Helen of Troy

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

Ancient Greece mythological figure, Helen of Troy is said to be the daughter of Zeus and Leda.  Of course with all Greek Mythology, there are conflicting stories of her origin. Some also say she is the daughter of Oceanus and Tethys.  Others peg her as the offspring of Zeus and Nemesis.  In any regard, she is thought to be the indirect cause of the Trojan War because she was the single most beautiful and desired woman throughout Greece.

One of the most famous stories of Helen’s life begins with her capture as a child by Theseus.  She was taken from her home in Sparta and brought to Attica.  Her brothers rescued her from this kidnapping and returned her to Sparta.  Here, the most famous Greek Prince asked for her hand in marriage, but her father had other plans.  He betrothed her to Menelaus.  Aphrodite was not happy with this planned marriage, so she and Paris, the son of Priam, devised a plot to seduce Helen, convincing her to flee to Troy with Paris.  Helen fell for this plot and ran off with Paris.  Upon his death, she married his brother, Deiphobus. Her story continues that she betrayed her new husband by delivering him to his death at the hands of Menelaus when Troy was captured.  She returned to Sparta, married to her original intended husband, Menelaus.  They lived the rest of their lives together and upon their deaths, they were buried in Laconia.

Another account says Helen lived beyond Menelaus’ death and was thrown out of Sparta by her stepsons.  She escaped to Rhodes where she was killed by her former friend, Polyxo.  As an act of revenge for the death of her husband during the Trojan War, Polyxo hung Helen. In this version, Helen marries Achilles in the afterlife in his home, the island of Leuke.

A separate version tells of Helen and Paris’ ship being blown off course during their voyage to Troy.  They were detained in Egypt by King Proteus.  The King sent a fake, illusion Helen to Troy.  Menelaus found Helen when his ship was also mistakenly driven to Egypt.  He rescued Helen and took her back home to Sparta.

Helen was honored across the land as the goddess of beauty as well as the tree goddess. The inhabitants of Rhodes built a temple to honor her, and worshipped her under the goddess name of Dendritis.  She became the radiant heroine of the classic Greek poem, The Iliad, and the main subject of works by Culluthus and Euripides.  Helen of Troy also became the patron goddess of sailors.