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Hercules Was Born
Hercules was born in Thebes. Also, he was the son of Zeus and Alcmena, but had said to have descended from Amphitryon who was his farmer dad. Since he was born, Hera became jealous that he wasn't her son. Hercules wouldn't have had to deal with a lot of challenges if this had not happened. -
Hercules Grasped Two Snakes When He Was a Baby
When Hercules was a baby, there were two snakes that came into his crib that he grasped and killed. When he did this, he had no fear and used his great strength. People knew after this event that he would be a very strong and skillful person. Since this event occured, Hercules was very well known, and people were very intimidated by him, -
Hercules Murders His Family
Hercules killed his family at night. He didn't know he did this because he was under Hera's spell. When he awoke, he was covered in their blood. This event caused him to be depressed. Without this, he wouldn't have thought to take his own life or achieve the twelve labors. -
Hercules Recieved The Twelve Labors
After Hercules realized that he actually killed his family, he went to Delphi. There, he received twelve labors from Eurystheus so that he would become purified from his troubles, Without receiving these labors, he would never become purified from the horrible crime he portrayed. Also, he gained a good reputation from this feat. -
Labor 1- Kill the Lion of Nemea
Hercules' first labor was to kill the lion of Nemea. He did this without using any weapons. This labor made it so that Eurystheus would not let him into his city. This also boosted Hercules' confidence so that he would be ready to conquer more labors. -
Labor 2- Kill the Hydra
The second labor that Hercules had to undergo was killing the Hydra, a nine headed creature. With the help of Iolaus, he used a burning brand to defeat the creature. After all the heads were beheaded, he buried the one immortal head under a great rock. By defeating this feat, many gods were suprised that he made it out alive. Hercules became that much stronger for he rest of his feats to come -
Labor 3- Bring Back a Stag With Horns of Gold
Hercules' third labor was to trap a stag with horns of gold from the forests of Cerynitia and bring it back. This took an entire year to do. This labor was important because it was a very difficult task and taught him a lot of lessons for capturing living creatures. -
Labor 4- Capture a Great Boar
His fourth labor was to capture a great boar from Mt. Erymanthus. To do this, he drove it into deep snow and trapped it there. This labor helped Hercules with his hunting skills. By tackling this great challenge, he was one step closer to being purified. -
Labor 5- Clean the Augean Stable
Hercules' fifth labor was to clean the Augean stables in one day. Since there was so much work to do, he got two rivers and flooded them into the stables to wash the feces away. This labor helped him use skills other than killing or using violence to succeed; he may need these skills for another labor ahead. This also made him to be less weak than if he had actually manually done this labor because he didn't have to do as much work. -
Labor 6- Drive Away the Stymphalians birds
The sixth labor was to drive away the Stymphalian birds because there were way too many of them in Stymphalus. Hercules did so with the help of Athena; she drove the birds out of their coverts so he could shoot them. This labor helped Hercules with problem solving and concentration skills that would be helpful in the future. -
Labor 7- Capture Minos' Bull
During this labor, Hercules captured Poseidon's beautiful bull ,that he gave Minos, from Crete. He somehow got the bull on a boat and all the way back to Eurystheus. This labor is important because it taught Hercules strategicness for capturing a creature. Since Hercules was taught this, he'll be able to strategize and figure out ways to stay alive when conquering more creatures in labors to come. -
Labor 8- Drive off the Man-Eating Mares of King Diomedes
The eighth labor that Hercules had to endure was getting the man-eating mares of King Diomedes in Thrace. Hercules managed to slay Diomedes by feeding him to a Mare and then drove off the mares afterward. This event once again built Hercules' confidence in defeating the labors even higher. It probably also made eager to finish the journey of labors. -
Labor 9- Bring Back the Girdle of Hippolyta
The nineth labor was to bring back the girdle from the Queen of Amazons, Hippolyta. Hera convinced the Amazons that Hercules was going to carry off the qeen. Hercules ended up killing Qeen Hippolyta, fighting the others, and got away with the girdle. This labor really helped Hercules to be able to think on his feet which would be really helpful with defeating great labors about to be brought about just like many of the other labors he had persued. -
Labor 10- Bring Back the Cattle of Geryon
Hercules was to bring back the cattle of Geryon, a three headed monster that lived on Erythia, to Mycenae. On his trip to go do this, he set up a memorial that recognized his journey that consisted of two great rocks known as the Pillars of Hercules. Afterward, he successfully brought the cattle to Mycenae. This event made Hercules become very proud for how far he had gotten in the completion of the twelve labors and furthermore encouraged him to finish the journey. -
Labor 11 Bring Back the Golden Apples of the Hesperides
The eleventh labor was for Hercules to bring back the golden apples of Hesperides though he had no idea where they were. He convinced Atlas to go get the golden apples for him in return for holding the sky. Hercules eventually got him to take the sky back, and he ran away with the apples. This labor was the hardest labor to fulfill because it involved physical and mental strength which got him prepared for the last and final feat. -
Labor 12- Bring Ceberus Up From Hades
The final, last labor was for Hercules to bring Ceberus, the three-headed dog, up from Hades with only his hands. Hercules brough Ceberus up to Mycenae but had to take him back down because Eurystheus didn't want such a creature. This labor made Hercules a purified person and completed his journey of labors so that he would not have to suffer anymore. -
The Conquest Of Antaeus
After Hercules conquered the twelve labors, his life was not fully tranquil; he was to conquer the Antaeus, a Giant and mighty wrestler who forced strangers to wrestle him. He held him up in the air and strangled him easily. Before this defeat, people believed conquering Antaeus was impossible. By proving them wrong, Hercules gained a lot of respect from many people, and he realized that the quests in his future are never ending. -
Hercules Fights The River God
Hercules fought the River God Achelous because he was in love with the girl that Hercules wanted to marry. He went to go fight for her hand in marriage, but Achelous turned into a bull and attacked him. Hercules conquered Achleous easily and broke of one of his horns. Because of this event, Hercules was able to marry the young princess Deianira and became very proud of himself. -
Hercules Rescuses Maiden At Troy
Hercules traveled to Troy and rescued King Laomedon's daughter while she was waiting on the shore to be devoured by a sea monster. Hercules agreed to rescue her only if her father would give him the horses Zeus had given his grandfather. Laomedon promised to give Hercules his requests, but after Hercules defeated the monster, he would not pay. Hercules then captured the city, gave his maiden to his friend, and became that much more of a great hero. -
Hercules Dies
After Hercules put on the robe in which Deianaira sent him as a love charm, he became tortured with a burning sensation and could not die causing Deianaira to kill herself. Since death couldn't come to Hercules, he got a pyre to be built on Mt. Oeta and stood in the fire which eventually killed him. He then went to heaven and married Hebe, Hera's daughter. The importance of this event in the story is that it concludes how Hercules went through many difficult challenges, even up to his dying day.
