Gordius

The legendary king of Phrygia who was credited with tying the famous Gordian Knot.

Gordius was a peasant with no pretense of nobility but when Phrygia was torn by revolt, he became the ruler by order of an oracle; the oracle of Zeus advised the people of Phrygia that their civil strife would end if they would appoint the next man they saw driving a wagon to the temple of Zeus; Gordius was the man the oracle had indicated.

Gordius dedicated his wagon to Zeus and it was noted that the knot by which the yoke was attached to the wagon was so intricate and clever that there must be some divine implication to its existence; a legend arose that the Phrygians would never be conquered unless the knot was undone; when Alexander the Great came to Phrygia on his march into Asia, he pondered the knot and instead of untying it, he drew his sword and cut it.

Gordius was the father of Phrygia’s most famous king, Midas.