First Macedonian War The First Macedonian War ( 214 – 205 BC ) was fought by Rome , allied ( after 211 BC ) with the Aetolian League and Attalus I of Pergamon , against Philip V of Macedon , contemporaneously with the Second Punic War ( 218 – 201 BC ) against Carthage . There were no decisive engagements , and the war ended in a stalemate . During the war , Macedon attempted to gain control over parts of Illyria and Greece , but without success . It is commonly thought that these skirmishes in the east prevented Macedon from aiding the Carthaginian general Hannibal in the war with Rome . The " Peace of Phoenice " , a treaty drawn up at Phoenice , in 205 BC , formally ended the war . Demetrius urges war against Rome . Rome ' s preoccupation with its war against Carthage provided an opportunity for Philip V of Macedon to attempt to extend his power westward . According to the ancient Greek historian Polybius , an important factor in Philip ' s decision to take advantage of this opportunity was the influence of Demetrius of Pharos . Demetrius had been , after the First Illyrian War in 229 BC , ruler of most of coastal Illyria . However , in 219 BC , during the Second Illyrian War he was defeated by the Romans and fled to the court of Philip . Involved in a war with the Aetolian s , Philip learned by messenger of the victory of Hannibal over the Romans , at Lake Trasimene in June 217 BC . Philip at first showed the letter only to Demetrius . Perhaps seeing a chance to recover his kingdom , Demetrius immediately advised the young king to make peace with the Aetolians , and turn his attentions toward Illyria and Italy . Polybius quotes Demetrius as saying : Philip was easily persuaded . Philip makes peace with Aetolia . Philip , at once began negotiations with the Aetolian s . At a conference on the coast near Naupactus , Philip met the Aetolian leaders , and a peace treaty was concluded . Polybius quotes the Aetolian Agelaus of Naupactus as having given the following speech in favor of peace : Philip builds a fleet . Philip spent the winter of 217 – 216 BC building a fleet of 100 warships and training men to row them , and according to Polybius , it was a practice that " hardly any Macedonian king had ever done before " . Macedon probably lacked the resources to build and maintain the kind of fleet necessary to match the Romans . Polybius says that Philip had no " hope of fighting the Romans at sea " , perhaps referring to a lack of experience and training . At any rate , Philip chose to build " lembi " . These were the small fast galleys used by the Illyrians . They had a single bank of oars and were able to carry 50 soldiers in addition to the rowers . With these , Philip could hope to avoid or evade the Roman fleet , preoccupied as he hoped it would be with Hannibal , and based , as it was , at Lilybaeum in western Sicily . Philip had in the meantime expanded his territories west along the Apsus and Genusus river valleys , right up to the borders of Illyria . Philip ' s plan was it seems , to first take the Illyrian coasts , conquer the area between the coasts and Macedon , and use the new land link to provide a rapid route for reinforcements across the narrow straits to Italy . At the beginning of summer , Philip and his fleet left Macedon , sailed through the Euripus Strait , between the island of Euboea and Boeotia on the Greek mainland , and then rounded Cape Malea , before dropping anchor off the Islands of Cephalenia and Leucas , to await word of the location of the Roman fleet . Informed that it was still at Lilybaeum , he sailed north to Apollonia in Illyria . However , as the Macedonian fleet neared the island of Sazan , Philip heard a report that some Roman quinqueremes had been seen headed for Apollonia . Convinced that the entire Roman fleet was sailing to apprehend him , Philip ordered an immediate return to Cephalenia . Polybius speaks of " panic " and " disorder " to describe the fleet ' s hasty retreat , and says that in fact the Romans had sent only a squadron of ten ships , and that because of " inconsiderate alarm " , Philip had missed his best chance to achieve his aims in Illyria , returning to Macedon , " without loss indeed , but with considerable dishonour " . Philip allies with Carthage . After hearing of Rome ' s disastrous defeat at the hands of Hannibal at Cannae in 216 BC , Philip sent ambassadors to Hannibal ' s camp in Italy to negotiate an alliance . There they concluded in the summer of 215 BC a treaty , the text of which is given by Polybius . In it they pledge in general terms , mutual support and defense and to be enemies to each other ' s enemies ( excepting current allies ) . Specifically they promise support against Rome , and that Hannibal shall have the right to make peace with Rome , but that any peace would include Philip and that Rome would be forced to give up control of Corcyra , Apollonia , Epidamnus , Pharos , Dimale , Parthini , and Atintania and " to restore to Demetrius of Pharos all those of his friends now in the dominion of Rome . " The treaty as set down by Polybius , makes no mention of an invasion of Italy by Philip , the debacle at Sazan perhaps having soured Philip on such a venture — something which in any case Hannibal may not have desired . On their way back to Macedon , Philip ' s emissaries along with emissaries from Hannibal were captured , by Publius Valerius Flaccus , commander of the Roman fleet patrolling the southern Apulian coast . A letter from Hannibal to Philip , and the terms of their agreement were discovered . Philip ' s alliance with Carthage caused immediate dismay in Rome , hard - pressed as they already were . An additional twenty - five warships were at once outfitted and sent to join Flaccus ' fleet of twenty - five warships already at Tarentum , with orders to guard the Italian Adriatic coast , and to try to determine Philip ' s intent and if necessary cross over to Macedonia , keeping Philip confined there . War breaks out in Illyria . In the late summer of 214 BC , Philip again attempted an Illyrian invasion by sea , with a fleet of 120 lembi . He captured Oricum which was lightly defended , and sailing up the Aous ( modern Vjosë ) river he besieged Apollonia . Meanwhile the Romans had moved the fleet from Tarentum to Brundisium to continue the watch on the movements of Philip and a legion had been sent in support , all under the command of the Roman propraetor Marcus Valerius Laevinus . Upon receiving word from Oricum of events in Illyria , Laevinus crossed over with his fleet and army . Landing at Oricum , Laevinus was able to retake the town with little fighting . In the account given by Livy , Laevinus , hearing that Apollonia was under siege , sent 2000 men under the command of Quintus Naevius Crista , to the mouth of the river . Avoiding Philip ' s army , Crista was able to enter the city by night unobserved . The following night , catching Philip ' s forces by surprise , he attacked and routed their camp . Philip , escaping to his ships in the river , made his way over the mountains and back to Macedonia , having burned his fleet and left many thousands of his men that had died or been taken prisoner , along with all of his armies ' possessions , behind . Laevinus and his fleet wintered at Oricum . Twice thwarted in attempts at invasion of Illyria by sea , and now constrained by Laevinus ' fleet in the Adriatic , Philip spent the next two years 213 – 212 BC making advances in Illyria by land . Keeping clear of the coast , he took the inland towns of Atintania , and Dimale , and subdued the Greek tribe of the Dassaretae and the Illyrian Parthini and at least the southern Ardiaei . He was finally able to gain access to the Adriatic by capturing Lissus and its seemingly impregnable citadel , after which the surrounding territories surrendered . Perhaps the capture of Lissus rekindled in Philip hopes of an Italian invasion . However the loss of his fleet meant that Philip would be dependent on Carthage for passage to and from Italy , making the prospect of invasion considerably less appealing . Rome seeks allies in Greece . Desiring to prevent Philip from aiding Carthage in Italy and elsewhere , Rome sought out land allies in Greece . Laevinus had begun exploring the possibility of an alliance with the Aetolian League , as early as 212 BC . The Aetolians , war weary , had made peace with Philip at Naupactus in 217 BC . However five years later the pendulum had swung in the other direction , the war faction was on the ascendency , and the Aetolians were once again ready to consider taking up arms against their traditional enemy of Macedon . In 211 BC an Aetolian assembly was convened for discussions with Rome . Laevinus pointed out the recent capture of Syracuse and Capua in the war against Carthage as evidence of Rome ' s rising fortunes , and offered to ally with them against the Macedonians . A treaty was signed . The Aetolians would conduct operations on land , the Romans at sea . Rome would keep any slaves and other booty taken and Aetolia would receive control of any territory acquired . Another provision of the treaty allowed for the inclusion of certain allies of the League : Elis , Sparta , Messenia and Attalus I of Pergamon , as well as two Roman clients , the Illyrians Pleuratus and Scerdilaidas . Campaign in Greece . Later that summer Laevinus seized the main town of Zacynthus , except for its citadel , and the Acarnania n town of Oeniadae and the island of Nasos which he handed over to the Aetolians . He then withdrew his fleet to Corcyra for the winter . Upon hearing of the Roman alliance with Aetolia , Philip ' s first action was to secure his northern borders . He conducted raids in Illyria at Oricum and Apollonia and seized the frontier town of Sintia in Dardania or perhaps Paionia . He marched rapidly south through Pelagonia , Lyncestis and Bottiaea and on to Tempe which he garrisoned with 4000 men . He turned north again into Thrace , attacking the Maedi and their chief city Iamphorynna before returning to Macedon . No sooner had Philip arrived there , when he received an urgent plea for help from his ally the Acarnanians . Scopas the Aetolian " strategos " ( general ) , had mobilized the Aetolian army and was preparing to invade Acarnania . Desperate and overmatched , but determined to resist , the Acarnanians sent their women , children and old men to seek refuge in Epirus , and the rest marched to the frontier , having sworn an oath to fight to the death , " invoking a terrible curse " upon any who were forsworn . Hearing of the Acarnanians ' grim determination , the Aetolians hesitated . Then learning of Philip ' s approach they finally abandoned their invasion . After which Philip retired to Pella for the winter . In the spring of 210 BC , Laevinus again sailed from Corcyra with his fleet , and with the Aetolians , captured Phocian Anticyra . Rome enslaved the inhabitants and Aetolia took possession of the town . Although there was some fear of Rome and concern with her methods , the coalition arrayed against Philip continued to grow . As allowed for by the treaty , Pergamon , Elis and Messenia , followed by Sparta , all agreed to join the alliance against Macedon . The Roman fleet together with the Pergamon fleet controlled the sea , and Macedon and her allies were threatened on land by the rest of the coalition . The Roman strategy of encumbering Philip with a war among Greeks in Greece was succeeding , so much so that when Laevinus went to Rome to take up his consulship , he was able to report that the legion deployed against Philip could be safely withdrawn . However the Eleans , Messenians and Spartans remained passive throughout 210 BC , and Philip continued to make advances . He invested and took Echinus , using extensive siegeworks , having beaten back an attempt to relieve the town by the Aetolian " strategos " Dorimachus and the Roman fleet , now commanded by the proconsul Publius Sulpicius Galba . Moving west Philip probably also took Phalara the port city of Lamia , in the Maliac Gulf . Sulpicius and Dorimachus took Aegina , an island in the Saronic Gulf , which the Aetolians sold to Attalus , the Pergamene king , for thirty talent s , and which he was to use as his base of operations against Macedon in the Aegean Sea . In the spring of 209 BC , Philip received requests for help from his ally the Achaean League in the Peloponnesus who were being attacked by Sparta and the Aetolians . He also heard that Attalus had been elected one of the two supreme commanders of the Aetolian League , and rumors that he intended to crossover the Aegean from Asia Minor . Philip marched south into Greece . At Lamia he was met by an Aetolian force , supported by Roman and Pergamene auxiliaries , under the command of Attalus ' colleague as " strategos " , the Aetolian Phyrrhias . Philip won two battles at Lamia , inflicting heavy casualties on Phyrrhias ' troops . The Aetolians and their allies were forced to retreat inside the city walls , where they remained , unwilling to give battle . Attempt at peace fails . From Lamia , Philip went to Phalara . There he met representatives from the neutral states of Egypt , Rhodes , Athens and Chios who were trying to end the war — they were trading states and the war was probably hurting trade . Livy says that they were concerned " not so much for the Aetolians , who were more warlike than the rest of the Greeks , as for the liberty of Greece , which would be seriously endangered if Philip and his kingdom took an active part in Greek politics . " With them was Amynandor of Athamania , representing the Aetolians . A truce of thirty days and a peace conference at Achaea were arranged . Philip marched to Chalcis in Euboea , which he garrisoned to block Attalus ' landing there , then continued on to Aegium for the conference . The conference was interrupted by a report that Attalus had arrived at Aegina , and the Roman fleet was at Naupactus . The Aetolian representatives , emboldened by these events , at once demanded that Philip return Pylos to the Messenians , Atintania to Rome and the Ardiaei to Scerdilaidas and Pleuratus . " Indignant " , Philip quit the negotiations telling the assembly that they " might bear him witness that whilst he was seeking a basis for peace , the other side were determined to find a pretext for war " . Hostilities resume . From Naupactus , Sulpicius sailed east to Corinth and Sicyon , conducting raids there . Philip , with his cavalry caught the Romans ashore and was able to drive them back to their ships , with the Romans returning to Naupactus . Philip then joined Cycliadas the Achaean general , near Dyme for a joint attack on the city of Elis , the main Aetolian base of operations against Achaea . However , Sulpicius had sailed into Cyllene and reinforced Elis with 4000 Romans . Leading a charge , Philip was thrown from his horse . Fighting on foot Philip became the object of a fierce battle , finally escaping on another horse . The next day Philip captured the stronghold of Phyricus , taking 4000 prisoners and 20 , 000 animals . Hearing news of Illyrian incursions in the north Philip abandoned Aetolia and returned to Demetrias in Thessaly . Meanwhile Sulpicius sailed round into the Aegean and joined Attalus on Aegina for the winter . In 208 BC the combined fleet of thirty - five Pergamene and twenty - five Roman ships failed to take Lemnos , but occupied and plundered the countryside of the island of Peparethos ( Skopelos ) , both Macedonian possessions . Attalus and Sulpicius then attended a meeting in Heraclea Trachinia of the Council of the Aetolians which included representatives from Egypt and Rhodes , who were continuing to try to arrange a peace . Learning of the conference and the presence of Attalus , Philip marched rapidly south in an attempt to break up the conference and catch the enemy leaders , but arrived too late . Surrounded by foes , Philip was forced to adopt a defensive policy . He distributed his commanders and forces and set up a system of beacon fires at various high places to communicate instantly any enemy movements . After leaving Heraclea , Attalus and Sulpicius sacked both Oreus , on the northern coast of Euboea and Opus , the chief city of eastern Locris . The spoils from Oreus had been reserved for Sulpicius , who returned there , while Attalus stayed to collect the spoils from Opus . However , with their forces divided , Philip , alerted by signal fire , attacked and took Opus . Attalus caught by surprise was barely able to escape to his ships . The war ends . Although Philip considered Attalus ' escape a bitter defeat , it proved to be the turning - point of the war . Attalus was forced to return to Pergamon , when he learned at Opus that , perhaps at the urging of Philip , Prusias I , king of Bithynia and related to Philip by marriage , was moving against Pergamon . Sulpicius returned to Aegina . Free from the pressure of the combined Roman and Pergamon fleets , Philip was able to resume the offensive against the Aetolians . He captured Thronium , followed by the towns Tithronium and Drymaea north of the Cephisus , controlling all of Epicnemidian Locris , and took back control of Oreus . The neutral trading powers were still trying to arrange a peace . At Elateia , Philip had met with the same would be peacemakers from Egypt and Rhodes , who had been at the meeting in Heraclea , and again in the spring of 207 BC , but to no avail . Representatives of Egypt , Rhodes , Byzantium , Chios , Mytilene and perhaps Athens also met again with the Aetolians that spring . The war was going Philip ' s way , but the Aetolians , although now abandoned by both Pergamon and Rome , were not yet ready to make peace on Philip ' s terms . However , after another season ' s fighting , they finally relented . In 206 BC , the Aetolians , without Rome ' s consent , sued for a separate peace on conditions imposed by Philip . The following spring the Romans sent the censor Publius Sempronius Tuditanus with 35 ships and 11 , 000 men to Dyrrachium in Illiria , where he incited the Parthini to revolt and laid siege to Dimale . However when Philip arrived Sempronius broke off the siege and withdrew inside the walls of Apollonia . Sempronius tried unsuccessfully to entice the Aetolians to break their peace with Philip . With no more allies in Greece , but having achieved their objective of preventing Philip from aiding Hannibal , the Romans were ready to make peace . A treaty was drawn up at Phoenice in 205 BC , the so - called " Peace of Phoenice " formally ended the First Macedonian War .