trojan war hero
Homer’s Iliad, the Tale of the Trojan War, is full of larger than life heroes. Meet the twelve greatest Trojan War Heroes of the Achaean Army.
Detailed view of a combat scene of heroes in the Trojan War from an Attic Black-Figure Neck Amphora , 500-480 BC, courtesy Getty Museum
The Trojan War , the most famous conflict of the Bronze Age, pitted the Greeks (also called Achaeans, Argives, or Danaans) against the city of Troy and its allies. Accounts of the conflict center on the heroes or champions of the opposing sides. These Trojan War Heroes were larger than life figures whose exploits became legendary. Not all were equal in valor, skill, courage, or counsel. However, some clearly stood above the rest. These twelve were the greatest and most influential Greek heroes in Homer’s Iliad, and other accounts of the Trojan War.
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Greatest of all the Achaean heroes who fought at Troy, and the central character of Homer’s Iliad, Achilles was the son of the Argonaut and companion Peleus and the Nereid Thetis, a goddess of the sea. Achilles was trained by the centaur Chiron who taught him the art of war. It was prophesied that he would either live long in obscurity or die young and obtain glory. To avoid this, Thetis was said to have dipped him in the river Styx to make him invulnerable; critically she missed his heel where she held him.
Homer’s Iliad begins with Achilles withdrawing himself and his soldiers from the war after quarreling with Agamemnon, commander of the Greek army. As the situation deteriorates for the Greeks Achilles rejects all attempts to mollify him. Finally, Patroclus, his cousin and close friend, convinces Achilles to allow him to take his place at the head of Achilles’ troops. Patroclus saves the Greeks but is killed, causing Achilles to rejoin the war.
Given new armor forged by the god Hephaestus, Achilles goes on a rampage slaughtering hundreds of Trojans, fights the river god Scamander, and kills the Trojan hero Hector. He then holds elaborate funeral games in honor of Patroclus; the nature of their relationship has been debated for centuries though many believe them to have been lovers. Achilles goes on to kill Penthesilea, queen of the Amazons, and Memnon king of Ethiopia, both of whom were Trojan allies before he himself is killed by the Trojan hero Paris. Achilles is a popular Trojan War Hero in both Ancient and Modern art .
Heroes Of The Trojan War
Mixing bowl, Calyx krater with the killing of Agamemnon b y the Dokimasia Painter , ca. 460 BC, courtesy Museum of Fine Arts Boston
The king of Mycenae, commander of the Achaean army, and brother of Menelaus, Agamemnon was the most powerful lord in Greece. After Helen of Troy and Paris ran off, Agamemnon gathered the various Greek contingents to invade Troy. Before the Greek fleet departed, Agamemnon insulted the goddess Artemis and was forced to sacrifice his daughter Iphigenia to make amend an act which his wife Clytemnestra never forgave. In the tenth year of the war, as recounted in Homer’s Iliad, Agamemnon and Achilles quarrel over Briseis, a slave girl. This occurs after Agamemnon is forced to relinquish his slave girl Chryseis to avert a plague. Achilles withdraws from the war and Agamemnon leads the Greeks against Troy with disastrous consequences.
Agamemnon, though not the equal of Achilles in bravery or Ajax in strength, is still one of the greatest Achaean warriors of all the Trojan War Heroes. In one memorable scene, he goes on a killing spree almost on the scale of Achilles. After the Fall of Troy, Agamemnon receives the Trojan princess Cassandra as a prize and delays his return voyage in an attempt to appease the goddess Athena. Agamemnon’s homecoming is not a happy one. He and Cassandra are murdered by Clytemnestra and her lover Aegisthus. Orestes and Electra , Agamemnon’s children, eventually avenge his death. Agamemnon was regarded as the highest type of monarch and artistic representations depict him in a similar manner to the famous god Zeus .
Achilles, Hero Of The Trojan War
Husband of Helen, brother of Agamemnon, and king of Sparta, Menelau s appears in both the Iliad and the Odyssey and was also a popular figure in Greek tragedy and art . According to legend, Menelaus was one of the many suitors who sought to marry the beautiful Helen. To avoid conflict her father made the suitors swear an oath to abide by the decision and support each other and defend Helen’s husband. Once Paris and Helen ran off to Troy Menelaus called on the suitors to fulfill their oath.
In the Iliad Menelaus challenges Paris to single combat and easily defeats him. However, Paris is saved by Aphrodite and Menelaus is wounded by the Trojan Pandarus who shoots him with an arrow. Menelaus helps retrieve Patroclus’ body and is credited with killing eight named Trojan warriors. He is one of the Trojan War Heroes of the Greek army hidden inside the famed Trojan Horse and participates in the Sack of Troy. Later he takes Helen back with him to Sparta after a long journey during which a storm forces them to stop in Crete and Egypt.
The cunning king of Ithaca, Odysseus played a key role in the Trojan War. It was he who devised the oath which bound the Achaeans to come to the aid of Helen’s husband, which he himself tried to avoid. His ploy was discovered by Palamedes, whose downfall he later orchestrated, possibly with the aid of his usual partner Diomedes. Odysseus’ main role amongst the other Trojan War Heroes is that of a counselor and advisor, especially to Agamemnon who often relies on his support. He is the main emissary sent to persuade Achilles to rejoin the war, where he shows off his diplomatic skills.
The Trojan War: History Or Myth?
As the war progresses, Odysseus’ role expands. He and Diomedes conduct several special operations against the Trojans. They kill the Trojan ally Rhesus and steal the Palladium from the temple of Athena in Troy. After Ajax and Odysseus retrieve the body of Achilles, Odysseus is awarded them which leads to Ajax committing suicide. Ultimately it is Odysseus who engineers the Fall of Troy first by bringing Neopotelmus, the son of Achilles, and Philoctetes, the wielder of the bow of Heracles into the Greek camp, and by creating the famed Trojan Horse . His journey home after the war is described in the epic poem the Odyssey; and Odysseus himself has been frequently depicted in both Ancient and Modern art.
The son of Menoetius, the king of Opus and a former Argonaut, Patroclus was sent to be raised alongside Achilles after killing another child over a game. Slightly older than Achilles he served as a squire, counselor, and war time companion. Although later Greek authors expanded and reinterpreted their relationship, there is no sexual dynamic between Achilles and Patroclus in the Homeric tradition. The exact nature of the relationship between these Trojan War Heroes continues to be hotly debated to this day.
When the war turned against the Greeks and the Trojans threatened the Greek ships Patroclus convinced Achilles to lend him both his soldiers and equipment. Wearing Achilles’ armor, carrying Achilles’ weapons, and leading Achilles troops, Patroclus drives the Trojans back to the city gates and kills the Trojan hero Sarpedon. However, Patroclus goes too far and is killed by the Trojan heroes Euphorbos and Hector with the aid of Apollo. Hector takes Achilles armor but Menelaus and Ajax the Greater rescue Patroclus body. A distraught Achilles later holds an elaborate burial and funeral games for Patroclus. The Trojan War Heroes Achilles and Patroclus are often depicted together by artists.
Amazon.com: Veronese Design Achilles Rage Trojan War Hero Achilleus Holding Spear And Shield Statue
Ajax was a towering figure, the son of Telamon. He was an Argonaut who also hunted the Calydonian boar and was king of Salamis, and half-brother of Teucer another Trojan War Hero in the Greek army. The strongest of all the Trojan War Heroes of the Greeks he was trained alongside Achilles by the centaur Chiron. Known as the “Bulwark of the Achaeans, ” Ajax possessed high levels of combat intelligence and despite being in the thick of the fighting and receiving little assistance from the gods, in the course of the Iliad he is never wounded. He often fought alongside Teucer, who sheltered behind his massive shield. Ajax fought a duel against the great Trojan hero Hector, who he wounds, which lasted for an entire day. They meet again later when Hector attacks the Greek camp and ships. Ajax is crucial to the Greek defense nearly killing Hector with a rock and holding off the Trojan army almost single handedly.
Ajax is one of the emissaries sent to Achilles by Agamemnon to try to convince him to rejoin the fighting and recovers Patroclus’ body after he was killed by Hector. Ajax also recovers Achilles’ body after he is killed with the help of Odysseus, who is awarded the arms and armor of Achilles by the Greeks. Enraged by this sight, Ajax slaughters the Achaean livestock which Athena causes him to mistake for his enemies. Upon recovering his senses, Ajax is
Husband of Helen, brother of Agamemnon, and king of Sparta, Menelau s appears in both the Iliad and the Odyssey and was also a popular figure in Greek tragedy and art . According to legend, Menelaus was one of the many suitors who sought to marry the beautiful Helen. To avoid conflict her father made the suitors swear an oath to abide by the decision and support each other and defend Helen’s husband. Once Paris and Helen ran off to Troy Menelaus called on the suitors to fulfill their oath.
In the Iliad Menelaus challenges Paris to single combat and easily defeats him. However, Paris is saved by Aphrodite and Menelaus is wounded by the Trojan Pandarus who shoots him with an arrow. Menelaus helps retrieve Patroclus’ body and is credited with killing eight named Trojan warriors. He is one of the Trojan War Heroes of the Greek army hidden inside the famed Trojan Horse and participates in the Sack of Troy. Later he takes Helen back with him to Sparta after a long journey during which a storm forces them to stop in Crete and Egypt.
The cunning king of Ithaca, Odysseus played a key role in the Trojan War. It was he who devised the oath which bound the Achaeans to come to the aid of Helen’s husband, which he himself tried to avoid. His ploy was discovered by Palamedes, whose downfall he later orchestrated, possibly with the aid of his usual partner Diomedes. Odysseus’ main role amongst the other Trojan War Heroes is that of a counselor and advisor, especially to Agamemnon who often relies on his support. He is the main emissary sent to persuade Achilles to rejoin the war, where he shows off his diplomatic skills.
The Trojan War: History Or Myth?
As the war progresses, Odysseus’ role expands. He and Diomedes conduct several special operations against the Trojans. They kill the Trojan ally Rhesus and steal the Palladium from the temple of Athena in Troy. After Ajax and Odysseus retrieve the body of Achilles, Odysseus is awarded them which leads to Ajax committing suicide. Ultimately it is Odysseus who engineers the Fall of Troy first by bringing Neopotelmus, the son of Achilles, and Philoctetes, the wielder of the bow of Heracles into the Greek camp, and by creating the famed Trojan Horse . His journey home after the war is described in the epic poem the Odyssey; and Odysseus himself has been frequently depicted in both Ancient and Modern art.
The son of Menoetius, the king of Opus and a former Argonaut, Patroclus was sent to be raised alongside Achilles after killing another child over a game. Slightly older than Achilles he served as a squire, counselor, and war time companion. Although later Greek authors expanded and reinterpreted their relationship, there is no sexual dynamic between Achilles and Patroclus in the Homeric tradition. The exact nature of the relationship between these Trojan War Heroes continues to be hotly debated to this day.
When the war turned against the Greeks and the Trojans threatened the Greek ships Patroclus convinced Achilles to lend him both his soldiers and equipment. Wearing Achilles’ armor, carrying Achilles’ weapons, and leading Achilles troops, Patroclus drives the Trojans back to the city gates and kills the Trojan hero Sarpedon. However, Patroclus goes too far and is killed by the Trojan heroes Euphorbos and Hector with the aid of Apollo. Hector takes Achilles armor but Menelaus and Ajax the Greater rescue Patroclus body. A distraught Achilles later holds an elaborate burial and funeral games for Patroclus. The Trojan War Heroes Achilles and Patroclus are often depicted together by artists.
Amazon.com: Veronese Design Achilles Rage Trojan War Hero Achilleus Holding Spear And Shield Statue
Ajax was a towering figure, the son of Telamon. He was an Argonaut who also hunted the Calydonian boar and was king of Salamis, and half-brother of Teucer another Trojan War Hero in the Greek army. The strongest of all the Trojan War Heroes of the Greeks he was trained alongside Achilles by the centaur Chiron. Known as the “Bulwark of the Achaeans, ” Ajax possessed high levels of combat intelligence and despite being in the thick of the fighting and receiving little assistance from the gods, in the course of the Iliad he is never wounded. He often fought alongside Teucer, who sheltered behind his massive shield. Ajax fought a duel against the great Trojan hero Hector, who he wounds, which lasted for an entire day. They meet again later when Hector attacks the Greek camp and ships. Ajax is crucial to the Greek defense nearly killing Hector with a rock and holding off the Trojan army almost single handedly.
Ajax is one of the emissaries sent to Achilles by Agamemnon to try to convince him to rejoin the fighting and recovers Patroclus’ body after he was killed by Hector. Ajax also recovers Achilles’ body after he is killed with the help of Odysseus, who is awarded the arms and armor of Achilles by the Greeks. Enraged by this sight, Ajax slaughters the Achaean livestock which Athena causes him to mistake for his enemies. Upon recovering his senses, Ajax is
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