Epialtes

Family: Malian · Role: guide who revealed the mountain path · First appears: Book 7 · §207–214

Life events

• Epialtes showed Xerxes the mountain path, bringing about the destruction of the Hellenes who remained there.(Book 7 · §207–214 · 📍 Thermopylai)
  • With: Xerxes
  • “Epialtes the son of Eurydemos, a Malian, came to speech with him, supposing that he would win a very great reward from the king; and this man told him of the path which leads over the mountain to Thermopylai, and brought about the destruction of those Hellenes who remained in that place.”
• Epialtes fled to Thessaly for fear of the Lacedemonians.(Book 7 · §207–214 · 📍 Thessaly)
  • “Afterwards from fear of the Lacedemonians he fled to Thessaly”
• A price was proclaimed for Epialtes’s life.(Book 7 · §207–214 · 📍 Pylai)
  • “a price was proclaimed for his life by the Deputies, when the Amphictyons met for their assembly at Pylai.”
• Athenades killed Epialtes, and the Lacedemonians honored him for it.(Book 7 · §207–214 · 📍 Antikyra)
  • With: Athenades
  • “Then some time afterwards having returned to Antikyra he was slain by Athenades a man of Trachis. Now this Athenades killed Epialtes for another cause, which I shall set forth in the following part of the history, but he was honoured for it none the less by the Lacedemonians.”
• Xerxes sent Hydarnes and his men along the mountain path after Epialtes offered to guide them.(Book 7 · §215–224)
  • With: Xerxes Hydarnes
  • “Xerxes accordingly, being pleased by that which Epialtes engaged to accomplish, at once with great joy proceeded to send Hydarnes and the men of whom Hydarnes was commander; and they set forth from the camp about the time when the lamps are lit.”
• Hydarnes's Persians reached the mountain summit and surprised the Phokian guards.(Book 7 · §215–224)
  • With: Hydarnes
  • “and when dawn appeared, they had reached the summit of the mountain.”

Book 7 · §207–214

• parent: Eurydemos “Epialtes the son of Eurydemos”
• with Athenades (Athenades killed Epialtes.) “Then some time afterwards having returned to Antikyra he was slain by Athenades a man of Trachis.”
• with Xerxes (Epialtes disclosed the mountain path to Xerxes.) “Epialtes the son of Eurydemos, a Malian, came to speech with him, supposing that he would win a very great reward from the king; and this man told him of the path which leads over the mountain to Thermopylai”

Book 7 · §215–224

• with Xerxes (Xerxes acted on Epialtes's undertaking.) “Xerxes accordingly, being pleased by that which Epialtes engaged to accomplish, at once with great joy proceeded to send Hydarnes and the men of whom Hydarnes was commander;”
• with Hydarnes (Epialtes informed Hydarnes about the opposing force.) “Then Hydarnes, seized with fear lest the Phokians should be Lacedemonians, asked Epialtes of what people the force was; and being accurately informed he set the Persians in order for battle.”
• with Hydarnes (Hydarnes asked Epialtes to identify the force.) “Then Hydarnes, seized with fear lest the Phokians should be Lacedemonians, asked Epialtes of what people the force was; and being accurately informed he set the Persians in order for battle.”

⭐ Constellation map → · 📖 Read the original → · 🗂 Character index → · 🕰 Chronicle → · 📍 Places →

Extracted from the original text of The Histories. Made with Rho MD.