Apollonius Taos () was a governor of

Coele-Syria Coele-Syria () was a region of Syria in classical antiquity. The term originally referred to the "hollow" Beqaa Valley between the Lebanon and the Anti-Lebanon mountain ranges, but sometimes it was applied to a broader area of the region of Sy ...

under the

Seleucid Empire The Seleucid Empire ( ) was a Greek state in West Asia during the Hellenistic period. It was founded in 312 BC by the Macedonian general Seleucus I Nicator, following the division of the Macedonian Empire founded by Alexander the Great ...

during the 2nd century BCE.

Background

Apollonius served as governor under

Alexander Balas Alexander I Theopator Euergetes, surnamed Balas (), was the ruler of the Seleucid Empire from 150 BC to August 145 BC. Picked from obscurity and supported by the neighboring Roman-allied Kingdom of Pergamon, Alexander landed in Phoenicia in 1 ...

, who ruled the Seleucid Empire from 150 to 142 BCE. This period was marked by internal strife and external threats, creating instability within the empire. A few years earlier, in 175 B.C.,

Antiochus IV Epiphanes Antiochus IV Epiphanes ( 215 BC–November/December 164 BC) was king of the Seleucid Empire from 175 BC until his death in 164 BC. Notable events during Antiochus' reign include his near-conquest of Ptolemaic Egypt, his persecution of the Jews of ...

had set a violent precedent by seizing the throne from his brother,

Seleucus IV Philopator Seleucus IV Philopator ( Greek: Σέλευκος Φιλοπάτωρ, ''Séleukos philopátо̄r'', meaning "Seleucus the father-loving"; 218 – 3 September 175 BC), ruler of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire, reigned from 187 BC to 175 BC over a ...

, and having him assassinated. This event initiated a pattern of violent succession crises within the

Seleucid dynasty The Seleucid dynasty or the Seleucidae (; , ', "descendants of Seleucus") was a Macedonian Greek royal family, which ruled the Seleucid Empire based in West Asia during the Hellenistic period. It was founded by Seleucus I Nicator, a general an ...

. Rival claimants to the throne often relied on foreign powers and internal factions to assert their claims, further destabilizing the empire until its eventual decline and

conquest Conquest involves the annexation or control of another entity's territory through war or Coercion (international relations), coercion. Historically, conquests occurred frequently in the international system, and there were limited normative or ...

by the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

Defection to Demetrius II

In 147 BCE, while Alexander Balas was addressing northern invasions, Apollonius Taos defected to

Demetrius II Nicator Demetrius II (, ''Dēmḗtrios B''; died 125 BC), called Nicator (, ''Nikátōr'', "Victor"), was one of the sons of Demetrius I Soter. His mother may have been Laodice V, as was the case with his brother Antiochus VII Sidetes. Demetrius ruled ...

. This defection was supported by the Hellenized

Philistine Philistines (; Septuagint, LXX: ; ) were ancient people who lived on the south coast of Canaan during the Iron Age in a confederation of city-states generally referred to as Philistia. There is compelling evidence to suggest that the Philist ...

cities, which aligned with Apollonius against Alexander. Apollonius challenged Jonathan Maccabeus, a Jewish leader and ally of Alexander, to battle, suggesting that the Jews might leave the mountains and venture into the plain.

Conflict with Jonathan Maccabeus

In response, the Maccabean

Jonathan Apphus Jonathan Apphus (Hebrew: ''Yōnāṯān ʾApfūs''; Ancient Greek: Ἰωνάθαν Ἀπφοῦς, ''Iōnáthan Apphoûs'') was one of the sons of Mattathias and the leader of the Hasmonean dynasty of Judea from 161 to 143 BCE. Name H J Wolf ...

and his brother

Simon Thassi Simon Thassi ( ''Šīməʿōn haTassī''; died 135) was the second son of Mattathias and thus a member of the Hasmonean family. Names The name "Thassi" has a connotation of "the Wise", a title which can also mean "the Director", "the Guide" ...

led a force of 10,000 men against Apollonius's forces stationed in

Jaffa Jaffa (, ; , ), also called Japho, Joppa or Joppe in English, is an ancient Levantine Sea, Levantine port city which is part of Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel, located in its southern part. The city sits atop a naturally elevated outcrop on ...

. The city, unprepared for an attack, opened its gates to them out of fear. Apollonius then received reinforcements from

Azotus Azotus is the Hellenistic Greek name of the ancient city of Ashdod. To the slightly inland city, a counterpart developed on the seashore and the name Azotus can refer to both of the twin cities : * Azotus Mesogaios, "inland Azotus", the Hellenisti ...

and confronted Jonathan with 3,000 men, relying on his superior cavalry. Despite being outnumbered, Jonathan's forces successfully resisted and ultimately defeated Apollonius's army. Jonathan pursued the fleeing forces to Azotus, capturing and burning the city along with the temple of Dagon. In reward for his victory, Alexander Balas granted Jonathan the city of

Ekron Ekron (Philistine: 𐤏𐤒𐤓𐤍 ''*ʿAqārān'', , ), in the Hellenistic period known as Accaron () was at first a Canaanite, and later more famously a Philistine city, one of the five cities of the Philistine Pentapolis, located in pr ...

with its surrounding territory.1 Maccabees 10:69–89.

References

Seleucid generals 2nd-century BC Greek politicians Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Seleucid Empire