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The Olympian gods were very human in their emotions and behaviors. They too experienced jealousy, envy and were vengeful and were often more irrational and unpredictable than people. A particularly good example of this is the Queen of the Gods Hera, who was vindictive, vengeful and cunning. Her relationship with her husband the King of the Gods, Zeus was turbulent, to say the least.
The King of the Olympian deities was notorious for his many sexual relationships with humans and demi-gods and he . He had many numerous children with his lovers. Hera was constantly betrayed by her husband and he made to look foolish. Hera's hatred of Zeus was justified and she sought revenge against many of his lovers.
====Who is Hera?====
Hera was possibly worshipped in Greece from early times and many , but scholars believe that she even may have had oriental Asian origins. In one archaic Greek dialect, she is known as the ‘mistress’‘mistress.’ <ref> Renehan, Robert. "Hera “Hera as Earth-Goddess: A New Piece of Evidence." ” Rheinisches Museum für Philologie 117, no. H. 3/4 (1974): 193-201</ref>. Hera was in particular associated with the Argive region and she may have been originally a local Argive God, who through a process of synchronization, became part of the Olympian Pantheon.<ref> Slater, Philip Elliot. The glory of Hera: Greek mythology and the Greek family (Princeton University Press, 2014), p. 12</ref>
[[File: Hera 3.jpg|200px|thumb|left|Bust of Zeus]]
Hera had many sanctuaries throughout Greece, and she was usually worshipped along with her husband and brother Zeus. In later Greek religion, she was the Queen of the Olympian gods and one of the 12 original Olympians. She was the deity of women. Marriage, the sky and was, closely associated with several animals, which were deemed sacred to her, such as cows <ref> Powell, Barry B. Classical Myth (London, Pearson, 2012), p. 12</ref> Her symbol was the peacock.
In several Greek traditions, Hera is more of a nature Goddess , and she was the personification of the primal power of the earth. The Romans, as a result, identified her with their Goddess Juno. According to some sources, in particular Homer, Hera is the daughter of Cronos and Rhea , and her brother was Zeus. At one time during the war between the Titans and Olympians, she was swallowed whole by her father Cronos but was later freed.<ref>Powell, p. 161</ref>
Because her brother Zeus usurped their father’s throne, she was reared by Oceanus and ThetysTethys. Zeus was madly in love with Hera, despite the fact that even though she was his sister and he . He did all everything he could to woo her , and she eventually married him. At the wedding of Zeus and his sister/wife, Hera was presented with a magical tree with golden apples. In later traditions, she is shown as the consort of Zeus , who depends on her for advice and support.
Hera was often known as the mother of the Gods. She had eight children , and seven of these were fathered by Zeus, with the exception of except for Typhoon (more on this later). Among the children she had with the King of the Gods was Ares , the God of War. Another of their children was Hephaestus, the deity of metalworking and Angelo, a goddess of the underworld. Hera was not a maternal figure , and she was not interested in justice or even morality. She even cast one of her children out of Olympus because she thought the infant was too ugly. Hera was arrogant, headstrong and vain and portrayed as a scheming cunning and manipulative wife by poets such as Homer.<ref> Beckwith, Miles C. "The' “The’ Hanging of Hera' Hera’ and the Meaning of Greek ἄκμων." ” Harvard Studies in Classical Philology (1998): 91-102</ref>.
====Why do Hera and Zeus- have a love/hate relationship?====[[File: Temple of Hera - Agrigento - Italy 2015.JPG|200px|thumb|left|A Temple of Hera in Sicily]]Hera had frequent rows with and Zeus and on several occasions, the Father of the Gods had to punish his wifefrequently clashed. The relationship between Zeus and Hera was a complex one , and the King of the Gods, did love his wife , and she loved him. However, as we will see he had a wandering eye , and Hera knew this and she . The Goddess did all she could to retain his affections. On one occasion she borrowed the girdle of Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love, and with this, she was able to briefly charm and fascinate Zeus- but only for a while . But his affection was temporary and he continued to have countless affairs. Often, she Her portrayal of Greek myths is portrayed in Greek myth often extremely negative. The myths often sought to portray her as someone who is rather ridiculous as because she tried and failed to stop Zeus' many affairs. In one story, Echo was a nymph in Greek legend, which can best be understood as who was a spirit of a forest or a body of water. She was given Zeus gave her the job of distracting Hera from Zeus many 'sexual adventures. Echo was something of a charmer and a flatterer and he she was very successful in distracting Hera for a long time. However, when Hera discovered that she was tricked and tricking her, she cursed the Echo so that she would forever only repeat the words of othersforever. This is the origin of the word echo. Despite this Hera was portrayed as a powerful Goddess and she . She rode in a chariot drawn by two horses and she had her own retinue of Gods. Despite the many portrayals adverse treatment of her as a deceived wifeHera, she was also much feared and was fervently worshipped, especially by women. Hera was the Goddess of marriage and anyone who broke their marriage vows, was thought believed to have personally insulted her and committed an act of hubris against the Goddess .<ref> Powell, p. 118</ref>. She was believed to have punished unfaithful husbands and was believed to also harm those anyone who injured those animals who that were sacred to her. The Queen of the Gods was People also believed to thought that Hera could help women in childbirth. Hera played a crucial role in the Trojan War. Because of the judgment of Paris, she hated the Trojans , and she did all she could to help the Greeks in their siege of Troy. Despite Zeus' many affairs, there is no story that survives that where Hera was unfaithful to her husband , and she was an ever-loyal if long-suffering wife .<ref> Renehan, p. 113</ref>. Not that she did not have her own admirers. When King Ixion, had the temerity to try and seduce Hera, Zeus did not take it well. The King of the Gods bound Ixion to a burning solar wheel, spinning across the heavens for all eternity.;l
==Hera and Hercules==Conclusion====Hercules is one The stories above are just some of the great heroes of incidents recounted from Greek mythology regarding Zeus infidelities and tales of his Seven Labors were very popular in the Ancient WorldHera’s vengeance. This demi-god was the son The Goddess of Zeus women, marriage, and Alcmene, who was already married when childbirth had a complex relationship with Zeus impregnated her. Hera in nearly every account hated Hercules. Not only He was she angered by Zeus’ betrayals’ but she feared that the child would eventually be the heir of the King of the Gods. In many stories, Hera hates him so much that she attempted to kill the infant, Hercules. She sent two snakes to kill the infant in frequently unfaithful and humiliated her with his cradle, but the remarkable Hercules managed to kill the snakesaffairs with mortals. Alcemne was so worried about the wrath of Hera that she abandoned her infant son on To be a slope, which Goddess and to have your husband betray you with mere mortals was a common form of infanticide in the Greek Worldinsulting. However, Athena, his half-sister Athena managed to save him and deceived Hera into thinking The fact that he Zeus was having illegitimate children was dead. Later when Hercules reached manhood and began his labors, the Queen of the Gods did all in her considerable power also a grievous insult to harm the son of Zeus. Later they were reconciled with the King Goddess of the Gods and Hercules married her daughter Hebe <ref>Powell, p. 89</ref>Marriage.
==Io and Hera==Further Reading====Another one of the more prominent affairs of Zeus was with IoHansen, who was ironically a priestess of Hera. When the Goddess heard about this she was furiousRandall, and she turned the unfortunate Io into a white cowWilliam F. Now Hera knew that Zeus would transform the white heifer back into her old female form and continue the affairHansen. She had a 100 eyed giant Argos, to keep watch on the heifer and to tell her if Zeus tried to change her back to her human form[https://www. Zeus, as cunning as ever, sent Hermes and he lulled the 100 eyed monster to sleep and killed itamazon. Io in the form of the white heifer escaped. The Queen com/gp/product/1576072266/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1576072266&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=b36bb079c0b18dd10b2365b100d13a26 Handbook of the Gods saw this and she sent a gadfly to torment the heiferclassical mythology]. Io in the form of the cow was driven halfAbc-mad by the gadfly<ref>Powell, p. 99</ref>. It was typical of the cruelty of Heraclio, who was shown in the myths to be given to fits of rage. Later when Hera had become reconciled to Zeus it seems that Io was turned back into her old form by Zeus. It is believed to have married a future King of Egypt2004.
O'Brien, Joan V. [https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0847678083/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=Further Reading0847678083&linkCode=as2&tag=Hansendailyh0c-20&linkId=881bc6b6ae4ff328c230c031651079e5 The Transformation of Hera: A study of ritual, Randallhero, and William Fthe goddess in the Iliad]. Hansen. Handbook of classical mythology. Abc-clioRowman & Littlefield, 20041993.;l