Over the ages, many civilizations have come and gone, each with their own Gods and deities. Although the Gods themselves have been different, some of their associations are the same. Many ancient cultures had a God for War, who soldiers and generals would pray to for success in battle. Here are a few:
Norse War Gods
In the Norse mythology, there were three Gods associated with war. Odin, the most important God of the pantheon, was associated with battles and wars in general and victory in particular. His beautiful warrior-women, the Valkyries, would ride into battle on the side that he selected. He was also the host of Valhalla, the great hall where the spirits of slain warriors would await the chance to fight again at Ragnarok, the great battle of the end of time. Odin’s son Tyr was the God associated with single-combat and glory. Tyr lost one of his hands while binding the great wolf Fenrir. The beautiful warrior-Goddess Freyja is also associated with war, although she is more commonly associated with love, fertility and beauty.
Greek War Gods
Ares and his sister Athena were the Greek Gods of War. Ares was generally associated with the violence, slaughter and mayhem of war as opposed to strategy and tactics, which were the responsibility of Athena. The son of Zeus and Hera, Ares was considered one of the more important and powerful Gods of the Pantheon. He was considered an unpredictable God compared to the others. Athena, on the other hand, represented the art of warfare and was the patroness of the city of Athens.
Roman War Gods
The Romans adopted most of the Greek Gods: Ares became Mars and Athena became Minerva. In terms of their personalities and characteristics they were pretty much the same, although Mars was a little more respectable than Ares; he was venerated by the Roman legions and was therefore very important in Roman culture.
Egyptian War Gods
Ancient Egypt was divided in two: Upper and Lower Egypt. In Lower Egypt, cat-headed goddess Bast was the Goddess of war. When Upper Egypt conquered Lower Egypt, their own war Goddess Sekhmet became the principal war deity. Sekhmet, often depicted as a lioness, was also responsible for protecting the Pharaohs, and so was very important to Egyptian life.
Aztec War God
Huitzilopochtli was the principal deity of the Aztecs and also served as their sun god and the patron of Tenochtitlán (Mexico City). His name means “hummingbird of the south” but don’t let that fool you: Huitzilopochtli was a tough master to the Aztecs. Thousands of people (mostly prisoners of war) were sacrificed to Huitzilopochtli before the arrival of the Spanish.
Irish War God
The Morrígan isn’t exactly a Goddess; she’s more of a spirit or harbinger of doom. She would often appear as a woman or a crow, and her appearance to any given warrior meant that he was going to die. She wasn’t really worshipped like the others on this list: she was more of a force of nature and not someone to be flattered or convinced to intervene by prayer or devotion.
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