battle, landmark, ancient

Battle of Chaeronea

Name: Battle of Chaeronea
Location: Chaeronea, Greece

Battle of Chaeronea was a battle fought in August 338 BC at Chaeronea, in what is now Greece. It was part of the Fourth Sacred War, which ran from 339 BC to 338 BC. The recorded result: Macedonian victory. Recorded strength: 30,000 infantry; 2,000 cavalry against 35,000.

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Battle of Chaeronea, 338 BC. United States Military Academy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

FoughtAugust 338 BC

WhereChaeronea, Greece38.495N, 22.848E

OutcomeMacedonian victory

BelligerentsMacedon; Thessaly; Argos; Arcadia; PhocisagainstAthens; Thebes; Corinth; Megara; Achaea; Chalcis; Epidaurus; Akarnania; Troezen

Casualties and lossesLowand~2,000 killed including all 300 of the elite Sacred Band of Thebes; 2,000 captured

Part ofFourth Sacred War339 BC to 338 BC

Record

Date	August 338 BC (month precision)
Place	Chaeronea, Greece 38.495N, 22.848E
Kind	Battle, ancient
Territorial change	Macedon establishes hegemony over the majority of Greece (except Sparta)
Strength	30,000 infantry; 2,000 cavalry	35,000
Casualties and losses	Low	~2,000 killed including all 300 of the elite Sacred Band of Thebes; 2,000 captured
Commanders	Philip II of Macedon Alexander the Great	Demosthenes Chares of Athens Lysicles (4th century BC) Theagenes of Thebes

The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

Nearest engagements

Battle of Chaeronea 86 BC, 1.6 km NE
Battle of Chaeronea 87 BC, 1.6 km NE
Siege of Livadia 1821, 7.1 km S
Battle of Tegyra 375 BC, 11 km NE
Battle of Orchomenus 86 BC, 12 km E

Contested ground: this site was fought over 3 times between 338 BC and 86 BC.

Elsewhere in 338 BC

Battle of Pedum Italy

Battle of Chaeronea is one of 137 engagements of the 4th century BC in the atlas and one of 493 in present-day Greece.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q200716, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC), revision 1383165436, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.