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65-585: Alexander Balas claimed to be the son of Antiochus IV Epiphanes and Laodice IV and heir to the Seleucid throne. The ancient sources, Polybius and Diodorus say that this claim was false and that he and his sister Laodice VI were really natives of Smyrna of humble origin. However, Polybius became friends with Balas's rival King Demetrius I when both were hostages in Rome, so Polybius is not an unbiased source on this matter. Modern scholars disagree about whether

130-434: A Hellenic culture , "the true essence of which he can scarcely be said to have appreciated". Whether Antiochus' policy was directed at extermination of Judaism as a culture and a religion, though, is debatable on the grounds that his persecution was limited to Judea and Samaria (Jews in the diaspora were exempt), and that Antiochus was hardly an ideologically motivated Hellenizer. Erich S. Gruen suggests that, instead, he

195-590: A civil war. In 168 BC, Antiochus led a second attack on Egypt and also sent a fleet to capture Cyprus . Before he reached Alexandria, his path was blocked by a single elderly Roman ambassador named Gaius Popillius Laenas who delivered a message from the Roman Senate directing Antiochus to withdraw his armies from Egypt and Cyprus or consider himself in a state of war with the Roman Republic. Antiochus said he would discuss it with his council, whereupon

260-703: A collective term used in the Hellenistic period to refer to the eastern, Iranian-populated , provinces (" satrapies ") of the empire of Alexander the Great , especially during the Wars of the Diadochi and the subsequent Seleucid Empire . At times, it also corresponded to a single super-province, under a strategos "in charge of the upper satrapies" ( Greek : ὁ ἐπί τῶν ἄνω σατραπειῶν , romanized :  ho epi tōn anō satrapeiōn ). The Upper Satrapies comprised

325-512: A force of Cretan mercenaries led by a man called Lasthenes. Much of Coele Syria was lost to him immediately, possibly as a result of the succession of the regional commander. Jonathan attacked Demetrius's position from the south, seizing Jaffa and Ashdod , while Alexander Balas was occupied with a revolt in Cilicia . In 145 BC Ptolemy VI of Egypt invaded Syria, ostensibly in support of Alexander Balas. In practice, Ptolemy's intervention came at

390-478: A full strategos of the Upper Satrapies, and a provincial satrap; Hippostratos thus likely commanded the troops of the royal army (the βασιλική δύναμις) stationed in the eastern provinces, while the satraps commanded only their local levies. Hippostratos' appointment was a temporary expediency, and in 315, Antigonos named his general Nikanor as strategos over Media and the Upper Satrapies. The fact that

455-555: A great humiliation for Antiochus IV that unhinged him for a time. Some more modern historians conjecture that Antiochus may have been more reconciled to this than ancient sources indicate, as the Roman intervention meant that Antiochus had been given an excuse to not undertake a potentially long and costly siege of Alexandria. He could instead return with treasure and loot having weakened the Egyptian state at little risk and cost compared to

520-404: A great swine at the image of Moses, and at the altar of God that stood in the outward court, and sprinkled them with the blood of the sacrifice. He commanded likewise that the books, by which they were taught to hate all other nations, should be sprinkled with the broth made of the swine's flesh. And he put out the lamp (called by them immortal) which burns continually in the temple. Lastly he forced

585-668: A heavy cost; with Alexander's permission, he took control of all the Seleucid cities along the coast, including Seleucia Pieria . He may also have started minting his own coinage in the Syrian cities. While he was at Ptolemais Akko, however, Ptolemy switched sides. According to Josephus , Ptolemy discovered that Alexander's chancellor, Ammonius, had been plotting to assassinate him, but when he demanded that Ammonius be punished, Alexander refused. Ptolemy remarried his Cleopatra Thea to Demetrius II and continued his march northward. Alexander's commanders of Antioch , Diodotus and Hierax, surrendered

650-529: A large bribe to secure the office. In 168 BC, when Antiochus was campaigning in Egypt, a rumor spread in Judea that he had been killed. Jason gathered a force of 1,000 soldiers and made a surprise attack on the city of Jerusalem . Menelaus was forced to flee Jerusalem during the ensuing riot. Jason's intention may have been to retake his former office by force and present his reassumption of power as fait accompli to

715-610: A larger-scale invasion. The Seleucids, like the Ptolemies before them, held a suzerainty over Judea : they respected Jewish culture and protected Jewish institutions. This policy was drastically reversed by Antiochus IV, seemingly after what was either a dispute over leadership of the Temple in Jerusalem and the office of High Priest , or possibly a revolt whose nature was lost to time after being crushed. Local revolts against

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780-499: A ship and fled to the coastal cities. Wherever he came the people rebelled and called him "The Fugitive," so he drowned himself in the sea. This story is from the 2nd century, however, much further removed from the event than Polybius or 2 Maccabees. It is generally considered secondary and unlikely to be accurate. Antiochus IV is remembered as a major villain and persecutor in the Jewish traditions associated with Hanukkah , including

845-469: A violent death, and the same number being sold into slavery. After restoring Menelaus, Antiochus IV issued decrees aimed at helping the most enthusiastically pro-Greek faction of Jews (usually called "Hellenizers") against the traditionalists. He outlawed Jewish religious rites and traditions and the Temple in Jerusalem was changed to a syncretic Greek-Jewish cult that included worship of Zeus . The Greek historian Diodorus wrote that Antiochus "sacrificed

910-538: Is sceptical, noting that there is little subsequent evidence for Attalid involvement with Alexander. However, Selene Psoma has proposed that a large set of coins minted in a number of cities under Attalid control in this period was produced by Attalus II in order to fund Alexander's bid for the kingship. Alexander and his sister were maintained in Cilicia by Heracleides, a former minister of Antiochus IV and brother of Timarchus , an usurper in Media who had been executed by

975-704: Is the Greek historian Polybius , generally considered one of the highest-quality sources on the time period. Polybius paints a negative picture of him, and other surviving accounts have as well. The negative accounts of the Jews in the Books of the Maccabees are also influential. On the basis of this, Antiochus IV has generally been judged poorly. There are historians who think that these hostile depictions deserve some skepticism, however. Not all ancient accounts are hostile;

1040-469: Is the title character of the oratorio Alexander Balus , written in 1747 by George Frideric Handel . On some of his coins he is called "Epiphanes" (splendid, glorious) and "Nicephorus" (bringer of victory) after his pretended father and on others "Euergetes" (benefactor) and "Theopator" (of divine descent). In Septuagint it was also called "Epiphanes". Antiochus IV Epiphanes Antiochus IV Epiphanes ( c. 215 BC–November/December 164 BC)

1105-456: The Books of the Maccabees and the " Scroll of Antiochus ". Rabbinical sources refer to him as הרשע harasha ("the wicked"). The Jewish Encyclopedia concluded that "[s]ince Jewish and heathen sources agree in their characterization of him, their portrayal is evidently correct", summarizing this portrayal as one of a cruel and vainglorious ruler who tried to force on all the peoples of his realm

1170-596: The Jews of Judea and Samaria , and the rebellion of the Jewish Maccabees . Antiochus's accession to the throne was controversial, and he was seen as a usurper by some. After the death of his brother Seleucus IV Philopator in 175 BC, the "true" heir should have been Seleucus's son Demetrius I . However, Demetrius I was very young and a hostage in Rome at the time, and Antiochus seized the opportunity to declare himself king instead, successfully rallying enough of

1235-704: The Kingdom of Armenia . His campaign went through Ecbatana and he and his forces attacked Persepolis but were driven off by the populace. On his return home, he died at Isfahan in 164 BC. Various religious explanations exist for Antiochus IV's death. Apparently, he attacked a temple of the Mesopotamian deity Nanaya in Persia shortly before his demise, and his death was possibly attributed to impiety and punishment by Nanaya in some quarters. Jewish sources gave credit for Antiochus's death to his earlier impiety at

1300-604: The Temple of Zeus at Athens and the altar at Delos ; put all his Western military forces on a massive parade at Daphne , a suburb of Antioch; and held opulent banquets with the aristocracy using the best spices, clothing, and food. He also supplemented the Seleucid army with mercenaries. All of this cost the Seleucid treasury, but the Empire was apparently able to raise enough taxes to pay for it. His eccentric behavior and unexpected interactions with common people such as appearing in

1365-419: The "Upper Satrapies" comes from 316 BC, when Peithon was named strategos of Media and of the Upper Satrapies as well by Antigonos I Monophthalmos . Peithon, the satrap of Media, had been elected by the army assembly in 323 BC to supervise the suppression of a revolt by mercenaries in the eastern satrapies, and had received some plenipotentiary powers over the local satraps. Although likely not envisioned at

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1430-613: The 'Antiochene crises' for the Jews. Traditionally, as expressed in the First and Second Books of the Maccabees, the Maccabean Revolt was painted as a national resistance to a foreign political and cultural oppression. In modern times, however, scholars have argued that Antiochus IV was more intervening in a civil war between the traditionalist Jews in the country and the Hellenized Jews in Jerusalem. Scholars think

1495-590: The Greek ruling class in Antioch to support his claim. This helped set a destabilizing trend in the Seleucid Empire in subsequent generations, as an increasing number of claimants tried to usurp the throne. After his own death, power struggles between competing lines of the ruling dynasty heavily contributed to the collapse of the empire. Antiochus's often eccentric behavior and capricious actions during his interactions with common people, such as appearing in

1560-579: The Roman envoy drew a line in the sand around Antiochus and said: "Before you leave this circle, give me a reply that I can take back to the Roman Senate." This implied Rome would declare war if the King stepped out of the circle without committing to leave Egypt immediately. Weighing his options, Antiochus decided to withdraw. Only then did Popillius agree to shake hands with him. Ancient sources and traditional historiography describe this "Day of Eleusis" as

1625-549: The Seleucid Empire were not unusual, but most were not successful. The revolt that Antiochus IV ultimately triggered in Judea was unusually well chronicled and preserved, however. According to the book of 2 Maccabees , the crisis had its origins in the years leading up to the Sixth Syrian War . In 171 BC, Antiochus had deposed the High Priest Jason and replaced him with Menelaus , who had offered Antiochus

1690-519: The Temple of Jerusalem. According to 2 Maccabees, he died from divinely-inflicted disease: But the all-seeing Lord, the God of Israel, struck him with an incurable and invisible blow. As soon as he stopped speaking he was seized with a pain in his bowels, for which there was no relief, and with sharp internal tortures—and that very justly, for he had tortured the bowels of others with many and strange inflictions. Yet he did not in any way stop his insolence, but

1755-405: The attack and had prepared more thoroughly. He had already built his forces and moved them into position; as soon as the Egyptian forces left Pelusium they were attacked and defeated by Antiochus IV and his Seleucid army. The Seleucids then seized Pelusium, giving them supplies and access to all of Egypt. He advanced into Egypt proper, conquering all but Alexandria and capturing King Ptolemy. This

1820-576: The chancellor Ammonius was a Ptolemaic agent. Other scholars argue that the alliance was advertised as an important one, but that the arguments for Alexander's subservience have been overstated. Meanwhile, the Seleucid positions in the eastern Upper Satrapies , already weakened by the previous kings' failure to contain the Parthians and the Greco-Bactrians , suffered almost complete collapse. The Parthians under Mithridates I took advantage of

1885-556: The city to Ptolemy. Alexander returned from Cilicia with his army, but Ptolemy VI and Demetrius II defeated his forces in a Battle of the Oenoparus River . Earlier, Alexander had sent his infant son Antiochus to an Arabian dynast called Zabdiel Diocles. Alexander now fled to Arabia in order to join up with Zabdiel, but he was killed. Sources disagree about whether the killer was a pair of his own generals who had decided to switch sides or Zabdiel himself. Alexander's severed head

1950-499: The courtiers of Demetrius I, as well as his wife Laodice and his eldest son Antigonus. Ptolemy VI Philometor of Egypt entered into an alliance with Alexander, which was sealed by Alexander's marriage to his daughter Cleopatra Thea . The wedding took place at Ptolemais, with Ptolemy VI and Jonathan Apphus in attendance. Alexander took the opportunity to shower honours on Jonathan, whom he treated as his main agent in Judaea. The marriage

2015-542: The doorsteps of Babylonia , one of the Seleucid empire's hearthlands and location of one of its two capital cities, Seleucia-on-Tigris . Alexander is not recorded to do anything of note to stem the steady erosion of Seleucid power in the East. Ancient historians hostile to him depict him as too distracted by a life of debauchery to take action to stop the Parthians, unlike earlier Seleucid Kings who would mount expeditions to

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2080-539: The east, seizing the city of Herat in 167 BC and disrupting the direct trade route to India, effectively splitting the Greek world in two. Antiochus recognized the potential danger in the east but was unwilling to give up control of Judea. He sent a commander named Lysias to deal with the Maccabees , while Antiochus himself led the main Seleucid army against the Parthians. Antiochus had initial success in his eastern campaign, capturing king Artaxias and reconquering

2145-462: The eastern satrapies to deter the Parthians. He was reputed to hand the administration over to two commanders, Hierax and Diodotus , neither of whom seemed to care for anything but their own interests. This representation is at least partially a product of his opponents' propaganda, but it is true that under Alexander, the Seleucid Empire continued to see its reach and power slip away. In early 147 BC Demetrius' son Demetrius II returned to Syria with

2210-633: The easternmost conquests of Alexander in India and modern-day Afghanistan and Pakistan (the Paropamisadai , Arachosia , and Gedrosia ), but these were definitively lost to Chandragupta Maurya in 303 BC, after his treaty with Seleucus I Nicator . It is possible that the concept and province of the "Upper Satrapies" was created already during the late Achaemenid Empire , where superior military commands covering several satrapies are attested for Asia Minor at least, with scholars hypothesizing also

2275-440: The educated upper class, something of an elitist. So stories related by Polybius such as those of Antiochus IV frolicking with commoners at taverns may have soured his reputation in antiquity, even though modern values would find this kind of behavior unobjectionable. The historian Dov Gera writes in defense of Antiochus IV that he was a "talented and accomplished politician" and that "the negative portrait of him painted by Polybius

2340-501: The embassy secured a renewed treaty of friendship and alliance with Rome, greatly helped by the fact Antiochus had come to power with the help of Eumenes II , Rome's principal ally in the region. The guardians of King Ptolemy VI Philometor demanded the return of Coele-Syria in 170 BC, declaring war on the Seleucids on the assumption that the kingdom was divided after Antiochus' murder of his nephew. However, Antiochus had warning of

2405-533: The entire eastern half of the territories conquered by Alexander: typically everything east of the River Tigris , from the Zagros Mountains in the west to the borders of India in the southeast and Central Asia in the northeast, including the provinces of Media , Persis , Carmania , Drangiane , Hyrcania , Parthia , Margiane , Aria , Baktria , and Sogdiane . The area initially also included

2470-551: The existence of similar arrangements for the Armenian, Syriac-Babylonian and eastern satrapies. The evidence for the eastern satrapies is based on a statement by Diodorus of Sicily that Artaxerxes III entrusted the Upper Satrapies to Bagoas , but this may be an anachronism, and no other piece of evidence survives indicating any continuity between the Achaemenid and Hellenistic periods in this regard. The first mention of

2535-528: The general instability to invade Media . The region had been lost to Seleucid control by the middle of 148 BC. At around the same time the local nobles in Elymais and Persis asserted their own ephemeral independence, only to be soon also subdued by the Parthians. By 148 BC at the latest the Parthians also secured their hold over Hyrcania at the coast of the Caspian Sea . By 147 BC the Parthians stood at

2600-481: The high mountains in a balance, was brought down to earth and carried in a litter, making the power of God manifest to all. And so the ungodly man's body swarmed with worms, and while he was still living in anguish and pain, his flesh rotted away, and because of the stench the whole army felt revulsion at his decay. According to the later rabbinical work, the scroll of Antiochus ( Megillat Antiochus ), when Antiochus heard that his army had been defeated in Judea, he boarded

2665-515: The high priest and the other Jews to eat swine's flesh." These decrees were a departure from typical Seleucid practice, which did not attempt to suppress local religions in their empire, though they may be similar to other instances in the Hellenistic era when local polities were punished for revolt against their imperial suzerain by having their autonomy and local laws repealed and local shrines removed from their control. The city of Jerusalem

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2730-399: The historian Appian does not say anything particularly bad about Antiochus IV, in contrast. Polybius does not appear to be neutral on this issue, as he was good friends with Antiochus IV's nephew and rival Demetrius I ; the two both spent years in exile in Rome. The Achaean League which Polybius hailed from was also traditionally hostile to the Seleucid Empire. Polybius was, like many of

2795-483: The institution of the post coincided with Antigonos' departure from Babylonia for the Mediterranean to fight against his rivals, and the absence of similar arrangements in the western provinces of his realm, where he was present in person, show that the post was meant to provide for the security of the eastern provinces while Antigonos himself was absent and preoccupied in the west. Nikanor remained in control of

2860-431: The king, he thought that Judea was in revolt. Raging like a wild animal, he set out from Egypt and took Jerusalem by storm. He ordered his soldiers to cut down without mercy those whom they met and to slay those who took refuge in their houses. There was a massacre of young and old, a killing of women and children, a slaughter of virgins and infants. In the space of three days, eighty thousand were lost, forty thousand meeting

2925-604: The leader of the ascendant faction in Judaea. Jonathan was won over to Alexander's side by the grant of a high position in the Seleucid court and the high priesthood in Jerusalem . Reinforced by Jonathan's hardened soldiers, Alexander fought a decisive battle with Demetrius in July 150 BC, in which Demetrius was killed. By autumn, Alexander's kingship was recognised throughout the Seleucid realm. Alexander gained control of Antioch at this time and his chancellor, Ammonius, murdered all

2990-623: The outset as an overarching military command as it later became, Peithon appears to have attempted to gradually impose just such an authority over the local satraps, which led to the latter banding together against him and evicting him in 317 BC. It was in this context that Antigonos recognized his claims to win him over, although soon after, Antigonos had Peithon arrested and executed. After Peithon's execution, Antigonos appointed two officers to replace him: Orontobates as satrap of Media, and Hippostratos as strategos . According to Hermann Bengtson, Hippostratos occupied an intermediate position between

3055-687: The public bathhouses and applying for municipal offices, led some of his contemporaries to call him Epimanes (Ἐπιμανής, Epimanḗs , "The Mad"), a wordplay on his title Epiphanes. Antiochus, born around 215 BC, was a son of the Seleucid king Antiochus III the Great . As a potential successor to the throne, he became a political hostage of the Roman Republic under the terms of the Treaty of Apamea , concluded in 188 BC. After his older brother Seleucus IV Philopator succeeded their father onto

3120-417: The public bath houses and applying for municipal offices led his detractors to call him Epimanes (Ἐπιμανής, Epimanḗs , "The Mad"), a word play on his title Epiphanes ("God Manifest"). After his ascension Antiochus took care to maintain good relations with the Roman Republic, sending an embassy to Rome in 173 BC with a part of the unpaid indemnity still owed from the 188 BC Treaty of Apamea . While there

3185-484: The recognition of Alexander - if at all. After recruiting mercenaries, Alexander and Heracleides departed to Ephesus . From there, they invaded Phoenicia by sea, seizing Ptolemais Akko . Numismatic evidence shows that Alexander had also gained control of Seleucia Pieria , Byblos , Beirut , Tyre by 151 BC. On this coinage, Alexander heavily advertised his (claimed) connection to Antiochus IV, depicting Zeus Nicephorus on his coinage as Antiochus had done. He also assumed

3250-545: The regency that would take power in the wake of the king's death, assuming that they would allow him to stay in power rather than invite further conflict during a delicate political moment. But Antiochus was still alive, and returned from Egypt enraged by the reverse he had suffered at the hands of the Romans and by the Jews' rejection of his chosen candidate for High Priest; he attacked Jerusalem and restored Menelaus, then executed many Jews. When these happenings were reported to

3315-453: The reigning king Demetrius I Soter . In 153 BC, Heracleides brought Alexander and his sister to Rome , where he presented Alexander to the Roman Senate , which recognised him as the legitimate Seleucid king and agreed to support him in his bid to take the throne. Polybius mentions that Attalus II and Demetrius I also met with the Senate at this time but does not state how this was connected to

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3380-592: The revolt also led to the writing of the Book of Daniel , where a villain called the "King of the North" is generally considered to be a reference to Antiochus IV. The portrayal of Antiochus there attacking the holy city of Jerusalem but eventually meeting his end would influence later Christian depictions of the Antichrist . King Mithridates I of Parthia took advantage of Antiochus' western problems and attacked from

3445-463: The story of Attalus finding a commoner who looked the part is true or was propaganda put about by Alexander's opponents. According to Diodorus, Alexander was originally put forward as a candidate for the Seleucid throne by Attalus II of Pergamum . Attalus had been disturbed by the Seleucid king Demetrius I's interference in Cappadocia , where he had dethroned king Ariarathes V . Boris Chrubasik

3510-607: The throne in 187 BC, Antiochus was exchanged for his nephew Demetrius , the son and heir of Seleucus. After this Antiochus lived in Athens and was there when his brother was assassinated in 175 BC by the government minister Heliodorus . Heliodorus proclaimed himself regent afterward, essentially giving himself control of the government. This arrangement did not last long. With the help of king Eumenes II of Pergamum, Antiochus IV traveled from Athens through Asia Minor and reached Syria by November 175 BC. Seleucus' legitimate heir Demetrius

3575-404: The title of Theopator ('Divinely Fathered'), which recalled Antiochus' epithet Theos Epiphanes ('God Manifest'). The coinage also presented Alexander Balas in the guise of Alexander the Great , with pronounced facial features and long flowing hair. This was intended to emphasise his military prowess to his soldiers. Alexander and Demetrius I competed with another to win over Jonathan Apphus ,

3640-530: Was a Greek Hellenistic King who ruled the Seleucid Empire from 175 BC until his death in 164 BC. He was a son of King Antiochus III the Great . Originally named Mithridates (or possibly its earlier, alternative form Mithradates ), he assumed the name Antiochus either after the death of his elder brother Antiochus or when he ascended the throne. Notable events during Antiochus' reign include his near-conquest of Ptolemaic Egypt , his persecution of

3705-399: Was advertised by a special coinage issue, depicting the royal pair side by side - only the second depiction of a queen on Seleucid coinage. She is shown with divine attributes (a cornucopia and a calathus ) and is depicted in front of the king. Some scholars have seen Alexander as little more than a Ptolemaic puppet, arguing that this coinage emphasises Cleopatra's dominance over him and that

3770-435: Was brought to Ptolemy, who also died shortly after from wounds sustained in the battle. Zabdiel continued to look after Alexander's infant son Antiochus, until 145 BC when the general Diodotus declared him king, in order to serve as the figurehead of a rebellion against Demetrius II. In 130 BC, another claimant to the throne, Alexander Zabinas , would also claim to be Alexander Balas' son; almost certainly spuriously. Alexander

3835-598: Was driven more by pragmatics such as the need to gather income from Judea. Antiochus was the first Seleucid king to use divine epithets on coins, perhaps inspired by the Bactrian Hellenistic kings who had earlier done so, or else building on the ruler cult that his father Antiochus the Great had codified within the Seleucid Empire. These epithets included Θεὸς Ἐπιφανής "manifest god", and, after his defeat of Egypt, Νικηφόρος "bringer of victory". The most important ancient non-Jewish source on Antiochus IV

3900-422: Was even more filled with arrogance, breathing fire in his rage against the Jews, and giving orders to drive even faster. And so it came about that he fell out of his chariot as it was rushing along, and the fall was so hard as to torture every limb of his body. Thus he who only a little while before had thought in his superhuman arrogance that he could command the waves of the sea, and had imagined that he could weigh

3965-407: Was influenced by political considerations of his friends... and should not be trusted." There is also some evidence on this: historian Nick Sekunda notes that Alexander Balas successfully challenged King Demetrius for leadership of the Seleucid Empire decades later in 152 BC while claiming to be an unknown son of Antiochus IV. This claim appears to have been useful to him, suggesting Antiochus IV

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4030-565: Was partially achieved because Rome (Ptolemaic Egypt's traditional ally) was embroiled in the Third Macedonian War and was not willing to become involved elsewhere. To avoid alarming Rome, Antiochus allowed Ptolemy VI to continue ruling as a puppet king from Memphis. Upon Antiochus' withdrawal, the city of Alexandria chose a new king, one of Ptolemy's brothers, also named Ptolemy (VIII Euergetes) . The Ptolemy brothers reconciled and agreed to rule Egypt jointly instead of fighting

4095-401: Was remembered fondly by at least some. Even 1 Maccabees, an extremely hostile source, has Antiochus IV wonder on his deathbed why calamity has struck him when he was "well-loved in the day of my power". [REDACTED] Media related to Antiochus IV at Wikimedia Commons Upper Satrapies The Upper Satrapies ( Greek : ἄνω σατραπεῖαι , romanized :  anō satrapeiai ) is

4160-520: Was sacked a second time in the disorder. Antiochus established a military Greek citadel called the Acra in Jerusalem to serve as a stronghold for Hellenized Jews and a Greek military garrison. This happened from 168–167 BC. Such steps triggered a revolt against his rule, known as the Maccabean Revolt . Scholars of Second Temple Judaism therefore sometimes refer to Antiochus' reign as

4225-467: Was still a hostage in Rome, so Antiochus seized the throne for himself, proclaiming himself co-regent with another son of Seleucus, an infant named Antiochus . (Antiochus, son of Seleucus IV would later die in 170 BC, possibly murdered by Antiochus IV). Antiochus IV cultivated a reputation as an extravagant and generous ruler. He scattered money to common people in the streets of Antioch; gave unexpected gifts to people he did not know; contributed money to

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