Thoas
Encyclopedia
Thoas son of Andraemon
and Gorge
, was one of the heroes who fought for the Greeks
in the Trojan War
. He was a former suitor of Helen of Troy and led a group of forty ships for the Aetolians, one of the larger contingents. In the Iliad
it states that he received his lordship because the previous dynasty of Oineus and Meleagros had perished, so the power to rule was bestowed on him. He was one of the nine volunteers to fight Hector
in one on one combat, but lost to the drawing of lots to Telamonian Aias.
In the Iliad Poseidon
impersonates Thoas to rally Idomeneus
so that he will prevent Hector
, who had just killed the sea god's grandson, and his forces from routing the Argives. Later when Hector has broken through to the ships and the Trojan advance is pressing hard upon them, Thoas advises the Greek's best warriors to make a stand against Hector and the advancing Trojans, to allow the rest of the Greek army to retreat to safety. In the Aeneid
, Aeneas
names Thoas as one of those Greeks hidden within the Trojan Horse
.
He figures in a story told by Odysseus
in the Odyssey
.
Some say that Odysseus, after being exiled from Ithaca by Neoptolemus
, came to Thoas and married his daughter, by whom he had a son Leontophonus.
Andraemon
In Greek mythology the name Andraemon, or Andraimôn may refer to:*Son of Oxylus and husband of Dryope.*Father of Oxylus and grandfather of the precedent....
and Gorge
Gorge (mythology)
In Greek mythology, the name Gorge may refer to:*Gorge, a daughter of Oeneus and Althaea, and wife of Andraemon. Artemis changed her sisters into birds because of their constant mourning over the death of their brother Meleager, but spared Gorge and her sister Deianeira...
, was one of the heroes who fought for the Greeks
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
in 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 a former suitor of Helen of Troy and led a group of forty ships for the Aetolians, one of the larger contingents. 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 states that he received his lordship because the previous dynasty of Oineus and Meleagros had perished, so the power to rule was bestowed on him. He was one of the nine volunteers to fight Hector
Hector
In Greek mythology, Hectōr , or Hektōr, is a Trojan prince and the greatest fighter for Troy in the Trojan War. As the first-born son of King Priam and Queen Hecuba, a descendant of Dardanus, who lived under Mount Ida, and of Tros, the founder of Troy, he was a prince of the royal house and the...
in one on one combat, but lost to the drawing of lots to Telamonian Aias.
In the Iliad Poseidon
Poseidon
Poseidon was the god of the sea, and, as "Earth-Shaker," of the earthquakes in Greek mythology. The name of the sea-god Nethuns in Etruscan was adopted in Latin for Neptune in Roman mythology: both were sea gods analogous to Poseidon...
impersonates Thoas to rally Idomeneus
Idomeneus
In Greek mythology, Idomeneus , "strength of Ida") was a Cretan warrior, father of Orsilochus and Chalkiope, son of Deucalion, grandson of Minos and king of Crete. He led the Cretan armies to the Trojan War and was also one of Helen's suitors. Meriones was his charioteer and brother-in-arms...
so that he will prevent Hector
Hector
In Greek mythology, Hectōr , or Hektōr, is a Trojan prince and the greatest fighter for Troy in the Trojan War. As the first-born son of King Priam and Queen Hecuba, a descendant of Dardanus, who lived under Mount Ida, and of Tros, the founder of Troy, he was a prince of the royal house and the...
, who had just killed the sea god's grandson, and his forces from routing the Argives. Later when Hector has broken through to the ships and the Trojan advance is pressing hard upon them, Thoas advises the Greek's best warriors to make a stand against Hector and the advancing Trojans, to allow the rest of the Greek army to retreat to safety. In the Aeneid
Aeneid
The Aeneid is a Latin epic poem, written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Romans. It is composed of roughly 10,000 lines in dactylic hexameter...
, Aeneas
Aeneas
Aeneas , 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...
names Thoas as one of those Greeks hidden within 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...
.
He figures in a story told by Odysseus
Odysseus
Odysseus or Ulysses was a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer's epic poem the Odyssey. Odysseus also plays a key role in Homer's Iliad and other works in the Epic Cycle....
in the Odyssey
Odyssey
The Odyssey is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is, in part, a sequel to the Iliad, the other work ascribed to Homer. The poem is fundamental to the modern Western canon, and is the second—the Iliad being the first—extant work of Western literature...
.
Some say that Odysseus, after being exiled from Ithaca by Neoptolemus
Neoptolemus
Neoptolemus was the son of the warrior Achilles and the princess Deidamia in Greek mythology. Achilles' mother foretold many years before Achilles' birth that there would be a great war. She saw that her only son was to die if he fought in the war...
, came to Thoas and married his daughter, by whom he had a son Leontophonus.