In the congress of 371 BC an altercation is recorded between him and the Theban general Epaminondas, and due to his influence Thebes was peremptorily excluded from the peace, and orders given for Cleombrotus to march against Thebes in 371 BC.

The destruction of the whole Theban army is said to only have been averted by the ability of Epaminondas, who was serving in the campaign, but not as general.

While a captive there, Philip received a military and diplomatic education from Epaminondas, became eromenos of Pelopidas, and lived with Pammenes, who was an enthusiastic advocate of the Sacred Band of Thebes.

Epaminondas was born into the Theban aristocracy in the late 5th century BC ; estimates for the year of his birth vary widely.

Epaminondas evidently excelled as a student, and was devoted to Lysis.

Though not explicitly stated, this was probably the Spartan attack on Mantinea in 385 BC, as described by Xenophon ; Plutarch tells us that Epaminondas was there as part of a Theban force aiding the Spartans, so this battle fits the description.

Epaminondas was certainly not old enough have served at the First Battle of Mantinea.

Epaminondas, although associated with that faction, was allowed to remain ; since " his philosophy made him to be looked down upon as a recluse, and his poverty as impotent ".

Epaminondas was serving as a Boeotarch for 371 BC, and led the Boeotian delegation to the peace conference.

Epaminondas was given charge of the Boeotian army, with the other six Boeotarchs in an advisory capacity.

During the course of the battle, Epaminondas was to display a grasp of tactics hitherto unseen in Greek warfare.

However, the reversing of the position of the elite troops, and an oblique line of attack were innovations ; it seems that Epaminondas was therefore responsible for the military tactic of refusing one's flank.

The Theban force arrived late in 370 BC, and it was led by Epaminondas and Pelopidas, both at this time Boeotarchs.

Epaminondas ' campaign of 370 / 369 has been described as an example of " the grand strategy of indirect approach ", which was aimed at severing " the economic roots of her military supremacy.

Upon his return home, Epaminondas was therefore greeted not with a hero's welcome but with a trial arranged by his political enemies.

According to Cornelius Nepos, in his defense Epaminondas merely requested that, if he be executed, the inscription regarding the verdict read: Epaminondas was punished by the Thebans with death, because he obliged them to overthrow the Lacedaemonians at Leuctra, whom, before he was general, none of the Boeotians durst look upon in the field, and because he not only, by one battle, rescued Thebes from destruction, but also secured liberty for all Greece, and brought the power of both people to such a condition, that the Thebans attacked Sparta, and the Lacedaemonians were content if they could save their lives ; nor did he cease to prosecute the war, till, after settling Messene, he shut up Sparta with a close siege.

The jury broke into laughter, the charges were dropped, and Epaminondas was re-elected as Boeotarch for the next year.

Epaminondas ' acceptance of the Achaean oligarchies roused protests by both the Arcadians and his political rivals, and his settlement was thus shortly reversed: democracies were set up, and the oligarchs exiled.

Since time was passing and the Mantinean alliance showed no signs of capsizing, Epaminondas decided that he would have to break the stalemate.

However, the Spartan king Archidamus was alerted to this move by an informant, probably a Cretan runner, and Epaminondas arrived to find the city well-defended.

The Theban statesman Epaminondas, who is boeotarch ( one of the five magistrates of the Boeotian federation ), maintains Thebes ' position, even when it leads to the exclusion of Thebes from the peace treaty.

The Roman orator Cicero called him " the first man of Greece ", and Montaigne judged him one of the three " worthiest and most excellent men " that had ever lived, but Epaminondas has fallen into relative obscurity in modern times.

" Diodorus suggests that one of his friends exclaimed " You die childless, Epaminondas " and then burst into tears.

Extant biographies of Epaminondas universally describe him as one of the most talented generals ever produced by the Greek city-states.

The name " Epiphone " is a combination of proprietor Epaminondas Stathopoulos ' nickname " Epi " and " phone " ( from Greek phon -, " sound "/" voice "), as well as a play on one meaning of the word " epiphany ," namely a sudden inspiration frequently presenting itself as supernatural in origin.

There are some notable extremes ; at the battles of Leuctra and Mantinea, the Theban general Epaminondas arranged the left wing of the phalanx into a " hammerhead " of 50 ranks of elite hoplites deep ( see below ) and when depth was less important, phalanxes just 4 deep are recorded, as at the battle of Marathon.

There, the Theban general Epaminondas thinned out the right flank and centre of his phalanx, and deepened his left flank to an unheard-of 50 men deep.

There, Epaminondas starts the rebuilding of the ancient city of Messene on Mount Ithome, with fortifications that are among the strongest in Greece.

The life of Epaminondas is very poorly attested in the ancient sources, especially compared to some of his near contemporaries ( e. g. Philip II of Macedon, Pelopidas ).

Epaminondas freed the helots of Messenia, and rebuilt the ancient city of Messene on Mount Ithome, with fortifications that were among the strongest in Greece.

In matters of character, Epaminondas was above reproach in the eyes of the ancient historians who recorded his deeds.

Indeed, the historians Bruce LaForse and John Buckler have noted that the character and accomplishments of Epaminondas were so unassailable that there is no known hostile account of him in ancient sources.

One of the prominent Greek military figures enjoying such a relationship was Epaminondas, considered the greatest warrior-statesmen of ancient Thebes by many, including the Roman historian Diodorus Siculus.

It seems safe to assume, given their close friendship, and their close collaboration after 371 BC, that Epaminondas and Pelopidas also collaborated closely on Theban policy in the period 378 – 371 BC.

There is also a surviving ( and possibly abridged ) biography of Epaminondas by the Roman author Cornelius Nepos from the first century BC, in the absence of Plutarch's, this becomes a major source for Epaminondas's life.

His prudence and heroism preserved an un-walled Sparta against the revolts and conspiracies of helots, perioeci and even Spartans, and against her enemies, four different armies led by Epaminondas, that penetrated Laconia that same year, and again in 362 BC when they all but succeeded in seizing the city by a rapid and unexpected march.

Late on in the hoplite era, more sophisticated tactics were developed, in particular by the Theban general Epaminondas.

Epaminondas and Gorgidas lead a group of young men who break into the city's armories, take weapons, and surround the Spartans on the Cadmea, assisted by a force of Athenian hoplites.

* On returning to Thebes, Epaminondas is put on trial by his political enemies who charge that he has retained his command longer than constitutionally permitted.

They then assassinated the leaders of the pro-Spartan government, and supported by Epaminondas and Gorgidas, who led a group of young men, and a force of Athenian hoplites, they surrounded the Spartans on the Cadmeia.

The following day, Epaminondas and Gorgidas brought Pelopidas and his men before the Theban assembly and exhorted the Thebans to fight for their freedom ; the assembly responded by acclaiming Pelopidas and his men as liberators.

As a consistent advocate of an aggressive policy, Epaminondas wished to fight, and supported by Pelopidas, he managed to swing the vote in favour of battle.

Epaminondas, supported by Pelopidas and the Arcadians, then persuaded the other Boeotarchs to invade Laconia itself.

Epaminondas decided to attack the weakest spot, guarded by the Lacedaemonians ; in a dawn attack he forced his way through the Spartan position, and joined his Peloponnesian allies.

When Epaminondas returned to Thebes, he continued to be dogged by his political enemies who prosecuted him for the second time.

However, at the height of the battle, Epaminondas was mortally wounded by a Spartan, and died shortly thereafter.

Death of Epaminondas, as painted by Benjamin West.