Ten Things You Didn’t Know About The Trojan War

The Trojan War is the most important events in Greek mythology. Whether it actually happened is still subject to debate, but the war resonates throughout ancient Greek literature in the same way that its key themes of heroism and the impermanence of human life have resonated throughout the ages, meaning that the mythical event is still as relevant today as it was to the ancient Greeks. To mark this importance, and the release of The Oracles of Troy by Glyn Iliffe here are ten things you (probably) didn’t know about the famous conflict.

1. The ancient Greeks believed that Homer’s version of the Trojan War was a real historical event.

Via sfsu.edu

The ancient Greeks thought that the Trojan War as described in the Iliad was a genuine historical event that had taken place in the 13th or 12th century BC. Most people accepted the document as fact, despite the fact that it featured divine intervention and- of course- a giant wooden horse.

2. The Trojan War was a conflict between the Greeks and Hittites over who rightfully owned Troy.

Via salimbeti.com

It seems likely that the Trojan War was actually a conflict between Greece and Asia Minor as a whole, not an attack on the city of Troy itself. Archaeologists recently discovered a Hittite tablet called the Tawagalawa letter that mentions the kingdom of Ahhiyawa (Greece) and also the Assuwa (Hittite) Empire of Asia Minor. The Tawagalawa letter is addressed to the king of Ahhiyawa and says: Now as we have come to an agreement on Wilusa(Troy) over which we went to war.

3. Homer wasn’t a real person (probably).

Via mg.co.za

The ancient Greeks were convinced that the Iliad was written by a poet named Homer who lived fairly close to the time of the Trojan War. However, party pooping modern historians now believe that the Iliad and the Odyssey are actually the culmination of many generations of oral story-telling that were eventually collected and written down by person or persons unknown. Sorry, Homer.

4. Troy, however, is a real location.

Via Wikimedia Commons

Until the late 19th century the city of Troy- also known as Ilion or Ilium- was generally held to be mythical. It was only after the site of Hisarlik in modern day Turkey was excavated by an amateur archaeologist called Heinrich Schliemann in the late 1800s that opinion changed. Today, most scholars believe that Hisarlik and ancient Troy are one and the same.

5. It’s likely that the Trojan ‘horse’ was a simple battering ram.

Via charlottehowell.net

Although we can’t be sure, the idea that a group of warriors on a war-blasted siege plain had the resources to build a giant, hollow wooden horse is a little far-fetched. Instead, some modern historians have speculated that the Trojan horse was just a battering ram crudely carved to resemble a horse and exaggerated as the tale was passed on orally through the years.

6. Achilles was worshipped as a god by the ancient Greeks.

Via india.com

The ancient Greeks believed that Trojan War hero Achilles was a real historical figure, but that didn’t prevent them from worshipping him as a god. There was a widespread cult of Achilles and temples dedicated to him have been found all over the Aegean, particularly in maritime cities whose fortunes were linked to the sea.

7. The Greek warriors actually spent most of their time farming, not fighting.

Via foodandnutrition.org

The Iliad states that Troy was besieged by the Greeks for ten years, but as the invading army lacked money and resources, they spent nine of those years farming in the nearby Thracian peninsula. Troy wasn’t fully besieged either: the city dwellers could still come and go and communicate with other towns in Asia Minor. It was essentially a nine year long camping trip with a fight at the end.

8. The Greek army mutinied and tried to go home.

Via factsanddetails.com

If you’ve seen the 2004 Hollywood film Troy, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the entire Greek army were made up of ludicrously brave heroes, when in fact most of the warriors actually decided to give up and go home. According to a lesser known Greek epic called the Cypria, the army grew bored of fighting- and farming- and tried to set sail back to Greece. Achilles had to force them to stay.

9. Achilles never entered the Trojan horse.

Via gla.ac.uk

Both Achilles and the Trojan horse are both so central to popular understanding of the Trojan war that most people assume the heel-challenged warrior was one of the men inside the hollowed out structure, but he actually dies earlier in the conflict. According to the Iliad, he was shot in the heel by Paris of Troy while dragging the body of Hector around behind his chariot in front of the city walls.

10. There is a lost account of the Trojan War called the Iliupersis.

Via Wikimedia Commons

When most people think of the Trojan War, they probably assume that Homer’s Iliad is the only full account of the conflict. In fact, there were a series of non Homeric epic poems known as the Epic Cycle that told the story of the War in full. The Iliad only covers a few weeks of the siege of Troy, while the Iliupersis described the sack and destruction of the city. It was followed by another lost epic poem called the Nostoi, which spoke of the Greek warriors return to their home country.