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Roman destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem

70 CE·Religion & ideology·Judaea (Jerusalem)·
70 CEDate
Religion & ideologyCategory
12Empires active
Date
70 CE
Category
Religion & ideology
Region
Judaea (Jerusalem)
Era
Classical Antiquity
Significance

During the First Jewish–Roman War, the future emperor Titus, son of Vespasian, besieged Jerusalem from spring to late summer 70 CE.

After breaching the city's defences, Roman forces stormed the Temple Mount and, late in August, burned the Second Temple — the central sanctuary of Judaism, rebuilt and expanded under Herod the Great. The city fell completely in early September; large numbers were killed or enslaved, and the Temple treasures were paraded in Rome, an event later commemorated on the Arch of Titus. The Temple's destruction ended the sacrificial cult and the priestly order at its heart, accelerating the transformation of Judaism toward a rabbinic, synagogue- and text-centred religion. It is mourned annually on the fast of Tisha B'Av and remains one of the most significant events in Jewish history. The war's suppression also reinforced Roman imperial dominance in the Near East and provided the new Flavian dynasty with the prestige and plunder — including funds toward the Colosseum — that helped legitimise its rule.

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A Little History of Religion

Richard Holloway

Accessible sweep of humanity's faiths and belief systems from prehistory to the present.

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