Assyrian siege of Bethulia

E520302

The Assyrian siege of Bethulia is a pivotal episode in the deuterocanonical Book of Judith, where the Assyrian army besieges a Jewish town, setting the stage for Judith’s daring assassination of the enemy general Holofernes.

All labels observed (3)

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf biblical event
fictional military siege
associatedWith Second Temple Jewish literature NERFINISHED
canonicalStatus apocryphal for most Protestant traditions
included in Catholic canon
included in Eastern Orthodox canon
depicts Assyrian general Holofernes as enemy of Israel
describedIn Book of Judith NERFINISHED
featuresEvent Judith’s beheading of Holofernes
Judith’s infiltration of the Assyrian camp
display of Holofernes’ head on Bethulia’s walls
panic and rout of the Assyrian army
followedBy Israelite counterattack on Assyrian camp
Judith’s return to Bethulia
hasBelligerent Assyrian army NERFINISHED
inhabitants of Bethulia
hasCause Assyrian expansion under King Nebuchadnezzar in Book of Judith
hasCommander Holofernes NERFINISHED
hasHistoricStatus generally regarded as non-historical
hasKeyFigure Achior NERFINISHED
Judith NERFINISHED
Ozias NERFINISHED
Uzziah NERFINISHED
hasLanguage Hebrew Bible tradition
hasLocation Bethulia NERFINISHED
hasLocationType Jewish town
hasMotivation punishment of western nations for refusing to aid Nebuchadnezzar
hasOutcome Assyrian withdrawal
death of Holofernes
deliverance of Bethulia
hasStrategicGoal capture of Bethulia
opening the route to Jerusalem
hasTactic cutting off water supply
encirclement of the town
hasTheme God’s protection of Israel
divine deliverance
faith versus despair
heroism of a woman
power of prayer and fasting
hasUncertainLocation Bethulia’s exact historical site is unknown
literaryStatus deuterocanonical story
narrativeFunction sets stage for Judith’s assassination of Holofernes
narrativeRole central episode of the Book of Judith
partOf Book of Judith NERFINISHED
precededBy Assyrian campaign in the western nations NERFINISHED
religiousTradition Christianity
Judaism
symbolizes God’s victory over oppressive empires

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (3)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Book of Judith narrativeEvent Assyrian siege of Bethulia
Holofernes associatedWith Assyrian siege of Bethulia
this entity surface form: siege of Bethulia
Judith’s maidservant timeOfStory Assyrian siege of Bethulia
this entity surface form: Assyrian campaign against Bethulia