I love this man :) Even, sincerely, for how he treated my ancient people in faith, the Jewish
people, in Jesus Christ. Cuz I am a christian, but i received that in inheritance in accepting
Christ. By the way, this is the man, Cyrus the Great, that showed to be great in human rights.
Cyrus the Great
Cyrus II of Persia ([4] New Persian: شوروک Kuruš; Hebrew: רֹּכ ֶש ׁ , Modern Kōréš, Tiberian Kōréš;
c. 600 – 530 BC),[5] commonly known as Cyrus the Great [6] and also called Cyrus the Elder by
the Greeks, was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire, the first Persian Empire.[7] Under his
rule, the empire embraced all the previous civilized states of the ancient Near East,[7] expanded
vastly and eventually conquered most of Southwest Asia and much of Central Asia and the
Caucasus. From the Mediterranean Sea and Hellespont in the west to the Indus River in the
east, Cyrus the Great created the largest empire the world had yet seen.[8] Under his
successors, the empire eventually stretched at its maximum extent from parts of the Balkans
(Bulgaria-Paeonia and Thrace-Macedonia) and Eastern Europe proper in the west, to the Indus
Valley in the east. His regal titles in full were The Great King, King of Persia, King of Anshan,
King of Media, King of Babylon, King of Sumer and Akkad, and King of the Four Corners of the
World. The Nabonidus Chronicle notes the change in his title from simply "King of Anshan", a
city, to "King of Persia". Assyriologist François Vallat wrote that "When Astyages marched
against Cyrus, Cyrus is called ‘King of Anshan’, but when Cyrus crosses the Tigris on his way to
Lydia, he is ‘King of Persia’. The coup therefore took place between these two events."[9]
The reign of Cyrus the Great lasted c. 30 years. Cyrus built his empire by first conquering the
Median Empire, then the Lydian Empire, and eventually the Neo-Babylonian Empire. Either
before or after Babylon, he led an expedition into Central Asia, which resulted in major
campaigns that were described as having brought "into subjection every nation without
exception".[1 0] Cyrus did not venture into Egypt, and was alleged to have died in battle, fighting
the Massagetae along the Syr Darya in December 530 BC.[11 ][1 2] He was succeeded by his
son, Cambyses II, who managed to add to the empire by conquering Egypt, Nubia, and
Cyrenaica during his short rule.
Cyrus the Great respected the customs and religions of the lands he conquered.[1 3] This
became a very successful model for centralized administration and establishing a government
working to the advantage and profit of its subjects.[7] In fact, the administration of the empire
through satraps and the vital principle of forming a government at Pasargadae were the works
of Cyrus.[1 4] What is sometimes referred to as the Edict of Restoration (actually two edicts)
described in the Bible as being made by Cyrus the Great left a lasting legacy on the Jewish
religion, where, because of his policies in Babylonia, he is referred to by the Jewish Bible as
messiah (lit. "His anointed one") (Isaiah 45:1 ),[1 5] and is the only non-Jewish figure in the Bible
to be called so.[1 6]
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. Having
originated from Persis, roughly corresponding to the modern Iranian province of Fars, Cyrus has
played a crucial role in defining the national identity of modern Iran.[1 7][1 8][1 9] The Achaemenid
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 Achaemenid Persian as their
own.[20] [to be continued]
From Wikipedia