<p><SPAN name="link42H_4_0001" id="link42H_4_0001"></SPAN></p>
<h1> BOOK IV. </h1>
<p>Containing The Interval Of About One Year.<br/></p>
<p>From The Siege Of Gamala To The Coming Of Titus To Besiege<br/>
Jerusalem.<br/></p>
<p><SPAN name="link42HCH0001" id="link42HCH0001"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CHAPTER 1. </h2>
<p>The Siege And Taking Of Gamala.<br/></p>
<p>1. Now all those Galileans who, after the taking of Jotapata, had revolted
from the Romans, did, upon the conquest of Taricheae, deliver themselves
up to them again. And the Romans received all the fortresses and the
cities, excepting Gischala and those that had seized upon Mount Tabor;
Gamala also, which is a city ever against Taricheae, but on the other side
of the lake, conspired with them. This city lay upon the borders of
Agrippa's kingdom, as also did Sogana and Seleucia. And these were both
parts of Gaulanitis; for Sogana was a part of that called the Upper
Gaulanitis, as was Gamala of the Lower; while Seleucia was situated at the
lake Semechouitis, which lake is thirty furlongs in breadth, and sixty in
length; its marshes reach as far as the place Daphne, which in other
respects is a delicious place, and hath such fountains as supply water to
what is called Little Jordan, under the temple of the golden calf, <SPAN href="#link4note-1" name="link4noteref-1" id="link4noteref-1">1</SPAN> where
it is sent into Great Jordan. Now Agrippa had united Sogana and Seleucia
by leagues to himself, at the very beginning of the revolt from the
Romans; yet did not Gamala accede to them, but relied upon the difficulty
of the place, which was greater than that of Jotapata, for it was situated
upon a rough ridge of a high mountain, with a kind of neck in the middle:
where it begins to ascend, it lengthens itself, and declines as much
downward before as behind, insomuch that it is like a camel in figure,
from whence it is so named, although the people of the country do not
pronounce it accurately. Both on the side and the face there are abrupt
parts divided from the rest, and ending in vast deep valleys; yet are the
parts behind, where they are joined to the mountain, somewhat easier of
ascent than the other; but then the people belonging to the place have cut
an oblique ditch there, and made that hard to be ascended also. On its
acclivity, which is straight, houses are built, and those very thick and
close to one another. The city also hangs so strangely, that it looks as
if it would fall down upon itself, so sharp is it at the top. It is
exposed to the south, and its southern mount, which reaches to an immense
height, was in the nature of a citadel to the city; and above that was a
precipice, not walled about, but extending itself to an immense depth.
There was also a spring of water within the wall, at the utmost limits of
the city.</p>
<p>2. As this city was naturally hard to be taken, so had Josephus, by
building a wall about it, made it still stronger, as also by ditches and
mines under ground. The people that were in it were made more bold by the
nature of the place than the people of Jotapata had been, but it had much
fewer fighting men in it; and they had such a confidence in the situation
of the place, that they thought the enemy could not be too many for them;
for the city had been filled with those that had fled to it for safety, on
account of its strength; on which account they had been able to resist
those whom Agrippa sent to besiege it for seven months together.</p>
<p>3. But Vespasian removed from Emmaus, where he had last pitched his camp
before the city Tiberias, [now Emmaus, if it be interpreted, may be
rendered "a warm bath," for therein is a spring of warm water, useful for
healing,] and came to Gamala; yet was its situation such that he was not
able to encompass it all round with soldiers to watch it; but where the
places were practicable, he set men to watch it, and seized upon the
mountain which was over it. And as the legions, according to their usual
custom, were fortifying their camp upon that mountain, he began to cast up
banks at the bottom, at the part towards the east, where the highest tower
of the whole city was, and where the fifteenth legion pitched their camp;
while the fifth legion did duty over against the midst of the city, and
whilst the tenth legion filled up the ditches and the valleys. Now at this
time it was that as king Agrippa was come nigh the walls, and was
endeavoring to speak to those that were on the walls about a surrender, he
was hit with a stone on his right elbow by one of the slingers; he was
then immediately surrounded with his own men. But the Romans were excited
to set about the siege, by their indignation on the king's account, and by
their fear on their own account, as concluding that those men would omit
no kinds of barbarity against foreigners and enemies, who where so enraged
against one of their own nation, and one that advised them to nothing but
what was for their own advantage.</p>
<p>4. Now when the banks were finished, which was done on the sudden, both by
the multitude of hands, and by their being accustomed to such work, they
brought the machines; but Chares and Joseph, who were the most potent men
in the city, set their armed men in order, though already in a fright,
because they did not suppose that the city could hold out long, since they
had not a sufficient quantity either of water, or of other necessaries.
However, these their leaders encouraged them, and brought them out upon
the wall, and for a while indeed they drove away those that were bringing
the machines; but when those machines threw darts and stones at them, they
retired into the city; then did the Romans bring battering rams to three
several places, and made the wall shake [and fall]. They then poured in
over the parts of the wall that were thrown down, with a mighty sound of
trumpets and noise of armor, and with a shout of the soldiers, and brake
in by force upon those that were in the city; but these men fell upon the
Romans for some time, at their first entrance, and prevented their going
any further, and with great courage beat them back; and the Romans were so
overpowered by the greater multitude of the people, who beat them on every
side, that they were obliged to run into the upper parts of the city.
Whereupon the people turned about, and fell upon their enemies, who had
attacked them, and thrust them down to the lower parts, and as they were
distressed by the narrowness and difficulty of the place, slew them; and
as these Romans could neither beat those back that were above them, nor
escape the force of their own men that were forcing their way forward,
they were compelled to fly into their enemies' houses, which were low; but
these houses being thus full, of soldiers, whose weight they could not
bear, fell down suddenly; and when one house fell, it shook down a great
many of those that were under it, as did those do to such as were under
them. By this means a vast number of the Romans perished; for they were so
terribly distressed, that although they saw the houses subsiding, they
were compelled to leap upon the tops of them; so that a great many were
ground to powder by these ruins, and a great many of those that got from
under them lost some of their limbs, but still a greater number were
suffocated by the dust that arose from those ruins. The people of Gamala
supposed this to be an assistance afforded them by God, and without
regarding what damage they suffered themselves, they pressed forward, and
thrust the enemy upon the tops of their houses; and when they stumbled in
the sharp and narrow streets, and were perpetually falling down, they
threw their stones or darts at them, and slew them. Now the very ruins
afforded them stones enow; and for iron weapons, the dead men of the
enemies' side afforded them what they wanted; for drawing the swords of
those that were dead, they made use of them to despatch such as were only
half dead; nay, there were a great number who, upon their falling down
from the tops of the houses, stabbed themselves, and died after that
manner; nor indeed was it easy for those that were beaten back to fly
away; for they were so unacquainted with the ways, and the dust was so
thick, that they wandered about without knowing one another, and fell down
dead among the crowd.</p>
<p>5. Those therefore that were able to find the ways out of the city
retired. But now Vespasian always staid among those that were hard set;
for he was deeply affected with seeing the ruins of the city falling upon
his army, and forgot to take care of his own preservation. He went up
gradually towards the highest parts of the city before he was aware, and
was left in the midst of dangers, having only a very few with him; for
even his son Titus was not with him at that time, having been then sent
into Syria to Mucianus. However, he thought it not safe to fly, nor did he
esteem it a fit thing for him to do; but calling to mind the actions he
had done from his youth, and recollecting his courage, as if he had been
excited by a divine fury, he covered himself and those that were with him
with their shields, and formed a testudo over both their bodies and their
armor, and bore up against the enemy's attacks, who came running down from
the top of the city; and without showing any dread at the multitude of the
men or of their darts, he endured all, until the enemy took notice of that
divine courage that was within him, and remitted of their attacks; and
when they pressed less zealously upon him, he retired, though without
showing his back to them till he was gotten out of the walls of the city.
Now a great number of the Romans fell in this battle, among whom was
Ebutius, the decurion, a man who appeared not only in this engagement,
wherein he fell, but every where, and in former engagements, to be of the
truest courage, and one that had done very great mischief to the Jews. But
there was a centurion whose name was Gallus, who, during this disorder,
being encompassed about, he and ten other soldiers privately crept into
the house of a certain person, where he heard them talking at supper, what
the people intended to do against the Romans, or about themselves [for
both the man himself and those with him were Syrians]. So he got up in the
night time, and cut all their throats, and escaped, together with his
soldiers, to the Romans.</p>
<p>6. And now Vespasian comforted his army, which was much dejected by
reflecting on their ill success, and because they had never before fallen
into such a calamity, and besides this, because they were greatly ashamed
that they had left their general alone in great dangers. As to what
concerned himself, he avoided to say any thing, that he might by no means
seem to complain of it; but he said that "we ought to bear manfully what
usually falls out in war, and this, by considering what the nature of war
is, and how it can never be that we must conquer without bloodshed on our
own side; for there stands about us that fortune which is of its own
nature mutable; that while they had killed so many ten thousands of the
Jews, they had now paid their small share of the reckoning to fate; and as
it is the part of weak people to be too much puffed up with good success,
so is it the part of cowards to be too much aftrighted at that which is
ill; for the change from the one to the other is sudden on both sides; and
he is the best warrior who is of a sober mind under misfortunes, that he
may continue in that temper, and cheerfully recover what had been lost
formerly; and as for what had now happened, it was neither owing to their
own effeminacy, nor to the valor of the Jews, but the difficulty of the
place was the occasion of their advantage, and of our disappointment. Upon
reflecting on which matter one might blame your zeal as perfectly
ungovernable; for when the enemy had retired to their highest fastnesses,
you ought to have restrained yourselves, and not, by presenting yourselves
at the top of the city, to be exposed to dangers; but upon your having
obtained the lower parts of the city, you ought to have provoked those
that had retired thither to a safe and settled battle; whereas, in rushing
so hastily upon victory, you took no care of your safety. But this
incautiousness in war, and this madness of zeal, is not a Roman maxim.
While we perform all that we attempt by skill and good order, that
procedure is the part of barbarians, and is what the Jews chiefly support
themselves by. We ought therefore to return to our own virtue, and to be
rather angry than any longer dejected at this unlucky misfortune, and let
every one seek for his own consolation from his own hand; for by this
means he will avenge those that have been destroyed, and punish those that
have killed them. For myself, I will endeavor, as I have now done, to go
first before you against your enemies in every engagement, and to be the
last that retires from it."</p>
<p>7. So Vespasian encouraged his army by this speech; but for the people of
Gamala, it happened that they took courage for a little while, upon such
great and unaccountable success as they had had. But when they considered
with themselves that they had now no hopes of any terms of accommodation,
and reflecting upon it that they could not get away, and that their
provisions began already to be short, they were exceedingly cast down, and
their courage failed them; yet did they not neglect what might be for
their preservation, so far as they were able, but the most courageous
among them guarded those parts of the wall that were beaten down, while
the more infirm did the same to the rest of the wall that still remained
round the city. And as the Romans raised their banks, and attempted to get
into the city a second time, a great many of them fled out of the city
through impracticable valleys, where no guards were placed, as also
through subterraneous caverns; while those that were afraid of being
caught, and for that reason staid in the city, perished for want of food;
for what food they had was brought together from all quarters, and
reserved for the fighting men.</p>
<p>8. And these were the hard circumstances that the people of Gamala were
in. But now Vespasian went about other work by the by, during this siege,
and that was to subdue those that had seized upon Mount Tabor, a place
that lies in the middle between the great plain and Scythopolis, whose top
is elevated as high as thirty furlongs <SPAN href="#link4note-2"
name="link4noteref-2" id="link4noteref-2">2</SPAN> and is hardly to be
ascended on its north side; its top is a plain of twenty-six furlongs, and
all encompassed with a wall. Now Josephus erected this so long a wall in
forty days' time, and furnished it with other materials, and with water
from below, for the inhabitants only made use of rain water. As therefore
there was a great multitude of people gotten together upon this mountain,
Vespasian sent Placidus with six hundred horsemen thither. Now, as it was
impossible for him to ascend the mountain, he invited many of them to
peace, by the offer of his right hand for their security, and of his
intercession for them. Accordingly they came down, but with a treacherous
design, as well as he had the like treacherous design upon them on the
other side; for Placidus spoke mildly to them, as aiming to take them,
when he got them into the plain; they also came down, as complying with
his proposals, but it was in order to fall upon him when he was not aware
of it: however, Placidus's stratagem was too hard for theirs; for when the
Jews began to fight, he pretended to run away, and when they were in
pursuit of the Romans, he enticed them a great way along the plain, and
then made his horsemen turn back; whereupon he beat them, and slew a great
number of them, and cut off the retreat of the rest of the multitude, and
hindered their return. So they left Tabor, and fled to Jerusalem, while
the people of the country came to terms with him, for their water failed
them, and so they delivered up the mountain and themselves to Placidus.</p>
<p>9. But of the people of Gamala, those that were of the bolder sort fled
away and hid themselves, while the more infirm perished by famine; but the
men of war sustained the siege till the two and twentieth day of the month
Hyperbereteus, [Tisri,] when three soldiers of the fifteenth legion, about
the morning watch, got under a high tower that was near them, and
undermined it, without making any noise; nor when they either came to it,
which was in the night time, nor when they were under it, did those that
guarded it perceive them. These soldiers then upon their coming avoided
making a noise, and when they had rolled away five of its strongest
stones, they went away hastily; whereupon the tower fell down on a sudden,
with a very great noise, and its guard fell headlong with it; so that
those that kept guard at other places were under such disturbance, that
they ran away; the Romans also slew many of those that ventured to oppose
them, among whom was Joseph, who was slain by a dart, as he was running
away over that part of the wall that was broken down: but as those that
were in the city were greatly aftrighted at the noise, they ran hither and
thither, and a great consternation fell upon them, as though all the enemy
had fallen in at once upon them. Then it was that Chares, who was ill, and
under the physician's hands, gave up the ghost, the fear he was in greatly
contributing to make his distemper fatal to him. But the Romans so well
remembered their former ill success, that they did not enter the city till
the three and twentieth day of the forementioned month.</p>
<p>10. At which time Titus, who was now returned, out of the indignation he
had at the destruction the Romans had undergone while he was absent, took
two hundred chosen horsemen and some footmen with him, and entered without
noise into the city. Now as the watch perceived that he was coming, they
made a noise, and betook themselves to their arms; and as that his
entrance was presently known to those that were in the city, some of them
caught hold of their children and their wives, and drew them after them,
and fled away to the citadel, with lamentations and cries, while others of
them went to meet Titus, and were killed perpetually; but so many of them
as were hindered from running up to the citadel, not knowing what in the
world to do, fell among the Roman guards, while the groans of those that
were killed were prodigiously great every where, and blood ran down over
all the lower parts of the city, from the upper. But then Vespasian
himself came to his assistance against those that had fled to the citadel,
and brought his whole army with him; now this upper part of the city was
every way rocky, and difficult of ascent, and elevated to a vast altitude,
and very full of people on all sides, and encompassed with precipices,
whereby the Jews cut off those that came up to them, and did much mischief
to others by their darts, and the large stones which they rolled down upon
them, while they were themselves so high that the enemy's darts could
hardly reach them. However, there arose such a Divine storm against them
as was instrumental to their destruction; this carried the Roman darts
upon them, and made those which they threw return back, and drove them
obliquely away from them; nor could the Jews indeed stand upon their
precipices, by reason of the violence of the wind, having nothing that was
stable to stand upon, nor could they see those that were ascending up to
them; so the Romans got up and surrounded them, and some they slew before
they could defend themselves, and others as they were delivering up
themselves; and the remembrance of those that were slain at their former
entrance into the city increased their rage against them now; a great
number also of those that were surrounded on every side, and despaired of
escaping, threw their children and their wives, and themselves also, down
the precipices, into the valley beneath, which, near the citadel, had been
dug hollow to a vast depth; but so it happened, that the anger of the
Romans appeared not to be so extravagant as was the madness of those that
were now taken, while the Romans slew but four thousand, whereas the
number of those that had thrown themselves down was found to be five
thousand: nor did any one escape except two women, who were the daughters
of Philip, and Philip himself was the son of a certain eminent man called
Jacimus, who had been general of king Agrippa's army; and these did
therefore escape, because they lay concealed from the rage of the Romans
when the city was taken; for otherwise they spared not so much as the
infants, of which many were flung down by them from the citadel. And thus
was Gamala taken on the three and twentieth day of the month
Hyperbereteus, [Tisri,] whereas the city had first revolted on the four
and twentieth day of the month Gorpieus [Elul].</p>
<div style="break-after:column;"></div><br />