Nebuchadnezzar II
Nebuchadnezzar II
- Frauke Weiershäuser
Summary
Nebuchadnezzar II was one of the most famous Babylonian kings and the most prominent ruler of the Neo-Babylonian period. After inheriting the throne from his father Nabopolassar, he successfully ruled Babylonia for more than forty years. During this time, he secured and enlarged the empire that his father had founded, strengthened Babylonian military dominance in the Levant against Egypt, claimed supremacy over Judah by conquering its capital, Jerusalem, twice and exiled the upper stratum of Judah’s population in Babylonia. According to extant sources, the main focus of Nebuchadnezzar’s politics was in the Syro-Palestine area; little is known about his policies towards his eastern neighbour Media. In Babylonia, Nebuchadnezzar sponsored large-scale construction work all over the country, but he paid special attention to his capital, Babylon, which he transformed into the most splendid and world-famous megacity, a metropolis that was praised centuries later and is still the basis for the modern image of Babylon.
Subjects
- Near East