Roman Empire · 260-273 AD

Zenobia, queen of Palmyra

A caravan city in the Syrian desert became the center of a realm stretching from Egypt to Asia Minor. Students follow Queen Zenobia's rise and fall and ask how Romans and Syrians have told her story.

Teach it live New Open on the map
Length
45 minutes
Ages
11–14
On the map
3 steps, AD 250
Live lesson
7 rounds, 3 on the map
Worksheet
Two A4 pages, with Classroom
You need
A projector; phones for live

Live lesson · new in Classroom

Teach it live. The class answers on their phones.

Put the board on the projector. Students join with a six-digit code, no account needed, and tap the map: where was the frontier, where did the grain come from. Their pins drop in together when you reveal, and the closest student takes the round.

€19 per month: every lesson live, every worksheet, cancel anytime. Rome at its height runs live for free.

A live lesson on the projector: the class's pins on the map around Alexandria, the closest students listed beside it A student's phone: the question and a map to tap
7 rounds
3 places to find on the map, quiz questions, a class vote and a one-line answer.
About 15 minutes
Run it as the map step, or to open the discussion. You move on with the space bar.
A report
Every answer, per student and per round, to read back or print after the lesson.
1

Introduction

5 min

Read aloud

A caravan city in the Syrian desert became the center of a realm stretching from Egypt to Asia Minor. Students follow Queen Zenobia's rise and fall and ask how Romans and Syrians have told her story.

By the end of the lesson, students can

  • Explain why Palmyra grew rich from caravan trade between the Roman world and the east.
  • Describe how Zenobia took control of Rome's eastern provinces and how Aurelian defeated her.
  • Compare Roman accounts of Zenobia with how she is remembered in Syria today.
2

Explore the map

12 min

Project the map, or let students follow on their own devices. Each step opens the map at the right year and place.

a

AD 250

A city in the desert

Open the map in AD 250 and turn on the Cities layer. Find Palmyra in the Syrian desert, between the Mediterranean and the Euphrates. Why would a city grow at an oasis here?

Open this view on the map
b

AD 250

Caravans

Turn on Trade Routes and follow the routes that come from the east toward Syria. Which goods might caravans have carried through Palmyra?

Open this view on the map
c

AD 250

Zenobia's realm

The map shows the empire in one piece, but in 271 Zenobia ruled from Egypt to central Asia Minor. With the Cities layer, find Alexandria, Antioch and Palmyra. How long might a messenger take to ride between them?

Open this view on the map
3

Class discussion

14 min

Pick two or three. They run from what happened to why it mattered.

  1. Palmyra's merchants traded with both Rome and the east. Why could a trading city become powerful in a time of crisis?
  2. Zenobia's husband Odaenathus defended the east for Rome against the Persians. Why might his widow then turn against Rome?
  3. Roman writers say Zenobia claimed to descend from Cleopatra. Why would a queen want that link?
  4. Much of what we know about Zenobia comes from the Historia Augusta, a Roman book full of invented details. How can historians check such a source?
  5. Palmyra's ruins were badly damaged in war in 2015. Why do people care so much about ancient ruins today?
4

Game round

9 min

Play the Cleopatra VII round in Rule History, the queen Zenobia is said to have admired. Discuss: Cleopatra and Zenobia both challenged Rome from the east. What did they have in common, and why did both lose?

Open Rule History
5

Worksheet

5 min

This worksheet comes with Classroom

€19 per month unlocks every worksheet, every live lesson and the class workspace. The free lesson prints without a subscription.