Evil-merodach. Neriglif far. he joined them to those he had already with him, and, without the leaft provocation, began to plunder and lay wafte the neighbouring country. Hereupon Aftyages the Mede, attended by his fon Cyaxares, his grandfon Cyrus, then near 16 years of age, and fuch troops as could be affembled on fo fudden an emergency, marched out to meet him, determined to repel force by force. The parties engaged, and Evil-merodach was put to the rout, and purfued, with great flaughter, quite home to his own borders. This happened when Cyrus was about 16 years old, and confequently 13 years before Nebuchadnezzar was deprived of his fenfes, and twenty before he returned to himself. We EVIL-MERODACH, in the very beginning of his reign, delivered Jehoiachin, the unhappy king of Judah, from the prifon to which he had been confined for the fpace of 37 years, and treated him ever afterwards as a king o. know nothing farther concerning him, except that, indulging himself in floth and wickedness, he was treacherously murdered by his fifter's husband Neriglissar, after he had reigned two years, and somewhat more P. NERIGLISSAR, Niriglifforoor, or Niricaffolaffurus 9, who is reprefented as the chief of the confpirators against Year of Evil-merodach, ufurped the throne. This prince, jeathe flood lous of the growing power of the Medes and Perfians, 1788. difpatched embaffadors into Lydia, Cappadocia, Phrygia, Bef. Chr. Caria, Paphlagonia, Cilicia, and even to the Indies, to 560. raife the like jealoufies in the princes of those countries, and ftir them up against the two above-mentioned nations, as their common enemies s. This obliged Cyazares to call Cyrus out of Perfia to his affiftance; who, upon his arrival with a body of 30,000 Perfians, was appointed commander in chief, both of the Medes and Perfians, in the impending war with the Babylonians. Three years were spent by both parties in forming alliances, and making preparations for war. In the beginning of the fourth, the Medes and Perfians on one fide, under the command of Cyrus, and the Babylonians on the other, with their allies, under the conduct of Neriglissar, and Crœfus king of Lydia, took the field. The Babylonian army confifted xed multitude of various nations. For Cræfus 31. XENOPH. Jerem. lii. king of Lydia came with 10,000 horfe, and upwards The confeof 40,000 light-armed foot; Artamas king of the greater derate arPhrygia brought 40,000 foot, moftly pikemen, and my under 8000 horfe; Aribaus king of Cappadocia led with him. him 6000 horse, and 30,000 foot, moftly armed with miffive weapons; Maragdas the Arabian conducted 10,000 horse, 100 chariots, and a great number of flingers m. These were the confederates of Neriglissar, and fuch the quotas they refpectively furnished. As for Neriglafar himself, he headed no more than 20,000 horfe, 200 chariots, and foot proportionable. Whether or no this confederate army received any farther addition, is not certain; but the Carians, Cilicians, Paphlagonians, and fome others, feem to have receded from their first engagements. The army of the Medes and the Perfians did not amount to above a third of that under the Babylonian king, till they were joined by a confiderable reinforcement under Tigranes the Armenian. In the midst of these great preparations for war, embaffadors arrived from India, to inquire into the grounds and causes of it, with an offer of mediation, if it might be accepted, and with a threat, in cafe it was rejected, of joining those who fhould appear to have the moft juftice on their fide". Medes and How this embaffy concluded, is uncertain; but the war War bebegan very much to the disadvantage of Nerigliffar; for tween him Cyrus fubdued the Chaldeans in the mountainous country, and the from whence they were wont to make their inroads upon the country of Armenia o. These Chaldeans, as they are Perfians. called, can have been no other than the proper Affyrians, who, for aught we know, may have been formerly fo called; but the proper Chaldæans, and their mountains, were at a great distance from any part of Armenia P. Thefe ChalChaldeans, according to our author's defcription, were deans next the moft valiant race of men in all these parts, carrying to Armeno other arms than a wicker fhield, and two javelins; and n'a. entered willingly into foreign pay, as being naturally addicted to war, and very poor; but they were fubdued by Cyrus, and obliged to make a peace with their next neighbours the Armenians, and, in a manner, to become the fame people with them 9. THE two armies now appeared in fight of each other : the Affyrians, or Babylonians, under Nerigliffar, encamp m Cyropæd. ib. 1. iii. p. 62-76. iii. p. 62-76. VOL. IV. " Cyropæd. ib. E e Cyropæd. ed ed and fortified themselves with ftrong retrenchments, while the Medes and Perfians covered themselves only with the villages and hills in the neighbourhood. In this posture they continued for fome days, till at length the Affyrians leaving their retrenchments, and drawing themBattle be- felves up in battle-array, Cyrus advanced to attack them; tween the and, clofing in with the enemy, broke through their fift Babylo battalions. The Babylonians, not able to ftand the shock, nians and immediately betook themselves to a precipitate flight. the Medes. Cyrus pursued them close to their entrenchments; but, not thinking himself in a condition to force them, he founded Neriglif- the retreat. But Neriglifsar was killed in the battle, and far flain. Cyrus, returning the next day to the charge, drove the Babylonians from their camp, killed great numbers of them, and took many prifoners, with the baggage of the whole army. THE death of Nerigliffar was a great lofs to the Baby lonians; for he was a prince of great courage, conduct, and wisdom; the preparations he made for the war fhewed his wifdom, and his dying in it his valour. But nothing made the Babylonians more fenfible of the lofs they had fuffered, than the tyrannical government of his fon and fucceffor Labore foarchod, Labafforafe, or Chabaffoarach who was in every refpect quite the reverse of his father, being addicted to all manner of wickedness, cruelty, and injuftice. Two acts of his cruelty towards two Babyle nian lords, Gobryas and Gadates, are particularly men tioned. The only fon of the former he flew at an hunting match, to which he had invited him, for no other reason, but because he pierced with his dart a wild beaft, which the king had miffed. The other he caused to be made a eunuch, because one of his concubines had commended him as an handsome man. These two acts of cruelty drove the two noblemen, with the provinces they govern ed, over to Cyrus, and haftened the conqueft of Babylo The king took the field against Gadates; but, being met by Cyrus, he was put to flight, and obliged to retire to his metropolis. Cyrus purfued him to the very walls of Baby lon, and there fhewed himself twice, in order to provoke him to battle. But, finding he could not draw him into the field, he spent the reft of the fummer in ravaging the country, and then marched back into Media. As foon as Cyrus was retired, Laborofoarchod, being now in no opæd. ib. & l. iv. p. 87-104. a Ibid. 1. iii. &ir. dread dread of the enemy, gave a loose to all the wicked inclinations, they were predominant in him; infomuch that his own fubjects, no longer able to bear his tyrannical government, confpired against him, and murdered him in the ninth month of his reign c. As he did not complete a year, he is omitted in the canon. LABOROSO ARCHOD was fucceeded by Nabonadius, who had the chief hand in the murder. He is called by Herodotus, Labynitus; by Abydenus, Nabannidochus; by Jofephus, Naboandal; and by the prophet Daniel, Belshazzar; as we shall fhew hereafter. He was the fon of Evil-merodach by Nitocris, and the grandfon of the great Nebuchadnezzar. Had he been left to himself, the Babylonians had not bettered themselves by the change of their monarch. But his mother Nitocris, who was a woman of extraordinary parts, took the main burden of all public affairs upon herfelf; and, while her fon followed his pleafures, did all that could be done, by human prudence, to preserve the tottering empire. She perfected the works, which Nebuchadnezzar had begun for the defence of Babylon, raised strong fortifications on the fide of the river, and caused a wonderful vault to be made under it, leading from the old palace to the new, twelve feet high, and fifteen wide. She likewife built a bridge cross the Euphrates, and did feveral other works, which were afterwards afcribed to Nebuchadnezzar . Philoftratus, in defcribing this bridge, tells us, that it was built by a queen, who was a native of Media; whence we may conclude this famed queen to have been by birth a Mede, though at the fame time it must seem ftrange, if fhe was of that country, that Evil-merodach, who had juft married her, or was upon the point of marrying her, fhould, at fuch a juncture, undertake the hoftilities against the Medes, which we have taken notice of above. Nitocris is faid to have placed her tomb over one of the most remarkable gates of the city, with an infcription to the following effect: IF ANY KING OF BABYLON AFTER ME SHALL BE IN DISTRESS FOR MONEY, HE MAY OPEN THIS SEPULCRE, AND TAKE OUT AS MUCH AS MAY SERVE HIM; BUT IF HE BE IN NO REAL NECESSITY, LET HIM FORBEAR, OR HE SHALL HAVE CAUSE TO REPENT IT. This monument and infcription are said to have remained untouched till the reign of Darius, who, d Vide PHILOSTRAT, in vit. BEROS. apud JOSEPH. 1. i. contra Apion. confider condering the gate was ufelefs, no man caring to go der a dead body, and being invited by the hopes of an immenfe treafure, broke it open; but, inftead of what he fought, is faid to have found nothing but a dead body; and another infcription, to the following effect: HADST THOU NOT BEEN MOST INSATIABLY AVARITIOUS, AND GREEDY OF THE MOST SORDID GAIN, THOU HADST NEVER VIOLATED THE A BODE OF THE DEAD (X). Thus far of Nitocris ; we must now return to her fon, and fee how the Babylonian empire ended under him. k HERODOTUS has a Labynitus, whom, in two places, he calls the king of the Babylonians, and a Labynitus, whom he calls emperor of Affyria, and reports to have derived his name from his father. It was, according to him, under this Labynitus that Babylon was taken. As for the Labynitus, who reconciled the Medes and Lydians, he could be no other than Nebuchadnezzar, as we have hinted above 1. as Of the reduction of this proud metropolis of the Eaft, in the reign of Nabonadius, Labynitus, or Belshazzar, we shall prove anon, authors give the following account. Cyrus, having fubdued the feveral nations inhabiting the great continent, from the Egaan fea to the Euphrates, and likewife Syria and Arabia, entered Affyria, and bent his march towards Babylon. Nabonadius, hearing that he was advancing to his metropolis, marched out to give him battle; but, being without much ado put to flight, he retreated to Babylon, where he was immediately blocked K HERODOT. 1. i. c. 187. (X) Plutarch (57) mentions this monument and infcription as belonging to Semiramis. Thus the fepulcre of Bel himfelf is faid to have been opened by Xerxes, who found nothing there but a glafs veffel almoft fell of oil, with a dead body ng in it, and an infcription all pillar hard by, That who fhould open it, arly repent of what one, if he did not 1 See before, p. 396. fill up the veffel with oil; which Xerxes in vain attempting, he went away heavy and fad, and experienced the efficacy of the threat, in his Grecian expedi tion. So Darius, by others, being faid to have opened the tomb of Semiramis, a pefti lence is reported to have iffued thence, and to have destroyed one third part of the race of men (58) Strange figments! ég mala, p. 173. (58) Vid. Purch, pilgr. part i. c. 12. p. 65, up, |