Hercules is a Latin form of his real name which is actually “Heracles”. That was the Greek form of his name. His dad was a God and actually his dad is Zeus. His mom was a mortal. Her name was Hera and she became jealous of Heracles. She sent two snakes to kill him while he was sleeping in his crib. He was found with two strange serpents in each hand. He had already proved himself with a bow and arrow and he possessed super-human strength. He was a champion wrestler.

Heracles was driven mad by Hera. He went into a frenzy and killed his own children. He was punished by being sentenced to perform a series of labors for his cousin Eurystheus. Heracles should have been king, but Hera had tricked her husband, Zeus, into crowning Eurystheus instead.

His first task was to kill The Nemean Lion. It was hard because The Nemean Lion was more of a monster than an ordinary lion. It’s skin could not be penetrated by spears or arrows. Heracles blocked off the entry to the lion’s cave.Heracles killed the lion with his bare hands. After, he wore the lion’s skin as a cloak and it’s jaws as a helmet. King Eurystheus was afraid when he saw Heracles come back with the lion around his shoulders. King Eurystheus hid in a storage jar he was so afraid.

For Heracles’ next task he had to kill a hydra. He went to the swamp of Lerna where they had been. They had trouble counting how many heads it had. Some said eight  and  others said nine. Everone knew that when one head had been chopped off two more took it’s place. It’s breath was lethal. Smelling it’s footprints can kill a mortal. Heracles was no mortal. Heracles went into the hydra’s cave and made it come out into the open with flaming arrows. The hydra tied it’s many heads around Heracles and tried to trip him up. The hydra called an ally. It was a huge crab that also lived in the swamp. The crab bit Heracles in the heel. Heracles was on the edge of failure, when he remembered his nephew, Iolaus, the son of his twin brother Iphicles. Iolaus could bear no longer so he dashed to Heracles with a flaming torch. Heracles cut off the heads then Iolaus burned the wounds. Heracles buried the hydra (which was supposed to be immortal) under a rock.

For Heracles third labor he had to capture the Cerynitian Hind. This female deer was a beast. It had golden horns and was sacred to Artemis (Goddess of the Hunt). Heracles did not want to wound it at all. He hunted it for a whole year before he could get into the banks of the River Ladon in Arcadia. He took careful aim and shot the arrow between the bones of the two forelegs. He pinned it down without a drop of blood to be found. Artemis was not pleased with this. Heracles dodged her flaming wrath by blaming his taskmaster, Eurystheus.

His fourth labor he had to capture the Erymanthian Boar. While he was tracking it down he stopped by the centaur Pholus, half-horse and half-man. He was examining one of Heracles arrows had accidentally dropped it on his foot and with the venom of the hydra on it, he dropped to the floor right away. Heracles located the boar on Mount Erymanthus. He made it go into a snow-bank and the boar could not move. Heracles put  it on his shoulder and took it to Eurystheus. Eurystheus ran into the storage jar again.

For his fifth labor he had to clean out the stalls of King Augeas. Eurystheus was sure that Heracles would humiliate him. King Augeas possessed vast herds and it has not been cleaned in a while. The aroma hung over the whole entire Peloponnesus. Heracles had to divide the river through the stable yard. He did it without getting dirty. Heracles got payment from Augeas. Eurystheus didn’t count this as a labor.

His next task was to kill the Stymphalian birds. They were in Lake Stymphalus. He could not approach them directly because these birds feasted on human flesh. These birds traveled in a large number of birds, so it was hard for Heracles. The ground was muddy and wet, so Heracles would sink. He could not fight them right then and there. He managed to bring them up and he would bring them down, one by one with his arrows.

After, he had to kill the Cretan Bull. Queen Pasiphae fell in love with the bull. The result was half man and half bull. It was a Minotaur. The bull belched flames, but Heracles over powered it and shiped it off to the mainland and now another hero would have to worry about it.

For his next labor Heracles had to bring Eurystheus the mares of Diomedes. They would eat human flesh. Heracles fed them their master’s bones. Heracles rounded them up and sent them down to the sea. He showed them to Eurystheus and then let them go. Then, they were eaten by wild animals on Mount Olympus.

Now he had to get the belt of Eurystheus’ daughter. Heracles got a lot of other people to help him on his journey. Hippolyte (Queen of the Amazon) gave Heracles her belt, but Hera wasn’t going to let that happen so easily. Hera spread rumors about the greeks. That they had kidnapped their queen and then there was a battle. Heracles made off with the belt.

Heracles had to now steal the Cattle of Geryon. This animal had three heads. Orthrus was the watchdog with two heads. The guard dog ran straight to Heracles because Heracles was taking the cattle. Heracles killed the watchdog in a single arrow. Heracles took the cattle back to Greece.

Next, Heracles had to get the Apples of Hesperides. They were Hera’s apples and she got them as a wedding present. They were gaurded by Ladon which was a many headed dragon. Heracles was told he would never get the apples without Atlas(Titan or first generation God). Atlas agreed and he told Heracles to hold the pillar, while Atlas gets the apples. Heracles had to kill the many headed dragon. Heracles did it and got the apples. He went back to Greece.

For his last labor he had to bring Cerberus up from Hades. Heracles had to go down the Styx. The boatman had to give Heracles a ride, but he wouldn’t  because Heracles wasn’t dead. The boatman was mad. Heracles made him take across the river. Heracles was wearing the lion skin and he ran into this weird mutated monster that he killed. Heracles found Cerberus and subdued him back to Greece where his final labor was accomplished.

Heracles shot this centaur and before he died he told his wife to take some of his blood and make a love potion and she did. She took part of his tunic and it had the hydra venom.

Heracles was the only person to become a full-god in the afterlife. He had heroic standards. He had a home on Mount Olympus and a goddess for a wife. He saw his father a lot more and his mortal mother, Alcmene.