"also the title of the first of a trilogy of plays by Aeschylus, collectively known as the ""Achilleis"". This play draws on the interactions between Achilles and Patroclus in Homer's ""Iliad""; however, only fragments of the play have survived. In Manichaeism, the name ""myrmidons"" is used to refer to a certain class of demonic soldiers that fight for darkness against light. This has been found by archaeologists in papyri known as Coptic Manichaean Psalm-books. These papyri were found in Medinet Maadi, Egypt. The Myrmidons of Greek myth were known for their skill in battle and loyalty to their leaders. In"
"Myrmidon (hero) In Greek mythology, Myrmidon (or ; Ancient Greek: Μυρμιδόνος) was the eponymous ancestor of the Myrmidons in one version of the myth. He was the son of Zeus and Eurymedusa, daughter of Cleitor (Cletor) of Arcadia or of the river god Achelous. Zeus was said to have approached Eurymedusa in the form of an ant (Greek μύρμηξ ""myrmēx""), which was where her son's name came from; others say that Myrmex was the name of Eurymedusa's mortal husband, and that it was his shape that Zeus assumed to approach her. Myrmidon married Peisidice, daughter of Aeolus and Enarete, and"
"along with the also lost ""Niobe"", are two famous examples cited in antiquity of the often-discussed theme of the ""Aeschylean silence"". ""Myrmidons"" (frr. 131–42 Radt; 211–35 Mette) concerned Achilles' refusal to fight for the Greeks, which tragically leads to the killing of his companion Patroclus by the Trojan hero, Hector; this death persuades Achilles to rejoin the fight. In ""Nereids"" (frr. 150–54 Radt; 236–41 Mette), Thetis and a chorus of sea-nymphs bring Achilles his new armor. The remainder of the action probably would have concerned his revenge killing of Hector and Patroclus' funeral. The action of ""Phrygians"" (frr. 263–72 Radt;"
"carrying 50 Myrmidons. He appointed five leaders (each leader commanding 500 Myrmidons): Menesthius, Eudorus, Peisander, Phoenix and Alcimedon. When the Greeks left for the Trojan War, they accidentally stopped in Mysia, ruled by King Telephus. In the resulting battle, Achilles gave Telephus a wound that would not heal; Telephus consulted an oracle, who stated that ""he that wounded shall heal"". Guided by the oracle, he arrived at Argos, where Achilles healed him in order that he might become their guide for the voyage to Troy. According to other reports in Euripides' lost play about Telephus, he went to Aulis pretending"
"Myrkinos Myrkinos () or Myrcinus was an ancient Greek city located in Macedonian Thrace, in the region of Edonis between the Strymon and the Nestos Rivers. It was within the territory of the Edonians, a Thracian tribe, and was founded as a polis by colonists from Miletus in 497 BC. The colonists were led by Histiaios (already a Tyrant of Miletus), whom Darius had allowed to build a city in reward for his help. Myrkinos joined Brasidas after he captured Amphipolis, Oisyme and Galepsus in 422 BC. During the Byzantine empire it was known as Doxompos () or Doxompus ()."
"Myrkinos Myrkinos () or Myrcinus was an ancient Greek city located in Macedonian Thrace, in the region of Edonis between the Strymon and the Nestos Rivers. It was within the territory of the Edonians, a Thracian tribe, and was founded as a polis by colonists from Miletus in 497 BC. The colonists were led by Histiaios (already a Tyrant of Miletus), whom Darius had allowed to build a city in reward for his help. Myrkinos joined Brasidas after he captured Amphipolis, Oisyme and Galepsus in 422 BC. During the Byzantine empire it was known as Doxompos () or Doxompus ()."
"Achilles strikes Eudorus to the ground; he later apologizes and asks Eudorus to leave him at Troy and take the Myrmidons home. Eudoros In Greek mythology, Eudoros (Greek: Εὔδωρος), was the second of Achilles' five commanders at the Trojan War. According to the ""Iliad"", he commanded ten penteconters and five hundred Myrmidons. In Book XVI of the ""Iliad"", when Patroclus readies Achilles' men, Homer talks about him for fourteen lines - more than any of the other commanders in this passage. He is also the second most notable of the five, beaten only by Phoenix. Eudoros was a demigod, the"
"word ""myrmex"" (), meaning ant. The Hesiodic ""Catalogue of Women"" ( 8th or 7th century BCE) gives a similar myth of the origin of the Myrmidons. In this version, Aeacus, the son of Zeus and the nymph Aegina, grows up on the island of Aegina all alone. Aeacus prays to Zeus for company, and as in Ovid's ""Metamorphoses"", Zeus changes ants into men and women for his son to rule over. The pseudo-Apollodoran ""Bibliotheca"" (a collection of myths of the first or second century CE), gives a different account of Myrmidonian origins, identifying the eponymous ancestor of the Myrmidons as"
"Argyraspides The Argyraspides (in ""Silver Shields""), were a division of the Macedonian army of Alexander the Great, who were so called because they carried silver-plated shields. They were picked men commanded by Nicanor, the son of Parmenion, and were held in high honour by Alexander. They were hypaspists, having changed their name to the Argyraspides whilst in India under Alexander (Arrian Anabasis 7.11.3). After the death of Alexander (323 BC) they followed Eumenes. They were veterans, and although most of them were over sixty, they were feared and revered due to their battle skills and experience. At the Battle of"
"Cimon Cimon (; – 450BC) or Kimon (; , ""Kimōn"") was an Athenian statesman and general in mid-5th century BC Greece. He was the son of Miltiades, the victor of the Battle of Marathon. Cimon played a key role in creating the powerful Athenian maritime empire following the failure of the Persian invasion of Greece by Xerxes I in 480479 BC. Cimon became a celebrated military hero and was elevated to the rank of admiral after fighting in the Battle of Salamis. One of Cimon's greatest exploits was his destruction of a Persian fleet and army at the Battle of"
"Achilles In Greek mythology, Achilles or Achilleus ( ; , ""Achilleus"" ) was a Greek hero of the Trojan War and the central character and greatest warrior of Homer's ""Iliad"". His mother was the immortal Nereid Thetis, and his father, the mortal Peleus, was the king of the Myrmidons. Achilles' most notable feat during the Trojan War was the slaying of the Trojan hero Hector outside the gates of Troy. Although the death of Achilles is not presented in the ""Iliad"", other sources concur that he was killed near the end of the Trojan War by Paris, who shot him"
"ensure that direct Persian military aggression against Greece had essentially ended; the latter probably significantly delayed the outbreak of the Peloponnesian War. Cimon Cimon (; – 450BC) or Kimon (; , ""Kimōn"") was an Athenian statesman and general in mid-5th century BC Greece. He was the son of Miltiades, the victor of the Battle of Marathon. Cimon played a key role in creating the powerful Athenian maritime empire following the failure of the Persian invasion of Greece by Xerxes I in 480479 BC. Cimon became a celebrated military hero and was elevated to the rank of admiral after fighting in"
"Mygdon of Bebryces In Greek mythology, King Mygdon (Ancient Greek: Μύγδων) of the Bebryces, people who lived in Bithynia, in northern Asia Minor. He was the son of Poseidon and the Bithynian nymph Melia and thus brother of Amycus, also a Bebrycian king. Mygdon was killed by Heracles on the way to Pontus to complete his ninth labour, which was to fetch the belt of Queen Hippolyte of the Amazons. After Heracles killed Mygdon, he gave his former lands to Lycus, who renamed the place Heraclea in honour of Heracles. The latter fathered a son named Berecynthus by Mygdon's daughter"
"Thersites In Greek mythology, Thersites (Ancient Greek: Θερσίτης) was a soldier of the Greek army during the Trojan War. In the ""Iliad"", he does not have a father's name, which may suggest that he should be viewed as a commoner rather than an aristocratic hero. However, a quotation from another lost epic in the Trojan cycle, the ""Aethiopis"", gives his father's name as Agrius of Calydon and Dia, as his mother. Agrius, was a prince of Calydon while Dia was a daughter of King Porthaon. In some accounts, Thersites together with his five brothers including Melanippus, overthrew Oeneus from the"
"Aeimnestus Aeimnestus (Gr. ) is an Ancient Greek word, also spelled and that means ""unforgettable"", literally ""of everlasting memory"". It was the name of multiple revered Greek warriors. A Spartan soldier Aeimnestus killed the Persian general Mardonius by crushing Mardonius' head with a rock during the Battle of Plataea in 479 BC. The event was described in Book 9 of the ""Histories"" of Herodotus. Plutarch calls the same man ""A""r""imnestus"" (). Another Spartan by the same name led three hundred men against the whole Messenian army in the Messenian Wars; both he and his company were killed to the last"
"Tolmides Tolmides, (Greek: Τολμίδης), son of Tolmaeus, was a leading Athenian general of the First Peloponnesian War. He rivalled Pericles and Myronides for the military leadership of Athens during the 450s and early 440s BC. In 455 BC Tolmides was given command of a fleet and a force of 4,000 soldiers in order to sail round the coasts of the Peloponnesus attacking the Spartans and their allies. Tolmides seized the city of Methone in Messenia but was then forced to abandon it due to the arrival of a Spartan force. He attacked the chief Spartan port of Gytheion and burnt"
"looted Dodona, and sacked Delphi as allies of Mithridates. It is said that they made a habit of raiding Macedon when a king of Macedon was away on a campaign.Sulla after this ravaged the land of the Maedi. Aristotle recorded that ""bolinthos"" was the Maedan word for a species of wild aurochses or wisents that lived in the region. A number of Maedi emigrated to Asia minor and were called ""MaedoBythini"" (). Maedi The Maedi (also ""Maidans"", ""Maedans"", or ""Medi""; Ancient Greek Μαῖδοι) were a Thracian tribe in antiquity. In historic times, they occupied the area between Paionia and Thrace,"
"the Greek Fire Service and the Cypriot National Guard, which lack the grade of full ""stratigós"". The oldest use of the term ""strategos"" in fiction may be found in the ""Callirhoe"" of Chariton of Aphrodisias which is dated in the first century A.D. There, Hermocrates is the ""strategos"" of Syracuse and the father of Callirhoe, living in the 5th century B.C. In fact, he was a historical person, the victor over the Athenians in 413 B.C., an event which stopped Athenian expansion to the West. His role as a character in the novel is rather limited. Although his position in"
"was the object of one of the labours of Heracles. Diodorus mentions that the Amazons traveled from Libya under Queen Myrina. Amazon warriors were often depicted in battle with Greek warriors in amazonomachies in classical art. Archaeological discoveries of burial sites with female warriors on the Eurasian steppes suggest that the Scythian women may have inspired the myth. From the early modern period, their name has become a term for female warriors in general. Amazons were said to have founded the cities and temples of Smyrna, Sinope, Cyme, Gryne, Ephesus, Pitania, Magnesia, Clete, Pygela, Latoreria and Amastris; according to legend,"
"by her became the father of Antiphus and Actor. Also given as his sons are Erysichthon and Dioplethes, himself father of Perieres, although Erysichthon and Perieres have been ascribed different parentage as well. He also had two daughters: Eupolemeia (mother of the Argonaut Aethalides by Hermes) and Hiscilla (mother of Phorbas by Triopas). Myrmidon (hero) In Greek mythology, Myrmidon (or ; Ancient Greek: Μυρμιδόνος) was the eponymous ancestor of the Myrmidons in one version of the myth. He was the son of Zeus and Eurymedusa, daughter of Cleitor (Cletor) of Arcadia or of the river god Achelous. Zeus was said"
"Amazons In Greek mythology, the Amazons (, ', singular , ') were a tribe of women warriors related to Scythians and Sarmatians. Apollonius Rhodius, at Argonautica, mentions that Amazons were the daughters of Ares and Harmonia (a nymph of the Akmonian Wood). They were brutal and aggressive, and their main concern in life was war. Herodotus and Strabo place them on the banks of the Thermodon, while Diodorus giving the account of Dionysius of Mitylene, who, on his part, drew on Thymoetas, states that before the Amazons of the Thermodon there were, much earlier in time, the Amazons of Libya."
"Amphimachus of Mycenae In Greek mythology, Amphimachus (; Ancient Greek: Ἀμφίμαχος derived from ἀμφί ""amphi"" ""on both sides, in all directions, surrounding"" and μαχη ""mache"" ""battle"") son of Electryon and Anaxo, killed (along with most of his brothers) by the sons of Pterelaus. """"When Electryon reigned over Mycenae, the sons of Pterelaus came with some Taphians and claimed the kingdom of Mestor, their maternal grandfather, and as Electryon paid no heed to the claim, they drove away his kine; and when the sons of Electryon stood on their defence, they challenged and slew each other. But of the sons of"
"Machimoi The term Máchimoi (, plural; μάχιμος, ""máchimos"", singular) commonly refers to a broad category of ancient Egyptian low-ranked soldiers which rose during the Late Period of Egypt (664–332 BCE) and, more prominently, during the Ptolemaic dynasty (323–30 BCE). The earliest attestation of this term given to native Egyptian warriors came from Herodotus – who visited Egypt during the first Persian domination (Manetho's 27th Dynasty) – and since him this term has been usually translated simply as ""warriors"" or ""fighting men"". It should be noted, however, that the same term was used by him, referring to Asiatic troops employed by"
"Sarpedon Sarpedon (; , ""Sarpēdṓn"" means ""rejoicing in a wooden ark"") was a common name in ancient Greece and in the Roman Empire. In Greek mythology, the name Sarpedon referred to at least three different people. The first Sarpedon was a son of Zeus and Europa, and is brother to Minos and Rhadamanthys. He was raised by the king Asterion and then, banished by Minos, his rival in love for the young Miletus or Atymnius, he sought refuge with his uncle, Cilix. Sarpedon conquered the Milyans, and ruled over them; his kingdom was named Lycia, after his successor, Lycus, son"
"part of the arsenal of Greek soldiers – including the famous Spartan hoplites and Alexander the Great's Macedonian phalanx. It is said that the Spartans at their immortal stand at Thermopylae fought with their bare hands and teeth once their swords and spears broke. Herodotus mentions that in the battle of Mycale between the Greeks and the Persians in 479 BC, those of the Greeks who fought best were the Athenians, and the Athenian who fought best was a distinguished pankratiast, Hermolycus, son of Euthynus. Polyaemus describes King Philip II, the father of Alexander the Great, practicing with another pankratiast"
"Phthia In Greek mythology Phthia (; or Φθίη ""Phthía, Phthíē"") was a city in ancient Thessaly which was later incorporated into Achaea Phthiotis. Phthia is the home of the Myrmidones, the contingent led by Achilles in the Trojan War. It was founded by Aiakos, grandfather of Achilles, it was the home of his father Peleus, his sea-nymph mother Thetis, and his son Neoptolemus, who reigned as king after the Trojan War. Phthia is referenced in Plato's ""Crito"", where Socrates, in jail and awaiting his execution, relates a dream he has had (""43d–44b""): ""I thought that a beautiful and comely woman"
"on the island of Lemnos, there was another Myrina. The cities of Myrina had this name after the amazon Myrina. Apollonius Rhodius, at Argonautica, mentions that at Thermodon the Amazons were not gathered together in one city, but scattered over the land, parted into three tribes. In one part dwelt the Themiscyreians (), in another the Lycastians (), and in another the Chadesians (). Greeks also used other descriptive phrases for them. Herodotus used the ""Androktones"" (, singular , ') (""killers/slayers of men"") and ""Androleteirai"" (, singular , ') (""destroyers of men, murderesses""), in the Iliad they are also called"
"Eudoros In Greek mythology, Eudoros (Greek: Εὔδωρος), was the second of Achilles' five commanders at the Trojan War. According to the ""Iliad"", he commanded ten penteconters and five hundred Myrmidons. In Book XVI of the ""Iliad"", when Patroclus readies Achilles' men, Homer talks about him for fourteen lines - more than any of the other commanders in this passage. He is also the second most notable of the five, beaten only by Phoenix. Eudoros was a demigod, the son of Hermes and Polymele, who danced in Artemis' choir. Polymele's father Phylas brought him up after she married Echekles. Eudoros was"
"Ancient Greek mercenaries There is evidence of mercenaries (""misthophoroi"" in Greek) being hired in Ancient Greece from the 6th century BC. The tyrants of that time hired bodyguards from other city-states. It is not known if earlier Greek armies and navies, such as the Minoans and Mycenaeans, used mercenaries. Mercenary troops from Caria and Ionia are known to have fought with Psamtik I against the Assyrians. These were the ""bronze men from the sea"" whose arrival in Egypt, according to Herodotus, was foretold to Psamtik by an oracle. They entered the country as raiders but Psamtik made a truce with"
"Ancient Greek mercenaries There is evidence of mercenaries (""misthophoroi"" in Greek) being hired in Ancient Greece from the 6th century BC. The tyrants of that time hired bodyguards from other city-states. It is not known if earlier Greek armies and navies, such as the Minoans and Mycenaeans, used mercenaries. Mercenary troops from Caria and Ionia are known to have fought with Psamtik I against the Assyrians. These were the ""bronze men from the sea"" whose arrival in Egypt, according to Herodotus, was foretold to Psamtik by an oracle. They entered the country as raiders but Psamtik made a truce with"
"was killed. At the funeral of their fathers, the sons of the seven fallen champions (Aegialeus, Alcmaeon, Amphilocus, Diomedes, Euryalus, Promachus, Sthenelus, and Thersander) met and vowed to vanquish Thebes in order to avenge their fathers. They were called ""the Epigoni"" because they were born ""after everything has happened"". Ten years later, the Epigoni set out to launch another expedition against Thebes, appointing Alcmaeon as their commander-in-chief. They strengthened their initial forces with contingents from Messenia, Arcadia, Corinth, and Megara. This army, however, was still small compared to that of Thebes. The war of the Epigoni is remembered as the"
"Prodromoi In ancient Greece, the prodromoi (singular: ""prodromos"") were skirmisher light cavalry. Their name (ancient Greek: ""πρόδρομοι"", ""prοdromoi"", lit. ""pre-cursors,"" ""runners-before,"" or ""runners-ahead"") implies that these cavalry 'moved before the rest of the army' and were therefore intended for scouting and screening missions. They were usually equipped with javelins, and a sword. Sometimes they wore either linen or leather armour, as well as bronze helmets. The ""prodomoi"" of Athens were mounted javelineers, raised between 395 and 360BC as a replacement for the ""hippotoxotai"", who were horse archers. The introduction of the ""prodromoi"" may have formed a part of the military"
"the claim of a paternity was certainly not acceptable to Aeschylus, Herodotus, or Plato. Despite their forbidding reputation, the Moirai could be placated as goddesses. Brides in Athens offered them locks of hair, and women swore by them. They may have originated as birth goddesses and only later acquired their reputation as the agents of destiny. According to the mythographer Apollodorus, in the Gigantomachy, the war between the Giants and Olympians, the Moirai killed the Giants Agrios and Thoon with their bronze clubs. In the Homeric poems Moira, who is almost always one, is acting independently from the gods. Only"