KING ERICHTHONIUS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY

Erichthonius is a name associated with two kings of Greek mythology, one being a king of Athens, and one being a king of Dardania. King Erichthonius of Dardania is today most famous for being a member of the House of Troy. 

Erichthonius and the House of Troy

The House of Troy began with the arrival of Dardanus in Asia Minor after the Great Flood. King Teucer welcomed him to the region, gave him land and also the hand in marriage of his daughter Batea.
 
Batea would subsequently give birth to two sons for Dardanus, Ilus, the elder, and Erichthonius.  

King Erichthonius

Ilus would predecease his father, and so upon the death of Dardanus, Erichthonius would inherit the throne and the kingdom of Dardania. Dardania had flourished under Dardanus, and the state continued to do so under King Erichthonius.
 
Erichthonius would marry the Naiad Astyoche, daughter of Simoeis, who would give birth to a son called Tros; Tros would later give his name to the Trojan people.
 
Erichthonius had a long reign, ruling for perhaps as long as 65 years before the throne of Dardania passed to his son, Tros. 

The Horses of Erichthonius

In his day King Erichthonius was considered the wealthiest of all kings, and was also noted for his extremely large stable of mares, where there were perhaps as many as 3000 mares. The king’s horses would feed upon the lush meadows of his kingdom.
 
The Anemoi god Boreas observed the mares of Erichthonius, and taking the form of a stallion, as was the want of the wind gods, he did mate with a number of the mares. These mares would give birth to 12 fillies. These horses were special, with unmatched speed, horses which could traverse over the top of a field of wheat without damaging a single ear, or could gallop over the sea without getting their feet wet.
 
Horses were closely associated with the House of Troy, and later, when Erichthonius’ grandson Ganymede was abducted by Zeus, part of the compensation given by the god came in the form of swift horses. 

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