Antipater II ( grc-gre, Ἀντίπατρος, Antípatros; c. 46 – 4 BC) was
Herod the Great
Herod I (; ; grc-gre, ; c. 72 – 4 or 1 BCE), also known as Herod the Great, was a Roman Jewish client king of Judea, referred to as the Herodian kingdom. He is known for his colossal building projects throughout Judea, including his renov ...
's first-born son, his only child by his first wife Doris. He was named after his paternal grandfather
Antipater the Idumaean
Antipater I the Idumaean, he, ''‘Ānṭīpāṭrūs'' (born 113 or 114 BCE, died 43 BCE) was the founder of the Herodian Dynasty and father of Herod the Great. According to Josephus, he was the son of Antipas; Hebrew: אנטיפס) and had ...
. He and his mother were exiled after Herod divorced her between 43 BC and 40 BC to marry
Mariamne I
Mariamne I (died 29 BCE), also called Mariamne the Hasmonean, was a Hasmonean princess and the second wife of Herod the Great. She was known for her great beauty, as was her brother Aristobulus III. Herod's fear of his rivals, the Hasmoneans, ...
. However, he was recalled following Mariamne's fall in 29 BC and in 13 BC Herod made him his first heir in his will. He retained this position even when
Alexander
Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history.
Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...
and
Aristobulus Aristobulus or Aristoboulos may refer to:
*Aristobulus I (died 103 BC), king of the Hebrew Hasmonean Dynasty, 104–103 BC
*Aristobulus II (died 49 BC), king of Judea from the Hasmonean Dynasty, 67–63 BC
*Aristobulus III of Judea (53 BC–36 BC), ...
(Herod's sons by Mariamne) rose in the royal succession in 12 BC, and even became exclusive successor to the throne after their execution in 7 BC (with
Herod II
Herod II (ca. 27 BC – 33/34 AD) was the son of Herod the Great and Mariamne II, the daughter of Simon Boethus the High Priest. For a brief period he was his father's heir apparent, but Herod I removed him from succession in his will. Some writ ...
in second place).
However, in 5 BC Antipater was brought before
Publius Quinctilius Varus
Publius Quinctilius Varus (Cremona, 46 BC – Teutoburg Forest, AD 9) was a Roman general and politician under the first Roman emperor Augustus. Varus is generally remembered for having lost three Roman legions when ambushed by Germanic tribes l ...
, then Roman governor of Syria, charged with the intended murder of his father Herod. Antipater was found guilty by Varus; however, due to Antipater's high rank, it was necessary for Caesar
Augustus
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...
to approve of the recommended sentence of death. After the guilty verdict, Antipater's position as exclusive successor was removed and granted to
Herod Antipas
Herod Antipas ( el, Ἡρῴδης Ἀντίπας, ''Hērǭdēs Antipas''; born before 20 BC – died after 39 AD), was a 1st-century ruler of Galilee and Perea, who bore the title of tetrarch ("ruler of a quarter") and is referred to as both "H ...
. Once the sentence had approval from
Augustus
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...
in 4 BC, Antipater was then executed, and
Archelaus (from the marriage with
Malthace
Malthace ( el, Μαλθάκη, Malthákē) was a Samaritan woman who lived in the latter half of the 1st century BC. She was one of the wives of Herod the Great and the mother by Herod of Herod Antipas, Archelaus, and a daughter, Olympias.
Sh ...
) was made heir in his father's will as king over Herod's entire kingdom (with
Antipas and
Philip
Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...
as
Tetrarchs
The Tetrarchy was the system instituted by Roman emperor Diocletian in 293 AD to govern the ancient Roman Empire by dividing it between two emperors, the ''augusti'', and their juniors colleagues and designated successors, the ''caesares''. ...
over certain territories).
Concerning Antipater's execution following on the heel of Herod's executions a couple of years before of his sons
Alexander
Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history.
Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...
and
Aristobulus Aristobulus or Aristoboulos may refer to:
*Aristobulus I (died 103 BC), king of the Hebrew Hasmonean Dynasty, 104–103 BC
*Aristobulus II (died 49 BC), king of Judea from the Hasmonean Dynasty, 67–63 BC
*Aristobulus III of Judea (53 BC–36 BC), ...
, it would be recounted in the compendium ''Saturnalia'' (compiled by
Macrobius
Macrobius Ambrosius Theodosius, usually referred to as Macrobius (fl. AD 400), was a Roman provincial who lived during the early fifth century, during late antiquity, the period of time corresponding to the Later Roman Empire, and when Latin was ...
) that Augustus remarked "It is better to be Herod's pig than his son."
We know two of Antipater's wives through the writings of
Josephus
Flavius Josephus (; grc-gre, Ἰώσηπος, ; 37 – 100) was a first-century Romano-Jewish historian and military leader, best known for ''The Jewish War'', who was born in Jerusalem—then part of Roman Judea—to a father of priestly d ...
. First was his niece
Mariamne III
Mariamne III was a daughter of Aristobulus IV and Berenice.
She had three brothers, Herod of Chalcis, Herod Agrippa I, and Aristobulus V, and one sister, Herodias.
Some time after the death of her father in 7 BCE, Mariamne III was betrothe ...
, daughter of
Aristobulus IV
Aristobulus IV (31–7 BC) was a prince of Judea from the Herodian dynasty, and was married to his cousin, Berenice, daughter of Costobarus and Salome I. He was the son of Herod the Great and his second wife, Mariamne I, the last of the Hasmon ...
. The second was a high-ranking Hasmonean princess whose first name is lost to history. She was the daughter of
Antigonus the Hasmonean
Antigonus II Mattathias ( grc-gre, Αντίγονος ''Antígonos''; he, , ''Matīṯyāhū''), also known as Antigonus the Hasmonean (died 37 BCE) was the last Hasmonean king of Judea. A puppet king installed by the Parthians, he was the son ...
, the last Hasmonean king who also served as high priest. This wife of Antipater was also a first cousin of
Mariamne I
Mariamne I (died 29 BCE), also called Mariamne the Hasmonean, was a Hasmonean princess and the second wife of Herod the Great. She was known for her great beauty, as was her brother Aristobulus III. Herod's fear of his rivals, the Hasmoneans, ...
, renowned royal wife of Herod the Great. Josephus records that she was at the palace with Doris, Antipater's mother, in support of her husband during his trial before
Varus in 5 BC.
In literature
In
Robert Graves
Captain Robert von Ranke Graves (24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985) was a British poet, historical novelist and critic. His father was Alfred Perceval Graves, a celebrated Irish poet and figure in the Gaelic revival; they were both Celtic ...
' ''
King Jesus'', Graves puts forth the idea that Antipater secretly married at the age of 15
Mary
Mary may refer to:
People
* Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name)
Religious contexts
* New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below
* Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...
, who was of a royal Jewish line. The marriage served to strengthen the position of Antipater among Herod's many sons as future
King of the Jews. Antipater was killed by his father five days before Herod's own death according to
Josephus
Flavius Josephus (; grc-gre, Ἰώσηπος, ; 37 – 100) was a first-century Romano-Jewish historian and military leader, best known for ''The Jewish War'', who was born in Jerusalem—then part of Roman Judea—to a father of priestly d ...
. (Some records indicate a period of two years between Antipater's death and Herod the Great's death). According to Graves, a pregnant Mary is compelled to pretend to marry an old, pious carpenter,
Joseph
Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
, to protect herself and the unborn
Jesus
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...
. Author Joseph Raymond supports this hypothesis as a fact. Unlike Graves, however, Raymond specifies that Mary was actually the unnamed daughter of Antigonus who would later become Antipater's wife.
[See also ]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Antipater
Herodian dynasty
46 BC births
4 BC deaths
Herod the Great
1st-century BCE Jews
Heirs apparent who never acceded