Pella is a small town in northern Greece, lying almost 24 miles (39 kilometers) northwest of Thessaloniki (Salonika). In ancient times, it occupied an area of gently rising ground overlooking a lake formed by the Lydias River. Ships could sail up the Lydias from what is now the Gulf of Salonika as far as Pella, which became a significant port. In about 400 B.C., Archelaus, king of Macedonia, moved his capital from Aigai to Pella. Philip II and his son Alexander the Great were both born in Pella, and it continued to be the Macedonian capital until the Romans captured it in 167 B.C. After 146 B.C., it was eclipsed in importance by the nearby town of Thessaloniki.