Toggle menu
Toggle personal menu
Not logged in
Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits.

Achaemenid Empire (550–330 BCE)

From ProleWiki, the proletarian encyclopedia
More languages
Revision as of 20:23, 16 January 2023 by Ledlecreeper27 (talk | contribs)
Achaemenid Empire
550 BCE–330 BCE
Flag of Achaemenid Empire
Standard
The empire at its height around 500 BCE
The empire at its height around 500 BCE
Common languagesOld Persian
Aramaic
GovernmentMonarchy
Area
• Total
5,500,000 km²


The Achaemenid Empire, also known as the First Persian Empire, was a multinational ancient state stretching from what is now Bulgaria to Pakistan. It began in 550 BCE with the unification of Persia and Media and quickly grew to include Egypt and much of Western Asia. The empire fell after Alexander of Macedon conquered Persepolis in 331 BCE.[1]

History

Cyrus the Great allowed a group of Jewish exiles to travel to Palestine from Babylonia.[2]

Government

The empire was divided into tribute-paying provinces ruled by satraps, with roads and a postal system connecting different regions. Satraps controlled large armies, but the King would take control of the military in the event of a major rebellion or foreign expeditions. Local kings and satraps held immense power, causing frequent rebellions.[1]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Neil Faulkner (2013). A Marxist History of the World: From Neanderthals to Neoliberals: 'Ancient Empires' (pp. 29–30). [PDF] Pluto Press. ISBN 9781849648639 [LG]
  2. Neil Faulkner (2013). A Marxist History of the World: From Neanderthals to Neoliberals: 'The End of Antiquity' (p. 54). [PDF] Pluto Press. ISBN 9781849648639 [LG]