Herod Agrippa II annexed the city 61 CE. During the First Jewish Roman War Josephus Flavius took control of the city and destroyed Herod’s palace. Most of the cities in the Provinces were destroyed but Tiberias spared because its it was loyal to Rome. Josephus Flavius surrendered the city to the Roman emperor Vespasian. It became a mixed city after the fall of Jerusalem in 70 CE. With Judea subdued, the southern Jewish population migrated to the Galilee.
After expulsion of all Jews from Jerusalem after 135 CE, Tiberias and its neighbour Sepphoris became the major Jewish cultural centres.There was widespread economic decline during the Bar Kokhba revolt of 132-136 CE, due to the war.