1. Chapter 7
The Empires of Persia

4. Persian Empires Contemporary Iran Four major dynasties
Achaemenids ( BCE)
(AWE KEE MA NIDS)
Seleucids ( BCE)
Parthians (247 BCE-224 CE)
Sasanids ( CE)

5. Achaemenid Empire (558-330 BCE)
Migration of Medes and Persians from central Asia, before BCE
Indo-Europeans
Capitalized on weakening Assyrian and Babylonian empires
Cyrus (r BCE) founder of dynasty
“Cyrus the Shepherd”
Peak under Darius (r BCE)
Ruled Indus to the Aegean
Capital Persepolis

6. Achaemenid Administration: The Satrapies
23 Administrative divisions
Satraps Persian, but staff principally local
System of spies, surprise audits
Minimized possibilities of local rebellion
Standardized currency for taxation purposes
Massive road building, courier services

7. Technologies Qanat: System of underground canals
Avoided excessive loss to evaporation
Extensive road-building
Persian Royal Road
1,600 miles, some of it paved
Courier service

10. Decline of the Achaemenid Empire
Policy of toleration under Cyrus, Darius
Rebuilding of Temple in Jerusalem
Xerxes ( BCE) attempts to impose Persian stamp on satrapies
Increasing public discontent

11. Persian Wars (500-479 BCE) Rebellious Greeks in Ionia
Peninsular Greeks join in
Persians defeated at Marathon (490 BCE), retreated
Alexander the Great conquers the Achaemenid Empire ( BCE)

12. Seleucid Empire Alexander the Great dies suddenly
No one knows exactly of what…had a high fever
Generals divide empire, best part goes to Seleucus (r BCE)
Attacked by rebellion in India, invasion of Parthians

14. Funeral of Iskander (Alexander): pallbearers carry his coffin draped with brocaded silk and his turban at one end.
In Nizami's version Iskandar fell ill and died near Babylon. Because it was believed he had been poisoned, no antidotes could revive him
Buried in Memphis, Egypt and then in Alexandria

15. The Achaemenid and Selucid empires, 558-83 B.C.E.

16. Parthian Empire Semi-nomadic Parthians drive Seleucus out of Iran
Federated governmental structure
Especially strong cavalry
Weakened by ongoing wars with Romans
Fell to internal rebellion

17. Sasanid Empire (224-651 CE) Claimed descent from Achaemenids
Continual conflicts with Rome, Byzantium in the west, Kush in the east
Overwhelmed by Arab conquest in 651
Persian administration and culture absorbed into local Islamic culture

18. The Parthian and Sasanid empires, 247 B.C.E.-651 C.E

19. Persian Society Early steppe traditions Warriors, priests, peasants
Family/clan kinship very important
Creation of bureaucrat class with Empire
Tax collectors
Record keepers
translators

20. Women in Persia
Women owned property, were involved in managing their assets, earned wages and as a result were able to be economically independent.
Patriarchal system prevailed and husbands and other males had far more rights and privileges than their wives or children.
Upper class and free women wore veil. Adopted from Assyrians (only slaves, prostitutes and concubines were without the veil)

23. Slave Class Prisoners of war, conquered populations Debtors
Children, spouses also sold into slavery
Principally domestic servitude
Some agricultural labor, public works

24. Persian Economy Several areas exceptionally fertile
Long-distance trade benefits from Persian road-building
Goods from India especially valued

25. Zoroastrianism Early Aryan influences on Persian religious traditions
Zarathustra (late 7th-early 6th c. BCE)
Prophet of Ahura Mazda, against Angra Mainu
Priests of Zarathustra known as Magi
Oral teachings until Sasanid period composed Gathas

26. Fortunes of Zoroastrianism
Under Alexander: Massacre of Magi, burning Zoroastrian temples
Weak Parthian support
Major revival under Sasanids, persecution of non-Zoroastrians
Discrimination under Islam

27. Other Religious Groups in the Persian Empire
Major Mesopotamian communities of Jews
Composition of the Talmud, c. 500 CE
“constitution of Judaism”
Buddhism, Christianity and Manichaeism also survived
Manichaeism (/ˌmænᵻˈkiːɪzəm/;[1] in Modern Persian آیین مانی Āyin-e Māni; Chinese: 摩尼教; pinyin: Móní Jiào; Xiao'erjing: موْنِ كِيَوْ) was a major religion that was founded by the Iranian[2] prophet Mani (in Persian: مانی, Syriac: ܡܐܢܝ , Latin: Manichaeus or Manes; c. 216–276 AD) in the Sasanian Empire.[3][4]
Manichaeism taught an elaborate dualistic cosmology describing the struggle between a good, spiritual world of light, and an evil, material world of darkness. Through an ongoing process which takes place in human history, light is gradually removed from the world of matter and returned to the world of light from whence it came. Its beliefs were based on local Mesopotamian gnostic and religious movements.[5]
Manichaeism was quickly successful and spread far through the Aramaic-Syriac speaking regions.[6] It thrived between the third and seventh centuries, and at its height was one of the most widespread religions in the world. Manichaean churches and scriptures existed as far east as China and as far west as the Roman Empire.[7] It was briefly the main rival to Christianity in the competition to replace classical paganism. Manichaeism survived longer in the east than in the west, and it appears to have finally faded away after the 14th century in southern China[8] contemporary to the decline in China of the Church of the East during the Ming Dynasty. While most of Manichaeism's original writings have been lost, numerous translations and fragmentary texts have survived.