The Battle of Megiddo was fought in 609 BCE. It was part of a larger conflict between the declining Assyrian Empire and the ascending Neo-Babylonian Empire. The Egyptians were led by Necho II, an Assyrian puppet ruler. The Battle of Megiddo was fought between Egypt and the Kingdom of Judah (a would-be ally of the Neo-Babylonians). It ended in victory for the forces of Egypt and Necho II, which captured Judah and joined up with the Assyrian army at Carchemish. It proved to be a pyrrhic victory, however, as the combined Egyptian and Assyrian army was promptly destroyed by the forces of Nebuchadnezzar II and the Neo-Babylonian Empire.

The Battle of Carchemish was fought in 605 BCE. It was contended by an alliance of Assyria and Egypt and an alliance of Babylon and Persia. It ended in the complete destruction of the Egyptian army, the downfall of the Assyrian Empire, and the ascendancy of the Neo-Babylonian Empire.