Theban Cycle
The cycle of myths surrounding the cursed royal house of Thebes, from Cadmus's founding through Oedipus's tragedy to the war of the Seven and their sons.
The Meaning of Theban Cycle
The Theban Cycle traced the doom of Thebes from its founding by Cadmus, who sowed the teeth of a dragon sacred to Ares and reaped a harvest of armed men called Spartoi. Cadmus married Harmonia, but their house was cursed — their grandson Pentheus was torn apart by Maenads of Dionysus. Laius, a later king, received a prophecy from Apollo that his son would kill him. That son, Oedipus, fulfilled the prophecy, then solved the Sphinx's riddle and married his own mother Jocasta. When the truth emerged, Jocasta hanged herself and Oedipus blinded himself. His sons Eteocles and Polynices fought for the throne; Polynices recruited the Seven Against Thebes, and the brothers killed each other. Antigone defied King Creon to bury Polynices. Ten years later, the Epigoni — sons of the Seven — conquered Thebes. Tiresias the prophet witnessed it all across seven generations.
Parents
Cadmus (founder)
Symbols
Fun Fact
The Theban Cycle provided material for more surviving Greek tragedies than the Trojan War: Aeschylus's Seven Against Thebes, Sophocles' Oedipus Rex, Oedipus at Colonus, and Antigone, and Euripides' Phoenician Women and Bacchae. Antigone's decision to obey divine law over state law has been cited in legal arguments from the Nuremberg Trials to modern civil disobedience cases. She remains international law's most-cited fictional character.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
Explore Further
Theban Royal Family
💭 conceptDynasty, Thebes
The cursed ruling house of Thebes spanning from Cadmus through Oedipus to the fratricidal war of his sons
House of Oedipus
💭 conceptDynasty, fate
The doomed Theban royal line of Laius and Oedipus, destroyed by patricide, incest, and fraternal war
House of Pelops
💭 conceptDynasty, curse
The cursed royal dynasty of Mycenae descended from Pelops, encompassing the Trojan War generation
House of Atreus
💭 conceptNarrative
The cursed royal dynasty of Mycenae whose generations of bloodshed and vengeance form the darkest saga in Greek mythology
House of Cadmus
💭 conceptDynasty, Thebes
The royal dynasty of Thebes founded by the Phoenician prince Cadmus who sowed the dragon's teeth
Danaid Lineage
💭 conceptDynasty, Argos
The royal lineage descending from Danaus and his fifty daughters, central to the mythology of Argos
Oedipus Cycle
💭 conceptNarrative
The interconnected myths tracing the cursed lineage of Oedipus from prophecy to tragic fulfilment
Seven Against Thebes
💭 conceptwar, curse
The doomed military expedition of seven champions against the seven gates of Thebes, organised by Polynices to reclaim the throne from his brother Eteocles.
Seven Against Thebes
💭 conceptNarrative
The doomed military expedition of seven champions against the city of Thebes in the generation before the Trojan War
Trojan Royal Family
💭 conceptDynasty, Troy
The ruling dynasty of Troy descended from Dardanus through Tros, Ilus, and Laomedon to Priam and his fifty sons
Niobe's Punishment
💭 conceptNarrative
The destruction of a queen's fourteen children by Apollo and Artemis for her boast of superiority to the goddess Leto
Heraclids
💭 conceptDynasty, conquest
The descendants of Heracles who claimed the Peloponnese and established the Dorian kingdoms of Sparta, Argos, and Messenia