List of massacres in Roman Judea
The following is a list of massacres that have occurred in ancient Israel and Judea prior to the establishment of the Roman province of Syria Palæstina.
- For massacres that took place in Southern Levant prior the establishment of the Mandatory Palestine in 1920, see List of massacres in Ottoman Syria
- For massacres that took place in the Mandatory Palestine, see List of killings and massacres in Mandatory Palestine.
- For massacres that took place during the 1948 Palestine War, see Killings and massacres during the 1948 Palestine War.
- For massacres that have occurred in Israel following its declaration of independence, see List of massacres in Israel.
- For massacres that have occurred in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip since 1967, see List of massacres in Palestinian Territories.
| Name | Date | Location | Responsible Party | Deaths | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Siege of Jerusalem (63 BC) | 63 BC | Jerusalem | Pompey the Great | 12,000 | Jews were massacred by invading Romans;[1] event marked the end of Jewish independence |
| Siege of Jerusalem (37 BC) | 37 BC | Jerusalem | Herod the Great and Romans | Unknown | Roman troops pillaged and killed all in their path; Herod exterminated the Hasmonean line[2] |
| Massacre of the Innocents | 6-4 BC | Bethlehem | Herod the Great | Unknown, estimated thousands of Jews | Biblical account of infanticide and gendocide |
| Masscre during the Samaritan Revolt (36 AD) | 36 AD | Mount Gerizim | Pontius Pilate and Romans | Unknown number of Samaritans | The Samaritans rebelled against the Romans in AD 36. A fanatic assembled them at Mount Gerizim, promising to reveal the sacred vessels which they had been taught were buried there by Moses, and the rebels were ruthlessly massacred by order of Pontius Pilate.[3] |
| Massacre during the First Jewish-Roman War | 66 AD | Judaea Province | Romans | 1,100,000 Jews[4] | Jews were massacred by Romans throughout the war; 97,000 enslaved; first of three major Jewish revolts against Romans; resulted in destruction of the Holy Temple. A devastating depopulation of the Jewish population as the massacre wiped out a large percentage of their population. |
| Massacre during the First Jewish-Roman War | 66 AD | Judaea Province | Jewish rebels | Unknown[5] | Massacre of Roman garrisons at Masada, Cypros, and Jerusalem. |
| Massacre during the First Jewish-Roman War | 67 AD | Mount Gerizim | Roman troops | 11,600 Samaritans and Jews[6] | This rout constituted a disaster for the Samaritan community. |
| Kitos War | 115-117 AD | Judaea Province and elsewhere | Romans and Jewish rebels | 440,000+ (mostly Greek Romans)[7][8][9] | Large scale massacres of both Jews and Romans |
| Bar Kokhba revolt | 132-136 AD | Judaea Province | Romans | 580,000 Jews[10] | Decisive Roman victory. Romans enslaved many Jews of Judaea, massacred many Jews, suppressed Jewish religious and political authority, banned Jews from Jerusalem, and renamed and merged Judaea into the Syria Palaestina province. Another devastating depopulation of the Jewish population. |
References
- ^ Josephus, The Wars of the Jews 1:149-151
- ^ Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews 14:403
- ^ [1]
- ^ [2] Retrieved 17 March 2014.
- ^ , Mladen Popovi The Jewish Revolt Against Rome; Interdisciplinary Perspectivesl. Retrieved 17 March 2014.
- ^ Jews and Samaritans: The Origins and History of Their Early Relations, pg 223, pub Oxford University Press, 13 Jun 2013, Gary N. Knopper.
- ^ Ta'anit 18b; Yer. Ta'anit 66b
- ^ Pes. 50a; B. B. 10b; Eccl. R. ix. 10
- ^ Orosius, Seven Books of History Against the Pagans, 7.12.6.
- ^ The 'Five Good Emperors' (roman-empire.net)
