The World's Progress Part 39

Astyages seems to have planned neither political activity nor personal diversion. He never joined in the hunts which were popular with his courtiers. Rather, he spent his leisure with such entertainment as his palace afforded and for his administration, depended wholly upon the reports of his officials. Such was Media when a Persian king, realizing the real situation, led an army against the country. In connection with our study of Persia we shall come again to the story of this conquest.

Polygamy was always allowed by the code of Median laws and morals, while women seem to have been treated with a certain chivalrous attention and deference. The civilization of the land was similar to that of Persia, which nation, it is supposed, sprang originally from the same stock. No greater difference existed between the two peoples than might be found between two modern Teutonic nations.

Education and learning was not valued in either country. Boys were taught to ride, to hunt, to shoot, and to become proficient in out of door sports rather than the arts of reading and writing.

The religion was akin to that of Persia, and the faith of the Persians was singularly pure. They like the Hebrews, worshipped one G.o.d. No degrading ceremonies and teachings attached to their forms of worship, as was the case in Egypt and Babylonia. The most ancient writings of the Zenda-Vesta appear to embody the faith of the Medes, and these will be considered in connection with the religion of Persia.

In conclusion, it may be said that the Medes were neither an inventive nor an ingenious people, nor did they develop a great civilization, culture, or literature. Indeed we are forced to the conclusion of Rawlinson: they scarcely contributed an idea or invention to the great store of knowledge transmitted by the past to the modern world.

[Ill.u.s.tration: RUINS OF PERSEPOLIS.]

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Isa. 13, 17. The chapter is late, and, as Duhm says, the fact that the redactor ascribed it to Isaiah is instructive as regards the want of critical ability of the _diaskenasts_. Craig.

CHAPTER XVIII.

PERSIA BEFORE THE AGE OF CYRUS.

The origin and early history of both Medes and Persians were similar.

When first the Persians are mentioned in a.s.syrian annals, they had migrated to the region east of a.s.syria, inhabiting an indefinite district which later became part of the Median state. At this time--about the ninth century before the Christian era--they were not united under one king, but each clan followed the leadership of a chosen chieftain. As a result of an a.s.syrian attack, more than twenty of these chiefs brought tribute and acknowledged the supremacy of the great king.

Nothing of importance is again heard of them until shortly before the fall of the a.s.syrian capital. They were then united into a kingdom, serving one ruler, and living in what has been called "Persia Proper,"

to distinguish the original state from the wide empire which was brought at length under Persian rule. While free to manage their internal affairs, they paid tribute to Media, now a vigorous and aggressive nation. It is plain then, that previous to the fall of Nineveh, the Persian state had taken no part in Asiatic affairs, and furthermore, was not yet free and independent. However, in less than one hundred years her people had gained control over the entire western portion of Asia, extending their rule from the Indus to the valley of the Nile, while only the little Greek nation held out against them on the west.

Before entering upon a study of this rapid imperial expansion, it would be well for us to get some general impressions of the comparatively small territory in which the various Persian tribes became welded into a united people, and of the conditions in the original kingdom wherein the principles which were to temporarily dominate the ancient world were developed.

Persia Proper consisted of an area of about 450 miles in length, and averaging 250 miles in width. It might have been roughly bounded on the south and west by the gulf which came to bear its name, while a desert reached off to the east and north, save where Persian territory touched upon the Median kingdom. A narrow strip of arid land lay between the gulf and a mountain range, making up perhaps one eighth of the entire area. The climate here is hot and dry, the soil marshy, producing little growth of any sort. The district east of this range was irregularly divided into highlands and valleys, lofty rocks and winding chasms.

Wherever water was available, vegetation was luxuriant, making the wild scenery fantastic and attractive. Generally water was scarce, and most of the year the land lay parched and brown.

"The region east of the range is of varied character. In places richly fertile, picturesque, and romantic almost beyond imagination, with lovely wooded dells, green mountain-sides, and broad plains suited for the production of almost any crops, it has yet on the whole a predominant character of sterility and barrenness, especially towards its more northern and eastern portions. The supply of water is everywhere scanty. Scarcely any of the streams are strong enough to reach the sea. After short courses they are either absorbed by the sand or end in small salt lakes, from which the superfluous water is evaporated. Much of the country is absolutely without streams, and would be uninhabitable were it not for the subterranean channels of spring-water.

"The most remarkable feature of the country consists in the extraordinary gorges which pierce the great mountain-chain, and render possible the establishment of routes across that tremendous barrier.

Scarped rocks rise almost perpendicularly on either side of the mountain streams, which descend rapidly with frequent cascades and falls. Along the slight irregularities of these rocks the roads are carried in zigzags, often crossing the streams from side to side by bridges of a single arch, which are thrown over profound chasms where the waters chafe and roar many hundred feet below. The roads have for the most part been artificially cut in the sides of the precipices, which rise from the streams sometimes to the height of 2,000 feet. Thus the country towards the edge of the plateau is peculiarly safe from attack, being defended on the north and east by vast deserts, and on the south by a mountain barrier of unusual strength and difficulty.

"It is in these regions, which combine facility of defence with pleasantness of climate, that the princ.i.p.al cities of the district have at all times been placed."[1]

It appears that nearly one-half of the kingdom was practically unsuited for habitation, being dry and producing little to sustain life. In these early times only two or three cities existed, small villages making up the remaining social centers, while peasants farmed limited portions of the outlying country where the water supply sufficed to maintain crops.

Various fruits abounded in the mountainous regions. Peaches were native to the soil. Grapes grew in profusion, and corn and vegetables were plentiful. Along the coast fish might be found in large quant.i.ties and const.i.tuted a staple article of food throughout the land. The natural conditions were not sufficiently favorable to allow heavy yields of grain or to make agriculture foremost among the nation's activities.

The Persians were active, vivacious people, lacking wholly the repose and dignified calm so characteristic of the English, for example. They concealed neither joy nor sorrow, and were immoderate in their expressions of both.

Learning and education were given little attention. It has become a trite and well-known saying that "Persian boys were taught to ride, to shoot, and to speak the truth." The religion of the people placed truth first among the virtues. Their steadfast fidelity to a promise excited wonderment among the nations. Physical, rather than mental, development was sought, and while in the nation's later life the people gave themselves up to indolence, pa.s.sing the hours with personal adornment and feasting, these pastimes did not characterize their early years.

Like the Medes, Persian n.o.bles had several wives, and polygamy was the rule rather than the exception. Women were kept in well-nigh complete seclusion, and no mention is made of them, nor are they seen in pictures adorning the palaces.

The att.i.tude a.s.sumed toward the sovereign influenced the very character of the people. "The Persian king held the same rank and position in the eyes of his subjects which the great monarch of Western Asia, whoever he might be, had always occupied from time immemorial. He was the lord and master, absolute disposer of their lives, liberties, and property; the sole fountain of law and right, incapable himself of doing wrong, irresponsible, irresistible--a sort of G.o.d on earth; one whose favor was happiness, at whose frown men trembled, before whom all bowed themselves down with the lowest and humblest obeisance.

"The feeling of the Persian towards his king is one of which moderns can with difficulty form a conception. In Persia the monarch was so much the State, that patriotism itself was, as it were, swallowed up in loyalty; and an unquestioning submission, not only to the deliberate will, but to the merest caprice of the sovereign, was, by habit and education, so ingrained into the nature of the people that a contrary spirit scarcely ever manifested itself. In war the safety of the sovereign was the first thought, and the princ.i.p.al care of all. If the king suffered, all was lost; if the king escaped, the greatest calamities seemed light and could be endured with patience. The same cheerful submission characterized times of peace. It was here that their loyalty became a defect rather than a virtue. The voice of remonstrance, of rebuke, of warning, was unheard at Court. Tyranny was allowed to indulge unchecked in the wildest caprices and extravagances. The father, whose innocent son was shot before his eyes by the king in pure wantonness, instead of raising an indignant protest against the crime, felicitated him upon the excellence of his archery. Thus a tone of servility was engendered which, sapping self-respect, tended fatally to lower and corrupt the entire character of the people."[2]

Such were the tendencies of the embryo state which under the leadership of a great ruler was soon to burst into sudden and brilliant flower, absorbing in a single campaign nations which had never before been united.

CYRUS THE GREAT AND THE PERSIAN EMPIRE.

In ages when monarchs were absolute in the foremost countries of the world, the personal ability of the king was a matter of far greater concern than we today realize. In modern times, political and social changes have had their beginnings in the conditions and desires of the people. In the remote years we are now studying, the people were less considered, and their wishes seldom heard. The personal character of the king determined the policy of the ancient state. We have already seen how the welfare--the very fate of Egypt, Babylonia and a.s.syria depended upon their rulers. Even more p.r.o.nounced was this in Persia, where subjects, including n.o.bles and princes, acted in unthinking submission to a degree unknown in other lands.

In taking up the career of Cyrus the Great we are largely dependent upon the writings of Herodotus and Xenophon. Of Herodotus we have learned something, and concerning Xenophon we may note that besides being a writer and a traveller, he was also an experienced and able general.

Herodotus lived some fifty years after the death of Cyrus, and Xenophon was thirty years younger than Herodotus. Both Greeks wrote at length of the great Persian King.

When Astyages ascended the throne of Media, Persia was a mere tribute-paying kingdom, insignificant not only in political strength, but in social life, wealth, and culture. It is supposed that Cyrus was sent to the Median court as a hostage from a tribute land. His father ruled in Persia, and we are told that he was greatly impressed as a boy by the difference between the two countries. The subjects over whom his father ruled were many of them soldiers whose days were spent with training and physical exercise. They ate and drank moderately, and while they lacked the culture and refinement of the northern kingdom, they were just coming into the strength and vigour which the Medians lost upon their conquest of a.s.syria and subsequent abundance of wealth.

Tradition pictures the youth clinging to the simple habits of his early life, and caring little for the pomp and ceremony around him. He delighted in riding and liked the hunt best of all amus.e.m.e.nts, while he shortly became the companion of Astyages during the king's leisure hours, bringing refreshing life and boyish candor into a degenerate court.

Some years later Cyrus returned home and, shortly after, a faction of the Medes who had become devoted to the Persian prince and felt dissatisfied with the tyranny of their king, informed Cyrus that if he would bring an army against the Medes, they would cause the Median forces to desert to him. Another account says that Cyrus himself planned the conquest while at the Median court, and having feasted his attendants and led them to drink heavily, escaped to Persia, where he soon persuaded his father to march against the Medes. In either case, it would seem that the prince had learned the true condition of degenerated Media, and determined to free his own land from the hated tribute service--establishing its independence.

In the battle which was waged against the two people, Astyages was taken captive, and when the majority of the soldiers went over to the Persian side, the remaining soldiers fled. Cyrus allowed Astyages to retain his own personal attendants, and permitted him to live in a style befitting his recent position. Under guard of Persian soldiers, he was free to go about at will.

It is probable that Cyrus had at first no greater ambition than to free Persia from tribute imposed by Media, but the desire for conquest once awakened never ceases while lands remain unwon. In conquering Media, all territories of a.s.syria fell to Cyrus' portion. The Medes had held lands to the river Halys on the northwest. Beyond this boundary stream the empire of Lydia had been growing under the rule of Croesus.

Croesus has become proverbial for his wealth. As he extended the boundaries of Lydia, he grew wealthier still, until his resources exceeded all estimate. Having lost a favorite son, he lived in seclusion until a sense of approaching danger roused him to defend his kingdom.

The river Halys was a narrow stream--too small by far to prove a lasting barrier against an aggressive nation. To spare his land the ravages of war, Croesus determined to invade the land of his rival. He thought best to consult the oracle at Delphi before entering upon such a serious campaign. Having sent costly presents to Delphi, Croesus inquired whether or not it would be safe for him to proceed against Persia. The reply was that if Croesus crossed the Halys and carried war into Persia, a mighty kingdom would be overthrown, and that he would do well to form an alliance with the strongest Greek state.

Regarding the answer as favorable, he sent word to Sparta that, since he was advised by the Delphian oracle to seek the strongest Greek state as an ally, he solicitated their a.s.sistance. These Spartans were unlike any soldiers we have yet met; they fought for glory, not for plunder.

They were glad, of course, to be considered the strongest Grecian state, and sent the a.s.sistance asked. With such re-enforcements, Croesus crossed the Halys and met Cyrus who had known of the Lydian movement and was ready for an attack. The battle was fought near Pterie; both sides lost heavily, and Croesus thought Cyrus was too crippled to longer advance, so he himself returned to Sardis, his capital, to make plans for a new campaign the following year. Cyrus waited until the Lydian troops were largely disbanded, and then suddenly appeared before Sardis.

Consternation swept over the Lydians, but they trusted to their cavalry which was numerous and well disciplined. Cyrus had also taken the Lydian cavalry into account, and had ordered his camels which carried the equipment of war, to face the horse, and if possible, to put them to flight. In the battle fought such was the result--the horses turned in confusion upon the charge of the camels, and the Lydian army withdrew into Sardis to undergo a siege. They expected to win in the long run, for they had sufficient stores of all kinds, and they hoped that outside aid would come sooner or later. Cyrus understood the danger of delay, and determined to carry the city by a.s.sault. By scaling a nearly perpendicular embankment, entrance to Sardis was gained, and Croesus fell into the hands of the great Persian conqueror. He was given considerate treatment. Few cruelties disfigure the pages of Persian history, and never were severe punishments meted out wholesale to captives in war. Those who betrayed confidence were harshly dealt with, and rebels seldom escaped, but the Persians were generally fair-minded.

Cyrus was uniformly mild and generous, lacking the inordinate pride of most Oriental monarchs, treating his subjects with kindness. Croesus became one of his trusted companions, and accompanied him upon his later campaigns. The story of the funeral pyre is probably an invention of the Greeks, or, if it had any foundation whatever, it may be that Croesus requested such an honorable end in preference to swearing allegiance to an unknown conqueror.

When measures had been taken for the government of Lydia, attention turned to Babylonia. There, as we have seen, the crown was worn by a king who was more interested in the temples of the G.o.ds than in the immediate welfare of his nation. His son Belshazzar made some defense outside the capital, but a faction within the city, out of sympathy with the existing government, allowed the Persians to take possession. Cyrus now allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem and there to rebuild their temple and to make their homes in the land of their fathers. For this reason the Hebrews had only words of praise for Cyrus. To the number of 49,697, with their property and possessions, they set upon their long march--a peaceful band which encountered no opposition throughout its course. The event stands unparalleled in history.

Had Cyrus lived, he would doubtless have added Egypt to his empire. This was left for his son to accomplish. The great king fell fighting for territories in the north.

In conclusion, it may be said that Cyrus is the first great conqueror we have so far met who was kind and humane. His policy towards the conquered stands out in marked relief to the butcheries and punishments which characterized a.s.syria. Notwithstanding, all charges of selfish motives which have belonged to those who have sought to become world-conquerors, attach to Cyrus. Urged on by personal vanity and hope of becoming supreme, he considered only the final issue and allowed his ambition to triumph over his n.o.bler nature. Some years later Alexander emulated his example, and one hundred years ago Napoleon undertook the same gigantic task--greater in his day--of building up a world-empire.

The motives prompting all three were the same, and in each case the empires, so quickly brought into being, vanished as quickly as they arose.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Rawlinson: Persia.

[2] Rawlinson: Persia.