He made anti-religious decrees forbidding Torah study, Sabbath observance, circumcision, Jewish courts, meeting in synagogues and other ritual practices. From letters and documents unearthed in the Judean Desert we know the real name of the leader to have been Simeon bar Kosiba. The Bar Kochba Revolt (132–136 CE) was the third and final war between the Jewish people and the Roman Empire. The sobriquet Bar Kokhba, “Son of a Star,” was given to him in accord with Num. Hadrian, destroying an enemy With the fall of Jerusalem and then Bethar, a fortress on the seacoast south of Caesarea where Bar Kokhba was slain, the rebellion was crushed in 135. Thousands of Jewish refugees fled to Bethar during the war. Judaea, Second Revolt (Bar Kokhba War), 132-136 CE. Yet during the years of rule by the autonomous Hillelite patriarchs and the leaders of the tannaitic academies, problems were brewing, both inside and outside the Land of Israel. The Jews minted coins with slogans such as “The freedom of Israel” written in Hebrew. It was in this context, as well as on the basis of the strong messianic yearnings we have observed already, that some elements in the Jewish population of Palestine began preparing for revolt in the 120’s. The war began as a guerrilla struggle against Rome in 13… Bar Kokhba Revolt: The revolt of 132-135 A. D. began with promise, after years Rome finally exacted a blood vengeance by General Severus. When the Roman author Cornelius Fronto wrote a letter to the emperor Marcus Aurelius on the occasion of the destruction of a legion by the Parthians (in 162 AD), he compared it to the Bar Kochba revolt, implicitly admitting that the latter had been a defeat. News coverage you can trust He had active support of most of the rabbis … All Rights Reserved. The Bar Kokhba Revolt broke out in 132 C.E., 62 years after the subjection of Judea and Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple by Titus, and continued for three and half years. he had to spend his first year mopping up the last of the rebels. The Bar Kokhba revolt (A.D. 132-135) was the last in a series of conflicts between Rome and its province of Judaea in the first and second centuries A.D. After the conclusion of the Jewish War (A.D. 66-70) in A.D. 70, relations only became more strained, with periodic eruptions of … Simon Bar Kosiba led the uprising, which began in full force in 132 CE. There are few sources about Bar-Kokhba. They seized towns and fortified them with walls and subterranean passages. His state was conquered by the Romans in 135 following a two-year war. Bar Kokhba Revolt coinage were coins issued by the Judaean rebel state, headed by Simon Bar Kokhba, during the Bar Kokhba revolt against the Roman Empire of 132-135 CE. Jason Aronson Inc., New Jersey, 1989. It was not until the reign of the Roman emperor Trajan (98-117 C.E.) All the suffering and the fervent yearnings for redemption had culminated not in a messianic state, but in a collection of traditions which set forth the dreams and aspirations for the perfect holiness that state was to engender. In fact, Jesus never wanted the Gentiles to become separated from their Hebrew roots. He also began deporting Jews to North Africa. Jerusalem was turned into a pagan city called Aelia Capitolina and the Jews were forbidden to live there. Hamodia notes the rebels reused Roman coins ‘with stripped or damaged faces’ and this was possibly out of defiance of the Imperial authorities. “Bar Kokba and Bar Kokba War.” Funk and Wagnalls Co. London, 1902. It followed a long period of tension and violence, marked by the first Jewish uprising of 66-70 CE, which ended with the destruction of … Yet as victories go, Simon Bar Kochba's was a Pyrrhic one. Jerusalem was retaken and future Jewish settlement there was prohibited by Hadrian. Simeon Bar Kokhba, Simeon Bar Kochba (died 135) led the last Jewish revolt against Roman rule in Palestine, 132-135. Capitolina on the ruins of Jerusalem and the Bar Kokhba revolt. Judea was made part of the province of Syria. There are few sources about Bar-Kokhba. Bar-Kokhba united his army in Judea and led the Jews in battle. During the revolt itself, the Jews gained enormous amounts of land, only to be pushed back and crushed in the final battle of Bethar. Jewish outrage at his actions led to one of the single greatest revolts of the Roman Era. Bar Kochba observed Jewish law, and it may be stated that the documents confirm the close relationship between this “messiah” and tannaitic Judaism. This minor holiday -- known for bonfires, weddings and haircuts -- begins the evening of May 11, 2020. On Lag Ba'Omer, Israeli children celebrate the Jewish rebels' victory over the Romans 2,000 years ago. Early in the time of Hadrian there was an abortive attempt to rebuild the Jerusalem Temple, believed by some scholars to have had Hadrian’s support. The Romans plowed Jerusalem with a yoke of oxen. He allowed them to return to Jerusalem and granted permission for the rebuilding of their Holy Temple. The failure of the revolt is considered by many to be the start of the Jewish diaspora. Supposedly of the line of David, some hailed him as the Messiah, inferred from his name change, Kosba to Kokhba (“Son of the Star” from Numbers 24:17). Obverse: the Jewish Temple facade with the rising star, surrounded by "Shimon". Judean settlements were not rebuilt. When discovered by Roman soldiers, they resisted, in some cases successfully. Jews were sold into slavery and many were transported to Egypt. ), virtually all of Hadrian’s decrees were rescinded…The latter years of Roman rule, in the aftermath of the Bar Kochba Revolt and on the verge of the Christianization of the empire, were extremely fertile ones for the development of Judaism. The revolt was ultimately unsuccessful, and Jerusalem paid a heavy toll for the rebellion. 24:17 (“A star shall go forth from Jacob”), taken to refer to the messiah. The Bar Kokhba Revolt was a Jewish rebellion against the Roman Empire. Eliav , Y. , “ Hadrian’s Actions in the Jerusalem Temple Mount according to Cassius Dio and Xiphilini Manus ,” Jewish Studies Quarterly 4 ( 1997 ). Bar Kokhba Revolt Coin inscribed with the word "Jerusalem" and a picture of a date palm. The Zionist youth movement Betar took its name from Bar-Kokhba's traditional last stronghold, and David Ben-Gurion, Israel's first prime minister, took his Hebrew last name from one of Bar-Kokhba's generals. Both are found subleasing land from Bar Kokhba, probably part of the imperial estate in Ein Gedi, now taken over by the rebels; see Yadin, Y., ‘ Expedition D ’, IEJ II (1961), 40 – 50, and Cotton, H. M., ‘Ein Gedi between the two revolts’, in Katzoff, R. The last fortress to fall was Betar, not far to the southwest of Jerusalem, which was captured by the Romans during the summer of 136 C.E. The Bar Kochba Revolt was a Jewish rebellion, led by Simon bar Kochba, against the Roman Empire that ultimately failed. 24:17 (“A star shall go forth from Jacob”), taken to refer to the messiah. Writes Casius Dio, Bar Kokhba This revolt began as small, spontaneous clashes between Jews and Roman forces. My Jewish Learning is a not-for-profit and relies on your help. Imagine the incredible excitement of those involved in the discovery of the caves when they learned they had finally uncovered the final resting place of Bar-Kokhba and others who were with him. Parenthetically, the texts also show that Hebrew was very much a living language at this time, and that, along with Aramaic and Greek, it served a large segment of the population. From Text to Tradition: A History of Second Temple & Rabbinic Judaism. Bar Kochba Jewish outrage at his actions led to one of the single greatest revolts of the Roman Era. Following the battle of Bethar, there were a few small skirmishes in the Judean Desert Caves, but the war was essentially over and Judean independence was lost. The slogans on the Bar Kokhba coins proclaimed … Copyright © 2002-2021 My Jewish Learning. Hadrian changed the country’s name from Judea to Syria Palestina. Before long pitched battles were being fought in Egypt. The Jews prepared to rebel until Rabbi Joshua ben Hananiah calmed them. Kantor, Morris. The historical memory of the Bar Kochba Revolt has been much weaker than that of the Jewish revolt of 70 CE, perhaps because of the spectacular tragedy of the Temple’s destruction, perhaps because no detailed history of it still survives today. It begins with Hadrian, functional ruler of the Roman Empire in AD 130, and a survey of his world. A rebellious Jewish population would coalescence around a man who would be proclaimed a messiah. It was the type of war the Romans tried to forget. “Bar Kokhba”. They were permitted to enter only on the 9th of Av to mourn their losses in the revolt. all credit goes to dovahhaty https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCdZY83VtDv0WieDHLyXrlNQ -Bar Kokhba proclaiming open rebellion against Roman rule in Judea. The Bar Kokhba Revolt and Hadrian’s Religious Policy Giovanni Battista Bazzana The many scholarly opinions collected in a volume published ten years ago and devoted to the study of the period between the two Jewish uprisings of 66 and 132 were all in agreement on the thick darkness that still enshrouds the historical contours of the fateful war associated with the name of Bar Kokhba1. The revolt did not begin until it had found its leader. , “ The Bar Kokhba Revolt: The Roman Point of View,” Journal of Roman Studies 89 (1999). Under the strong leadership of Shimon Bar-Kokhba, the Jews captured approximately 50 strongholds in Judea and 985 undefended towns and villages, including Jerusalem. The Jews expectations rose as they made organizational and financial preparations to rebuild the temple. In 115‑117 C.E., while Trajan was occupied in Mesopotamia, Jews throughout the Diaspora rose up against their non‑Jewish neighbors in a violent confrontation. The Romans suffered heavy casualties as well and Hadrian did not send his usual message to the Senate that “I and my army are well.”. Simeon Bar Kochba is surrounded by legend, and little is known of his life. Fought circa 132-136 CE, it was the last of three major Jewish-Roman wars, so it is also known as The Third Jewish-Roman War or The Third Jewish Revolt. The main conflicts took place in Judea, the Shephela, the mountains and the Judean desert, though fighting also spread to Northern Israel. 24:17(“A star shall go forth from Jacob”), taken to refer to the messiah. The tannaim were divided, some supporting his rebellion, others not. The revolt did not begin until it had found its leader. We know from the documents that the country was organized into administrative districts, that taxes were collected, and that governmental operations were carried out by Bar Kochba’s supporters. The Jews then invaded the coastal region and the Romans began sea battles against them. Similar disturbances followed in Cyprus and Mesopotamia. The debacle of the first revolt against Rome was followed by a period of relative calm. Bar Kokhba Revolt - "/his/ - History & Humanities" is 4chan's board for discussing and debating history. Documents discovered in the modern era Rabbi Akiva. Nonetheless, Bar Kochba has remained alive in historical memory. Bar Kochba followed the same strategy that the Jews had followed in the first rebellion against Rome. Bethar was a vital military stronghold because of its strategic location on a mountain ridge overlooking both the Valley of Sorek and the important Jerusalem-Bet Guvrin Road. Messianism was abstracted and spiritualized, and rabbinical political thought becam… The war began as a guerrilla struggle against Rome in 132 C.E. Then he surrounded Jerusalem and forced them out. The sobriquet Bar Kokhba, “Son of a Star,” was given to him in accord with Num. 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