# Pontius Pilate becomes prefect of Judea (26)

URL: https://christianity-history.com/timeline/26-pontius-pilate-becomes-prefect-of-judea
Location: Caesarea Maritima, Judea
Themes: Politics

Pontius Pilate begins a ten-year term as Roman prefect of Judea, the official under whom Jesus would be crucified. At this point in the timeline (26), there was not yet a Christian church; the Jewish people lived under a succession of Seleucid, Hasmonean, Herodian and Roman rulers, and religious life centred on the Temple in Jerusalem and its high priests.

## Why it matters
Pontius Pilate becomes prefect of Judea mattered because it changed the relationship between the churches and political power.

## Sources
- [Wikipedia — Pontius Pilate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontius_Pilate)
- [Encyclopaedia Britannica topic lookup — Pontius Pilate becomes prefect of Judea](https://www.britannica.com/search?query=Pontius+Pilate+becomes+prefect+of+Judea)
- [Wikipedia — Second Temple Background (period overview)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Temple_period)