Josephus
Roman–Jewish historian and military leader (c. 37–c. 100)
Flavius Josephus (born Yosef ben Mattityahu; c. AD 36 – c. 100) was a Roman–Jewish historian and military leader. Best known for writing The Jewish War, he was born in Jerusalem—then part of the Roman province of Judea—to a father of priestly descent and a mother who claimed Hasmonean royal ancestry.
He initially fought against the Roman Empire during the First Jewish–Roman War as general of the Jewish forces in Galilee, until surrendering in AD 67 to the Roman army led by Vespasian after the six-week siege of Yodfat. Josephus claimed the Jewish messianic prophecies that initiated the First Jewish–Roman War made reference to Vespasian becoming Roman emperor. In response, Vespasian decided to keep him as a slave and presumably interpreter. After Vespasian became emperor in AD 69, he granted Josephus his freedom, at which time Josephus assumed the Emperor's family name of Flavius.
Flavius Josephus fully defected to the Roman side and was granted Roman citizenship. He became an advisor and close associate of Vespasian's son Titus, serving as his translator during Titus's protracted siege of Jerusalem in AD 70, which resulted in the near-total razing of the city and the destruction of the Second Temple.
Josephus recorded the Great Jewish Revolt (AD 66–70), including the siege of Masada. Some notable works were The Jewish War (c. 75), Antiquities of the Jews (c.
“Josephus” enters the record as roman–Jewish historian and military leader (c. 37–c. 100). Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Josephus, Roman and Jewish can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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“Josephus” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Josephus, Roman and Jewish provides the most credible route into that argument.
Chronology provides the most reliable spine for this subject; interpretation should follow only after identities and dates are secure. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 22, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q134461. VIAF identifies the subject as 22143666. The Library of Congress control number is n80015583. 4 of 7 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 1 use preferred rank.
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This entry incorporates text from “Josephus” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.