Episode 3 The World Before Cyrus

The Persian Empire (2012)

Dr John W I Lee

Film Review

The Persian empire would form in the 6th century BC from an alliance of Median, Elamite and early Persian chieftains following the collapse of the Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian empires.

Assyrian and Neo-Assyrian Empires

Named for the god Ashur, the the kingdom of Ashur formed in 3500 BC, dominating Mesopotamia and Babylon until its collapse at the end of the Bronze Age (around 1100 BC).* Effectively recovering by 950BC, the Assyrians built an infantry, cavalry, chariot brigade and siege engines. Following the will of their god Ashur, the conquered Babylon, Samaria, Medes and Elam to form the Neo-Assyrian empire. Known for excellent administrative skills, road building and libraries, it collapsed in 612, when Babylon organized a joint revolt with Medes.

Neo-Babylonian Empire

The Neo-Babylonian empire was founded by an Assyrian general Nabopolasser in 626 BC. Conquering all of Mesopotamia, his son Nebuchadnezzar marched west, conquering Judah in 587 BC and deporting its Jewish inhabitants to Babylon.

Kingdom of Medes

Median nomads from the Asian steppes arrived in the Iran’s Zargos mountains during the third millennium. According to the Greek historian Herodotus, Medes began building a powerful kingdom in 700 BC. However after allying with Babylon to conquer the Assyrians, they became despotic and were conquered by the Persians.

Following their conquest of Medes, Persians widely adopted Median dress. There were many Median priests and soldiers in the Persian empire. The English word “paradise” is of Median origin.

Persian Tribes

Persian tribes arrived in Iran (from Central Asian steppes) in the third millennium BC and intermarried with local tribes. By 1000 BC they had settled two separate areas of western Iran: Parsua (in the Zagros mountains) and Ansham (a Median name) in Farsham province (now known as Shiraz). As the Assyrians put more pressure on Medes and Elam, the Persians gained control of splintered Median kingdoms. Between 750-645 BC, they came to dominate Medes and saw themselves as heirs to the Achaemid chiefdom, a very powerful role in the Median Pasargadae tribe.

Greece

It took the Greek city-states around 250 years to recover from the Bronze Age collapse. Around 750 BC the Greeks rediscovered written language, resumed trade and began hiring themselves out as mercenaries.

Lydia

In Anatolia, the Hittite empire also collapsed at the end of the Bronze Age. It was replaced by the extremely wealthy kingdom of Lydia, the first Middle East state to use coins.

Egypt

In the 7th century BC, Egypt expelled their Assyrian occupiers with the help of Greek mercenaries.

The Levant

The Levant saw the increase of independent borderline states, as both the Hittites and the Egyptians lost ability to defend their claims in the region. Tyre (Phoenician state) and Israel were the most prominent of the new states.

*For some reason civilization collapsed across the entire Middle East at the end of the Bronze Age around 1100 BC.

https://www.kanopy.com/en/pukeariki/video/15372393/15372389