The Achaean Plague

 

The Achaean Plague

When the Iliad opens, the stage is set for a terrible onslaught against the Achaeans. The arrows of their enemy rained down upon them and the number of dead and the dying were uncountable. But in this case, the enemy was not the army of Troy. No, it was the god Apollo himself who delivered destruction to the Achaeans in the form of a devastating plague. His priest Chryse had beseeched the god to punish the Greeks because their leader Agamemnon had refused the ransom that the holy man had offered for the return of his daughter and had humiliated the priest in front of the troops. Apollo heard his prayer and acted accordingly.

Thus was his prayer made known on high and Phoebus Apollo heard him. He stalked down from the summit of Olympus, troubled deeply in his heart and bearing with him his bow and covered quiver. As he moved, the arrows rattled on the shoulders of the angry god. As the far-darting one swept by, his coming was like the night. Then he crouched down among the ships of the Greeks and let fly an arrow. Terrifying was the sound that arose from his silver bow. The mules he attacked first and then the swift dogs. Next on the men themselves he rained down his terrible shafts. The corpses of the dead burned constantly.

Highly enraged, the old man retreated and Apollo heard him praying since he favoured him greatly and in answer he sent an arrow of pestilence upon the Argives. The people were dying left and right as the darts of the god fell on all sides of the army of the Achaeans.

            As the story unfolded, we know that the pestilence continued until such time as King Agamemnon changed his mind after nine days of death and terror and sent the girl Chryseis back to her father in the company of an embassy led by Odysseus. He had been warned by Calchas that the pestilence would continue until he returned the girl and appeased the priest and Apollo.

“It is not with a vow or a sacrifice that the god takes exception, but rather because of the priest whom Agamemnon dishonoured by not accepting the ransom and releasing his daughter. For this reason the far-shooting god has delivered woes upon you and will continue to do so. He will not relieve the Danaans of this loathsome plague until we deliver back to her father this un-bought and un-ransomed captive bright-eyed maiden and present a magnificent sacrificial offering to Chryses. Perhaps then we might be able to appease and win over the god.”

Chryseis was returned to her father, an appropriate sacrifice was offered to Apollo and the priest was appeased. He then prayed to the god to have the pestilence lifted from the Achaeans.

Then Chryses offered up a great prayer on their behalf and raised his hands to heaven. “Hear me o god of the silver bow who protects Chryse and holy Cilla and rules mightily over Tenedos. Indeed you heard me praying before and you honoured me by answering my prayer, but you have inflicted great hardship on the people of the Achaeans. I ask that you now grant me this wish, namely that you ward off this unholy pestilence from the Danaans.”

            Scholars have debated for a long time about the true nature of the plague or pestilence that was inflicted upon the Greek army. This would not be the only time that the people of ancient Greece would suffer from horrendous outbreaks of disease. The most famous Greek plague was the Plague of Athens which raged for four years starting in 430 BCE. By the time it was contained, it is estimated that between 75,000 and 100,000 people had succumbed. There have been a number of theories put forward about the exact cause and scholars debate between typhoid fever, smallpox and influenza. The historian Thucydides gave such a complete description of the symptoms of the Athenian plague in his History of the Peloponnesian War, that most commentators feel that the correct answer is Typhoid Fever. Homer does not describe any specific symptoms of the Achaean plague in the Iliad, and since at least two pestilences have such remarkable identifiers that certainly would be worthy of comment by the author, we can likely rule out both Typhoid and the Bubonic Plague as the sources of the problems for the Achaeans fighting at Troy.

            The Achaean plague of the Iliad first affected mules and dogs as Homer told us. It was a disease that was zoonotic, meaning that it was capable of being passed from animals to humans. We are talking here about large animals in the transmission phase, not for example a flea bite from an infected rat. The disease showed a rapid onset and was of relatively short duration. Homer said that the pestilence raged for nine days. The mortality rate was very high and it would appear that the disease quickly ran its course. There are two specific diseases that fit these particulars and both were common in ancient Greece. The two prime candidates for the Achaean plague are Anthrax and Glanders.

            On their website, The Centers for Disease Control include the following information about Anthrax:

Anthrax is a serious disease usually caused by Bacillus anthracis bacteria. The bacteria are found naturally in soil around the world and commonly affect livestock and wild animals. People usually get sick with anthrax if they come in contact with infected animals or contaminated animal products. People can breathe in anthrax spores, eat food or drink water contaminated with spores, or get spores in a cut or scrape in the skin.

Livestock and wild animals can become infected when they breathe in, eat, or drink spores in contaminated soil, plants, or water. These animals can include cattle, sheep, goats, antelope, and deer.

The type of illness a person develops depends on how anthrax enters the body: through the skin, lungs, or gastrointestinal system. All types of anthrax can cause death if they're not treated with antibiotics.

            Glanders, also called Malleus, is not as well known as Anthrax. It is a contagious infection similar to Anthrax and affects domestic animals as well as dogs and cats and is transmissible to humans. There has not been a case of Glanders reported in North America since 1945, but historically it was a serious illness that plagued armies at war from the Middle Ages to the 1900’s. It was so contagious and deadly that attempts were made to cultivate its bacterium as a biological weapon or bioterrorism agent.

            The fact is that we will never really know the exact nature of the plague that struck the Achaeans. What is indeed more important than identifying the disease, is gaining an understanding of its significance in the story. The plague was first and foremost a divine punishment sent from the gods and not just a random virus that found its way into the human population. It was a deliberate act on the part of the divine, paying the Achaeans back for the insult that had been rendered to Apollo and his priest by Agamemnon’s refusal to return Chryseis to her father. This act of disrespect and the events that followed it, principally the seizure of Briseis, triggered the central conflict between Achilles and Agamemnon and gave birth to the wrath of Achilles, the central point upon which the entire narrative is based.

            The Greek plague is a metaphor for war and the arrows of pestilence that were shot by Apollo mirror the arrows of battle that were launched by both sides, all of which mowed down fighting warriors. The fact that the initial plague originated with the gods underscores the fact that it is always the gods who are in control and who decide the action. Men are seen as pawns of the gods and their fate has been pre-determined. The solution to the plague was religious and not military. Suitable sacrifices and prayers were offered to Apollo and he in turn, at the request of the priest Chryse, lifted the pestilence from the Achaeans. Likewise the Trojan War was concluded, not so much because of the military prowess of one side over the other, but because the various players carried out the actions that were deemed necessary by the gods to fulfill their individual pre-fated destinies.

            The plague itself served as a catalyst for the central conflict of the narrative and highlighted the themes of divine intervention, human error and the breakdown of basic human values. The devastation of the plague directly mirrors the devastation of war, both of which are powerful forces that lead to indiscriminate destruction, immense suffering and death. By positioning the plague at the very beginning of the epic, Homer set a very dark tone for the entire story and its depiction of the sorrow and pain of war. Plague, whether medical or military in nature, was the central theme of the Iliad.