7-2 Chaldeans

Chaldeans
Chaldea also spelled Chaldaea, Assyrian Kaldu, Babylonian Kasdu, Hebrew Kasddim. Chaldeans were warriors. The Chaldean regime was the last to rule in Babylon.

Nebuchadnezzar
He was known for his military might, the splendor of his capital, Babylon, and his important part in Jewish history. Nebuchadnezzar, became king of the Chaldeans in 604 B.C Nebuchadnezzar reconstructed Babylon, making it the largest, richest, and most impressive city of its day. The tremendous city walls were wide enough at the top to have rows of small houses on either side. In the center of Babylon ran the famous Procession Street, which passed through the Ishtar Gate. This arch, which was adorned with brilliant tile animals, is the best remaining example of Babylonian architecture. The immense palace of Nebuchadnezzar towered terrace upon terrace, each resplendent with masses of ferns, flowers, and trees. These roof gardens, the famous Hanging Gardens of Babylon, were so beautiful that they were regarded by the Greeks as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. He also Rebuilt the great temple-tower or ziggurat, the Biblical "Tower of Babel,"

625 BC	Nabopolassar defeats Assyrians and founds Chaldean dynasty
616-610 BC? 605-594 BC?	Campaigns of Nabopolassar against Assyria (and Egypt)
612 BC	Chaldeans level Nineveh with help of Medes
609 BC	Assyrians crushed by Medes and Babylonians
605 BC	Nebuchadrezzar defeated the Egyptians at Carchemish
604 BC	Nebuchadnezzar, became king of the Chaldeans
597 BC	Nebuchadrezzar II besieged Jerusalem and captured the city and its king. Zedekiah was appointed as regent. 3,000 Jews were deported to Mesopotamia.
586 BC	Zedekiah revolted against Babylonian hegemony. Nebuchadrezzar II besieged Jerusalem again as he had a decade before. After eighteen months Zedekiah was captured trying to escape. His sons were killed; he was blinded and deported with thousands of Jews to Babylon.. Jerusalem was looted; its walls were broken down; and the temple was destroyed.
585 BC	NebuchadrezzarII mediated a truce between Medes and Lydians.
586 BC	Nebuchadrezzar II invades Egypt.
562 BC	Nebuchadnezzar II was the last great Mesopotamian ruler, Chaldean power quickly crumbled after his death.
555 BC	Babylon came under the control of a king loyal to the Assyrians, Nabonidus (555-539 BC),
539 BC	Gates of Babylon opened to Cyrus the Persian.

Religion
Each spring a gold statue of Marduk was wheeled through the streets. It was believed it would make their crops grow.

Babylon
In the center of the city stood palaces and temples. A 300 foot ziggurat with its gold roof could be seen for miles. The king's palace had hanging gardens. Nebuchadnezzar had built it for his wife. Outside the center stood houses and marketplaces. Babylon was the busiest center of trade at this time connecting Egypt, Phoenicia, and Syria to Cyprus, Asia Minor, and Elam. Weighed silver was the primary currency, as there were no minted coins. In the sixth century BC while most people were suffering hardship, powerful capitalists arose, particularly the Egibi family in Babylon, with fortunes in real estate, slaves, money-lending, commerce, agriculture, and banking. These inequities were probably factors in Babylon's loss of political autonomy.

Artisans
Pottery, cloth, and baskets

Science
Babylonian astronomers made one of the first sundials and they were the first to have a seven-day week. Chaldean priests - whose interest in astrology so greatly added to the astronomical knowledge that the word "Chaldean" came to mean astronomer