Chryseis (War Prize)
heroDaughter of Apollo's priest Chryses whose capture by Agamemnon triggered the plague and quarrel that opens the Iliad.
The Myth
She is the reason the Iliad begins with a plague — her father prayed to Apollo and the god shot arrows of pestilence into the Greek camp for nine days. Chryseis was captured by Agamemnon during a raid. Her father Chryses, priest of Apollo, came with ransom. Agamemnon refused. Chryses prayed, and Apollo sent a plague. When Agamemnon was forced to return Chryseis, he took Briseis from Achilles as compensation. Achilles withdrew from battle. Without Achilles, the Greeks began losing. Patroclus fought in his place and died. This chain — Chryseis to plague to quarrel to withdrawal to Patroclus's death — is the Iliad's engine. The entire epic pivots on the capture of one woman.
Parents
Chryses
Symbols
Explore Further
Briseis
heroBriseis was the captive woman taken from Achilles by Agamemnon — the cause of Achilles' wrath that...
Briseis (War Prize)
heroCaptured woman taken from Achilles by Agamemnon, whose seizure caused Achilles to withdraw from the...
Chryseis
heroChryseis was the priest's daughter whose captivity by Agamemnon and forced return sparked the...
Achilles
heroThe greatest warrior in the Greek army at Troy, nearly invulnerable thanks to being dipped in the...
Achilles (Wrath)
heroThe swift-footed son of Peleus and Thetis whose wrath drives the Iliad and whose choice between...
Agamemnon
heroAgamemnon led the Greek coalition against Troy but was murdered upon return by his wife...
Hector
heroHector was Troy's greatest warrior, who fought not for glory but to defend his city, wife, and son.
Patroclus
heroPatroclus was Achilles' closest companion whose death in borrowed armour at Hector's hands was the...
Patroclus (Beloved Companion)
heroAchilles's closest companion whose death in borrowed armour broke the hero's withdrawal and sent...
Thersites
heroThe ugliest Greek at Troy and the first commoner to challenge aristocratic authority in Western...
Apollo
godGod of light, music, poetry, and prophecy. Apollo embodied the Greek ideal of youthful masculine...
Apollo (Far-Striker)
godThe radiant god of light, prophecy, music, healing, and plague — the most complex deity in the...