Thebes was the principal city of Boeotia, a province which lay to the north of the great city state of Athens . The story of it's founding goes back to the time of Cadmus, son of Agenor, the king of Tyre. Agenor had a beautiful daughter named Europa . One day when she was playing with her companions on the sea shore, a large white bull came towards her.
At first she run away, expecting it to charge and gore her, but the bull was so fine and looked at her with such wide , calm eyes , that she soon lost her fear and began to stroke its pure white neck. Growing bolder, she made chains of flower to wind around it's horns , and eventually since it really did seem a peaceful, friendly bull, she clambered onto it's broad back.
At once the bull changed , with a snort , it galloped straight towards the edge of the sea and into the waves. As Europa clung terrified to it's nerk , it swarm off in the direction of the island of Crete. when they were safely back on land the bull vanished as mysteriously as it had had appeared, in it's place stood the might Zeus, explain that everything he had done had been in the name of love.
Europa was soon comforted and in a short time forgot all about her home and family. Agenor however, could not forget his beautiful daughter, and he sent his son Cadmus in search of her. He found no sign of her so after some time he travelled to Delphi to ask the oracle of Apollo for advice. This he received , though it was not what he expected.
He was told to abandon the search for his sister and instead to follow a cow which he would find in a herd nearby . on the spot when the cow first lay down to rest , he was to found a city . everything happened as the oracle had foretold and Cadmus and his men followed the cow for many days , arriving at last in the country called Boeotia .
There the cow lay down, and the spot was chosen. meanwhile, Cadmus, s companions had gone to draw water from a nearby well , and discovered that the place was guarded by a fierce , fire-breathing serpent. The serpent killed them all with one searing hot breath , but Cadmus himself, who had stayed to give thanks to the gods , was saved.
When his men did not return, he set out to look for them after a fierce fight Cadmus slew the serpent and on the instructions of the goddess Athene, who appeared at his side , sowed it's teeth in the ground . immediately an army of soldiers sprang up where the strange seed was buried. Cadmus turned to defend himself, but Athene told him to throw a stone amongst them so that they would fight among themselves.
The battle was so fierce that only five of the strange soldiers survived , these , known as the sown men or sparti , helped Cadmus to build the cadmea the citadel of the city which was to became Thebes. In due course they married and their families played a leading part in the city's history. Cadmus himself married Harmonia , a daughter of Ares and bought order and civilization to the previously wild country.