Nebuchadnezzar II
~634–562 BCE · Babylonian (modern-day Iraq) · Neo-Babylonian Empire
Known for: Destroyed Jerusalem's Temple, built the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, and created the greatest city of the ancient world
Nebuchadnezzar II rebuilt Babylon into the largest and most magnificent city on Earth—with the Ishtar Gate, the Processional Way, and (possibly) the Hanging Gardens. He destroyed Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem (586 BCE) and exiled the Jewish people to Babylon—the beginning of the Jewish Diaspora.
He defeated Egypt at the Battle of Carchemish and controlled an empire from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean. He ruled for 43 years during Babylon's golden age.
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