Preview

Persian Empire

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
544 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Persian Empire
The essay about the Persian Empire The particular history-achaemenid

The Persian Empire is the name used to refer to a number of historic dynasties that have ruled the country of Persia (Iran). Persia's earliest known kingdom was the proto-Elamite Empire, followed by the Medes; but it is the Achaemenid Empire that emerged under Cyrus the Great that is usually the earliest to be called "Persian.

The first record of the Persians comes from an Assyrian inscription from c. 844 BC that calls them the Parsu (Parsuash, Parsumash) and mentions them in the region of Lake Urmia alongside another group, the Madai (Medes). For the next two centuries, the Persians and Medes were at times tributary to the Assyrians. The region of Parsuash was annexed by Sargon of Assyria around 719 BC. Eventually the Medes came to rule an independent Media Empire, and the Persians were subject to them.

Achaemenid Persia (648 BC-330 BC) was the first state of the Persians. The first king of the Achaemenid Persia was Cyrus the Great and the last one was Darius III. Cyrus the Great was the founder of the Archaemenian dynasty and the Persian Empire. Cyrus' military victories eventually put him in possession of the largest empire in the world at that time. No doubt he was a remarkably humane ruler for his time.

Cyrus the Great founded the empire as a multi-state empire, governed by four capital states; Pasargadae, Babylon, Susa and Ecbatana. Each capital represented a different fact of Persian territorial power. Ecbatana’s significance did not end with the Achaemenid dynasty. Susa was linked with political authorities and cultural influences from both if its regional contexts.

The Achaemenids allowed a certain amount of regional autonomy in the form of the satrapy system. A satrapy was an administrative unit, usually organized on a geographical basis. The satrapies were linked by a 2,500-kilometer highway; the most impressive stretch being the Royal Road from Susa to Sardis, built by

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    The Persian Empire ruled from 559 to 330 B.C.E. Around 2000 B.C.E. the Aryans conquered modern day Persia. The Achaemenid Empire began with Cyrus the Great and he became a king beneath Astyages in ancient Persia. In 550 B.C.E. Cyrus took complete control over the Median kingdom. By 539 B.C.E. Cyrus the Great had conquered both the Lydian and Babylonian kingdoms. After conquering a kingdom he would “decapitate” the leader (not by beheading them but by replacing the existing leader with one of his choosing). Cyrus interfered very little with those beneath the leader which kept them happy and prevented them from revolting. Cyrus almost always honored his subject’s religion by allowing them to worship in peace and not destroy their places of worship. Cyrus the Great ended his reign in 530 B.C.E. Darius the Great ruled from 522-486 B.C.E. Darius expanded the Persian Empire into India. When not occupied by military endeavors Darius was a great administrator, he built extravagant capitals, introduced a standard currency, and extended the road network. Darius also organized a navy comprised of the Greeks and the Egyptians. Alexander the Great took the throne in 336 B.C.E. immediately following his father’s assassination. Alexander continued to follow his predecessors and employ tolerance for tactical reasons. By 324 B.C.E. Greece was the most powerful empire in the world making Alexander the Great the most powerful man in the world at that time.…

    • 1755 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Cyrus placed both Medes and Persians in positions of responsibility and retained the framework of Median rule.…

    • 3342 Words
    • 14 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    a) The empires of Persia arose in the arid land of Iran. For centuries, Iran had developed under the shadow of the wealthier and productive Mesopotamia while absorbing migrations and invasions.…

    • 2839 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Persian King Cyrus was part of one of the most powerful kingdoms leading after the “Dark Age”(textbook, p.37). His great ruling was primarily in Babylon but his ruling emerged all around the world; “(as to…

    • 501 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    1. Why does the book say that Darius was "more important as an administrator than as a conqueror"?…

    • 928 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Persia’s government ruled like the Mesopotamian kingdoms with a hereditary monarchy. The land was split into twenty-nine satrapies that were allowed to self-govern themselves, which gave these people more freedom. With the freedom to self-govern, the satrapies did not revolt and gave the Persian government less to worry about. Even though they each were allowed to govern themselves, the king had power of them by appointing a secretary and a military commander to each satrapy. The king also chose inspectors to go to different satrapies and report on each one so the empire was all connected.…

    • 775 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    World History Finaly Exam

    • 6041 Words
    • 25 Pages

    Which leader of the Persian Empire extended it to become the largest empire the world had yet seen?…

    • 6041 Words
    • 25 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Day of Empire Essay

    • 1724 Words
    • 7 Pages

    The great Persian empire ruled from 559 to 330 BCE founded Cyrus the great. Cyrus was very tolerant towards religion and explored alternative cultures as well as allowing the conquered people to join him. In 550 BCE, Cyrus defeated Astyages (his grandfather) and took over Assyria, Mesopotamia, Syria, Armenia and Cappadocia. In 539, Cyrus became the ruler of the largest empire to ever exist after conquering Lydian, Median, and Babylonian. Cambyses took over the empire after Cyrus died and ruled from 530-522 BCE, expanding the empire. Darius the great ruled from 522-486 BCE. Darius helped the empire increase in tolerance. He encouraged the people to do what they wanted. When he conquered people he encouraged them to join him and benefitted off them joining by increasing diversity throughout the kingdom and used their skills and…

    • 1724 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    After the Medes, a strong empire called the Persians grew to power. They had a brilliant and powerful leader named Cyrus. Cyrus ruled the Persian Empire greatly. Persia was isolated from Fertile Crescent, mountain ranges cut the Fertile Crescent off from Persia. Cyrus led swift and deadly attacks.…

    • 223 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    | -empires included Sargon of Akkad, Hammurabi, Assyrian, and New Babylonian (Nebuchadnezzar)-kings, that normally ruled with local nobles-nobles were through birth in rich families; could not work way up-city-states to control public life within city walls and oversee affairs in surrounding agricultural regions-more cities than Nubia…

    • 389 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Persian Empire, founded by Cyrus the Great in the 6th century BC, was the largest empire of the ancient world, stretching from the borders of India and China in the east to large parts of Greece and Libya.The empire was divided into provinces called satrapies.They respected the people they conquered.The timeframe is 550-330 b.c..Persian government was a monarchy system in which the kings had the final say so in how things were supposed to be handled. The first king through 559-529 BCE and the last king ruled from 336-330 BCE. The empire was divided into twenty provinces each ruled by a governor.The economics were that they had a road system and has developed the use of coins, a system of weights, and a measurement system.They also switched to a barter system but China did it first.Also each satrapy paid taxes based on wealth and resources.A satrapy system was an administrative group. A satrap (governor) administered the region, a general supervised military, and a…

    • 380 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    As we can tell, the Persian Empire had improved economically, politically, and socially due to the Persian Wars of Expansion. Economically, the empire had improved in trade from gaining more land. Politically, the emperors that ruled over this period of time had helped the economic growth as well as having more power over people. Socially, the empire’s cultural ideas and social beliefs had been widespread and influenced other countries around because of the people that practiced the same beliefs on this vast amount of…

    • 1043 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    Cyrus the Great is most well-known for his conquests, tolerance, and his government style. His conquests showed that the Achaemenid Empire and later the Persian Empire’s dominance during it’s time. “He became the King of the Persians in 559 B.C.E. and captured the capital of Ecbatana, starting the Achaemenid Empire. This united the Medes and Persians under his own rule.” His victory in…

    • 1023 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    World LIt

    • 739 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Who was the Persian conqueror who in 539 B.C.E. released the Hebrews from a period of exile and bondage in Babylon?…

    • 739 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Persian Empire The Persian Empire was one of the most successful empires in the world, largely because of its strategic geographical location. First, the location of the Persian Empire prior to its expansion was between the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf to the south while the northern side of the empire lay the Caspian Sea. A plethora of rivers, including River Tigris and River Euphrates contributed immensely to the growth of the empire due to its strategic position and contribution in irrigation and the growth of the Fertile Crescent, which was used for agriculture and farming (Burgan 8-10). Moreover, the location of the Persian Empire was an important trade route between the Far East and the European region. The rich agricultural production made Persia a trade hub and the exchange of goods and services took place on its trade routes.…

    • 629 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays