Menestheus
Encyclopedia
Menestheus the son of Peteus, son of Orneus
, son of Erechtheus
, was a legendary King of Athens
during the Trojan War
. He was set up as king by the Dioscuri when Theseus
travelled to the underworld, and at his return Menestheus exiled him from the city.
Menestheus was one of the suitors of Helen of Troy, and when the Trojan War
started he brought "fifty black ships" to Troy
. In the Iliad
it is noted that no one could arrange chariots and shield-bearing warriors in battle orders better than Menestheus, and that only Nestor
could vie with him. Yet further he is characterized as not valiant. When Agamemnon
was reviewing his troops he found Menestheus in the back rows seemingly avoiding action. Later when Sarpedon
attacked the portion of the Greek wall that he was in charge of, Menestheus shivered and had to call on Telamonian Aias and Teucer
for aid. Menestheus was one of the warriors in the Trojan Horse
. After Troy was sacked, he sailed to Mimas
, then to Melos where he became king.
When Menestheus died, Athens passed back to the family of Theseus
.
The name Menestheus may also refer to:
Orneus
In Greek mythology, Orneus was the son of King Erechtheus and Praxithea and the father of Peteus. Through Peteus Orneus is the grandfather of Menestheus. The town of Orneae is believed to be named after him....
, son of Erechtheus
Erechtheus
Erechtheus in Greek mythology was the name of an archaic king of Athens, the re-founder of the polis and a double at Athens for Poseidon, as "Poseidon Erechtheus"...
, was a legendary King of Athens
King of Athens
Before the Athenian democracy, the tyrants, and the Archons, the city-state of Athens was ruled by kings. Most of these are probably mythical or only semi-historical...
during the Trojan War
Trojan War
In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, the king of Sparta. The war is among the most important events in Greek mythology and was narrated in many works of Greek literature, including the Iliad...
. He was set up as king by the Dioscuri when Theseus
Theseus
For other uses, see Theseus Theseus was the mythical founder-king of Athens, son of Aethra, and fathered by Aegeus and Poseidon, both of whom Aethra had slept with in one night. Theseus was a founder-hero, like Perseus, Cadmus, or Heracles, all of whom battled and overcame foes that were...
travelled to the underworld, and at his return Menestheus exiled him from the city.
Menestheus was one of the suitors of Helen of Troy, and when the Trojan War
Trojan War
In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, the king of Sparta. The war is among the most important events in Greek mythology and was narrated in many works of Greek literature, including the Iliad...
started he brought "fifty black ships" to Troy
Troy
Troy was a city, both factual and legendary, located in northwest Anatolia in what is now Turkey, southeast of the Dardanelles and beside Mount Ida...
. In the Iliad
Iliad
The Iliad is an epic poem in dactylic hexameters, traditionally attributed to Homer. Set during the Trojan War, the ten-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek states, it tells of the battles and events during the weeks of a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles...
it is noted that no one could arrange chariots and shield-bearing warriors in battle orders better than Menestheus, and that only Nestor
Nestor
- Arts, literature, and entertainment :* Nestor , the son of Neleus, the King of Pylos and Chloris in Greek mythology* "Nestor", a chapter in the novel Ulysses by James Joyce* Nestor Studios, first-ever motion picture studio in Hollywood, Los Angeles...
could vie with him. Yet further he is characterized as not valiant. When Agamemnon
Agamemnon
In Greek mythology, Agamemnon was the son of King Atreus and Queen Aerope of Mycenae, the brother of Menelaus, the husband of Clytemnestra, and the father of Electra and Orestes. Mythical legends make him the king of Mycenae or Argos, thought to be different names for the same area...
was reviewing his troops he found Menestheus in the back rows seemingly avoiding action. Later when Sarpedon
Sarpedon
In Greek mythology, Sarpedon referred to at least three different people.-Son of Zeus and Europa:The first Sarpedon was a son of Zeus and Europa, and brother to Minos and Rhadamanthys. He was raised by the king Asterion and then, banished by Minos, his rival in love for the young Miletus, he...
attacked the portion of the Greek wall that he was in charge of, Menestheus shivered and had to call on Telamonian Aias and Teucer
Teucer
In Greek mythology Teucer, also Teucrus or Teucris , was the son of King Telamon of Salamis Island and his second wife Hesione, daughter of King Laomedon of Troy. He fought alongside his half-brother, Ajax, in the Trojan War and is the legendary founder of the city Salamis on Cyprus...
for aid. Menestheus was one of the warriors in the Trojan Horse
Trojan Horse
The Trojan Horse is a tale from the Trojan War about the stratagem that allowed the Greeks finally to enter the city of Troy and end the conflict. In the canonical version, after a fruitless 10-year siege, the Greeks constructed a huge wooden horse, and hid a select force of men inside...
. After Troy was sacked, he sailed to Mimas
Karaburun
Karaburun is a district and the center town of the same district in Turkey's İzmir Province. The district area roughly corresponds to the peninsula of the same name which spears north of the tourism resorts of neighboring Çeşme and its dependencies and west of the city of İzmir. In fact, the...
, then to Melos where he became king.
When Menestheus died, Athens passed back to the family of Theseus
Theseus
For other uses, see Theseus Theseus was the mythical founder-king of Athens, son of Aethra, and fathered by Aegeus and Poseidon, both of whom Aethra had slept with in one night. Theseus was a founder-hero, like Perseus, Cadmus, or Heracles, all of whom battled and overcame foes that were...
.
The name Menestheus may also refer to:
- Menestheus, son of Clytius and grandson of AeolusAeolusAeolus was the ruler of the winds in Greek mythology. In fact this name was shared by three mythic characters. These three personages are often difficult to tell apart, and even the ancient mythographers appear to have been perplexed about which Aeolus was which...
, a companion of AeneasAeneasAeneas , in Greco-Roman mythology, was a Trojan hero, the son of the prince Anchises and the goddess Aphrodite. His father was the second cousin of King Priam of Troy, making Aeneas Priam's second cousin, once removed. The journey of Aeneas from Troy , which led to the founding a hamlet south of...
- Menestheus, a warrior in the army of the Seven Against ThebesSeven Against ThebesThe Seven against Thebes is the third play in an Oedipus-themed trilogy produced by Aeschylus in 467 BC. The trilogy is sometimes referred to as the Oedipodea. It concerns the battle between an Argive army led by Polynices and the army of Thebes led by Eteocles and his supporters. The trilogy won...
, participant of the disk-trowing competition at the funeral games of OpheltesOpheltesOpheltes is a boy from Greek mythology, the son of the Nemean king Lycurgus and Queen Eurydice."When their son was born, Lykourgos consulted the oracle at Delphi in order to find out how he might insure the health and happiness of his child...