The Amazons

The Twelve Labors of Hercules

Hercules was a mythic hero in Greek mythology, his endeavors brought him from being a mortal into the realm of immortal. Hercules, the son of Zeus, and was born from a union between Zues and Alcmena (a mortal).Hercules was forced to perform twelve labors because after Hera smited him with a fit of insane rage, he killed his wife Megara, and his children. After this act, Hercules exiled himself and sought out the Pythia (Delphian priestess), at Delphi. The oracle at Delphi instructed Hercules to spend time as a servant to Eurystheus, in Tyrins. Eurystheus sent Hercules to commit to twelve labors in order to purge/cleanse himself from the murder of his wife and children.

Hercules' twelve labors were as follows:

Slay the Nemean Lion

Slay the Hydra of Lerna

Capture the Cernthis Hind

Trap the Erymanthian Boar

Clean the Augean Stables

Get rid of the man eating Stymphalian Birds

Capture the Cretan Bull

Capture the cannibalistic horses of Diomedes

Capture Hippolyte's Girdle (Hippolyte was the queen of the Amazons)

Capture the Cattle of Geyron.

Slay the Dragon which guarded the apples of Hesperides.

Capture Cerebus the three headed dog.

The capturing of Hippolyte's girdle takes on a great importance concerning the Amazons. Hippolyte possessed a golden girdle given to her by Ares (god of war), Some sources say that Hercules raped Hippolyte in order to take the girdle, but other sources say she gave it willfully. In either case, whether the Hercules took is forcefully or not, the other Amazon's retaliated against Hercules. Hercules battled with the Amazons until none were left, and within modern Greece this event served to explain why there were no Amazons in the Black Sea region when the Greeks arrived to the area in 650 BC (for trade mostly the actual date remains sketchy).