Sasanian conquest of Jerusalem
| Sasanian conquest of Jerusalem | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628 | |||||||||
Territory controlled by the Byzantines (purple) and the Sasanians (yellow) in 600 CE | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
| Byzantine Empire |
Sasanian Empire Anti-Heraclian Jews | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
Heraclius Zacharias |
Khosrow II Shahrbaraz Nehemiah ben Hushiel Benjamin of Tiberias | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| Unknown |
Unknown number of Sasanian forces 20,000–26,000 Jewish rebels | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| Disputed | Disputed | ||||||||
| Many Jews killed during the revolt; 4,518–66,509 Christians killed during the siege | |||||||||
The Sasanian conquest of Jerusalem in early 614 was a significant development in the Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628. It was the result of a major offensive by the Sasanian Empire across the Fertile Crescent, culminating in the annexation of Jerusalem and Palaestina Prima as a whole. The Sasanian advance had been bolstered by the timely outbreak of the Jewish revolt against Heraclius, owing to decades of persecution of Jews and Samaritans by the Byzantine Empire, although the Heraclian dynasty itself had only been in power for four years.
In 613, Sasanian king Khosrow II had appointed his army chief Shahrbaraz to lead a campaign into the Byzantines' Diocese of the East. Under Shahrbaraz's command, the Sasanian army proceeded to secure victories at Antioch and Caesarea Maritima, which was the administrative capital of Palaestina Prima. By this time, the grand inner harbour had silted up and was useless, but the city continued to be an important maritime hub after Byzantine emperor Anastasius I Dicorus ordered the outer harbour's reconstruction. Successfully capturing the city and the harbour had given the Sasanians strategic access to the Mediterranean Sea, and their ranks were reinforced by Nehemiah ben Hushiel and Benjamin of Tiberias, who enlisted and armed Jewish rebels throughout Galilee, including the cities of Tiberias and Nazareth. In total, between 20,000 and 26,000 Jewish rebels joined the Sasanian army's assault on Byzantine Jerusalem. By mid-614, the Sasanians had taken the city, but sources vary on whether this occurred without resistance from the Byzantine army or after a siege and breaching of the wall with artillery.
In the aftermath of the fall of Jerusalem to the Sasanian–Jewish alliance, the city initially descended into chaos and disorder, although reconstruction began soon. On Khosrow's orders, the Sasanian army located the True Cross, which Christians believe was used to crucify Jesus in 30 or 33, and moved it to Ctesiphon. The Sasanian conquest interrupted the centuries-long Byzantine ban on Jewish entry into Jerusalem, and Jews were able to enter the city for the first time since the Bar Kokhba revolt in 136. Sources for Christian casualties during this period vary greatly, with some placing the number of dead and wounded in the low thousands and others in the tens of thousands or higher. The Byzantines eventually recovered their lost territories before being pushed out indefinitely by the Muslim conquest of the Levant in 638, whereafter the ban on Jews was lifted and Christian rule over Jerusalem ended until the Crusades.