Helen and the War of Troy

The story of the Trojan War, a bloody conflict, is immortalized by Homer in his Iliad. It is the story of war which raged of ten years and it had its origin in a quarrel between the Olympian gods. Eris, the goddess of Discord, was once not invited to a banquet. When the merry-making was at its height, Eris threw a golden apple into the dining hall, and the following words were written on it. “For the Most Fair”. Many claimed the prize, but finally three contestants remained. Venus and Juno and Minerva claimed to be the most beautiful of all. Zeus (Jove) suggested that the three contestants travel to Mount Ida, where young Paris, son of Priam, the king of Troy, was guarding some flocks for his father. He was an excellent judge of feminine beauty, and would award the apple to the most fair.

So, there appeared before him the three goddesses and explained to him their purpose. Juno promised to make him the ruler of vast and rich kingdoms. Minerva promised him military victory against the hated Greeks. But Venus, understanding best a young man’s heart, offered him the fairest woman in all the world. To Venus, therefore, he gave the golden apple.

The fairest woman in all the world promised to Paris was Helen, daughter of Zeus (Jove) by the beautiful Leda. Menelaus was chosen as her husband and had thus obtained both a beautiful queen and the rich kingship of Sparta. Venus directed Paris to the home of the happy couple, where he was hospitably received. But when Menelaus left on a journey, Paris carried Helen off to Troy. Menelaus prepared his forces to wage war on Troy. A thousand ships were ready but no favorable winds did blow. Calchas, the prophet, then prophesied that some goddess had been offended by Agamemnon, brother to Menelaus. A sacrifice, therefore, must be made to please the goddess. It was decided that Iphigenia, daughter of Agamemnon, must be so sacrificed. This was so harsh a demand that all Greece was terrified. Agamemnon himself brought his daughter to the sacrificial altar, and the goddess was pleased by the sacrifice, and a favorable wind began to blow.

Ten hundred ships now moved towards Troy. For ten long years, this war was waged and neither side had any great advantage. The Greeks then began to fight among themselves because Achilles was unwilling to give up Briseis, a beautiful young captive, who had been earlier awarded to him. At last Achilles agreed to give him up, but announced that he would fight no longer in the war and would return to Greece. The gods and goddesses took sides and many a battle was won through Olympian intervention. Juno and Minerva naturally fought against Troy and Paris. Apollo helped both sides, varying his support from time to time. Zeus remained for the most part impartial and aloof, although on occasions he too made his power felt.

After Achilles retired to his tent, the Trojans attacked and forced the Greeks back to the shores where their ships were anchored. Then the Greeks knew that they needed Achilles, and Ulysses and Ajax went to inform the great warrior that Agamemnon had at last consented to return Briseis to him. But Achilles was adamant. The Trojans were again successful in the next day’s battle, and won their way to the shore and set fire to many of the Grecian ships. Achilles still remained behind in his tent. The closest and dearest friend of Achilles was Patroclus. When Achilles learned that Patroclus had been slain by Hector, his rage was terrible. Then he hastened to the field seeking vengeance. When King Priam looked down from the city walls, he saw his forces driven back to the gates, which he ordered should be quickly opened. Hector alone would not pass through the gates and remained outside the city to meet his sworn enemy. With his family and many of the survivors watching from towers and battlements, the two great leaders finally met in mortal combat. Hector was at last killed. Achilles took a strong rope and tied it to the feet of his vanquished foe. Then he fastened the other end to his chariot and dragged the body of dead Hector back and forth for all to see.

Peace might have come once again to Greece and Troy, for Achilles had seen and fallen in love with Polyxena, daughter of King Priam. This happened during the period of truce allowed for Hector’s burial. Achilles visited the temple of Apollo to arrange for the marriage, when Paris, never a brave man, saw the great warrior and without warning shot a poisoned arrow at him which pierced his heel, the only part of Achilles which could be wounded. His mother had dipped him, when he was an infant, into the river, Styx. She had to hold him by the heels, which remained the only place where the waters could not work their magic. The idiom ‘Achilles’ heels meaning “the weak point of a person”, comes from this story.

After the death of Achilles, the war continued. Ulysses finally thought of a way to bring the war to an end, also to gain victory for his side. He caused to be constructed a huge wooden horse which was hollow and capable of housing a hand of armed men. On a dark night the Greeks took the horse before the gates of the city of Troy and left it there, as a gift for the Trojans. They then pretended to have given up the war and set sail. They did indeed take to the ships but anchored only a short distance away in a sheltered nook invisible from Troy’s towers. As Ulysses had foreseen, the Trojans took the horse through their gates. During the night, Ulysses and his men stole from the belly of the horse, overpowered the few guards and opened the city’s gates. The Greek Forces had meanwhile sailed back into port and in a few hours the city was sacked and burnt, and the long war for Helen was over.