juliacaesaris: historical figures → queen septimia zenobia Zenobia was a Syrian queen (240-after 274
juliacaesaris: historical figures → queen septimia zenobia Zenobia was a Syrian queen (240-after 274 C.E.). After her husband’s death, she became a powerful military leader in her own right, conquering both Egypt and much of the Eastern Roman Empire. The descendant of various royal ancestors, Zenobia became queen of the Palmyrene Empire as the second wife of King Septimius Odaenathus. When he was assassinated, she executed his killer and became the new ruler with her infant son. A woman of broad education, she protected both Jews and “heretics” as queen. In 269, she challenged Rome by conquering Egypt, defeating the Roman prefect Tenagino Probus. She then proclaimed herself queen of Egypt and conquered parts of Anatolia (modern Turkey), Syria, Palestine, and Lebanon, taking vital trade routes from the Romans. In 274, she was defeated by the forces of the Roman Emperor Aurelian and taken as a hostage to Rome. Appearing in golden chains in Aurelian’s military triumph parade, Zenobia was freed by the emperor, who granted her an elegant villa in Tibur (modern Tivoli, Italy). She became a prominent philosopher, socialite, and Roman matron. Several notable Romans are counted as her descendants, and she figures prominently in later literature through the present day. -- source link
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