Conquering Jerusalem

For the first time, in Conquering Jerusalem, author and historian Stephen Dando-Collins devotes a single book to the First Jewish Revolt - the Great Revolt as the Jews still call it, the Judean War as Romans called it. In this book, Dando-Collins details the background, people and events of the revolt, and enables readers to draw upon the numerous archeological and forensic discoveries made since 2002, discoveries that have often shone fascinating new light on those people and events.

Neither side comes out well in this story. Both were at times equally heroic, and often equally brutal and barbaric. In the end, the Jewish freedom fighters lost their war, and lost their holy city, the focus of the revolt and of the Roman military campaigns to end that revolt. Yet, today, Jerusalem is once more the heart of the Jewish faith, while, thanks to Christianity, an offshoot of Judaism, the Roman Empire and its gods have long gone. It just goes to show that, sometimes, faith can have its rewards, and the tables can be turned, if you wait long enough.