of Demosthenes leaving the Assembly in shame after his first failure at public speaking, as described by Plutarch in his
Life of Demosthenes Legal career To make his living, Demosthenes became a professional litigant, both as a "
logographer" (, ), writing speeches for use in private legal suits, and as an advocate (, ) speaking on another's behalf. He seems to have been able to manage any kind of case, adapting his skills to almost any client, including wealthy and powerful men. It is not unlikely that he became a teacher of rhetoric and that he brought pupils into court with him. However, though he probably continued writing speeches throughout his career, he stopped working as an advocate once he entered the political arena. Judicial oratory had become a significant literary genre by the second half of the fifth century, as represented in the speeches of Demosthenes's predecessors,
Antiphon and
Andocides. Logographers were a unique aspect of the Athenian justice system: evidence for a case was compiled by a magistrate in a preliminary hearing and litigants could present it as they pleased within set speeches; however, witnesses and documents were popularly mistrusted (since they could be secured by force or bribery), there was little cross-examination during the trial, there were no instructions to the jury from a judge, no conferencing between jurists before voting, the juries were huge (typically between 201 and 501 members), cases depended largely on questions of probable motive, and notions of natural justice were felt to take precedence over written law—conditions that favoured artfully constructed speeches. Since Athenian politicians were often indicted by their opponents, there was not always a clear distinction between "private" and "public" cases, and thus a career as a logographer opened the way for Demosthenes to embark on his political career. An Athenian logographer could remain anonymous, which enabled him to serve personal interests, even if it prejudiced the client. It also left him open to allegations of malpractice. Thus for example Aeschines accused Demosthenes of unethically disclosing his clients' arguments to their opponents; in particular, that he wrote a speech for Phormion (350 BC), a wealthy banker, and then communicated it to Apollodorus, who was bringing a
capital charge against Phormion. Plutarch much later supported this accusation, stating that Demosthenes "was thought to have acted dishonourably" and he also accused Demosthenes of writing speeches for both sides. It has often been argued that the deception, if there was one, involved a political
quid pro quo, whereby Apollodorus secretly pledged support for unpopular reforms that Demosthenes was pursuing in the greater, public interest (i.e. the diversion of
Theoric Funds to military purposes).
Early political activity Demosthenes was admitted to his () as a citizen with full rights probably in 366 BC, and he soon demonstrated an interest in politics. He was among the first ever volunteer trierarchs in 357 BC, sharing the expenses of a ship called
Dawn, for which the public inscription still survives. In 348 BC, he became a
choregos, paying the expenses of a
theatrical production. Between 355 and 351 BC, Demosthenes continued practising law privately while he was becoming increasingly interested in public affairs. During this period, he wrote
Against Androtion and
Against Leptines, two fierce attacks on individuals who attempted to repeal certain tax exemptions. In
Against Timocrates and
Against Aristocrates, he advocated eliminating corruption. All these speeches, which offer early glimpses of his general principles on foreign policy, such as the importance of the navy, of alliances and of national honour, are prosecutions (
, ) against individuals accused of illegally proposing legislative texts. In Demosthenes's time, different political goals developed around personalities. Instead of electioneering, Athenian politicians used litigation and defamation to remove rivals from government processes. Often they indicted each other for breaches of the statute laws (''
), but accusations of bribery and corruption were ubiquitous in all cases, being part of the political dialogue. The orators often resorted to "character assassination" tactics (, ; , ), both in the courts and in the Assembly. The rancorous and often hilariously exaggerated accusations, satirised by Old Comedy, were sustained by innuendo, inferences about motives, and a complete absence of proof; as J. H. Vince states "there was no room for chivalry in Athenian political life". Such rivalry enabled the demos
("citizen-body") to reign supreme as judge, jury and executioner. Demosthenes was to become fully engaged in this kind of litigation and he was also to be instrumental in developing the power of the Areopagus to indict individuals for treason, invoked in the ekklesia'' by a process called (). In 354 BC, Demosthenes delivered his first political oration,
On the Navy, in which he espoused moderation and proposed the reform of the
symmoriai (boards) as a source of funding for the Athenian fleet. In 352 BC, he delivered
For the Megalopolitans and, in 351 BC,
On the Liberty of the Rhodians. In both speeches he opposed
Eubulus, the most powerful Athenian statesman of the period 355 to 342 BC. The latter was no pacifist but came to eschew a policy of aggressive interventionism in the internal affairs of the other Greek cities. Contrary to Eubulus's policy, Demosthenes called for an alliance with
Megalopolis against
Sparta or
Thebes, and for supporting the democratic faction of the Rhodians in their internal strife. His arguments revealed his desire to articulate Athens's needs and interests through a more activist foreign policy, wherever opportunity might provide. Although his early orations were unsuccessful and reveal a lack of real conviction and of coherent strategic and political prioritisation, Demosthenes established himself as an important political personality and broke with Eubulus's faction, of which a prominent member was Aeschines. He thus laid the foundations for his future political successes and for becoming the leader of his own "party" (the issue of whether the modern concept of political parties can be applied in the
Athenian democracy is hotly disputed among modern scholars).
Confrontation with Philip II First Philippic and the Olynthiacs (351–349 BC) : victory medal () struck in
Tarsus, c. 2nd century BC (
Cabinet des Médailles, Paris). Most of Demosthenes's major orations were directed against the growing power of King Philip II of Macedon. Since 357 BC, when Philip seized
Amphipolis and
Pydna, Athens had been formally at war with the
Macedonians. In 352 BC, Demosthenes characterised Philip as the very worst enemy of his city; his speech presaged the fierce attacks that Demosthenes would launch against the Macedonian king over the ensuing years. A year later he criticised those dismissing Philip as a person of no account and warned that he was as dangerous as the king of
Persia. In 352 BC, Athenian troops successfully opposed Philip at
Thermopylae, but the Macedonian victory over the
Phocians at the
Battle of Crocus Field shook Demosthenes. In 351 BC, Demosthenes felt strong enough to express his view concerning the most important foreign policy issue facing Athens at that time: the stance his city should take towards Philip. According to
Jacqueline de Romilly, a French philologist and member of the , the threat of Philip would give Demosthenes's stances a focus and a . The theme of the
First Philippic (351–350 BC) was preparedness and the reform of the
Theoric fund, a mainstay of Eubulus's policy. He thus provided for the first time a plan and specific recommendations for the strategy to be adopted against Philip in the north. Among other things, the plan called for the creation of a rapid-response force, to be created cheaply with each () to be paid only ten
drachmas per month (two
obols per day), which was less than the average pay for unskilled labourers in Athens—implying that the hoplite was expected to make up the deficiency in pay by looting. From this moment until 341 BC, all of Demosthenes's speeches referred to the same issue, the struggle against Philip. In 349 BC, Philip attacked
Olynthus, an ally of Athens. In the three
Olynthiacs, Demosthenes criticised his compatriots for being idle and urged Athens to help Olynthus. He also insulted Philip by calling him a "barbarian". Despite Demosthenes's strong advocacy, the Athenians would not manage to prevent the falling of the city to the Macedonians. Almost simultaneously, probably on Eubulus's recommendation, they engaged in a war in
Euboea against Philip, which ended in a stalemate.
Case of Meidias (348 BC) In 348 BC a peculiar event occurred:
Meidias, a wealthy Athenian, publicly slapped Demosthenes, who was at the time a choregos at the
Greater Dionysia, a large religious festival in honour of the god
Dionysus. He also was an old enemy of Demosthenes; in 361 BC he had broken violently into his house, with his brother Thrasylochus, to take possession of it. Demosthenes decided to prosecute his wealthy opponent and wrote the judicial oration
Against Meidias. This speech gives valuable information about Athenian law at the time and especially about the Greek concept of
hybris (aggravated assault), which was regarded as a crime not only against the city but against society as a whole. He stated that a democratic state perishes if the
rule of law is undermined by wealthy and unscrupulous men, and that the citizens acquire power and authority in all state affairs due "to the strength of the laws". There is no consensus among scholars either on whether Demosthenes finally delivered
Against Meidias or on the veracity of Aeschines's accusation that Demosthenes was bribed to drop the charges.
Peace of Philocrates (347–345 BC) In 348 BC, Philip conquered Olynthus and razed it to the ground; then conquered the entire
Chalcidice and all the states of the Chalcidic federation that Olynthus had once led. After these Macedonian victories, Athens sued for peace with Macedon. Demosthenes was among those who favoured compromise. In 347 BC, an Athenian delegation, comprising Demosthenes, Aeschines and Philocrates, was officially sent to
Pella to negotiate a peace treaty. In his first encounter with Philip, Demosthenes is said to have collapsed from fright. The ekklesia officially accepted Philip's harsh terms, including the renouncement of their claim to
Amphipolis. However, when an Athenian delegation arrived at Pella to put Philip under oath, which was required to conclude the treaty, he was campaigning abroad. He expected that he would hold safely any Athenian possessions that he might seize before the ratification. Being very anxious about the delay, Demosthenes insisted that the embassy should travel to the place where they would find Philip and swear him in without delay. Philip swore to the treaty, but he delayed the departure of the Athenian envoys, who had yet to receive the oaths from Macedon's allies in
Thessaly and elsewhere. Finally, peace was sworn at
Pherae, where Philip accompanied the Athenian delegation, after he had completed his military preparations to move south. Demosthenes accused the other envoys of venality and of facilitating Philip's plans with their stance. Just after the conclusion of the Peace of Philocrates, Philip passed Thermopylae, and subdued
Phocis; Athens made no move to support the Phocians. Supported by Thebes and Thessaly, Macedon took control of Phocis's votes in the
Amphictyonic League, a Greek religious organisation formed to support the greater temples of
Apollo and
Demeter. Despite some reluctance on the part of the Athenian leaders, Athens finally accepted Philip's entry into the Council of the League. Demosthenes was among those who adopted a pragmatic approach, and recommended this stance in his oration
On the Peace. For Edmund M. Burke, this speech heralds a maturation in Demosthenes's career: after Philip's successful campaign in 346 BC, the Athenian statesman realised that, if he was to lead his city against the Macedonians, he had "to adjust his voice, to become less partisan in tone".
Second and Third Philippics (344–341 BC) In 344 BC Demosthenes travelled to the
Peloponnese, to detach as many cities as possible from Macedon's influence, but his efforts were generally unsuccessful. Most of the Peloponnesians saw Philip as the guarantor of their freedom and sent a joint embassy to Athens to express their grievances against Demosthenes's activities. In response, Demosthenes delivered the
Second Philippic, a vehement attack against Philip. In 343 BC Demosthenes delivered
On the False Embassy against Aeschines, who was facing a charge of high treason. Nonetheless, Aeschines was acquitted by the narrow margin of thirty votes by a jury which may have numbered as many as 1,501. In 343 BC, Macedonian forces were conducting campaigns in
Epirus and, in 342 BC, Philip campaigned in Thrace. He also negotiated with the Athenians an amendment to the Peace of Philocrates. When the Macedonian army approached
Chersonese (now known as the
Gallipoli Peninsula), an Athenian general named
Diopeithes ravaged the maritime district of Thrace, thereby inciting Philip's rage. Because of this turbulence, the Athenian Assembly convened. Demosthenes delivered
On the Chersonese and convinced the Athenians not to recall Diopeithes. Also in 342 BC, he delivered the
Third Philippic, which is considered to be the best of his political orations. Using all the power of his eloquence, he demanded resolute action against Philip and called for a burst of energy from the Athenian people. He told them that it would be "better to die a thousand times than pay court to Philip". Demosthenes now dominated Athenian politics and was able to considerably weaken the pro-Macedonian faction of Aeschines.
Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC) In 341 BC Demosthenes was sent to
Byzantium, where he sought to renew its alliance with Athens. Thanks to Demosthenes's diplomatic manoeuvres,
Abydos also entered into an alliance with Athens. These developments worried Philip and increased his anger at Demosthenes. The Assembly, however, laid aside Philip's grievances against Demosthenes's conduct and denounced the peace treaty; so doing, in effect, amounted to an official declaration of war. In 339 BC Philip made his last and most effective bid to conquer southern Greece, assisted by Aeschines's stance in the
Amphictyonic Council. During a meeting of the council, Philip accused the
Amfissian Locrians of intruding on consecrated ground. The presiding officer of the council, a Thessalian named Cottyphus, proposed the convocation of an Amphictyonic Congress to inflict a harsh punishment upon the Locrians. Aeschines agreed with this proposition and maintained that the Athenians should participate in the Congress. Demosthenes however reversed Aeschines's initiatives and Athens finally abstained. After the failure of a first military excursion against the Locrians, the summer session of the Amphictyonic Council gave command of the league's forces to Philip and asked him to lead a second excursion. Philip decided to act at once; in the winter of 339–338 BC, he passed through Thermopylae, entered Amfissa and defeated the Locrians. After this significant victory, Philip swiftly entered Phocis in 338 BC. He then turned south-east down the
Cephissus valley, seized
Elateia, and restored the fortifications of the city. At the same time, Athens orchestrated the creation of an alliance with
Euboea,
Megara,
Achaea,
Corinth,
Acarnania and other states in the Peloponnese. However the most desirable ally for Athens was Thebes. To secure their allegiance, Demosthenes was sent by Athens, to the
Boeotian city; Philip also sent a deputation, but Demosthenes succeeded in securing Thebes's allegiance. Demosthenes's oration before the Theban people is not extant and, therefore, the arguments he used to convince the Thebans remain unknown. In any case, the alliance came at a price: Thebes's control of Boeotia was recognised, Thebes was to command solely on land and jointly at sea, and Athens was to pay two thirds of the campaign's cost. While the Athenians and the Thebans were preparing themselves for war, Philip made a final attempt to appease his enemies, proposing in vain a new peace treaty. After a few trivial encounters between the two sides, which resulted in minor Athenian victories, Philip drew the
phalanx of the Athenian and Theban confederates into a plain near
Chaeronea, where he defeated them. Demosthenes fought as a mere
hoplite. Such was Philip's hatred for Demosthenes that, according to
Diodorus Siculus, the King after his victory sneered at the misfortunes of the Athenian statesman. However, the Athenian orator and statesman
Demades is said to have remarked: "O King, when Fortune has cast you in the role of
Agamemnon, are you not ashamed to act the part of
Thersites [an obscene soldier of the Greek army during the
Trojan War]?" Stung by these words, Philip immediately altered his demeanour.
Last political initiatives and death Confrontation with Alexander from
Pompeii, from a 3rd-century BC original Greek painting, now lost. In 336–335 BC, the king of Macedon killed any attempt of the Greek cities at resistance and shattered Demosthenes's hopes for Athenian independence. After Chaeronea, Philip inflicted a harsh punishment upon Thebes, but made peace with Athens on very lenient terms. Demosthenes encouraged the fortification of Athens and was chosen by the ekklesia to deliver the
Funeral Oration. In 337 BC, Philip created the
League of Corinth, a confederation of Greek states under his leadership, and returned to Pella. In 336 BC, Philip was assassinated at the wedding of his daughter,
Cleopatra of Macedon, to King
Alexander of Epirus. The Macedonian citizens swiftly proclaimed
Alexander III of Macedon, then twenty years old, as the new King of Macedon. Greek cities like Athens and Thebes saw in this change of leadership an opportunity to regain their full independence. Demosthenes celebrated Philip's assassination and played a leading part in his city's uprising. According to Aeschines, "it was but the seventh day after the death of his daughter, and though the ceremonies of mourning were not yet completed, he put a garland on his head and white raiment on his body, and there he stood making thank-offerings, violating all decency." Nonetheless, Alexander moved swiftly to Thebes, which submitted shortly after his appearance at its gates. When the Athenians learned that Alexander had moved quickly to Boeotia, they panicked and begged the new King of Macedon for mercy. Alexander admonished them but imposed no punishment. In 335 BC Alexander felt free to engage the
Thracians and the
Illyrians, but, while he was campaigning in the north, Demosthenes spread a rumour—even producing a bloodstained messenger—that Alexander and all of his expeditionary force had been slaughtered by the
Triballians. The Thebans and the Athenians rebelled once again, financed by
Darius III of Persia, and Demosthenes is said to have received about 300 talents on behalf of Athens and to have faced accusations of embezzlement. Alexander reacted immediately and razed Thebes to the ground. He did not attack Athens, but demanded the exile of all anti-Macedonian politicians, Demosthenes first of all. According to
Plutarch, a special Athenian embassy led by
Phocion, an opponent of the anti-Macedonian faction, was able to persuade Alexander to relent. According to ancient writers, Demosthenes called Alexander "Margites" () and a boy.
Delivery of On the Crown Despite the unsuccessful ventures against Philip and Alexander, most Athenians still respected Demosthenes, because they shared his sentiments and wished to restore their independence. In 336 BC, the orator Ctesiphon proposed that Athens honour Demosthenes for his services to the city by presenting him, according to custom, with a golden crown. This proposal became a political issue and, in 330 BC, Aeschines prosecuted Ctesiphon on charges of legal irregularities. In his most brilliant speech,
On the Crown, Demosthenes effectively defended Ctesiphon and vehemently attacked those who would have preferred peace with Macedon. He was unrepentant about his past actions and policies and insisted that, when in power, the constant aim of his policies was the honour and the ascendancy of his country; and on every occasion and in all business he preserved his loyalty to Athens. He finally defeated Aeschines, although his enemy's objections, though politically motivated,
Case of Harpalus and death , where Demosthenes died by suicide. In 324 BC Harpalus, to whom Alexander had entrusted huge treasures, absconded and sought refuge in Athens. The Assembly had initially refused to accept him, following Demosthenes's and
Phocion's advice, but finally Harpalus entered Athens. He was imprisoned after a proposal of Demosthenes and Phocion, despite the dissent of
Hypereides, an anti-Macedonian statesman and former ally of Demosthenes. Additionally, the ekklesia decided to take control of Harpalus's money, which was entrusted to a committee presided over by Demosthenes. When the committee counted the treasure, they found they only had half the money Harpalus had declared he possessed. When Harpalus escaped, the Areopagus conducted an inquiry and charged Demosthenes and others with mishandling twenty talents. Among the accused, Demosthenes was the first to be brought to trial before an unusually numerous jury of 1,500. He was found guilty and fined 50 talents. Unable to pay this huge amount, Demosthenes escaped and only returned to Athens nine months later, after the death of Alexander. Upon his return, he "received from his countrymen an enthusiastic welcome, such as had never been accorded to any returning exile since the days of
Alkibiades." After Alexander's death in 323 BC, Demosthenes again urged the Athenians to seek independence from Macedon in what became known as the
Lamian War. However, Antipater, Alexander's successor, quelled all opposition and demanded that the Athenians turn over Demosthenes and Hypereides, among others. Following his order, the ekklesia had no choice but to reluctantly adopt a decree condemning the most prominent anti-Macedonian agitators to death. Demosthenes escaped to a sanctuary on the island of
Kalaureia (modern-day
Poros), where he was later discovered by Archias, a confidant of Antipater. He died by suicide before his capture by taking poison out of a reed, pretending he wanted to write a letter to his family. When Demosthenes felt that the poison was working on his body, he said to Archias: "Now, as soon as you please you may commence the part of
Creon in the tragedy, and cast out this body of mine unburied. But, O gracious Neptune, I, for my part, while I am yet alive, arise up and depart out of this sacred place; though Antipater and the Macedonians have not left so much as the temple unpolluted." After saying these words, he passed by the altar, fell down and died. ==Assessments==