The Trojan War was a famous battle in Greek mythology that happened around the 12th or 13th century BC. It was fought by the Achaeans (Greeks) against the city of Troy after Paris of Troy took Helen, who was married to Menelaus, the king of Sparta. This war is one of the most important events in Greek mythology and has been told in many Greek writings, especially Homer's Iliad. The main part of the Iliad (Books II–XXI) describes a time of four days and two nights during the tenth year of the ten-year siege of Troy. Homer's Odyssey tells the story of Odysseus, a hero of the war, as he travels home. Other parts of the war are described in a group of ancient poems, which only exist in pieces today. Stories from the war were also used in Greek tragedies and other writings, as well as by Roman poets like Virgil and Ovid.
The ancient Greeks believed that Troy was near the Dardanelles and that the Trojan War was a real event from the 12th or 13th century BC. By the mid-1800s, many people thought the war and the city were not real, but in 1868, the German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann met Frank Calvert, who convinced Schliemann that Troy was located at a place now called Hisarlık in modern-day Turkey. Based on Schliemann's and others' excavations, most scholars now agree with this location.
Whether the Trojan War actually happened is still debated. Many scholars think the story has a historical basis, but this might mean the Homeric tales combine different stories about Mycenaean Greek attacks during the Bronze Age. Those who believe the war was based on a real event often place it in the 12th or 11th century BC, with some preferring the dates given by Eratosthenes (1194–1184 BC). These dates match evidence of a major fire at Troy VII and the collapse of the Late Bronze Age.
Legend
The Trojan War began because of a disagreement between the goddesses Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite. Eris, the goddess of discord, was not invited to the wedding of Peleus and Thetis. She arrived anyway and gave a golden apple with the inscription "for the fairest." Each goddess claimed the apple, and they asked a shepherd, Paris, to decide who was the fairest. Paris chose Aphrodite, who promised him love. This made Hera and Athena angry but earned Aphrodite’s favor. Aphrodite caused Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world, to fall in love with Paris. When Helen left her husband, Menelaus, to be with Paris, Menelaus asked Greek kings and princes to attack Troy.
Menelaus’s brother, Agamemnon, led Greek troops to Troy and attacked the city for ten years. Many heroes, including Achilles and Ajax from the Greeks, and Hector and Paris from the Trojans, died. The Greeks finally won by using the Trojan Horse trick. They killed most Trojans, but some women and children were kept or sold as slaves. The Greeks also damaged temples, which angered the gods. Few Greeks returned home safely, and many started new colonies in other lands. Later, the Romans claimed their ancestors came from Aeneas, a Trojan who survived the war and led others to Italy.
This summary follows the order of events from Proclus’s account, the Iliad, Odyssey, and Aeneid, with details from other sources.
According to Greek mythology, Zeus became king of the gods by defeating his father, Cronus. Cronus had earlier defeated his father, Uranus. Zeus had many lovers and children, but he wanted to reduce the number of people on Earth. He planned to use the Trojan War to achieve this, especially to remove his half-human descendants.
Hesiod wrote that Zeus wanted to end the lives of demigods (half-human, half-god beings) to stop them from marrying mortals. He also planned to destroy the race of mortals to keep the gods separate from humans.
Zeus learned from Themis or Prometheus that he would be overthrown by one of his sons. Another prophecy said that a son of Thetis, a sea nymph, would be greater than his father. To avoid this, Zeus ordered Thetis to marry Peleus, a human king, instead of staying with the gods.
At Peleus and Thetis’s wedding, Eris was not allowed to attend. She threw a golden apple marked "to the fairest" into the hall. Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite argued over it. Zeus sent Hermes to ask Paris, a Trojan prince raised as a shepherd, to decide. The goddesses offered Paris gifts: Athena gave wisdom and battle skills, Hera promised power and control over Asia, and Aphrodite promised love with Helen. Paris chose Aphrodite, and Helen later left her husband to be with him.
Peleus and Thetis had a son named Achilles. It was said he would either live a long, uneventful life or die young and become famous in poetry. When Achilles was nine, a prophet named Calchas said Troy could not fall without his help. Thetis tried to make Achilles immortal by burning him daily, but Peleus stopped her. Some stories say she bathed him in the Styx river, making him invulnerable except for his heel, which became known as "Achilles’ heel."
Helen, the most beautiful woman, was the daughter of Tyndareus, King of Sparta. Her mother, Leda, was seduced by Zeus in the form of a swan. Helen had many suitors, and her father, Tyndareus, feared their anger if he chose one. Odysseus suggested all suitors swear an oath to protect Helen’s marriage. Tyndareus chose Menelaus, a powerful man, as Helen’s husband. Menelaus later inherited Sparta’s throne when Helen’s brothers became gods.
Dates of the Trojan War
Different dates are given for when Troy fell, based on the family trees of kings. Ephorus says 1135 BC, Sosibius says 1172 BC, Eratosthenes says 1184 BC or 1183 BC, Timaeus says 1193 BC, the Parian marble says 1209 BC or 1208 BC, Dicaearchus says 1212 BC, Herodotus says around 1250 BC, Eretes says 1291 BC, and Douris says 1334 BC. These dates average around 1220 BC. For the exact day, Ephorus says 23rd or 24th of Thargelion (6th or 7th of May), Hellanicus says 12th of Thargelion (26th of May), and others say 23rd of Sciroforion (7th of July) or 23rd of Ponamos (7th of October).
Many 20th-century scholars believed the rich and famous city described by Homer was Troy VI, which was destroyed about 1275 BC, likely by an earthquake. Troy VIIa, which came after Troy VI, was destroyed around 1180 BC. It was once thought to be a poorer city and not the one described in Homer’s stories. However, after a dig in 1988, it is now considered the most likely match for Homeric Troy.
Historical basis
The history of the Trojan War, including whether it actually happened, is still debated by scholars. Many ancient Greeks believed the war was real, but they thought the stories in Homer’s poems had made the events more dramatic for storytelling. For example, the historian Thucydides believed the war was real but doubted that 1,186 ships were sent to Troy. The playwright Euripides changed Greek myths, including those about the Trojan War. Around AD 100, Dio Chrysostom argued that the war was historical but claimed the Trojans won, and the Greeks tried to hide this. By 1870, many in Western Europe thought the Trojan War never happened and that Troy never existed. However, in the late 1800s, Heinrich Schliemann excavated Hisarlık in Çanakkale, which he believed was Troy, and other ancient Greek cities. Today, many scholars agree the Trojan War likely reflects a real event—a Greek attack on Troy—but few believe Homer’s poems accurately describe what happened.
In November 2001, geologist John C. Kraft and classicist John V. Luce shared findings from a study of the region’s geology, which began in 1977. They compared modern geological features with descriptions of the land and coastal areas in the Iliad and other ancient texts, such as Strabo’s Geographica. They found that the location of Troy identified by Schliemann (and other sites like the Greek camp) matches geological evidence and descriptions of the battle in the Iliad. However, they noted this could be a coincidence.
Since the 20th century, scholars have studied Hittite and Egyptian texts from the time of the Trojan War. These texts describe the region’s political situation but provide little direct evidence about the war itself. Andrew Dalby suggests the war likely happened in some form and has historical roots, but its exact details remain unknown. A Hittite letter, the Tawagalawa text, mentions a kingdom called Ahhiyawa (likely Greece) and a region called Wilusa (possibly Troy). Another text, the Milawata letter, places Wilusa north of the Assuwa confederation, a group of 22 cities, including Wilusa. While linking Wilusa to Troy is debated, many scholars now accept this connection. A treaty from around 1280 BC mentions a king named Alaksandu, and the name “Alexander” appears in Homer’s Iliad. A Hittite letter from around 1250 BC refers to a peace agreement involving Wilusa.
The Assuwa confederation, once under Hittite control, broke away after the Battle of Kadesh (around 1274 BC). In 1230 BC, the Hittite king Tudhaliya IV fought against this group. By 1210 BC, the Hittites lost control of Aegean coastal lands. Some scholars think the Trojan War may have been a conflict between Ahhiyawa (Greece) and the Assuwa confederation. This idea is supported by details in the war stories, such as Greek soldiers landing in Mysia, fighting in the North Aegean, and campaigns in Thrace and Phrygia—regions linked to Assuwa. Thucydides once thought Greek soldiers did not return home because they were away for so long. Today, many scholars believe these Greek leaders, displaced during the end of the Mycenaean period, later claimed they were descendants of those who fought in the Trojan War.
In popular culture
The Trojan War has been a popular topic since ancient times. Well-known versions include Troädes by Euripides, Troilus and Criseyde by Geoffrey Chaucer, Troilus and Cressida by William Shakespeare, Iphigenia and Polyxena by Samuel Coster, Palamedes by Joost van den Vondel, and Les Troyens by Hector Berlioz. In modern times, adaptations include Helen of Troy (1956), The Trojan Horse (1961), Troy (2004), and The Song of Achilles (2011).