Philippi
Ancient Macedonian city, Roman colony, and early Christian site.
Philippi, originally called Crenides—meaning "Fountains" in Greek—was a significant city on the Greek mainland, situated northwest of the island of Thasos. King Philip II of Macedon conquered and renamed it in 356 BC, and it was eventually deserted in the 14th century following the Ottoman takeover. Today, the small village of Filippoi stands near the ancient ruins, which lie within the boundaries of the modern city of Kavala, itself part of the East Macedonia and Thrace administrative region. In 2016, the archaeological site earned UNESCO World Heritage status, recognized for its outstanding Roman architecture, its city layout that mirrors Rome on a smaller scale, and its role in early Christianity. The site is also famous as the location of the Battle of Philippi in 42 BC.
The city began as a settlement founded by Thasian colonists in 360/359 BC at a spot called Crenides, near the Aegean Sea’s head and at the base of Mount Orbelos (now Mount Lekani), about 13 kilometers northwest of Kavala. It sat on the northern edge of a marsh that once covered the plain separating it from the Pangaion Hills to the south. When Philip II took over in 356 BC, his goals were to seize the nearby gold mines and set up a garrison controlling a key route: the passage between Amphipolis and Neapolis, part of the major east-west road across Macedonia that the Roman Republic later rebuilt as the Via Egnatia. Philip fortified the city heavily, partially blocking the gap between the marsh and Mount Orbelos, and brought in colonists. He also drained part of the marsh, as noted by the writer Theophrastus. Within the Macedonian kingdom, Philippi kept its autonomy, running its own political institutions like the Assembly of the demos. New gold mines discovered at Asyla boosted the kingdom’s wealth, and Philip established a mint there. The city was fully absorbed into the kingdom under Philip V or Perseus of Macedon, between 221 and 179 BC. After Rome dismantled the Antigonid dynasty in the Third Macedonian War in 168 BC, the kingdom was split into four states, with Amphipolis—not Philippi—becoming the capital of the eastern one. Little is known of Philippi from this era, but archaeological finds include walls, a Greek theatre, the foundations of a house beneath the Roman forum, and a small temple for a hero cult. That temple, possibly on the agora, covers the tomb of a man named Exekestos and is dedicated to the city’s founding hero.
Philippi reemerges in historical records during the Liberators' civil war of 43–42 BC, after Julius Caesar’s assassination. In October 42 BC, Mark Antony and Octavian, Caesar’s heirs, fought the assassins Brutus and Cassius on the plain west of the city. Their victory led them to settle some veteran soldiers, likely from Legion XXVIII, in the city, which was refounded as Colonia Victrix Philippensium. From 30 BC onward, Octavian consolidated power, becoming emperor in 27 BC. He reorganized the colony, adding more settlers—veterans possibly from the Praetorian Guard and other Italians—and renamed it first Colonia Iulia Philippensis, then Colonia Augusta Iulia Philippensis after the Senate granted him the title Augustus in January 27 BC. After these renamings, the land around Philippi was divided into squares and given to colonists. The city kept its Macedonian walls, and its layout changed only slightly with the construction of a forum just east of the old Greek agora. It functioned as a "miniature Rome," governed by Roman municipal law and two military officers called duumviri, appointed directly from Rome. The colony’s wealth came from its mines and its prime spot on the Via Egnatia. Monuments like the forum—built in stages between the reigns of Claudius (41–54 AD) and Antoninus Pius (138–161)—and an expanded theatre for Roman games testify to this prosperity, as do many Latin inscriptions.
The New Testament records that the apostle Paul visited Philippi during his second missionary journey, likely in AD 49 or 50. Based on the Acts of the Apostles and his letter to the Philippians, early Christians believed Paul founded their community. With companions Silas, Timothy, and possibly Luke, Paul is thought to have preached for the first time on European soil in Philippi, leading to the conversion and baptism of Lydia of Thyatira, a dealer in purple cloth. Paul reportedly returned in 56 and 57. His Epistle to the Philippians, written around 61–62, is generally seen as reflecting the immediate impact of his teachings. The growth of Christianity in the city is further evidenced by a letter from Polycarp of Smyrna to the Philippian community around AD 160 and by funerary inscriptions.
- abandoned
- 14th century (after Ottoman conquest)
- field
- Ancient city, Roman colony, early Christian center
- location
- Near Kavala, East Macedonia and Thrace, Greece
Quick Facts
- Native Names
- grc · Φίλιπποι
- Location
- Filippoi, Eastern Macedonia and Thrace Greece
- Region
- Macedonia
- Built
- 356 BC
- Abandoned
- 14th century
- Notes
- child=yes · official_name=Archaeological Site of Philippi · ID=1517 · year=2016 · criteria=Cultural: iii, iv · area= 87.545 ha · buffer_zone=176.291 ha
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Thasian colonists established a settlement at Crenides in Thrace in 360/359 BC near the head of the Aegean Sea at the foot of Mount Orbelos, now called Mount Lekani, about 13 km north-west of Kavala. In 356 BC, King Philip II of Macedon conquered the city and renamed it to Philippi. The Macedonian conquerors aimed to control the neighbouring gold mines and establish a garrison at a strategic passage: the site controlled the route between Amphipolis and Neapolis, part of the great royal route which the Roman Republic reconstructed in the 2nd century BC as the Via Egnatia. Philip II endowed the city with important fortifications and sent colonists to occupy it. He also had the marsh partially drained, as the writer Theophrastus (c. 371 – c. 287 BC) attests. Philippi preserved its autonomy within the kingdom of Macedon and had its own political institutions (the Assembly of the demos). The discovery of new gold mines near the city, at Asyla, contributed to the wealth of the kingdom and Philip established a mint there. The city became fully integrated into the kingdom during the last years of the reign (221 to 179 BC) of Philip V of Macedon or the reign of Perseus of Macedon. When the Romans destroyed the Antigonid dynasty in the Third Macedonian War (168 BC), they divided the kingdom into four separate states (merides), and Amphipolis (rather than Philippi) became the capital of the eastern Macedonian state. The city reappears in the sources during the Liberators' civil war (43–42 BC). Caesar's heirs Mark Antony and Octavian confronted the forces of the assassins Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus at the Battle of Philippi on the plain to the west of the city during October in 42 BC. They released some of their veteran soldiers, probably from Legion XXVIII, to colonize the city, refounded as Colonia Victrix Philippensium. From 30 BC Octavian established his control, becoming Roman emperor from 27 BC. He reorganized the colony and established more settlers—veterans (possibly from the Praetorian Guard) and other Italians. The city was renamed Colonia Iulia Philippensis, then Colonia Augusta Iulia Philippensis after January, 27 BC, when Octavian received the title Augustus from the Roman Senate. The territory was centuriated and distributed to colonists. The city kept its Macedonian walls, and its general plan was modified only partially by the construction of a forum east of the Greek agora. It was a "miniature Rome," under municipal law of Rome, governed by two military officers, the duumviri, appointed directly from Rome. The colony recognized its dependence on the mines that brought it its privileged position on the Via Egnatia. Many monuments evidence its wealth: the forum, laid out in two terraces on both sides of the main road, was constructed in several phases between the reigns of Claudius (41–54 AD) and Antoninus Pius (138–161), and the theatre was enlarged and expanded to hold Roman games. An abundance of Latin inscriptions also testifies to the city's prosperity. The New Testament records a visit by the apostle Paul during his second missionary journey (likely in AD 49 or 50). Accompanied by Silas, by Timothy and possibly by Luke, Paul is believed to have preached for the first time on European soil in Philippi, leading to the conversion and baptism of the purple textile merchant, Lydia of Thyatira. Paul visited on two other occasions, in 56 and 57. The Epistle to the Philippians dates from around 61–62. The development of Christianity is indicated by a letter from Polycarp of Smyrna addressed to the community around AD 160 and by funerary inscriptions. The first church described is a small building, the Basilica of Paul, identified by a mosaic inscription on the pavement, dated around 343 from a mention by bishop Porphyrios, who attended the Council of Serdica that year. Seven different churches were built between the mid-4th century and the end of the 6th, some competing in size and decoration with the most beautiful buildings in Thessalonica or Constantinople. The relationship of the plan and architectural decoration of Basilica B with Hagia Sophia and Saint Irene in Constantinople accorded it a privileged place in early Christian art. In 473, Ostrogothic troops of Theodoric Strabo besieged the city; they failed to take it but burned down the surrounding villages. Already weakened by Slavic invasions at the end of the 6th century and probably by the Plague of Justinian in 547, the city was almost totally destroyed by an earthquake around 619, from which it never recovered. There was small activity in the 7th century, but the city was now hardly more than a village. In 838, the Bulgarians under kavhan Isbul took the city and celebrated their victory with a monumental inscription on the stylobate in Basilica B. The Byzantines attempted to recapture it around 850. Around 969, Emperor Nicephorus II Phocas rebuilt the fortifications on the acropolis and in part of the city. In 1077, Bishop Basil Kartzimopoulos rebuilt part of the defenses inside the city. The city began to prosper once more, as witnessed by the Arab geographer Al Idrisi, who mentions it as a centre of business and wine production around 1150. After a brief occupation by the Franks after the Fourth Crusade and the capture of Constantinople in 1204, the city was captured by the Serbs. In 1354, the pretender to the Byzantine throne, Matthew Cantacuzenus, was captured there by the Serbs. The city was abandoned at an unknown date. When the French traveller Pierre Belon visited the area in the 1540s, there remained nothing but ruins, used by the Turks as a quarry. The name of the city survived—at first in a Turkish village on the nearby plain, Philibedjik (Filibecik, "Little Filibe" in Turkish), which has since disappeared, and then in a Greek village in the mountains.
Reader's Guide
Philippi's significance lies in its layered history as a Greek foundation, a Macedonian stronghold, a Roman colony, and an early Christian hub. The Battle of Philippi in 42 BC marked a turning point in Roman history, ending the Roman Republic and paving the way for the Empire. The city's role in early Christianity, through Paul's missionary work and the Epistle to the Philippians, made it a key center for the spread of the faith in Europe. The ruins, including the forum, theater, and multiple basilicas, illustrate the city's prosperity and its adaptation through Greek, Roman, and Byzantine periods. Its decline after the 6th century, due to earthquakes, plague, and invasions, mirrors the broader transformation of the late antique world. Today, the site near the village of Filippoi offers insight into ancient urban life and religious history.
Did You Know?
- The city was originally named Crenides, meaning 'Fountains' in Ancient Greek.
- Philip II of Macedon renamed the city to Philippi in 356 BC after conquering it.
- The Battle of Philippi in 42 BC was fought on the plain west of the city between Mark Antony and Octavian against Brutus and Cassius.
- The apostle Paul is believed to have preached for the first time on European soil in Philippi, leading to the conversion of Lydia of Thyatira.
- The city was almost totally destroyed by an earthquake around 619 and never fully recovered.
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