Polites
Trojan prince and son of Priam known for his swiftness as a scout and lookout
The Legend of Polites
Polites was one of the many sons of King Priam and Queen Hecuba of Troy. He served as a scout and lookout for the Trojans during the war, trusted for his speed and keen eyes. Homer describes him sitting as a sentinel on the tomb of old Aesyetes, watching for Greek movements from the plain. During the fall of Troy, Polites was pursued through the halls of Priam's palace by Neoptolemus, son of Achilles. He was struck down and killed before his father's eyes, and Priam's anguished protest at this act led to the old king's own death at Neoptolemus's hands. His death scene is one of the most tragic in Virgil's Aeneid.
Parents
Priam and Hecuba
Symbols
Fun Fact
Polites' death before his father's eyes provoked Priam's final, fatal confrontation with Neoptolemus
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