The Trojan Horse

Greek mythology · ancient warfare · clever tricks

A giant wooden trap. The Greeks built an enormous wooden horse and hid their best soldiers inside it, including the hero Odysseus. They left it outside the city walls of Troy as a fake gift.

The trick that worked. The people of Troy thought the horse was a harmless gift or offering to the gods, so they rolled it into their city. Once inside, the Greek soldiers snuck out at night and helped their army defeat Troy.

Hidden from Homer. Oddly enough, Homer's famous poem the Iliad doesn't mention the Trojan Horse at all, even though it's about the Trojan War. The story shows up later in other ancient writings, especially in the Roman poet Virgil's Aeneid.

Ending a long siege. The Greeks had been trying to capture Troy for ten whole years without success. The wooden horse idea finally broke the stalemate and let them win the war at last.