The Iliad 13.685–699

There the Boeotians and the Ionians,55.1 of trailing tunics, and the Locrians, and Phthians, and glorious Epeians, had much ado to stay his onset upon the ships, and availed not to thrust back from themselves goodly Hector, that was like a flame of fire,—even they that were picked men of the Athenians; and among them Menestheus, son of Peteos, was leader, and there followed with him Pheidas and Stichius and valiant Bias, while the Epeians were led by Meges, son of Phyleus, and Araphion and Dracius, and in the forefront of the Phthians were Medon and Podarces, staunch in fight. The one, verily, even Medon, was a bastard son of godlike Oïleus and brother of Aias, but he dwelt in Phylace, far from his native land, for that he had slain a man of the kin of his stepmother Eriopis, that Oïleus had to wife; and the other, Podarces, was the son of Iphiclus, son of Phylacus. These, harnessed in their armour, in the forefront of the great-souled Phthians,

ἔνθα δὲ Βοιωτοὶ καὶ Ἰάονες ἑλκεχίτωνες Λοκροὶ καὶ Φθῖοι καὶ φαιδιμόεντες Ἐπειοὶ σπουδῇ ἐπαΐσσοντα νεῶν ἔχον, οὐδὲ δύναντο ὦσαι ἀπὸ σφείων φλογὶ εἴκελον Ἕκτορα δῖον οἳ μὲν Ἀθηναίων προλελεγμένοι· ἐν δʼ ἄρα τοῖσιν ἦρχʼ υἱὸς Πετεῶο Μενεσθεύς, οἳ δʼ ἅμʼ ἕποντο Φείδας τε Στιχίος τε Βίας τʼ ἐΰς· αὐτὰρ Ἐπειῶν Φυλεΐδης τε Μέγης Ἀμφίων τε Δρακίος τε, πρὸ Φθίων δὲ Μέδων τε μενεπτόλεμός τε Ποδάρκης. ἤτοι ὃ μὲν νόθος υἱὸς Ὀϊλῆος θείοιο ἔσκε Μέδων Αἴαντος ἀδελφεός· αὐτὰρ ἔναιεν ἐν Φυλάκῃ γαίης ἄπο πατρίδος ἄνδρα κατακτὰς γνωτὸν μητρυιῆς Ἐριώπιδος, ἣν ἔχʼ Ὀϊλεύς· αὐτὰρ ὃ Ἰφίκλοιο πάϊς τοῦ Φυλακίδαο. οἳ μὲν πρὸ Φθίων μεγαθύμων θωρηχθέντες

Lattimore commentary

The “Ionians” sounds anachronistic, as Ionia (the west coast of Asia Minor as far north as Smyrna) was not settled by Greeks until some two centuries after the time of the Trojan war. But here they are identical to the Athenians, an accurate memory of the fact that many early colonists hailed from that city. The Phthians come from the broader region around the homeland of Achilleus, while his troops are specifically Myrmidons. These, by contrast, are led by Podarkes (“swift-footed”—a name that happens to be an epithet of the great hero).

Read in context →