'''Hercules''' is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. Early Roman sources suggest that the imported Greek hero supplanted a mythic Italic shepherd called "Recaranus" or "Garanus", famous for his strength who dedicated the Ara Maxima that became associated with the earliest Roman cult of Hercules. While adopting much of the Greek Heracles' iconography and mythology as his own. As in ancient Greek myths about Heracles, Hercules was best known for his god-like strength and "Twelve Labors."

The Romans adapted the Greek hero's iconography and myths for their literature and art under the name Hercules. In later Western art and literature and in popular culture, Hercules is more commonly used than Heracles as the name of the hero. Hercules is a multifaceted figure with contradictory characteristics, which enabled later artists and writers to pick and choose how to represent him.

In Roman mythology, although Hercules was seen as the champion of the weak and a great protector, his personal problems started at birth. Juno sent two witches to prevent the birth, but they were tricked by one of Alcmene's servants and sent to another room. Juno then sent serpents to kill him in his cradle, but Hercules strangled them both. In one version of the myth, Alcmene abandoned her baby in the woods in order to protect him from Juno's wrath, but he was found by the goddess Minerva who brought him to Juno, claiming he was an orphan child left in the woods who needed nourishment. Juno suckled Hercules at her own breast until the infant bit her nipple, at which point she pushed him away, spilling her milk across the night sky and so forming the Milky Way. She then gave the infant back to Minerva and told her to take care of the baby herself. In feeding the child from her own breast, the goddess inadvertently imbued him with further strength and power.

The Latin name Hercules was borrowed through Etruscan, where it is represented variously as Heracle, Hercle, and other forms. Hercules was a favorite subject for Etruscan art, and appears often on bronze mirrors. The Etruscan form Herceler derives from the Greek Heracles via syncope. A mild oath invoking Hercules (Hercule! or Mehercle!) was a common interjection in Classical Latin.

Hercules had a number of myths that were distinctly Roman. One of these is Hercules' defeat of Cacus, who was terrorizing the countryside of Rome. The hero was associated with the Aventine Hill through his son Aventinus. Mark Antony considered him a personal patron god, as did the emperor Commodus. Hercules received various forms of religious veneration, including as a deity concerned with children and childbirth, in part because of myths about his precocious infancy, and in part because he fathered countless children. Roman brides wore a special belt tied with the "knot of Hercules", which was supposed to be hard to untie. The comic playwright Plautus presents the myth of Hercules' conception as a sex comedy in his play Amphitryon; Seneca wrote the tragedy Hercules Furens about his bout with madness. During the Roman Imperial era, Hercules was worshipped locally from Hispania through Gaul.

Tacitus records a special affinity of the Germanic peoples for Hercules. Some have taken this as Tacitus equating the Germanic Þunraz with Hercules by way of interpretatio romana.

In the Roman era Hercules' Club amulets appear from the 2nd to 3rd century, distributed over the empire (including Roman Britain, cf. Cool 1986), mostly made of gold, shaped like wooden clubs. A specimen found in Köln-Nippes bears the inscription "DEO HER", confirming the association with Hercules.

In the 5th to 7th centuries, during the Migration Period, the amulet is theorized to have rapidly spread from the Elbe Germanic area across Europe. These Germanic "Donar's Clubs" were made from deer antler, bone or wood, more rarely also from bronze or precious metals. The amulet type is replaced by the Viking Age Thor's hammer pendants in the course of the Christianization of Scandinavia from the 8th to 9th century.

After the Roman Empire became Christianized, mythological narratives were often reinterpreted as allegory, influenced by the philosophy of late antiquity. In the 4th century, Servius had described Hercules' return from the underworld as representing his ability to overcome earthly desires and vices, or the earth itself as a consumer of bodies. In medieval mythography, Hercules was one of the heroes seen as a strong role model who demonstrated both valor and wisdom, while the monsters he battles were regarded as moral obstacles. One glossator noted that when Hercules became a constellation, he showed that strength was necessary to gain entrance to Heaven.

Medieval mythography was written almost entirely in Latin, and original Greek texts were little used as sources for Hercules' myths.

The Renaissance and the invention of the printing press brought a renewed interest in and publication of Greek literature. Renaissance mythography drew more extensively on the Greek tradition of Heracles, typically under the Romanized name Hercules, or the alternate name Alcides. In a chapter of his book Mythologiae (1567), the influential mythographer Natale Conti collected and summarized an extensive range of myths concerning the birth, adventures, and death of the hero under his Roman name Hercules.

In 1600, the citizens of Avignon bestowed on Henry of Navarre (the future King Henry IV of France) the title of the Hercule Gaulois ("Gallic Hercules"), justifying the extravagant flattery with a genealogy that traced the origin of the House of Navarre to a nephew of Hercules' son Hispalus.

There is evidence of Hercules worship in myth in the Latin epic poem, the Aeneid. In the 8th book of the poem Aeneas finally reaches the future site of Rome, where he meets Evander and the Arcadians making sacrifices to Hercules on the banks of the Tiber river. They share a feast, and Evander tells the story of how Hercules defeated the monster Cascus, and describes him as a triumphant hero. Translated from the Latin text of Vergil, Evander stated: "Time brought to us in our time of need the aid and arrival of a god. For there came that mightiest avenger, the victor Hercules, proud with the slaughter and the spoils of threefold Geryon, and he drove the mighty bulls here, and the cattle filled both valley and riverside.

Hercules was also mentioned in the Fables of Gaius Julius Hyginus. For example, in his fable about Philoctetes he tells the story of how Philoctetes built a funeral pyre for Hercules so his body could be consumed and raised to immortality.

When Billy Batson transformed into Captain Marvel he would gain the wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, the power of Zeus, the courage of Achilles, and the speed of Mercury. The wizard Shazam, Captain Marvel Jr., and the Lieutenant Marvels also possess the same powers.

In the Diana the Huntress origin story, Hercules is dispatched by Zeus to help the allies.

Hercules is sent by his father to the modern world to rid it of evil.

Hercules was summoned by Kid Eternity at least twice. Also, another character took his name.

All published appearances of Hercules from before January 1, )-(95)}} are public domain in the US.

Some notable appearances are listed here and below:

*The Twelve Labours of Hercules, Son of Jupiter & Alcmena by Anonymous
*Germania by Tacitus

*Amphitryon by Plautus
*Ercole amante by Francesco Cavalli
*Hercules by George Frideric Handel
*The Choice of Hercules by George Frideric Handel
*Hercule mourant by Antoine Dauvergne

*The Little Journeys of Nip and Tuck (newspaper strip) (26 Sept. 1909) – Hercules cleans the Augean stables.
*Hercules #1-2
*Blue Ribbon Comics #4-8
*Four Color #32, 692, 1006, 1121
*Hit Comics #25, 30
*Stamps Comics #6
*Mystery Men Comics #2
*Blue Bolt vol. 2 #5
*Whiz Comics #26, 125
*Boy Comics #9
*Yellowjacket Comics #1, 5
*Jumbo Comics #107
*Kid Eternity #5

* Greek Mirthology (1954): Playing the part of Hercules, Popeye the Sailor tells his version of the myth to his nephews.

*Hit Comics #1-21

*Hugo Hercules (1902-1903)

*Green Lama #1-8

Hercules.jpg
Hercules.png

*Wikipedia
*[https://comicvine.gamespot.com/hercules/4005-67267/ Comicvine]
*Myths in Media Wiki
*Myth & Folklore Wiki
*[https://www.giantbomb.com/hercules/3005-6644/ GiantBomb]
*Religion Wiki
*Gacha Games Wiki
*DC Wiki
*Marvel Wiki
*Ultimate Pop Culture Wiki
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20200719042309/http://free-universe.myartsonline.com/Hercules.html Free Universe (Archived)]
*[https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/22529 Download The 12 Labors of Hercules]
Category:Cultural Heroes
Category:Unknown Creator
Category:Unknown Debuts
Category:Male Characters
Category:Roman Characters
Category:Demigod Characters
Category:Feline Themed Characters
Category:Hercules Family Characters
Category:Mythological Characters
Category:Constellation Characters
Category:Literary Characters
Category:Theatre Characters
Category:Opera Characters
Category:Musical theatre Characters
Category:Comic Book Characters
Category:Comic Strip Characters
Category:Text Story Characters
Category:Animated Characters
Category:Manga / Anime Characters
Category:TCG Characters
Category:Video Game Characters
Category:Mobile Game Characters
Category:Gacha Game Characters
Category:Movie Characters
Category:Television Characters
Category:Tokusatsu Characters
Category:Music Characters
Category:RPG Characters
Category:Stop-Motion Characters
Category:Toys
Category:Academy Awards Characters
Category:Disney Characters
Category:NBC Characters
Category:Paramount Characters
Category:MGM Characters
Category:Universal Studios Characters
Category:Xena: Warrior Princess Characters
Category:Buena Vista Pictures Distribution Characters
Category:Columbia Pictures Characters
Category:20th Century Studios Characters
Category:Marvel Characters
Category:Popeye Characters
Category:Fleischer Studios Characters
Category:CBS Characters
Category:ABC Characters
Category:Once Upon a Time Characters
Category:Descendants Characters
Category:Kingdom Hearts Characters
Category:Square Enix Characters
Category:Sega Characters
Category:God of War Characters
Category:Smite Characters
Category:Assassin's Creed Characters
Category:Civilization Characters
Category:Percy Jackson Characters
Category:Hachette Characters
Category:DC Characters
Category:Dell Characters
Category:Gold Key Characters
Category:Charlton Characters
Category:Topps Characters
Category:Radical Studios Characters
Category:Record of Ragnarok Characters
Category:Coamix Characters
Category:Image Characters
Category:Savage Dragon Characters
Category:D.C. Thompson Characters
Category:Gwandanaland Characters
Category:Dynamite Entertainment Characters
Category:Mad Magazine Characters
Category:Archie Characters
Category:Action Lab Entertainment Characters
Category:Boom! Studios Character
Category:First Second Characters
Category:Titan Comics Characters
Category:Zenescope Entertainment Characters
Category:IDW Characters
Category:Valiant Characters
Category:AC Comics
Category:Viz Media Characters
Category:Cracked Magazine Characters
Category:Dark Horse Characters
Category:Papercutz Characters
Category:Harvey Characters
Category:Casper Characters
Category:Quality Characters
Category:Kid Eternity Summons
Category:Tokyopop Characters
Category:TwoMorrows Publishing Characters
Category:Hellboy Characters
Category:Vertigo Characters
Category:ACG Characters
Category:DK Publishing Characters
Category:Collectors Press Characters
Category:Youthful Magazines Characters
Category:TidalWave Productions Characters
Category:Scholastic Inc. Characters
Category:Archaia Characters
Category:Antarctic Press Characters
Category:Seven Stories Press Characters
Category:Facts On File Characters
Category:Fantagraphics Characters
Category:Ten Speed Press Characters
Category:Monster Strike Characters
Category:Scribblenauts Characters
Category:Dragon Poker Characters
Category:Legend of the Cryptids Characters
Category:Puzzle & Dragons Characters
Category:Lord of Vermilion Characters
Category:Destiny Child Characters
Category:Devil Maker Tokyo Characters
Category:Crash Fever Characters
Category:Dislyte Characters
Category:Dragon City Characters
Category:Fate Franchise Characters
Category:Kamihime Project Characters
Category:Monster Warlord Characters
Category:Mythwars Puzzles Characters
Category:Tokyo Afterschool Summoners Characters
Category:Adult Swim Characters
Category:Robot Chicken Characters
Category:Aeon Crash Characters
Category:Cardfight Vanguard Monsters
Category:Castlevania Characters
Category:Clone High Characters
Category:Divine Comedy Characters
Category:Doctor Who Characters
Category:Mattel Characters
Category:Dragon Ball Characters
Category:Eiyuu Senki Characters
Category:Final Fantasy Characters
Category:Kamen Rider Characters
Category:League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Characters
Category:Funko Characters
Category:LEGO Characters
Category:Shin Megami Tensei Characters
Category:Shrek Characters
Category:Sid Story Characters
Category:Sonic the Hedgehog Characters
Category:South Park Characters
Category:Supernatural Franchise Characters
Category:Sítio do Picapau Amarelo Characters
Category:The Simpsons Characters
Category:Tower of Saviors Characters
Category:Wishbone Characters
Category:Avengers Characters
Category:Fox Features Syndicate Characters
Category:Novelty Characters
Category:Fawcett Characters
Category:Lev Gleason Characters
Category:Fiction House Characters
Category:Spark Characters
Category:Filmation Characters
Category:Dingo Pictures Characters
Category:I.W. Publishing Character
Category:Frank Communale Characters
Category:Warner Bros. Characters
Category:MLJ Characters
Category:Age of Empires Characters
Category:Lerner Publishing Group Characters
Category:Manhwa Characters
Category:Rip Off Press Characters
Category:Full Bokko Heroes X Characters
Category:Destiny of Spirits Characters
Category:Hanna-Barbera Characters
Category:Roblox Characters
Category:Webseries Characters
Category:Streaming Television Characters
Category:Lorcana Characters
Category:Macy's Parade Characters
Category:Goofy Gods Comics Characters
Category:Webcomic Characters
Category:Mutant Summoners Characters
Category:Ark Order Characters
Category:Toon in with Me Characters
Category:Board Game Characters
Category:Tsum Tsum Characters
Category:Super Mario Characters
Category:Wonder Woman Characters
Category:Shazam Characters
Category:Disney Speedstorm Characters
Category:Little Golden Books Characters
Category:Animaniacs Characters
Category:God of High School Characters
Category:Mythic Heroes Characters
Category:Saturday Night Live Characters
Category:Extra Credits Characters
Category:King's Throne Characters
Category:Rock of Ages Characters
Category:Phobies Characters
Category:Destripando la Historia Characters
Category:Mitos y Leyendas Characters
Category:Costume Characters
Category:Archivo Mitologico Characters
Category:Playing Card Characters
Category:Puzzle Characters
Category:K. G. Murray Characters
Category:Embassy Pictures Corporation Characters
Category:Marvel Cinematic Universe Characters