Shalom! I am completely confused in the chronology of the kings of Persia, related to the period after the destruction of the First Temple and Purim. Maybe you can help me figure it out.
Greek historians report: The Persian king Cyrus, having conquered Media, captured Babylon. King Belshazzar (Belshazzar) was killed. After the death of Cyrus, his son Cambyses ruled, who died during the conquest of Egypt. Next, an impostor ruled for 7 months, posing as the murdered youngest son of Cyrus, Bardiya. He was overthrown by Darius, a distant relative of Cyrus, from the same Achaemenid dynasty, who married the daughter of Cyrus for his legitimation (analogy with Vashti and Achashverosh). Under Darius the First, the construction of the Second Temple was completed. Next ruled the son and grandson of Darius - Xerxes and Artaxerxes. Xerxes is the probable Ahasuerus, and Artaxerxes is the one under whom Nehemiah and Ezra lived. One of the sons of Artaxerxes is Darius the Second.
Now information from Jewish tradition: The Persians and Medes captured Babylon. A certain Mede, Darius, became king for just one year, voluntarily giving up the throne to Cyrus. Then a certain Akhashverosh appears, the head of the stable, who, for his legitimation, married Belshatzar’s granddaughter, Vashti. An analogy with Darius: he was in charge of a stable, and for legitimation he married the daughter of Cyrus. Here, of course, the question is: Why does Ahasuerus need legitimation from the overthrown dynasty of Babylon? Who was between Cyrus and Achashverosh? After the death of Achashverosh, his son Darius becomes king, under whom the construction of the Second Temple is completed.
It should be noted here: the difference in Jewish and non-Jewish chronology is approximately 150 years. Therefore, the difference between Darius the First and Darius the Second is erased. As I understand it, in the Jewish tradition, this is one person. I ask for your help in resolving these difficult issues for me.
Answered by Rabbi Nathan Agress
Dear Daniel! First of all, I want to apologize for the delay in answering, all this time I was hoping to clarify this topic for myself, I looked through several books, etc., but, alas, I did not find a clear and definite answer. Rabbi Shimon Schwab in his book "SELECTED SPEACHES" mentions this problem, but I was not able to get hold of it.
Nevertheless, in order not to leave you empty-handed, I will provide here information from Jewish sources known to me, as well as a line of thought regarding the inconsistency of the two traditions.
Anyone who is “completely confused in the chronology of the kings of Persia” is in “good company,” since among historians this topic is also considered the most complex and confusing (as one friend, a doctor in history, told me), Malbim (Ezra 6: 14) also writes that there is no consensus on this matter.
As you mentioned, the inconsistency exists on two levels - the number of kings, and the duration of their reigns. It should be noted that there are contradictions in the Greek sources themselves, some say that there were 11 kings, others - 14, and there are many disputes about the time of their reign.
On the other hand, in the Jewish tradition there is clear data regarding the reign of the kings and the existence of the Persian Empire as a whole. The Talmud in treatise Megillah (11b) reports that Daryavesh aMadi (Darius of Media) ruled for one year (3389-3390 from the creation of the world, 3760 corresponds to the first year of the new era according to non-Jewish chronology), Koresh aParsi (Cyrus of Persia) - three years ( to 3393), then Achashverosh - 14 years old (until 3407), and Daryavesh aParsi (Darius the Second), son of Esther from Achashverosh - 34 years old (until 3442). The empire was then captured by Alexander the Great. That is, in total, the Persian Empire lasted 52 years.
However, it should be noted here that we are talking about the Persian-Median Empire during the period of its world dominion, from the moment of the conquest of Babylon by Darius and Cyrus, and until its fall at the hands of the Greeks. But, as our sources clearly indicate, the Persian-Median kingdom existed long before it managed to conquer Babylon, and at that time there were also powerful rulers there (which also corresponds to the opinion of historians).
This is clearly evident from the words of the prophet Yirmiyah, who predicted the fall of Babylon (Yirmiyahu 50:41): “Behold, a people comes from the north, and a great nation, and numerous kings they will awaken and go from the ends of the earth"; the kings mentioned here are Darius and Koresh (Rashi, Radak there, Ibn Ezra on Daniel 6:1). In addition, the book of Daniel (9:1) says: “In the first year of the reign of Daryabesh, the son of Achashverosh from the family of Media,” that is, the father of Darius the First was called Achashverosh (the same as Achashverosh from the scroll of Esther, see below) , and he was king of Media long before his son, at the age of 62 (Daniel 6:1), conquered Babylon. Cyrus also ruled Persia for many years before conquering Babylon. And in an earlier period, the kingdoms of Persia and Media were already mentioned in Chumash itself (Pentateuch), see Bereshit (14:1) with com. Ramban and Midrash Rabbah (42:4).
In light of this, it is possible that the kings mentioned in the Greek sources ruled in an earlier period, before Persia became a world power. We also see that names such as Achashverosh and Daryavesh were repeated several times, as stated in the Greek chronicles. The Talmud turns to this empire during its apogee, for the reason that it was then that it was directly related to the life of the Jewish people (the book of Maor Einaim on behalf of Abarbanel).
In other words, the main inconsistency lies not in the very fact of the existence of additional Persian rulers, but in determining the clear time of their reign, and their order - who was earlier and who was later.
So, for example, you cited from Greek sources that Darius the First married the daughter of Koresh, but in our sources it is the other way around: Koresh was the son-in-law of Darius of Media (moreover, even before the conquest of Babylon). In such cases, one “damaged phone” is enough to turn the picture upside down!
From the words of some midrashim (see Lekah Tov, preface to Esther) we can conclude that Darius of Media - the first king of the united Median-Persian Empire - is Darius the First from Greek sources, for the reason that in both places he is called Darius the Great (HaGadol).
Regarding the origin of Achashverosh, Rashi believed that he did not come from a royal family. This opinion is based on the words of the Talmud (Megillah 11a) that Achashverosh became king only thanks to a large monetary bribe, as well as on the insult of the king’s wife, Vashti, addressed to Achashverosh: “My father’s groom” (Megillah 12b) (drashot Ri ibn Shuib).
However, in the Midrash we find that Achashverosh was the son of Darius the First! In light of the above - that Darius's father's name was Ahasuerus - it is very natural that Darius named his son in honor of his grandfather. In turn, Achashverosh named his son (from Esther) Darius, again in honor of his grandfather! And this does not at all contradict the words of the Talmud. According to one opinion, it was Achashverosh’s candidacy that was the most worthy, but according to the second, that he was not worthy of the throne, but bought it with a bribe, it is not directly said that he was not the royal heir. And the fact that he was not worthy of the royal crown can be explained in several ways (Vashti’s insult can also be understood allegorically: compared to the greatness of her father, he was worthy to serve him as a groom, and nothing more).
One possible explanation: the Talmud states that the Persians and Medes entered into an agreement among themselves that the royal throne would belong to them in turn. Cyrus himself persuaded Darius (his father-in-law) to ascend the throne first, because he became aware of Daniel’s prophecy, which mentions the fall of Babylon into the hands of Media and Persia, and since Media was mentioned before Persia, the right of primacy belongs to its king.
Ahasuerus was the son of Darius the Mede, but his mother was from Persia (Midrash Targum Sheni Esther 1:1). Therefore, perhaps his status was “Persian” by mother, and after Cyrus the right to the kingdom belonged to Media, so a bribe was necessary to turn a blind eye to his origin, or to take into account the fact that his father was from Media.
And if we rely on the assumption of many historians (including Jewish religious scholars) that Achashverosh is the “Greek” Xerxes, the son of Darius the First, we get a different explanation. In the royal speech of Xerxes, found in one of the ancient Persian capitals of Persepoles (imprinted on a stone), it is said: “My father Darius had other sons, however ... my father appointed me to be his successor.” This confirms what was said in Greek sources that Xerxes was not the firstborn of Darius, and the kingdom, as is known, is transferred to the firstborn. Therefore, there was a need to “pay extra” in order to be worthy of the kingdom.
(By the way, at the conclusion of that speech it is said: “When my father joined his fathers, I ruled in his place.” According to Greek sources, it is true that Xerxes ruled after Darius, but the question is how this fits with Jewish tradition, which says that between Darius and Ahasuerus, Cyrus (and maybe his son Cambyses) ruled for 3 years? Perhaps from this we can conclude that Xerxes is not Ahasuerus, because the connection between them is just an unproven assumption. Or perhaps Ahasuerus meant that Darius bequeathed to transfer power to him when it becomes possible (according to the agreement to alternate with the Persians), or there was an inaccuracy in the translation. Or perhaps this inscription includes a certain falsification of history, examples of which are very numerous).
Hence the answer to your question, why Ahasuerus needed legitimation in the person of Vashti, the granddaughter of Nevukhadar-Netzar. When there are some reasons to consider him unworthy of the throne - lack of royal blood or a more worthy older brother - the presence of a wife from a famous royal family certainly adds respect and legitimation to his candidacy (the concepts of “glory” and “honor” had even more meaning in those days meaning than they have today). By the way, the explanation that Achashverosh married Vashti for the sake of his own legitimation belongs to the pen of some relatively later commentators (R. Bezalel Ashkenazi, Agro, Malbim, etc.), but from what was said in the Talmud and Midrashim we can conclude that he took Vashti as his wife only because of her extraordinary beauty.
Finally, we present data from Jewish tradition regarding the exact number of kings of Persia. In the books of the prophets (Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, Divrei haYamim) we find Darius of Media, Koresh of Persia, Artahshast (Artaxerxes - in the Greek interpretation), Ahasuerus, Darius the Second, Artahshast - during whose time Ezra and Nehemiah returned to Judea. That is, according to a simple understanding, a total of 6 kings are mentioned. The book of Daniel (beginning of Chapter 11) also clearly speaks of the number of Persian kings, but, oddly enough, it is also difficult to find certainty in the interpretation - it is possible to explain that there will be 6 kings, or 5, or 4 (see Rashi and Ibn Ezra).
However, as we have already mentioned, according to oral tradition (Talmud Megillah 11b, Seder Olam ch. 28-30), there were only 4 kings (not including the earlier period, see above): Artahshasta - the last, also known as Darius the Second. The fact is that Artahshasta is a general name for the ruler of Persia, like Pharaoh in Egypt and Abimelech among the Philistines. Therefore, Artahshasta the First is none other than Achashverosh himself.
On the other hand, some believe that perhaps Artahshasta the First, mentioned between Cyrus and Ahasuerus, is Cyrus' son Cambyses (see Rashi on Daniel (11:1) - Bambisha).
Darius the Second, in addition to the name Artahshasta, is called Scripture (Ezra 6:14) Koresh (Cyrus), because he continued and completed the construction of the Temple in Jerusalem, begun by Cyrus, but interrupted due to denunciation of the enemies of the Jewish people (Talmud Rosh Hashanah 3b) .
This is the little that I have been able to clarify for now. Of course, this topic requires additional consideration, a thorough analysis of Greek sources and archaeological finds.
In any case, Jewish sages of all generations were very critical of the Greek chronicles (Abarbanel - Maainei haYeshua 2:7, Maaral - Beer haGola end of part 6, Chazon Ish - collection of letters 1:206), emphasizing that our tradition comes from the sages of the Torah, contemporaries and witnesses of those events who conveyed to us the necessary information as clearly and definitely as possible.
If you have additional information on this issue, I will be glad to read it.
With respect and best wishes for your future studies, Nathan Agres
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The territory of Persia, before the formation of an independent state, was part of the Assyrian Empire. VI century BC. became the heyday of ancient civilization, which began with the kingdom of the ruler Persia Cyrus II the Great. He managed to defeat the king named Croesus of the richest country of antiquity, Lydia. It went down in history as the first state entity in which silver and gold coins began to be minted in the history of the world. This happened in the 7th century. BC.
Under the Persian king Cyrus, the borders of the state were significantly expanded and included the territories of the fallen Assyrian Empire and the powerful. By the end of the reign of Cyrus and his heir, Persia, which had received the status of an empire, occupied the area from the lands of Ancient Egypt to India. The conqueror honored the traditions and customs of the conquered peoples and accepted the title and crown of the king of the conquered states.
Death of King Cyrus II of Persia
In ancient times, the Persian Emperor Cyrus was considered one of the most powerful rulers, under whose skillful leadership numerous successful military campaigns were carried out. However, his fate ended ingloriously: the great Cyrus fell at the hands of a woman. Near the northeastern border of the Persian Empire lived Massagetae. Small tribes were very savvy in military affairs. They were ruled by Queen Tomiris. She responded to Cyrus' marriage proposal with a decisive refusal, which extremely angered the emperor and he launched a military campaign to capture the nomadic peoples. The queen's son died in the battle, and she promised to force the king of the ancient civilization to drink blood. The battle ended in the defeat of the Persian troops. The emperor's head was brought to the queen in a leather fur filled with blood. Thus ended the time of despotic rule and conquests of the king of Persia, Cyrus II the Great.
Darius's rise to power
After the death of the mighty Cyrus, his direct heir came to power Cambyses. A militia began in the state. As a result of the struggle, Darius I became the emperor of Persia. Information about the years of his reign has reached our days thanks to Behistunskaya inscriptions, which contains historical data in Old Persian, Akkadian and Elamite. The stone was found by British officer G. Rawlinson in 1835. The inscription indicates that during the reign of Darius the Great, a distant relative of Cyrus II, Persia turned into an eastern despotism.
The state was divided into 20 administrative units, which were governed by satraps. The regions were called satraps. Officials were in charge of management and their responsibilities included monitoring the collection of taxes into the main treasury of the state. The money was spent on infrastructure development, in particular, roads were built connecting areas throughout the empire. Postal posts were established to carry messages to the king. During his reign, extensive urban construction and the development of crafts were noted. Gold coins – “dariks” – are introduced into monetary use.
Centers of the Persian Empire
One of the four capitals of the ancient civilization of Persia was located on the territory of former Lydia in the city of Susa. Another center of social and political life was in Pasargadae, established by Cyrus the Great. The Persian residence was also located in the conquered Babylonian kingdom. Emperor Darius I was enthroned in a city specially established as the capital of Persia Persepolis. Its wealth and architecture amazed the rulers and ambassadors of foreign countries who came to the empire to bring gifts to the king. The stone walls of Darius's palace in Persepolis are decorated with paintings depicting the immortal army of the Persians and the history of the existence of the "six nations" living as part of the ancient civilization.
Religious beliefs of the Persians
In ancient times in Persia there was polytheism. The adoption of a single religion came with the teaching of the struggle between the god of good and the creation of evil. The name of the prophet Zarathustra (Zoroaster). In the Persian tradition, unlike the religiously strong Ancient Egypt, there was no custom of erecting temple complexes and altars for performing spiritual rites. Sacrifices were made on hills where altars were built. God of light and goodness Ahura-Mazda depicted in Zoroastrianism as a solar disk decorated with wings. He was considered the patron saint of the kings of the ancient civilization of Persia.
The Persian state was located on the territory of modern Iran, where ancient architectural monuments of the empire were preserved.
Video about the creation and fall of the Persian Empire
PERSIAN KINGS AND GENERAL LEADERS IN THE BOOK OF NEPOTA TO THE LIFE OF DATAM, TO THE FRAGMENT “ON THE KINGS”
Among the famous generals presented in this book, we see one hero of Persian history - Datamus, the military leader of King Artaxerxes II, a participant in the great uprising of the satraps. In the fragment “On the Kings,” Nepos briefly mentions the rulers of Persia themselves, under whom the events of his Greek biographies unfolded. This series opens with the name of Cyrus II, the founder of the great Persian power, who died 30 years before the start of the Greco-Persian wars. Let's take a general look at the periods of Persian history reflected in the pages of Nepos.
In the middle of the 6th century. BC, when the power of the tyrant Pisistratus was established in Athens, a change of great empires took place in the Middle East. Cyrus II, a minor dynast from the Achaemenid family, ruler of the provincial Median province of Persia, raised a rebellion against his master, which was crowned with brilliant success: a descendant of the Persian princes sat on the throne of the mighty Median kingdom (550). Through his mother Mandana, Cyrus was the grandson of the deposed king Astyages; the Persians were considered the closest relatives of the Medes, so the foundation of the Persian state on the site of the Median kingdom looked more like a palace coup than a conquest; the Greeks, as we know, called the Persians Medes, and the ancient authors called the Greco-Persian wars Median. During the 30 years of his reign, Cyrus II widely expanded the borders of his state, absorbing the possessions of all the ancient “kings of the four countries of the world.” In the east, the Persians occupied Babylon, taking over the legacy of the Assyro-Babylonian conquerors; in the west, in Asia Minor, their prey was the rich trading Lydian kingdom, together with the coastal Greek colonies subordinate to it; Perhaps, already under Cyrus, some of the Greek islands closest to Asia also submitted to the Persians.
The creator of the great Persian power was not destined to pass it on to the direct heirs of his house: after the death of the great king on the banks of the Amu Darya during a campaign against the Massagetae (530), his son Cambyses reigned for only 7 years. The heir of Cyrus barely managed to complete his father's work by conquering the last great kingdom of the Middle East - Egypt; in March 522, he died on the way back to Persia, where at that time a rebellious pretender to the throne appeared, posing as the younger prince Bardia. This last true or imaginary son of Cyrus fell victim to a palace conspiracy after 7 months of reign (September 522). By decision of the noble conspirators, power passed to Darius, representing a subsidiary branch of the Achaemenids; securing his right to the throne, the new king married Cyrus's daughter Atossa.
With Darius I, son of Hystaspes, begins the dynasty of Persian kings who fought with the Greeks for a total of about 150 years. During the reign of its founder, the Persians captured the coast of Thrace, suppressed the uprising of Asian Ionia and made the first naval campaign against Attica, which ended in the Battle of Marathon (see the biography of Maltiades). Darius I died in 486, at the age of 64, while preparing for a new war. The 36-year-old Xerxes, son of Darius from Atossa, grandson of Cyrus the Great, ascended the throne. At this time, the power of the Persian despot seemed limitless; the sea, which swept away the royal bridge on the Hellespont, was scourged for rebellion against the ruler of the earth and the elements. The campaign of a million Xerxes horde against Hellas (480) became the culmination of the Median wars, the defeat of the Persians at Salamis and Plataea is an eternal example of the defeat of earthly pride.
After glorious victories in Europe, the Greeks moved the war to the sea, displacing the Persians from the Aegean basin (see the biography of Cimon). The reign of Xerxes ended ingloriously: in the last two years of his life, there were turmoil within the Persian state - famine, rising prices, hectic movements of officials. In 465, the aging king became the victim of high-ranking assassins, suspected of acting at the behest of a younger prince.
Artaxerxes I, nicknamed Dolgoruky because his right arm was longer than his left, came to the throne through intrigue, parricide and fratricide. Nevertheless, in Greek tradition he enjoyed a reputation as a magnanimous and merciful ruler. It was this king who sheltered and caressed the great enemy of the Persians, Themistocles (see the biography of Themistocles). During his reign, a major anti-Persian uprising in Egypt, supported by the Athenians (460 - 454), was suppressed, not without the participation of Persian diplomats, the first military clash between Athens and Sparta took place (the 1st Peloponnesian War) and, finally, the 50-year Greek war ended. Persian feud: in 449 in Susa, the Persian king and the Athenian ambassador Callias signed a peace treaty, according to which the Persians renounced their claims to the islands and shores of the Aegean or Greek Sea, retaining Egypt and Cyprus. The border separating the maritime zones of influence became the Helids Islands off the coast of Pamphylia.
In the list of great Persian kings, Nepos omits the name of Darius II, the natural son of Artaxerxes by a Babylonian concubine (hence his nickname Noth, the illegitimate), who ruled during the Peloponnesian War (424-404). He was a weak ruler who used against the Greeks only those archers that were minted on the royal gold coins. Under him, the principle of “divide and conquer” was established in relation to the Hellenes. With the help of Persian subsidies, the strongest states of Greece, Athens and Sparta, were pitted against each other; not war, but an alliance with the rich Persian ruler became at this time an important phenomenon in inter-Greek relations (see the biography of Alcibiades).
Within the Persian state, under Darius II, the weakening of central power began; strife and revolts of satraps, uprisings of conquered peoples became part of Persian politics. At the end of Darius's reign, Egypt fell away and won independence for a long period of 60 years (405/400-342).
In the year of the end of the Peloponnesian War, the Persian throne was taken by Artaxerxes II the Memorable, the eldest son of Darius and his powerful wife, as well as sister Parysatis. This long-lived king, who reigned for 45 years (404-359), was a contemporary of Agesilaus, Epaminondas and the glorious Athenian generals, the creators of the 2nd Athenian Naval Union. There is Plutarch's biography of Artaxerxes, a significant part of which is the story of the rebellion of the younger prince Cyrus against his brother, the campaign of 10 thousand Greek mercenaries deep into Babylonia, the victory and death of the pretender to the throne (401).
In the first years of the reign of Artaxerxes II, the Persians repelled the invasion of Agesilaus into Asia Minor, and then for many years they invariably adhered to the policy of Darius, carried out in an improved form: taking the position of mediators and peacemakers, they entered into an alliance with the strongest state of Hellas (first Sparta, then Thebes ) and provided the leader with diplomatic and financial support, seeking with his help the dissolution of all other combat-ready Greek coalitions (see above about the Peace of Antalcis and the Peace of Pelopidas). Under the weak-willed king, immersed in the intrigues of 360 wives and 150 sons, the Persian power from time to time burst at all the seams. The punitive expeditions of the royal commanders against Egypt ended ingloriously: in 385-383. Pharaoh Achoris, in 374 Nectanebo I, using the services of the Athenian military leader Chabrias, turned back the armies of Pharnabazus and Tiphrastus. At the end of the 60s. under Taha, the son of Nectanebo, there was a retaliatory invasion of the Egyptians into Syria and Palestine; Agesilaus and Chabrias took part in this campaign. In those same years, the Persian king had to fight with the defunct satraps of Asia Minor.
Soon after the second campaign of the Persians in Egypt (374), the governor of Cappadocia, Datamus, rebelled against his master; in 367 he was joined by the Phrygian satrap Ariobarzanes, whose example was followed by the governor of Ionia Orontes and the Carian dynast Mausolus. Athens and Sparta, outraged by the profivan orientation of the royal court (see above about the Peace of Pelopidas in 367), without violating the formal peace with Persia, sent Agesilaus and Timothy to help the rebels; Pharaoh Tax also sent money and ships to Asia. The rebellion of the Asia Minor governors, known as the “great uprising of the satraps,” continued until the very end of the 60s, coming to naught after a separate pacification or the death of its participants. The events of the great uprising are reflected in Datam's nepotic biography.
The reign of Artaxerxes III Ochus (358-338), which began after this rebellion, goes beyond the scope of nepotist biographies. Under the new, cruel and powerful ruler, the Persian state was temporarily strengthened: ambitious satraps laid down their arms, the rebel Phoenician cities suffered cruel punishment, and Egypt was re-conquered. In the west, Persia's main opponents, the Athenians, had been mired in a war with their own allies since 357. 3 years after the start of the allied war, under the threat of an invasion of Hellas by a huge royal army, Athens accepted the Persian ultimatum, recalling its fleet from the shores of Asia Minor. Thus, immediately after the death of Artaxerxes II, the era of the 2nd Athenian Maritime Union receded into the past.
The Persian Empire was a centralized monarchical state. The successes and defeats of the Persians depended on the personal qualities of the king and his ability to make the right decisions. The main turns of Persian foreign policy are associated with the decisions made by the kings. Even the most powerful satraps, military leaders and rulers of vassal areas depended on the mercy of the Achaemenids. The main stages of the history of the Persian Empire can be associated with the activities of its supreme rulers, who ruled the state from Persepolis.
First Achaemenids. The royal family from which Cyrus II and Darius I came ruled the Persians from at least the 7th century BC. Its founder was considered to be Achaemen, who reigned at the turn of the 8th-7th centuries BC. The next king was his son Chishpish (Teisp).
It is known that in the 7th century BC. was the king of Persia Cyrus I. In the first half of the 6th century BC. Cambyses I ruled the Persians, and after him the throne was inherited by his son named Cyrus.
Cyrus II reigned 559-530. BC. This ruler was able to go from being the king of little Persia to becoming the founder of a world empire. He conquered Media, Babylonia, Asia Minor and its Greek cities, and vast lands in Central Asia. Cyrus allowed the Jews, who were driven to Mesopotamia after the Babylonian conquest, to return to their homeland.
Cambyses II(530-522 BC). He was the closest ally of his father Cyrus. For several months during his father's life he ruled as king of Babylon. Before the last campaign against the Massagetae, Cambyses became co-ruler of Cyrus.
In 525-522 BC. King Cambyses II organized an invasion and subjugated Egypt. He was proclaimed king of this country in accordance with Egyptian traditions and is considered the founder of the XXVI dynasty.
Herodotus created the image of Cambyses as a cruel and insane tyrant who mocked the religious traditions of the Egyptians. Authentic texts do not confirm this, emphasizing the king's respect for the Egyptian religion.
Darius I(522-486 BC). He achieved power after the turmoil that followed the death of Cambyses. Overthrew the usurper Bardiya and suppressed the uprisings. Reorganized the satrapy system. Under Darius I, the borders of the empire reached their maximum: northwestern India, part of Thrace, and the Greek islands in the Aegean were conquered.
Artaxex I(465-424 BC). Under this king, the wars with the Greeks ended. He managed to maintain control over the rebels Egypt and Cyprus. He began a policy of cooperation with the Greek city-states to the benefit of Persia.
Artaxerxes II(404-359 BC). Soon after coming to power, he suppressed the uprising of his brother Cyrus the Younger, who marched towards Babylon. Under Artaxex II, Persia actively intervened in the affairs of the Greek city-states, supporting different city-states alternately so that the Greeks could not become dangerous.
In 386 BC. in alliance with Sparta, he dictated the Antalcid (Royal) peace to the Greeks, according to which the Hellenic city-states of Ionia and Aeolis returned to the Achaemenid empire. In 375, 371, 366 BC. with the participation of Artaxerxes II, new peace treaties were concluded between the Greek city-states. In 391-382 BC. subjugated the strong ruler of Cyprus, Evagoras.
Artaxex III(359-338 BC). He continued his father's policy towards the Greek city states. In 355 BC. intervened in the Allied War of Athens against Byzantium, Rhodes and Chios. He promised these policies support against Athens and achieved a peace agreement, according to which Byzantium, Rhodes and Chios left the alliance led by Athens.
In 349-344 BC. suppressed uprisings in Phenicia. During the campaigns of 344-342 BC. Artaxerxes' generals re-conquered Egypt, which had seceded at the end of the 5th century BC.
Darius III(336-330 BC). He was a representative of a side branch of the royal house, tracing its origin back to Darius II. Before coming to power, he was the governor of Armenia under the name Kodoman. Received the throne in adulthood as a result of a conspiracy organized by a court eunuch. His reign saw the invasion of Alexander the Great. After a series of defeats and the loss of the capital, Darius was killed by his entourage.
After the death of most of the kings in Persia, the empire was rocked by rebellions. Satraps and dependent rulers tried to break away from the central empire, and representatives of the lateral branches of the Achaemenids took the throne. To retain power from the king, determination, cruelty and the gift of a politician were required.
The activities of the kings from the Achaemenid clan were connected, first of all, with the acquisition of new lands and the desire to keep those already conquered in subjection.
In the middle of the 6th century BC. That is, a hitherto little-known tribe entered the historical arena - the Persians, who, by the will of fate, soon managed to create the greatest empire of that time, a powerful state stretching from Egypt and Libya to the borders. The Persians were active and insatiable in their conquests, and only courage and bravery during the Greco-Persian Wars managed to stop their further expansion into Europe. But who were the ancient Persians, what was their history and culture? Read about all this further in our article.
Where is Persia
But first, let’s answer the question of where ancient Persia is located, or rather, where it was. The territory of Persia at the time of its greatest prosperity extended from the borders of India in the East to modern Libya in North Africa and part of mainland Greece in the West (those lands that the Persians managed to conquer from the Greeks for a short time).
This is what ancient Persia looks like on the map.
History of Persia
The origin of the Persians is associated with the warlike nomadic tribes of the Aryans, some of whom settled on the territory of the modern state of Iran (the word “Iran” itself comes from the ancient name “Ariana,” which means “country of the Aryans”). Finding themselves on the fertile lands of the Iranian highlands, they switched from a nomadic lifestyle to a sedentary one, nevertheless, preserving both their military traditions of nomads and the simplicity of morals characteristic of many nomadic tribes.
The history of ancient Persia as a great power of the past begins in the middle of the 6th century BC. that is, when, under the leadership of the talented leader (later the Persian king) Cyrus II, the Persians first completely conquered Media, one of the large states of the then East. And then they began to threaten itself, which at that time was the greatest power of antiquity.
And already in 539, near the city of Opis, on the Tiber River, a decisive battle took place between the armies of the Persians and Babylonians, which ended in a brilliant victory for the Persians, the Babylonians were completely defeated, and Babylon itself, the greatest city of antiquity for many centuries, became part of the newly formed Persian Empire . In just a dozen years, the Persians from a seedy tribe truly turned into the rulers of the East.
According to the Greek historian Herodotus, such a crushing success of the Persians was facilitated, first of all, by the simplicity and modesty of the latter. And of course there is iron military discipline in their troops. Even after gaining enormous wealth and power over many other tribes and peoples, the Persians continued to honor these virtues, simplicity and modesty, most of all. It is interesting that during the coronation of the Persian kings, the future king had to put on the clothes of a common man and eat a handful of dried figs and drink a glass of sour milk - the food of the common people, which symbolized his connection with the people.
But back to the history of the Persian Empire, the successors of Cyrus II, the Persian kings Cambyses and Darius, continued their active policy of conquest. So, under Cambyses, the Persians invaded ancient Egypt, which by that time was experiencing a political crisis. Having defeated the Egyptians, the Persians turned this cradle of ancient civilization, Egypt, into one of their satrapies (provinces).
King Darius actively strengthened the borders of the Persian state, both in the East and in the West; under his rule, ancient Persia reached the pinnacle of its power, and almost the entire civilized world of that time was under its rule. With the exception of ancient Greece in the West, which gave no rest to the warlike Persian kings, and soon the Persians, under the reign of King Xerxes, the heir of Darius, tried to conquer these wayward and freedom-loving Greeks, but it was not to be.
Despite their numerical superiority, military luck betrayed the Persians for the first time. In a number of battles they suffered a number of crushing defeats from the Greeks, however, at some stage they managed to conquer a number of Greek territories and even plunder Athens, but still the Greco-Persian wars ended in a crushing defeat for the Persian Empire.
From that moment on, the once great country entered a period of decline; the Persian kings, who had grown up in luxury, increasingly forgot the former virtues of modesty and simplicity, which were so valued by their ancestors. Many conquered countries and peoples were just waiting for the moment to rebel against the hated Persians, their enslavers and conquerors. And such a moment has come - Alexander the Great, at the head of a united Greek army, himself attacked Persia.
It seemed that the Persian troops would crush this arrogant Greek (or rather, not even a completely Greek - a Macedonian) into powder, but everything turned out to be completely different, the Persians again suffered crushing defeats, one after another, the united Greek phalanx, this tank of antiquity, crushes superior forces over and over again. Persian forces. The peoples once conquered by the Persians, seeing what was happening, also rebelled against their rulers; the Egyptians even met Alexander’s army as liberators from the hated Persians. Persia turned out to be a true ear of clay with feet of clay, formidable in appearance, it was crushed thanks to the military and political genius of one Macedonian.
Sasanian state and Sasanian revival
The conquests of Alexander the Great turned out to be a disaster for the Persians, who, instead of arrogant power over other peoples, had to humbly submit to their long-time enemies - the Greeks. Only in the 2nd century BC. That is, the Parthian tribes managed to expel the Greeks from Asia Minor, although the Parthians themselves adopted a lot from the Greeks. And so in 226 AD, a certain ruler of Pars with the ancient Persian name Ardashir (Artaxerxes) rebelled against the ruling Parthian dynasty. The uprising was successful and ended with the restoration of the Persian state, the Sassanid state, which historians call the “second Persian empire” or the “Sassanid revival”.
The Sasanian rulers sought to revive the former greatness of ancient Persia, which at that time had already become a semi-legendary power. And it was under them that a new flowering of Iranian and Persian culture began, which everywhere supplants Greek culture. Temples and new palaces in the Persian style are being actively built, wars are being waged with neighbors, but not as successfully as in the old days. The territory of the new Sasanian state is several times smaller than the size of the former Persia; it is located only on the site of modern Iran, the actual ancestral home of the Persians, and also covers part of the territory of modern Iraq, Azerbaijan and Armenia. The Sasanian state existed for more than four centuries, until, exhausted by continuous wars, it was finally conquered by the Arabs, who carried the banner of a new religion - Islam.
Persian culture
The culture of ancient Persia is most notable for their system of government, which even the ancient Greeks admired. In their opinion, this form of government was the pinnacle of monarchical rule. The Persian state was divided into so-called satrapies, headed by the satrap himself, which means “guardian of order.” In fact, the satrap was a local governor-general, whose broad responsibilities included maintaining order in the territories entrusted to him, collecting taxes, administering justice, and commanding local military garrisons.
Another important achievement of Persian civilization was the beautiful roads described by Herodotus and Xenophon. The most famous was the royal road, running from Ephesus in Asia Minor to the city of Susa in the East.
The post office functioned well in ancient Persia, which was also greatly facilitated by good roads. Also in ancient Persia, trade was very developed; a well-thought-out tax system, similar to the modern one, functioned throughout the state, in which part of the taxes and taxes went to conditional local budgets, while part was sent to the central government. The Persian kings had a monopoly on the minting of gold coins, while their satraps could also mint their own coins, but only in silver or copper. The "local money" of the satraps circulated only in a certain territory, while the gold coins of the Persian kings were a universal means of payment throughout the Persian empire and even beyond its borders.
Coins of Persia.
Writing in ancient Persia had an active development; there were several types of it: from pictograms to the alphabet invented in its time. The official language of the Persian kingdom was Aramaic, coming from the ancient Assyrians.
The art of ancient Persia is represented by the sculpture and architecture there. For example, skillfully carved stone bas-reliefs of Persian kings have survived to this day.
Persian palaces and temples were famous for their luxurious decoration.
Here is an image of a Persian master.
Unfortunately, other forms of ancient Persian art have not reached us.
Religion of Persia
The religion of ancient Persia is represented by a very interesting religious doctrine - Zoroastrianism, so named after the founder of this religion, the sage, prophet (and possibly magician) Zoroaster (aka Zoroaster). The teachings of Zoroastrianism are based on the eternal confrontation between good and evil, where the good principle is represented by the god Ahura Mazda. The wisdom and revelation of Zarathushtra are presented in the sacred book of Zoroastrianism - the Zend Avesta. In fact, this religion of the ancient Persians has a lot in common with other monotheistic later religions, such as Christianity and Islam:
- Belief in one God, which among the Persians was represented by Ahura-Mazda himself. The antipode of God, the Devil, Satan in the Christian tradition in Zoroastrianism is represented by the demon Druj, personifying evil, lies, and destruction.
- The presence of sacred scripture, the Zend-Avesta among the Zoroastrian Persians, like the Koran among Muslims and the Bible among Christians.
- The presence of a prophet, Zoroastrian-Zaratushtra, through whom divine wisdom is transmitted.
- The moral and ethical component of the teaching is that Zoroastrianism preaches (as well as other religions) renunciation of violence, theft, and murder. For an unrighteous and sinful path in the future, according to Zarathustra, a person after death will end up in hell, while a person who commits good deeds after death will remain in heaven.
In a word, as we see, the ancient Persian religion of Zoroastrianism is strikingly different from the pagan religions of many other peoples, and in its nature is very similar to the later world religions of Christianity and Islam, and by the way, it still exists today. After the fall of the Sasanian state, the final collapse of Persian culture and especially religion came, since the Arab conquerors carried with them the banner of Islam. Many Persians also converted to Islam at this time and assimilated with the Arabs. But there was a part of the Persians who wanted to remain faithful to their ancient religion of Zoroastrianism, fleeing the religious persecution of Muslims, they fled to India, where they preserved their religion and culture to this day. Now they are known under the name Parsis; on the territory of modern India, even today there are many Zoroastrian temples, as well as adherents of this religion, real descendants of the ancient Persians.
Ancient Persia, video
And in conclusion, an interesting documentary about ancient Persia - “The Persian Empire - an empire of greatness and wealth.”
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