For warriors like Achilles, Hector, Ajax and Odysseus, the Trojan War was their way of achieving immortal glory
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MICHAEL SCOTT is professor of classics and ancient history at the University of Warwick, president of the largest regional branch of the Classical Association, and director and trustee of Classics for All. As well as being an author, he has presented a number of programmes for BBC television and radio, including Ancient Invisible Cities for BBC Two. Follow him on Twitter: @profmcscott
A chilles bound together the heels of the man he had just slain in single combat – Hector, hero of the Trojans – and tied the lifeless body to his chariot. He climbed aboard and encouraged his horses to move, dragging his fallen foe around and around the walls of Troy so that all inside could see the fate that had befallen their bravest and noblest of protectors. Following that humiliation, Achilles rode back to the Greek camp, where, for the next 12 days, he further desecrated Hector’s body by refusing the proper burial rituals. It required the intervention of the gods before Achilles returned Hector to his father for a funeral.