History

Hasmonean Revolt

Hasmonean Revolt Against Seleucid Rule. We know little about life in Israel during the period of about 300 years between the time of the return from Babylon and the time of the taking over of the country by the Seleucids. We do know that religious observance was so important that they would not even defend themselves when attacked on the Sabbath (t...

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Ptolemaic dynasty - Ptolemy I - XV

Ptolemaic Dynasty - Ptolemy I - XV "" Cleopatra. This period is confusing due to all of the co-regencies. Scholars are not always in agreement on the order of reigns and, in some case, the reigns themselves, from Ptolemy VI through Ptolemy XI. In any event, Egypt's authority and wealth was intact until the death of Cleopatra, at which time, Egypt w...

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The Hasmonean Dynasty

The Silent Centuries. The Hasmonean Dynasty Growth and Decay (135 "" 63 BC) by Al Maxey. For the first several years of his rule, John Hyrcanus was little more than a pawn in the hands of Antiochus VII. With the death of Antiochus VII in 128 BC, however, the people of Judea again proclaimed -- and managed to achieve -- their independence. Thus bega...

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Ptolemy Kings and Queens

The House of Ptolemy: Kings, Queens and the Rest of the Royal Ptolemies. Chronological List of Ptolemaic rulers...

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Chapter 30: The Hasmonean Dynasty

Old Testament Life and Literature (1968) WITH Simon (141-135) a new era dawned for the Jews, and for the first time since the Babylonian conquest, they breathed the pure air of freedom. The atmosphere was charged with expectation. Simon seized the important port city of Gaza, providing Judah with a direct outlet to the Mediterranean world. Treaties...

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Cleopatra , Ptolemy XIII, Ptolemy IV, Ptolemy XV Caesarion

Cleopatra VII, Ptolemy XIII, Ptolemy IV, Ptolemy XV Caesarion. In 51 BC, Cleopatra assumed power at the age of 17. She was required to marry so she took her brother, Ptolemy XIII, as her husband. He was only 12 by that time. Cleopatra soon dropped him from official documents and regarded herself as the sole ruler. Few years later, Ptolemy XIII chal...

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Alexander's Successors: The Diadochi

Diadochi ('successors'): name of the first generation of military and political leaders after the death of the Macedonian king and conquerorAlexander the Great in 323. To settle the question whether his empire should disintegrate or survive as a unity, and, if so, under whose rule, they fought four full-scale wars. The result, reached by 300, was a...

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History of Iran: Seleucid Empire

The Hellenistic period is one of the most controversial in the history of Iran. The Greek or Macedonian dynasties were never fully accepted as more than occupants, and in hindsight their reign has been neglected. In the West, where the Hellenistic kings were defeated by Rome, most historians tend to look down on them as degenerated tyrants. The cri...

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The Rise of Herod the Great (51 - 37 BCE)

In 49 BCE, in Rome, a civil war erupted between Pompey and Julius Caesar. At first, Hyrcanus II and Antipater supported Pompey, as most from the east did, but quickly switched allegiances, when it was discovered that Caesar and his allies had been victorious over Pompey, who had fled to Egypt but who was murdered in 48 BCE in Egypt. In gratitude fo...

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History of the Intertestamental Period

Following the conquests of Alexander the Great and his early death in 323 B.C., his empire was divided by four of his generals. Israel initially fell under the rule of Seleucus, who held authority over Syria, but soon passed to Ptolemy, who had gained authority over Egypt. This period under the "Ptolemies" from 301 to 198 B.C. was generally one of ...

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