This left the Babylonian army in an untenable position and it soon surrendered. In the meantime, Ugbaru, the commander of the Persian forces that had captured Babylon, had taken good care that his men would not plunder or otherwise harm the city. He had even made sure that the temple rites continued to be observed. Nonetheless, it still took Cyrus almost a month before he proceeded towards the city. As many Babylonian officials as well as the Babylonian administrative system stayed in place after the transition of power, it has been surmised that this time was spent on negotiations with representatives from the city;[1] this is similar to what happened when the Neo-Chaldean king Sargon II and later Alexander the Great took the city.[2]
- ↑ J. Wiesehöfer, "Kontinuität oder Zäsur? Babylon under den Achaimeniden", in J. Renger (ed.), Babylon: Focus Mesopotamischer Geschichte, Wiege früher Gelehrsamheit, Mythos in der Moderne (Saarbrücken: SDV 1999), 167-88; M. Jursa, "The transition of Babylonia from the Neo-Babylonian empire to Achaemenid rule", in H. Crawford (ed.), Regime change in the ancient Near East and Egypt: From Sargon of Agade to Saddam Hussein (New York: Oxford University Press 2007), 73-94.
- ↑ Kuhrt 2007 ("'Ex oriente lux'...").