Nabopolassar

Nabopolassar (Akkadian: Nabû-apla-uṣur) was a Chaldean noble who founded the Neo-Babylonian Empire and ruled as king of Babylon from 626/625 BCE until his death in 605 BCE. He rose to power during the decline of the Assyrian Empire and established a new Babylonian state with Babylon as its capital.

In 626 BCE, Nabopolassar led a revolt against Assyrian authority and, in alliance with the Median kingdom under Cyaxares, united Babylonia against a common foe. The combined forces shattered much of the Assyrian heartland, culminating in the sack of Nineveh in 612 BCE and contributing to the weakening and eventual dissolution of the Assyrian state by the mid-6th century BCE.

Nabopolassar’s reign consolidated the Neo-Babylonian state and restored Babylon as a major power in Mesopotamia. He reorganized administration, revived royal cults, and laid the foundations for a centralized monarchy capable of sustaining extended military campaigns. His efforts established the dynasty of Nabopolassar, of which his son Nebuchadnezzar II would become the most famous ruler, expanding the empire and pursuing ambitious architectural and military projects.

Nabopolassar died in Babylon in 605 BCE, and Nebuchadnezzar II succeeded him. In modern scholarship, Nabopolassar is regarded as the founder of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, a revival of Babylonian power after Assyrian dominance, and the progenitor of a dynasty that would dominate Mesopotamia for several decades.