Siege of Jerusalem
587 BCE · Jerusalem
The Siege of Jerusalem was fought in 587 BCE in Jerusalem between Neo-Babylonian Empire vs the Kingdom of Judah; Babylonian victory; Jerusalem and Solomon's Temple were destroyed and the Judean elite exiled.
Siege of Jerusalem: quick facts
- Date
- 587 BCE
- Location
- Jerusalem
- Belligerents
- Neo-Babylonian Empire vs the Kingdom of Judah
- Commanders
- Nebuchadnezzar II vs Zedekiah
- Result
- Babylonian victory; Jerusalem and Solomon's Temple were destroyed and the Judean elite exiled.
- Era
- 🏛️ Ancient Egypt & Mesopotamia
- Quiz difficulty
- medium
What happened at the Siege of Jerusalem?
Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon besieged Jerusalem after King Zedekiah of Judah rebelled against Babylonian authority. After an 18-month siege, the city walls were breached and the Babylonians sacked the city. Solomon's Temple, the spiritual center of the Jewish people, was completely destroyed. Zedekiah was captured, forced to watch his sons' execution, then blinded and taken in chains to Babylon. The elite of Judah were deported to Babylon in what became known as the Babylonian Exile, one of the defining events in Jewish history.
Did you know?
The Babylonian Exile that followed the siege of Jerusalem lasted roughly 70 years and fundamentally transformed Judaism, leading to the compilation of much of the Hebrew Bible as we know it.
Sources and further reading
- Siege of Jerusalem on Wikipedia for the full account, historiography and primary sources.
- How BattleGuess compiles and checks battle facts: see the About page.
Entry last reviewed 26 September 2026.