The long-suffering supreme queen of Olympus, she’s also a Goddess of Marriage and Birth, which is somewhat ironic considering that her notoriously unfaithful husband Zeus produced an incredible number of illicit offspring with an entire pantheon of lovely ladies.

If he wasn’t liaising with Leto and Leda, he was getting friendly with Danae, Themis or Mnemosyne — all behind Hera’s back. He used every trick in the book to mislead and divert her away from his affairs. See our entry on Echo for an example.

Although as regal as they come, Hera is not the most Godly of Goddesses. She can be spiteful, vicious and extremely jealous, but who can blame her with all the carrying-on Zeus did? Their arguments and fighting make Mount Olympus shake to its roots. And when Hera starts throwing the Holy Crockery you know it’s time to make a rapid exit.

Even Zeus is scared of his formidable wife. After seeing what she did to his illegitimate son Heracles we can understand why. The one time he managed to get the better of her by force, by chaining her to a mountain with horrifically heavy weights, Zeus didn’t hear the end of the matter for centuries. No wonder he spends most of his time delayed at the office.

We have to admire Hera’s strength and determination. She certainly gives as good as she gets. And if you’re lucky enough to be in her good books, she can be wonderfully gracious and charming. But she’s best avoided at parties unless you happen to be carrying a sacred pomegranate in your pocket.

Article last revised on September 05, 2018 by Rowan Allen.
Editors: Peter J. Allen, Chas Saunders

References: Coming soon.

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