Aleus
King of Tegea in Arcadia and founder of the great temple of Athena Alea
The Legend of Aleus
Aleus was a king of Tegea in Arcadia, son of Aphidas and grandson of Arcas, the eponymous founder of Arcadia. He established the famous sanctuary of Athena Alea at Tegea, one of the most important religious sites in the Peloponnese. Aleus received an oracle warning that his daughter Auge's son would one day kill his own sons. To prevent this, he made Auge a priestess of Athena, binding her to chastity. When Heracles visited Tegea and seduced Auge, she bore a son, Telephus. Aleus discovered the secret birth and in fury set mother and child adrift at sea, or in some versions sold Auge into slavery. Despite his precautions, his grandsons were eventually killed, fulfilling the prophecy he had tried so desperately to avert.
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Legendary king of Sparta and founder of the ancient city of Amyclae near Sparta
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🗡 heroNone recorded
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🗡 heroNone recorded
A legendary king of Sparta and father of Penelope who tried to prevent his daughter from leaving with Odysseus after her marriage
Jason
🗡 heroLeader of the Argonauts
The hero who assembled the Argonauts and sailed to Colchis to retrieve the Golden Fleece, aided by Medea's sorcery.
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🗡 heroHero who slew Medusa
The son of Zeus and Danae who beheaded Medusa, rescued Andromeda, and founded the Perseid dynasty of Mycenae.
Erichthonius
🗡 heroNone recorded
Earth-born king of Athens raised by Athena, credited with inventing the four-horse chariot
Busiris
🗡 heroNone recorded
Egyptian king who sacrificed strangers to Zeus until Heracles broke free and killed him
Theseus
🗡 heroSlayer of the Minotaur, king of Athens
The hero who navigated the Labyrinth, slew the Minotaur, and became the legendary king of Athens. Theseus was considered Athens's national hero.