Greek and Roman Gods: Titans

Mr. Upchurch’s Mythology 101

Lectures 8

Also known as Classical

Mythology

Greek Gods•Gaea and Uranus –(Earth and Heaven)

• Titans–Ruled before the

Olympians overthrew them.

•Olympians–Other Minor/Non-ruling

gods

Original Creators (from Choas)

The Titans

The Olympians

Greek Creation•Many versions…

•…Chaos (nothingness)

• Out of Chaos–Either Earth (Gaea) alone or

with Night, Darkness, and Love (Eros) (sometimes just

with Love)

Gaea

• Gaea (Earth) gives birth to Uranus (Heaven) to cover herself and be a home to

the gods

• Together they produced three kinds of children

–Three monsters with 100 hands and 50 heads (Hecatoncheires)–Three Cyclopes–The Titans

•Watch Quick Overview of the Greek Creation

Account (FactsOnFile: Zeus: King of the Gods)

The First Overthrow• Gaea is a good mom, but

Uranus hates his kids–Tries to have Gaea take them back into her womb. He was afraid they would

overthrow him.

• Gaea gives her youngest child, Chronos (Saturn) a

sickle to kill his father with

Reign of the Titans

Chronos (Cronus, Saturn)

•Ruling Titan•His reign is referred to as “the golden age”—he though he was a jealous

ruler like his father Uranus.

Rhea•Wife/Sister of Chronos•Mother of the gods• Titan goddess of

motherhood, fertility and generation•Cunning

Coeus• Titan of Intelligence.

• Father of Leto.–Titan Mother of Apollo

and Artemis

Phoebe• Titan of the Moon•Mother of Leto

Oceanus & Tethys•Oceanus is the unending

stream of water encircling the world.

• Together they produced all the rivers and 1,000 ocean nymphs (minor

nature goddesses)

Leto•Daughter of Coeus &

Phoebe•Bride of Zeus

•Goddess of Motherhood•A protector of youth (along with her twins: Apollo and Artemis)

Iapetus• father of Prometheus, Epimetheus, and Atlas.• Titan god of mortality

Prometheus•Wisest Titan–Name means “forethought”

–He could foretell the future

• Fought with Zeus against the other Titans

•Sometimes credited with creating man…

(continued)

• Always known as the benefactor and protector of

man-kind• Gave man gifts

– Fire(possibly stolen from Zeus) and the best portion of the

sacrifices• Punished by Zeus

– Horrible Eagle Eating Liver Punishment (until he told paranoid Zeus which kid

would betray him)

– Rescued by Hercules

Epimetheus•Unintelligent Titan

–Name means “afterthought”

• Father of excuses•Receives Pandora (from

Zeus) as his bride and, effectively, introduces

evil into the human world

Atlas• Unlike his brothers, he

fought with the other Titans against Zeus

• Because Chronos was old, Atlas led the Titan army

• Because of this Zeus gave him the special punishment of holding the world on his

back

The Fall of the Titans• Chronos is no better than Uranus

– Afraid that his children would overthrow him, he swallows them.

• Rhea sneaks Zeus (her youngest away)

– Tricking Chronos into swallowing a stone instead

– Zeus then frees the swallowed Olympians by killing his father.

•Watch Quick Overview Zeus Conquering

Chronos (FactsOnFile: Zeus: King of the Gods)