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Herodotus · Histories §7.204.1

Lineage of Leonidas Commander of the Greek Forces

Passage 1267 of 1577 · Greek

Summary

While mentioning the other generals of the Greek forces at Thermopylae, this passage introduces the supreme commander, Leonidas of Sparta, tracing his illustrious lineage back to Heracles and noting his unexpected accession to the throne.

§7.204.1τούτοισι ἦσαν μέν νυν καὶ ἄλλοι στρατηγοὶ κατὰ πόλιας ἑκάστων, ὁ δὲ θωμαζόμενος μάλιστα καὶ παντὸς τοῦ στρατεύματος ἡγεόμενος Λακεδαιμόνιος ἦν Λεωνίδης ὁ Ἀναξανδρίδεω τοῦ Λέοντος τοῦ Εὐρυκρατίδεω τοῦ Ἀναξάνδρου τοῦ Εὐρυκράτεος τοῦ Πολυδώρου τοῦ Ἀλκαμένεος τοῦ Τηλέκλου τοῦ Ἀρχέλεω τοῦ Ἡγησίλεω τοῦ Δορύσσου τοῦ Λεωβώτεω τοῦ Ἐχεστράτου τοῦ Ἤγιος τοῦ Εὐρυσθένεος τοῦ Ἀριστοδήμου τοῦ Ἀριστομάχου τοῦ Κλεοδαίου τοῦ Ὕλλου τοῦ Ἡρακλέος, κτησάμενος τὴν βασιληίην ἐν Σπάρτῃ ἐξ ἀπροσδοκήτου.
For these forces, there were indeed other generals as well, according to their respective cities, but the one most admired and who held command of the entire army was the Lacedaemonian Leonidas, son of Anaxandrides, son of Leon, son of Eurycratides, son of Anaxandros, son of Eurycrates, son of Polydoros, son of Alcamenes, son of Teleclos, son of Archelaos, son of Hegesilaos, son of Doryssos, son of Leobotes, son of Echestratos, son of Agis, son of Eurysthenes, son of Aristodemos, son of Aristomachos, son of Cleodaios, son of Hyllos, son of Heracles, who had acquired the kingship in Sparta unexpectedly.

Notes

  1. §7.204.1τούτοισι — Dative of the demonstrative pronoun pointing back to the Greek allied forces listed in the preceding chapters (7.202–203). Used as a dative of possession with the verb ἦσαν ("For these forces, there were...").
  2. §7.204.1Ἤγιος — Genitive of the name of King Agis of Sparta (Ἆγις). It appears here in the Herodotian Ionic dialectal form Ἤγιος (instead of the Attic Ἄγιδος), representing a crucial link in the Agiad genealogy tracing back to Heracles.
  3. §7.204.1κτησάμενος — Nominative masculine singular aorist participle modifying the main subject, Λεωνίδης. It can be interpreted either adverbially (explaining the circumstances or the time of his accession) or attributively (describing him as the one who acquired the kingship).

Cite this passage

Herodotus, Histories §7.204.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:7.204.1

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