Peleus

Greek Son of King Aecus; brother of Telamon; husband of Thetis; father, with Thetis, of the hero Achilles. Peleus and Telamon murdered their younger halfbrother, Phocus, the king's favorite. Peleus fled from the kingdom of Aegina to Phthia. There, he accidentally killed the king's son in the Calydonian Boar Hunt and had to flee once again. He came to Iolcus in Thessaly, but bad luck followed him. There, the wife of King Acatus, Astydameia, fell in love with Peleus. When Peleus spurned her love, she accused him before the king of molesting her. King Acatus took Peleus hunting on Mount Pelion. He stole Peleus's sword while the young man slept and left him to die on the mountain, which was famous for its savage Centaurs. However, Chiron, their wise leader, took pity on Peleus. Chiron found his sword for him and sent Peleus back to Iolcus, where Peleus killed the treacherous Astydameia. Eventually Peleus married Thetis, a sea Nymph. All the gods attended their wedding, for Thetis was a favorite of Zeus. However, the couple neglected to invite Eris, the goddess of strife, and this oversight was one of the causes of the Trojan War, in which Achilles, son of Thetis and Peleus, was a leading figure and hero. (See also The Judgment of Paris, under Paris.)