Antiochus III the Great (ruled 222–187 BC) was a Seleucid king and the 6th ruler of the Seleucid Empire. He ruled over the region of Syria and large parts of the rest of western Asia towards the end of the 3rd century BC. Rising to the throne at the age of eighteen in 222 BC, his early campaigns against the Ptolemaic Kingdom were unsuccessful, but in the following years Antiochus gained several military victories. His traditional designation, the Great, reflects an epithet he briefly assumed. He also assumed the title Basileus Megas (Greek for "Great King"), the traditional title of the Persian kings. A militarily active ruler, Antiochus restored much of the territory of the Seleucid Empire, before suffering a serious setback, towards the end of his reign, in his war against Rome.

Declaring himself the "champion of Greek freedom against Roman domination", Antiochus III waged a war against the Roman Republic in mainland Greece in autumn of 192 BC only to be defeated.

Antiochus III resettled 2000 Jewish families from Babylonia into the Hellenistic Anatolian regions of Lydia and Phrygia. He is not the king who oppressed Judea and was resisted by the Maccabees in the Jewish story of Hanukkah; rather, that was his son, Antiochus IV. On the contrary, Josephus portrays him as friendly towards the Jews and cognizant of their loyalty to him, in stark contrast to the attitude of his son. In fact, Antiochus III lowered taxes and let the Jews live, as Josephus puts it, "according to the law of their forefathers."... More • http://en.wikipedia. ... _the_Great View • Books • Images • Videos • Search Related • Royalty • Statesmen • 2nd Century BC • 3rd Century BC • Afghanistan • Antioch • Egyptians • Greek • Hellenistic Age • Iran • Iraq • Levant • Middle East • Rulers • Seleucid • Syria • Turkey • Icons • People