Empires of Ancient Persia
For almost 1,200 years, from 550 B.C.E. to 651 C.E., the Persians dominated an area that stretched from the Black Sea (which is north of modern Turkey and bordered by Eastern Europe) into Central Asia. Throughout its long history, Persia had contact with—and often battled—many of the other great empires of the past.
The Persian homeland was centered in the southwest of modernday Iran, along the Zagros Mountains. From there, the Persians conquered the various kingdoms of Mesopotamia, in the region between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in what is now Iraq. They then spread their influence over Egypt and the fringes of southern Europe. This made them the first empire builders to control part of three continents. To the east, Persian rule extended as far as India.
It is difficult to talk about one Persian Empire, because three distinct Persian peoples rose to power at different times. But they shared a similar language and culture and ruled many of the same lands. The Achaemenid dynasty created what is sometimes called the Persian Empire. Their rule lasted from about 559 b.c.e. until 330 b.c.e., when Persia was conquered by Alexander the Great (356–323 b.c.e.). Several centuries later, the Parthians rose to power in the region. They were followed by the Sassanians.
For centuries, historians in Europe and North America studied the Persians mostly through the words of ancient Greek and Roman writers. Their writings provided important information on Persian history and culture. But the ancient Greeks and Romans saw the Persians as their enemies, and so their accounts of the Persians were not always accurate...
Contents
Introduction / 7
PART I HISTORY
CHAPTER 1 Th e First Persian Empire / 19
CHAPTER 2 Th e Achaemenid Empire at Its Largest / 35
CHAPTER 3 Th e New Persian Empires / 55
PART II SOCIETY AND CULTURE
CHAPTER 4 Politics and Society in the Persian Empires / 75
CHAPTER 5 Living and Working in the Persian Empires / 93
CHAPTER 6 Persian Art, Science, and Culture / 111
Epilogue / 127
Time Line / 140
Glossary / 141
Bibliography / 143
Further Resources / 147
Picture Credits / 150
Index / 151
About the Author / 159
Great Empires of the Past: Empires of Ancient Persia
Michael Burgan
Chelsea House
Copyright © 2010 Michael Burgan
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher. For information, contact:
Chelsea House
An imprint of Infobase Publishing
132 West 31st Street
New York NY 10001
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Burgan, Michael.
Empires of ancient Persia / Michael Burgan.
p. cm.—(Great empires of the past)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-60413-156-7 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-43812-784-2 (e-book)
1. Iran—Juvenile literature. 2. Iran—History—To 640—Juvenile literature. 3. Iran—Civilization—To 640—Juvenile literature.
I. Title. II. Series.
DS254.75.B87 2009
935—dc22 2009011154
Chelsea House books are available at special discounts when purchased in bulk quantities for businesses, associations, institutions, or sales promotions.
Please call our Special Sales Department in New York at (212) 967-8800 or (800) 322-8755.
You can find Chelsea House on the World Wide Web at http://www.chelseahouse.com
Produced by the Shoreline Publishing Group LLC
Editorial Director: James Buckley Jr.
Series Editor: Beth Adelman
Text design by Annie O’Donnell
Cover design by Alicia Post
Composition by Mary Susan Ryan-Flynn
Cover printed by Bang Printing, Brainerd, MN
Book printed and bound by Bang Printing, Brainerd, MN
Date printed: November 2009
Printed in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
All links and Web addresses were checked and verified to be correct at the time of publication. Because of the dynamic nature of the Web, some addresses and links may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid
MICHAEL BURGAN has written more than 200 books including Buddhist Faith in America (for Facts On File), Cold War, and Colonial and Revolutionary Times. He has also written biographies of former secretary of state Madeleine Albright, astronaut John Glenn, various U.S. presidents, and several scientists and explorers.
Historical consultant THOMAS G. URBAN received his Masters Degree in Northwest Semitics from the University of Chicago in 2000. He has been senior editor of serial publications in the Publications Office at the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago since 1990. The Oriental Institute is a world renown publisher of books on the Near East, from Libya to Iran.
