Achilles
The swift-footed son of Peleus and Thetis whose wrath drives the Iliad and whose choice between glory and life defines the heroic ideal.
The Legend of Achilles
Achilles was the son of the mortal Peleus and the sea-nymph Thetis, who dipped him in the River Styx to make him invulnerable — all except the heel by which she held him. He was raised by the centaur Chiron and became the greatest warrior of his generation. The entire Iliad is driven by his wrath: when Agamemnon takes his prize Briseis, Achilles withdraws from battle. Without him, the Greeks are slaughtered. He relents only when his beloved companion Patroclus is killed by Hector. Achilles's grief transforms into cosmic rage: he kills Hector, drags his body behind his chariot for twelve days, and fights the river god Scamander himself. But the poem's climax is not violence but compassion: when old King Priam comes to ransom Hector's body, Achilles sees in Priam his own father Peleus, who will never see his son again. They weep together — enemy grieving with enemy — in one of the most profound moments in world literature.
Fun Fact
The Achilles tendon in your heel is named after the only vulnerable spot on the greatest warrior who ever lived.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
Explore Further
Achilles
🗡 heroGreatest warrior of the Trojan War
The greatest warrior in the Greek army at Troy, nearly invulnerable thanks to being dipped in the River Styx as an infant — except for the heel by which his mother held him.
Tydeus
🗡 heroThe ferocious warrior who forfeited immortality
A hero of savage courage who fought as one of the Seven Against Thebes but lost Athena's gift of immortality in his final moment.
Sarpédon
🗡 heroSon of Zeus who died at Troy
Sarpedon was a son of Zeus and the greatest Lycian warrior at Troy — his death forced Zeus to confront the limits of even divine power.
Ajax the Lesser
🗡 heroSwift warrior of the Locrians
Ajax son of Oileus was a fast, fierce, impious warrior whose assault on Cassandra in Athena's temple brought divine wrath upon the Greek fleet.
Hector
🗡 heroChampion of Troy
Hector was Troy's greatest warrior, who fought not for glory but to defend his city, wife, and son.
Heracles
🗡 heroGreatest of the Greek heroes, demigod of strength
The greatest hero of Greek mythology, son of Zeus and the mortal Alcmene. Famous for his extraordinary strength and his Twelve Labors.
Ajax
🗡 heroThe immovable warrior who held the Greek line
The massive warrior from Salamis who carried a shield like a tower wall and held the Greek line when every other defender broke.
Heracles
🗡 heroGreatest of all Greek heroes
The son of Zeus and Alcmene who performed twelve impossible labours and was the only hero to achieve full godhood after death.
Antilochus
🗡 heroThe young warrior who died saving Nestor
The son of Nestor who died at Troy protecting his elderly father from Memnon — a sacrifice that moved Achilles to avenge him.
Ilioneus
🗡 heroHerding, Troy
Trojan warrior whose name means man of Ilion, killed by Peneleos during the great battles
Patroclus
🗡 heroThe companion whose death transformed the Iliad
Achilles's closest companion whose death in borrowed armour broke the hero's withdrawal and sent him raging back to war.
Diomedes
🗡 heroThe hero who wounded two Olympian gods in a single day
The king of Argos who fought at Troy with such ferocity that he wounded both Aphrodite and Ares — becoming one of the only mortals to injure gods.