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{{short description|Trojan hero in Greco-Roman mythology}}
{{About|the Greco-Roman hero}}
{{Infobox deity
| type = Roman
| image = Iapyx removing arrowhead from Aeneas.jpg
| caption = [[Iapyx]] removing an arrowhead from the leg of Aeneas, with Aeneas's son, [[Ascanius]], crying beside him. Antique fresco from [[Pompeii]].
| siblings = Lyrus
| name = Aeneas
| offspring = {{ubl|[[Ascanius]] (by Creusa)|[[Silvius (mythology)|Silvius]] (by Lavinia)}}
| consort = {{ubl|[[Creusa of Troy|Creusa]]|[[Dido]]|[[Lavinia]]}}
| abode = [[Alba Longa]]
| deity_of = Founder of [[Alba Longa]]
| parents = [[Anchises]] and [[Aphrodite]]
}}
{{Greek mythology sidebar}}
[[File:Aeneas' Flight from Troy by Federico Barocci.jpg|thumb|''Aeneas flees burning Troy'', [[Federico Barocci]], 1598 ([[Galleria Borghese]], Rome, Italy)]]
In [[Greco-Roman mythology]], '''Aeneas''' ({{IPAc-en|ᵻ|ˈ|n|iː|ə|s}} {{respell|in|EE|əs}};<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aeneas |title=Aeneas |website=Merriam-Webster |access-date=2015-07-14 |year=2015}}</ref> {{IPA|la-x-classic|ae̯ˈneːaːs|lang|link=yes}}; from {{Langx|grc|Αἰνείᾱς|Aineíās}}) was a [[Troy|Trojan]] hero, the son of the Trojan prince [[Anchises]] and the Greek goddess [[Aphrodite]] (equivalent to the Roman [[Venus (mythology)|Venus]]).<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ma0dM1ULeWoC&pg=PA43|page=43|title=Exemplary Traits: Reading Characterization in Roman Poetry|author=J. Mira Seo|publisher=Oxford University Press|date=2013|isbn=978-0-19-973428-3 }}</ref> His father was a first [[cousin]] of King [[Priam]] of Troy (both being grandsons of [[Ilus (son of Tros)|Ilus]], founder of [[Troy]]), making Aeneas a second cousin to Priam's [[List of children of Priam|children]] (such as [[Hector]] and [[Paris (mythology)|Paris]]). He is a minor character in [[Greek mythology]] and is mentioned in [[Homer]]'s ''[[Iliad]]''. Aeneas receives full treatment in [[Roman mythology]], most extensively in [[Virgil]]'s ''[[Aeneid]]'', where he is cast as an ancestor of [[Romulus and Remus]]. He became the first true hero of Rome. [[Snorri Sturluson]] identifies him with the Norse god [[Víðarr]] of the [[Æsir]].<ref name="ReferenceA">The Prose Edda of Snorri Sturlson Translated by Arthur Gilchrist Brodeur [1916] Prologue II at Internet Sacred Texts Archive. Accessed 11/14/17</ref>

== Etymology ==
[[File:MACEDON, Aineia. Circa 510-480 BC.jpg|thumb|Coinage of [[Aenea (city)|Aenea]], with portrait of Aeneas. c. 510–480 BCE.]]
Aeneas is the [[Romanization of Greek|Romanization]] of the hero's original [[Greek language|Greek]] name {{Langx|grc|Αἰνείας|label=none}} (''Aineías''). Aineías is first introduced in the ''[[Homeric Hymn]] to [[Aphrodite]]'' when Aphrodite gives him his name from the adjective {{Langx|grc|αὶνóν|label=none|italic=yes}}
({{Transliteration|grc|ainon|italic=yes}},
"terrible"), for the "terrible grief" ({{Langx|el|αὶνóν ἄχος|label=none|italic=invert}}) he has caused her by being born a mortal who will age and die.<ref group="lower-alpha">"His name will be Aineias [Aeneas], since it was an unspeakable [ainos] ''akhos'' that took hold of me – grief that I had fallen into the bed of a mortal man." (Nagy 2001, [https://uh.edu/~cldue/texts/aphrodite.html#_ftn18 198–99])</ref><ref name=":0">Nagy, Gregory, trans. (2001) ''[http://www.uh.edu/~cldue/texts/aphrodite.html Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite],'' edited by C. Dué Hackney. Houston: University of Houston.</ref> It is a popular etymology for the name, apparently exploited by Homer in the ''[[Iliad]]''.<ref>Andrew Faulkner, ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=VuATDAAAQBAJ&dq=aeneas%20etymology&pg=PA257 The Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite: Introduction, Text, and Commentary]'' (2008) p. 257</ref> Later in the Medieval period there were writers who held that, because the ''Aeneid'' was written by a philosopher, it is meant to be read philosophically.<ref>Desmond, Marilynn (1994), ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=2b1qK94kbgIC&dq=aeneas%20etymology%20ennos%20demas&pg=PA85 Reading Dido: Gender, Textuality, and Medieval Aeneid].'' pp. 85–86.</ref> As such, in the "natural order", the meaning of Aeneas's name combines Greek {{Langx|grc|ennos|label=none|italic=yes}} ("dweller") with {{Langx|grc|demas|label=none|italic=yes}} ("body"), which becomes {{Langx|grc|ennaios|label=none|italic=yes}} or "in-dweller"—i.e. as a god inhabiting a mortal body.<ref>[[John of Salisbury]], ''Polycraticus'' 8.24–25; [[Bernardus Silvestris|Bernard Sylvestris of Tours]], ''Commentum supra sex libros Eneidos Vergilii''</ref> However, there is no certainty regarding the origin of his name.

===Epithets===
In imitation of the ''Iliad'', [[Virgil]] borrows [[epithet]]s of Homer, including: Anchisiades, ''magnanimum'', ''magnus'', ''heros'', and ''bonus''. Though he borrows many, Virgil gives Aeneas two epithets of his own, in the ''[[Aeneid]]'': ''pater'' and ''pius''. The epithets applied by Virgil are an example of an attitude different from that of Homer, for whilst Odysseus is {{Langx|grc|poikilios|label=none|italic=yes}} ("wily"), Aeneas is described as {{Langx|grc|pius|label=none|italic=yes}} ("pious"), which conveys a strong moral tone. The purpose of these epithets seems to enforce the notion of Aeneas's divine hand as father and founder of the Roman race, and their use seems circumstantial: when Aeneas is praying he refers to himself as ''pius'', and is referred to as such by the author only when the character is acting on behalf of the gods to fulfill his divine mission. Likewise, Aeneas is called ''pater'' ("father") when acting in the interest of his men.<ref>Parry, Milman (1971), ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=cbvyswUgSnEC&dq=aeneas%20epithets&pg=PA169 The Making of Homeric Verse: The Collected Papers of Milman Parry],'' edited by [[Adam Parry]]. p. 169</ref>

==Greek myth and epos==

===Homeric ''Hymn to Aphrodite''===
[[File:William Blake Richmond - Venus and Anchises - Google Art Project.jpg|upright=1.5|''Venus and Anchises'' by [[William Blake Richmond]] (1889 or 1890)|thumb]]

The story of the birth of Aeneas is told in the ''Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite'', one of the major [[Homeric Hymns]]. Aphrodite has caused [[Zeus]] the king of the Gods to fall in love with mortal women. In retaliation, Zeus decided to put a desire over her heart for the mortal Prince Anchises, who is tending his cattle among the hills near [[Mount Ida (Turkey)|Mount Ida]]. When Aphrodite saw him, she was immediately smitten. She adorns herself as if for a wedding among the gods and appears before him. He is overcome by her beauty, believing that she is a goddess, but Aphrodite identifies herself as a [[Phrygia]]n princess. After they make love, Aphrodite reveals her true identity to him and Anchises fears what might happen to him as a result of their liaison. Aphrodite assures him that he will be protected and tells him that she will bear him a son to be called Aeneas. However, she warns him that [[Taboo#In religion and mythology|he must never tell]] anyone that he has lain with a goddess. When Aeneas is born, Aphrodite takes him to the [[nymph]]s of Mount Ida, instructing them to raise the child to age five, then take him to Anchises.<ref name=":0" /> According to other sources, Anchises later brags about his encounter with Aphrodite, and as a result is struck in the foot with a thunderbolt by Zeus. Thereafter he is lame in that foot, so that Aeneas has to carry him from the flames of Troy.<ref>Virgil, ''Aeneid''</ref>

===Homer's ''Iliad''===
[[File:Aineias Ankhises Louvre F118.jpg|thumb|left|Aeneas carrying [[Anchises]], black-figured [[oinochoe]], {{circa}} 520–510&nbsp;BCE, [[Musée du Louvre|Louvre]] (F&nbsp;118)]]
{{Trojan War}}
Aeneas is a minor character in the ''[[Iliad]]'', where he is twice saved from death by the gods as if for an as-yet-unknown destiny but is an honorable warrior in his own right. Having held back from the fighting, aggrieved with Priam because in spite of his brave deeds he was not given his due share of honor, he leads an attack against Idomeneus to recover the body of his brother-in-law Alcathous at the urging of [[Deiphobus]].<ref>{{cite book |author=[[Homer]] |title=The Iliad |translator=Samuel Butler |year=2019 |orig-year=1999 |others=transcribed by A. Haines |via=[[Project Gutenberg]] |url=http://www.gutenberg.org/files/2199/2199-h/2199-h.htm}}</ref> He is the leader of the Trojans' [[Dardanians (Trojan)|Dardanian]] allies, as well as a third cousin and principal lieutenant of [[Hector]], son and heir of the Trojan king [[Priam]].

Aeneas's mother [[Aphrodite]] frequently comes to his aid on the battlefield, and he is a favorite of the Sun God [[Apollo]]. Aphrodite and Apollo would frequently rescue Aeneas from combat with [[Diomedes]] of [[Argos, Peloponnese|Argos]], who nearly kills him, and carry him away to [[Pergamos]] for healing. Even the Sea God [[Poseidon]], who usually favors the Greeks, comes to Aeneas's rescue after he falls under the assault of [[Achilles]], noting that Aeneas, though from a junior branch of the royal family, is destined to become king of the Trojan people.

Bruce Louden presents Aeneas as an archetype: The sole virtuous individual (or family) spared from general destruction, following the [[mytheme]] of [[Utnapishtim]], [[Baucis and Philemon]], [[Noah]], and [[Lot (biblical person)|Lot]].<ref>{{cite conference |last=Louden |first=Bruce |title=Aeneas in the Iliad: The one just man |type=abstract |conference=102nd Annual Meeting of Classical Association of the Middle West and South (CAMWS) |year=2006 |url=https://camws.org/meeting/2006/abstracts/louden.html}}</ref> Pseudo-Apollodorus in his ''[[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Bibliotheca]]'' explains that "...&nbsp;the Greeks [spared] him alone, on account of his piety."<ref>{{cite book |author=[[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Apollodorus]] |title=Epitome |editor-first=James G. |editor-last=Frazer  |at=V, 21 |publisher=[[Tufts University]] |url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0022%3Atext%3DEpitome%3Abook%3DE%3Achapter%3D5%3Asection%3D21}}</ref>  [[Heinrich Schliemann]] wrote that it seemed "extremely probable that, at the time of Homer's visit [to the Troad], the King of Troy declared that his race was descended in a direct line from Æneas."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Schliemann |first1=Heinrich |title=Troy and Its Remains: A Narrative of Researches and Discoveries Made on the Site of Ilium, and in the Trojan Plain |date=1875 |publisher=John Murray |location=London |page=19 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TZhAAAAAYAAJ |access-date=21 March 2025 |language=en}}</ref>

===Other sources===
The Roman mythographer [[Gaius Julius Hyginus]] ({{circa|64 BCE}} – CE 17) in his ''[[Fabulae]]''<ref>Hyginus, ''[[Fabulae]]'' 115.</ref> credits Aeneas with killing 28 enemies in the Trojan War. Aeneas also appears in the Trojan narratives attributed to [[Dares Phrygius]] and [[Dictys of Crete]].

==Roman myth and literature==

[[File:Denier frappé sous César célébrant le mythe d'Enée et d'Anchise.jpg|thumb|Aeneas and Anchises]]

The history of Aeneas was continued by Roman authors. One influential source was the account of Rome's founding in [[Cato the Elder]]'s ''[[Origines]]''.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Stout|first=S.E.|year=1924|title=How Vergil Established for Aeneas a Legal Claim to a Home and a Throne in Italy|journal=[[The Classical Journal]]|volume=20|issue=3|pages=152–60|jstor=3288552}}</ref> The Aeneas legend was well known in Virgil's day and appeared in various historical works, including the ''Roman Antiquities'' of the Greek historian [[Dionysius of Halicarnassus]] (relying on [[Marcus Terentius Varro]]), ''[[Ab Urbe Condita (book)|Ab Urbe Condita]]'' by [[Livy]] (probably dependent on [[Quintus Fabius Pictor]], fl. 200 BCE), and [[Gnaeus Pompeius Trogus]] (now extant only in an epitome by [[Justin (historian)|Justin]]).

===Virgil's  ''Aeneid''===
[[File:Venus as Huntress Appears to Aeneas.jpg|thumb|''Venus as Huntress Appears to Aeneas'', by [[Pietro da Cortona]]]]
The ''[[Aeneid]]'' which is 12 books of the legendary foundation of [[Lavinium]] which explains that Aeneas is one of the few Trojans who were not killed or enslaved when Troy fell. Aeneas, after being commanded by the gods to flee, gathered a group, collectively known as the [[Aeneads]], who then traveled to [[Italy]] and became progenitors of the [[Ancient Rome|Romans]]. The Aeneads included Aeneas's trumpeter [[Misenus]], his father [[Anchises]], his friends [[Achates]], [[Sergestus]], and [[Acmon, the Aenead|Acmon]], the healer [[Iapyx]], the helmsman [[Palinurus]], and his son [[Ascanius]] (also known as Iulus, Julus, or Ascanius Julius). He carried with him the [[Lares]] and [[Penates]], the statues of the household gods of Troy, and transplanted them to Italy.

Several attempts to find a new home failed; one such stop was on [[Sicily]], where in [[Trapani|Drepanum]], on the island's western coast, his father, Anchises, died peacefully.

[[File:Énée et Didon, Guérin.jpg|thumb|right|Aeneas tells Dido about the fall of Troy, by [[Pierre-Narcisse Guérin]]]]
After a brief but fierce storm sent up against the group at [[Juno (mythology)|Juno]]'s request, Aeneas and his fleet made landfall at [[Carthage]] after six years of wanderings.  Aeneas had a year-long affair with the Carthaginian queen [[Dido (Queen of Carthage)|Dido]] (also known as Elissa), who proposed that the Trojans settle in her land and that she and Aeneas reign jointly over their peoples. A marriage of sorts was arranged between Dido and Aeneas at the instigation of Juno, who was told that her favorite city would eventually be defeated by the Trojans' descendants. Aeneas's mother [[Venus (mythology)|Venus]] (the Roman adaptation of Aphrodite) realized that her son and his company needed a temporary respite to reinforce themselves for the journey to come. However, the messenger god [[Mercury (mythology)|Mercury]] (the adaptation of Hermes) was sent by [[Jupiter (mythology)|Jupiter]] (who was Zeus in this version) and Venus to remind Aeneas of his journey and his purpose, compelling him to leave secretly. When Dido learned of this, she uttered a curse that would forever pit Carthage against Rome, an enmity that would culminate in the [[Punic Wars]]. She then committed suicide by stabbing herself with the same sword she gave Aeneas when they first met.

After the sojourn in Carthage, the Trojans returned to Sicily where Aeneas organized [[funeral games (antiquity)|funeral games]] to honor his father, who had died a year before. The company traveled on and landed on the western coast of Italy. Aeneas descended into the underworld where he met Dido (who turned away from him to return to her husband) and his father, who showed him the future of his descendants and thus the history of Rome.

[[File:Aeneas and Turnus.jpg|thumb|left|Aeneas defeats [[Turnus]], by [[Luca Giordano]], 1634–1705. The ''[[Genius (mythology)|genius]]'' of Aeneas is shown ascendant, looking into the light of the future, while that of Turnus is setting, shrouded in darkness.]]

[[Latinus]], king of the Latins, welcomed Aeneas's army of exiled Trojans and let them reorganize their lives in [[Latium]]. His daughter [[Lavinia]] had been promised to [[Turnus]], king of the [[Rutuli]], but Latinus received a prophecy that Lavinia would be betrothed to one from another land – namely, Aeneas. Latinus heeded the prophecy, and Turnus consequently declared war on Aeneas at the urging of Juno, who was aligned with King [[Mezentius]] of [[Etruscan civilization|the Etruscans]] and Queen [[Amata]] of the Latins. Aeneas's forces prevailed. Turnus was killed, and Virgil's account ends abruptly.

===Other sources===
[[File:Walter Pompe, De Romeinse wolvin met Romulus en Remus- La louve romaine avec Romulus et Remus, KBS-FRB.jpg|thumb|The twin sons Romulus and Remus suckling off of a she-wolf]]
The rest of Aeneas's biography is gleaned from other ancient sources, including Livy and [[Ovid]]'s ''[[Metamorphoses]]''. According to Livy, Aeneas was victorious, but Latinus died in the war. Aeneas founded the city of [[Lavinium]], named after his wife. He later welcomed Dido's sister, [[Anna Perenna]], who then committed suicide after learning of Lavinia's jealousy. After Aeneas's death, Venus asked Jupiter to make her son immortal. Jupiter agreed. The river god [[Numicus]] cleansed Aeneas of all his mortal parts and Venus anointed him with [[ambrosia]] and nectar, making him a god. Aeneas was recognized as the god [[Jupiter Indiges]].<ref>Titus Livius. [http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/txt/ah/Livy/Livy01.html ''The History of Rome''] (Rev. Canon Roberts, trans.), Vol. I, J. M. Dent & Sons, Ltd., London, 1905</ref>  Aeneas is also an ancestor of the founders of Rome, the twin brothers Romulus and Remus, the two orphan boys who are seen being suckled by a she-wolf.[https://www.britannica.com/biography/Romulus-and-Remus]

== English mythology ==
{{More citations needed section|date=January 2023}}

{{Essay-like|date=October 2024}}

The [[Brut Chronicle]] tells the story of Britain's settling by [[Brutus of Troy]], son of Aeneas. Belief in this story was once widespread, but by the time of the [[Renaissance]] had begun to fade.<ref name=Rastell>{{cite book |last=Rastell |first=Johannes |date=1529 |title=The pastyme of people |publisher=in chepesyde at the sygne of the mearemayd next to pollys gate |url=https://archive.org/details/pastymeofpeoplec00rast/page/n9/mode/1up }}</ref>

=== Further reading ===
* One surviving version of the [[Brut Chronicle]] is a late Middle Ages manuscript, known as the St Albans Chronicle.<ref name=stalbc>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/lewis_e_238/page/n9/mode/2up |title=The St Albans Chronicle |date=1400 }}</ref>

==Medieval accounts==
[[Snorri Sturlason]], in the Prologue of the [[Prose Edda]], tells of the world as parted in three [[continents]]: [[Africa]], [[Asia]] and the third part called [[Europe]] or Enea.<ref name="ReferenceA"/><ref>Edda Snorra Sturlusonar GUÐNI JÓNSSON bjó til prentunar. [http://heimskringla.no/wiki/Prologus Prologus 2]</ref> Snorri also tells of a Trojan named [[Menon (mythology)|Munon]] (or Mennon), who marries the daughter of the [[High King]] (Yfirkonungr) [[Priam]] called [[Troan]] and travels to distant lands, marries the [[Sibyl|Sybil]] and got a son, Tror, who, as Snorri tells, is identical to [[Thor]]. This tale resembles some episodes of the Aeneid.<ref>The Prose Edda of Snorri Sturlson Translated by Arthur Gilchrist Brodeur [1916] Prologue III at Internet Sacred Texts Archive. Accessed November 14, 2017</ref>
Continuations of Trojan matter in the Middle Ages had their effects on the character of Aeneas as well. The 12th-century French ''[[Roman d'Enéas]]'' addresses Aeneas's sexuality. Though Virgil appears to deflect all homoeroticism onto [[Nisus and Euryalus]], making his Aeneas a purely heterosexual character, in the Middle Ages there was at least a suspicion of homoeroticism in Aeneas. The ''Roman d'Enéas'' addresses that charge, when [[Amata|Queen Amata]] opposes Aeneas's marrying [[Lavinia]].<ref>{{cite journal|last=Eldevik|first=Randi|year=1991|title=Negotiations of Homoerotic Tradition|journal=[[Publications of the Modern Language Association|PMLA]]|volume=106|issue=5|pages=1177–78|jstor=462692|doi=10.2307/462692|s2cid=251026783 }}</ref>

Medieval interpretations of Aeneas were greatly influenced by both Virgil and other Latin sources. Specifically, the accounts by Dares and Dictys, which were reworked by the 13th-century Italian writer [[Guido delle Colonne]] (in ''[[Historia destructionis Troiae]]''), colored many later readings. From Guido, for instance, the [[Pearl Poet]] and other English writers get the suggestion<ref name=tolkien/> that Aeneas's safe departure from Troy with his possessions and family was a reward for treason, for which he was chastised by [[Hecuba]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Colonne|first=Guido delle|author-link=Guido delle Colonne|editor=Griffin, N. E.|title=Historia destructionis Troiae|url=http://www.medievalacademy.org/resource/resmgr/maa_books_online/griffin_0026.htm|series=Medieval Academy Books|volume=26|year=1936|publisher=Medieval Academy of America|location=Cambridge|pages=218, 234}}</ref> In ''[[Sir Gawain and the Green Knight]]'' (late 14th century) the Pearl Poet, like many other English writers, employed Aeneas to establish a genealogy for the foundation of Britain,<ref name=tolkien>{{cite book|editor=Tolkien, J. R. R.|editor2=E. V. Gordon|editor3=Norman Davis|title=Sir Gawain and the Green Knight|edition=2|year=1967|publisher=Oxford UP|location=Oxford|isbn=9780198114864|page=70}}</ref> and explains that Aeneas was "impeached for his perfidy, proven most true" (line 4).<ref>{{cite book|editor=Laura Howes|translator=Marie Boroff|title=Sir Gawain and the Green Knight|year=2010|publisher=Norton|location=New York|isbn=9780393930252|page=3}} In Marie Boroff's translation, edited by Laura Howes, the treacherous knight of line 3 is identified as [[Antenor]], incorrectly, as Tolkien argues.</ref>

==Family and legendary descendants==
[[File:B. PINELLI, Enea e il Tevere.jpg|thumb|right|Aeneas and the god [[Tiberinus (god)|Tiber]], by [[Bartolomeo Pinelli]]]]

Aeneas had an extensive family tree. His [[wet-nurse]] was [[Caieta]],<ref>[[Vergil]] ''[[Aeneid]]'' 7.1–4</ref> and he is the father of [[Ascanius]] with [[Creusa (wife of Aeneas)|Creusa]], and of [[Silvius (mythology)|Silvius]] with [[Lavinia]]. Ascanius, also known as [[Iulus]] (or Julius),<ref>[[Vergil]], ''[[Aeneid]]'' 1983 1.267</ref> founded [[Alba Longa]] and was the first in a [[Latin kings of Alba Longa|long series of kings]]. According to the mythology used by Virgil in the ''Aeneid,'' Romulus and Remus were both descendants of Aeneas through their mother Rhea Silvia, making Aeneas the progenitor of the Roman people.<ref>C.F. L'Homond ''[https://archive.org/details/selectionsfromv02lhogoog/page/n44 <!-- pg=1 quote=kings alba longa fill the gap. --> Selections from Viri Romae]'' p.1</ref> Some early sources call him their father or grandfather,<ref>[http://www.4literature.net/Plutarch/Romulus/ Romulus by Plutarch<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> but once the dates of the fall of Troy (1184 BCE) and the founding of [[Rome]] (753 BCE) became accepted, authors added generations between them. The [[Gens Julia|Julian family]] of Rome, most notably [[Julius Cæsar]] and [[Augustus]], traced their lineage to Ascanius and Aeneas,<ref>[[Dionysius of Halicarnassus]] ''Roman Antiquities'' I.70.4</ref> thus to the goddess Venus. Through the Julians, the [[Palemonids]] make this claim. The legendary [[List of legendary kings of Britain|kings of Britain]] – including [[King Arthur]] – trace their family through a grandson of Aeneas, [[Brutus of Britain|Brutus]].<ref>Charles Selby ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=LSFXAAAAcAAJ&dq=house%20of%20brutus%20sylvius&pg=PA1 Events to be Remembered in the History of Britain]'' pp. 1–2</ref>

==Character and appearance==
[[File:Affresco romano - Enea e di.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Dido]] and Aeneas, from a Roman fresco, [[Pompeian Styles|Pompeian Third Style]] (10 BCE – 45 CE), [[Pompeii]], Italy]]
Aeneas's consistent epithet in Virgil and other Latin authors is ''pius'', a term that connotes reverence toward the gods and familial dutifulness. There is significant scholarly debate, however, over the degree to which this epithet is genuine within the poem, and to what extent its deployment by Virgil is sarcastic.

In the ''Aeneid'', Aeneas is described as strong and handsome, but neither his hair colour nor complexion are described.<ref>Mark Griffith, "What Does Aeneas Look like?", Classical Philology, Vol. 80, No. 4 (Oct., 1985), p. 309. {{doi|10.1086/366939}}. {{JSTOR|269615}}.</ref> In late antiquity however sources add further physical descriptions. The ''De excidio Troiae'' of [[Dares Phrygius]] describes Aeneas as "auburn-haired, stocky, eloquent, courteous, prudent, pious, and charming. His eyes were black and twinkling".<ref>[[Dares Phrygius]], ''History of the Fall of Troy'' [https://www.theoi.com/Text/DaresPhrygius.html 12]</ref> There is also a brief physical description found in the 6th-century  [[John Malalas]]' ''Chronographia'': "Aeneas: short, fat, with a good chest, powerful, with a ruddy complexion, a broad face, a good nose, fair skin, bald on the forehead, a good beard, grey eyes."<ref>Lowden, John. ''Illuminated prophet books: a study of Byzantine manuscripts of the major and minor prophets'' Penn State Press, 1988, p. 62</ref><ref>[[John Malalas|Malalas]], ''Chronography'' [https://topostext.org/work/793#5.106 5.106]</ref>

==Modern portrayals==

===Literature===
Aeneas appears as a character in [[William Shakespeare]]'s play ''[[Troilus and Cressida]]'', set during the Trojan War.

Aeneas is a major character in [[Christopher Marlowe]]'s play ''[[Dido, Queen of Carthage (play)|Dido, Queen of Carthage]]''.

Aeneas and [[Dido]] are the main characters of a 17th-century [[Broadside (music)|broadside]] [[ballad]] called "[[The Wandering Prince of Troy]]". The ballad ultimately alters Aeneas's fate from traveling on years after Dido's death to joining her as a spirit soon after her suicide.<ref>[http://ebba.english.ucsb.edu/search_combined/?ss=the+wandering+prince+of+troy English Broadside Ballad Archive], ballad facsimile and full text</ref>

In modern literature, Aeneas is the speaker in two poems by [[Allen Tate]], "Aeneas at Washington" and "Aeneas at New York". He is a main character in [[Ursula K. Le Guin]]'s ''[[Lavinia (novel)|Lavinia]]'', a re-telling of the last six books of the ''[[Aeneid]]'' told from the point of view of [[Lavinia]], daughter of King [[Latinus]] of [[Latium]].

Aeneas appears in [[David Gemmell]]'s ''Troy'' series as a main heroic character who goes by the name [[Helikaon]].

In [[Rick Riordan]]'s book series ''[[The Heroes of Olympus]]'', Aeneas is regarded as the first Roman demigod, son of [[Venus (mythology)|Venus]] rather than Aphrodite.

Will Adams's novel ''City of the Lost'' assumes that much of the information provided by Virgil is mistaken, and that the true Aeneas and Dido did not meet and love in Carthage but in a Phoenician colony at Cyprus, on the site of the modern [[Famagusta]]. Their tale is interspersed with that of modern activists who, while striving to stop an ambitious Turkish Army general trying to stage a coup, accidentally discover the hidden ruins of Dido's palace.

===Opera, film and other media===

[[File:Henry Purcell "Dido & Aeneas" (extrait) - Les Arts Florissants, William Christie.webm|thumb|upright=1.25|[[Lea Desandre]] performs an aria from [[Henry Purcell|Purcell]]'s ''[[Dido and Aeneas]]'' with [[Les Arts Florissants (ensemble)|Les Arts Florissants]] in 2020]]

Aeneas is a title character in [[Henry Purcell]]'s opera ''[[Dido and Aeneas]]'' ({{circa|1688}}), and [[Jakob Greber]]'s {{lang|it|Enea in Cartagine}} (''Aeneas in Carthage'') (1711), and one of the principal roles in [[Hector Berlioz]]'s opera ''[[Les Troyens]]'' ({{circa|1857}}), as well as in [[Metastasio]]'s immensely popular<ref>William Fitzgerald "Vergil in Music" in 
"A Companion to Vergil's Aeneid and its Tradition" Joseph Farrell, Michael C. J. Putnam eds, p.344 : "[https://books.google.com/books?id=nVWUluw8X8wC&dq=Metastasio++%22between+1724+and+1824%22&pg=PA344 Metastasio's Didone Abbandonata was set over eighty times in the period between 1724 and 1824]"</ref> opera libretto [[Didone abbandonata]]. Canadian composer [[James Rolfe (composer)|James Rolfe]] composed his opera ''Aeneas and Dido'' (2007; to a libretto by [[André Alexis]]) as a companion piece to Purcell's opera.

Aeneas appears in [[Rudyard Kipling|Kipling]]'s "A Tree Song" as a throwaway line.

Despite its many dramatic elements, Aeneas's story has generated little interest from the film industry. [[Ronald Lewis (actor)|Ronald Lewis]] portrayed Aeneas in ''[[Helen of Troy (1956 film)|Helen of Troy]]'', directed by Robert Wise, as a supporting character, who is a member of the Trojan Royal family, and a close and loyal friend to Paris, and escapes at the end of the film. Portrayed by [[Steve Reeves]], he was the main character in the 1961 [[sword and sandal]] film ''[[Guerra di Troia]]'' (''The Trojan War'').  Reeves reprised the role the following year in the film ''[[The Avenger (1962 film)|The Avenger]]'', about Aeneas's arrival in [[Latium]] and his conflicts with local tribes as he tries to settle his fellow Trojan refugees there.

[[Giulio Brogi]], portrayed as Aeneas in the 1971 Italian TV miniseries series called ''[[Eneide (TV serial)|Eneide]]'', which gives the whole story of the Aeneid, from Aeneas escape from Troy, to his meeting of Dido, his arrival in Italy, and his duel with Turnus.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-09-23 |title=Eneide |url=https://www.repubblica.it/serietv/schede/eneide/8257/ |access-date=2025-03-27 |website=La Repubblica |language=it}}</ref>

The most recent cinematic portrayal of Aeneas was in the film ''[[Troy (film)|Troy]]'', in which he appears as a youth charged by [[Paris (mythology)|Paris]] to protect the Trojan refugees, and to continue the ideals of the city and its people. Paris gives Aeneas Priam's sword, in order to give legitimacy and continuity to the royal line of Troy – and lay the foundations of Roman culture. In this film, he is not a member of the royal family and does not appear to fight in the war.

In the role-playing game ''[[Vampire: The Requiem]]'' by White Wolf Game Studios, Aeneas figures as one of the mythical founders of the [[Ventrue Clan]].

in the action game ''[[Warriors: Legends of Troy]]'', Aeneas is a playable character. The game ends with him and the Aeneans fleeing Troy's destruction and, spurned by the words of a prophetess thought crazed, goes to a new country (Italy) where he will start an empire greater than Greece and Troy combined that shall rule the world for 1000 years, never to be outdone in the tale of men (the Roman Empire).

In the 2018 TV miniseries ''[[Troy: Fall of a City]]'', Aeneas is portrayed by [[Alfred Enoch]].<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://deadline.com/2017/03/troy-fall-of-a-city-cast-bella-dayne-louis-hunter-joseph-mawle-frances-oconnor-david-threlfall-bbc-netflix-1202055633/|title='Troy: Fall Of A City': Bella Dayne, Louis Hunter & More Join BBC/Netflix Epic|date=March 30, 2017|magazine=Deadline|language=en-US|access-date=April 1, 2017}}</ref> He also featured as an Epic Fighter of the Dardania faction in the ''[[Total War Saga: Troy]]'' in 2020.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://guides.gamepressure.com/total-war-saga-troy/guide.asp?ID=55281 |title=Total War Troy: Aeneas guide – bonuses, faction units, builds |website=Game Guides – Game Pressure }}</ref>

==Depictions in art==
Scenes depicting Aeneas, especially from the ''Aeneid'', have been the focus of study for centuries. They have been the frequent subject of art and literature since their debut in the 1st century.

===Villa Valmarana===
The artist [[Giovanni Battista Tiepolo]] was commissioned by Gaetano Valmarana in 1757 to fresco several rooms in the Villa Valmarana, the family villa situated outside [[Vicenza]]. Tiepolo decorated the ''palazzina'' with scenes from epics such as Homer's ''Iliad'' and Virgil's ''Aeneid''.<ref>Michael Collins, Elise K. Kirk ed. ''Opera and Vivaldi'' p. 150</ref>
{|style="margin: 0 auto;"
|[[Image:Giovanni Battista Tiepolo 038.jpg|thumb|upright|''Aeneas Introducing Cupid Dressed as Ascanius to Dido'', by Tiepolo ([[1757]]).]]
|[[Image:Giovanni Battista Tiepolo 054.jpg|thumb|upright|''Venus Appearing to Aeneas on the Shores of Carthage'', by Tiepolo (1757).]]
|[[File:Giovanni Battista Tiepolo - Mercury Appearing to Aeneas - WGA22338.jpg|thumb|upright|''Mercury Appearing to Aeneas'', by Tiepolo (1757).]]
|[[File:Giovanni Battista Tiepolo - Venus and Vulcan - WGA22370.jpg|thumb|upright|''Venus and Vulcan'', by Tiepolo (between 1762 and 1766).]]
|}

===Aeneas flees Troy===
{|style="margin: 0 auto;"
|[[File:'Flight of Aeneas from Troy', fresco painting by Girolamo Genga, 1507-1510, Pinacoteca Nazionale, Siena.jpg|thumb|''Flight of Aeneas from Troy'', by [[Girolamo Genga]] (between 1507 and 1510).]]
|[[File:Aeneas and his Father Fleeing Troy by Simon Vouet, San Diego Museum of Art.JPG|thumb|''Aeneas and his Father Fleeing Troy'', by [[Simon Vouet]] (c. 1635).]]
|[[File:Enée & Anchise Lepautre Louvre M.R.2028 noir.jpg|thumb|''Aeneas & Anchises'', by [[Pierre Lepautre (1659–1744)|Pierre Lepautre]] (c. 1697).]]
|[[File:Batoni, Pompeo — Aeneas fleeing from Troy — 1750.jpg|thumb|''Aeneas fleeing from Troy'', by [[Pompeo Batoni]] (c. 1750).]]
|}

===Aeneas with Dido===
{|style="margin: 0 auto;"
|[[File:Dido and Aeneas LACMA M.81.199.jpg|thumb|''Dido and Aeneas'', by [[Rutilio Manetti]] (c. 1630)]]
|[[File:Sir Nathaniel Dance-Holland - The Meeting of Dido and Aeneas - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|''[[The Meeting of Dido and Aeneas]]'', by [[Nathaniel Dance-Holland]] (1766)]]
|[[File:Thomas Jones - Landscape with Dido and Aeneas - WGA11966.jpg|thumb|'' Landscape with Dido and Aeneas'', by [[Thomas Jones (artist)|Thomas Jones]] (1769)]]
|[[File:The-Meeting-Of-Dido-And-Aeneas.jpg|thumb|''Dido meeting Aeneas'', by [[Johann Heinrich Tischbein|Johann Heinrich the Elder Tischbein]] (3 January 1780)]]
|}

==Family tree==
{{Trojan race|align=center|title=Family tree of Aeneas}}

==See also==
* [[Cumaean Sibyl]]
* [[Lacrimae rerum]]
* [[The Golden Bough (mythology)|The Golden Bough]]
* [[Latin kings of Alba Longa]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
* [[Homer]], ''[[Iliad]]'' II. 819–21; V. 217–575; XIII. 455–544; XX. 75–352.
* Apollodorus, ''[[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Bibliotheca]]'' III. xii. 2; ''Epitome'' III. 32–IV. 2; V. 21.
* [[Virgil]], ''[[Aeneid]]''.
* [[Ovid]], ''[[Metamorphoses]]'' XIII. 623–715; XIV. 75–153; 581–608.
* [[Ovid]], ''[[Heroides]],'' VII.
* [[Livy]], Book 1.1–2.
* [[Dictys Cretensis]].
* [[Dares Phrygius]].

==Further reading==
* Cramer, D. "The Wrath of Aeneas: ''Iliad'' 13.455–67 and 20.75–352." Syllecta Classica, vol. 11, 2000, pp.&nbsp;16–33. {{doi|10.1353/syl.2000.0002}}.
* de Vasconcellos, P.S. "A Sound Play on Aeneas' Name in the ''Aeneid'': A Brief Note on VII.69." Vergilius (1959–), vol. 61, 2015, pp.&nbsp;125–29. {{JSTOR|vergilius1959.61.125}}.
* Farron, S. "The Aeneas–Dido Episode as an Attack on Aeneas' Mission and Rome." Greece & Rome, vol. 27, no. 1, 1980, pp.&nbsp;34–47. {{doi|10.1017/S0017383500027327}}. {{JSTOR|642775}}.
* Gowers, E. "Trees and Family Trees in the ''Aeneid''." Classical Antiquity, vol. 30, no. 1, 2011, pp.&nbsp;87–118. {{doi|10.1525/ca.2011.30.1.87}}. {{JSTOR|10.1525/ca.2011.30.1.87}}.
* Grillo, L. "Leaving Troy and Creusa: Reflections on Aeneas' Flight." The Classical Journal, vol. 106, no. 1, 2010, pp.&nbsp;43–68. {{doi|10.5184/classicalj.106.1.0043}}. {{JSTOR|10.5184/classicalj.106.1.0043}}.
* Noonan, J. "Sum Pius Aeneas: Aeneas and the Leader as Conservator/Σωτήρ" The Classical Bulletin. vol. 83, no. 1, 2007, pp.&nbsp;65–91.
* Putnam, M.C.J. ''The Humanness of Heroes: Studies in the Conclusion of Virgil's Aeneid''. The Amsterdam Vergil lectures, 1. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2011.
* Starr, R.J. "Aeneas the Rhetorician: 'Aeneid IV', 279–95." Latomus, vol. 62, no. 1, 2003, pp.&nbsp;36–46. {{JSTOR|41540042}}.
* Scafoglio, G. "The Betrayal of Aeneas." Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies, vol. 53 no. 1, 2013, pp.&nbsp;1–14.
* Schauer, M. ''Aeneas dux in Vergils Aeneis. Eine literarische Fiktion in augusteischer Zeit''. Zetemata vol. 128. Munich: C.H. Beck, 2007.

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
{{EB1911 poster|Aeneas}}
{{Library resources box |by=no |onlinebooks=yes |others=yes |about=yes |label=Aeneas
  |viaf= |lccn= |lcheading= |wikititle= }}
* [http://iconographic.warburg.sas.ac.uk/vpc/VPC_search/subcats.php?cat_1=8&cat_2=15&cat_3=626&cat_4=970 Warburg Institute Iconographic Database (about 900 images related to the Aeneid)]

{{s-start}}
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{{s-bef | before = [[Latinus]] }}
{{s-ttl | title  = [[Latin kings of Alba Longa|Latin king]] }}
{{s-aft | after  = [[Ascanius]] }}
{{s-end}}

{{Roman myth (mortal)}}
{{Roman religion}}
{{Characters in the Iliad}}
{{Aeneid}}
{{Dido and Aeneas}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aeneas}}
[[Category:Trojan Leaders]]
[[Category:Characters in the Aeneid]]
[[Category:Greek mythological heroes]]
[[Category:Children of Aphrodite]]
[[Category:Characters in Roman mythology]]
[[Category:Characters in the Divine Comedy]]
[[Category:Katabasis in classical mythology]]
[[Category:Demigods in classical mythology]]
[[Category:Legendary progenitors]]
[[Category:Metamorphoses characters]]
[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]
[[Category:Deified men]]