Key points: 1. Antiquity – major political defeats - 586 BC: The Kingdom of Judah was defeated by the Babylonians. Solomon's Temple was destroyed, and part of the population was taken captive to Babylon. This is the "Babylonian exile". - 70 AD: Second revolt against Rome. Romans destroyed the Second Temple in Jerusalem. Many people were killed, others dispersed. - 135 AD: The Bar Kokhba revolt was also crushed by Rome. After that, Judea was renamed "Palestine," and Jews were forbidden from living in Jerusalem for centuries. These defeats broke the ancient Jewish state and began the Diaspora – Jews living outside of Israel. 2. Middle Ages and Modern Era Jews lived as minorities in various empires and countries. They suffered expulsions, persecutions, and massacres, such as in Spain in 1492, pogroms in Russia, and the Holocaust in World War II, where 6 million were killed by the Nazis. This is a catastrophic defeat in human terms. 3. 20th Century – Creation of Israel - 1948 – War of Independence: Israel won and established itself as a state, but neighboring Arab countries attacked. Jordan took the West Bank, Egypt took Gaza. - 1967 – Six-Day War*: Israel won and took the West Bank, Gaza, Sinai, and Golan. - 1973 – Yom Kippur War: Israel suffered a surprise attack and heavy losses at the beginning, but recovered and maintained the territory. So, militarily, Israel won most of the wars against neighboring states, but still faces ongoing conflicts. Direct summary: As an ancient political state, the Jews were defeated several times and lost sovereignty for approximately 1900 years. As a people, they were not eliminated. Today they have their own state, Israel, which has won interstate wars but still lives in conflict.
