The ancient city of
Babylon, in present-day Babylon Province was the capital of ancient
Babylonia, situated on the
Euphrates river south of
Baghdad, Iraq. The city was occupied from the 3rd millennium BC but became important early in the 2nd millennium under the kings of the First Dynasty of Babylon. The sixth king of this dynasty was
Hammurabi (1792–1750 BC) who made Babylon the capital of a vast empire and is best remembered for his
code of laws. The city peaked in pre-eminence when
Nabopolassar (626–605 BC) and his successor and son
Nebuchadnezzar II (605–562 BC) extended the
Neo-Babylonian Empire over most of
Western Asia. In the year 1991, Babil Governorate was the center of a
Shia uprising. ==Geography==