how persia became powerful
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1. The First Suez Canal
In order to boost trade between Egypt and the Persian Gulf, Darius-I ordered the construction of a canal linking the Nile and the Red Sea.
Darius’ canal – which ran along a course similar to the modern Suez Canal, from the Nile Delta through the Bitter Lakes to near the port of Suez – remained in more or less regular use until the 8th century AD.The Persian empire, toppled by Alexander the Great in 330 BC, was ruled by the Archaemenid dynasty – named after Archaemenes, a 9th-century king of Persia.2. Men of Magic
The English word ‘magic’ comes originally from the Magi, a mysterious Persian priestly clan. A Magus was a person wise in religious matters, and the Magi were probably also scribes and keepers of records.
The word magic may have acquired its modern meaning from a branch of the clan which moved to Babylonia and specialised in telling fortunes and working religious ‘wonders’. It was three of the Persian Magi, “wise men from the east”, whose journey to visit the infant Christ is described in St. Matthew’s Gospel.
3. Cult of Mystery
One of the main religions in ancient Persia was the cult of Mithras, who was generally portrayed as a man slaying a bull. It was a men-only religion, and several of the ceremonies had parallels with those of Christianity, including baptism with water and the sharing of a sacramental meal.
4. Guarding the Harem
The Persian kings had many wives, and even more concubines, kept in a harem guarded by eunuchs. After Cyrus subdued Babylonia in 539 BC, the province had to supply already castrated boys each year to learn their trade as eunuchs.
5. Stormy Crossing
When the Persian king, Xerxes I, led an expedition against Greece in 480 BC, he had some of his Egyptian and Phoenician engineers throw two pontoon bridges across the narrow Hellespont Strait to carry his armies over.
Know other 4 Persian Empire Hidden Facts
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Nathan Seim
Nathan Seim
Answered Feb 21, 2017
The 1st persian empire was powerful because they made 2 things:
A lot of friends
Excellent tactical decisions
Cyrus, the empire’s founder, was either loved or deeply admired by nearly everyone he came into contact with.
The greeks idolized him, even as they warred with his succesors. The achaemenids fought very few wars of aggression, and it was a black mark on the name of Cambyses, Cyrus’ son, thst he attacked Egypt unprovoked, even though he won.
They also didnt usually allow slavery, which made common people everywhere love them. In short, when everyone wanted to be you, you were sure to become powerful.