King Priam Priam to be killed by Neoptolemus, Achilles' son. Troy is in ruins. Priam refuses to leave his city, and one by one his family leaves him. His last farewell is with Helen, to whom he speaks gently. There is a moment of stillness before Achilles' son appears to strike the killing blow and Hermes, the drama over, departs for Olympus. King Priam King Priam is an opera by Michael Tippett, to his own libretto. The story is based on Homer's "Iliad", except the birth and childhood of Paris, which are taken from the "Fabulae" of Hyginus. The premiere was on
Classical Anatolia and was appointed to be the local satrap as had been his father Orontes II (336–331 BC). With the death of Alexander and subsequent division of the empire in 323 BC, Armenia was granted to Neoptolemus (323–321 BC). Neoptolemus, however, conspired and was killed in battle with Eumenes in 321 BC. With the subsequent fall of Eumenes, Mithrenes re-assumed power (321–317 BC) and declared himself king. He was succeeded by Orontes III (317–260 BC) and relative stability apart from his unsuccessful struggles with the minor kingdom of Sophene on his south-western frontier. During this time the capital was moved from