Meleager was the Son of King Oeneus of Calydon and Althea
Seven
days after his birth the Fates appeared foretelling his future
Clotho
and Lachesis predicted he would be both noble and brave
However,
the prediction of the fate Atropos was a little more grave
He
warned he would die as soon as a stick in the fire burned away
So,
Althea pulled the stick from the fire, put it out, and hid it away
While
he was still a young man, he became regarded as second only
To
the mighty Heracles in his speed strength skill and overall ability
He
was the youngest to sail with Jason’s Argonauts and subsequently
He
went on to kill King Aeetes of Colchis the Argonauts chief enemy
He
returned from his time with the Argonauts and married Cleopatra
And
they lived happily in Calydon and they had a daughter Polydora
His
domestic tranquillity was brought to a tragic and abrupt end
When Artemis unleashed the fearsome giant boar in his homeland
Meleager
naturally took a leading role in the hunt from the start
The
Calydonian Boar Hunt ended with his spear in the beast’s heart
As
Atalanta had drawn first blood Meleager awarded her the hide
Awarding
the prize to a woman injured the some of the party’s pride
His
uncles felt that his generous action had made them look small
A
quarrel broke out between them and Meleager then killed them all
Althea,
on hearing of her brother’s death’s by her own son’s hands
She
was so distraught at the news that some instant revenge she plans
Remembering
the words of Atropos about the stick on the fates visit
Althea
took the stick from its place of safety and then she burned it
As
predicted Meleager died and then in remorse took her own life
