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The Empires of Persia

The Empires of Persia. I will analyze the rise, fall, and importance of the 4 Empires that dominated Persia from 558 B.C.E. to 651 C.E. Persian Empires. Location: Arose from contemporary Iran Four major dynasties Achaemenids (558-330 BCE) Seleucids (323-283 BCE)

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The Empires of Persia

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  1. The Empires of Persia I will analyze the rise, fall, and importance of the 4 Empires that dominated Persia from 558 B.C.E. to 651 C.E.

  2. Persian Empires • Location: • Arose from contemporary Iran • Four major dynasties • Achaemenids (558-330 BCE) • Seleucids (323-283 BCE) • Parthians (247 BCE-224 CE) • Sasanids (224-651 CE)

  3. Geographic Analysis: Using modern Atlases, determine the expanse of the Persian Empires compared to Modern Nations or geographic landforms.

  4. Check for Understanding • Based on the following maps of the four Persian dynasties, what can you conclude about the history of the Persian Empires? Justify your response.

  5. Migrations into Persia • Migration of Medes and Persians from central Asia to Persia (Modern Iran), before 1000 BCE • Indo-Europeans – Language • Organized in Clans and not states • Good on horses, skilled archers (even on horse back) • Capitalized on weakening Assyrian and Babylonian empires, although they were originally their subjects

  6. Achaemenid Empire (558-330 BCE) • Cyrus (r. 558-530 BCE) founder of dynasty • “Cyrus the Shepherd” – Not wealthy • Tough and skilled military strategist. • Became king of Persian tribes in 558 B.C.E. • Conquered all of Iran by 534 B.C.E. and Lydia in Anatolia 546 • Between 545 BCE and 539 BCE he took Bactria (modern Afghanistan) and Babylonia in 539 B.C.E. as well • Died in 530 B.C.E. in battle.

  7. Achaemenid Empire (558-330 BCE) • Cambyses, Cyrus’s son conquered Egypt in 525 B.C.E. • Peak of Empire under Darius (r. 521-486 BCE) • Ruled from the Indus River to the Aegean Sea • He pushed the Empire farther East and West • Empire stretched 1,865 miles East to West and 933 mile North to South • Population of 35 Million…Most the world had yet seen • 27 Ethnic groups • Pioneered administrative techniques to manage the massive Empire • Established the Capital in Persepolis in 520 B.C.E. Summarize Information from the reading.

  8. Achaemenid Administration: The Satrapies • King titles = “The Great King, King of Kings, King of Persia, King of Countries.” • Darius divided the Realm into 23 Satrapies (Administrative and taxation districts) • Ruled by Satraps • Satraps mostly Persian, but their staff was principally made up of local officials. • System of spies and surprise audits • AKA- “Eyes and ears of the king” • Minimized possibilities of local rebellion

  9. Achaemenid Administration: The Satrapies • Finances • Standardized currency for taxation purposes (From the defeated Lydian King Croesus) • Regular Tax levies expected from each Satrapy • No uniform law code for entire empire, old laws remained in conquered areas. • Just matched laws to the Empires expectations. • Transportation of People and Information: • Massive road building- Persian Royal Road (1600 miles) • Some stone roads • Courier services (messages) • 111 Postal stations ever 25 to 30 miles with fresh horses for couriers to continue travelling • Could send messages as fast as 2 weeks time across the Royal Road, Caravans took 90 days. • Almost 8000 miles of total roads.

  10. Technologies • Qanat: System of underground canals • Improved agricultural production • Avoided excessive loss to evaporation • Iron Metallurgy Spread throughout the whole empire during this

  11. Decline of the Achaemenid Empire • Policy of toleration under Cyrus, Darius • Seen as new legitimate rulers in Babylonia • Rebuilding of Temple in Jerusalem for Jews that was destroyed by the Babylonians • Xerxes (486-465 BCE) attempts to impose Persian stamp on satrapies in Egypt and Mesopotamia • He fought revolutions harshly and was not as tolerant as Cyrus or Darius • Increasing public discontent

  12. Persian Wars (500-479 BCE) • Rebellious Greeks in Ionia (Anatolia) • Did not like their new “Tyrant Rulers” and were closely connected to their cousins on the Greek Peninsula • They executed their governors and launched the Persian Wars • Peninsular Greeks join in • Persians defeated at Marathon (490 BCE), retreated • Xerxes failed to regain control of the area. • However Greek City-States were not organized enough to pose a threat to the Achaemenid Empire • Safe for 150 years

  13. Fall of the Achaemenid Empire • Alexander the Great conquers the Achaemenid Empire (334-331 BCE) • Alexander and his father unite Greece in the Macedonian Empire • Well disciplined solders with heavier arms and more sophisticated tactics defeat Persians easily • Alexander declared himself the heir to Achaemenid Rulers • Paid Respects to Cyrus • Later burned Persepolis • Kept Satrap administration • However Alexander died in 323 B.C.E. leaving the door open for new Persian Empires.

  14. Seleucid Empire • Alexander the Great dies suddenly • Generals divide empire, best part goes to Seleucus (r. 305-281 BCE) • Seleucus became Emperor • Maintained Achaemenid systems of administration and taxation. • Founded New cities throughout the realm and attracted Greek colonists • The Seleucids face opposition from the Persians ruling classes • Attacked by rebellion in India causing them to lose their satraps in the area • Invasion of Parthians in Iran • Kept some rule until 83 B.C.E. when the Romans arrived.

  15. The Achaemenid and Selucid empires, 558-83 B.C.E.

  16. Parthian Empire • Seminomadic Parthians drive Seleucus out of Iran • Good warrior who used alfalfa to feed horses in the winter to make them bigger and stronger to defeat other nomadic groups who struggled to feed their horses in the winter. • Their horses gave them a military advantage and could hold larg warriors with heavy equipment. • By the 3rd C. B.C.E. they began to fight for their independence from the Seleucus Empire • Won independence in 238 B.C.E., gradual grew larger • Mithradates I, Their greatest leader came to power in 171 • By 155 B.C.E. they controlled Iran and pushed into Mesopotamia

  17. Parthian Empire • Federated governmental structure • Similar with satraps but without the strong centralized government • Capital in Ctesiphon (near Baghdad) • Weakened by ongoing wars with Romans to the west • Fell to internal rebellion

  18. Sasanid Empire (224-651 CE) • Claimed descent from Achaemenids and restored Imperial Rule (Emporers) • Conquered the Parthians in 224 C.E. and ruled until 651 C.E. • Traded actively with peoples to the east and west • Continual conflicts with Rome, Byzantium in the west, Kush in the east • Overwhelmed by Arab conquest in 651 • Persian administration and culture absorbed into local Islamic culture

  19. The Parthian and Sasanid empires, 247 B.C.E.-651 C.E

  20. Objective I will evaluate the major accomplishments and characteristics of the Persian Empires in regards to the 5 SPICE themes in AP World.

  21. SPICE Graphic Organizer • Add as many details as you can to the Politics section of your SPICE graphic Organizer based on the information that you have gained from the lecture notes. • Focus specifically on the Political Category. • Add More where possible.

  22. Spice Graphic Organizer • Read about Persian Society on Pages 169-171 • Create notes on the section. • Add key details to your SPICE Graphic Organizer. • Read about the Persian Economy on Pages 171-172 • Create Notes on the Section • Add key details to your SPICE Graphic Organizer. • Read about Zarathustra- Pages 175-175 • Create notes on the Section. • Read the Sources from the past on 176 and evaluate what you can conclude about Zarathustrianism. • Add key details to your SPICE Graphic Organizer.

  23. DOL • Create a 5 sentence SPICE summary for each of the following themes for the Persian Empires that begins with a thesis statement: • Social • Political • Interaction with the Environment • Cultural • Economic

  24. Read about Zarathustra- Pages 175-175 • Create notes on the Section. • Create a new 5 to 7 sentence SPICE Summary for Culture regarding Persia. • Read the Sources from the past on 176 and evaluate what you can conclude about Zarathustrianism.

  25. Persian Society • Early steppe traditions • Group types: Warriors, priests, peasants • Family/clan kinship very important • Creation of bureaucrat class with Empire • Tax collectors • Record keepers • translators

  26. Slave Class • Prisoners of war, conquered populations • Debtors • Children, spouses also sold into slavery • Principally domestic servitude • Some agricultural labor, public works

  27. Persian Economy • Several areas exceptionally fertile • Long-distance trade benefits from Persian road-building • Goods from India especially valued

  28. Zoroastrianism • Early Aryan influences on Persian religious traditions • Zarathustra (late 7th-early 6th c. BCE) • Prophet of AhuraMazda the good god • Against AngraMainuthe evil spirit • Priests of Zarathustra known as Magi • Oral teachings until Sasanid period composed Gathas

  29. Fortunes of Zoroastrianism • Under Alexander: Massacre of Magi, burning Zoroastrian temples • Weak Parthian support • Major revival under Sasanids, persecution of non-Zoroastrians • Discrimination under Islam

  30. Other Religious Groups in the Persian Empire • Major Mesopotamian communities of Jews • Composition of the Talmud, c. 500 CE • “constitution of Judaism” • Buddhism, Christianity and Manichaeism also survived

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