Troy

Introduction to Troy
From Troy I to Troy IX
A virtual trip to Troy

Introduction to Troy

I was in Troy in the autumn '97. So I will tell you all the things of this ancient city and I will give you some advice if you want to visit Troy. The city Troy lied on a strategical place in Turkey. That's why it's built up and broke down nine times. So there were nine different cities. One was Persian, another Greek or Roman. The famous Troy in the Iliad and the Oddysee of Homer in the Trojan war was the sixst. Troy is laying in a valley in North-West Turkey. But in time of trojan war (1250 BC), Troy lied next to the Dandarels of Hellespont. It was a strategic place, because if want to sail with a ship from the Atlantic Ocean to the Black see you have to cross the Dandarels and so you've to pass Troy. And because it's so strategically Troy had been built up (and broke down) nine times. The famous Troy of Hector, Paris, Aeneas and king Priam was the six one. This people had sailed out of Italian to this special place. And after Troy had been destroyed, Aeneas sailed back to Italy and was the ancestor of the Romans, he was the forefather of Romulus and Remulus. The 8th Troy was Greek and the 9th was Roman. In this two cities there was built an Aqueduct, an Odium and a Theatre. Everyone thinks Troy was a big city, but there lived no more then 1500 men and women. That not not much when you think of Ephese a city of 250,000 people and Pergamum 80,000 people. This two Greek cities were also built on the Western coast of Turkey. But Troy had, have and will have one of the famous stories of the world and the others haven't: The Iliad written by Homer.

Troy I until Troy IX

Troy I (3000 - 2500 BC)
The first civilians of Troy built their city on a hill of 16 meters. Today we'll only find a wall with two towers and some houses of Troy I. The houses were long and small and the walls 2,5 meter weight. Probably, Troy I burnt down.

Troy II (2500 - 2300 BC)
After Troy I burnt down, the civilians built a new city on the rests of the old city. The houses were bigger than these of Troy I. It was a rich Troy, which you can see on the portal way. Troy II had a radial of 55 meters. Troy II had much money so Schliemann believed this was the Troy of king Priam. Later Wilhelm Dorpfeld thought that Troy VI was the Troy of king Priam. Troy II is destroyed by an attacking nation.

Troy III, IV, V (2300 - 1700 BC)
The people who survived the attack of other nation, but a new Troy. This Troy looked more like a town than like a city. Troy IV and V were also primitive cities with small roads. We don't know how the cities were destroyed, since Schliemann took the walls of this city to Berlin.

Troy VI (1700 - 1250 BC)
After the pathetic city Troy III, IV and V, Troy VI rose up. It was a city like no others. It had powerful walls, towers and gates. That's why Wilhelm Dorpfeld thought that this was the Troy of king Priam. May be he is right, may be he is wrong, because an American research-team thought that the first years of Troy VII was the city of king Priam. But who knows. Troy VI was a powerful and tremendous city. Nowadays 121 meter of the Trojan wall is left. The rest is destroyed when the Odium of Troy IX was built. The houses of Troy VI were big and the look like the minion ones. One theory says that Troy VI is destroyed by the horse of Odysseus (the theory of Homer). And one says that the Troy VI has been destroyed by an earthquake and that the horse was an offer for Poseidon (one of Poseidon's symbols was an horse), the god of the sea and the earthquakes.

Troy VII (1250 - 1000 BC)
Troy VII was also a powerful city. After the Greek were gone, the civilians who survived the war built a new city. Another theory says that Troy VII was the Troy of Priam. Troy VII has been destroyed by fire.

Troy VIII (1000 - 85 BC)
Troy VIII was the first Greek Troy. In this Troy has been built a temple for Pallas Athena. Later in 334 BC, Alexander the Great saw this temple and he ordered to build a bigger temple next to this temple.

Troy IX (85 BC - 400/600 AD)
Troy IX is the first Roman Troy. The Roman Emperors called the city:'Novum Ilium' (the new Troy). The Roman built an Odium, a Bouleterion, a Bathhouse, a temple for Pallas Athena and a Aqueduct. A Odium is a Music Theatre and a Bouleterion a senate, like the Capital (USA) Lager house (UK) The second chamber (NL).

The tour

Click here for a virtual trip to Troy (recommended 33k6)

If you visit Troy you will see a horse if you're a mile of Troy. It's a horse of wood and is ten meters height. The horse is the sign of Troy. When you came into the park, you'll see in front of you the south-east tower and the big walls of Troy VI. You walk to the right and enter the ruins of Troy thought the east gate. If you're in, you're allowed to see houses and shop from Troy VI and VII. You make a curve to the left and you walk into Troy II. Troy VI is greater then Troy II, but Troy II is also a cities with big wall and height towers. If you walk further you can see houses of Troy I (a primitive city). The walls of Troy I have almost disappeared. When you leave Troy I and II, you'll walk over an very nice access road of Troy II. Then you see the walls of Troy VI again. When you leave Troy VI you come in an other period: The period of Troy VIII and IX with an Odeon and a Parliament (it looks like a theatre). A then you'll approach the end of the tour. Troy is nice to visit but only if you're in the neighbourhood, don't travel to many mile to see this ruins. It could be disappointing you.