Title
Trojan War revised2
Abstract
of its existence they remained extremely sceptical regarding its mythological origin. Archaeology has confirmed
one essential point: there was indeed a general conflagration in the Greek world around 1200 BCE, the
assumed period of that war, which caused the disappearance of two powerful empires: Mycenaean on one
hand and Hittite with its vassals on the other hand. The inscriptions of Ramses III's year 8 describe
actually a general invasion of the Mediterranean by the "Sea Peoples", but without giving any reason. A
precise chronological reconstruction, based on a few absolute dates, shows that the annexation of the kingdom
of Cyprus (AlaĊĦia), closely linked to the Mycenaean world, by Hittite King Tudhaliya IV played a role of
detonator in the confrontation between a Greek heterogeneous confederation, consisting of pirates and
privateers on one side and a set of vassal kingdoms of the Hittite empire, such as Troy and Ugarit, on the
other. This struggle to control a vital sea path, from Crete to Egypt, via Cyprus, which ended with a
complete mutual destruction in 1185 BCE, the climax of the famous Trojan War, had begun 10 years
earlier. Surprisingly, this conclusion was already that of Eratosthenes (276-193). Historical and epigraphic
context shows that Homer wrote his epic shortly after Queen Elissa founded Carthage (c. 870 BCE).
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