Tea at Trianon: The City in Spain Founded by a Greek Hero of the Trojan War

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Monday, June 19, 2023

The City in Spain Founded by a Greek Hero of the Trojan War

From Greek Reporter:

Pontevedra is almost 4,000 kilometers (2,485 miles) away from Hisarlik, the archaeological site believed to have been Troy, so what could possibly link this city in Spain to one of the heroes of the Trojan War?According to local legends, Teucer (Greek: Τεύκρος), an ancient Greek hero and skilled archer depicted by Homer in the Iliad, founded the city of Pontevedra in Spain after fighting in the Trojan War.

The legend may reflect an ancient Greek presence in the region, as the Greeks were fond of associating geographical spaces with their mythical heroes and powerful gods. As for Teucer himself, the hero is said to have also founded Salamis, an ancient city on the island of Cyprus.

Teucer is one of the lesser-known characters in the Iliad. Although more famous figures like Achilles, Hector, and Agamemnon tend to take the limelight, Homer nevertheless depicts Teucer as a supremely good archer, and he is certainly one of the most accurate warriors with a bow in the entire story.

Teucer was the son of Telamon, the king of Salamis, and the half-brother of the famous hero Ajax. The pair made for a formidable team during the battles depicted in the Iliad, with Teucer often taking cover behind the giant shield of Ajax as he loosed a hailstorm of arrows at the Trojans. (Read more.)