Historical Investigation Homer and the Trojan War
Troy was a city well-known to both history and legend, and situated in Turkey. It is best known for being the setting of the Trojan War described in The Iliad, the epic poem attributed to Homer. A lot of people ask, was there really a war at Troy? "Most likely" is the answer most would say. Although many professional archaeologists believe that the war was just a story passed down many generations, today many people are convinced that The Sack of Troy actually occurred. The amateur archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann, using The Iliad and The Odyssey of Homer as a guide discovered the ruins of the powerful city. There was also evidence that supported the theory of Mycenaeans being the people the sacked and destroyed Troy in the late Bronze Age.
Homer, who is consider to be one of the greatest Greek poets of all time, gives us evidence that there really was a war involving Troy, through his epic poem The Iliad.
The description of Troy he gave to us was that it had tall, sloping walls and large towers surrounding the city. These descriptions seemed to be true due to the archaeological finds at Hissarlik. In the poem, Homer also mentioned a "weaker" wall that was on the west end of the city, which was also found to be true. Archaeologists and Historians confirm that Homer wasn't alive during the Trojan War. In fact, many believe that Homer collected stories and poems that had been passed down from older generations to make his poem The Iliad. Homer also mentions that the city of Troy lies near a large bay of water as well as being located on top of a large hill. Archaeologists also confirm this description. Almost all of the...