Nomen: ____________________________________ Hora: ________ Dies: ____________________
The Trojan War Study Guide
Homer:
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According to tradition, the poet Homer lived in _________ sometime around 800’s700’s BC. Legend says that Homer was _________. The epic poems the __________
and the ____________ are attributed to him.
The great Trojan War is believed to have been fought around __________.
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Eris, goddess of discord, crashes the wedding of the sea goddess Thetis and the mortal
Peleus. She brings a golden apple inscribed “to the fairest.” Three goddesses
immediately claim it: _____________, __________________, and ______________.
Zeus refuses to judge, so the goddesses ask Prince ________ of Troy to decide who gets
the apple. Paris is promised many things.
Aphrodite promises him the most beautiful woman in the world as his bride…Hera
promises him the _________ of Europe and Asia…and Athena promises him victory
over the __________ in war.
Paris chooses Aphrodite’s bribe. The most beautiful woman in the world’s name is
____________. She is a mortal daughter of Zeus. Problem: She is already married to
King Menelaus of Sparta.
Helen was so beautiful that her father, ___________, made all her suitors swear an
oath. Whoever won her hand in marriage would have to support the winner in battle.
This way, no wars would be fought over her. While Menelaus is away, Paris kidnaps
Helen and carries her away to _________.
A thousand ships set sail for Troy, led by Menelaus. The war lasted ______ years.
Odysseus:
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Odysseus was king of the island of ___________. Odysseus was the wisest and most
clever of all the Greeks. He was a suitor of Helen but did not want to go to war. He
pretended to be insane by planting salt. The Greek leaders put his son in front of his
plow to see if he was really crazy…he turned the plow aside so as not to hit the baby.
His story after the Trojan War is told in the Odyssey.
Achilles:
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Son of Thetis and Peleus. He is the greatest ___________ warrior. After he was born,
his mother Thetis dipped him into the waters of the __________ __________, which
made him invulnerable in battle. But---she held him by his heel, so that spot didn’t get the
magic protection. Thetis had a prophecy that Achilles would live either a short and glorious life,
or a long and unknown life. So she hid him in a palace disguised as a ___________ so he
wouldn’t be found to join the fighting in the Trojan War. Achilles was later tricked into revealing
his true identity! He was glad to join the army.
Agamemnon:
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Brother of _______________, son of Atreus. Brother-in-law of the kidnapped Helen. He was the
commander of armies. He stole Achilles’ prize maiden, Bryseis, after being forced to give up his
own prize maiden Chryseis. He was later murdered in cold blood by his wife’s boyfriend,
Aegisthus, when he got home from the ____________ ___________.
The Wrath of Achilles (The Iliad)
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Achilles refuses to help fight in the Trojan War because Agamemnon had stolen his prize lady.
He stayed in his tent a long time, and refused to fight even when Agamemnon brought her back.
______________: Achilles’ best friend. He wears his armor in the battle, in which he falls to the
mighty Prince Hector of Troy. Achilles swears vengeance, and his mother has Hephaestus make
him some new armor. Achilles dons his new armor, confronts Hector, and kills him. After
stripping the armor off, he ties Hector’s body to the back of his chariot and drags it around the
__________ ______ ____________. This did not please the gods.
Hector’s father, ________ ______________, sneaks into the Greek camp at night and begs
Achilles to return Hector’s body for proper burial. Achilles surrenders the body and allows for
12 days of non-fighting so the Trojans can observe funeral rites for Hector.
Later, __________ caused an arrow, shot by Paris himself, to fly at the only vulnerable spot on
Achilles’ body, the heel, and kill him. Odysseus was given the mighty armor in remembrance of
the mighty Achilles.
The Trojan Horse:
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Odysseus had the Greeks build a large wooden horse. A small group of soldiers hid inside it.
The rest of the Greeks sailed away and hid their ships behind a nearby island. The Trojans
assumed the Greeks had left, and dragged the “_____________ ____________” of the horse
into their city. The hidden soldiers sneaked out at night and threw open the gates of Troy. The
Greek army, who had sailed back, entered the city.
The Aftermath:
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The Trojan women are captured as slaves. Troy is burned to the ground. The infant son of
______________ is thrown from the walls to die. The Greeks return home. Odysseus, however, takes
__________ ____________ to return home and has many adventures.
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The Romans believed that _______________ was a Trojan survivor of the war who sailed to Italy
and became an ancestor of Romulus and Remus.