The painting illustrates the scene in the Iliad 6.312ff. Paris reaching for the helmet corresponds to what he later says to Hector (line 340): "So give me a moment while I arm for battle …"

The painter has arranged the scene that inspired him a little differently; for there should be some maids who cannot be seen in the scene from the spectator's point of view. Also Paris was, in the text, already busy with his armour when Hector arrived, whereas in the painting he reaches for his helmet first after Hector's exhortation. Nevertheless, the artist follows the meaning of the text, exposing the difference between Hector the warrior and Paris the lover.

Paris and Helen's world of love and sensuality is represented with golden and pale colours bathing in light. A statuette of Aphrodite holding a dove presides it; there are flowers on the floor, and food and drink are set on the table. The fragility of this attractive realm is shown in the nudity of the characters, and specially in Paris, who caught by two opposite worlds and being the link between them, is now embarrassed and therefore should not be naked any more. Ironically, he must remove yet another item from his body (the wreath) before he puts on his armour.

The excitement of Paris, who has dropped the lyre, contrasts with the serenity or indifference of Helen, who being the passive object of the conflicting passions surrounding her, is not affected by Hector's presence. In the painting Helen is one and the same with her world, and therefore she is not disturbed. Vanity might be believed to show in the peacock feathers of Helen's fan, and excitability in the skin on the bed.

Hector, who as ambassador of bloodshed appears in red mantle, has already spoken as his spear and shield overshadow the scene. His irruption announces the darkness of war, which covers him, and also Paris' armour on the opposite side (the lovers are surrounded by the shadows of war). Relying on contrast, the painting expresses, by means of light and darkness, the colliding worlds of love and war, or of sensuality and discipline, or of pleasure and duty. But even if Hector is present, the realm of heroism is not with him; for he stands like a summoning messenger, not in the light of great deeds, but in the obscurity of duty and necessity. Darkness, as a pictorial form of space perspective, confirms that Hector's world is far from this, to his character, foreign scene.

Unknown childhood of the pillar of Troy

Nothing is told about the childhood of Hector ₁ nor on his life before the Trojan War. This man came to be known for his courageous interventions during the Trojan War and for being the very fundament of the defence of the city. And yet some have said that before the Trojan War, Hector ₁ came to Hellas, and having taken the city of Troezen, carried away Aethra ₂, mother of Theseus, and took her to Troy (for another version of the abduction of Aethra ₂ see Helen).

Anyhow Hector ₁ became the pillar of the city. And when the Achaeans talked, planned or dreamt about the destruction of Troy, they seldom failed to mention the need of killing its mighty defender, if that aim was to be achieved.

Thinks his brother is a curse

Hector ₁ fulfilled his duty as defender and commander of the troops without hesitation. However, he was visibly annoyed with his brother Paris, who, through the abduction of Helen, had caused the conflict that threatened the existence of Troy. That is why he could address Paris thus:

"Paris, you pretty boy, you woman seducer, why were you ever born? Why weren't you killed before your wedding day?" (Hector ₁ to Paris. Homer, Iliad 3.39).

And as Paris was reluctant to meet Menelaus in single combat, Hector ₁ reproached him:

"Can you be the man who carried off a beautiful woman from a distant land and warlike family, to be a curse to your father, to the city, and to the whole people? Are you too cowardly to stand up to the brave man whom you wronged? You would soon find out the kind of fighter he is whose lovely wife you stole." (Hector ₁ to Paris. Homer, Iliad 3.45).

At a later time he would admonish Paris with similar words:

"It is your fault that this city is invaded by the sounds of battle." (Hector ₁ to Paris. Homer, Iliad 6.327).

Temporary Trojan victory

The Trojans were fated, by the will of Zeus, to win several victories during the last year of the war. And that was so, because the god, having heard the prayers of Thetis, had decided to punish Agamemnon's pride and the Achaeans for the outrage Achilles had suffered when his sweetheart Briseis was taken away from him. And so, while Achilles nursed his bitter wrath and refused to fight, Zeus gave victory and glory to Hector ₁, who killed many warriors, and finally threatened the Achaean fleet.

Pious and temperate man

A pious man was Hector ₁, for he would not offer a libation to the gods with unwashed hands, or pray while being bespattered with blood and filth. He was also a temperate man, for he would abstain, during a break in the battle, to drink wine, feeling it would cripple him, and make him forgetful of his courage. And yet it was his own mother who offered it with reasonable words:

"Wine is a great comfort to a weary man; and you must be exhausted after fighting so hard for your dear ones." (Hecabe ₁ to Hector ₁. Homer, Iliad 6.260).

Aware of his duty

Hector ₁ never hesitated and was always dutiful. He never rested when he had tasks in front of him. Also Helen invited him to a short pause, but he refused:

Helen: Come in now, my dear brother, and sit down on this chair. No one in Troy has a greater burden to bear than you, all through my own shame and the wickedness of Paris.
Hector ₁: Helen, you are kind, but do not ask me to sit down. I am late already and anxious to return and help the Trojans, who miss me terribly when I am gone.
(Homer, Iliad 6.355).

Premonitions

And this devotion towards his duty, which he recognizes as defence of country and family, does not fade in front of the inevitable disaster, for Hector ₁ himself acknowledges that his efforts will be fruitless:

"Deep in my heart I know the day is coming when Troy will be destroyed." (Hector ₁ to Andromache. Homer, Iliad, 6.445).

Prophetic feelings

And, as if a prophetic vision had seized him, he laments what in fact will take place: the death of his father and brothers, and Andromache's lost freedom. Thus, seeing the future as if it were displayed in front of his eyes, he cannot see the point in trying to spare his own life, and so suffer hearing the screams of his own wife as the enemy drags her off.

Andromache's appeal

Good-byes of Hector 1 and Andromache. To the right, on horseback, is Paris

Andromache begs him to live:

"You, Hector, are father and mother and brother to me, as well as my beloved husband. Have pity on me now; stay here in the city, and do not make your boy an orphan and your wife a widow." (Andromache to Hector ₁. Homer, Iliad 6.430).

But he tells Andromache what he knows people in a foreign country who see her as prisoner will say:

"There goes the wife of Hector, who was the champion of the Trojans when Troy was besieged". (Hector ₁ to Andromache. Homer, Iliad 6.460).

This proved to be true, for later being in Hellas she lamented:

"In days gone by I was a woman to be envied, but now I am, if any woman ever was, the paragon of misery. I have many things, not one, to lament, my native land, the death of Hector, and the hard lot to which I have been yoked when I fell undeservedly into slavery." (Andromache. Euripides, Andromache 5).

Blind again in front of his child

And yet, when kissing his little child Astyanax ₂, he cannot see his fate and prays to the gods what will prove impossible:

"Grant that this boy of mine be as strong and brave as I; a mighty king of Troy." (Hector ₁. Homer, Iliad 6.475).

Single combat and the gift of an enemy

In one occasion, Hector ₁ and the Achaean champion Ajax ₁ fought in single combat that was without issue because the heralds parted them as the night was coming. In recognition of their courage the contenders exchanged gifts. But, as it is said, the gifts of enemies bring no good, for Ajax ₁ gave Hector ₁ the belt by which he was later dragged by Achilles, and Hector ₁ gave Ajax ₁ the sword with which he killed himself.

Those killed by Hector ₁

Man-slaying Hector 1 killed many Achaeans: Amphimachus 1 Leader of Elis, son of Cteatus & Theronice. Anchialus 1 and Menesthes 1 These two were riding the same chariot when Hector 1 attacked them. Antilochus Son of Nestor, but some say he was killed by the Ethiopian Memnon. Archesilaus Leader of the Boeotians and son of Areilycus 1 & Theobula 1. Coeranus 1 The squire of Meriones, a leader from Crete. Dolops 1 son of Clytius 1. Epigeus One of the best in the Myrmidon force, son of Agacles. Lycophron Son of Mastor 1 and a Cytherian squire of Ajax 1. Oresbius 1 A rich man who lived in Hyle, a city in Boeotia. Periphetes 1 A Mycenaean warrior son of Copreus, who was himself son of Pelops 1 and herald of Eurystheus (see also Heracles 1). Protesilaus Leader from Phylace, a Thessalian city west of the Gulf of Pagasae; Protesilaus was the first of the Achaeans to land on Trojan soil, and the first of the Achaeans to be killed in the war. But some say that he was killed by a Dardanian leader or by Cycnus 1, ruler of Colonae, a city in the Troad. Schedius 1 Leader of Phocis, a region bordering the Gulf of Corinth west of Boeotia, and son of the Argonaut Iphitus 2. Schedius 3 Another Phocian, son of Perimedes 3. Stichius An Athenian who carried the body of Amphimachus 1 off the battlefield and later supported Menestheus 1 against the attacks of Hector 1. Trechus An Aetolian spearman. Hector 1 also killed: Aesymnus, Agelaus 7, Asaeus, Autonous 1, Eioneus 1, Helenus 3, Hipponous 3, Oenomaus 2, Opheltius 2, Opites, Orestes 3, Orus 2, Patroclus 1, and Teuthras 1.

Zeus gives glory to Hector ₁

Zeus had promised Thetis to honour her son Achilles, and so the god showed the Achaeans, through defeat's bitter lesson, the value of the man they had offended, letting the Trojans win. Zeus even sent Iris ₁ with a message to Hector ₁, letting him learn that when Agamemnon would be wounded, that was the signal for him to attack and slay warriors until he reached the Achaean ships.

Does not believe in omens

However, when this was about to happen and the Trojans were preparing to break the Achaean defence and were standing at the trench ready to cross, a portent appeared to them. They saw an eagle holding a blood-red snake in his talons. The snake was alive, and suddenly it bit the eagle on the breast, and the bird had to drop it before he reached his nest. Some Trojans understood this omen thus: that even if they succeeded in breaking the Achaean wall, they would not be able to set the ships afire, that many warrior would die, and that finally they would have to return to the city without having achieved complete victory. But Hector ₁, who felt he had been promised glory by Zeus, said that he was not to base his actions on the flight of birds, and so he gave the signal to advance.

Zeus looks away

And in fact that was Hector ₁'s day of glory and victory, for the defences were broken and the Achaeans were driven in rout among the ships. Having achieved this, Zeus turned his eyes elsewhere, deeming that no other god would ever dare to intervene, as he had strictly forbidden them to help anybody in battle. But Poseidon, seeing that Zeus' attention was not in the battlefield, came to where the fight was, and assuming the seer Calchas' shape, gave the Achaeans renewed courage.

Zeus restores the chain of events

When Zeus discovered what had happened, and that even the life of Hector ₁ had been in danger, he soon reestablished the line of action he had decided, letting the Trojans reach the Achaean ships and Hector ₁ win a victory, in order to fulfill the prayer of Thetis. But Zeus was only waiting for the glare of a burning ship; for from that time forth, he would grant glory to the Achaeans, and let the Trojans be defeated.

Death of Patroclus ₁

When one of the ships caught fire, Achilles perceived the gravity of the situation, and letting go a part of his wrath, he let his friend Patroclus ₁ go into battle with a force of Myrmidons. But as it had been predicted, Hector ₁ killed Patroclus ₁, who before dying said:

"You too, I swear it, have not long to live. Already Destiny and Death are very close to you, and you will die at the hands of Achilles." (Patroclus ₁, dying, to Hector ₁. Homer, Iliad 16.850).

Not ready to concede Patroclus ₁ what he later asked of Achilles

When Hector ₁ had killed Patroclus ₁, he intended to behead the corpse, drag it off, and give it to the dogs of Troy, but the body was finally retrieved by the Achaeans. Yet he kept Achilles' armour, which Patroclus ₁ had worn.

Achilles honoured, and yet disappointed

All these dead Achaeans were in fact the work of Zeus, for the god punished them for having offended Achilles. And yet Achilles could now say:

"It is true that Zeus has done that much in my behalf. But what satisfaction can I get from that, now that my dearest friend Patroclus is dead? I have no wish to live unless Hector falls by my spear and dies." (Achilles to his mother Thetis. Homer, Iliad 18.80).

Thetis understands that nothing can save her son

Now it became clear for Thetis that all her efforts to honour her child led to his destruction, and that is why she, weeping, warns him a last time:

"If that is so, you surely have not long to live; for after Hector's death you are doomed to die immediately." (Thetis to Achilles. Homer, Iliad 18.95).

Achilles comes back

But death is nothing to Achilles now, for he feels that his wrath had transformed him into an idle burden, and that he failed to save his friend and many others from death. So after having received a new armour from Hephaestus and having put and end to his feud with Agamemnon, he went in search of Hector ₁ and death.

Hector ₁ decides to meet destiny

Hector ₁ was not less decided to meet his own fate. So he said to the Trojans:

"I am going to meet Achilles, though his hands are like fire, and his heart like steel." (Hector ₁. Homer, Iliad 20.370).

It is not decisive who was stronger, because as they saw it, these things were in the knees of the gods, and it may very well happen that heaven lets the weaker man win. For in fact, no one can tell on whose head fortune will land next time.

Worried parents

King Priam ₁ tried to dissuade his son from fighting a man, son of a goddess, far stronger than himself. And the same did his mother Hecabe ₁, who exhorted him to fight within the walls of the city, instead of meeting the savage Achilles in single combat. They resorted both to reason and tears, but all their entreaties were wasted on this son, and they failed to shake Hector ₁'s resolution.

The crucial moment comes with doubts

And yet when the crucial moment approached and Hector ₁ was waiting for Achilles, many doubts appeared in his thoughts: Should he had withdrawn the army when Achilles came to life again? Would not the Trojans say that he trusted his own arm and lost his army? Could he not make overtures to Achilles, and for example, deliver Helen and the property Paris stole from Sparta? Could he not propose to share all the rest of the Trojan possessions with the Achaeans?

Thoughts of a man in danger

Death of Hector 1

Many things may be thought by a man in danger, trying to figure up how the present nightmare might be averted. So there was almost no thought or possible solution that Hector ₁ did not consider at that moment. And he even thought of inducing his countrymen to swear in council that they would hide nothing, but divide all the Trojan property in two equal parts, to be shared with the enemy. For peace, agreement, and sharing, which seldom awake enthusiasm when they in daily life are taken for granted, become the object of profound longing when they are lost.

Courage may fail the bravest

Hector ₁'s inward debate was followed by the kind of prophetic inspiration he had in his dialogue with his wife Andromache (see above). When he caught sight of Achilles, feeling that something terrible was about to happen, he began to tremble, and losing heart he ran away in terror. So the combat started like a race with Hector ₁ in front and Achilles behind, pursuing him round the city of Troy. So they went on until Zeus, lifting his golden scales and weighing their sentences of death, saw the side of Hector ₁ come down, spelling his doom. Then Apollo, who up to that point had protected Hector ₁, deserted him, and Athena, who wished to help Achilles, assuming the shape of Deiphobus ₁, brother of Hector ₁, came to him and convinced him of making a stand and face Achilles, both together, she said.

Death

That is how Hector ₁ finally decided to stop running and fight. But very soon, having discovered that there was no Deiphobus ₁ by his side, Hector ₁ realized that the gods had fooled him, that death was not far away, and that he was about to face his doom. This came quickly, for Achilles' lance wounded him mortally in the neck. In vain Hector ₁ begged Achilles not to give his body to the dogs. And as if men became prophets in front of death he said to Achilles:

"Your heart is hard as iron. Nevertheless, pause before you act, in case the angry gods remember how you treated me, when your turn comes and you are killed at the Scaean Gate by Paris and Apollo." (Hector ₁ to Achilles. Homer, Iliad 22.355).

Body outraged

The Achaeans murder little Astyanax 2, the son of Hector 1

The soul of Hector ₁ descended to Hades lamenting, as they say, its lot and the youth it was leaving, but his body Achilles outraged in a shameful way. He pierced the tendons at the back of his feet from the heel to the ankle, and having inserted leather straps (the belt of Ajax ₁), he bound them to his chariot, leaving the head to trail. And having done this, he drove the chariot in front of the walls and round the city, while the head of Hector ₁ tumbled against the ground.

It was not before hard negotiations, during a humiliating meeting with King Priam ₁, that Achilles accepted the body to be ransomed by the father of the man he had killed.

When Hecabe ₁ was taken away as a prize by Odysseus from the sacked Troy, she carried the ashes of her son, for it has been chanted:

Yet Hector's ashes from his urn she bore,
And in her bosom the sad relic wore:
Then scatter'd on his tomb her hoary hairs,
A poor oblation mingled with her tears.
(Ovid, Metamorphoses 13.425).

Epilogue

In such a way fell he who had been the first among the Trojan warriors, and the one who was to become king of Troy, had not the city been destroyed. His wife Andromache was given as a prize to Achilles' son Neoptolemus, and had a child Amphialus ₁ by him. At Neoptolemus' death, Andromache married Helenus ₁, a seer and brother of Hector ₁, who became king of Epirus. Little Astyanax ₂ was thrown down by the Achaeans, from the battlements at Troy. Some say that Neoptolemus performed this deed, but others say that it was Odysseus who murdered little Astyanax ₂. However, in spite of all rumours about his death, he is also said to have been taken by Neoptolemus and later allowed to return home from Hellas, becoming king of Scepsis, a place near Mt. Ida, not far away from Troy.

Another with identical name

Hector ₂ is a king of Chios.

Andromache was daughter of Eetion ₁, the king of Cilician Thebe who was killed by Achilles when the city was sacked.

(For more details about Andromache and little Astyanax ₂ see Epilogue, in the main text above.).

Abolengo Album - High Resolution Genealogical Charts

Names in this chart

Achilles, Aeacus, Amphialus ₁, Andromache, Astyanax ₂, Atlas, Cestrinus, Cisseus ₂, Dardanus ₁, Deidamia ₁, Eetion ₁, Electra ₃, Erichthonius ₁, Hecabe ₁, Hector ₁, Helenus ₁, Hesione ₂, Ilus ₂, Laomedon ₁, Molossus, Neoptolemus, Peleus, Pergamus, Pielus, Pleione, Priam ₁, Telamon, Teucer ₁, Tros ₁, Zeus.