Capaneus in Greek tradition
Capaneus was one of the Seven champions who attacked Thebes and a descendant of Proitos from the native royal line in Argos. He boasted that he would sack the town whether Zeus wished it or not, claiming the god’s thunder and lightning were no worse than the midday sun. Zeus struck him down for this impious arrogance, making him the Lightning-Struck warrior.
The quick answers
Who is Capaneus?
Capaneus is a Greek being.Source
Source
- Classical Mythology a to Z
Is Capaneus in The Divine Comedy?
Yes. It is linked here to Zeus Strikes Down Capaneus.What family links are recorded for Capaneus?
Father: Alector, Mother: Astynome, Spouse: Evadne, 1 child.What happens in Zeus Strikes Down Capaneus?
Capaneus climbs Thebes’ wall during the Argive assault and declares that Zeus cannot stop him.Source
Source
- Apollodorus, The Library
- The Library of Greek Mythology (Oxford World's Classics)
Capaneus’s family, at a glance
Parents above, children below, and the figure’s consorts named in between, the same family data as the fact box, laid out as a chart instead of a field list.
with Evadne
The names Capaneus answers to
Capaneus the Impious
The hero whose defiance of Zeus brought divine punishment
SourceClassical Mythology a to Z
Capaneus the Mighty
A gigantic and exceptionally powerful warrior
SourceClassical Mythology a to Z
Capaneus of the Seven
One of the Seven champions who attacked Thebes
SourceClassical Mythology a to Z
The myths of Capaneus
2 myths, each traced to its primary text and corpus sources, with 1 reviewed modern rework linked where the evidence supports it.
Asclepius Restores Capaneus to Life
Asclepius used his medical skill to bring the dead Capaneus back to life. He had become so skilled in healing that he could restore the dead, exceeding the limits set for mortals. Capaneus was one of several people whom Asclepius was said to have raised, together with Lycurgus and Tyndareus.
Hades complained to Zeus that Asclepius was taking subjects from the Underworld. The complaint was supported by an accusation that Asclepius had accepted gold in return for the resurrection. Zeus therefore took up his thunderbolt and struck Asclepius down. The account that names Capaneus among those restored also says that both Asclepius and the person he had revived were killed by the thunderbolt.
Apollo mourned his son. In one account, his grief drove him to attack the Cyclopes who forged Zeus’s thunderbolts. Apollo killed them with his arrows, then pleaded with Zeus for Asclepius. Zeus recalled Asclepius to life, and Asclepius repaired the damage done to the Cyclopes, who returned to their work. Another account says that Zeus restored Asclepius later, fulfilling a prophecy by Euippe, the daughter of Cheiron, who had foretold that Asclepius would become a god, die, and recover his divine status. Zeus then placed Asclepius’s image among the stars, holding a curative serpent.
In the modern world
No modern rework confirmed yet.
3 sources· checked 2026-08-19
- 1Monsters of Greek Mythology, Volume OneT1
- 2Apollodorus, The LibraryT1
Quote
“Asclepius brought Capaneus back from the dead, but Zeus struck down both the physician and the man he had revived after Hades complained that the healer was taking subjects from the Underworld.”
Apollodorus, The Library
- 3The Greek MythsT1
Zeus Strikes Down Capaneus
The Cadmeians were driven back towards the walls of Thebes. Capaneus seized a ladder and began to climb the wall during the assault. He had boasted that he would sack the city whether Zeus wished it or not. He also claimed that Zeus’s thunder and lightning were no more powerful than the midday sun. For this impious arrogance, Zeus struck Capaneus with a thunderbolt and killed him.
The battle followed a prophecy given by Teiresias when the Thebans consulted him. He said that they would win if Menoiceus, the son of Creon, offered himself as a sacrifice to Ares. When Menoiceus heard the prophecy, he killed himself in front of the gates. The fighting then continued until Capaneus was struck down. After his death, the Argives turned and fled.
Many had died, so Eteocles and Polyneices agreed with both armies to fight for the throne in single combat. They killed one another. Fighting broke out again. Ismaros, one of the sons of Astacos, killed Hippomedon. Leades killed Eteoclos, and Amphidicos killed Parthenopaios. Another account says that Periclymenos, son of Poseidon, killed Parthenopaios. Melanippos, the last son of Astacos, wounded Tydeus in the stomach. Capaneus belonged to the native royal line in Argos and was descended from Proitos.
In the modern world
The Divine Comedy
BookDante places Capaneus among the blasphemers, still defiant after death and still boasting that no thunderbolt could ever subdue him, directly recalling his death by Zeus's lightning at Thebes.
3 sources· checked 2026-08-19
- 1The Library of Greek Mythology (Oxford World's Classics)T1
- 2Apollodorus, The LibraryT1
Quote
“Capaneus, while attacking Thebes, boasted that he would sack the city despite Zeus and that the god’s thunder and lightning were no stronger than the midday sun, so Zeus killed him with a thunderbolt.”
Apollodorus, The Library
- 3The Library of Greek Mythology (Oxford World's Classics)T1
Also appears in
The myths across MythSource where Capaneus features, each on that figure’s page.
- Zeus Strikes Asclepius with Lightning · on Asclepius
- Hypsipyle Becomes Nurse of Opheltes · on Hypsipyle
- Hypsipyle’s Flight from Lemnos · on Hypsipyle
- The Death of Opheltes · on Hypsipyle
- The Lemnian Massacre and Hypsipyle’s Queenship · on Hypsipyle
- Jason on Lemnos with Hypsipyle · on Jason
- Tydeus Dies in the War Against Thebes · on Tydeus
- Zeus Strikes Asclepius · on Zeus
1 work catalogued
This is the candidate catalogue for Capaneus: candidate reworks first, then references, then names used as atmosphere. Nothing here has been checked against a source yet. Only reviewed myth-to-work links are promoted in Overview.
Showing 1 of 1 works.
Book1
- The Divine ComedyZeus Strikes Down CapaneusRework
These are catalogue candidates, not proof that every work retells this figure. Reviewed myth-to-work links appear in Overview.
What this page is built from
About this page
Written and maintained by MythSource. Last reviewed not yet recorded. How a page gets built.
4 sources are cited on this page, primary texts and corpus scholarship, listed below.
Cite this page
MythSource. (n.d.). Capaneus. https://www.mythsource.com/figures/capaneus
"Capaneus." MythSource, n.d., www.mythsource.com/figures/capaneus.
"Capaneus." MythSource. n.d. https://www.mythsource.com/figures/capaneus.
The mythology summaries and identity fields on this page are grounded in the primary texts and scholarship above. The appearance table records candidates separately; only reviewed joins are presented as modern reworks in Overview.
The film
The Underdrawing video on Capaneus embeds here once it publishes.