![]() ![]() Though their combined deeds merited three separate triumphs, they elected to hold a single immense triumph instead, riding together into the city to proclaim the glory of Rome. Upon his arrival, a triumph was immediately awarded to him, and to his father Vespasian and brother Domitian. Titus returned early, however, his job finished with the fall of Jerusalem. In 70 AD Jerusalem fell and the war was over, though fighting would continue for another three years, until the fall of Masada. Because the Jews had used it as a fortress, the general rule of leaving temples intact was ignored, and after sacking the temple Titus ordered his army to burn the temple to the ground. Though even the women and children of Jerusalem fought fiercely to defend their city, Titus’ army soon breached all three walls and reached the temple. ![]() Upon Titus’ arrival, the city of Jerusalem was hungry and tired, and only managed to break out of civil war when the Romans finally began building ramparts to scale and destroy Jerusalem’s walls. Capturing and crucifying anyone leaving the city, the Romans watched as civil war ravaged their enemy inside the city. Outside the city’s three walls, the Romans had constructed their own wall, just after the city had been filled with pilgrims intent on celebrating Passover in the holy city. The siege on Jerusalem began long before Titus’ arrival, and the city was certainly feeling strained. Titus was not slow to regain Vespasian’s momentum in Judea, immediately marching on Jerusalem. Leaving Judea in the hands of Titus, his son, Vespasian returned to Rome. Unlike Judea, Rome flew into activity, Galba, Vitellius, and Otho all held the title Emperor within a year, before Vespasian’s diplomatic maneuverings gave him the support of the army in the east and the title of Emperor. However, incredible news from Rome dragged the war to a halt: the Emperor Nero was dead. ![]() By 69 AD, Vespasian had made incredible progress, leaving only two major Jewish strongholds. Hearing of the civil war erupting in Jerusalem among the Jewish Zealot groups from fleeing Jewish moderates, Vespasian chose to let his enemy weaken itself, and focus instead on Judea’s other major strongholds. Forgiving Vespasian’s nap, and supplying him with an army, Nero sent Vespasian to Judea. Though Vespasian had fallen out of Nero’s favor by falling asleep during one of the Emperor’s many recitals, Nero knew the general’s reliability would serve Rome well. After Syria’s governor marched on Judea to restore order, only to suffer a humiliating defeat, Nero called for Vespasian. This was an offense the Romans could not ignore. A series of bad choices among the local Roman government and the Zealot leaders led to a full scale assault on Roman strongholds in Judea. In 66 AD, Nero chose Judea, demanding the treasures of the Jewish temple be confiscated for the glory of the Empire. When the Emperor Nero decides to make a withdrawal, nations fall. A group of Jewish extremists, the Zealots, gathered strength for the inevitable rebellion, and in 66 AD, The Emperor Nero triggered the beginning of the war. But the High Priests, since the beginning of Rome’s occupation, were under Roman control, their office awarded by the Roman government, weakening their authority over the people. Jewish peasants immediately fell into poverty, until only the counsel of the High Priests could soothe away rebellion. Though Rome herself demanded only a modest tax, the local governors of Roman provinces could pocket anything over that quota, a right that was often abused. Judea first fell into the hands of Rome in 6 AD, when the Emperor Augustus removed Archelaus, king of Judea, from power and transformed Judea into a Roman province. ![]()
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