Agenor, the king of Tyre and Sidon, had three sons and one very beautiful daughter called Europa.  When Zeus, in the form of a bull, carried off Europa, the Syrian king ordered his three sons to set off in search of her and not to return until they had found her.
    The three young men set out, but they soon realized the futility of their search.  One of the brothers, Cadmus, consulted the oracle at Delphi and the oracle told him to abandon the search for Europa and to found a city.  To find the right place, he was to follow a cow until the animal sank down from weariness.
    Cadmus traveled on until he reached a lush, fertile valley.  It was remote and unpolluted.  There, a cow without a yoke was grazing, and Cadmus followed her.  The cow lay down to chew the cud near a river, in a beautiful spot, and the young man decided that he would found his city in that very place.  Seeing that the prophecy had been fulfilled, he sacrificed the animal to the goddess Athena and then overcome with exhaustion, he fell asleep.
    A beautiful woman dressed in a white tunic appeared to him in his dreams.  She was wearing a helmet and a gleaming breastplate.  In her hands she held a silver lance and shield, and on her shoulder was perched an owl.  Cadmus recognized the goddess Athena.
    The apparition spoke softly to him:
    "Cadmus, brave warrior, you must indeed found your city here.  To do so you must kill an enormous dragon who guards the Spring of Ares.  Once you have vanquished hi, pull out his teeth and plough a field to sow them."
    The boy prepared to fight the dragon who guarded the Spring of Ares, the god of war.  The brave warrior fought a terrible battle against the beast.  The powerful dragon used every possible trick, and Cadmus fought valiantly.  The ground was soaked with blood, and rocks went flying as though they were pebbles.  The yells of the hero and the roaring of the beast could be heard as far away as Mount Olympus, where the din of the contest disturbed the father of the gods who was resting.
    Annoyed, Zeus sent his daughter Athena to help Cadmus, and put an end to this racket once and for all.
    The goddess of war obediently appeared on the battlefield, but even with her help, it took Cadmus another day to defeat the powerful dragon.  After killing the beast, the hero pulled out his teeth.  He ploughed a field with great effort, sowed the teeth in the blood-stained and sweat -soaked soil, and waited.
    Soon, from the dragon's teeth sprang many fierce warriors, who began to fight among themselves with uncommon determination until there were only five left.  The hero then attacked them and disarmed them.  The warriors who were called Sparti, "sown men", then acclaimed Cadmus as their king and lord, and helped him build the walls of the city of Thebes.  Thanks to Athena's protection, the heroic Cadmus ruled from then on in that city, which was famous for the valour of her men, for they were born of a dragon's teeth.

    There is an ancient legend that tells how, in the high Middle Ages, there lived in a lake in the south of France a huge blue water dragon covered in steely scales, known as the Tarasque.  The local population was terrorized by the presence of the monster, who would emerge from the lake from time to time to devour a virgin, as is customary among water dragons.
    The villagers did not know what to do to free themselves of the Tarasque.  Nobody was brave enough to fight against the beast, nor was there anyone who would dare even speak with him to negotiate a truce.  In the end, the people decided to send emissaries to the court of the King of France, but the King had other more serious problems to deal with and was not interested in the troubles of a village so far from the capital.  Nor were the knights of the court interested in the problem.  The dragon did not guard any treasure that would make the challenge worth their while, nor was he holding a princess prisoner whom they could free to gain honour and glory.  "The dragon only devours humble ignorant and filthy peasants.  The tournaments and jousts are much more profitable", thought the "valiant" knights.
    In desperation, the local people gathered to discuss the possibility of abandoning the village, given that they were unable to rid themselves of the monster.  The discussions were becoming heated when St Martha, a beautiful yound woman who was known and worshipped in the region for her goodness and bounty, happened to be passing that way.
    The village elders interpreted her appearance as a sign from the heavens and went to meet her to ask for her help deperately beseeching her.  In response to the villagers' urgent entreaties, the young woman offered to capture the Tarasque, but on one condition.
    "Tell us what you require, good Saint", agreed the local people.
    "I just want you to wish me luck for three days, asking Her to help me overcome the Tarasque", replied Martha.
    The elders accepted her condition, and waited full of faith that a miracle would happen which would save them forever from the curse.
    So, one morning, the Saint made her way to the lake where the Tarasque lived.  The dragon was a great music lover despite his ferocity.
    The beautiful young woman stood on the shore and began to sing a lovely song praising the dragon and his greatness.  Enchanted by the sweetness of the song, the Tarasque came out of the water and lay down at Martha's feet.  The Saint Quickly tied a belt around his neck without the monster offering the slightest resistance.  The dragon was completely subdued, and Martha was able to lead him easily away from the village forever.  In memory of this feat, the region where the Tarasque lived was known after that as Tarascon.

 [Main]  [Links]  [Dragon Pictures]