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Structure
Interesting Questions, Facts and Information
- There are a total of 20 general entries.
Special Topics
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 Interesting Questions, Facts, and Information
 Persian Empire
| Just prior to the birth of the Persian Empire, Zoroaster presented his philosophical ideas and teachings, and the development and spread of the Zoroastrian faith throughout the Persian Empire followed. His teachings were formalized into the sacred book of the Zoroastrian religion, which is called...?
| The Persian Empire, Part I
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Zend-Avesta. The Zoroastrian faith was (and is) essentially a monotheistic one, in which the god Ahura Mazda was the all-powerful creator of the world. The Parsees of western India still practice a form of Zoroastrianism today.
| The origin of the Persian Empire can be found in a state formed at Parsumash c. 700 B.C. Who was the founder of this Persian state?
| The Persian Empire, Part I
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Achaemenes. When Cyrus became emperor, he took the name Achaemenid as the title for his dynasty, in remembrance of his great ancestor.
| One of the keys to the building of the Persian Empire was the founding of the Median Kingdom to the north. Which Median king created this kingdom by first defeating the Scythians and then by extending his rule over the Persians to the south?
| The Persian Empire, Part I
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Cyaxares. Cyaxares participated in the sacking of Nineveh and final destruction of the Assyrian Empire in 612 B.C. Following this, he extended his kingdom into Armenia and Asia Minor, setting the stage for future Persian conquests.
Pasargadae. Cyrus built his royal palace and a temple in Pasargadae, at which all of the future Persian Emperors were crowned. It later became a holy city of the empire. Later, Cyrus chose to rule from Ecbatana...a more strategic and central location. Later, the capital would be moved to Susa, and finally to Persepolis.
| In 550 B.C., the son of the founder of the Median Kingdom, Astyages, was ousted from the Median throne by which Persian vassal king?
| The Persian Empire, Part I
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Cyrus. Rather than dealing harshly with Astyages and the Medians, Cyrus essentially combined the two kingdoms, and treated the Medians with fraternal respect. Cyrus thus inherited the lands ruled by the Medians, vastly expanding Persian territory...the empire was born.
The royal bodyguard. They were called the 'immortals' because of their impeccable appearance and their high level of skill, and because of the fact that if any member fell sick or died, they were immediately replaced...and the number was always kept at exactly 10,000!
| One of the first great conquests of Persia was that of Lydia, ruled by the famed king Croesus, which finally occurred in 547 by the capture of which capital city?
| The Persian Empire, Part I
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Sardes. Cyrus spared the life of Croesus (famed for his wealth) following the capture of Sardes. He continued on to the Aegean coast of Asia Minor, and the Greek cities there were finally subdued by 540 B.C.
Nabonidus. Once again, Nabonidus' life was spared once Cyrus took the city of Babylon, and the priest of Marduk immediately accepted Cyrus as the rightful ruler of the land of Marduk (a Babylonian god).
| When last we left off (see the quiz 'Persian Empire, Part I') Cyrus had just conquered Babylon (in 539 B.C.), greatly expanding his empire. Persia inherited which two areas following this conquest?
| The Persian Empire, Part II
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Syria and Palestine. The Persians were looked at as benevolent liberators by the native peoples of these areas. In particular, the Jews who had been exiled to Babylon, were able to make their way back to Jerusalem where their temple was rebuilt. Again, Persian tolerance created the atmosphere that made these things possible.
| The founder of the Persian Empire, Cyrus the Great, died in battle in 530 B.C. fighting against which people of central Asia?
| The Persian Empire, Part II
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Massagetai. The Massagetai dwelled in the area now occupied by Afghanistan, a place where many a great power has found itself bogged down in dangerous warfare. Cyrus was unable to overcome the Massagetai who were led by Queen Tomyris, and he perished in battle.
| Cambyses was the second Persian Emperor, succeeding his father Cyrus after the latter's death in battle. Before succeeding to the throne however, Cambyses had his own brother put to death. What was this brother's name?
| The Persian Empire, Part II
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Smerdis. Cambyses was the eldest son of Cyrus and was chosen by Cyrus to be the successor to the Persian throne, but this did not prevent Cambyses from secretly having his brother killed so that no challenge could be mounted to his reign.
Conquest of Egypt. The conquering of Egypt was not difficult for the army of Cambyses, within a year (from 526-5 B.C.) they entered Memphis where Cambyses was made Pharaoh. Unfortunately, it appears that the priests of Egypt were somehow offended by Cambyses and slandered him, while at the same time a revolt against Cambyses began back in Persia. The combination of these factors probably led to his suicide in 525 B.C.
| During his reign, Darius made several great conquests, and brought the Persian Empire to its greatest extent. However, in terms of warfare Darius is probably best known for which great loss inflicted by the Greeks?
| The Persian Empire, Part II
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Marathon. Despite his conquests of Thrace and Macedonia, and his moderately successful campaigns against the Scythians, Darius could not overcome the united Greeks at Marathon, led by the commander Miltiades. Darius's army was badly defeated on the plain of Marathon in 490 B.C. and he died 4 years later without ever having been able to follow up his attack.
Xerxes I . Xerxes continued unsuccessfully his father's campaigns to conquer Greece and met with several embarrassing defeats.
| I'm going to skip a great deal of time now to ask this final question, that is...who was the last emperor of Persia, just prior to its final defeat by Alexander the Great in 330 B.C.?
| The Persian Empire, Part II
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Darius III. Following a long decline, which included the remainder of Xerxes' reign, and the reigns of Artaxerxes I, II and III and Xerxes II, Darius III rose to the throne in 336 B.C. His empire was soon lost though to the army of Alexander the Great, who would eventually conquer the entire territory of the Persian Empire at its greatest extent.
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