Darius the Great of Persia Seth Johnstone Ancient Near East 4320 Dr. Onstine November 13th, 2016 “I am Darius the Great, King of Kings, King in Persia, King of countries, son of Hystaspes, grandson of Arsames, an Achaemenian.” This essay will explore the life and world surrounding Darius the Great of Persia and delve into the world of a Persian King during the time of the 6th and 5th century BCE. In this essay it shall include the origins of Darius. The examination and highlights of his reign shall be explored. A photograph of his empire will be inserted into this paper to further examine Darius’s reign. The Persepolis, a palace in which Darius began building is important to explain how lavish he envisioned his …show more content…
Darius comes from Persia and was born in 550 BCE from the Achaemenian dynasty and is the son of Hystaspes. Hystaspes was an elite member of society who was extremely close to Cyrus the Great. Hystaspes followed Cyrus on his military campaigns, which helps the eventual rise of Darius. Cyrus eventually has a dream in which “Darius appeared to him in a vision, with vast wings growing from his shoulders. Darius stood, in the vision, on the confines of Europe and Asia.” This distress with Cyrus who eventually dispatches Hystaspes to return to Persia. After a matter of time through the empire, the heirs of Cyrus dwindled away. The Cyrus line came down to Cambyses II and Smerdis whom did not have an heir to the throne. This caused much tension in the Persian Empire which gave rise to whom or what entity will rule over the kingdom. Jacob Abbott expounds that there were seven elite members that wanted to decide on what to do with Persia’s rule. One of the men in this council was Darius. Abbott explains that two leaders fought for the ideal system in which Persia should be ruled. The two leaders were Otanes and Megabyzus, elite members of Persian aristocracy. Otanes and Megabytes were bickering back and forth arguing for a monarchist society or republican. Megabyzus had “disapproved of both a monarchy and a republic. He recommended an oligarchy” A oligarchy is a split of power between different people …show more content…
While goods were brought into the region, the other aspect is who ran his kingdom? It was a tremendously large empire to control. The empire was sectioned into different territories; each controlled by a local governor who maintained peace and justice throughout the region. A military force from Darius would only intervene if a location became totally out of control which would force his hand. Darius also controlled the amount of wealth to come from each province he controlled. Under his protection and leadership, it is expected of those in one’s control to pay tribute to the overlord of an empire. Darius according to Abbott “divided his empire into twenty great districts, each of which was governed by a ruler called a satrap.” These Satraps were able to govern provinces with cruelty and discipline to keep control over the subjects of Darius. Most Satraps were previously put in place by Cyrus and Cambyses II. Darius kept many of those previously in authority under his rule as well. Under this paragraph is a photo depicting how expansive Darius’s empire was during his