Mnestheus is a character from
Roman mythology, found in
Virgil's ''
Aeneid''. He is described by Virgil as the ancestral hero of the
Memmii and "Of the house of
Assaracus". One of a handful of vaguely defined lieutenants under
Aeneas, he appears to be Aeneas's most senior captain, taking charge in Book 9 in his absence. He takes second place in the boat race during the funeral games of
Anchises
Anchises (; grc-gre, Ἀγχίσης, Ankhísēs) was a member of the royal family of Troy in Greek and Roman legend. He was said to have been the son of King Capys of Dardania and Themiste, daughter of Ilus, who was son of Tros. He is most fam ...
in Book 5.
See also
*
9023 Mnesthus, Jovian asteroid named after Mnestheus
*
Mnestheus (skipper), a genus of butterflies
References
* Virgil IV, 288; IX, 171, 781.
* ''
A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities'' edited by
William Smith (1870).
External links
*
Characters in the Aeneid
Characters in Roman mythology
{{AncientRome-myth-stub