Cyrus the Great

Cyrus the Great

Cyrus the Great was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire, the first Persian Empire. He conquered the Median Empire, then the Lydian Empire, and eventually the Neo-Babylonian Empire. The name Cyrus is a Latinized form derived from the Greek Kỹros, itself from the Old Persian Kūruš. He is the only non-Jewish figure in the Bible to be called a messiah.

About Cyrus the Great in brief

Summary Cyrus the GreatCyrus the Great was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire, the first Persian Empire. He conquered the Median Empire, then the Lydian Empire, and eventually the Neo-Babylonian Empire. Cyrus the Great is also well recognized for his achievements in human rights, politics, and military strategy, as well as his influence on both Eastern and Western civilizations. He is a cult figure amongst modern Iranians, with his tomb serving as a spot of reverence for millions of people. The name Cyrus is a Latinized form derived from the Greek Kỹros, itself from the Old Persian Kūruš. The ancient Greek historians Ctesias and Plutarch stated that Cyrus was named from Kuros, the Sun, a concept which has been interpreted as meaning ‘like the Sun’ In the Persian language, and especially in Persian, he is spelled as وش. In the Bible, he was known as Koresh. Some scholars believe that neither Cyrus nor Cambyses were Iranian names, proposing that it was Elamite in origin and that it meant ‘bestows care’ Cyrus is the only non-Jewish figure in the Bible to be called a messiah, and he is also the first non- Jewish person to be referred to as such in Isaiah 45: 1 of the Hebrew Bible. He was succeeded by his son, Cambyse II, who managed to conquer Egypt, Nubia, and Cyrenaica during his short rule. The last Shah of Iran Mohammad Reza Pahlavi identified his famous proclamation inscribed onto the Cyrus Cylinder as the oldest known declaration of human rights.

Cyrus’s name is now used as the name of a state in Iran, the Islamic Republic of Iran. The founder of this dynasty was Achaemanes, eponymous of the ninth century BC king Darius the Great, who ruled from the 9th century BC to the 10th century AD. Cyrus is also known as the “father of the Persian people” and the “first Persian king” Cyrus is believed to have been born in Persis, roughly corresponding to the modern Iranian province of Fars. He died in 530 BC, and was alleged to have died in battle, fighting the Massagetae along the Syr Darya in December 530 BC. But Xenophon said Cyrus did not die in battle and he returned to the capital again. The reign of Cyrus theGreat lasted about thirty years. Cyrus built his empire by first conquering the Median Emperor, and then the Neo Babylonia. He also led an expedition into Central Asia, which resulted in major campaigns that were described as having brought into subjection every nation without exception. The empire eventually stretched at its maximum extent from parts of the Balkans and Eastern Europe proper in the west, to the Indus Valley in the east. Cyrus has played a crucial role in defining the national identity of modern Iran. His influence in the ancient world eventually would extend as far as Athens, where upper-class Athenians adopted aspects of the culture of the ruling class of A chaemenid Persia as their own.