end of John Hyrcanus's long tenure. Forces led by the brothers then overran Scythopolis and the entire region south of Mount Carmel. According to the directions of John Hyrcanus, the country after his death was to be placed in the hands of his wife, and Aristobulus was originally to receive the high priesthood only. Instead, Aristobulus became both king and high priest as he did not approve of his father's wishes; And to secure his kingship, he had his mother placed in prison where she starved to death; And to ensure himself of any possible endangerment from his family, he placed his three brothers in prison except for Antigonus whom he had friendly relations because they'd fought together against the enemies of Judaea. Josephus does not name Hyrcanus's wife. He does state however that Aristobulus and Antigonus were the eldest of the five brothers, but Aristobulus is the first born. The others were Alexander Jannaeus and Absalom. Josephus mentions a fifth brother but doesn't name him. Conquest of Galilee Aristobulus had gone to war against the Ituraeans and taken territory from them. The conquered Ituraeans and the inhabitants had to accept Jewish law and be circumcised if they wanted to remain in their land. The Ituraeans were an Arab tribe that expanded their settlement from the Lebanese Beq'a to the Golan and Mount Hermon in the second century BCE after the collapse of the Seleucid Empire. They are first mentioned in Josephus's Antiquities 13.319 during Aristobulus I's conquest where Josephus writes, "he brought over to them a portion of the Ituraean nation". Josephus's Antiquities 13.319 is a quote from Strabo's Historica Hypomnemata which was originally written by Timagenes stating "This man was a kindly person and very serviceable to the jews, for he acquired additional territory for them, and brought over to them a portion of the Ituraean nation, whom he joined to them by the bond of circumcision." This passage has been generally accepted as evidence for Josephus's reliance on Strabo and Timagenes's writings. It is unknown where the exact location of the confrontation took place and the territory which the Ituraeans occupied. Most scholars assume the Ituraean territory to be northern Galilee. There is also no evidence of forced Judaization on Galilee during Aristobulus's reign. Death and successor Feast of Tabernacles With sudden abdominal pains, Aristobulus's health gradually deteriorated, forcing him to return to his palace during the