216 HISTORY OF GREECE. Amphipolis. They knew the value of that city : they considered it as of right theirs } they had long been anxious for its reposses- sion, and had even besieged it five years before, though seemingly only with a mercenary force, which was repelled mainly by the aid of Philip's predecessor Perdikkas. Amphipolis was not like- ly to surrender to them voluntarily ; but when thrown upon its own resources, it might perhaps have been assailed with success. Yet they remained without making any attempt on the region at the mouth of the river Strymon. We must recollect (as has been narrated in my last preceding volume 1 ), that during 359 B. c., and the first part of 358 B. c., they were carrying on operations in the Thracian Chersonese, against Charidemus and Kersobleptes> with small success and disgraceful embarrassment. These vexatious operations in the Chersonese in which peninsula many Athe- nians were interested as private proprietors, besides the public claims of the city may perhaps have absorbed wholly the at- tention of Athens, so as to induce her to postpone the acquisition of Amphipolis until they were concluded ; a conclusion which did not arrive (as we shall presently see) until immediately beforp she became plunged in the dangerous crisis of the Social Yfar I kno.w no better explanation of the singular circumstance, tha: Athens, though so anxious, both before and after, for the possessicr of Amphipolb, made no attempt to acquire it during more than a year after its evacuation by Philip ; unless indeed we are to rank this opportunity among the many which she lost (according to Demosthenes 2 ) from pare negligence ; little suspecting how speedi- ly such opportunity would disappear. ID 358 B. c., an opening was afforded to the Athenians for re- gaining their influence in .Euboea ; and for this island, so near their own shores, they struck a more vigorous blow than for the distant possessions of AmphipoLis. At the revival of the maritime con- federacy under Athens (immect'ately after 378 B. c.),'most of the cities in Euboea had joined it voLmtarily ; but after the battle of Leuktra (in 371 B. c.), the island passed under Theban suprema- 1 See Vol. X. Ch. Ixxx. p. 379 seq.
- Demosthenes, Orat. de Chersones-j, -v 98, s. 34. Qspe yup, npbf
- i Aoyov iipiif uTrai-rjaeicv o "EAAiyvef <j wvl TrapeiKare Kaipuv dia
uiav . etc.
