We have all heard about the Trojan War thanks to Homer's Iliad. Who were the inhabitants of Troy and what peoples can be their descendants?

Turks and Greeks

It is assumed that ancient Troy (at Homer - Ilion) was located in the north of modern Turkey, on the shores of the Aegean Sea, in the area of ​​the entrance to the Dardanelles.

The inhabitants of Troy were actually called Teukras, not Trojans. Mention of the tjkr people is found in the sources of the times of the Egyptian pharaoh Ramses III. Aeschylus and Virgil also spoke about them.

According to the historian Strabo, the Tevkr tribe originally lived in Crete, from where it moved to Troas (Troy). After the fall of Troy, the Teukras moved to Cyprus and Palestine.

Today, both Turks and Greeks live in the region where Troy was once located. Therefore, most likely, it is among them that descendants of Trojans can be found.

Etruscans

A number of researchers believe that the pre-Greek inscriptions found in Cyprus (the so-called Eteocyprian inscriptions) and revealing grammatical and

lexical similarity with the Etruscan language, belong to the Teukras. Almost all ancient authors speak of the Asia Minor origin of the Etruscans, which is quite consistent with the "Trojan" version.

True, the famous expert on the Etruscans, R. Bekes, believed that they were not descendants of the Trojans, but only their closest neighbors.

Romans

Legends say that the Romans descended from Aeneas, who fled from the burning Troy. This is stated both in the "History from the Founding of the City" by Titus Livy, and in the "Aeneid" by Virgil. Tacitus also mentions the Trojan origin of the Romans. Julius Caesar himself announced that he was descended from Askania, the son of Aeneas.

True, there is confusion about dates. It is believed that Rome was founded in 753 BC, and the Trojan War took place in the XIII-XII centuries BC, that is, about 400 years before the foundation of Rome.

Francs

The first Frankish kings were representatives of the Merovingian dynasty. It was necessary to create some kind of legend confirming their right to rule, and then they came up with an ancestor named Francus or Francion, who was supposedly the son of Hector - the leader of the Trojan warriors.

For the first time, Francus (Francus) is mentioned in 660 with reference to the "Chronicle" of the Roman historian Eusebius of Caesarea. From there, the information was transferred to the "History of the Franks" by Gregory of Tours, the events in which date back to the 4th century.

According to legend, Francus and his comrades fled from Troy during a fire and after long wanderings built the city of Sycambria on the Danube. Later he erected another city on the Rhine - Dispargum. Subsequently, the descendants of Francus moved to the lands of Gaul and began to call themselves Franks in honor of the first leader.

The city of Paris allegedly got its name in honor of Prince Paris, who provoked the Trojan War, and was a distant relative of Francus. It was he who became the founder of the city on the Seine. Also, according to this version, many European cities were founded trojan heroes: among them Toulouse, London, Barcelona, ​​Bern, Cologne.

Germans and Britons

The Germanic tribes considered Troana, the daughter of the Trojan king Priam, as their progenitor. As the Scandinavian sagas say, one of her descendants was the ruler of Thrace, a country located on the European coast of the Hellespont. He and his people managed to conquer the lands of Scandinavia and Jutland (Denmark), and then populate the entire northern part of Western Europe. One of the tribes that lived there - the Britons - gave the name to Britain, the territory of which was inhabited in the 7th century BC. Natives of Troy differed from the indigenous population in white skin, tall, light eyes and blond or red hair.

Russians

In theory, Trojans could migrate not only to the West or East, but also to the North. Most likely, in the area of ​​the mouth of the Itil (as the Volga River was then called) and on the coast of the Dnieper. In particular, they could become residents of the Khazar Kaganate, and after its fall, settle further along the Slavic lands, mixing with local population, and then with the Balts. It is possible that the legendary Varangians Rurik, Sineus and Truvor, called to reign in Russia, just descended from the Trojans. And in the "Lay of Igor's Host" the adjective "Trojan" ("Trojan") is mentioned several times, possibly formed on behalf of its own Trojan.

By the way, Ivan the Terrible, as you know, claimed that the Ruriks descended from the first Roman emperors. Maybe there were reasons for this?

Let only indirect facts speak in favor of this version, but why not fantasize that we, Russians, can also be the descendants of the ancient Trojans?

Many powerful states and civilizations have sunk into oblivion. One notable example of this is ancient city Troy, which is also known as Ilion. This legendary settlement is familiar to many people from the war of the same name. Homer's poem The Iliad describes in detail the epic confrontation between the inhabitants of Troy and the ancient Greeks. This famous city at all times excited the minds of various scientists, from historians to archaeologists. During the 19th century excavations, the legendary Troy was discovered on the territory of modern Turkey. Why did this ancient city deserve such close attention of contemporaries? There is extremely interesting legend its emergence, existence and fall. Where was Troy? And what can be found in its place now? Read about all this in the article.

Ancient world and date of formation of Troy

Before the appearance of the legendary Troy, the oldest permanent settlement of Kumtepe was located on the Troada Peninsula. Its founding date is considered to be approximately 4800 BC. The inhabitants of the ancient settlement were mainly engaged in fishing. Oysters were also included in the diet of the settlers. In Kumtepe, the dead were buried, but without any burial gifts.

The settlement was abandoned around 4500 BC, but revived again around 3700 BC thanks to new colonists. The new population of Kumtepe was engaged in cattle breeding and agriculture, and also lived in big houses with several rooms. Goats and sheep were raised by the inhabitants of the settlement not only for meat, but also for milk and wool.

The history of Troy dates back to 3000 BC. The fortified settlement was located in Asia Minor on the Troada Peninsula. The city was located in a fertile hilly country. In the place where Troy was located, the rivers Simois and Scamander flowed from both sides of the city. There was also free access to the Aegean Sea. Thus, Troy throughout its existence occupied a very profitable geographical position not only in the economic sphere, but also in terms of defense in the event of a possible invasion of enemies. It is no coincidence that the city in Ancient world, in the Bronze Age, this is why it became a key center of trade between East and West.

Legend of the origin of Troy

You can learn about the appearance of the legendary city from an old legend. Long before the construction of Troy on the territory of the Troada peninsula (the place where Troy was located) the Tevkr people lived. The character ancient greek mythology Tros named the country he ruled Troy. Consequently, all residents began to be called Trojans.

One legend tells about the origin of the city of Troy. The eldest son of Tros was Il, who, after the death of his father, inherited part of his kingdom. Once he came to Phrygia, having managed to successfully defeat all rivals in a competition. The Phrygian king generously rewarded Ila, giving him 50 young men and the same number of virgins. Also, according to legend, the ruler of Phrygia gave the hero a motley cow and ordered to found a city in the place where she wants to rest. On the Ata hill, the animal had a desire to lie down. It was there that Troy was founded, which was also called Ilion.

Before building the city, Il asked Zeus for a good omen. The next morning, a wooden image of Pallas Athena appeared in front of the tent of the founder of the legendary city. Thus, Zeus provided Ilu with a pledge of divine help, a stronghold and protection for the inhabitants of Troy. Subsequently, a temple appeared at the place where the wooden image of Pallas Athena appeared, and the built Troy was reliably protected from enemies by high walls with loopholes. The son of Ila, King Laomedont, continued the work of his father, fortifying the lower part of the city with a wall.

Protective structures of Troy

According to ancient Greek myths, the gods of Olympus themselves participated in the construction of the walls of the legendary city. Once Zeus sent Poseidon and Apollo to Troy for a whole year to serve with Laomedont. Both gods built a solid wall around Troy from large boulders. Moreover, if Poseidon dug stones from the bowels of the earth and brought them to the city, then to the sounds of Apollo's lyre, the construction of the stronghold was carried out by itself. Not a single external threat was terrible Troy, if the gods were not helped by the man Eak. It was the part of the wall that the mortal was erecting that was vulnerable.

The deceived Hercules decided to get even with the king of Troy. On 18 ships, together with the heroes and the army, he set out to take the impregnable city and take revenge on the treacherous Laomedont. Important role the campaign was played by Telamon, son of Eak. He was the first to enter the city wall in the very place where his father worked. Troy was taken, and the treacherous king was killed by the arrow of Hercules. The young Priam, the son of Laomedont, began to restore the former power of the legendary city. Under the new ruler, Troy blossomed again and became as powerful as before. However, in extreme old age, Priam lived out his days in great sorrow.

Trojan War

The famous ten-year confrontation forever glorified the ancient city. In the region of the VIII century BC, several poems were composed about the legendary war. Only Homer's Odyssey and Iliad have survived to us. They describe the events that took place in the 9th year of the confrontation between the inhabitants of besieged Troy and the Greeks, as well as the fall of the city.

The wife of the Spartan king, by the will of the goddess of love Aphrodite, fell in love with Paris. The Greeks took Helena's voluntary departure with Priam's son as a kidnapping. The Spartan king Menelaus, together with his brother, gathered a huge army, after which they went on their ships to conquer Troy.

For almost 10 years, the Greeks unsuccessfully tried to break the resistance of the impregnable city. And only Odysseus's cunning plan allowed him to capture Troy. History contains information that the Greeks built a large wooden horse and left it to the Trojans as a gift, while they themselves embarked on ships and sailed, supposedly, home. In fact, a group of the best warriors lurked inside the statue. At night, during the jubilation of the Trojans, they got out of the horse and opened the gates to their comrades-in-arms. As a result, the Greeks won a victory thanks to cunning, and the city itself was destroyed and burned. So, the famous expression "Trojan horse" appeared.

The final fall of Troy

From 350 BC to 900 BC, the legendary city was ruled by the Greeks. Subsequently, he passed from hand to hand to various rulers. First, the Persians, during the war with the Greeks, captured Troy, and later the city already belonged to Alexander the Great.

When the Roman Empire took possession of Troy, the city was revived again. The Romans were very proud of their descent from Aeneas and his companions. In 190 BC, Troy was generally exempted from any taxes and was expanded.

In 400 AD, Troy was captured by the Turks and finally destroyed. In the 6th century AD, the last settlements of people disappeared in the place where the legendary city was formerly exalted. The years of Troy's existence date back to around 3000 BC and ends around 400 AD.

Excavation of an ancient city

For many centuries, the existence of the legendary city has been questioned. Most people were very skeptical of Troy herself. Thanks to the poem Iliad, most scholars were inclined to believe that the ruins of the ancient city could be found somewhere in the northwest of Asia Minor, that is, in the location of modern Turkey.

Now many people know on the territory of which modern state Troy was located. Thanks to Heinrich Schliemann, the ruins of the ancient city were discovered in Turkey, 30 km from the village of Canakkale, near the village of Tevfikie.

Heinrich Schliemann, after receiving permission from the Ottoman authorities in 1870, began excavating Troy in the northwestern part of the Hisarlik hill. A self-taught archaeologist on May 31, 1873 succeeded in discovering a treasure. Heinrich Schliemann hastily called his find "Priam's Treasure."

Contrary to the agreement concluded with the Ottoman authorities, according to which it was necessary to transfer half of everything found to the Archaeological Museum in Istanbul, Schliemann smuggled the treasures to Greece. After unsuccessful attempts to sell the find to major museums different countries world archaeologist presented them to Berlin. Subsequently, Heinrich Schliemann became an honorary citizen of this city. After the end of World War II, the found Trojan treasures began to be stored in Moscow at the Pushkin Museum im. A.S. Pushkin.

What is located on the site of Troy?

Let's find out what is in the place of Troy now. In our time, modern Troy differs significantly from the place that Homer described in his poems. Over the centuries, the coastline gradually receded, with the result that the excavated city was located on a completely dry hill.

Every year the city-museum is visited by many tourists from all over the world from May to September. The ruins of Troy from different historical times have a magnificent appearance. If you wish to familiarize yourself with all the exhibits in detail, it is recommended to hire a guide.

The most popular place where Troy was located is a wooden copy of the famous horse among tourists. Everyone has the opportunity to be inside a large statue, feeling for a while in the role of a cunning Greek hero. You can also be one of these lucky ones to have an unforgettable experience. But it is necessary to choose the time for the trip, taking into account the special factors. Indeed, on some days there are so many people at the place where Troy was located around the Trojan horse that most of them cannot get closer to it even closer than 100 meters.

The Museum of Excavations is no less popular in the ancient city. Its visitors have the opportunity to view a bunch of photographs, models and other exhibits that will allow them to get acquainted with the process of discovering Troy. Also, curious tourists during the excursion can look into the huge temple of Pallas Athena, visit the inside of a gloomy sanctuary ancient greek gods and appreciate the Odeon concert hall.

Other sights of Turkey near Troy

South of the ancient city of Troy, you can find the ruins of Alexandria Troad. This ancient city was founded in the 4th century BC by the ancient Greeks. During its existence, it passed into the hands of the Romans. Subsequently, in honor of Alexander the Great, the city received its final name.

It is worth noting that Alexandria of Troad is mentioned in the New Testament. According to the Holy Scriptures, in this city the Lord commanded the Apostle Paul to go and preach in the lands of Macedonia. Nowadays, the ruins of the city are called Eski-Istanbul.

Near Alexandria Troadskaya on a hill surrounded by dilapidated walls is the ancient city of Ass or Behramkale. During the life of the great thinkers Plato and Aristotle, the famous philosophical school functioned here, where many minds of those times visited. Among the sights of Ass is the Murad Mosque, many tombs and caravanserais, which have been transformed into hotels for tourists.

How to get to Troy on your own

To visit the place where Troy was is is like touching a legend. It is no coincidence that many tourists annually decide to see the amazing sights of the famous Troy in Turkey.

The easiest way to get to the legendary city is from Canakkale, which is located 30 km from Troy. A regular intercity bus leaves from this Turkish administrative center every hour. About half an hour's journey separates each tourist from the famous historical site... It is also possible to get to Troy from Istanbul, Bursa or Izmir thanks to fixed-route taxis.

Visiting the legendary city is not expensive financially. A tourist should actually spend money only for an entrance ticket and travel.

Film "Troy"

In 2004, a filmed story about the legendary city was published. The historical drama was based on the poem The Iliad. The leading roles in the film went to such Hollywood stars as Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom, Sean Bean, Brendan Gleeson and others. famous personalities... The film was directed by Wolfgang Petersen, and David Benioff was responsible for the script.

In the 13th century BC, the Trojan prince Paris kidnapped Helen the Beautiful, which angered the Greek rulers to the core. The Spartan king Menelaus gathered a huge army and set off on numerous ships to the shores of Troy.

During the bitter confrontation, both the Greeks and the Trojans had alternating success. And only Odysseus's cunning idea made it possible to break the resistance of Troy. Having rolled a large wooden horse into the city, the Trojans doomed themselves to death. At night, the Greeks dealt with the inhabitants of Troy without any problems.

Thus, only the ruins of the legendary city have survived to this day. A visit to modern Troy will allow everyone to touch the legend and visit the inside of a large wooden horse.

In the Dark Ages (XI-IX centuries BC), which came, wandering singers wandered along the roads of Greece. They were invited to houses and palaces, treated at the table next to the hosts, and after the meal, the guests gathered to listen to stories about gods and heroes. The singers recited hexameter verses and played along with their lyre. The most famous of these was Homer. He is considered to be the author of two epic poems - "Iliad" (about the siege of Troy) and "Odyssey" (about the return from the campaign of the king of the Greek island Ithaca Odysseus), while many literary scholars agree that the poems themselves were created for more than one century and are traces of different eras. Even in antiquity, almost nothing was known about Homer. It was said that he came from the island of Chios and was blind. argue for the right to be called his homeland. Scientists believe that Homer lived from about 850-750. BC NS. By this time, the poems had already taken shape as integral literary works.

Homer told how the city of Troy was destroyed by the Achaeans after years of siege. The cause of the war was the kidnapping of the wife of the Spartan king Minelai Helen by the Trojan prince Paris. It so happened that three goddesses - Hera, Athena and Aphrodite - asked the young man who was the most beautiful of them. Aphrodite promised the prince the love of the most beautiful woman in the world, if he calls her. Paris recognized Aphrodite as the most beautiful, and Hera and Athena harbored a grudge against him.

The most beautiful woman lived in Sparta. She was so beautiful that all the Greek kings wanted to marry her. Helen chose Menelaus, brother of Agamemnon, king of Mycenae. On the advice of Odysseus, all of Elena's former suitors vowed to help Menelaus if anyone tried to take his wife away from him. After a while, Paris went to Sparta on business. There he met Elena and burst into passion, and Aphrodite helped him take possession of the queen's heart. The lovers fled to Troy under the protection of Paris' father, King Priam. Remembering the oath, the Mycenaean kings, led by Agamemnon, gathered on a campaign. Among them was the bravest Achilles and the most cunning Odysseus. Troy was a powerful fortress, and it was not easy to storm it. For ten years the Achaean army stood under the walls of the city, and did not achieve victory. The defense was led by Priam's eldest son Hector, a brave warrior who took advantage of the love of his fellow citizens.

Finally, Odysseus came up with a trick. they built a huge wooden horse, in the belly of which the soldiers hid. The horse was left at the walls of the city, and they themselves defiantly sailed home on ships. The Trojans believed that the enemy had left and dragged the horse into the city, rejoicing at such an unusual trophy. At night, the soldiers, hiding inside the horse, got out, opened the city gates and let their comrades into Troy, who, as it turned out, unnoticed returned to the city walls. Troy fell. The Achaeans destroyed almost all men, and took women and children into slavery.

Modern scholars believe that the Trojan War took place in 1240-1230. BC NS. Its real reason could be the trade rivalry between Troy and the union of the Mycenaean kings. In ancient times, the Greeks believed in the truthfulness of the myths about the Trojan War. Indeed, if the deeds of the gods are removed from the Iliad and the Odyssey, the poems look like detailed historical chronicles.

Homer even recounts a long list of ships that went on a campaign against Troy. Historians of the 18th-19th centuries looked at the matter differently, for them the Iliad and Odyssey were literary works, the plot of which was fictional from beginning to end.

Only the excavations of the German amateur archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann could turn this preconceived opinion. He was convinced that Homer's characters were real historical figures. Since childhood, Schliemann deeply experienced the tragedy of Troy and dreamed of finding this mysterious city. The son of a pastor, he was engaged in business for many years, until one day he saved enough money to start excavations. In 1871, Schliemann went to the north-west of the peninsula of Asia Minor, to the area that in ancient times was called Troada, where, according to Homer's instructions, Troy was located. The Greeks also called it Ilion, hence the name of the poem - "Iliad". In the XIX century. these lands belonged to the Ottoman Empire. Having agreed with the Turkish government, Schliemann began excavations on the Hisarlik hill, the geographical position of which corresponded to the description of Homer. Luck smiled at him. The hill hid the ruins of not one, but nine cities, replacing each other over twenty centuries.

Schliemann conducted several expeditions to Hisarlik. The fourth was decisive. Homeric Troy, the archaeologist considered the settlement located in the second layer from the bottom. In order to get to it, Schliemann had to "demolish" the remains of at least seven more cities that kept many valuable finds. In the second layer, Schliemann discovered the Skean Gate, the tower on which Helen showed Priam the Greek generals.

Schliemann's discoveries shocked the scientific world. There was no doubt that Homer had told about the actual war going on. However, the continuation of excavations by professional researchers gave an unexpected result: the city that Schliemann mistook for Troy is a thousand years older than the Trojan War. The very same Troy, if, of course, it was she, Schliemann "threw" along with his family upper layers... The assertion of an amateur archaeologist that he was "looking Agamemnon in the face" was also wrong. People who lived several centuries before the Trojan War were buried in the graves.

But the most important thing is that the finds showed that it is far from the well-known Greek archaic from the Iliad and Odyssey. It is older, much higher in development and much richer. Homer wrote his poems five to six centuries after the death of the Mycenaean world. He could not even imagine palaces with water pipes and frescoes, in which thousands of slaves worked. He shows the life of people as it became in his time, after the invasion of the Dorian barbarians.

Homer's kings live little better than simple people... Them wooden houses, surrounded by a palisade, have an earthen floor, the ceiling is covered with soot. At the doorstep of Odysseus's palace there is a fragrant dung heap on which his beloved dog Argus lies. Penelope's grooms themselves slaughter and fresh animals during feasts. The king of the fabulously rich people of the Faeakians, Alkina, has "fifty involuntary needlewomen" who grind flour, and fifty weavers. His daughter Navsekaya and her friends do the washing herself on the seashore. Penelope weaves and weaves with the maids. The life of Homeric heroes is patriarchal and simple. Odysseus's father Laertes himself worked the land with a hoe, and Tsarevich Paris grazed herds in the mountains, where he met three arguing goddesses ...

The controversy surrounding the excavations in Troy is still ongoing. Did Schliemann find that city? Thanks to the discovery and reading of documents from the archives of the Hittite kings, it is known that these people traded with Troy and Ilion. knew them as two different cities in Asia Minor and called Truis and Vilus. Be that as it may, as a result of the excavations of a hasty and not too attentive amateur, the world first became acquainted with the Mycenaean culture. This civilization overshadowed with its brilliance and wealth everything that was previously known about early history Greece.

Troy is the scene of the legendary Trojan War, which is reflected in the ancient Greek oral and literary traditions.

Historians are still debating the existence of Troy. Most are inclined to believe that Troy really existed, as this is confirmed by archaeological finds found on the site: some of them fit the description of Troy by Homer in the Iliad.

Troy is also called Hisarlik (Turkish name), Ilios or Ilia, as well as Ilium (as Homer called the city).

Mythological Troy

Troy is the main setting in Homer's Iliad; recall that the work is dedicated to last year Trojan War that took place in the 13th century BC. The war lasted 10 years: King Agamemnon of Mycenae, together with his allies, Greek troops, literally besieged the city. The purpose of the capture was to return Elena the Beautiful, wife of Menelaus, king of Argos and brother of Agamemnon.

The girl was abducted by the Trojan prince Paris, as at a beauty contest she was awarded the grace of herself, which recognized Elena as the most beautiful woman living on earth.

References to the Trojan War are also found in other literary sources: for example, in poems by several authors, as well as in Homer's Odyssey. Troy and later became one of the most popular subjects in mythology and classical literature.

Homer describes Troy as a city surrounded by a strong, invincible wall. In the Iliad, there are also references to the fact that the city was fortified by high and steep walls with battlements at the ends.

The walls must have been unusually strong, as Troy was able to withstand the 10-year siege of the Greeks. The city could have been saved if the cunning Greeks had not come up with a knight's move - and in a literal sense: the Danaans built a huge horse, which they allegedly gave as a gift to the Trojans, but in fact the soldiers hid in it, and later were able to break into the city, breaking enemy forces.

From Greek myths it was known that the walls of Troy were so impressive that people believed that they were erected by Poseidon and Apollo.

Archaeological finds of Troy

Existing from the early bronze age(3000 BC) to XII century AD the city, which is usually called Troy, is located 5 km from the coast, but once it was located next to the sea.

The territory of Troy was bounded by a bay created by the mouth of the Skamanda River, and the city occupied a strategically important position between the Aegean and Eastern civilizations, and also controlled access to the Black Sea, Anatolia and the Balkans - both on land and at sea.

The remains of the city of Troy were first discovered by Frank Calvert in 1863 AD, then the study of archaeological artifacts was continued by Heinrich Schliemann in 1870.

The scientist studied Troy for 20 years, until his death in 1890. So, Schliemann managed to find an artificial hill 20 m high, which has remained untouched since antiquity. Schliemann's findings contained jewelry and vessels made of gold and silver, which were described as similar to those described by Homer in the Iliad.

However, all the artifacts were dated to earlier dates and may have been from the period of the Greeks before the Trojan War.

Excavations continued throughout the 20th century AD. and are ongoing to this day.

According to the latest data, there could be nine different cities on the territory of the alleged city of Troy. Scientists have created a special classification, designating these cities with Roman numerals: from Troy I to Troy IX.

The history of Troy, according to historians, began with a small village. Then large buildings and walls-fortifications made of stone and brick appeared in it, later steep walls 8 meters high and 5 meters thick (apparently, Homer mentioned them in the Iliad), the city occupied an area of ​​270,000 square meters.

The further fate of Troy is connected with fires and some kind of major destruction - this is confirmed by the finds of archaeologists.

The centuries-old existence of Troy influenced the development of arts and various crafts in neighboring cities: archaeologists often find replicas of jewelry, ceramics and military supplies created by craftsmen from other cities in the image and likeness of those that the Trojans once created.

A large center of culture in the III-II millennia BC. NS. there was Troy. The city of Troy was located on the northwestern coast of Asia Minor, 25-30 km from the mouth of the Thracian Bosphorus.

The hill (modern Hisarlik), on which Troy (Ilion) was located, towered over the plain of the Scamander River, bounded by mountains from the south and east.

The history of Troy is closely connected with the history of neighboring Asia Minor peoples. Around the XII century. BC NS. the flourishing settlement of the Trojans was destroyed; Greek tradition considered this death to be the work of the Achaeans: the Basileia of Mycenae and other centers of Greece of that time appear in the ancient Greek legends about the Trojan campaign as the leaders of the Greek army that besieged Troy. Information about this event was preserved in Homer's poems "Iliad" and "Odyssey". In the middle of the XIX century. representatives of the so-called critical direction in the study of Homeric poems expressed doubts about the existence of Troy.

Only excavations by amateur archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann in Troy proved its existence. Using the instructions contained in the Homeric poems, Schliemann began to excavate the Hissarlik hill and discovered the place where Troy stood. True, Schliemann was mistaken in determining the layer related to Homeric Troy, since he conducted excavations without observing the basic requirements of archaeological methods.

As a result, he dated the time reflected in the poems of Homer, objects related to more early era, the material of settlements of different times was confused, and the walls of Homeric Troy were even torn down. Subsequent excavations revealed the presence of many urban layers, no less than nine in number, dating from the 3rd millennium BC. NS. up to the first centuries A.D. NS.

The oldest settlement on the Hisarlik hill dates back to the beginning of the 3rd millennium BC. NS. Its inhabitants were still at the stage of the tribal system. They were engaged in agriculture and cattle breeding, which was especially facilitated by the fertility of the surrounding area. Tools were made of stone and polished; one can only presumably talk about the use of copper. Around 2800 BC NS. here appear vessels brought from the Cyclades.

In the second half of the 3rd millennium, over the ruins of the first village, which apparently perished from a fire, a richer settlement, fortified with powerful walls, arose - Troy II. The inhabitants of this city used bronze and precious metals - silver and gold. This was the era of the decay of the primitive communal system. The wealth of the nobility reached considerable proportions. An example is the famous treasure found at Troy, arbitrarily named by Schliemann as Priam's treasure.

It consisted of silver ingots, vessels of copper, silver and gold, weapons of bronze and stone, finest work gold jewelry (tiaras, bracelets, earrings, etc.), dishes, etc. The number of small gold items exceeded 8 thousand. Especially noteworthy are the large polished jasper and jade axes, very beautifully shaped, decorated with unusually graceful patterns.

And in other hoards of this era, numerous highly artistic items of gold, silver, bronze were found. The abundance of treasures testifies to the fact that the crafts associated with the processing of metal have already become an independent branch of production. The rapid development of metallurgy was favored by the wealth of minerals in Asia Minor (copper, tin, silver, and gold were mined there in antiquity). The development of production created the conditions for a lively exchange. Trade, judging by the available data, was conducted not only with the closest neighbors, but also with the population of the eastern part of the Aegean Basin.

The isolated finds of Trojan things in Cyprus and Egypt allow the assumption of the relations between Troy and these countries that existed at that time. Excavations of recent decades in Thrace, Macedonia and mainland Greece (in Argolis) have shown that the communication of the population of Troas with these areas was already quite intense. Intercourse was not only commercial, but also cultural - similarities were found in ceramics and in some ritual ceremonies (for example, in the burial rite).

Materials concerning the external relations of Troy in the second half of the III millennium BC. e., strongly refute the theory of Ed. Meyer that at the end of the III millennium BC. NS. Troy was the center of a single "bronze culture" that spread throughout Asia Minor. We can only talk about close, related cultures of the tribes that lived there, who were at similar stages of social development.

Numerous treasures found in Troy also testify to the dangers that Troy faced in the second half of the 3rd millennium. Property stratification and the accumulation of wealth was the main reason for the intensification of inter-tribal wars.

For peoples at the stage of disintegration of the tribal system, the acquisition of wealth seems to be one of the most important goals in life. The robbery of other people's wealth seems to them easier and more honorable than hard work.

In that era, Troy was surrounded by thick walls, reaching a height of 3 m, with several towers and gates. The entire fortification, which occupied a relatively small space(175 to 190 m in diameter), apparently, was the residence of the Basileus and the local nobility. As evidenced by the excavations, the most valuable items were kept in this, the most protected and fortified point, Troad.

The settlement we are describing perished in a fire at the end of the 3rd millennium BC. NS. It is interesting to note that the time of the death of this rich center coincides with the period of the strengthening of the Hittites who lived in the interior of Asia Minor.

In the period from the XXI to the XVIII century. BC NS. over the ruins of the destruction of the fortress, three successive settlements appeared and, apparently, were destroyed by the enemy. The earliest of them (Troy III) had powerful walls reaching 12 m in width. The fourth settlement was destroyed by fire. The culture of the inhabitants of these settlements was less vivid than the inhabitants of Troy II. However, economic ties with neighbors, in particular with the inhabitants of the Aegean islands, continued to develop gradually.