Fourth Macedonian War

Fourth Macedonian War
Part of Macedonian Wars
Drachm of Andriscus, the Macedonian pretender, overstruck on a Roman denarius, perhaps taken as booty after Andriscus' initial victory[2]
Date 150–148 BC Location Macedon Result Roman victory Territorial changes Roman annexation of Macedon
Belligerents
Roman Republic Attalid kingdom Achaean League	Macedon Thracian allies Carthage[Note 1]
Commanders and leaders
P. Cornelius Scipio Nasica Publius Juventius Thalna † Quintus Caecilius Metellus	Andriscus Teres III Barsabas

The Fourth Macedonian War (150–148 BC) was fought between Macedon, led by the pretender Andriscus, and the Roman Republic. It was the last of the Macedonian Wars, and was the last war to seriously threaten Roman control of Greece until the First Mithridatic War sixty years later.

The last Macedonian king of the Antigonid dynasty, Perseus, had been defeated and dethroned by the Romans in the Third Macedonian War in 168 BC. In the aftermath of the war, Rome took indirect control of the region through a system of client states, and imposed harsh terms to prevent Macedon from becoming a powerful state again. This system was successful in maintaining Roman hegemony for nearly two decades, but broke down when Andriscus, a Greek who bore a resemblance to Perseus, claimed to be the former king's son and re-established the Macedonian Kingdom with Thracian troops.

Andriscus was initially successful, defeating Roman clients and a Roman army sent to stop him, and conquering much of Thessaly. However, he was eventually defeated by another Roman army under Quintus Caecilius Metellus at the Second Battle of Pydna in 148 BC, severely weakening his position; he was subsequently pursued and eventually betrayed to the Romans. After settling a few subsequent minor rebellions, Rome took direct control of Macedon, making it a Roman province.

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