Primary Iliad Characters

Front 1

Achilles

Back 1

Temperamental Greek soldier who is the greatest warrior in history. No man can stand against him. He is the son of Peleus and a sea nymph named Thetis.

Front 2

Agamemnon

Back 2

Commander-in-chief of the Greek armies.

Front 3

Menelaus

Back 3

King of Sparta and brother of Agamemnon. After his wife, Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world, was taken by a Trojan named Paris, the Greeks declared war on Troy.

Front 4

Helen

Back 4

Wife of Menelaus, paramour of Paris, and the most beautiful woman in the world.

Front 5

Odysseus (Roman name, Ulysses)

Back 5

King of Ithaca and brilliant strategist. He is unsurpassed in cunning.

Front 6

Aias the Great (Roman name, Ajax the Great)

Back 6

Hulking giant who is second only to Achilles in battlefield prowess. Many translators of the epic use his Roman name, perhaps because of the force of its emphatic consonants–and everyone's familiarity with the power of a popular cleanser found in bathrooms and kitchens.

Front 7

Patroclus

Back 7

Greek warrior and beloved companion of Achilles.

Front 8

Diomedes

Back 8

Greek warrior of extraordinary valor and ability.

Front 9

Calchas

Back 9

Soothsayer who explains an important event.

Front 10

Nestor

Back 10

Wise old king who advises Agamemnon.

Front 11

Briseis

Back 11

Beautiful captive of Achilles.

Front 12

Chryseis

Back 12

Captive of Agamemnon.

Front 13

Priam

Back 13

King of Troy.

Front 14

Hector

Back 14

Bravest and most accomplished of the Trojan warriors; son of Priam.

Front 15

Paris

Back 15

Trojan who took Helen From Menelaus.

Front 16

Aeneas

Back 16

Brave and powerful Trojan warrior

Front 17

Zeus (Roman name, Jupiter)

Back 17

King of the gods who prefers to remain neutral in the war but intervenes after a plea for help.

Front 18

Hera (Roman name, Juno)

Back 18

Queen of the gods who favors the Greeks.

Front 19

Athena

Back 19

Goddess of wisdom and war who favors the Greeks.

Front 20

Poseidon (Roman name, Neptune)

Back 20

God of the sea who favors the Greeks.

Front 21

Hephaestus (Roman name, Vulcan)

Back 21

God of the forge who favors the Greeks.

Front 22

Aphrodite (Roman name, Venus)

Back 22

Goddess of love and beauty who sides with the Trojans.

Front 23

Apollo

Back 23

Highly revered and feared sun god who sides with the Trojans.

Front 24

Ares (Roman name, Mars)

Back 24

God of war who sides with the Trojans.

Front 25

Artemis (Roman name, Diana)

Back 25

Goddess of archery and hunting who sides with the Trojans.

Front 26

Thetis

Back 26

Sea nymph who is the mother of Achilles.