During the Classical era, they played an active role in the military history of ancient Chalcidice, but after the Macedonian conquest under Philip II nothing remained except the names of these two regions and the adjective Bottiaean, which was limited to sole geographical meaning.
Unlike other tribes of Macedonia ruled by kings or living in villages, Bottiaeans developed some polis form of self-government.
And he says that the Cretans once, in fulfillment of an ancient vow, sent an offering of their first-born to Delphi, and that some descendants of those Athenians were among the victims, and went forth with them; and that when they were unable to support themselves there, they first crossed over into Italy and dwelt in that country round about Iapygia, and from there journeyed again into Thrace and were called Bottiaeans; and that this was the reason why the maidens of Bottiaea, in performing a certain sacrifice, sing as an accompaniment “Let us go to Athens!” The same story is related by the Roman-era mythographer Conon.
Having besieged and taken Olynthus, he brought these men to a lake and there cut their throats and delivered their city over to the charge of Critobulus of Torone and the Chalcidians.
Other Minoan features are the importance of priestess and the type of head-dress...in the matter of weapons and pendants, the Bottiaeans shared the tastes of Illyrians.
In their new home they were conservative in their ways and showed no signs of contact with the coastal GreeksHowever, if two 6th and early 5th century BC cow-and-calf coins[8] found in Bottiaea belong to Bottiaeans, it seems that not all of them were expelled.
Spartolos the chief city of Bottiaeans in Bottike, was one of the first (454 BC) and stable members of the Delian League under the Thracian phoros.
In 429 BC the Athenians arriving before Spartolus in Bottike, they destroyed the corn and had some hopes of the city coming over through the intrigues of a faction.
In the battle of Spartolos, the heavy Chalcidian infantry, the Spartolian psiloi and peltasts from Crusis and Olynthus, jointly defeated the Athenian army and set up a trophy, took up their dead, and dispersed to their several cities (Thuc.
The phrase of Stephanus of Byzantium that Nikaea in Bithynia was a colony of Bottiaeans (Bottiaiôn apoikos) may mean that Lysimachus used as colonists population from Bottiaea or Bottike.