In Greek mythology, Achilles was a Greek hero. He is the chief character in Homer's Iliad. His father was Peleus, ruler of Phthia in Thessaly, his mother the sea-goddess Thetis. When only six years of age he was able to overcome lions and bears. His guardian, Cheiron the Centaur, having declared that Troy could not be taken without his aid, his mother, fearing for his safety, disguised him as a girl, and introduced him among the daughters of Lycomedes of Scyros. Her desire for his safety made her also try to make him invulnerable when a child by anointing him with ambrosia, and again by dipping him in the river Styx, from which he came out proof against wounds, all but the heel, by which she held him.
His place of concealment was discovered by Odysseus (Ulysses), and he promised his assistance to the Greeks against Troy. Accompanied by his close friend, Patroclus, he joined the expedition with a body of followers (Myrmidons) in fifty ships, and occupied nine years in raids upon the towns neighbouring to Troy, after which the siege proper commenced. On being deprived of his prize, the maiden Briseis, by Agamemnon, he refused to take any further part in the war, and
disaster attended the Greeks.
Patroclus now persuaded Achilles to allow him to lead the Myrmidons to battle dressed in his armour, and he having been slain by Hector, Achilles vowed revenge on the Trojans, and forgot his anger against the Greeks. He attacked the Trojans and drove them back to their walls, slaying them in great numbers, chased Hector, who fled before him three times round the walls of Troy, slew him, and dragged his body at his chariot-wheels, but afterwards gave it up to Priam, who came in person to beg for it. He then performed the funeral rites of Patroclus, with which the Iliad closes. He was killed in a battle at the Scasan Gate of Troy by an arrow from the bow of Paris which struck his vulnerable heel. In discussions on the origin of the Homeric poems the term Achilleid is often applied to those books (i. viii. and xi.-xxii.) of the Iliad in which Achilles is prominent, and which some suppose to have formed the original nucleus of the poem. Research Achilles
In Greek mythology, Charon was the son of Erebus and Nyx. He was the ferryman who transported the dead across the river Styx to the Underworld of Hades. Charon was depicted as a squalid, mean, sprightly, bad tempered old man. Charon demanded a fee of an Obol for the journey across the river Styx, and to this end the Greeks buried their dead with an Obol coin in their mouth with which to pay Charon. Hercules forced Charon to ferry him into the Underworld, and Hades punished Charon by binding him in chains for a year. Research Charon
Janus was a two faced Roman god of doorways, and of beginnings and ends. In the earliest days of the universe, Janus was created by Ouranos as a love-gift for Hecate. But Janus (as Hecate called him) was appalled by life in the Underworld and jumped into the river Styx and was carried to the Upper World. During the war between the gods and the Titans Janus gave shelter to his half-brother, Saturn, but was forced to hand him over to the gods, which he did in exchange for a promise of mercy. Afterwards, Jupiter made Janus a god, making him two-faced in punishment for his treachery and removing his power of motion, and
Janus forever stood as Heaven's doorkeeper. Another account says Jupiter punished Janus by putting him in charge of the moment when the old years ends and the new year starts, endlessly repeating, thereby giving Janus immortality without the freedom to enjoy it. Research Janus
Nike was the Greek goddess of victory. She was the daughter of Pallas and Styx. She helped the gods in their battle against the titans and was rewarded by Zeus. Research Nike
In Greek mythology Pallas was one of the Titans. He was a son of Crius and Eurybia and brother of Astraeus and Perseus. He married Styx and fathered Zelus, Cratos, Bia and Nike. Research Pallas
In Greek and Roman mythology, the Styx was the principal river in the underworld. Styx was the name of a nymph who was the daughter of Oceanus and Tethys. She dwelt at the entrance to Hades in a lofty grotto which was supported by silver columns. Styx took her children to help Zeus in the fight against the Titans. Research Styx
The SS-N-2a (Styx) is a Soviet anti-ship missile. It has a range of 46 km and a flight speed of mach 0.9. It carries a 1100lb warhead. Research SS-N-2A
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
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Abbreviations
Research Achilles
