Peeter I

The siege of Lachish was the Neo-Assyrian Empire's siege^[1] and conquest of the town of Lachish in 701 BC.^[2] The siege is documented in several sources including the Hebrew Bible, Assyrian documents and in the Lachish relief, a well-preserved series of reliefs which once decorated the Assyrian king Sennacherib's palace at Nineveh.^[3]^[4]^[5]

Background

Several kingdoms in the Levant ceased to pay taxes to the Assyrian king Sennacherib. In retribution, he initiated a campaign to re-subjugate the rebelling kingdoms, among them the Kingdom of Judah. After defeating the rebels of Ekron in Philistia, Sennacherib set out to conquer Judah and, on his way to Jerusalem, came across Lachish: the second most important of the Jewish cities.

Battlefield

The battlefield was the walled city of Lachish, situated on a hill. The northern part of the hill is steeper than the southern side and due to that the gate is situated there. On top of the fact that the hill as of itself is quite high, the wall further makes the city hard to breach. Inside the city itself there was a castle with significant walls.

Forces of each side

Assyrian army

The Assyrian Army was the most effective force of its time and was divided mostly into three different categories:

Infantry, which included both close-combat troops using spears, and archers. There were also hired mercenaries throwing stones (slingers). The infantry was highly trained and worked alongside military engineers in order to breach sieges.
Cavalry; Assyrian cavalry were among the finest in the ancient Middle East and included both close-combat cavalry units with spears and mounted archers, which could both use the agility of the horses alongside long-range attacks.
Chariots, which were not used as much in sieges as in regular land engagements.

Judean army

The Judean military force was insignificant compared to the professional and massive Assyrian army and mostly included local militias and mercenaries. There were barely any cavalrymen and chariots in the Judean army which mostly included infantry, either for close combat (spearmen) or long range combat (archers), they were also significantly less organized. (This section doesn’t provide any historical sources to support their claims.)

Siege

Due to the steepness of the northern side of Lachish the Assyrian Army attacked from the south, where the Jewish defenders situated themselves on the walls. The Jewish defenders threw stones and shot arrows at the advancing Assyrians; the Assyrians started shooting arrows and stones themselves, creating a skirmish between the two armies. Meanwhile, Assyrian military engineers built a ramp to the east of the main gate where Assyrian and Jewish troops began engaging in close combat. The Assyrians meanwhile brought siege engines to the ramp and broke the wall; the Jewish defenders could not hold the Assyrian army and retreated, with some attempting to escape from the other side of the hill.

Subjugation

The city was captured by the Assyrians, its inhabitants led into captivity and the leaders of Lachish tortured to death. The town was abandoned, but resettled after the return from Babylonia.^{[citation needed]}

Assyrian reliefs portraying the siege of Lachish clearly show battering rams attacking the vulnerable parts of the city.^[6]

Aftermath

After he captured the second most important city in Judah, Sennacherib encamped there and then sent his Rabshakeh to capture Jerusalem.

Cultural references

The Siege of Lachish is the subject of an eponymous song (and single) by metal band Melechesh.

Ancient sources

Lachish relief - A relief that was featured in Sennacherib's palace in Nineveh, it was identified by the text in it: "Sennacherib King of the Universe, King of Assyria, sits on a throne and the spoils of Lachish are paraded before him."