What was the Trojan War?
The Trojan war was a war between Mycenaean Greece and Troy and it was believed to have been legend till archeologists found the remains of an empire that seemed to have been overrun around 1,180 B.C. and it may have formed the basis for Homer's tales in the "Iliad" and "Odyssey".
How did the war start and end?
The war began when the Trojan prince Paris abducted Helen, wife to Menelaus and ended with the Greeks infiltrating Troy using a Trojan horse that was brought in, they crept out of the horse and opened the gates for the rest to enter and so Troy was destroyed.
Who were the major players in the war?
Major players in the Trojan war were Paris who abducted Helen, Achilles whom sadly died before they fought Troy, Odysseus hero to the Greeks, Menelaus husband to Helen,Agamemnon who was leader of the Greeks, and Nestor who participated in the war he had wisdom, eloquence, and bravery he was of old age.
Who was Homer?
Homer was a Greek poet who wrote the "Iliad" and "Odyssey" both were epic's that followed the strange journeys of men. Very little is known about Homer he's most famous for the epics he wrote.
How does the Odyssey relate to it?
The Odyssey relates to the Trojan war since during the story Odysseus fights the cicones who were allies to Troy, during the journey Odysseus and his crew raided the cicones and retreated so as to not lose and sacrifice many men.
Sources used
http://www.biography.com/people/homer-9342775#synopsis
https://sites.google.com/a/fairfieldsfuture.org/trojanwarrox/important-people-from-the-war-from-trojans-to-the-greeks
http://www.classics.upenn.edu/myth/php/homer/index.php?page=trojan
http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/entertainment/trojan-war.html