Ugbaru was made governor of Babylon, but died three weeks after its fall. In 538 BC Cyrus appointed his son Cambyses II (r.530-522 BC) as king of Babylon, but for unknown reasons removed him from office nine months later. The central and southern parts of Babylonia remained under the control of Cyrus or his officials.
Immediately after Darius-I (c.64; r.522-486 BC) came to power the Babylonians started to revolt. Nidintu-Bel, claiming to be the son of Nabonidus, began to reign under the name of Nebuchadnezzar (III). Darius led the campaign against the insurgents and won the first battle on 13 December 522 BC on the banks of the Tigris. Five days later he won another victory at Zazarna on the Euphrates. Nidintu-Bel was captured and executed. In August 521 BC an insurgency by the Babylonians was led by an Armenian (Urartian) called Arakha, son of Haldita, who also claimed to be Nebuchadnezzar (IV), son of Nabonidus. To subdue the Babylonians, Darius sent an army headed by his general Vindafarna. On 27 November 521 BC Arakha’s army was crushed and he was put to death.
During the second year of the reign of Xerxes-I (c.54; r.486-465 BC) an insurrection broke out in Babylonia headed by Bel-shimanni. The revolt was easily suppressed (possibly after two weeks) and initiators punished, but Xerxes refrained from harsh retaliation. In the summer of 482 BC the Babylonians revolted under the leadership of Shamash-eriba. Xerxes sent his brother-in-law Megabyzus to crush the rebellion. The siege of Babylon lasted for several months and apparently came to a conclusion in March 481 BC. Shamash-eriba and the other rebels were put to death.
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