70 AD. Tens of thousands of Roman troops surround Jerusalem. What follows is one of the most brutal sieges in ancient history—and the dramatic climax of the Great Jewish Revolt.In this episode of The Ancients, Tristan Hughes is joined by Dr Guy Maclean Rogers to uncover the full story of this epic uprising against Rome. From its origins in rising tensions and religious strife to the devastating siege and destruction of the Second Temple, discover how this revolt shaped the ancient world and continues to resonate today.For more on The Great Jewish Revolt listen to our episode on Masada:Besieging Masada: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0FcheOKepMhzYGDjZUcP6aMyths of Masada: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5YncKSM3r79AD8PwmZNWjkPresented by Tristan Hughes. Audio editor is Aidan Lonergan, the producer is Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music courtesy of Epidemic SoundsThe Ancients is a History Hit podcast.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. You can take part in our listener survey here: https://insights.historyhit.com/history-hit-podcast-always-on
Full Episode
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Jerusalem is under siege. Some 50,000 Roman soldiers have descended on the city, keen to crush the greatest beacon of resistance still standing. The brutal siege that followed would be the climax to a bloody revolt that has been going on for four years. An anti-Roman revolt that still resonates with many people today. We know it as the Great Jewish Revolt. It's the Ancients of History Hit.
I'm Tristan Hughes, your host. Joining me today to talk through the story of the Great Jewish Revolt, I was delighted to interview Dr. Guy McLean-Rogers, the classicist historian and an author who has written an incredibly detailed book on the Great Jewish Revolt from origins to endgame. Let's get into the interview. Guy, it is a pleasure to have you on the podcast today.
Well, thank you for inviting me. I appreciate it. You're more than welcome, but I hope you're ready because this is a massive topic, the Great Jewish Revolt. So we've got eight years, a war that lasted eight years. We've got two Roman emperors, a merciless siege of Jerusalem. And I mean, this whole event, it still holds so much meaning today, isn't it?
It's still significant for people down to present day.
Yeah, that's exactly right. I mean, I tell my students all the time that most of the ancient history that I teach is fascinating and interesting, especially to ancient historians, but it's kind of all over.
It doesn't really matter to most of my students who won the Peloponnesian War, but the revolt against Rome in 66 and its outcome with the destruction of the temple and then kind of the progressive... deterioration in relations between Romans and Jews and Jews and Christians unfortunately has resonances right down to the present and
Actually, although I wrote the book back in 2020, 21, the events of the last year to year and a half have only kind of heightened that sense that this is history that isn't over. It's living history. So yeah, it's still present in the minds of tens of millions of people.
Absolutely. An interesting comparison or contrast you put there, Guy, with the Peloponnesian War between Athens and its allies and Sparta and its allies. But let's set the scene. So with the Great Jewish Revolt, what kinds of sources do you have to study this incredibly important period in ancient history?
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