Who was Darius of the Persian Empire?

Answer 1

Dariush the Great (522-486) ruled the Persian Empire of the Achamenids. He was NOT the son of Cyrus, he was in fact, from the junior line of the Achamenid clan, and came to power after Kambyz, son of Cyrus.

Darisuh (Darayavaush) actually wrested control from Bardya, nicknamed "the Magian" with the help of several conspirators from powerful influential Persian famillies, including Gavaruba (Gobryas). Whether he really was Cyrus' son or an imposteur is still in dispute.

Darius expanded the borders of the empire, which reached the Indus river and brought the rich provinces of modern day Pakistan into the Persian Empire. Before he embarked on any external conquests however, he had to quell uprisings and rebellions that threatened to death whole provinces of the empire, with the help of his old Spearbearer elite Imperial guard (2 regiments of 1,000 men) and the Immortal division (10,000 men). To commemorate their deeds and allegiance, he carved their portraits at his palaces of Susa and Persepolis. His object was to impose peace within his empire, and he extended its borders to establish defensible frontiers.

Dariush then faced a revolt by the Ionian Greeks in Asia Minor, which was put down in some dozen battles such as Ephesos, Chios, Pedasus, Labraunda, Miletos, Naxos, Malene, Lade etc. His object was to impose peace within his empire, and he extended its borders to establish defensible frontiers, however Eretria and Athens had intervened in the Ionian Revolt and he sent a punitive expedition against them in 490 BC. Eretria was betrayed and captured, but Athens, with the help of Plataia, turned this expedition back at Marathon.

Dariush' strength accomplished the submission of Macedon, Thrace and some northern Greek cities, and after the debacle at Marathon he realised that the only way to keep the Greeks quiet was to bring all the mainland cities within his empire. However he died before achieving this and the mission was taken up by his son Xerxes.

Dariush was known as a great admnistrator and skillful politician who held the empire together in spite of the early threats of separatism from Babylonians, Medes, Carians, Greeks and Egyptians.