Herod Archelaus was the son of Herod the Great and Malthace the Samaritan, brother of Herod Antipas, and half-brother of Herod II.
16 Facts About Herod Archelaus
2.
Herod Archelaus had placed a golden eagle over the Temple entrance which was perceived as blasphemous.
3.
Herod Archelaus defended his works and offered an attack on his predecessors, the dynastic Hasmoneans.
4.
Herod Archelaus began to worry as people started streaming into the temple area and those who wailed for the loss of the teachers continued their very loud mourning.
5.
Those who came from Herod Archelaus were stoned, with many killed.
6.
Herod Archelaus sent heralds around the city announcing the cancellation of Passover.
7.
Antipas, the younger brother of Archelaus who was deposed from Herod's will days earlier, argued that Archelaus merely feigned grief for his father, crying during the day and involved with great "merriment" during the night.
8.
The threats carried out by Herod Archelaus ending in the death of 3000 in the Temple were not just threats to the worshipers in Jerusalem at Passover, but amounted to a threat to Caesar himself, since Herod Archelaus acted in every manner a king, before such title had been given by Caesar.
9.
At this point, Nicolaus of Damascus argued to Caesar that Archelaus acted appropriately and that Herod's will, supposedly written a few weeks prior, should be seen as valid.
10.
The change of this will in favor of Archelaus is given as Herod's true choice and, it is argued, occurred with Herod being in his right mind since he left the final decision to Caesar.
11.
Caesar raised him up and stated that Herod Archelaus "was worthy to succeed his father".
12.
The first wife of Herod Archelaus is given by Josephus simply as Mariamne, perhaps Mariamne III, daughter of Aristobulus IV, whom he divorced to marry Glaphyra.
13.
Herod Archelaus was the widow of Archelaus' brother Alexander, though her second husband, Juba, king of Mauretania, was alive.
14.
Herod Archelaus fell into disrepute and was deposed in his 10th year of reign as ethnarch, being banished to Vienna in Gaul.
15.
Herod Archelaus is mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew.
16.
However, upon hearing that Herod Archelaus had succeeded his father as ruler of Judaea he "was afraid to go there", and was again warned in a dream by God "and turned aside to the region of" Galilee.