In Greek mythology, Aloeus was the name of two figures. The one in the Aeolid line was a Thessalian prince, son of the god Poseidon and Canace, daughter of Aeolus. He married his niece Iphimedeia and, by her, was the nominal father of the giant twins Otus and Ephialtes, collectively called the Aloadae. He is best remembered as the husband whose wife Eriboea reported the Aloadae's capture of Ares to the gods, for which he had her flayed alive.
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I.Overview
The name Aloeus can indicate one of two distinct characters in Greek mythology. The first is a Thessalian prince, the son of Poseidon and Canace, who is best known as the nominal father of the giant twins Otus and Ephialtes, the Aloadae. The second is a son of the sun-god Helios who ruled the district of Asopia (Sicyon).
The two figures are sometimes confused in the tradition, but they belong to separate genealogies: one to the Aeolid line descended from Aeolus through Canace, the other to the line of Helios associated with the territory of Sicyon.
II.Aloeus, son of Poseidon
This Aloeus was a Thessalian prince, the son of the god Poseidon and the princess Canace, daughter of King Aeolus and Enarete. Among his siblings were Hopleus, Nireus, Epopeus, and Triops.
He first married his niece Iphimedeia and later took as a second wife Eriboea, daughter of Eurymachus. By these marriages and his line he was credited with several children: Salmoneus, who founded Elis; the daughters Elate and Platanus; the maiden Pancratis; and, most famously, the twin giants Otus and Ephialtes, collectively known as the Aloadae.
The Aloadae grew to enormous size and waged war against the gods, even imprisoning Ares in a bag. When Eriboea reported the giants' capture of Ares to the gods, Aloeus punished her by having her flayed alive.
Virgil's Aeneid depicts the sons of Aloeus among those suffering punishment in the underworld, where judgment is administered by Rhadamanthus. Aloeus is also credited with founding the city of Alus in Aetolia.
III.Aloeus, son of Helios
The second Aloeus was a son of the sun-god Helios, his mother being possibly Antiope or Perse. From his father he received sovereignty over the district of Asopia, which corresponds to Sicyon.
He was the father of Epopeus, who succeeded him as ruler of the region.