Cyrus_Ii_of_Persia

Cyrus II of Persia Cyrus II of Persia, also known as Cyrus the Great, was the illiterate founder of the expansionist Persian empire under the Achaemenid dynasty. Cyrus the Great created the greatest empire history had ever seen. There are few ancient sources who refer to him apart from Herodotus who saw him as an ingenious and ideal king. The key events of his life were summed up by Xenophon when he wrote, “Cyrus… finding the nations in Asia also independent… started out with a little band of Persians and became the leader of the Medes by their full consent and of the Hyrcanians by theirs; he then conquered Syria, Assyria, Arabia, Cappadocia, both Phrygias, Lydia, Caria, Phoenicia and Babylonia… and many other nations of which one could not even tell the names… the tribes which he brought into subjection to himself were so many that it is a difficult matter even to travel to them all, in whatever direction one begins one’s journey, whether towards the east or west, towards the north or south…”. Within forty years Cyrus had created an empire three times the size of the previous largest in history, the Median empire. Cyrus became king of Ashan in western Persia (modern Iran) in 559 BC. In 550 BC Cyrus defeated the Median kingm, Astyages, at his capital, Ecbatana. According to Herodotus, because the last Median ruler was very cruel, the Median nobles either turned against their ruler or a portion of the population rebelled. Not a single text from Media is known and Ecbatana lies underneath the modern city of Hamadan so therefore cannot be excavated. The Lydian king, Croesus, was very rich and ambitious. He decided to attack Cyrus II in Persia, in 547 BC and was defeated and retreated to his capital, Sardis, chased by Cyrus. Cyrus then fought the battle of Pteria against the Lydians, after which he marched to Sardis and took the city. Cyrus reported his taking of the Lydian state, “In May he marched to the land of Lydia. He killed its king. He took its booty. He placed it in his own garrison.”. In the same year Cyrus made his first contact with the Greeks. The Greek cities under Lydian protection demanded the same treatment that the Lydians had provided, warning that if they were treated poorly, the Spartans would come. Cyrus, not knowing who the Spartans were, invaded these cities and learnt much about the Greeks. After the conquest of these cities, he received an embassy from the Spartans, which forbade him to injure any Greek city on pain of punishment by the Spartans. Between 545 and 540 BC, Cyrus expanded eastward as far as the Jaxartes River in Central Asia and the border of India, although there is very little known about his eastern campaigns. We do know that he introduced sophisticated irrigation to these areas; he split the Oxus River into five channels and built sluice gates to distribute the water over the lands of central Asia. Cyrus also was determined to keep this land as his northernmost frontier, so he constructed a line of seven guard posts along the southern bank of the Oxus River. He successfully reconquered Parthia, Sogdiana, Bactria and Arachosia, all of which were attempting to establish their independence after being under the Median rule. Similarly there is not much known about the conquest of Egypt. The Persian conquest of Babylon and then Phoenicia was straightforward; the king fled and Cyrus marched in peacefully. The Cyrus Cylinder in the British Museum records the taking of Babylonia. The cylinder has often been described as the first charter of human rights. This is a misunderstanding; since the third millennium BC, Mesopotamian kings have begun their reigns with declarations or reforms and Cyrus was simply following tradition. Cyrus had a policy of religious tolerance and funded the rebuilding of the temple of Solomon in Jerusalem. Cyrus was an able and merciful leader, who was very popular throughout his empire. Significant deeds performed include allowing the Jews out of exile in Babylon back to their native Israel. Persians loved gardens and Cyrus created many. Iransaga was created by Cyrus in 550 BC and is the earliest surviving garden in the world. According to Herodotus, Cyrus died in battle in 530 BC against the Massagatae tribe of central Asia. -------------------------------------------- [ 1 ]. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_empires [ 2 ]. A. Olmstead, A History of The Persian Empire (1948) p.34-35 [ 3 ]. M. Van De Mieroop, A History of the Ancient Near East (2004), p. 257 [ 4 ]. M. Van De Mieroop, A History of the Ancient Near East (2004), p. 258 [ 5 ]. A. Olmstead, A History of The Persian Empire (1948) p.38-39 [ 6 ]. A. Olmstead, A History of The Persian Empire (1948) p.40 [ 7 ]. A. Olmstead, A History of The Persian Empire (1948) p.42 [ 8 ]. A. Olmstead, A History of The Persian Empire (1948) p.47-48 [ 9 ]. http://members.ozemail.com.au/~ancientpersia/timeline.html [ 10 ]. M. Van De Mieroop, A History of the Ancient Near East (2004), p.262-263 [ 11 ]. T. Mitchell, The Bible In The British Museum Interpreting the Evidence (1988), p.83 [ 12 ]. http://www.cyrusgreat.com/content/view/13/2/ [ 13 ]. http://www.art-arena.com/pgarden.htm