An+Overview+of+the+War

**Overview of the Trojan War porn**
In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was fought against the city of Troy by the Achaeans of Greece. This 10-year long struggle started after Paris of Troy stole Helen from her husband Menelaus, the king of Sparta. The war is one of the most important events in Greek mythology because it marked when the Greeks were justified as the mightiest empire on planet Earth. The Iliad, where much of the events described in the Trojan War is based upon, relates a part of the last year of the siege of Troy. Other works such as the Odyssey by Homer and Aenid by Virgil give more stories about what happened in the war. Though this is treated like it's a real war, many parts of it may by slightly or even fully myth. The war was told to be originated from a quarrel between the goddesses Athena, Hera and Aphrodite, after Eris, the goddess of discord, gave them a golden apple, sometimes known as the Apple of Discord, marked "for the fairest". Zeus sent the goddesses to Paris, who judged that Aphrodite, as the "fairest", should receive the apple. In exchange, Aphrodite made Helen, the most beautiful of all women and wife of Menelaus, fall in love with Paris, who took her to Troy. Agamemnon, king of Mycenae and the brother of Helen's husband Menelaus, led an expedition of Achaean troops to Troy and besieged the city for ten years because of Paris' insult. After the deaths of many heroes, including the Achaeans Achilles and Ajax, and the Trojans Hector and Paris, the city fell to the ruse of the Trojan Horse. The Achaeans slaughtered the Trojans (except for some of the women and children whom they kept or sold as slaves) and desecrated the temples, thus earning the gods' wrath. Few of the Achaeans returned safely to their homes and many founded colonies in distant shores.It is also believed that the Romans later traced their origin to Aeneas, one of the Trojans, who was said to have led the surviving Trojans to modern day Italy.

**The Apple of Discord** In the beginning, Zeus invited all of the gods to Peleus and Thetis' wedding and brought gifts, except Eris ("Discord"), who was stopped at the door by Hermes. Insulted, Eris threw from the door a gift of her own a golden apple on which were inscribed the words "To the fairest". The apple was claimed by Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite. They fought extensivly over it, and none of the other gods would venture an opinion favoring one, for fear of earning the enmity of the other two. Eventually, Zeus ordered Hermes to lead the three goddesses to Paris, one of the princes of Troy, who, unaware of his being royal, was being raised as a shepherd in the countryside, because of a prophecy that he would be the downfall of Troy. The goddesses appeared to him, and because he was unable to decide between them, they moved on to bribes. Athena offered Paris **wisdom, skill in battle, and the abilities of the greatest warriors**; Hera offered him **political power and control of all of Asia**, and Aphrodite offered him **the love of the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen of Sparta**. Pondering deeply all of the gifts, Paris awarded the apple to Aphrodite. Following this, Paris returned to Troy where he was recognized as part of the royal family and moved into the royal palace. Peleus and Thetis had a son, whom was named Achilles. It was foretold that he would either die of old age after an life of little meaning, or die quite young in a battlefield and become remembered as a hero through the ages. In mythology, his mother Thetis is told for attempting to make Achilles immortal when he was an infant. Some of these state that she held him over fire every night to burn away his mortal parts and rubbed him with ambrosia during the day, but that Peleus discovered her actions and stopped them. According to some versions of this story, Thetis had already killed several sons in this manner, and Peleus' action therefore saved his son's life. Other sources state that Thetis bathed Achilles in the River Styx, the river that runs to the Underworld, making him invulnerable wherever he had touched the water. Because she had held him by the heel, that part remained a mortal not a god, hence the expressions "Achilles heel" for an isolated weakness. He grew up to be the greatest of all mortal warriors. When Achilles was about 9, Calchas prophesised that his presence in war was going to be needed for the city of Troy to ever fall, Thetis hid Achilles in Skyros at the court of King Lycomedes, where he was disguised as a girl for much of his childhood.

**Helen and Paris** Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world, was the daughter of King Tydareus of Sparta and Queen Leda. though myth states her father may have been Zeus. When she grew older, Tyndareus was to choose whom she would marry. From the list of nearly 50 potential spouses, he finally chose Menelaus for his power and wealth. Thet then inherited the throne of Sparta while Menelaus' brother Agamemnon married Helen's sister Clytemnestra and took the throne of Mycenae. Paris, who was raised as a poor shepherd, soon returned to Troy and was recognized as a member of the royal family. After Aphrodite promised him the most beautiful wife in the world, he ventured to Sparta to search for Helen. Since Menelaus was in Crete for a funeral, not many people were there to witness how she was taken. Some sources say that she went with Paris willingly, purposly leaving her husband, 8 yr old daughter, and her attachment to the kingdom of Sparta, while other sources say she was kidnapped against her will. Nevertheless, her departure from Sparta to Troy sparked the anger in not only in Menelaus, but in entirity of Greece.

**Odysseus and Achilles**
Since Menelaus's wedding, Odysseus had married Penelope and fathered a son, Telemachus. In order to avoid the war, he feigned madness and sowed his fields with salt. Palamedes outwitted him by placing his infant son in front of the plough's path, and Odysseus turned aside, unwilling to kill his son, so revealing his sanity and forcing him to join the war. At Scyros, Achilles had an affair with the king's daughter Deidamia, resulting in a child, Neoptolemus. Odysseus, Telamonian Ajax, and Achilles' tutor Phoenix went to retrieve Achilles. Achilles' mother disguised him as a woman so that he would not have to go to war, but, according to one story, they blew a horn, and Achilles revealed himself by seizing a spear to fight intruders, rather than fleeing. According to another story, they disguised themselves as merchants bearing trinkets and weaponry, and Achilles was marked out from the other women for admiring weaponry instead of clothes and jewelry. Pausanias said that, according to Homer, Achilles did not hide in Scyros, but rather conquered the island, as part of the Trojan War.

**Gatherings at Aulis** There were two major gatherings at Aulis. First, the Achaean launched a very few number of ships to go to war. this only included to armies of Odysseus, Cinyras of Crete, and Achilles, who was only 15 yrs old. When they departed, no one knew the way to Troy. They all landfed at Mysia, where Telephus son of Hercules ruled. After conquering much of the land surrounding Troy in the following 8 years with the help of Telephus they returned to Aulis. The 2nd gathering at aulis was one where there were no winds to carry ships far. This was so because Artemis, goddess of the hunt ceased the winds after Agamemnon claimed himself a better hunter than her after killing a sacred deer.The only way to appease Artemis was then for Agamemnon to sacrifice his daughter Inphigenia to the gods. some sources say he refused, but some say he carried out with the execution. Also there is a version that says Artemis laid pity on the girl and used her as a servant on Mt. Olympus and only required a sheep to be sacrificed. Then the apprpriate winds came and the monstrous new and improved Achaean army set sail towards the city of Troy. This //Catalogue of Ships//, as described in the Iliad consisted of 28 contignents, or individual groups.

**Greeks- Greatest Warriors** Among those warriors who join the Greek army, the best were: Achilles, leader of the Myrmidons, son of Peleus and Thetis. Ajax the Greater, the tall Salamian leader, son of Telamon and Periboea. Diomedes, the Argive leader, son of Tydeus and Deïpyle; Odysseus, the resourceful and cunning king of Ithaca, son of Laërtes (Laertes) and Anticleia. Other outstanding warriors aside from these are Ajax the lesser, Nestor, Menelaus and Achilles' great friend Patroclus.

This is a compiled list of all of the commanders of each of the contignents, the name of their people or state they come from, and the number of ships they brought into the war: Agamemnon was the commander-in-chief of the Greek forces. The Greek forces brought a total of 1227 ships to Troy. Neoptolemus joined the Greek army after death of Achilles and Ajax.
 * ||  || Greek Leaders || Origin || Ships ||
 * Penelaus, Leitus, Archesilaus, Prothoenor, Clonius || The Boeotians || 50 ||
 * Ascalaphus, Ialmenus || Minyan Orchomenus & Aspledon || 30 ||
 * Schedius, Epistrophus, Iphitus || Phocis || 40 ||
 * Lesser Ajax || Locris || 40 ||
 * Elephenor, Acamas, Demophon || Euboea || 40 ||
 * Menestheus || Athens || 50 ||
 * Telamonian Ajax || Salamis || 12 ||
 * Diomedes, Sthenelus, Euryalus || Argos & Tiryns || 80 ||
 * Agamemnon || Mycenae & Corinth || 100 ||
 * Menelaus || Lacedaemon & Sparta || 60 ||
 * Nestor || Pylus & Arene || 90 ||
 * Agapenor || Arcadia: Orchomenus, Pheneus, Tegea || 60 ||
 * Amphimachus. Thalpius, Diores, Polyxeinus || Buprasion, part of Elis || 40 ||
 * Meges || Dulchium, Echinean Isles || 40 ||
 * Odysseus || Ithaca, Samos || 12 ||
 * Thoas || Aetolia: Calydon || 40 ||
 * Idomeneus, Meriones || Crete || 80 ||
 * Tlepolemus || Rhodes || 9 ||
 * Nireus || Syme || 3 ||
 * Pheidippus, Antiphus || Nisyrus, Cos || 30 ||
 * Achilles, Automedon, Neoptolemus || Pelasgian Argos, Alus, Alope, Trachis, Phthia || 50 ||
 * Protesilaus, Podarces || Phylace || 40 ||
 * Eumelus || Pherae, Iolcus || 11 ||
 * Philoctetes, Medon || Methone, Meliboea || 7 ||
 * Podalirius, Machaon, Perithous || Tricce, Oechalia || 30 ||
 * Eurypylus (Εὐρύπυλος) || Ormenion, Asterion || 40 ||
 * Polypoetes (Πολυποίτης), Leonteus (Λεοντεύς) || Argissa || 40 ||
 * Guneus || Cyphus || 22 ||
 * Prothous || Magnete || 40 ||
 * Mygdalion || Cyprus || 1 ||
 * Thersander || Thebes || 40 ||  ||

**Trojans- Leaders and Warriors** King Priam's eldest son, Hector, was commander-in-chief of the Trojan forces. Hector was the best warrior on the Trojan side. Hector knew that he was fated to die in the war, but as heir and eldest son of Priam, he was duty bound to defend Troy, even though he thought that his brother was wrong to start this war. His second-in-command was also a Trojan royal prince, from the Dardanian House, Aeneas, son of Aphrodite and Anchises. Aeneas was the bravest Trojan next to Hector.


 * Trojan Leaders || Origin ||
 * Hector || Troy ||
 * Aeneas, Archelous, Acamas || Dardania ||
 * Pandarus || Zeleia ||
 * Adrastus, Amphius || Adrasteia, Apaesus, Tereia ||
 * Asius || Percote, Practius, Sestos, Abydos, Arisbe ||
 * Hippothous, Pylaeus || Pelasgus ||
 * Acamas, Peirous, Rhesus || Thrace ||
 * Euphemus || Cicones ||
 * Pyraechmes || Paeonia ||
 * Pylaemenes || Cytorus, Cromna, Aegialus ||
 * Odius, Epistrophus || Alybe ||
 * Chromis, Ennomus || Mysia ||
 * Phorcys, Ascanius || Phrygia ||
 * Mesthles, Antiphus || Maeonia ||
 * Nastes, Amphimachus || Caria, Miletus ||
 * Sarpedon, Glaucus || Lycia ||

The Achaeans besieged Troy for nine years. This part of the war is the least developed among surviving sources, which prefer to talk about events in the last year of the war. After the initial landing the army was gathered in its entirety again only in the tenth year. Thucydides deduces that this was due to lack of money. They raided the Trojan allies and spent time farming the Thracian peninsula.[80] Troy was never completely besieged, thus it maintained communications with the interior of Asia Minor. Reinforcements continued to come until the very end. The Acheans controlled only the entrance to the Dardanelles, and Troy and her allies controlled the shortest point at Abydos and Sestus and communicated with allies in Europe.[81] Achilles was the most active of the Achaeans. According to Homer, he conquered 11 cities and 12 islands.[82] According to Apollodorus, he raided the land of Aeneas in the Troad region and stole his cattle.[83] He also captured Lyrnassus, Pedasus, and many of the neighbouring cities, and killed Troilus, son of Priam, who was still a youth; it was said that if he reached 20 years of age, Troy would not fall, prophecized by Apollodorus. // He also took Lesbos and Phocaea, then Colophon, and Smyrna, and Clazomenae, and Cyme; and afterwards Aegialus and Tenos, the so-called Hundred Cities; then, in order, Adramytium and Side; then Endium, and Linaeum, and Colone. He took also Hypoplacian Thebes and Lyrnessus, and further Antandrus, and many other cities. // Iliad
 * 9 Years of Siege **


 * War Contineus On**

Chryses, a priest of Apollo and father of Chryseis, came to Agamemnon to ask for the return of his daughter. Agamemnon refused, and insulted Chryses, who prayed to Apollo to avenge his ill-treatment. Enraged, Apollo afflicted the Achaean army with plague. Agamemnon was forced to return Chryseis to end the plague, and took Achilles' concubine Briseis as his own. Enraged at the dishonor Agamemnon had inflicted upon him, Achilles decided he would no longer fight. He asked his mother, Thetis, to intercede with Zeus, who agreed to give the Trojans success in the absence of Achilles, the best warrior of the Achaeans. After the withdrawal of Achilles, the Achaeans were initially successful. Both armies gathered in full for the first time since the landing. Menelaus and Paris fought a duel, which ended when Aphrodite snatched the beaten Paris from the field. With the truce broken, the armies began fighting again. Diomedes won great renown amongst the Achaeans, killing the Trojan hero Pandaros and nearly killing Aeneas, who was only saved by his mother, Aphrodite. With the assistance of Athena, Diomedes then wounded the gods Aphrodite and Ares. During the next days, however, the Trojans drove the Achaeans back to their camp and were stopped at the Achaean wall by Poseidon. The next day, though, with Zeus' help, the Trojans broke into the Achaean camp and were on the verge of setting fire to the Achaean ships. An earlier appeal to Achilles to return was rejected, but after Hector burned Protesilaus' ship, he allowed his close friend[101] and relative Patroclus to go into battle wearing Achilles' armor and lead his army. Patroclus drove the Trojans all the way back to the walls of Troy, and was only prevented from storming the city by the intervention of Apollo. Patroclus was then killed by Hector, who took Achilles' armor from the body of Patroclus. Triumphant Achilles dragging Hector's lifeless body in front of the Gates of Troy. (From a panoramic fresco on the upper level of the main hall of the Achilleion) Achilles, maddened with grief, swore to kill Hector in revenge. He was reconciled with Agamemnon and received Briseis back, untouched by Agamemnon. He received a new set of arms, forged by the god Hephaestus, and returned to the battlefield. He slaughtered many Trojans, and nearly killed Aeneas, who was saved by Poseidon. Achilles fought with the river god Scamander, and a battle of the gods followed. The Trojan army returned to the city, except for Hector, who remained outside the walls because he was tricked by Athena. Achilles killed Hector, and afterwards he dragged Hector's body from his chariot and refused to return the body to the Trojans for burial. The Achaeans then conducted funeral games for Patroclus. Afterwards, Priam came to Achilles' tent, guided by Hermes, and asked Achilles to return Hector's body. The armies made a temporary truce to allow the burial of the dead. The //Iliad// ends with the funeral of Hector.