"was not until the time of the emperor Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II of Persia), a descendant of Achaemenes, that the Achaemenid Empire developed the prestige of an empire and set out to incorporate the existing empires of the ancient east, becoming the vast Persian Empire of ancient legend. At some point in 550 BC, Cyrus rose in rebellion against the Medes (most likely due to their mismanagement of Persis), eventually conquering the Medes and creating the first Persian empire. Cyrus the Great utilized his tactical genius, as well as his understanding of the socio-political conditions governing his territories, to"
"son Xerxes (486–465). He fought the Persians at Marathon and Salamis. His play ""The Persians"" predates both Xenophon and Herodotus, and is therefore independent of either of those sources. The play is a dramatic reenactment of the Persian defeat at Salamis (486 BC). In it, the ghost of Darius I describe the two Median kings who preceded Cyrus as rulers of the Medo-Persian alliance: For the Mede was the first leader of [our] host;<br>And another, his son, completed this work,<br>For [his] mind directed his passion.<br>And third from him was Cyrus, a fortunate man;<br>When he ruled, he established peace for all"
"forces temporarily overran mainland Greece north of the Isthmus of Corinth until the losses at Salamis and Plataea a year later reversed these gains and ended the second invasion decisively. Xerxes also crushed revolts in Egypt and Babylon. Roman Ghirshman says that, ""After this he ceased to use the title of 'king of Babylon', calling himself simply 'king of the Persians and the Medes'."" Xerxes oversaw the completion of various construction projects at Susa and Persepolis. Xerxes was born to Darius I and Atossa (daughter of Cyrus the Great). Darius and Atossa were both Achaemenids as they were both descendants"
"prior to Darius' ascent to the throne. Xerxes was the first-born son of Darius after he was crowned king, and he was also son of Atossa, the daughter of Cyrus the Great, founder of the empire. After many disputes in the court, Darius finally chose Xerxes. This is corroborated by Xerxes himself, who in his ""Harem Inscription"" of Persepolis states that his father designated him ""mathishta"" despite having other sons. Pompeius Trogus, a later author, relates the same story, but refers to Artabazanes as Ariamenes. On the other hand, Plutarch states that Xerxes, when he is chosen as heir, offers"
"after defeating Darius III. After being ruled by the Seleucid dynasty, the Persian Empire was subsequently ruled by the Parthian and Sassanid dynasties, which were the Roman Empire's greatest rivals during the Roman-Persian Wars. In Greece, several city-states rose to power, including Athens and Sparta. The Greeks successfully stopped two Persian invasions, the first at the Battle of Marathon, where the Persians were led by Darius the Great, and the second at the Battle of Salamis, a naval battle where the Greek ships were deployed by orders of Themistocles and the Persians were under Xerxes I, and the land engagement"
"returned under Darius's son Xerxes. When a small Greek force holding the pass of Thermopylae was defeated, the Persians proceeded to capture an evacuated Athens. The city of Athens got captured and sacked twice by the Persians within one year after Thermopylae. Subsequently, the Athenians (led by Themistocles), with their allies, engaged the much larger Persian navy at sea in the Battle of Salamis. Xerxes built a throne on the coast in order to watch the Greek navy being defeated, but instead, the Persians were routed. This established a great turning point in the war. In 479 BC, the Athenians"
"from this period. Nevertheless, Darius was more devoted to supporting Egyptian temples than Cambyses, earning himself a reputation for religious tolerance in the region. In 497 BC, during a visit by Darius to Egypt, Aryandes was executed for treason, most likely for attempting to issue his own coinage, a visible attempt to distance Egypt from the rest of the Persian Empire. Darius died in 486 BC, and was succeeded by Xerxes I. Upon the accession of Xerxes, Egypt again rebelled, this time possibly under Psamtik IV, although different sources dispute that detail. Xerxes quickly quelled the rebellion, installing his brother"
"Athens and Sparta were unpunished for their treatment of the Persian ambassadors. Darius therefore began raising a huge new army with which he meant to completely subjugate Greece; however, in 486 BC, his Egyptian subjects revolted, indefinitely postponing any Greek expedition. Darius then died whilst preparing to march on Egypt, and the throne of Persia passed to his son Xerxes I. Xerxes crushed the Egyptian revolt, and very quickly restarted the preparations for the invasion of Greece. This expedition was finally ready by 480 BC, and the second Persian invasion of Greece thereby began, under the command of Xerxes himself."
"king is the heir to the kingship. Some modern scholars also view the unusual decision of Darius to give the throne to Xerxes to be a result of his consideration of the unique positions that Cyrus the Great and his daughter Atossa enjoyed. Artobazan was born to ""Darius the subject"", while Xerxes was the eldest son born in the purple after Darius's rise to the throne, and Artobazan's mother was a commoner while Xerxes's mother was the daughter of the founder of the empire. Xerxes was crowned and succeeded his father in October–December 486 BC when he was about 36"
"In 465 BC, Xerxes I was murdered by Artabanus, the commander of the royal bodyguard and the most powerful official in the Persian court (Hazarapat/commander of thousand), with the help of a eunuch, Aspamitres. Greek historians give contradicting accounts of events. According to Ctesias (in Persica 20), Artabanus then accused the Crown Prince Darius, Xerxes's eldest son, of the murder and persuaded Artaxerxes, to avenge the patricide by killing Darius. But according to Aristotle (in Politics 5.1311b), Artabanus killed Darius first and then killed Xerxes. After Artaxerxes discovered the murder, he killed Artabanus and his sons. Artaxerxes had to face"
"number of workers and artisans of diverse nationalities. Several of these workers were deportees who had been employed specifically for these projects. These deportees enhanced the empire's economy and improved inter-cultural relations. At the time of Darius's death construction projects were still under way. Xerxes completed these works and in some cases expanded his father's projects by erecting new buildings of his own. Darius I Darius I (Old Persian: , New Persian: ""Dāryuš""; ; c. 550–486 BCE) was the fourth king of the Persian Achaemenid Empire. Known as Darius the Great, he ruled the empire at its peak, when it"
"was launched by Darius' son Xerxes. The city-states of northern and central Greece submitted to the Persian forces without resistance, but a coalition of 31 Greek city states, including Athens and Sparta, determined to resist the Persian invaders. At the same time, Greek Sicily was invaded by a Carthaginian force. In 480 BC, the first major battle of the invasion was fought at Thermopylae, where a small force of Greeks, led by three hundred Spartans, held a crucial pass into the heart of Greece for several days; at the same time Gelon, tyrant of Syracuse, defeated the Carthaginian invasion at"
"Darius II Darius II (Old Persian: ""Dārayavahuš""), was king of the Persian Empire from 423 BC to 404 or 405 BC. The Elephantine papyri mention Darius II as a contemporary of the high priest Johanan of Ezra 10:6. Artaxerxes I, who died in 424 BC, was followed by his son Xerxes II. After a month and a half Xerxes II was murdered by his brother Secydianus or Sogdianus (the form of the name is uncertain). His illegitimate brother, Ochus, satrap of Hyrcania, rebelled against Sogdianus, and after a short fight killed him, and suppressed by treachery the attempt of his"
"empire the world had yet seen in the ancient world. At its peak it would stretch from Macedon and Paeonia-Bulgaria in the west, to the Indus Valley in the far east. Founded by Cyrus the Great, it was notable for embracing various civilizations and becoming the largest empire of the ancient history, for its successful model of a centralised, bureaucratic administration (through satraps under a king) and a government working to the profit of its subjects, for building infrastructure such as a postal system and road systems and the use of an official language across its territories and a large"
"checking Babylonian hegemony. The work which he began of opposing Babylonian hegemony through the confederation with Persia was completed by his son Darius/Cyaxares II, who occupied the Median throne when Babylon fell to the Medo-Persian army."" Aeschylus in these few lines presents a picture of the early days of the Medo-Persian confederacy that is in harmony with Xenophon's succession of Median kings, including Cyaxares II. Xenophon was a mercenary soldier who fought in the Persian civil war between Cyrus the Younger and his brother Artaxexes II of Persia. The story of the 10,000 Greek mercenaries is related in Xenophon’s most"
"empire. Nevertheless, the loss of the fleet meant that he had to retreat back into Asia Minor. He was relieved of his command by Darius, who appointed Datis and Artaphernes junior to lead the invasion of Greece in 490 BC, and though they were subsequently successful in capturing Naxos and destroying Eretria, they were later defeated at the Battle of Marathon. Mardonius came back into favour under Darius' successor Xerxes I, Mardonius' cousin and brother-in-law. Xerxes was at first not interested in renewing the war with Greece, but Mardonius, who had the most influence on Xerxes in all of Persia,"
"Darius died, thus leaving the task to his son Xerxes. Darius was the son of Hystaspes and the grandson of Arsames. Both men belonged to the Achaemenid tribe and were still alive when Darius ascended the throne. Darius justifies his ascension to the throne with his lineage. He claimed he could trace his ancestors back to Achaemenes, even though he was only distantly related. With this in mind, Darius married Atossa, daughter of Cyrus, with whom he had four sons: Xerxes, Achaemenes, Masistes and Hystaspes. He also married Artystone, another daughter of Cyrus, with whom he had two sons, Arsames"
"successfully sacking Naxos and Eretria, before moving to attack Athens. However, at the ensuing Battle of Marathon, the Athenians won a remarkable victory, which resulted in the withdrawal of the Persian army to Asia. Darius therefore began raising a huge new army with which he meant to completely subjugate Greece. However, he died before the invasion could begin. The throne of Persia passed to his son Xerxes I, who quickly resumed the preparations for the invasion of Greece, including building two pontoon bridges across the Hellespont. In 481 BC, Xerxes sent ambassadors around Greece asking for earth and water as"
"failure of the first invasion, Darius began raising a huge new army with which he intended to subjugate Greece completely. However, in 486 BC, his Egyptian subjects revolted, and the revolt forced an indefinite postponement of any Greek expedition. Darius died while preparing to march on Egypt, and the throne of Persia passed to his son Xerxes I. Xerxes crushed the Egyptian revolt, and very quickly resumed the preparations for the invasion of Greece. Since this was to be a full-scale invasion, it needed longterm planning, stockpiling and conscription. Xerxes decided that the Hellespont would be bridged to allow his"
"Darius (son of Xerxes I) Darius was crown prince of the Persian Empire. He was the eldest son of the Persian king Xerxes I and his wife Amestris, the daughter of Onophas. His younger brothers were Hystaspes and Artaxerxes, and his younger sisters were Rhodogyne and Amytis. Circa 478 BC, before the revolt at Bactria, Darius was married to his cousin Artaynte at Sardis. She was the daughter of his uncle Masistes. At the behest of Xerxes, Artaynte committed adultery with him. When Amestris found out, she did not seek revenge against Artaynte, but against her mother, Masistes' wife, as"
"he sent his son Cyrus to Asia Minor, to carry on the war with greater energy. Darius II died in 404 BC, in the nineteenth year of his reign, and was followed as Persian king by Artaxerxes II. Prior to his accession, Darius II was married to the daughter of Gobryas. With the daughter of Gobryas, Darius II had four sons, one of whom fathered Artabazanes, who served as King of Media Atropatene in the second half of the 3rd century BC. Darius II Darius II (Old Persian: ""Dārayavahuš""), was king of the Persian Empire from 423 BC to 404"
"heavily outnumbered Athenian army. At the ensuing Battle of Marathon, the Athenians won a remarkable victory, which resulted in the withdrawal of the Persian army to Asia. Darius, therefore, began raising a huge new army with which he meant to completely subjugate Greece; however, in 486 BC, his Egyptian subjects revolted, indefinitely postponing any Greek expedition. Darius then died whilst preparing to march on Egypt, and the throne of Persia passed to his son Xerxes I. Xerxes crushed the Egyptian revolt and very quickly restarted the preparations for the invasion of Greece. Since this was to be a full-scale invasion,"
"Hystaspes (father of Darius I) Vishtaspa (fl. 550 BC), known under his Hellenized name Hystaspes (Ὑστάσπης), was a Persian satrap of Bactria and Persis. He was the father of Darius I, king of the Achaemenid Empire, and Artabanus, who was a trusted advisor to both his brother Darius as well as Darius's son and successor, Xerxes I. The son of Arsames, Hystaspes was a member of the Persian royal house of the Achaemenids. He was satrap of Persis under Cambyses, and probably under Cyrus the Great also. He accompanied Cyrus on his expedition against the Massagetae. However, he was sent"
"began raising a huge new army with which he meant to completely subjugate Greece; however, in 486 BC, his Egyptian subjects revolted, indefinitely postponing any Greek expedition. Darius then died whilst preparing to march on Egypt, and the throne of Persia passed to his son Xerxes I. Xerxes crushed the Egyptian revolt, and very quickly restarted the preparations for the invasion of Greece. Since this was to be a full-scale invasion, it required long-term planning, stock-piling and conscription. Xerxes decided that the Hellespont would be bridged to allow his army to cross to Europe, and that a canal should be"
"empire are in works of Greek philosophers and historians, and since many of the original Persian documents are lost, not to mention being subject to varying scholarly views on their origin and possible motivations behind them, it is difficult to create a definitive and completely objective list. Nonetheless, it is clear that Cyrus and Darius were critical in the expansion of the empire. Cyrus is often believed to be the son of Cambyses I, grandson of Cyrus I, the father of Cambyses II, and a relative of Darius through a shared ancestor, Teispes. Cyrus the Great is also believed to"
"under Persian domination, and prepared defenses to fight them and sending for aid from Sparta. Since no aid was promised except for a warning to Cyrus from their emissary, eventually their stance was abandoned and they submitted, or they fled as in citizens from Phocaea to Corsica or citizens from Teos to Abdera in Thrace. The Achaemenid Persian Empire, thus founded by Cyrus the Great, continued its expansion under the Persia king Darius the Great, in which the satrap system of local governors continued to be used and upgraded and other governmental upgrades were carried out. A revolt by Naxos"
"G.C.C. Maspero, Eduard Meyer, Theodor Nöldeke, H.C. Rawlinson.Beginning with the Achaemenids, this part describes briefly the Medes, Elamites, leading up to the civilization of Persia under Cyrus and Darius I, Xerxes I and Artaxerxes III along with the fall of the empire. The cover matter states ""Part X: The History of Rome from the Earliest Times to 476 AD"" is based chiefly on the works of the following authorities: Ammianus, Appian, Thomas Arnold, Barthélemy Aube, the Augustan History, Julius Caesar, Henry Fynes Clinton, Cicero, Dion Cassius, Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Eutropius (historian), Florus, Victor Gardthausen, Edward Gibbon, Otto Gilbert, Adolf Harnack,"
"the palace of Artaxerxes and put to death. Artabanus may have had personal ambitions for the throne since, subsequently, he conspired with Megabyzus to have Artaxerxes killed. But Megabyzus revealed the plot to Artaxerxes who put Artabanus and Aspamitres to death for the murders of Xerxes, Darius and his own attempted murder. Artabanus was killed by sword whilst Aspamitres was left in a tub where he was eaten by insects. Darius (son of Xerxes I) Darius was crown prince of the Persian Empire. He was the eldest son of the Persian king Xerxes I and his wife Amestris, the daughter"
"with the decisive Athenian victory at the Battle of Marathon. Between the two invasions, Darius died, and responsibility for the war passed to his son Xerxes I. Xerxes then led the second invasion personally in 480 BC, taking an enormous (although oft-exaggerated) army and navy to Greece. Those Greeks who chose to resist (the 'Allies') were defeated in the twin battles of Thermopylae and Artemisium on land and at sea respectively. All of Greece except the Peloponnesus thus fell into Persian hands, but then seeking to finally destroy the Allied navy, the Persians suffered a decisive defeat at the Battle"
"Darius I Darius I (Old Persian: , New Persian: ""Dāryuš""; ; c. 550–486 BCE) was the fourth king of the Persian Achaemenid Empire. Known as Darius the Great, he ruled the empire at its peak, when it included much of West Asia, the Caucasus, parts of the Balkans (Thrace-Macedonia and Paeonia), most of the Black Sea coastal regions, parts of the North Caucasus, Central Asia, as far as the Indus Valley in the far east and portions of north and northeast Africa including Egypt (Mudrâya), eastern Libya and coastal Sudan. Darius ascended the throne by overthrowing Gaumata, a usurper. The"
"under Datis and Artaphernes in 490 BC, using Delos as an intermediate base at, successfully sacking Karystos and Eretria, before moving to attack Athens. However, at the ensuing Battle of Marathon, the Athenians won a remarkable victory, resulting in the withdrawal of the Persian army to Asia. Darius therefore began raising a huge new army with which he meant to completely subjugate Greece. However, he died before the invasion could begin. The throne of Persia passed to his son Xerxes I, who quickly restarted the preparations for the invasion of Greece, including building two pontoon bridges across the Hellespont. In"
"Darius III Darius III (c. 380 – July 330 BC), originally named Artashata and called Codomannus by the Greeks, was the last king of the Achaemenid Empire of Persia, from 336 BC to 330 BC. Artashata adopted ""Darius"" as a dynastic name. His empire was unstable, with large portions governed by jealous and unreliable satraps and inhabited by disaffected and rebellious subjects. In 334 BC, Alexander the Great began his invasion of the Persian Empire and subsequently defeated the Persians in a number of battles before looting and destroying their capital, Persepolis, by fire in 330 BC. With the Persian"
"of Achaemenes. While Darius was preparing for another war against Greece, a revolt spurred in Egypt in 486 BC due to heavy taxes and the deportation of craftsmen to build the royal palaces at Susa and Perseopolis. Under Persian law, the king was required to choose a successor before setting out on dangerous expeditions. When Darius decided to leave (487–486 BC), Darius prepared his tomb at Naqsh-e Rustam (five kilometers from his royal palace at Perseopolis) and appointed Xerxes, his eldest son by Atossa, as his successor. However, Darius could not lead the campaign due to his failing health and"