Valerius Gratus was the 4th Roman

Prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect' ...

of Judaea province under

Tiberius Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus ( ; 16 November 42 BC – 16 March AD 37) was Roman emperor from AD 14 until 37. He succeeded his stepfather Augustus, the first Roman emperor. Tiberius was born in Rome in 42 BC to Roman politician Tiberius Cl ...

from 15 to 26 AD.

History

He succeeded Annius Rufus in 15 and was replaced by

Pontius Pilate Pontius Pilate (; ) was the Roman administration of Judaea (AD 6–135), fifth governor of the Judaea (Roman province), Roman province of Judaea, serving under Emperor Tiberius from 26/27 to 36/37 AD. He is best known for being the official wh ...

in 26. The government of Gratus is chiefly remarkable for the frequent changes he made in the appointment of the high-priesthood. He deposed Ananus, and substituted Ishmael ben Fabus, then Eleazar, son of Arianus, then Simon, son of Camith, and lastly Joseph Caiaphas, the son-in-law of Ananus.''Antiquities of the Jews'' xviii. 2. §2.

In popular culture

In the book '' Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ'' and its derived films, Gratus is almost killed by a roof tile which accidentally falls from the home of Judah Ben-Hur, which prompts all subsequent events of the story. In the novel, Gratus is portrayed as a corrupt governor who acted against the Jews by removing the rightful head priest of the Temple, Hannas, and replacing him with a Roman puppet, Ishmael.

References

Bibliography

Josephus Flavius Josephus (; , ; ), born Yosef ben Mattityahu (), was a Roman–Jewish historian and military leader. Best known for writing '' The Jewish War'', he was born in Jerusalem—then part of the Roman province of Judea—to a father of pr ...

- Antiq. xviii. 6. § 5. * Roman governors of Judaea 1st-century Romans 1st-century Roman governors of Judaea Valerii {{AncientRome-bio-stub

History

In popular culture

See also

References

Bibliography