1 / 21

Persian Empire 550 BC - 320 BC

Persian Empire 550 BC - 320 BC. The Persian Empire. Cyrus the Great. Video Clip on Cyrus the Great. Cyrus the Great. By 550 BCE (age 30) he conquered several neighboring kingdoms.

rigg
Download Presentation

Persian Empire 550 BC - 320 BC

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Persian Empire 550 BC - 320 BC

  2. The Persian Empire

  3. Cyrus the Great Video Clip on Cyrus the Great

  4. Cyrus the Great • By 550 BCE (age 30) he conquered several neighboring kingdoms. • Tolerant ruler he allowed conquered regions to keep their local “rulers” and religion. He honored their cultures. • The Greeks called him a “Law-Giver” 580 – 529 B. C. E.

  5. Zarathustra [Zoroaster] 6th c. BCEGood Thoughts, Good Deed, Good Words “Tree of Life”

  6. Concentrated in Eastern Portion of Empire

  7. Dualistic Battle of Good vs. Evil Early Concept of Heaven & Hell Ahura Mazda“Holy Spirit” Ahriman“Destructive Spirit”

  8. Cyrus the Great Freed the Jews from Babylon in 538 BCE. • I have given leave to as many of the Jews that dwell in my country as please to return to their own country, and to rebuild their city, and to build the temple of God at Jerusalem on the same place where it was before. • Cyrus as quoted by Josephus in The Works of Flavius Josephus, as translated by William Whiston; Antiquities of the Jews Book XI

  9. Cyrus the Great Freed the Jews from Babylon WHY? To “protect” his reign! • The priests shall also offer these sacrifices according to the laws of Moses in Jerusalem; and when they offer them, they shall pray to God for the preservation of the king and of his family, that the kingdom of Persia may continue. • Cyrus as quoted by Josephus in The Works of Flavius Josephus, as translated by William Whiston; Antiquities of the Jews Book XI

  10. Period of Crisis after death of Cyrus • Cyrus died in 530 BCE at age 51 • His son was not an effective successor. • After 8 years of civil unrest Darius took control in 522 BCE.

  11. Darius the Great • Darius expanded the empire by 500 miles to the Indus River. • He built the Royal Road. • He created an effective bureaucracy with local administrative leaders (SATRAPS) that “watched” the local leaders and collected the Taxes. 522 – 486 B. C. E.

  12. Satraps & Spies Used to Quell Rebellions • Local leaders continued to “rule”, but they could not oppose the policies of Darius. • Satraps were appointed to “watch over” the local leaders and watch out for any signs of rebellion. • Darius “employed” thousands of spies called “Eyes and Ears of the King” to make sure that the satraps stayed loyal to the king.

  13. ROYAL ROAD • Engineering wonder. The road extended 1500 miles and connected the three capital cities of the Persian Empire. • Caravanserai (inn & resting station) every 18 miles with food & fresh horses • 1st Postal System • “Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor darkness of night prevents these couriers from completing their designated stages with utmost speed.” • Herodotus’ Praise of the Couriers of the Royal Road became the “motto” & Mission Statement of the U.S. Postal System.

  14. ROYAL ROAD Trivia • Used by Alexander the Great to conquer Persia • Acted as the model and in face was incorporated into the Roman Road System • The term “Royal Road” was a metaphor for the “easy way” to get somewhere. Euclid, the father of geometry told his king, Ptolomy, that “there is no Royal Road to mathematics.” • The “success” of the Royal Road helped convince Darius to build the “BRIDGE of BOATS” across the Hellespont.

  15. ROYAL ROAD “Trade Benefits” • Having INNS every 18 miles, meant that there were soldiers every 18 miles. • TRADE SAFER • To make trade EASIER the government standardized coins and established a common system of weights and measures. • Increased trade within the empire (Intra-Regional) • Increased trade with other regions (Inter-Regional) like China and India

  16. Linked up with the Silk Road and the Roman roads for next 2500 years.

  17. PERSIAN WARS – Background 490 BC – 480 BC • Athens supported one of her colonies (IONIA) that had been “conquered” by the Persians. • The Ionian Revolt was quickly quashed. • Darius was “insulted” by Athens and wanted to teach a lesson to the Greeks, especially Athens. • Population of Persian Empire – 70 million • Population of Greece – 2 million • Population of Athens – 120,000 (plus slaves)

  18. PERSIAN WARS - Background • To get to Athens the army of Darius had to cross the Hellespont (about 1 mile of water) or travel by foot around the Black Sea (about 8,000 miles). • Darius told his road engineers to build a “road” across the Hellespont.

  19. BRIDGE OF BOATSHellespont

  20. PERSIAN WARS - Marathon • The Persians crossed over from Asia to Europe on the BRIDGE of BOATS • Battle against the citizens of Athens took place 26 miles from the city on the plains of Marathon. • Persian Army : 25,000 – 200,000 • Athens Army : 10,000 citizens (no standing army of professionals)

  21. PERSIAN WARS - Marathon • Athenian generals devised a battle plan that feigned retreat and pulled the Persians forward. They were surrounded by the men of Athens. • Death Toll • Persians 6400 died • Athenians 196 died Click on Video Marathon - Horrible Histories Nike

More Related