Menelaus Menelaus In Greek mythology, Menelaus (; , "Menelaos", from μένος "vigor, rage, power" and λαός "people," "wrath of the people") was a king of Mycenaean (pre-Dorian) Sparta, the husband of Helen of Troy, and the son of Atreus and Aerope. According to the "Iliad", Menelaus was a central figure in the Trojan War, leading the Spartan contingent of the Greek army, under his elder brother Agamemnon, king of Mycenae. Prominent in both the "Iliad" and "Odyssey", Menelaus was also popular in Greek vase painting and Greek tragedy, the latter more as a hero of the Trojan War than as a
William Menelaus Aberdare. Unfortunately, she died ten weeks later in November 1852 of cholera. Menelaus did not remarry, but brought up and educated two nephews: William Darling, who became a law lord, and Charles Darling, who became an MP and later a baron. Although paid well from his work at Dowlais and investments in other steel, coal and commercial activities, Menelaus lived a simple lifestyle at his home in Merthyr Tydfil. His only extravagance was his art collection, which included works by many of the modern and noted European artists. Menelaus died on 30 March 1882 at Charlton House, in Tenby. Having