Alexander Jannaeus (127 BC-76 BC) was King of Judea from 103 BC to 76 BC, succeeding Aristobulus I and preceding Salome Alexandra.
Biography[]
Alexander Jannaeus was the third son of John Hyrcanus and the half-brother of Aristobulus I. He was imprisoned under his half-brother, but, when his brother died after a year as king, Alexander inherited both the throne and his brother's widow, Salome Alexandra. He controversially combined the offices of King and High Priest, just as his father had done, and he persecuted the Pharisees and supported the Sadducees due to the Pharisees' opposition to this move. With assistance from the Ptolemaic queen Cleopatra III, he conquered Ptolemais (Acre) from her rebellious son Ptolemy IX Lathyros, and the influence of Egypt's Jewish community convinced Cleopatra not to go ahead with her demand to annex Judea as recompense for her assistance. Alexander also campaigned against the Hellenized coastal cities of Philistia, capturing Raphia and Anthedon. In 96 BC, he pillaged and burned Gaza, giving the Judeans control over the Mediterranean outlet of the Nabatean trade routes. He then conquered Gadara from the Nabatean king Obodas I, but, in 93 BC, Obodas defeated him in a second battle at Gadara, and Alexander lost his Jordanian territories. When he returned to Jerusalem, he faced fierce opposition. At the Feast of Tabernacles, he insulted the Pharisees by performing the water libation on his feet instead of on the altar, and the shocked crowd began to throw fruit at him. The outraged Alexander had his soldiers massacre 6,000 Pharisees in the Second Temple's courtyard, igniting popular opposition to his rule. A rebellion broke out against his rule, backed by the Seleucid king Demetrius III Eucaerus. Alexander's 20,000 Jews and 6,200 mercenaries faced Demetrius' 40,000 soldiers and 3,000 soldiers at Shechem, where Alexander was defeated. All of his mercenaries were killed in the battle, and he was forced to flee to the mountains. In sympathy towards Alexander, 6,000 Judean rebels joined his army, and, in fear of this news, Demetrius withdrew. Alexander ultimately crushed the rebellion, and most of the rebels died in battle, while the last rebels were defeated at Bethoma. Jannaeus had 800 of the captured Pharisee rebels crucified in Jerusalem, and he had their wives and children executed before their eyes. His reign continued in peace with the rebellion's end, and he died in 76 BC, upon which his wife became queen. His sons Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II would later engage in several civil wars with each other.