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'''Nekho II''' (atau '''Nekau'''; {{lang-en|Necho II}}) adalah raja [[Mesir kuno]] dari [[Dinasti ke-26 Mesir|dinasti ke-26]] (610 SM – 595 SM).
Nekho II diyakini adalah [[firaun]] yang disebutkan namanya di sejumlah kitab dalam [[Alkitab Ibrani]] atau [[Perjanjian Lama]] di [[Alkitab]] [[Kristen]]. [[Kitab 2 Raja-raja]] mencatat bahwa Nekho berperang dengan raja [[Yosia]] dari [[Kerajaan Yehuda]] di [[Megido]] and melukainya yang menyebabkan kematiannya.<ref>[[2 Raja-raja 23]]</ref> (dikenal sebagai [[Perang Megido (609 SM)]]). Dalam [[Kitab 2 Tawarikh]] diberikan keterangan lebih panjang, bahwa Nekho sebenarnya maju berperang melawan tentara Babel di [[ KarkhemisKarkemis]] dekat [[sungai Efrat]] dan raja Yosia menghalanginya, sehingga kemudian terluka parah oleh panah tentara Mesir. Raja Yosia kemudian dibawa ke Yerusalem dan mati di sana. Tertulis bahwa Nekho <blockquote>mengirim utusan kepada Yosia, dengan pesan: "Apakah urusanmu dengan aku, raja Yehuda? Saat ini aku tidak datang melawan engkau, tetapi melawan keluarga raja yang sedang kuperangi. Allah memerintahkan aku supaya segera bertindak. Hentikanlah niatmu menentang Allah yang menyertai aku, supaya engkau jangan dimusnahkan-Nya!" </blockquote><ref>[[2 Tawarikh 35]], terutama {{Alkitab|2 Tawarikh 35:21}}</ref>
Menurut [[Kitab Yeremia]][[Yeremia 46| pasal 46]] "Firaun Nekho, raja Mesir", berkemah di tepi sungai Efrat dekat Karkemis dipukul kalah oleh Nebukadnezar, raja Babel, dalam tahun yang keempat pemerintahan Yoyakim bin Yosia, raja Yehuda (diperkirakan pada musim panas tahun [[605 SM]]). Tujuan Nekho adalah untuk menghalangi perluasan ke arah barat [[Kerajaan Babel]] dan memotong jalur perdagangannya sepanjang sungai Efrat. Namun tentara Mesir dikalahkan oleh serangan mendadak tentara Babel dan akhirnya dipukul mundur dari wilayah Suriah.
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According to the [[Book of Jeremiah]] in the summer of [[605 BC]] Carchemish was the site of an important battle was fought by the [[Babylon]]ian army of [[Nebuchadrezzar II]] and that of Pharaoh Necho II of Egypt.<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+46-48 Jeremiah 46-48], biblegateway.com</ref> The aim of Necho's campaign was to contain the Westward advance of the [[Babylonian Empire]] and cut off its trade route across the Euphrates. However, the [[Egyptians]] were defeated by the unexpected attack of the Babylonians and were eventually expelled from Syria.
== Keluarga ==
The [[Egyptologist]] [[Donald B. Redford]] observed that although Necho II was "a man of action from the start, and endowed with an imagination perhaps beyond that of his contemporaries, Necho had the misfortune to foster the impression of being a failure."{{Citation needed|date=March 2012}}
NechoNekho II wasadalah theputra son ofraja [[Psammetichus I]] bydengan hispermaisuri [[Great Royal Wife]]utama Mehtenweskhet. HisPrenomen prenomenatau ornama royal namekerajaannya Wahem-Ib-Re meansberarti " CarryingDibawa outkeluar [the]dari Hearthati ( i.e.,atau Wishkeinginan) [of]dewa [[Ra|Re]]."<ref>Peter Clayton, Chronicle of the Pharaohs, Thames and Hudson, 1994. p.195</ref> ▼
==Biography Pemerintahan ==
Nekho memainkan peranan penting dalam sejarah [[Kekaisaran Asyur]], [[Babilonia]] dan [[Kerajaan Yehuda]]. Begitu naik tahta, Nekho menghadapi kekacauan dari serangan orang [[Kimeria]] dan [[Scythia]], yang tidak hanya menjarah Asia di sebelah barat sungai Efrat, namun juga membantu Babilonia menghancurkan Kekaisaran Asyur. Kerajaan Asyur yang tadinya megah itu kemudian hanya menyisakan tentara, pejabat dan bangsawan yang bertahan di kota [[Harran]] di sekitar raja [[Ashur-uballit II]]. Nekho berniat membantu sisa-sisa kerajaan ini segera setelah naik tahta, tetapi tentara yang dikirimkannya terlalu sedikit dan tentara gabungan dengan Asyur dipaksa mundur ke sebelah barat sungai Efrat.
===Family===
== Perang pertama ==
▲Necho II was the son of [[Psammetichus I]] by his [[Great Royal Wife]] Mehtenweskhet. His prenomen or royal name Wahem-Ib-Re means "Carrying out [the] Heart (i.e., Wish) [of] [[Ra|Re]]."<ref>Peter Clayton, Chronicle of the Pharaohs, Thames and Hudson, 1994. p.195</ref>
[[Image:Tel megido.JPG|right|thumb|200px| AerialPandangan view ofudara [[Tel Megiddo]] , sitetempat ofPerang the [[battle of MegiddoMegido (609 BCSM) |battle of Megiddo in 609 BC]].]] ▼Pada musim semi tahun 609 SM, Nekho memimpin sendiri tentara dalam jumlah besar (terutama tentara bayaran) untuk membantu Asyur. Nekho mengambil jalur pantai [[Via Maris]] ke Suriah, didukung oleh armada lautnya di Laut Tengah di sepanjang pantai, maju melalui dataran rendah Filistia dan Sharon. Ia bersiap untuk menerobos tebing bukit yang menutup bagian selatan lembah Yizreel, tetapi di sana jalannya dihalangi oleh tentara Yehuda yang dipimpin oleh raja [[Yosia]]. Raja Yosia berpihak kepada Babilonia dan menghalangi Nekho untuk membantu Asyur yang saat itu sedang berperang dengan tentara Babel. Dalam peperangan di Megido, Yosia terbunuh ([[Kitab 2 Raja-raja]][[2 Raja-raja 29| pasal 29]], [[Kitab 2 Tawarikh]][[2 Tawarikh 35| pasal 35]]).
[[Herodotus]] reportsmencatat thepeperangan campaignini ofdalam the pharaoh in hisbukunya ''[[Histories (Herodotus)|Histories]], Bookjilid 2:159'': ▼===Reign===
Necho played a significant role in the histories of the [[Assyrian Empire]], [[Babylonia]] and the [[Kingdom of Judah]]. Upon his ascension, Necho was faced with the chaos created by the raids of the [[Cimmerians]] and the [[Scythians]], who had not only ravaged Asia west of the Euphrates, but had also helped the Babylonians shatter the Assyrian Empire. That once mighty empire was now reduced to the troops, officials, and nobles who had gathered around a general holding out at [[Harran]], who had taken the throne name of [[Ashur-uballit II]]. Necho attempted to assist this remnant immediately upon his coronation, but the force he sent proved to be too small, and the combined armies were forced to retreat west across the Euphrates.
''{{cquote|''Necos, kemudian, berhenti membangun kanal dan berperang lagi; beberapa "''trireme''"-nya dibangun di laut sebelah utara dan beberapa di Teluk Arab, di pantai Laut Erythrias. "Windlasses" untuk menambatkan kapal-kapal masih dapat dilihat. Ia menempatkan kapal-kapal sesuai kebutuhan, sementara ia berperang di Magdolos dengan orang Suriah, dan mengalahkannya; dan setelahnya ia merebut Cadytis ([[Kadesh]]), kota besar Suriah. Ia mengirimkan pakaian yang dipakainya dalam peperangan itu ke Branchidae di Miletus dan mempersembahkannya kepada dewa Apolo.''}}
===First campaign===
▲[[Image:Tel megido.JPG|right|thumb|200px| Aerial view of [[Tel Megiddo]] site of the [[battle of Megiddo (609 BC)|battle of Megiddo in 609 BC]].]]
Nekho menguasai Kadesh di Orontes dan maju bergabung dengan tentara Ashur-uballit menyeberangi sungai Efrat untuk mengepung Harran. Nekho merupakan firaun pertama sejak [[Thutmose III]] yang menyeberangi sungai Efrat. Serangan itu gagal dan ia harus mundur ke Suriah utara. Pada waktu ini Ashur-uballit lenyap dari sejarah dan Kekaisaran Asyur dikuasai oleh Babilonia.
In the spring of 609 BC, Necho personally led a sizable force to help the Assyrians. At the head of a large army, consisting mainly of his mercenaries, Necho took the coast route [[Via Maris]] into [[Syria]], supported by his Mediterranean fleet along the shore, and proceeded through the low tracts of Philistia and Sharon. He prepared to cross the ridge of hills which shuts in on the south the great [[Jezreel Valley]], but here he found his passage blocked by the Judean army. Their king, [[Josiah]], sided with the Babylonians and attempted to block his advance at [[Megiddo (place)|Megiddo]], where a fierce [[battle of Megiddo (609 BC)|battle]] was fought and Josiah was killed ([[Books of Kings|2 Kings]] 23:29, [[Books of Chronicles|2 Chronicles]] 35:20-24).
Setelah meninggalkan sejumlah tentara, Nekho berangkat pulang ke Mesir. Dalam perjalanan ia mendapati bahwa Kerajaan Yehuda telah memilih [[Yoahas (raja Yehuda)|Yoahas]] sebagai raja menggantikan ayahnya, Yosia. Nekho mencopot Yoahas dari tahta dan menggantikannya dengan saudara laki-lakinya, [Yoyakim]]. Nekho membawa Yoahas ke Mesir sebagai tawanan, sampai mati di sana ({{Alkitab|2 Raja-raja 23:31}}; {{Alkitab|2 Tawarikh 36:1-4}}).
▲[[Herodotus]] reports the campaign of the pharaoh in his ''[[Histories (Herodotus)|Histories]], Book 2:159'':
== Perang kedua ==
''{{cquote|''Necos, then, stopped work on the canal and turned to war; some of his triremes were constructed by the northern sea, and some in the Arabian Gulf, by the coast of the Sea of Erythrias. The windlasses for beaching the ships can still be seen. He deployed these ships as needed, while he also engaged in a pitched battle at Magdolos with the Syrians, and conquered them; and after this he took Cadytis ([[Kadesh]]), which is a great city of Syria. He sent the clothes he had worn in these battles to Branchidae of Miletus and dedicated them to Apollo.''}}
Saat itu raja Babel berencana untuk memperluas kekuasaannya di Suriah. Pada tahun 609 SM, raja [[Nabopolassar]] merebut Kummuh (Kumukh), mengisolasi tentara Mesir yang bermarkas di Karkemis. Nekho merebut kembali Kumukh pada tahun berikutnya setelah mengepungnya selama 4 bulan, dan membunuh tentara-tentara Babel. Nabopolassar mengumpulkan tentara baru yang bermarkas di [[Qurumati]], di tepi sungai Efrat. Namun, kesehatan yang memburuk memaksa Nabopolassar kembali ke [[Babilon]] pada tahun 605 SM. Pada tahun 606 SM tentara Mesir menyerang tentara Babilon yang segera mundur. Nabopolassar yang sudah tua menyerahkan pimpinan tentara kepada putranya [[Nebukadnezar II]], yang mengalahkan tentara Mesir dalam [[Perang Karkemis]], dan mengejar tentara yang mundur sampai ke [[Hamath]]. Impian Nekho untuk memulihkan kekuasaan Kerajaan Mesir di Timur Tengah hancur setelah Nebukadnezar menguasai seluruh tanah milik Mesir dari sungai Efrat sampai ke sungai Mesir ("Brook of Egypt") ([[Kitab Yeremia]] 46:2; [[2 Raja-raja 23]]:29) termasuk [[Kerajaan Yehuda]].
== Proyek-proyek ==
Necho soon captured Kadesh on the Orontes and moved forward, joining forces with Ashur-uballit and together they crossed the Euphrates and laid siege to Harran. Although Necho became the first [[pharaoh]] to cross the Euphrates since [[Thutmose III]], he failed to capture Harran, and retreated back to northern [[Syria]]. At this point, Ashur-uballit vanished from history, and the Assyrian Empire was conquered by the Babylonians.
Pada suatu saat selama perang di Suriah, Nekho II memulai tetapi tidak dapat menyelesaikan proyek pembuatan kanal dari cabang sungai Nil di [[Pelusium]] ke [[Laut Merah]]. Kanal ini merupakan cikal bakal [[Terusan Suez]].<ref>Redmount, Carol A. "The Wadi Tumilat and the "Canal of the Pharaohs"" ''Journal of Near Eastern Studies'', Vol. 54, No. 2 (Apr., 1995), pp. 127-135</ref> Dalam rangka proyek tersebut Nekho mendirikan kota baru ''Per-Temu Tjeku'' (artinya "Rumah dewa [[Atum]] di Tjeku") yang sekarang dikenal sebagai "Tell el-Maskhuta",<ref>Shaw & Nicholson, p.201</ref> sekitar 15 km sebelah barat [[Ismailia]]. Jalur air itu dimaksudkan mempermudah perdagangan antara Laut Tengah dengan Samudera Hindia. Nekho juga membangun angkatan laut Mesir dengan merekrut orang-orang Yunani Ionia yang mengungsi. Hal ini unik karena umumnya orang Mesir tidak suka dan takut akan lautan.<ref>Clayton, p.196</ref> Angkatan laut yang dibangun oleh Nekho beroperasi di sepanjang pantai Laut Tengah dan Laut Merah.<ref>[[Herodotus]] 2.158; [[Pliny the Elder|Pliny]] N.H. 6.165ff; [[Diodorus Siculus]] 3.43</ref>
Herodotus (4.42) juga mencatat bahwa Nekho mengirim ekspedisi ke [[Fenisia]], yang membutuhkan 3 tahun untuk berlayar dari Laut Merah mengelilingi benua Afrika sampai ke muara sungai Nil.<ref>Perlu diketahui bahwa meskipun dokumen aslin menulis "Laut Merah", banyak naskah kuno juga menyebut "Laut Tengah" sebagai "Laut Merah". Lihat ''History of Suez Canal'' dan lukisan [[Wybylack]] untuk lebih jelasnya.''</ref>
Leaving a sizable force behind, Necho returned to [[Ancient Egypt|Egypt]]. On his return march, he found that the Judeans had selected [[Jehoahaz of Judah|Jehoahaz]] to succeed his father Josiah, whom Necho deposed and replaced with [[Jehoiakim]]. He brought Jehoahaz back to Egypt as his prisoner, where Jehoahaz ended his days (2 Kings 23:31; 2 Chronicles 36:1-4).
== Kematian dan pengganti ==
===Second campaign===
Nekho II mati pada tahun 595 SM dan digantikan oleh putranya, [[Psamtik II]], sebagai firaun Mesir. Psamtik II kemudian menghapus nama Nekho dari hampir semua monumen ayahnya dengan alasan yang tidak diketahui.
Meanwhile, the Babylonian king was planning on reasserting his power in Syria. In 609 BC, King [[Nabopolassar]] captured [[Kummuh|Kumukh]], which cut off the Egyptian army, then based at [[Carchemish]]. Necho responded the following year by retaking Kumukh after a four month siege, and executed the Babylonian garrison. Nabopolassar gathered another army, which camped at [[Qurumati]] on the Euphrates. However, Nabopolassar's poor health forced him to return to [[Babylon]] in 605 BC. In response, in 606 BC the Egyptians attacked the leaderless Babylonians (probably then led by the crown prince Nebuchadrezzar) who fled their position.
At this point, the aged Nabopolassar, passed command of the army to his son [[Nebuchadrezzar II]], who led them to a decisive victory over the Egyptians at [[Battle of Carchemish|Carchemish]], and pursued the fleeing survivors to [[Hamath]]. Necho's dream of restoring the Egyptian Empire in the Middle East as had occurred under the [[New Kingdom of Egypt|New Kingdom]] was destroyed as Nebuchadrezzar conquered Egyptian territory from the Euphrates to the [[Brook of Egypt]] ([[Book of Jeremiah|Jeremiah]] 46:2; [[Books of Kings|2 Kings]] 23:29) down to [[Judea]]. Although Nebuchadrezzar spent many years in his new conquests on continuous pacification campaigns, Necho was unable to recover any significant part of his lost territories. For example, when [[Ashkalon]] rose in revolt, despite repeated pleas the Egyptians sent no help, and were barely able to repel a Babylonian attack on their eastern border in 601 BC. When he did repel the Babylonian attack, Necho managed to capture Gaza while pursuing the enemy. Necho turned his attention in his remaining years to forging relationships with new allies: the [[Caria]]ns, and further to the west, the [[ancient Greeks|Greeks]].
===Ambitious projects===
At some point during his Syrian campaign, Necho II initiated but never completed the ambitious project of cutting a navigable [[canal]] from the [[Pelusium|Pelusiac]] branch of the [[Nile]] to the [[Red Sea]]. [[Canal_of_the_Pharaohs|Necho's Canal]] was the earliest precursor of the [[Suez Canal]].<ref>Redmount, Carol A. "The Wadi Tumilat and the "Canal of the Pharaohs"" ''Journal of Near Eastern Studies'', Vol. 54, No. 2 (Apr., 1995), pp. 127-135</ref>
It was in connection with this new activity that Necho founded a new city of ''Per-Temu Tjeku'' which translates as 'The House of [[Atum]] of Tjeku' at the site now known as Tell el-Maskhuta,<ref>Shaw & Nicholson, p.201</ref> about 15 km west of [[Ismailia]]. The waterway was intended to facilitate trade between the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean. Necho also formed an Egyptian navy by recruiting displaced Ionian Greeks. This was an unprecedented act by the pharaoh since most Egyptians had traditionally harboured an inherent distaste for and fear of the sea.<ref>Clayton, p.196</ref> The navy which Necho created operated along both the Mediterranean and Red Sea coasts.<ref>[[Herodotus]] 2.158; [[Pliny the Elder|Pliny]] N.H. 6.165ff; [[Diodorus Siculus]] 3.43</ref>
Herodotus (4.42) also reports that Necho sent out an expedition of [[Phoenicians]], who in three years sailed from the Red Sea around Africa back to the mouth of the Nile.<ref>Note however that though the original documents state "Red Sea", many ancient manuscripts reference the "Mediterranean Sea" as the "Red Sea". See ''History of Suez Canal and painting by [[Wybylack]] for more detail.''</ref> Some current historians tend to believe Herodotus' account, primarily because he stated with disbelief that the Phoenicians " as they sailed on a westerly course round the southern end of Libya (Africa), they had the sun on their right - to northward of them" (''The Histories'' 4.42) -- in Herodotus' time it was not known that Africa extended south past the [[equator]]; however, Egyptologists also point out that it would have been extremely unusual for an Egyptian Pharaoh to carry out such an expedition.<ref>For instance, the Egyptologist Alan Lloyd wrote "Given the context of Egyptian thought, economic life, and military interests, it is impossible for one to imagine what stimulus could have motivated Necho in such a scheme and if we cannot provide a reason which is sound within Egyptian terms of reference, then we have good reason to doubt the historicity of the entire episode." Alan B. Lloyd, "Necho and the Red Sea: Some Considerations", Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, 63 (1977) p.149.</ref> [[Alan B. Lloyd]] doubts the event and attributes the development of the story by other events.<ref>Lloyd points out that geographical knowledge at the time of Herodutus was such that Greeks would know that such a voyage would entail the sun being on their right but did not believe Africa could extend far enough for this to happen. He suggests that the Greeks at this time understood that anyone going south far enough and then turning west would have the sun on their right but found it unbelievable that Africa reached so far south. He suggests that "It is extremely unlikely that an Egyptian king would, or could, have acted as Necho is depicted as doing" and that the story might have been triggered by the failure of [[Sataspes]] attempt to circumnavigate Africa under [[Xerxes the Great]]. For more see: Lloyd, Alan B. "Necho and the Red Sea: Some Considerations ''Journal of Egyptian Archaeology'', Vol. 63, (1977), pp. 142-155</ref>
===Death and succession===
Necho II died in 595 BC and was succeeded by his son, [[Psamtik II]], as the next pharaoh of Egypt. Psamtik II, however, later removed Necho's name from almost all of his father's monuments for unknown reasons.
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== Referensi ==
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