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Codrus (; ;
Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
: , ''Kódros'') was the last of the semi-mythical Kings of Athens (r. ca 10891068 BC). He was an ancient exemplar of
patriotism Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and a sense of attachment to one's country or state. This attachment can be a combination of different feelings for things such as the language of one's homeland, and its ethnic, cultural, politic ...
and self-
sacrifice Sacrifice is an act or offering made to a deity. A sacrifice can serve as propitiation, or a sacrifice can be an offering of praise and thanksgiving. Evidence of ritual animal sacrifice has been seen at least since ancient Hebrews and Gree ...
. He was succeeded by his son Medon, who it is claimed ruled not as king but as the first Archon of Athens. He was said to have traced his descent to the sea-God
Poseidon Poseidon (; ) is one of the twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and mythology, presiding over the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 He was the protector of seafarers and the guardian of many Hellenic cit ...
through his father Melanthus. The earliest version of the story of Codrus comes from the 4th oration ''Against Leocrates'' by Lycurgus of Athens. During the time of the Dorian Invasion of
Peloponnesus The Peloponnese ( ), Peloponnesus ( ; , ) or Morea (; ) is a peninsula and geographic regions of Greece, geographic region in Southern Greece, and the southernmost region of the Balkans. It is connected to the central part of the country by the ...
(c. 1068 BC), the Dorians under Aletes, son of Hippotes, had consulted the Delphic Oracle, who prophesied that their invasion would succeed as long as the king was not harmed. The news of this prophecy, that only the death of an
Athenian Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
king would ensure the safety of
Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
, quickly found its way to the ears of the king. Knowing Athens would fall to the foreign war tribe otherwise, after conquering most of Greece up to this point; for the love of his people, King Codrus sacrificed himself to save them. Disguised as a peasant, he made it to the vicinity of the Dorian encampment across the river, where he provoked a group of Dorian soldiers. He was put to death in the quarrel, and the Dorians, realizing Codrus had been slain, decided to retreat in fear of their prophesied defeat. In the aftermath of these events, it was claimed that no one thought himself worthy to succeed Codrus and so the title of king was abolished, and that of
archon ''Archon'' (, plural: , ''árchontes'') is a Greek word that means "ruler", frequently used as the title of a specific public office. It is the masculine present participle of the verb stem , meaning "to be first, to rule", derived from the same ...
substituted for it.
Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...
(or possibly one of his students), in the '' Constitution of the Athenians'', states that it was indeed the house of Codrus that abolished the title of king in favor of Archon, eventually followed by 11 more.Aristotle ''Constitution of Athens'' 3
, page 6


References

{{Authority control Kings of Athens Iron Age Greece 2nd millennium BC Family of Plato Ancient Greek monarchs Mythological people from Attica