Theseus and His Father

By ridding the countryside of crime, Theseus became so famous that the King himself asked the boy to come to the royal palace.

The King's wife Medea intended to poison the boy before the people made him the king. Medea knew that Theseus was the king's son and she feared she would lose her power with an heir in the palace. At supper, Medea handed Theseus the poisoned cup. As he took up the cup and stood to toast, King Aegeus saw the boy's sandals. Instantly he embraced his son, took the cup from him and told the world that Theseus was his child and his heir.

But Theseus, being his own man, wanted to prove himself worthy. He asked his father to send him on an adventure which would help all the people of Athens and which would prove his bravery. He asked to go and fight the Minotaur--a mingled monster half bull and half human and who had terrified the children of Athens for many years.