Siege of Jerusalem (63 BCE)

Siege of Jerusalem
Pompey in the Temple of Jerusalem, Jean Fouquet 1470-1475
Date 63 BC Location Jerusalem Result Roman victory, Judea incorporated into the Roman Republic
Belligerents
Roman Republic	Hasmonean Kingdom
Commanders and leaders
Pompey Faustus Cornelius Sulla	Aristobulus II
Casualties and losses
Few	12,000

The Siege of Jerusalem (63 BC) occurred during Pompey the Great's campaigns in the east, shortly after his successful conclusion of the Third Mithridatic War. Pompey had been asked to intervene in an internecine war between Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II for the throne of the Hasmonean Kingdom. His conquest of Jerusalem, however, spelled the end of Jewish independence and the incorporation of Judea into the Roman Republic as a client kingdom.

The death of Hasmonean queen Alexandra Salome plunged Judea into a civil war between her two sons, Hyrcanus and Aristobulus. After Aristobulus ousted his elder brother from both the throne and the high priesthood in Jerusalem, Antipater the Idumean advised Hyrcanus to enlist the aid of King Aretas III of Nabataea. In return for the promise of territorial concessions, Aretas provided Hyrcanus with 50,000 soldiers, and their joint forces besieged Aristobulus in Jerusalem.

Pompey had followed the successful conclusion of the Third Mithridatic War with the creation of the Province of Syria and had spent 64 and 63 BC bringing law and order to the region. Events in Judea prompted Aemilius Scaurus, Pompey's legate in Damascus, to arrive in Jerusalem. Scaurus was approached by both parties, but the issue was settled by a bribe from Aristobulus, and Scaurus ordered Arestas to lift his siege of the city. As the Nabataean army withdrew towards Philadelphia, Aristobulus set off in pursuit and defeated the Nabataeans at Papyron.

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