Nidintu-Bêl
(Akkadian Nabû-kudurri-usur; Old Persian Naditabira): son of
an official named Kîn-Zêr, proclaimed himself king of Babylonia
immediately after the Persian king Darius had
killed the Magian Gaumâta.
He claimed to be the son of Nabonidus, the
last king of independent Babylonia; from October 3, 522 BC, Nidintu-Bêl's
ruled under the throne name Nebuchadnezzar III. Immediately, Darius sent
an army against the rebel. The Babylonians were unable to prevent the Persians
from crossing the Tigris, and on December 13,
their army was defeated. A second battle took place near Zâzâna
on the Euphrates five days later; again, Darius'
army was victorious and Nidintu-Bêl was killed when Babylon was sacked.
The Behistun inscription is the most important source on these events; it even contains a statue of the Babylonian rebel king (picture). Unfortunately, this text is biased. There are several letters from Babylonia which mention Nidintu-Bêl, but they contain almost no useful information. The text of the Behistun inscription is also damaged: the name of the usurper's father can only be reconstructed from the Babylonian translation. The name "Aniri" that is sometimes read, is based on the damaged Persian text and incorrect.
