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Machaerus
Machaerus (Μαχαιροῦς, from Ancient Greek: μάχαιρα, lit. 'makhaira' [a sword]; Hebrew: מכוור; Arabic: قلعة مكاور, romanized: Qala'at Mukawir, lit. 'Mukawir Castle') was a Hasmonean hilltop palace and desert fortress, rebuilt by Herod and now in ruins, located in the village of Mukawir in modern-day Jordan, 25 km (16 mi) southeast of the mouth of the Jordan River on the eastern side of the Dead Sea.
Machaerus was built by Hasmonean king Alexander Jannaeus (r. 104–78 BCE). Destroyed later by Roman general Gabinius in 57 BCE during conflicts with Aristobulus II, it was subsequently rebuilt and expanded by Herod, who envisioned it as a potential refuge. Herod constructed a palace, cisterns, a mikveh, a triclinium, and a peristyle within the fortress. After the fall of Jerusalem during the First Jewish–Roman War, the fortress became a magnet for resistance against Roman rule. Following a siege by Legio X Fretensis under Bassus in 71 CE, the Jewish defenders eventually surrendered after Eleazar, a key leader, was captured. However, the Romans reneged on their agreement regarding the non-Jewish inhabitants, massacring the men and enslaving the women and children.
According to the Jewish-Roman historian Flavius Josephus, Machaerus was the location of the imprisonment and execution of John the Baptist. According to the chronology of the Bible (Mark 6:24; Matthew 14:8), the execution took place in about 32 CE shortly before the Passover, following an imprisonment of two years. The site also provides the setting for four additional New Testament figures: Herod the Great; his son, Tetrarch Herod Antipas; his second wife, Princess Herodias; and her daughter, Princess Salome.
The fortress Machaerus was originally built by the Hasmonean king, Alexander Jannaeus (104 BC-78 BC) in about the year 90 BC, serving an important strategic position. Its high, rocky vantage point was difficult to access, and invasions from the east could be easily spotted from there. It was also in line of sight of other Hasmonean (and later Herodian) citadels, so other fortresses could be signaled if trouble appeared on the horizon. Nevertheless, it was destroyed by Pompey's general Gabinius in 57 BC, but later rebuilt by Herod the Great in 30 BC to be used as a military base to safeguard his territories east of the Jordan.
Upon the death of Herod the Great, the fortress was passed to his son, Herod Antipas, who ruled from 4 BC until 39 AD. It was during this time, at the beginning of the first century of the Common Era, that John the Baptist was imprisoned and beheaded at Machaerus.
After the deposition and banishment of Herod Antipas in 39 AD, Machaerus passed to Herod Agrippa I until his death in AD 44, after which it came under Roman control. Jewish rebels took control after AD 66 during the First Jewish Revolt. The fort fell to the Romans in the mop-up operations that followed Titus's destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. Shortly after defeating the Jewish garrison of Herodium, the Roman legate Lucilius Bassus advanced on Machaerus with his troops and began its siege. Bassus first set engineers to fill the southeastern ravine and raise a ramp; he then began a second ramp from the higher northwestern ridge and ringed the site with a rectangular circumvallation studded with fixed camps to prevent escape.
According to Josephus, raiding parties from the garrison harassed the Roman siege force, with losses on both sides, until a turning point: a young, well-born Jewish fighter, Eleazar, lingered outside the gates and was seized by a Roman soldier named Rufus. Bassus had Eleazar flogged in full view of the fortress and ordered a cross brought up; Eleazar then called on his horrified comrades to save themselves by surrendering. Envoys came out to negotiate, and Bassus agreed to spare Eleazar and grant safe conduct to the Jewish defenders. The non-Jewish inhabitants, realizing the terms covered only Jews, attempted a night escape. Warned by their opponents in the upper citadel, the Romans intercepted the breakout: some forced their way through, but 1,700 men were reportedly killed and the women and children taken and sold. The Jewish rebels were allowed to depart, and the fortress was demolished, leaving only its foundations.
Josephus gives a full description of Machaerus in The Jewish War 7.6.1 ff. The hilltop, which stands about 1,100 meters above Dead Sea level, is surrounded on all sides by deep ravines which provide great natural strength. The valley on the west extends 60 stadia to the Dead Sea (Josephus refers to it as Lake Asphaltitis). The valley on the east descends to a depth of a hundred cubits (150 ft).
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Machaerus
Machaerus (Μαχαιροῦς, from Ancient Greek: μάχαιρα, lit. 'makhaira' [a sword]; Hebrew: מכוור; Arabic: قلعة مكاور, romanized: Qala'at Mukawir, lit. 'Mukawir Castle') was a Hasmonean hilltop palace and desert fortress, rebuilt by Herod and now in ruins, located in the village of Mukawir in modern-day Jordan, 25 km (16 mi) southeast of the mouth of the Jordan River on the eastern side of the Dead Sea.
Machaerus was built by Hasmonean king Alexander Jannaeus (r. 104–78 BCE). Destroyed later by Roman general Gabinius in 57 BCE during conflicts with Aristobulus II, it was subsequently rebuilt and expanded by Herod, who envisioned it as a potential refuge. Herod constructed a palace, cisterns, a mikveh, a triclinium, and a peristyle within the fortress. After the fall of Jerusalem during the First Jewish–Roman War, the fortress became a magnet for resistance against Roman rule. Following a siege by Legio X Fretensis under Bassus in 71 CE, the Jewish defenders eventually surrendered after Eleazar, a key leader, was captured. However, the Romans reneged on their agreement regarding the non-Jewish inhabitants, massacring the men and enslaving the women and children.
According to the Jewish-Roman historian Flavius Josephus, Machaerus was the location of the imprisonment and execution of John the Baptist. According to the chronology of the Bible (Mark 6:24; Matthew 14:8), the execution took place in about 32 CE shortly before the Passover, following an imprisonment of two years. The site also provides the setting for four additional New Testament figures: Herod the Great; his son, Tetrarch Herod Antipas; his second wife, Princess Herodias; and her daughter, Princess Salome.
The fortress Machaerus was originally built by the Hasmonean king, Alexander Jannaeus (104 BC-78 BC) in about the year 90 BC, serving an important strategic position. Its high, rocky vantage point was difficult to access, and invasions from the east could be easily spotted from there. It was also in line of sight of other Hasmonean (and later Herodian) citadels, so other fortresses could be signaled if trouble appeared on the horizon. Nevertheless, it was destroyed by Pompey's general Gabinius in 57 BC, but later rebuilt by Herod the Great in 30 BC to be used as a military base to safeguard his territories east of the Jordan.
Upon the death of Herod the Great, the fortress was passed to his son, Herod Antipas, who ruled from 4 BC until 39 AD. It was during this time, at the beginning of the first century of the Common Era, that John the Baptist was imprisoned and beheaded at Machaerus.
After the deposition and banishment of Herod Antipas in 39 AD, Machaerus passed to Herod Agrippa I until his death in AD 44, after which it came under Roman control. Jewish rebels took control after AD 66 during the First Jewish Revolt. The fort fell to the Romans in the mop-up operations that followed Titus's destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. Shortly after defeating the Jewish garrison of Herodium, the Roman legate Lucilius Bassus advanced on Machaerus with his troops and began its siege. Bassus first set engineers to fill the southeastern ravine and raise a ramp; he then began a second ramp from the higher northwestern ridge and ringed the site with a rectangular circumvallation studded with fixed camps to prevent escape.
According to Josephus, raiding parties from the garrison harassed the Roman siege force, with losses on both sides, until a turning point: a young, well-born Jewish fighter, Eleazar, lingered outside the gates and was seized by a Roman soldier named Rufus. Bassus had Eleazar flogged in full view of the fortress and ordered a cross brought up; Eleazar then called on his horrified comrades to save themselves by surrendering. Envoys came out to negotiate, and Bassus agreed to spare Eleazar and grant safe conduct to the Jewish defenders. The non-Jewish inhabitants, realizing the terms covered only Jews, attempted a night escape. Warned by their opponents in the upper citadel, the Romans intercepted the breakout: some forced their way through, but 1,700 men were reportedly killed and the women and children taken and sold. The Jewish rebels were allowed to depart, and the fortress was demolished, leaving only its foundations.
Josephus gives a full description of Machaerus in The Jewish War 7.6.1 ff. The hilltop, which stands about 1,100 meters above Dead Sea level, is surrounded on all sides by deep ravines which provide great natural strength. The valley on the west extends 60 stadia to the Dead Sea (Josephus refers to it as Lake Asphaltitis). The valley on the east descends to a depth of a hundred cubits (150 ft).
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