In Greek mythology, Cronos was the last of Gaia and Ouranos' children and was the Emperor of the Titans. During the reign of Ouranos, the hundred armed Hecatonchires and one-eyed Cyclops were imprisoned within Tartarus, causing Gaia great pain. Gaia constructed a sickle and ordered her children to use it against Ouranos, but they refused. Only Cronos was brave enough to take the weapon. When Ouranos met with Gaia, Cronos ambushed his father Ouranos and castrated him with the sickle; from the blood sprouted the Gigantes, The Furies, and Aphrodite.
After defeating Ouranos, Cronos reimprisoned the Hecatonchires and the Cyclops along with the Gigantes and set the dragon Campe to guard them forever. He and his sister-wife, Rhea, took the throne of the world as Emperor and Empress, respectively. This period of Cronos' rule was called the "Golden Age," as the people of the time had no need for laws or rules; everyone did the right thing, and evil was absent.
Cronos learned from the Sisters of Fate that he was destined to be overcome by his own son, just as he had overthrown his father. As a result, although he sired the gods Demeter, Hera, Hades, Hestia, and Poseidon by Rhea, he swallowed them all as soon as they were born to prevent the prophecy from happening. The sixth and final child, Zeus, would become the son destined to overthrow Cronos and defeat the Titans.
Cronos was usually depicted with a sickle, which is used to harvest crops and also the weapon used to defeat Ouranos. Other children he is reputed to have fathered was Chiron, by Philyra.
His counterpart in Roman mythology is Saturn and his Canaanite counterpart is El.
