Nabonidus was the last king of Babylon before the Persian conquest in 539 BCE.
He ruled the Neo-Babylonian Empire from 556 to 539 BCE. Unlike many Babylonian kings, Nabonidus showed unusual interest in restoring ancient temples and studying the history of earlier Mesopotamian rulers. He spent much of his reign away from Babylon at Tayma in northern Arabia, leaving his son Belshazzar to manage affairs in the capital.
The Persian king Cyrus the Great captured Babylon in 539 BCE. Babylonian records describe the takeover as comparatively peaceful, and Nabonidus was later taken into Persian custody. Belshazzar is sometimes mistakenly called Babylon’s last king because the Book of Daniel gives him a prominent role, but historically he was Nabonidus’s son and co-regent, not the reigning monarch.
Nabonidus is also known for excavating and restoring older buildings, making him an important early example of a ruler interested in antiquity.