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Why does Aeneas leave Troy in the Aeneid?

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Ancient Roman mosaic showing the poet Virgil seated and writing, flanked by the muses Clio and Melpomene, displayed in a decorative border. — Virgil Virgil (centre) holding a scroll with a quotation from the *Aeneid* and flanked by the muses Clio and Melpomene, mosaic, early 3rd century ce; in the Bardo National Museum, Tunis, Tunisia.

In the Aeneid, Aeneas leaves Troy because he is commanded by a vision of Hector to flee the burning city and fulfill his divine destiny to establish a new homeland in the West.12

Following the fall of Troy, Aeneas receives further confirmation of this mission from the ghost of his wife, Creusa, who instructs him to travel to a land where the Tiber River flows. Throughout his journey, Aeneas is guided by his commitment to pietas—a sense of duty and obedience to the gods—which requires him to sacrifice his personal desires and natural inclinations to ensure the eventual founding of the Roman nation. This divine mandate remains his primary motivation, even leading him to abandon Dido in Carthage when he is reminded by Mercury that his true goal is the foundation of a new city in Italy.123