The timeline of the Second Temple period in Jewish history begins with the end of the Babylonian captivity and the Persian conquest of the Babylonian Empire in 539 BCE. A new temple to replace the destroyed Solomon's Temple was built in Jerusalem by the returnees, and the Second Temple (model pictured) was finished around 516 BCE. Second Temple Judaism was centered around the religious leadership of the Second Temple, and lasted for six centuries. The Persians were largely tolerant of Judaism. Persian rule lasted for two centuries, but came to an end with the conquests of Macedonia under Alexander the Great in 332 BCE. Judea and the Eastern Mediterranean region came under Greek influence during the resulting Hellenistic period; Hellenistic Judaism blended both Greek and Jewish traditions. The Second Temple period came to an end with the First Jewish–Roman War of 66 to 73 CE. (Full list...)