Leosthenes

Leosthenes (; died 323 BC) was an Athenian who was commander of the combined Greek army in the Lamian War. Leosthenes was the son of his namesake father Leosthenes who had suffered exile in 362/1 BC and who had fled to the court of Philip II. It is unknown by what means he had obtained the high reputation he had when he first makes his appearance in history. It has been inferred from a passage in Strabo, that he had first served under Alexander the Great in Asia; but it now seems certain that this is a mistake, and rather the reference should have been to Leonnatus.

Military activities It is certain that when Leosthenes is first the subject of distinct mention, he was an officer of acknowledged ability and established reputation in war, but a proponent of Greek freedom and vehement opponent of Macedonian rule. Inscriptions show that in 329/8 BC, he served as General of the Countryside, responsible for the garrisons and border patrols of Attica. In 324/3 and 323/2 BC he was involved in the maintenance of the Athenian navy. Shortly before the death of Alexander, Leosthenes collected and brought over to Cape Taenarum a large body of the Greek mercenaries that had been disbanded by the different satraps in Asia, following Alexander's orders.

As soon as the news of Alexander's death reached Athens, Leosthenes was despatched to Taenarus to engage the services of these 8,000 troops. Along with Athenian envoys who addressed the assemblies of many city-states, Leosthenes was instrumental in recruiting many Greek cities to the cause of Greek liberation. He first hastened to Aetolia, and persuaded the people of that region to join in the Greek war of liberation against Macedonia. Under the influence of such brilliant orators as Demosthenes, their example was followed by the Locrians, Phocians, Dorians, and many of the Thessalians, as well as by several of the states of the Peloponnese. Leosthenes, who was by common consent appointed commander-in-chief, assembled these combined forces in the neighbourhood of Thermopylae. The Boeotians, who, through fear of the restoration of Thebes and loss of their newly-acquired land,