Judah Ben-Hur

Judah Ben-Hur

Background

Judah Ben-Hur is a prince of Jerusalem and a Jew. His mother is Miriam and his sister is Tirzah. Ben-Hur's family is the richest in Jerusalem. He hunts jackals and lions. Ben-Hur and Messala were boyhood friends.

During the events of Ben-Hur (1959) played by Charlton Heston

Ben-Hur visits Messala after Messala is promoted to a Tribune and is sent to Jerusalem to help pacify it. Messala asks Ben-Hur for help and then they drink a toast to each other. Later, Messala asks Ben-Hur to name those who oppose Rome, but Ben-Hur refuses to betray his people. Simonides arrives at Ben-Hur's home with Esther, and Ben-Hur grants Esther her freedom as a wedding present. That night, he and Esther kiss and he takes her ring to wear until the time that he marries. While the new Governor, Valerius Gratus is riding through the streets, a tile falls from the roof of Ben-Hur's home and scares his horse, causing Valerius' horse to rear into the air and drop him. Ben-Hur and his family are blamed and arrested. He is sent to prison and then marched to become a galley slave. As he is being marched, he arrives at the village of Nazareth were he is given water by Jesus, who defies the Roman guards. Ben-Hur is placed on a military galley under the command of Quintus Arrius, who calls Ben-Hur 41. During a battle against Macedonian Pirates, the galley that Ben-Hur is on is rammed. Quintus Arrius is knocked off the ship by a pirate and Ben-Hur jumps into the ocean to save him. Quintus tries to commit suicide, but is prevented by Ben-Hur. They float on a piece of wood until they are rescued by a Roman ship. Quintus is told that the battle against the pirates has been won and he celebrates by offering water to Ben-Hur before drinking from it himself. Ben-Hur is brought to Rome and made the property of Quintus by Tiberius Caesar. Quintus uses Ben-Hur to win his chariot races and eventually makes Ben-Hur his legal son. Ben-Hur then returns to Jerusalem. On his way there he meets Balthasar, who is searching for Jesus and Sheik Ilderim, who owns chariot horses. Ilderim asks Ben-Hur to be his charioteer after Ben-Hur gives him advice on placement of his horses, but Ben-Hur refuses. He returns home and finds it in ruins, but inhabited by Esther, Simonides and Malluch. He visits Messala and demands to know where Miriam and Tirzah are and vows to return. That night, Esther tells him that she saw them dead while she was imprisoned. Ben-Hur races Sheik Ilderim's horses in a chariot race against Messala. During the race, he takes a whip Messala was using on him and uses it against Messala and Messala's chariot crashes and he is run over by another charioteer. Ben-Hur goes to see a dying Messala who tells him Miriam and Tirzah are not dead but are living in the Valley of the Lepers, declares the race is not over and then dies. Ben-Hur goes to the Valley of the Lepers and sees Esther who tells him she lied to him to keep a promise she made to Miriam and Tirzah. Ben-Hur eventually goes to Miriam and brings Tirzah to try and get help from Jesus. They watch as Jesus is condemned to die by the Romans and as Ben-Hur gives Jesus water he recognizes Jesus as the one who gave him water when he was a prisoner of Rome. Ben-Hur and Balthasar watch as Jesus is crucified. Ben-Hur returns home and finds Miriam and Tirzah cured of their leprosy and they hug.