The Woman Who Defied The Roman Empire: Zenobia

The great Roman Empire, like all great empires, had many adversaries. But did you know that one of the biggest challenges this empire had to deal with was the doing of a woman? Her name was Zenobia, the queen of Palmyra. Starting out as the wife of the ruler of a Roman province, Zenobia's ambition, cleverness, and bravery soon paved the way for her rise to the top.

According to many historians, Zenobia was of Arab descent and was the daughter of an influential Palmyrene family. Not much is known about her upbringing but according to British historian Edward Gibbon, Zenobia received good education and knew the Latin, Greek, Syriac, and Egyptian languages very well.

In 258 CE, Zenobia married Odaenathus, who was the ruler of Palmyra. At the time, Palmyra (located in modern day Syria) was powerful and wealthy. It was one of the obligatory stopovers of many trade routes and known as "the pearl of the desert". But despite its power and wealth, Palmyra was a client state within the Roman Empire. This meant that even though it had a certain amount of independence, Palmyra was still dependent on the Roman Empire in terms of military, economic, and political support. Odaenathus wanted to change that. He wanted to be the "monarch of the East". He was already given the title "corrector totius Orientis", meaning "the governor of the entire East", by the Roman Empire itself. On top of that, his own people called him "king of kings". Holding so much power, Odaenathus desired to make Palmyra the capital of an empire independent of the Roman Empire. Aware of the power Palmyra held, the Roman Emperor Gallienus was of course not pleased with the fact. But the Roman Empire was not in a good place at the time, and Palmyra was a major military force for their defense. Hence, the emperor had to reluctantly accept the situation.

Unfortunately, Odaenathus's plans were cut short in 267. Upon his return from a campaign in Cappadocia, he was assassinated by a relative of his in his own palace. However ill-fated this turn of events may seem, it actually gave Zenobia an opportunity to seize. Her and Odaenathus had a son in line for the throne, Wahballat (also known as Vaballathus). But Wahballat was still a mere child. He could not rule on his own yet. So, seize the opportunity Zenobia did. She declared herself regent. Thus, she had the control over the lands in the east. Then, Zenobia declared the independence of Palmyra. Neither Emperor Gallienus nor the next emperor, Claudius Gothicus, could do anything to stop this from happening, as the Roman Empire was weakening at the time.

In time, Zenobia turned the Palmyrene Empire into a force to be reckoned with, even for the Roman Empire itself. By the year of 270, she had seized control of all of Syria, Egypt, and most of Anatolia. With the conquest of Egypt, the Roman Empire lost a major resource as Egypt supplied its grain.

Sadly, Zenobia's time of glory was short-lived. In 270, the Roman Empire had a new emperor: Lucius Domitius Aurelianus. Emperor Aurelian was known especially for his military discipline and ferocity in war. So much so that he was even mentioned in a song with the lyrics "Mille, mille, mille occidit!", meaning "Millions, millions, millions he has killed!". Naturally, Zenobia's exceptional power caught his attention, especially in 271 when she declared her son "Caesar", which was a title all Roman emperors adopted after Julius Caesar. This was of course an open challenge to the Roman Empire, and having already become a big threat, Zenobia and her empire became Emperor Aurelian's next target. Thus, Zenobia and Aurelian's armies came to face each other near Antioch, which is known as Hatay or Antakya today.

In 272, Aurelian's men besieged the city of Palmyra. But Zenobia would not be deterred. She sent a message to the emperor, comparing herself to Cleopatra whom she claimed she was a descendant of (which is known to be false today): "From Zenobia, Queen of the East, to Aurelian Augustus... You demand my surrender as though you were not aware that Cleopatra preferred to die a queen rather than remain alive, however high her rank." Aurelian was offended by such a response, especially coming from a woman, so he started attacking the city with even more force. When it became obvious that Palmyra was about to fall, Zenobia attempted to flee to Persia, but was captured on her way. Soon after, Palmyra was conquered by Aurelian's forces.

What happened to Zenobia after her defeat is uncertain. According to some Arab sources, she committed suicide after she was captured. On the other hand, Roman sources have several different claims as to her fate. Some say she was taken to Rome and held captive there, while others say she was executed. There are even some sources that say she married a Roman senator.

Whatever may have happened to Zenobia in the end, there is no denying that this woman was a force to be reckoned with, instilling fear even in the heart of the Roman Empire. Despite her glory being short-lived, it was an exceptional achievement, especially considering she did everything she did in such a short amount of time and as a woman in an era of patriarchy. Zenobia is yet another example of countless women who rewrote history but were forgotten inside its worn pages. It is crucial that we tell the stories of these women and rewrite the narrative on the influence women have had throughout history.