Agamemnon was the son of Atreus, king of Mycenae, and of Queen Aërope, granddaughter of King Minos of Crete. He had a brother, Menelaus. When his father was murdered and his kingship usurped by Aegistus, the brothers fled to Sparta. There, Agamemnon married the Spartan princess Clytemnestra. He returned to Mycenae, defeated Aegisthus, and became king. At some point, he became the High King of the Argives.