Nero Sends Titus to Put Down the Jewish Rebellion

Nero Hears Of the Rebellion. When Nero heard about the bitter defeat of the 12th Legion, he dispatched his most able commander, General Titus Flavius Vespasian, to put down the rebellion. Titus Vespasian was a very skilled military strategist and planned his attack starting with Galilee. He arrived with three legions and wiped out the Jewish forces in Galilee. It is interesting that the fortresses had been built by Josephus, who was captured by the Romans and later, as a prisoner, wrote the history of the remainder of the war. Titus then marched his legions down the coast and then moved inward toward Jerusalem. By 68 A.D. Jerusalem was under siege. Nero had committed suicide on June 9th, 68 A.D. and Titus Vespasian was awaiting orders. At this time three emperors came to power and left the throne almost as quickly. Finally Titus Vespasian was named head of the realm. In 70 A.D. he sailed for Rome and left the final siege of Jerusalem in the hands of his son Titus. Titus arrived to the city border at the head of 80,000 soldiers, he brought so many because Jerusalem was a difficult city to capture and heavily fortified. On three sides it is nearly impossible to attack the city which leaves only the North side for the troops to attack, the North contained the heavy fortifications, with their high walls and towers. Titus strategically planned his attack and after a two-week siege, according to Josephus, his troops "became masters of the first wall." Five days later came down the second wall and the legions marched in, but "the Jews, constantly growing in numbers and greatly at an advantage through their knowledge of the streets, wounded multitudes of the enemy." The Jewish victory would not last, for Titus sealed off the city by building a five-mile wall and then killed anyone that touched it. The Jews inside quickly ran short on supplies and became ridden with disease and starvation. Dead corpses filled the city and were finally thrown over the walls. After a month the Roman soldiers had reached the Temple and Titus made an offer to the Jews, he would spare the Temple if the rebels would come out and fight, but they resisted his offer. In fact they even set fire to portions of the Temple rather than allow the enemy entrance. The Roman troops fueled the fires, desiring to see the whole Temple in ashes, this was done against Titus' orders and they could not be stopped. The Temple was destroyed and set on fire never again to be rebuilt. Josephus said: "As the flames shot up, a cry, as poignant as the tragedy, arose from the Jews, who flock to the rescue," he also added: "lost to all thought of self-preservation, all husbanding of strength, now that the object of all their past vigilance was vanishing." The entire city was leveled except for three pillars in the northwest corner. Whoever was not killed was carried off into slavery. When Titus returned to Rome he marched triumphantly through the city bearing the Golden Menorah from the Temple, with hundreds of Jewish captives following behind. Herod's two strong fortresses, Herodium and Machaerus, were also captured. Only Masada was left, the last stronghold of the Zealots, who had captured it in 66 AD. This is where they made their final stand. The new procurator of Judea was Flavius Silva, and he came up with a plan, he built a wall around the base of the mountain and then ordered his troops to build a massive ramp, slowly but surely, until it reached the top of the 300 ft. plateau where the fortress stood. The Romans brought a huge battering ram and rolled up the ramp to crush the outer wall. They then lit a fire which doomed those who were inside. All of the Jews inside committed suicide (about 960 men, women and children) except for two women and five children. The seven-year war had finally come to an end and the Jews lost the Temple, and whoever was left alive was taken into slavery.