# King Croesus — The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Other Stories character guide

> King Croesus in The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Other Stories by Leo Tolstoy.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Croesus

**First appearance:** 0048-croesus-and-solon

## Snapshot

The richest king in Lydia, who laughs off a philosopher's warning about happiness until fire and defeat teach him the lesson he refused to hear.

## Who they are

Croesus dismisses Solon's counsel that no man should be called happy until he is dead, trusting instead in his wealth, his son, and his army. When Cyrus invades and Croesus is bound to a pyre, he finally cries out the philosopher's name, and the emperor's curiosity spares him. His reversal is the story's engine: a king learning, too late for pride but not for wisdom, that fortune is a wheel.

## In the story

### [Croesus and Solon](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leo_tolstoy_short_fiction_se/chapters/croesus-and-solon)

The wealthy king who learns the hard lesson that happiness cannot be judged by riches or power alone.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leo_tolstoy_short_fiction_se/characters/croesus
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leo_tolstoy_short_fiction_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leo_tolstoy_short_fiction_se/characters