Jewish–Roman wars

Jewish–Roman wars
Date 66–135 CE (70 years) Location Roman Judea, Egypt, Cyprus, Cyrenaica, Mesopotamia Result Roman victory: Destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple Widespread destruction in Judea and diaspora of many survivors Separation of Christianity from Judaism Consolidation of non-messianic Jewish sects into Rabbinic Judaism Consolidation of Jewish center in Galilee Territorial changes Roman Judea (Iudaea) remained under Roman control, renamed and merged into the province of Syria Palaestina
Belligerents
Roman Empire	Judean provisional government Jewish Zealots Jewish rebels Judea under Bar Kokhba
Commanders and leaders
Titus Vespasian Marcus Lupus Marcius Turbo Lusius Quietus Hadrian Sextus Julius Severus	Hannan Eleazar ben Hanania Bar Giora Eleazar John Artemion Lukuas Julian and Pappus Simon bar Kokhba † Eleazar of Modi'im
Strength
Great revolt: 30,000 (Beth Horon) – 60,000 (siege of Jerusalem) Kitos War: forces of the eastern legions Bar Kokhba revolt: 6–7 full legions with cohorts and auxiliaries of 5–6 additional legions – about 120,000 total.	Great revolt: 25,000+ Jewish militias 20,000 Idumeans Kitos War: loosely organized tens of thousands Bar Kokhba revolt: 200,000–400,000b militiamen
Casualties and losses
Great revolt: Legio XII Fulminata lost its aquila and Syrian contingent destroyed – about 20,000 casualties; thousands of Roman civilians slain Kitos War: 240,000 killed in Cyprusa,[1] 200,000 killed in Cyrenaicaa Bar Kokhba revolt: Legio XXII Deiotariana destroyed, Legio IX Hispana possibly disbanded,[2] Legio X Fretensis – sustained heavy casualties	Great revolt: 1,356,460 civilians and militia killed[3] – perhaps hundreds of thousands of non-Jewish civilians (mostly trapped visitors) killed; enslavement of 97,000–99,000c Kitos War: 200,000 killed[4] Annihilation of Jewish communities in Cyprus, Cyrenaica and Alexandria Bar Kokhba revolt: 580,000a killed,[5] 985 Jewish strongholds and villages destroyeda
350,000[6]–1,400,000[7] fatalities
[a] per Cassius Dio[8] [b] according to Rabbinic sources [c] per Josephus[9]

The Jewish–Roman wars were a series of large-scale revolts by the Jews of Judaea against the Roman Empire between 66 and 135 CE.^[10] The conflict primarily encompasses two major uprisings: the First Jewish–Roman War (66–73 CE) and the Bar Kokhba revolt (132–136 CE), both driven by Jewish aspirations to restore the political independence lost when Rome conquered the Hasmonean kingdom. Some historians also include the Diaspora Revolt (115–117 CE), when Jewish communities across the Eastern Mediterranean rose up against Roman rule.

The Jewish–Roman wars had a devastating impact on the Jewish people, turning them from a major population in the Eastern Mediterranean into a dispersed and persecuted minority.^[11] The First Jewish-Roman War ended with the devastating siege and destruction of Jerusalem in 70 CE, including the burning of the Second Temple—the center of Jewish religious and national life. Roman forces destroyed other towns and villages throughout Judaea, causing massive loss of life and displacement of the population.^[12] The surviving Jewish community lost all political autonomy under direct Roman rule.^[13] The later Bar Kokhba revolt proved even more devastating. The Romans' brutal suppression of this uprising led to the near-total depopulation of Judea proper through a combination of battlefield casualties, mass killings, and the widespread enslavement of survivors.^[14][15] In a deliberate effort to erase Jewish connections to the land, Emperor Hadrian renamed the province from Judaea to Syria Palaestina. On the ruins of Jerusalem, he established the Roman colony of Aelia Capitolina, prohibited Jewish entry into the city, and outlawed key Jewish religious practices.

These catastrophic events expanded and strengthened the Jewish diaspora, driving profound religious and cultural transformations that would shape Judaism for millennia. With the Temple's sacrificial cult no longer viable, other forms of worship developed, centered on prayer, Torah study, and communal synagogue gatherings, enabling Jewish communities to preserve their identity and practices despite dispersion. As Jewish life in Judaea became untenable, two major shifts occurred: within the Land of Israel, the cultural center shifted northward to Galilee, while internationally, Babylonia and other diaspora communities across the Mediterranean and Near East gained unprecedented importance, eventually comprising the majority of the Jewish population. These developments laid the foundation for Rabbinic Judaism, which emerged as the dominant form of Judaism in late antiquity and was responsible for the codification of the Mishnah and Talmud.

The Jewish–Roman wars include the following:^[16]

• First Jewish–Roman War (66–73)—also called the First Jewish Revolt or the Great Jewish Revolt, spanning from the 66 insurrection, through the 67 fall of the Galilee, the destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple and institution of the Fiscus Judaicus in 70, and finally the fall of Masada in 73.
• Diaspora revolt (115–117)—known as the "Rebellion of the Exile" and sometimes called the Second Jewish–Roman War; includes the Kitos War in Judaea
• Bar Kokhba revolt (132–136)—also called the Second Jewish–Roman War (when Kitos War is not counted), or the Third (when the Kitos War is counted).

Following increasing Roman domination of the Eastern Mediterranean, the client kingdom of the Herodian dynasty had been officially merged into the Roman Empire in 6 CE with the creation of the Roman province of Judaea. The transition of the Tetrarchy of Judaea into an Imperial province immediately brought a great deal of tensions and a Jewish uprising by Judas of Galilee erupted right away as a response to the Census of Quirinius.

Although initially pacified (the years between 7 and 26 being relatively quiet), the province continued to be a source of trouble under Emperor Caligula (after 37). The cause of tensions in the east of the empire was complicated, involving the spread of Greek culture, Roman law, and the rights of Jews in the empire. Caligula did not trust the prefect of Roman Egypt, Aulus Avilius Flaccus. Flaccus had been loyal to Tiberius, had conspired against Caligula's mother, and had connections with Egyptian separatists.^{[17][better source needed]} In 38 Caligula sent Herod Agrippa to Alexandria unannounced to check on Flaccus.^{[18][better source needed]} According to Philo, the visit was met with jeers from the Greek population, who saw Agrippa as the king of the Jews.^[19][20] Flaccus tried to placate both the Greek population and Caligula by having statues of the emperor placed in Jewish synagogues.^[21][22] As a result, extensive religious riots broke out in the city.^[23] Caligula responded by removing Flaccus from his position and executing him.^[24] In Antiquities of the Jews, Josephus mentions that in 39 CE Agrippa accused Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee and Peraea, of planning a rebellion against Roman rule with the help of Parthia. Antipas confessed, and Caligula exiled him. Agrippa was rewarded with his territories.^[25]

Riots again erupted in Alexandria in 38 between Jews and Greeks.^[26] Jews were accused of not honoring the emperor.^[26] Disputes occurred also in Jamnia.^[27] Jews were angered by the erection of a clay altar and destroyed it.^[27] In response, Caligula ordered the erection of a statue of himself in the Temple in Jerusalem,^[28] a demand in conflict with Jewish monotheism.^[29] In this context, Philo writes that Caligula "regarded the Jews with most especial suspicion, as if they were the only persons who cherished wishes opposed to his".^[29] Fearing civil war if the order were carried out, Publius Petronius—governor of Roman Syria—delayed implementing it for nearly a year.^[30] Agrippa finally convinced Caligula to reverse the order.^[26] However, only Caligula's death at the hands of Roman conspirators in 41 prevented a full-scale war in Judaea, that might have spread to the rest of the eastern part of the empire.^[31]

Caligula's death did not stop the tensions completely, and in 46 an insurrection led by two brothers, the Jacob and Simon uprising, broke out in the Judea province. The revolt, mainly in the Galilee, began as sporadic insurgency; when it climaxed in 48 it was quickly put down by Roman authorities. Both Simon and Jacob were executed.^[32]

In the spring and summer of 66 CE, a chain of events in Caesarea and Jerusalem sparked what would become the First Jewish–Roman War. The conflict began with a local dispute in Caesarea over land adjacent to a synagogue, which escalated when a Greek resident deliberately provoked the Jewish community by sacrificing birds at the synagogue entrance.^[33] The situation worsened when Florus plundered the Jerusalem Temple treasury and ordered brutal crackdowns that killed thousands in the city.^[34] After Agrippa II, a pro-Roman Jewish king, failed to relax the crowds and fled the city,^[35][36] Eleazar ben Hanania, the Temple captain, halted sacrifices for Rome—effectively declaring rebellion.^[37][38] The crisis spiraled into widespread ethnic violence across the region, with massacres of Jewish communities in several mixed cities,^[39][40] while Jewish forces retaliated against Greek cities and seized key fortresses. In Jerusalem, the rebels drove out and killed the remaining Roman forces; afterward, Menahem ben Judah, leader of the Sicarii, attempted to seize power but was assassinated, leading to the Sicarii's expulsion to the desert fortress of Masada.^[41]

At this stage, the Roman legate of Syria, Cestius Gallus, assembled a force including the Legio XII Fulminata and auxiliary troops from regional vassals,^[42] devastating Jewish settlements such as Chabulon, Jaffa and Lydda.^[43] However, after initial successes, he withdrew from the city for unclear reasons and was decisively ambushed at the Bethoron Pass,^[44] suffering losses equivalent to a full legion. This unexpected defeat proved a turning point, bolstering rebel morale^[45] and leading to the establishment of a provisional government in Jerusalem.^[46] Led by former High Priest Ananus ben Ananus,^[47] this new administration divided the country into military districts, appointed regional commanders,^[47] and began minting coins with nationalist Hebrew inscriptions, such as "For the Freedom of Zion".^[48][49] While the government publicly supported the revolt, they seem to have secretly hoped to restore order and negotiate with Rome.^[50] During this period, several rebel leaders emerged, including John of Gischala in Galilee^[51] and Simon Bar Giora in Judea.^[52]

After Gallus' defeat, Nero appointed the experienced commander Vespasian to lead the Roman response.^[53][54] He assembled a massive force including three legions and numerous auxiliary troops.^[53] Arriving in Akko-Ptolemais in the summer of 67 CE,^[55] Vespasian launched a systematic campaign in the Galilee. Yodfat, a key stronghold, fell after a grueling 47-day siege,^[56] with thousands killed or captured.^[57] Josephus, who had been the commander of the Galilee, surrendered after the city's fall and later gained Roman favor by claiming prophetic visions of Vespasian's rise to power,^[58] ultimately becoming a historian under Flavian patronage and the main source for the war.^[59][60] Taricheae mounted fierce resistance before falling in an event of mass killing, with its survivors facing execution, slavery, or other severe punishments.^[61] Gamla, a fortified city in the Golan, was the next Roman target. After a prolonged siege, it fell in the autumn of 67 CE. Despite suffering heavy casualties, the Romans succeeded, leaving the city in ruins and its population nearly exterminated.^[62][63] Other Roman successes included the recapture of Mount Tabor,^[64] Gush Halav,^[65] Mount Gerizim,^[66] and Jaffa, where they suppressed rebel piracy and restored imperial control.^[67]

While the Romans pacified the north, Jerusalem plunged into civil war as refugees and zealots poured in from the Galilee.^[68] The radical Zealot faction, allied with John of Gischala, who arrived in the city with his followers from the north, overthrew the moderate government. With Idumeans joining the Zealots, Ananus ben Ananus was killed, and his forces suffered heavy casualties;^[69] many moderates were executed^[69][70] or forced to flee.^[71] The Zealots instituted revolutionary changes, including selecting a new High Priest by lot rather than from traditional aristocratic families.^[72] Upon learning of the turmoil in Jerusalem from deserters, Vespasian chose not to advance on the city, reasoning that internal conflict would weaken the Jews.^[73]

After a lull in military operations due to civil war and political instability in Rome, Vespasian returned to Rome and was proclaimed emperor in 69 CE. After Vespasian's departure, his son Titus besieged the center of rebel resistance in Jerusalem in early 70. As conditions within Jerusalem deteriorated catastrophically—with widespread famine, disease, and factional violence—the Romans employed psychological warfare, including mass crucifixions of escapees and parades displaying their military might. While the first two walls of Jerusalem were breached within three weeks, a stubborn stand prevented the Roman Army from breaking the third and thickest wall. However, they eventually penetrated the Jewish defenses, fighting through to the Temple Mount and destroying the Temple. The Romans then methodically razed the rest of the city, sparing only the Western Wall and a few towers.^[74][75] Archaeological findings corroborate these accounts of widespread destruction. Titus returned to Rome, where he and his father celebrated a triumph in the summer of 71, during which the Temple menorah and other spoils from the Temple were paraded through the city. The triumph also featured hundreds of captives, including Simon bar Giora, who was executed as a primary leader of the revolt at the conclusion of the procession.

With Jerusalem destroyed, the Romans launched an operation aimed at eliminating the last pockets of resistance: the rebel-held desert fortresses of Herodium, Machaerus, and Masada.^[76][77][78] Under Sextus Lucilius Bassus, the Romans swiftly captured Herodium, secured the surrender of Machaerus,^[79][80] and then eliminated rebel forces in the Forest of Jardes.^[81] After Bassus's death, his successor Lucius Flavius Silva led the siege of Masada in 73 or 74 CE.^[82][83] This massive engineering effort on an isolated, fortified rocky plateau near the Dead Sea included a complete circumvallation wall and an enormous siege ramp, which still stands today.^[83][78] According to Josephus, when the Romans finally breached the fortress walls, they discovered that the Sicarii defenders, led by Eleazar ben Yair, had chosen mass suicide over capture—960 men, women, and children died by their own hands, with only seven survivors.^[84][85]

The Diaspora Revolt (115–117), also known as mered ha'galuyot or mered ha'tfutzot (Rebellion of the exile), is the name given to the second of the Jewish–Roman wars. The Kitos War consisted of major revolts by diasporic Jews in Cyrenaica, Cyprus, Mesopotamia and Egypt, which spiraled out of control, resulting in a widespread slaughter of Roman citizens and others (200,000 in Cyrene, 240,000 in Cyprus according to Cassius Dio) by the Jewish rebels. The rebellions were finally crushed by Roman legionary forces, chiefly by Roman generals Marcius Turbo and Lusius Quietus. Kitos War was a contemporaneous episode of unrest and revolt in Judaea. The Diaspora revolt led to the disappearance of the influential Jewish community in Alexandria and Egypt and in the expulsion of Jews from Cyprus.^[86]

During the Bar Kokhba revolt (132 CE), Jews briefly established an independent state, minting coins like this one, depicting the former Temple and a lulav

The revolt was brutally crushed by the Romans, nearly depopulating Judea. Pictured is Betar, a key stronghold of the revolt, which fell around 135 CE

The Bar Kokhba revolt (132–136,^[87] Hebrew: מרד בר כוכבא) was the third major and final rebellion of the Jewish–Roman wars. The establishment of Roman colony Aelia Capitolina on the ruins of Jerusalem as well as the prohibition of circumcision by Hadrian, are the most likely causes which sparked the uprising. The Judeans spent a long time preparing for this rebellion in secrecy, carving out hundreds of underground hideout systems beneath their villages. Simon bar Kokhba was acclaimed as a messiah, a figure in Jewish eschatology who stems from the Davidic line and will restore the Kingdom of Israel and usher the Messianic age. The revolt managed to establish independence of many parts of Judaea as a state for more than two years, with Jerusalem being Bar Kokhba's capital. However a Roman army of six full legions with auxilia and elements from up to six additional legions ultimately crushed the rebellion ^[88], and defeated Bar Kokhba in his last stand in Betar.

The repercussions of the revolt's conclusion were catastrophic. The brutal suppression of it resulted in a significant number of Judaea's people being killed or captured, devastating its countryside and made it depopulated.^{[89][90][91][92][93]} Jewish presence in the Land of Israel was eradicated, and to complete the destruction of the memory of Judaea ; it was converted into a pagan province, with its name replaced with Syria Palaestina.^[94][95] Jews were then barred from entering Jerusalem, except to attend Tisha B'Av. At the former Jewish sanctuary on the Temple Mount he installed two statues, one of Jupiter and another of himself.^[96] Although Jewish Christians hailed Jesus as the Messiah and did not support Bar Kokhba,^[97] they were barred from Jerusalem along with other fellow Jews.^{[citation needed]} The war and its aftermath accelerated the emergence of early Christianity as a distinct religion from Judaism.^[98]

The Jewish-Roman wars profoundly transformed the Jewish people, converting a once-prominent population in the Eastern Mediterranean into a dispersed and persecuted minority.^[11] These conflicts caused extensive casualties and destruction throughout Judea and led to mass displacement and the enslavement of many. While the First Jewish-Roman War devastated Jerusalem—destroying the center of Jewish political, national, and religious life—the Bar Kokhba revolt had even more catastrophic consequences, effectively depopulating Judea proper, the core of the Jewish homeland, of its Jewish population. Rome renamed the province from Judaea to Syria Palaestina and banned Jews from living in Jerusalem and its vicinity. While Jewish communities had existed outside Judea before the revolts, the aftermath of the wars led to a significant shift in the center of Jewish population and cultural life from the Land of Israel to the diaspora.

The destruction of the Temple was a watershed moment in Jewish history, transforming both religious practice and social structure.^[99] The Temple stood at the heart of Jewish religious and national life,^{[100][99][101]} serving as the center for sacrificial worship that had been central to Judaism for centuries,^[59][102] and as the primary symbol of Jewish sovereignty. Its loss created a vacuum that demanded a reimagining of Jewish life.^[99] This episode also ended Jewish sectarianism: The Sadducees, whose authority and prestige were linked to the Temple, vanished as a distinct group, as did the ascetic Essenes.^[103][a] However, the Pharisees, who had generally opposed the first revolt, emerged as the dominant religious force.^[106] Their emphasis on prayer, scriptural interpretation, and religious law proved crucial for Judaism's survival. Under their successors, the rabbis,^[107] Judaism underwent a reconstruction that enabled it to flourish without its central institution. This transformation centered on elements that could be practiced anywhere: prayer as a substitute for sacrifice, Torah study, and the performance of good deeds.^[108] The synagogue, which had already existed as an institution during the Second Temple period, grew in prominence, becoming a central venue for Jewish worship and communal life.^[109][110] These changes established patterns of religious practice that would sustain and shape Jewish life for millennia, even as Jews faced further exile and dispersion from the Land of Israel.^[111]

According to rabbinic tradition, a key moment in this transformation took place during the siege of Jerusalem, when the Pharisaic sage Yohanan ben Zakkai had himself smuggled out of the city in a coffin. After meeting with Vespasian and prophesying his rise to the imperial throne, Yohanan secured permission to establish an academy at Yavne. This institution became a leading center of rabbinic activity, where significant enactments were introduced to reshape Jewish life and observance without the temple.^[112][113] Following the Bar Kokhba revolt, major centers of Jewish learning emerged in the Galilee and Babylonia, where scholars compiled the foundational texts of rabbinic Judaism: the Mishnah (early 3rd century) and later, the Jerusalem and Babylonian Talmuds, which became primary sources of Jewish law and religious guidance.^[114][115]

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