Hera was fiercely jealous of Zeus's lovers and children and pursued them mercilessly. When the goddess Herat discovered that Zeus had seduced Alcmena and fathered Hercules, she was furious.

Concerned that Amphitryon did not remember being with Alcmena on both nights, the couple consulted the blind prophet Tiresias, who told them that Zeus had slept with Alcmena the first night and predicted that she would bear a child who would become a great hero.Īlcmena bore twin boys -Hercules, the son of Zeus, and Iphicles, the son of Amphitryon. The next day, the real Amphitryon returned and slept with his wife. One night while Amphitryon was away, Zeus came to Alcmena disguised as her husband. Hercules was the son of Zeus* and Alcmena, the wife of Amphitryon, a distinguished Greek warrior and heir to the throne of Tiryns. In Greek mythology, only two figures with half-mortal, half-immortal parentage -Hercules and Dionysus -became fully immortal and were worshiped as gods.īirth and Early Life. Only supernatural forces could defeat him, and it was magic that ended his mortal life. When the fury passed, though, Hercules was full of sorrow and guilt for what he had done and ready to accept any punishment for his misdeeds.

Easily angered, his sudden outbursts of rage often harmed innocent bystanders. Hercules (called Heracles by the Greeks) was not blessed with great intelligence, but his bravery made up for any lack of cunning. Besides tremendous physical strength, he had great self-confidence and considered himself equal to the gods. The greatest of all heroes in Greek mythology, Hercules was the strongest man on earth.

Hercules The Son of Zeus Scene