Greek Name: Ares
Roman Name: Mars
Role in Mythology : God of War
Ares, in Greek mythology, god of war and son of Zeus, king of the gods, and his wife, Hera. The Romans identified him with Mars, also a god of war. Aggressive and sanguinary, Ares personified the brutal nature of war. He was unpopular with both gods and humans. Among the deities associated with Ares were his consort, Aphrodite, goddess of love, and such minor deities as Deimos (Panic) and Phobos (Fear), who accompanied him in battle. Although fierce and warlike, Ares was not invincible, even against mortals.
The worship of Ares, believed to have originated in Thrace, was not extensive in ancient Greece, and where it existed, it lacked social or moral significance. Ares was an ancestral deity of Thebes and had a temple at Athens, at the foot of the Areopagus, or Hill of Ares.
