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Agamémnon (Greek: ) ("very resolute"), one of the most distinguished heroes of Greek mythology, was the son of King Atreus of Mycenae (or Argos) and Queen Aerope, and brother of Menelaus.
Early life
Agamemnon's father Atreus was murdered by Aegisthus, who took possession of the throne of Mycenae and ruled jointly with his father Thyestes. During this period Agamemnon and Menelaus took refuge with Tyndareus, king of Sparta. There they respectively married Tyndareus' daughters Clytemnestra and Helen. Agamemnon and Clytemnestra had five children: four daughters, Iphigeneia, Electra, Chrysothemis, and Iphianissa and one son, Orestes.
Menelaus succeeded Tyndareus in Sparta, while Agamemnon, with his brother's assistance, drove out Aegisthus and Thyestes to recover his father's kingdom. He extended his dominion by conquest and became the most powerful prince in Greece.
However, Agamemnon's family history, dating back to legendary king Pelops, had been marred by pederastic rape, murder, incest, and treachery. The Greeks believed this violent past brought misfortune upon the entire House of Atreus.
The Trojan War
Agamemnon gathered together the Greek forces to sail for Troy. Preparing to depart from Aulis, a port in Boeotia, Agamemnon's army incurred the wrath of the goddess Artemis. There are several reasons throughout myth for such wrath: in Aeschylus' play 'Agamemnon', Artemis is angry for the young men who will die at Troy, whereas in Sophocles' 'Electra', Agamemnon has slain an animal sacred to Artemis, and subsequently boasted that he was Artemis' equal in hunting. Misfortunes including a plague and a lack of wind prevented the army from sailing; finally, the prophet Calchas announced that the wrath of the goddess could only be propitiated by the sacrifice of Iphigeneia (daughter of Agamemnon). Classical dramatizations differ on how willing either father or daughter were to this fate, including such trickery as claiming she was to be married to Achilles, but Agamemnon did eventually sacrifice Iphigeneia. Her death appeased Artemis and the Greek army set out for Troy. Several alternatives to the human sacrifice have been presented in Greek mythology. Other sources claim Agamemnon was prepared to kill his daughter, but Artemis accepted a deer in place of Iphigeneia, and whisked her to Taurus in Crimea. Hesiod said she became the goddess Hecate.
Agamemnon was the commander-in-chief of the Greeks during the Trojan War. During the fighting, Agamemnon killed Antiphus. Agamemnon's teamster, Halaesus, later fought with Aeneas in Italy. The Iliad tells the story of the quarrel between Agamemnon and Achilles in the final year of the war. Agamemnon took an attractive slave and spoil of war Briseis from Achilles. Achilles, the greatest warrior of the age, withdrew from battle in revenge and nearly cost the Greek armies the war.
Although not the equal of Achilles in bravery, Agamemnon was a dignified representative of kingly authority. As commander-in-chief, he summoned the princes to the council and led the army in battle. He took the field himself, and performed many heroic deeds until he was wounded and forced to withdraw to his tent. His chief fault was his overweening haughtiness. An over-exalted opinion of his position led him to insult Chryses and Achilles, thereby bringing great disaster upon the Greeks.
After the capture of Troy, Cassandra, doomed prophetess and daughter of Priam, fell to his lot in the distribution of the prizes of war.
Return to Greece
After a stormy voyage, Agamemnon and Cassandra landed in Argolis or were blown off course and landed in Aegisthus' country. Aegisthus, who in the interval had seduced Clytemnestra, invited him to a banquet at which he was treacherously slain. According to the account given by Pindar and the tragedians, Agamemnon was slain by his wife alone in a bath, a piece of cloth or a net having first been thrown over him to prevent resistance. Clytemnestra also killed Cassandra. Her wrath at the sacrifice of Iphigenia, and her jealousy of Cassandra, are said to have been the motives of her crime. Aegisthus and Clytemnestra then ruled Agamemnon's kingdom for a time, but the murder of Agamemnon was eventually avenged by his son Orestes (possibly with the help of Electra).
Other stories
Athenaeus tells a story of Argynnus, an eromenos of Agamemnon: "Agamemnon loved Argynnus, so the story goes, having seen him swimming in the Cephisus river; in which, in fact, he lost his life (for he constantly bathed in this river), and Agamemnon buried him and founded there a temple of Aphrodite Argynnis." (The Deipnosophists of Athenaeus of Naucratis, Book XIII Concerning Women, p.3) This episode is also found in Clement of Alexandria (Protrepticus II.38.2) and in Stephen of Byzantium (Kopai and Argunnos), with minor variations. The fortunes of Agamemnon have formed the subject of numerous tragedies, ancient and modern, the most famous being the Oresteia of Aeschylus. In the legends of the Peloponnesus, Agamemnon was regarded as the highest type of a powerful monarch, and in Sparta he was worshipped under the title of Zeus Agamemnon. His tomb was pointed out among the ruins of Mycenae and at Amyclae.
Another account makes him the son of Pleisthenes (the son or father of Atreus), who is said to have been Aerope's first husband.
In works of art there is considerable resemblance between the representations of Zeus, king of the gods, and Agamemnon, king of men. He is generally characterized by the sceptre and diadem, the usual attributes of kings.
Agamemnon in modern fiction and film
Modern writers of time travel and historical novels often attempt to show the Trojan War "as it really happened", based on the archeological evidence of Mycenaean civilization. Such authors frequently use Agamemnon as the archetypical Mycenaean king, bringing life to old artifacts by dressing a familiar face in them. Of particular interest is S. M. Stirling's time-travel trilogy Island in the Sea of Time, Against the Tide of Years and On the Oceans of Eternity, where the fate that befalls the House of Atreus is every bit as horrific as that portrayed in traditional myth. The horror is arranged by a time-travelling villain who is very well aware of the mythology.
Agamemnon is also said to have been the ancient ancestor or relative of the noble family the Atreides of the classic science fiction series Dune by Frank Herbert (Note that the surname, Atreides is derived from Agamemnon's father's name, Atreus). There are many parallels with the story of Agamemnon and in Dune, such as with the protagonist Paul Atreides in that both are tragic heroes.
Agamemnon makes an appearance in the film Time Bandits, played by Sean Connery, although his depiction in the film seems more reminiscent of Odysseus. Masks very similar to the famous Mask of Agamemnon are also used in the film.
He also appeared in the 2004 film Troy, played by Scottish actor Brian Cox.
Agamemnon was the name of the 64 gun ship commanded by Horatio Nelson which began his rehabilitation following his whistle blowing of wealthy sugar merchants.
The Babylon 5 author, J Michael Straczinsky, used that information to chose a name for his protagonist hero John Sheridan's command ship. Hence Agamemnon was the name of the Earth fleet Destroyer that John Sheridan commanded near the end of season 4 of Babylon 5.
He was also a king in the Shakespeare play "Troilus and Cressida"
References
- Homer, Iliad;
- Homer, Odyssey I, 28-31; XI, 385-464;
- Aeschylus, Agamemnon (play)*;
- Aeschylus, The Libation Bearers;
- Sophocles, Electra;
- Euripides, Electra;
- Apollodorus, Epitome, II, 15-III, 22; VI, 23.
- Seneca, Agamemnon
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"Agamemnon"