Of Philosophers and Kings:: Concerning Philip II of Macedon’s Alleged “Debt” to Plato
Journal: TeesRep (Teesside University)
Year: 2016

A fragment of Carystius' Historical Notes, preserved by Athenaeus in Book XI of the Deipnosophistae, reports that Phillip II owed his kingship to Plato because the latter had sent an emissary to Perdiccas III of Macedon, Phillip’s brother and the king at that time, one Euphraeus of Oreus, who persuaded him to put Philip in charge of a territory of Macedon. This placed him in a prime position to ascend to the throne when Perdiccas was killed by the Illyrians in 359 BC and, by extension, made it p