First Jewish–Roman War

The First Jewish–Roman War (66–74 CE), 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 BCE. 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 CE, 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 in 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, commander Vespasian was sent to suppress the revolt, invading the 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 CE, resulting in the Temple's destruction and the city's razing. In 71, they 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, with many killed, displaced, or sold into slavery. The 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 victory also 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 (132–136 CE), the last major attempt to restore Jewish independence, which resulted in even more catastrophic consequences.