The Antigonid family first rose to power when Demetrius I Poliorcetes, son of Antigonus I, ousted Cassander's governor of Athens in 306 BC giving his father control over a land spanning from the Aegean Sea to the Middle East.

Antigonus III Doson further expanded Macedonian influence in southern Greece reestablishing the Hellenic Alliance with himself as the president.

Following that victory, Demetrius' father, Antigonus I, assumed the title of Basileus ("King" of Alexander's Empire) by the assembled armies and gained control over the Aegean, the eastern Mediterranean, and most of the Middle East.

[6] Demetrius I survived the battle and in 294 BC –during the struggles between Casander's sons Alexander V and Antipater I– he managed to seize control of Athens and establish himself as king of Macedon.

[7][8] After a long period of instability, Demetrius' son Antigonus II Gonatas was able to establish the family's control over the old Kingdom of Macedon, as well as over most of the Greek city-states by 276 BC.