Queen Zenobia of Palmyra

Queen Zenobia of Palmyra

Queen Zenobia of Palmyra was one of the most fascinating figures in the ancient world.

Ruling over the short-lived Palmyrene Empire, Queen Zenobia defied tradition, becoming a powerful and successful female leader in the period when men sat on the throne.

Septimia Zenobia, better known as Queen Zenobia of Palmyra, was born in Palmyra on 23rd December 240 CE.

Palmyra was a wealthy city located on the Silk Road – an ancient trade route linking China with Parthia and the Roman Empire.

Its ruler and Zenobia’s husband Odaenathus, acted as Roman governor but was actually an independent king.

Palmyra had its own law, coinage and most importantly, it’s own army.

After Odaenathus’ assassination in 267 CE, Zenobia became the regent of her son Vaballathus, and held the real power throughout his reign.

However, the ambitious queen did not content herself with a figurehead role.
Instead, she swiftly seized power and declared herself
the ruler of the Palmyrene Empire.

This bold move shocked Rome, which was going through one of the worst crises in its history.

This was the so-called ‘Third Century Crisis’ the period in which the Roman Empire found itself beset by external and internal enemies.

Queen Zenobia exploited Rome’s weakness to expand the Palmyrene Empire greatly.

Her late husband Oedenathus, had already controlled large parts of the Roman East.
Zenobia consolidated those territories, using the immense wealth and loyal armies to bring under Palmyra’s control, the great cities of the Eastern Mediterranean, such as Antioch and Alexandria.

Her forces, made of local troops but also of eastern Roman legions, triumphed in a series of battles.

In only a few years, all of Syria, Palestine, and even Egypt, became part of Zenobia’s Palmyrene Empire.

With Rome in chaos, the future of Zenobia’s new empire looked promising.
Palmyra became one of the ancient world’s major centers of art, culture and philosophy.

The Queen encouraged the study of Greek and Latin literature, attracting renowned scholars, philosophers and artists to the royal court.

Queen Zenobia adopted the title of Augusta, usually reserved for the empress of Rome.
She also removed the Roman emperor’s portrait from the coinage.

This further signalled the breakaway from Rome, and the establishment of Palmyra as a power in its own right.

Unfortunately for the Queen of the East, Emperor Aurelian was determined to restore the unity of the Roman world.

In 272, Aurelian turned his gaze eastwards to the upstart Palmyrene Empire.
Despite fierce resistance, Zenobia’s forces were defeated in a series of battles.
In the end Palmyra fell to the Roman legions.

Zenobia herself was captured and, in 274, was displayed in chains as a sign of Aurelian’s triumph.

The fate of the warrior queen remains uncertain, as the few sources provide conflicting information.

However, the fact remains, that Queen Zenobia was an ambitious and powerful female ruler, who dared to defy the emperor of Rome, and for a brief moment, succeeded, making her indelible mark in history…..

🌹 Zenobia’s last look on Palmyra.
By Herbert G Schmalz, 1888.
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide.