ORIGINS AND THE MACCABEAN REVOLT
The Hasmonean dynasty was a Jewish ruling family that governed Judea and its surrounding regions during the Second Temple period, from approximately 141 BC to 37 BC. The dynasty’s name originates from an ancestor named Asmoneus, the great-grandfather of Mattathias, though little else is known of him. The dynasty was established by Simon Thassi, two decades after his brother, Judah Maccabee, had led a successful revolt against the Seleucid Empire. This conflict was ignited when the Seleucid king, Antiochus IV Epiphanes, seeking to assert control after a failed invasion of Egypt, sacked Jerusalem, suppressed Jewish religious practices, and imposed Hellenistic culture around 167 BC.
The primary historical sources for this period are the books of 1 and 2 Maccabees, which cover the initial revolt until 134 BC, and the later histories of the Jewish-Roman historian Josephus, which document the dynasty's expansion and subsequent decline. In the early second century BC, Judea was caught between the rival Ptolemaic and Seleucid empires. When the Seleucids gained final control, the spread of Hellenism created a deep rift between traditionalists and those who embraced Greek culture, leading to a civil war over the high priesthood. Tensions peaked when Antiochus IV outlawed the Sabbath, forbade circumcision, and desecrated the Jerusalem Temple by erecting an idol of Zeus, compelling Jews to sacrifice to idols on pain of death.
In response, the priestly family of Mattathias, later known as the Maccabees, initiated a holy war. Modern scholars view this conflict not just as a religious uprising but as a civil war between rural traditionalists and Hellenized urban Jews, which evolved into a war of national liberation. After Mattathias’s death, his son Judah Maccabee led the revolt using guerrilla tactics. He successfully entered Jerusalem in 164 BC, purified the Temple, and re-established Jewish worship—an event commemorated by the festival of Hanukkah. Judah later established a diplomatic league with the Roman Republic, but the conflict continued. He was ultimately killed in the Battle of Elasa in 160 BC by forces sent by the Seleucid king Demetrius I Soter.
CONSOLIDATION OF POWER
Following Judah’s death, his brother Jonathan Apphus assumed leadership. He took advantage of a Seleucid civil war, securing permission from Demetrius I to raise an army. When a rival claimant, Alexander Balas, offered Jonathan the position of High Priest, Jonathan accepted, becoming the official religious leader of his people in 153 BC and establishing the Hasmoneans in that office. Jonathan skillfully navigated shifting political alliances, expanding his territory and renewing treaties with Rome and Sparta. However, he was eventually deceived, captured, and executed by the ambitious Seleucid general Diodotus Tryphon.
Jonathan's brother, Simon Thassi, took command in 142 BC, assuming the dual roles of High Priest and Ethnarch (Prince) of Israel. His leadership was formally established in 141 BC by a great assembly of priests and elders, who declared his authority would stand "until there should arise a faithful prophet." Simon captured the Seleucid fortress in Jerusalem, the Acra, solidifying Jewish semi-independence. The Roman Senate officially recognized the new dynasty around 139 BC. After a period of peace and prosperity, Simon and two of his sons were assassinated in 135 BC at the instigation of his son-in-law.
EXPANSION AND INTERNAL DIVISIONS
Simon's third son, John Hyrcanus I, succeeded him as High Priest and Ethnarch (134–104 BC). Initially a vassal to the Seleucids, he achieved full independence as their empire crumbled. He embarked on a series of military conquests, raising a mercenary army to capture territories in Transjordan and Samaria, and notably conquering Idumea, where he forced the population to convert to Judaism. Upon his death, his son Aristobulus I (104–103 BC) imprisoned his own mother and brothers to seize power. He became the first Hasmonean to adopt the Greek title Basileus (King) and conquered the region of Galilee.
Aristobulus I was succeeded by his brother, Alexander Jannaeus (103–76 BC), who continued to expand the kingdom, conquering and forcibly converting the people of Iturea. His reign was marked by intense internal conflict with the Pharisees, a prominent Jewish sect. The Pharisees, who emphasized strict adherence to Jewish law and tradition, opposed the Hasmoneans' wars of expansion and demanded that Jannaeus choose between being king and High Priest. This rift led to a bloody civil war in which the king, siding with the rival Sadducee sect, crucified 800 rebels.
Jannaeus's widow, Salome Alexandra, became the only regnant Jewish queen of the era (76–67 BC). She favored the Pharisees, greatly increasing their political influence and appointing her elder son, Hyrcanus II, as High Priest.
CIVIL WAR AND ROMAN INTERVENTION
After Salome Alexandra’s death, a war of succession erupted between her sons: Hyrcanus II, supported by the Pharisees, and Aristobulus II, backed by the Sadducees. Aristobulus II initially triumphed, but Hyrcanus II was persuaded by his adviser, Antipater the Idumean, to challenge the throne with the help of the Nabataean kingdom. This internal strife drew the attention of Rome. In 63 BC, the Roman general Pompey the Great, campaigning in the region, intervened. He sided with Hyrcanus II, captured Jerusalem, and entered the Temple's Holy of Holies. This act effectively ended Jewish independence, transforming Judea into a Roman client state.
Hyrcanus II was restored as High Priest but stripped of political authority, with real power resting in the hands of Antipater. Rome reorganized the territory, and later, Antipater and Hyrcanus II shifted their allegiance to Julius Caesar. Caesar appointed Antipater the first Roman Procurator of Judea and confirmed Hyrcanus as Ethnarch. Antipater, in turn, appointed his sons Phasael and Herod to governorships in Jerusalem and Galilee, respectively.
THE END OF THE DYNASTY
The turmoil following Caesar's assassination in 44 BC created an opportunity for the Parthian Empire to invade Roman territories. In 40 BC, the Parthians supported Mattathias Antigonus, the son of Aristobulus II, in his bid to reclaim the throne. Antigonus captured Hyrcanus II and mutilated him to render him unfit for the priesthood, becoming the last Hasmonean king. Meanwhile, Antipater's son Herod fled to Rome. There, the Roman Senate, at the urging of Mark Antony, declared Herod the "King of the Jews," viewing him as a valuable ally in the war against Parthia.
After the Parthians were defeated, Herod returned with Roman support and, following a prolonged struggle, captured Jerusalem in 37 BC. Antigonus was executed, marking the end of Hasmonean rule. To secure his reign and legitimize his claim, Herod the Great married the Hasmonean princess Mariamne. He then systematically eliminated all remaining Hasmonean heirs, including his wife, their two sons, her brother Aristobulus III, and the aged Hyrcanus II. The Hasmonean dynasty, which had survived for 103 years, gave way to the Herodian dynasty, and Judea was fully integrated into the Roman system, eventually becoming the province of Judaea in 6 CE.
The Hasmonean legacy, however, endured. The memory of a century of Jewish self-governance fueled a persistent nationalism that inspired later revolts against Rome. The period also saw significant developments in Jewish religious life, with scholars noting the rise of Jewish identity beyond nationality, the consolidation of biblical traditions, and the widespread adoption of key practices like kashrut (dietary laws) and ritual purity.
Concise Summary
The Hasmonean dynasty rose from a religious revolt against Hellenistic oppression to establish a century of independent Jewish rule, but its reign was ultimately undone by internal dynastic conflict, which invited the Roman intervention that ended its sovereignty and reshaped Jewish national and religious identity.
Alexander Jannaeus
ACCESSION AND FAMILY
Alexander Jannaeus, born Jonathan, was the second king of the Hasmonean dynasty, ruling an expanding Judean kingdom from 103 to 76 BCE. He was the third son of John Hyrcanus. When his half-brother, Aristobulus I, became king, he imprisoned Alexander for his own security. Following Aristobulus's death after a one-year reign, his widow, Queen Salome Alexandra, had Alexander and his brothers released. As the oldest living brother, Alexander ascended to the throne and, in accordance with the Jewish law of levirate marriage, married Salome, who was thirteen years his senior. Together they had two sons: Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II, both of whom would later hold the office of high priest and engage in a destructive civil war.
Alexander's reign was marked by deep internal division. He was an ardent supporter of the aristocratic Sadducee faction, while his wife Salome hailed from a prominent Pharisaic family; her brother was the famed Pharisee leader Simeon ben Shetach. Like his father, Alexander served as both king and high priest, a combination the Pharisees vehemently opposed. Their opposition intensified due to a rumor that his mother had been a captive violated in Modi'in, which, in their view, disqualified him from serving in the temple. Infuriated by this challenge to his legitimacy, Alexander sided firmly with the Sadducees and persecuted the Pharisees throughout his reign.
CONFLICT WITH PTOLEMY AND CLEOPATRA
Alexander’s rule began with a military expedition against the coastal city of Ptolemais. The city sought aid from Ptolemy IX Lathyros, who ruled a kingdom in Cyprus after being exiled by his mother, Cleopatra III of Egypt. Ptolemy saw this as an opportunity to gain a foothold on the Judean coast for a potential invasion of Egypt. Initially, Alexander tried to avoid being drawn into the conflict between mother and son, offering Ptolemy a peace treaty while secretly negotiating an alliance with Cleopatra.
When Ptolemy discovered this treachery, he launched a destructive campaign against Alexander. After his own generals laid siege to Ptolemais, Ptolemy pursued Alexander's forces into Galilee, capturing thousands of prisoners. The two armies finally met in battle at Asophon, near the Jordan River. Despite having a numerical advantage, Alexander's army was routed when a tactical maneuver by Ptolemy's forces was mistaken for a massive reinforcement. An estimated thirty to fifty thousand of Alexander's soldiers were killed. Ptolemy proceeded to conquer northern Judea and pillaged its villages, reportedly ordering his troops to cannibalize women and children to spread terror.
The war came to an abrupt end when Cleopatra III, alarmed by her son's success, intervened. She appointed Jewish generals to command her forces and sailed with a fleet to Judea. Faced with his mother's army, Ptolemy miscalculated and withdrew to Cyprus. Alexander approached Cleopatra and, bowing before her, pleaded to retain his rule. Though her advisors urged her to annex Judea, she was persuaded by her Jewish general Ananias to relent, fearing she would lose the support of the influential Jewish population in Egypt. Alexander agreed to her terms, and after her death five years later, he felt free to resume his military campaigns.
TERRITORIAL CONQUESTS AND THE BATTLE OF GAZA
With his northern border secured, Alexander turned to conquest, capturing the coastal cities of Raphia and Anthedon. In 96 BCE, he defeated the inhabitants of Gaza, a significant victory that gave Judea control over the Mediterranean outlet of the main Nabataean trade route. He also returned to the Transjordan region to avenge an earlier defeat, successfully capturing and destroying the fortress of Amathus.
The conquest of Gaza was particularly brutal. The city's general, Apollodotus, initially repelled the Hasmonean army with a clever night attack, but the city was ultimately betrayed from within. One of its leaders, Lysimachus, convinced the people to surrender, and Alexander entered peacefully. His peaceful demeanor, however, was a ruse. He turned his soldiers against the inhabitants, who fought desperately; some killed their own families to prevent their enslavement, while others burned down their homes. Alexander had the town council and five hundred civilians, who had sought refuge in the Temple of Apollo, massacred.
JUDEAN CIVIL WAR
Alexander's victory at Gaza cut off the Nabataean kingdom's access to the sea, provoking their king, Obodas I, to retaliate. He ambushed and defeated Alexander's army at the Battle of Gadara. When Alexander returned to Jerusalem after this defeat, he was met with fierce opposition that erupted into a full-blown civil war.
The conflict was inflamed during the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot). While officiating as High Priest, Alexander showed his contempt for Pharisaic tradition by refusing to perform the water libation ceremony correctly; instead of pouring the water on the altar, he poured it on his own feet. The crowd reacted with outrage, pelting him with citrons (etrogim) and insulting him as unfit for his office. Enraged, Alexander unleashed his mercenaries on the crowd, killing six thousand people. He then erected wooden barriers around the temple altar to keep the populace away.
As the civil war escalated, the rebels sought aid from the Seleucid king, Demetrius III Eucaerus. The combined forces defeated Alexander at Shechem, killing all of his mercenaries and forcing him to flee into the mountains. However, sympathy for the Hasmonean king grew, and six thousand of the Judean rebels returned to his side. Fearing this shift, Demetrius withdrew. Alexander pursued the remaining rebels, eventually defeating them and bringing the survivors back to Jerusalem for a final, horrific act of retribution. He had eight hundred of them, primarily Pharisees, crucified. As they died, he had their wives and children executed before their eyes, all while he feasted with his concubines. This brutal event, which ended the rebellion, is referenced in the Nahum Commentary from the Qumran Scrolls.
FINAL CAMPAIGNS AND DEATH
In his final years, Alexander continued to campaign in the east, expanding Hasmonean territory into the Transjordan despite a defeat by the Nabataean king Aretas III. He captured several cities in Gaulanitis and Galaaditis, destroying Pella when its inhabitants refused to adopt Judaism. For the last three years of his life, he suffered from the severe effects of alcoholism and malaria.
Alexander Jannaeus died in 76 BCE at the age of fifty-one during the siege of Ragaba, after a reign of 27 years. According to the historian Josephus, Alexander instructed his wife, Salome Alexandra, to hide his death until the siege was complete. He advised her to then reconcile with the Pharisees by granting them a share of power and allowing them to abuse his corpse, believing this act of penance would persuade them to give him an honorable burial. In a final political act, he named his wife as his successor, granting her the authority to rule and to appoint the next high priest.
Concise Summary
Alexander Jannaeus was a ruthless warrior-king whose reign was defined by continuous conflict, expanding the Hasmonean kingdom to its greatest territorial extent while simultaneously igniting a brutal civil war through his oppressive rule and persecution of the Pharisees.
Maccabees (rebel leaders)
- Mattathias, 170–167 BCE
- Judas Maccabeus, 167–160 BCE
- Jonathan Apphus, 160–143 BCE (High Priest from 152 BCE)
Monarchs (ethnarchs and kings) and high priests = Jewish Priest + King = Messiah
- Simon Thassi, 142/1–134 BCE (Ethnarch and High Priest)
- John Hyrcanus I, 134–104 BCE (Ethnarch and High Priest)
- Aristobulus I, 104–103 BCE (King and High Priest)
- Alexander Jannaeus, 103–76 BCE (King and High Priest)
- Salome Alexandra, 76–67 BCE (the only Queen regnant)
- Hyrcanus II, 67–66 BCE (King from 67 BCE; High Priest from 76 BCE)
- Aristobulus II, 66–63 BCE (King and High Priest)
- Hyrcanus II (restored), 63–40 BCE (High Priest from 63 BCE; Ethnarch from 47 BCE)
- Antigonus, 40–37 BCE (King and High Priest)
- Aristobulus III, 36 BCE (only High Priest)
Aristobulus II
FAMILY BACKGROUND AND AMBITION
Aristobulus II was a Hasmonean king and the High Priest of Israel who reigned from 66 to 63 BCE. He was the younger son of King Alexander Jannaeus and Queen Salome Alexandra. Upon Alexander’s death in 76 BCE, his widow Salome Alexandra ascended to the throne and appointed her elder, more passive son, Hyrcanus II, as High Priest.
Sharing his late father's political and religious views, Aristobulus harbored ambitions for the throne even during his mother's lifetime. He cultivated support among the nobles and military leaders by becoming a patron of the Sadducees. He convinced the queen to place numerous fortresses under Sadducee control, ostensibly for their protection against the rival Pharisees, but in reality, this was a strategic move to build his own power base. Although the queen attempted to channel his military ambitions abroad by sending him on a failed campaign against Ptolemy Mennaeus, Aristobulus resumed his political intrigues upon his return. He secretly left Jerusalem to rally his allies, who controlled a majority of the fortified cities, intending to launch a war for the throne.
REBELLION AND CIVIL WAR
Before Aristobulus could act against his mother, Queen Salome died in 67 BCE at the age of 73. Her death triggered an immediate conflict, as Hyrcanus II legally inherited the kingship. Aristobulus directed his forces against his brother, and the two met in battle near Jericho. The engagement was decisive; many of Hyrcanus's soldiers defected to Aristobulus's side, securing his victory.
Hyrcanus took refuge in the citadel of Jerusalem, but when Aristobulus captured the Temple, he was forced to surrender. A peace agreement was concluded in which Hyrcanus agreed to renounce the throne and the office of High Priest, though he was permitted to retain the revenues of the latter. This arrangement was short-lived. Antipater the Idumaean, a powerful advisor, persuaded Hyrcanus that Aristobulus was plotting his death and convinced him to seek an alliance with Aretas III, King of the Nabataeans. With a formidable army of 50,000 men, the Nabataeans advanced on Jerusalem and laid siege to the city for several months.
ROMAN INTERVENTION AND CAPTURE
As the civil war raged, the Roman general Pompey the Great was concluding his campaigns against Pontus and the Seleucids. He dispatched his deputy, Marcus Aemilius Scaurus, to take control of Syria. Both Hasmonean brothers, as allies of Rome, appealed to Scaurus for support, offering gifts and promises. Moved by a substantial bribe of 400 talents, Scaurus sided with Aristobulus and ordered the Nabataean king Aretas to withdraw his army. As Aretas retreated, Aristobulus attacked and inflicted a crushing defeat upon his forces.
When Pompey himself arrived in Syria in 63 BCE, both brothers sent delegates to him, as did a third faction that wished to abolish the Hasmonean dynasty altogether. Pompey delayed his decision but ultimately favored Hyrcanus, viewing the weaker, elder brother as a more reliable and manageable Roman ally. Aristobulus, suspicious of Pompey’s intentions, entrenched himself in the fortress of Alexandrium. After the Romans defeated his army, he surrendered and agreed to hand over Jerusalem. However, many of his followers refused to open the city gates, leading to a Roman siege. The city was captured by force, causing significant damage to Jerusalem and the Temple. Hyrcanus was restored as High Priest but was stripped of all political authority, ending Judea's autonomy. Aristobulus and his sons, Alexander and Antigonus, were taken captive.
FINAL REBELLION AND DEATH
In 57 BCE, Aristobulus escaped captivity and instigated another rebellion against Rome in Judea. He was eventually cornered in the fortress of Machaerus by Aulus Gabinius, the Roman consul of Syria. During this engagement, a young cavalry commander under Gabinius, Mark Antony, distinguished himself by leading the assault that subdued Aristobulus's forces.
Taken prisoner once again, Aristobulus remained in Roman hands until 49 BCE, when Julius Caesar released him. Caesar's plan was to send Aristobulus back to Judea to incite opposition against his rival, Pompey. However, while en route, Aristobulus was assassinated, poisoned by members of Pompey's party. At the same time, his son Alexander was captured and beheaded in Antioch by the Roman commander Scipio, ensuring neither could aid Caesar's cause. Years later, his other son, Antigonus, would lead a final Hasmonean rebellion with Parthian support.
Concise Summary
Aristobulus II was an ambitious Hasmonean prince whose rebellion against his brother for the Judean throne ignited a civil war, which directly led to Roman intervention, the end of Jewish independence, and his own capture and eventual death.
Antigonus II Mattathias
EARLY STRUGGLES AGAINST ROME
Antigonus II Mattathias, the second son of King Aristobulus II of Judea, was the last Hasmonean king and High Priest of Israel. His life was defined by a fierce struggle for Jewish independence against Roman dominance. In 63 BCE, both he and his father were taken to Rome as prisoners by Pompey. Antigonus managed to escape and returned to Judea in 57 BCE, where he made an unsuccessful attempt to oppose the Roman forces. Despite this failure and his refusal to surrender his dynastic rights, the Roman Senate released him.
Following the death of his older brother, Alexander, Antigonus began to challenge the rule of his uncle, Hyrcanus II, whom he viewed as a mere puppet of Antipater the Idumean. He sought to overthrow them, initially with Roman consent. In 47 BCE, he personally visited Julius Caesar to complain about the usurpation of power by Antipater and Hyrcanus. Later, in 42 BCE, he attempted to seize control of Judea by force with the help of his brother-in-law, Ptolemy, but was defeated in this effort by Herod.
RISE TO POWER WITH PARTHIAN SUPPORT
By 40 BCE, the Judean populace harbored a deep hatred for Rome, largely due to the excessive taxes imposed to fund the extravagances of Mark Antony and Cleopatra. Antigonus capitalized on this sentiment, gaining the allegiance of Jerusalem's aristocratic class and the leaders of the Pharisees. When the Parthian Empire invaded Syria that same year, they sought an anti-Roman ruler for Judea. Antigonus struck a deal, promising the Parthians large sums of gold and five hundred female slaves in exchange for their military support.
With a force of five hundred Parthian warriors, Antigonus conquered Jerusalem. His uncle, Hyrcanus, was captured and his ears were mutilated, a disfigurement that rendered him permanently unfit for the office of High Priest. Hyrcanus was then exiled to Babylon. With his rival disposed of and Herod having fled the city, Antigonus was officially proclaimed both king and High Priest, beginning a three-year reign.
DEFEAT AND EXECUTION
After escaping from Masada, Herod made his way to Rome. There, on the recommendation of Mark Antony, the Roman Senate nominated him as Judea's allied king in 40 BCE. Upon his return in 39 BCE, Herod launched a campaign against Antigonus. By the spring of 38 BCE, he had wrested control of Galilee and most of Judea, leaving only Jerusalem in Antigonus's hands. The siege of the capital was postponed for the winter but resumed the following spring.
For several months, Antigonus and his army held out, but the combined forces of Herod and a supporting Roman army eventually breached the city's defenses. The supporters of Antigonus fought fiercely until the Romans reached the inner courtyard of the Temple itself. Antigonus was captured and taken to Antioch, where he was executed in 37 BCE, bringing Hasmonean rule to a final end. The manner of his death is recorded differently by ancient historians. Josephus states he was beheaded, while Cassius Dio records that he was bound to a cross, scourged, and then killed—a punishment he notes no other king had suffered from the Romans. Plutarch also claims he was beheaded, calling it the first time such a punishment was inflicted on a king.
LEGACY AND LATER THEORIES
In 1971, a tomb was discovered in East Jerusalem with an inscription that led to speculation it belonged to King Antigonus. However, this is widely considered an urban myth by scholars. The only beheaded skeleton found in the tomb was that of an elderly woman, and no other remains could be associated with the last Hasmonean king. Separately, in modern scholarship, biblical scholar Gregory Doudna has proposed that Antigonus II Mattathias was the figure identified as the "Wicked Priest" in several of the Qumran Scrolls, including the commentaries on Habakkuk and Nahum.
Concise Summary
Antigonus II Mattathias, the last Hasmonean king, led a fierce but brief struggle for Jewish independence, seizing power with Parthian support before being defeated and executed by Herod the Great and his Roman allies.
Maccabees (rebel leaders)
- Mattathias, 170–167 BCE
- Judas Maccabeus, 167–160 BCE
- Jonathan Apphus, 160–143 BCE (High Priest from 152 BCE)
Monarchs (ethnarchs and kings) and high priests
- Simon Thassi, 142/1–134 BCE (Ethnarch and High Priest)
- John Hyrcanus I, 134–104 BCE (Ethnarch and High Priest)
- Aristobulus I, 104–103 BCE (King and High Priest)
- Alexander Jannaeus, 103–76 BCE (King and High Priest)
- Salome Alexandra, 76–67 BCE (the only Queen regnant)
- Hyrcanus II, 67–66 BCE (King from 67 BCE; High Priest from 76 BCE)
- Aristobulus II, 66–63 BCE (King and High Priest)
- Hyrcanus II (restored), 63–40 BCE (High Priest from 63 BCE; Ethnarch from 47 BCE)
- Antigonus, 40–37 BCE (King and High Priest)
- Aristobulus III, 36 BCE (only High Priest)