This was too great an embarrassment for her to ignore, and so in an attempt to kill Hercules, she sent two snakes into his crib. Zeus chuckled to himself and bought Hercules back to earth, placing him in a crib next to his mother. This milk would settle out in space, becoming known as the ‘Milky Way.’Ĭomic illustration of Baby Hercules and two snakes Startled, Hera woke up and threw the baby off her chest with milk spraying across the heavens. As she was sleeping, Zeus placed the infant on Hera’s breast, where Hercules was able to feed on the goddess’s milk-stealing some of her divine power for himself. After Hercules was born, Zeus brought him up to Hera’s bed chamber on Olympus. While Zeus could do nothing about his son’s lost kingdom, he did manage to get his own revenge on Hera. As Eurystheus had been born just mere seconds before Hercules, he had become the next descendant of Perseus with Zeus being forced to give him the kingship instead. When Hercules was about to be born, she used her magic to delay the birth, while also speeding up the birth of another descendant of Perseus. When Zeus swore an oath to give kingship to the next descendant of Perseus, thinking it would be his son Hercules, Hera saw an opportunity to get revenge on her husband. In the past, she had sat idle while Zeus had fathered many illegitimate children, but this time she had finally had enough. Little did he know that his wife, Hera, the queen of the gods had been watching these events unfold. While her husband was at war, Zeus impregnated Alcmene planning to make his son the next great king of Greece. As she was a descendant of the famous hero, Perseus. Zeus then chose the beautiful Alcmene to be the mother of Hercules. This hero was to be Heracles-later known as Hercules to the Romans. A hero had to rise! A hero that he would father, who could unite the people and liberate the world of these terrible monsters. It was ravaged by war and ferocious beasts prowled the land. Nessus would eventually get his revenge by tricking Heracles’ wife, Deianira, into giving the hero a poisoned robe, bringing his eventful life to an abrupt and painful end.Īs Zeus, the king of the gods sat on his throne on Mount Olympus, he looked down upon the troubled land of Greece. However, although Heracles lived an amazing life full of adventure, he would ultimately suffer an agonising death.Īfter causing the death of the centaurs Pholus and Chiron, he would make an enemy of the centaur Nessus. And his wits would be tested when he was tasked with cleaning the filthy Augean Stables in a single day.Īfter his Labours, Heracles would continue his heroic journey, setting up the Olympic Games as well as joining Jason and the Argonauts on their quest for the Golden Fleece. His strength would be pushed to the limit when he offered to hold up the sky for the Titan Atlas, on his journey to retrieve the Golden Apples of the Hesperides. From Artemis’ Ceryneian Hind and King Minos’ Cretan Bull (the father of the Minotaur) to the guardian of the Underworld itself, the three-headed dog Cerberus, who was sacred to Hades. But his labours would also require him to travel to distant lands, to capture animals that King Eurystheus wanted to observe. His labours were the ultimate test of strength and skill. Steal the Golden Apples of the Hesperides.Obtain the Belt of Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons.The 12 Labours of Hercules/Heracles are as follows: The Oracle informed him that he would have to carry out 12 Labours in penance, under the service of King Eurystheus of Mycenae. Using her magic, she made Heracles kill his family, forcing him to visit the Oracle of Delphi to seek redemption. ![]() However, one Olympian, the goddess Hera, hated him before he was even born and strived to make his life as difficult as possible. He was favoured by many gods of Olympus, including Athena, Apollo, and Hermes. The son of Zeus and a descendant of Perseus, Heracles was destined to be a great Hero. The 12 Labours of Hercules/Heracles are some of the most impressive tales in Greek Mythology. Brief Summary to the 12 Labours of Hercules in Greek Mythology To the Romans, he was known as Heracules, and they added various encounters in Italy to his already large cycle of adventures, otherwise popularly known as the labours of Hercules. HERACLES, the son of ZEUS and ALCEME, was the greatest of all the Greek heroes. The Death of Hercules Who is Hercules in Greek Mythology?.Labour Eleven: The Golden Apples of the Hesperides.Labour Nine: The Girdle of Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons.Brief Summary to the 12 Labours of Hercules in Greek Mythology.
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