What is Trojan Horse:
The Trojan horse is the horse made of woodwhich the Greeks used as a ruse to enter the fortified city of Troy.
The expression “Trojan horse” has become popular, meaning a stratagem or deception to obtain a benefit or achieve an objective.
It appears referenced in an episode of Homer’s Iliad, an epic that describes the siege and war of Troy, and in Virgil’s Aeneid, a Roman epic par excellence.
The end of the war between the Greeks and Trojans took place thanks to one of the best-known raids into enemy territory. The plan was led by Ulysses, who ordered the artist Epeus to build an immense wooden horse that was accepted by Troy as a symbol of peace.
To the great surprise of the Trojans, the horse contained Greek soldiers within its structure. When night came, Sinon opened the horse and the Greeks took the city, they unscrupulously murdered the guards, women, men, elders, and raped women.
Thus, the city fell into the hands of Greek troops, putting an end to ten years of conflict.
Trojan War
The Trojan War took place during the Bronze Age, between Greeks and Trojans, beginning in the year 1300 BC. C. and lasted a decade. The territory of Troy is located where what is currently known as Western Turkey, according to archaeological evidence.
The justification for the start of this conflict was the kidnapping or escape of Queen Helen of Sparta with the prince of Troy, Paris. The situation angered the Spartan king Menelaus, who declared war on Troy.
Achilles, Ulysses, Nestor and Ajax fought alongside Menelaus, who were supported by a fleet of a thousand ships.
Achilles, the main character in the Iliad, is considered a demigod chosen to die young in battle. Shortly after Hector’s death, Achilles was killed by an arrow shot by Paris and stuck in his heel. This is where the expression “Achilles’ heel” comes from.
For more information, see the article Achilles Heel.
All of the above was captured in the film “Troy”, directed by Wolfgang Petersen and starring: Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Diana Kruger, Orlando Bloom, Rose Byrne, Sean Bean, Saffron Burrows, Brian Cox and Peter O’ Toole.
It is based on the poem “The Iliad” by Homer, and includes material from The odysseyby Homer, and The Aeneid of Virgil.
For more information, see the Odyssey article.