Jotapata | David Solomon

Battles of Jewish History: Judea

Beginning in the year 66 CE, the Jewish Revolt in the land of Israel launched a decades-long conflict with the Roman Empire. In this podcast episode, David examines three Roman sieges of Judean fortified towns and cities, culminating in the devastation of the destruction of Jerusalem in 70CE. He describes the key characters during this period, including the Jewish commander-turned-historian Josephus and the Roman general Vespasian, a master of siege warfare. David also creates a vivid picture of each of the battles, setting the scene, recreating the tensions, and leading us to the inevitable catastrophic end.

For listeners of the podcast, we have provided a series of maps and pictures of the battle locations in pdf as a substitute for David’s illustrations on the whiteboard.

This Jewish history lecture includes discussions on the:

- historical context leading up to the Jewish Revolt of 66 CE
- political and geographical necessities for Rome in subduing the Jewish rebellion
- character and military experience of Vespasian
- strengths and flaws of the Jewish commanders, including Elazar ben Shimon and Josephus
- devastation of Jewish factionalism and zealotry
- military capabilities and technological ingenuity of the various forces, including the importance of engineering
- role played by the environment and terrain in the sieges
- use of military intelligence
- catastrophic destruction and the enormous loss of life
- implications for Jewish life in the land of Israel.