Roots Of The Swamp Thing: Swamp Thing, Hellblazer, The Un-Men And More

Roots of the Swamp Thing: Your Portal to the Universe of Swamp Thing, The Un-Men and John Constantine: Hellblazer

• Part 1: Before Year 1
• Part 2: Year 1 to 1899
• Part 3: 1900 to 1969
• Part 4: 1970 to 1979
• Part 5: 1980 to 1984
• Part 6: 1985 to 1988
• Part 7: 1989 to 1991
• Part 8: 1992 to 1994
• Part 9: 1995 to 1999
• Part 10: 2000 to Present

Born on the Bayou
A history and introduction

Creature Features
Articles and feature stories

Cover Gallery
Judge the books by the covers

In the Swamplight
Issue-by-issue breakdowns

Elemental Lineage
Past lives and other entities

Upcoming Releases
Coming to a bog near you

What's New Bayou?
Archived news updates

About Me
Portrait of a swamp-nerd

Homepage
Go back to the roots

Contact Me
Comments, corrections & tubers

Thanks to Joe Bongiorno, who first dragged me kicking and screaming into the mucky mythos of Swamp Thing, and to Paul Giachetti, who created the amazing header banner.

Thanks also to reader 'Alec Holland,' whose support has been invaluable; Mike Sterling, for promoting Swamp Thing and this site; and Kevin Church, for his excellent optimization advice.

And thanks to Len Wein, Bernie Wrightson, Alan Moore, John Totelben, Stephen Bissette, Jamie Delano, Garth Ennis and all the other creators whose work inspired this site.

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The Swamp Thing/Hellblazer/Un-Men Timeline

Welcome to Roots of the Swamp Thing, a comprehensive chronology of the events of DC Comics' Swamp Thing, Un-Men and John Constantine: Hellblazer comic book mythos. (And not a Keanu Reeves or Heather Locklear film to be found...though you just might find a walking brain or two.)

This website was first created to chronicle the events of DC/Vertigo's Swamp Thing saga, from 1972 to present, including all known crossovers with other titles that involve the "muck-encrusted mockery of a man" known as Alec Holland. Now, I've expanded its focus to include the events of its celebrated spinoff, John Constantine: Hellblazer.

Whenever possible, I have adhered to dates specified within the text; otherwise, I have made educated estimates, using time-span indicators (i.e., "days later" or "ten years ago") to place surrounding events. In the case of contradictions, common sense has been my guide.

To date, every issue of all four Swamp Thing incarnations has been chronicled on the timeline, along with every guest appearance the character has ever made. As for Hellblazer, I've added all of the Jamie Delano run and am currently breaking down the events of the Garth Ennis years.

To access the timeline, simply choose an era from the navigation bar on the left, or scroll down to begin reading from the beginnning.

Part 1: Before Year 1

Creation: The Dawn of Time

In the beginning, God creates the heavens and the Earth.

The Book of Genesis

NOTE: This is included because the DC universe seems to employ a psuedo-Christian approach to religion in which God and Heaven exist, as do Satan, Hell and other deities, personages and locales mentioned in the Bible-but with a uniquely comic book spin to them that often bears no relation to any actual Earthly religions.

God (the Presence) creates the Word, the first archangel and one of the seven deadly aspects of The Voice, to carry out His vengeance.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #147: "Amsterdamnation"

NOTE: The Word is described as an "older brother" of the Spectre.

At the moment of creation, the universe cries out in pain as it gives birth to light, time, heat and life.

The Books of Magic, Book I: "The Invisible Labrynth"

God creates the first being in the universe, a powerful entity who makes the error of daring to think for himself. For this, the being is exiled to Hell, along with his two brothers. Thereafter, the trio are called the First, Second and Third of the Fallen—collectively known as Satan, or the Devil.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #59: "Guys & Dolls, Part One—Fallen Women"

Prehistory (exact era indeterminate)

The Primordial Shadow, a being some suspect may be Satan himself, is barred from the universe by the Almighty. For an eternity thereafter, the Shadow hungers to understand its own purpose.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #50: "An American Gothic—Crisis in Heaven: The End"

Cast out from Heaven for waging a war against God, the angel Lucifer Morningstar is exiled to Hell, damned to fight Heaven for control of man's souls. When he arrives, however, he finds he is not alone, for already there are three evil beings known as the First, Second and Third of the Fallen, known collectively as Satan, or the Devil.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #59: "Guys & Dolls, Part One—Fallen Women"

NOTE: Lucifer's story is explored in greater detail in the pages of The Sandman and its spinoff, Lucifer.

Gabriel of the Cherubim, also known as Djibril of the El-Karrubiyan, soars through the first sunrise singing his joy so that the first creatures can learn to smile, according to the Will of the Lord.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #64: "Fear and Loathing, Part One—For God and Country"

A being known as the Lord of the Dance comes into being. Each new day, he finds something new in which to delight, but nothing gives him more joy than witnessing and joining in the revelry of others.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #49: "Lord of the Dance"

The demon Triskele, the Wyrm Queen of Sucubae, kills a hundred of God's seraphim. Slaying the archangel Dariel, she tears off his face and wears it for her own.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #56: "This Is the Diary of Danny Drake"

A belief vampire, a psychic sorcerer that feeds on the devout, becomes lost in the ether. Passing through the wrong portal, it is stuck in Hell for an indeterminate time, unable to return to its own plane.

Swamp Thing (Series 4) #14: "Measure of Faith, Chapter Two"

Alternate Timeline: In the beginning, before there are swamps or things, the Swamp Thing is born of the chemical soup as it is excited into the earliest life. The entity lives when life is new, watches when there are no eyes and interacts when there is no sentience. It swims and sings among single-celled orgnanisms, recalling every moment, and when single cells form communal beings, it contours itself into their shapes to move among them undetected. It watches as multicellular beings self-replicate asexually, then later split into genders. As coral gives way to chitinous armor, as hydra makes way for jellyfish, as sponges spread beneath swarms of trilobite, the Swamp Thing swims with them, and when the great sea scorpions seize and dismember their prey, it plays both the hunter and the hunted. As notochords become spinal columns, as spineless jawless swimmers attach their suckered mouths to oversized superfishes, and as the first fish raise their lobe-fins to the air and crawl upon the land, it follows. On land, it metamorphs with several dominant lifeforms, from lungfish and amphibians to reptiles and dinosaurs. When a monstrous forest fire rages, he witnesses the survival of flying creatures. Intrigued, he emulates their freedom, mirroring their forms as he moves up the food chain, from flies to dragonflies and on to pterosaurs and birds. In time, the nest of a species he is imitating is raided by early man, and he follows its evolution until fleeing his first encounter with fire being wielded as a weapon. Taking humanoid form, he carries the memories of all former incarnations. Discovering how humans re-invent themselves with every generation, however, he decides to forget the past, embracing mortality as an individual rather than a collective elemental consciousness. And he deems fire—the one element he can neither withstand nor control—the vehicle of his eventual rebirth.

Swamp Thing Origins: Go With the Flow [unpublished]

NOTE: Steven R. Bissette pitched this story to editor Karen Berger in September 1998, broken up into four parts: Water, Land, Air and Fire. Expanding on a sequence he conceived and penciled for issue #63, this was intended as a self-standing graphic album or series of short series. Though Berger liked the pitch, it was never published and contradicts history later established. As the author writes at his website (www.comicon.com/bissette/retailers.htm), "It tells of his life as an elemental, eternally manifesting itself among whatever dominant life form caught his interest, until finally there came a being which mastered the one element Swamp Thing could not." (Ironically, Swamp Thing does ultimately gain control over the element of fire.)

c. 8,000,000,000 B.C.

A massive extragalactic energy field is drawn inside a black hole, where it remains until 1985.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #37: "An American Gothic-Growth Patterns"

c. 5,000,000,000 B.C.

Located within the star Sol, the Parliament of Flames attains sentience and becomes the nuclear mother of all planets in the Sol System.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #170: "Trial By Fire, Part 5-Apocalypse Now"

NOTE: This time-placement is based on when science places the ignition of the Sun; as such, it is open to interpretation.

Sol's planets, in time, will each develop planetary awareness and evolve, taking their respective place in the group consciousness known as the Parliament of Worlds.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #171: "Trial By Fire-The End"

With Earth still a world of molten lava and the formation of the planet's Parliaments still a distant concept, a demonic race known as the Old Ones walk the planet as its only masters. Eventually, their reign on Earth comes to an end, but not their desire for revenge.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #114: "Pirate's Alley"

c. 4,500,000,000 B.C.

A race of advanced beings known as the Forest Lords and their master, Sila, seed planets throughout the universe with the potential for life (green, blue, red and violet). On some worlds, life never takes hold, but on three planets in the Sol System (Earth, Jupiter and a fifth planet, now perished), life thrives. On Earth, the plant kingdom form a conscious realm called the Green, while on the fifth planet, evolution bases itself on fungi and molds.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #104: "The Quest for the Elementals I-Matango"

NOTE: Issue #168 says the Parliament of Trees first attained sentience 4.5 billion years ago. Since we know that the Parliament was sentient from its very inception (the first member, Yggdrasil, was born sentient), we can place these events in that era. It should be noted that this negates scientific evidence that land plants appeared on Earth 435 million years ago; however, since a specific figure is given, that supercedes scientific theory.

As such, the Green becomes the first lifeforms on Earth to attain sentience.

DC Heroes Role-Playing Game—Magic Sourcebook

In response to the ravages of nature, Earth calls forth an elemental, an Erl-King, as its spirit protector.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #47: "An American Gothic-The Parliament of Trees"

Thrown back in time by the Claw of Aelkh�nd, an earth elemental from the future known as Swamp Thing (once the scientist Alec Holland) becomes this first spirit protector. As the Parliament of Trees does not yet exist to counsel him, he grows a vast brain to consider his options in creating them. He realizes he must guide Earth's infant biosphere, for his destiny is to spawn his own Erl-King lineage.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #89: "Founding Fathers"

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The Earth spirit She-Who-is-the-World, desiring shepherds to watch over her Earthen form, permits the creation of the Erl-King Yggdrasil, knowing it will lead to the formation of the Parliament of Trees.

Black Orchid #9: "The Murmuring of Mists, the Whispering of Flowers"

NOTE: In Norse mythology, Yggdrasil ("The Terrible One's Horse", also called "the World Tree") is a giant ash tree that links and shelters all the worlds.

Using a seed a Neanderthal named Rheelai will give him in 40,000 B.C., Alec forms Yggdrasil in a spot that will some day be called the Garden of Eden. This elemental, shaped like a DNA strand, takes its name from Alec's knowledge of Norse mythology. Yggdrasil is the first elemental in a long line that will eventually be known as the Parliament of Trees.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #89: "Founding Fathers"

In spawning the Parliament of Trees, Alec passes down his memories to Yggdrasil, who in turn will pass them down to the other Founders who follow him.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #104: "The Quest for the Elementals I-Matango"

After creating Yggdrasil, Alec realizes why the amber Claw of Aelkh�nd has been tossing him ever backward through time: it is a gateway to the Tree of Life, and his key to going home. Alas, a volcanic eruption disturbs Alec's meditations, threatening to destroy him before he can make the leap.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #89: "Founding Fathers"

The volcano's lava dissolves Alec's body, trapping him in amber crystal as it hardens. Unable to escape, he spends the next half-billion years encased in crystal, fading in and out of consciousness as he relives the stops of his journey back through space-time, but this time in proper chronological order: first billions of years in the past, then a Neanderthal village in 40,000 B.C., and on to Jerusalem in 33 A.D., sixth century Camelot, 1780 and 1872 in the Old West, World Wars I and II, and finally 1989, when John Constantine will free him from his crystal prison.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #90: "Journeys"

c. 3,900,000,000 B.C.

Yggdrasil, the Tree of Life, creates a second Erl-King to ease his loneliness-Tuuru, known to some as the Tree of Visions and Knowledge. Tuuru can change form as needed and will in time have many identities. To the Neanderthals, he will be known as the tree-god Sarga. To the American Indians of Echo Valley, he will appear as a giant quartz crystal.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #89: "Founding Fathers"

NOTE: Tuuru seems to have been named for a village in Estonia.

Though Tuuru is known as the Tree of Visions and Knowledge, he is not the true Tree of Knowledge as mentioned in the Bible. That distinction belongs to the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, located in Africa and protected by a being known as the Gardener.

Swamp Thing (Series 3) #18: "Last of the Loose Ends"

Tuuru spawns the third Erl-King, Eyam, forming the Trinity. Their domain is the Green. The first to take the shape of a dissimilar lifeform, Eyam embodies a trilobite so the Trinity can learn about life in the oceans. With Eyam's mind capable only of primitive thoughts, the line of elementals remains without speech until the coming of man, though they do possess a plant form of telepathy. With the creation of the second Erl-King, the Parliament of Trees comes into existence.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #89: "Founding Fathers"

NOTE: Dough Wheeler's "Quest for the Elementals" saga negates the idea that the line of elementals remained without speech until the coming of man. Eyam seems to have been named for one of the best-preserved villages in Britain-the famous "Plague Village" that went into voluntary quarantine when the disease was imported from London in 1665.

This happens at about the same time that rocks first form on the planet Earth.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #168: "Trial By Fire, Part 3-The Last Temptation of Anton"

NOTE: Issue #168 says the Parliament of Trees has been around since the first rocks formed on Earth. Current scientific theory places this event at about 3.9 billion years ago.

The Trinity reigns as Erl-Kings for some three billion years before the fourth elemental is formed.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #104: "The Quest for the Elementals I-Matango"

NOTE: Given that the next nine elementals are based on various sea creatures, Eyam must reign until circa 550,000,000 B.C., when the first such creatures evolved.

The Parliament of Trees, representing the woods, the marshes and all that lives and grows, exists in tandem with the Parliament of Stones, which carries a less crystalline intelligence in its hard rock. The latter's domain is called the Melt. Together, the two domains form the Parliaments of the Earth.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #150: "The Illumination"

The Parliaments of Waves and Vapors also form, representing Earth's water and air, respectively.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #158: "River Run, Chapter Seven-The Parliament of Waves"

Alternate Timeline: Thrown back in time by the Claw of Aelkh�nd, Alec witnesses the dawn of life on Earth. Adopted by a civilization of plant beings, he takes a job and starts a family of his own. In time he forgets his future wife Abby, but as his memories return, he struggles to recall who he really is. Ultimately, he becomes trapped within the Claw for billions of years until John Constantine frees him in 1989. During this period, he meets time travelers Anthro and Rip Hunter and defeats his lifelong enemy, Anton Arcane.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #89: "Retro" [unpublished] and #90 [unpublished, title unknown]

NOTE: These tales were slated for issues #89-90, but writer Rick Veitch quit the series and Doug Wheeler took the storyline in a new direction. As such, these "lost" chapters never actually occurred. They are included here for posterity.

Billions of years B.C.

The planet Mars gains global consciousness after billions of years of existence. Joining the Parliament of Worlds, Mars takes its place alongside most of its fellow planets in the Sol System. Only Earth, still an infant, and Oa, a planet no longer in existence, are not represented. In the ensuing billennia, Mars watches over its younger brother, waiting for Earth to attain awareness and complete the Parliament.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #171: "Trial By Fire-The End"

In the Okavango Swamp in Botswana, Africa, an ape finds the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Still just a sapling, the Tree produces fruit containing mild hallucinogens. The ape eats of the fruit, which reorganizes her brain development, granting self-awareness. Over the centuries, this tree and others in her garden evolve, as do her descendants. In time, the fruit develops the ability to bestow upon those who eat it visions of the greatest good and the greatest evil of which they are capable.

Swamp Thing (Series 3) #20: "Saga"

c. 1,000,000,000 B.C.

The Parliament of Stones and the Parliament of Trees part ways, becoming separate entities.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #150: "The Illumination"

Prophecy foretells that champions for the Parliament of Trees and the Parliament of Stones will one day face off in a great battle between their chosen champions in order to bring about the reunification of the Parliaments of the Earth. The Stones' prophesized champion is big game hunter Nelson Strong, while the Trees' choice is not yet set in stone.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #145: "Big Game"

NOTE: Excuse the pun.

The stars choose Alec Holland as the Green's champion, predicting that a billion years hence, he will reunite the two Parliaments of the Earth as one body. Agents for both sides prepare for the coming battle over the next billion years, testing each successive plant elemental in a series of trials meant to determine worthiness. However, none succeed in passing the first level, the earth level, until Alec Holland succeeds in 1995 by defeating Nelson Strong.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #150: "The Illumination"

NOTE: If Alec has been chosen as the Green's champion, why would the Parliament bother testing other elementals along the way? Perhaps they did not want to place all their seeds in one basket, so to speak, and had doubts about Alec's ability to finish the task.

The three Lords of the Fallen (demon brothers known as the First, Second and Third of the Fallen) are named as the co-rulers of Hell, collectively to be known as the Devil.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #50: "Remarkable Lives"

NOTE: The Lords of the Fallen are separate entities from Lucifer Morningstar, who appears in Hellblazer #12 with fellow devils Beelzebub and Belial as the triumvirate rulers of Hell. (Belial is identified as Azazel in Neil Gaiman's Sandman.) Lucifer also features in Weird Mystery Tales #4, and more prominently in both Sandman and Lucifer, while Beelzebub shows up in Swamp Thing #96 and elsewhere. The First is also separate from the various Satans featured in DC's Teen Titans #25 and other titles. In each series, and in other DC/Vertigo titles, rulership of Hell seems to vary widely, as do many other aspects of the afterlife. This discrepancy can be explained by noting that the DC universe's Hell and Heaven are both shaped by perception and, thus, prone to change. The film Constantine combines Lucifer and the First as one character, Lucifer (hardly a surprise, as it gets so many other facets wrong as well).

c. 550,000,000 to 200,000,000 B.C.

The next nine elementals are formed from sea creatures: a man-of-war, a conch, a lobster, a shark, a crustacean called Canan Kax, a layer of algae known as Misk, a snail, an eel and a sea-plant.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #104: "The Quest for the Elementals I-Matango"

NOTE: This period covers the scientifically accepted range from when the earliest sea creatures swam the seas to the Age of the Dinosaurs. Canan Kax is named for a Guatemalan eco-organization. In Guatemalan, the name means "Guardian of the Forest."

c. 200,000,000 B.C.

Armed with pre-knowledge of Alec's eventual time-traveling adventures, the Parliament of Trees vow to make sure history unfolds unchanged to keep Alec from damaging the future. To that end, they cease sharing memories with future members after Matango, the 13th Erl-King, based on the form of a serpentine dinosaur. The first thirteen form the Inner House of the Parliament, located in Founder's Grove, while successive members take root in the Outer House. With the separation of the two Houses, younger members develop a group mind of their own, without Alec's memories. Bifa, the 14th member, remains uprooted and mobile, his job to pass verbal messages between the two groves.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #104: "The Quest for the Elementals I-Matango"

NOTE: This date is based on the accepted beginning of the Age of the Dinosaurs. Matango is named for a Japanese kaiju film of the same name, produced by Toho Films. (English titles: Attack of the Mushroom People and Fungus of Terror.)

Thrown back in time by the Claw of Aelkh�nd, Alec stands before the Trinity. Yggdrasil explains his origins, having inherited his knowledge of the future. Alec experiences a montage of visions of events yet to come: the explosion in his lab, Anton Arcane, General Sunderland, Abby, Batman, Alex Olsen, John Constantine, the Sprout (his child) and the looming encroachment of the alien plant-mind known as the Grey. Tuuru ends the visions at that point, for showing Alec more would reveal a future he has not yet experienced. The Parliament then sends him back to the dawn of life on Earth to discover his true destiny: fathering their kind and beginning the entire Erl-King lineage.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #89: "Founding Fathers"

The fifth planet of the Sol System drifts too close to Jupiter and is pulled apart by its gravity well. This creates a great asteroid belt. The planet's fungus and mushroom-based lifeforms form a collective mind known as the Grey and retreat into dormancy while searching for a new home.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #104: "The Quest for the Elementals I-Matango"

A meteor from the asteroid belt that was once the fifth planet strikes Earth's Southern Hemisphere. As a result, the Grey spreads throughout this world.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #100: "Tales of Eden"

The Grey gains a foothold of power on Earth. As the reigning plant elemental, Matango volunteers to assume the Grey's essence and learn its nature and intentions from within. Leaving a receptacle of his knowledge behind, Matango joins the Grey, secretly planning to build a Parliament of his own. Instead, he is swallowed up by the Grey's will, which is far more powerful than he could have realized.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #104: "The Quest for the Elementals I-Matango"

Carrying out the will of the Grey, Matango seeks to weaken the Parliament of Trees, forcing them to abandon Eden and disperse around the globe. In the so-called Battle of Eden, Eyam is struck down and severed from the Green entirely, while half of Yggdrasil's body succumbs to the Grey.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #100: "Tales of Eden"

Upon Eden's fall, Canan Kax leads a band of elementals from the uprooted Parliament to scout out a new home. The Grey ambushes them in the Yucat�n forests of Mexico, where Matango absorbs most of the elementals. Canan Kax encases his body in sap for protection, using Earth's heat to harden the sap. Before he can escape, however, Matango's slaves plant poisonous Grey thorns in the sap, preventing him from breaking free. He watches helplessly as the millennia pass, bringing with them the rise and fall of the Mayan Empire.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #105: "The Quest for the Elementals II-Living Sacrifices"

During the Great Migration from Eden, over a thousand elemental souls are lost to the Grey, trapped beneath the Pacific Ocean within a fragment of the asteroid that first brought the Grey to Earth. Among those trapped are a deer-based elemental named Hart-in-the-Trees and a sabertooth tiger called Fields-That-Stalk. Others arise based on an ape, a boar and an alligator. Their bodies are made of kelp, however, preventing them from escaping Matango's trap, for were they to leave the asteroid fragment, they'd be eaten by fish.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #107: "The Quest for the Elementals IV-Stabs of Life Echoing in a Void"

Yggdrasil, Tuuru and Eyam forge a new Founders Grove and take root in the Parliament's new home, located in a rain forest at the mouth of the Tef� River in Brazil.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #47: "An American Gothic-The Parliament of Trees"

As each of the next nine elementals end their reigns as Erl-King, they join the Founders there as well.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #89: "Founding Fathers"

Deep in the rain forest of their new home, the Garden of Bereavement commemorates those Erl-Kings lost from the Green during the Great Migration. There, empty receptacles of those lost in the Battle of Eden are stored in the hope of some day rescuing them from the Grey.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #100: "Tales of Eden"

Following the war, the Grey and Green agree to share the planet in a balanced manner. Matango serves as the Grey's ambassador, his earlier ambitions suppressed by the Grey's will.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #104: "The Quest for the Elementals I-Matango"

The Parliament continues to add new species in order to learn new perspectives, never repeating a species twice until the arrival of man allows them to plan for Alec Holland's eventual arrival.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #100: "Tales of Eden"

The earliest Erl-Kings live for millennia, their successors for centuries, and so on until the elementals' reigns mirror human lifespans. Among the earliest of the Outer Parliament are two based on insects.

Swamp ~~Thing~~ Think (Series 2) #75: "The Thinker"

An Erl-King is born in the form of a dragon-like dinosaur known in old English lore as a knucker. Millions of years later, this elemental will be known as the Swamp Knucker.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #72: "Gargles in the Rat Race Choir"

NOTE: Alec mistakenly refers to the creature as a Swamp Mucker in issue #127.

A race of giant mutated worms dies out before the advent of mankind. A few survivors make their way to Earth and hibernate for millennia before being awoken by Dr. Zachary Nail.

Swamp Thing (Series 1) #11: "The Conqueror Worms"

c. 200,000,000 to 65,000,000 B.C.

Sent back in time by a Hell-Jewel, Alec barely survives a Tyrannosaurus Rex attack. Time-traveler Milo Mobius, cursed with immortality, kills the dinosaur but is impaled when it falls on him in its death throes. As Alec is swept forward in time, Milo rises unscathed and continues on his own journey.

Swamp Thing (Series 1) #12: "The Eternity Man"

Two early plant elementals are based on the templates of a mammoth and a dinosaur.

Swamp ~~Thing~~ Think (Series 2) #75: "The Thinker"

c. 65,000,000 B.C.

The beings known as the Old Ones try to make the dinosaurs their servants, rendering all the creatures extinct when they fail to satisfy the Old Ones' wishes.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #114: "Pirate's Alley"

NOTE: This placement is based on the generally accepted end of the Age of Dinosaurs.

Millions of years B.C.

The first man on Earth is born of the evolutionary chain in Kilimanjaro, Africa. Even as infant humanity develops full of promise and future potential, "dark things" hoping to hold man back and feed upon his weaknesses look forward to preying upon this new species. Growing to adulthood, the first man father's several children. The mother's identity is unrecorded.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #50: "Remarkable Lives"

NOTE: No date is given for this event, so I've set it here to coincide with the rise of humanity, but there is certainly room for debate. How this first human relates to the various DC-universe versions of Eden is unclear.

This first man kills his eldest son in an argument over a mango.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #69: "Rough Trade"

Two hours later, the King of the Vampires—the first of his kind—creeps out of the forests and snaps the first man's neck to feast on his blood.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #50: "Remarkable Lives"

Dekker, an angel in the court of the Archangel Michael, puts forth the outrageous idea that humanity constitutes an elemental force. For holding such a belief, he is banished from God's Kingdom until he either renounces his heresy or proves his contention. Choosing the latter route, he resolves to find one being who embodies the human element and bring him under his aegis so he can pull the human's strings while posing as his servant. His search takes millions of years, but among all the brilliant minds and nobel souls, none whom he serves possess that elusive elemental force.

Swamp Thing (Series 4) #8: "Missing Links, Conclusion"

NOTE: No date is given for this event, just that it happened at the beginning of time. I've set it here to coincide with the rise of humanity, but there is certainly room for debate.

The Brujer�a, a sadistic male-only witch cult worshipping evil, forms in South America.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #48: "An American Gothic-A Murder of Crows"

NOTE: The Brujer�a are said to have survived millions of years, which would make them an example of early man.

As ritualistic magicians, the Brujer�a are able to access the twin disciplines of communication and control. Though unable to channel the mana stream themselves, they can reach out across the mana stream and make contact with potent otherworldy and extraterrestrial entities.

DC Heroes Role-Playing Game—Magic Sourcebook

The fallen angel Dekker, determined to find one being who embodies the human element and bring him under his aegis, comes to serve the leaders of a primitive tribe of Early Men, but none display the elemental force that he seeks.

Swamp Thing (Series 4) #8: "Missing Links, Conclusion"

Calibraxis, a sadistic human child in ancient Atlantis who will later become a demon known as Lord of the Blades, learns how to keep a person alive and conscious, even after its guts are torn out.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #52: "Royal Blood, Part One—The Players"

c. 1,000,000 B.C.

A mortal manages to beat the First of the Fallen (one of the three co-rulers of Hell, along with his demonic brothers, the Second and Third of the Fallen) in a battle of the wits. The details of this event are unrecorded, and no mortal manages to beat the Devil again for at least a thousand millennia.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #45: "Dangerous Habits, Part Five—The Sting"

c. 200,000 B.C.

The coming of homo sapiens man changes the balance of power between the Green and the Grey, for his essence is in discord with his world, his nature one of devastation and ruin. The Parliament wages a war to keep this new race separate from others, but Matango tempts them with fruit from Tuuru's branches, unleashing global destruction. Causing an Ice Age to protect the Neanderthals (homo Neandertalensis) that also inhabit the Earth, the Green enrages the Grey, sparking a war that rages until Cro Magnon man slays the Neanderthals around 40,000 B.C.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #104: "The Quest for the Elementals I-Matango"

M'Nagalah the Eternal creates in the minds of mankind a capacity for evil and mindless violence.

Swamp Thing (Series 1) #8: "The Lurker in Tunnel 13"

M'Nagalah's siblings, Rh'Thulla of the Wind and Kag'Naru of the Air, continue their brother's evil ways, hoping one day to dominate the universe. Before completing their plans, however, they are shut off from the cosmos by the Golden Ones.

Challengers of the Unknown #83: "Chapter 3-The Gods Crawl Closer"

NOTE: M'Nagalah claims this happened "a billion-billion" years ago, but that is unlikely since scientific theory indicates homo sapiens first appeared on Earth around 200,000 B.C. Even Biblical accounts contradict such a figure, in fact. Therefore, I have amended the figure, attributing his claim to gross exaggeration-villains lie, after all.

The First of the Fallen—one of three beings known collectively as Satan—appears to Adam and Eve as the Serpent, tricking them into betraying God.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #59: "Guys & Dolls, Part One—Fallen Women"

Adam and Eve are cast out of the Garden of Eden, along with an evil Beast that Adam never named. To protect humanity from the Beast, God creates Kua I'ipa, the Shadow Dog, as mankind's guardian.

Hellblazer� #190: "Staring at the Wall, Part Two"

NOTE: Clearly, this placement is extremely open to debate. When and where did Adam and Eve exist in the DC universe's mixture of science, religion and fictional origins? And is this Garden of Eden the same Eden the elementals fought over millions of years past? I've placed it just after M'Nagalah creates in the minds of men a capacity for evil, but at this point, we simply don't have enough information to make a more educated placement.

The Garden of Eden drifts south and is buried beneath the ice of Antarctica.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #100: "Tales of Eden"

NOTE: This event is actually said to occur millions of years earlier, following the Battle of Eden. However, I have moved this event after Adam and Eve's expulsion, as it would be difficult for them to live in Eden in the first place if it were buried beneath miles of ice.

Cain―eldest son of Adam and Eve, the first modern humans―perpetrates the first murder against his brother Abel. As punishment for introducing the concept of murder, both are sentenced to relive the crime eternally in the realm known as the Dreaming―Cain for being the first predator, Abel the first victim. They serve thereafter as Caretakers, respectively, to the Houses of Mystery and Secrets.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #33: "Abandoned Houses"

NOTE: This date is conjectural and VERY open to debate, based upon when scientists believe homo sapiens first appeared on Earth. Given the Biblical nature of Cain and Abel, such rules might not even apply, but I am making this arbitrary chronological assumption in order to be able to place these events on the timeline.

In time, Eve departs the world of the living to dwell in the Dreaming as well, where she lives in a cave accompanied by an ever-changing string of sentient Ravens. Once human beings before leaving the world of the living, the Ravens serve the Sandman, Morpheus of the Endless, as his loyal assistants.

The Sandman and The Dreaming

Fascinated with man's complexity and armed with Alec's memories of the past, the Parliament of Trees begins to create elementals from man, hoping to learn more about his dangerous nature.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #100: "Tales of Eden"

Earth's elemental Parliaments watch in disgust as man poisons and destroys the world with impunity. God does nothing to stop his favored creation, and the Parliaments come to resent both man and God. Knowing they cannot battle God alone, they conspire to combine their powers and cast off the shackles of God's enslavement. Since God created man in his own image, they hope to use that against him, selecting suitable humans and impressing themselves upon their consciousness in the hope that one will aspire to Godhood. For millennia, many elementals come and go, but before Alec Holland, none display such aspirations.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #170: "Trial By Fire, Part 5-Apocalypse Now"

The Parliaments hope that in uniting, they can bring about a change on Earth by giving mankind a new way of thinking that will replace its destructive path. Down through the years, select members of the human race receive knowledge of the future in order to make preparations for the arrival of a new child that will herald in this new way of thinking and make the Earth a better place for everyone.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #171: "Trial By Fire-The End"

c. 200,000 B.C. to the 1990s A.D.

After millions of years pass without Alec Holland's arrival, the Parliament of Trees worry that perhaps they've done something wrong and changed time. They eventually start choosing people with names similar to his, prodding them toward studies of plant regeneration and arranging for their deaths under fiery conditions, just as he died.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #104: "The Quest for the Elementals I-Matango"

NOTE: The issue actually says "billions of years" pass, but since that does not fit the established chronology, I have changed that figure to "millions."

Two great magic Lodges evolve on Earth. One seeks to inspire mankind to greatness by any means unnecessary, no matter how unspeakable the act. The other believes mankind a disease that must be destroyed and replaced. The latter learn of the Parliaments' plans for mankind and devote themselves to making sure events unfold precisely as the Parliaments wish so mankind can be replaced by a newer, better race. For millennia, both Lodges guard their secrets and train their players in the game, waiting for the day when the Parliaments can finally reunite.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #167: "Trial By Fire, Part 2-The Word of God"

NOTE: The creation of the Lodges is undated in the comic. I conjecture it must have been long ago, as Blake and his comrades appear to be part of a long-standing tradition.

c. 102,370 B.C.

100,000 years before Noah's Flood, a medicine woman practiced in the healing magic of herbs and plants is caught in an avalanche of volcanic mud. When she arises, she finds she has become Earth's next plant elemental. This new Erl-King is called Bog Venus in the guttural language of her people.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #68: "Reflections in a Golden Eye"

NOTE: This date is conjectural and VERY open to debate, based on the year some Biblical scholars ascribe to the Great Flood (2,370 B.C.). Issue #80 states Bog Venus was born before man started using tools, implying homo erectus, but given the flood reference, I have ignored that figure since tools appeared at least two million years earlier.

c. 40,000 B.C.

A young Neanderthal named Tianne reaches womanhood and is betrothed to a man in her tribe. She eats a seed from the skull of an honored dead, hoping it will help her conceive a child. All are stunned when Alec appears from another seed, having been thrown back in time by the Claw of Aelkh�nd. Rather than fear him, Shaman Rheelai recognizes him as an Earth spirit and welcomes him openly. Alec spends three days with the Neanderthals and feels spiritually content. Rheelai shows him a gift his people received from Sarga, their god who resides in a tall tree in the village. (Alec will later meet Sarga in the guise of Tuuru.) It is the Holy Grail, which they have spent countless years creating with help from an amber stone passed down through his family for generations. Alec recognizes the stone as the Claw of Aelkh�nd, and Rheelai promises to use it to send him on his way once they have finished creating the Grail. Having foreseen their own slaughter in the gem, they are using the Grail to help Cro Magnon man, their successors, find peace and harmony. In that way, he hopes his people will live on. Across the continent, a group of Cro Magnons lose their leader, Yahc-Kow. Fearful that his spirit might return to haunt them, they bury him beneath large stones, burn and abandon their own village and claim the Neanderthal village for their own. Rheelai gives Alec three seeds, for he knows his people, the last remaining Neanderthals, will die. The attack is brief, the Neanderthals quickly slaughtered. As his final act before dying, Rheelai uses the gem to encase his tribe's spirits in the Grail. Alec tries to destroy the attackers using plants around him, but his powers are weak in this Ice Age. One Cro Magnon sees Alec and throws the gem at him, sending Alec further back in time. The man then places the gem within the Grail, never knowing the irony and historical importance of that action. There, the gem will remain until the sixth century and the Fall of Camelot.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #88: "Survival of the Fittest"

Ohtehrah, a Neanderthal-based elemental, severs his connection to the Parliament of Trees when Cro Magnon man kills his people. Leading the few surviving Neanderthals across the mountains to a secret cave, he stays with them until the last dies, circa 210 B.C. Rarely seen, these last survivors become the basis of the Yeti Snowman and the demon Raksa of legend. Before accepting extinction, the tribe create cave paintings telling the story of the three seeds of Rheelai, prophesizing that an elemental named Tef� will some day usher in their rebirth through the use of the third seed.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #106: "The Quest for the Elementals III-Dead Tribes and Forgotten Souls"

NOTE: The Yeti do, in fact, exist in the DC/Vertigo universe, as shown in varies series over the years, most recently in Hawkman. As such, the Neanderthals would more accurately be said to have perpetuated the Yeti legend rather than inspiring it. In fact, Yeti also appear or are mentioned in the pages of Swamp Thing itself: in issues #82 and 159 of Series 2, and in issue 7 of Series 4.

Thousands of years B.C.

The Brujer�a survive undetected in the caves of Chil�e, in the forests of Patagonia, for millennia. There, they await a chance to summon a great evil down upon the Earth and wipe out all mankind.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #48: "An American Gothic-A Murder of Crows"

NOTE: Although the Brujer�a are said to have survived millions of years, they are also said to have hidden out on Patagonia for "thousands of yeas.

After eons of peaceful existence on a beautiful planet they call their Lady, a multi-species culture is ousted by a selfish, hostile race who brutalize the ecosystem and destroy the fauna for food and experimentation. One of each species is genetically altered for the journey to be long-lived and reproduce asexually. Boarding a living tortoise-shaped Vivi-Quinquerme spaceship called Find the Lady, they set out to complete their mission, hoping never again to encounter the Loneliest Animals of All (those who kill others) in their search for a new world.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #32: "Pog"

An Earl-King is born in pre-historic Africa. He is called Great Url, and elephants eat from his hand.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #47: "An American Gothic-The Parliament of Trees"

NOTE: No date is given for his reign, so consider this placement open to interpretation.

An elf-like race thrives in Europe while humans are still quite primitive. They call themselves the Folk, though humans call them Tuatha de Daanan ("the Children of Danu") for their worship of Danu, goddess of the Moon's cycle and grace. Older and wiser than man, the Folk are the first to master smithing and woodworking. They are warriors, huntsmen, poets, sorcerers, physicians and musicians without equal; their rulers, particularly Nuada of the Silver Leg and Lug of the Many Skills, are initially good and just. Believing themselves blessed, they eventually grow cruel and arrogant toward those they deem inferior. Mankind first reveres them, then hates and fears them.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #131: "Folk Remedy"

According to the Will of God, Gabriel of the Cherubim wanders ancient Mesopotamia, spreading love among the Babylonians and Sumerians, and alternately slaying Assyrians and Egyptians. When ordered to level the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah in an apocalypse of fire, he never questions the Lord's command, even though the archangel does not understand why homosexuality is a sin.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #64: "Fear and Loathing, Part One—For God and Country"

c. 8,200 B.C.

Echida, a demon in Hell known as the Mother of Monsters, defies Lucifer Morningstar by having so many children that they nearly overran the bounds of Hell. In punishment, Mulciber fashions a prison to hold them, disguised as a humble-looking box. Never intended to distill and crystalize into material form, the box falls into the physical world. There, it is gated to Empress Pandora by a rival prince, who forbids her to open it but hopes she will anyway so he can overthrow her empire. This unleashes Hell on Earth until an alliance of mortal sorcerers trap the demons in the box once more with a word of binding. In punishment, Pandora is cursed with immortality, unable to die except at the demons' hands, and charged with guarding the box forever. From this event, the Greek myth of Pandora's Box arises. In time, she will become known as Lady Blackwood of England., though after nearly 10,000 years, she will go quite mad, determined to open the box so she can finally die.

Hellblazer Special―Lady Constantine #4: "Hell Hath No Fury, Part 4"

NOTE: In Milton's Paradise Lost, Mulciber is the demon who built Pandemonium, Satan's palace in Hell; he is based on a Greek mythological figure known for being a poor architect, though in Milton's poem, he is a productive and skilled devil. Incidentally, Pandora's box bears a striking resemblance to the Lament Configuration puzzle seen in Clive Barker's Hellraiser films, complete with chains. This is ironic, as Hellblazer was originally named Hellraiser until the film necessitated a title change for the comic.

Some time before 8,000 B.C.

A man named Nergal is caught sexually molesting children, and is burnt at the stake for his sins. Descending to Hell, he evolves into a demon over the next 10,000 years.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #60: "Guys & Dolls, Part Two—Nativity Infernal"

NOTE: Nergal is said to have taken 10,000 years to become a demon, but since it's not been established when Nergal became a demon, it's impossible to determine when he died as a mortal. Before attaining fame as a Hellblazer villain, Nergal first appeared in More Fun Comics #67 as an enemy of Dr. Fate. A second Nergal character, an alien from the planet Oa, also inhabits the DC Comics universe, as seen in Green Lantern Annual #9 and the miniseries JLA: Gatekeeper.

c. 5,000 B.C.

The Ruby of Life is created with a single purpose-that of elevating a human being to godhood. In millennia to come, it will reside in the hands of Sargon the Sorcerer.

Swamp Thing (Series 4) #2: "Bad Seed, Part Two"

c. 3,100 B.C.

The Masons of Atlantis, an offshoot of the Freemasons, build Stonehenge and other stone circles to capture the Earth's energy. Their modern-day descendants, the Magi Caecus, carry on this tradition.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #22: "The Fear Machine, Part IX-Balance"

NOTE: No time reference is given for this event. Rather I've placed it based on the generally accepted year that Stonehenge's construction began.

c. 3,000 B.C.

Great Phoenix, an eagle-based Erl-King, reigns during the early days of the Egyptian Empire.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #107: "The Quest for the Elementals IV-Stabs of Life Echoing in a Void"

c. 2010 B.C.

In ancient Mesopotamia, a revered priest gives himself over to the demon Nergal and is sucked into Hell to feed the bloody vineyards of Nergal's realm, Mashkan-Shapir.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #99: "Leaves in a Tempest"

NOTE: In Babylonian mythology, Nergal is a deity with the main seat of his cult at Cuthah, represented by the mound of Tell-Ibrahim. Nergal seems to be, in part, a solar deity, sometimes identified with Shamash.

c. 1800 B.C.

In the desert wilderness outside Beersheba, the largest city in Israel's Negev Desert, Abraham's Egyptian-born concubine Hagar carries her son, Ishmael, after being sent away by Abraham's wife Sarah. With no food or water for days, Ishmael is dying, and she decides to abandon him, knowing God will save him since the Lord favors Abraham. God intervenes in the form of a wolf, admonishing her for leaving her son to die. Tired of God's "backhanded" interventions, she questions why women must suffer under His rule. He creates a pool of water to quench their thirst, saying they will both live, but that for questioning His actions, she will ever remain outside His covenant. The thing she seeks the most, He says—love—she will never find, and the years of longing shall make her a monster. Saddened, she asks why He would do this rather than showing her compassion, and He reminds her that suffering is the stock and trade of drama.

Swamp Thing (Series 4) #24: "The Bleeding Raconteur, Part 4—Emendation"

NOTE: Some details of Hagar's back story are not mentioned in the issue, but rather can be found in the Bible.

c. 1050 B.C.

In China's Third Dynasty, the Emperor orders his much-feared sorcerer murdered. The sorcerer is said to have the heart of a Buddha. His body is cremated as per his own instructions, his remains immersed in a cask of specially-prepared tinctures and oils. Knowing his own fate, he has prepared himself for resurrection as Earth's next plant elemental. An army of life-size ceramic soldiers are left to prevent his transformation, but nature is a more powerful force and the resurrection takes place.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #68: "Reflections in a Golden Eye"

In time, this sorcerer-turned-elemental will be known as Ghost-Hiding-in-the-Rushes.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #47: "An American Gothic-The Parliament of Trees"

c. 49 B.C. to 44 B.C.

During the reign of Julius Caesar, the King of the Vampires and his kind make their home in the Roman Empire. In such a culture of decadence, senators and slaves alike willingly give themselves over for consumption in order to experience new, illicit pleasures.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #50: "Remarkable Lives"

NOTE: Julius Caesar took control of the Roman government in 49 B.C., conquering the known world as dictator until his assassination in 44 B.C.

c. 210 B.C.

The last remnants of the Neanderthal race dies in a secret cave where they have hidden for millennia, protected by a rogue plant elemental named Ohtehrah. Rarely seen, these last Neanderthals spawn the basis of the Yeti Snowman and the demon Raksa of modern legend. Before accepting extinction, the tribe create cave paintings telling the story of three seeds given to Alec by a Shaman named Rheelai. The paintings prophesize that Alec's future daughter, Tef�, will some day usher in their rebirth through the use of the third seed.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #106: "The Quest for the Elementals III-Dead Tribes and Forgotten Souls"

c. 6 B.C. to 1 A.D.

As per the Will of God, Gabriel of the Cherubim rapes Mary, wife of a carpenter in Nazareth named Joseph, impregnating her with His child. A loyal archangel, Gabriel never questions the Lord's wishes.

John Constantine, Hellblazer #64: "Fear and Loathing, Part One—For God and Country"

Jesus Christ is born, considered by many the Son of God. Three gift-bearing Wise Men visit the child. Two millennia later, their 664th descendant, Mamadou Ngom, will make such a journey to honor Tef�.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #91: "Augurs and Offerings"

NOTE: The accepted years of Christ's birth and death―1 and 33 A.D., respectively―are debatable due to evidence involving King Herod's death. A questionable census date also adds to the confusion. Thus, I have allowed time to account for a math error.

Unbeknownst at the time, the Three Wise Men are evil sorcerers in disguise, sent to observe the birth and determine if the child merits further study as an obstacle to Hell's reign on Earth. Not recognizing his true power, the three Magi decide not to kill the infant, a decision they will regret in later years.

Swamp Thing (Series 2) #88: "Morning of the Magician" [unpublished]

NOTE: Illustrated by Michael Zulli, this tale was slated for issue #88 but was canceled following a conflict between Rick Veitch and DC Comics. Since issue #90 and Swamp Thing Secret Files & Origins reference these events, they do occur in some form. Having obtained a copy of the script, I am including the events of this story for posterity. It should be noted that the accepted years of Christ's birth and death―1 and 33 A.D., respectively―are debatable due to evidence involving King Herod's death. A questionable census date adds to the confusion. Thus, I have allowed time to account for a math error.

On to Part 2

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