Patroclus (mythology) explained

In Greek mythology, Patroclus (/pəˈtroʊkləs/; Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: Πάτροκλος|Pátroklos|glory of the father) may refer to two different individuals:

• Patroclus, the Thespian son of Heracles and Pyrippe,^[1] daughter of King Thespius of Thespiae.^[2] Patroclus and his 49 half-brothers were born of Thespius' daughters who were impregnated by Heracles in one night,^[3] for a week^[4] or in the course of 50 days^[5] while hunting for the Cithaeronian lion.^[6] Later on, the hero sent a message to Thespius to keep seven of these sons and send three of them in Thebes while the remaining forty, joined by Iolaus, were dispatched to the island of Sardinia to found a colony.^[7]
• Patroclus, the childhood friend of Achilles and son of Menoetius.^[8]

Notes

1. [Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Apollodorus]
2. Apollodorus, 2.4.10
3. [Pausanias (geographer)|Pausanias]
4. [Athenaeus]
5. Apollodorus, 2.4.10; Diodorus Siculus, 4.29.3; Tzetzes, Chiliades 2.224
6. Apollodorus, 2.4.9–10
7. Apollodorus, 2.7.6
8. Apollodorus, 3.13.8

References

• Apollodorus, The Library with an English Translation by Sir James George Frazer, F.B.A., F.R.S. in 2 Volumes, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1921. ISBN 0-674-99135-4. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library. Greek text available from the same website.
• Athenaeus of Naucratis, The Deipnosophists or Banquet of the Learned. London. Henry G. Bohn, York Street, Covent Garden. 1854. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
• Athenaeus of Naucratis, Deipnosophistae. Kaibel. In Aedibus B.G. Teubneri. Lipsiae. 1887. Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library.
• Diodorus Siculus, The Library of History translated by Charles Henry Oldfather. Twelve volumes. Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann, Ltd. 1989. Vol. 3. Books 4.59–8. Online version at Bill Thayer's Web Site
• Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica. Vol 1-2. Immanel Bekker. Ludwig Dindorf. Friedrich Vogel. in aedibus B. G. Teubneri. Leipzig. 1888-1890. Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library.
• Pausanias, Description of Greece with an English Translation by W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., and H.A. Ormerod, M.A., in 4 Volumes. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1918. . Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
• Pausanias, Graeciae Descriptio. 3 vols. Leipzig, Teubner. 1903. Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library.
• Tzetzes, John, Book of Histories, Book II-IV translated by Gary Berkowitz from the original Greek of T. Kiessling's edition of 1826. Online version at theio.com