Babylonian captivity
The Babylonian captivity, also known as the Babylonian exile, was the deportation of some Jews to Babylonia following the latter’s conquest of the kingdom of Judah in 598-7 and 587-6 BC. They were formally allowed to return in 538 BC.
Historians agree that several deportations took place (each the result of uprisings in Palestine), that not all Jews were forced to leave Palestine, that returning Jews left Babylonia at various times, and that some Jews chose to remain in Babylonia.
