The Empires of Persia: CHAPTER 7 LECTURE NOTES - TRADITIONS AND ENCOUNTERS 6TH EDITION - AP World History

THE EMPIRES OF PERSIA

• Persian Empires
  • Contemporary Iran
  • Four major dynasties
  • Achaemenids (558-330 BCE)
  • Seleucids (323-283 BCE)
  • Parthians (247 BCE-224 CE)
  • Sasanids (224-651 CE)

ACHAEMENID EMPIRE (558-330 BCE)

• Migration of Medes/Persians from Central Asia before 1,000 BCE
  • Indo-Europeans
  • Capitalized on weakening Assyrian and Babylonian empires
  • Cyrus (r. 558-530 BCE) founder of dynasty
    • "Cyrus the Shepherd" (indicates borders of Egypt)
      • Called that because he was originally a shepherd, called by his people
      • Pastoral in nature
  • Peak under Darius (r. 521-486 BCE)
    • Ruled Indus to the Aegean 
    • Set up his capital at Persepolis 
      • Becomes an imperial center (where kings live, trade, hallmark of society

ACHAEMENID ADMINISTRATION: THE SATRAPIES

• Had 23 administrative divisions: The Satrapies
  • Allows for "counties" or "states"
• Satraps Persian, but staff principally local, were like governors 
• System of spies, surprise audits*
  • Minimized possibilities of local rebellion
• Standardized currency for taxaption purposes
• Massive road buildings, courier services
  • Set up "royal road"
    • for trade, easily patrolled
• Developed Qanat, avoided extensive loss to evaporation
• Extensive road building
  • Persian Royal Road 1,600 miles, some of it paved 
• Courier service
• Policy of toleration unhder Cyrus, Darius 
  • Seen as a high/low point
• Rebuilding of temple in Jerusalem 587 BCE
• Xerxes )486-465 BCE) harshly represses rebellions in Mesopotamia/Egypt
  • Concerned about rebellions
  • Brutal treatment of rebellions made many find him distasteful because of his oppressive message/methods

PERSIAN WARS (500-479 BCE)

• Rebellious Greeks in Ionia
• Peninsular Greeks join in
• Persians defeated at Maraton (490 BCE), retreated
  • Darius undertakes campaign to fight Greeks who supported Ionian Greeks and battles Athenians 
• Alexander the Great conquers Achaemenid Empire (334-331 BCE) 

**NOTES***

Medes - spoke Indo-Euro languages

Pasargadae - In Persia, like right next to Persepolis

Cambyses - Cyrus' son (r. 530-522 BCE)

Audit - checking for order 

Qanat - System of underground canal

Ionia - Near Anatolia 

SELEUCID EMPIRE

• Alexander the Great dies suddenly
  • Dies after returning from military campaigns
• Generals divide empire, best part goes to Seleucus (reigned 505-281 BCE)
• Attacked by rebellion in India, invasion of Parthians

PARTHIAN EMPIRE

• Seminomadic Parthians drive Seleucus out of Iran
  • Built huts/small shelters to support nomadic lifestyle
• Federated government structure
  • Allowed more decision making and power to local leaders; more rebellions, smaller consequences 
• Especially strong cavalry
• Weakened by ongoing wars with Romans 
• Fell to internal rebellion 

SASANID EMPIRE (224-651 CE) 

• Claimed descent from Achaemenids
  • Believed that they were restoring the Achaemenid empire in a sense
• Continual conflict with Rome, Byzantium in the West, Kush in the East
• Overwhelmed by Arab conquest in 651
• Persian administration/culture absorbed into local Islamic culture
  • The Islamic culture that eventually dominated the Sasanid empire would use a lot of trade networks, city centers, etc. 

**NOTES**

Battle of Marathon = 490 BCE

Alexander of Macedon = Another name for Alexander the Great

Parthians established themselves as rulers of a powerful empire based in Iran that extended to wealthy Mesopotamia

Mithradates I = the Parthians greatest conquerer, came to the throne in 171 BCE and in 155 BCE, consolidated his rule and extended it to Mesopotamia

Ctesiphon = the Parthian capital, built near the Euphrates River and near modern-day Baghdad

PERSIAN SOCIETY

• Early steppe traditions
  • Warriors, priests, peasants
  • Family/clan kinship very important
• Creation of bureaucrat classes with empire
  • Tax collectors
  • Record keepers (trade records, etc.)
  • Translators

SLAVE CLASS

• POW, conquered populations
• Debtors (sell yourself/family members if you were the father to slavery)
• Children/spouses also sold to slavery
• Principally domestic servitude (cleaning, cooking, etc.)
  • Some agricultural labor, public works 

PERSIAN ECONOMY

• Several areas exceptionally fertile
  • This area known as the "Fertile Crescent"
• Long-distance trade benefits from Persian road building
• Goods from India especially valued because of their rarity
  • India is like a warehouse for various goods from all over the world

ZOROASTRIANISM 

• Early Aryan influences on Persian religious traditions
  • Aryans would eventually settle in Indian subcontinent 
• Zarathrustra (17th - early 6th century BCE)
  • Not much known about him, but he came from an aristocratic family
  • Became disenchanted with some traditional Persian religions 
  • Decided to wander for like ten years seeking guidance/wisdom, received a vision on the true vision of the universe
• Prophet of Ahura Mazda against Anyra Mainyu
  • Ahura Mazda = good deity
  • Anrya Mainya = bad deity
  • 1st religion we see in this time that has a dualistic nature (good/bad deities)
• Priests of Zarathrustra known as magi
  • Very big on oral tradition
• Oral teachings until Sasanid period composed Gathas*
  • Moral teachings, songs, etc. 
  • Promises that Ahura Mazda will win/souls will be judged; good souls go to heavenly realm and evil will be cast down for eternal punishment and pain 
• Fortunes of Zoroastrianism 
  • Under Alexander: massacre of magi, burning Zoroastrian temples
    • Alexander didn't seem to like what Zoroastrianism was proclaiming 
  • Weak Parthian support
  • Major revival under Sasanids, persecution of non-Zoroastrians
• Discrimination under Islam
  • As Islam grows in power/expands its empire, any cultural religion that conflicted with Islam as it grew was persecuted
  • Very few Zoroastrians, but they're still in the Persia area where mostly Islam dominates
• Other religious groups in the Persian Empire:
  • Major Mesopotamian communities of Jews
    • Jews originally based in Israel/Palestine
    • Had spread out throughout the Mesopotamian area to live in smaller communities
  • Composition of the Talmud (ca. 500 CE)
  • Buddhism, Christianity, and Manichaeism also survived

**NOTES**

Avesta = the holy book of religious texts from the Sasanids

Gathas = Zarathrustra's hymns compiled to honor various deities 

Talmud = the constitution of Judaism, pretty much a guide on how to read "The Old Testament" (in Protestant terms)

Manichaeism = A dualistic religious system with Christian, Gnostic, and pagan elements; founded in Persia in the third century by Manes (c. 216 - c. 276). The system was based on a supposed primeval conflict between light and darkness. It spread widely in the Roman Empire and in Asia, and survived in eastern Turkestan (Xinjiang) until the thirteenth century; religious or philosophical dualism. (Source: Quizlet)