Klio 2019; 101(1): 77–106 Giorgos S. Mitropoulos* The Sphinx and the She-Wolf: Some Remarks on Aetolian Politics after the Antiochian War https://doi.org/10.1515/klio-2019-0003 Summary: This article aims to examine the turbulent course of the Aetolian League in the confused years after the Antiochian War (191–188) up until 160/159, when its leader at the time, Lykiskos, passed away. Military defeats, political developments and economic problems will be studied together in order to form an accurate interpretation of the internal strife inside the Koinon. In addition, the factor of Rome also needs to be taken into consideration, as the new power seems to have adopted a cautious stance, intervening in the League’s internal politics only when it was considered necessary. Prominent (and relatively neglected in the modern literature) Aetolians of this era, like Thoas and Lykiskos, as well as their crucial political roles, are also analysed. Keywords: Aetolian League, Hellenistic Greece, Roman Republic, politics, debt crisis, civil war, Thoas, Lykiskos Qui vincit non est victor nisi victus fatetur Ennius, Annales, fr. 513 Studying the history of the Aetolian Koinon after the Antiochian War (191–188)1, when the Aetolians allied with the Seleucid king Antiochos III against the Roman Republic, often resembles wandering through the mountains of Aetolia itself: the road is rough and steep. Sometimes the mist covers large parts of the path and the wanderer cannot be sure what comes next. Respectively, the researcher must examine the few, very fragmentary and uneven ancient sources carefully in order to follow the path as accurately as possible. Indeed, in order to understand the confused events in Aetolia after 188, it is necessary to study mainly Polybius and Livy, who usually followed the Polybian text. However, at the same time, one 1 All dates are B.C. *Kontakt: Giorgos S. Mitropoulos, E-Mail: g.mitro@hotmail.com Unauthenticated Download Date | 6/13/19 8:57 PM