Cyrus And The Babylonian Of The Persian Empire - 1878 Words

Cyrus II, more commonly referred to, as Cyrus the Great was the founder of the Persian Empire. Cyrus is renowned for being one of the greatest historical conquerors, who in two decades (550-530) conquered all the major empires of the near east, including Media, Lydia and the Neo-Babylonian kingdoms; all these cities united created the largest empire the world had seen to that time . However in many ancient texts, such as the works of Xenophon, a number of sacred Jewish texts and the Babylonian peoples, Cyrus was often described as a ‘liberator’ as apposed to a conqueror . From a number of ancient written sources, including the Cyropaedia, Cyrus is depicted as a very tolerant and generous ruler, this attribute was a very important†¦show more content†¦This source is very different from Herodotus’ version, which claims that Cyrus only became king after he defeated Astyages in 550/549 BCE; this version is also reiterated in Xenophon’s Cyropaedia . The details of Cyrus’ origin story are widely debated, however, the Cyrus Cylinder and ancient cuneiform texts remain as the most reliable sources that say Cyrus inherited the position of king of Anash, under Median rule, from his father and predecessor . In c.550 BCE a battle broke out between the Persians, led by Cyrus the Great and the Median Empire led by their king, Astyages . Although different ancient sources argue which of the two started the conflict, the outcome is mutually agreed upon. Ancient Greek historian, Herodotus claims that prior to the rise of the Persian Empire the Medes ruled the Persian peoples. Until Cyrus â€Å"persuaded the Persians to revolt and march against the Medes†, after learning of this Astyages ordered his armies to capture Cyrus; but instead his armies revolted against him and after his defeat in the battle, Astyages was captured by the Persian Empire . This version of events is