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There are many times whenever a
story as told to the point where it actually enters into the history
books. It doesn't really matter if this story is true or if it is
been expounded upon in some way, it is been told for so long that it
becomes something that is taken as fact. One good example of this
in modern history is the story about George Washington chopping down
the cherry tree. It is taught in our schools as something that is
true, the founding father of the United States not being able to
tell a lie. The fact is, however, that it is just a story that does
not really have any basis in fact.
Another story that is been told for
thousands of years and is accepted by some as being fact is that of
the Trojan horse. Whether this story has its beginnings in
truth or not is really unclear, but it has been told for so long
that it is still used as an analogy many times even today.
According to the story about the Trojan war, Helena of Sparta fell
in love with the Prince of the city of Troy. She was either
taken away by force or perhaps went there on her own which enraged
the Greeks to the point where they went to war against the city of
Troy.
Apparently the walls of the city
were so strong that the Greek army was not able to break through so
they laid siege to the city and stayed there for an extended period
of time. It wasn't until after some 10 years that the Greek army
decided that they were unable to break the spirit of the men and
women living in Troy. They then came up with a plan, which was
supposedly given to them by the goddess of war. By using this plan
they would be able to enter into the city without force. The Greek
army built a huge wooden horse that was hollow and many of the Greek
soldiers were put into the horse and concealed there.
As a gesture of what could be
considered peace, the Trojan horse was left outside of the city and
the Greek army withdrew, burning their camps as they left. The
people in the city of Troy thought that the Greek army had returned
home. The truth of the matter was that they had just withdrawn
some distance and then hid behind another city. Once the
inhabitants of the city of Troy had gone to sleep, the soldiers came
out of the horse and attacked the gates from the inside. The
rest of the Greek army invaded the city and killed all of the men.
The women and children were taken into slavery and then the city was
annihilated and burnt to the ground.
It is unclear as to whether this
story really ever happened or not. Some of the things that are
contained in the story, such as the gods and goddesses giving advice
and assistance were obviously added over time. Regardless of the
truthfulness of the story it has survived the test of time and
continues to be told even in our day.
Greek History Article:
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