• About "If", Philip II of Macedon and Laconia-Sparta (by Plutarh)

After invading Greece and receiving the submission of other key city-states, Philip II of Macedon sent a message to Sparta: "If I win this war, you will be slaves forever." In another version, he warned: "You are advised to submit without further delay, for if I bring my army into your land, I will destroy your farms, slay your people, and raze your city." According to both accounts, the Spartan ephors replied with one word: "If" (αἴκα). Subsequently neither Philip nor Alexander attempted to capture the city.

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