Who is Dido: history of the queen of Carthage

Dido, a symbolic figure in Roman mythology and the central character in Virgil’s Aeneid, represents a narrative filled with passion, tragedy, and resilience. As the founder and first queen of Carthage, her story is closely connected to themes of love, sacrifice, and fate. According to legend, Dido was the daughter of Belus, sister of Pygmalion, and wife of Sychaeus.

Her tale merges multiple legends, including African and Eastern origins, as recounted by historians like Timaeus and Justin, and later adapted by Roman poets, particularly Virgil.

The earliest version of her story recounts Dido’s flight from Tyre following the death of her father and the murder of her husband by her brother, Pygmalion. She eventually reaches the African coast, where she establishes the city of Carthage. An African king falls in love with her, but to avoid marrying him, Dido takes her own life.

Virgil retains the elements of Dido’s escape from Tyre and the founding of Carthage but reinterprets her suicide as an act driven by her love for the Trojan hero Aeneas.

The name “Dido,” meaning “the fugitive,” was bestowed upon her by the people of the African land where she arrived after her journey.

The myth of the foundation of Carthage

Dido (also known as Elissa or Elisha) was the daughter of Belus (or Mutto), king of Tyre, and the sister of Pygmalion. She was also the niece and later the wife of Sychaeus (or Sicarba). Upon the death of their father, Belus, both Dido and Pygmalion inherited the throne, as he had divided his kingdom between them before passing. However, Pygmalion, driven by greed and unwilling to share power with his sister, envied the wealth of his brother-in-law, Sychaeus, and murdered him. Dido remained unaware of this crime until her husband’s spirit appeared to her in a dream, revealing the true cause of his death.

Following her husband’s advice, Dido decided to flee with a group of loyal followers and Sychaeus’ treasures. However, she lacked the necessary ships to escape. Crafting a clever plan, she requested a meeting with Pygmalion in hopes of reaching an agreement. Her brother, unsuspecting, sent ships and sailors to fetch her. During the night, with the help of her allies, Dido secretly loaded Sychaeus’ gold onto the ships. To deceive Pygmalion, she filled sacks with sand and placed them on deck, making it appear as though they contained all of her late husband’s wealth.

After the ships set sail, Dido, filled with grief, invoked her murdered husband and pleaded with him to reclaim the gold, deeming her brother unworthy of it. With the help of her loyal followers, she threw the sacks of sand into the sea. The men sent by Pygmalion, shocked by the deception, realized they could not return to the king without the treasure. Just as Dido had planned, they set course for Cyprus. Upon arriving, they were greeted with a surprise orchestrated by the queen: eighty beautiful maidens awaited them on the shore, declaring their willingness to follow them wherever they went.

Meanwhile, the sailors discovered that the treasure was still on board. With the promise of both the gold and the company of the women, they no longer hesitated and were eager to follow Dido on her mission to establish a new city.

Dido eventually landed on the northern coast of Africa, where the local inhabitants welcomed her warmly and gave her the name “Dido,” meaning “the fugitive.” They offered her as much land as she could enclose with an oxhide. Cleverly, the queen had the hide cut into thin strips, allowing her to encircle a large area, including a hill where she founded the city of Carthage.