Introduction
Deianira was a princess of Calydon whom Heracles won as his second wife after wrestling the river-god Achelous for her hand.
Family
The Poisoned Robe
Years into their marriage, the centaur Nessus attempted to assault Deianira while ferrying her across a river; Heracles shot him with an arrow tipped in the Hydra's poisoned blood. As he died, Nessus told Deianira to keep his blood-soaked tunic as a supposed love charm. Later, fearing she was losing Heracles's affection, she sent him the garment; it was in fact lethal, and Heracles died in agony, ascending to Olympus upon his funeral pyre.
As with all figures of Greek heroic legend, sources diverge on many particulars; the account above follows the most widely transmitted classical tradition.