Siege of Masada
Masada, Israel (then part of Judaea Province)
What happened
Eleazar ben Ya'ir led a rebel group called the Sicarii against the Roman governor of Judaea, Lucius Flavius Silva, and the Tenth Legion. During the First Jewish-Roman War, rebels held Masada, a mountaintop fortress-palace above the Dead Sea that King Herod the Great had fortified. The Romans built a wall all the way around the mountain and a giant earth ramp up its western side. In spring 73 CE they moved a siege tower up the ramp and breached the fortress wall.
Why it matters
Result: Roman victory. Leaders: Eleazar ben Ya'ir against Lucius Flavius Silva. Why it matters: It was the final chapter of the First Jewish-Roman War. UNESCO describes the Roman camps, walls and ramp that circle the monument as the finest and most complete Roman siege works to survive to the present day.
What came next
The site stayed untouched for more than thirteen centuries until its rediscovery in 1828, and it was excavated in 1963 to 1965 by an expedition led by Yigael Yadin. Masada became a national symbol in modern Israel and was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001.
Did you know?
Masada's water system collected run-off from a single day's rain, enough to supply about a thousand people for two to three years, according to UNESCO.
Timeline
- 37-31 BCEHerod the Great fortifies Masada as a refuge.
- 66 CEAt the start of the revolt, the Sicarii overcome the Roman garrison.
- 70 CERome destroys the Second Temple in Jerusalem.
- 72 CEFlavius Silva begins the siege of Masada.
- Spring 73 CEThe Romans breach the fortress wall.