Why did Jesus go to hell after His death on the cross and preach to the people while He was there?

I don't know what my church teaches about it and I'm not sure what I believe because I haven't thought too much about it.

But I remember someone telling me when I was younger that prior to His death on the cross, no one could get to Heaven. Instead they went to a place called, I think it was Sheol maybe?. This is actually where Jesus went but the real name was lost through translation and called hell. After he preached to them, he unchained them so they could go to Heaven...or to the real hell.

He went to Tartarus and announced His triumph to the spirits in prison. These were the angels of Gen 6:2,4

2 Pet 2:4 and Jude 6

1 Pet 3:19 By which also He went and preached unto the spirits in prison;

Earlier in John’s vision, Jesus is described as having “the keys of death and of Hades.” (Revelation 1:18) He serves as Jehovah’s “Chief Agent of life,” empowered to judge “the living and the dead.” (Acts 3:15; 2 Timothy 4:1) How will he do this? By bringing back to life those who sleep in death. “Do not marvel at this,” Jesus said to the crowds to whom he preached, “because the hour is coming in which all those in the memorial tombs will hear his voice and come out.” He then added: “Those who did good things to a resurrection of life, those who practiced vile things to a resurrection of judgment.” (John 5:28-30)

Continuing with 1 Timothy 3:16, Paul next refers to the third feature of the sacred secret, saying that Jesus “appeared to angels.” Who might these angels be? Concerning Jesus, now “made alive in the spirit,” Peter writes at 1 Peter 3:19, 20: “In this state also he went his way and preached to the spirits in prison, who had once been disobedient when the patience of God was waiting in Noah’s days.” According to Jude 6, those spirits were “the angels that did not keep their original position but forsook their own proper dwelling place” in the heavens. They took on fleshly bodies in order to enjoy illicit sex relations with women. When the Deluge compelled those angels to return to the spirit realm, they were thrown into Tartarus, a condition of utter debasement. (2 Peter 2:4) The resurrected Jesus preached to them. But was that a message of salvation? Definitely not! Rather, Jesus condemned their wickedness as being the very antithesis of godly devotion. Any of God’s people who toy with sexual immorality today should take warning from the judgment pronounced upon those angels!

There is no such thing as hell... yet. Despite popular belief, Satan doesn't rule over the evil of the dead or anything like that... Jesus didn't defeat death or the devil. By 'defeat death' if you mean rose out of his grave, then yes, but he still died. He was resurrected by God and went to heaven. The devil... well he still makes people sin today and that won't stop until Christ returns to take us home.

He went to a place referred to as "Abraham's Bosom" which is also referred to as Hades.

Abraham's Bosom was the "Paradise" side of Hades and is why the story of Lazarus and the rich man was valid when it was preached but no longer works (Paradise is empty as those in Paradise went to Heaven).

Hell is a worse place then the torment side of Hades, currently people who have died and not gone to Heaven have gone to Hades to await judgment.

The preaching would have been to get everyone together and convince them to leave the (stereotyping here for illustrative purposes) "white sandy beaches, the beautiful weather, the crystal clear oceans filled with fish and the drink sitting next to them as they lay on their chairs basking in their holiday", and to go to an even better place with Him.

He preached the good news to those held in captivity and led the captives free in his train. As for keys he still holds those hun and there are more dungeons than just hell. There are several dungeons. Its in the Bible read it.

He didn't really go to hell. He went to a place they called limbo and comforted the people who died and believed, hoped and waited for Him,the Messiah, that their prophets foretold of Him. He went there to comfort and assure them that He will take them all with Him when He ascends (ascension) into Heaven.

That was the reason God sent His only son to cross so that we can have life in Him.

Jesus is the way truth and life

Because Heaven had yet to be built. He went to Hell to release those kept their who included Adam, and all the other notable names. It took three days for Heaven to be built and all the captives freed.

habit, I guess