Chapter 4 Daily Focus Skills Transparency 4 4
The Persian Empire united a wide area under a single government. The Persian Empire Section 3
Objectives for this lesson: Analyze the causes, course, and consequences of the Persian Wars. Identify how to use historical information acquired from a variety of sources
Locating Places Persia (PUHR zhuh) Marathon (MAR uh THAHN) Salamis (SA luh muhs) Thermopylae (thuhr MAH puh lee) Plataea (pluh TEE uh) Meeting People Cyrus the Great (SY ruhs) Darius (duh RY uhs) Xerxes (ZUHRK SEEZ) Themistocles (thuh MIHS tuh KLEEZ) Building Your Vocabulary Satrapies (SAY truh pees) Satrap (SAY TRAP) Zoroastrianism (ZOHR uh WAS tree uh NIH zuhm)
The Persians Persians were warriors and nomads who lived in Persia, the southwestern area of what is today Iran.
Persia Attacks the Greeks Cyrus the Great united the Persians. The Persians built a large empire, conquering Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, Syria, Canaan, and Phoenician cities. Under Cyrus the Great: Subjects were treated well. The Persian Empire grew to be as big as the United States! Persians built miles of roads.
Darius came to power in 521 B.C. and reorganized the government, because the empire grew too large to manage. The empire under Darius was divided into 20 satrapies, each with a ruler known as a satrap. The satraps answered to the king. What was a satrap s responsibilities? Tax collector Judge Chief of police Head recruiter for the Persian army
Persian Military Spartan and Athenian soldiers? Citizens Required to serve Fought in times of war Persian soldiers? PAID!! Full-time soldiers 10,000 specially trained soldiers who guarded the king called Immortals
Zoroastrianism Persian Religion Founder: Zoroaster God(s): One God, creator of all things and a force of goodness Humans had the freedom to choose between right and wrong. Goodness would triumph over evil in the end.
The Persian Wars
The Greeks thought, Persia controls too much! The Athenian army helped the Greeks in Asia Minor rebel again Persia It didn t work, but it did fire up King Darius Both Sparta and Athens played roles in defeating the Persians.
Battle of Marathon 490B.C. a Persian fleet landed 20,000 soldiers on the plain of Marathon, just a short distance from Athens. Athens only had 10,000 soldiers---1/2! The Persians waited for Athenian soldiers to charge. They waited and waited Athenians held out and watched from the hilltops. Tired of waiting, the Persians decided to sail south and attack Athens directly. The first to board the ships was the cavalry, the strongest part of the army BIG mistake!
As soon as the cavalry was on the ships in charged the Greeks! They caught the Persian foot soldiers standing in the water and easily defeated them!
Marathon Legend The Athenians sent a messenger named Pheidippides home with the news of the victory. He ran nearly 25 miles from Marathon to Athens! He collapsed from exhaustion and with his last breath, announced, VICTORY! Then died. Modern marathon races are named for this famous run and are just over 26 miles long.
Pesky Persia Strikes Again! King Darius died in 486B.C. and his son Xerxes became king. Xerxes vowed revenge against the Athenians In 480B.C., he launched a new invasion of Greece with 180,000 soldiers and thousands of warships and supply vessels.
Battle of Thermopylae Athens and Sparta joined forces to defend against Xerxes s attack. The Greeks fought the Persians at Thermopylae for two days. The Greeks fought bravely, but the Persians found a way to defeat them.. The Greeks lost the battle, but 200 ships were assembled in Athens.
Battle of Salamis The Greeks joined forces, and their fleet attacked the Persian fleet in the strait of Salamis. The Greeks had the upper hand because their ships were: Smaller Faster Easier to steer Victory for the Greeks!
Battle of Salamis Even after most of the Persian fleet was destroyed, the Persian army marched on. They entered Athens and burned the city. This only made the Greeks stronger!
Battle of Plataea Even thought the Persian fleet was destroyed, they kept marching. They attacked the Greeks at Plataea. The Greeks had a larger army equipped with solid body armor, longer spears, and better training. The Greek army crushed the Persians at Plataea. This was a turning point for the Greeks, and Persia retreated to Asia Minor.
Greeks Are Victorious! The Persian Empire fell for several reasons: Raised taxes to gain more wealth this angered the subjects and caused rebellions Spent gold on luxuries for the royals Royal family fought each other for throne Persians are weakened by war