SARGON
(Heb derived from ac. «Sharrukinu» «the affirmed king»)
King of Assyria and successor to Shalmansar V, he is considered a usurper. His general, the Tartan, captured Ashdod (Is. 20:1).
He reigned from 722 to 705 BC. Although his name only appears in the Scriptures in the previous passage, there is documentary and monumental evidence that he finished the capture of Samaria initiated by Shalmansar. (See SAMARIA.)
He undertook various campaigns against the king of Gaza and Egypt; He seized Carchemish, capital of the Hittites, in 717 BC.
This marked the end of the Hittite empire, which, weakened, could not resist further attacks from other directions (see HITITE).
In the year 710, Sargon took Babylon, of which he proclaimed himself king.