Andromache
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Andromache grieves the loss of Hector |
In
Greek mythology,
Andromache (Ἀνδρομαχη) was the wife of
Hector and daughter of
Eetion, and sister to
Podes. She was born and raised in the city of
Cilician Thebes (Thebe under Placus), over which her father ruled.
During the
Trojan War, Hector was killed by
Achilles. Their infant son
Astyanax was killed by Achilles' son
Neoptolemus. Neoptolemus took her as a concubine and Hector's brother,
Helenus, as a slave.
With Hector, Andromache had a son named
Astyanax. By Neoptolemus, she was the mother of
Molossus.In the play "Andromache", she and her child nearly got the asassinated by Hermione, Neoptolemus' wife.
When Neoptolemus died, Andromache married
Helenus, brother of Hector, and became Queen of
Epirus.
*
Homer.
Iliad VI, 390â€"430;
*
Apollodorus.
Bibliotheke III, xii, 6;
*
Apollodorus.
Epitome V, 23; VI, 12;
*
Euripides.
Andromache;
*
Virgil.
Aeneid III, 294â€"355.
Andromache is also the subject of a tragedy by French classical playwright
Jean Racine (1639â€"1699), entitled
Andromaque.
