The
Trojan
War
The Trojan War
The Trojan War actually occurred; the city of
Troy fell into the hands of the Greeks.
 Archaeologists have found historical evidence
of the war.


Was it exactly as told in The Iliad?
– No. It was probably fought over commerce and trade
between Greece and Asia Minor.
– But Homer’s version (The Iliad) is more exciting!
– Some of the characters may have been based on real
personalities.
What is a Trojan?
 a person from Troy
 one who shows qualities (endurance,
toughness, determined energy) like
those of the soldiers who defended
ancient Troy
Where’s Troy?
across the Aegean
Sea from Greece
 also called Ilium,
Ilion, and Ilios
 a well-walled city
with broad streets
and beautiful
palaces… until the
Trojan War

When was the war?
 beginning
of the 12th century B.C.
 1193 – 1184 B.C.
 That’s 3,200 years ago!
– B.C. = Before Christ
– A.D. = Anno Domini
(The Year of Our Lord)
Who are they?

Greeks (Achaeans)
– Achilles
 Greatest Greek
Warrior
– King Agamemnon
– Nestor
– Odysseus
– Patroclus
– Menelaus
 Helen’s husband

Trojans
– Hector
 Greatest Trojan
Warrior
– King Priam
 Father of Hector
– Aeneas
– Paris
 Helen’s abductor
Who supports whom?
 Greeks
– Hera
– Poseidon
– Hermes
– Athena
 Trojans
– Artemis
– Ares
– Apollo
– Aphrodite
Zeus tries to remain neutral, but he
shows empathy for Priam and Hector.
How did it start?
Eris, goddess of discord, was not invited to a
wedding banquet on Mt. Olympus.
 Into the banquet hall, Eris tossed a golden
apple inscribed “For the Fairest.”
 Athena, Hera, and Aphrodite asked Zeus to
decide who deserved the apple.
 Zeus would not choose. (He’s no fool!)
 Zeus says Paris is an excellent judge of beauty
and refers the goddesses to him.

The Judgment of Paris
Paris was the son of King Priam of Troy.
 He was rather weak and cowardly.
 Priam had sent him away from Troy because
an oracle prophesied that he would be the
ruin of the city.
 When the goddesses appeared to him, they
each offered him a bribe:

– Athena would make him a great warrior.
– Hera would make him ruler of Europe and Asia.
– Aphrodite would give him the most beautiful woman in the
world.
Who did paris choose?
 Paris gave the apple
to Aphrodite.
 She then took Paris
to Helen, the most
beautiful woman in
the world.
 Hera and Athena vowed
revenge.
Helen
 Helen was a daughter of Zeus.
 She was the wife of Menelaus.
 Menelaus was the brother of
the Greek King,
Agamemnon.
 See the problem?
Paris takes Helen
The Greeks Respond
 Menelaus asks all of Greece to help.
 Greek armies set off across the sea to lay
siege to Troy and leave it in ashes.
 And so begins the Trojan War.
 Helen is often referred to as “The Face
that Launched a Thousand Ships.”
Odysseus and
Achilles Join Late

Odysseus didn’t want to fight for Helen.
– He thought her a faithless woman.
– He did not want to leave his home (Ithaca).

Achilles was kept back by his mother.
– Thetis was a sea nymph who knew he was fated to die in
Troy.
– She had dipped him in the river Styx to try and give him
immortality. (She held him by the heel.)

Both of these great Greek warriors were later
called (forced) into battle where they played
important roles in many battles.
Agamemnon
 leader of all Greek forces during
Trojan War
 sacrificed his daughter (Iphegenia) to
Artemis in order to get favorable
winds for the ships to sail to Troy
 offended Achilles by taking his “prize”
(a girl named Briseis) after an early
battle
The Battle Rages
 Due to the influence of various gods
and goddesses, the war went back and
forth for many years.
 You can read about the war in
Homer’s epic poem The Iliad.
 Iliad means “a series of disastrous
events.”
Achilles Pouts
 Because Agamemnon offended him,
Achilles refused to fight.
 Then things went badly for the Greeks,
and they begged him to return.
 He allows Patroclus to fight in his place,
wearing his armor.
 Patroclus is killed by Hector, who
thought it was Achilles.
Achilles Returns
 Enraged over the death of Patroclus,
Achilles returns to battle.
 His mother procures for him some new
armor (made by Hephaestus).
 He kills Hector and desecrates the body.
Achilles Relents
 King Priam
sneaks into the Greek camp
and begs Achilles to give him Hector’s
body so that his son may have proper
funeral rites.
 Achilles allows Priam to take the body.
 After Hector’s death, Achilles does not
have long to live.
The Death of Achilles
 Achilles was unconquerable
by mortal
men, but Apollo stepped in.
 Apollo guided Paris’s arrow into the
only weak spot Achilles had: his heel.
 Achilles dies from the wound.
 The remaining Greeks decide his divine
armor should go to the bravest
remaining warrior.
Odysseus Wins
 Odysseus makes a speech explaining
why he deserves it, and he is awarded
the armor of Achilles.
 He then devises the final plan to end
the Trojan War.
The Trojan Horse
 The Greeks pretend
to retreat, leaving
behind a large
wooden horse.
 The Trojans, in
celebration, drag the
horse inside their
city as a war prize.
The Trojan Horse
Odysseus and many other Greek warriors are
hiding inside the horse.
The Fall of Troy
 They wait until the Trojans are asleep,
and then they come out and slaughter
them.
 The Trojan War is ended.
 The Greeks won.
 The Trojans lost.
 Odysseus is the greatest hero remaining
alive…but now he has to get home…
Sources
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Graphics in this presentation were taken from
the following web sites:
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http://www.bulfinch.org/fables/search.html
http://www.pantheon.org/
http://www.messagenet.com/myths/
http://mythman.com/
http://web.uvic.ca/grs/bowman/myth/index.html
http://www.paleothea.com/
http://www.entrenet.com/%7Egroedmed/greekm/myth.html
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only; it has not been and should not be sold or
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