They were in no position to resist him, and after holding Nineveh for forty-two days, fled to the court of the Armenian king.

Esar-haddon followed, and a battle fought near Malatiyeh, on the 12th of Iyyar, or April, B.C.680, decided the fate of the empire.

The veterans of Esar-haddon utterly defeated the conspirators and their Armenian allies, and at the close of the day he was saluted as king.

He then returned to Nineveh, and on the 8th of Sivan, or May, formally ascended the throne.
Esar-haddon proved himself to be not only one of the best generals Assyria ever produced, but a great administrator as well.

He endeavoured to cement his empire together by a policy of reconciliation, and one of his first actions was to rebuild Babylon, to bring back to it its gods and people, and to make it one of the royal residences.