the friend of the mighty Persian. From that day neither Egypt nor
Chaldæa had any chance of victory on the battlefield. Nabonidus became a
mere vassal of Cyrus, and lived more or less inactively in his palace at
Tima, leaving the direction of power at Babylon in the hands of his son,
Bel-sharuzu.

At length the Babylonians grew weary of their king. Nabonidus had never
been popular, and the discontent of the people at length called for the
intervention of the suzerain. In 538 Cyrus moved against Babylon, and
Nabonidus now retreated into the city with his troops, and prepared for
a siege. But Cyrus, taking advantage of the time of the year when the
waters were lowest, diverted the Tigris, so that his soldiers were able
to enter the city without striking a blow. Nabonidus surrendered, and
Belsharuzur was slain. With him perished the second Chaldæan Empire.

The sagacious conqueror did not pillage the city, and treated the
citizens with clemency. Cyrus associated his son Cambyses with himself,
making him King of Babylon. Nothing in Babylon was changed, and she
remained what she had been since the fall of Assyria, the real capital
of the regions between the Mediterranean and the Zapcos. The Persian
dominion extended undisputed as far as the Isthmus of Suez. Under Cyrus
took place the first return of the Jews to Jerusalem.

According to Xenophon, the great Persian, in 529 B.C., died peaceably on
his bed, surrounded by his children, and edifying them by his wisdom;
but Herodotus declares that he perished miserably in fighting with the
barbarian hosts of the Massagetæ, on the steppes of Turkestan, beyond
the Arxes. He had believed that his destiny was to found an empire in
which all other ancient empires should be merged, and he all but
accomplished the stupendous task. When he passed away, Egypt alone