Language
ODYSSEY = a long journey (also Honda’s minivan)
TITANIC = something large (like that boat that sank)
PLACE NAMES = Athens is named for Athena, AtlasMountains named for Atlas who held up the sky, Europenamed for Princess Europa
Literature & The Arts
ART – paintings and sculptures over thecenturies
MOVIES – Hercules, The Lightning Thief/PercyJackson series
SPORTS TEAMS – Tennessee Titans, USCTrojans
BUSINESSES/ADVERTISING - Midas
Greece & Persia
Unit 6: Section 4
Persia Becomes an Empire
Originally, Persians were an unorganized, nomadic group ofpeople.
Leaders such as Cyrus the Great and Darius I united themand created an empire.
Cyrus the Great
Cyrus led a revolt against the MEDES,a group of people that ruled thePersians for 150 years.
The revolt was successful and markedthe beginning of the Persian Empire.
Cyrus the Great
Conquered much of Asia Minor,Southwest Asia, some Greekcity-states, Mesopotamia andCentral Asia
By his death in 529 BC, Cyrusruled the largest empire theworld had ever seen.
Cyrus the Great
Cyrus let the people he conquered keep their own customs.
Because of this, few people rebelled against his rule.
This increased the strength of Cyrus and the empire—therefore, historians call him CYRUS THE GREAT.
The Persian Army
Strong, well-organized, and loyal
IMMORTALS – 10,000 soldierschosen for bravery and skill
CAVALRY – units of soldiers onhorseback
Cavalry would shoot enemy witharrows before the Immortalsattacked, which weakened theirenemies.
The Persian Empire Grows Stronger
After the death of Cyrus’s successor, there was no clearleader of Persia.
DARIUS I claimed the throne by killing his rivals for power.
Once he was securely in place, he worked to restore order,improve Persian society, and expand the empire.
Political Organization
Darius divided the empire into 20provinces
He chose governors called SATRAPS
Satraps collected taxes, served as judges,and put down rebellions.
Although powerful within their provinces,satraps still had to answer to Darius.
Persian Society
ROADS – over 1,700 miles stretching across the empire.Used by messengers and traders.
NEW CAPITAL CITY – Persepolis – reflected the glory ofthe empire. Filled with art, gold, silver, and precious jewels
NEW RELIGION – Zoroastrianism – forces of good and evilfight for control of the universe, and people must fight forgood.
Persian Expansion
Conquered into the IndusValley
Tried to expand into Europe,but had to crush somerebellions within the empire.
The Battle of Marathon
Darius invades Greece nineyears after the invasion.
This invasion begins thePERSIAN WARS.
Athenians had only 11,000soldiers and the Persians had15,000—but the Greeks wonbecause of better weapons andclever leaders.
The Battle of Marathon
Legend says a messenger ran the distance from Marathon toAthens – 26 miles to deliver the news of the Greek victory.He delivered the news and fell over dead of exhaustion.
The Second Invasion of Greece
XERXES I invades Sparta in 480 BC
THE BATTLE OF THERMOPYLAE
1,400 Spartan soldiers stood in amountain pass for three days to hold offthe Persians
A Greek traitor showed the Persians aback path.
Surrounded, the Spartans fought to thedeath.
Persians moved on to Athens and burnedthe city.
The Second Invasion of Greece
THE BATTLE OF SALAMIS – Athenian navy led the largePersian navy into a narrow strait. Trapped and unable to turnaround, the large Persian ships were easily sunk by the smallAthenian ships.
Persian ships that were not sank retreated and headed home.The Greeks had won!
The Second Invasion of Greece
THE BATTLE OF PLATAEA: The final battle of thePersian Wars where the Greeks defeated the Persians.
For the Persians: Losing the war was humiliating, butdidn’t destroy the empire.
For the Greeks: The defeat of the Persians was a majortriumph. They saved their homeland.