Cyrus the Great

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Cyrus the Great Builds the Persian Empire by Governing With Toleration and Kindness

The greatest leaders in history often leave behind some sort of legacy. Cyrus the Great was the founder of the Persian Empire around 500 B.C., which was the largest empire of its time (Cyrus II, the Great). The empire stretched from ancient Iran, and grew to include an area reaching from Greece to India (Persian Empire). Cyrus’ reign saw some of the first contacts between Persia and Greece, and helped Persia gain the political power that had once been held by the people of Mesopotamia (Cyrus, the Great). Cyrus the Great proved to be an effective leader who developed a strong military that was stationed strategically throughout the empire to stop rebellions and keep trade routes safe, treated captives like the jews kindly, and implemented an organized administration of government that included satraps who governed locally.
Cambyses I, one of the earliest Achaemenid kings, ruled Persia around 600 B.C. Upon his death, his son Cyrus II took over as king in 559 B.C., and later became known as Cyrus the Great. As the ruler of Persia at the age of 41, Cyrus wanted to gain more power to strengthen the Persian Empire. He started by negotiating an alliance with the Babylonians against the Medes, who at this time were being ruled by Cyrus’ grandfather Astyages (Cyrus, the Great). Around 550 BC Astyages was worried that his grandson might be trying to form an alliance with his enemy Nabonidus, King of Babylon. Astyages called for Cyrus to come to him in the capital of Ecbatana to discuss the matter, but Cyrus would not (Pettman). With the support of the Babylonians, Cyrus led a revolt and defeated the Medes (Cyrus II, the Great). The Nabodinus Chro...

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...w American Bible. 2000-2001 ed. Wichita: Fireside Bible, 2001. Print. Rev. Vers.
"Persian Empire." The Ancient Near East: An Encyclopedia for Students. Ed. Ronald Wallenfels and Jack M. Sasson. Vol. 3. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2000. 171-76. World
History in Context. Web. 25 Nov. 2013. .
"Persian Empire." The Greenhaven Encyclopedia of Ancient Mesopotamia. Ed. Don Nardo and
Robert B. Kedric. 2007. 220-24. World History in Context. Web. 25 Nov. 2013.
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Pettman, Andrew. "Cyrus the Great." Encyclopedia of World History. Ed. Marsha E. Ackerman et al. Vol. 1. New York: Facts on File, 2008. Ancient and Medieval History Online. Web.
25 Nov. 2013. .
Stockdale, Nancy. “Cyrus the Great.” World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO, 2013. Web. 14 Dec. 2013

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