Amyntas II of Macedon: A Brief Reign in Ancient Greek History

Introduction

Amyntas II, called “the Little,” was a short-reigned king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon from the Argead dynasty who held the throne for a matter of months around 394/3 BC. He succeeded Aeropus II in July or August of 394/3 following Aeropus’ death and was shortly thereafter assassinated by an Elimieotan nobleman named Derdas; Pausanias, son of Aeropus, succeeded him. Amyntas’ parentage is unsettled in the sources; the prevailing reconstruction treats him as a son of Menelaus, grandson of Alexander I, while alternative readings make him a son of Archelaus. Later writers and modern scholars note confusing and corrupt passages in the surviving texts that have produced divergent genealogies. Some historians have proposed political marriage ties linking Amyntas and the house of Archelaus as a means to limit dynastic conflict, but that reconstruction remains debated. Ancient authorities differ in their treatment of his reign—Diodorus omits him—yet other chronicles and modern scholarship accept his brief rule, a status supported by numismatic evidence. Amyntas II made no recorded reforms or campaigns; his reign is principally remembered for its abrupt termination by assassination and for the ensuing succession that returned the kingship to Aeropus’ line.