Agis I
Encyclopedia
Agis I was a legendary king
of Sparta
and eponym
of the Agiad dynasty. He was the son of Eurysthenes
, first monarch of this dynasty, which ruled the city along with the Eurypontids. His genealogy
was traced through Aristodemus
, Aristomachus, Cleodaeus
and Hyllus
all the way to Heracles
, and he belongs to mythology rather than to history. Tradition ascribed to him the capture of the maritime town of Helos, which resisted his attempt to curtail its guaranteed rights (which had originally been granted by Eurysthenes
). The inhabitants of the town attempted to shake off the yoke, but they were subdued, and gave rise and name to the Spartan class of serfs called helots
. To his reign was referred the colony which went to Crete
under Pollis and Delphus.
According to Eusebius
he reigned only one year; according to Apollodorus
, as it appears, about 31 years.
He was succeeded by his son Echestratus
.
Monarch
A monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...
of Sparta
Sparta
Sparta or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c...
and eponym
Eponym
An eponym is the name of a person or thing, whether real or fictitious, after which a particular place, tribe, era, discovery, or other item is named or thought to be named...
of the Agiad dynasty. He was the son of Eurysthenes
Eurysthenes
In Greek legend, Eurysthenes was one of the Heracleidae, a great-great-great-grandson of Heracles, and a son of Aristodemus and Argia. His twin was Procles. Together they received the land of Lacedaemon after Cresphontes, Temenus and Aristodemus defeated Tisamenus, the last Achaean king of the...
, first monarch of this dynasty, which ruled the city along with the Eurypontids. His genealogy
Genealogy
Genealogy is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history. Genealogists use oral traditions, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinship and pedigrees of its members...
was traced through Aristodemus
Aristodemus
In Greek mythology, Aristodemus was an Heracleidae, son of Aristomachus and brother of Cresphontes and Temenus. He was a great-great-grandson of Heracles and helped lead the fifth and final attack on Mycenae in the Peloponnesus....
, Aristomachus, Cleodaeus
Cleodaeus
In Greek mythology, Cleodaeus was one of the Heracleidae, a grandson of Heracles. He was the son of Heracles's eldest son Hyllus and Iole of Oechalia. He became father of Aristomachus, who led the third attempt to capture Mycenae and failed. He also had a daughter Lanassa, who married Neoptolemus...
and Hyllus
Hyllus
In Greek mythology, Hyllus was the son of Heracles and Deianira, husband of Iole, nursed by Abia....
all the way to Heracles
Heracles
Heracles ,born Alcaeus or Alcides , was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, foster son of Amphitryon and great-grandson of Perseus...
, and he belongs to mythology rather than to history. Tradition ascribed to him the capture of the maritime town of Helos, which resisted his attempt to curtail its guaranteed rights (which had originally been granted by Eurysthenes
Eurysthenes
In Greek legend, Eurysthenes was one of the Heracleidae, a great-great-great-grandson of Heracles, and a son of Aristodemus and Argia. His twin was Procles. Together they received the land of Lacedaemon after Cresphontes, Temenus and Aristodemus defeated Tisamenus, the last Achaean king of the...
). The inhabitants of the town attempted to shake off the yoke, but they were subdued, and gave rise and name to the Spartan class of serfs called helots
Helots
The helots: / Heílôtes) were an unfree population group that formed the main population of Laconia and the whole of Messenia . Their exact status was already disputed in antiquity: according to Critias, they were "especially slaves" whereas to Pollux, they occupied a status "between free men and...
. To his reign was referred the colony which went to Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
under Pollis and Delphus.
According to Eusebius
Eusebius of Caesarea
Eusebius of Caesarea also called Eusebius Pamphili, was a Roman historian, exegete and Christian polemicist. He became the Bishop of Caesarea in Palestine about the year 314. Together with Pamphilus, he was a scholar of the Biblical canon...
he reigned only one year; according to Apollodorus
Apollodorus
Apollodorus of Athens son of Asclepiades, was a Greek scholar and grammarian. He was a pupil of Diogenes of Babylon, Panaetius the Stoic, and the grammarian Aristarchus of Samothrace...
, as it appears, about 31 years.
He was succeeded by his son Echestratus
Echestratus
Echestratus was King of Sparta from about 900 to 870 BC. He was a son of Agis I, and third of the Agiad line of Spartan kings.In his reign the district of Cynuria on the Argive border was reduced. He was the father of Labotas or Leobotes, king of Sparta. his grandson was Doryssus....
.