Vespasian establishes a new pagan city, Flavia…

Vespasian joins Cappadocia with the provinces of Galatia and Lesser Armenia in 72 to form a large new Roman administrative unit.

Aretaeus of Cappadocia writes in Ionic Greek a general treatise on diseases, which is still extant, and is certainly one of the most valuable relics of antiquity.

The book displays great accuracy in the detail of symptoms, and in seizing the diagnostic character of diseases.

In his practice he follows for the most part the method of Hippocrates, but he pays less attention to what have been styled "the natural actions" of the system; and, contrary to the practice of the Father of Medicine, he does not hesitate to attempt to counteract them, when they appear to him to be injurious.

One disease he describes is later known as Celiac Disease and is common in the world today.

The account which he gives of his treatment of various diseases indicates a simple and sagacious system, and one of more energy than that of the professed Methodici.

Thus he freely administers active purgatives; he does not object to narcotics; he is much less averse to bleeding; and upon the whole his Materia Medica is both ample and efficient.

It may be asserted generally that there are few of the ancient physicians, since the time of Hippocrates, who appear to have been less biased by attachment to any peculiar set of opinions, and whose account of the phenomena and treatment of disease has better stood the test of subsequent experience.

Aretaeus is placed by some writers among the Pneumatici because he maintained the doctrines which are peculiar to this sect; other systematic writers, however, think that he is better entitled to be placed with the Eclectics.

Aretaeus' work consists of eight books, two De causis et signis acutorum morborum, two De causis et signis diuturnorum morborum, two De curatione acutorum morborum, and two De curatione diuturnorum morborum.

They are in a tolerably complete state of preservation, though a few chapters are lost. (See Aretaeus' complete works in Greek and English (edition of Francis Adams, 1856) at the Digital Hippocrates project.)

Titus had set sail for Rome in the spring of 71.

A new military governor he has appointed from Rome, Lucilius Bassus, prefect of the fleet stationed at Ravenna, had betrayed Vitellius by siding with Vespasian during the Year of the Four Emperors.

Bassus’s assigned task being the "mopping-up" operations in Judea, he uses X Fretensis to besiege and capture the few remaining fortresses that still resist.

Bassus takes Herodium, then …

…crosses the Jordan to capture the fortress of Machaerus on the shore of the Dead Sea.

After its commander, Eleazer, accidentally falls into Roman hands, the defenders of the fortress offer a compromise: if the Romans free Eleazer, they will evacuate the fortress.

Bassus after concluding this bargain falls ill and dies, and in late 72 is replaced by Lucius Flavius Silva.

The nearly impregnable Masada resists Roman attempts to reduce it, however.

According to Josephus, additional members of the Sicarii and numerous Jewish families fled Jerusalem after its fall and settled on the mountaintop, using it as a base for harassing the Romans.

The Masada garrison—the last remnant of Jewish rule in Palestine—refuses to surrender.

The Roman governor of Iudaea Lucius Flavius Silva, commanding the legio X Fretensis in 72, lays siege to Masada.

The Roman legion surrounds Masada and builds a circumvallation wall and then a siege embankment against the western face of the plateau, moving thousands of tons of stones and beaten earth to do so.

Josephus does not record any attempts by the Sicarii to counterattack the besiegers during this process, a significant difference from his accounts of other sieges against Jewish fortresses.

He does record their raid before the siege on Ein-Gedi, a nearby Jewish settlement, where the Sicarii allegedly killed seven hundred of its inhabitants.

The increased amount of propaganda that appeared during Vespasian's reign has been noted by many modern historians.

Stories of a supernatural emperor who was destined to rule circulate in the empire.

Nearly one-third of all coins minted in Rome under Vespasian celebrate military victory or peace.

The word vindex is removed from coins so as not to remind the public of rebellious Julius Vindex.

Construction projects bear inscriptions praising Vespasian and condemning previous emperors.

A temple of peace is constructed in the forum as well.

Vespasian approves histories written under his reign, ensuring biases against him are removed.

Vespasian also gives financial rewards to writers.

The ancient historians who lived through the period such as Tacitus, Suetonius, Josephus and Pliny the Elder speak suspiciously well of Vespasian while condemning the emperors who came before him.

Tacitus admits that his status was elevated by Vespasian, Josephus identifies Vespasian as a patron and savior, and Pliny dedicated his Natural Histories to Vespasian's son, Titus.

Those who speak against Vespasian are punished.

A number of stoic philosophers are accused of corrupting students with inappropriate teachings and are expelled from Rome.

Helvidius Priscus, a pro-republic philosopher, is banished twice and eventually executed for his teachings.

A similar incident takes place in 73, when Prince Yan of Huaiyang is reported to have hired warlocks to curse Emperor Ming.

Several of Prince Yan's associates are executed, and there are also many others who are executed or exiled after Chu-style interrogations are carried out.

Prince Yan himself is not executed, but is demoted from his prefecture-level principality to be the Prince of Fulin, with only two counties in his principality.

Emperor Ming, annoyed at the Northern Xiongnu's constant incursions against Han domains, in 73 commissions his generals Geng Bing and Dou Gu to lead a major expedition against them.

They have only minor successes, but the campaign demonstrates to the Northern Xiongnu that the Han dynasty is now in a position to retaliate.

Dou, as part of his campaign, sends his assistant Ban Chao to visit the Xiyu (modern Xinjiang and former Soviet central Asia) kingdom of Shanshan (on the eastern edge of the Taklamakan Desert. (Xiyu kingdoms had long submitted to the authority of the Northern Xiongnu, and, unable to bear the heavy taxes, have often requested that the Eastern Han dynasty emperors step in and reassert the suzerainty that had been established during the Western Han Dynasty, starting with the reign of Emperor Wu. They had been constantly rebuffed however by Emperors Guangwu and Ming, who had judged their realm to be insufficiently strong to engage in a Xiyu campaign.)

Initially, the king of Shanshan is very pleased and welcomes the Han ambassadors as honored guests, but the welcome eventually fades.

Ban realizes that the Northern Xiongnu ambassadors must have arrived.

He discovers their location and, in a night raid, massacres them.

The king of Shanshan is shocked but pleased, and submits to Han suzerainty.

Emperor Ming promotes Ban and commissions him to next visit Yutian (Khotan), at this time the most powerful kingdom in southern Xiyu, which has a strong alliance with the North Xiongnu.

Guangde, the King of Yutian, trusts his chief warlock, who demands Ban's horse.

Ban agrees to give him the horse, and then, when the warlock arrives to pick up the horse, immediately executes him, and sends his head back to Guangde.

Impressed, Gunagde submits to Han suzerainty.

With Yutian having submitted, the Xiyu kingdoms largely all submit as well.

The Han dynasty during the turbulent reign of Wang Mang had lost control over the Tarim Basin, which was conquered by the Northern Xiongnu in 63 CE and used as a base to invade the Eastern Han dynasty's Hexi Corridor in Gansu.

Dou Gu (d. 88 CE) defeats the Northern Xiongnu at the Battle of Yiwulu in 73 CE, evicting them from Turpan and chasing them as far as Lake Barkol before establishing a garrison at Hami.