Statue of QueenZenobia discovered in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, 
Lattakia, Syria. Zenobia, the Rebel Queen Who Took On Rome. This ancient Queen of Palmyra conquered Egypt, captured Roman provinces, and nearly transformed her realm into an empire equal to Rome. The showdown had been decades in the making. By the middle of the third century A.D. the Roman Empire was mired in political and economic crisis, its frontiers under constant attack, and its center struggling to hold. The catastrophic defeat and capture in 260 of Emperor Valerian by the Persians thrust Roman rule into even greater disarray. In Europe the rebel Gallic empire started to break away from Rome. Weakened and distracted, the empire was facing threats on all fronts. Observing from the east, Zenobia saw her opportunity and knew that she had an empire to gain.
