2010+Ancient+Persia+5

__Persia__
By: Elaine,Danielle, and Danyal.

559 BC - 330 BC


 * //Map of Ancient Persia; 500 BC//**

**G﻿overnment:** The Persian Goverment changed hands several different times over the course of the civilization. - Cyrus founded the empire, and got lots of territory for the civilization. Below is a picture of Cyrus the Great leading some troops: - Darius ruled after Cyrus and his son, and he greatly influenced the empire, making it grow ( More information under Economy and Technology.)

- The Empire fell to Alexander the Great in 330 B.C.



**Religion:** The Persian Empire was open to other cultures and religions, this helped them to gain new knowledge however by 226 CE a new family, known as the Sassanians, took the throne, claiming to be descents of the ancient Achaemenids, and established and enforced a new religion known as Zoroastrianism. Other faiths were persecuted. They believed in one God, unlike other polytheistic cultures of the time. It was founded by Zoroaster, a Prophet. **Economy:** -The several rulers of the Empire tried to stimulate Persia's economy through irrigation and the promotion of trade.  -Standardized taxation and thus increased revenues  - Coins were introduced under the rule of Darius.

- The "Royal Road" (More information under technology.)

-Persian cities were well known for thier wealth and numerous merchant districts

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Art:
- They developed a unique form of writing system called cuniform.

- They built statues of the rulers of the Empire, such as Darius.

- The construction of the Persian capitals.

-Persian cities were famous for their beautiful architecture and gardens.

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** Technology: **
- Persian rulers Cyrus II and Darius I, built the "Royal Road" between 550 and 486 B.C. This road improved travel.

- Darius I created a coin system encouraging trade.

- A standard set of weights and measures was also put in place.

- Cuniform: The first known writing system, which helped in communication.

- Canals: to prevent floods, and provide better irrigation.

-Darius I created a postal system.

= Society: = - Was a very ethnicly diverse society, consisting of groups such as the Persians, Medes, Babylonians, Egyptians, Greeks, and Indians. - Empire was divided into satrapies, small provinces. - They were open to all cultures and religions. -After the Sassanians became the royal family, Religious freedom was lost and the offical religion became Zoroastrianism. -The Sassanians developed a type of caste system in the Persian society in which the royal family was at the top, then Zoroastrian priests, military officers and their soldiers, scribes, commoners and then slaves.

__ In Conclusion... __
The Persian Empire exceled in many ways. They conquered, allowing them to expand the civilization's territory. They also formed the religion of Zoroastrianism, which would become one of the largest religions for the next 1,000 years. But more importantly, they were accepting to others, making both their society and culture diverse. All three of these examples and many more prove the greatness of Persia.

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