Unlike the four men who sat on the throne of Babylon before him, Nabonidus, whose name means "The god Nabû is praised" (Akk. Nabû-naʾid), did not have any direct or even indirect family connection whatsoever with his predecessors (see below for further details); he did, however, according to his own inscriptions, serve at the royal court, starting in the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II.[[17]] When Lâbâši-Marduk, Neriglissar's young and unqualified son, succeeded his father as king, the nobles, courtiers, and Babylonian elite were unhappy and plotted almost immediately to have him removed from the throne. During Lâbâši-Marduk's second or third month as king, these men staged a coup against him and placed an older and more experienced man on the throne: Nabonidus.[[18]] Despite being over fifty (or sixty) years old,[[19]] Nabonidus proved to be a suitable choice since he, together with his son Belshazzar (Akk. Bēl-šarru-uṣur), ruled over Babylonia for seventeen years.
Contrary to popular belief, which has generally been heavily influenced by a handful of later pro-Cyrus sources (for example, the Cyrus Cylinder and the propagandistic Verse Account), Nabonidus, Babylon's last native king.[[20]] was a rather successful ruler. Not only did he lead his army on far-flung campaigns, he undertook numerous building activities in Babylonia's most important cult centers and ensured that his land prospered and was financially stable. Nabonidus managed to accomplish a great deal during his tenure as king. Only the highlights of his life and career are provided here.[[21]]
17 Because Nabonidus was undoubtedly one of the most vibrant personalities of ancient Mesopotamia, it is little surprise that his life and times have received a great deal of scholarly attention. For some recent biographies of him, see, for example, Beaulieu, Nabonidus; D'Agostino, Nabonedo; Dandamaev, RLA 9/1–2 (1998) pp. 6–11; Da Riva, GMTR 4 pp. 16–18; Sack, Studies Astour pp. 455–473; Schaudig, Studies Kienast pp. 447–497; and Weisberg, Studies Astour pp. 547–556.
18 According to Nabonidus 3 (Babylon Stele) v 1´–7´, "they (the courtiers) brought me (Nabonidus) inside the palace, and all of them fell limp at my feet and (then) kissed my feet. They constantly blessed me being king." Further details about the coup against Lâbâši-Marduk and Nabonidus' ascent to the throne would have been described in the now-missing portion of col. v of that basalt stele. That same inscription records that Nabonidus not only served Nebuchadnezzar II, but also Neriglissar, stating: "I am the strong envoy of Nebuchadnezzar (II) and Neriglissar, the kings who came before me. Their troops are entrusted to my hand" (Nabonidus 3 [Babylon Stele] v 14´–20´). The Adad-guppi stele (Nabonidus 2001 ii 44–48) also records that Nabonidus served both of those kings. These statements, although they come from biased, self-aggrandizing sources, indicate that Nabonidus, like Neriglissar, had years of experience before sitting on the throne. The first known archival text dated to Nabonidus as king of Babylonia is dated to the 26th of June 556 (18-III, Strassmeier, Nbn. 1), for a discussion of the last texts dated to Lâbâši-Marduk and the first tablets dated to Nabonidus, see Frame, Studies Rochberg pp. 287–295.
19 H. Schaudig (Studies Kienast p. 10) suggests that Nabonidus was born ca. 620 and was about sixty-five years of age when he became king. M. Dandamaev (RLA 9/1–2 [1998] p. 7) proposes that he was born ca. 610 and, thus, was about fifty-five when he ascended the throne. In any case, Nabonidus was (by the standards of the time) quite old when he became king.
20 Although Achaemenid Persian rule over Babylonia (539–331) was relatively stable, there were a few, short-lived attempts to place a Babylonian on the throne. In 522, Nidinti-Bēl, a man claiming to be the son of Nabonidus and assuming the name of Nebuchadnezzar III, briefly declared himself king when Cyrus II's son Cambyses II died; he was defeated and killed by Darius I. One year later, in 521, a certain Nebuchadnezzar IV revolted and declared himself king; he too was quickly defeated. During the second regnal year of Xerxes I (484), Šamaš-erība and Bēl-šimânni led revolts in Babylonian; both attempts were unsuccessful.
21 See n. 17 for recent biographies of Nabonidus.
Frauke Weiershäuser & Jamie Novotny
Frauke Weiershäuser & Jamie Novotny, 'Nabonidus', RIBo, Babylon 7: The Inscriptions of the Neo-Babylonian Dynasty, The RIBo Project, a sub-project of MOCCI, 2022 [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/ribo/babylon7/rinbe2introduction/nabonidus/]