During the ancient world, an empire was a group of nations or peoples ruled over by an emperor, empress, or other powerful sovereign or government: usually a territory of greater extent than a kingdom, as the former British Empire, French Empire, Russian Empire, Byzantine Empire, or Roman Empire. To make a successful empire, it needs a healthy mixture of military, a strong efficient leader, a sturdy government, religion, trade or spread of ideas, and social ranking. The Achaemenid Persian Empire was the first major global empire in history, spanning most of the civilized world and containing 44% of the world’s population at the time, a part that has never since been exceeded. The Persian Empire managed to successfully rule much of the Middle East, Central Asia, and parts of South Asia and Europe for hundreds of years. The empire was founded in 550 B.C.E. by Cyrus the Great, who was known for establishing some of the policies that made his empire successful. For example, he allowed the empire’s mixed population’s cultural and religious freedom. This made revolts infrequent and gave its many nationalities a stake in the empire’s continued existence; the Old Testament declared Cyrus the “Anointed of God.” …show more content…
Massive public works projects going back to the Akkadian Empire helped facilitate the movement of military units and communication in order to maintain the vast territories conquered. However, the fall of the empire to Alexander the Great, by 330 B.C.E., was spectacular in its quickness. Perhaps this was the result of the decay that befalls all empires. As Cyrus the Great warned the Persians, the luxuries and wealth that comes from ruling a successful empire eventually leads to soft