The Empire of Persia
Objectives:
•Explain rise of
Persian Empire
•Discuss
accomplishments
Under Cyrus and
Darius
•Begin classical
India
Persia, led by King Cyrus, began to build his empire in
550 BCE. Persia would conquer most of the
Fertile Crescent, Egypt and Anatolia. Persia is located in
present-day Iran.
The empire spanned over 2,000 miles.
Cyrus was a
military genius
•Armies included
archers on horseback
•Conquered the entire
Fertile Crescent and
most of Anatolia
Cyrus was most well known for how he treated
conquered people.
He showed
kindness and his
armies refrained
from looting and
burning
Cyrus became well respected by honoring
local customs and religions instead
of trying to destroy them.
Under the Persian Empire, conquered
citizens enjoyed freedom.
Jews who had been
deported from
their homeland to
Babylon were allowed
to return to Jerusalem.
Cyrus the Great
The Iranians regarded
him as “The Father.”
The Jews regarded him as
“The Anointed Of the Lord”
Monument to Cyrus
in Sydney, Australia
The Persians, under
Cyrus:
•Advanced iron
technology
•Developed a new
religion – Zoroastrianism
•Art flourished
Tomb of Cyrus the Great
Cyrus died in 530 BCE
Zorastrianism
•founded by a Persian
prophet named Zoroaster
who lived around 600 BC.
•Supreme deity was
Ahuramazda or “Wise Lord”
•People must choose the
between right and wrong.
The right way is the way of
Ahuramazda.
Zorastrian beliefs:
•A person’s soul faced judgement based on actions.
•Two spiritual armies, good and evil, fought for a
person’s soul. Two opposing forces in the universe.
Does this sound similar to any other religion?
Zorastrianism
was uniquely Persian
and did not spread.
But, many historians
believe it influenced
Christianity.
Ahuramazda
Cyrus’ son ruled for a short while and was
overthrown by Darius. Darius:
•Built the royal road system – 1,677 miles
from Sardis to Susa
•Expanded empire into India and present-day
Afghanistan
•Imperial bureaucracy was well-organized.
-Divided the kingdom into 20 provinces
-Installed governors in each province
called Satraps
-Appointed inspectors to check on the
Satraps
they were the “King’s Eyes and Ears”
-Began using standardized metal coins
Tomb of King Darius
The Persian Empire
would eventually
fall to Alexander the Great
Of Macedonia
Photo Credits
http://www.niasnet.org/tomb%20of%20cyrus%20the%20great.jpg
http://www.caissoas.com/CAIS/Images2/Achaemenid/Cyrus%20the%20Great/Cyr
us_the_Great_Winged__Figure.gif
http://cache.virtualtourist.com/1798547coPersian_and_Medean_Guardsc-Takht_e_Jamshid_Persepolis.jpg
http://www.ahura.info/images/iran/darius_tomb.jpg
http://www.wadsworth.com/religion_d/special_features/popups/ma
ps/matthews_world/images/w107.jpg
http://en.citizendium.org/images/thumb/1/1e/Zoroaster.jpg/350pxZoroaster.jpg
http://ahuramazda.org/faravahar.gif