Babylon
Babylon is an ancient city located near the Euphrates River in present-day southern Iraq, specifically north of the modern town of Hillah. Historically significant as the capital of the Babylonian Empire, it thrived after its conquest by Cyrus II of Persia in 539 BCE, who established it as his winter residence. The city became a focal point for culture and commerce, attracting notable figures such as the Greek historian Herodotus around 450 BCE. Following the rise of Alexander the Great in 331 BCE, who briefly considered reviving Babylon's prominence, the city faced challenges due to conflicts during the Hellenistic period. Although it lost its title as a major trade hub to Seleucia, Babylon's religious sites were restored, and it continued to be influential in the realms of science and astronomy, with scholars contributing to Hellenistic knowledge. Despite its historical significance, accounts from later periods, including writings by Strabo and visits by the Roman Emperor Trajan, indicate that much of the city's former glory was diminished by then. Today, Babylon is recognized for its rich cultural heritage and historical importance in the ancient world.
Babylon
is situated on a branch of the river Euphrates a little to the north of the modern town of Hillah (southern Iraq), on a somewhat swampy site where there is a narrow land isthmus between the Euphrates and Tigris
Capital of the empire that bore its name, Babylon continued to prosper after its conquest by Cyrus II the Great of Persia (539), who made it his winter residence and the headquarters of the satrapy of Babylonia. Herodotus visited and described its sights in about 450.
During his conquest of the Persian empire, Alexander the Great entered Babylon without encountering resistance (331), and established a mint; but his plan to rebuild its religious pyramid (ziggurat) and make it the capital of his empire was suspended by his death (323). Two years later Seleucus became governor of the city, which suffered devastation, however, during the conflicts of the period and lost its position, as a major entrepôt of commerce between east and west, to the newly founded Seleucia on the Tigris. Nevertheless, the historic temple of Marduk at Babylon was lavishly restored by the Seleucid monarchs, who also revived the theocratic administration of the shrine in an attempt to gain popular goodwill. They also constructed a Greek theater in the city.
When the Parthians broke away from the Seleucid empire (c 247), Babylon passed into their hands, and remained important enough to have its own city-governor. Its scholars also played a significant part in the development of Hellenistic science. Eudoxus of Cnidus (c 390–340) had already familiarized the Greeks with the star-worship and astrological practices of the ancient Babylonians, and now Hipparchus of Nicaea (c 190–after 126), the greatest astronomer of antiquity, employed records of eclipses preserved by the school of astronomy which still flourished at Babylon. But when Strabo wrote about the city, and Trajan visited it in AD 116, there was little left to see.
See map ofThe East.