Everything about Herod The Great totally explained
Herod (
Horodos,
Greek:
ἡρῴδης Herōdes), also known as
Herod I or
Herod the Great (73 BC – 4 BC in
Jericho), was a
Roman client king of
Judaea. Herod is known for his colossal building projects in Jerusalem and other parts of the ancient world, including the rebuilding of the
Second Temple in
Jerusalem, sometimes referred to as
Herod's Temple. Some details of his biography can be gleaned from the works of the 1st century AD Roman-Jewish historian
Josephus Flavius.
In Christian scripture, Herod is known for the
Massacre of the Innocents, described in Chapter 2 of the
Gospel according to Matthew.
Biography
Herod the Great was born around
73 BC. He was the second son of
Antipater the Idumaean, a high-ranked official under Ethnarch
Hyrcanus II, and
Cypros, a
Nabatean. A loyal supporter of Hyrcanus II, Antipater appointed Herod
governor of
Galilee at 25, and his older brother,
Phasael, governor of Jerusalem. He enjoyed the backing of Rome but his excessive brutality was condemned by the
Sanhedrin.
In 43 BC, following the chaos caused by Antipater offering financial support to Caesar's murderers, Antipater was poisoned. Herod, backed by the Roman Army, executed his father's murderer. Afterwards,
Antigonus, Hyrcanus' nephew, tried to take the throne from his uncle. Herod defeated him and then married his teenage niece,
Mariamne (known as Mariamne I), which helped to secure him a claim to the throne and gain some Jewish favor. However, Herod already had a wife, Doris, and a three-year-old son,
Antipater III, and chose to banish Doris and her child.
In 42 BC, he convinced
Mark Antony and
Octavian that his father had been forced to help Caesar's murderers. Herod was then named
tetrarch of Galilee by the Romans. However, many of the Jews were very upset by this since most Jews didn't consider Herod to be a true Jew. The
Idumaean family, successors to the
Edomites of the
Hebrew Bible, settled in Idumea, formerly known as
Edom, in southern
Judea. When the
Maccabean John Hyrcanus conquered Idumea in 140–130 BC, he required all Idumaeans to obey Jewish law or to leave; most Idumaeans thus converted to
Judaism. While King Herod publicly identified himself as a Jew and was considered as such by some, this religious identification notwithstanding was undermined by the
Hellenistic cultural affinity of the
Herodians, which would have earned them the antipathy of observant Jews.
In 40 BC Antigonus tried to take the throne again with the help of the
Parthians, this time succeeding. Herod fled to Rome to plead with the Romans to restore him to power. There he was elected "
King of the Jews" by the
Roman Senate. In 37 BC the Romans fully secured Judea and executed Antigonus. Herod took the role as sole ruler of Judea and took the title of
basileus (Gr. Βασιλευς) for himself, ushering in the
Herodian Dynasty and ending the
Hasmonean Dynasty. He ruled for 34 years.
Achievements
Herod's most famous and ambitious project was the expansion of the
Second Temple in Jerusalem.
In the eighteenth year of his reign (20–19 BC), Herod rebuilt the Temple on "a more magnificent scale". The new Temple was finished in a year and a half, although work on out-buildings and courts continued another eighty years.
New Testament references
Herod the Great appears in The
Gospel according to Matthew (Ch. 2), which describes an event known as the
Massacre of the Innocents.
According to Matthew's gospel, shortly after the birth of
Jesus,
Magi from the East visited Herod to inquire the whereabouts of "the one having been born king of the Jews", because they'd seen his star in the east and therefore wanted to pay him homage. Herod, who was himself King of Judea, was alarmed at the prospect of the newborn king usurping his rule.
In the story, Herod was advised by the assembled chief priests and scribes of the people that the Prophet had written that the "Anointed One" (Greek:
ho christos) was to be born in
Bethlehem of Judea. Herod therefore sent the Magi to Bethlehem, instructing them to search for the child and, after they'd found him, to "report to me, so that I too may go and worship him". However, after they'd found Jesus, the Magi were warned in a dream not to report back to Herod. Similarly,
Joseph was warned in a dream that Herod intended to kill Jesus, so he and his family fled to Egypt. When Herod realized he'd been outwitted by the Magi, he gave orders to kill all boys of the age of two and under in Bethlehem and its vicinity. Joseph and his family stayed in Egypt until Herod's death, then moved to
Nazareth in Galilee in order to avoid living under Herod's son Archelaus.
The
historical accuracy of this event has been questioned, since although Herod was certainly guilty of many brutal acts, including the killing of his wife and two of his sons, no other source from the period makes any reference to such a massacre.
Death
The scholarly consensus, based on
Josephus'
Antiquities of the Jews is that Herod died at the end of March or early April in 4 BC. Josephus wrote that Herod died 37 years after being named as King by the Romans, and 34 years after the death of Antigonus. This would imply that he died in 4 BC. This is confirmed by the fact that his three sons, between whom his kingdom was divided, dated their rule from 4 BC. For instance, he states that
Herod Philip II's death took place after a 37-year reign in the 20th year of
Tiberius, which would imply that he took over on Herod's death in 4 BC. In addition, Josephus wrote that Herod died after a
lunar eclipse, and a partial eclipse took place in 4 BC. It has been suggested that 5 BC might be a more likely date — there were two total eclipses in that year. However, the 4 B.C. date is almost universally accepted.
Josephus wrote that Herod's final illness was excruciating (
Ant. 17.6.5
). From Josephus' descriptions, some medical experts propose that Herod had
chronic kidney disease complicated by
Fournier's gangrene. Modern scholars agree he suffered throughout his lifetime from depression and paranoia.
After Herod's death, his kingdom was divided among three of his sons, namely
Herod Archelaus,
Herod Antipas, and
Herod Philip II, who ruled as
tetrarchs rather than kings.
Tomb discovery
The location of Herod's tomb is documented by Roman historian
Flavius Josephus, who writes, "And the body was carried two hundred furlongs, to Herodium, where he'd given order to be buried."
Flavius Josephus provides more clues about Herod's tomb which he calls Herod's monuments:
So they threw down all the hedges and walls which the inhabitants had made about their gardens and groves of trees, and cut down all the fruit trees that lay between them and the wall of the city, and filled up all the hollow places and the chasms, and demolished the rocky precipices with iron instruments; and thereby made all the place level from Scopus to Herod's monuments, which adjoined to the pool called the Serpent's Pool.
Ehud Netzer, an archaeologist from
Hebrew University, read the writings of Josephus and focused his search on the vicinity of the pool and its surroundings at the Winter Palace of Herod in the Judean desert. An article of the New York Times states,
Lower Herodium consists of the remains of a large palace, a race track, service quarters, and a monumental building whose function is still a mystery. Perhaps, says Ehud Netzer, who excavated the site, it's Herod's mausoleum. Next to it's a pool, almost twice as large as modern Olympic-size pools.
It took 35 years for Netzer to identify the exact location, but on
May 7,
2007, an
Israeli team of
archaeologists of the
Hebrew University led by Netzer, announced they'd discovered the tomb. The site is located at the exact location given by Flavius Josephus, atop of tunnels and water pools, at a flattened desert site, halfway up the hill to
Herodium, 12 kilometers (7.5 mi) south of Jerusalem.
Chronology
30s BC
36 BC — Herod makes his 17-year-old brother-in-law, Aristobulus III of Judea, high priest, fearing that the Jews would appoint Aristobulus III of Judea "king of the Jews" in his place.
35 BC — Aristobulus III of Judea is drowned at a party, on Herod's orders.
32 BC — The war against Nabatea begins, with victory one year later.
31 BC — Judea suffers a devastating earthquake. Octavian defeats Mark Antony, so Herod switches allegiance to Octavian, later known as Augustus.
30 BC — Herod is shown great favour by Octavian, who at Rhodes confirms him as King of Judaea.
20s BC
29 BC — Josephus writes that Herod had great passion and also great jealousy concerning his wife, Mariamne I. She learns of Herod's plans to murder her, and stops sleeping with him. Herod puts her on trial on a charge of adultery. His sister, Salome I, was chief witness against her. Mariamne I's mother Alexandra made an appearance and incriminated her own daughter. Historians say her mother was next on Herod's list to be executed and did this only to save her own life. Mariamne was executed, and Alexandra declared herself Queen, stating that Herod was mentally unfit to serve. Josephus wrote that this was Alexandra's strategic mistake; Herod executed her without trial.
28 BC — Herod executed his brother-in-law Kostobar (husband of Salome, father to Berenice) for conspiracy. Large festival in Jerusalem, as Herod had built a Theatre and an Amphitheatre.
27 BC — An assassination attempt on Herod was foiled. To honor Augustus, Herod rebuilt Samaria and renamed it Sebaste.
25 BC — Herod imported grain from Egypt and started an aid program to combat the widespread hunger and disease that followed a massive drought. He also waives a third of the taxes.
23 BC — Herod built a palace in Jerusalem and the fortress Herodion (Herodium) in Judea. He married his third wife, Mariamne II, the daughter of high priest Simon.
22 BC — Herod began construction on Caesarea Maritima and its harbor. The Roman emperor Augustus grants him the regions Trachonitis, Batanaea and Auranitis to the north-east of Judea.
Circa 20 BC — Expansion started on the Second Temple. (See Herod's Temple)
10s BC
Circa 18 BC — Herod traveled for the second time to Rome.
14 BC — Herod supported the Jews in Anatolia and Cyrene. Owing to the prosperity in Judaea he waived a quarter of the taxes.
13 BC — Herod made his first-born son Antipater (his son by Doris) first heir in his will.
12 BC — Herod suspected both his sons (from his marriage to Mariamne I) Alexander and Aristobulus of threatening his life. He took them to Aquileia to be tried. Augustus reconciled the three. Herod supported the financially strapped Olympic Games and ensured their future. Herod amended his will so that Alexander and Aristobulus rose in the royal succession, but Antipater would be higher in the succession.
Circa 10 BC — The newly expanded temple in Jerusalem was inaugurated. War against the Nabateans began.
0s BC
9 BC — Caesarea Maritima was inaugurated. Owing to the course of the war against the Nabateans, Herod fell into disgrace with Augustus. Herod again suspected Alexander of plotting to kill him.
8 BC — Herod accused his sons by Mariamne I of high treason. Herod reconciled with Augustus, which also gave him the permission to proceed legally against his sons.
7 BC — The court hearing took place in Berytos (Beirut) before a Roman court. Mariamne I's sons were found guilty and executed. The succession changed so that Antipater was the exclusive successor to the throne. In second place the succession incorporated (Herod) Philip, his son by Mariamne II.
6 BC — Herod proceeded against the Pharisees.
5 BC — Antipater was brought before the court charged with the intended murder of Herod. Herod, by now seriously ill, named his son (Herod) Antipas (from his fourth marriage with Malthace) as his successor.
4 BC — Young disciples smashed the golden eagle over the main entrance of the Temple of Jerusalem after the Pharisee teachers claimed it was an idolatrous Roman symbol. Herod arrested them, brought them to court, and sentenced them. Augustus approved the death penalty for Antipater. Herod then executed his son, and again changed his will: Archelaus (from the marriage with Malthace) would rule as king over Herod's entire kingdom, while Antipas (by Malthace) and Philip (from the fifth marriage with Cleopatra of Jerusalem) would rule as Tetrarchs over Galilee and Peraea (Transjordan), also over Gaulanitis (Golan), Trachonitis (Hebrew: Argob), Batanaea (now Ard-el-Bathanyeh) and Panias. As Augustus didn't confirm his will, no one got the title of King; however, the three sons did get the stated territories.
Marriages and children
It is very probable that Herod had more children, especially with the last wives, and also that he'd more daughters, as female births at that time were often not recorded.
Family trees
Marriages and descendants
Herod the Great + Doris
|
Antipater
d. 4 BC?
Herod the Great + Mariamne I, d. 29 BC?, dt. of Alexandros.
|
—————————————————————————————————————————————
| | | |
Aristobulus Alexander Salampsio + Phasael Cypros
d. 7 BC? d. 7 BC? | m. Antipater(2)
m. Berenice Cypros
|
————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
| | | | |
Mariamne III Herod III Herodias Herod Agrippa Aristobulus V
m. her uncle King of Chalcis + King of Judea
Archelaus ? m. 1. Herod II Boethus
her uncle
2. Herod Philip I
her uncle
3. Herod Antipas
her uncle
Herod the Great + Mariamne II, dt. of Simon the High-Priest.
|
—————————————————
| |
Herod II Herod Philip I
Boethus
Herod the Great + Malthace (a Samaritan)
|
————————————————————————————————————————————————
| | |
Herod Antipas Archelaus Olympias
b. 20 BC?
+ Phasaelis,
dt. of Aretas IV, king of Arabia
"divorced" to marry:
+ Herodias,
dt. of Aristobulus (son of Herod the Great)
Herod the Great + Cleopatra of Jerusalem
|
Philip the Tetrarch
d. AD 34
Notes.
Antipater(2) was the son of Joseph and Salome
Dates with ? need verifying against modern findings
Ancestors
Antipater the Idumaean + Cypros, Arab princess from Petra, Jordan in Nabatea.
|
—————————————————————————————————————————————
| | | | |
Phasael Herod the Great Joseph Pheroras Salome I
(74-4 BC)
Legend>
| Sign & Meaning |
| + = married |
| > = descended from |
| ../——— = sibling |
| dt. = daughter |
| b. = born |
| d. = died |
| m. = was married to |
| ? = not included here or unknown |
Alexandros + Alexandra
|
———————————————————————————————————
| |
Aristobulus III of Judea Mariamne, dt.
(d. 35 BC) m. Herod the Great
(last Hasmonean scion;
appointed high priest; drowned)
Herod in later culture
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