28. Herod Executes His Son
Mariamne was a stunning beauty, and Herod was crazy about her – but not in a good way. On the one hand, he was passionately in love with her. On the other hand, he was also crazy jealous. While Herod loved Mariamne, she did not return the feeling. It was probably understandable, considering that Herod had killed her brother and uncle, and that Herod’s father had killed Mariamne’s father, then embalmed him in a tub of honey. Nonetheless, Herod had five children with her – two girls and three boys.
In 29 BC, Herod suspected Mariamne of plotting against him, so he had her executed. Understandably, her children resented that, and grew up with a fractious relationship with their father. Two in particular, Alexander and Aristobulus, did a poor job of hiding their resentment of Herod, which led him to suspect them of plotting against him to avenge the execution of their mother. So Herod imprisoned Alexander in 10 BC, and three years later, had him and his brother Aristobulus charged with treason. Both were convicted, and Herod ordered his sons strangled to death in 7 BC, giving rise to Augustus’ quip that it was better to be Herod’s pig than his son.