Editing Tel Lachish (section)

===Iron Age (Levels II–IV)===
Rebuilding of the city began in the [[Early Iron Age]], during the 10th and 9th centuries BCE, when it was part of the [[Kingdom of Judah]]. The unfortified settlement may have been destroyed {{Circa|925 BCE}} by the pharaoh [[Shoshenq I]], founder of the [[Twenty-second Dynasty of Egypt]].<ref name=King /> In the first half of the 9th century BCE, under the Judahite kings [[Asa of Judah|Asa]] and [[Jehoshaphat]], Lachish became an important city in the kingdom. It was heavily fortified with massive walls and ramparts. A royal palace was built on a platform in the center of the city.<ref name=King /> Lachish was the foremost among several towns and fortified strongholds guarding the valleys that lead up to Jerusalem and the interior of the country against enemies who usually approached from the coast.

====Siege by Sennacherib, Assyrian rule====
{{main|Siege of Lachish}}
[[File:Lachish inscription.jpeg|left|thumb|The single inscription which identifies the location depicted in the reliefs reads: "Sennacherib, the mighty king, king of the country of Assyria, sitting on the throne of judgment, before (or at the entrance of) the city of Lachish (Lakhisha). I give permission for its slaughter"]]

In 701&nbsp;BCE, during the revolt of [[Hezekiah]], king of Judah, against the Neo-Assyrian Empire, it was besieged and captured by [[Sennacherib]] despite the defenders' determined resistance.<ref>David Ussishkin, ''The Conquest of Lachish by Sennacherib'', Tel Aviv University Institute of Archaeology, 1982, {{ISBN|965-266-001-9}}</ref> Some scholars believe that the fall of Lachish occurred during a second campaign in the area by Sennacherib ca. 688&nbsp;BCE.<ref>William H. Shea, "Jerusalem under siege: Did Sennacherib attack twice?", ''Biblical Archaeology Review'', vol. 25, iss. 6, pp. 36–44, Nov/Dec 1999</ref> The site now contains the only remains of an Assyrian siege ramp discovered. Sennacherib later devoted a whole room in his "Palace without a rival", the southwest palace in [[Nineveh]], for [[Lachish relief|artistic representations]] of the siege on large [[alabaster]] slabs, most of which are now on display in the [[British Museum]]. They hold depictions of Assyrian siege ramps, battering rams, sappers, and other siege machines and army units, along with Lachish's architecture and its final surrender. Combined with the archaeological finds, they give a good understanding of siege warfare of the period.<ref>William H. Shea, "Sennacherib's Description of Lachish and its Conquest," ''Andrews University Seminary Studies'', vol. 26, no. 2, pp. 171–180, 1988</ref><ref name=BritMus>{{cite web|url=http://www.britishmuseum.org/visiting/galleries/middle_east/room_10_assyria_lion_hunts.aspx|title=Room 10: Assyria: Lion hunts|publisher=British Museum}}</ref> Modern excavation of the site has revealed that the Assyrians built a stone and dirt ramp up to the level of the Lachish city wall, thereby allowing the soldiers to charge up the ramp and storm the city.<ref>GARFINKEL, Y., CARROLL, J. W., PYTLIK, M., & MUMCUOGLU, M., "Constructing the Assyrian Siege Ramp at Lachish: Texts, Iconography, Archaeology and Photogrammetry", ''Oxford Journal of Archaeology'', 40(4), pp. 417–439, 2021 https://doi.org/10.1111/ojoa.12231</ref> Excavations revealed approximately 1,500 skulls in one of the caves near the site, and hundreds of arrowheads on the ramp and at the top of the city wall, indicating the ferocity of the battle. The city occupied an area of {{convert|8|ha}}.{{when|date=October 2020}}<ref name=rocca>{{cite book|last=Rocca|first=Samuel|title=The Fortifications of Ancient Israel and Judah 1200–586 BC|year=2012|publisher=Osprey Publishing|location=Oxford|isbn=9781782005216|page=32|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lepkNC_gqs4C&pg=PA32}}</ref>

====Babylonian occupation====
{{main|Babylonian captivity}}
Lachish fell to the Neo-Babylonian emperor [[Nebuchadnezzar II]] in his campaign against Judah in 586&nbsp;BCE.{{citation needed|date=October 2020}} The city was finally destroyed in 587&nbsp;BCE.<ref name=rocca /> Residents were exiled as part of the Babylonian captivity.<ref name=King /> During Babylonian occupation, a large residence was built on the platform that had once supported the Israelite palace. At the end of the captivity, some exiled Jews returned to Lachish and built a new city with fortifications.

Under the [[Achaemenid Empire]] (Level I), a large altar known as the Solar Shrine on the east section of the mound was built. The shrine was abandoned after the area fell in the hands of [[Alexander the Great]]. The tell has been unoccupied since then.<ref name=King />