Babylon through the Ages
To fully understand the monuments of Babylon, it is helpful to know some of the culture and history which preceded the construction of such buildings. The story of Babylon takes place in the land of Mesopotamia, or the land between two rivers. This is generally considered the land between and around the rivers of Tigris and Euphrates in present day Iraq. Since this region of the world has been one of the longest inhabited areas, the archaeological record can be at times rather muddied. From the fourth century BC until the middle of the first century BC, Babylon existed either as a vassal, a ruler, or rubble.
While studying Babylonian history, it interesting to note the brevity of each kingdom. It seems that an empire was only a super power during the lifetime of one of its rulers and otherwise was either in decline or emerging importance. The entire region was filled with battles and uprisings with each victorious people only in control for less than two hundred years before someone else would conquer the region.
There are principally two periods in history when Babylon was the center of an empire. This was during the First Supremacy of Babylon (c. 1792-1595 BC) primarily under Hammurabi, the Lawgiver, and during the Neo-Babylonians (c. 626-539 BC) first started by Nabopolassar and most famous for Nebuchadnezzar. (Macqueen pp. 245-246) Altogether, Babylon was the capital of an empire for less than three hundred years with almost one thousand years between occurrences. However, Babylon played an important role in the shaping of the history and culture of the region regardless of its military power. The map in Figure 1 (World Atlas 1993 combined with King, 1969, pp. 340) shows present day Iraq with ancient cities superimposed alongside. Babylonia is generally considered the area surrounding the Tigris and Euphrates junction, though this was only a small part of the empire. To the north of Babylonia can be found both Assur and Nineveh, major cities in the Assyrian empire. Borsippa to the south of Babylon was initially thought to contain the Biblical Tower of Babel during the Middle Ages.
King Nebuchadnezzar was a powerful man, ruler of almost the entire Middle East. His power stretched from Turkey in the north to the Mediterranean Sea in the West to Egypt in the south and the Zagros Mountains in the east. His father, Nabopolassar, had won the Babylonian kingdom by joining the Medes and overthrowing the Assyrian empire. The Medes and Babylonians remained strong, trusted allies until after Nebuchadnezzar’s death. Because of this alliance, each kingdom could concentrate on only three of its borders and have a protected fourth. The relationship was so harmonious that Nebuchadnezzar married the daughter of Cyaxares, the Median king. It was for this wife for whom the Hanging Gardens were built. However, towards the end of Nebuchadnezzar’s life, he began to suspect the Medes and started fortifying his eastern border. Less than fourteen years after his death, the Medes did indeed attack and conquer the city of Babylon.