The siege of Lamia occurred from 323 to 322 BC between the Macedonians led by
Antipater
Antipater (; ; 400 BC319 BC) was a Macedonian general, regent and statesman under the successive kingships of Philip II of Macedon and his son, Alexander the Great. In the wake of the collapse of the Argead house, his son Cassander ...
and a coalition of armies mostly from central Greece led by
Leosthenes.
The siege gave its name to the
Lamian War
The Lamian War or the Hellenic War (323–322 BC), was an unsuccessful attempt by Athens and a large coalition of Greek states to end the hegemony of Macedonia over Greece just after the death of Alexander the Great. It was the last time Athen ...
.
After Antipater was defeated at the
Second Battle of Thermopylae, he shut himself in the city of
Lamia
Lamia (; ), in ancient Greek mythology, was a child-eating monster and, in later tradition, was regarded as a type of night-haunting spirit or "daimon".
In the earliest myths, Lamia was a beautiful queen of ancient Libya who had an affair with ...
. Leosthenes approached the city and with his army fortified a camp, dug up a deep ditch and constructed a palisade. Initially, Leosthenes would draw up his forces, and approach the city and directly challenge the Macedonians to battle. The Macedonians denied this challenge, prompting Leosthenes to launch daily attacks on the walls with his soldiers.
The Macedonians defended themselves from the daily attacks and were able to halt the Greeks' attacks, because of the abundance of missiles and protection from the walls. Since Leosthenes was unable to storm the city, he shut off all supplies entering the city, believing this would reduce the army because of hunger. He also built a wall and dug a deep, wide ditch, cutting off all escape routes for the Macedonians.
The Aetolians all returned to Aetolia, due to national business Leosthenes agreed, Antipater and his men exhausted due to the anticipation of famine. Antipater initiated an attack on the men digging the moat and a struggle occurred. Leosthenes in an attempt to aid his men, was struck in the head by a stone from a sling shot and so he fainted and was dragged to camp. He died three days later.
References
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Lamia
Lamia (; ), in ancient Greek mythology, was a child-eating monster and, in later tradition, was regarded as a type of night-haunting spirit or "daimon".
In the earliest myths, Lamia was a beautiful queen of ancient Libya who had an affair with ...
Lamia
Lamia (; ), in ancient Greek mythology, was a child-eating monster and, in later tradition, was regarded as a type of night-haunting spirit or "daimon".
In the earliest myths, Lamia was a beautiful queen of ancient Libya who had an affair with ...
Lamia
Lamia (; ), in ancient Greek mythology, was a child-eating monster and, in later tradition, was regarded as a type of night-haunting spirit or "daimon".
In the earliest myths, Lamia was a beautiful queen of ancient Libya who had an affair with ...
Military history of Lamia (city)