Atlas of Battles

battle, major, ancient

Battle of Sellasia

Battle of Sellasia was a battle fought in 222 BC at Sellasia, in what is now Greece. Its exact site is not recorded; the atlas places it at Sellasia. It was part of the Cleomenean War, which ran from 229 BC to 222 BC. The recorded result: Decisive Macedonian-Achaean victory. Recorded strength: 28,000 infantry,; 1,200 cavalry against 20,000 infantry,; 650 cavalry.

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Fought222 BC
WhereSellasia, Greece37.167N, 22.417E, placed at the location, approximate
OutcomeDecisive Macedonian-Achaean victory
BelligerentsLeague of Leagues; Macedon; Achaean League; Boeotian League; Acarnania; Epirus; ArdiaeiagainstSparta
Casualties and lossesSubstantialandHeavy; 5,800 Spartans dead
Part ofCleomenean War229 BC to 222 BC

Where it sits in the Cleomenean War

Battle of Mount Lycaeum, 227 BCSiege of Orchomenus, 227 BCBattle of Dyme, 226 BCBattle of Sellasia, 222 BC227 BC222 BCBattle of Sellasia, 222 BC
4 placed engagements of the Cleomenean War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date222 BC (year precision)
PlaceSellasia, Greece
37.167N, 22.417E
KindBattle, ancient
Strength28,000 infantry,; 1,200 cavalry20,000 infantry,; 650 cavalry
Casualties and lossesSubstantialHeavy; 5,800 Spartans dead
Commanders
  • Antigonus III Doson
  • Philopoemen
  • Cercidas
  • Alexander (Antigonid general)
  • Demetrius of Pharos
  • Cleomenes III
  • Eucleidas
Battle of SellasiaBattle of SellasiaBattle of SelasiaSiege of SpartaBattle of Agios VasileiosBattle of DolianaSecond Battle of DolianaSiege of SpartaBattle of DolianaSecond Battle of DolianaAthensPatraTripoliPirgos100 km37.167N, 22.417E
Placed at Sellasia; the exact site is not recorded. with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Sellasia
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 50 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Sellasia today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2025-09-01. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2025.

The recorded site stands at about 597 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 213 to 875 m, 662 m of relief, steep country and today it is 67% tree cover, 16% grassland, 15% shrubland.

tree cover: 67%grassland: 16%shrubland: 15%tree cover 67%grassland 16%shrubland 15%
west to east, 10.0 km255 to 802 mnorth to south, 10.0 km231 to 857 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Elsewhere in 222 BC

Battle of Sellasia is one of 184 engagements of the 3rd century BC in the atlas and one of 493 in present-day Greece.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q204343, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Sellasia, revision 1370588989, 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.