Third Sacred War The Third Sacred War ( 356 BC – 346 BC ) was fought between the forces of the Delphic Amphictyonic League , principally represented by Thebes , and latterly by Philip II of Macedon , and the Phocians . The war was caused by a large fine imposed in 357 BC on the Phocians by the Amphictyonic League ( dominated at that moment by Thebes ) , for the offense of cultivating sacred land ; refusing to pay , the Phocians instead seized the Temple of Apollo in Delphi , and used the accumulated treasures to fund large mercenary armies . Thus , although the Phocians suffered several major defeats , they were able to continue the war for many years , until eventually all parties were nearing exhaustion . Philip II used the distraction of the other states to increase his power in northern Greece , in the process becoming ruler of Thessaly . In the end , Philip ' s growing power , and the exhaustion of the other states , allowed him to impose a peaceful settlement of the war , marking a major step in the rise of Macedon to pre - eminence in Ancient Greece . Sources and Chronology . The ancient sources for the Third Sacred War are scant , and generally lacking in firm chronological information . The main source for the period is Diodorus Siculus ' s " Bibliotheca historica " , written in the 1st century BC , which is therefore very much a secondary source . Diodorus is often derided by modern historians for his style and inaccuracies , but he preserves many details of the ancient period found nowhere else . Diodorus worked primarily by epitomizing the works of other historians , omitting many details where they did not suit his purpose , which was to illustrate moral lessons from history ; his account of the Third Sacred War therefore contains many gaps . Beyond Diodorus , further details of the Sacred War can be found in the orations of Athenian statesmen , primarily Demosthenes and Aeschines , which have survived intact . Since these speeches were never intended to be historical material , they must be treated with circumspection ; Demosthenes and Aeschines have been described as " a couple of liars , neither of whom can be trusted to have told the truth in any matter in which it was remotely in his interest to lie " . Nevertheless , their allusions in speeches to contemporary or past events indicate some of the gaps in Diodorus ' s account , and help with the arrangement of a chronology . The accounts of Diodorus , Demosthenes and Aeschines can be further supplemented by fragments of otherwise lost histories ( such as that by Theopompus ) and by contemporary epigraphic sources . Modern historians ' dates for the war have been hotly debated , with no clear consensus . It is generally accepted that the war lasted 10 years , and ended in summer 346 BC ( one of the few firm dates ) , which yields a date of 356 BC for the beginning of the war , with Philomelos ' s seizure of Delphi . Diodorus ' s chronology for the sacred war is very confused — he dates the start and end of the war a year too late , variously says the war lasted 9 , 10 or 11 years , and included the siege of Methone twice under different dates — and his dates cannot therefore be relied upon . After Philomelos ' s defeat at Neon , the Thebans thought it safe to send the general Pammenes to Asia with 5000 hoplites ; Pammenes probably met with Philip at Maroneia in 355 BC , presumably on his outward journey . Buckler , the only historian to produce a systematic study of the sacred war , therefore places Neon in 355 BC , and suggests after the meeting with Pammenes , Philip went to begin the siege of Methone . Other historians have placed Neon in 354 BC , because Diodorus says that the battle took place while Philip besieged Methone which Diodorus ( at one point ) places in 354 BC . Disregarding the dates , most historians agree upon the same sequence of events for the first phases of the Sacred War . The principal question is therefore when that sequence started . Thus , Buckler ( as well as Beloch and Cloche ) dates Neon to 355 BC , Methone to 355 – 354 BC , Philip ' s first Thessalian campaign to 354 BC , and his second to 353 BC . Conversely , Cawkwell , Sealey , Hammond and others lower all these dates by one year , beginning with Neon in 354 BC . Background . The war was ostensibly caused by the refusal of the Phocian Confederation to pay a fine imposed on them in 357 BC by the Amphictyonic League , a pan - Greek religious organisation which governed the most sacred site in Ancient Greece , the Temple of Apollo at Delphi . The fine was occasioned by the Phocians ' s illegal cultivation of sacred land on the Kirrha ean plain , which they did not deny ; the fine was , however , far beyond the Phocians ' ability to pay . Under normal circumstance , refusal to pay the fine would have made the Phocians religious ( and therefore political ) outcasts in Greece , and liable to have a sacred war declared against them . Behind the religious element , there probably lay a display of " realpolitik " in bringing charges against the Phocians , instigated by the Thebans . The Phocians had declined to send troops on the Mantinea campaign of 362 BC , despite Theban requests , and this appears to have caused lasting enmity in Thebes . By 357 BC , with the Athenians embroiled in the Social War , and Alexander of Pherae ( an erstwhile ally of the Phocians ) dead , the Thebans deemed that the chance to punish Phocis had come . The Amphictyonic League was composed of 12 Greek tribes , primarily of central Greece ( the Oetaea ns , Boeotians , Dolopes , Phthian Achaeans , Locrians , Magnesians , Malia ns , Perrhaebia ns , Phocians , Pythians of Delphi and Thessalians ) , plus the Dorians ( including Sparta ) and the Ionians ( including Athens ) , with each tribe having two votes in the council of the league . Thebes had effectively become the ' protector ' of the league in 360 BC , after the civil war had restarted in Thessaly ; the Thessalians having previously been the dominant power in the league . Thus , at this time , Thebes controlled a majority of the votes in the council , and at the autumn meeting in 357 BC , the Thebans were able to have both the Phocians ( for the cultivation of the sacred land ) and the Spartans ( for occupying Thebes some 25 years previously ) denounced and fined . Since the fines for both parties were " unjustifiably harsh " , the Thebans probably expected neither party to pay , and thus to be able to declare a sacred war on either . There seems to have been some sympathy in Greece for the Phocians , since other states could see that " the Thebans . . . had used the Amphictyony to pursue petty and destructive vendettas " . The Phocians held a special conference to decide what action to take . Philomelos , a citizen of Ledon , advocated a pre - emptive policy of seizing Delphi ( which was situated within the boundaries of Phocis ) , and asserting the ancient claim of Phocis to the presidency of the Amphictyonic League . In this way , the Phocians could annul the judgment against themselves . The Phocians voted in favour of his proposal , and Philomelos was appointed " strategos autokrator " ( general with independent powers ) by the confederacy , with his chief supporter Onomarchos also elected as " strategos " . Philomelos travelled to Sparta to discuss his proposals with the Spartan king Archidamos III . Archidamos expressed his support , hoping that the Spartan fine would also be annulled , and gave Philomelos 15 talents to raise troops with . Seizure of Delphi . On his return to Phocis , Philomelos began assembling a mercenary army using the 15 talents from Archidamos , and also raised a force of 1000 peltasts from amongst the Phocian citizenry . In approximately July 356 BC , Philomelos marched on Delphi , just before the end of the period in which the Phocians had been required to pay their fine . He easily captured the city of Delphi , along with the sanctuary of Apollo . Philomelos captured the nobles of the Thrakidai family , who had probably been involved in imposing the fine on Phocis , and killed them , seizing their wealth to add to his treasury . He promised the other Delphians that he would not harm them , although he had initially contemplated enslaving the whole city . Ozolian Locrian expedition to Delphi . The news of Philomelos ' s move against Delphi resulted in a relief expedition being mounted by the Ozalian Locrians , probably mainly from Amphissa . Philomelos ' s army met the Locrians in open battle on a small plain between the city of Delphi and the sanctuary , and routed them with heavy losses . Some prisoners were taken , and Philomelos had them thrown from the cliffs that tower over the sanctuary ( the Phaidriadai rocks ) . This was the traditional punishment for sacrilege against Apollo ' s temple , and through the means of this atrocity , Philomelos was asserting the Phocian claim to the presidency of the sanctuary . Buckler observes that " in his first acts , Philomelos set a brutal stamp on the war " . Fortification of Delphi . After defeating the Locrians , Philomelos continued to strengthen his position in Delphi . He destroyed the stones which recorded the verdict against the Phocians , and abolished the government of the city , installing in its place a group of pro - Phocian Delphians , who had been in exile in Athens . Philomelos ordered the sanctuary be fortified on the western side ( natural features defended the other approaches ) , and a large limestone wall was constructed . He then demanded that the priestess of Apollo ( the Pythia ) provide him with an oracle ; she replied that he " could do whatever he wanted " . Philomelos called that an oracle , and had it inscribed in the sanctuary , as was customary . This pseudo - oracle provided Philomelos with supposed divine justification from Apollo for his actions . He next sent embassies to all Greek states , asserting the Phocian claim to Delphi , and promising not to touch the treasury of Apollo ; Buckler suggests that he did not expect the Greeks to acquiesce to his actions , but hoped to draw support away from the Amphictyons . The Spartans , as expected , endorsed Philomelos ' s actions , since their fine was now erased , whilst Athens also expressed support , following their general anti - Theban policies . Declaration of Sacred War . However , Philomelos ' s embassies elsewhere met with failure . The Locrians demanded that the Amphictyons avenge them and Apollo , and the Thebans sent embassies to the other council members suggesting that a sacred war should be declared against Phocis . This was assented to by most Greek states , including the Amphictyonic council members ( minus Sparta and Athens ) , and those well - disposed to Thebes ; furthermore , otherwise uninvolved states declared support for the Amphictyonic for reasons of piety . The Amphictyons seem to have decided that the year was too advanced to begin campaigning , and so agreed to launch military action the following year . They may have hoped that in the meantime , their sacrilegious behaviour would cause the Phocians to reconsider their position . Start of the War ( c . 355 BC ) . Following the declaration of war against Phocis , Philomelos decided he would need to substantially increase the size of his army . Rather than levy the Phocian citizen body , Philomelos decided to hire more mercenaries ; the only way he could afford to do this was by plundering the dedications in the treasury of Apollo . That the treasury contained much wealth , from years of accumulated donations , is well - established ; it is estimated that the Phocians spent some 10 , 000 talents of Apollo ' s treasure during the war . In order to overcome the reluctance of mercenaries to fight for a sacrilegious cause , Philomelos increased the rate of pay by half , which allowed him to recruit a force of 10 , 000 troops over the winter , for the forthcoming war . Conflict in Epicnemidian Locris and Phocis ( c . 355 BC ) . The following spring , possibly upon hearing news that the Boeotians were ready to march against Phocis , Philomelos took the initiative and marched into Epicnemidian Locris . Since the Phocian army would be outnumbered by the whole Amphictyonic levy , it is probable that he sought to defeat his enemies one by one , starting with the Locrians . If he could defeat the Locrians , then he was in a position to occupy the narrow pass of Thermopylae and block the union of the Thessalian and Boeotian armies , the main Amphictyonic contingents . Philomelos ' s army thus crossed into Locris , probably using the Fontana pass from Triteis to Naryx , or possibly the Kleisoura pass from Tithronion to the same general area of Locris . The Locrians sent a force of cavalry to oppose him , which the Phocians easily defeated . However , this battle gave the Thessalians time to pass through Thermopylae and arrive in Locris . Philomelos immediately attacked the Thessalians , and defeated them near the town of Argolas , whose location is not definitively known . Buckler suggests , on the basis of topographical considerations , that the modern village of Mendenitsa must be ancient Argolas . Philomelos then laid siege to Argolas , but failed to capture it , and instead pillaged as much Locrian territory as possible . The Boeotian army , under the command of Pammenes , then arrived on the scene , and rather than oppose them , Philomelos backed off , allowing the Boeotians to link up with the Locrians and Thessalians . Philomelos had thus failed in his strategy of dealing with the Amphictyons separately , and he now faced an army at least equal in size to his own . He therefore decided to retreat before the Amphictyons could bring him to battle , and probably using the Kleisoura pass , he returned with his army to Phocis . Battle of Neon . In response to Philomelos ' s retreat , Pammenes ordered the Amphictyonic force to cross into Phocis as well , probably by the Fontana pass , in order to prevent Philomelos marching on Boeotia . The two armies converged on Tithorea ( whose acropolis , Neon , gives the battle its name ) , where the Amphictyons brought the Phocians to battle . Details of the battle are scant , but the Amphictyons defeated the Phocians , and then pursued the survivors up the slopes of Mount Parnassos , slaying many . Philomelos was injured , and rather than risk capture , threw himself off the mountain , falling to his death . Onomarchos , who was second in command , managed to salvage the remainder of the army , and retreated to Delphi , whilst Pammenes retired to Thebes with the Boeotian army . Second phase ( c . 354 – 353 BC ) . The Amphictyons seem to have concluded that their victory at Neon had effectively ended the war , and the Phocians would sue for peace . Otherwise , it is difficult to understand why Pammenes did not march on Delphi , or even sack the undefended Phocian cities in the Kephisos valley . In failing to follow up their victory , the Amphictyons wasted the best opportunity they had during the course of the war to end it . The Thebans seem to have been so sure that the war was ended that they agreed to send 5 , 000 hoplites under Pammenes to help the rebellion of the Persian satrap Artabazos , shortly after the Battle of Neon . The Thebans needed the money Artabazos offered them , and although they had generally been on good terms with the Persian king , they obviously felt the offer was too good to refuse . It is likely the troops were dispatched before the Phocian decision to fight on became clear , unless the Thebans thought that their remaining troops were a match for any army the Phocians could field . This was to prove a serious mistake for the Thebans , and the Amphictyonic cause in general . Rather than contemplate surrender after the retreat from Neon , Onomarchos had rallied the Phocians , and insisted that they should continue the war . A meeting of the Phocian Confederation was held to discuss the future course of action , to which their Athenian and Spartan allies were invited . If they surrendered , the Phocians would face additional fines for their sacrilege , and for plundering the treasury ; however , to fight on meant perpetrating still further sacrilege , and effectively committed the Phocians to winning a total victory against the Amphictyons . Whilst some were inclined towards peace , the majority were swayed by Onomarchos ' s orations and policies , quite possibly backed up by the threat of force from the mercenary army , and voted to continue the war . Buckler highlights the particular importance of the Phocian mercenary force on the decisions made by ( or for ) the Phocian Confedearation during the course of the war , and also the peculiar consequences it had for the Phocians : " The primary loyalty of that army would go to its commander and paymaster , not to the Phocian Confederacy . In effect , continued war forced the Phocians to put their faith in the hands of a man who could act regardless of their wishes but the responsibility for whose acts would be theirs . " His position now secure , Onomarchos had his chief opponents arrested and executed , and confiscated their property to add to his war - chest . He then set about raising a new army , doubling the size of Philomelos ' s force , until he had 20 , 000 men and 500 cavalry at his disposal . Raising such a large force required extensive depredations of Apollo ' s wealth ; bronze and iron dedications were melted down and recast as weapons , whilst gold and silver offerings were melted down and used to make coinage . Although raising such a large army would have taken a considerable time , Onomarchos had the whole winter after Neon in which to do so . First conflict in Thessaly ( c . 354 BC ) . The Sacred War appears to have laid way for renewed conflict within Thessaly . The Thessalian Confederation were in general staunch supporters of the Amphictyonic League , and had an ancient hatred of the Phocians . Conversely , the - city state of Pherae had allied itself with the Phocians . In either 354 or 353 BC the ruling clan of the city of Larissa appealed to Philip II of Macedon to help them defeat Pherae . Philip thus brought an army into Thessaly , probably with the intention of attacking Pherae . Under the terms of their alliance , Lycophron of Pherae requested aid from the Phocians , and Onormarchos dispatched his brother , Phallyos with 7 , 000 men ; however , Philip repulsed this force before it could join up with the Pheraeans . Onomarchos then abandoned the siege he was currently prosecuting , and brought his whole force into Thessaly to attack Philip . It is possible that Onomarchos hoped to conquer Thessaly in the process , which would both leave the Thebans isolated ( Locris and Doris having already fallen to the Phocians ) , and give the Phocians a majority in the Amphictyonic council , thus enabling them to have the war declared over . Onomarchos probably brought with him 20 , 000 infantry , 500 cavalry , and a large number of catapults , and outnumbered Philip ' s army . The exact details of the campaign that followed are unclear , but Onomarchos seems to have inflicted two defeats on Philip , with many Macedonians killed in the process . Polyaenus suggests that the first of Onomarchos ' s victories was aided by the use of the catapults to throw stones into the Macedonian phalanx , as they climbed a slope to attack the Phocians . After these defeats , Philip retreated to Macedon for the winter . He is said to have commented that he " did not run away but , like a ram , I pulled back to butt again harder " . Second conflict in Thessaly ( c . 353 BC ) . Philip returned to Thessaly the next summer ( either 353 or 352 BC , depending on the chronology followed ) , having gathered a new army in Macedon . Philip formally requested that the Thessalians join him in the war against the Phocians ; the Thessalians , even if underwhelmed by Philip ' s performance the previous year , realistically had little choice if they wanted to avoid being conquered by Onomarchos ' s army . Philip now mustered all the Thessalian opponents of Pherae that he could , and according to Diodorus , his final army numbered 20 , 000 infantry and 3 , 000 cavalry . Pagasae . At some point during his campaigns in Thessaly , Philip captured the strategic port of Pagasae , which was in effect the port of Pherae . It is unclear whether this was during the first or second campaign ; both Buckler and Cawkwell suggest that it took place in the second campaign , before the Battle of Crocus Field . By taking Pagasae , it is possible that Philip prevented Pherae from being reinforced by sea during his second campaign . Buckler suggests that Philip had learnt his lesson from the previous campaign , and intended to cut Pherae off from outside help before attacking it . Battle of Crocus Field . Meanwhile , Onomarchus returned to Thessaly to try to preserve the Phocian ascendancy there , with approximately the same force as during the previous year . Furthermore , the Athenians dispatched Chares to help their Phocian allies , seeing the opportunity to strike a decisive blow against Philip . Subsequent events are unclear , but a battle was fought between the Macedonians and the Phocians , probably as Philip tried to prevent the Phocians uniting forces with the Pheraeans , and crucially , before the Athenians had arrived . According to Diodorus , the two armies met on a large plain near the sea , probably in the vicinity of Pagasae . Philip sent his men into battle wearing crown of laurel , the symbol of the Apollo ; " as if he was the avenger . . . of sacrilege , and he proceeded to battle under the leadership , as it were , of the god " . In the ensuing battle , the bloodiest recorded in ancient Greek history , Philip won a decisive victory against the Phocians . In total , 6 , 000 Phocian troops were killed including Onormarchos , and another 3000 taken prisoner . Onomarchos was either hanged or crucified and the other prisoners drowned , as ritual demanded for temple - robbers . These punishments were designed to deny the defeated an honourable burial ; Philip thus continued to present himself as the pious avenger of the sacrilege committed by the Phocians . Re - organisation of Thessaly . It was probably in the aftermath of his victory ( if not before ) that the Thessalians appointed Philip " Archon " of Thessaly . This was an appointment for life , and gave Philip control over all the revenues of the Thessalian Confederation , and furthermore made Philip leader of the united Thesslian army . Philip was now able to settle Thessaly at his leisure . He first probably finished the siege of Pagasae , to deny the Athenians a landing place in Thessaly . Pagasae was not part of the Thessalian Confederation , and Philip therefore took it as his own , and garrisoned it . The fall of Pagasae now left Pherae totally isolated . Lycophron , rather than suffer the fate of Onomarchos , struck a bargain with Philip , and in return for handing Pherae over to Philip , he was allowed , along with 2000 of his mercenaries , to go to Phocis . Philip now worked to unite the traditionally fractious cities of Thessaly under his rule . He took direct control of several cities in western Thessaly , exiling the dissidents , and in one case refounding the city with a Macedonian population ; he tightened his control of Perrhaebia , and invaded Magnesia , also taking it as his own and garrisoning it ; " when finished , he was lord of Thessaly . " Thermopylae . Once satisfied with his reorganisation of Thessaly , Philip marched south to the pass of Thermopylae , the gateway to central Greece . He probably intended to follow up his victory over the Phocians by invading Phocis itself , a prospect which greatly alarmed the Athenians , since once he was passed Thermopylae , he could also march on Athens . The Athenians therefore dispatched a force to Thermopylae and occupied the pass ; there is some debate as to whether other contingents may have joined the Athenians at Thermopylae . The Athenians were certainly there , since the Athenian orator Demosthenes celebrated the defense of the pass in one of his speeches . Cawkwell suggests that the Athenian force was the one that Diodorus says was dispatched under Nausicles consisting of 5 , 000 infantry and 400 cavalry , and that they were joined by the remnants of the Phocians and the Pheraean mercenaries . However , Buckler argues that Diodorus never mentions Thermopylae , and the force under Nausicles was sent to help the Phocians the following year ; instead , he believes that another Athenian force held the pass unassisted . Although it might have proved possible to force the pass , Philip did not attempt to do so , preferring not to risk a defeat after his great successes in Thessaly . Third phase ( c . 352 – 346 BC ) . Meanwhile , the Phocians regrouped under Onomarchos ' s brother , Phallyos . After the huge Phocian defeats at Neon and Crocus Field , Phallyos had to resort to doubling the pay for mercenaries , in order to attract enough to replenish his army . Despite their defeats however , the majority of the Phocians were still in favour of continuing the war . Over the winter of that year , Phallyos engaged in diplomatic efforts to gather more support from Phocis ' s allies , and succeeding in widening the theatre of conflict in the next campaigning season . Uniquely in Greek history , the Phocians were able to absorb huge losses in manpower , thanks to their pillaging of Temple of Apollo , a factor which was to contribute to the war dragging on indecisively until 346 BC . Fourth Boeotian campaign in Phocis ( 347 BC ) . Philip had not involved himself in the Sacred War since his victory at the Crocus Field in 352 BC . In the meantime , it had become clear that the Sacred War could only be ended by outside intervention . The Phocians had occupied several Boeotian cities , but were running out of treasure to pay their mercenaries ; conversely , the Thebans were unable to act effectively against the Phocians . The Phocian general Phalaikos was removed from his command in 347 BC , and three new generals appointed , who successfully attacked Boeotia again . The Thebans appealed to Philip for aid , and he sent a small force to their assistance . Philip sent force enough to honour his alliance with Thebes , but not enough to end the war — he desired the glory of ending the war personally , in the manner of his choosing , and on his terms . Settlement of the Sacred War . Preliminaries . Athens and Macedon had been at war since 356 BC , after Philip ' s capture of the Athenian colonies of Pydna and Potidea . Philip had then been drawn into the Sacred war , on behalf of the Thessalians , as described above . Since Athens was also a combatant in the Sacred war , the war between Athens and Macedon being inextricably linked with the progress of the Sacred War . In 352 BC , Philip ' s erstwhile ally , the Chalkidian League ( led by Olynthos ) , alarmed by Philip ' s growing power , sought to ally themselves with Athens , in clear breach of their alliance with Philip . In response , Philip attacked Chalkidiki in 349 BC , and by 348 BC , had completely destroyed the Chalkidian League , razing Olynthos in the process . The prominent Athenian politician Philocrates had suggested offering Philip peace in 348 BC , during the Olynthian war . The war between Athens and Philip thus continued through 347 BC , as did the Sacred War . In early 346 BC , Philip let it be known that he intended to march south with the Thessalians , though not where or why . The Phocians thus made plans to defend Thermopylae , and requested assistance from the Spartans and the Athenians , probably around 14 February . The Spartans dispatched Archidamus III with 1 , 000 hoplites , and the Athenians ordered everyone eligible for military service under the age of 40 to be sent to the Phocians ' aid . However , between the Phocians ' appeal and the end of the month , all plans were upset by the return of Phalaikos to power in Phocis ; the Athenians and the Spartans were subsequently told that they would not be permitted to defend Thermopylae . It is not clear from the ancient sources why Phalaikos was returned to power , nor why he adopted this dramatic change of policy . Cawkwell suggests , based on remarks of Aeschines , that the Phocian army restored Phalaikos because they had not been properly paid , and further that Phalaikos , realizing that the army could not be paid and that the Phocians could no longer hope to win the war , decided to try and negotiate a peace settlement with Philip . Peace between Macedon and Athens . When the Athenians received this news , they rapidly changed policy . If Thermopylae could no longer be defended , then Athenian security could no longer be guaranteed . By the end of February , the Athenians had dispatched an embassy , including Philocrates , Demosthenes and Aeschines , to Philip to discuss peace between Athens and Macedon . The embassy had two audiences with Philip , in which each side presented their proposals for the terms of the peace settlement . The embassy then returned to Athens to present the proposed terms to the Athenian Assembly , along with a Macedonian embassy to Athens , empowered by Philip to finalize an agreement . On 23 April , the Athenians swore to the terms of the treaty in the presence of the Macedonian ambassadors . Embassies to Philip . After agreeing to the peace terms with Macedonian ambassadors in April , the Athenians dispatched a second embassy to Macedon , to extract the peace oaths from Philip ; this embassy travelled to Pella at a relaxed pace , knowing that Philip was away on campaign against the Thracian king Kersebleptes . When they arrived , the Athenians ( again including Demosthenes and Aeschines ) were rather surprised to find embassies from all the principle combatants in the Sacred War were also present , in order to discuss a settlement to the war . When Philip returned from Thrace he received both the Athenian and other embassies . The Thebans and Thessalians requested that he take the leadership of Greece , and punish Phocis ; conversely , the Phocians , supported by the Spartans and the Athenian delegations , pleaded with Philip not to attack Phocis . Philip , however , delayed making any decisions ; " [ he ] sought by every means not to reveal how he intended to settle things ; both sides were privately encouraged to hope that he would do as they wanted , but both were bidden not to prepare for war ; a peacefully arranged concordat was at hand " ; he also delayed taking the oaths to the Peace of Philocrates . Military preparations were ongoing in Pella during this period , but Philip told the ambassadors that they were for a campaign against Halus , a small Thessalian city which held out against him . He departed for Halus before making any pronouncements , compelling the Athenian embassy to travel with him ; only when they reached Pherae did Philip finally take the oaths , enabling the Athenian ambassadors to return home . Occupation of Thermopylae . It was in the aftermath of finally ratifying the Peace that Philip applied the " coup de grace " . He had persuaded the Athenians and other Greeks that he and his army was heading for Halus , but it seems certain that he also sent other units straight to Thermopylae . Thus , when he swore oaths to the Athenian assembly in Pherae , his troops were already very close to Thermopylae ; by the time the Athenian ambassadors arrived home ( 9 July ) , Philip was already in possession of the pass . By delaying the oaths , and making what was effectively a feint against Halus , he prevented the Athenians from seeing their imminent danger , and from having time to try and garrison the Thermopylae . Peace settlement . All of central and southern Greece was now at Philip ' s mercy , and the Athenians could not now save Phocis even if they abandoned the peace . However , the Athenians were still ignorant of this turn of events when Phocian ambassadors came to Athens to plead for military aid around the 9th July . The Athenian council recommended that the peace be rejected , and Thermopylae be occupied in order to help save Phocis ; since , as far at the Athenian embassy knew , Philip ' s troops were still in Pherae , there seemed to be ample time to occupy the pass . By the 12th July the news that Philip was " in the gates " arrived in Athens ; the Athenians then knew that the situation was hopeless , and instead of acting on the previous recommendation of the council , the Assembly instead passed a motion re - affirming the Peace of Philocrates . Now that he was in control of Thermopylae , Philip could be certain of dictating the terms of the end of the Sacred War , since he could now use force against any state that did not accept his arbitration . He began by making a truce with Phalaikos on 19 July ; Phalaikos surrendered Phocis to him , in return for being allowed him to leave , with his mercenaries , and go wherever he wished . Cawkwell suggests that Phalaikos probably collaborated with Philip in 346 BC , allowing Philip to take Thermopylae in return for lenience for him and his men . Otherwise , it is difficult to see how Philip could have advertised his campaign so far in advance ( and been so confident of success ) , and yet not been stopped at Thermopylae . Philip restored to Boeotia the cities that Phocis had captured during the war ( Orchomenos , Coroneia and Corsiae ) , and then declared that the fate of Phocis would not be decided by him , but by the Amphictyonic Council . This caused great panic in Athens , since the Phocians could never hope for mercy from the Amphictyons , and since Athens was also ( having allied with Phocis ) shared in the same sacrilege . However , it is clear that Philip was dictating the terms behind the scenes ; allowing the Amphictyons the formal responsibility allowed him to dissociate himself from the terms in the future . In return for ending the war , Macedon was made a member of the Amphictyonic council , and given the two votes which had been stripped from Phocis . This was an important moment for Philip , since membership of the Ampictyony meant that Macedon was now no longer a ' barbarian ' state in Greek eyes . The terms imposed on Phocis were harsh , but realistically Philip had no choice but to impose such sanctions ; he needed the support of the Thessalians ( sworn enemies of Phocis ) , and could not risk losing the prestige that he had won for his pious conduct during the war . However , they were not as harsh as some of the Amphictyonic members had suggested ; the Oeteans had demanded that the traditional punishment for temple robbers of being pushed over a cliff be carried out . Aside from being expelled from the Amphictyonic council , all the Phocian cities were to be destroyed , and the Phocians settled in ' villages ' of no more than fifty houses ; the money stolen from the temple was to be paid back at a rate of 60 talents per year ; He did not , however , destroy the Phocians , and they retained their land . The Athenians , having made peace with Philip , were not penalised by the Amphictyonic council , and the Spartans also seem to have escaped lightly . Philip presided over the Amphictyonic festival in the autumn , and then much to the surprise of the Greeks , he went back to Macedon and did not return to Greece for seven years . He did however retain his access , by garrisoning Nicaea , the closest town to Thermopylae , with Thessalian troops .