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402 THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA

Babylonia

was still the chief city of the The development of the kingdom which Hammurabi had founded was continued the city of Babylon

southern kingdom.

during the second dynasty of Babylon, at the end of which (about 1780 b.c.) a foreign dynasty known as the Kassites came to the throne. The Kassites had come originally from the mountains of Elam and they furnished to Babylonia some kings eminent as warriors and in the The arts of peace. Among them were

Kassites.

Kadashman-Bel

(about 1400 b.c), spondence with the kings of Egypt.

During

the

and

Burnaburiash

who were

in corre-

Not

until 625 b.c.

402 was a

fresh lease of life given

and the king who began it was in all probability a Chaldean. Nabopolassar (625-605 B.C.) gave a rallying point to the independNabopo- ent life of the country, and threw off the Assyrian yoke with such energy lassar. and success as at once to establish a new world-empire and to destroy the once powerto

Babylonia



His son (see Nebuchadnezzar) carried on his plans with notable success, and was succeeded by Evil-Merodach (561-560 b.c), and he by Nergalsharezer (559-556 b.c); but the power that Nabopoful Assyria.

lassar had made dominant over the best of the world

576

was now

years 1hat this dynasty ruled over Babylonia the king-

in decay.

After Labashi-Mar-

duk

(556 B.C.),

dom of Assyria achieved complete independence, and the power of Baby-

Na-

became reigned .c) with devotion

waned greatThe dynasties

on and but without that followed (dyMagic Bowl with Hebrew Inscriptions, Found Among the political wisdom. Ruins of Babylon. nasty 4 of Isin, A new power had " (From Revue de8 Etudes Jiiiyes.") dynasty 5 of the arisen in Elam and Sea Lands, dynasty Cyrus, who began 6 of Bazi) produced few men of the highest rank to reign as king of Anshan, had become king of either as warriors or as organizers; and modern Media in 549 B.C., and shortly afterward king of knowledge of the latter part of the period is more or Persia. In 545 b.c he had conquered Lydia, and The seventh dynasty had but one less fragmentary. Babylonia was threatened. Revolts against Naboniking, an Elamite of unknown name (about 1030 b.c), dns in Babylonia opened the way for Cyrus; and in and during the eighth dynasty the power gradually 538 b.c Nabonidus fell into his hands and could no drifted into the hands of Assyria. In 729 B.c.Tiglathlonger call himself " king of Babylonia." So ended pileser III. of Assyria was also king of Babylonia, the native rule of a mighty Semitic kingdom, which and thenceforward Babylonia had no life of its own for 5,000 years had piled up wealth, furthered civilonia

ly.

science,



(see Assyria).

lization,

and ministered

to peace.

Babylonia, far