in Grecian Story, the most valiant foe that the Greeks had to encounter in the siege of Troy. He was the eldest son of Priam and Hecuba, and of all the Trojan chiefs was the wisest in counsel and the bravest in the field. During the whole continuance of the siege he was the bulwark of his country, devotedly meeting all risks, and bravely encountering all odds. He slew some of the most distinguished leaders of the Grecian host, and fought on equal terms with Menelaus, Ajax, Diomede, and others. His last exploit was his conquest of Patroclus, the friend of Achilles, whom he slew and stript of his armour. The death of Patroclus roused Achilles from the lethargic indifference which he had maintained since he had been insulted by Agamemnon. He sought out the slayer of his friend, and Hector fell in the encounter. His victorious foe dragged his corpse three times round the walls of Troy; but the body was preserved from injury by the gods. Some of the scenes in which Hector takes part are among the finest in the Iliad. Such are his interview with his brother Paris, and afterwards with his wife Andromache and his son Scamandrius at the Scæan gate (book vi.); his final combat with Achilles; and after his death, the interview of his aged father with that chief concerning the ransom of the slain hero's body. The Iliad closes with the description of the funeral rites and games in his honour.