In 215 BC, Rome began to interfere in Greek affairs. Philip V of Macedonia allied himself with Carthage against Rome during the Punic wars, but the Romans, with the support of the Aetolian League, overcame the Macedonian forces in 206 BC and obtained a firm foothold in Greece. Rome, this time aided by both leagues, again defeated Philip in 197 BC and Macedonia, completely subjugated, agreed to a peace with Rome, by which the independence of Greece from Macedonia was recognized. The Greeks found that they had exchanged one master for another. In a last desperate attempt to free themselves, in 149 BC, the members of the Achaean League resisted Roman tribute demands. The resulting war ended with the destruction of Corinth by Roman legions in 146 BC. The leagues were abolished and Greece passed completely into the power of Rome, which united Macedonia and Greece to form the Roman province of Macedonia.

For 60 years after 146 BC, Greece was competently administered by Rome. Some cities, such as Athens and Sparta, even retained their free and independent status. In 88 BC, Mithridates VI Eupator, king of Pontus, began a campaign of conquest in Roman-controlled territories with the support of many of the Greek cities. Roman legions under Lucius Cornelius Sulla forced Mithridates out of Greece and crushed the rebellion, sacking Athens in 86 BC and Thebes a year later. Roman punishment of all the rebellious cities was heavy, and the campaigns fought on Greek soil left central Greece in ruins. As a result, the country began to disintegrate economically. Athens did remain a center of philosophy and learning, but its commerce became almost nonexistent.

After the defeat of Antonius and Cleopatra, the Roman Emperor Augustus separated Greece from Macedonia and made the former a province called Achaea in about 22 BC. Over the next century and a half the ancient glory of Greece would slowly rebuild itself, culminating during the reign of Hadrian between 117 and 138 AD. Along with the Greek scholar Herodes Atticus, Hadrian undertook an extensive rebuilding program. He beautified Athens and restored many of the ruined and depressed Greek cities.

Prefect: Joseph Niafer Notable Residents: Aelia Cassius