The Royal House of Thebes

The Royal House of Thebes

Santina Betti

The Royal House of Thebes

How Thebes Came To Be

Europa’s brothers were sent to search for her

Cadmus went to Apollo’s oracle at Delphi

Apollo told Cadmus to found his own city

How Thebes Came To Be

Founding Thebes did not come without its challenges Cadmus had to fight a fierce dragon Athena then told him to sow the earth

with the dragon’s teeth Armed men sprang from the furrows and

killed each other 5 survived and became Cadmus’ helpers

Cadmus and His Children

It is believed that Cadmus first introduced the alphabet to Greece

Cadmus married HarmoniaHarmonia was given a necklace from

Aphrodite

Cadmus and His Children

Cadmus and Harmonia had 4 daughters and 1 son Semele, Ino, Agave, Autonoe, and

Polydous All of their daughters experienced great

tragedy in their livesCadmus and Harmonia were turned

into serpents

The Reign of King Laius and JocastaWith Laius as King, Apollo’s oracle at

Delphi began to play a large role in their family’s fortunes

The oracle told Laius a prophecyLaius tried to prevent fate Laius was killed several years later

The Sphinx

The details of Laius’ murder were not investigated because of the Sphinx

The Sphinx had the winged body of a lion, and the breast and face of a woman

As travelers passed, the Sphinx would ask them her riddle

The Sphinx

The Sphinx had caused Thebes to grow close to famine

Her riddle was, “What goes on four legs in the morning, on two legs at noon, and on three legs in the evening?

Oedipus, a traveler from Corinth, successfully answered the riddle by answering “man”

The Sphinx, in disbelief, killed herself

The Reign of Oedipus

Oedipus became king and was given Jocasta as his wife

Together, they had 2 sons and 2 daughters Polyneices, Eteocles, Antigone, and

Ismene

The Reign of Oedipus

When Polyneices and Eteocles had grown into men, Thebes succumbed to a terrible plague

Oedipus sent Creon to Delphi

The Reign of Oedipus

Creon said the plague would lift when the murderer of Laius was punished

Oedipus sent for TeirsiasTeirsias told Oedipus he, himself was

the killer he soughtOedipus ordered him out of his sight

The Reign of Oedipus

Jocasta told Oedipus the prophecy told to Laius and of his murder

Oedipus tells of his prophecy and that he killed a group of men at a place where 3 roads meet

Oedipus sent for the surviving shepherd

The Reign of Oedipus

In the meantime, a messenger from Corinth arrived to tell Oedipus of Polybus’ death

Jocasta told him there was no truth in prophecy

The messenger then tells Oedipus he wasn’t Polybus’ son and he himself received him from a shepherd, a servant of Laius

The Reign of Oedipus

The shepherd confessed that he didn’t leave Laius’ son to die, but instead, gave him to the messenger

Jocasta killed herself and Oedipus blinded himself

After Oedipus

Oedipus lived on in Thebes and resigned from the throne, as did his son, Polyneices

The Thebans then accepted Creon as their ruler

After many years, the Thebans decided to expel Oedipus

Antigone

Antigone guided her father after he was driven out of the city

Ismene stayed in Thebes to keep them informed

Shift In Power

After Oedipus left, his two sons fought for their right to the throne

Eteocles succeeded and exiled his brother from Thebes

Polyneices resided in Argos and rallied an army together to march against Thebes

Oedipus’ death

In the meantime, Antigone and Oedipus had traveled to Colonus

Apollo told Ismene he would be received by the King of Athens with all honor

Ismene went to Colonus to tell Oedipus of Apollo’s words and was with him when he dies

King Theseus sent Antigone and Ismene safely home

Polyneices Attacks Thebes

When Antigone and Ismene returned home, their brothers were fighting

Polyneices was accompanied by 6 other men

Each man attacked one of the 7 Great Gates of Thebes

Polyneices Attacks Thebes

Neither side gained any advantageThe outcome was to be determined

by a battle between Polyneices and Eteocles

Neither was victorious and they killed each other

Polyneices’ last wish was to be buried in his homeland

Creon’s Rule

The battle restarted, and the Thebans were victorious

Creon became KingOnly one of Polyneices’ men

survived, AdrastusCreon made it law that none of the

men against Thebes should be buried there

Antigone

Antigone disobeyed Creon and buried him herself

She was sentenced to deathThe House of Oedipus, the last of the

royal family of Thebes, was no more

The Seven Against Thebes

Adrastus and the mothers and sons of the dead went to Theseus, King of Athens, to ask him to convince Creon to allow his men be buried in Thebes

Theseus decided that if the people of Athens consented, he would ask Creon

The Seven Against Thebes

Theseus pleaded to Creon, but he ignored it

The Athenians then marched against Thebes and conquered

The 5 dead men were burned on a pyre and peace overcame their mothers

Their sons vowed to take vengeance upon Thebes when they were grown

The Seven Against Thebes

Ten years later, they marched to Thebes and were victorious

The Thebans fled and their city was destroyed

The only remains was Harmonia’s necklace, which was taken to Delphi to be shown to pilgrims

Works Cited

Hamilton, Edith. Mythology. New York: Grand Central Publishing, 1942.

Greek-Style Sphinx from the Delphi Museum. Flickr.com. 26 May 2006.

Antigone from the Beijing Capital Museum. Flickr.com. 29 August 2007.