Daughter of Heracles
In the Heracleidae of Euripides, Macaria ("she who is blessed") is a daughter of Heracles. Even after Heracles's death, King Eurystheus pursues his lifelong vendetta against the hero by hunting down his children. Macaria flees with her siblings and her father's old friend Iolaus to Athens, where they are received by Demophon, the king.
Arriving at the gates of Athens with his army, Eurystheus gives Demophon an ultimatum, threatening war upon Athens unless Demophon surrenders Heracles's children. When Demophon refuses and begins to prepare for war, an oracle informs him that Athens will be victorious only if a noble maiden is sacrificed to Persephone. Upon hearing this, Macaria sees that her only choice is immediate death on the altar or eventual death at the hands of Eurystheus. Since in neither case will she be granted a normal, happy life, she offers herself as the victim to save the welcoming city and its inhabitants, declining a lottery that would put other girls at risk. The Athenians honored her with lavish funeral rites, and the myth has an aetiological aspect: the spring where she died was named the Macarian in her honor.
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