An analysis of the Jewish-Roman War (66–73 AD) using contemporary insurgency theory

ABSTRACT

The present article seeks to identify variables that explain the success or failure of insurgent groups by using contemporary theories of insurgency. It then applies those variables to interpret tentatively an insurgency from classical antiquity: the Jewish-Roman War of 66–73 A.D. Although the results of one single empirical case cannot be generalised, they nonetheless constitute a preliminary element for the construction of a broader theoretical framework concerning the existence of elements of continuity in the phenomenon of insurgency.

KEYWORDS:

• Cestius Gallus
• Eleazar ben Simon
• Flavius Josephus
• John of Gischala
• Jewish–Roman War
• Masada
• sicarii
• Vespasian

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Notice of duplicate publication: An analysis of the Jewish-Roman War (66–73 AD) using contemporary insurgency theory

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The author declares no conflict of interest in this article

Notes

1. See Kennedy, “Grand Strategy in War and Peace,” 7; Luttwak, The Grand Strategy of the Roman Empire, 1–5; Hanson, “Introduction: Makers of Ancient Strategy,” 3; Boot, Invisible Armies, 557–67; and Gaddis, On Grand Strategy, 10.

2. Extensive academic debate and an abundance of literature exist on the complex figure of Flavius Josephus and bias in his works. However, they fall beyond the scope of the present article. See for example Curran, “The Jewish War,” 76–8; Cotton and Eck, “Josephus’ Roman Audience,” 37–52; and Mason, “Of Audience and Meaning,” 71–100.

3. Sheldon, “Taking on Goliath”; Curran, “The Jewish War”; Faulkner, Apocalypse; Sorek, The Jews against Rome; Bloom, The Jewish Revolts against Rome; and Mason, A History of the Jewish War.

4. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book III, Chapter 2, §1–2.

5. Ibid., Chapters 6–8; Book IV, Chapter 1.

6. Ibid., Book IV, Chapter 7, §3–4.

7. Ibid., Chapter 8.

8. Suetonius, The Lives of the Twelve Caesars. Book VIII, Chapters 5–7; and Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book IV, Chapters 9–11.

9. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book IV, Chapters 3–7; Book V, Chapter 1.

10. Goldsworthy, In the name of Rome, 337.

11. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book V, Chapters 2–13; Book V, Chapters 2–13. Book VI, Chapters 1–10. Book VII, Chapter 1.

12. The debate on the year of the fall of Masada (73 A.D. or 74 A.D.) is beyond the scope of the present article. For more detailed discussion see for example Cotton, “The Date of the Fall of Masada,” 157–62.

13. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book VII, Chapter 6, Chapters 8–9.

14. Mattern, Rome and the Enemy, 101–2.

15. Collier, Hoeffler, and Rohner, “Beyond Greed and Grievance,” 2.

16. Beckett, Modern Insurgencies; Beckett, “The Future of Insurgency,” 22–36; Boot, Invisible Armies; Byman, “Understanding Proto-Insurgencies,” 165–200; Metz, “Insurgency after the Cold War,” 63–82; Metz, and Millen, Insurgency and Counterinsurgency; Steven Metz, Rethinking Insurgency; O’Neill, Insurgency and Terrorism; and Connable, and Libicki, How Insurgencies End?

17. Byman, “Understanding Proto-Insurgencies,” 170; and Metz and Millen, Insurgency and Counterinsurgency, 6–7.

18. Gray, “Irregular Warfare One Nature,” 44; and Shaw, “Bandits in the Roman Empire,” 8–12.

19. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book II, Chapter 4, §1–3.

20. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Chapters 4–5; and Flavius, Antiquities of the Jews, Book XVII, Chapter 10, §9–10.

21. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book II, Chapter 8, §1.

22. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book XX, Chapter 5, 2; Faulkner, Apocalypse, 120–122; and Curran, ‘‘The Long Hesitation,” 92.

23. Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, Book XX, Chapter 8, §6.

24. Ibid., Chapter 8, §5, §10; Horsley, “The Sicarii,” 440.

25. Brighton, The Sicarii in Josephus’s Judean War, 9.

26. Laqueur, A History of Terrorism, 7.

27. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book II, Chapter 17, §2.

28. Goodman, The Ruling Class of Judaea, 51–75.

29. Mattern, “Counterinsurgency and the Enemies of Rome,” 178.

30. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book II, Chapter 17, §6.

31. Byman, “Understanding Proto-Insurgencies,” 170.

32. However, Josephus does not always draw a clear distinction between the different groups he calls bandits in some cases and sicarii in others. See Brighton, “The Sicarii in Acts,” 554–5.

33. Appelbaum, “The Idumaeans,” 10–5.

34. Goodman, The Ruling Class of Judea, 183.

35. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Preface, 2; and Curran, “The Jewish War,” 82–3.

36. Goodman, Rome and Jerusalem, 408.

37. Bloom, The Jewish Revolts Against Rome, 68–9.

38. Ibid., 100.

39. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book II, Chapter 19, §9.

40. Ibid., Chapter 17, §8.

41. Bloom, The Jewish Revolts Against Rome, 82.

42. Metz and Millen, Insurgency and Counterinsurgency, 7.

43. Goodman, Ruling Class of Judea, 199–200.

44. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book V, Chapter 10, §1–2.

45. Ibid., Book II, Chapter 17, §2–9.

46. Ibid., Book IV, Chapter 2, §2.

47. Ibid., Chapter 3, §10–14.

48. Ibid., Book II, Chapter 21, §1.

49. Ibid., Chapter 19, §1.

50. Ibid., Book V, Chapter 1, §3.

51. Ibid., §4–6.

52. Ibid., Book V, Chapter 6, §3–5.

53. Appelbaum, “The Idumaeans,” 10.

54. Ibid., 14–5.

55. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book IV, Chapter 5, §1–4.

56. Ibid., Book V, Chapter 6, §1.

57. Connable and Libicki, How Insurgencies End? 36.

58. Metz and Millen, Insurgency and Counterinsurgency, 6; and Kilcullen, ‘Counter-insurgency Redux,’ 112–119.

59. Goldsworthy, The Roman Army at War, 86.

60. See note 4 above.

61. Kaempf, “Lost through Non-Translation,” 548–73.

62. Areguin-Toft, “How the Weak Win Wars,” 121–2.

63. Starr, The Roman Empire, 121.

64. Boot, Invisible Armies, 561.

65. Aviam, “The Fortified Settlements of Josephus Flavius”; and Davies, “Under Siege,” 65–83.

66. Lee, “Urban Warfare in the Classical Greek World,” 141.

67. Boot, Invisible Armies, 566; and Connable, and Libicki, How Insurgencies End? 62.

68. Sherwin-White and Kuhrt, From Samarkhand to Sardis, 218–22.

69. Curran, “The Jewish War,” 82.

70. Mattern, Rome and the Enemy, 35.

71. Goldsworthy, In the Name of Rome, 321–3.

72. Curran, “The Jewish War,” 81; and Suetonius, The Lives of the Twelve Caesars, Book VIII, Chapter 6, 4.

73. Paul, Clarke and Grill, Victory Has a Thousand Fathers, 85–6; and Sobek, “Master of their Domains,” 267–71.

74. Luttwak, The Grand Strategy, 33–5; and Ferrill, “The Grand Strategy,” 79–80.

75. Jn 11: 48.

76. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book II, Chapter 16, §4.

77. Goldsworthy, The Roman Army at War, 88–7.

78. Mack, “Why Big Nations Lose Small Wars,” 179.

79. Goldsworthy, In the Name of Rome, 356.

80. Mattern, “Counterinsurgency,” 164–5.

81. Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book VI, Chapter 9, Book VII, Chapters 1–2.

Additional information

Funding

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Notes on contributors

Javier Jordán

Javier Jordán is Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science and Public Administration at the University of Granada, Spain. He is Editor-in-chief of the Journal of International Security Studies (RESI) and director of the platform on strategic studies and Defence policy Global Strategy. He is author of 30 articles co-author or editor of 14 books; and lead-researcher of 7 research projects. He has been visiting researcher in the Center of International Studies at the University of Oxford, the European Institute of the London School of Economics, Institute of International Politics of the King’s College of London, and the Leonard Davis Institute for International Relations of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He participated as an expert in Terrorism in the Project Interchange (Israel, 2007) and in the International Visitor Leadership Program of the US Department of State (2008). Javier Jordan has led the research project Future Operative Environment of the Spanish Army funded by the University of Granada – Spanish Army Training and Doctrine Command (MADOC) Centre. He has been member of the Spanish team in the Multinational Capabilities Development Campaign 2017–2018 Countering Hybrid Warfare. He has participated in the Futures Research Project of the Spanish Institute for Strategic Studies (Spanish Ministry of Defence, 2017–2018).