Historiae Romanorum

Laius

Laius was a king of Thebes.  With his wife Jocasta, he fathered a son, Oedipus.  This child was given to shepherds to be exposed, however.  This was because Laius had learned from the Oracle at Delphi that any son of his would one day murder him.  Oedipus was not exposed, but instead was raised by Polybus, the king of Corinth. 

During a trip by chariot to visit the Oracle at Delphi, Laius encountered a man in the road.  He told the man to move aside, but he did not.  Laius drove the chariot onward, running over the stranger's foot.  Enraged, the young man killed Laius and all but one of his attendants.  This young man was Oedipus, the child he had exposed many years ago.

Source(s):

1. Sophocles.  Oedipus Tyrannus.

This page was last updated on July 21, 2004.