Ancient era Tribes known as
Curetes – named after the nearby mountain Kourion, or just to stand out from the Acarnanians, who were called so because they were unshorn – and
Leleges originally inhabited the country, but at an early period
Greeks from
Elis, led by the mythical
eponym Aetolus, set up colonies.
Dionysius of Halicarnassus mentions that Curetes was the old name of the Aetolians and Leleges the old name of the
Locrians. The Aetolians took part in the
Trojan War, under their king
Thoas. The mountain tribes of Aetolia were the Ophioneis, the Apodotoi, and the Eurytanians. The primitive lifestyle of those tribes made an impression on ancient historians.
Polybius doubted their Greek heritage.
Livy reports that they spoke the same language with
Acarnanians and
Macedonians.
Thucydides claims that Eurytanians spoke a very difficult language and ate their food completely raw. They were semi-barbaric, warlike and predatory. They worshiped
Apollo as god of tame nature and
Artemis as goddess of wilderness. They also worshiped
Athena, not as goddess of wisdom, but emphasizing the element of war – i.e. a goddess that was a counterbalance to the god
Ares. They called Apollo and Artemis "Laphrios gods," i.e. patrons of the spoils and loot of war. In addition, they worshiped Hercules, the river Achelous and Bacchus. In Thermos, an area north of Trichonis lake, there was after the 7th century a shrine of Apollo “Thermios,” which became a significant religious center during the time of the
Aetolian League. The Aetolians refused to participate in the
Persian Wars. In 426 BC, led by Aegitios, they defeated the Athenians and their allies, who had turned against Apodotia and Ophioneia under the general command of Demosthenes. However, they failed to regain
Naupaktos, which had meanwhile been conquered by the Corinthians with the aid of the Athenians. At the end of the
Archidamian War, the Aetolians took part as mercenaries of the Athenians in the expedition against Syracuse. Then the Achaeans occupied
Calydon, but the Aetolians recovered it in 361 BC. In 338 BC, Naupaktos was again taken by the Aetolians, with the help of Philip II. During the
Lamian War, the Aetolians helped the Athenian general
Leosthenes defeat
Antipater. As a result, they came into conflict with Antipater and
Craterus, taking great risks, but were eventually saved by the disagreement between the two Macedonian generals and Perdiccas. The Acarnanians then attempted to invade their land, but the Aetolians were able to force them to flee. The Aetolians set up a united league, the
Aetolian League, in early times. It soon became a powerful confederation (
sympoliteia) and by c. 340 BC it became one of the leading military powers in ancient Greece. It had originally been organized during the reign of
Philip II by the cities of Aetolia for their mutual benefit and protection and became a formidable rival to the
Macedonian monarchs and the
Achaean League. The great courage shown by the Aetolians during the fighting against the Macedonians, as well against the
Spartans in the last
Amphictyonic war and even more during the
Gallic invasion under
Brennus when rescuing the sanctuary of
Delphi, increased their glamour and fame. Subsequently, the Sotiria Games were established by the Aetolians, in honour of
Zeus the Saviour. In 232 BC, the Illyrians under Agron attacked the Aetolians, and managed to take many prisoners and booty. In 229 BC, the Aetolians participated in a
naval battle off the island of Paxos in a coalition with
Korkyra and the
Achaean League, and were defeated by a coalition of
Illyrians and
Acarnanians; as a result, the Korkyreans were forced to accept an Illyrian garrison in their city, which was put under the command of Demetrius of Pharos. The Aetolians’ power increasingly magnified with the occupation of the lands of Ozoloi, Locrians and Phocians, as well as Boeotia. They then united under the power of their League in the areas of Tegea, Mantinea, Orchomenus, Psophida and Phigaleia. Between 220 and 217 BC, the
Social War broke out between the Achaean and Aetolian Leagues. The war was first started by the Aetolians with the help of the Spartans and Eleans. Allies of the Achaeans were the Macedonians, the Boeotians, the Phocians, the Epirotes, the Acarnanians and the Messenians. The Aetolians allied with the Romans, while
Philip V destroyed the temple of Apollo Thermios and allied with the Carthaginians. The Aetolians continued to fight on the side of the Romans even in the
Battle of Cynoscephalae (196 BC), ignoring the great dangers looming for Greece as a result of this alliance. The Aetolians took the side of
Antiochus III against the
Roman Republic, and on the defeat of that monarch in 189 BC, they became virtually the subjects of
Rome. Following the conquest of the Achaeans by
Lucius Mummius Achaicus in 146 BC, Aetolia became part of the Roman province of
Achaea. When the Roman garrisons were withdrawn because of the civil wars in Rome, the Aetolians, too, began to fight each other. Following Octavius’ victory at the
Battle of Actium, the Aetolians who had sided with Antony disbanded completely. Octavius handed Calydon over to the Achaeans, who devastated it entirely and moved the statue of Artemis Laphria to
Patras. There were subsequent invasions by
Goths,
Huns, and
Vandals several centuries later at the end of the
Roman Empire. Aetolia's reputation has suffered from a rather hostile treatment in the sources.
Polybius is considered now to have a heavy anti-Aetolian bias due to his having relied on Aetolia's opponent
Aratus of Achaea, but mainly because of his origin in
Megalopolis, a major centre of the rival Achaean League.
Middle Ages During the Middle Ages, Aetolia was part of the Byzantine Empire and its successor Despotate of Epirus, and later passed to the
Turks. Aetolia was mentioned in Francisco Baltazar's Florante at Laura. ==List of Aetolians==