In Greek mythology, Menelaus (ancient Greek Μενέλαος) was a king of Ancient Sparta, the husband of Helen, and a central figure in the Trojan War. Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the ancient Greeks concerning their gods and Heroes the nature of the world and the origins and significance The Ancient Greek language is the historical stage in the development of the Hellenic language family spanning the Archaic (c This article covers the history of Sparta from its founding to the present concentrating primarily on the Spartan state during the height of its power from the 6th This article is about the mythological figure Helen of Troy For other uses see Helen (disambiguation and Helen of Troy (disambiguation. In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans after Paris of Troy stole Helen from her He was the son of Atreus and Aerope. In Greek mythology, King Atreus ( Greek: Ατρεύς Atreús) (fearless of Mycenae was the son of Pelops and Hippodamia Aërope ( Ancient Greek:) was in Greek mythology, a daughter of Catreus, king of Crete, and granddaughter of Minos.
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Ascension and reign
King Atreus of Mycenae sent his sons, Agamemnon and Menelaus, to seize his twin brother Thyestes, with whom he was feuding, and bring him to Mycenae. "Lion Gate" redirects here For other uses see Lions' Gate (disambiguation. In Greek mythology, Agamemnon (very resolute / ( ancient Greek:) is a hero, the son of King Atreus of Mycenae In Greek mythology, Thyestes (Θυέστης was the son of Pelops, King of Olympia, and Hippodamia and father of Pelopia and Their feud was over the beautiful Aerope, the wife of Atreus and lover of Thyestes. Aërope ( Ancient Greek:) was in Greek mythology, a daughter of Catreus, king of Crete, and granddaughter of Minos. In Greek mythology, Thyestes (Θυέστης was the son of Pelops, King of Olympia, and Hippodamia and father of Pelopia and She was the mother of Agamemnon and Menelaus. In Greek mythology, Agamemnon (very resolute / ( ancient Greek:) is a hero, the son of King Atreus of Mycenae Atreus arranged a complicated stratagem in which he tricked Thyestes into eating his (Thyestes') own sons. In revenge, Thyestes caused his other son, Aegisthus (the offspring of the incestuous union between Thyestes and his daughter by Aerope, Pelopia) to murder Atreus. In Greek mythology, Thyestes (Θυέστης was the son of Pelops, King of Olympia, and Hippodamia and father of Pelopia and In Greek mythology, Aegisthus ( Ancient Greek:, " goat strength " &mdash also transliterated as Aegisthos In Greek mythology, Thyestes (Θυέστης was the son of Pelops, King of Olympia, and Hippodamia and father of Pelopia and Aërope ( Ancient Greek:) was in Greek mythology, a daughter of Catreus, king of Crete, and granddaughter of Minos. In Greek mythology, Pelopia (or Pelopea) was a name attributed to three individuals In Greek mythology, King Atreus ( Greek: Ατρεύς Atreús) (fearless of Mycenae was the son of Pelops and Hippodamia The throne was then passed to Thyestes and Aegisthus jointly. In Greek mythology, Thyestes (Θυέστης was the son of Pelops, King of Olympia, and Hippodamia and father of Pelopia and In Greek mythology, Aegisthus ( Ancient Greek:, " goat strength " &mdash also transliterated as Aegisthos
As a result, Atreus’ sons went into exile. They first stayed with King Polyphides of Sicyon, and later with King Oeneus of Calydon. For the modern municipality see Sikyona. Sicyon (Σικυών was an ancient Greek city situated in the northern Peloponnesus In Greek mythology, Oeneus, or Oineus (Οἰνεύς was a Calydonian king son of Porthaon, husband of Althaea and father of Calydon ( Greek: Καλυδών was an ancient Greek city in Aetolia, situated on the west bank of the river Evenus. But when they thought the time was ripe to dethrone Mycenae's hostile ruler, they returned. Assisted by King Tyndareus of Sparta, they drove Thyestes away, and Menelaus took the throne for himself. In Greek mythology, Tyndareus Τυνδαρεύς (or Tyndareos Τυνδάρεως) was a Spartan king son of Oebalus The city of Sparta ( Doric Σπάρτα Attic Σπάρτη
When it was time for Helen, Tyndareus's daughter, to marry, many Greek kings and princes came to seek her hand, or sent emissaries to do so on their behalf. This article is about the mythological figure Helen of Troy For other uses see Helen (disambiguation and Helen of Troy (disambiguation. Among the contenders were Odysseus, Menestheus, Ajax the Great, Patroclus, and Idomeneus, but Menelaus was the favorite, though, according to some sources, he did not come in person but was represented by his brother Agamemnon. grc-Latn Odysseus or la Ulysses ( Greek grc-Latn Odysseus; Latin: la Ulixes or more commonly Ulysses) oʊˈdɪsiəs Menestheus (Μενεσθεύς the son of Peteus, son of Orneus, son of Erechtheus, was a legendary King of Athens during the Trojan War "Aias" redirects here For other uses of this name see AIAS and Ajax. In Greek mythology, as recorded in the Iliad by Homer, Patroclus, or Patroklos (Gr In Greek mythology, Idomeneus was a Cretan warrior father of Orsilochus, son of Deucalion, grandson of Minos and king of Crete In Greek mythology, Agamemnon (very resolute / ( ancient Greek:) is a hero, the son of King Atreus of Mycenae All but Odysseus brought many rich gifts with them.
Tyndareus would accept none of the gifts, nor would he send any of the suitors away for fear of offending them and giving grounds for a quarrel. Odysseus promised to solve the problem in a satisfactory manner if Tyndareus would support him in his courting of Penelope, the daughter of Icarius. In Homer 's Odyssey, Penelópē ( Πηνελόπεια/Πηνελόπη) is the faithful wife of Odysseus, who keeps her suitors In Greek mythology, there were two people named Icarius, or Ikários (and another named Icarus) Tyndareus readily agreed, and Odysseus proposed that, before the decision was made, all the suitors should swear a most solemn oath to defend the chosen husband in any quarrel. This stratagem succeeded, and Helen and Menelaus were married. Following Tyndareus's death, Menelaus became king of Sparta because the only male heirs, Castor and Polydeuces, had died when they had ascended Mount Olympus. For the stars see Castor (star and Pollux (star, for the sculptural group in the Prado Museum, see Castor and Pollux (Prado, and for Mount Olympus (Όλυμπος also transliterated as Ólympos, and on Greek maps Óros Ólimbos) is the highest Mountain in Greece Together, Menelaus and Helen had only one daughter, Hermione. In Greek mythology, Hermione (in greek Ἑρμιόνη was the only daughter of Menelaus and Helen.
Trojan War
Some years later, Paris, a Trojan prince, came to Sparta to marry Helen, to whom he had been promised by Aphrodite, after Paris had selected Aphrodite as the most beautiful of the gods (see The Judgment of Paris). See List of King Priam's children Paris ( Greek:; also known as Alexander or Alexandros, c Troy ( Greek: grc Τροία Troia, also, Ilion; Latin: Trōia, Īlium, Hittite: Wilusa or The Judgement of Paris is a story from Greek mythology, which was one of the events that led up to the Trojan War and (in slightly later versions of the story to Although Helen was married to Menelaus, Paris returned to Troy with her, though accounts differ whether or not Helen's flight was willing, blinded as she was by Aphrodite's power. Troy ( Greek: grc Τροία Troia, also, Ilion; Latin: Trōia, Īlium, Hittite: Wilusa or This issue is the source of much of the dramatic tension in Book IV of Homer's book Odyssey. Homer ( Ancient Greek:, Homēros) is a legendary ancient Greek epic Poet, traditionally said to be the author of the epic poems the
Menelaus called upon all the other of Helen’s suitors, (almost all of the Greek kings had been suitors for Helen’s hand), to fulfill their oaths, thus beginning the Trojan War. In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans after Paris of Troy stole Helen from her Virtually all of Greece took part, either attacking Troy with Menelaus or defending it from them.
In the Iliad, Menelaus fights bravely and well, even when wounded, and distinguishes himself particularly by recovering the body of Patroclus after he is killed by Hector. The Iliad ( Greek: Ἰλιάς (Ancient Ιλιάδα (Modern is together with the Odyssey, one of two ancient In Greek mythology, as recorded in the Iliad by Homer, Patroclus, or Patroklos (Gr In Greek mythology, Hectōr ( "holding fast" or Hektōr, is a Trojan prince and one of the greatest fighters in the Although Menelaus is depicted as a reasonably wise and just leader, he has a tendency to rattle off fatuous bromides in the most inappropriate circumstances. A bromide is a Figure of speech, referring to a phrase or person who uses such phrases that has been used and repeated so many times as to become either insincere in its meaning
After Paris was killed by Philoctetes, Helen was married to Paris' brother Deiphobus. In Greek mythology, Philoctetes (also Philoktêtês or Philocthetes, Φιλοκτήτης was the son of King Poeas of Meliboea List of King Priam's children In Greek mythology, Deiphobus was a son of Priam and Hecuba. This angered another of Paris’ brothers, Helenus, who had also wished to marry her. Helenus was a Trojan soldier and prophet in the Trojan War. In Greek mythology, Helenus was the son of King Priam and Queen Helenus, who was the leader of the Trojan army after the death of Hector (another brother), then retreated to Mount Ida. He later gave Odysseus suggestions of how Troy could be defeated. It is not clear if this was given willingly or under duress.
One story tells that, when the Argives were razing Troy, Menelaus searched the city in order to find Helen with the intention of killing her to atone for all the pain she had caused. Argos ( Greek: Ἄργος, Árgos ˈaɾɣos is a city in Greece in the Peloponnese near Nafplio, which was its historic harbor But, when he found her in the ruins, and saw again her breathless beauty and perfect breasts, he dropped his sword and took her up in his arms.
Helen is then said to have betrayed Deiphobus (her third husband) to Menelaus (her first). Menelaus killed Deiphobus and mutilated his body, removing all of his body parts one by one and spending special time on his eyes (the eyes having witnessed the naked Helen).
According to the Odyssey, Menelaus' homebound fleet was blown by storms to Crete and Egypt, [1] where they were unable to sail away because the wind was calm. The Odyssey ( Greek: Ὀδύσσεια or Odússeia) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. Crete ( Greek: Κρήτη transliteration: Krētē, modern transliteration Kriti) is the largest of the Greek islands and the This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. Menelaus had to capture Proteus, a shape-shifting sea god, until Proteus told him what sacrifices he would have to make to the gods to guarantee safe passage. In Greek mythology, Proteus (Πρωτεύς is an early sea-god one of several deities whom Homer calls the "Old Man of the Sea" whose name suggests the A water deity is a Deity in Mythology associated with Water or various bodies of water. [1] Proteus also told Menelaus that he was destined for Elysium after his death. In Greek mythology, Elysium ( Greek:) was a section of the Underworld (the spelling Elysium is a Latinization of the This was based solely on the fact that he had married Helen, hence becoming a son-in-law to Zeus - and Elysium being a place reserved for the progeny of Zeus.
Menelaus returned to Sparta with Helen, settling in Lacedaemon,[1] where they were later buried together in a modest shrine, although there are many alternative stories of Helen’s life after the fall of Troy. The city of Sparta ( Doric Σπάρτα Attic Σπάρτη One of these says that, after Menelaus' death, his illegitimate son Megapenthes sent Helen into exile, whence she went eventually to Rhodes. For the Click beetle Genus, see Megapenthes (beetle. In Greek mythology Rhodes (Ρόδος Ródos, ˈɾo̞ðo̞s Rodi ردوس Rodos; Ladino: Rodi or Rodes) is a Greek island
Alternative parentage
In alternative traditions Menelaus is said to be the son of Pleisthenes (son of Atreus) and Aerope, or of Pleisthenes and Cleolla, daughter of Dias, making him the grandson, rather than the son, of Atreus. In Greek mythology, Pleisthenes was either the son of Pelops, or Pelops' son Atreus (in which case he rather than Atreus was thought of the father of [1]
In other media
Menelaus appears in the 2004 film Troy, portrayed by Brendan Gleeson. Troy is an epic movie released on May 14, 2004 concerning the Trojan War. Brendan Gleeson (born 29 March 1955 is an Irish Actor who has starred in many high profile Irish American and British films He duels Paris and wins, but Paris retreats to his brother, Hector. When Menelaus wants to strike the finishing blow, Hector kills him to protect his brother. (Menelaus also wins the duel in the Iliad, but Paris is spirited away behind Troy's walls by an interfering Aphrodite. )
See also
- USS Menelaus (ARL-13)
- Menelaus, a crater on the moon named after the Spartan king. Menelaus is a young lunar Impact crater located on the south shore of Mare Serenitatis near the eastern end of the Montes Hæmus mountain range
- The Odyssey by Homer. The Odyssey ( Greek: Ὀδύσσεια or Odússeia) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. Homer ( Ancient Greek:, Homēros) is a legendary ancient Greek epic Poet, traditionally said to be the author of the epic poems the
Notes
- ^ a b c "Menelaus" (overview), Encyclopedia Mythica, Pantheon. org, 2004, webpage: Pantheon-Menelaus-overview.
References
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