Before modern archaeological excavations in Mesopotamia, the political history, society and appearance of ancient Babylonia was largely a mystery. Western artists typically envisioned the city and its empire as a combination of known ancient cultures—typically a mixture of ancient Greek and Egyptian culture—with some influence from the then-contemporary Middle Eastern empire, the Ottoman Empire. Early depictions of the city show it with long colonnades, sometimes built on more than a level, completely unlike the actual architecture of real ancient Mesopotamian cities, with obelisks and sphinxes inspired by those of Egypt. Ottoman influence came in the shape of cupolas and minarets dotted through the imagined appearances of the ancient city. [46] MacGinnis, John (2010). "Mobilisation and Militarisation in the Neo-Babylonian Empire". Studies on War in the Ancient Near East, AOAT 372: 153–163. Finger Snail Fish Pen-Abu Animal Stork Canide Bull Scorpion I Shendjw Iry-Hor Ka Scorpion II Narmer / Menes Agum-Kakrime Burnaburiash I Kashtiliash III Ulamburiash Agum III Karaindash Kadashman-harbe I Kurigalzu I Kadashman-Enlil I Burnaburiash II Kara-hardash Nazi-Bugash Kurigalzu II Nazi-Maruttash Kadashman-Turgu Kadashman-Enlil II Kudur-Enlil Shagarakti-Shuriash Kashtiliashu IV Enlil-nadin-shumi Kadashman-Harbe II Adad-shuma-iddina Adad-shuma-usur Meli-Shipak II Marduk-apla-iddina I Zababa-shuma-iddin Enlil-nadin-ahi Cyrus Cambyses Darius I Xerxes Artaxerxes I Darius II Artaxerxes II Artaxerxes III Artaxerxes IV Darius III

Ninurta-kudurri-usur II Mar-biti-ahhe-iddina Shamash-mudammiq Nabu-shuma-ukin I Nabu-apla-iddina Marduk-zakir-shumi I Marduk-balassu-iqbi Baba-aha-iddina (five kings) Ninurta-apla-X Marduk-bel-zeri Marduk-apla-usur Eriba-Marduk Nabu-shuma-ishkun Nabonassar Nabu-nadin-zeri Nabu-shuma-ukin II Nabu-mukin-zeri The Egyptian Pharaoh Necho II, whose dynasty had been installed as vassals of Assyria in 671 BC, belatedly tried to aid Egypt's former Assyrian masters, possibly out of fear that Egypt would be next to succumb to the new powers without Assyria to protect them, having already been ravaged by the Scythians. The Assyrians fought on with Egyptian aid until what was probably a final decisive victory was achieved against them at Carchemish in northwestern Assyria in 605 BC. The seat of empire was thus transferred to Babylonia [33] for the first time since Hammurabi over a thousand years before.Na’aman, Nadav (1991). "Chronology and History in the Late Assyrian Empire (631–619 B.C.)". Zeitschrift für Assyriologie. 81 (1–2): 243–267. doi: 10.1515/zava.1991.81.1-2.243. S2CID 159785150.

Babylon remained a minor town in a small state until the reign of its sixth Amorite ruler, Hammurabi, during 1792–1750 BC (or c. 1728–1686 BC in the short chronology). [11] He conducted major building work in Babylon, expanding it from a small town into a great city worthy of kingship. A very efficient ruler, he established a bureaucracy, with taxation and centralized government. Hammurabi freed Babylon from Elamite dominance, and indeed drove the Elamites from southern Mesopotamia entirely, invading Elam itself. He then systematically conquered southern Mesopotamia, including the cities of Isin, Larsa, Eshnunna, Kish, Lagash, Nippur, Borsippa, Ur, Uruk, Umma, Adab, Sippar, Rapiqum, and Eridu. [12] His conquests gave the region stability after turbulent times, and coalesced the patchwork of small states into a single nation; it is only from the time of Hammurabi that southern Mesopotamia acquired the name Babylonia. [13] The Assyrian king Shalmaneser V was declared king of Babylon in 727 BC, but died whilst besieging Samaria in 722 BC.Eriba-Adad I Ashur-uballit I Enlil-nirari Arik-den-ili Adad-nirari I Shalmaneser I Tukulti-Ninurta I Ashur-nadin-apli Ashur-nirari III Enlil-kudurri-usur Ninurta-apal-Ekur Ashur-dan I Ninurta-tukulti-Ashur Mutakkil-Nusku Ashur-resh-ishi I Tiglath-Pileser I Asharid-apal-Ekur Ashur-bel-kala Eriba-Adad II Shamshi-Adad IV Ashurnasirpal I Shalmaneser II Ashur-nirari IV Ashur-rabi II Ashur-resh-ishi II Tiglath-Pileser II Ashur-dan II Followed by the collapse of the Sumerian "Ur-III" dynasty at the hands of the Elamites in 2002 BC, the Amorites ("Westerners"), a foreign Northwest Semitic-speaking people, began to migrate into southern Mesopotamia from the northern Levant, gradually gaining control over most of southern Mesopotamia, where they formed a series of small kingdoms, while the Assyrians reasserted their independence in the north. The states of the south were unable to stem the Amorite advance, and for a time may have relied on their fellow Akkadians in Assyria for protection. [ citation needed] Dandamaev, Muhammad A. (1989). A Political History of the Achaemenid Empire. Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-09172-6. Babylonian rule was restored by Nabû-mukin-apli in 977 BC, ushering in Dynasty VIII. Dynasty IX begins with Ninurta-kudurri-usur II, who ruled from 941 BC. Babylonia remained weak during this period, with whole areas of Babylonia now under firm Aramean and Sutean control. Babylonian rulers were often forced to bow to pressure from Assyria and Elam, both of which had appropriated Babylonian territory. Although animal husbandry was practiced throughout Mesopotamia, it was the most common form of farming in the south. In Uruk, animals, rather than some type of plant, were the main cash crop. Shepherds could be temple dependents or independent contractors and were entrusted with herds of either sheep or goats. Similar to other farmers working in connection to the temples, these shepherds had a set quota of lambs to provide for sacrificial purposes, with wool and hides also being used in the temples for various purposes. [70] Dairy products were less important since the animals would be unavailable for most of the year as the shepherds drove them across the land. Cows and oxen, rare in Mesopotamia due to being difficult to feed and maintain through the summer months, were mainly used as draft animals for plowing. Regions with a swampy environment, unsuited for farming, were used to hunt birds and fish. [53]

Cyrus now claimed to be the legitimate successor of the ancient Babylonian kings and the avenger of Bel-Marduk, who was assumed to be wrathful at the impiety of Naboni Main articles: Neo-Babylonian Empire and Chaldea The Neo-Babylonian Empire Panorama view of the reconstructed Southern Palace of Nebuchadnezzar II, 6th century BC, Babylon, Iraq Radner, Karen (2019). "Last Emperor or Crown Prince Forever? Aššur-uballiṭ II of Assyria according to Archival Sources". State Archives of Assyria Studies. 28: 135–142. Menkare Neferkare II Neferkare Neby Djedkare Shemai Neferkare Khendu Merenhor Neferkamin Nikare Neferkare Tereru Neferkahor Neferkare Pepiseneb Neferkamin Anu Qakare Ibi Neferkaure Neferkauhor Neferirkare

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Wunsch, Cornelia (2012). "Neo-Babylonian Entrepreneurs". The Invention of Enterprise: Entrepreneurship from Ancient Mesopotamia to Modern Times. Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-691-15452-7. The early Achaemenid rulers had great respect for Babylonia, regarding it as a separate entity or kingdom united with their own kingdom in something akin to a personal union. [34] The region was a major economical asset and provided as much as a third of the entire Achaemenid Empire's tribute. [35] Despite Achaemenid attention and the recognition of the Achaemenid rulers as kings of Babylon, Babylonia resented the Achaemenids, like the Assyrians had been resented a century earlier. At least five rebels proclaimed themselves King of Babylon and revolted during the time of Achaemenid rule in attempts at restoring native rule; Nebuchadnezzar III (522 BC), Nebuchadnezzar IV (521–520 BC), Bel-shimanni (484 BC), Shamash-eriba (482–481 BC) and Nidin-Bel (336 BC). [36] [37] [38] The revolt of Shamash-eriba against Xerxes I in particular is suggested by ancient sources to have had dire consequences for the city. Though no direct evidence exists [39], Babylon appears to have been severely punished for the revolt. Its fortifications were destroyed and its temples damaged as Xerxes ravaged the city. It is possible that the sacred statue of Marduk, which represented the physical manifestation of Babylon's patron deity, was removed by Xerxes from Babylon's main temple, the Esagila, at this time. Xerxes also divided the previously large Babylonian satrapy (composing virtually all of the Neo-Babylonian Empire's territory) into smaller sub-units. [37] Major cities of Lower Mesopotamia in the 1st century BC. Mesopotamia had already enjoyed a long history prior to the emergence of Babylon, with Sumerian civilization emerging in the region c. 5400 BC, and the Akkadian-speaking Semitic people who would go on to form Akkad, Assyria and Babylonia appearing somewhere between the 35th and 30th century BC. [3] Babylon did not begin to recover until late in the reign of Adad-shuma-usur (1216–1189 BC), as he too remained a vassal of Assyria until 1193 BC. However, he was able to prevent the Assyrian king Enlil-kudurri-usur from retaking Babylonia, which, apart from its northern reaches, had mostly shrugged off Assyrian domination during a short period of civil war in the Assyrian empire, in the years after the death of Tukulti-Ninurta.

Although Akkadian-language legal documents continued in a slightly reduced number through the rule of the Hellenic kings, they are rare from the period of Parthian rule. The astronomical diaries kept since the days of ancient Babylon survived through Persian and Hellenic rule but stopped being written in the middle of the 1st century BC. [43] It is likely that only a small number of scholars knew how to write Akkadian by the time of the Parthian kings, and the old Babylonian temples became increasingly undermanned and underfunded as people were drawn to the new Mesopotamian capitals, such as Seleucia and Ctesiphon. [44] And then he [Mursili I] marched to Aleppo, and he destroyed Aleppo and brought captives and possessions of Aleppo to Ḫattuša. Then, however, he marched to Babylon, and he destroyed Babylon, and he defeated the Hurrian troops, and he brought captives and possessions of Babylon to Ḫattuša."Nebuchadnezzar II also built a second palace, the North Palace, on the other side of the inner city wall. This palace also adjoined the Processional Street on its eastern side, but its ruins are poorly preserved and as such its structure and appearance are not entirely understood. There was also a third royal palace in the city, the Summer Palace, built some distance north of the inner city walls in the northernmost corner of the outer walls (also constructed by Nebuchadnezzar II). Non-royal palaces, such as the palace of a local governor at Ur, share design features with Babylon's South Palace but were considerably smaller in size. [88] Reconstruction of the Etemenanki, Babylon's great ziggurat. The latest dated document written in accordance with the old scribal tradition in Akkadian cuneiform is from 35 BC and contains a prayer to Marduk. The latest known other documents written in Akkadian are astronomic predictions (e.g. planetary movements) for the year 75 AD. The way the signs are written in these astronomic texts means that readers would not have to be familiar with Akkadian to understand them. [44] If the Akkadian language and Babylonian culture survived beyond these sparse documents, it was decisively wiped out c. 230 AD with the religious reforms introduced in the Sasanian Empire. By this time, the ancient Babylonian cult centres had already been closed and razed. Some temples had been closed during the early Parthian period, such as many temples in Uruk, whilst others lingered on to near the end of the Parthian Empire, such as the Esagila in Babylon. [45] Legacy of Babylon [ edit ] Partial view of the ruins of Babylon in modern-day Iraq. Cyrus claimed to be the legitimate successor of the ancient Babylonian kings and the avenger of Marduk, who Cyrus claimed to be wrathful at Nabonidus's supposed impiety. Cyrus's conquest was welcomed by the Babylonian populace, though whether it was because he was genuinely seen as a liberator or out of fear is unknown. Cyrus's invasion of Babylonia may have been helped along by the presence of foreign exiles such as the Jews. Accordingly, one of his first acts was to allow these exiles to return to their homelands, carrying with them the images of their gods and their sacred vessels. The permission to do so was explicitly written in a proclamation, today called the Cyrus Cylinder, wherein Cyrus also justified his conquest of Babylonia as the will of Marduk. [33] Aftermath and legacy [ edit ] Babylon under foreign rule [ edit ] Illustration of the inhabitants of Babylon deriding the Achaemenid king Darius I during the revolt of Nebuchadnezzar III in 522 BC. From the History of Darius the Great (1900) by Jacob Abbott. Frame, Grant (2013). "The Political History and Historical Geography of the Aramean, Chaldean, and Arab Tribes in Babylonia in the Neo-Assyrian Period". Arameans, Chaldeans, and Arabs in Babylonia and Palestine in the First Millennium B.C. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag. pp.87–121. Monumental architecture encompasses building works such as temples, palaces, ziggurats (a massive structure with religious connections, composed of a massive stepped tower with a shrine on top), city walls, processional streets, artificial waterways and cross-country defensive structures. [85] The Babylonian king was traditionally a builder and restorer, and as such large-scale building projects were important as a legitimizing factor for Babylonian rulers. [86] Due to the interests of early excavators of the ancient cities in Babylonia, most of the archaeological knowledge regarding the Neo-Babylonian Empire is related to the vast monumental buildings that were located in the hearts of Babylonia's major cities. This early bias has resulted in that the makeup of the cities themselves (such as residential areas) and the structure of smaller settlements remains under-researched. [87]