Trojan War

The Apple of Discord

The Trojan War has its roots in the marriage between Peleus and Thetis, a sea-goddess. Peleus
and Thetis had not invited Eris, the goddess of discord, to their marriage and the outraged
goddess stormed into the wedding banuet and threw a golden apple onto the table. The apple
belonged to, Eris said, whoever was the fairest.
!era, Athena, and Aphrodite each reached for the apple. "eus proclaimed that Paris, prince of
Tro# and thought to be the most beautiful man alive, would act as the judge.
!ermes went to Paris, and Paris agreed to act as the judge. !era promised him power, Athena
promised him wealth, and Aphrodite promised the most beautiful woman in the world.
Paris chose Aphrodite, and she promised him that !elen, wife of $enelaus, would be his wife.
Paris then prepared to set off for %parta to capture !elen. Twin prophets &assandra and !elenus
tried to persuade him against such action, as did his mother, !ecuba. 'ut Paris would not listen
and he set off for %parta.
(n %parta, $enelaus, husband of !elen, treated Paris as a ro#al guest. !owever, when $enelaus
left %parta to go to a funeral, Paris abducted !elen )who perhaps went willingl#* and also carried
off much of $enelaus+ wealth.
(n Tro#, !elen and Paris were married. This occurred around ,-.. '.&. )Wood, ,/*.
0ree1 Armament
$enelaus, however, was outraged to find that Paris had ta1en !elen. $enelaus then called upon
all of !elen+s old suitors, as all of the suitors had made an oath long ago that the# would all bac1
!elen+s husband to defend her honor.
$an# of the suitors did not wish to go to war. 2d#sseus pretended to be insane but this tric1 was
uncovered b# Palamedes. Achilles, though not one of the previous suitors, was sought after
because the seer &alchas had stated that Tro# would not be ta1en unless Achilles would fight.
2ne of the most interesting stories is of &in#ras, 1ing of Paphos, in &#prus, who had been a
suitor of !elen. !e did not wish to go to war, but promised Agamemnon fift# ships for the 0ree1
fleet. True to his word, &in#ras did send fift# ships. The first ship was commanded b# his son.
The other fort#-nine, however, were to# cla# ships, with tin# cla# sailors. The# dissembled soon
after being placed in the ocean )Tripp, 345-345*.
The 0ree1 fleet assembled, under Agamemnon+s inspection, in Aulis. !owever, Agamemnon
either 1illed one of Diana+s sacred stags or made a careless boast. Either wa#, Diana was
outraged and she calmed the seas so that the fleet could not ta1e off.
The seer &alchas proclaimed that (phigenia, daughter of Agamemnon, must be sacrificed before
the fleet could set sail. This was done, and the 0ree1 ships set off in search of Tro#.
6inding Tro#
6inding Tro# proved difficult, however, and the 0ree1 fleet at first landed in $#sia. According
to !erodotus, the 0ree1s were under the impression that !elen had been ta1en b# the
Teuthranians )Teucrians*, and though the Teuthranians denied such allegations, the 0ree1s la#
siege to the cit# )!erodotus, '1. ((.,,4*. The 0ree1s ultimatel# prevailed, but suffered heav#
casualties at the hands of Telephus, 1ing of the Teuthranians, and, at the end, were still without
!elen. Telephus, in the course of the war, was wounded b# Achilles.
With no where else to turn, the 0ree1s returned home.
The Trojan War might not have happened had not Telephus gone to 0reece in the hopes of
having his wound cured. Telephus had been told b# an oracle that onl# the person who wounded
him )in this case, Achilles* could cure him. Achilles assented and Telephus told the 0ree1s how
to get to Tro#.
Embass# to Priam
2d#sseus, 1nown for his elouence, and $enelaus were sent as ambassadors to Priam. The#
demanded !elen and the stolen treasure be returned. Priam refused, and 2d#sseus and $enelaus
returned to the 0ree1 ships with the announcement that war was inevitable.
The War
The first nine #ears of the war consisted of both war in Tro# and war against the neighboring
regions. The 0ree1s reali7ed that Tro# was being supplied b# its neighboring 1ingdoms, so
0ree1s were sent to defeat these areas.
As well as destro#ing Trojan econom#, these battles let the 0ree1s gather a large amount of
resources and other spoils of war, including women )e.g., 'riseis, Tecmessa and &hr#seis*.
The 0ree1s won man# important battles and the Trojan hero !ector fell, as did the Trojan all#
Penthesilea. !owever, the 0ree1s could not brea1 down the walls of Tro#.
Patroclus was 1illed and, soon after, Achilles was felled b# Paris.
!elenus, son of Priam, had been captured b# 2d#sseus. A prophet, !elenus told the 0ree1s that
Tro# would not fall unless8
a* P#rrhus, Achilles+ son, fought in the war,
b* The bow and arrows of !ercules were used b# the 0ree1s against the Trojans,
c* The remains of Pelops, the famous Eleian hero, were brought to Tro#, and
d* The Palladium, a statue of Athena, was stolen from Tro# )Tripp, 349*.
Phoeni: persuaded P#rrhus to join the war. Philoctetes had the bow and arrows of !ercules, but
had been left b# the 0ree1 fleet in ;emnos because he had been bitten b# a sna1e and his wound
had a horrendous smell. Philoctetes was bitter, but was finall# persuaded to join the 0ree1s. The
remains of Pelops were gotten, and 2d#sseus infiltrated Trojan defenses and stole the Palladium.
The Trojan !orse
%till see1ing to gain entrance into Tro#, clever 2d#sseus )some sa# with the aid of Athena*
ordered a large wooden horse to be built. (ts insides were to be hollow so that soldiers could hide
within it.
2nce the statue had been built b# the artist Epeius, a number of the 0ree1 warriors, along with
2d#sseus, climbed inside. The rest of the 0ree1 fleet sailed awa#, so as to deceive the Trojans.
2ne man, %inon, was left behind. When the Trojans came to marvel at the huge creation, %inon
pretended to be angr# with the 0ree1s, stating that the# had deserted him. !e assured the Trojans
that the wooden horse was safe and would bring luc1 to the Trojans.
2nl# two people, ;aocoon and &assandra, spo1e out against the horse, but the# were ignored.
The Trojans celebrated what the# thought was their victor#, and dragged the wooden horse into
Tro#.
That night, after most of Tro# was asleep or in a drun1en stupor, %inon let the 0ree1 warriors out
from the horse, and the# slaughtered the Trojans. Priam was 1illed as he huddled b# "eus+ altar
and &assandra was pulled from the statue of Athena and raped.
After the War
After the war, Pol#:ena, daughter of Priam, was sacrificed at the tomb of Achilles and Ast#ana:,
son of !ector, was also sacrificed, signif#ing the end of the war.
Aeneas, a Trojan prince, managed to escape the destruction of Tro#, and <irgil+s Aeneid tells of
his flight from Tro#. $an# sources sa# that Aeneas was the onl# Trojan prince to survive, but
this statement contradicts the common stor# that Andromache was married to !elenus, twin of
&assandra, after the war.
$enelaus, who had been determined to 1ill his faithless wife, was soon ta1en b# !elen+s beaut#
and seductiveness that he allowed her to live.
The surviving Trojan women were divided among the 0ree1 men along with the other plunder.
The 0ree1s then set sail for home, which, for some, proved as difficult and too1 as much time as
the Trojan War itself )e.g., 2d#sseus and $enelaus*.
Mortal Women of the Trojan War: http://www.stanford.edu/~plomio/history.html
Trojan War [British site so British spelling!]
b# Mark Cartwright
published on ,3 $a# -.,=
The Trojan War, fought between Greeks and the defenders of the city of Troy in Anatolia sometime in the
late Bronze Age, has grabbed the imagination for millennia. A conflict between Mycenaeans and Hittites may
well have occurred, but its representation in epic literature such as Homers Iliad is almost certainly more myth
than reality. Nevertheless, it has defined and shaped the way ancient Greek culture has been viewed right up to
the !st century "#. The story of gods and heroic warriors is perhaps one of the richest single surviving sources
from anti$uity and offers insights into the warfare, religion, customs, and attitudes of the ancient Greeks.
Origins of the War
The main source for our knowledge of the Trojan War is %omers Iliad &written sometime in the 'th century ("#)
where he recounts *+ days during the final year of the ten year conflict. The Greeks imagined the war to have
occurred some time in the !+th century ("#. %owever, the war was also the subject of a long oral tradition prior to
%omers work, and this, combined with other sources such as the fragmentary Epic Cycle poems, give us a more
complete picture of what e,actly the Greeks thought of as the Trojan -ar.
The Trojan -ar, in Greek tradition, started as a way for Zeus to reduce the ever.increasing population of humanity
and, more practically, as an e,pedition to reclaim %elen, wife of /enelaos, 0ing of Sarta and brother of
Agamemnon. %elen was abducted by the Trojan prince 1aris &also known as Ale,andros) and taken as his pri2e for
choosing Ahro!ite as the most beautiful goddess in a competition with Athena and Hera at the wedding of
1eleus and Thetis. /enelaos and the Greeks wanted her back and to avenge Trojan impudence.
The Greeks
The coalition of Greek forces &or Archaians as %omer often calls them) were led by 0ing Agamemnon of /ycenae.
Amongst the cities or regions represented were (oiotia, 1hocia, #uboea, Athens, Argos, "orinth, Arcadia,
3parta, 0ephalonia, "rete, #ho!es, /agnesia, and the "ycla!es. 4ust how many men these totaled is unclear.
%omer states an army of 5tens of thousands or rather more poetically 5as many 6men7 as the leaves and flowers
that come in springtime.
Amongst the Greek warriors were some e,tra special heroes, leaders who were the greatest fighters and displayed
the greatest courage on the battlefield. Also, they often had a divine mother or father whilst the other parent was a
mortal, thereby creating a genealogical link between the gods and ordinary men. Amongst the most important
were Achilles, O!ysseus, Aja,, 8iomedes, 1atroklos, Antilokus, /enestheus, and 9domenus.
The Greeks were aided by several of the Olymian gods of Greek religion. Athena, $osei!on, %era,
Hehaistos, Hermes, and Thetis all gave direct or indirect help to the Greeks in %omers account of the war. The
gods had their favorites amongst the men fighting down on the plains of Troy and they often protected them by
deflecting spears and even spiriting them away in the heat of %attle to put them down somewhere safe, far from
danger.
The Trojans
The Trojan army defending the great city of Troy, led by their king 1riam, had assistance from a long list of allies.
These included the "arians, %ali2ones, 0aukones, 0ikones, :ycians, /aionians, /ysians, 1aionians, 1aphlagonians,
1elasgians, $hrygians, and Thracians.
The Trojans, too, had their semi.divine heroes and these included %ektor &son of 1riam), Aeneas, 3arpedon,
Glaukos, 1horkys, 1oulydamas, and ;hesos. The Trojans also had help from the gods, receiving assistance during
the battle from Aollo, Aphrodite, Ares, and :eto.
Ares, god of War, called Terror and Panic to yoke his horses, while he
himself put on his gleaming armour. Iliad
&ey Battles
/ost of the Trojan -ar was in a fact a protracted siege, and the city was able to resist the invaders for so long
principally because its fortifications were so magnificent. 9ndeed, in Greek mythology, the walls of Troy were said
to have been built by 1oseidon and Apollo who, after an act of impiety, were compelled by <eus to serve the Trojan
0ing :aomedon for one year. There were, though, battles outside the city where armies fought, sometimes
with chariots, but mostly by men on foot using spears and swords and protected by a shield, helmet, and armour
for the chest and legs. -ar waged back and forth across the plains of Troy over the years, but the really e,citing
battles seem to have been reserved for the final year of the siege and the following are a selection of the
highlights.
Menelaos ' $aris
Tiring of indecisive battles, /enelaos offered to fight 1aris in single.combat and so settle the issue of the war.
Agreeing to this, the two warriors drew lots to see who would have first throw with their spear. 1aris won and
threw first but his spear landed harmlessly in the shield of /enelaos. The Greek king then threw his weapon with
tremendous force and the spear went through the shield of 1aris and carried on through to pierce his armour. 9f
1aris had not swayed at the last moment, he would surely have been killed outright. %owever, /enelaos was not
finished and with his sword he struck a fearful blow on the Trojan princes helmet. The sword shattered, though,
and fell in pieces into the dust. /enelaos then grabbed 1aris helmet with his bare hands and proceeded to drag
him from the field. "hoking as his helmet strap wrapped around his neck, 1aris was only saved through the
intervention of Aphrodite who broke the helmet strap and, covering the prince in a thick mist, spirited her favorite
back to the safety of his perfumed bedroom.
Aja( ' Hektor
The meeting of the two great heroes echoes that of /enelaos and 1aris. #ach throw their spears but to no effect.
%ektor then threw a large rock at the Greek, only for him to fend it off with his shield. Aja, then returned the favor
with an even bigger rock, smashing %ektors shield. They then drew their swords and closed for mortal combat but
were each stopped by their comrades who called for an end to the fighting as night was approaching. 8isplaying
the code of honor for which the good old days were famous, the two warriors even said goodbye on friendly terms
by e,changing gifts, %ektor giving a silver.hilted sword and Aja, giving a splendid purple belt.
The Greek "am Attacke!
=ollowing a tremendous day of fighting, %ektor led the Trojans in an attack on the very walls of the Greeks camp.
(reaking through the gates, the Trojans sent the Greeks fleeing in panic back to their ships. %owever, as <eus was
momentarily distracted by the charms of %era, 1oseidon stepped in to encourage the Greeks who rallied and forced
the Trojans to retreat. Then the tide of battle changed again and, with the support of Apollo, an inspirational
%ektor, in his finest hour, once more beat the Greeks back to their ships where he sought to set them abla2e.
The )eath of $atroklos
9nvincible Achilles was $uite simply the greatest warrior in Greece, or anywhere else for that matter. /uch to the
Greeks frustration, though, he sat out most of the war in a big sulk. Agamemnon had stolen his female war.booty
(riseis and conse$uently the hero refused to fight. Agamemnon at first doesnt seem to have been too bothered
about losing his temperamental talisman but as the Trojans started to gain an upper hand in the war, it began to
look like Achilles would be needed if the Archaians were to actually win the protracted conflict. Accordingly, an
increasingly desperate Agamemnon sent an appeal to Achilles with promises of vast treasure if he would only re.
join the conflict. These Achilles refused but with the Greek camp under attack, 1atroklos appealed to his mentor
and great friend Achilles to rejoin the conflict and, when he still refused, 1atroklos asked for permission to wear
Achilles armour and lead the fearful /yrmidons himself. Achilles, on seeing one of the Greek ships already abla2e,
reluctantly gave his consent but warned 1atroklos to only repel the Trojans from the camp and not pursue them to
the walls of Troy.
1atroklos then led the Greek fight.back, the Trojans were swept back and he even managed to kill the great Trojan
hero 3arpedon. =lushed with success, the young hero then ignored Achilles advice and rashly carried the fighting
on towards Troy. %owever, at this point, great Apollo intervened on behalf of the Trojans and struck the helmet
and armour from 1atroklos, shattered his spear and knocked his shield from his arm. Thus e,posed and
defenseless, 1atroklos was stabbed by #uphorbos and then %ektor stepped in to deal the fatal blow with a pitiless
stab of his spear.
Achilles* +ew Armour
-hen Achilles discovered the death of his great friend 1atroklos, he was overcome with grief and rage and he
swore to take terrible revenge on the Trojans and %ektor in particular. After a suitable show of mourning, Achilles
finally decided to enter the battlefield once more. 9t was a decision which would seal the fate of Troy.
(efore he could enter the fighting, though, Achilles needed new armour and this was provided by his divine mother
Thetis who had %ephaistos, the master craftsman of >lympus, make him the most magnificent set of armour ever
seen. ?sing bron2e, tin, silver, and gol!, the god made a massive shield which depicted a myriad of earthly scenes
and all the constellations. 3o too, he made a da22ling, gold.crested helmet for the hero. ;esplendent in his shining
armour, Achilles, still mad with rage, predictably routed the Trojans who fled in panic behind the safety of their city
walls.
Come closer now, to meet your doomed end sooner.
Achilles to Hektor, Iliad
Achilles ' Hektor
%ektor alone remained standing outside the walls but at the sight of the awesome Achilles on the rampage, even
his nerve gave way and he made a run for safety. Achilles, however, gave chase and pursued the Trojan prince
three times around the city walls. =inally catching him, Achilles killed his $uarry with a vicious stab of his spear in
%ektors throat. Achilles then stripped the body of its fine armour and, tying %ektor by the ankles to his chariot,
Achilles dragged the body back to the Greek camp in full view of 1riam standing atop the fortifications of the city.
This was a shockingly dishonorable act and against all the rules of ancient warfare.
%aving avenged the death of 1atroklos, Achilles arranged funeral games in his fallen friends honor. /eanwhile,
1riam entered the Greek camp in disguise and begged Achilles to return the body of his son that he might be given
proper %urial. 9nitially reluctant, the emotional pleas of the old man were finally heeded and Achilles consented to
return the body. %ere the Iliad ends but the war still had a few more twists of fate to turn.
The Trojan Horse , -ictory
The war involved several more e,citing episodes including Achilles fight with and killing of the #thiopian 0ing
/emnon and the Amazon 1enthesilea who both came to the aid of the Trojans. Achilles was even said to have
fallen in love with the beautiful Ama2on just at the moment he killed her with his spear. Achilles himself met his
destiny and was killed by an arrow to his only weak spot, his ankle, shot by 1aris and guided by Apollo. >dysseus
and Aja, s$uabbled over the heros magnificent armour and Aja, went mad with disappointment when he lost out
on the pri2e. 3laughtering a herd of sheep he thought were Greeks, he fell on his sword in a messy and pointless
suicide. 1hilokteles got revenge for his father, Achilles, by fatally shooting 1aris with the legendary bow
of Hercules. =inally, >dysseus even managed to get into the city in disguise and steal the sacred 1alladion statue
of Athena.
The final and decisive action was, though, the idea of the wooden horse. >dysseus, inspired by Athena, thought up
the ruse to get a body of men inside the walls of Troy. =irst, the Greeks all sailed off into the sunset leaving a
mysterious offering to the Trojans of a gigantic wooden horse which in reality concealed a group of warriors within.
4ust to make sure the Trojans took the horse within the city, 3inon was chosen to stay behind and tell a cock and
bull story about the Greeks having given up and left a nice present. The Trojans did take the horse inside the city
walls but whilst they were enjoying a drunken celebration of their victory, the Greeks climbed out of the horse,
opened the city walls for the returning Greek army, and the city was sacked and the population slaughtered or
enslaved. %elen was taken back to Argos and of the Trojan heroes only Aeneas escaped to eventually set up a new
home in .taly.
@ictory had its price though. 8ue to their pitiless ravaging of the city and its people and even worse, outrageous
sacrilegious acts such as the rape of 0assandra, the gods punished the Greeks by sending storms to wreck their
ships and those who did eventually return were made to endure a protracted and difficult voyage home. #ven then,
some of the Greeks who did make it back to their homeland only did so to face further misfortune and disaster.
The War in Art , /iterature
Troy and the Trojan -ar became a staple myth of "lassical Greek and #oman literature and were revisited many
times by writers in works such as Aeschylus Agamemnon, #uripedes Trojan Women, and @irgils Aenid. Also
in ottery decoration and in sculpture, artists were captivated by the Trojan -ar. 3cenes of the judgment of 1aris,
Achilles fighting %ektor, Achilles playing dice with Aja,, and Aja, falling on his sword were just some of the myriad
scenes from the story that would appear in art again and again over the centuries. 1erhaps more importantly, the
Trojan -ar came to represent the struggle of Greeks against foreign powers and it told tales of a time when men
were better, more able, and more honorable.
Ancient Encyclopedia History: http8>>www.ancient.eu.com>Trojan?War>
Questions:
,. Describe the events and outcomes of the Trojan War. @ou can use a timeline or other graphic organi7er,
but ma1e sure #ou label with sufficient detail to be clear.
-. E:amine )anal#7e* the conseuences. Wh# is the Trojan War such a pivotal piece of m#th as well as a
compelling topic for historiansA