Historia Troiana Lore Books

Description

The story of the mythical Trojan War, describing the siege of the wealthy ancient city of Troy by the Greek army and its ruthless conquest by the Mycenaean king.

Text

Trojan Chronicle
Guido de Columnis

Thus begins the story of the killing of the heroic Hector, the Trojan prince, which occurred in the tenth year of the war between the Achaeans and the defenders of the city of Troy. After thirty days of truce, both armies were once again preparing for battle. On the night before the battle, Andromache, Hector’s wife, had a terrible vision that her husband would not escape death the next day. In the dark of the night, she immediately revealed everything to her husband and begged him not to go into battle, but Hector harshly rebuked her, saying that it was not fitting for warriors to flee from the fight because of deceptive dreams.
Andromache ran to the king and queen to implore them to forbid their son from going into battle, warning that they would surely be burying him if they did not. They all knelt before Hector, pleading with him in tears, but he ignored them and prepared for battle. He mounted his horse and rode out before the assembled Trojan army.
Then began the terrible battle between the Achaeans and the Trojans, with countless men attacking each other so fiercely that a thousand died on the spot before the ranks even clashed. Amid the calls of horns and the sounds of pipes, the Greek king Menelaus struck hard at the Syrian allies, but the Trojans did not let them fall, and the battle raged fiercely where it had previously calmed. There fought Troilus, there his rival King Telamon, and elsewhere Achilles and his Myrmidons were pushing the Trojans back toward the city. So many heroic deeds were performed in such a short time.
Achilles planned to capture the Trojan prince Margaretis, but killed him in the battle. When Prince Hector saw this, he immediately launched an attack with his men, killing many Greek nobles. Achilles quickly realised that fortune was turning against the Achaeans and would not allow them to triumph over the Trojans. But then Polices, the betrothed of Achilles’ sister, arrived on the battlefield with his men and attacked Hector, who killed him. Thus, the two princes finally faced each other in battle, seeking vengeance for their fallen comrades.
Achilles first attacked Hector, but Hector wounded him in the thigh with a spear, forcing his enemy to withdraw from the fight to have his wound bandaged. Later, as Achilles was searching for his foe, he saw that Hector had captured a Greek lord and was therefore without a shield. He spurred his horse and struck Hector so hard in the chest that the prince fell dead on the spot. The loyal companion Odemon, seeing Hector’s death, immediately knocked Achilles from his horse with a spear, making everyone believe he was dead, and they carried him from the field.
When the Trojans saw their greatest and bravest among them fall, they ended the battle and, with great weeping, lamentation, and grief that cannot be described or expressed, carried his dead body back to their city.