Line #13 UsefulNotes/JewishRevolts


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/half_shekel.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:Coinage minted to declare independence from Rome.]]
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4	->''"Since we long ago resolved never to be servants to the Romans, nor to any other than to God Himself, Who alone is the true and just Lord of mankind, the time is now come that obliges us to make that resolution true in practice...We were the very first that revolted, and we are the last to fight against them; and I cannot but esteem it as a favor that God has granted us, that it is still in our power to die bravely, and in a state of freedom."''
5	-->--credited to '''Elazar Ben Yair''' at Masada
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7	These were a series of revolts by the Jews against UsefulNotes/TheRomanEmpire, which ended with the Jews uprooted from the province of Judea and scattered. This began the Diaspora era, in which the Jews were scattered across the globe. They were not to return to their ancient lands as a nation again[[note]] There were however ''individual'' Jews in the general area all throughout the next two thousand years. In fact, Jerusalem had a Jewish majority by the turn of the twentieth century. Hebron's Jewish community was only interrupted twice, both in the 20th century, due to the Arab Uprising and later due to the 1948 war[[/note]] until the founding of the State of UsefulNotes/{{Israel}}.
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9	Despite the tragedy of this episode, there is one thing Jews can take pride in. No one had given Rome [[DyingMomentOfAwesome a fight like that]] for generations. The defense of the province of Judea was ferocious to the point of fanaticism and required the utmost effort -- so much so that the final victory was considered worthy of a Triumph for Titus (he declined it, saying there was no honor in defeating people forsaken by their own god), the Roman general in command, and lifted him to [[TheEmperor the highest rank]]. The Arch of Titus in Rome today, while not intended as such, comes off accidently as a [[WorthyOpponent backhanded tribute to the valor of the Jews]].
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11	This war was ritualistically mourned by Jews through the ages. It was the beginning of the custom of pouring part of the Passover wine on the ground in mourning for the lost Temple as well as the CatchPhrase "Next Year In Jerusalem". It was also the beginning of adjustments in Jewish doctrine which included the end of the priesthood, and the increase in the prestige of the Rabbinate, with their expertise in the study of ''Literature/TheTalmud''.
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13	''Literature/TheFourGospels'' were all written after the conclusion of the first revolt and reflect rejection of the sort of ideology which contributed to the rebellions breaking out (notably, Simon the Zealot is convinced to become an apostle of the more peaceable Jesus), as well as numerous "predictions" of the destruction of the Temple by Jesus, which aren't all that surprising in retrospect. There were rebellions in Judea even after the fall of Jerusalem, most notably the Simon bar Kochba revolt under Emperor UsefulNotes/{{Hadrian}}, who suppressed it, and renamed the city Aelia Capitolina, and forbade Jews from entering the city for 150 years, during which time [[MonumentOfHumiliationAndDefeat he attempted to rebuild the city as a pagan colony]].
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15	The wars were chronicled by Flavius Josephus, a former Jewish rebel who later sided with the Roman Empire. His books ''The Antiquities of the Jews'' and ''The War of the Jews'' are considered among the key primary sources for the conflict.
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17	----
18	!!Depictions in fiction
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20	[[AC: {{Film}}]]
21	* Films about Jesus Christ (whose life coincided around this time) often invoke the Jewish Revolt as a broader context for his beliefs and ideas.
22	** Creator/NicholasRay's ''Film/KingOfKings'' portrayed Judas and Barabbas as Zealots, with Judas sent undercover to Jesus' sect to see if he's on the side of the revolution or not. The Romans likewise wonder if Jesus was a revolutionary against their regime. Ultimately Jesus' sacrifice comes as a result of a mix-up between the Empire and the Revolt.
23	** Creator/MartinScorsese's ''Film/TheLastTemptationOfChrist'' initially shows Jesus advocating revolutionary struggle against the Romans and their collaborationist establishment. Judas, who is Jesus' close friend in this revisionist adaptation, is shown as a Zealot and Sicarii. Scenes such as Jesus charging against the money lenders is shown as a revolutionary action. However, Jesus finally backs away and decides to sacrifice himself. [[spoiler:TheFinalTemptation shows Jesus a vision of the fall of Jerusalem]].
24	* Broadly parodied in ''Film/MontyPythonsLifeOfBrian'', though the Jewish revolt is mostly used as a metaphor for the [[WeAreStrugglingTogether increasingly fractious]] British Left of the 1970s (a criticism that would grow [[HarsherInHindsight all too painful]] in [[UsefulNotes/MargaretThatcher the '80s]]).
25	* The documentary ''Avenge But One Of My Two Eyes'' by Israeli film-maker Avi Mograbi is a critical examination of the Masada Siege and its place in the cultural memory of contemporary Israel.
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27	[[AC:{{Literature}}]]
28	* Marguerite Youcenar's ''Memoirs of Hadrian'' briefly chronicles the Bar Kochba revolt and Emperor Hadrian's suppression of the same.
29	* The ''Series/{{Highlander}}'' tie-in novel, "Zealot", deals with Avram ben Mordecai, a Jew who became an Immortal at Masada. He was then taken in by an Immortal Roman general who was part of the siege force.
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31	[[AC: LiveActionTV]]
32	* The miniseries ''Series/{{Masada}}'', about TheSiege of the eponymous citadel in AD 73.
33	* The miniseries ''Series/ADTheBibleContinues'', while primarily adapting the Literature/ActsOfTheApostles, is specifically set in the historical periods leading up to the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Jewish%E2%80%93Roman_War First Jewish-Roman War]].
34	* The miniseries ''The Dovekeepers'' is based on a historical novel which features the same revolt. It has Josephus interviewing two female survivors of the Masada siege, while also chronicling their lives prior to this.
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36	[[AC: TabletopGames]]
37	* Avalon Hill's ''The Siege of Jerusalem''

Context UsefulNotes / JewishRevolts