Aulus Gabinius was a
independent-minded Roman soldier
& political reformer who catapulted Pompey
to power. To rid the Mediterranean of pirates he introduced legislation in
the Senate (67
BCE) that made Pompey supreme commander of the sea & all territory
within a 50 mile radius. Pompey rewarded his loyalty by making him
proconsul of Syria at a time when the Hasmonean
Antigonus was inciting Jews to rebel against
Roman dominion (57-54
BCE). Gabinius countered by deposing Antigonus,
restoring Hyrcanus II as
high priest & decentralizing the
Judean state, dividing it into 5 autonomous districts --- each with its
own independent capital [Jerusalem,
Jericho,
Gadara,
Sepphoris
& Hammath] --- to weaken the authority
of Jerusalem. Such
innovations, however, led to further local disturbances. When Gabinius
returned to Rome (54
BCE), he was tried & exiled on charges brought by
enemies in the Roman Senate. But after Julius Caesar's
triumphant return to Rome (49
BCE), Gabinius was made commander of his
troops in Dalmatia where he died in battle.
References:
Josephus,
Antiquities 14.37,
55-56, 82-104;
_____, War 1.140, 160-178.
Dio
Cassius, Roman History 36.23-36; 38.13,30;
39.55-63;
42.5.
Appian, History
of Rome: Civil Wars
2.24,59.
Plutarch, Parallel
Lives: Pompey 25, 48; Antony
3.
Other
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