Salome Alexandra
queen of the Hasmonean dynasty
139 BCE to 67 BCE
Salome Alexandra or Alexandra of Jerusalem (139–67 BCE) is the only Jewish regnant queen, with the exception of her own husband's mother whom he had prevented from ruling as his dying father had wished, and of the much earlier usurper Athaliah.
The wife of Aristobulus I, and afterward of Alexander Jannaeus, she is the last woman ruler of Judaea, and the last ruler of ancient Judaea to die as the ruler of an independent kingdom.
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At the death of Aristobulus in 103 BCE, his widow, Salome Alexandra, liberates his brother Alexander Jannaeus, who had been held in prison.
Jannaeus succeeds Aristobulus as the Judaean king and high priest; and marries Salome Alexandra, whose brother is Shimon ben Shetach, a leading Pharisee.
After a failed siege against Gaza, Jannaeus strikes a phony league of friendship with the Egyptian co-ruler Ptolemy Lathyrus.
In reality Jannaeus seeks the assistance of Lathyrus’ mother, Cleopatra III, against her son.
When Lathyrus learns of this treachery, he takes out his fury on Judea.
After defeating Jannaeus near the Jordan River, Lathyrus’ soldiers slaughter fleeing Jewish troops.
Afterwards, Lathyrus attacks a small village in Judea with utter malice.
The Egyptian troops strangle women and children.
Then the deceased are cut into pieces, boiled in cauldrons, and eaten as a sacrifice.
This act of cannibalism is used to terrify the Judean people and their military.
After this massacre, Jannaeus is in no position to stop the onslaught of Lathyrus.
However, Cleopatra III, who is probably swayed to support Jannaeus through two Jewish commanders in her military, steps in to prevent Lathyrus from sacking Jerusalem.
Jannaeus is defeated at Acre, and …
…Hasmonean forces take the coastal ports of Dor and …
…Stratonospyrgos (Straton's Tower), founded by Straton I of Sidon, likely an agricultural storehouse in its earliest configuration.
Jannaeus captures the site as part of his policy of developing the shipbuilding industry and enlarging the Hasmonean kingdom; the port will eventually become developed as Caesarea Maritima.
Alexander Jannaeus, on his deathbed, calls in 76 BCE for a reconciliation between the Sadducees, who he has always supported, and the rival Pharisees.
His son Hyrcanus II is appointed high priest; Alexander's widow, Salome Alexandra, reverses anti-Pharisaic policy and is guided by powerful religious advisers, members of the Pharisaic movement.
Judea under the Hasmonean Dynasty has become comparable in extent and power to the ancient Davidic dominion described in the Bible.
Internal political and religious discord runs high, however, especially between the Pharisees, who interpret the written law by adding a wealth of oral law, and the Sadducees, who call for strict adherence to the written law.
Salome Alexandra dies in 67 and her son assumes the rulership of Judaea as Hyrcanus II, but after a troubled reign of three months, his warlike brother Aristobulus drives him from power.