[1] However, the Athenian Ecclesia (assembly) had effectively rejected this proposal by putting Philocrates on trial, and by the time he was cleared of the charges, it was too late to save Olynthos.
[4] The Spartans dispatched Archidamus III with 1,000 hoplites, and the Athenians ordered everyone eligible for military service under the age of 40 to be sent to the Phocians' aid.
[4] However, between the Phocians' appeal and the end of the month, all plans were upset by the return of Phalaikos to power in Phocis; the Athenians and the Spartans were subsequently told that they would not be permitted to defend Thermopylae.
[5] By the end of February, the Athenians had dispatched an embassy, including Philocrates, Demosthenes and Aeschines, to Philip to discuss peace between Athens and Macedon.
[6] During this meeting, Aeschines made the case that Philip should hand the former Athenian colony of Amphipolis back to Athens in return for peace.
[9] Despite his suggestions, the Athenian envoys, including himself and Aeschines, remained in Macedonia for three whole months, until Philip returned from Thrace, having subdued the whole country.
[12] Military preparations were ongoing in Pella during this period, but Philip told the ambassadors that they were for a campaign against Halus, a small Thessalian city which held out against him.
[12] By delaying the oaths, and making what was effectively a feint against Halus, he prevented the Athenians from seeing their imminent danger, and from having time to try to garrison Thermopylae.
[15] By 12 July the news that Philip was "in the gates" arrived in Athens; the Athenians then knew that the situation was hopeless, and instead of acting on the previous recommendation of the council, the Assembly instead passed a motion re-affirming the Peace of Philocrates.
His argumentation, exposed in the oration On the Peace, was based on the fact that Athens was not ready for a war against all the other members of the League led by Philip.
[17] Over the next few years, Demosthenes became leader of the "war-party" in Athens, and at every opportunity he sought to undermine the peace: "His method was simple and effective.
"[16] Demosthenes believed that all Philip's successes were due to his bribery and corruption of the Greeks, a view which, although there is little evidence for it, became commonplace until re-examined by modern historians.
The Assembly, stirred by Demosthenes' oratory, passed the motion, leaving the Macedonian embassy speechless—clearly, Philip could not, and would not give up Amphipolis.
[27] In June 341 BC, Athens and Chalcis allied themselves, and proceeded to attack Eritrea and Oreus and install suitable governance in those cities.
[27] Finally, in the Fourth Philippic delivered later in 341 BC, Demosthenes argued that Athens should send an embassy to the Persian king, requesting money for a forthcoming war with Macedon.
The Athenians responded to Philip's grievances, denouncing the terms of the peace treaty, an action entailing the official declaration of war.
The peace officially collapsed in 338 BC, when Philip passed Thermopylae, attacked the Amphissians, entered Phocis and seized Elateia.
Demosthenes convinced the Thebans to enter their alliance against Macedon, when Philip made a final attempt to appease his enemies, proposing a new peace treaty.