Cyrus the Great: A Short Bio (part 2 of 2)

 

An Enemy and an Ally

 The fledgling Persian Empire was to face its first serious challenge. The Lydian kingdom, situated in western Anatolia, contained extensive gold fields, so much so that the name of its ruler King Croesus remains heavily associated with wealth. As with the Persians, knowledge of the Lydians has been almost exclusively channeled through Greek sources, to the point that they can be confused with Greeks themselves. Over 35 years earlier, the Lydians and Medes were embroiled in a massive war. On May 28 in 585 BC, a solar eclipse suddenly came and frightened the two sides into a truce, with Astyages marrying the daughter of the Lydian king. Now, with Astyages dead and the Medes subsumed into a new empire, Croesus saw an opportunity to finish the war that the gods had seemingly put to an end (Herodotus makes the alternate claim that he sought to avenge Astyages, who was his brother-in-law). He believed that Cyrus would not be ready to repel a Lydian invasion, and was emboldened in his plans by the Oracles of Apollo. These prophets had divined that he would destroy an empire.

Golden coin of Croesus.

Though seemingly encouraged by the gods, Croesus bettered his odds through alliances with his neighbors. He gained the support of Babylon, Egypt, and Sparta, a grand alliance that threatened to destroy the new Persian Empire. These were defensive alliances, meaning they would not march into Persian territory with him, but they would come to his aid if the roles of attacker and defender were reversed. Croesus struck for Pteria, a city near the Black Sea. Cyrus responded quickly and effectively. To ensure that his army was well supplied, he purchased thousands of camels from the Arabs and gave each regiment of men its own baggage train.

Cyrus the Great: A Short Bio (part 1 of 2)

 

The Ancient Persian (or Achaemenid) Empire dominated the Middle East from roughly 550 to 330 BC. Compared to its predecessors in the region, it lasted a long time and came to be seen as a model for empire-building, even by its eventual destroyer Alexander the Great. It was founded by another “The Great,” Cyrus the Great. Cyrus is one of the more highly regarded ancient rulers. Many respect him for his, by the standards of the time, generosity and mercy towards conquered peoples. He rarely massacred entire populations and did not often resort to mass enslavement either. He let local rulers stay on as part of his administration, creating a soft rule over his holdings. Cyrus is also a legend among many in Iran, as he was the one who catapulted their Persian ancestors to the status of a great civilization. Judaism and Christianity alike also have a positive image of him as he allowed the captive Hebrews to return to the Levant and rebuild their cities (though as it turns out there is a caveat on this matter).

Despite his importance to world history, we know very little about Cyrus. What has been passed down is largely suspect. Little contemporary records exist from the time of his life and most of these, such as the Nabonidus Verse Account and Cyrus Cylinder, are obvious pieces of propaganda from a time when people did not have a widely circulated press, much less the internet, to seek out the truth. Most ancient sources are actually Greek histories. These were written decades to hundreds of years after the events of Cyrus’ life. They were based on Persian historical legends and orally transmitted hearsay, and then filtered through Greek biases. The most popular Greek sources is Xenophon’s account of his time as a Greek mercenary in a Persian civil war. Xenophon related many tales he heard of Cyrus the Elder. Ironically it’s riddled with literary liberties and inaccuracies as well as the promotion of the author’s Greek beliefs. Concerning the Cyrus the Great’s characteristics, Xenophon falsely depicts him embracing and spouting Socratic philosophy while also worshipping the Greek pantheon of gods and goddesses. The most respected source is Herodotus’ Histories. The father of historians, Herodotus carefully weighted various accounts and tried to piece together the most likely narrative.