Cyrus the Great of Persia and Emperor Ashoka of India The history of a nation is measured chronologically by its rulers. An era of history can be discussed while comparing the government and sociology of one nation to that of another existing in the same time period. How then, can we compare two nations that existed in two different portions of the world, nearly three centuries apart? Since one cannot do

Except for Miletus, which was sacked as an initiator of the revolt, the other cities were treated rather reasonably, going as far as recommendations for the settled Persians to respect local religious traditions (Herodotus VI 42-45). This does not necessarily need to be seen only as a reasonable conquering policy, but also as a diplomatic and political approach: once Darius asked for the submissions of mainland Greek cities, many of

They also counted with cavalry and carts. However on thin passages or gorges, the Persian cavalry could not display its full power and their number superiority was blocked, since their spears were shorter than the Greek weapons. The narrow battlefield of the gorge forced them to fight almost in equal number with the Greek army, forcing them to retreat after two days of battle. The Persian army achieved important victories: the

Persian Wars (490 BCE to 479 BCE) between the Greek city-states and the Persian Empire were predicated by various circumstances, ranging from cultural ideologies to political connivances. For the Greeks, particularly the Ionians and the Athenians, Persian rule was unwanted and unacceptable. The Persian leaders Darius and his son Xerxes, however, following in the example of Cyrus the Great, saw the Greek city-states as puny colonies that were to be

Dark Age and the Archaic Age Having watched the lectures for the prior learning unit on video, I was prepared to enjoy the video lecture presentation for this learning unit. I previously found the presentation of lectures in the video format to be very convenient because I could observe at my own pace, rewind if I missed part of the lecture, have flexibility about when I was viewing the lecture, and

Known as the Median kingdom, centered in what is today northern Iran, this powerful alliance of Mesopotamian kingdoms and nations emerged in the late 8th century B.C.E. with its mighty army joining that of Babylon to destroy the Assyrian Empire. In 546 B.C.E., Cyrus the Great, after conquering Lydia and subduing its king Croesus, quickly acquired domination over many of the Greek polis or city-states on the western coast