Twelve Olympians

• The Twelve Olympians were the most important Gods in the Greek Pantheon.
• The Gods lived on Mount Olympus, 100 miles (160km) west of Thessalonica.

History

• The first Greek Pantheon, Temple of all Gods, was inhabited by the twelve Titans.
• After a ten year war, the Titans were replaced by the Twelve Olympians.
• Plato in ‘The Phaedrus’ (Dialogue) places the twelve Gods in the Zodiac each representing a month.

The Twelve Olympians

1. Zeus (Jupiter) Son of the Titans Cronus and Rhea.
2. Hera (Juno) Daughter of the Titans Cronus and Rhea.
3. Poseidon (Neptune) Son of the Titans Cronus and Rhea.
4. Demeter (Ceres) Daughter of the Titans Cronus and Rhea.
5. Athena (Minerva) Daughter of Zeus and Metis (Oceanid)
6. Hestia (Vestia) – later Dionysus (Bacchus). Daughter of the Titans Cronus and Rhea.
7. Apollo (Apollo) Son of Zeus and Leto.
8. Artemis (Diana) Daughter of Zeus and Leto.
9. Ares (Mars) Son of Zeus and Hera.
10. Aphrodite (Venus) Daughter of Uranus’ genitals transformed when dropped into the sea.
11. Hephaestus (Vulcan) Son of Hera alone.
12. Hermes (Mercury) Son of Zeus and Maia (Pleiad)

Mount Olympus