Queen Zenobia of Palmyra: The History and Legacy of the Ancient Levant’s Most Famous Queen

*Includes pictures
*Includes a bibliography for further reading
*Includes a table of contents

For hundreds of years, Palmyra’s wealth was a testament to its greatness, and its leaders displayed their political acumen by playing the middleman between the powerful Roman and Parthian Empires. As a result, the Palmyrenes built an eclectic culture that was as sophisticated as any of their contemporaries, but eventually the leadership of Palmyra overestimated their power and the greatness of their city quickly came crumbling down.

Although the ancient world was for the most part a patriarchal place, more than a few women rose to prominence and were able to exert political power. Hatshepsut (ruled 1479-1458 BCE) was ruler of Egypt’s mighty New Kingdom, and nearly 1,500 years later the more famous Cleopatra VII (reigned 51-30 BCE) was the regent of the Nile Valley. Many other women in Babylon, Assyria, Greece, and Rome played significant roles as regents for their young sons and occasionally as the true power behind the throne.

Of these rulers, one of the most significant females in late antiquity was Zenobia, who for just a few short years in the late 3rd century CE ruled the wealthy merchant city of Palmyra. During her time as ruler, Zenobia extended Palmyra’s boundaries from its very circumscribed location in the Syrian desert to that of a full-fledged empire that included most of the Levant, Egypt, and part of Anatolia. Despite living in a man’s world, Zenobia was able to come to power and eventually challenge the Roman Emperor Aurelian (r. 270-275) through a combination of intelligence, guile, and some luck.
Zenobia’s immediate impact was her direct challenge to the political authorities in both Rome and Persia. Before Zenobia, Palmyra had a fair degree of autonomy, but it was essentially a Roman client state. Palmyra’s stability and wealth were also dependent upon the various dynasties that ruled Persia: the Persians could attack Palmyra from the desert to the east or they could simply stop the trade routes, thereby destroying the city-state’s wealth. Zenobia sought to establish Palmyra as a power in its own right so that it would no longer be a pawn in the constant wars between Rome and Persia. In Zenobia’s eyes, Palmyra was a true equal of the Romans and Persians and should be given an equal place at the geopolitical table when it came to diplomacy and trade. Palmyra may only have been a city-state, but its influence was well-known and far exceeded its physical size.

Zenobia was a quick learner, and although she eventually lost her bid to build an empire that rivaled Rome in the West and Persia in the East, she impacted the course of history and left a historical and literary legacy on several different cultures for many centuries. Even after the Romans defeated her, her influence grew as her personality and deeds became legendary. Zenobia became a template for Islamic, Jewish, and Western writers and artists who found inspiration in the bravery of a woman who challenged the power structure. To these later men and women, Zenobia represented something innate and visceral inside all people, good and bad, and though these writers and artists did not always portray the legendary Zenobia positively, they usually gave the warrior queen respect.

Queen Zenobia of Palmyra: The History and Legacy of the Ancient Levant’s Most Famous Queen examines how she came to power, and how she forged a lasting legacy despite being on the losing end of her most important conflict. Along with pictures depicting important people, places, and events, you will learn about Zenobia like never before.