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. The conflict was driven by Jewish aspirations to restore the political independence lost when Rome conquered the Hasmonean kingdom, and unfolded over three major uprisings: the First Jewish–Roman War (66–73 CE), the Kitos War (116–118 CE) and the Bar Kokhba Revolt (132–136 CE). Some historians also include the Diaspora Revolt (115–117 CE) which coincided with the Kitos War, 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. 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. The surviving Jewish community lost all political autonomy under direct Roman rule. The later Bar Kokhba Revolt proved even more devastating. The Romans' brutal suppression of this uprising led to the near-total depopulation of Judea through a combination of battlefield casualties, mass killings, and the widespread enslavement of survivors.
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 offering system 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.
Sequence
The Jewish–Roman wars include the following:
- 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 (if the Kitos War is not counted), or the Third (if it is).
Background
Rome gained control of Judaea, then an independent kingdom ruled by the Hasmonean dynasty, in 63 BCE. That year, the Roman general Pompey intervened in a succession war between brothers Hyrcanus and Aristobulus, who were fighting for the throne following the death of their mother, Queen Salome Alexandra. Pompey besieged and conquered Jerusalem, committing a religious violation by entering the Temple's Holy of Holies, a space reserved exclusively for the High Priest who entered it only once a year on Yom Kippur. After the Roman conquest, Judaea became a client state: the monarchy was abolished, and Hyrcanus was reduced to serving solely as High Priest. Parts of the former kingdom were detached and incorporated into the province of Syria, likely in an attempt to weaken the Jewish population economically and pave the way for future annexation. Fifteen years later, Julius Caesar visited the region and improved Jewish status, restoring some territories to Jewish control and appointing Hyrcanus as ethnarch.
Antigonus II Mattathias, Aristobolus's son, reclaimed Judaea's throne in 40 BCE with popular and Parthian support. Meanwhile, the Roman Senate appointed Herod, an Idumean noble from a family that had converted to Judaism a century prior, as "King of the Jews". It took Herod three years to conquer the kingdom, capturing Jerusalem through siege and ending Antigonus' brief reign. He ruled Judaea as a client kingdom, maintaining close ties with Rome, though he faced widespread Jewish resentment. After his death in 4 BCE, his realm was divided among his sons: Archelaus became ethnarch of Judaea, Samaria, and Idumaea, while Herod Antipas governed Galilee and Perea. Archelaus' misrule led to his removal within a decade, and in 6 CE Judaea was annexed as a Roman province.
In 6 CE, Quirinius, the governor of Syria, conducted a census in Judaea, triggering an uprising led by Judas of Galilee. Judas led what Josephus described as the 'fourth philosophy,' rejecting Roman rule and affirmed God's sole kingship. During the tenure of Pontius Pilate (c. 26–36 CE), several incidents provoked unrest: the introduction of military standards into Jerusalem, the diversion of Temple funds to build an aqueduct, and a soldier's indecent exposure near the Temple.
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. In 38 Caligula sent Herod Agrippa to Alexandria unannounced to check on Flaccus. According to Philo, the visit was met with jeers from the Greek population, who saw Agrippa as the king of the Jews. Flaccus tried to placate both the Greek population and Caligula by having statues of the emperor placed in Jewish synagogues. As a result, extensive religious riots broke out in the city. Caligula responded by removing Flaccus from his position and executing him. 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.
Riots again erupted in Alexandria in 38 between Jews and Greeks. Jews were accused of not honoring the emperor. Disputes occurred also in Jamnia. Jews were angered by the erection of a clay altar and destroyed it. In response, Caligula ordered the erection of a statue of himself in the Temple in Jerusalem, a demand in conflict with Jewish monotheism. 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". Fearing civil war if the order were carried out, Publius Petronius—governor of Roman Syria—delayed implementing it for nearly a year. Agrippa finally convinced Caligula to reverse the order. 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.
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.
First Jewish–Roman War
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. The situation worsened when procurator Gessius Florus plundered the Jerusalem Temple treasury and ordered brutal crackdowns that killed thousands in the city. After Agrippa II, a pro-Roman Jewish king, failed to relax the crowds and fled the city, Eleazar ben Hanania, the Temple captain, halted sacrifices for Rome—effectively declaring rebellion. The crisis spiraled into widespread ethnic violence across the region, with massacres of Jewish communities in several mixed cities, 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.
At this stage, the Roman legate of Syria, Cestius Gallus, assembled a force including the Legio XII Fulminata and auxiliary troops from regional vassals, devastating Jewish settlements such as Chabulon, Jaffa and Lydda. However, after initial successes, he withdrew from the city for unclear reasons and was decisively ambushed at the Bethoron Pass, suffering losses equivalent to a full legion. This unexpected defeat proved a turning point, bolstering rebel morale and leading to the establishment of a provisional government in Jerusalem. Led by former High Priest Ananus ben Ananus, this new administration divided the country into military districts, appointed regional commanders, and began minting coins with nationalist Hebrew inscriptions, such as "For the Freedom of Zion". While the government publicly supported the revolt, they seem to have secretly hoped to restore order and negotiate with Rome. During this period, several rebel leaders emerged, including John of Gischala in Galilee and Simon Bar Giora in Judea.
After Gallus' defeat, Nero appointed the experienced commander Vespasian to lead the Roman response. He assembled a massive force including three legions and numerous auxiliary troops. Arriving in Akko-Ptolemais in the summer of 67 CE, Vespasian launched a systematic campaign in the Galilee. Yodfat, a key stronghold, fell after a grueling 47-day siege, with thousands killed or captured. 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, ultimately becoming a historian under Flavian patronage and the main source for the war. Taricheae mounted fierce resistance before falling in an event of mass killing, with its survivors facing execution, slavery, or other severe punishments. 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. Other Roman successes included the recapture of Mount Tabor, Gush Halav, Mount Gerizim, and Jaffa, where they suppressed rebel piracy and restored imperial control.
While the Romans pacified the north, Jerusalem plunged into civil war as refugees and zealots poured in from the Galilee. 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; many moderates were executed or forced to flee. The Zealots instituted revolutionary changes, including selecting a new High Priest by lot rather than from traditional aristocratic families. 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.
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. 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 at the end 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. Under Sextus Lucilius Bassus, the Romans swiftly captured Herodium, secured the surrender of Machaerus, and then eliminated rebel forces in the Forest of Jardes. After Bassus's death, his successor Lucius Flavius Silva led the siege of Masada in 73 or 74 CE. 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. 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.