Acra (fortress)

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The Acra was a fortress or citadel built in Jerusalem by Antiochus Epiphanes ruler of the Seleucid Empire after his conquest of the city in 168 BCE. It stood on a hill higher than the Temple and was garrisoned by Greek soldiers. Its exact location is now unknown, but is generally believed to have been in the center of the city near the Temple. After liberation of Jerusalem by the Maccabees a Greek garrison and local supporters of the Seleucids held out in the Acra for a considerable time. After reduction of the fortress the Maccabees demolished the Acra and leveled the hill on which it had stood.