Epigoni
- I The sons of the seven heroes who went together against Thebes, Hyg. Fab. 71; as the name of a tragedy of Aeschylus, translated into Latin by Attius, Cic. Opt. Gen. 6, 18; id. Tusc. 2, 25, 60; id. Off. 1, 31, 114.—
- II The children of the soldiers of Alexander the Great by Asiatic women, Just. 12, 4 fin.
(Group Ἐπίγονοι), that is, the heirs or descendants. By this name ancient mythology understands the sons of the seven heroes who had undertaken an expedition against Thebes, and had perished there. [Adrastus.] Ten years after that catastrophe, the descendants of the seven heroes went against Thebes to avenge their fathers, and this war is called the war of the Epigoni. According to some traditions, this war was undertaken at the request of Adrastus, the only surviver of the seven heroes. The names of the Epigoni are not the same in all accounts (Apollod. 3.7.2, &c.; Diod. 4.66; Paus. 10.10.2; Hyg. Fab. 71); but the common lists contain Alemaeon, Aegialeus, Diomedes, Promachus, Sthenelus, Thersander, and Euryalus. Alcmaeon undertook the command, in accordance with an oracle, and collected a considerable band of Argives. The Thebans marched out against the enemy, under the command of Laodamas, after whose fall they took to flight to protect themselves within their city. On the part of the Epigoni, Aegialeus had fallen. The seer Teiresias, however, induced the Thebans to quit their town, and take their wives and children with them, while they sent ambassadors to the enemy to sue for peace. The Argives, however, took possession of Thebes, and razed it to the ground. The Epigoni sent a portion of the booty and Manto, the daughter of Teiresias, to Delphi, and then returned to Peloponnesus. The war of the Epigoni was made the subject of epic and tragic poems. (Paus. 9.9. 3.) The statues of the seven Epigoni were dedicated at Delphi. (Paus. 10.10.2.) [L.S]
(Ἐπίγονοι, “descendants”). The sons of the Grecian heroes who were killed in the First Theban War. (See Polynices.) The War of the Epigoni is famous in ancient history. It was undertaken ten years after the first. The sons of those who had perished in the first war resolved to avenge the death of their fathers. The god, when consulted, promised them victory if led by Alcmaeon , the son of Amphiaraüs. Alcmaeon accordingly took the command. Another account, however, given by Pausanias (ix. 9, 2), makes Thersander, son of Polynices, to have been at the head of the expedition. The other leaders were Amphilochus, brother of Alcmaeon ; Aegialeus, son of Adrastus; Diomedes, of Tydeus; Promachus, of Parthenopaeus; Sthenelus, of Capaneus; and Eurypylus, of Mecisteus. The Argives were assisted by the Messenians, Arcadians, Corinthians, and Megarians. The Thebans obtained aid from the neighbouring States. The invaders ravaged the villages about Thebes. A battle ensued, in which Laodamas, the son of Eteocles, slew Aegialeus, and fell himself by the spear of Alcmaeon. The Thebans then fled; and, by the advice of Tiresias, they secretly left their city, which was entered and plundered by the Argives, and Thersander was placed on the throne.
With the exception of the events of the Trojan War and the return of the Greeks, nothing was so closely connected with the Iliad and Odyssey as the War of the Argives against Thebes, since many of the principal heroes of Greece, particularly Diomedes and Sthenelus, were themselves among the conquerors of Thebes, and their fathers before them, a bolder and wilder race, had fought on the same spot, in a contest which, although unattended with victory, was still far from inglorious. Hence, also, reputed Homeric poems on the subject of this war were extant, which perhaps really bore a great affinity to the Homeric time and school. The second part of the Thebaïs, which related to the exploits of the Epigoni, was, according to Pausanias (ix. 9, 2), ascribed by some to Homer himself. The Epigoni was still commonly ascribed to Homer in the time of Herodotus (iv. 32). See Homerus.
- reference therein to Hyperboreans: Hdt. 4.32
- their war on Thebes: Apollod. 1.9.13, Apollod. 3.7.1, Apollod. 3.7.2, Apollod. 3.7.3
- march against Thebes: Paus. 9.9.4ff.
- capture Thebes: Paus. 9.25.6
- hold Nemean games: Paus. 10.25.7
- their graves: Paus. 9.19.2
- statues of E. at Delphi: Paus. 10.10.4