by Stephen Fry
ANTILOCHUS Prince of Pylos. Son of Nestor. Brother of Thrasymedes. Friend of Achilles; brings him the news of Patroclus’s death, then tries to console him. Slain by Memnon. Avenged by Achilles.
AUTOMEDON Myrmidon warrior. Captain and attendant of Achilles. Witness of his meeting with Priam to ransom Hector.
CALCHAS Priest (and great-grandson) of Apollo. Seer of Agamemnon. Father, according to some later accounts, of Cressida. Prophesies Agamemnon’s pre-eminence; the duration of the Trojan War; the death of Iolaus, as the first Greek to land at Troy; and the necessity of Achilles, Neoptolemus, and the arrows of Heracles for victory. Advises Agamemnon to sacrifice Iphigenia to appease Artemis, and to surrender Chryseis to appease Apollo. Advises Neoptolemus to spare Aeneas.
CASTOR See the Dioscuri.
CINYRAS King of Cyprus. Descendant of Eos. Father (by his daughter Myrrha) of Adonis, and of Mygdalion. Pioneer of copper smelting. His promise to contribute warriors to the Greek host at Troy fulfilled to the letter but not in spirit. Appeases Agamemnon with a magnificent breastplate.
CLYTEMNESTRA Queen of Mycenae. Daughter of Tyndareus and Leda. Sister of the Dioscuros Castor. Half-sister of the Dioscuros Polydeuces and of Helen. Cousin of Penelope. Wife of Agamemnon. Mother (by him) of Chrysothemis, Electra, Iphigenia and Orestes. Unlikely to forgive Agamemnon’s plan to sacrifice Iphigenia or his plan to bring Cassandra home from Troy.
DEIDAMIA Princess of Skyros. Daughter of Lycomedes. Lover of Achilles. Mother (by him) of Neoptolemus.
DEMOPHON Athenian prince. Son of Theseus and Phaedra. Brother of Demophon. Late-joining but valiant member of the Greek host at Troy. Rescuer, with Acamas, of his grandmother Aethra during the sack of Troy.
DIOMEDES King of Argos. Son of Tydeus and Deipyle. Cousin of Meleager and Thersites. Suitor of Helen. Husband of Aegialia. According to some, a lover of Cressida. One of the leading warriors in the Greek host at Troy. Greatly favoured by Athena. Despatched on missions with Odysseus to enlist Achilles to the cause; to steal the horses of Rhesus; to bring Neoptolemus and Philoctetes to Troy; and to steal Troy’s protective Palladium. Wounder of Aeneas, Aphrodite and Ares. Wounded by arrows from Pandarus and Paris. Slayer of Dolon and Pandarus. Nearly slain by Odysseus. Rescuer of Nestor. One of the contingent in the wooden horse.
DIOSCURI The twin ‘boys of Zeus’: Castor (son of Leda and Tyndareus) and Polydeuces or Pollux (son of Leda and Zeus). Brothers of Clytemnestra and Helen. Cousins of Penelope. Argonauts and hunters of the Calydonian Boar. Rescue Helen from abduction by Pirithous and Theseus; provide her with Aethra as a long-serving companion. Mysteriously unable to prevent Helen’s abduction by Paris. After Castor killed in a family feud, the twins jointly catasterized as Gemini.
EPEIUS Architect and engineer of Phocis. Son of Panopeus. Champion boxer. Builder of the wooden horse; one of the contingent concealed within it.
HELEN ‘Helen of Sparta’, ‘Helen of Troy’. Queen of Sparta and unrivalled mortal beauty. Daughter of Zeus and Leda (or possibly of Zeus and Nemesis); raised by Tyndareus as his daughter. Sister of the Dioscuros Polydeuces. Half-sister of the Dioscuros Castor and of Clytemnestra. Cousin of Penelope. Abducted by Pirithous and Theseus. Rescued by the Dioscuri, who carry off Aethra to be her long-serving companion. Sought as wife by Agamemnon, Ajax, Diomedes, Idomeneus, Iolaus, Menelaus, Patroclus, Philoctetes and Teucer. Awarded by lottery to Menelaus; then by Aphrodite to Paris; then by right of seniority to Deiphobus. Mother (by Menelaus) of Hermione and Nicostratus. Her abduction by Paris causes the Trojan War. Aids Diomedes and Odysseus in stealing Troy’s protective Palladium. Aids the Trojans by mimicking the wives of the Greeks in the wooden horse. Works her old magic to win back Menelaus.
HERMIONE Spartan princess. Daughter of Menelaus and Helen. Sister of Nicostratus. Scion of a much-cursed house. Left in Sparta with her father after her mother’s abduction by Paris.
IDOMENEUS King of Crete. Grandson of Minos. Nephew of Catreus. Suitor of Helen. One of the leading warriors in the Greek host at Troy. Defender of the body of Patroclus. One of the contingent in the wooden horse.
IOLAUS King of Phylacea. Brother of Iphiclus and Podarces. Suitor of Helen. First Greek hero to die in the Trojan War; killed by Hector. Known to posterity as Protesilaus.
IPHIGENIA Princess of Mycenae. Eldest daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra. Sister of Chrysothemis, Electra and Orestes. Her sacrifice advised by Calchas to appease Artemis. Lured to the Greek fleet by Odysseus’s promise of marriage to Achilles. Offers her life willingly, but apparently spared by Artemis.
LEDA Aetolian princess; Queen of Sparta. Wife of Tyndareus. Mother (by him) of the Dioscuros Castor and of Clytemnestra, and (by Zeus) of the Dioscuros Polydeuces and of Helen.
LIGYRON See Achilles.
MACHAON Son of Asclepius. With his brother Podalirius, the chief healer of the Greek host at Troy, and leader of the Oechalian contingent. Salves Menelaus’s wound by Pandarus. Slain by Eurypylus.
MENELAUS King of Sparta. Son of Atreus and Aerope (sister of Catreus). Brother of Agamemnon and Anaxibia. Scion of a much-cursed house. While exiled in Sparta, wins the hand of Helen and then succession to the throne of Tyndareus. Father (by Helen) of Hermione and Nicostratus. One of the leading warriors in the Greek host at Troy. Saved by Antenor, Athena and Teucer from certain death; saves Odysseus in turn. Prevented from slaying Paris by Aphrodite; not prevented from slaying Deiphobus and Euphorbus. One of the contingent in the wooden horse. Remains susceptible to the charms of Helen.
NEOPTOLEMUS Son of Achilles and Deidamia. Named Pyrrhus at birth. His presence at Troy necessary for its fall; brought there by Diomedes and Odysseus. One of the contingent in the wooden horse. His lust for killing at least the equal of his father’s. Slayer of Eurypylus, Polites and Priam. Sparer of Aeneas. Andromache destined to be his prize of war.
NESTOR King of Pylos. Son of Neleus. Cousin of Jason. Father of Antilochus and Thrasymedes. Inherits his throne after Heracles slays his father and eleven elder brothers. Argonaut and hunter of the Calydonian Boar. Oldest and wisest of the Greek host at Troy; trusted counsellor of Agamemnon. His attempts to mediate between the Greeks and Trojans, between Achilles and Agamemnon, and between Ajax and Odysseus don’t work out quite as planned.
NICOSTRATUS Spartan prince. Son of Menelaus and Helen. Brother of Hermione. Scion of a much-cursed house. As an infant, taken by his mother during her abduction by Paris. Reunited with Menelaus after the sack of Troy.
ODYSSEUS King of Ithaca. Son of Laertes and Anticlea. Husband of Penelope. Father (by her) of Telemachus. Descendant of Hermes, Autolycus and Sisyphus. Cousin of Sinon. Greatly favoured by Athena. One of the leading warriors in the Greek host at Troy; unsurpassed in guile or cunning. Devises successful scheme to ensure the peaceful marriage and protection of Helen. His ruse to avoid taking part in the Trojan War foiled by Palamedes. Later avenges himself by conspiring to have Palamedes executed for treason. Implicated in the plans to sacrifice Iphigenia and in the marooning of Philoctetes. Despatched on missions with Diomedes to enlist Achilles to the cause; to steal the horses of Rhesus; to bring Neoptolemus and Philoctetes to Troy; and to steal Troy’s protective Palladium. Mediates unsuccessfully in the quarrel between Achilles and Agamemnon. Saved from certain death by Antenor, and by Ajax and Menelaus. Rewarded with the armour of Achilles, to Ajax’s insane jealousy. Nearly slays Diomedes in his own moment of insanity (or jealousy). Inspired by Athena with the idea of the wooden horse. One of the contingent in the horse; accidentally smothers Anticlus.
PALAMEDES Prince of Euboea. Son of Nauplius and Clymene (daughter of Catreus). Grandson of Poseidon. Brother of Oeax. Kinsman of Agamemnon and Menelaus. Foils Odysseus’s ruse to avoid taking part in the Trojan War. Saved by Antenor from certain death. Stoned to death for treason on a charge trumped up by Odysseus. Inventor of board and dice games, and of the trickiest parts of the Greek alphabet.
PATROCLUS Prince of Opus. Son of Menoetius and Polymele. Cousin of Achilles, Ajax and Teucer
. Raised by his uncle Peleus after accidentally killing another child. Childhood friend, later lover, of Achilles. Suitor of Helen. Treats Briseis kindly. Leads the Myrmidons against the Trojans in place of Achilles. Slayer of Cebriones, Sarpedon and Sthenelaus. Killed by Apollo, Euphorbus and Hector. His death avenged by Achilles.
PENELOPE Princess of Sparta. Daughter of Icarius, the brother of Tyndareus. Cousin of Clytemnestra, the Dioscuri and Helen. Long-suffering but devoted wife of Odysseus. Mother (by him) of Telemachus.
PHOENIX Prince of Dolopia. Son of Amyntor. Befriended by Peleus after being unfairly exiled by his father. Beloved tutor of Achilles. Heeded by Achilles in his quarrel with Agamemnon over Iphigenia. Not heeded by Achilles in his quarrel with Agamemnon over Briseis.
PHILOCTETES Prince of Meliboea. Son of Poeas. One of the Argonauts. Comrade of Heracles: immolates him; in return, receives his bow and Hydra-envenomed arrows. Suitor of Helen. Bitten by a viper and marooned for ten years on Lemnos. Retrieved by Diomedes and Odysseus, and healed by Podalirius, in order to play his prophesied part in Troy’s fall. Slayer of Paris.
PODALIRIUS Son of Asclepius. With his brother Machaon, the chief healer of the Greek host at Troy, and leader of the Oechalian contingent. Salves Philoctetes’ snake-bitten foot.
POLYDEUCES See the Dioscuri.
PROTESILAUS See Iolaus.
PYRRHUS See Neoptolemus.
SINON Son of Sisyphus. Grandson of Autolycus. Descendant of Hermes. Cousin and mortal enemy of Odysseus. Convinces the Trojans to take the wooden horse into their city. His name preserved by posterity as a byword for lying and deceit.
TENES King of Tenedos. Son of Apollo. Slain by Achilles en route to the Trojan War; his death partly responsible for Apollo’s fateful and deadly enmity.
TEUCER Prince of Salamis. Son of Telamon and Hesione. Half-brother of Ajax. Cousin of Achilles and Patroclus, and of Eurypylus, Hector, Memnon and Paris. Suitor of Helen. Greatest archer in the Greek host at Troy. Slayer of Archeptolemus. Saved by Ajax from certain death; saves, in turn, Agamemnon and Menelaus.
THERSITES Aetolian lord. Son of Agrios. Cousin of Diomedes and Meleager. Hunter of the Calydonian Boar; his cowardice causing Meleager to hurl him over a cliff. Ugliest and most satirical of the Greek host at Troy. Slain by Achilles for mocking his grief over Penthesilea.
TROJANS AND ALLIED PEOPLES
AENEAS Prince of Troy. Son of Anchises and Aphrodite. Kinsman of Priam, and of Eurypylus, Hector, Memnon and Paris. Husband of Creusa (a daughter of Priam). Father (by her) of Anchises. Greatly favoured by Aphrodite. Accompanies Paris during the abduction of Helen. After his livestock seized by Achilles, becomes one of the leading Trojan warriors in the siege of Troy; commander of the Dardanian allies. Preserved from likely death at the hands of Achilles, Diomedes and Neoptolemus in order to fulfil a momentous destiny. Rescues his family from the sack of Troy, and the Palladium from Greek possession.
AESACUS Trojan seer. Son of Priam and Arisbe. Half-brother of numerous siblings, including Cassandra, Deiphobus, Hector, Helenus, Paris, Polites, Polydorus, Polyxena and Troilus. Foretells that Paris will destroy Troy. Attempts to kill himself after the death of his beloved, the nymph Hesperia; transformed instead into a seabird by Tethys.
AGELAUS Trojan herdsman. Ordered to kill the infant Paris; instead raises him as his own son on Mount Ida.
ANCHISES Herdsman, and former Prince of Troy. Grandson of Assaracus, the brother of Ilus. Kinsman of Priam and his numerous children. Lover of Aphrodite, thanks to Zeus. Father (by her) of Aeneas. Saved from the sack of Troy by his son.
ANDROMACHE Cilician princess. Daughter of Eetion. Wife of Hector. Mother (by him) of Astyanax. Taken as a prize of war for Neoptolemus.
ANTENOR Trojan lord. Kinsman of Priam; his wisest and most trusted counsellor. Husband of Theano. Father (by her) of numerous, mostly ill-fated sons, including Coön and Iphidamus (both slain by Agamemnon), Demoleon (slain by Achilles) and Agenor (saved by Apollo from Achilles’ wrath). Foils the plot of Antimachus and Paris to assassinate the deputation of Menelaus, Odysseus and Palamedes. As a result, spared by Agamemnon during the sack of Troy.
ANTIMACHUS Trojan lord. Bribed by Paris to assassinate the deputation of Menelaus, Odysseus and Palamedes. Foiled by Antenor.
ASTYANAX Prince of Troy. Named Scamandrius at birth. Infant son of Hector and Andromache. Slain during the sack of Troy.
BRISEIS Cilician princess. Daughter of the King of Lyrnessus. Captured by Achilles. Her ownership the cause of his great quarrel with Agamemnon. Mourns the deaths of both Patroclus and Achilles.
CASSANDRA Princess of Troy and priestess of Apollo. Daughter of Priam and Hecuba. Sister of numerous siblings, including Deiphobus, Hector, Helenus, Paris, Polites, Polydorus, Polyxena and Troilus. Blessed by Apollo with gift of prophecy. Cursed by Apollo so that no one ever believes her. Raped by Aias. Taken by Agamemnon as his prize of war.
CHRYSEIS Daughter of Chryses. Captured by Achilles. Taken by Agamemnon as his prize of war. His refusal to ransom her punished by Apollo with plague. Released, and escorted home by Odysseus.
CHRYSES Priest of Apollo in Chryse. Father of Chryseis. Unsuccessfully pleads with Agamemnon to free her from captivity. Successfully pleads with Apollo to punish the Greeks for Agamemnon’s lack of mercy.
CORYTHUS Son of Paris and the nymph Oenone. Abandoned by his father when Paris resumes his place in the Trojan royal family. Unwittingly murdered by Paris when he attempts to re-establish contact.
CRESSIDA Daughter of Calchas. Star-crossed lover of Troilus.
CYCNUS Impenetrable Trojan warrior. Son of Poseidon. Transformed into a swan by his father to save him having his neck wrung by Achilles.
DARDANUS Founder king of Dardania. Son of Zeus and the Pleiad Electra. Brother of Harmonia. Father of Erichthonius, Ilus and Idaeus. Progenitor of the Trojan royal line. Gives his name to the Dardanelles.
DEIPHOBUS Prince of Troy. Brutish son of Priam and Hecuba. Brother of numerous siblings, including Cassandra, Hector, Helenus, Paris, Polites, Polydorus, Polyxena and Troilus. Half-brother of Aesacus. Kinsman of Aeneas, Eurypylus, Memnon and Teucer. Succeeds Paris as husband of Helen. Slain by Menelaus.
DOLON Trojan warrior. Son of the herald Eumedes. Sent by Hector to spy on the Greek lines. Fatally intercepted by Diomedes and Odysseus.
ERICHTHONIUS King of Dardania. Son of Dardanus. Brother of Ilus and Idaeus. Father of Tros. Noted horse fancier.
EUPHORBUS Trojan warrior. Son of Panthous and Phrontis. Brother of Polydamas. Slayer, with Apollo and Hector, of Patroclus. Slain by Menelaus. Reincarnated centuries later as Pythagoras.
EURYPYLUS Prince of Mysia. Son of Telephus and Astyoche. Nephew of Priam. Grandson of Heracles. Nephew of Priam. Kinsman of his numerous children, and of Aeneas, Memnon and Teucer. Famed for his beauty and his mighty shield. One of the leading warriors and allies on the Trojan side in the siege of Troy. Slayer of Machaon. Slain by Neoptolemus.
GANYMEDE Prince of Dardania. Cupbearer and beloved of Zeus. Son of Tros and Callirrhoë. Grandson of Scamander. Brother of Assaracus, Cleopatra and Ilus. Abducted by Zeus. Immortalized. Catasterized as Aquarius.
GLAUCUS Lycian prince. Son of Hippolochus (son of Bellerophon). Cousin of Sarpedon. Slain by Ajax in the fight for Achilles’ body. His corpse rescued from the fray by Aeneas.
HECTOR Prince of Troy. Eldest son of Priam and Hecuba. Brother of numerous siblings, including Cassandra, Deiphobus, Hector, Helenus, Paris, Polites, Polydorus, Polyxena and Troilus. Half-brother of Aesacus. Kinsman of Aeneas, Eurypylus, Memnon and Teucer. Husband of Andromache. Father of Astyanax. Welcomes first Paris, then Helen, into Troy. Leading Trojan warrior in the siege of Troy. Duels chivalrously with Ajax. Nearly succeeds in destroying the Greeks’ ships. Slayer of Epigeus, Iolaus and (with Apollo and Euphorbus) of Patroclus. Slain by Achilles and his body mistreated before being ransomed by Priam for burial.
HECUBA Queen of Troy. Wife of Priam. Mother (by him) of numerous children, including Cassandra,
Deiphobus, Hector, Helenus, Paris, Polites, Polydorus, Polyxena and Troilus. Her prophetic dream entwines the fates of Paris and Troy.
HELEN OF TROY See Helen of Sparta.
HELENUS Prince of Troy and seer. Son of Priam and Hecuba. Brother of numerous siblings, including Cassandra, Deiphobus, Hector, Paris, Polites, Polydorus, Polyxena and Troilus. Half-brother of Aesacus. Kinsman of Aeneas, Eurypylus, Memnon and Teucer. Defects to the Greeks when his suit for Helen rejected in favour of Deiphobus. Advises Diomedes and Odysseus how to steal Troy’s protective Palladium.
HESIONE Princess of Troy. Daughter of Laomedon. Sister of Astyoche, Priam and Tithonus. Offering to Poseidon’s sea monster. Rescued by Heracles. Spared by Heracles during his sack of Troy and ransoms Priam. Taken home and married by Telamon; mother (by him) of Teucer.
HIPPOLYTA Queen of the Amazons. Daughter of Ares. Sister of Antiope and Penthesilea. Possessor of marvellous jewelled girdle. Either a lover of Heracles and slain by him, or the wife of Theseus.
ILUS Founder king of Troy. Son of Tros and Callirrhoë. Grandson of Scamander. Brother of Assaracus, Cleopatra and Ganymede. Father of Laomedon. Recipient of Troy’s protective Palladium from Athena. Expeller of Tantalus and Pelops from Lydia. Troy alternatively named Ilium in his honour.
LAOCOÖN Trojan priest of Apollo. Father of Antiphantes and Thymbraeus. Suspicious of Greeks even when they bear gifts. Devoured with his sons by sea serpents sent by the gods to prevent him disclosing the secret of the wooden horse.
LAOMEDON King of Troy. Son of Ilus. Father of Astyoche, Hesione, Priam and Tithonus. Tricks Apollo and Poseidon out of payment for building Troy’s walls; then Heracles when he rescues Hesione from Poseidon’s sea monster. Later slain by Heracles in revenge.
MEMNON King of the Ethiopians. Son of Eos and Tithonus. Nephew of Priam. Kinsman of his numerous children, and of Aeneas, Eurypylus and Teucer. Possessor of a panoply made by Hephaestus. One of the leading warriors and allies on the Trojan side in the siege of Troy. Slayer of Antilochus. Slain by Achilles.