cheenc03a.pdf

SENNAGHERIB
Sennacherih then proceeded to conquer the country:city
by city. He seems to have had to fight with a number
of tribes. Urbi. Aramu, and Chaldeans, who had
occupied Erech. Nippur, Kisu. YarBaglialamaand Cutha,
and boasts of having captured 89 strong citier as well
as 820 smaller cities in Chaldea. On his return to
Babylon he had to pacify thecountry, and rescue it from
the hordes of Aramean and Chald~an peoples, who
would not acknowledee him as kine.
It is evident that Asavria had comolerelv lost control
. .
This doubtless marked the commencement of the reconquest.
But the campaign clearly lasted beyond 702
B.c., when Sennacherib set Bel~ihni on the throne of
Babylon. This prince had been brought up at the
Assyrian court, hut was of the old Babylonian reed
royal, for all the sources acknowledge him as legitimate
monarch, and the Babylonian Kings' List ascribes him
to 'the dynasty of Babylon,' and giver him a reign of
three years. He was, of course, a vassal king.
Sennacherib assigns to this period the submission of
NahO-MbiumBte, h2pu of HararOti, and the destruction
of Hirimmu. Some of Sennacherib's inscripiionr follow
the plan of presenting together the events connected
with one district. Thus we learn that after B@l-ih"1
had proved faithless or inefficient, Sennacherib once
more marched to Babylon and deposed him, setting
Aiur-"adidin-sum. his own son, on the throne. The Babylonian
Chronicle places the pillage of HararZite and
Hirimmu in 702 B.c., and associates the accession of
Aiur-"&din-Bum with Sennacheriws pillage of Akkad,
or Northern Babylonia. MI-ihnl war called away to
hisyria. It w.v probably during Sennacherib's absence
in the Wert that BPI-ibnl became disgraced. Aiur-
"idin-ium was acknowledged king in Babylon according
to all sources ; but the Kings' List assigns him to the
dynartyof Habigal. Hereigned six years. 699.693 B.C.
Sennacherib owed Elam a grudge for supporting
Merodach~halvdan aeainrt - him. In his second campaign,
ns he calls it, before September 702 B.c., when
the Bellino Cylinder is dated, he marched an army
towards Elam. The KaiBi, who had once furnished
the ruling dynasty of Babylonia, about 1725-1155 B.C..
and a neighbouring tribe, the Iasubigalli, on the borders
of Babylonia and Elam. who had never been subjected
to Assyrian rule, were now ravaged. The neighbouring
kingdom of Ellipi, once subject to Sargon, was also
pillaged. As in Sargon's cure, some distant tribes of
the Xedes sent ~resents. Sennacherib boasts that his
predecessors hah not even heard the names of these
peoples. But although Ekm was threatened, it doer
not seem thnt Sennacherib made any direct attack thin
time. Hi5 hands were soon full in another qurter.
HOW long the west had been in rehellion doe5 not
appear; but Sennacherib calls the campaign in which
he proceeded to bring the Wert to rubmirrion his third.
Thls is ascribed by general consent to Tor B.C. B&libnl
war settled in Babylon. and Sennacherib was free
to attend to the West at that time; but we have no
explicit statement of date from cuneiform sources The
first move was against TF~. Eulul~ur, whom Sennacherih
calls Lull king of Sidon. according to Menander.
Y quoted by Jorephun. had gone to Citium in Cyprus
to establish his authority. He was thus committing a
technical act of war against Sennsrherib. The latter
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SENNAGHERIB
doer not state the grounds of his quarrel. But douhtless
all the West had become very backward in payment
of tribute. Sennacherib says that Lull Red from Tyre
to Cyprns and that all his country fell into Assyrian
hands. Great Sidonand LittleSidon, Reth~zait, Sarept4
Mahalliba. UBB Achrih, and Accho are named as
fortresses captured from Lull. Sennacherib set up
Ethobal as vassal king over a new kingdom of Sidon.
Tyre he could not reduce.
The vassal kings and semi-independent rulers of Syria
and Palestine now hastened to secure exemption from
pillage by tribute and submission. Menahem of SamrimurGna,
Abdi-li'ti of Arind, Urumilki of Gebal, Mitinti
of Arhdod, Pudu-ilu of Ammo", Kemui-"ad?h of
Moab, Airammu of Edon, all called kings of the Mzrtuland,
submitted. Sidka of AshkcLon stwd out, was
captured and with all his belongings carried to Arsyria.
He had apparently come to the throne by a revolution
which had expelled Sarru-lbdari, son of Rulii~ti. whom
Tiglath-pilerrr 111. had set over Ashkelon, about 734
ec. Hence he probably expected no mercy if he submitted.
Sam-lO&ri was reinstated. Sennacherib then
reduced Beth-dagan, Joppa, Benebarka, and Azor which
had been under Sidka's rule.
'The nobles and people of Ekron had rebelled against
their king Padl, a faithful vassal of Assyria, put him in
chains, and sent him to Hezrkiah, king of Judah, to
keep in prison. When Sennacherib advanced against
Ekro", he was faced by a great army of the kings of
Muyur, with irwps, archers, chariots, and horsemen
from Meluhha. This arm" he defeated at Eltekeh.
capturing thesons ofthe kinisof Muyur and the generals
rent from Meiuhba. He then stormed Eltekeh and
Timnafh.
~ ~
Ekron soon submitted. After wioine . - out
the conspirators and enslaving their supporters Sennaeherib
reinstated Padl, whom he says he ' brought forth
out of Jerusalem.'
Sennacherib then proceeded to ravage Judah, capturing
forty-six great fortresses and smaller citier 'without
number,' 'counting as spoil' zoo.150 people. He doer
not claim to have captltied Jerusalem. He says of
Hezekiah. 'him, like a caged bird, within Jerusalem,
his capital, I shut in, iorrr againrt him I raised, and I
repulsed ,,,hoeuer came out of his city gate and torr it
UP': but tilere is no mmtionof capture. The captured
cit,es were annexed to the dominions of Metinti of
Ashdod, Pad1 of Ekron, and Silli-bPI of Gara. What
canred Sennacherib to leave Judah we are not told : but
it in nearly certain that troubles in Babylon were again
pressing. The army left behind under the Tartan and
Rabrhakeh would be well able to carry on a siege ; but
Hezekiah would not push matters to the point of stmding
a long siege. He did submit, as is erident from
the tribute which. Sennacherib says, x~as sent aher him
to Nineveh. It amounted to 30 talents of gold, 800
talent3 of silver, and an enormous amount of precious
rtonesand palacefurniture.besides Heickiah'sdaughters,
his eunuchs, musicians, etc. Sennacherib's account of
the submission reems to imply thnt it was the Urhi.
Arabs whom He~ekiah had received into the city to
strengthen it, who really gave in, and so forced the
king to submit. They may have been a garrison from
Melubba. These events are recorded on Cylinder B.
which is dated in the Eponymy of Mirunu. 700 z.c.
That the account is complete no one can pretend. It
makes no mention of Lachirh, although the celebrated
scene of Sennacherib receiving the ~uhmirsion of that
~ity shows the great importance attached by him to its
capture. Whether Lachish was one of the forty-six
great fortresrer, or not, it reems probable, ar it was
only lo m. or so from Eltekeh, that it was captured in
this expedition.
What war the exact nature of BCI-ihnl's fault we do
not know ; but Merodach-baludan's activity in the Sealand
and the unrest of Marduk-uitzib in Chaldzea
caused Sennacherib to attack the southern portion of
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