The Battle of Opis ended Neo-Babylonian independence, allowing Cyrus the Great to absorb Babylonia into the Achaemenid Empire.
Key Facts
- Date
- September 539 BC
- Location
- Opis, north of Babylon (modern-day Iraq)
- Outcome
- Decisive Persian victory
- Aftermath
- Sippar surrendered; Babylon entered without resistance
- Result
- Cyrus proclaimed king of Babylonia
- Empire absorbed
- Entirety of the Neo-Babylonian Empire
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Babylonia remained the last major independent power in Western Asia not yet under Persian control. The Achaemenid Empire under Cyrus the Great launched an invasion of Mesopotamia to bring Babylonia under Persian dominion, setting the stage for a decisive military confrontation near the strategically important riverside city of Opis, north of the Babylonian capital.
In September 539 BC, Persian and Neo-Babylonian forces clashed at or near Opis in what became the final major military engagement of the Persian conquest of Babylonia. The battle resulted in a decisive victory for Persia, effectively breaking Babylonian military resistance and opening the path to the heartland of the Neo-Babylonian Empire.
Following the Persian victory at Opis, the city of Sippar surrendered to Persian forces, and Babylon itself was reportedly entered without further armed resistance. Cyrus the Great was subsequently proclaimed king of Babylonia and its subject territories, ending Babylonian independence and fully incorporating the Neo-Babylonian Empire into the Achaemenid Empire.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Cyrus the Great.
Side B
1 belligerent