Siege of Jerusalem (70)
 
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For other sieges laid upon the city of Jerusalem in history, see Siege of Jerusalem.
Siege of Jerusalem
Part of the First Jewish-Roman War

The sack of Jerusalem, from the inside wall of the Arch of Titus, Rome
Date March – September 70
Location Jerusalem, Judaea
Result Siege succeeds; Temple of Jerusalem destroyed and sacked.
Territorial
changes		 Jerusalem falls to Roman rule
Belligerents
Roman Empire Jews of Judea
Commanders
Titus Flavius Vespasianus Simon Bar-Giora
Yohanan mi-Gush Halav (John of Gischala)
Eleazar ben Simon
Strength
70,000 men 13,000 men, split among three factions
Casualties and losses
Unknown 60,000–1,100,000 (mass civilian casualties)

The Siege of Jerusalem in the year 70 AD. It was a decisive event in the First Jewish-Roman War, followed by the fall of Masada in 73. The Roman army, led by the future Emperor Titus, with Tiberius Julius Alexander as his second-in-command, besieged and conquered the city of Jerusalem, which had been occupied by its Jewish defenders in 66. The city and its famous Temple were completely destroyed.

The destruction of the Temple is still mourned annually as the Jewish fast Tisha B'Av, and the Arch of Titus, depicting and celebrating the sack of Jerusalem and the Temple, still stands in Rome.

Contents

Siege

Map of Jerusalem in 70; the Temple is in yellow
Map of Jerusalem in 70; the Temple is in yellow
v • d • e
First Jewish-Roman War

Despite early successes in repelling the Roman sieges, the Zealots fought amongst themselves, lacking proper leadership. They lacked discipline, training, and preparation for the battles that were to follow.

Titus surrounded the city, with three legions (V Macedonica, XII Fulminata, XV Apollinaris) on the western side and a fourth (X Fretensis) on the Mount of Olives to the east. He put pressure on the food and water supplies of the inhabitants by allowing pilgrims to enter the city to celebrate Passover, and then refusing them egress. After Jewish sallies killed a number of Roman soldiers, Titus sent Josephus, a Jewish Historian, to negotiate with the defenders;. Titus was almost captured during this sudden attack, but escaped.

In mid-May Titus set to destroying the newly built Third Wall with a ram, breaching it as well as the Second Wall, and turning his attention to the Fortress of Antonia just north of the Temple Mount. The Romans were then drawn into street fighting with the Zealots were ordered to retreat to avoid heavy losses. Josephus failed in another attempt at negotiations, and Jewish attacks prevented the construction of siege towers at the Fortress of Antonia. Food, water, and other provisions were dwindling inside the city, but small foraging parties managed to sneak supplies into the city, harrying Roman forces in the process. To put an end to the foragers, orders were issued to build a new wall, and siege tower construction was restarted as well.

Catapulta, by Edward Poynter (1868). Siege engines such as this would have been used by the Roman army during the attack.
Catapulta, by Edward Poynter (1868). Siege engines such as this would have been used by the Roman army during the attack.

After several failed attempts to breach or scale the walls of the Antonia Fortress, the Romans finally launched a secret attack, overwhelming sleeping Zealot guards and taking the Fortress. This was the second highest ground in the city, after the Temple Mount, and provided a perfect point from which to attack the Temple itself. Battering rams made little progress, but the fighting itself eventually set the walls on fire, when a Roman soldier threw a burning stick onto one of the Temple's walls. Destroying the Temple was not among Titus' goals, possibly due in large part to the massive expansions done by Herod the Great mere decades earlier. Most likely, Titus had wanted to seize it and transform it into a temple, dedicated to the Roman Emperor and to the Roman pantheon. But the flames spread quite quickly and were soon unquenchable. The Temple was destroyed on Tisha B'Av, at the end of August, and the flames spread into the residential sections of the city. The Roman legions quickly crushed the remaining Jewish resistance. Part of the remaining Jews escaped through hidden underground tunnels, while others made a final stand in the Upper City. This defense halted the Roman advance as they had to construct siege towers to assail the remaining Jews. The city was completely under Roman control by September 7 and the Romans continued to hunt down the Jews that had fled the city.

Destruction of Jerusalem

The Siege and Destruction of Jerusalem, by David Roberts (1850).
The Siege and Destruction of Jerusalem, by David Roberts (1850).

Sulpicius Severus (363–420), referring in his Chronica to an earlier writing by Tacitus (56–117), claimed that Titus favored destroying the Jerusalem Temple to help uproot and demolish both the Jewish and Christian sects. Some scholars argue that this was not completely effective, and that the destruction of Jerusalem liberated the Christian church to fulfill its destiny as a universal religion offered to the whole world.[1] The account of Josephus, generally considered unreliable in this case, described Titus as moderate in his approach and, after conferring with others, ordering that the thousand-year-old (at that time) Temple be spared. (Solomon's Temple dated to the 10th century BCE, though the physical structure was Herod's Temple, about 90 years old at the time.) According to Josephus, the Roman soldiers grew furious with Jewish attacks and tactics and, against Titus' orders, set fire to an apartment adjacent to the Temple, which soon spread all throughout.

Josephus had acted as a mediator for the Romans and, when negotiations failed, witnessed the siege and aftermath. He wrote:

Now as soon as the army had no more people to slay or to plunder, because there remained none to be the objects of their fury (for they would not have spared any, had there remained any other work to be done), [Titus] Caesar gave orders that they should now demolish the entire city and Temple, but should leave as many of the towers standing as they were of the greatest eminence; that is, Phasaelus, and Hippicus, and Mariamne; and so much of the wall enclosed the city on the west side. This wall was spared, in order to afford a camp for such as were to lie in garrison [in the Upper City], as were the towers [the three forts] also spared, in order to demonstrate to posterity what kind of city it was, and how well fortified, which the Roman valor had subdued; but for all the rest of the wall [surrounding Jerusalem], it was so thoroughly laid even with the ground by those that dug it up to the foundation, that there was left nothing to make those that came thither believe it [Jerusalem] had ever been inhabited. This was the end which Jerusalem came to by the madness of those that were for innovations; a city otherwise of great magnificence, and of mighty fame among all mankind.[2]
And truly, the very view itself was a melancholy thing; for those places which were adorned with trees and pleasant gardens, were now become desolate country every way, and its trees were all cut down. Nor could any foreigner that had formerly seen Judaea and the most beautiful suburbs of the city, and now saw it as a desert, but lament and mourn sadly at so great a change. For the war had laid all signs of beauty quite waste. Nor had anyone who had known the place before, had come on a sudden to it now, would he have known it again. But though he [a foreigner] were at the city itself, yet would he have inquired for it.[3]

Josephus claims that 1,100,000 people were killed during the siege, of which a majority were Jewish.[4] 97,000 were captured and enslaved, including Simon Bar Giora and John of Gischala.[4] Many fled to areas around the Mediterranean. Titus reportedly refused to accept a wreath of victory, as there is "no merit in vanquishing people forsaken by their own God".[5]

Theological perceptions

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Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (July 2008)

While the Jewish Amoraim attribute the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem as a punishment from God for the "baseless hatred" {Yoma,9b} that pervaded Jewish society at the time, some Christianswho? believecitation needed that the events surrounding the siege and the destruction of Jerusalem are the fulfillment of the prophecy of Daniel 9, referred to by Jesus approximately 40 years before the event took place. The corresponding Olivet Discourse prophecy is found in Luke 21, Matthew 24, and also the "little Apocalypse" of Mark 13. Eusebius records in The History of the Church that the Christians who lived in Jerusalem at the time fled during the withdrawal of Cestius Gallus four years before the calamity took place.

Some Christianswho? also believecitation needed that the events surrounding the year 70 are the fulfillment of various prophecies in the Old Testament. For example, Isaiah 10:3 talks about a "day of visitation", when "desolation comes from far"; and the prophet Daniel foresaw a day when "the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary (Dan 9:26). Zechariah 14 tells of the nations attacking Jerusalem.

Some Christianswho? also believe that the Jews were punished for not recognizing the "day of visitation" espoused by Jesus, since they rejected him as their Messiahcitation needed, as well as some Christianswho? also believecitation needed that the events of this time were a fulfillment of the prophecies of the New Testament as well, including the prophecies of the Book of Revelation.

In later art

The war in Judaea, particularly the siege and destruction of Jerusalem, have inspired writers and artists through the centuries. The bas-relief in the Arch of Titus has been influential in establishing the Menorah as the most dramatic symbol of the looting of the Second Temple.

See also

References

  • Cawthorne, Nigel. History's Greatest Battles: Masterstrokes of War, 31–37. ISBN 1-84193-290-6. 
  1. ^ Noll, Mark (1997). "Turning Points: Decisive Moments in the History of Christianity." Intervarsity Press.
  2. ^ Flavius Josephus. The Wars of the Jews or History of the Destruction of Jerusalem. Containing The Interval Of About Three Years. From The Taking Of Jerusalem By Titus To The Sedition At Cyrene. Book VII. Chapter 1.1
  3. ^ Flavius Josephus. The Wars of the Jews or History of the Destruction of Jerusalem. BOOK VI. Containing The Interval Of About One Month. From The Great Extremity To Which The Jews Were Reduced To The Taking Of Jerusalem By Titus.. Book VI. Chapter 1.1
  4. ^ a b Josephus, The Wars of the Jews VI.9.3
  5. ^ Philostratus, The Life of Apollonius of Tyana 6.29

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