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Cassandane
Cassandane or Cassandana (died 538 BC) was an Achaemenian queen and the wife of king Cyrus the Great, the mother of Cambyses II and Atossa and the grandmother of Xerxes I. She was a daughter of Pharnaspes. She had four children with Cyrus: Cambyses II, who succeeded his father and conquered Egypt; Smerdis ( Bardiya), who also reigned as the king of Persia for a short time; a daughter named Atossa, who later wed Darius the Great; and another daughter named Roxana. Her daughter Atossa later played an important role in the Achaemenid royal family, as she married Darius the Great and bore him the next Achaemenid king, Xerxes I. When Cassandane died, all the nations of Cyrus' Persian empire observed "a great mourning". This is reported by Herodotus. According to the Nabonidus Chronicle, there was a public mourning after her death in Babylonia lasting for six days. Cassandane reportedly stated that it was more bitter to leave Cyrus's side than to die. The six days of mourning are id ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cyrus The Great
Cyrus II of Persia ( ; 530 BC), commonly known as Cyrus the Great, was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire. Achaemenid dynasty (i. The clan and dynasty) Hailing from Persis, he brought the Achaemenid dynasty to power by defeating the Median Empire and embracing all of the previous civilized states of the ancient Near East, expanding vastly across most of West Asia and much of Central Asia to create what would soon become the List of largest empires#Timeline of largest empires at the time, largest empire in history at the time. The Achaemenid Empire's greatest territorial extent was achieved under Darius the Great, whose rule stretched from Southeast Europe in the west to the Indus Valley in the east. After absorbing the Median Empire, Cyrus conquered Lydia and eventually the Neo-Babylonian Empire, granting him control of Anatolia and the Fertile Crescent, respectively. He also led a major expedition into Central Asia, where his army brought "into subjection every nation wit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Atossa
Atossa (Old Persian: ''Utauθa'', or Old Iranian: ''Hutauθa''; 550–475 BC) was an Achaemenid empress. She was the daughter of Cyrus the Great, the sister of Cambyses II, the wife of Darius the Great, the mother of Xerxes the Great and the grandmother of Artaxerxes I. Name The Persian name "Atossa" (or "Atusa") means "bestowing very richly" or "well trickling" or "well granting". Atossa is the Greek () transliteration of the Old Persian name ''Utauθa.'' Her name in Avestan is ''Hutaosā''. Queen Atossa is the most famous bearer of this name, however, the name Atossa appears to have been a traditional one within the Achaemenid clan. According to the genealogy of the Kings of Cappadocia, the name Atossa was also borne by a sister of Cambyses I and sister-wife of Artaxerxes II. Early life Atossa was born in 550 BCE as the eldest daughter of Cyrus the Great and his wife Cassandane. Cassandane, an Achaemenian and the daughter of Pharnaspes, bore Cyrus two sons, Cambyses ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cambyses II
Cambyses II () was the second King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, reigning 530 to 522 BCE. He was the son of and successor to Cyrus the Great (); his mother was Cassandane. His relatively brief reign was marked by his conquests in North Africa, notably Egypt, which he took by defeating pharaoh Psamtik III () at the battle of Pelusium in 525 BC. After his victory in Egypt, he expanded the empire's holdings in Africa by taking Cyrenaica, the coastal region of eastern Libya. In the spring of 522 BC, Cambyses had to leave Egypt hastily to put down a revolt in Persia. En route in Syria ( Eber-Nari), Cambyses somehow received a thigh wound; it soon became gangreneous. Cambyses died three weeks later in Agbatana, likely the modern city of Hama. He died childless, and was thus succeeded by his younger brother Bardiya. Bardiya ruled for a short time, and was then overthrown by Darius the Great (), who went on to increase the power of the Achaemenids even further. Before his acces ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bardiya
Bardiya or Smerdis ( ; ; possibly died 522 BCE), also named as Tanyoxarces (; ) by Ctesias, was a son of Cyrus the Great and the younger brother of Cambyses II, both Persian kings. There are sharply divided views on his life. Bardiya either ruled the Achaemenid Empire for a few months in 522 BCE, or was impersonated by a magus called Gaumata ( ), whose name is given by Ctesias as Sphendadates (; ), until he was toppled by Darius the Great. Name and sources The prince's name is listed variously in the historical sources. In Darius the Great's Behistun inscription, his Persian name is Bardiya or Bardia. Herodotus calls him Smerdis, which is the prevalent Greek form of his name; the Persian name has been assimilated to the Greek (Asiatic) name ''Smerdis'' or ''Smerdies'', a name which also occurs in the poems of Alcaeus and Anacreon. Bardiya is called ''Tanyoxarces'' by Ctesias, who also names Gaumāta as ''Sphendadates'';Ctesias ''Persica'' 8 he is called ''Tanooxares'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pasargad
Pasargadae (; ) was the capital of the Achaemenid Empire under Cyrus the Great (559–530 BC), located just north of the town of Madar-e-Soleyman and about to the northeast of the city of Shiraz. It is one of Iran's World Heritage Site, UNESCO World Heritage Sites. It is considered to be the location of the Tomb of Cyrus, a tomb previously attributed to ''Madar-e-Soleyman'', the "Mother of Solomon". It is a national tourist site administered by the Iranian culture of List of World Heritage Sites in Iran, world heritage. History Pasargadae was founded in the 6th century BCE as the first capital of the Achaemenid Empire by Cyrus the Great, near the site of his victory over the Medes, Median king Astyages in 550 BCE. The city remained the Achaemenid capital until Darius the Great, Darius moved it to Persepolis. The archaeological site covers and includes a structure commonly believed to be the mausoleum of Cyrus, the fortress of Toll-e Takht sitting on top of a nearby hill, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Queen Consort
A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king, and usually shares her spouse's social Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and status. She holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles and may be crowned and anointed, but historically she does not formally share the king's political and military powers, unless on occasion acting as regent. In contrast, a queen regnant is a female monarch who rules ''suo jure'' (Latin for, "in her own right") and usually becomes queen by inheriting the throne upon the death of the previous monarch. A queen dowager is a widowed queen consort, and a queen mother is a queen dowager who is the mother of the current monarch. Titles When a title other than king is held by the sovereign, his wife can be referred to by the feminine equivalent, such as princess consort or empress consort. In monarchies where polygamy has been practised in the past (such as Morocco and Thailand), or is practised today (such as the Zulu people, Zulu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Achaemenid Empire
The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire, also known as the Persian Empire or First Persian Empire (; , , ), was an Iranian peoples, Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid dynasty in 550 BC. Based in modern-day Iran, it was the List of largest empires#Timeline of largest empires to date, largest empire by that point in history, spanning a total of . The empire spanned from the Balkans and ancient Egypt, Egypt in the west, most of West Asia, the majority of Central Asia to the northeast, and the Indus Basin, Indus Valley of South Asia to the southeast. Around the 7th century BC, the region of Persis in the southwestern portion of the Iranian plateau was settled by the Persians. From Persis, Cyrus rose and defeated the Medes, Median Empire as well as Lydia and the Neo-Babylonian Empire, marking the establishment of a new imperial polity under the Achaemenid dynasty. In the modern era, the Achaemenid Empire has been recognised for its imposition of a succ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Artystone
Artystone (; ; Elamite , ) also known as ''Irtašduna'' in the Fortification tablets, was a Achaemenid princess, daughter of king Cyrus the Great, and sister of Cambyses II, Atossa and Smerdis. Along with Atossa and her niece Parmys, Artystone married king Darius I. It is argued that by marrying the female offspring of Cyrus, the founder of the empire, the new king aimed to prevent his rule from being contested, since Darius himself was not of royal blood. Artystone and Darius had at least two sons, Arsames and Gobryas, and a daughter, Artazostre. According to the Greek historian Herodotus, Artystone was Darius' favourite wife. According to James Ussher, Artystone may have been another name for the biblical queen Esther, since Herodotus also called her Artystone the Virgin. While Esther is commonly known as the wife of Xerxes or Artaxerxes, the Book of Esther lists her cousin Mordecai as present during Nebuchadnezzar's capture of Jeconiah in 599 BC, and Josephus referen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Achaemenid
The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire, also known as the Persian Empire or First Persian Empire (; , , ), was an Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid dynasty in 550 BC. Based in modern-day Iran, it was the largest empire by that point in history, spanning a total of . The empire spanned from the Balkans and Egypt in the west, most of West Asia, the majority of Central Asia to the northeast, and the Indus Valley of South Asia to the southeast. Around the 7th century BC, the region of Persis in the southwestern portion of the Iranian plateau was settled by the Persians. From Persis, Cyrus rose and defeated the Median Empire as well as Lydia and the Neo-Babylonian Empire, marking the establishment of a new imperial polity under the Achaemenid dynasty. In the modern era, the Achaemenid Empire has been recognised for its imposition of a successful model of centralised bureaucratic administration, its multicultural policy, building complex infrast ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xerxes I
Xerxes I ( – August 465 BC), commonly known as Xerxes the Great, was a List of monarchs of Persia, Persian ruler who served as the fourth King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, reigning from 486 BC until his assassination in 465 BC. He was the son of Darius the Great and Atossa, a daughter of Cyrus the Great. In Western history, Xerxes is best known for his Second Persian invasion of Greece, invasion of Greece in 480 BC, which ended in Persian defeat. Xerxes was designated successor by Darius over his elder brother Artobazan and inherited a large, multi-ethnic empire upon his father's death. He consolidated his power by crushing revolts in Twenty-seventh Dynasty of Egypt, Egypt and Babylonian revolts (484 BC), Babylon, and renewed his father's campaign to subjugate Ancient Greece, Greece and punish Classical Athens, Athens and its allies for their interference in the Ionian Revolt. In 480 BC, Xerxes personally led a large army and crossed the Dardanelles, Hellespont into Eu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Darius The Great
Darius I ( ; – 486 BCE), commonly known as Darius the Great, was the third King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, reigning from 522 BCE until his death in 486 BCE. He ruled the empire at its territorial peak, when it included much of West Asia, parts of the Balkans (Skudra, Thrace–Achaemenid Macedonia, Macedonia and Paeonia (kingdom), Paeonia) and the Caucasus, most of the Black Sea's coastal regions, Central Asia, the Achaemenid conquest of the Indus Valley, Indus Valley in the far east, and portions of North Africa and Northeast Africa including History of Persian Egypt, Egypt (), eastern ancient Libya, Libya, and coastal The Sudans, Sudan. Darius ascended the throne by overthrowing the Achaemenid monarch Bardiya (or ''Smerdis''), who he claimed was in fact an imposter named Gaumata. The new king met with rebellions throughout the empire but quelled each of them; a major event in Darius's life was his expedition to subjugate Ancient Greece, Greece and punish Classical At ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
