History
- Herod
Rome had been growing and
strengthening during the Hasmonean Period. In 161 BCE, near the
beginning of the Hasmonean Period, Judah the Maccabee had made a treaty
with Rome.
Corruption within the Hasmonean family speeded the fall of the Hasmonean
Empire. Aristoboulos, a typical Hasmonean "loving son," declared himself
High Priest-King thirty minutes before the death of his mother the
queen. His brother, John Hyrcanus, felt his brother hadn't played fair.
He revolted against him. By 67 BCE there was civil war in Judea , and
the land was ripe for conquest. Rome took advantage of the situation.
John Hyrcanus allied himself with Rome under General Pompey. Together,
they succeeded in smashing most of Aristobulos' forces in 63 BCE. John
and Pompey entered Jerusalem unopposed, but the Temple Mount, with its
own fortifications, posed some problems. It took three months to take
the Temple, and Rome gained control of Judea.
Confusion ensued. Rome was in a state of flux, with power struggles
between Pompey and Julius Caesar; Caesar won. Julius Caesar appointed a
governor to keep watch over the country, the son of an Idumean who had
been forced to covert to Judaism, a man named Herod. After Caesar's
death, Cassius, Mark Antony, and Octavian all struggled for control of
the Roman Empire. They all kept Herod in power.
The Hasmonean family wasn't willing to give up, and, with the support of
the Parthians (a nation in Asia Minor), there was a mini-revolt which
was brutally suppressed.
After putting down the Judean/Parthian revolt against their rule, Rome
appointed Herod king of Judea. Herod had complete authority, and he used
it ruthlessly. He established an enormous secret police force, brutally
killed anyone suspected of plotting against him, and created Roman peace
by slaughtering all dissidents.
Herod controlled the sacrificial cult by placing a lackey in the
position of High Priest. In any of his appointees was foolish enough to
displease him, Herod killed him and replaced him with another lackey.
The vast majority of popular tourist sites in present-day Israel were
originally built by Herod. Herod was security conscious. He built
fortresses throughout the land just in case he should ever need
sanctuary. These included Sabaste in the Hills of Ephraim, the central
region of Israel; Herodium, just east of Bethlehem; and Jericho. Each of
these fortresses was architecturally unique.
Sabaste was originally called Samaria. It had been the capital of Israel
during the Divided Kingdom, and Samaria became the name for the entire
northern region. Herod built over the ruins of Samaria, which had been
built atop a mountain. He ordered the construction of an enormous
colonnade of imported marble starting from the base of the mountain and
rising to the summit.
The mountain Herod had chosen for the fortress Herodium was too low.
Herod has his architects raise the summit and build his palace inside
this man-made cone. It is generally believed that Herod was buried in
Herodium, but no grave was ever found. Equally puzzling is the fact that
archaeologists have been unable to discover a water source there.
To supply water for the Jericho fortress, Herod had an enormous aqueduct
built which carried water from Ein Kelt.
One of Herod's greatest building projects was in Jerusalem. He wanted to
enlarge and embellish the Temple, but the mountain on which Solomon had
built the First Temple and on which Zachariah and Haggai had built the
Second was just too small for his plans. That didn't stop Herod. He
dramatically increased the size of the Temple Mount by constructing huge
encasement walls and filling them in with pure dirt, creating a large
trapezoid. He was then able to proceed with his architectural plans to
enlarge the Temple and its courtyards.
Herod protected the Temple Mount with a large military fortress called
Antonia, honoring Mark Antony. He protected the western entrance of
Jerusalem (and, incidentally, his villa situated there) with a huge
tri-towered fortress called the Citadel. The Citadel loomed over the
wealthy part of town, called the Upper City.
Herod's most famous fortress was Masada. Located on the shores of the
Dead Sea, Masada was built on a high plateau. Access was only along a
steep, sharply winding path called the Snake Path. At the top, Herod had
two palaces: a magnificent three-tiered northern palace complete with
columns and frescoes offered a spectacular view of the Dead Sea. A
larger mosaic- decorated western palace was probably planned as an
administrative headquarters.
Herod's architects created water channels and cisterns to provide
drinking water during the long, dry summers. Huge storehouses guaranteed
food in case of siege. A strong casemate wall enclosed the entire summit
of the plateau. It was an awesome fortress and appeared to be
invulnerable.
Herod's projects were built through the use of thousands of Jews as
forced laborers moving enormous blocks of limestone. Many of these
blocks weighed more than ten tons. Because of his despotic actions, the
Jews despised and feared Herod. Even projects that he commissioned to
endear him to the people failed to change their hatred for him.
Herod continued to build. In honor of Octavian (Augustus Caesar), Herod
took the ancient port city of Straton's Tower just south of Haifa and
renamed it Caesarea. There he created a deep sea port, surrounded the
city with a wall, and constructed an amphitheater. To supply the port
with ample water, Herod build another enormous aqueduct.
Although Herod was a terrible tyrant, his buildings and fortresses
remain awesome architectural achievements even today.
From:
http://www.jewishgates.com/personalities/index.stm
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