Seven Against Thebes: The Quest of the Original Magnificent Seven

In the thirteenth century BC, a quarter of a century before the Trojan War, seven Greek warrior heroes went against the Greek city of Thebes to restore one of their number to the throne of his father, the famous King Oedipus. Several children of those seven heroes would later take part in the siege of Troy.

This adventure was equal in the minds of Greeks and Romans with the siege of Troy as told in Homer’s epic The Iliad, an event which it predated by a generation. And while the story contains mythical elements, there are no factual, historical, or archaeological reasons to suggest that the military campaign did not take place much as described.

Initially sung in verse and later committed to written form via histories, ancient poems, and plays, Seven Against Thebes is a historical narrative concerning one of the greatest military adventures of all time.