This next part of the series will focus on the reign of Artaxerxes III, who ruled Persia at the time of Philip's campaigns.
At the accession of Artaxerxes III Ochus in 358 BC, the Achaemenid Empire was plagued by internal discord and external pressure.
Artaxerxes had acceded following a period of internal strife that resulted in the assassination of many of his brothers and the Western Empire at least was in turmoil as large parts of Anatolia were in revolt and Egyptian and Greek armies had invaded the Levant (Egypt had been in revolt since the accession of Artaxerxes II in 405 BC, and a large number of Greeks, opposed to the royal intervention in Greek affairs, fought against the King as mercenaries). Similarly, the Athenians and Thebans supported the rebels and were able to defeat the loyal Satrapal garrisons of Western Anatolia. However, these were subsequently defeated due to Persian intervention in the Athenian social war of 357-5 BC, removing them from the war and allowing the Persians to defeat the rebels and conquer Rhodes, thereby regaining naval dominance of the Aegean.
However, a Persian attempt to reconquer Egypt was defeated and the succeeding military build-up in the Levant triggered a further revolt in Sidon, Cyprus and possibly Judah. The Kings cousin, Artashata, defeated a Cadusian army in the Zagros during this time reunifying the Eastern and Western portions of the Empire. This enabled Artaxerxes to launch an invasion that reconquered the Levant, Cyprus, and Egypt. It is probably in the context of this expedition that the first Persian-Macedonian War was fought. Persian involvement in the rise of Macedon on their doorstep is difficult to gauge. Whilst it is certain that Artaxerxes did send armies into Thrace, their response seems fairly limited, and it appears as though some form of alliance was formed based on vague mentions in the sources.
Join us next time for a look at the causes of the renewed war between the two empires.
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