KING RHESUS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY
Rhesus was a character that appeared in later events of the Trojan War, for Rhesus was an ally of King Priam of Troy.
Rhesus King of Thrace
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Rhesus was said to have been the son of Strymon, a Potamoi, and a named king of Thrace, born to either Euterpe or Calliope, both of whom were Muses. Rhesus was thus brother to Olynthus and Brangas, named Thracian princes.
Rhesus himself would be named as a King of Thrace, perhaps succeeding his father to the Thracian kingdom. Alternatively, Rhesus’ father was Eioneus, a man otherwise unrecorded in mythological texts. |
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Rhesus at Troy
It was said that Priam had sent envoys to Rhesus seeking assistance since the outbreak of the Trojan War, but no forces of Rhesus appeared on the battlefields of Troy.
Eventually though, in the tenth year of the war, Rhesus arrived at the head of a Thracian force, having crossed the Hellespont. The arrival of Rhesus was an event for, he arrived in golden armour riding upon a gold and silver chariot, pulled by the whitest of all horses.
Rhesus arrived at a time when the Trojans were in ascendency, for Achilles had withdrawn from the fight. Trojans, including Hector, now thought that Rhesus had arrived simply to take more than his fair share of the glory for victory.
Rhesus would declare that he had wished to be present since the outset, but had been delayed by an invasion of Scythians, which he had recently defeated. Rhesus himself declared that the next day he and his Thracians alone, would end the war, with a decisive victory upon the battlefield.
Events thereafter are told in the Doloneia, the tenth book of Homer’s Iliad.
Rhesus and the Thracians camped outside of Troy, alongside many of the Trojan forces. With the Trojans in ascendency, security was perhaps not what it should be. It was a night of intrigue for Diomedes and Odysseus had set forth to spy on the Trojan encampment.
Having captured a Trojan spy, Dolan, Odysseus and Diomedes had learned about the arrival of Rhesus, and the wealth, in the form of horses and golden armour, that he had brought with him. The pair bypassed the Thrcian sentries, and made their way to the heart of the Thracian camp. There they found a small cluster of Thracians. Diomedes and Odysseus killed a dozen of the Thracians before they came upon Rhesus, Rhesus was easily identified as a pair of snow white horses stood beside him.
Diomedes dispatched the Thracian king, and the magnificent horses were led silently out of the Trojan encampment back to that of the Achaeans.
The death of Rhesus was discovered the next morning, and although Hector was suspected by some of killing Rhesus. Hector knew that Achaean spies had been afoot behind Trojan lines, but all that Priam’s son could do was build a magnificent funeral pyre for the ally of Troy.
So Rhesus, who had arrived with pomp and circumstance, but had died before even setting foot on the battlefield.
Eventually though, in the tenth year of the war, Rhesus arrived at the head of a Thracian force, having crossed the Hellespont. The arrival of Rhesus was an event for, he arrived in golden armour riding upon a gold and silver chariot, pulled by the whitest of all horses.
Rhesus arrived at a time when the Trojans were in ascendency, for Achilles had withdrawn from the fight. Trojans, including Hector, now thought that Rhesus had arrived simply to take more than his fair share of the glory for victory.
Rhesus would declare that he had wished to be present since the outset, but had been delayed by an invasion of Scythians, which he had recently defeated. Rhesus himself declared that the next day he and his Thracians alone, would end the war, with a decisive victory upon the battlefield.
Events thereafter are told in the Doloneia, the tenth book of Homer’s Iliad.
Rhesus and the Thracians camped outside of Troy, alongside many of the Trojan forces. With the Trojans in ascendency, security was perhaps not what it should be. It was a night of intrigue for Diomedes and Odysseus had set forth to spy on the Trojan encampment.
Having captured a Trojan spy, Dolan, Odysseus and Diomedes had learned about the arrival of Rhesus, and the wealth, in the form of horses and golden armour, that he had brought with him. The pair bypassed the Thrcian sentries, and made their way to the heart of the Thracian camp. There they found a small cluster of Thracians. Diomedes and Odysseus killed a dozen of the Thracians before they came upon Rhesus, Rhesus was easily identified as a pair of snow white horses stood beside him.
Diomedes dispatched the Thracian king, and the magnificent horses were led silently out of the Trojan encampment back to that of the Achaeans.
The death of Rhesus was discovered the next morning, and although Hector was suspected by some of killing Rhesus. Hector knew that Achaean spies had been afoot behind Trojan lines, but all that Priam’s son could do was build a magnificent funeral pyre for the ally of Troy.
So Rhesus, who had arrived with pomp and circumstance, but had died before even setting foot on the battlefield.
Rhesus and Arganthone
Rhesus was said to have been married to a huntress named Arganthone; with the courtship taking many months. Some say that Arganthone was the true reason why Rhesus had been delayed in arriving at Troy.
The marriage of Rhesus and Arganthone did not produce any heirs for the king, and Arganthone was said to have starved herself to death when she heard of her husband’s death.
The marriage of Rhesus and Arganthone did not produce any heirs for the king, and Arganthone was said to have starved herself to death when she heard of her husband’s death.
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Colin Quartermain - King Rhesus - 4th April 2026