Palmyra, Syria

Palmyra (now Tadmor, Syria), whose name means "place of Palms," was made part of the Roman province of Syria during the reign of Tiberius and steadily grew in importance until it became a free city under Hadrian. In the third century, its queen Zenobia gave the Romans a pretty hard time, but Aurelian finally captured her and brought her back to Rome. After parading her in golden chains, he allowed her to retire to a villa in Tibur (now Tivoli, Italy), where she took an active part in society for years.