HERCULES

Hercules is the Roman name for the Greek hero Herakles, the most popular figure from

ancient Greek mythology. Hercules was the son of Zeus, king of the gods, and the

mortal woman Alcmene. Zeus, who was always chasing one woman or another, took on

the form of Alcmene's husband, Amphitryon, and visited Alcmene one night in her bed,

and so Hercules was born a demi-god with incredible strength and stamina. He

performed amazing feats, including wrestling death and traveling twice to the

underworld, and his stories were told throughout Greece and later in Rome, yet his life

was far from easy from the moment of his birth, and his relationships with others were

often disastrous. This was because Hera, the wife of Zeus, knew that Hercules was her

husband's illegitimate son and sought to destroy him. In fact, he was born with the name

Alcaeus and later took the name Herakles, meaning "Glory of Hera", signifying that he

would become famous through his difficulties with the goddess. 

1. Early Life

2. Hera’s Revenge

3. The Heroic Labors of Hercules

4. Immortality

Hercules (known in Greek as Heracles or Herakles) is one of the best-known heroes in

Greek and Roman mythology. His life was not easy–he endured many trials and

completed many daunting tasks–but the reward for his suffering was a promise that he

would live forever among the gods at Mount Olympus.

Hercules had a complicated family tree. According to legend, his father was Zeus, ruler

of all the gods on Mount Olympus and all the mortals on earth, and his mother was

Alcmene, the granddaughter of the hero Perseus. (Perseus, who was also said to be

one of Zeus’ sons, famously beheaded the snake-haired Gorgon Medusa.)

Did you know? The constellation Hercules is the fifth-largest one in the sky.

Hera’s Revenge

Hercules had enemies even before he was born. When Zeus’ wife Hera heard that her

husband’s mistress was pregnant, she flew into a jealous rage. First, she used her

supernatural powers to prevent the baby Hercules from becoming the ruler of Mycenae.

(Though Zeus had declared that his son would inherit the Mycenaean kingdom, Hera’s

meddling meant that another baby boy, the feeble Eurystheus, became its leader

instead.) Then, after Hercules was born, Hera sent two snakes to kill him in his crib. The

infant Hercules was unusually strong and fearless, however, and he strangled the

snakes before they could strangle him.

But Hera kept up her dirty tricks. When her stepson was a young adult, she cast a kind

of spell on him that drove him temporarily insane and caused him to murder his beloved

wife and their two children. Guilty and heartbroken, Hercules tracked down Apollo, the
god of truth and healing (and another of Zeus’ sons), and begged to be punished for

what he had done.

The Heroic Labors of Hercules

Apollo understood that Hercules’ crime had not been his fault—Hera’s vengeful actions

were no secret—but still he insisted that the young man make amends. He ordered

Hercules to perform 12 “heroic labors” for the Mycenaen king Eurystheus. Once

Hercules completed every one of the labors, Apollo declared, he would be absolved of

his guilt and achieve immortality.

The Nemean Lion

First, Apollo sent Hercules to the hills of Nemea to kill a lion that was terrorizing the

people of the region. (Some storytellers say that Zeus had fathered this magical beast

as well.) Hercules trapped the lion in its cave and strangled it. For the rest of his life, he

wore the animal’s pelt as a cloak.

The Lernaean Hydra

Second, Hercules traveled to the city of Lerna to slay the nine-headed Hydra—a

poisonous, snake-like creature who lived underwater, guarding the entrance to the

Underworld. For this task, Hercules had the help of his nephew Iolaus. He cut off each

of the monster’s heads while Iolaus burned each wound with a torch. This way, the pair

kept the heads from growing back.The Golden HindNext, Hercules set off to capture the

sacred pet of the goddess Diana: a red deer, or hind, with golden antlers and bronze

hooves. Eurystheus had chosen this task for his rival because he believed that Diana
would kill anyone she caught trying to steal her pet; however, once Hercules explained

his situation to the goddess, she allowed him to go on his way without punishment.

The Erymanthean Boar

Fourth, Hercules used a giant net to snare the terrifying, man-eating wild boar of Mount

Erymanthus.

The Augean StablesHercules’ fifth task was supposed to be humiliating as well as

impossible: cleaning all the dung out of King Augeas’ enormous stables in a single day.

However, Hercules completed the job easily, flooding the barn by diverting two nearby

rivers.

The Stymphlaian Birds

Hercules’ sixth task was straightforward: Travel to the town of Stymphalos and drive

away the huge flock of carnivorous birds that had taken up residence in its trees. This

time, it was the goddess Athena who came to the hero’s aid: She gave him a pair of

magical bronze krotala, or noisemakers, forged by the god Hephaistos. Hercules used

these tools to frighten the birds away.

The Cretan Bull

Next, Hercules went to Crete to capture a rampaging bull that had impregnated the wife

of the island’s king. (She later gave birth to the Minotaur, a creature with a man’s body

and a bull’s head.) Hercules drove the bull back to Eurystheus, who released it into the

streets of Marathon.
The Horses of Diomedes

Hercules’ eighth challenge was to capture the four man-eating horses of the Thracian

king Diomedes. He brought them to Eurystheus, who dedicated the horses to Hera and

set them free.

Hippolyte’s Belt

The ninth labor was complicated: stealing an armored belt that belonged to the Amazon

queen Hippolyte. At first, the queen welcomed Hercules and agreed to give him the belt

without a fight. However, the troublemaking Hera disguised herself as an Amazon

warrior and spread a rumor that Hercules intended to kidnap the queen. To protect their

leader, the women attacked the hero’s fleet; then, fearing for his safety, Hercules killed

Hippolyte and ripped the belt from her body.

The Cattle of Geryon

For his 10th labor, Hercules was dispatched nearly to Africa to steal the cattle of the

three-headed, six-legged monster Geryon. Once again, Hera did all she could to

prevent the hero from succeeding, but eventually he returned to Mycenae with the

cows.

The Apples of Hesperides

Next, Eurystheus sent Hercules to steal Hera’s wedding gift to Zeus: a set of golden

apples guarded by a group of nymphs known as the Hesperides. This task was difficult

—Hercules needed the help of the mortal Prometheus and the god Atlas to pull it off—

but the hero eventually managed to run away with the apples. After he showed them to

the king, he returned them to the gods’ garden where they belonged.
Cerberus

For his final challenge, Hercules traveled to Hades to kidnap Cerberus, the vicious

three-headed dog that guarded its gates. Hercules managed to capture Cerberus by

using his superhuman strength to wrestle the monster to the ground. Afterward, the dog

returned unharmed to his post at the entrance to the Underworld.

Immortality

Later in his life, Hercules had a number of other adventures—rescuing the princess of

Troy, battling for control of Mount Olympus—but none were as taxing, or as significant,

as the labors had been. When he died, Athena carried him to Olympus on her chariot.

According to legend, he spent the rest of eternity with the gods.