How did it start?
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The most famous gods in Greek mythology (Zeus,Hera,Apollo, Hermes, etc) weren't the first gods; they were actually the grandchildren of the first gods. According to Greek mythology, the universe began with 5 gods that emerged from the chaos of nothing. They included Gaia (the Earth), Tartarous (the underworld), Erebus (the darkness that fills the underworld), Eros (love), and Nyx (the darkness that covers the Earth after a sundown). This first gods madly fall in love and started a family. The first group of children were monsters, and the second group were Titans. The Titans were gods and goddesses who ruled for a long time. One of the Titans was Cronos, who married Rhea. They had a number of children, including Zeus, Poseidon and Hades. When Zeus and his siblings grew up, they overthrew the Titans and became rulers of the world. They were called the Olympians.
The Trojan War
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The war continue for more than ten years. The Greeks could not break into Troy and the Trojans could not drive them off. The most famous Greek warrior was Achilles. He was one of the seven sons of Thetis and Peleus. Thetis made six of her sons immortal by burning away their mortal half. She was doing the same exact thing to Achille, when Peleus came in. As the love of a father, he thought Thetis was hurting the child and prevented her finishing, so Achilles was left with one vulnerable place on his body where he could be fatally wounded-the heel by which Thetis had held him. Achilles was given the choice of a long, undistinguished life or a short but remarkable one. He chose the second. As time went on, the warriors began to quarrel. Achilles argued Agamemnon over a slave girl and left the battle, sulking. The Greeks lost heart and were driven back by the Trojan hero Hector, Priam's son.Many heroes were killed on both sides. One great Trojan hero was Aeneas. Aphrodite's son by Anchises. He was wounded by Diomedes and Aphrodite rushed to help him. Diomedes stopped Aphrodite and even dared graze with his spear. In the end, Apollo carried him to Leto and Artemis, who healed him. Ajax and Odyssseus disputed who should belong Achilles's amour, as they had both guarded his body or his soul during the battle. Agammemnon decided Odysseus should have it and Ajax killed himself in shame. To prevent more trouble, Odysseus deliver the amour to Achille's son Neoptolemus. With many of their heroes dead, the Greeks were told that only the famous archer Philoctetes could save them. In desperation Patroclus put on Achilles's armour and led an attack. He was not as skilled as Achilles, though, the Trojans saw through disguise and Hector finished him or kill him. Achilles was stricken with guilty and sorrow and plunged back into battle. He killed Hector and dragged his body round the city behind his chariot before letting the Trojans get it back for his burial. Paris emerged to avenge Hector's death and shot Achilles in the heel-his only weak spot-and killed him. Philoctetes had been on his way to Troy when accidentally he was bitten by a snake. His wound was not fatal, but nothing make it heel, so the Greeks had left him behind. He felt very angry about this treatment and when the Greeks came back to beg for his help he refused at first. Then Heracles came to him in a dream, saying that if he forgave the Greeks and went to Troy, his wound would heal. He returned with them in no time, and killed Paris with a skillful shot, which gave the Greeks new hope. After this tremendous act, magically the wound heal just as Heracles had promised. Troy finally fell thanks to an idea brought up by Odysseus. The Greeks pretended to give up, however they built a huge wooden horse as a gift to Athene, so she would grant them a safe trip home. They left it outside the gates of Troy and sailed away. The Trojans were overjoyed. They pulled the horse through the city gates and offered it at their own temple of Athene. That night they celebrated, but when they were all asleep, some Greeks who had hidden inside the giant horse, slipped out od the trapdoor in its side. They opened the city gates to let in the Greek army, who had sneaked back under cover of darkness. The Greeks conquered Troy and vast numbers of Trojans were killed. Helen was captured and taken to Menelaus. He try to punish her but despite all the bloodshed she had caused, he founded he still loved her and took her back as his wife.
How did it fail?
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The conquests of the military genius Alexander the Great in the fourth century B.C. opened the doors of the Hellenic world to influences and culture from the East. Art became more expensive and artistic forms evolved towards a more baroque style; the schools also influenced the rich cities of the East because they formed the basis for scientific advances, crowned with notable discoveries and also the development of philosophy. However, the imperial dream of the Macedonian conqueror was cut off by his mysterious death. His vast dominions were divided between his generals, thus setting off a long period of decline that culminated with the incorporation of Greece into the great Roman Empire.
The Renaissance.
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The rebirth of Greek and Roman mythology is known as the Renaissance. The thousand years after the fall of the western Roman empire had been a slow time for the development of ideas. To have new ideas and to question Christian beliefs had often been through wrong. But know people began to turn to the Greeks and Romans for their learning. Some schools taught ancient Greek, so that scholars or kids will find out for themselves what the Greeks had write. Many more read the ancient texts in translation. Dramatis, such as Racine in France and Shakespeare in England, wrote plays which took ideas from the drama and myth of the ancient world. In the early 1800s, many Greek sculptures were brought to northern Europe. Greek art became fashion, and Greek ideas retained their importance in thinking of educated people.