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ACHAEAN LEAGUE

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Originally appearing in Volume V01, Page 141 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

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ACHAEAN See also:

LEAGUE

LEAGUE , a See also:

CONFEDERATION (Fr. confederation, Lat. confoederatio, from foedus, a league, foederare, to form a league)

confederation of the See also:

ancient towns of See also:

ACHAEA

Achaea. See also:

STANDING

Standing isolated on their narrow strips of See also:

PLAIN (O. Fr. plain, from Lat. plenum)

plain, these towns were always exposed to the raids of pirates issuing from the recesses of the See also:

north See also:

COAST (from Lat. costa, a rib, side)

coast of the Corinthian Gulf. It was no doubt as a See also:

PROTECTION

protection against such dangers that the earliest league of twelve Achaean cities arose, though we are nowhere explicitly informed of its functions other than the See also:

COMMON

common See also:

WORSHIP (i.e. " worth-ship," O. Eng. weor8scipe)

worship of See also:

ZEUS

Zeus Amarius at Aegium and an occasional See also:

arbitration between See also:

Greek belligerents. Its importance See also:

GREW, NEHEMIAH (1641-1712)

grew in the 4th See also:

CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century, when we find it fighting in the Theban See also:

WARS

wars (368—362 B.C.), against See also:

Philip (338) and See also:

ANTIPATER (398?-319 B.C.)

Antipater (330). About 288 Antigonus Gonatas dissolved the league, which had furnished a useful See also:

BASE

base for pretenders against See also:

Cassander's regency; but by 280 four towns combined again, and before See also:

long the ten surviving cities'of Achaea had renewed their federation. Antigonus' preoccupation during the See also:

CELTIC

Celtic invasions, See also:

SPARTA (Gr. Eirapril or AaKe5atycav)

Sparta's prostration after the Chremonidean See also:

CAMPAIGNS

campaigns, the See also:

WEALTH

wealth amassed by Achaean adventurers abroad and the subsidies of See also:

EGYPT

Egypt, the standing foe of See also:

MACEDONIA

Macedonia, all enhanced the league's importance. Most of all did it profit by the statesmanship of See also:

ARATUS

Aratus (q.v.), who initiated its expansive policy, until in 228 it comprised See also:

ARCADIA

Arcadia, Argolis, See also:

Corinth and See also:

Aegina. Aratus probably also organized the new federal constitution, the See also:

CHARACTER (Gr. xapareri7p, from xap&crew, to scratch)

character of which, owing to the scanty and somewhat perplexing nature of our See also:

EVIDENCE (Lat. evidentia, evideri, to appear clearly)

evidence, we can only approximately determine. The league embraced an indefinite number of See also:

CITY (through Fr. cite, from Lat. civitas)

city-states which maintained their See also:

INTERNAL

internal See also:

independence practically undiminished, and through their several magistrates, assemblies and See also:

law-courts exercised all traditional See also:

POWERS, HIRAM (1805-1873)

powers of self-See also:

government. Only in matters of See also:

FOREIGN

foreign politics and See also:

war was their competence restricted. The central government, like that of the constituent cities, was of a democratic See also:

CAST (from the verb meaning " to throw "; the word is Scand. in origin, cf. Dan. kaste, and Swed. kasta; " cast " in Middle Eng. took the place of the A.S. weor pan, cf. Ger. werf en)

cast. The See also:

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

chief legislative powers resided in a popular See also:

ASSEMBLY, UNLAWFUL

assembly in which every member of the league over See also:

THIRTY

thirty years of See also:

AGE (Fr. age, through late Lat. aetaticum, from aetas)

age could speak and See also:

VOTE

vote.

This See also:

BODY

body met for three days in See also:

SPRING (from " to spring," " to leap or jump up," " burst out," O. Eng., springau, a common Teut. word, cf. Ger. springer, possibly allied to Gr. QnrFpxecOac, to move rapidly)

spring and autumn at Aegium to discuss the league's policy and elect the federal magistrates. Whatever the number of its attendant burgesses, each city counted but one on a See also:

DIVISION (from Lat. dividere, to break up into parts, separate)

division. Extraordinary assemblies could be convoked at any See also:

time or See also:

PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place on See also:

SPECIAL

special emergencies. A See also:

COUNCIL (Lat. concilium, from cum, together, and the root cal, to call)

council of 120 unpaid delegates, selected from the See also:

LOCAL

local See also:

COUNCILS

councils, served partly as a See also:

COMMITTEE (from commute, an Anglo-Fr. past participle of commettre, Lat. committere, to entrust; the modern Fr. equivalent comite is derived from the Eng.)

committee for preparing the assembly's See also:

PROGRAMME, or PROGRAM

programme, partly as an administrative See also:

BOARD (O. Eng. bord)

board which received embassies, arbitrated between contending cities and exercised penal See also:

jurisdiction over offenders against the constitution. But perhaps some of these duties concerned the dicastae and See also:

GEROUSIA (Gr. yepovo'ia, Doric yepwta)

gerousia, whose functions are nowhere described. The chief magistracy was the strategia (tenable every second See also:

YEAR

year), which combined with an unrestricted command in the See also:

field a large measure of See also:

CIVIL

civil authority. Besides being authorized to See also:

VETO (Lat. for " I forbid ")

veto motions, the See also:

STRATEGUS (oTparfyos)

strategus (See also:

general) had practically the See also:

SOLE (Solea)

sole See also:

POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power of introducing See also:

MEASURES

measures before the assembly. The ten elective demiurgi, who presided over this body, formed a See also:

KIND (O. E. ge-cynde, from the same root as is seen in " kin," supra)

kind of See also:

CABINET

cabinet, and perhaps acted as departmental chiefs. We also hear of an under-strategus, a secretary, a See also:

CAVALRY (Fr. cavalerie, Ger. Kavallerie or Reiterei, derived ultimately from late Lat. caballus, horse)

cavalry See also:

COMMANDER

commander and an See also:

ADMIRAL

admiral. All these higher See also:

OFFICERS

officers were unpaid. See also:

PHILOPOEMEN (253–184 B.C.)

Philopoemen (q.v.) transferred the seat of assembly from See also:

TOWN

town to town by rotation, and placed dependent communities on an equal footing with their former suzerains. The league prescribed See also:

UNIFORM

uniform See also:

LAWS

laws, See also:

STANDARDS

standards and coinage; it summoned contingents, imposed taxes and fined or coerced refractory members.

. The first federal wars were directed against Macedonia; in 266—263 the league fought in the Chremonidean league, in 243—241 against Antigonus Gonatas and See also:

AETOLIA

Aetolia, between 239 and 229 with Aetolia against See also:

DEMETRIUS

Demetrius. A greater danger arose (227—223) from the attacks of Cleomenes III. (q.v.). Owing to Aratus's irresolute generalship, the indolence of the See also:

rich burghers and, the inadequate See also:

PROVISION (Lat. provisio)

provision for levying troops and paying mercenaries, the league lost several battles and much of its territory; but rather than See also:

COMPROMISE (pronounced compromize; through Fr. from Lat. compromittere)

compromise with the Spartan See also:

GRACCHUS

Gracchus the assembly negotiated with Antigonus Doson, who recovered the lost districts but retained Corinth for himself (223—221). Similarly the See also:

ACHAEANS ('AXaioi, Lat. Achivi)

Achaeans could not check the incursions of Aetolian adventurers in 220—218, and when Philip V. came to the See also:

RESCUE (in Middle Eng. rescous, from O. Fr. recousse, Low Lat. rescussa, from reexcussa,reexcutere, to shake off again, re, again, ex, off, quatere, to shake)

rescue he made them tributary and annexed much of the Peloponnese. Under Philopoemen the league with a reorganized See also:

army routed the Aetolians (210) and Spartans (207, 201). After their benevolent See also:

NEUTRALITY

neutrality during the Macedonian war the See also:

ROMAN

Roman general, T. Quinctius See also:

FLAMININUS, TITUS QUINCTIUS (c. 228–174 B.C.)

Flamininus, restored all their lost possessions and sanctioned the See also:

INCORPORATION (from Lat. incorporare, to form into a body)

incorporation of Sparta and See also:

MESSENE

Messene (191), thus bringing the entire Peloponnese under Achaean See also:

CONTROL (Fr. contrdle, older form contre rolle, from Med. Lat. contra-rotulus, a counter roll or copy of a document used to check the original; there is no instance in English of the use of " control " in this, its literal, meaning)

control. The league even sent troops to See also:

PERGAMUM, or PERGAMTS (mod. Bergama)

Pergamum against See also:

ANTIOCHUS

Antiochus (190). The See also:

ANNEXATION (Lat. ad, to, and nexus, joining)

annexation of Aetolia and Zacynthus was forbidden by See also:

Rome. Moreover, Sparta and Messene always remained unwilling members. After Philopoemen's See also:

DEATH

death the aristocrats initiated a strongly See also:

philo-Roman policy, declared war against See also:

King See also:

PERSEUS

Perseus and denounced all sympathizers with Macedonia.

This agitation induced the See also:

Romans to deport See also:

I000

i000 prominent Achaeans, and, failing See also:

PROOF (in M. Eng. preove, proeve, preve, &°c., from O. Fr . prueve, proeve, &c., mod. preuve, Late. Lat. proba, probate, to prove, to test the goodness of anything, probus, good)

proof of See also:

TREASON (Fr. trahison, Lat. traditio)

treason against Rome, to detain them seventeen years. These hostages, when restored in 150, swelled the ranks of the proletariate opposition, whose leaders, to See also:

COVER (from the Fr. convert, from couvrir, to cover, Lat. cooperire)

cover their maladministration at See also:

home, precipitated a war by attacking Sparta in See also:

DEFIANCE

defiance of Rome. The federal troops were routed in central See also:

GREECE

Greece by Q. See also:

CAECILIUS

Caecilius See also:

METELLUS

Metellus Mc: eedonicus, and again near Corinth by L. See also:

MUMMIUS, LUCIUS (2nd century B.c.)

Mummius Achaicus (146). The Romans now dissolved the league (in effect, if not in name), and took measures to isolate the communities (see See also:

POLYBIUS (c. 204–122 B.C.)

POLYBIUS). See also:

AUGUSTUS (a name 1 derived from Lat. augeo, increase, i.e. venerable, majestic, Gr. Ee0avr6s)

Augustus instituted an Achaean See also:

synod comprising the dependent cities of Peloponnese and central Greece; this body sat at See also:

ARGOS

Argos and acted as See also:

GUARDIAN

guardian of Hellenic sentiment. The chief defect of the league See also:

lay in its lack of proper provision for securing efficient armies and See also:

REGULAR

regular See also:

PAYMENT (Fr. paiement, from payer, to pay; Lat. pacare, to appease, pax, peace)

payment of imposts, and for dealing with disaffected members. Moreover, owing to difficulties of travel, the assembly and magistracies were practically monopolized by the rich, who shaped the federal policy in their own See also:

INTEREST

interest. But their See also:

RULE

rule was mostly judicious, and when at last they lost control the ensuing See also:

mob-rule soon ruined the See also:

COUNTRY (from the Mid. Eng. contre or contrie, and O. Fr. cuntree; Late Lat. contrata, showing the derivation from contra, opposite, over against, thus the tract of land which fronts the sight, cf. Ger. Gegend, neighbourhood)

country. On the other See also:

hand, it is the See also:

GLORY (through the O. Fr. glorie, modern gloire, from Lat. gloria, cognate with Gr. KXebs, abets)

glory of the Achaean league to have combined city See also:

AUTONOMY (Gr. abr6s, self, and v6pos, law)

autonomy with an organized central See also:

ADMINISTRATION (Lat. administrare, to serve)

administration, and in this way to have postponed the entire destruction of Greek See also:

LIBERTY (Lat. libertas, from liber, free)

liberty for over a century.

End of Article: ACHAEAN LEAGUE

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