Deiphobus

2025-10-27T11:54:24Z

216.164.48.111: Meaning

{{Short description|Mythical prince of Troy}}
{{distinguish|Deiphobe (disambiguation){{!}}Deiphobe}}
{{Trojan War}}

In [[Greek mythology]], '''Deiphobus''' {{IPAc-en|d|iː|ˈ|ɪ|f|ə|b|ə|s}} ({{langx|grc|{{linktext|Δηΐφοβος}}|Dēḯphobos}}, "hostile, panicky flight") was a [[List of children of Priam|son]] of [[Priam]] and [[Hecuba]]. He was a prince of [[Troy]], and the greatest of Priam's sons after [[Hector]] and [[Paris (mythology)|Paris]]. Deiphobus killed four men of fame in the [[Trojan War]].<ref>[[Gaius Julius Hyginus|Hyginus]], ''[[Fabulae]]'' 115.</ref>

== Description ==
Deiphobus was described by the chronicler [[John Malalas|Malalas]] in his account of the ''Chronography'' as " above average stature, keen-eyed, somewhat snub-nosed, dark-skinned, flat-faced, brave, good beard".<ref>[[John Malalas|Malalas]], ''Chronography'' [https://topostext.org/work/793#5.105 5.105]</ref> Meanwhile, in the account of [[Dares Phrygius|Dares the Phrygian]], he was illustrated as ". . .looked like his father [i.e. a handsome face]. He was the man of forceful action".<ref>[[Dares Phrygius]], ''History of the Fall of Troy'' [https://www.theoi.com/Text/DaresPhrygius.html 12]</ref>

== Mythology ==
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According to the ''[[Iliad]]'' (books XII, XIV, XXII), in the [[Trojan War]] Deiphobus, along with his brother [[Helenus]], led a group of soldiers at the siege of the newly constructed Argive wall and killed many, and wounded the [[Achaeans (Homer)|Achaean]] hero [[Meriones (mythology)|Meriones]]. As Hector was fleeing [[Achilles]], [[Athena]] took the shape of Deiphobus and goaded Hector to make a stand and fight. Hector, thinking it was his brother, listened and threw his spear at Achilles. When the spear missed, Hector turned around to ask his brother for another spear, but "Deiphobus" had vanished. He then looked around for him but he was nowhere to be seen. It was then Hector knew the gods had deceived and forsaken him, and he met his fate at the hand of Achilles.

Some accounts, such as that of [[Dictys Cretensis]], hold that it was Deiphobus and Paris who ambushed and killed Achilles while luring him to their sister [[Polyxena]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cretensis |first=Dictys |title=4.11 |url=https://www.theoi.com/Text/DictysCretensis4.html |access-date=2024-01-12 |website=www.theoi.com}}</ref> After the death of Paris, Deiphobus was given [[Helen of Troy]] as a bride for his deeds in the war, defeating the bid of his other brother, [[Helenus]]. [[Euripides]], in ''[[The Trojan Women]]'', states that the marriage was by force and that Helen felt “bitterly enslaved.” When the [[Trojan Horse]] was in the city, Deiphobus accompanied Helen as she walked around the horse, calling out the names of the Greeks within in the voices of their wives. [[Menelaus]] and [[Odysseus]] had to restrain the men inside from responding. During the sack of Troy, Deiphobus was slain by either Odysseus or Menelaus, and his body was mutilated. Some accounts{{Who|date=October 2018}} say it was Helen who killed him, or that she celebrated his death. Most accounts{{Who|date=October 2018}} seem to indicate that, unlike her other two husbands, Helen didn't love Deiphobus and decided she would rather return to Menelaus.

In [[Virgil]]'s ''[[Aeneid]]'', Deiphobus, horribly mutilated during the sack of Troy, appears to [[Aeneas]] in the underworld. He tells him the story of his death, which entails Helen's betrayal in signaling Menelaus to Deiphobus's bedchamber. While with Aeneas, he begs the gods for revenge against the Greeks.<ref>[[Virgil]], ''[[Aeneid]]'' 6.494-547</ref>

== Cultural depictions ==
* Deiphobus is a minor character in [[William Shakespeare]]'s play ''[[Troilus and Cressida]]''.
* One modern account, ''The Luck of Troy'' by [[Roger Lancelyn Green]], depicts him as a particularly unpleasant character.
* In the ''[[Xena: Warrior Princess]]'' episode "Beware Greeks Bearing Gifts," Deiphobus is the primary villain, portrayed as betraying Troy and murdering Paris in order to win Helen for himself.

== Namesake ==
* [[1867 Deiphobus]], Trojan asteroid

== See also ==
* [[List of children of Priam]]

==Sources==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
*[[Gaius Julius Hyginus]], ''Fabulae from The Myths of Hyginus'' translated and edited by Mary Grant. University of Kansas Publications in Humanistic Studies. [https://topostext.org/work/206 Online version at the Topos Text Project.]
*[[Homer]], [[Iliad|''The Iliad'']] with an English Translation by A.T. Murray, Ph.D. in two volumes. Cambridge, MA., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1924. [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0134 Online version at the Perseus Digital xLibrary.]
*Homer, ''Homeri Opera'' in five volumes. Oxford, Oxford University Press. 1920. [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0133 Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library].
*[[Virgil|Publius Vergilius Maro]], ''Aeneid.'' Theodore C. Williams. trans. Boston. Houghton Mifflin Co. 1910. [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0054%3Abook%3D1%3Acard%3D1 Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.]
*Publius Vergilius Maro, ''Bucolics, Aeneid, and Georgics''. J. B. Greenough. Boston. Ginn & Co. 1900. [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.02.0055 Latin text available at the Perseus Digital Library].

{{Characters in the Iliad}}
{{Aeneid}}

[[Category:Trojan Leaders]]
[[Category:Characters in Book VI of the Aeneid]]
[[Category:Children of Priam]]
[[Category:Princes in Greek mythology]]

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