Ares: The Greek God Of War and His Legend 20 Facts

Meet with us Ares the Greek God of War. We tell you about his most famous myths and legends that will surprise you.

Ares, God Of War

Ares plays a relatively limited role in Greek mythology as depicted in literary narratives, although his numerous romances and abundant offspring are often alluded to. Unlike his nobler Roman counterpart, Mars, Ares was an unpopular god and never developed beyond the image of a crazed divine butcher.

Consequently, only a few epithets have come down to us. As might be expected, few of them are flattering: “the doom of mortals”, “the murderer of men”, “the assailant of the city”, “the rattler of armor”, “the supporting arm”.

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who was Ares?

Ares was the Greek god of war who was known for his destructive behavior. Although it is known that Athena was also a goddess of war (and sister of Ares), the two could not be more different.

Athena was known for her knowledge and strategies associated with war, while Ares was known to be the personification of all the violence and rage that make up war. Coincidentally, Athena was one of Zeus ‘ favorite sons , while Ares was Zeus’ least favorite son and hated by many other gods and goddesses.

While Ares’ Roman counterpart (Mars) gained more respect among the people, the Greeks and their deities had little use for a god as reckless and violent as Ares. The only exception seems to be the goddess Aphrodite.

While she is not the only woman with whom he had relations with Ares, she is the most notable and bore him many influential children. The number varies by source, but it has been confirmed that Deimos, Phobos and Harmonia were born to Ares. Later sources also include Adrestia and the four Erotes: Eros, Anteros, Pothos and Himeros as children of Aphrodite and Ares.

Etymology of Ares

The etymology of the name Ares is traditionally related to the Greek word ἀρή (arē), the Ionic form of the Doric ἀρά (ara), “bane, ruin, curse, imprecation” There may also be a connection to the Roman god of war, Mars, through the hypothetical Proto-Indo-European *M̥rēs; compare the ancient Greek μάρνναμαι (marnamai), “I fight, I battle”.Walter Burkert notes that “Ares is apparently an ancient abstract noun meaning multitude of battles, war.”

The earliest attested form of the name is the Mycenaean Greek, a-re, written in the linear B syllabic script. The adjectival epithet, Areios, was often added to the names of other gods when they took on a warlike aspect or engaged in war: Zeus Areios, Athena Areia, even Aphrodite Areia. In the Iliad, the word ares is used as a common noun synonymous with “battle”.

History of Ares

Ares was the Greek god of war and perhaps the most unpopular of all the Olympian gods due to his quick temper, aggressiveness, and unquenchable thirst for conflict. He seduced Aphrodite, fought unsuccessfully with Hercules, and enraged Poseidon by killing his son Halirrhothios. One of the most human of the Olympian gods, he was a popular subject in Greek art and even more so in Roman times when he took on a much more serious aspect as Mars, the Roman god of war.

Ares was usually depicted as a warrior carrying a spear and shield. Sometimes he wore armor and a helmet. As he traveled, he rode a chariot drawn by four fire-breathing horses.

Son of Zeus and Hera, Ares’ sisters were Hebe and Eileithyia. Despite being a god, the Greeks considered him to be from Thrace, perhaps in an attempt to associate him with what they considered foreign and war-loving peoples, totally different from themselves. Ares had several children with different partners, several of whom were unfortunate enough to face Hercules when he performed his famous twelve labors.

Ares’ daughter Hippolyta, the queen of the Amazon, lost her girdle to Hercules; her son lost his cattle; and Diomedes had his horses stolen by the Greek hero. It was also believed that the brave but warlike Amazons were descendants of Ares.

Beauty and bravery

Ares was noted for his beauty and bravery, qualities that undoubtedly helped him win the affection of Aphrodite (although she was married to Hephaistos) with whom he had a daughter, Harmonia, and the god of love and desire Eros. Hephaistos managed to trap the lovers in a clever bed, and the story is told in some detail in Book 8 of Homer’s Odyssey. Once captured, the punishment for Ares’ indiscretion was temporary banishment from Mount Olympus.

Described by Hesiod in his Theogony as the “shield-piercing Ares” and the “city-plundering Ares,” the god represented the more brutal and bloody side of battle, which was in contrast to Athena, who represented the more strategic elements of warfare.

In the stories of Greek mythology, Ares was usually in the company of his other children with Aphrodite, Phobos (Fear) and Deimos (Terror), with his sister Eris (Strife), and with his charioteer Ennyo.

Birth of Ares

Ares was the son of the Greek gods Zeus and Hera. Zeus and Hera were the king and queen of the gods. In some Greek stories, Hera had Ares without Zeus’ help using a magic herb. When Ares was still a child, he was captured by two giants and put in a bronze jar. He would have remained forever, but the mother of the giants found out and told the god Hermes who rescued Ares.

Legend of the birth of Ares

Legend has it that Ares was one of the few children born to Zeus from his union with Hera (some of the others being Eris (goddess of chaos and fighting) and Enyo (goddess of war and destruction). Although Ares is believed to be the only son born to Zeus from his marriage to Hera, Zeus never liked Ares.

In fact, Ares may have been Zeus’ least favorite god, and there was a time when Zeus alluded that he would banish Ares to Tartarus if he were not his own son. This lack of support meant that the other gods and goddesses did not have to go out of their way to show kindness to Ares, and many did not. Instead, they often left him to fend for himself, and many of the legends in which he appears describe a kind of humiliation to which he was subjected.

Romance of Ares

Ares was not the only undesirable god among the sons of Zeus and Hera. His brother Hephaestus was also shunned for his terrible ugliness. As revenge, Hephaestus made a golden throne for Hera that would not allow her to rise until she met all his demands.

Among these demands were that Hephaestus be allowed to return to Mount Olympus and that he be given the hand of Aphrodite in marriage. This latter demand caused great displeasure to Ares and Aphrodite, who had already fallen in love.

Because they did not wish to give up the connection that had already kindled between them, Ares and Aphrodite decided to continue their relationship in secret. This was fine for a while, but eventually Helios saw them in an intimate embrace and told Hephaestus about the affair.

Hephaestus was immediately enraged and wanted revenge. Instead of confronting Ares directly, he made a net out of the best metals he had. The end product was a trap that was virtually invisible and could be sprung by Hephaestus at any time he wanted.

Hephaestus waited until Ares and Aphrodite had made passionate love before springing his trap. The net went off and caught the two lovers in an intimate embrace from which they could not extricate themselves. To make matters worse, Hephaestus invited all the gods and goddesses to his house to see the two lovers in their shameful state.

The goddesses declined out of respect, but many of the gods came to marvel at Aphrodite’s beauty and put Ares to shame. The two were held in their revealing embrace for days before Hephaestus decided to let them go.

Sons of Ares

Ares and Aphrodite never married, but there was a level of commitment that was shared between the two. Aphrodite gave birth to several children for Ares. Among these children were Phobos (god of fear and phobias), Deimos (god of terror), Harmonia (goddess of harmony) and Adrestia (goddess of rebellion).

While it is not surprising that Ares was the father of so many gods and goddesses of war, it is also noted that he had four other children with Aphrodite who were considerably gentler in nature. These were the Erotes (the winged gods of love) and their names were Eros, Anteros, Himeros and Pothos.

Although most of Ares’ children were born to him by Aphrodite, he also had some demigod children. Like Aphrodite, he maintained some sort of commitment to the mothers of his children, at least for a time, and seemed to genuinely care about the welfare of his children. This is clearly demonstrated by his quick defense of Alcippe and Cycnus. Ares had many children and did his best to care for them all.

what powers did Ares have?

Ares was the god of war, and his power had to do with his physique and strength, being a warrior god he was a superior fighter in battles, he was also the cause of great bloodshed and destruction wherever he went.

As a god of war and violence, Ares was the personification of bloodlust and cruelty that took place during battles. His sister, Athena, was the goddess of war, but she represented the intelligence and strategy that was used to win wars. Ares didn’t care much about who would win, he just wanted people to fight and kill each other.

Attributes of Ares

The main attribute of Ares was the helm of a warrior. Even in domestic scenes, such as feasts of the gods, he was depicted wearing or holding his helm. The god’s other attributes included a shield, a spear and sometimes a sheathed sword. Although his shield was often decorated with some sort of emblem, ancient artists simply used a generic one drawn from their standard repertoire rather than something specific to the god.

Ares was usually dressed as a standard Greek warrior with short tunic, breastplate, helmet and greaves. The breastplate was often omitted in favor of a simple tunic, and he was sometimes depicted naked except for the helmet and shield. Ares can be quite difficult to identify in ancient Greek art as there is little to distinguish him from other warrior figures.

Myths of Ares

Many of the ancient myth stories, such as the legend of Ares, the god of War, incorporate cautionary tales that provided ancient storytellers with brief examples of exciting stories about how to act and behave, and reflected important life lessons.

The hero characters in this type of fable demonstrated the virtues of courage, love, loyalty, strength, perseverance, leadership, and self-reliance. While the villains demonstrated all the vices and were killed or punished by the gods. The old and famous story of myths and fables, such as Ares, the God of War, were designed to entertain, thrill and inspire their young listeners.

Ares and Aphrodite

A popular myth that does not put Ares in a good light is a myth where he is tricked by Hephaestus. Hephaestus sets a trap, and traps Ares and Aphrodite together in a net. They are humiliated as all the gods on Olympus see it.

Otis and Ephialtes

Another myth that does not represent Ares well is the Myth of Ares and the twin giants. Ares went to fight Otis and Ephialtes, and then was captured and kept in a jar for a lunar year (13 months). He was finally rescued by Hermes, but not without losing his pride.

Ares in the Trojan War

The God Ares supported the Trojans in the Trojan War, mainly because he wanted to support Aphrodite. Ares was leading them in battle when Diomedes, with the guiding hand of Athena, stabbed Ares. He fell with the cry “as great as nine thousand men,” and then retreated (Homer, Iliad 5. 699).

Ares versus Hercules

Hercules, son of Zeus, was on his way to the Oracle at Delphi when he confronted and killed a son of Ares. When Ares heard that he was furious, he went to fight Hercules. When he confronted Hercules, Athena made sure that Hercules could not injure himself. Hercules, now winning, injured Ares so badly that he fled.

Ares is sent away from Mount Olympus

After being imprisoned by the Aloades and nearly perishing due to his lack of care and nutrition, Hera decided that Ares (still a baby) should be raised elsewhere. She sent him to live with a lesser-known deity named Priapus, who lived on Earth. This is interesting considering that Hera cursed Priapus in the womb, which is why he was banished to Earth in the first place. Regardless, Priapus agrees to take care of young Ares.

Priapus Ares’ teaching would go on to shape the young god’s character and ability. It was Priapus who taught him much of what he knew. Priapus was also considered a warrior god, although he never received the same level of attention as Ares and Athena.

Interestingly, Priapus refused to teach Ares anything about warfare until he learned to dance. It was only when Ares mastered dancing that he was able to learn more about war and fighting. Eventually, as Ares grew older, he became involved in a series of battles that allowed him to prove himself in a way that earned him a place on Mount Olympus.

Ares attempts to avenge Cycnus

With the violent nature and tendencies often associated with Ares, it should come as no surprise that most of his children had the same attributes. Although Ares’ family was often harsh, they respected their father and worked to show their admiration in strange and often grotesque ways.

Perhaps the best example of these acts was the temple being built in honor of Ares by Cycnus. Cycnus was known to be an evil and extremely cruel man. He had a habit of killing men and animals in a brutal manner and then stealing their bones. He planned to use their bones and skulls to build a bloody temple in honor of his father.

Eventually, the other gods and goddesses grew tired of Cycnus killing their favorite followers and the sacrifices they meant for them. They decided to intervene. Hercules was instructed to kill Cycnus to end his reign of terror.

Hercules did as instructed, causing Ares (who was also present) to become enraged. Furious, Ares pounced on the young Hercules and attempted to strike him down with his sword. Athena blocked the blow and ordered Ares to retreat because it was the will of the other gods that Hercules should live.

Still enraged and acting on the impulse of the loss of his son, Ares ignored the warning and tried to attack Hercules again. However, before he could do so, Hercules wounded Ares in the thigh, causing him to fall to the ground in pain. When this happened, Phobos and Deimos descended in Ares’ war chariot and drove him back to the safety of Mount Olympus.

Places named after Ares

Although Ares was not favored like many of the other gods, there were still places named in his honor.

Areopagus

(Hill of Ares, also known as the Areios) is located on the Acropolis of Athens. This place is named after Ares because it is supposedly the place where his trial was held when he killed Halirrhothius for assaulting his daughter, Alcippe. Although Ares was found to be justified for the murder, it was decided that the hill was the place where all murder trials would be held. If a person was found guilty, he was thrown from the top of the hill to his death.

The Island of Ares

The Island of Ares was known to be the place where the Golden Fleece was kept and proved to be a difficult challenge for Jason and the Argonauts. Ares kept the island guarded by vicious birds that could release dagger feathers as weapons against unwanted visitors.

Planet Ares

Although we know it today as Mars, the Greeks called it “the red planet” Ares, the famous god of war. It is believed that this planet was so named because of the red color that probably reminded them of blood.

Curious facts about Ares

• Ares was most notably known as the God of War; he represented the unpleasant aspects of battle.
• He was the son of Zeus and Hera, who hated him (according to Homer).
• According to some sources, Ares was described as the lover of Aphrodite and her husband, Hephaestus, despised her.
• The romance between them was not a secret among the Olympians.
• Ares was not popularly recognized neither among men, nor mortals.
• His bird was the vulture.
• The Amazons, warrior women, were his daughters. Their mother was a peace-loving nymph named Harmony.
• Otus and Ephialtes, twin giants, imprisoned Ares for a lunar year by binding him with bronze chains; he was finally rescued by Hermes.
• In the Trojan War he was always on the side of Aphrodite.
• Harmonia, Goddess of Harmony, was the daughter of Ares and Aphrodite.
• Eros (better known as Cupid) was also the son of Ares and Aphrodite.
• Ares was the biological father of at least three of Hercules’ enemies: Cycnus, Lycaon and Diomedes.
• Ares had a sister named Eris, who was the Goddess of Discord.
• In art, Ares is usually depicted wearing a spear and helmet.