Achilles was the most handsome, capable and worthy of all the heroes that participated in the Trojan War.

Achilles was born in Farsala in southern Thessaly (Central Greece) as the son of Peleus, the King of Pithia in Thessaly, and the Nereid Thetis.

When Achilles was born, his mother Thetis attempted to make him immortal by dipping him in the sacred waters of the river Styx. While she was immersing her infant from the water, she was holding him by one heel so this heel remained dry, leaving a vulnerable spot on Achilles' body. This weakness turned out to be crucial for Achilles, since he got killed during the Trojan War by an arrow of Paris that hit exactly that spot.