Εὐρυσθεύς

English (Autenrieth)

Eurystheus, son of Sthenelus, and king of Mycēnae; by a trick of Hera upon Zeus, Eurystheus was born to power over Heracles, and imposed upon him the celebrated labors, Il. 19.103 ff., 123 ff., Od. 8.363, Od. 11.620.

English (Slater)

Εὐρυσθεύς son of Sthenelos, king of Tiryns; responsible for the labours of Herakles, and slain by Iolaos. μιν (= Ἡρακλέα) ἀγγελίαις Εὐρυσθέος ἔντὐ ἀνάγκα πατρόθεν (O. 3.28) Εὐρυσθῆος ἐπεὶ κεφαλὰν ἔπραθε φασγάνου ἀκμᾷ (sc. Ἰόλαος: -θέος, -θέως codd., corr. byz.) (P. 9.80) ἐπεὶ Γηρυόνα βόας Κυκλώπειον ἐπὶ πρόθυρον Εὐρυσθέος ἔλασεν (Boeckh: -θέως codd.: i. e. to Tiryns) fr. 169. 7.

Russian (Dvoretsky)

Εὐρυσθεύς: έως, эп. ῆος ὁ Эврисфей (внук Персея, сын Сфенела, царь Микен, возложивший на Геракла свершение «двенадцати подвигов») Hom., Her., Pind. etc.

Frisk Etymology German

Εὐρυσθεύς: {Heurustheús}
Grammar: m.
Meaning: König in Mykene, S. des Sthenelos und Enkel des Perseus (seit Il.).
Etymology : Kurzform für Εὐρυσθένης (Hdt. usw.; εὐρυσθενής Beiwort des Poseidon u. a. seit Il.); vgl. den Vaternamen Σθένελος. Einzelheiten bei Boßhardt Die Nom. auf -ευς 124.
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Wikipedia EN

Eurystheus hiding in a storage jar as Heracles brings him the Erymanthian boar. Side A from a red-figure kylix by Oltos, ca. 510 BC, (Louvre)

In Greek mythology, Eurystheus (/jʊəˈrɪsθiəs/; Greek: Εὐρυσθεύς, lit. "broad strength", IPA: [eu̯rystʰěu̯s]) was king of Tiryns, one of three Mycenaean strongholds in the Argolid, although other authors including Homer and Euripides cast him as ruler of Argos.

In the contest of wills between Hera and Zeus over whose candidate would be hero, fated to defeat the remaining creatures representing an old order and bring about the reign of the Twelve Olympians, Eurystheus was Hera's candidate and Heracles—though his name implies that at one archaic stage of myth-making he had carried "Hera's fame"—was the candidate of Zeus. The arena for the actions that would bring about this deep change are the Twelve Labors imposed on Heracles by Eurystheus. The immediate necessity for the Labours of Heracles is as penance for Heracles' murder of his own family, in a fit of madness, which had been sent by Hera; however, further human rather than mythic motivation is supplied by mythographers who note that their respective families had been rivals for the throne of Mycenae. Details of the individual episodes may be found in the article on the Labours of Heracles, but Hera was connected with all of the opponents Heracles had to overcome.

Heracles' human stepfather Amphitryon was also a grandson of Perseus, and since Amphitryon's father (Alcaeus) was older than Eurystheus' father (Sthenelus), he might have received the kingdom, but Sthenelus had banished Amphitryon for accidentally killing (a familiar mytheme) the eldest son in the family (Electryon). When, shortly before his son Heracles was born, Zeus proclaimed the next-born descendant of Perseus should get the kingdom, Hera thwarted his ambitions by delaying Alcmene's labour and having her candidate Eurystheus born prematurely.

Heracles' first task was to slay the Nemean Lion and bring back its skin, which Heracles decided to wear. Eurystheus was so scared by Heracles' fearsome guise that he hid in a subterranean bronze winejar, and from that moment forth all labors were communicated to Heracles through a herald, Copreus.

For his second labour, to slay the Lernaean Hydra, Heracles took with him his nephew, Iolaus, as a charioteer. When Eurystheus found out that Heracles' nephew had helped him he declared that the labour had not been completed alone and as a result did not count towards the ten labours set for him.

Eurystheus' third task did not involve killing a beast, but capturing one alive—the Ceryneian Hind, a golden-horned hind or doe sacred to Artemis. Heracles knew that he had to return the hind, as he had promised, to Artemis, so he agreed to hand it over on the condition that Eurystheus himself come out and take it from him. Eurystheus did come out, but the moment Heracles let the hind go, she sprinted back to her mistress, and Heracles departed, saying that Eurystheus had not been quick enough.

When Heracles returned with the Erymanthian Boar, Eurystheus was again frightened and hid in his jar, begging Heracles to get rid of the beast; Heracles obliged.

The fifth labour proposed by Eurystheus was to clear out the numerous stables of Augeias. Striking a deal with Augeias, Heracles proposed a payment of a tenth of Augeias' cattle if the labour was completed successfully. Not believing the task feasible, Augeias agreed, asking his son Phyleus to witness. Heracles rerouted two nearby rivers (Alpheis and Peneios) through the stable, clearing out the dung rapidly. When Augeias learned of Heracles' bargain for the task, he refused payment. Heracles brought the case to court, and Phyleus testified against his father. Enraged, Augeias banished both Phyleus and Heracles from the land before the court had cast their vote. However, Eurystheus refused to credit the labour to Heracles, as he had performed it for payment. So Heracles went and drove Augeias out of the kingdom and installed Phyleus as king. Heracles then took his tenth of the cattle and left them to graze in a field by his home.

For his sixth labour, Heracles had to drive the Stymphalian Birds off the marshes they plagued. He did so, shooting down several birds with his Hydra-poisoned arrows and bringing them back to Eurystheus as proof.

For his seventh labour, Heracles captured the Cretan Bull. He used a lasso and rode it back to his cousin. Eurystheus offered to sacrifice the bull to Hera his patron, who hated Heracles. She refused the sacrifice because it reflected glory on Heracles. The bull was released and wandered to Marathon, becoming known as the Marathonian Bull.

When Heracles brought back the man-eating Mares of Diomedes successfully, Eurystheus dedicated the horses to Hera and allowed them to roam freely in the Argolid. Bucephalus, Alexander the Great's horse, was said to be descended from these mares.

To acquire the belt of Hippolyte, queen of the Amazons, was Heracles ninth task. This task was at the request of Eurystheus' daughter, Admete. For the tenth labour, he stole the cattle of the giant Geryon, which Eurystheus then sacrificed to Hera.

To extend what may have once been ten Labours to the canonical dozen, it was said that Eurystheus didn't count the Hydra, as he was assisted, nor the Augean stables, as Heracles received payment for his work. For the eleventh labour, Heracles had to obtain the Apples of the Hesperides; he convinced their father, the Titan Atlas, to help him, but did his share of work by temporarily holding up the sky in the Titan's stead. For his final labour, he was to capture Cerberus, the three-headed hound that guarded the entrance to Hades. When he managed to bring the struggling animal back, the terrified Eurystheus hid in his jar one more time, begging Heracles to leave for good and take the dog with him.

Wikipedia EL

Στην Ελληνική μυθολογία, ο Ευρυσθέας ήταν βασιλιάς της Τίρυνθας και των Μυκηνών, γιος του Σθένελου και της Νικίππης και εγγονός του Περσέα και του Πέλοπα. Ο Ηρακλής μπήκε στην υπηρεσία του Ευρυσθέα κι εκείνος τον διέταξε να πραγματοποιήσει τους περίφημους 12 άθλους του, καθώς είχε δολοφονήσει την οικογένειά του, σε μια στιγμή τρέλας εμπνευσμένης από τη θεά Ήρα.

Translations

be: Еўрысфей; bg: Евристей; br: Eurystheüs; ca: Euristeu; cs: Eurystheus; de: Eurystheus; el: Ευρυσθέας; en: Eurystheus; eo: Eŭristeo; es: Euristeo; eu: Euristeo; fa: ائوروستئوس; fi: Eurystheus; fr: Eurysthée; ga: Eoraistéas; gl: Euristeo; hu: Eurüsztheusz; id: Euristheus; it: Euristeo; ja: エウリュステウス; ka: ევრისთევსი; kk: Еврисфей; ko: 에우리스테우스; lt: Euristėjas; nl: Eurystheus; no: Eurysthevs; pl: Eurysteusz; pt: Euristeu; ro: Euristeu; ru: Еврисфей; simple: Eurystheus; sk: Eurystheus; sl: Evristej; sq: Euristeu; sr: Еуристеј; sv: Eurystheus; ta: யூரிஸ்தியஸ்; tr: Eurystheus; uk: Еврістей