The Jewish War Series (Part 14): May 70 AD–Titus Takes the First and Second Walls
When Titus had come to Jerusalem, he encountered a city that had been effectively under siege by the two remaining zealot leaders long before he had arrived. Si...
Category: Jewish War
The Jewish War Series (Part 13): Spring of AD 70–Titus and the Roman Legions Arrive at Jerusalem
The State of Jerusalem in the Spring of AD 70 During the winter of AD 69-70, the three factions of zealots in Jerusalem terrorized both each other and the civil...
The Jewish War Series (Part 12): Zealot Terrorism in Jerusalem, Chaos in Rome, and a Two-Year Delay to the War
As Vespasian bided his time in Caesarea, things were playing out just as he had expected in Jerusalem—the zealots were tearing each other apart, and in the proc...
The Jewish War Series (Part 11): The Idumeans’ and Zealots’ Reign of Terror in Jerusalem
With the Idumeans now in the city, they and the zealots began to unleash a reign of terror in Jerusalem. The first order of business for the Idumeans was to go ...
The Jewish War Series (Part 10: The Idumeans Come to the Aid of the Zealots)
In actuality, Eleazar ben-Simon and Zacharias ben-Phalek, two of the zealot leaders who, along with the rest of the zealots, were trapped in the Temple, smuggle...
The Jewish War Series (Part 9): Ananus the High Priest vs. The Zealots (and further betrayal by John of Gischala)
After the zealots had seized control of the temple complex and thrown out all the established priests, the high priest Ananus made one last effort to regain con...
The Jewish War Series (Part 8: The Revolutionaries in Jerusalem)
Upon coming to Jerusalem, John of Gischala attempted to rally the populace to engage the Roman army in battle. He had seen the difficulty the Roman soldiers had...
The Jewish War Series (Part 7): Vespasian Conquers Galilee
After the taking of Jotapata, Vespasian dispatched the 5th and 10th legions to secure Scythopolis in Samaria, while he took two other legions to the coastal cit...
The Jewish War Series (Part 6: Vespasian Begins the Roman Advance into Galilee)
By AD 67, the emperor Nero had chosen the old, proven general Vespasian to go in and subdue Judea. Vespasian had a proven war record from his successes in Germa...
The Jewish War Series (Part 5: Josephus Secures Galilee, and the Rise of John of Gischala)
Josephus’ Early Challenges in Galilee—and the Emergence of John of Gischala Upon arriving in Galilee, Josephus saw that his work was cut out for him. He was tas...