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Why did the Greek army besiege Troy according to the traditional story?

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Was the city of Troy real or a myth? — Troy Learn about Troy.

According to traditional Greek mythology, the Greek army besieged Troy primarily to recover Helen, the wife of the Spartan king Menelaus.123

The conflict originated from the "judgment of Paris," a divine beauty contest in which the Trojan prince Paris was asked to award a golden apple to the "fairest" goddess. Paris chose Aphrodite after she promised him the love of the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen. Paris subsequently traveled to Sparta and eloped with Helen, taking her back to Troy.134

Because many of the Greek kings had previously been suitors of Helen and had sworn an oath to defend her marriage, they assembled an expeditionary force led by Menelaus's brother, Agamemnon, to wage war against Troy when the Trojan king Priam refused to return her. Some accounts also suggest the war was orchestrated by Zeus as a scheme to reduce the human population.143