Gordias

Gordios ( Gordias, Hdt ) was the father of the Greek legend of Midas, founder of Gordion, and King of Phrygia. As under the Phrygians, a dispute broke out, who should be at their peak, they asked an oracle. This instructed them to make one king, the first met the author, on a cart. That was Gordios. He had long before prophesied a fortune teller that he would be king. Then married Gordios the seer. After being crowned the king of the Phrygians, he founded Gordion and consecrated his car with an unresolvable node in the Temple of Zeus. He prophesied that the one node ( Gordian knot ) could solve the rule would acquire the whole of Asia Minor. Many centuries later, Alexander the Great by Gordion (in winter 334/333 BC), is looked at the node and cut in half him with his sword. Then Alexander conquered all of Asia Minor.

Gordios applies according to legend, as a founder of the Phrygian empire.

Herodotus mentions several Phrygian named Gordios. Thus, a Phrygian king Midas, son of Gordios in Macedonia ( Hdt. VIII, 138)! Furthermore, a Gordios as the father of Adrastus, who was atonement in the 6th century BC Lydian King Croesus of ( Hdt. I, 35; I, 45). Adrastus was also the grandson of a Midas who was consequently father of Gordios. At another place Herodotus tells of the Midas, who had donated a throne in Delphi, and called his father Gordios. In the latter, Midas there were believed to be the historically clear bezeugtem King Midas from the second half of the 8th century ( cf. Midas).

It was a long time ago trying to bring the various Phrygian ruler named Midas and Gordios based on the information in ancient sources (especially in Herodotus ) in a sequence. Here, up to four kings named Gordios have been suspected. Such studies are, however, extremely problematic due to the source location. Recently, such studies have been taken up by some historians, but again, there appears questionable whether the Midas the second half of the 8th century, the encounters as Mita Mushki in Assyrian sources, with the Midas is identical, which at rush of the Cimmerians on Gordion 696 or 679 BC, took his own life. Those who doubt the company, now partly a Gordios for the period around 700 BC, and at least one Gordios, who reigned before the famous Midas of the 8th century. However, the whole thing is very vague and controversial.