WI: Titus Killed At Siege of Jerusalem

During the Great Jewish Revolt, when the Roman army arrived at Jerusalem, Titus personally scouted ahead with some cavalry to survey the defenses. The defenders saw this and poured out of the gate and scattered the Roman cavalry, leaving Titus, without any armor on, to personally lead the fight to break out of the trap back to his army. What if, during this engagement, Titus is struck down, before the Siege of Jerusalem even begins? Obviously the Jewish defenders are still screwed.

Who would take over and carry out the siege? I imagine the Roman treatment of Jerusalem after they take it ITTL would be absolutely brutal-maybe Hadrian levels. Might, in their rage, Romans completely raze it as they did Corinth and Carthage? It was already largely in ruins after the siege IOTL.

Also, I'm curious how no Titus effects Roman politics. Without Titus, Domitian is Vespasian's clear heir, which means he has to treat him like one. So rather than having the oft scorned cast aside younger brother trope that seemed to have had a huge effect on Domitian's personality and how he ruled as emperor, here Domitian is favored after Titus's death if only by default, and groomed for succeeding his father for almost a decade before Vespasian's death.
 
Well first off, if the Romans turn Jerusalem into another Carthage...

Imagine someone razing Vatican, or Mecca. and making it so that nothing could grow there. Then imagine the spiritual impact of that.
 
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Anyway, i believe the jews won't be hunted to straight-up extinction. They survived very well within the Roman Empire, even with loads of persecution.
But of course, having been supymbolically responsible for the death of an emperor, they'd be more widely despised.
 
Well first off, if the Romans turn Jerusalem into another Carthage...

Imagine someone razing Vatican, or Mecca. and making it so that nothing could grow there. Then imagine the spiritual impact of that.
Could they destroy Jerusalem much more than they did IOTL? There wasnt much left of Jerusalem between The Great Jewish revolt and Hadrian's colony.
 
Could they destroy Jerusalem much more than they did IOTL? There wasnt much left of Jerusalem between The Great Jewish revolt and Hadrian's colony.

Yes they could. Killing a emperor is no small business and the Romans was very good at doing stuff like this.

Christianity also takes a big hit, with the lost of the early Jerusalem church and so on.
 
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