In Greek mythology, Hercules was the strongest hero who ever lived. The legend says he was set twelve nearly impossible challenges as punishment for a terrible mistake. These quests were called the Twelve Labors, and they ranged from monster-hunting to errands in the underworld.
His first labor was killing the Nemean lion, a beast whose skin was so tough no weapon could pierce it. The story goes that Hercules strangled it with his bare hands, then wore its hide as armor. Later labors had him catching a giant boar, stealing magic apples, and capturing Cerberus, the three-headed guard dog of the underworld.
The ancient Greeks actually called him Heracles - meaning “glory of Hera” (an ironic name, since the goddess Hera hated him). “Hercules” is the Latin version that the Romans used when they adopted him into their own mythology. He was supposed to be half-god, half-human - his father was said to be Zeus himself. The Romans liked him so much that “Hercules” stuck around as the more famous name today.
