ratified a general peace and led to the conclusion of a treaty of alliance of which Philip did not actually form part, but whose supreme leader he became.
