The Themistoclean Wall ( Greek : Θεμιστόκλειον τείχος ), named after the Athenian statesman Themistocles , was built in Athens , Greece during the 5th century BC as a result of the Persian Wars and in the hopes of defending against further invasion.
185-736: The Persian Wars were waged by the Achaemenid Empire of Persia in an attempt to conquer the Greeks. King Darius I was unsuccessful in his invasion attempt and was followed by his son, Xerxes I , who led the Second Persian Wars which lasted from 480 to 479 BC. Xerxes saw more victories than his father, successfully burning down Athens . Following the Persian Wars the Greek city states were left in disarray. Many buildings, statues, and fortifications of
370-449: A Median substratum. David Neil MacKenzie , an authority on the Kurdish language, said Kurdish was closer to Persian and questioned the "traditional" view holding that Kurdish, because of its differences from Persian, should be regarded as a Northwestern Iranian language . The Kurdologist and Iranologist Garnik Asatrian stated that "The Central Iranian dialects, and primarily those of
555-536: A "cruel and barbarous manner." Medes The Medes were an ancient Iranian people who spoke the Median language and who inhabited an area known as Media between western and northern Iran . Around the 11th century BC, they occupied the mountainous region of northwestern Iran and the northeastern and eastern region of Mesopotamia in the vicinity of Ecbatana (present-day Hamadan ). Their consolidation in Iran
740-571: A 'crusade against the barbarians' but there was not enough strength left in any of the Greek city-states to answer his call. Although there were no rebellions in the Persian Empire itself, the growing power and territory of Philip II of Macedon in Macedon (against which Demosthenes was in vain warning the Athenians) attracted the attention of Artaxerxes. In response, he ordered that Persian influence
925-469: A description of the palace of Deioces in Ecbatana, stating that it was an architectural complex built on a hill and surrounded by seven concentric walls, with each battlement of a wall surpassing that of the wall next outside it. The palace itself and the royal treasures were located within the innermost circle. The battlements of these circles would have been painted with seven different colors, indicating that
1110-406: A force of 14,000 Greeks furnished by the Greek cities of Asia Minor: 4,000 under Mentor , consisting of the troops that he had brought to the aid of Tennes from Egypt; 3,000 sent by Argos; and 1,000 from Thebes. He divided these troops into three bodies, and placed at the head of each a Persian and a Greek. The Greek commanders were Lacrates of Thebes, Mentor of Rhodes and Nicostratus of Argos while
1295-535: A great warrior. Through his victories, Cyaxares gained more and more influence, eventually uniting the Medes and other peoples under his leadership. From the 10th to the late 7th centuries BCE, the western parts of Media fell under the domination of the vast Neo-Assyrian Empire , which stretched from Cyprus in the west, to parts of western Iran in the east, and Egypt and the north of the Arabian Peninsula . During
1480-517: A large army, including a contingent of Ten Thousand Greek mercenaries , and made his way deeper into Persia. The army of Cyrus was stopped by the royal Persian army of Artaxerxes II at Cunaxa in 401 BC, where Cyrus was killed. The Ten Thousand Greek Mercenaries including Xenophon were now deep in Persian territory and were at risk of attack. So they searched for others to offer their services to but eventually had to return to Greece. Artaxerxes II
1665-580: A large, professional army . Its advancements inspired the implementation of similar styles of governance by a variety of later empires. By 330 BC, the Achaemenid Empire was conquered by Alexander the Great , an ardent admirer of Cyrus; the conquest marked a key achievement in the then-ongoing campaign of his Macedonian Empire . Alexander's death marks the beginning of the Hellenistic period , when most of
1850-410: A major role and presence in the military of the Achaemenid Empire . The almost complete lack of written material makes it difficult to know how the Medes conceived their society. According to Herodotus, Persian society during the reign of Cyrus the Great was composed of 'numerous tribes' ( génea ), and each tribe was divided into 'clans' ( phrātría ). This general outline by the Greek historian reflects
2035-560: A majority, might have been forefathers of the modern Kurds. He also states that the Medes who invaded the region in the eighth century BC, linguistically resembled the Kurds. This view was accepted by many Kurdish nationalists in the twentieth century. However, Martin van Bruinessen , a Dutch scholar, argues against the attempt to take the Medes as ancestors of the Kurds: Though some Kurdish intellectuals claim that their people are descended from
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#17328549953232220-554: A new context without their typical and initial qualities. Later, the Achaemenids borrowed cultural achievements from the ancient Near East through the Medes. J. Curtis argues against the minimalist position that there is nothing readily identifiable as Median art, but rather asserts that those objects that may be characterized as Median were heavily influenced by Assyrian art. Objects in a style halfway Assyrian, halfway Achaemenid, are often attributed to Median art. Herodotus provides
2405-515: A number of respects, including hairstyle, funerary practices, and diet, from the cultural habits of the western parts of the Assyrian Empire. Median livestock breeders probably practiced transhumance , inhabiting their settlements in winter and spending the summer on pastures high in the mountains. The information gleaned from the Sargon campaign provides a rare reference to Median farming, suggesting
2590-587: A one-tenth tithe which all inhabitants paid to the temple nearest to their land or another source of income. Artaxerxes II became involved in a war with Persia's erstwhile allies, the Spartans , who, under Agesilaus II , invaded Asia Minor . To redirect the Spartans' attention to Greek affairs, Artaxerxes II subsidized their enemies: in particular the Athenians , Thebans and Corinthians . These subsidies helped to engage
2775-464: A peace which required the city's forces to leave Asia Minor and to acknowledge the independence of its rebellious allies. Artaxerxes started a campaign against the rebellious Cadusians , but he managed to appease both of the Cadusian kings. One individual who successfully emerged from this campaign was Darius Codomannus, who later occupied the Persian throne as Darius III . Artaxerxes III then ordered
2960-509: A prolonged, if not even a successful resistance. However, he lacked good generals, and, over-confident in his own powers of command, he was out-maneuvered by the Greek mercenary generals, and his forces were eventually defeated by the combined Persian armies. After his defeat, Nectanebo hastily fled to Memphis , leaving the fortified towns to be defended by their garrisons. These garrisons consisted of partly Greek and partly Egyptian troops; between whom jealousies and suspicions were easily sown by
3145-604: A religion derived from the teachings of Zoroaster (although not necessarily identical with his doctrine). Mary Boyce argued that the existence of the Magi in Media with their own traditions and forms of worship was an obstacle to Zoroastrian proselytism there. Boyce wrote that the Zoroastrian traditions in the Median city of Ray probably goes back to the 8th century BCE. It is suggested that from
3330-549: A result, the Persian forces were driven out of Phoenicia . After this, Artaxerxes personally led an army of 330,000 men against Sidon . Artaxerxes' army comprised 300,000-foot soldiers, 30,000 cavalry , 300 triremes, and 500 transports or provision ships. After gathering this army, he sought assistance from the Greeks. Though refused aid by Athens and Sparta , he succeeded in obtaining a thousand Theban heavy-armed hoplites under Lacrates, three thousand Argives under Nicostratus, and six thousand Æolians, Ionians , and Dorians from
3515-409: A robust rural economy combining livestock breeding and farming, albeit lacking notable crafts or industries worth mentioning. The degree to which the Medes participated in the trade that passed through their territories between Mesopotamia and the lands further east is unknown. Assyrians received various goods from the Medes, including horses, mules, Bactrian camels, oxen, sheep, and goats. However, there
3700-539: A subject of debate, ranging from vassal treaties to the swearing in of a corps of Median bodyguards to the crown prince. The discovery of a very similar tablet from the Syrian site of Tell Tayinat points to an empire-wide attempt at making all allies swear allegiance to the crown-prince before Esarhaddon's death. Six years prior one of these bēl-ālāni , Ramataya of Urakazabarna, had visited the Assyrian court. He brought tribute in
3885-487: A united Media to defeat Assyria and assume her mantle of power in the region, the impetus to unite may have been stronger than the competitive forces dividing the bēl-ālāni . After 670 BCE, susceptible to Scythian and Cimmerian raids and facing the decline of trade along the Great Khorasan Road , many Median chiefdoms probably collapsed leaving fewer chiefs to compete for power. The states of non-Iranian peoples like
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#17328549953234070-486: Is an absence of sophisticated finished products like precious textiles, metalwork, or furniture, and no luxury goods except for lapis lazuli. The Medes were defined by their life in the Zagros Mountains. They sowed grain in the broad valleys and pastured their animals on the hillsides, moving from summer to winter pastures as the weather demanded. The Medes raised sheep, goat, and cattle for meat, milk, and wool, but it
4255-433: Is believed to have occurred during the 8th century BC. In the 7th century BC, all of western Iran and some other territories were under Median rule, but their precise geographic extent remains unknown. Although they are generally recognized as having an important place in the history of the ancient Near East , the Medes have left no written source to reconstruct their history, which is known only from foreign sources such as
4440-403: Is evidence of the earlier political activity of the powerful societies of Elam, Mannaea, Assyria and Urartu . There are various and up-dated opinions on the positions and activities of Iranian tribes in these societies and prior to the "major Iranian state formations" in the late 7th century BC. One opinion (of Herzfeld, et al. ) is that the ruling class were "Iranian migrants" but the society
4625-463: Is further said to have killed not only all Arses' children, but many of the other princes of the land. Bagoas then placed Darius III , a nephew of Artaxerxes IV, on the throne. Darius III, previously the Satrap of Armenia , personally forced Bagoas to swallow poison. In 334 BC, when Darius was just succeeding in subduing Egypt again, Alexander and his battle-hardened troops invaded Asia Minor . Alexander
4810-491: Is indicated by excavated bronze jars. Architectural painting, attested in both Baba Jan and Nush-i Jan, can be compared to the not-so-sophisticated geometric style found in Tepe Sialk . R. D. Barnett argued that the so-called Scythian style , more precisely the earliest phase of this style, was also part of contemporary Median art (late 8th century BCE). However, this theory has not been proven or refuted so far. A passage from
4995-425: Is no indication that the fundamental political structure of the Medes as independent bēl-ālāni was undergoing significant changes as Herodotus's story of Deioces 's rise would suggest. The last mention of Median bēl-ālāni comes from an inscription of Ashurbanipal that recounts a campaign of 656 BCE, in which three Median bēl-ālāni rebelled and were captured and brought back to Nineveh. As it became conceivable for
5180-518: Is not precisely known. However, the linguist W. Skalmowski proposes a relation with the proto-Indo European word "med(h)-", meaning "central, suited in the middle", by referring to the Old Indic "madhya-" and Old Iranian "maidiia-" which both carry the same meaning. The Latin medium , Greek méso , Armenian mej , and English mid are similarly derived from it. Greek scholars during antiquity would base ethnological conclusions on Greek legends and
5365-463: Is presumed they inhabited small villages or pastoral camps. The Medes are portrayed in the reliefs of Persepolis , dating back to 515 BCE, just 35 years after the fall of the Median Kingdom. The reliefs depicting the Medes appear in three locations, showing guards, nobles, and their delegations. The reason for their frequent representation lies in the fact that the Medes held a privileged status in
5550-461: Is reported to have had a number of wives. His main wife was Stateira , until she was poisoned by Artaxerxes II's mother Parysatis in about 400 BC. Another chief wife was a Greek woman of Phocaea named Aspasia (not the same as the concubine of Pericles ). Artaxerxes II is said to have had more than 115 sons from 350 wives. In 358 BC Artaxerxes II died and was succeeded by his son Artaxerxes III . In 355 BC, Artaxerxes III forced Athens to conclude
5735-408: Is the earliest, and although the later historians all agree on the key details of the story, that a magus impersonated Bardiya and took the throne, this may have been a story created by Darius to justify his own usurpation. Iranologist Pierre Briant hypothesises that Bardiya was not killed by Cambyses, but waited until his death in the summer of 522 BC to claim his legitimate right to the throne as he
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5920-539: Is very unlikely that such a burden would actually be obligatory on anyone: most likely only five lawful wives, and no more, were permitted by the aforementioned law, just as four wives, and no more, are legal for Muslims . The Medes had "cities", probably small fortified settlements like those identified archaeologically. These locations were characterized by fortifications, warehouses, worship buildings, and ceremonial structures. The common population did not reside within these places, nor necessarily in immediate proximity; it
6105-483: The Assyrians , Babylonians , Armenians and Greeks , as well as a few Iranian archaeological sites, which are believed to have been occupied by Medes. The accounts relating to the Medes reported by Herodotus left the image of a powerful people, who would have formed an empire at the beginning of the 7th century BC that lasted until the 550s BC, played a determining role in the fall of the Assyrian Empire and competed with
6290-498: The Babylonian Chronicle records that after the conquest of Ecbatana, Cyrus took the silver, gold, goods, and properties of the city to Persia. While the exact nature of these precious metals and goods is not specified, except for being portable material, it is possible that Median artisanal objects, as well as state or religious items, were among the spoils. Greek references to "Median" people make no clear distinction between
6475-729: The Balkans and Egypt in the west, West Asia as the base, the majority of Central Asia to the northeast, and the Indus Valley to the southeast. Around the 7th century BC, the region of Persis in the southwestern portion of the Iranian plateau was settled by the Persians . From Persis, Cyrus rose and defeated the Median Empire as well as Lydia and the Neo-Babylonian Empire , marking
6660-467: The Histories of Herodotus. Between 1967 and 1977, David Stronach excavated a building at Tepe Nush-i Jan that had been built around 750 BC and appears to be mainly religious in character. The building was erected on a rock about 30 meters high and included a "Central Sanctuary", "Western Sanctuary", "Fortress" and "Columned Hall", which were surrounded by a circular brick support wall. The Central Sanctuary
6845-652: The Macedonian invasion in 338 BC, a smaller wall, the Proteichisma, was built in front of the main one as an extra defence. The walls were badly damaged when Sulla besieged and attacked the city in 86 BC. They were eventually rebuilt along some sections by Valerian (253-260 AD). The main visible remains are: The Themistoclean Wall had a number of gates, many of which have been excavated in whole or in part. The most important were: Achaemenid Empire The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire , also known as
7030-518: The Manneans , Elippians , and Kassites probably collapsed as well, which allowed Median groups to take over their territory. With fewer chiefs remaining, one of them might have risen to the position of paramount chief, subjugating his former equals. Cyaxares probably rose to prominence in this context. He may indeed have fought the Scythians, as Herodotus claims, which may have earned him his reputation as
7215-570: The Persian Empire or First Persian Empire ( / ə ˈ k iː m ə n ɪ d / ; Old Persian : 𐎧𐏁𐏂 , Xšāça , lit. 'The Empire' or 'The Kingdom' ), was an Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid dynasty in 550 BC . Based in modern-day Iran , it was the largest empire by that point in history , spanning a total of 5.5 million square kilometres (2.1 million square miles). The empire spanned from
7400-749: The Sacred Gate , on the southern side, to Eleusis . On the northern side a wide road, the Dromos, ran through the double-arched Dipylon Gate (also known as the Thriasian Gate) and on to the Platonic Academy a few miles away. After their defeat in the Peloponnesian war in 404 BC the Athenians had to destroy all the walls. However, when democracy was re-established Conon repaired the city walls in 394 BC. Facing
7585-639: The Spartans in what would become known as the Corinthian War . In 387 BC, Artaxerxes II betrayed his allies and came to an arrangement with Sparta, and in the Treaty of Antalcidas he forced his erstwhile allies to come to terms. This treaty restored control of the Greek cities of Ionia and Aeolis on the Anatolian coast to the Persians while giving Sparta dominance on the Greek mainland. In 385 BC he campaigned against
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7770-552: The UAE . The Ionian Revolt in 499 BC, and associated revolts in Aeolis, Doris, Cyprus, and Caria, were military rebellions by several regions of Asia Minor against Persian rule, lasting from 499 to 493 BC. At the heart of the rebellion was the dissatisfaction of the Greek cities of Asia Minor with the tyrants appointed by Persia to rule them, along with the individual actions of two Milesian tyrants, Histiaeus and Aristagoras . In 499 BC,
7955-402: The "Persians" and the "Medians"; in fact for a Greek to become "too closely associated with Iranian culture" was "to become Medianized, not Persianized". The Median kingdom was a short-lived Iranian state and the textual and archaeological sources of that period are rare and little could be known from the Median culture. The basic economic resource in the region was pastoralism, as indicated in
8140-521: The 10 years that Persia controlled Egypt, believers in the native religion were persecuted and sacred books were stolen. Before Artaxerxes returned to Persia, he appointed Pherendares as satrap of Egypt . With the wealth gained from his reconquering Egypt, Artaxerxes was able to amply reward his mercenaries. He then returned to his capital having successfully completed his invasion of Egypt. After his success in Egypt, Artaxerxes returned to Persia and spent
8325-658: The 1960s. Prior to the 1960s, the search for Median archeological sources has mostly focused in an area known as the "Median triangle", defined roughly as the region bounded by Hamadan and Malayer (in Hamadan province ) and Kangavar (in Kermanshah province ). Three major sites from central western Iran in the Iron Age III period (i.e. 850–500 BC) are: These sources have both similarities (in cultural characteristics) and differences (due to functional differences and diversity among
8510-570: The 8th century BC. By this time the Iranian tribes were the majority in what later become the territory of the Median Kingdom and also the west of Media proper . A study of textual sources from the region shows that in the Neo-Assyrian period, the regions of Media, and further to the west and the northwest, had a population with Iranian speaking people as the majority. In western and northwestern Iran and in areas further west prior to Median rule, there
8695-454: The 8th century BCE, a form of " Mazdaism with common Iranian traditions" existed in Media and the strict reforms of Zarathustra began to spread in western Iran during the reign of the last Median kings in the 6th century BCE. It is also possible that the Medes may have practised Mithraism , with Mithra as their supreme deity. Median people spoke the Median language, which was an Old Iranian language. Strabo 's Geographica (finished in
8880-558: The 9th century BCE, the Assyrians found what they needed in the Zagros Mountains, in areas closer to the Assyrian heartland and more accessible. However, the situation changed when the kingdom of Urartu expanded into the areas south of Lake Urmia , thus cutting off Assyria's most convenient connection with central Iran. This prompted Assyria to seek new and more reliable access routes connecting Assyria with horse-breeding areas far from Urartian interference. This attracted Assyria's attention to
9065-486: The Achaemenid Empire. The first relief shows four Medes and Persian spearmen. In this relief, the Medes wear short coats, trousers, and round caps, under which they seem to have curly hair. Information about the religion of the Medes is very limited. Primary sources pointing to religious affiliations of Medes found so far include the archaeological discoveries in Tepe Nush-i Jan, personal names of Median individuals, and
9250-423: The Assyrian Empire and retained the freedom to govern their subjects as they deemed fit. This compromise usually suited both sides well. Sargon II undertook another expedition to Media in 708 BCE but was unable to achieve his goal of conquering all Median lands or establishing stable control over them. Subsequently, the tribes on the Iranian plateau opposing Assyrian dominance consolidated their efforts against it. By
9435-401: The Assyrian Empire's grip on western Iran even further. This renewed advance was a highly concentrated affair, accomplished in just four years from 716 to 713 BCE, during which time the Median lands were invaded no fewer than three times. Most chiefs who paid tribute in 714 BCE, did not do so again in 713 BCE, which shows that even when the Assyrian Empire's involvement with the Median territories
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#17328549953239620-452: The Assyrian reliefs show the existence of urban settlements in Media in the first half of the 1st millennium BC which had functioned as centres for the production of handicrafts and also of an agricultural and cattle-breeding economy of a secondary type. For other historical documentation, the archaeological evidence, though rare, together with cuneiform records by Assyrian make it possible, regardless of Herodotus' accounts, to establish some of
9805-407: The Assyrians is probably also a reflection of their own interpretation of a power structure that was unfamiliar to them and could only be rendered in terms that the Assyrians themselves understood. It is clear from Assyrian sources that the position of bēl-āli could be hereditary. The Assyrian sources do not provide any information about the organizational structure above the level of chieftains, and
9990-648: The Athenians to move the treasury of the Delian League from the island of Delos to the Athenian acropolis. This funding practice inevitably prompted renewed fighting in 450 BC, where the Greeks attacked at the Battle of Cyprus . After Cimon 's failure to attain much in this expedition, the Peace of Callias was agreed between Athens , Argos and Persia in 449 BC. Artaxerxes offered asylum to Themistocles , who
10175-535: The Babylonians at Opis , then took Sippar without a fight before finally capturing the city of Babylon on 12 October, where the Babylonian king Nabonidus was taken prisoner. Upon taking control of the city, Cyrus depicted himself in propaganda as restoring the divine order which had been disrupted by Nabonidus , who had promoted the cult of Sin rather than Marduk , and he also portrayed himself as restoring
10360-500: The Busae tribe lived in and around the future Median capital of Ecbatana, near modern Hamadan. The Struchates and the Budii lived in villages in the Median triangle. The family life of the Medes was based on patriarchal authority and polygamy was permitted. Strabo ( Geogr. XI, 13.11) mentions a peculiar law applied to all Medes – a law requiring every man to have no fewer than five wives. It
10545-622: The Cadusians . Although successful against the Greeks, Artaxerxes II had more trouble with the Egyptians , who had successfully revolted against him at the beginning of his reign. An attempt to reconquer Egypt in 373 BC was completely unsuccessful, but in his waning years the Persians did manage to defeat a joint Egyptian–Spartan effort to conquer Phoenicia . He quashed the Revolt of the Satraps in 372–362 BC. He
10730-613: The Elamite style in Susa, but the hero's headdress is typical of the Medes in Achaemenid palace reliefs. Other findings include a crude-style cylinder seal impression from Nush-i Jan and cylinder seals in various Mesopotamian styles from the ruins and vicinity of Hamadan, some dating back to the 8th and 7th centuries BCE. These findings reveal a strong influence from other civilizations but lack distinctive traits of authentic Median art. Local craftsmanship
10915-691: The European part of the Black Sea , such as parts of modern Bulgaria , Romania , Ukraine , and Russia , before it returned to Asia Minor . Darius left in Europe one of his commanders named Megabazus whose task was to accomplish conquests in the Balkans. The Persian troops subjugated gold-rich Thrace , the coastal Greek cities, and defeated and conquered the powerful Paeonians . Finally, Megabazus sent envoys to Amyntas, demanding acceptance of Persian domination, which
11100-520: The Great (Alexander III of Macedon) defeated the Persian armies at Granicus (334 BC), followed by Issus (333 BC), and lastly at Gaugamela (331 BC). Afterwards, he marched on Susa and Persepolis which surrendered in early 330 BC. From Persepolis, Alexander headed north to Pasargadae , where he visited the tomb of Cyrus , the man whom he had heard of from the Cyropaedia . In the ensuing chaos created by Alexander's invasion of Persia, Cyrus's tomb
11285-491: The Great , claims that Teispes was the son of Achaemenes and that Darius is also descended from Teispes through a different line, but no earlier texts mention Achaemenes. In Herodotus ' Histories , he writes that Cyrus the Great was the son of Cambyses I and Mandane of Media , the daughter of Astyages , the king of the Median Empire. Cyrus revolted against the Median Empire in 553 BC, and in 550 BC succeeded in defeating
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#173285499532311470-454: The Great ordered Aristobulus to improve the tomb's condition and restore its interior, showing respect for Cyrus. From there he headed to Ecbatana , where Darius III had sought refuge. Darius III was taken prisoner by Bessus , his Bactrian satrap and kinsman. As Alexander approached, Bessus had his men murder Darius III and then declared himself Darius' successor, as Artaxerxes V, before retreating into Central Asia leaving Darius' body in
11655-494: The Great. The Persians continued to reduce the cities along the west coast that still held out against them, before finally imposing a peace settlement in 493 BC on Ionia that was generally considered to be both just and fair. The Ionian Revolt constituted the first major conflict between Greece and the Achaemenid Empire, and as such represents the first phase of the Greco-Persian Wars. Asia Minor had been brought back into
11840-778: The Great. The Persian invasion led indirectly to Macedonia's rise in power and Persia had some common interests in the Balkans; with Persian aid, the Macedonians stood to gain much at the expense of some Balkan tribes such as the Paeonians and Greeks. All in all, the Macedonians were "willing and useful Persian allies. Macedonian soldiers fought against Athens and Sparta in Xerxes I's army. The Persians referred to both Greeks and Macedonians as Yauna (" Ionians ", their term for "Greeks"), and to Macedonians specifically as Yaunã Takabara or "Greeks with hats that look like shields", possibly referring to
12025-497: The Greek cities of Asia Minor. This Greek support was numerically small, amounting to no more than 10,000 men, but it formed, together with the Greek mercenaries from Egypt who went over to him afterward, the force on which he placed his chief reliance, and to which the ultimate success of his expedition was mainly due. The approach of Artaxerxes sufficiently weakened the resolution of Tennes that he endeavoured to purchase his own pardon by delivering up 100 principal citizens of Sidon into
12210-410: The Greek city states were destroyed. The people of Athens were worried by a return of the Persians, and Themistocles advocated rebuilding the walls before anything else so they decided to act upon this plan. This project was opposed by the Spartans and their Peloponnesian allies alarmed by the increasing power of Athens, arguing that a walled Athens would be a useful base for an invading army, and that
12395-522: The Greeks won a decisive victory over the Persian fleet at the Battle of Salamis and forced Xerxes to retire to Sardis . The land army which he left in Greece under Mardonius retook Athens but was eventually 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 the Persians lost all of their territories in Europe with Macedonia once again becoming independent. Artabanus ,
12580-530: The Ionian Revolt. In 492 BC, the Persian general Mardonius re-subjugated Thrace and made Macedonia a fully subordinate part of the empire; it had been a vassal as early as the late 6th century BC but retained a great deal of autonomy. However, in 490 BC the Persian forces were defeated by the Athenians at the Battle of Marathon and Darius I would die before having the chance to launch an invasion of Greece. Xerxes I (485–465 BC, Old Persian Xšayārša "Hero Among Kings"), son of Darius I , vowed to complete
12765-453: The Iron Age. For this reason, Median art remains a purely speculative topic, and its existence is even denied by some scholars. Géza de Francovitch noted that there is not a single work conclusively of Median origin in the archaeological record. This observation appears to remain relevant, even after the excavation of two seemingly Median sites in western Iran and the emergence of more academic writings claiming to have unraveled and understood
12950-461: The Kashan area in the first place, as well as the Azari dialects (otherwise called Southern Tati ) are probably the only Iranian dialects, which can pretend to be the direct offshoots of Median... In general, the relationship between Kurdish and Median is not closer than the affinities between the latter and other North Western dialects – Baluchi, Talishi, South Caspian, Zaza, Gurani, Kurdish (Soranî, Kurmancî, Kelhorî). Asatrian also stated that "there
13135-513: The Macedonian kausia hat. By the 5th century BC, the Kings of Persia were either ruling over or had subordinated territories encompassing not just all of the Persian Plateau and all of the territories formerly held by the Assyrian Empire ( Mesopotamia , the Levant , Cyprus and Egypt ), but beyond this, all of Anatolia and Armenia , as well as the Southern Caucasus and parts of the North Caucasus , Azerbaijan , Uzbekistan , Tajikistan , Bulgaria , Paeonia , Thrace and Macedonia to
13320-464: The Macedonians did. The Balkans provided many soldiers for the multi-ethnic Achaemenid army. Many of the Macedonian and Persian elite intermarried, such as the Persian official Bubares who married Amyntas' daughter, Gygaea. Family ties that the Macedonian rulers Amyntas and Alexander enjoyed with Bubares ensured them good relations with the Persian kings Darius and Xerxes I , who was also known as Xerxes
13505-553: The Medes along the main trade route, the Silk Road , connecting Mesopotamia to Central Asia. Assyrian palace reliefs depict inhabitants of the eastern mountain regions wearing the same tunics, sheepskin coats, lace-up boot, and hairstyles. This visual evidence suggests a similarity in the lifeways of the Western Iranian peoples, with no apparent significant distinctions among the Medes and their neighbors. The only direct references to
13690-429: The Medes developed a rich polychrome ; and the two innermost circles were covered with silver and gold, respectively. The artistic contributions of Median goldsmiths are also mentioned in Persian records. Pictorial art has been excavated in small quantities and of somewhat disappointing quality so far. Evidence shows that Median pictorial art was heavily influenced by the Babylonians, Assyrians, Elamites, and perhaps
13875-400: The Medes, capturing Astyages and taking the Median capital city of Ecbatana . Once in control of Ecbatana, Cyrus styled himself as the successor to Astyages and assumed control of the entire empire. By inheriting Astyages' empire, he also inherited the territorial conflicts the Medes had with both Lydia and the Neo-Babylonian Empire . King Croesus of Lydia sought to take advantage of
14060-544: The Medes, renowned for their wealth of horses. In a campaign in 819 or 818 BCE, Shamshi-Adad V (823-811 BCE) led Assyrian forces deep into western Iran. Advancing through Mesa, Gilzilbunda, Mataya (Media), and Araziaš, he followed the path previously taken by Shalmaneser III in 834 BCE. During this expedition, Assyrian forces encountered and fought a ruler named Hanaşiruka in Media. According to Shamshi-Adad's inscriptions, they purportedly killed 2,300 of Hanaşiruka's warriors and 140 cavalrymen, and Hanaşiruka's royal city of Sagbita
14245-535: The Medes, there is no evidence to permit such a connection across the considerable gap in time between the political dominance of the Medes and the first attestation of the Kurds Contemporary linguistic evidence has challenged the previously suggested view that the Kurds are descendants of the Medes. Gernot Ludwig Windfuhr , professor of Iranian Studies, identified the Kurdish languages as Parthian , albeit with
14430-487: The Median general Mazares to deal with the rebellion, and Pactyes was captured. Mazares, and after his death Harpagus , set about reducing all the cities which had taken part in the rebellion. The subjugation of Lydia took about four years in total. When the power in Ecbatana changed hands from the Medes to the Persians, many tributaries to the Median Empire believed their situation had changed and revolted against Cyrus. This forced Cyrus to fight wars against Bactria and
14615-417: The Median lifestyle occur in a literary text from the 7th century BCE, known as the "Sargon Geography", mentioning one Median chiefdom, Karzinu, reached by Assyrian forces in 716 BCE. As usual, non-Mesopotamian foreigners are characterized negatively, by listing the Assyrian cultural elements that the foreigners supposedly lacked. The description of the people of Karzinu makes it clear that they differed in quite
14800-405: The Median people as "a just and incorruptible man" and when asked by the Median people to solve their possible disputes he agreed and put forward the condition that they make him "king" and build a great city at Ecbatana as the capital of the Median state. Judging from the contemporary sources of the region and disregarding the account of Herodotus puts the formation of a unified Median state during
14985-619: The Median provinces. In inquiries directed to the god Shamash , the king seeks guidance on the power of the Medes and their allies, the Cimmerians and Manneans . Notably, the bēl-āli of Karkaššî, Kashtariti , becomes the focus of the king's concern. Even the once routine collection of horse tribute from the Medes now encounters unexpected difficulties. The adê tablets record the oaths made by eight Zagros-dwelling bēl-ālāni who swore loyalty to Esarhaddon and his crown prince Ashurbanipal (668-631 BCE). The interpretation of these oaths has been
15170-432: The Median rulers, the Assyrian texts use the title bēl āli (meaning "city lord"), a term for petty rulers who were not important enough to be called kings. Since there's no very large settlements in Median territory, bēl āli is sometimes translated as "chief" or "chieftain". From the Assyrian perspective, the Medes were a strange people living beyond the eastern fringes of the civilized world. Shalmaneser III (858-824 BC)
15355-600: The Median territories with the Mesopotamian lowlands now reached as far as the strategically significant city of Harhar on the Iranian Plateau. In 738 BCE, Tiglath-Pileser sent an army detachment against "the mighty Medes in the east", likely in the region beyond Mount Alvand . The operation was successful, with the Assyrians capturing the settlement of Mulugani and capturing "5,000 horses, people, oxen, sheep and goats." Sargon II (721-705 BCE) resumed efforts to strengthen
15540-624: The Median tribes). The architecture of these archaeological findings, which can probably be dated to the Median period, show a link between the tradition of columned audience halls often seen in the Achaemenid Empire (for example in Persepolis ) and Safavid Iran (for example in Chehel Sotoun from the 17th century AD) and what is seen in Median architecture. The materials found at Tepe Nush-i Jan, Godin Tepe, and other sites located in Media together with
15725-738: The Persian capital with Artaxerxes, where he took a leading role in the internal administration of the Empire and maintained tranquillity throughout the rest of the Empire. During the last six years of the reign of Artaxerxes III, the Persian Empire was governed by a vigorous and successful government. The Persian forces in Ionia and Lycia regained control of the Aegean and the Mediterranean Sea and took over much of Athens ' former island empire. In response, Isocrates of Athens started giving speeches calling for
15910-495: The Persian fold, but Darius had vowed to punish Athens and Eretria for their support of the revolt. Moreover, seeing that the political situation in Greece posed a continued threat to the stability of his Empire, he decided to embark on the conquest of all of Greece. The first campaign of the invasion was to bring the territories in the Balkan peninsula back within the empire. The Persian grip over these territories had loosened following
16095-596: The Persian leaders. As a result, the Persians were able to rapidly reduce numerous towns across Lower Egypt and were advancing upon Memphis when Nectanebo decided to quit the country and flee southwards to Ethiopia . The Persian army completely routed the Egyptians and occupied the Lower Delta of the Nile. Following Nectanebo fleeing to Ethiopia, all of Egypt submitted to Artaxerxes. The Jews in Egypt were sent either to Babylon or to
16280-574: The Persians in about 512–511, Macedonians and Persians were strangers no more as well. The subjugation of Macedonia was part of Persian military operations initiated by Darius the Great (521–486) in 513—after immense preparations—a huge Achaemenid army invaded the Balkans and tried to defeat the European Scythians roaming to the north of the Danube river. Darius' army subjugated several Thracian people , and virtually all other regions that touch
16465-471: The Persians were led by Rhossaces, Aristazanes, and Bagoas , the chief of the eunuchs. Nectanebo II resisted with an army of 100,000 of whom 20,000 were Greek mercenaries. Nectanebo II occupied the Nile and its various branches with his large navy. The character of the country, intersected by numerous canals and full of strongly fortified towns, was in his favour and Nectanebo II might have been expected to offer
16650-552: The Persians. Psamtik positioned his army at Pelusium in the Nile Delta . He was soundly defeated by the Persians in the Battle of Pelusium before fleeing to Memphis , where the Persians defeated him and took him prisoner. After attempting a failed revolt, Psamtik III promptly committed suicide. Herodotus depicts Cambyses as openly antagonistic to the Egyptian people and their gods, cults, temples, and priests, in particular stressing
16835-519: The Zagros region seem to have focused mainly on plunder. It is only under the king Tiglath-Pileser III (744-727 BCE) and his successors that the Assyrians attempted to take direct control of Median territory by founding new Assyrian provinces in the western Zagros. They also converted some Median towns to Assyrian centers, renaming them with the prefix kār , which meant "harbor" or "trading station". Their new names highlight their central role in commerce. In
17020-466: The Zoroastrian shrines can also be dated to his reign, and it was probably during this period that Zoroastrianism spread from Armenia throughout Asia Minor and the Levant . The construction of temples, though serving a religious purpose, was not a purely selfless act, as they also served as an important source of income. From the Babylonian kings, the Achaemenids adopted the concept of a mandatory temple tax,
17205-535: The ancestor of Cyrus the Great, the founder of the empire, Achaemenes . The term Achaemenid means "of the family of the Achaemenis/Achaemenes" ( Old Persian : 𐏃𐎧𐎠𐎶𐎴𐎡𐏁 , romanized: Haxāmaniš ; a bahuvrihi compound translating to "having a friend's mind"). Achaemenes was himself a minor seventh-century ruler of the Anshan in southwestern Iran, and a vassal of Assyria . Around 850 BC
17390-415: The arrival of Indo-Iranian speaking populations into Western Iran was not the result of one mass migration, but instead small groups of nomadic pastoralists gradually infiltrated the region from the northeast over a long period of time, perhaps dating back to the early 2nd millennium BCE. These pastoralist groups gave rise to diverse cultural and linguistic groups, with one such group eventually coalescing into
17575-406: The attempt. By the last year of Artaxerxes' rule, Philip II already had plans in place for an invasion of the Persian Empire, which would crown his career, but the Greeks would not unite with him. In 338 BC Artaxerxes was poisoned by Bagoas with the assistance of a physician. Artaxerxes III was succeeded by Artaxerxes IV Arses , who before he could act was also poisoned by Bagoas. Bagoas
17760-470: 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 executed if their mother Parysatis had not intervened. Cyrus was then sent back as Satrap of Lydia, where he prepared an armed rebellion. Cyrus assembled
17945-400: The chancellery, military, and judicial affairs according to Rüdiger Schmitt . It's likely that the Median language differed only dialectically from Old Persian. Very little remains of the material culture of the Medes, and it is challenging to confidently attribute artifacts from the period before the Persian Empire to the Medes specifically or to other groups residing in western Iran during
18130-449: The characteristics of Median art. Still, other scholars presume that archaeological sites such as Tepe Nush-i Jan and Godin Tepe, located in Media and dating back to the 8th and 7th centuries BCE, are examples supporting the existence of Median art. Although Tepe Nush-i Jan was not a capital, according to David Stronach, it became a crucial link in a chain of evidence regarding the composition and development of Median architecture, as well as
18315-423: The combined forces managed to defeat the forces sent by Artaxerxes III in 354 BC. However, in 353 BC, they were defeated by Artaxerxes III's army and were disbanded. Orontes was pardoned by the king, while Artabazos fled to the safety of the court of Philip II of Macedon . In c. 351 BC , Artaxerxes embarked on a campaign to recover Egypt, which had revolted under his father, Artaxerxes II. At
18500-446: The commander of the royal bodyguard and the most powerful official in the Persian court, assassinated Xerxes with the help of a eunuch , Aspamitres. The exact year and date of Xerxes' assassination is disputed among historians. After Xerxes I was assassinated, he was succeeded by his eldest surviving son Artaxerxes I . It was during his reign that Elamite ceased to be the language of government, and Aramaic gained in importance. It
18685-426: The concept that the social groups individuals belonged to were family, clan, tribe, and country. Although clan affiliations or tribal connections of significant individuals are rarely mentioned in Achaemenid period texts, the Persians still identified themselves through their relationships with family (paternal name), clan, and tribe. It is quite likely that the Medes did the same, as, according to Herodotus, their nation
18870-472: The course of his campaigns, Tiglath-Pileser III established two new provinces, expanding the permanent Assyrian presence much further onto the Iranian Plateau. East of the existing Assyrian province of Zamua (established no later than 843 BCE), Tiglath-Pileser founded the province of Parsua. Additionally, the province of Namri, likely established in the 790s BCE, now shared a border with the newly created province of Bit-Hamban. The Assyrian overland route connecting
19055-530: The defences of the Isthmus of Corinth would provide a sufficient shield against invaders. The Athenians went ahead to protect themselves from the Peloponnesians; Thucydides , in his account of these events, describes a series of complex machinations by Themistocles through which he distracted and delayed the Spartans until the walls were built up high enough to provide adequate protection. The Themistoclean Wall
19240-423: The disbanding of all the satrapal armies of Asia Minor, as he felt that they could no longer guarantee peace in the west and was concerned that these armies equipped the western satraps with the means to revolt. The order was however ignored by Artabazos II of Phrygia , who asked for the help of Athens in a rebellion against the king. Athens sent assistance to Sardis . Orontes of Mysia also supported Artabazos and
19425-513: The earlier Elamite title "King of Susa and Anshan". There are conflicting accounts of the identities of the earliest Kings of Anshan. According to the Cyrus Cylinder (the oldest extant genealogy of the Achaemenids) the kings of Anshan were Teispes , Cyrus I , Cambyses I and Cyrus II , also known as Cyrus the Great, who founded the empire. The later Behistun Inscription , written by Darius
19610-475: The early first century) mentions the affinity of Median with other Iranian languages : "The name of Ariana is further extended to a part of Persia and of Media, as also to the Bactrians and Sogdians on the north; for these speak approximately the same language, but with slight variations". No original deciphered text has been proven to have been written in the Median language. It is suggested that similar to
19795-409: The early history of Medians. At the end of the 2nd millennium BC, the Iranian tribes emerged in the region of northwest Iran. These tribes expanded their control over larger areas. Iranian tribes were present in western and northwestern Iran from at least the 12th or 11th centuries BC. But the significance of Iranian elements in these regions were established from the beginning of the second half of
19980-466: The early phase of the 'animal style' of the Ancient Near East. In Hamadan, a bronze plate was discovered with the inscription of a king of Abadana, a small kingdom west of Assyrian outposts. The plate depicts the king dressed similarly to Babylonian attire from the late Kassite period. Another inscribed object is a cylinder seal with a hero fighting a monster, the scene and inscription style related to
20165-416: The effectiveness of Assyrian rule was still limited and remained weak, especially in areas east of the Zagros mountain range. Since direct control over the Medes was challenging to keep, deals were made with those local rulers. In exchange for recognizing the Assyrian king's authority, providing a fixed quantity of horses as tribute, and fulfilling other obligations, cooperative chiefs received the protection of
20350-624: The elder Evagoras , the Cypriot monarch. Idrieus succeeded in reducing Cyprus. Artaxerxes initiated a counter-offensive against Sidon by commanding Belesys , satrap of Syria, and Mazaeus , satrap of Cilicia , to invade the city and to keep the Phoenicians in check. Both satraps suffered crushing defeats at the hands of Tennes, the Sidonese king, who was aided by 40,000 Greek mercenaries sent to him by Nectanebo II and commanded by Mentor of Rhodes . As
20535-447: The end of the 8th century BCE, the first major unions and states based on tribal confederations began to emerge in the western Iranian territory, led by local chiefs. While during Sargon II's reign, the Medes seemed contained through diplomacy and the strategic backing of competing factions, by the time of his grandson Esarhaddon (680-669 BCE), the Assyrians appeared to have lost ground in Media. Records from this period indicate unrest in
20720-467: The epitaph of Apis from 524 BC shows that Cambyses participated in the funeral rites of Apis styling himself as pharaoh. Following the conquest of Egypt, the Libyans and the Greeks of Cyrene and Barca in present-day eastern Libya ( Cyrenaica ) surrendered to Cambyses and sent tribute without a fight. Cambyses then planned invasions of Carthage , the oasis of Ammon and Ethiopia . Herodotus claims that
20905-458: The establishment of a new imperial polity under the Achaemenid dynasty . In the modern era, the Achaemenid Empire has been recognized for its imposition of a successful model of centralized bureaucratic administration, its multicultural policy, building complex infrastructure such as road systems and an organized postal system , the use of official languages across its territories, and the development of civil services, including its possession of
21090-416: The existence of "Median court poets". Median literature is part of the "Old Iranian literature" (including also Saka , Old Persian , Avestan ) as this Iranian affiliation of them is explicit also in ancient texts, such as Herodotus's account that many peoples including Medes were "universally called Iranian". No documents dated from the Median period have been preserved. Only one bronze plate dating from
21275-580: The expedition was not a failure, and a fortress at the Second Cataract of the Nile , on the border between Egypt and Kush, remained in use throughout the Achaemenid period. The events surrounding Cambyses's death and Bardiya's succession are greatly debated as there are many conflicting accounts. According to Herodotus, as Bardiya's assassination had been committed in secret, the majority of Persians still believed him to be alive. This allowed two Magi to rise up against Cambyses, with one of them sitting on
21460-713: The fallen Achaemenid Empire's territory came under the rule of the Ptolemaic Kingdom and the Seleucid Empire , both of which had emerged as successors to the Macedonian Empire following the Partition of Triparadisus in 321 BC. Hellenistic rule remained in place for almost a century before the Iranian elites of the central plateau reclaimed power under the Parthian Empire . The Achaemenid Empire borrows its name from
21645-407: The form of horses and lapis lazuli, seeking Esarhaddon's assistance against rival bēl-ālāni . However, it appears that the oaths and alliances eventually fell apart, leading to the tablets that documented them being taken from the temple storage room and crushed. While, by the mid-seventh century, the Median bēl-ālāni seemed poised to form alliances that could have united against the Assyrians, there
21830-453: The good", also known as Darayarahush ). The Magi, though persecuted, continued to exist, and a year following the death of the first pseudo-Smerdis ( Gaumata ), saw a second pseudo-Smerdis ( Vahyazdāta ) attempt a coup. The coup, though initially successful, failed. Herodotus writes that the native leadership debated the best form of government for the empire. Ever since the Macedonian king Amyntas I surrendered his country to
22015-458: The hands of the Persian king and then admitting Artaxerxes within the defences of the town. Artaxerxes had the 100 citizens transfixed with javelins, and when 500 more came out as supplicants to seek his mercy, Artaxerxes consigned them to the same fate. Sidon was then burnt to the ground, either by Artaxerxes or by the Sidonian citizens. Forty thousand people died in the conflagration. Artaxerxes sold
22200-550: The heritage of the Neo-Assyrian Empire by comparing himself to the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal . The Hebrew Bible also unreservedly praises Cyrus for his actions in the conquest of Babylon, referring to him as Yahweh 's anointed . He is credited with freeing the people of Judah from their exile and with authorizing the reconstruction of much of Jerusalem , including the Second Temple . In 530 BC, Cyrus died and
22385-481: The incorporation of Median culture into ancient Eastern civilizations. Influence and direct borrowing of fine details, entire architectural forms, and building design that had precise analogs in Assyrian and Urartian art can be traced in the architecture of Tepe Nus-i Jã and Godin Tepe. The Medes not only borrowed some elements from foreign art but also used them in new contexts with new functions and meanings, that is, in
22570-403: The inner structure of these Median chiefdoms remain largely unknown. According to Herodotus, the Medes were divided into six tribes: Busai, Paretakenians, Struchates, Arizantians, Budians, and Magians . The name of these tribes appear to be completely unknown to the Assyrians despite centuries of direct contact with various Median groups. Only the name of Herodotus's Paretakenians sounds similar to
22755-762: The insistence of Tissaphernes , gave support first to Athens, then to Sparta, but in 407 BC, Darius' son Cyrus the Younger was appointed to replace Tissaphernes and aid was given entirely to Sparta which finally defeated Athens in 404 BC. In the same year, Darius fell ill and died in Babylon. His death gave an Egyptian rebel named Amyrtaeus the opportunity to throw off Persian control over Egypt . At his death bed, Darius' Babylonian wife Parysatis pleaded with him to have her second eldest son Cyrus (the Younger) crowned, but Darius refused. Queen Parysatis favoured Cyrus more than her eldest son Artaxerxes II . Plutarch relates (probably on
22940-400: The job. He organized a massive invasion aiming to conquer Greece . His army entered Greece from the north in the spring of 480 BC, meeting little or no resistance through Macedonia and Thessaly , but was delayed 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
23125-419: The lands of Partakka and Partukka, whose chieftains sought help from the Assyrian king Esarhaddon (680-669 BC). If any tribal structures existed from the 9th to the 7th century BC, their political significance was likely minimal. Contrary to expectations, the Medes' internal rivalries did not result in the concentration of land, wealth, and power in the hands of a steadily decreasing number of chieftains over time,
23310-478: The last Median king against the Persian king Cyrus the Great , Media became an important province and was prized by the empires which successively dominated it ( Achaemenids , Seleucids , Parthians and Sasanids ). The original source for their name and homeland is a directly transmitted Old Iranian geographical name which is attested as the Old Persian "Māda-" ( singular masculine ). The meaning of this word
23495-470: The later Iranian practice of keeping archives of written documents in Achaemenid Iran, there was also a maintenance of archives by the Median government in their capital Ecbatana. There are examples of "Median literature" found in later records. One is according to Herodotus that the Median king Deioces, appearing as a judge, made judgement on causes submitted in writing. There is also a report by Dinon on
23680-408: The murder of the sacred bull Apis . He says that these actions led to a madness that caused him to kill his brother Bardiya (who Herodotus says was killed in secret), his own sister-wife and Croesus of Lydia. He then concludes that Cambyses completely lost his mind, and all later classical authors repeat the themes of Cambyses' impiety and madness. However, this is based on spurious information, as
23865-601: The naval invasion of Carthage was canceled because the Phoenicians, who made up a large part of Cambyses' fleet, refused to take up arms against their own people, but modern historians doubt whether an invasion of Carthage was ever planned at all. However, Cambyses dedicated his efforts to the other two campaigns, aiming to improve the Empire's strategic position in Africa by conquering the Kingdom of Meroë and taking strategic positions in
24050-582: The new international situation by advancing into what had previously been Median territory in Asia Minor. Cyrus led a counterattack which not only fought off Croesus' armies, but also led to the capture of Sardis and the fall of the Lydian Kingdom in 546 BC. Cyrus placed Pactyes in charge of collecting tribute in Lydia and left, but once Cyrus had left Pactyes instigated a rebellion against Cyrus. Cyrus sent
24235-399: The next few years effectively quelling insurrections in various parts of the Empire so that a few years after his conquest of Egypt, the Persian Empire was firmly under his control. Egypt remained a part of the Persian Empire from then until Alexander the Great 's conquest of Egypt. After the conquest of Egypt, there were no more revolts or rebellions against Artaxerxes. Mentor and Bagoas ,
24420-563: The nomadic Saka in Central Asia. During these wars, Cyrus established several garrison towns in Central Asia, including the Cyropolis . Nothing is known of Persia–Babylon relations between 547 and 539 BC, but it is likely that there were hostilities between the two empires for several years leading up to the war of 540–539 BC and the Fall of Babylon . In October 539 BC, Cyrus won a battle against
24605-565: The north and west, most of the Black Sea coastal regions, parts of Central Asia as far as the Aral Sea , the Oxus and Jaxartes to the north and north-east, the Hindu Kush and the western Indus basin (corresponding to modern Afghanistan and Pakistan ) to the far east, parts of northern Arabia to the south, and parts of eastern Libya ( Cyrenaica ) to the south-west, and parts of Oman , China, and
24790-645: The opposite occurred. In 819 BC, a small number of Median chiefs fielded considerably stronger forces against Assyria than their more numerous descendants did in the later half of the 8th century BC, when they were attacked by Tiglath-Pileser III and Sargon II. This suggests that sons of chieftains had equal inheritance rights, leading to the division of their father's lands, increasing the number of chiefdoms, and accelerating Media's political fragmentation. Sargon II's inscriptions alone identify at least 55 Median chiefdoms, and considering that there were likely additional less important chiefdoms not mentioned in Assyrian records,
24975-496: The original nomadic people who began the empire called themselves the Parsa and their constantly shifting territory Parsua , for the most part localized around Persis. The name "Persia" is a Greek and Latin pronunciation of the native word referring to the country of the people originating from Persis ( Old Persian : 𐎱𐎠𐎼𐎿 , romanized: Pārsa ). The Persian term 𐎧𐏁𐏂 Xšāça , literally meaning "The Kingdom",
25160-646: The other near eastern sources. After Cyrus's victory against Astyages, the Medes were subjected to their close kin, the Persians. In the new empire they retained a prominent position; in honour and war, they stood next to the Persians; their court ceremony was adopted by the new sovereigns, who in the summer months resided in Ecbatana ; and many noble Medes were employed as officials, satraps and generals. In later periods, Medes and especially Mede soldiers are identified and portrayed prominently in ancient archaeological sites such as Persepolis , where they are shown to have
25345-626: The people referred to by the Assyrians as the Medes. From the 9th century BCE onwards the Medes were well established in Western Iran and frequently clashed with the Assyrians, their powerful neighbors to the west. The Zagros Mountains and the Iranian Plateau were politically fragmented in the extreme. The Assyrian sources of the 8th and 7th centuries BCE tell of a bewildering number of kings and chieftains who ruled areas of different sizes, most of which seem to have been very small. In referring to
25530-407: The powerful kingdoms of Lydia and Babylonia. However, a recent reassessment of contemporary sources from the Median period has altered scholars' perceptions of the Median state . The state remains difficult to perceive in the documentation, which leaves many doubts about it, some specialists even suggesting that there never was a powerful Median kingdom. In any case, it appears that after the fall of
25715-479: The pre-Achaemenid period has been found in Median territory, bearing a cuneiform inscription in Akkadian dating back to the 8th century BCE, but it does not mention any Median names. A cuneiform inscription on a piece of silver was excavated at Tepe Nush-i Jan, but only the end of one sign and the beginning of the next were preserved. If writing was employed by the Medes, it likely utilized a script similar to Aramaic that
25900-405: The records of Assyrian raids and tributes. A primary factor for economic development was the breeding of valuable breeds, such as horses for military use and Bactrian camels for commercial transport. The proximity to the Assyrian Empire, as well as to Urartu, Elam, and Babylon, made the breeding of these animals highly profitable. However, the most crucial economic factor was the strategic location of
26085-399: The regions of "Messi, Amadaya, Araziaš and Harhar." Among these, Amadaya can be identified as Media. Shalmaneser's attack was, however, a mere side show without any consequences since Media was not the focus of Shalmaneser's attention. The Assyrian interest in the Iranian highlands probably stemmed from their need for horses to supply the chariots and cavalry of their armed forces. For most of
26270-554: The reign of Cyaxares or later. The list of Median rulers and their period of reign is compiled according to two sources. Firstly, Herodotus who calls them "kings" and associates them with the same family. Secondly, the Babylonian Chronicle which in "Gadd's Chronicle on the Fall of Nineveh" gives its own list. A combined list stretching over 150 years is thus: However, not all of these dates and personalities given by Herodotus match
26455-454: The reign of Sinsharishkun (622–612 BCE), the Assyrian empire, which had been in a state of constant civil war since 626 BCE, began to unravel. Subject peoples, such as the Babylonians, Egyptians, Scythians, Cimmerians, and Arameans quietly ceased to pay tribute to Assyria. Assyrian dominance over the Medes came to an end during the reign of Median king Cyaxares , who, in alliance with the Babylonian king Nabopolassar , attacked and destroyed
26640-496: The right or privilege to serve as priests not only for the Medes but also for the Persians. Thus, they constituted a priestly caste that passed its functions from father to son. They played a significant role in the court of the Median king Astyages, serving as advisers, sorcerers, dream interpreters, and soothsayers. Classical authors regarded the Magi as Zoroastrian priests. From the personal names of Medes as recorded by Assyrian texts from 8th and 9th centuries BCE there are examples of
26825-425: The road to delay Alexander, who brought it to Persepolis for an honourable funeral. Bessus would then create a coalition of his forces, to create an army to defend against Alexander. Before Bessus could fully unite with his confederates at the eastern part of the empire, Alexander, fearing the danger of Bessus gaining control, found him, put him on trial in a Persian court under his control, and ordered his execution in
27010-507: The ruins at a high price to speculators, who calculated on reimbursing themselves by the treasures which they hoped to dig out from among the ashes. Tennes was later put to death by Artaxerxes. Artaxerxes later sent Jews who supported the revolt to Hyrcania on the south coast of the Caspian Sea . The reduction of Sidon was followed closely by the invasion of Egypt. In 343 BC, Artaxerxes III, in addition to his 330,000 Persians, had now
27195-470: The same time, a rebellion had broken out in Asia Minor, which, being supported by Thebes , threatened to become serious. Levying a vast army, Artaxerxes invaded Egypt and engaged in fighting with Nectanebo II . After a year of fighting the Egyptian Pharaoh , Nectanebo inflicted a crushing defeat on the Persians with the support of mercenaries led by the Greek generals Diophantus and Lamius. Artaxerxes
27380-613: The similarity of names. According to the Histories of Herodotus (440 BC): The Medes were formerly called by everyone Arians , but when the Colchian woman Medea came from Athens to the Arians, they changed their name, like the Persians [did after Perses , son of Perseus and Andromeda ]. This is the Medes' own account of themselves. The discoveries of Median sites in Iran happened only after
27565-513: The soil, the remainder—the Dai , Mardi , Dropici , Sagarti , being nomadic . The Achaemenid Empire was created by nomadic Persians . The Persians were Iranian people who arrived in what is today Iran c. 1000 BC and settled a region including north-western Iran, the Zagros Mountains and Persis alongside the native Elamites . The Persians were originally nomadic pastoralists in
27750-489: The south coast of the Caspian Sea , the same location that the Jews of Phoenicia had earlier been sent. After this victory over the Egyptians, Artaxerxes had the city walls destroyed, started a reign of terror, and set about looting all the temples. Persia gained a significant amount of wealth from this looting. Artaxerxes also raised high taxes and attempted to weaken Egypt enough that it could never revolt against Persia. For
27935-532: The strife-riven Neo-Assyrian Empire between 616 and 609 BCE. After the fall of Assyria, a unified Median state became one of the four major powers of the ancient Near East together with Babylonia, Lydia , and Egypt . The Medes were subsequently able to expand beyond their original homeland and had eventually a territory stretching roughly from northeastern Iran to the Kızılırmak River in Anatolia . Cyaxares
28120-450: The support of his regions. Sogdianus reigned for six months and fifteen days before being captured by his half-brother, Ochus , who had rebelled against him. Sogdianus was executed by being suffocated in ash because Ochus had promised he would not die by the sword, by poison or by hunger. Ochus then took the royal name Darius II. Darius' ability to defend his position on the throne ended the short power vacuum. From 412 BC Darius II , at
28305-473: The then-tyrant of Miletus , Aristagoras, launched a joint expedition with the Persian satrap Artaphernes to conquer Naxos , in an attempt to bolster his position in Miletus, both financially and in terms of prestige. The mission was a debacle, and sensing his imminent removal as a tyrant, Aristagoras chose to incite the whole of Ionia into rebellion against the Persian king, Darius I, who was commonly known as Darius
28490-451: The throne able to impersonate Bardiya because of their remarkable physical resemblance and shared name (Smerdis in Herodotus's accounts ). Ctesias writes that when Cambyses had Bardiya killed he immediately put the magus Sphendadates in his place as satrap of Bactria due to a remarkable physical resemblance. Two of Cambyses' confidants then conspired to usurp Cambyses and put Sphendadates on
28675-625: The throne under the guise of Bardiya. According to the Behistun Inscription , written by the following king Darius the Great , a magus named Gaumata impersonated Bardiya and incited a revolution in Persia. Whatever the exact circumstances of the revolt, Cambyses heard news of it in the summer of 522 BC and began to return from Egypt, but he was wounded in the thigh in Syria and died of gangrene, so Bardiya's impersonator became king. The account of Darius
28860-508: The tomb already built for him in the Naqsh-e Rustam Necropolis. It was Persian tradition that kings begin constructing their own tombs while they were still alive. Artaxerxes I was immediately succeeded by his eldest and only legitimate son, Xerxes II . However, after a few days on the throne, he was assassinated while drunk by Pharnacyas and Menostanes on the orders of his illegitimate brother Sogdianus , who apparently had gained
29045-448: The total number could have been close to a hundred or even more. Presumably the tribal union of the Medes was not merely nominal. It is to this union that the Medes must have owed at times the possibility of collective action with a choice of capable leaders. But such unity could manifest itself only occasionally. In the majority of the cases the Medes, in spite of their strength, were divided. The six Median tribes resided in Media proper,
29230-554: The triangular area between Rhagae , Aspadana and Ecbatana . In present-day Iran , that is the area between Tehran , Isfahan and Hamadan , respectively. Of the Median tribes, the Magi resided in Rhagae, modern Tehran. They were of a sacred caste which ministered to the spiritual needs of the Medes. The Paretaceni tribe resided in and around Aspadana, modern Isfahan, the Arizanti lived in and around Kashan ( Isfahan Province ), and
29415-484: The two generals who had most distinguished themselves in the Egyptian campaign, were advanced to posts of the highest importance. Mentor, who was governor of the entire Asiatic seaboard, was successful in reducing to subjection many of the chiefs who during the recent troubles had rebelled against Persian rule. In the course of a few years, Mentor and his forces were able to bring the whole Asian Mediterranean coast into complete submission and dependence. Bagoas went back to
29600-522: The use of the Indo-Iranian word arta- (lit. "truth") or theophoric names with Maždakku and even the name of the god Ahura Mazda , which is familiar from both Avestan and Old Persian. The religion promoted by the Magi could be some form of pre-Zoroastrianism or Zoroastrianism itself. This is a controversial topic on which scholars have not yet reached a consensus. Igor Diakonoff supposed that Astyages and perhaps even Cyaxares had already adopted
29785-676: The version, she marries King Aegeus of Athens and bears a son Medus . After failing to make Aegeus kill his older son Theseus , she and her son fled to Aria , where the Medes take their name from her, according to several Greek and later Roman accounts, including in Pausanias ' Description of Greece (1st-century AD). According to other versions, such as in Strabo 's Geographica (1st-century AD) and Justin 's Epitoma Historiarum Philippicarum (2nd or 3rd century AD), she returned home to conquer neighboring lands with her husband Jason, one of which
29970-452: The western Iranian Plateau. The Achaemenid Empire may not have been the first Iranian empire, as the Medes , another group of Iranian people, possibly established a short-lived empire when they played a major role in overthrowing the Assyrians. The Achaemenids were initially rulers of the Elamite city of Anshan near the modern city of Marvdasht ; the title "King of Anshan" was an adaptation of
30155-414: The western oases. To this end, he established a garrison at Elephantine consisting mainly of Jewish soldiers, who remained stationed at Elephantine throughout Cambyses' reign. The invasions of Ammon and Ethiopia themselves were failures. Herodotus claims that the invasion of Ethiopia was a failure due to the madness of Cambyses and the lack of supplies for his men, but archaeological evidence suggests that
30340-479: Was "autonomous" while another opinion (of Grantovsky, et al. ) holds that both the ruling class and basic elements of the population were Iranian. The Medes first appear on the historical scene in the 9th century BCE, when they are mentioned in contemporary Assyrian texts. By this time, it is highly likely that Indo-Iranian-speaking peoples had already settled in Western Iran at least some 500 years — if not 1,000 years — prior to this period. Most scholars believe that
30525-475: Was affected by Shamshi-Adad's incursion, this marked the first of a series of Assyrian attempts to exert its power over the horse breeders of western Iran. Between 810 and 766 BCE, at least seven and possibly as many as nine Assyrian campaigns were directed against Media, climaxing in the years 793-787 BCE when Nergal-ila'i , the commander-in-chief of Adad-nirari III (810-783 BCE), led no fewer than five expeditions east-ward. The earliest Assyrian incursions into
30710-418: Was also composed of tribes ( génēa ). Assyrian inscriptions use the unusual term " bēl-āli " for the Median leaders, a term that is occasionally applied also to other rulers of polities in the Zagros mountains, but otherwise unknown in the Assyrian records. Literally translated the term means "head of a city" but it has been variously translated as "chieftain", "city leader", or "city lord". The term as used by
30895-479: Was at its absolute peak, only a small fraction of the Median chiefs in power established a lasting relationship with the Assyrian conqueror. The majority anticipated that Assyrian forces would eventually withdraw, as they had done in the past. However, the establishment of fortresses in Harhar and Kišesim in 716 BCE marked a turning point. From then on, the Assyrians maintained a permanent presence in western Iran. However,
31080-400: Was broken into and most of its luxuries were looted. When Alexander reached the tomb, he was horrified by the manner in which it had been treated, and questioned the Magi, putting them on trial. By some accounts, Alexander's decision to put the Magi on trial was more an attempt to undermine their influence and display his own power than a show of concern for Cyrus's tomb. Regardless, Alexander
31265-504: Was compelled to retreat and postpone his plans to reconquer Egypt. Soon after this defeat, there were rebellions in Phoenicia , Asia Minor and Cyprus . In 343 BC, Artaxerxes committed responsibility for the suppression of the Cyprian rebels to Idrieus , prince of Caria , who employed 8,000 Greek mercenaries and forty triremes , commanded by Phocion the Athenian, and Evagoras, son of
31450-521: Was completed in 479 BC and built with spolia , old materials, in this case destroyed temples, statues, and other ruins because of the rushed nature of the work and the readily available material. It had a total length of 8500 m, height 8–10 m, width 3m and had at least 13 gates. The wall bisected the Kerameikos cemetery where all of the funerary sculptures were built into it and two large city gates facing north-west were erected. The Sacred Way ran through
31635-419: Was destroyed, along with 1,200 other settlements. However, considering later campaigns in the region, these figures seem exaggerated. Hanaşiruka fared better than his neighboring rulers, the king of Gizilbunda and the ruler of Araziaš. Hanaşiruka not only survived the assault but also did not submit to the Assyrian king and apparently had no booty taken from his land. While only a fraction of the Median territories
31820-517: Was named after her; while another version related by Diodorus Siculus in Bibliotheca Historica (1st-century BC) states that after being exiled she married an Asian king and bore Medus, who was greatly admired for his courage, after whom they took their name. Russian historian and linguist Vladimir Minorsky suggested that the Medes, who widely inhabited the land where currently the Kurds form
32005-471: Was probably during this reign that the solar calendar was introduced as the national calendar. Under Artaxerxes I, Zoroastrianism became the de facto religion of the empire. After Persia had been defeated at the Battle of Eurymedon (469 or 466 BC ), military action between Greece and Persia was halted. When Artaxerxes I took power, he introduced a new Persian strategy of weakening the Athenians by funding their enemies in Greece. This indirectly caused
32190-421: Was stopped prematurely when the Greeks received news of the defeat at Thermopylae and retreated. The battle was a tactical victory for the Persians, giving them uncontested control of Artemisium and the 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
32375-412: Was succeeded by his eldest son Cambyses II , while his younger son Bardiya received a large territory in Central Asia. By 525 BC, Cambyses had successfully subjugated Phoenicia and Cyprus and was making preparations to invade Egypt with the newly created Persian navy. Pharaoh Amasis II had died in 526, and had been succeeded by Psamtik III , resulting in the defection of key Egyptian allies to
32560-426: Was succeeded by his son Astyages . In 553 BCE, Cyrus the Great , the King of Persia, a Median vassal, revolted against the Median king. In 550 BCE, Cyrus finally won a decisive victory resulting in Astyages' capture by his own dissatisfied nobles, who promptly turned him over to the triumphant Cyrus. In Herodotus (I, 95–130), Deioces is introduced as the founder of a centralized Median state. He had been known to
32745-488: Was the Median horses that were considered their most treasured resource. The Medes were known for their horsemanship, and when the Assyrians demanded tribute from them it was almost always in the form of horses trained for riding. In the Greek myth of Jason and the Argonauts , Medea is the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis and a paternal granddaughter of the sun-god Helios . Following her failed marriage to Jason while in Corinth , for one of several reasons depending on
32930-436: Was the first Assyrian king who made serious efforts to extend the power of his kingdom beyond the reaches of northern Mesopotamia, and he was the first Assyrian king to reach the Iranian Plateau. Although his army operated near Median territories in 843, 827, and 826 BCE, the Medes are not mentioned in the reports on these campaigns. Only once, in 834, did Shalmaneser sally forth from Parsua in order to attack four settlements in
33115-403: 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. The extraordinary innovation of
33300-402: Was the winner of the Battle of Salamis , after Themistocles was ostracized from Athens . Also, Artaxerxes gave him Magnesia , Myus , and Lampsacus to maintain him in bread, meat, and wine. In addition, Artaxerxes I gave him Palaescepsis to provide him with clothes, and he also gave him Percote with bedding for his house. When Artaxerxes died in 424 BC at Susa , his body was taken to
33485-421: Was then the only male descendant of the royal family. Briant says that although the hypothesis of a deception by Darius is generally accepted today, "nothing has been established with certainty at the present time, given the available evidence". According to the Behistun inscription , Gaumata ruled for seven months before being overthrown in 522 BC by Darius the Great (Old Persian Dāryavuš , "who holds firm
33670-404: Was to be used to check and constrain the rising power and influence of the Macedonian kingdom. In 340 BC, a Persian force was dispatched to assist the Thracian prince , Cersobleptes , to maintain his independence. Sufficient effective aid was given to the city of Perinthus that the numerous and well-appointed army with which Philip had commenced his siege of the city was compelled to give up
33855-400: Was tower-shaped with a triangular inner altar. Its space is 11×7 meters and the walls are eight meters high. Near the west corner of the altar, a stepped fire altar constructed of mud bricks was discovered. As is known, the cult of fire was a common Indo-Iranian legacy. According to Herodotus, the Medes had a priestly caste called the Magi , who were one of the tribes of this people. They had
34040-458: Was used to refer to the Empire formed by their multinational state. The Persian nation contains a number of tribes as listed here. ... : the Pasargadae , Maraphii , and Maspii , upon which all the other tribes are dependent. Of these, the Pasargadae are the most distinguished; they contain the clan of the Achaemenids from which spring the Perseid kings. Other tribes are the Panthialaei, Derusiaei, Germanii , all of which are attached to
34225-666: Was written on perishable materials since no historical accounts, literary texts, bureaucratic records, or even commercial transaction records survived. Some small elements of the Median language have been reconstructed from place names, personal names, and some suggested Median linguistic remnants in Old Persian . Numerous non-Persian words in Old Persian texts are commonly assumed to be Median, and other Median forms are preserved in Akkadian versions of Achaemenid inscriptions and elsewhere. The Median words in Old Persian texts, whose Median origin can be established by "phonetic criteria", appear more frequently among royal titles and among terms of
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