First Jewish–Roman War
The First Jewish–Roman War, also known as the Great Jewish Revolt, the First Jewish Revolt, the War of Destruction, or the Jewish War, was the first of three major Jewish rebellions against the Roman Empire. Fought in the province of Judaea, it resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem and the Jewish Temple, mass displacement, land appropriation, and the dissolution of the Jewish polity.
Judaea, once independent under the Hasmoneans, fell to Rome in the first century BC. Initially a client kingdom, it later became a directly ruled province, marked by the rule of oppressive governors, socioeconomic divides, nationalist aspirations, and rising religious and ethnic tensions. In 66 AD, under Nero, unrest flared when a local Greek sacrificed a bird at the entrance of a Caesarea synagogue. Tensions escalated as Governor Gessius Florus looted the temple treasury and massacred Jerusalem's residents, sparking an uprising during which rebels killed the Roman garrison while pro-Roman officials fled.
To quell the unrest, Cestius Gallus, the governor of Syria, invaded Judaea but was defeated at Bethoron and a provisional government, led by Ananus ben Ananus, was established in Jerusalem. In 67 CE, Vespasian was sent to suppress the revolt, invading Galilee and capturing Yodfat, Tarichaea, and Gamla. As rebels and refugees fled to Jerusalem, the government was overthrown, leading to infighting between Eleazar ben Simon, John of Gischala and Simon bar Giora. After Vespasian subdued most of the province, Nero's death prompted him to depart for Rome to claim the throne. His son Titus led the siege of Jerusalem, which fell in the summer of 70 AD, resulting in the Temple's destruction and the city's razing. In 71, Titus and Vespasian celebrated a triumph in Rome, and Legio X Fretensis remained in Judaea to suppress the last pockets of resistance, culminating in the fall of Masada in 73/74 CE.
The war had profound consequences for the Jewish people, many being killed, displaced, or sold into slavery. The rabbinic sages emerged as leading figures and established a rabbinic center in Yavneh, marking a key moment in the development of Rabbinic Judaism as it adapted to the post-Temple reality. These events in Jewish history signify the transition from the Second Temple period to the Rabbinic period. The revolt also hastened the separation between Christianity and Judaism. The victory strengthened the new Flavian dynasty, which commemorated it through monumental constructions and coinage, imposed a punitive tax on all Jews, and increased military presence in the region. The Jewish–Roman wars culminated in the Bar Kokhba revolt, the last major attempt to restore Jewish independence, which resulted in even more catastrophic consequences.
Ante bellum
Judaea under the Romans
In 63 BCE, the kingdom of Judaea was conquered by the Roman Republic, ending Jewish independence under the Hasmonean dynasty. Roman general Pompey intervened in a succession war between two brothers, Hyrcanus and Aristobolus. After capturing Jerusalem, Pompey entered the Temple's Holy of Holies; this was an act of desecration as only the High Priest was permitted to enter. The Jewish monarchy was abolished, Hyrcanus was appointed to serve exclusively as High Priest, and parts of the kingdom were transferred to Hellenistic cities or to the Roman province of Syria.In 40 BCE, Antigonus II Mattathias, Aristobolus' son, briefly regained the throne with Parthian support becoming the last Hasmonean king. He was deposed in 37 BC by Herod, who had been appointed "King of the Jews" by the Roman Senate. Herod ruled Judaea as a client kingdom. Although he succeeded in preserving a measure of autonomy, his heavy taxation, harsh repression—including executions of family members—and control over Jewish institutions fostered deep resentment. After Herod's death in 4 BC, his realm was divided among his sons: Archelaus served as ethnarch of Judea, Samaria, and Idumaea, and Herod Antipas governed Galilee and Perea. Archelaus's misrule led to his deposition in 6 AD, and the Roman Empire annexed his territories as the province of Judaea.
In the following decades, Jewish–Roman relations in Judaea faced repeated crises. With the onset of direct Roman rule, the census of Quirinius, instituted by the governor of Syria, triggered an uprising led by Judas of Galilee. Judas led the "fourth philosophy", a movement that recognized God as the only king and rejected foreign rule. During the governorship of Pontius Pilate, incidents such as the introduction of Roman military standards into Jerusalem, the diversion of Temple funds for an aqueduct, and a soldier's indecent exposure near the Temple provoked unrest and bloodshed. Conflicts escalated during pilgrim festivals, as the influx of worshippers often fueled nationalistic sentiments.
Under Emperor Caligula's reign, imperial policy in Judaea briefly broke with earlier, more tolerant practice: his efforts to impose the imperial cult provoked crises and helped fuel anti-Jewish sentiment, leading to violent outbreaks in Alexandria, Egypt, in 38 CE. Tensions further escalated following a dispute at Yavneh, where the Jewish community dismantled a pagan altar. In response, Caligula ordered a statue of himself to be placed in the Temple, provoking widespread outrage. His death averted open conflict, but the episode further deepened Jewish resentment toward Roman rule.
In 41 CE, with the support of Emperor Claudius, Herod Agrippa became the client king of Judaea, unifying the territories once ruled by his grandfather, Herod. This briefly restored Jewish self-governance, but after Agrippa's death in 44, Judaea reverted to direct Roman rule, expanding to include Judea, Samaria, Idumaea, Galilee, and Perea. His son, Agrippa II, ruled Chalcis and oversaw the Temple, including appointing and removing High Priests.
Judaea was initially stable under restored Roman rule but soon fell into disorder. Around 48, the Romans crucified Jacob and Simon, sons of Judas of Galilee. Clashes erupted between Jews and Samaritans, and by the early 50s, the Sicarii began exploiting pilgrim festivals in Jerusalem for assassinations and intimidation. They also targeted rural landowners, destroying property to deter cooperation with Rome. Religious fanaticism grew, inspiring figures like Theudas, who claimed he would miraculously part the Jordan River but was executed by governor Fadus, and "The Egyptian", whose followers were dispersed by Antonius Felix.
In 64, Gessius Florus became governor, securing the position through his wife, who was a friend of Poppaea Sabina, the wife of Emperor Nero. His ties to the imperial family gave him considerable freedom in governance. The Roman historian Tacitus described him as unfit for office, and Josephus—a Jewish commander who became a historian after his capture by the Romans—portrayed him as a ruthless official who plundered the region and imposed harsh punishments. The worsening situation under Florus led many to flee the region.
Causes and motivations
Most scholars regard the Jewish War as a prime example of ancient Jewish nationalism. The revolt was driven by the pursuit of freedom, the removal of Roman control and the establishment of an independent Jewish state. Aspiration for independence grew following Herod's death and particularly after the establishment of direct imperial rule. This desire was partially fueled by the legacy of the successful Maccabean revolt against the Seleucids, which fostered the belief that a similar victory over Rome could be achievable. The Hasmonean-led Jewish state strengthened Jewish nationalistic awareness and aspirations for independence. Historian David Goodblatt pointed to similarities between the rebels' actions and ideology and those of modern national liberation movements, citing the rebels' struggle to free Judaea, their minting of coins inscribed with "Israel", and their adoption of a new symbolic era, called the "freedom of Israel," as examples.Jewish discontent was fueled by the harsh suppression of unrest and widespread perception of Roman rule as oppressive. Many Roman officials were corrupt, brutal, or inept, fueling unrest even under competent governors. Florus's governorship is described by ancient sources as the tipping point that sparked the revolt. Tacitus attributed the war to Roman misgovernance rather than Jewish rebelliousness; he noted that Jews showed restraint under harsh governors but lost patience due to Florus' actions. Josephus wrote that the Jews preferred to die in battle rather than endure prolonged suffering under Florus' governance.
The concept of "zeal"—a total commitment to God's will and law, rooted in figures like Phinehas, Elijah, and Mattathias, and driven by a belief in Israel's election—is often seen as a key driver of the revolt. Though Eleazar ben Simon's faction was the only one to explicitly call itself "Zealots", historian Martin Hengel maintained that all factions rejecting foreign rule in the name of God's sole sovereignty could rightfully be included under this designation. Hengel traced this view to the intensification of concepts found in the Torah, such as God's kingship. This ideology resurfaced in the revolt, especially among the Sicarii. Judaic scholar Philip Alexander also described the Zealots as a coalition of factions, united by a shared form of nationalism and the goal of liberating Israel by force.
Historian Jonathan Price wrote that apocalyptic beliefs played a role in fueling the revolt, many rebels envisioning a divinely sanctioned cosmic struggle inspired by prophetic texts, such as the Book of Daniel, which foretold the fall of the fourth imperial power, which some Jews believed was Rome. Historian Tessa Rajak asserted that there is no evidence to suggest the insurgents were driven by messianic or end-of-days aspirations.
Marxist scholars, notably Heinz Kreißig, interpreted the revolt as a class struggle between social strata, and the burning of debt records by the rebels is often cited as proof of socio-economic motives. Critics argue this view to be a case of political theory being held over evidence. Such is the case for Price, who noted there is little evidence of economic grievances; he sees the burning of debt records as a tactic for popular support, not ideology. Classicist Guy McLean Rogers wrote that debt was routine and neither a key cause nor a unifying rallying point for the rebels. Price also argued that rebel leaders lacked "class loyalty": Simon bar Giora did free slaves and target the wealthy, but he also had aristocratic support, wheras other leaders lacked any social agenda.
Historian Uriel Rappaport wrote that hostility between Jews and surrounding Greek cities was the decisive factor that made the revolt inevitable, as Rome failed to address the tensions. The provincial Roman garrison was mainly drawn from Hellenistic cities, while Greek-speaking eastern provincials held key administrative roles, heightening tensions. Historian Martin Goodman counter-argued that since Jews had chosen to live in Greek cities, deep hostility was not a long-standing issue, and the ethnic violence that erupted in these cities in 66 was a consequence of rising tensions rather than the root cause of the revolt. Goodman attributes the causes of the revolt to the inability of the local elite to address economic and societal discontent, such failure being linked to their lack of legitimacy as their authority depended on the Herodians and Romans, both of whom were often despised by the populace; he also argued that elite involvement made Rome view the uprising as a full rebellion and deepened divisions within the rebel state.