About Priam, King of Troy
In Greek mythology, Priam was the king of Troy during the Trojan War and
youngest son of Laomedon. Modern scholars derive his name from the Luwian
compound Priimuua, which means "exceptionally courageous".
Marriage and issue
Priam had a number of wives; his first was Arisbe, who had given birth to his
son Aesacus, who met his death before the advent of the Trojan War. Priam later
divorced her in favor of Hecuba (or Hecebe), daughter of the Phrygian king Dymas.
By his various wives and concubines Priam was the father of fifty sons and
nineteen daughters. Hector was Priam's eldest son by Hecuba, and heir to the
Trojan throne. Paris, another son, was the cause of the Trojan War. Other
children of Priam and Hecuba include the prophetic Helenus and Cassandra; eldest
daughter Ilione; Deiphobus; Troilus; Polites; Creusa, wife of Aeneas; Laodice,
wife of Helicaon; Polyxena, who was slaughtered on the grave of Achilles; and
Polydorus, his youngest son.
Life
Priam was originally called Podarces and he kept himself from being killed by
Heracles by giving him a golden veil embroidered by his sister, Hesione. After
this, Podarces changed his name to Priam. This is an etymology based on priatos
"ransomed"; the actual etymology of the name is probably not Greek, but perhaps
Lydian in origin.
When Hector is killed by Achilles, Achilles treats the body with disrespect and
refuses to give it back. Zeus sends the god Hermes to escort King Priam,
Hector’s father and the ruler of Troy, into the Greek camp. Priam tearfully
pleads with Achilles to take pity on a father bereft of his son and return
Hector’s body. He invokes the memory of Achilles’ own father, Peleus. Priam begs
Achilles to pity him, saying "I have endured what no one on earth has ever done
before — I put my lips to the hands of the man who killed my son".[2] Deeply
moved, Achilles finally relents and returns Hector’s corpse to the Trojans. Both
sides agree to a temporary truce, and Hector receives a hero’s funeral. Achilles
further goes on to give Priam leave to hold a proper funeral for Hector complete
with funeral games. He promises that no Greek will engage in combat for 11 days,
but on the 12th day of peace, the mighty war between the Greeks and the Trojans
would resume. Priam is killed during the Sack of Troy by Neoptolemus (or
Pyrrhus) son of Achilles. His death is graphically related in Book II of
Virgil's Aeneid. In Virgil's description Neoptolemus first kills Priam's son
Polites as he seeks sanctuary on the altar of Zeus. Priam rebukes Neoptolemus,
throwing a spear at him, which misses. Neoptolemus then drags Priam to the altar
and there kills him too.
It has been suggested by Hittite sources, specifically the Manapa-Tarhunta
letter that there is historical basis for the archetype of King Priam. The
letter describes one Piyama-Radu as a troublesome rebel who overthrew a Hittite
client king and thereafter established his own rule over the city of Troy
(mentioned as Wilusa in Hittite). There is also mention of an Alaksandu,
suggested to be Paris Alexander (King Priam's son from the Iliad), a later ruler
of the city of Wilusa who established peace between Wilusa and Hatti (see the
Alaksandu treaty).
