| Aegeus | |
|---|---|
King ofAthens | |
| Member of the Athenian Royal Family | |
 Themis and Aegeus Attic red-figure kylix, 440–430 BC | |
| Other names | Aegeas |
| Predecessor | Pandion II |
| Successor | Theseus |
| Abode | Megara, then Athens |
| Genealogy | |
| Parents | (1)Pandion II andPylia (2)Scyrius (3)Phemius |
| Siblings | (1)Pallas,Nisus,Lycus and wife ofSciron |
| Consort | (i)Meta (ii)Chalciope (iii)Aethra (iv)Medea (v)unknown |
| Children | (iii) Theseus (iv)Medus (v) Pallas |
Aegeus (/ˈiːdʒi.əs/ ⓘ,[1]/ˈiːdʒuːs/;[2]Ancient Greek:Αἰγεύς,romanized: Aigeús) was one of thekings of Athens[3] inGreek mythology, who gave his name to theAegean Sea, was the father ofTheseus,[4] and founded Athenian institutions.
Aegeus was the son ofPandion II, king of Athens[5] andPylia, daughter of KingPylas ofMegara[6] and thus, brother toPallas,Nysus,Lykos and the wife ofSciron.[7] But, in some accounts, he was regarded as the son ofScyrius orPhemius and was not of the stock of theErechtheids, since he was only an adopted son of Pandion.[8][AI-generated source?]
Aegeus' first wife wasMeta,[9] daughter ofHoples and his second wife wasChalciope, daughter ofRhexenor, neither of whom bore him any children.[10] He was also credited to be the father ofMedus by the witchMedea.[11] In a rare account, Pallas was also said to be the son of Aegeus.[12] The latter was also said to fatheredMegareus, eponymous founder ofMegara.[13]
Aegeides (Αἰγείδης), was a patronymic from Aegeus and especially used to designate Theseus.[14]
Aegeus was born inMegara where his fatherPandion II had settled after being expelled from Athens by the sons ofMetion who seized the throne.[15] After the death of Pandion, now king of Megara, Aegeus in conjunction with his three brothers successfully attacked Athens, took control over the government and expelled the usurpers, the Metionids. Then, they divide the power among themselves but Aegeus obtained the sovereignty ofAttica, succeeding Pandion to the throne.[16] It has been said that Megara was at the time a part of Attica, and that Nisus received his part when he became king of that city.[17] Lycus became king ofEuboea whereas Pallas received the southern part of the territory. Aegeus, being the eldest of the brothers, received what they all regarded as the best part: Athens.[18]
The division of the land was explained further in the following text by the geographerStrabo:[19]
... when Attica was divided into four parts, Nisus obtained Megaris as his portion and foundedNisaea. Now, according toPhilochorus, his rule extended from theIsthmus to the Pythium, but according toAndron, only as far asEleusis and theThriasian Plain. Although different writers have stated the division into four parts in different ways, it suffices to take the following fromSophocles: Aegeus says that his father ordered him to depart to the shorelands, assigning to him as the eldest the best portion of this land; then to Lycus he assigns Euboea's garden that lies side by side therewith; and for Nisus he selects the neighboring land ofSceiron's shore; and the southerly part of the land fell to this rugged Pallas, breeder of giants.
Later on, Lycus was driven from the territory by Aegeus himself, and had to seek refuge in Arene,Messenia which was ruled by KingAphareus. Pallas and his fifty sons revolted at a later time, being crushed by Aegeus' son Theseus.[20]
Still without a male heir with his previous marriages, Aegeus asked theoracle atDelphi for advice. According toPausanias, Aegeus ascribed this misfortune to the anger of Aphrodite and in order to conciliate her introduced her worship as Aphrodite Urania (Heavenly) in Athens.[21]
The cryptic words of the oracle were "Do not loosen the bulging mouth of the wineskin until you have reached the height of Athens, lest you die of grief."[22] Aegeus did not understand the prophecy and was disappointed. This puzzling oracle forced Aegeus to visitPittheus, king ofTroezen, who was famous for his wisdom and skill at expounding oracles. Pittheus understood the prophecy and introduced Aegeus to his daughter,Aethra, when Aegeus was drunk.[23] They lay with each other, and then in some versions, Aethra waded to the island ofSphairia (a.k.a. Calauria) and bedded Poseidon. When Aethra became pregnant, Aegeus decided to return to Athens. Before leaving, he buried his sandal, shield, and sword under a huge rock and told her that, when their son grew up, he should move the rock and bring the weapons to his father, who would acknowledge him.[24] Upon his return to Athens, Aegeus marriedMedea, who had fled fromCorinth and the wrath ofJason. Aegeus and Medea had one son namedMedus.
When Theseus grew up, he found his father's belongings left for him and went to Athens to claim his birthright. Aegeus recognized him as his son by his sword, shield, and sandals. Medea, Aegeus' wife perceived Theseus to be a threat for her children's inheritance and first tried to discredit and then to poison Theseus. When Aegeus discovered these schemes, he drove Medea out of Athens.[25]
While visiting in Athens, KingMinos' son,Androgeus managed to defeat Aegeus in every contest during thePanathenaic Games. Out of envy, Aegeus sent him to conquer theMarathonian Bull, which killed him.[26] Minos was angry and declared war on Athens. He offered the Athenians peace, however, under the condition that Athens would sendseven young men and seven young women every nine years toCrete to be fed to theMinotaur, a vicious monster. This continued until Theseus killed the Minotaur with the help ofAriadne, Minos' daughter.
After his adventures in Crete, Theseus returned by ship to Athens. His father, Aegeus previously had asked him to hang a white sail as a sign that Theseus is alive, but Theseus neglected this request. When Aegeus saw Theseus' ships without a white sail, he assumed the worst and threw himself in his grief into the sea, named after him the Aegean Sea.[25]
In Troezen, Theseus grew up and became a brave young man. He managed to move the rock and took his father's weapons. His mother then told him the identity of his father and that he should take the weapons back to him at Athens and be acknowledged. Theseus decided to go to Athens and had the choice of going by sea, which was the safe way, or by land, following a dangerous path with thieves and bandits all the way. Young, brave and ambitious, Theseus decided to go to Athens by land.
When Theseus arrived, he did not reveal his true identity. He was welcomed by Aegeus, who was suspicious about the stranger who came to Athens. Medea tried to have Theseus killed by encouraging Aegeus to ask him to capture the Marathonian Bull, but Theseus succeeded. She tried to poison him, but at the last second, Aegeus recognized his son and knocked the poisoned cup out of Theseus' hand. Father and son were thus reunited, and Medea was sent away toAsia.[27]
Theseus departed for Crete. Upon his departure, Aegeus told him to put up white sails when returning if he was successful in killing the Minotaur. However, when Theseus returned, he forgot these instructions. When Aegeus saw the black sails coming into Athens, mistaken in his belief that his son had been slain, he killed himself by jumping from a height: according to some, from the Acropolis or another unnamed rock;[28] according to some Latin authors, into the sea which was therefore known as the Aegean Sea.[29]
Sophocles' tragedyAegeus has been lost, but Aegeus features inEuripides'Medea.
At Athens, the traveller Pausanias was informed in the second-century CE that the cult ofAphrodite Urania above theKerameikos was so ancient that it had been established by Aegeus, whose sisters were barren, and he still childless himself.[30]
There was aheroon of Aigeus in Athens, called Aigeion (Αἰγεῖον).[31]
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| Preceded by | King of Athens | Succeeded by |
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