6/10/2023 0 Comments Greatest rulers in historyThis was the first recorded instance in history of an alternative to simple parallel confrontation.Ĭyrus also placed camels in the front of his army, knowing that the Lydian horses were not accustomed to the smell of camels and would panic. Cyrus quickly marched against Lydia, undaunted by the Lydians’ great reputation for military prowess, especially their great cavalry.Ĭyrus ranged his forces against the mighty Lydian line not in the usual parallelline formation but in separate and maneuverable square formations, with archers and slingshots in the middle of each square, which was defended by infantry. The Lydian kingdom in Asia Minor (now Turkey), heard of the fall of the King of the Medes and began encroaching on Medean territory, which now was under Cyrus’ rule. Cyrus and his tribe were under the lordship of the Medes.Ī natural leader, Cyrus rallied other Persian tribes and marched against the king of the Medes, whose soldiers deserted him and went over to Cyrus, who now took his place as their ruler. His people were insignificant compared to most nations of the ancient Near-East, such as the Medes, the Babylonians, and the Hittites. Born near the beginning of the 6th century BC, he succeeded to the chieftainship of his people, a Persian tribe in the mountains of what is now central Iran. While many aggressors have made that claim throughout history, in Cyrus’ case it rings true.Ĭyrus created the world’s first truly large empire that ruled over diverse peoples, but he did it without exploitation and with great clemency, allowing local self-rule under a well thought-out policy of toleration.Ĭyrus’ beginnings were relatively humble. His motto seemed to be conquer or be conquered, and he always insisted that he conquered only for self-protection. He started as the chief of a downtrodden tribe that overthrew its masters, and he went on to ensure that for the next couple of centuries no other nation would conquer his people again. He is Cyrus the Great of Persia, who in the mid-6th century BC ruled the greatest empire the world had ever known. But when all the votes are in, one figures in the minds of scholars and historians as the greatest. There is a standard list of candidates: David of Israel, Charlemagne of the Franks, Asoka of India, Elizabeth of England, and Tutmose of Egypt. Many writers have ventured opinions as to who was the greatest monarch in human history.
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