Figure 1.--This is the World Heritage Site of Behistun (Bisotun) near Kermanshah in Iran. It was sited along an important trade route so it would be widely viewed by passerbys. The trade route linked the Iranian plateau with the Mesopotamian lowlands. The bas-relief and cuneiform inscription were commissioned by Darius I, The Great, when he ascended the Persian throne (521 BC). The relief is called 'The King of Persia' portrays Darius in life size holding a bow which is a sign of sovereignty. He is show ehen defeated enemies. He is treading on the chest of a foe who lies on his back before him. We are not sure why he was singled out for this reatment. Also shown are 10 smaller figures, also foes. They are all chained at the neck, showing that they are defeated enemies. They are not foreign emimes, but formerly trusted Persian governors. There are 1,200 lines of text which explain the betrayal. The text provides details on Darius' battles against the governors who attempted to dismember the Empire founded by Cyrus. The text inscription is written in three languages showing the diverse makeup of the Empire. It is about and it is approximately 15m high by 25m wide. It was carved 100m above ground level sit couldbe seen and not touched. Rebellious local govenors was a constant problem for multi-ethnic empires like Persia. Rebellion is what set off the Persian Wars with the Greeks.

When we think about the Persian Empire, what commonly comes to mind is the Achaemenids. The first great war chief was Hakhamanish or Achaemenes who founded the Achaemenid dynasty about 700 BC. The Achaemenids built a great capital city at Persepolis. They conquered a vast empire from Egypt to India. The conquered were allowed to keep their own religion, customs, and laws and were governed by native princes as long a they accepted Persian soverignty and paid tribute. The Persians encouraged cultural diversity. Persia was dominated by the Medes until Cyrus the Great rose to the throne (558 BC). Cyrus overthrew the Median rulers and conquered important neighboring territories, Lydia (546 BC) and Babylon (539 BC)--establishing the Perian Empire as the preminent power of the age. Cyrus is one of the most famed rulers of the ancient world. He styled himself as a liberator rather than a conqueror. Of course this was a kind of early propaganda, but his relativelyly enlighted and tolerant rule was often a relief from despotic local rulers. Cyrus and his descendents brought many diverse people into the Persian Empire. The walls of the royal palaces in Persepolis were decorated with relief sculptures of subject people bearing tribute. One of Cyrus' many actions which is a central event in the Bible was freeing the Jews from their Babylonian impoed captivity. Such was the prosperity of the Persian Empire, not all Jews returned to Palistine, but some did. How many rulers from the ancient world are known for freeing a captive people. His son Cambyses II extended the Empire further by defeating the last Egyptian pharaoh and bringing Egypt within the Empire (525 BC). Darius I, a distant relative, succeded Cambyses and conquered territory as far east as the Indus River bringing him the title of Darius the Great. The Persians engaged in vast building projects. Under Darius a canal was built from the Nile to the Red Sea ocer 2 milenia before Suez. Darius next turned his attention west. After brutally crushing an Ionian Greek revolt in Anatolia (499-93 BC) he moved against the mainland Greek city states which had aided the Ionians. His huge army was defeated by the Greeks in the one of the epic battle of history -- Marathon (490 BC). This was one of the decisive battles of history and can be viweed as essentially the birth of the west and the idea of freedom. Darius' son Xerxes was determined to avenge this defeat. He assembled an even larger army and again invaded Greece. His navy, however, was defeated by the Athenians in the battle of Salamis (480 BC). Deprived of supplied by the destruction of the Persian fleet, large elements of the Persian army had to with draw and the reamining units were defeated by the Greeks (439 BC). The Oxus River Treasure gives us a fascinating view of Achaemenid Persia.

Extent

The Persians conquered a vast empire from Egypt to India. The Persian Empire began east of Mesopptamia and the the Zagros Mountains. Here a high plateau extens towards India--the Iranian Plateau.

History

The Persians entered history at a time that the Egyptians were rising up against the dreaded Hyksos, pastoral Steppe tribes began migrating south on to the Iranian Plateau and into the Indian Sub-Continet. This was also a time of Assyrian decline. A second wave of Steppe migrations had managed to people the Iranian Steppe, coveing the area from the Zagros and the Hindu Kush. Some of the tribes became settled peoples turing to agricuture and handicrafts. Other continued a semi-nomadic lifestyle. These people were the Persians, nown as the Iranian people today. Their first great war chief was Hakhamanish or Achaemenes who founded the Achaemenid dynasty about 700 BC. What came to be called Persia was dominated by the Medes until Cyrus the Great rose to the throne (558 BC). Cyrus overthrew the Median rulers and conquered important neighboring territories, Lydia (546 BC) and Babylon (539 BC)--establishing the Perian Empire as the preminent power of the age. The Achaemenids built a great capital city at Persepolis. Cyrus is one of the most famed rulers of the ancient world. He styled himself as a liberator rather than a conqueror. Of course this was a kind of early propaganda, but his relativelyly enlighted and tolerant rule was often a relief from despotic local rulers. Cyrus and his descendents brought many diverse people into the Persian Empire. The walls of the royal palaces in Persepolis were decorated with relief sculptures of subject people bearing tribute. One of Cyrus' many actions which is a central event in the Bible was freeing the Jews from their Babylonian impoed captivity. Such was the prosperity of the Persian Empire, not all Jews returned to Palistine, but some did. How many rulers from the ancient world are known for freeing a captive people. His son Cambyses II extended the Empire further by defeating the last Egyptian pharaoh and bringing Egypt within the Empire (525 BC). Darius I, a distant relative, succeded Cambyses and conquered territory as far east as the Indus River bringing him the title of Darius the Great. The Persians engaged in vast building projects. Under Darius a canal was built from the Nile to the Red Sea ocer 2 milenia before Suez. Darius next turned his attention west. After brutally crushing an Ionian Greek revolt in Anatolia (499-93 BC) he moved against the mainland Greek city states which had aided the Ionians. His huge army was defeated by the Greeks in the one of the epic battle of history -- Marathon (490 BC). This was one of the decisive battles of history and can be viweed as essentially the birth of the west and the idea of freedom. Darius' son Xerxes was determined to avenge this defeat. He assembled an even larger army and again invaded Greece. His navy, however, was defeated by the Athenians in the battle of Salamis (480 BC). Deprived of supplied by the destruction of the Persian fleet, large elements of the Persian army had to with draw and the reamining units were defeated by the Greeks (439 BC).

Economy

The Persians as they built their empire were fcused on economics. Their behavior changed over and the various enemies they faced. In geberal their policy was to integrate conquered peoples, even the govering nobility and social structure into the imperial system. Rather than rape and pillage, which many conquests they pursued a more long term goal of promting commerce and trade. They standardized weights and measure, developed coinage and a medium exchange, and decreed universal laws -- what might be called inmodern terms the rule of law. All of this was extremely positive in creating an effective economic system. The Persians required acceptance of their rule and imposed a 20 percent tax on all agriculture harvests and manufacturing. Taxation was important to the Persians. A 20 percent tax was not insignificant, but it was also no ruinous or wxcessive in imperial terms. The persians were interested in expanding the tax base and on previoysly untached sources were the religious temples which in many cases had acquired considerable wealth. This was an inovation as most rulers had not taxed temples, attemting to maintan the support of priests who were often influential. The Persians as they became an imperial power shuifted the tax burden from their own people themselves to the conquered people.

Administration

The Persians as their impire expanded divided it into 20 provinces, each managed by appointed governors. They commonly maintained the local social structure. They awarding land feudal lords swearing loyalty and promises to provide soldiers for the Emperor in time of wr or crisis. Most of the common people in the empire were largely untouhed by Persian rule, except for the peace and prosperity in brought. An important contribution to the Persian administration was the creation of a royal mail system, a kind of courier system.. Darius I was noted for establishing a communication network that connected much of his Empire. Particularly notable was the 1,600-mile Royal Road from Sardis to Susa, important administrative cities. All along the road were favilities food lodging. Here royal couriers could obtain fresh horses and supplies.

Human Rights

The Cyrus Cylinder (استوانه کوروش‎‎) is an intreuging window into the Persian Empire. It is a clay cylinder written Akkadian cuneiform script which the people of Babylon and Mesopotamia could understand. It was issued by Persian Emperor Cyrus the Great who had just conquered Babylon (6th century BC). It was discovered in the ruins of Babylon (1879). It is currently held in the British Museum which sponsored the expedition in Mesopotamia that discovered the cylinder. At the time Mesopotamia was part of the Ottoman Empire. It was created by Cyrus to legitamize his conquest of Babylon (539 BC) and most of Mesopotamia. Babylon was not just any conquered city. People throuhout Mesopotamia viewed Babylon as an iconic cultural and religious center, in a way like modern people look on Rome, Jerusalem, or Mecca. As a result, Cyrus on the cilinder set out to descredit the former ruler of the Beo-Bbylonian Empire and to destablish his bonafides. Such foundation stories were not unique in the Middle Eastern world or for that matter modern politics. Some see the Cyrus Cylinder as much more and refer to it as the Cyrus Charter (منشور کوروش‎‎). The Cylinder's soon led to influentil biblical scholars to see it as confirming the Biblical account of Cyrus' policy of the repatriation of the Jewish people following their Babylonian captivity in the Book of Ezra. Here there is some difference of opinion as Cylinder text identified specifically Mesopotamian sanctuaries. This of course does not mean that it was no part of a wider policy. The Cylinder gained new prominence more recently. The Shah of Iran began to refer to it as 'the world's first charter of human rights'. The Shah made the cylinder a key symbol of his rule. Some authors agree with the description of the Cylinder as a charter of human rights. It is even displayed in the United Nations building in New York. There is, however, considerable disagreement that it is the first human rights charter. There is no doubt that it is proof of Cyrus' enlightened state craft as he added an important non-Persian region to his Empire. A universal declaration of human rights, however, is a streach. An interesting question about Persia is, How did Cyrus the Great maintain his empire while still being tolerant of other cultures? A sucinst answer is, "Iron fist against rebels, sympathy and respect towards the peaceful. Same rule as Alexander the Great and the Romans. Negative historical example is the ex-Soviet Union, especially under Stalin, which was a bloody dictatorship with no respect for anybody else and the minorities." [Travaglini] Irinically, we might also add the Modern Islamic Republic of Iran under the medieval Mullahs as a gross abuser of human rights.

Culture

The conquered were allowed to keep their own religion, customs, and laws and were governed by native princes as long a they accepted Persian soverignty and paid tribute. The Persians encouraged cultural diversity. The Oxus River Treasure gives us a fascinating view of Achaemenid Persia.

Religion

The settled agicultural people of the Middle East had well-established religious systems. The peope of Mesopotmia converted nature gods into city guardians. The Egyptians constructed an even more elaborate religious system, perhaps because of the Nile less centered on city gods, but an amalgum of nature gods. Both in Mesopotamia and Egypt polytheism developed. The Persians were different. Like most nomadic peoples they were less tied to the annual natural cycles that govered agriculture. They lacked the hierarchical system necessary to mananage an agricutural society. There was no organized dminisreation, police, courts, priests, and other governing institutions. Rather a kind of code of honor developed alonf with a differing religious outlook. Most Steppe people never moved much beyond animistc shamanism. The Persians as they moved on to the Iranian Plateau were different. A man named Zoroaster began distilling the developing code of honor into a few universal principles (around 1000 BC). The result was the first major monotheistic religion. Zoroaster saw a single creator god--Ahura Mazda. He was the bringer of asha –- light, order, truth. This was the law or logic arond which the world was structured. Zoroastrians had an enormous cultural impact. Peoplewithin the Empire, Persians and subject people as well and both practising Zoroastrians were influenced by a culture that valued universal ethical ideas such as telling the truth. It is notable that at the same time that Zoroastrianism was beginning to impact the Middle East that Hebrew tribes in Palistine were beginning to develop their concept of Yahweh. Zoroastrianism became part of that process.

Importance

The Persian Empire was not only the greatest empire in scope of the ancient world, but a text book example of empire, along with the Roman, Mogul, Tsarist, and British Empire. (I do not add China which was immensely important because it was largely confined to one people--the Chinese.) The sheer size made it the largest of the ancient empires. The Persians were successful in many ways. The Persians successfully wove a great diversity of cultures and civilizations into a coherent trade and economic network. The establishment of weights and measures and the use of money as a medium of trade were very important and while not created by the Persians were adopted and implemented in their huge empire. This all facilitated economic growth and prosperity. It also made possible a high degree of cultural diffusion. The Persian Empire also created the first link between the link between Indian subcontinent and the developing West in Mediterranean Europe. Much of this was transitory, but not all. Perhaps the most important was religion. The Persian state religion was Zoroastrianism which had a major impact on all three Abrahamic religions--Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. We see this not only in important scripture stories, but in the central ethos of all three religions -- a stark conflict between good and evil. This was a fundamental difference from many other religions at the time, such as the Egyptian and pagan (Greek and Roman) religions. Other than that,the enduring impact of the Persian Empire is limited. Virtually no one can site an important ancient Persian author, dramatist, scientist, sculptor, or thinker, in sharp comparison to Greece. And while perhaps the greatest Persian contribution was Cyrus' Charter of Human Rights Cylinder, but Persia (Iran) today is among the most oppressive in the world and the greatest violators of human rights. The former Persian Empire after the death of Alexander might have been the vessel through which Hellenism was delivered to the world. This proved not to be the case. Hellenist thought proved to be transitory in the Middle East after Alexandr and was ultimately extinguished by Islam.

Sources

Travaglini, Guido. Researcher at La Sapienza University (September 11, 2019).

Created: 6:56 PM 11/10/2016
Last updated: 6:56 PM 11/10/2016