Category:Herod Agrippa (subject)
Herod Agrippa I (10 BCE - 44 CE) was a member of the Herodian family. He ruled as King of Judea from 41 CE to his death in 44 CE.
Overview
Herod Agrippa I was the son of Aristobulus IV and Berenice I. His paternal grandparents were Herod the Great and Mariamne, while Salome I and Costobarus were his maternal grandparents. He was thus related to both the House of Herod and the House of Hasmoneus. His siblings were Herod of Chalcis, Herodias, Mariamne III and Aristobulus Minor.
After his father was executed by Herod the Great in 7 BCE, Herod Agrippa I was sent to Rome where he was educated by Tiberius alongside his son Drusus and future emperor Claudius. After spending some years in Israel, Agrippa returned to Rome thanks to a large loan he received from Alexander the Alabarch in support to his political ambitions. In Rome Agrippa befriended future emperor Caligula. For his support to Caligula, Agrippa was even cast to prison. Now emperor Caligula set him free and rewarded him with territories in the East, including those belonging to Agrippa's uncle, Herod Antipas, who was banished. Herod Agrippa took an active role in Jewish affairs; in 41 CE he interceded with Caligula on behalf of the Jews, when that emperor was attempting to set up his statue in the temple at Jerusalem.
The assassination of Caligula in 41 CE was not a reverse of fortune for Agrippa, as the new emperor was his childhood friend Claudius, who added the province of Judea and Samaria to Agrippa's possessions. Agrippa's political ambitions were fulfilled; he was now ruling a territory larger than the one that belonged to his grandfather Herod the Great. He repaid the loan he received from Alexander the Alabarch and gave his young daughter Berenice in marriage to Alexander's son Marcus Julius Alexander. Josephus describes Agrippa as a wise and kindly ruler. According to Christian tradition, however, Herod Agrippa persecuted the Jerusalem church, imprisoned Peter and had James son of Zebedee beheaded.
The reign of Herod Agrippa did not last long as he died a sudden death in 44 CE. Agrippa's premature death was a blow for the Romans who had hoped to restore a native dynasty in Jerusalem. Agrippa's son, Herod Agrippa II, was judged too young to inherit the entire kingdom; thus Judea and Samaria returned to be a Roman province. The children Agrippa had from Cypros (Herod Agrippa II, Berenice, Mariamne, and Drusilla), however, would play an important role in Judea in the years and decades to come, as the most loyal allies of the Romans in the region.
Herod Agrippa I in ancient sources
The writings of Flavius Josephus are the major source of information for the life and deeds of King Herod Agrippa I. He is also mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles.
Josephus, Jewish Antiquities
Ant XVIII 5, 4 -- [Herod] Agrippa had by Cypros two sons and three daughters, which daughters were named Berenice, Mariamne, and Drusilla; but the names of the sons were [Herod] Agrippa [II] and Drusus, of which Drusus died before he came to the years of puberty.
- Agrippa I (sources) -- survey of ancient sources
Herod Agrippa I in literature & the arts
- Agrippa I (arts) -- survey of fictional works
Herod Agrippa I in scholarship
- Agrippa I (research) -- survey of scholarly works
References
- Agrippa / David C. Braund / In: The Anchor Bible Dictionary (1992 Freedman), dictionary, 1:98-100
Related categories
External links
Pages in category "Herod Agrippa (subject)"
The following 10 pages are in this category, out of 10 total.
1
- L'Agrippa tetrarca di Gerusalemme (1724 Buini), opera
- Claudius the God (1935 Graves), novel
- Five Men: Character Studies from the Roman Empire (1936 Charlesworth), book
- Herod Agrippa (1951 Swan), novel
- Bi-yeme Agripas melekh Yisrael (1961 Benzioni), novel
- St. Stephen and Herod (1968 Fussell), oratorio
- The Sins of Herod (1968 Slaughter), novel
- Herod Agrippa I, King of the Jews (1968 Wirgin), book
- I, Claudius (1976 Wise), film
- Agrippa I: The Last King of Judaea (1990 Schwartz), book (English ed.)