The Trojan horse is a myth or reality, a legend about the Trojan horse

Greek mythology and history gave the world a huge number of quotes and wise examples. The Trojan horse is one of the main symbols and lessons of the history of this state. It is so popular that one of the most dangerous computer viruses penetrating the system under the guise of a harmless program was named after him.

What does the Trojan horse mean?

A legend telling what a Trojan horse means, informs about the insidiousness of enemies and the naive trust of their victims. One of several authors who described it was the ancient Roman poet Virgil, who created the "Aeneid" about the life wanderings of Aeneas of Troy. This he called a cunning military construction of a horse, which allowed a small group of people to defeat the brave and clever soldiers. In "Aeneid" the story of the Trojan horse is described in several features:

  1. The Trojan prince Paris himself provoked the enemy to take decisive action, stealing from his Danais king his wife - the beautiful Elena.
  2. The Danais were angry with the military protection of the opponents, they could not cope with, no matter what tricks they resorted to.
  3. King Menelaus had to receive the blessing to create a horse from the god Apollo, bringing him bloody sacrifices.
  4. For the attack involving the horse, the best warriors who were included in the books of historians and ready to give their lives for their country were selected.
  5. The men had to wait patiently for a few days in the statue, so as not to arouse suspicion among the workers who were dismantling the wall for the passage of the horse.

Trojan horse - a myth or reality?

The fact that the wooden construction is absolutely real, say some historians. Among them is Homer, the author of the Iliad and Odyssey. Modern scientists disagree with him and Virgil: they believe that the reason for the war could become trade disputes between the two states. The myth of the Trojan horse was considered an absolute fiction, coinciding with the artistic fantasy of two ancient Greeks, while the German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann in the 19th century did not receive permission to excavate under the hill of Gissarlik, then belonging to the Ottoman Empire. The research of Henry gave astounding results:

  1. On the territory of Homer's Troy in ancient times there were eight cities, succeeding each other after conquests, diseases and wars.
  2. The remains of the structures of Troy itself were under a layer of seven later settlements;
  3. Among them were found the Skye Gate, into which the Trojan horse, the throne of King Priam and his palace entered, as well as the tower of Helena.
  4. Confirmed the words of Homer that the kings in Troy lived a little better than ordinary peasants because of the laws of equality.

The Myth of the Trojan Horse

Archaeologists who do not support Schliemann's point of view consider myth to be the very cause of the war. After the theft of Helen, her husband Agamemnon decided to punish Paris. Having joined his army with his brother's army, he went to Troy and besieged her. After many months, Agamemnon realized that she was impregnable. The city, which was the victim of the Trojan horse, was taken by deception: after installing a supposedly presented wooden statue in front of the gate, the Achaeans took boats and pretended to leave Troy. "Be afraid of the Danians, gifts bringing!" - cried at the sight of the horse priest of the city Lakoont, but no one attached importance to his words.

What did the Trojan horse look like?

To make the inhabitants of Troy believe in the good intentions of the donors, it was not enough just to make a figure of the animal from the boards. The wooden Trojan horse preceded the official visit by ambassadors of ambassadors of Agamemnon to the palace of Troy, during which they told that they want to atone for their sins and realized that the city is guarded by the goddess Athena. The condition for achieving peace on their part was a request to receive a gift: they promised that as long as the Trojan horse was stationed in Troy, no one would dare attack it. The appearance of the statue can be described as follows:

  1. The height of the structure is about 8 meters, and the width is about 3 meters.
  2. To roll it on logs, greased to facilitate the movement of fat, required at least 50 people.
  3. The material for the building was the cornel trees from the sacred grove of Apollo.
  4. On the right side of the horse was the inscription "This gift was left to the goddess Athena, the defending Danians".

Who invented the Trojan horse?

The very concept of "Trojan horse" as a military method came to mind the hero of the "Iliad" Odysseus. The most cunning of all the leaders of the Danais, he never obeyed Agamemnon, but he respected them for his numerous victories. A drawing of a horse with a hollow belly, in which soldiers could easily accommodate, Odysseus worked out three days. Later, he handed it to the one who built the Trojan horse - a fist warrior and builder Epeius.

Who hid in the Trojan horse?

With a minimum supply of water and food, the horse was seated by soldiers who had been repeatedly tested by the king in difficult battles. Those who hid in the Trojan horse, along with Agamemnon selected Odysseus. Because most of the brave men belonged to his army, he went along with them. Homer retained in the centuries only a part of their names: