Babylonian revolts (484 BC)

Babylonian revolts (484 BC)
Part of the Babylonian revolts against the Persian Empire
The Daiva inscription of Xerxes I (c.  480 BC), which records the suppression of a religious revolt somewhere in the Achaemenid Empire. It might be a reference to the revolts of Bel-shimanni and Shamash-eriba.[1]
Date July – October 484 BC (3 months) Location Babylonia Result Decisive Achaemenid victory Babylon and other cities punished; extent of punishment unclear Division of the large Babylonian satrapy into smaller units Targeted revenge against supporters of the revolts Persians encourage local cults in Babylonia to diminish the religious hegemony of Babylon in the region
Belligerents
Babylon Sippar Borsippa Kish Dilbat Other Babylonian cities	Achaemenid Empire
Commanders and leaders
Shamash-eriba Bel-shimanni	Xerxes I
Strength
Unknown	Unknown

The Babylonian revolts of 484 BC were revolts of two rebel kings of Babylon, Bel-shimanni (Akkadian: Bêl-šimânni)^[1] and Shamash-eriba (Akkadian: Šamaš-eriba),^[1] against Xerxes I, king of the Persian Achaemenid Empire.

Babylonia had been conquered by the Persians in 539 BC, but through the fifty-five years of Persian rule, the Babylonians had grown dissatisfied with their foreign overlords. Babylon's prestige and significance had diminished as the Persian kings did not become absorbed by the native Babylonian culture and continued to rule from capitals outside of Babylonia. Furthermore, the Persian kings failed in the traditional duties of the Babylonian king in that they rarely partook in Babylon's rituals (which required the presence of a king) and rarely gave cultic gifts in Babylonian temples. Babylonian letters written shortly before the revolt paint a picture of dissatisfaction and concern, as the Persians withdrew the income of Babylonian temple officials without explanation and tax pressures and exploitation of resources increased throughout Babylonia. It is possible that the revolts were not just motivated by a wish to re-establish an independent Babylonian kingdom, but that the revolts also had religious undertones, something which might connect them to a religious uprising somewhere in the Persian Empire written about in Xerxes's inscriptions.

The revolt began in July 484 BC, the fourth month of Xerxes's second year as king. The citizens of Sippar (north of Babylon) proclaimed Shamash-eriba as king of Babylon and he also took for himself the title king of the Lands. In the same month, a second rebel king, Bel-shimanni, was recognised in Borsippa and Dilbat (south of Babylon). Shamash-eriba was still in control of Sippar at this point, which means that the two rebels were contemporaries, either allies or, more likely, rivals. Bel-shimanni's revolt was brief, only lasting about two weeks, most probably either being defeated by Shamash-eriba or willingly giving up his claim and joining with the northern rebel. By September, Shamash-eriba was recognised not only in Sippar and Borsippa, but also in Kish and Babylon itself. The Persians defeated him in October and re-established control of Babylonia.

The extent to which Babylon and the Babylonians were reprimanded by Xerxes is unclear. Traditionally, historians have ascribed widespread destruction to the aftermath of the revolts, with Xerxes supposedly having greatly damaged the temples of Babylon and removing the Statue of Marduk, Babylon's main cult image, from the city. The veracity of such claims is unclear, as no evidence exists whatsoever of any damage being done to the cities of Babylonia in 484 BC. Other forms of retribution are evident from the historical evidence; the text archives of a majority of Babylonia's most prominent families end in 484 BC, suggesting targeted revenge against the supporters of the revolts. Additionally, the Persians appear to have worked on dismantling the religious hegemony Babylon held over Babylonia by encouraging the rise of local cults in other Mesopotamian cities, most notably in Uruk.