Most of Demosthenes' major orations were directed against the growing power of King Philip II of Macedon. Since 357 BC, when Philip seized Amphipolis and Pydna, Athens had been formally at war with the Macedonians.[60] In 352 BC, Demosthenes characterized Philip as the very worst enemy of his city; his speech presaged the fierce attacks that Demosthenes would launch against the Macedonian king over the ensuing years. A year later he criticized those dismissing Philip as a person of no account and warned that he was as dangerous as the King of Persia.

This edition of five of Demosthenes' Assembly speeches arguing for a military response to Philip II of Macedon is aimed at students. The extensive introduction and grammatical notes fully explicate the Greek text and provide abundant detail and up-to-date references to help readers understand the historical and literary context.