Here are some facts about Pluto (sometimes called Hades), the Ancient Greek God of the Underworld.
- Pluto was the son of Cronos and Rhea. He is the brother of Zeus, the King of the Gods, and Poseidon, the ruler of the oceans.
- When Pluto was born, his father, Cronos, swallowed him. Zeus managed to save him and he was given the Underworld as his kingdom.
- Pluto kidnapped Persephone, the daughter of the goddess Demeter. He forced her to marry him and wanted her to live with him in the Underworld. Demeter was not in favour of this, so Zeus decided the matter. He ruled that Persephone should spend half of the year with Pluto (Autumn and Winter), and part of the year on Earth with Demeter (Spring and Summer).
- Pluto was gloomy and he could be really scary and frightening.
- He was exceedingly wealthy, owning all of the gold and silver and jewels.
- Pluto is the owner of a helmet of invisibility. He occasionally lent this to humans.
- Even though Pluto was associated with the Underworld, he was never thought of as evil. The name Hades means ‘the unseen’ and Pluto means ‘the giver of wealth’.
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