After the Titan King Kronos had killed his father, he claimed the throne of the Gods for himself. He then married his sister the Titan of Fertility and Motherhood, Rhea, despite Kronus fearing the possibility of children. This was due to a prophecy given to him by his father, Ouranos, which basically stated that his children would kill him as he(Kronos) had killed him(Ouranos).
Despite this paranoia, Rhea gave birth to three daughters and two sons(Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades and Poseidon), all of which were swallowed by Kronos upon birth.
However after the birth of her sixth child, Zeus, Rhea couldn’t bear to see him swallowed by the Titan King and with that in mind she sent him away to the island of Crete1 to live with the nymph, Melissa and the goat, Amalthea. Back at Mt Othrys Rhea gave Kronos a rock to swallow instead of Zeus.
While Zeus grew up on the island of Crete, Kronos continued his tyrannical rule and as time flew by Zeus grew of age with one goal in mind, to free his siblings and the world from the tyrannical rule of Kronos.
With a plan he went back to Kronos as a cupbearer. Here it is believed (as there isn’t much evidence to suggest otherwise) that Zeus gave his father a concoction of mead laced with drugs that had him throwing up his children(Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades and Poseidon.)
From here the great Titanomachy, the 10 year long battle between the Gods and the Titans began.
On the side of the Gods were the Elder Cyclops2 which were freed from the pit, Tartarus along with the Hecatonchires(Cottus meaning “furious”, Gyges meaning ”long-limbed” and Briareos meaning “vigorous one” ). A few titans such as Prometheus, Themis and Metis allied with the Gods while the rest of the titans sided with Kronos. However the most notable include Crius, Coeus, Atlas and Hyperion3.
Despite the added strength on the Titan’s side, the Gods held up for 10 years before Zeus destroyed Mt Othrys, where the Titans had erected their base4, with his symbol of power, the Lightning Bolt.
It is then believed that Zeus cut Kronus into pieces, as was Ouranos’ fate. Thus beginning a new age5.
1Gaia, Ouranos or No One
When she had set off to Crete to give birth to Zeus. Some records suggest that Rhea prayed to Mother Earth and was aided by Gaia who too despised Kronos’s paranoia. Other records suggest that both Ouranos and Rhea collaborated together to save Zeus. But sometimes it’s suggested that Rhea wasn’t given any aid and came up with the plan herself.
2Talents of the Cyclops & The Symbol of Power
When Zeus and the other god freed the Elder Cyclops it turned the tides of war into their favour. The 3 Cyclops, Arges(Vividly Bright), Steropes(Lightning Man), and Brontes(Thunder Man) forged the most powerful weapons that were wielded, the Gods’ Symbol of Power. Which as the name suggests, symbolised the Gods’ power. For Zeus they created the almighty and legendary Lightning Bolt, for Poseidon the Trident and for Hades the Helmet of Darkness.
3Bloody War.
With powerful beings on both sides, the war(Titanomachy) had turned bloody, turning the whole world into upheaval. An excerpt from Hesoid’s Theogony paints a vivid picture of what the would would have looked like then. “…and the boundless sea re-echoed terribly, and earth resounded loudly, and the broad sky groaned, being shaken, and vast Olympus was convulsed from its base under the violence of the immortals, and a severe quaking came to murky Tartaros, namely, a hollow sound of countless chase of feet, and of strong battle-strokes: to such an extent did they hurl groan-causing weapons.”
4War Bases
When the Titanomachy began and the sides began to form, Kronos decided that his base would be located at Mt Othrys, while Zeus located himself at Mt Olympus. Here both sides would decide their strategies. Kronos with the help of Atlas the war general and Zeus as historians suggested with the help of Metis, the Titaness of Good Counsel, Planning, Cunning and Wisdom.
5Punishments
While most of Kronos’s allies were thrown into Tartarus by Zeus and the other Olympians, there were some exceptions. Of course Kronos was cut into pieces before being thrown into Tartarus thus decreasing his uprising. While Atlas the general in the tyrant’s army was given the cruel fate to hold the sky for eternity. While Calypso, the daughter of Atlas, was cast out into the island of Ogygia.