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The siege of Halus in 346 was carried out as
the same time as peace negotiations between Philip II of Macedon and Athens,
and may have been part of Philip's wider plan for a campaign in central Greece
(Third Sacred War)
358-338 The siege is only known to us through scattered references, mainly in
the writings of Demosthenes. Halus was a minor polis in Phthiotis, the area
around the head of the Malian Gulf, forty four around the gulf from the pass of
Thermopylae. In 346 the Halians were involved in a dispute with Pharsalus, an
inland town of southern Thessaly. The siege was conduced by Philip's general
Parmenion, on behalf of Pharsalus. The siege began early in 346. Our first
mention of it comes when the Athenians were sending their first peace embassy
to Philip II. The envoys moved to Oreus, then sailed across the sea to Halus.
Using their diplomatic status they were able to pass through the Macedonian
lines to meet Parmenion, and then continued on their way toward Macedon. Later
in the year the siege was still going on. A later Athenian embassy was delayed
on its way back from Macedon, allegedly because Philip wanted them to help
reconcile the Halians and the Pharsalians. However when the siege did finally
end, Halus was handed over to the Pharsalians, and they exiled the inhabitants.
During the negotiations Philip insisted that Halus and Phocis were excluded
from the peace terms. Demosthenes opposed this, while his rival Aeschines
supported the proposal. Philip got his way. It is possible that this siege was
deliberately drawn out in order to give Philip an excuse to bring a large army
down into Phthiotis, from where he was easy able to occupy Thermopylae, a move
that effectively forced the Phocians to surrender to him, ending the Third
Sacred War. If events had worked out slightly differently, this army might then
have been used against Athens, although when the final conflict between the two
did come (Fourth Sacred War), Philip actually bypassed Thermopylae, and instead
crossed the mountains into Doris.
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