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Onomarchus () was general of the Phocians in the
Third Sacred War The Third Sacred War ( 356– 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 35 ...
, brother of
Philomelus Philomelus (; ), Philomêlos or Philomenus was a minor Greek demi-god, patron of husbandry, tillage/ ploughing and agriculture. His name means 'friend of ease' from ''philos'' and ''mêlos''. Family Philomelus the son of Demeter and Iasi ...
and son of Theotimus. After his brother's death he became commander of the Phocians and pursued a warmongering policy until his final defeat.


Commander of the Phocians

Onomarchus commanded a division of the Phocian army under his brother, Philomelus, in the action at
Tithorea Tithorea (), is an ancient place with more than 4,000 years of human history. A part of the municipality of Amfikleia-Elateia, in Phthiotis, Greece, it had a population of 561 in 2021, and is situated 156 km from Athens. Geography Tithore ...
, in which Philomelus perished. After the battle Onomarchus gathered the remains of the Phocian army and retreated to
Delphi Delphi (; ), in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), was an ancient sacred precinct and the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient Classical antiquity, classical world. The A ...
. An assembly of the people was held, in which Onomarchus strongly urged the prosecution of the war—in opposition to the counsels of the more moderate party. In the winter of 354 / 353 BC, the Phocians decided to make Onomarchus supreme commander, in place of Philomelus. As far as the funding of his campaign was concerned, Onomarchus went a step further than his brother and predecessor, who had 'borrowed' from the sacred treasures of
Delphi Delphi (; ), in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), was an ancient sacred precinct and the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient Classical antiquity, classical world. The A ...
, keeping, however, scrupulous records. He actually confiscated the property of all those states who were opposed to Phocis and made full use of the accumulated wealth of the shrine. Using the treasures of Delphi he was able to assemble and maintain a large body of mercenary troops, in addition to bribing many of the hostile states, allowing him to influence the
Thessalians Thessaly ( ; ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessaly was known as Aeolia (, ), and appears ...
to abandon their allies and take up a neutral position. Thus, disencumbered from his most dangerous antagonists, he was more than a match for his remaining foes. Onomarchus was also given to presenting handsome young men whom he took as
favorites In the context of the World Wide Web, a bookmark is a Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) that is stored for later retrieval in any of various storage formats. All modern web browsers include bookmark features. Bookmarks are called favorites or In ...
with expensive gifts among those offered to the treasures of Delphi.


Campaigning

Onomarchus' campaigning began in 353 BC. He invaded
Locris Locris (; ; ) was a region of ancient Greece, the homeland of the Locrians, made up of three distinct districts. Locrian tribe The city of Locri in Calabria (Italy), also known in antiquity as "Epizephyrian Locris", was a colony founded by the ...
, took the town of Thronium, compelled Amphissa to surrender, ravaged the Dorian Tetrapolis, and finally turned his arms against
Boeotia Boeotia ( ), sometimes Latinisation of names, Latinized as Boiotia or Beotia (; modern Greek, modern: ; ancient Greek, ancient: ), is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the modern regions of Greece, region of Central Greece (adm ...
, where he took Orchomenus and laid siege to
Chaeronea Chaeronea ( English: , ) is a village and a former municipality in Boeotia, Greece, located about 35 kilometers east of Delphi. The settlement was formerly known as (), and renamed to () in 1916. Since the 2011 local government reform it is pa ...
, but was compelled to retreat without effecting anything more. Following the siege of Chaeronea, his assistance was requested by
Lycophron Lycophron ( ; ; born about 330–325 BC) was a Hellenistic Greek tragic poet, grammarian, and commentator on comedy, to whom the poem ''Alexandra'' is attributed (perhaps falsely). Life and miscellaneous works He was born at Chalcis in Euboea, a ...
, a tyrant of
Pherae Pherae (Greek: Φεραί) was a city and polis (city-state) in southeastern Ancient Thessaly. One of the oldest Thessalian cities, it was located in the southeast corner of Pelasgiotis. According to Strabo, it was near Lake Boebeïs 90 stadi ...
who was being attacked by
Philip II of Macedon Philip II of Macedon (; 382 BC – October 336 BC) was the king (''basileus'') of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedonia from 359 BC until his death in 336 BC. He was a member of the Argead dynasty, founders of the ...
. At first Onomarchus sent his brother Phayllus into Thessaly with an army of 7000 men, but they were defeated by Philip's armies. Onomarchus then marched with his entire force to support Lycophron, defeated Philip in two successive battles, and drove him out of
Thessaly Thessaly ( ; ; ancient Aeolic Greek#Thessalian, Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic regions of Greece, geographic and modern administrative regions of Greece, administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient Thessaly, a ...
. Onomarchus then returned to Boeotia, whose forces he defeated in a battle and took the city of Coroneia. He was recalled once more to the assistance of Lycophron, against Philip, who had again invaded Thessaly. Onomarchus hastened to support his ally with an infantry of 20,000 men and a cavalry of 500 (another source suggests 3000 horse). Philip, however, outnumbered him: a pitched battle ensued, in which the superiority of the
Thessalian cavalry The Kingdom of Macedon possessed one of the greatest armies in the ancient world. It is reputed for the speed and efficiency with which it emerged from Greece to conquer large swathes of territory stretching from Egypt in the west to India in th ...
decided the victory in favour of Philip.


Defeat

Onomarchus was defeated in the
Battle of the Crocus Field The Battle of Crocus Field (Krokion pedion) (353 BC or 352 BC) was a battle in the Third Sacred War, fought between the armies of Phocis, under Onomarchos, and the combined Thessalian and Macedonian army under Philip II of Macedon. The Phocian ...
. This battle was fought in c. 352 BC between the armies of Phocis, under Onomarchos, and the combined Thessalian and Macedonian army under Philip II. The Phocians were decisively defeated by Philip's forces.


Death

The details concerning Onomarchus' death in 352 BC vary in the written sources. Reportedly, Onomarchus and many of the fugitives plunged into the sea in the hope of swimming to the Athenian ships under Chares which were lying off the shore. The Roman historian,
Eusebius Eusebius of Caesarea (30 May AD 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilius, was a historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christian polemicist from the Roman province of Syria Palaestina. In about AD 314 he became the bishop of Caesarea Maritima. ...
states he drowned in this effort.
Diodorus Diodorus Siculus or Diodorus of Sicily (;  1st century BC) was an ancient Greek historian from Sicily. He is known for writing the monumental universal history '' Bibliotheca historica'', in forty books, fifteen of which survive intact, b ...
(XVI 35 ) asserts he was taken prisoner and put to death by Phillip. Pausanias states that he died from the darts of his own soldiers. Onomarchus' body fell into the hands of Philip, who had it crucified as punishment for his sacrilege. Some sources relate that he also killed 3000 Phocian hostages as a punishment for the sacrilege they committed against the Sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi two years earlier.


References

*{{SmithDGRBM, title = Onomarchus 4th-century BC executions Ancient Greek LGBTQ people Ancient Phocian generals People who died under the reign of Philip II of Macedon Year of birth unknown Executed ancient Greek people