What Alexander the Great did when he visited the site of the mythical Trojan War

According to the Greeks, Troy was the battleground for one of the most revered stories of the ancient world.

The Iliad presented the city as the scene of the Trojan War, where Achaean warriors fought to recover Helen and reassert their honour.

Over time, poets, artists, and rulers elevated this myth into a shared cultural memory, treating it as a source of national identity and moral instruction.

Among the Macedonians, who had embraced Greek ideals at court, Troy remained holy ground. 

As a young teenager, Alexander had received a formal training from Aristotle, who viewed Homeric poetry as essential to forming moral judgement.

The characters in the Iliad, especially Achilles, were treated as warriors and role models whose conduct showed how honour and courageous action combined with duty to the gods.

For Alexander, the tale of Troy was a script for his own life and, as such, he wanted to frame his invasion of Asia as a continuation of that mythical struggle.

Therefore, Alexander used Troy as a symbolic gateway to the East. He believed that just as the Greeks of old had sailed across the Aegean to challenge a foreign king, he too would finish what they had begun.

His visit allowed him to present the war against Persia as the final chapter in an ancient rivalry between Greek heroism and Asian kingship.

For the Greek city-states watching his campaign, the symbolism reinforced his claim to act on behalf of a shared cultural heritage and to avenge the Persian sack of Athens in 480 BCE. 

From his earliest years, Alexander showed an intense devotion to Achilles.

Historical sources, including Arrian and Plutarch, reported that he kept a personalised copy of the Iliad beside him at all times, especially during military campaigns.

According to tradition, he later stored this prized manuscript in a jewelled casket taken from the spoils of Darius. 

Unlike other historical figures who admired Achilles from a distance, Alexander actively modelled his life on that of the Homeric hero.

During combat, he led charges personally, which exposed him to danger in ways that showed Achilles’ fearless reputation.

He did not see this as recklessness. He treated it as a demonstration of heroic courage that elevated his status among both Greeks and non-Greeks. 

On account of his mother Olympias’ claims of divine ancestry, Alexander came to believe that he descended from Achilles’ bloodline, which convinced him that he had a special role to play in the world’s unfolding story.

After crossing the narrow straits that separated Europe and Asia, Alexander selected a small force to accompany him inland.

He sought the ruins of Troy, which lay near the banks of the Scamander River and Mount Ida.

Although the ancient city no longer flourished as a major settlement, it had been partially settled again under the name Ilion and still contained shrines, burial mounds, and altars that linked it to the world of Homer’s poems.

Religious rites continued to be held there, which made it a natural place for Alexander to conduct public homage.

His official historian, Callisthenes, likely recorded the visit to shape how it would be remembered for those who came after him. 

At the sanctuary of Athena Ilias, Alexander made a formal offering to the goddess who, according to tradition, had supported the Achaeans during the war.

He also honoured other gods linked to the conflict, including Poseidon, whose wrath had threatened the Greek fleet during their journey home.

These ceremonies gave approval by the gods for his coming campaign and helped to present him as the chosen bearer of victory. 

For his troops, many of whom had been raised on the same Homeric stories, the visit served was a reminder that they followed a leader whose mission had historical and mythological meaning.

Among the most dramatic events of the visit was Alexander’s ceremony at the burial mound believed to contain the remains of Achilles.

The site was marked by a large earthwork near the coastline at Sigeion and had long been treated as sacred.

When Alexander approached the tomb, he brought garlands, incense, and sacrificial animals with him.

In the presence of his officers, he placed a wreath upon the mound and offered wine offerings to the fallen warrior’s memory.

Hephaestion, his closest friend and companion, laid a second wreath at the tomb of Patroclus at nearby Rhoiteion, an act that some ancient sources recorded as a deliberate echo of the Iliad.

Ancient authors understood this act as a deliberate echo of the Iliad, where the bond between Achilles and Patroclus had formed the emotional core of the narrative.

Following the ritual, Alexander declared his admiration for Achilles and prayed for strength and guidance in the campaign ahead.

Alexander revived Troy as a site of living memory, and his visit was the beginning of a campaign that aimed to rival the greatest feats of the mythical past, which gave his war against Persia both religious significance and poetic emphasis.