Roman Jerusalem

Herodian Temple Mount

Roman Rule began in Palestine around 63 BCE. Pompey besieged Jerusalem and annexed it for Rome. Rome backed Herod as the King of Judea through Parthian invasion. From here the rise of Herod the Great starts, 37 BCE Herod gets Jerusalem from Parthians after siege. Herod now walks a thin line between pleasing the Jews and Romans. He is known as a "client king", meaning he wanted to please everyone on both sides. Herod the Great ultimately ruled from 37 to 4 BCE, and through this time was known to be extremely paranoid and impulsive. He murdered masses of people, even his own sons. In light of that Herod conducted many epic building projects. Among them lie the Herodian Temple Mount, 15 football fields long, with retaining walls 80 ft. tall, and stones thats were 40 plus ft weighing 100 tons.

Herod the Great although a good king constructively and economically got a bad wrap from the Jews who essentially hated him. Working both sides of the field did not fly with the Jews.

Good Herod: offered relief during famine, inanimate objects on coins, employed Jews through his building projects. Bad Herod: killed his own sons, family forcibly judaized , half worked for the jews and half for romans.