Tiberius Julius Alexander (fl. 1st century) was an equestrian governor and general in the Roman Empire. Born into a wealthy Jewish family of Alexandria but abandoning or neglecting the Jewish religion, he rose to become the 2nd procurator of Judea (c. 46 – 48) under Claudius. While Prefect of Egypt (66–69), he employed his legions against the Alexandrian Jews in a brutal response to ethnic violence, and was instrumental in the Emperor Vespasian's rise to power. In 70, he participated in the Siege of Jerusalem as Titus' second-in-command. He became the most powerful Jew of his age, and is ranked as one of the most prominent Jews in military history. Early life Tiberius Julius Alexander was probably born early in the reign of the Emperor Tiberius (14–37). His father was Alexander, an Alexandrian Jew who held the office of Alabarch as head of customs on the Arabian frontier, but it may have denoted a senior customs official. The family of the older Alexander, a member of the Egyptian gentry, had Roman citizenship, something not infrequent among the wealthy Jews of Alexandria. He also had business connections both with Agrippa, grandson of Herod the Great, and with Antonia, mother of the emperor Claudius. Another prominent member of Tiberius Alexander's family was his uncle, the philosopher Philo. With both Tiberius and his younger brother Marcus Julius Alexander, the father preferred to give them a grounding in classical languages, rather than have them receive a traditional Jewish education, and both had been groomed to enter into the Roman bureaucracy Marcus Julius Alexander was the first husband of Herodian Princess Berenice. Marcus died in 43 or 44, leaving no children. The Jewish historian Josephus introduces his portrait of Tiberius by condemning him for impiety, explaining that he "did not remain in his ancestral customs". This has traditionally been taken to mean that he became an apostate from Judaism at an early age, a view which finds some support in his appearance as a character in two of Philo's philosophical dialogues, making arguments against divine providence which Philo attempts to refute. However, some more recent scholars believe that Josephus is criticizing Alexander simply for his decision to take up the service of Rome, placing the interests of the Empire above the Jewish religion. He nevertheless continued to benefit from his family's connections, which were enhanced after the Emperor Claudius came to power in 41. Agrippa