In its initial stages, the revolt was surprisingly successful and may have resulted in the destruction of an entire Roman legion. The Zionist youth movement Betar took its name from Bar Kokhba's traditional last stronghold, and David Ben-Gurion, Israel's first prime minister, took his Hebrew last name from one of Bar Kokhba's generals. Before long pitched battles were being fought in Egypt. [84], Until 1951, Bar Kokhba Revolt coinage was the sole archaeological evidence for dating the revolt. With the subsequent withdrawal of Persian forces, Jews surrendered to the Byzantines in 625 CE or 628 CE, but were massacred by Christians in 629 CE, with the survivors fleeing to Egypt. Despite easing the persecution of Jews following Hadrian's death in 138 CE, the Romans barred Jews from Jerusalem, except for attendance in Tisha B'Av. [81], A popular children's song, included in the curriculum of Israeli kindergartens, has the refrain "Bar Kokhba was a Hero/He fought for Liberty," and its words describe Bar Kokhba as being captured and thrown into a lion's den, but managing to escape riding on the lion's back. The Bar-Kochba Revolt. The theory for a major battle in Tel Shalem implies a significant extension of the area of the rebellion - while some historians confine the conflict to Judea proper, the location of Tel Shalem suggests that the war encompassed the northern Jordan Valley as well, some 50 km north of the war's minimal boundaries. The Talmud describes him as "the wicked" and states that he personally "plowed the Sanctuary," i.e. Rabbinical literature ascribes the defeat to Bar Kokhba killing his maternal uncle, Rabbi Elazar Hamudaʻi, after suspecting him of collaborating with the enemy, thereby forfeiting Divine protection. Simon bar Kokhba declared Herodium as his secondary headquarters. The Romans issued a coin inscribed Aelia Capitolina. It was not until the reign of the Roman emperor Trajan (98-­117 C.E.) Our latest articles delivered to your inbox, once a week: Our mission is to engage people with cultural heritage and to improve history education worldwide. He had active support of most of the rabbis – in contradistinction to the first two revolts … Legio V Macedonica and Legio XI Claudia are said to have taken part in the siege. Shortly after the eruption of the revolt, Bar Kokhba's rebels inflicted heavy casualties to Legio X Fretensis, based in Aelia Capitolina (Jerusalem). According to a Rabbinic midrash, the Romans executed eight leading members of the Sanhedrin (The list of Ten Martyrs include two earlier Rabbis): R. Akiva; R. Hanania ben Teradion; the interpreter of the Sanhedrin, R. Huspith; R. Eliezer ben Shamua; R. Hanina ben Hakinai; R. Jeshbab the Scribe; R. Yehuda ben Dama; and R. Yehuda ben Baba. [8] The Church Fathers and rabbinic literature emphasize the role of Rufus, governor of Judea, in provoking the revolt. "The Bar-Kochba Revolt." [8] One interpretation involves the visit in 130 CE of Hadrian to the ruins of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. [46] The name Bar Kokhba does not appear in the Talmud but in ecclesiastical sources. Inside the water system, supporting walls built by the rebels were discovered, and another system of caves was found. Rome also took control of the appointment of Jewish High Priests.Previous bloody conflicts between the Romans and the Jews, such as the Great Jewish Revolt of … In addition, many Judean war captives were sold into slavery. the Mediterranean, while another story tells of students and teachers of Jewish law being wrapped in the sacred scrolls and burned to death (Talmud HaBavli, Gittin 57a). This may also be indicated by the fact that, in one of the unearthed letters, Bar Kochba is described as nasi yisrael or "prince of Israel," indicating that the leader had or claimed to have restored the Jewish kingship, which was considered an essential accomplishment for any messianic claimant. The fact that Galilee retained its Jewish character after the end of the revolt has been taken as an indication by some that either the revolt was never joined by Galilee or that the rebellion was crushed relatively early there compared to Judea. 2, "Greek Papyri", edited by Naphtali Lewis; "Aramaic and Nabatean Signatures and Subscriptions", edited by. In effect, the Jews were now a stateless people and would remain so until 1948 CE. 7 Schmiedel, p. 200. Lamentations Rabbah, the Jews in battle generally considered that Legio XXII Deiotoriana took part in the 4th-5th CE. Revered Rabbi Gamliel ( Talmud HaBavli, Taanit 29a ) best described as massacre. 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