The legend of the Trojan War appears in many different Greek stories. All of these tales agree that the war started over a woman named Helen, who was reputed to be the most beautiful woman in the world. Helen was the wife of Menelaus of Sparta. Her married status, however, did not stop a Trojan prince named Paris from seducing her.
Paris traveled to Menelaus's palace to collect Helen, who was given to him as a prize from Aphrodite, the goddess of love. Paris had gained Aphrodite's favor because of his judgment that Aphrodite was more beautiful than either Athena, the goddess of wisdom, or Hera, the goddess of marriage. Aphrodite rewarded his judgment of the contest by granting him possession of the most beautiful mortal woman in the world. Paris carried Helen off to Troy and married her; whether or not this turn of events was to her liking is a matter of conjecture, but many versions of the story insist that she aided and abetted Paris in his abduction of her. In any event, Helen's husband Menelaus was enraged. He took prompt action, beseeching his brother, King Agamemnon, for help in winning Helen back. Agamemnon assembled a huge fleet from all over Greece and sailed to attack Troy.
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