Rulers, Persia - The Greatest Empire of Ancient Times - Who Were the Persians? - The Birth of Cyrus - Rise to Greatness

Sep 28, 2026

A historical narrative introduces ancient Persia and explains how four major kingdoms dominated the region before Persian leadership transformed the Middle East. The text describes Persian origins in present-day Iran, their early culture of shepherding and farming, and their reputation for horseback riding and a fighting spirit used for good. It then follows Cyrus’s rise from noble beginnings through legend of Astyages and the Median conquest, highlighting mercy toward conquered peoples and Cyrus’s influence on empire-building.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLiterature

FormatPDF

Pages24

Reading Time37 min

AccessFree to download

The Greatest Empireof Ancient Times

Who Were the Persians?

The Birth of Cyrus

Rise to Greatness

Cyrus the Great,founder ofthe Persian Empire

The Birth of a New Empire

A Just and Righteous Ruler

RulersPersiaby Rebeca WagnerHOUGHTON MIFFLIN 1000 1 Rulers,Persia by Rebecca Wagner 2.1 HOUGHTON MIFFLIN HARCOURTSchool Publishers ILLUSTRATION CREDITS:3,16 Joe LeMonnier /Melissa Turk PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS:Cover ORobert Harding Picture Library Ltd/Alamy;1C Mary Evans Picture Library/Alamy;4◎ Visual Arts Library (London)/Alamy;6 ◎Bettmann /Corbis;7◎ Mary Evans Picture Library /Alamy;9 OImageSource/Corbis;10 ORobert Harding Picture Library Ltd/Alamy;12C Image Asset Management;13OSergio Pitamitz/Alamy;15◎ Corbis.Bkgrnd /border PhotoDisc/Essentials Copyright oby Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company All rights reserved.No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means,electronicor mechanical,including photocopying or recording,or by any information storage and retrieval system,without theprior written permission of the copyright owner unless such copying is expressly permitted by federal copyright law.Requests for permission to make copies of any part of the work should be addressed to Houghton Mifflin HarcourtSchool Publishers,Attn:Permissions,6277 Sea Harbor Drive,Orlando,Florida 32887-6777. Printed in Hong Kong ISBN-10:0-547-29912-5 ISBN-13:978-0-547-29912-9 78909401817161514134500409004 If you have received these materials as examination copies free of charge,Houghton Mifflin Harcourt School Publishersretains title to the materials and they may not be resold.Resale of examination copies is strictly prohibited. Possession of this publication in print format does not entitle users to convert this publication,or any portion of it,intoelectronic format. # The Greatest Empireof Ancient Times In the year 600 B.C.E.,four kingdomsdominated one part of the world—Media,Lydia,Babylonia (bab uh LOH nee uh),andEgypt.These kingdoms had powerful armies,great prosperity,and highly developed cultures.Their proud histories could be tracedback hundreds,even thousands of years.Yet,injust a few decades,their rule over the MiddleEast would come to a crashing halt. A small but courageous tribe of Persians(PUR zhuns)would soon change the worldforever.They would become the leaders ofone of the largest empires that ever existed.The Persians would rule successfully over theentire Middle East for two centuries.How didthey do it?Why did they do it? # Who Were the Persians? The story of the Persians begins more than 3,000 yearsago when the first Persian tribes migrated southwest fromCentral Asia into the dusty plateaus and grassy valleys ofpresent-day Iran.There,they established missions of mostlypeaceful shepherds and farmers.They fashioned jewelry andother decorative items from bronze,silver,and gold.ThePersians lived in the shadows of the great Median Empirethat lay to the west.Although the Persians had their ownline of kings and ruled over their own land,they were forced to recognize a higherMedian authority. The Persians became knownfor their mastery of horsebackriding.From an early age,Persianboys were taught to ride a horse,shoot an arrow from a bow,and tellthe truth.The trait thatbest characterizedPersians would be afighting spirit thatwas used for good.A Persian drinkingvessel # The Birth of Cyrus Sometime between 600 and 580 B.C.E.,a son was born tothe Persian king Cambyses(kam BY seez)and his wife They named the baby Cyrus(SY ruhs).As the king's only son,Cyrus knew he was next in line for his father's throne.Cyruswas a skilled fighter,a natural leader,and an ambitious youngman.He was driven by noble ideals and strong spiritual beliefsthat he pondered constantly.He believed he was meant for agreater purpose than simply ruling the Persian tribes.Cyruswanted to conquer the world. # Rise to Greatness Perhaps others sensed that Cyrus was destined for greatness.According to legend,the ruler of the Median Empire,King Astyages (as TY uh jeez),was actually Cyrus's maternalgrandfather.Before Cyrus was born,Astyages had a dream thathis grandson would overthrow him

FAQs

Which kingdoms dominated the Middle East before Persian rule expanded?

Media, Lydia, Babylonia, and Egypt dominated one part of the world before Persian leadership changed the region’s future.

How did Persian tribes establish themselves after migrating southwest?

They migrated from Central Asia into present-day Iran and formed mostly peaceful communities of shepherds and farmers.

What role did Cyrus play in creating the Persian Empire?

Cyrus defeated the Median army, claimed kingship over Persia, expanded the empire over the following decades, and governed with notable respect toward conquered subjects.

Sep 28, 2026

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