Early feats

Heracles’ parents feared his temper and his strength, so they sent him off into the country to tend the flocks on Mount Cithaeron, between Thebes and Thespiae (ruled by Thespius).The boy grew tall and continued to show signs of exceptional athleticism. He killed a ferocious lion with his bare hands. This so impressed King Thespius that he invited Heracles to stay in his palace and dine with him. Thespius and the Thespians, meanwhile, were suffering at the hands of Erginus, king of nearby Orchomenus, who was demanding from them a heavy tribute. Thespius was secretly hoping to strengthen his kingdom by having the powerful Heracles produce children with his daughters. At the dinner party, Thespius got Heracles drunk on wine, then sent him in to his daughters—all 50 of them. Heracles had intercourse with every one, producing a child through each union. Soon afterward, when envoys from King Erginus came to Thespiae to exact the tribute, Heracles cut off their ears and noses, hung them around their necks, and sent the envoys packing back to Orchomenus. This sparked the outbreak of a war between the two states, but with Heracles fighting on the side of the Thespians and rearming them with weapons stored in a temple, the Thespians prevailed and began to exact their own tribute from the Minyans of Orchomenus.

Soon Heracles married Megara of Thebes, and they had several children together, all of whom he loved very much. Hera, however, was not content to let the hero lead a happy life. She sent a fit of madness _ '

On him, and he began to slay  '

Everyone in his family, either by throwing them into a fire or by shooting them with arrows. The only way that Heracles could atone for these murders was by submitting to his cousin Eurystheus, who set him 10 tasks. Because Heracles cheated on two of the original tasks, the number was later increased to 12.