Is there a character named Cyrus the Great in the movie 300?

Answer 1

No. The movie 300 is a highly colorful interpretation of the historical events that happened at the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC between the large expeditionary forces of Persia under Xerxes I and the defending Greek and Macedonian forces at the narrow pass of Thermopylae. In contrast, Cyrus II (the Great) (559-529) was the great uncle of Xerxes I (486-465) who founded the Achaemenid Persian Empire - the first WORLD empire. He was in fact the first king in history to be referred to as "the Great" because his leadership and humanitarian achievements became the role model for all kings that followed. Even the Greeks whom he conquered considered him a just ruler and used the story of his life (as written in Xenophon's Cyropedia) as a manual for ideal leadership [interestingly, this was true of the founding fathers of the United States such as Thomas Jefferson who had two personal copies of the book]. Cyrus the Great is revered by the Jews in The Bible as a 'messiah' after he conquered Babylon, freed the Jews from a century of slavery, and paid for the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem--he in fact made it a policy that the Persian Kings would pay for the maintenance of the temple. Perhaps the greatest achievement of Cyrus was his declaration that the people of the empire were to be treated with respect, allowed freedom of religion, and to be left unharassed by the forces in power (to live in peace). This declaration as preserved on the famous 'Cyrus Cylinder' is today considered by many to be the first (if you will) "declaration of human rights"--a copy sits in the UN in New York City. Despite Greek depictions of the Persians as slave drivers being whipped into action by despotic (in 300 apparently transsexual) kings, the Persians starting with Cyrus the Great had outlawed slavery. This is well documented in stone tablet remnants dating back to the 4th, 5th, and 6th centuries BC including at Persepolis, the great palace city burned to ashes by the forces of Alexander of Macedonia. All workers in Persia were paid according to their ability and contribution. Ironically, the Greeks during the same period employed large numbers of slaves. At the time of the Persian Wars with Xerxes, 50% of the population of Athens, birthplace of democracy, were slaves. A recent program on the History Channel voiced that Cyrus the Great was "one of the few personages in history who deserved the title 'the Great'".