After a couple of short-lived (but procreative!) relationships with the Titan goddesses Metis and Mnemosyne, Zeus finally settled down with the goddess, Hera. It was only when the last child was born, Zeus, that machinations were put into place to allow Zeus to overthrow Cronos, free his siblings, and take his place on the throne of Mount Olympus.
Their lives began tumultuously: Cronos famously developed a habit of devouring his children in an effort to avoid any one of them becoming more powerful than him. Zeus and Hera are two of the six first generation Olympian gods, both children of the famed Titans Cronos and Rhea (yes, this does mean they’re siblings but it’s best not to dwell on that). Like most of the gods of Olympus, their relationship and characters are flawed and dangerous and, most importantly, interesting. As the king and queen of the Olympian gods, you might expect Zeus and Hera to have a nice, healthy, loving relationship…But then, that wouldn’t be particularly fitting with the wider world of Greek mythology.
