'Cyrus/Kourosh II the Great' (
Old Persian: 𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁
[1], ''Kūruš'',
[2] modern Persian: کورش بزرگ, ''Kourosh-e Bozorg'') (c.
590 BC or
576 — August
530 BC), also known as 'Cyrus II of Persia' and 'Cyrus the Elder', was the founder of the
Persian Empire under the
Achaemenid dynasty. As leader of the
Persian people in
Anshan, he conquered the
Medes and unified the two separate
Iranian kingdoms; as the
king of Persia, he reigned over the new empire from 559 BC until 561. The empire expanded under his rule, eventually conquering most of
Southwest Asia and much of
Central Asia, from
Egypt and
Hellespont in the west to the
Indus River in the east, to create the largest state the world had yet seen.
[3]
During his twenty-nine year reign, Cyrus fought against some of the greatest states of the early Classical period, including the
Median Empire, the
Lydian Empire, and the
Neo-Babylonian Empire. Cyrus did not venture into
Egypt, as he himself died in battle, fighting the
Massagetae along the
Syr Darya in August 530 BC.
[4] He was succeeded by his son,
Cambyses II, who managed to conquer Egypt during his short rule.
Cyrus is the first Persian king whose name was suffixed with the word "Great", or '''Vazraka''' in
Old Persian ('Bozorg' in modern Persian), a titulary style adopted by his Achaemenid successors including
Darius the Great,
Xerxes the Great, ''
et al''. Beyond his nation, Cyrus left a lasting legacy on
religion,
politics, and
military strategy, as well as on both
Eastern and
Western civilization.
Background
Etymology
The ancient
historians
Ctesias and
Plutarch noted that Cyrus was named from ''Kuros'', the
sun, a concept which has been interpreted as meaning "''like the sun''," by noting its relation to the Persian noun for sun, ''khorsheed'', while using ''-vash'' as a suffix of likeness.
[5] However, some modern historians, such as
Karl Hoffmann and Rüdiger Schmitt of the
Encyclopædia Iranica, have suggested the translation "''humiliator of the enemy in verbal contest''."
[6]
In modern Persian, Cyrus is referred to as Kourosh-e Kabir, and, more recently, as 'Kourosh-e Bozorg' — the Persian-derived name for Cyrus the Great. In the
Bible, he is known as simply ''Koresh'' (
Hebrew: כורש).
Dynastic history
A
bas-relief found at Pasargadae shows a winged-figure thought to be Cyrus, depicted with four Assyrian wings, and wearing an Egyptian ''hemhem'' crown, and a Persian dress.
Cyrus the Great was an Achaemenid Persian, son of the local Persian king
Cambyses I and the Mede princess
Mandane, who was the daughter of
Astyages, the last
Median emperor.
[7] Before he united the Persians and Medes under a single empire, he was the ruler of Anshān, then a vassal kingdom of the Median Empire, in what is now part of
Fars Province in southern
Iran. In this area Cyrus would build
Pasargadae, his future capital city.
The dynasty had been supposedly founded by
Achaemenes (c. 700 BC?), who was succeeded by his son
Teispes of Anshan[8]. Inscriptions indicate that when the latter died, two of his sons shared the throne as
Cyrus I of Anshan and
Ariaramnes of Persia. They were succeeded by their respective sons Cambyses I of Anshan and
Arsames of Persia. However, the authenticity of these inscriptions has been called into question, thus blurring the history of Cyrus' predecessors.
[9]
Cambyses is considered by
Herodotus to be of good family but not a king
[10], and further note his marriage to Princess Māndānā, who was the daughter of Princess
Aryenis of Lydia (or of another wife according to
Christian Settipani) and
Astyages, king of the Medes. From their union, Māndānā bore only one son, Cyrus II, better known today as Cyrus the Great, whom Cambyses named after the child's grandfather.
According to Ctesias, Cyrus the Great married a daughter of Astyages named Amytis, which seems unlikely, as his wife would also be his aunt. A possible explanation is that Astyages married again, and his second wife bore him this daughter.
[11] Cyrus' first wife,
Cassandane, is equally obscure. According to Herodotus and the Behistun Inscription, she bore Cyrus at least two sons,
Cambyses II and
Smerdis.
[12] Both sons later separately ruled Persia for a short period of time. Cyrus also had several daughters, of which two,
Artystone[13] and
Atossa, would marry
Darius the Great. The latter is significant, as she gave birth to
Xerxes I, Darius' successor.
[14]
Early life
Cyrus was born in either 590 or 576 BC.
[15] Little is known of his early years, as the sources detailing that part of his life are few, and have been damaged or lost.
Herodotus's story of Cyrus' early life belongs to a genre of legends in which abandoned children of
noble birth, such as
Oedipus and
Romulus and Remus, return to claim their royal positions. His overlord was his own grandfather,
Astyages, ruler of the powerful Median kingdom.
After the birth of Cyrus, Astyages had a dream that his
Magi interpreted as a sign that his grandson would eventually overthrow him. He then ordered his steward
Harpagus to kill the infant. Harpagus, morally unable to kill a newborn, summoned a herdsman of the king named
Mithridates and ordered him to dispose of the child. Luckily for the young boy, the herdsman took him in and raised him as his own.
[16][17]
When Cyrus was ten years old, Herodotus claims that it was obvious that Cyrus was not a herdsman's son, stating that his behavior was too noble. Astyages interviewed the boy and noticed that they resembled each other. Astyages ordered Harpagus to explain what he had done with the baby, and after confessing that he had not killed the boy, the king tricked him into eating his own son.
[18] Astyages was more lenient with Cyrus, and allowed him to return to his biological parents, Cambyses and Mandane.
[19] While Herodotus' description may be a legend, it does give insight into the figures surrounding Cyrus the Great's early life.
Rise and military campaigns
Median Empire
After his father's death in 559 BC, Cyrus became king of Anshan. However, Cyrus was not yet an independent ruler. Like his predecessors, Cyrus had to recognize Mede overlordship. During Astyages' reign, the Median Empire may have ruled over the majority of the
Ancient Near East, from the
Lydian frontier in the west to the
Parthians and Persians in the east.
In Herodotus' version, Harpagus, seeking vengeance, convinced Cyrus to rally the Persian people to revolt against their feudal lords, the Medes. However, it is likely that both Harpagus and Cyrus rebelled due to their dissatisfaction with Astyages' policies.
[20] From the start of the revolt in 554 BC, with the help of Harpagus, Cyrus led his armies against the Medes until the capture of
Ecbatana in 549 BC, effectively conquering the Median Empire.
While Cyrus seems to have accepted the crown of Media, by 546 BC, he officially assumed the title of ''King of Persia'' instead. Arsames, who had been the ruler of Persia under the Medes, therefore had to give up his throne. His son,
Hystaspes, who was also Cyrus' second cousin, was then made
satrap of Parthia and
Phrygia. Arsames would live to see his grandson become Darius the Great,
Shahanshah of Persia, after the deaths of both of Cyrus' sons.
Cyrus' conquest of Media was merely the start of his wars. Astyages had been
allied with his brother-in-law
Croesus of
Lydia (son of
Alyattes II),
Nabonidus of
Babylon, and
Amasis II of Egypt, who reportedly intended to join forces against Cyrus and Empire.
Lydian Empire and Asia Minor
Croesus was the first ally of
Astyages to attack Persia, but was ultimately defeated by Cyrus.
The exact dates of the Lydian conquest are unknown, but it must have taken place between Cyrus' overthrow of the Mede kingdom (
550 BC)) and his conquest of Babylon (
539 BC). It was common in the past to give
547 BC as the year of the conquest due to some interpretations of the
Nabonidus Chronicle, but this position is currently not much held.
[21] The Lydians first attacked the Achaemenid Empire's city of
Pteria in
Cappadocia. Croesus laid siege to the city, and captured its inhabitants as slaves. Meanwhile, The Persians invited the citizens of
Ionia, who were part of the Lydian kingdom, to revolt against their ruler. The offer was rebuffed, and thus Cyrus levied an army and marched against the Lydians, increasing his numbers while passing through nations in his way. The
Battle of Pteria was effectively a stalemate, with both sides suffering heavy casualties by nightfall. Croesus retreated to Sardis the following morning.
[22]
While in Sardis, Croesus sent out requests for his allies to send aid to Lydia. However, near the end of winter, before the allies could unite, Cyrus pushed the war into Lydian territory and besieged Croesus in his capital,
Sardis. Shortly before the final
Battle of Thymbra between the two rulers, Harpagus advised Cyrus to place his
dromedaries in front of his warriors; the Lydian horses, not used to the dromedaries' smell, would be very afraid. The strategy worked; the Lydian cavalry was routed. Cyrus defeated and captured Croesus. Cyrus occupied the capital at Sardis, conquering the Lydian kingdom in 546 BC.
[22] According to Herodotus, Cyrus spared Croesus' life and kept him as an advisor, but this account conflicts with some translations of the contemporary Nabonidus Chronicle, which interpret that the king of Lydia was slain.
[24]
Before returning to the capital, a Lydian named Pactyes was entrusted by Cyrus to send Croesus' treasury to Persia. However, soon after Cyrus' departure, Pactyes hired mercenaries and caused an uprising in Sardis, revolting against the Persian
satrap of Lydia, Tabalus. With recommendations from Croesus that he should turn the minds of the Lydian people to luxury, Cyrus sent
Mazares, one of his commanders, to subdue the insurrection, but demanded that Pactyas be returned alive. Upon Mazares' arrival, Pactyas fled to
Ionia, where he had hired mercenaries. Mazares marched his troops into the
Greek country and captured the cities of
Magnesia and
Priene, where Pactyas was captured and sent back to Persia for punishment.
Mazares continued the conquest of Asia Minor, but died of unknown causes during his campaign in Ionia. Cyrus sent Harpagus to complete Mazares' conquest of Asia Minor. Harpagus captured
Lycia,
Cilicia and
Phoenicia, using the technique of building
earthworks to breach the walls of besieged cities, a method unknown to the Greeks. He ended his conquest of the area in 542 BC, and returned to Persia.
[16]
Neo-Babylonian Empire
Superimposed on modern borders, the Achaemenid Empire under Cyrus' rule extended approximately from
Turkey,
Israel, and
Armenia in the west to
Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, and to the
Indus River in the east. Persia became the largest empire the world had ever seen.
In 539 BC, towards the end of September, Cyrus' armies, under the command of
Gubaru, the governor of
Gutium, attacked
Opis on the
Tigris river and defeated the Babylonians after a minor uprising. With Opis subjugated, the Persians took control of the vast
canal system of Babylonia.
On
October 10, the city of
Sippar was seized without a battle, with little to no resistance from the populace. It is probable that Cyrus engaged in negotiations with the Babylonian generals to obtain a compromise on their part and therefore avoid an armed confrontation.
[26] Nabonidus was staying in the city at the time, and soon fled to the capital, Babylon, which he had not visited in years.
Two days later, on
October 12 (Julian calendar;
October 7 by the Gregorian calendar), Gubaru's troops entered Babylon, again without any resistance from the Babylonian armies. Herodotus explains that to accomplish this feat, the Persians diverted the
Euphrates river into a canal so that the water level dropped "to the height of the middle of a man's thigh," which allowed the invading forces to march directly through the river bed to enter at night.
[27] On
October 29, Cyrus himself entered the city of Babylon and arrested Nabonidus. He then assumed the titles of "king of Babylon, king of
Sumer and
Akkad, king of the four sides of the world."
Prior to Cyrus' invasion of Babylon, the
Neo-Babylonian Empire had conquered many kingdoms. In addition to Babylonia itself, Cyrus incorporated its subnational entities into his Empire, including
Syria and
Palestine.
Before leaving Babylon, Cyrus also freed the
Israelites by allowing them to return to their native land, effectively ending the
Babylonian captivity. The return of the exiles reinforced the Jewish population in their homeland, which had been waning since the start of the Babylonian rule.
[28]
According to the
Behistun Inscription of Darius the Great, Cyrus' dominions must have comprised the largest empire the world had ever seen. At the end of Cyrus' rule, the Achaemenid Empire stretched from
Asia Minor and
Judah in the west to the
Indus River in the east.
Death
Cyrus's death is not clearly known. Although, Ctesias reports only that Cyrus met his death while warring against tribes north-east of the headwaters of the Tigris. In Herodotus' account, Cyrus met his fate in a fierce battle with the
Massagetae, a tribe from the southern deserts of
Kharesm and
Kizilhoum in the southernmost portion of the
steppe region, after heeding advice from his advisor, Croesus, to meet the tribes in their own territory rather than Persian territory.
[29] The Massagetae were related to the
Scythians in their dress and mode of living; they fought on horseback and on foot.
The queen of the Massagetae,
Tomyris, who had assumed control after Cyrus had defeated Tomyris' son Spargapises, led the attack. The Persian forces suffered heavy casualties, including Cyrus himself. After the battle, Tomyris ordered the body of Cyrus to be found, and then dipped his head in blood (or ordered his head to put into a wine-skin filled with human blood) to avenge the death of her son at his hands. Reinforcements from the Persian army later arrived and won a renewed battle, in which they were able to recover Cyrus' body.
[30]
An alternative account from
Xenophon conveys that Cyrus died peaceably at an unknown location within the Achaemenid Empire. Inferring evidence from the reign of
Cambyses II, son of Cyrus, it can be noted that another expedition, with the proclivity of vengeance, against the Massagetian tribe was not recommenced. Instead, the campaigning of Cambyses focused on the
Egyptian dynasty.
Cyrus was buried in the city of
Pasargadae, where his tomb remains today. Both
Strabo and
Arrian give descriptions of his tomb, based on eyewitness reports from the time of Alexander the Great's invasion. Though the city itself is now in ruins, the burial place of Cyrus the Great has remained largely intact; and the tomb has been partially restored to counter its natural deterioration over the years. According to
Plutarch, his epitaph said,
Cuneiform evidence from Babylon (letters dated to regnal years) prove that Cyrus died in August 530 BC, and that his son
Cambyses II had become king. His younger son, Smerdis, died before Cambyses left to invade the eastern front. From Herodotus' account, Cambyses killed his brother to avoid a rebellion in his absence. Cambyses continued his father's policy of expansion, and managed to capture
Egypt for the Empire, but soon died after only seven years of rule. An imposter named
Gaumata, claiming to be Smerdis, became the sole ruler of Persia for seven months, until he was killed by
Darius the Great, the grandson of Arsames, who ruled Persia before Cyrus' rise.
Legacy
Cyrus the Great allowed the
Hebrew exiles to resettle and rebuild
Jerusalem, earning him an honored place in Judaism.
Cyrus was distinguished equally as a
statesman and as a soldier. By pursuing a policy of generosity instead of repression, and by favoring local religions, he was able to make his newly conquered subjects into enthusiastic supporters.
[31] Due in part to the political infrastructure he created, the Achaemenid empire endured long after his demise.
The rise of Persia under Cyrus's rule had a profound impact on the course of world history.
Persian philosophy,
literature and
religion all played dominant roles in world events for the next millennia. Despite the
Islamic conquest of Persia in the 7th century CE by the
Islamic Caliphate (
Arab Empire), Persia continued to exercise enormous influence in the Middle East during the
Islamic Golden Age, and was particularly instrumental in the growth and expansion of
Islam.
Many of the dynasties that followed the Achaemenids (
Seleucid,
Sassanid,
Pahlavi) have claimed to continue the line begun by Cyrus.
Mohammad Reza Shah celebrated the
2500th anniversary of the Iranian monarchy in 1971, though it would be
toppled a mere eight years later.
Religion
Main articles: Cyrus in the Judeo-Christian tradition,
Cyrus the Great in the Qur'an
The only known example of his religious policy is his treatment of the
Jews in Babylon. The Bible records that a remnant of the Jewish population returned to the
Promised Land from Babylon, following an edict from Cyrus to rebuild the temple. This edict is fully reproduced in the
Book of Ezra. As a result of Cyrus' policies, the Jews honored him as a dignified and righteous king. He is the only
Gentile to be designated as a
messiah, a divinely-appointed king, in the
Tanakh (
Isaiah 45:1-6). However, at the time, there was also Jewish criticism of him after he was lied to by the
Cuthites, who wanted to halt the building of the
Second Temple. They accused the Jews of conspiring to rebel, so Cyrus in turn stopped the construction of the temple, which would not be completed until
516 BC, during the reign of Darius the Great.
[32]
Some contemporary Muslim scholars have suggested that the
Qur'anic figure of
Dhul-Qarnayn is Cyrus the Great. This theory was proposed by
Sunni scholar
Abul Kalam Azad and endorsed by
Shi'a scholars
Allameh Tabatabaei, in his ''
Tafsir al-Mizan'' and
Makarem Shirazi and
Sunni scholar
Abul Ala Maududi.
[33] Conversely, it has been challenged by some, including
Iranologist and
archaeologist Alireza Shapour Shahbazi.
[34]
Politics and philosophy
During his reign, Cyrus maintained control over a vast region of conquered kingdoms, achieved partly through retaining and expanding Median
satrapies. Further organization of newly conquered territories into provinces ruled by
vassal kings called ''satraps'', was continued by Cyrus' successor
Darius the Great. Cyrus' empire demanded only
tribute and
conscripts from many parts of the realm.
Cyrus' conquests began a new era in the age of empire building, where a vast
superstate, comprising many dozens of countries, races, religions, and languages, were ruled under a single administration headed by a central government. This system lasted for centuries, and was retained both by the invading
Seleucid dynasty during their control of Persia, and later Iranian dynasties including the Persian
Parthians and
Sassanids.
[35]
In 1992, he was ranked #87 on
Michael H. Hart's
list of the most influential figures in history. On
December 10,
2003, in her acceptance of the
Nobel Peace Prize,
Shirin Ebadi evoked Cyrus, saying:
Cyrus' legacy has been felt even as far away as
Iceland[36] and colonial
America. Many of the forefathers of the United States of America sought inspiration from Cyrus the Great through works such as
Cyropaedia.
Thomas Jefferson, for example, had two personal copies of the book, "which was a mandatory read for statesmen alongside
Machiavelli's ''The Prince''."
[37]
Cyrus the Great is genuinely one of history's towering figures. America's own founders such as Thomas Jefferson were influenced by Cyrus the Great in the field of
Human Rights.
[38][39]
Cyrus Cylinder
The Cyrus Cylinder artifact was inscribed in Babylonian
cuneiform at Cyrus' command after his conquest of Babylon.
The cylinder has been considered as the world's first known charter of
human rights, as there are passages in the text have been interpreted as expressing Cyrus’ respect for humanity. It promotes a form of religious tolerance and freedom,
[40] and the abolishment of
slavery.
[41][42] He allowed his subjects to continue worshipping their gods, despite his own religious beliefs.
[43] In 1971, the
United Nations published a translation of the document in all the official U.N. languages. A replica of the Cyrus Cylinder has reportedly been on display at
United Nations headquarters in
New York City as a tribute to Cyrus' display of respect and tolerance.
[44]
Nevertheless, some scholars have rejected this view, arguing that the concept of human rights is alien to the historical context
[45].
Family tree
|-
Notes
1. Achaemenid Inscriptions (کتیبههای هخامنشی), , R. M., Ghias Abadi, Shiraz Navid Publications, 2004,
2. Old Persian: Grammar, Text, Glossary, , Ronald Grubb, Kent, , 1384 AP,
3. The Ancient Near East: C. 3000-330 BC, , Amélie, Kuhrt, Routledge, ,
4. Cyrus' date of death can be deduced from the last reference to his own reign (a tablet from Borsippa dated to 12 August 530 BC) and the first reference to the reign of his son Cambyses (a tablet from Babylon dated to 31 August); see R.A. Parker and W.H. Dubberstein, ''Babylonian Chronology 626 B.C. - A.D. 75'', 1971.)
5. ; Plutarch, ''Artaxerxes'' 1. 3 [1]; Photius, ''Epitome of Ctesias' Persica'' 52 [2]
6. Schmitt, Rüdiger, ''Encyclopædia Iranica''. Cyrus; The Name, p. 515–516 (PDF).
7. Suren-Pahlav, Sh., ''Cyrus The Great; The Liberator'', ; Retrieved January 12, 2007
8. This is the traditional view, based on the Behistun Inscription and Herodotus. However, some scholars consider that Cyrus was unrelated with Achaemenes or Darius the Great, calling Cyrus' family Teispid instead of Achaemenid; see M. Waters, "Cyrus and the Achaemenids", ''Iran'' 42, 2004 (Achemenet.com > ressources > sous presse), with previous bibliography.
9. Shahbazi, A. Sh., ''Encyclopædia Iranica''. Arsama, p. 546 (PDF).
10. M. Dandamaev, "Cambyses I". In spite of Herodotus' statements, Cambyses reign is attested in some Cyrus Babylonian inscriptions.
11. "It seems inevitable to assume that Astyages had another wife. [...] According to Ctesias of Cnidus, their son Cyrus married to a daughter of Astyages. That would be his aunt, which is most unusual." [3]
12. Jona Lendering, ''Cyrus'' (Old Persian Kuruš; Hebrew Kores): founder of the Achaemenid empire. // Herodotus ''Historias'' 3. 2, 30; Behistun 1. 29-30. The Behistun Inscription just states that Cambyses and Smerdis were full brothers, but doesn't mentions Cassandane.
13. ''Artystone'': Queen of Persia, married to Darius I the Great.
14. ''Atossa'': Daughter of the Persian king Cyrus the Great.
15. Most sources give either 576 BC or 590 BC as Cyrus' birth year; a conclusive answer is not fully clear.
16. ''Harpagus'': Median general, 'kingmaker' of the Persian king Cyrus the Great.
17. ''Stories of the East From Herodotus'', Chapter V: ''The Birth and Bringing Up of Cyrus'', p. 66–72.
18. ''Stories of the East From Herodotus'', p. 79–80
19. ''Stories of the East From Herodotus'', Chapter VI: ''Cyrus Overthroweth Astyages and Taketh the Kingdom to Himself'', p. 84.
20. ''Harpagus'': Mede general, 'kingmaker' of the Persian king Cyrus the Great.
21. Rollinger, Robert, "The Median "Empire", the End of Urartu and Cyrus' the Great Campaign in 547 B.C."; Lendering, Jona, "The End of Lydia: 547?".
22. Herodotus, ''The Histories, Book I'', 440 BC. Translated by George Rawlinson.
23. Herodotus, ''The Histories, Book I'', 440 BC. Translated by George Rawlinson.
24. ''Croesus'': Fifth and last king of the Mermnad dynasty.
25. ''Harpagus'': Median general, 'kingmaker' of the Persian king Cyrus the Great.
26. Tolini, Gauthier, ''Quelques éléments concernant la prise de Babylone par Cyrus'', Paris. "Il est probable que des négociations s’engagèrent alors entre Cyrus et les chefs de l’armée babylonienne pour obtenir une reddition sans recourir à l’affrontement armé." p. 10 (PDF)
27. Missler, Chuck, ''The Fall of Babylon Versus The Destruction of Babylon'', p. 2 (PDF)
28. Ancient History Sourcebook: Cyrus the Great: ''The Decree of Return for the Jews'', ''The Cyrus Cylinder''.
29. Livius: "Herodotus describes Cyrus' campaign against the Massagetes, a nomadic tribe in modern Kazakhstan and/or Uzbekistan. Cyrus follwed the advice of the former king of Lydia, Croesus, and Cyrus' army advances into Massagetian territory. The Massagetian queen Tomyris defeats and kills Cyrus."
30. Tomyris, Queen of the Massagetae, Defeats Cyrus the Great in Battle Herodotus, ''The Histories''
31. Schaff, Philip, The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, Vol. III, Cyrus the Great
32. History of the Jewish People: The Second Temple Era, , Hersh, Goldwurm, ArtScroll, 1982,
33. Dhul-Qarnayn: Encyclopedia - Dhul-Qarnayn
34. A. Shapur Shahbazi, 'Iranians and Alexander', in: ''American Journal of Ancient History'' n.s. 2 (2003), 5-38, final section
35. Rome's Enemies: Parthians And Sassanid Persians, , Peter, Wilcox, Osprey Publishing, 1986, ISBN 0850456886
36. ''Jakob Jonson'': "Cyrus the Great in Icelandic epic: A literary study". Acta Iranica. 1974: 49-50
37. Interview with Cliff Rogers, United States Military Academy Link: [4]
38. Ted Koppel, ABC's Nightline
39. See last 3 minutes of the videoclip to view Ted Koppel's statement: Link: [5]
40. ''WHAT IS NEW HORIZONS AND WHY'', Center For Inquiry West (CFI) Website, Retrieved January 12, 2007.
41. Cyrus Cylinder (The Official Text)
42. Engineering an Empire - The Persians
43. ''The Forgotten Empire; the World of Ancient Persia, The British Museum Website; Retrieved January 12, 2007
44. United Nations Press Release 14 October 1971 (SG/SM/1553/HQ263).
45. A. Kuhrt "The Cyrus Cylinder and Achaemenid imperial policy" in ''Journal of Studies of the Old Testament'' 25 pp. 83-97; B. van der Spek, "Did Cyrus the Great introduce a new policy towards subdued nations? Cyrus in Assyrian perspective" in ''Persica'' 10 pp. 273-285; M. Dandamaev ''A Political History of the Achaemenid Empire'', pp. 52-53; J. Wisehöfer, ''Ancient Persia from 550 BC to 650 AD'', 2006 1996, p. 82.
References
'Ancient sources'
★ The
Cyrus Cylinder
★ The
Nabonidus Chronicle of the
Babylonian Chronicles
★
Herodotus (''
The Histories'')
★
Ctesias (''Persica'')
★ The biblical books of ''
Isaiah'', ''
Daniel'', ''
Ezra'' and ''
Nehemiah''
★
Flavius Josephus (''
Antiquities of the Jews'')
★ ''The Prayer of Nabonidus'' (one of the
Dead Sea scrolls)
★ Herodotus; Church, Alfred J., ''Stories of the East From Herodotus'' (1891). ISBN 0-7661-8928-7
★ Xenophon,
Cyropaedia
'Modern sources'
★ Moorey, P.R.S., ''The Biblical Lands'', VI. Peter Bedrick Books, New York (1991). ISBN 0-87226-247-2
★ Frye, Richard N., ''The Heritage of Persia''. Weidenfeld and Nicolson (1962), 40, 43-4, 46-7, 70, 75, 78-90, 93, 104, 108, 122, 127, 206-7. ISBN 1-56859-008-3
★ Olmstead, A. T., ''History of the Persian Empire [Achaemenid Period]''. University of Chicago Press (1948). ISBN 0-226-62777-2
★ Palou, Christine; Palou, Jean, ''La Perse Antique''. Presses Universitaires de France (1962).
★ '', 1991,
Christian Settipani, p. 146, 152 and 157
External links
'Iran Chamber Society'
★
Historic Personalities - Cyrus the Great
★
Cyropaedia of Xenophon
'Other'
★
PersianDNA Cyrus The Great - Persian Empire & The Greatest King of the History
★
Pictures of Tomb of Cyrus the Great
★
Seder Olam Rabbah, Part 2 – Solomon's Temple, and Zerrubabel
★
Cyrus Cylinder Full Babylonian text of the Cyrus Cylinder as it was known in 2001; translation; brief introduction
★
Cylinder of Cyrus, Persian text منشور کوروش هخامنشی
★
Who Was Zulqarnain?
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