Titus Besieges Jerusalem: Roman Legions Breach the Wall
The Third Wall was unfinished—still under construction when Titus arrived with four legions and 80,000 men. Jerusalem's defenders had been arguing for months about whether to complete it. They lost that argument on this day. Titus chose the northwest approach because the ground was flattest, which meant his siege towers could roll right up. What he started wouldn't end for five months. When it did, the Second Temple was ash, a million people were dead, and the Jewish diaspora began in earnest. Sometimes the direction you attack from determines everything that follows.
May 10, 70
1956 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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