15,697
edits
Changes
→Croesus on the Throne
“Croesus now attempted to win the favour of the Delphian Apollo by a magnificent sacrifice. Of every kind of appropriate animal he slaughtered three thousand; he burnt in a huge pile a number of precious objects – couches overlaid with gold or silver, golden cups, tunics, and other richly coloured garments – in the hope of binding the god more closely to his interest; and he issued a command that every Lydian was also to offer a sacrifice according to his means.” <ref> Herodotus, p. 21</ref>
Believing that he had adequately paid the Oracle enough to get the answer he desired, Croesus then developed an alliance with Sparta, Babylon, Egypt, and Media against Persia. <ref> Kuhrt, p. 569</ref> When Croesus led Lydia against Persia in the Persian-Lydian War of 546-541 BC, he clearly overestimated the influence of his wealth. With the exception of mainland Greece, the Persians gobbled up all opposing kingdoms and took the richest man in the world as their captive. According to Herodotus, after a miraculous scene of divine intervention, the Persian King Cyrus allowed Croesus to live at his court. <ref> Herodotus, pgs. 40-41</ref> The Babylon Chronicle on the other had states that Cyrus conquered Lydia and “killed its king, took his possessions, put (there) a garrison of his own. <ref> Pritchard, James B., trans. <i> [https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0691147264/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0691147264&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=ddb6ea9b5a3027fa5dad4f130e56f55c Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament].</i> 3rd ed. (Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1992), p. 306 </ref> It will probably never be known what happened to Croesus, but the reference in the Babylonian Chronicle to Cyrus taking his possessions seems quite likely. It would stand to reason that once Cyrus deprived Croesus of his wealth and kingdom there would have been little reason to keep him alive.
===Conclusion===
