Alexander (was born around 35 BC and died around 7 BC) was a King's Son of Judea and part of the Hasmonean branch of the Herodian dynasty. His was the first-born son of Herod the Great and born to the Hasmonean princess, Mariamne.
The unfortunate fate which persistently pursued the Hasmonean house also overtook this prince. As heir presumptive to the throne by right of descent on his mother's side, he was sent to Rome for his education in the year 23 BC. He remained there in the household of Asinius Pollio until about the year 17 BC, when Herod himself brought him and his younger brother Aristobulus, who had been with him, home to Jerusalem. Shortly afterward, Alexander received in marriage the Cappadocian Princess, Glaphyra, the daughter of King Archelaus of Cappadocia. Glaphyra bore Alexander three children: two sons, Tigranes and Alexander, and an unnamed daughter.
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Demise
Alexander was regarded as handsome and sincere, qualities which endeared him to the public, who supported the house of the Maccabees for the throne instead of the half-Jewish Herod. However, he became marked by a certain degree of vanity and a spirit of vindictiveness, which rendered him extremely unpopular with the partisans of Herod who began to fear retribution should he become King. One concern about this account is Josephus' potential bias towards his Roman audience; his criticism may not be genuine and merely an attempt to discredit Judea after a major rebellion.
