Achaemenid Empire
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The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenid Persian Empire (Persian: هخامنشیان IPA: [haχɒmaneʃijɒn]) (559–330 BC) was the first of the Persian Empires to rule over significant portions of Greater Iran. At the height of its power, encompassing approximately 7.5 million square kilometers, the Achaemenid Empire was territorially the largest empire of classical antiquity. It spanned three continents, including territories of modern Afghanistan, Pakistan, central Asia, Asia Minor, Thrace, most of the Black Sea coastal regions[citation needed], Iraq, northern Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, and all significant population centers of ancient Egypt as far west as Libya. It is noted in western history as the foe of the Greek city states in the Greco-Persian Wars, for freeing the Israelites from their Babylonian captivity, and for instituting Aramaic as official language.
HistoryThe empire began as a tributary state of the Medes but ended up conquering and enlarging the Median empire to include Egypt and Asia Minor. Under Xerxes, it came very close to conquering Ancient Greece. The Achaemenids were overthrown by the conquest of Alexander the Great in 330 BC. The early periodThe founder of this dynasty was supposedly Achaemenes: هخامنش (Old Persian Haxāmaniš "Of Friendly Mind"). He was succeeded by his son Teispes (Cišpi), who first took the title King of Anšān after seizing Anšān city from the Elamites. Inscriptions indicate that when Teispes died, two of his sons shared the throne as Cyrus (Kuruš), king of Anšān, and Ariaramnes (Ariyāramna, 'Having the Iranians at Peace'), king of Parsua (later called Pārsa, that is, Persia Proper). They were succeeded by their respective sons Cambyses I of Anshan (Kambūjiya, "the Elder"), and Arsames (Aršāma "Having a Hero's Might") of Iran (Persia). In 559 BC, Cambyses I the Elder was succeeded as king of Anšān by his son Cyrus II the Great, who also succeeded the still-living Arsames as King of Persia, thus reuniting the two realms. Cyrus is considered to be the first true king of the Achaemenid dynasty, as his predecessors were subservient to Media. Cyrus II conquered Media, Lydia and Babylon. Cyrus was politically shrewd, modeling himself as the "savior" of conquered nations. To reinforce this image, he instituted policies of religious freedom, and abolished slavery in the newly acquired cities. (Most notably the Jews of Babylon, as recorded in the Cyrus Cylinder and the Tanakh). It was the general policy of the Achaemenids to continue the Assyrian and Babylonian practice of transferring large populations between areas.[citation needed] This caused a great deal of cultural diffusion, blending many of the disparate clans together, and thus reducing previous tribal (and territorial) loyalties. As a result, the Achaemenid era was known as a relatively peaceful period in Middle Eastern history.[citation needed] His immediate successors were less successful. Cyrus' son Cambyses II conquered Egypt, but died in July 522 BC as the result of either accident or suicide, during a revolt led by a sacerdotal clan that had lost its power following Cyrus' conquest of Media. These priests, whom Herodotus called Magi, usurped the throne for one of their own, Gaumata, who then pretended to be Cambyses II's younger brother Smerdis (Pers. Bardiya), who had been assassinated some three years earlier. Owing to the despotic rule of Cambyses and his long absence in Egypt, "the whole people, Perses, Medes and all the other nations," acknowledged the usurper, especially as he granted a remission of taxes for three years (Herodotus iii. 68). It is important to note that the claim that Gaumata had impersonated Smerdis, is derived from Darius. Historians are divided over the possibility that the story of the impostor was invented by Darius as justification for his coup [1]. Darius made a similar claim when he later captured Babylon, announcing that the Babylonian king was not, in fact, Nebuchadnezzar III, but an impostor named Nidintu-bel. [2] According to the Behistun Inscription, pseudo-Smerdis ruled for seven months before being overthrown in 522 BC by a member of a lateral branch of the Achaemenid family, Darius I (Old Persian Dāryavuš "Who Holds Firm the Good", also known as Darayarahush or Darius the Great). The Magi, though persecuted, continued to exist, and a year following the death of the first pseudo-Smerdis (Gaumata), had a second pseudo-Smerdis (named Vahyazdāta) attempt a coup. The coup, though initially successful, failed. According to Herodotus, the native leadership then debated the best form of government for the Empire. He reports that it was decided that oligarchy would divide them against one another, and democracy would bring about mob rule resulting in a charismatic leader resuming the monarchy. Therefore, they decided a new monarch was in order, particularly since they were in a position to choose him. Darius I was chosen monarch from among the leaders. He was cousin to Cambyses II and Smerdis, claiming Ariaramnes as his ancestor. Darius I attacked the Greek mainland, which had supported rebellious Greek colonies under his aegis; but as a result of his defeat at the Battle of Marathon in 490, he was forced to pull the limits of his empire back to Asia Minor. The Achaemenids thereafter consolidated areas firmly under their control. It was Cyrus the Great and Darius the Great who, by sound and farsighted administrative planning, brilliant military maneuvering, and a humanistic world view, established the greatness of the Achaemenids and, in less than thirty years, raised them from an obscure tribe to a world power. It was during the reign of Darius I that Persepolis was built (518–516 BC) and which would serve as capital for several generations of Achaemenid kings. Ecbatana (Hagmatāna "City of Gatherings", modern Hamadan) in Media was greatly expanded during this period and served as the summer capital. Greco-Persian WarsXerxes I (485–465 BC, Old Persian Xšayārša "Hero Among Kings"), son of Darius I, organised a massive expedition aiming to conquer Greece. His army entered Greece from the north, meeting little or no resistance through Macedonia and Thessaly, but was held by a small Greek force for three days at Thermopylae. A simultaneous naval battle at Artemisium was tactically indecisive as large storms destroyed ships from both sides. The battle was stopped prematurely when the Greeks received news of the defeat at Thermopylae and retreated. The battle was a strategic victory for the Persians, giving them uncontested control of Artemisium and Aegean Sea. Following his victory at the Battle of Thermopylae, Xerxes sacked the evacuated city of Athens and prepared to meet the Greeks at the strategic Isthmus of Corinth and the Saronic Gulf. In 480 BC the Greeks won a decisive victory at the Battle of Salamis and forced Xerxes to retire to Sardis. The army which he left in Greece under Mardonius was destroyed in 479 BC at the Battle of Plataea. The final defeat of the Persians at Mycale encouraged the Greek cities of Asia to revolt, and marked the end of the Greco-Persian Wars, along with Persian expansion to Europe. Maximum extentImage:World 500 BCE.png
The world, c. 500 BC, showing the Achaemenid Empire's place in its larger geopolitical context
Nonetheless, by the 5th century BC the Achaemenid kings ruled over territories roughly encompassing today's Iran, Iraq, Armenia, Afghanistan, Turkey, Bulgaria, many parts of Greece, Egypt, Syria, much of what is now Pakistan (then considered "Hindush" or India), Jordan, Israel, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Caucasia, Central Asia, Libya, and northern parts of Arabia. The empire eventually became the largest empire of the ancient world. The cultural phase
 Xerxes I was followed by Artaxerxes I (465–424 BC), who moved the capital from Persepolis to Babylon. It was during this reign that Elamite ceased to be the language of government, and Aramaic came into prominence. It was probably during this reign that the solar calendar (based on the Babylonian one) was introduced as the national calendar. Under Artaxerxes I, Zoroastrianism became the de-facto religion of state, and for this Artaxerxes I is today also known as the Constantine of that faith. Artaxerxes I died in Susa, and his body was brought to Persepolis for interment in the tomb of his forebears. Artaxerxes I was immediately succeeded by his eldest son Xerxes II, who was however assassinated by one of his half-brothers a few weeks later. Darius II was then in Babylon, where he rallied support for himself. He marched eastwards, desposed and put to death the assassin and was crowned in his stead. From 412 Darius II (423–404 BC), at the instance of the able Tissaphernes, gave support then to Athens, then to Sparta, but in 407, Darius' son Cyrus the Younger was appointed to replace Tissaphernes and aid was given entirely to Sparta which finally defeated Athens in 404. In the same year, Darius fell fatally ill and died in Babylon. At his deathbed, his Babylonian wife Parysatis pleaded with Darius to have her second eldest son Cyrus (the Younger) crowned, but Darius refused. Darius was then succeeded by his eldest son Artaxerxes II Memnon. Plutarch relates (probably on the authority of Ctesias) that the displaced Tissaphernes came to the new king on his coronation day to warn him that his younger brother Cyrus (the Younger) was preparing to assassinate him during the ceremony. Artaxerxes had Cyrus arrested and would have had him put to death if their mother Parysatis had not intervened. Cyrus was then sent back as Satrap of Lydia, where he prepared an armed rebellion. Cyrus and Artaxerxes met in the Battle of Cunaxa in 401 BC, where Cyrus was killed. Artaxerxes II (404–358 BC), was the longest reigning of the Achaemenid kings and it was during this 45-year period of (relative) peace and stability that many of the monuments of the era were constructed. Artaxerxes moved the capital back to Persepolis, which he greatly extended. Also the summer capital at Ecbatana was lavishly extended with gilded columns and roof tiles of silver and copper (Polybius, 10.27.12). The extraordinary innovation of the Zoroastrian shrine cults can also be dated to his reign, and it was probably during this period that Zoroastrianism was disseminated throughout Asia Minor and the Levant, and from there to Armenia. The temples, though serving a religious purpose, were however not a purely selfless act: they also served as an important source of income. From the Babylonian kings, the Achaemenids had taken over the concept of a mandatory temple tax, a one-tenth tithe which all inhabitants paid to the temple nearest to their land or other source of income (Dandamaev & Lukonin, 1989:361–362). A share of this income called the quppu ša šarri, "kings chest"—an ingenious institution originally introduced by Nabonidus—was then turned over to the ruler. In retrospect, Artaxerxes is generally regarded as an amiable man who lacked the moral fibre to be a really successful ruler. However, six centuries later Ardeshir I, founder of the second Persian Empire, would consider himself Artaxerxes' successor, a grand testimony of the importance of Artaxerxes to the Persian psyche. Fall of the empire beginsAccording to Greek sources, Artaxerxes' successor Artaxerxes III (358 BC–338 BC) came to the throne by bloody means, ensuring his place upon the throne by the assassination of eight of his half-brothers. In 343 BC Artaxerxes III defeated Nectanebo II, driving him from Egypt, and made Egypt once again a Persian satrapy. In 338 BC, the very year that Philip of Macedon united the Greek states (by force) and so paved the way for Alexander, Artaxerxes III died of natural causes (according to cuneiform sources) but according to the Greek historian Diodorus, Artaxerxes was murdered by his minister, Bagoas.[1] Artxerxes III was succeeded by Artaxerxes IV Arses, who before he could act was also poisoned by Bagoas. Bagoas is further said to have killed not only all Arses' children, but many of the other princes of the land. Bagoas then had Darius III (336–330 BC), a nephew of Artaxerxes IV, placed on the throne. Darius III, although previously Satrap of Armenia, had no training in governing the empire, but in his first year as emperor he personally forced Bagoas to swallow poison. In 334 BC, when Darius was just succeeding in subduing Egypt again, Alexander and his battle-hardened Macedonian troops attacked Asia Minor. Second reign over Egypt fallsAt two different times, the Achaemenids ruled Egypt although the Egyptians twice regained temporary independence from Persia. After the practice of Manetho, Egyptian historians refer to the periods in Egypt when the Achaemenid dynasty ruled as the twenty-seventh dynasty of Egypt, 525–404 BC, until the death of Darius II, and the thirty-first dynasty of Egypt, 343–332 BC, which began after Nectanebo II was defeated by the Persian king Artaxerxes III. This second Persian occupation of Egypt ended in 332 when Alexander the Great, withdrawing from his attempted conquest of Nubia which was rebuffed by the Candace of Meroë,[2] entered Egypt instead, where he was welcomed as a liberator in Persian-occupied Egypt. 
Alexander defeated western Satraps at the battles of Issus (332 BC), and the Gaugamela (331 BC). Next, Alexander marched on Susa, which likewise, capitulated and surrendered vast treasure. Alexander then went eastward to Persepolis which surrendered in early 330 BC. From Persepolis, Alexander headed north to Pasargadae where he treated the tomb of Cyrus II with respect. From there he headed to Ecbatana, where Darius III had sought refuge. The Persian king was taken prisoner by Bessus, his Bactrian satrap and kinsman. As Alexander approached, Bessus had his men murder Darius and then declared himself Darius' successor, as Artaxerxes V, before retreating into Central Asia to launch a guerrilla campaign against Alexander. They left the body of Darius in the road to delay Alexander, who took his body to Persepolis for an honorable interment. The Achaemenid empire was succeeded by the Seleucid empire, that is, by the generals of Alexander and their descendants, who ruled Persia. They in turn would be succeeded by the Arsacid dynasty of Parthia in North-Eastern Iran, who, quite spuriously, would claim Artaxerxes II for their ancestor. Istakhr, one of the vassal kingdoms of the Arsacids would be overthrown by Papak, a priest of the temple there. Papak's son, Ardašir I, who named himself in remembrance of Artaxerxes II, revolted against the Parthians, defeated them and went on to establish the second Persian Empire, 556 years after the end of the first. Government
 The Achaemenids were absolutists who allowed a certain amount of regional autonomy in the form of the satrapy system. A satrapy was an administrative unit, usually organized on a geographical basis. A satrap (governor) administered the region, a general supervised military recruitment and ensured order, and a state secretary kept official records. The general and the state secretary reported directly to the central government. Accomplishments of Darius' reign included codification of the data, a universal legal system upon which much of later Iranian law would be based, and construction of a new capital at Persepolis, where vassal states would offer their yearly tribute at the festival celebrating the spring equinox. The practice of slavery in Achaemenid Persia was generally banned, although there is evidence that conquered and/or rebellious armies were sold into captivity.[3] Zoroastrianism, the de facto religion of the empire, explicitly forbids slavery,[4] and the kings of Achaemenid Persia followed this ban to varying degrees, as evidenced by the freeing of the Jews at Babylon, and the construction of Persepolis by paid workers. The twenty three satrapies were linked by a 2,500-kilometer highway, the most impressive stretch being the Royal Road from Susa to Sardis, built by command of Darius I. Relays of mounted couriers could reach the remotest of areas in fifteen days. Despite the relative local independence afforded by the satrapy system, royal inspectors, the "eyes and ears of the king," toured the empire and reported on local conditions. The king also maintained a personal bodyguard of 10,000 men, called the Immortals. Image:Perse.jpg
The Persepolis Ruins
Darius revolutionized the economy by placing it on a silver and gold coinage system. Trade was extensive, and under the Achaemenids there was an efficient infrastructure that facilitated the exchange of commodities in the far reaches of the empire. Tariffs on trade were one of the empire's main sources of revenue, along with agriculture and tribute. Culture
The Achaemenid Empire, which at the height of its glory had more than 20 nations under its control, was built on the most basic principles - that of truth and justice, which formed the bases of the Achaemenid culture. Based on the Zoroastrian doctrine, it was the strong emphasis on honesty and integrity that gave the ancient Persians credibility to rule the world, even in the eyes of the people belonging to the conquered nations. Herodotus in his mid-5th century BC account of Persian residents of the Pontus recorded that the most disgraceful thing in the world [the Perses] think, is to tell a lie; the next worst, to owe a debt: because, among other reasons, the debtor is obliged to tell lies. Herodotus also reports that Persian youths, from their fifth year to their twentieth year, were instructed in three things - to ride a horse, to draw a bow, and to speak the Truth. Truth for the sake of truth, was the universal motto and the very core of the Achaemenid culture that was followed not only by the great kings, but even the ordinary Persians, who made it a point to adhere to this code of conduct. In Achaemenid Iran, the lie, druj, is considered to be a cardinal sin, and it was punishable by death in some extreme cases. Tablets discovered by archaeologists in 1930s[5] at the site of Persepolis give us adequate evidence about the love and veneration for the culture of truth during the Achaemenian period. These tablets contain the names of ordinary Iranians, mainly traders and warehouse-keepers.[6] According to Professor Stanley Insler of Yale University, as many as 72 names of officials and petty clerks found on these tablets contain the word truth.[7] Thus, says Insler, we have Artapana, protector of truth, Artakama, lover of truth, Artamanah, truth-minded, Artafarnah, possessing splendour of truth, Artazusta, delighting in truth, Artastuna, pillar of truth, Artafrida, prospering the truth and Artahunara, having nobility of truth. It was Darius the Great, who laid down the ordinance of good regulations during his reign. King Darius' testimony about his constant battle against the lie is found in cuneiform inscriptions. Carved high up in the Behistun mountain on the road to Kermanshah, Darius testifies: Image:Silver ryhton Iran.jpg
Silver rhytons such as this were ubiquitous and used as a drinking vessels in Persia, underscoring the eclectic taste of the Achaemenids; the fanciful beast that forms its base is both mammal and bird
Darius had his hands full dealing with large-scale rebellion which broke out throughout the empire. After fighting successfully with nine traitors in a year, Darius records his battles against them for posterity and tells us how it was the lie that made them rebel against the empire. At Behistun, Darius says:
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