Hercules was both the most famous hero of antiquity and the most beloved. Hercules was worshipped in many temples throughout Greece and Rome.
There are as many different versions of Hercules' life story as there are storytellers.
Hercules' father Zeus was the most powerful of the gods. This meant that Zeus could do anything he wanted, but it also meant that sometimes Zeus wasn’t a very good husband to his wife, Hera, the queen of the gods.
Zeus fell in love with a beautiful Greek woman named Alcmene . When Alcmene’s husband, Amphitryon, was away, Zeus impregnated her. This enraged Hera so much that she tried to prevent the child from being born. When Alcmene nevertheless gave birth to the baby, she named him Heracles. The name Heracles means "Hera’s splendid gift" in Greek, and this enrages Hera even more. She then tried to kill the baby by sending snakes into his crib. But little Hercules was a strong child, and he strangled the snakes, holding one in each hand, before they could bite him.
Hera remained angry. How could she take revenge? Hera knew she would lose the battle, and she was not powerful enough to stop Zeus from having his way. Hera decided to make Zeus pay for his infidelity and make the rest of Hercules' life as miserable as possible
When Hercules grew up and became a great warrior, he married Megara. They had two children. Hercules and Megara were…
