279 BC and the barbarians are coming. Hungry for new lands and an end to their struggle, a formidable Celtic horde has descended on Macedonia. In their way stands a kingdom in chaos, its king imprudent and people despairing. Yet for the Celts, Macedonia is to be just the beginning. This is their story.

Background: Macedonia in 280 BC

Fresh from committing the horrific treachery against his half-sister, Ptolemy ‘Ceraunus’ started to settle into life as the new King of Macedonia. Any potential threats to his rule seemed to have evaporated; Arsinoe, Pyrrhus, Antiochus and Antigonus Gonatas – Ceraunus had overcome the challenges all these powerful opponents had offered. Yet there would be no respite for the impetuous monarch. The greatest challenge to his rule was about to materialise.

Beyond the northern borders of his kingdom, a new threat – one very different to any Ceraunus had faced before – was fast approaching: a Celtic invasion!

The Celts

From sacking the eternal city of Rome to settling the harsh rugged lands of Britain, by 279 BC the Celts had already left their mark on large swathes of the European landscape. The Arverni, Celtiberii, Boii and the Brigantes – just a few Celtic tribes that at that time dominated vast regions in Northern Europe. Yet for many of these people life proved far from pleasant.

Internal struggles

As the Celtic presence in certain regions increased, so too did the pressure on available resources. Land and food became hotly-contested; the very visible problems of overpopulation soon became apparent. Something had to give.

Merciless infighting for control of land naturally ensued. For the winners, victory promised the ultimate prize, allowing them to seize the contested land for themselves. For the losers, however, everything they held dear would be turned upside-down.

What remained of the defeated tribes would be forced out of their homes, taking as many of their possessions as they could carry with them. The safety settling had offered them had evaporated; their dangerous quest for a new home had begun.

The Celtic horde of 279 BC was no different.

On the march

Having been forced off their lands in both Illyria and the fertile Danube valley by other tribes, hundreds of thousands of men, women and children were on the move. Risking everything in the hopes of a brighter future, they were desperate for new homes, united in their desire to start afresh. Their tribe’s survival depended on it! Yet settling new lands was not the only motive for all these migrants; for many, there was another motive that was equally-attractive.

Plunder

Trained for war since childhood, within this migration’s ranks were hundreds of thousands of ferocious warriors, each harbouring desires for plunder and a craving to carve out a new kingdom for their people by the spear. Settlement was not the priority for these men; plunder was!

Spain, Italy, Britain and Illyria – all places that had been transformed with the arrival of similar warlike Celtic migrations in the past. Yet this horde’s destination would not be to the West. Instead, they looked East.

Macedonia, Thrace and the gateway to the lucrative Greek World beckoned to the Celts. They could not have chosen a more favourable time.

Crisis on the frontier

Following Lysimachus’ death at Corupedium barely two years earlier, the strong, stable northern frontier he had created soon started to crumble; Hellenistic control of the Thracian hinterland withered and the strong frontier system that Lysimachus and Agathocles had put in place for the last thirty years evaporated in the blink of an eye.

Anarchy ensued; the Greek World was now once again vulnerable to the threat of barbarian incursions from the North. The Celts saw a great opportunity!

Past meeting

The Celts and Macedonians were no strangers to each other. During the previous century, as Macedonia enjoyed the zenith of its power under first Philip and then his infamous son Alexander, the paths of these two peoples had crossed before. Back then, it had been the Celts who had become wary of Macedonian power. By 279 BC however, the page had turned.

Much had changed in Macedonia since the death of Alexander in 323 BC. His glorious reign – and that of his father Philip – was now embedded in the past. No longer were the Celts fearful of that nation’s military might. And Ceraunus was certainly no Philip or Alexander.

Overconfidence

News soon reached Ptolemy ‘Ceraunus’ of this impending barbarian incursion. Yet rather than being alarmed, the impetuous king believed his victory was certain. How, he thought, could a barbarian rabble, no matter how large, overcome the land that had sired some of the greatest military generals of the age – men such as Alexander, Perdiccas and Seleucus.

Ceraunus was confident. Yet as history has shown us so many times, confidence can easily transform into arrogance – the result of which would decide his fate.

An offer of alliance

As the Celtic horde came ever closer to his borders word of their progress reached Ceraunus from the Dardanians, a Thracio-Illyrian tribe situated to the north of Macedonia. Their history with Ceraunus’ kingdom had been far from amicable; for centuries, the Dardanians had been one of Macedonia’s greatest enemies, launching numerous brutal incursions into the territory and inflicting horrible defeats on many previous Macedonian kings.

By 279 BC however, times had changed. Desiring to put aside their past differences, the Dardanian king offered to unite his forces with Ceraunus against the impending threat. He had 20, 000 grizzled troops at his disposal – no insignificant number. United, he stated, their army could fend off the impending Celtic threat.

The logic for accepting the aid seemed sound – why turn down the offer of such a powerful ally just before the war? Yet Ceraunus’ fateful arrogance now revealed itself.

Rebuke

Considering the prospect of being aided by the Dardanians – a tribe that in his eyes were just as barbaric and uncivilised as the Celtic horde – a humiliation to Macedonian pride, Ceraunus scorned the offer, replying that,

The Macedonians were in a sad condition if, after having subdued the whole east without assistance, they now required aid from the Dardanians to defend their country… he had for soldiers the sons of those who had served under Alexander the Great, and had been victorious throughout the World.

(Justin XXIV.4)

In no uncertain terms, Ceraunus openly rebuked the Dardanian offer. It quickly proved a poor decision.

Rather than persisting the Dardanian king took the next-best logical step to preserving his kingdom. Reluctantly he surrendered to the Celtic horde on its arrival, swelling their army with his powerful soldiers. The Macedonians, he predicted, would rue the day they refused Dardanian assistance. Only time would tell.

Peace or war

Not long after refusing the Dardanian offer, word reached Ceraunus that the Celts, commanded by a warlord named Bolgius, had finally arrived. On reaching the northern border of the Macedonia, they had quickly made their presence known, offering the Macedonian king a stark choice: so long as he gave them a bountiful supply of money, Bolgius promised that he and his horde would leave Macedonia unharmed and find another land to plunder. Yet Ceraunus once again displayed his arrogance.

Ceraunus did not realise the Celts had threatened him from a position of strength; instead, he believed they were suing for peace!

Convinced that Bolgius’ aggressive, bellicose horde feared the ‘might’ of Alexander’s legacy, Ceraunus gave a careless response to the Celtic envoys. Portraying himself as if he were the victor of some great battle against his foe, he demanded the Celtic leaders as hostages – the ultimate sign of submission; only then, Ceraunus haughtily stated, would he consider peace.

The reply was defiant, if not for all the wrong reasons. Astounded on hearing the response, the Celts merely laughed, saying,

he (Ceraunus) would soon see whether they had offered peace from regard for themselves or for him.

(Justin XXIV.5)

War beckoned.

The Celtic Invasion of Macedonia

And so in 279 BC, the overconfident Ceraunus lead his Macedonian army out to face Bolgius’ horde in the open field. The result was no surprise. Lacking manpower and disorganised in their array, Ceraunus’ army was vanquished. Any survivors unfortunate enough to be taken alive by their barbaric foe were sacrificed. The Celts revelled in their victory; the Macedonians either lay dead or broken.

Ceraunus would not escape this fate. Having been captured by his enemy this young, demented murderer was offered no quarter; the Celts mutilated the Macedonian king, placing his dismembered head on top a spear and parading it around as a trophy. Ptolemy Ceraunus, the man that history remembers most vividly as the scheming, traitorous murderer of the last of the Diadochs, was no more.

Fresh from victory, the Celtic horde now threatened to wreck-havoc. City-gates were closed and desperate prayers were made by the Macedonians. Having heard of the fate of their countrymen that had served alongside Ceraunus, they knew a fate worse than death awaited them if the barbarian horde was not stopped.

Hopelessness and despair quickly spread among the Macedonians – the golden age of their nation’s power that they had enjoyed under esteemed leaders such as Philip, Alexander and Antipater seemed a distant memory. Yet not everyone was despairing; amid this turmoil one man acted.

Sosthenes

His name was Sosthenes. A Macedonian aristocrat, Sosthenes realised that prayers alone would not stop the barbarian menace; a leader was needed – one who could offer a beacon of hope in this time of utter despair. Sosthenes knew he could be that man.

Rallying as many Macedonians as were physically able to carry a sarissa, sword, javelin or bow, Sosthenes gathered a small army and marched to confront the victorious Bolgius.

The result was remarkable, as Sosthenes and his army,

…repulsed the Gauls in the midst of their exultation at their victory and saved Macedonia from devastation.

(Justin XXIV.5)

Sosthenes had successfully taken Bolgius and his Celtic horde by complete surprise; aghast, his foe retreated in all haste – forced to leave even their plunder behind. In this act, the little-remembered Sosthenes became the new saviour of Macedonia. Yet this would prove just the beginning; the Celts had no intention of letting this humiliation slide.

Celtic retaliation

News soon reached Sosthenes and the Macedonians that another Celtic horde had invaded the country, determined to avenge their fallen comrades. And this time, its leader would not be outsmarted so easily.

His name was Brennus, a Celtic warlord hailing from the otherwise-unheard of Prausi tribe. As Bolgius had led his force into Macedonia, Brennus had been campaigning further north in Paeonia, leaving a trail of death and destruction in his wake. He had no intention of remaining there however.

Hearing of the humiliating defeat of his comrades at the hands of Sosthenes, Brennus decided to act. Backed by his own great army – over 150, 000 men strong – he lead them into Macedonia intent on revenge.

Very quickly, they made their presence known to Sosthenes and his Macedonians, ravaging the countryside and chiding their opponents. The Celts were back with a vengeance!

Repeating the miracle

All Macedonian eyes once again turned to their saviour Sosthenes. Would he be able to repeat the miraculous victory he had gained against Bolgius?

The answer quickly became apparent. Greatly outnumbered, Sosthenes lead his small, determined Macedonian force into battle against the Celtic horde. Yet there would be no repeat of their previous heroics.

Despite fighting bravely, the battle proved a lost cause for Sosthenes and his men; Brennus’ horde was simply too large! Disheartened, Sosthenes ordered the retreat, gathering what remained of his force and instructing every-able Macedonian to take shelter in the walled cities of their country. There they would wait and wither the Celtic storm.

Macedonia in turmoil

From the safety of their defences, Sosthenes and his Macedonians could only watch on as Brennus and his horde ravaged their lands. The homeland of Alexander the Great was in utter turmoil, the need for a saviour critical.

Urgently, the Macedonians dispatched messengers to their Hellenic neighbours – to Pyrrhus in the West, Ptolemy Epigonus in Illyria and their former-adversary Antigonus in the South – searching for a saviour in this time of crisis. Yet their responses would take time. And Brennus had no intentions of sitting quietly in the meantime.

The Celtic leader was not content with simply raiding the Macedonian countryside; the desire of his warriors for even more loot was now insatiable. Brennus realised a new target was required to placate this lust – one that guaranteed bountiful riches and everlasting fame. He did not have to look far.

Delphi

Embed from Getty Images

To the South of Macedonia lay the famed Mainland-Greek cities of antiquity, the heartlands of Hellenic culture. Athens, Corinth and Sparta – all cities that in the past had been paragons of power and civilisation in the central Mediterranean. And in their midst, beaming as the epicentre of Hellenic culture was Delphi, home of the Pythia and the most prestigious sanctuary in the Greek World.

Adorned with splendorous dedications – varying from intricate bronze statues to majestic treasures – the visible riches of Delphi were common knowledge throughout the Greek World. Brennus was no-less ignorant. He would claim,

“The gods being rich, ought to be liberal to men.”

His mind was set.

Preparation

Persuaded by his promises of unmatched wealth and eternal fame, Brennus’ fellow commanders eagerly agreed to Brennus’ proposal and gathered their warriors for the long march south.

United, the size of this horde was phenomenal; over 150, 000 battle-hardened warriors awaited Brennus’ command, many equally-ambitious for the chance of more wealth, glory and battle.

Not all of Brennus’ deadliest warriors would be fighting on-foot however. In his army Brennus also had a sizeable amount of cavalry, trained in one of the most fascinating tactics of the age.

The ‘Trimarchisia’ system

Prepared for all the unexpected eventualities of battle, two servants accompanied each of Brennus’ horsemen on the field. Yet these grooms were much more than your average stable-hands. Similarly-mounted and well-trained in the art of war, Pausanias recalls the unique role they played in battle,

When the Gaulish cavalry were in battle, the grooms would stay behind the ranks and make themselves useful with new mounts when a horse or rider fell, but when a man was killed the groom would mount the horse in place of his master.

(Pausanias 10.19.6)

Employing such a tactic, Brennus’ enemies would have faced a seemingly-endless tide of Celtic cavalry. Truly, these men were more than a force for any enemy to deal with.

The march to Greece

Backed by his formidable army, Brennus now lead his force south, leaving a plundered Macedonia in his wake.

Little did he know, however, that a large and united Greek army was quickly being mobilised. The Greeks had heard vivid reports of the great terrors these barbarians had inflicted on their northern neighbours. They were determined the heartlands of Hellenism would not suffer a similar fate.

Once more, a seemingly-innumerable barbaric host threatened Greece from the North; once more the odds seemed stacked against them. But these cities had overcome similar odds in the past. And so they marched their forces to one of the most legendary sites of Greek heroism – a place where numbers would count for little: Thermopylae.

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Notes and Further Reading

Huge thanks to Johnny Shumate and his fantastic illustrations!

Click here for Johnny’s website.

Johnny’s Etsy page, check it out here.

Information is from:

Pausanias’ account of the invasion of the Gauls (10.19.4-23.8) here.

Justin Book XXIV here.

Ellis, P. B. 1997, Celt and Greek: Celts in the Hellenic World, Constable

Rankin, D. 1996, Celts and the Classical World. Routledge

Author: Tristan Hughes Twitter Facebook

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