The Persian Emprie

The Persians At about the same time that the Athenians were creating a democracy, the Persian Empire was rising in the east. Persians began as an unorganized, nomadic people who often fought other people of Southwest Asia, sometimes winning, sometimes losing. One time they lost to the Medes and were ruled by them for about 150 years. In 550 BC, Cyrus II led a Persian revolt and conquered the Medes. This was the beginning of the Persian Empire. They conquered much of Southwest Asia, almost all of Asia Minor, and Mesopotamia.

Cyrus the Great By the time Cyrus died around 529 BC, he ruled the largest empire the world had ever seen. One reason he was such a successful emperor was the way he treated conquered people. He didn’t force them to adopt Persian customs, and he didn’t mistreat them. For example, Cyrus allowed the conquered Babylonians to keep worshipping their own gods. He also allowed the Jews who had been Babylonian slaves to return to their homeland. In return, both the Babylonians and the Jews had great respect for Cyrus and didn’t rebel. Because of this, his empire was very strong, and he has become known as Cyrus the Great. Cyrus the Great https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xveGzQsAIXs

Persian Army Cyrus was successful in his conquests because his army was strong, organized, and loyal. At the heart of the Persian army were the Immortals, 10,000 soldiers chosen for their bravery and skill. They also had a powerful cavalry, or unit of soldiers who ride horses. Cyrus used his cavalry to charge at and shoot an enemy with arrows. This strategy weakened the enemy before the Immortals attacked. Together, the cavalry and the Immortals could defeat almost any foe.

Darius I After Cyrus’s death, his son Cambyses took over and conquered Egypt. Soon after, a rebellion broke out, during which Cambyses died, leaving Persia without a clear leader. Within 4 years a young prince named Darius I claimed the throne, killed all his rivals for power, restored order, and began improving society and expanding the empire.

Political Organization Darius organized the empire by dividing it into 20 provinces. He chose governors called satraps to rule the provinces for him. Satraps collected taxes for Darius, served as judges, and put down rebellions within their territories. Although they had great power, Darius remained the empires real ruler. Darius’s officials visited each province to make sure the satraps were loyal to him. He called himself king of kings to remind other rulers of his power.

Persian Society Darius made many improvements such as building roads and a new capital Road system – connected various parts of the empire, making travel much faster. One road, called the Royal Road, was more than 1,700 miles long. Even the Persians’ enemies admired this vast road system. Persepolis – means “city of Persians;” new capital city. Filled with beautiful works of art and carvings. Statues throughout the city glittered with gold, silver, and precious jewels. Ruins https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4T5nz-I06Q 3D Reconstruction https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8L4E9m27aKY Zoroastrianism – a new religion that rose during this time; taught that there were 2 forces fighting for control of the universe. One force was good, and the other evil. Priests urged people to help the side of good in its struggle. Was popular for many centuries.

So what does this have to do with Greece? The Persian Wars So what does this have to do with Greece? In 499 BC several Greek cities in Asia Minor rebelled against Persian rule. To help their fellow Greeks, a few city-states in mainland Greece sent soldiers to join the fight against the Persians. The Persians put down the revolt, but Darius was still angry with the Greeks. Although the cities that had rebelled were in Asia, Darius was enraged that other Greeks had given them aid. He swore to get revenge on the Greeks. 9 years later, he invaded Greece. This invasion began a series of wars between Persia and Greece that historians call the Persian Wars.

The Battle of Marathon When Cyrus invaded Greece, he and his army sailed to the plains of Marathon near Athens. The Athenian army had only about 11,000 soldiers, while the Persians had about 15,000. However, the Greeks lured the Persians into the middle of their forces and surrounded them. The Greeks won the battle because they had better weapons and clever leaders. According to legend, a messenger ran from Marathon to Athens (26 miles) to bring news of the victory. After crying out, “Rejoice! We conquer!” the exhausted runner fell to the ground and died. Athletes today recreate the Greek messenger’s run in 26-mile races called marathons. HH Battle of Marathon https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=geR3BrcWSt0

Battle of Thermopylae 10 years later, Darius’s son Xerxes I tried to conquer Greece again. This time they sent both their army and their navy. This time Sparta, a powerful city-state in southern Greece with the strongest army in Greece, joined Athens. To slow the Persian army, the Greeks sent about 7,000 soldiers to Thermopylae, a narrow mountain pass. The Persians had to cross through this pass to attack Greek cities. For three days, the small Greek force held off the much larger Persian army estimated to be between 100,000-150,000 soldiers strong. A Greek soldier turned traitor and led the Persians through another pass so they could attack from behind. In essentially a suicide mission, Greece’s soldiers blocked the pass and held off the Persian army long enough for the rest of the Greek army to escape. After winning the battle, the Persians swept into Athens, attacking and burning the city. Thermopylae https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzfQzTcAGDc (stop at end of words)

Battle of Salamis Although the Persians won the battle in the pass and burned Athens, a few days later the Athenians defeated the Persian navy through a clever plan. They led the larger Persian navy into the narrow straits of Salamis. The Persians had so many ships that they couldn’t steer well in the narrow strait. As a result, the smaller Athenian boats easily sank many Persian ships. Those ships that were not destroyed soon returned home. Soon after the Battle of Salamis, an army of soldiers from all over Greece beat the Persians at Plataea. This battle ended the Persian Wars. Defeated, the Persians left Greece.

Wrapping it Up For the Persians, this defeat was humiliating, but it was not a major blow. The Persian Empire remained strong for more than a century after the war. For the Greeks, though, the defeat of the Persians was a triumph. They had saved their homeland, and stopped the Persians from expanding into the rest of Europe. Now back to the Greeks . . .