Antipater
Administrator under Hyrcanus II, 47-44 B.C.
Antipater, the father of Herod the Great, moved to a position of power by political skill exercised in a tumultuous time. The son of a distinguished Idumaean family, Antipater was the satrap of Idumaea under the Hasmonean king, Alexander Jananeus. (The Idumaeans had earlier been forced to convert to Sacrificial Judaism by Hyrcanus and absorbed into the Hasmonean kingdom.) After the death of Alexander, Antipater continued to increase his influence under the rule of the surviving Jewish queen, Salome.
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Alexander and Salome had two sons, Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II. Though Hyrcanus was the designated heir, his younger brother, Aristobulus, immediately challenged his rule. Hyrcanus, indecisive and timid, retained Antipater as an advisor and increased the Indumaean’s authority during the civil war. In the end, the brothers signed a peace treaty, giving Aristobulus the crown with Hyrcanus retaining the High Priest’s office.
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Antipater continued in the service of Hyrcanus while increasing his own power. Three years later, he encouraged Hyrcanus to ally himself with the Nabathean king and break the treaty with his brother. Civil war again erupted. This time, a new interest existed in Syria, and Rome. Pompey, the Roman general, settled the matter by taking Jerusalem and removing Aristobulus II from the throne. He retained Hyrcanus as the High Priest, keeping Antipater to administer the national affairs, subject to the supervision of the Syrian governor. Antipater served in that capacity from 67 to 43 B.C.
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Egypt would shortly follow Syria into the net of Rome. As Julius Caesar battled Cleopatra, Antipater—in the name of Hyrcanus—supplied Caesar with troops and supplies. When Egypt fell and Caesar sailed for Syria, he met Antipater there and honored him with Roman citizenship. Upon Antipater’s return to Jerusalem, he basically assumed rule. Not challenged by Hyrcanus, he appointed his oldest son, Phasael, governor of Jerusalem and Herod, governor of Galilee.
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As the Jewish aristocracy saw the increasing power of Antipater and his sons, they began to press Hyrcanus to remove them from their offices. Worse, seeing a weakening position for Hyrcanus, the followers of Aristobulus, the deposed king, killed Antipater.
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