Chapter 7
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| 240711536 | Medes and the Persians | Persia is modern day Iran, Medes and Persians were the originators of the empires and had originally migrated from Central Asia. Were excellent horsemen and organized themselves into pastoral clans; excellent archers and raided wealth of Mesopotamia. | 0 | |
| 240711537 | Cyrus the Great | Reigned from 558-530 BCE and he was originally Cyrus the Shepherd. He was a tough, wily leader and an outstanding military strategist. Laid foundation for the first Persian Empire (Achaemenid). Very tolerant of religion. | 1 | |
| 240771299 | Cyrus's Conquests | 558 BCE, became king of all Persian tribes and led a rebellion vs. Median overlord. 546 BCE Cyrus's armies conquered Lydia in modern day Turkey and in 539 BCE conquered Babylonia and made their states recognize him as lord. He planned on conquering Egypt but died in 530 BCE while fighting nomadic raiders; tomb at Pasargadae | 2 | |
| 240771300 | Darius | Darius(521-486 BCE) extended empire North to India, West to Thrace and Macedonia; his empire totaled 1865mi. He was a great administrator who maintained his huge empire by keeping open lines of communication btw all ethnicities throughout empire; also developed branches of gov't to handle tax collection and local administrations. | 3 | |
| 240771301 | Persepolis | He centralized his administration by building his capital @ Persepolis; this was a magnificent city complete with a variety of offices and palaces. | 4 | |
| 240771302 | Achaemenid Administration:The Satrapies | Darius divided his empire into 23 satrapies, with each ruled by a governor called a satrap. Archaemenids didn't push direct rule on their subjects, but recruited local officials to fill administrative posts below level of satraps. To prevent local rebellion, satrapy had a battery of military personnel and tax collectors to check satraps power. King also had imperial spies to make sure the Satraps were doing their job right. | 5 | |
| 240771303 | Taxes, Coins, and Laws | Darius set up a formal tax system where each satrapy paid a set quantity of silver to the imperial court and he also created a common currency. He modified old laws and created one uniform law code to govern empire. | 6 | |
| 240771304 | Roads and Communication | To improve trade and transportation, Achaemenid rulers built a partially paved Persian Royal Road that stretched 1,600mi and allowed Persian couriers to become fastest in world by having 111 postal relay stations. | 7 | |
| 240771305 | Achaemenid Commonwealth | Cyrus and Darius practiced toleration of cultures that they ruled over; later rulers wouldn't. Xerxes(486-465 BCE) flaunted his Persian identity and sought to impose his will on foreign lands; this really upset Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Greece. Attempts to control Greece is what helped to bring about the collapse of the Achaemenid Empire. | 8 | |
| 240771306 | Persian Wars | The Persian Wars were brought up by the conflicts between the Ionian Greeks and the Persians. 500-479 BCE, Persians fought off and on with Greek States until they were routed @ Battle of Marathon in 490 BCE. They continued to spar for 150 years. | 9 | |
| 240771307 | Alexander of Macedon | 334 BCE, Greeks go the upper hand when Alexander of Macedon invaded Persia with an army of 48,000 men. He invaded Persepolis and burned city to ground after looting for its treasures. He now controlled all of Persia. | 10 | |
| 240771308 | Seleucids | Alexander's empire was divided into three amongst generals. Seleucus (305-281 BCE) reigned over best of lands and kept similar Achaemenid systems of administration. Seleucids were opposed by many native Persians and their ruling classes; Seleucids lost lands to Parthians and were finally defeated by Romans in 83 BCE. | 11 | |
| 240771309 | Parthians | Occupied region of East Iran and kept many of nomadic customs from people of Central Asia; they organized themselves politically through a federation of leaders who met in council. Developed may to defend against nomadic invasions. | 12 | |
| 240771310 | Parthian Conquests | Parthians revolted against Seleucids in 238 BCE and portrayed themselves as natural Persians sent to drive out foreign Seleucids. | 13 | |
| 240771311 | Parthian Gov't | Gov't was similar to that of Achaemenids but they also retained elements of steppe traditions such as giving clan leaders power of satrap. Parthian capital of Ctesiphon was captured by Romans around 200 CE and by 224, internal rebellion brought it down. | 14 | |
| 240771312 | The Sasanids | Began in 224 CE and ruled until 651 CE (direct descendants of Achaemenids). King lived extravagant lifestyles in the palaces of Ctesiphon and provided strong rule from Parthia to Mesopotamia. During Shapur's reign, they created a series of buffer states btw themselves and Rome. He continued Persian roads thus increasing trade. After Shapur, army was weak and king was killed (Persia absorbed into large Islam empire). | 15 | |
| 240771313 | Imperial Bureaucrats | Requirements for Persian gov't administration led to social class of bureaucrats. They din't challenge the rule of nobility but they handled the day to day affairs of the empire which in turn guaranteed them a comfortable place in Persian society. | 16 | |
| 240771314 | Free Classes | most of Persia was free classes: artisans, craftsmen, merchants, and civil servants. Countryside peasants who owned land were also part of free classes. Countryside gad irrigation systems and underground canals called qanats (free class worked hard to maintain bc it was needed due to lack of | 17 | |
| 240771315 | Slaves | POW's, debtors, and rebellious citizens made up the slave class. Slaves did the majority of all work but still could have some benefits. | 18 | |
| 240771316 | Agricultural Production | Foundation of Persian economies: barley, wheat, peas, garlic, onions, cucumbers, etc. were most common with beer and wine common also. | 19 | |
| 240771317 | Trade | India supplied Persia with gold, ivory, and perfumes. Central Asia supplied semiprecious stones, while Egypt provided grain, linen, and papyrus. | 20 | |
| 240771318 | Zarathustra | Classical era, Persian religion changed from being cult centered on the sun and moon to a religious based on needs of a cultured society. Zoroastrianism was developed from teachings of Zarathustra. After 10 years of travel, he saw visions from Ahura Mazida (supreme god) telling him that he was chosen prophet. Then, he taught priests(magi) orally. | 21 | |
| 240771319 | Gathas | Sassanids compiled his writings into a book of hymns known as the Gathas which he composed in honor of the deities that he recognized. | 22 | |
| 240771320 | Zoroastrian Teachings | Zoroastrianism were not strict monotheists they recognized Ahura Mazda as the supreme god but also worshipped 6 other gods. | 23 |
