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→The story of Hera
The King of the Olympian deities was notorious for his many sexual relationships with humans and demi-gods and he had many 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.
==The story of ==Who is Hera?====Hera was possibly worshipped in Greece from early times and many believe that she even had oriental origins. In one archaic Greek dialect, she is known as the ‘mistress’<ref> Renehan, Robert. "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>. 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 Thetys. Zeus was madly in love with Hera, despite the fact that she was his sister and he did all 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. In total Hera had eight children and seven of these were fathered by Zeus, with the exception of 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 and manipulative wife by poets such as Homer <ref> Beckwith, Miles C. "The' Hanging of Hera' and the Meaning of Greek ἄκμων." Harvard Studies in Classical Philology (1998): 91-102</ref>.;l
[[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 Thetys. Zeus was madly in love with Hera, despite the fact that she was his sister and he did all 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 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 and manipulative wife by poets such as Homer.<ref> Beckwith, Miles C. "The' Hanging of Hera' and the Meaning of Greek ἄκμων." Harvard Studies in Classical Philology (1998): 91-102</ref>.;l
==Hera and Zeus- a love/hate relationship==
Hera had frequent rows with Zeus and on several occasions, the Father of the Gods had to punish his wife. 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 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 charm and fascinate Zeus- but only for a while and he continued to have countless affairs. Often, she is portrayed in Greek myth as someone who is rather ridiculous as she tried and failed to stop Zeus' many affairs. Echo was a nymph in Greek legend, which can best be understood as a spirit of a forest or a body of water. She was given the job distracting Hera from Zeus many sexual adventures. Echo was something of a charmer and a flatterer and he was very successful for a long time. However, Hera discovered that she was tricked and cursed the Echo so that she would forever only repeat the words of others. This is the origin of the word echo. Despite this Hera was a powerful Goddess and she rode in a chariot drawn by two horses and she had her own retinue of Gods. Despite the many portrayals of her as a deceived wife, 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 to have 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 who injured those animals who were sacred to her. The Queen of the Gods was also believed to 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 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 to a burning solar wheel, spinning across the heavens for all eternity.;l
