Phaedra

Mortal Cretan princess, daughter of Minos and Pasiphae and sister of Ariadne; second wife of Theseus and mother of Acamas and Demophon. The tragic protagonist of the Euripidean Hippolytus: her Aphrodite-sent passion for her stepson, his rejection, her suicide and accusing tablet, and the destruction of Hippolytus by the bull from the sea.

Parentage

• parent: Minos

Children

• Acamas
• Demophon

Domains

• queenship

Powers

• Destroy her stepson with a dying false accusation

Relations

• sibling: AriadneApollodorus, Bibliotheca (secondary)
• sibling: AndrogeosApollodorus, Bibliotheca (secondary)
• sibling: CatreusApollodorus, Bibliotheca (secondary)
• sibling: Glaucus son of MinosApollodorus, Bibliotheca (secondary)
• spouse: TheseusSecond wife of Theseus.Apollod. Epit. 1.18; Plut. Thes. 28 (primary)
• mother of: AcamasApollod. Epit. 1.18 (primary)
• mother of: DemophonApollod. Epit. 1.18 (primary)
• enemy: HippolytusHer false accusation, after the spurned passion, destroyed her stepson Hippolytus.Eur. Hipp. 373-731; Apollod. Epit. 1.18-19 (primary)

Sources

• existence: Euripides Hippolytus (428 BCE); Apollodorus 3.1.2, Epitome 1.17-19; Ovid Heroides 4; Seneca Phaedra; Hyg. Fab. 47 (primary)
• parentage: Apollod. 3.1.2 (daughter of Minos and Pasiphae) (primary)