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Cyrus the Great

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Cyrus the Great
“I am Cyrus, king of the world.” (From the Cylinder of Cyrus). In the world of great kings, great empires, and great wars lived the greatest warrior, conqueror, and king, Cyrus the great. Who is this Cyrus the Great and what made him so “great”? Cyrus the Great is a Persian king who defeated many groups, but perhaps the beginning is the best to start. Explaining his very amazing life includes his early life, his victories, and his death.

Cyrus the Great was born like any other child, by his mother. His mother, Princess Mandane of Media, was married to a royal Persian by the name of Cambyses. She was the daughter of Astyages, the emperor of Media. Little Cyrus’s grandfather was really superstitious; it is easy to assume though that all kings should be superstitious. According to the ancient historians and writers such as Xenophon and Herodotus, Astyages saw, in a dream, that his grandson would overthrow him, taking over his power. Astyages, with all his greed, ordered Cyrus to be killed by Harpagus, a trusted general of Astyages. Perchance, generals have hearts too. Cyrus was not killed that day; he was given to a farmer family. Ten-year-old Cyrus was found out to be still alive. He was an extraordinary child thus he was allowed to live with his mother. Ironically, Cyrus did end up revolting against his grandfather. He did end up overthrowing the Median Empire. Rarely was there such thing as a guarantee back then especially when it comes down to prophecies.

Cyrus first conquered the Medians in 549 B.C. The battle was extreme. It probably was like a tom-cat fighting a big bulldog. The tom-cat, in this case, won. The Persians were that tom-cat. The Medians were that big bulldog. It was a great first victory for Cyrus, on his way to be great. The Croesus of Lydia was annoyed and impatient. Lydia was really angered by Cyrus for conquered Media. Croesus had thought Cyrus was unsophisticated and inexperienced, and should be taught a lesson. The Lydians were ready



Cited: Cyrus, Sorat. "Cyrus the Great-Cyrus 's Legacy." Cyrus the Great. Web. 1 Mar. 2010. . Darius of Parsa. "Cyrus the Great." All Empires. 31 Oct. 2007. Web. 4 Mar. 2010. .

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