Parthia 5

Beginnings of History.—A connected chain of historical evi dence begins with the time when under Shalmaneser (Salmanas sar II.), the Assyrians in 836 B.C. began for the first time to pene trate farther into the mountains of the east ; and there, in addition to several non-Iranian peoples, subdued a few Median tribes.

These wars were continued under successive kings, till the Assyri an power in these regions attained its zenith under Sargon (q.v.), who (715 B.c.) led into exile the Median chief Dayuku (see DEI . a vassal of the Mini (Mannaeans), with all his family, and subjected the princes of Media as far as the mountain of Bikni (Elburz) and the border of the great desert. At that time 28 Median "town-lords" paid tribute to Nineveh; two years later, B.c.) no fewer than 46. Sargon's successors down to Assur bani-pal (668-626 B.c.) maintained and even augmented their suzerainty over Media. Not till the last years of Assur-bani-pal, on which the extant Assyrian annals are silent, can an independ ent Median empire have arisen.

For the history *f this empire see MEDIA. In 612 B.C. Nineveh and the other capitals of the Assyrian empire were conquered and destroyed by Cyaxares of Media and Nebopolassar of Babylon, and the provinces divided between the victors. The Median em pire extended far over Iran ; the kings of Persia also became their vassals. In the west Armenia and Cappadocia were subdued by Cyaxares ; in a war with the -Lydian empire the decisive battle was broken off by the celebrated eclipse of the sun on May 28, 585 B.C., foretold by Thales (Herod. i. 74). After this a peace was arranged by Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon and Syennesis of Cilicia, recognizing the Halys as the borderline. In this state of equilib rium the great powers of the Near East remained during the first half of the 6th century.

The Empire of the Achaemenids.

The balance, however, was disturbed when the Persian Cyrus, king of Anshan in Elam (Susiana), revolted against his suzerain Astyages, the son of Cy axares, and three years later defeated him at Pasargadae Shortly afterwards Astyages was taken prisoner, Ecbatana re duced, and the Median empire replaced by the Persian. The Per sian tribes were welded by Cyrus into a single nation, and now be came the foremost people in the world (see PERSIS and CYRus). At first Nabonidus of Babylon hailed the fall of the Medes with delight and utilized the opportunity by occupying Harran (Carr hae). But before long he recognized the danger threatened from that quarter. Cyrus and his Persians paid little heed to the trea ties which the Median king had concluded with the other powers; and the result was a great coalition against him, embracing Nabon idus of Babylon, Amasis of Egypt, Croesus of Lydia, and the Spartans, whose highly efficient army seemed to the Oriental states of great value. In the spring of 546 B.c., Croesus opened

the attack. Cyrus flung himself upon him, beat him at Pteria in Cappadocia and pursued him to Lydia. A second victory followed on the banks of the Pactolus; by the autumn of 546 Sardis had already fallen and the Persian power advanced at a bound to the Mediterranean. In the course of the next few years the Greek littoral towns were reduced, as also the Carians and Lycians. The king of Cilicia (Syennesis) voluntarily acknowledged the Persian suzerainty. In 539 Nabonidus was defeated and Babylon occu pied, while, with the Chaldean empire, Syria and Palestine also became Persian (see JEws). The east of Iran was further sub dued, and, after Cyrus met his end (528 B.c.) in a war against the eastern Nomads (Dahae, Massagetae), his son Cambyses con quered Egypt (525 B.c.). Cyprus and the Greek islands on the coast of Asia Minor also submitted, Samos being taken by Darius. On the other hand, an expedition by Cambyses against the Ethi opian kingdom of Napata and Meroe came to grief in Nubia. The usurpation of Smerdis (522-521 B.c.) and his death at the hands of Darius was the signal for numerous insurrections in Babylon, Susiana, Persis, Media, Armenia and many of the Eastern prov inces. But, within two years (521-519), they were all crushed by Darius and his generals.

The causes of this astonishing success, which, in the brief space of a single generation, raised a previously obscure and secluded tribe to the mastery of the whole Orient, can only be partially discerned from the evidence at our disposal. The decisive factor was of course their military superiority. The chief weapon of the Persians, as of all Iranians, was the bow, which accordingly the king himself holds in his portraits, e.g., on the Behistun rock and the coins (darics). In addition to the bow, the Persians carried short lances and short daggers. But it was not by these weapons, nor by hand-to-hand fighting, that the Persian victories were won. They overwhelmed their enemy under a hail of arrows, and never allowed him to come to close quarters. While the infantry kneeled to shoot, the cavalry swarmed round the hostile squadrons, threw 'See further, BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA: History.