Xerxes I

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Xerxes I of Persia
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Xerxes I
Xšayār̥šā
𐎧𐏁𐎹𐎠𐎼𐏁𐎠
  • Pharaoh of Egypt
ReignOctober 486 – August 465 BC
PredecessorDarius the Great
SuccessorArtaxerxes I
Bornc. 518 BC
DiedAugust 465 BC (aged approximately 53)
Burial
SpouseAmestris (or Vashti and Hadassah in Biblical tradition)
Issue
Indo-Iranian religion
(possibly Zoroastrianism
)
<
xASAi i ArwSAA
>
Xerxes (Xašayaruša/Ḫašayaruša)[2]
in hieroglyphs

Xerxes I [a] (c. 518 – August 465 BC), commonly known as Xerxes the Great,[4] was a Persian ruler who served as the fourth King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, reigning from 486 BC until his assassination in 465 BC. He was the son of Darius the Great and Atossa, a daughter of Cyrus the Great. In Western history, Xerxes is best known for his invasion of Greece in 480 BC, which ended in Persian defeat. Xerxes was designated successor by Darius over his elder brother Artobazan and inherited a large, multi-ethnic empire upon his father's death. He consolidated his power by crushing revolts in Egypt and Babylon, and renewed his father's campaign to subjugate Greece and punish Athens and its allies for their interference in the Ionian Revolt. In 480 BC, Xerxes personally led a large army and crossed the Hellespont into Europe. He achieved victories at Thermopylae and Artemisium before capturing and razing Athens. His forces gained control of mainland Greece north of the Isthmus of Corinth until their defeat at the Battle of Salamis. Fearing that the Greeks might trap him in Europe, Xerxes retreated with the greater part of his army back to Asia, leaving behind Mardonius to continue his campaign. Mardonius was defeated at Plataea the following year, effectively ending the Persian invasion.

After returning to Persia, Xerxes dedicated himself to large-scale construction projects, many of which had been left unfinished by his father. He oversaw the completion of the Gate of All Nations, the Apadana and the Tachara at Persepolis, and continued the construction of the Palace of Darius at Susa. He also maintained the Royal Road built by his father. In 465 BC, Xerxes and his heir Darius were assassinated by Artabanus, the commander of the royal bodyguard. He was succeeded by his third son, who took the throne as Artaxerxes I.

Etymology

Xérxēs (

Old Iranian Xšaya-ṛšā ("ruling over heroes"), which can be seen by the first part xšaya, meaning "ruling", and the second ṛšā, meaning "hero, man".[5] The name of Xerxes was known in Akkadian as Ḫi-ši-ʾ-ar-šá and in Aramaic as ḥšyʾrš.[6] Xerxes would become a popular name among the rulers of the Achaemenid Empire.[5]

Early life

Parentage and birth

Xerxes' father was Darius the Great (r. 522–486 BC), the incumbent monarch of the Achaemenid Empire, albeit himself not a member of the family of Cyrus the Great, the founder of the empire.[7][8] Xerxes' mother was Atossa, a daughter of Cyrus.[9] Darius and Atossa married in 522 BC,[10] and Xerxes was born around 518 BC.[11]

Upbringing and education

Cabinet des Médailles, Paris[12]

According to the Greek dialogue

Zoroastrian religion, and were taught to be truthful, to be courageous, and to have self-restraint.[13] The dialogue further added that "fear, for a Persian, is the equivalent of slavery."[13] At the age of 16 or 17, they began their mandatory 10 years of national service, which included practicing archery and javelin, competing for prizes, and hunting.[14] Afterwards, they served in the military for around 25 years, after which they were elevated to the status of elders and advisers to the king. Families[14]
in this time, including Xerxes', would intermarry.

This account of education among the Persian elite is supported by

Safavid Empire in the 17th-century AD.[15] Starting from 498 BC, Xerxes resided in the royal palace of Babylon.[16]

Accession to the throne

While Darius was preparing for another war against Greece, a revolt began in Egypt in 486 BC due to heavy taxes and the deportation of craftsmen to build the royal palaces at Susa and Persepolis. The king was required by Persian law to choose a successor before setting out on dangerous expeditions; when Darius decided to leave for Egypt (487–486 BC), he prepared his tomb at

Naqsh-e Rustam (five kilometers from his royal palace at Persepolis) and appointed Xerxes, his eldest son by Atossa, as his successor. However, Darius could not lead the campaign due to his failing health; he died in October 486 BC at the age of 64.[17]

Artobazan was born to "Darius the subject", while Xerxes was the eldest son "born in the purple" after Darius' rise to the throne. Furthermore, while Artobazan's mother was a commoner, Xerxes' mother was the daughter of the founder of the Achaemenid Empire.[20]

Xerxes was crowned and succeeded his father in October–December 486 BC[21] when he was about 32 years old.[22] The transition of power to Xerxes was smooth, due again in part to the great authority of Atossa[23][24] and his accession to royal power was not challenged by any person at court or in the Achaemenian family, or by any subject nation.[25]

Consolidation of power

Engraving of Babylon by H. Fletcher, 1690

At the time of Xerxes' accession, trouble was brewing in some of his domains. A revolt occurred in

Bel-shimanni. Bel-shimmani's revolt was short-lived; Babylonian documents written during his reign only account for a period of two weeks.[28]

Two years later, Babylon produced another rebel leader,

King of Babylon" and "King of the Lands," implying that they perceived Babylonia as a somewhat separate entity within their empire, united with their own kingdom in a personal union. After the revolts, however, Xerxes dropped "King of Babylon" from his titulature and divided the previously large Babylonian satrapy (accounting for most of the Neo-Babylonian Empire's territory) into smaller sub-units.[30]

Based on texts written by classical authors, it is often assumed that Xerxes enacted a brutal vengeance on Babylon following the two revolts. According to ancient writers, Xerxes destroyed Babylon's fortifications and damaged the temples in the city.[28] The Esagila was allegedly subject to great damage, and Xerxes allegedly carried the statue of Marduk away from the city,[31] possibly bringing it to Iran and melting it down (classical authors hold that the statue was made entirely of gold, which would have made melting it down possible).[28] Modern historian Amélie Kuhrt considers it unlikely that Xerxes destroyed the temples, but believes that the story of him doing so may derive from an anti-Persian sentiment among the Babylonians.[32] It is doubtful if the statue was removed from Babylon at all[28] and some have even suggested that Xerxes did remove a statue from the city, but that this was the golden statue of a man rather than the statue of the god Marduk.[33][34] Though mentions of it are lacking considerably compared to earlier periods, contemporary documents suggest that the Babylonian New Year's Festival continued in some form during the Achaemenid period.[35] Because the change in rulership from the Babylonians themselves to the Persians and due to the replacement of the city's elite families by Xerxes following its revolt, it is possible that the festival's traditional rituals and events had changed considerably.[36]

Campaigns

Invasion of the Greek mainland

The soldiers of Xerxes I, of all ethnicities,[37] on the tomb of Xerxes I, at Naqsh-e Rostam[38][39]

Darius died while in the process of preparing a second army to invade the Greek mainland, leaving to his son the task of punishing the

Colchians, Sindhis
and many more.

According to the Greek historian

Agrigentum; ancient sources assume Xerxes was responsible, modern scholarship is skeptical.[42] Many smaller Greek states, moreover, took the side of the Persians, especially Thessaly, Thebes and Argos
. Xerxes was victorious during the initial battles.

Xerxes set out in the spring of 480 BC from Sardis with a fleet and army which Herodotus estimated was roughly one million strong along with 10,000 elite warriors named the Immortals. More recent estimates place the Persian force at around 60,000 combatants.[43]

Battle of Thermopylae and destruction of Athens

Achaemenid king killing a Greek hoplite. Impression from a cylinder seal, sculpted c. 500–475 BC, at the time of Xerxes I Metropolitan Museum of Art

At the Battle of Thermopylae, a small force of Greek warriors led by King Leonidas of Sparta resisted the much larger Persian forces, but were ultimately defeated. According to Herodotus, the Persians broke the Spartan phalanx after a Greek man called Ephialtes betrayed his country by telling the Persians of another pass around the mountains. At Artemisium, large storms had destroyed ships from the Greek side and so the battle stopped prematurely as the Greeks received news of the defeat at Thermopylae and retreated.

Destruction of Athens
in 480 BC

After Thermopylae,

Destruction of Athens and burnt the city, leaving an archaeologically attested destruction layer, known as the Perserschutt.[44] The Persians thus gained control of all of mainland Greece to the north of the Isthmus of Corinth.[4]

Battles of Salamis and Plataea

Xerxes was induced, by the message of

Peloponnesus and awaiting the dissolution of the Greek armies. The Battle of Salamis (September, 480 BC) was won by the Greek fleet, after which Xerxes set up a winter camp in Thessaly
.

According to Herodotus, fearing that the Greeks might attack the bridges across the

Hellespont and trap his army in Europe, Xerxes decided to retreat back to Asia, taking the greater part of the army with him.[45] Another cause of the retreat might have been that the continued unrest in Babylon, a key province of the empire, required the king's personal attention.[46]
He left behind a contingent in Greece to finish the campaign under
Mardonius, who according to Herodotus had suggested the retreat in the first place. This force was defeated the following year at Plataea
by the combined forces of the Greek city states, ending the Persian offensive on Greece for good.

Construction projects

Naqsh-e Rustam north of Persepolis, copying that of Darius
, is usually assumed to be that of Xerxes

After his military blunders in Greece, Xerxes returned to Persia and oversaw the completion of the many construction projects left unfinished by his father at Susa and Persepolis. He oversaw the building of the Gate of All Nations and the Hall of a Hundred Columns at Persepolis, which are the largest and most imposing structures of the palace. He oversaw the completion of the Apadana, the Tachara (Palace of Darius) and the Treasury, all started by Darius, as well as having his own palace built which was twice the size of his father's. His taste in architecture was similar to that of Darius, though on an even more gigantic scale.[47] He had colorful enameled brick laid on the exterior face of the Apadana.[48] He also maintained the Royal Road built by his father and completed the Susa Gate and built a palace in Susa.[49]

Death and succession

This cuneiform text mentions the murder of Xerxes I by his son. From Babylon, Iraq. British Museum

In August 465 BC,

Hyrcanian Artabanus bore the same name as the famed uncle of Xerxes, his rise to prominence was due to his popularity in religious quarters of the court and harem intrigues. He put his seven sons in key positions and had a plan to dethrone the Achaemenids.[50]

Greek historians give differing accounts of events. According to

Artaxerxes, to avenge the patricide by killing Darius. But according to Aristotle (in Politics 5.1311b), Artabanus killed Darius first and then killed Xerxes. After Artaxerxes discovered the murder, he killed Artabanus and his sons.[51] Participating in these intrigues was the general Megabyzus, whose decision to switch sides probably saved the Achaemenids from losing their control of the Persian throne.[52]

Religion

While there is no general consensus in scholarship as to whether Xerxes and his predecessors had been influenced by Zoroastrianism,[53] it is well established that Xerxes was a firm believer in Ahura Mazda, whom he saw as the supreme deity.[53] However, Ahura Mazda was also worshipped by adherents of the (Indo-)Iranian religious tradition.[53][54] On his treatment of other religions, Xerxes followed the same policy as his predecessors; he appealed to local religious scholars, made sacrifices to local deities, and destroyed temples in cities and countries that caused disorder.[55]

Wives and children

Ahuramazda
crowns the scene.

By queen Amestris:

By unknown wives or mistresses:

Reception

Trilingual inscription of Xerxes at Van
(present-day Turkey)

Xerxes' presentation in Greek and Roman sources is largely negative and this set the tone for most subsequent depictions of him within the western tradition. Xerxes is a central character of Aeschylus' play The Persians, first performed in Athens in 472 BC, only seven years after his invasion of Greece. The play presents him as an effeminate figure and his hubristic effort to bring both Asia and Europe under his control leads to the ruin of both himself and his kingdom.[58]

Herodotus Histories, written later in the fifth century BC centre on the Persian Wars and Xerxes is a major figure. Some of Herodotus' information is spurious.[59][60] Pierre Briant has accused him of presenting a stereotyped and biased portrayal of the Persians.[61] Richard Stoneman regards his portrayal of Xerxes as nuanced and tragic, compared to the vilification that he suffered at the hands of the Macedonian king Alexander the Great (r. 336–323 BC).[62]

Xerxes is identified with the king Ahasuerus in the biblical Book of Esther,[63] which some scholars, including Eduard Schwartz, William Rainey Harper, and Michael V. Fox, consider to be historical romance.[64][65] There is nothing close to a consensus, however, as to what historical event provided the basis for the story.[66][67][68][69]

Xerxes is the protagonist of the opera

Ombra mai fù
" opens the opera.

The murder of Xerxes by Artabanus (Artabano), execution of crown prince Darius (Dario), revolt by Megabyzus (Megabise), and subsequent succession of

Johann Adolf Hasse and Johann Christian Bach.[70][71][72]

The historical novel Xerxes of de Hoogmoed (1919) by Dutch writer Louis Couperus describes the Persian wars from the perspective of Xerxes. Though the account is fictionalised, Couperus nevertheless based himself on an extensive study of Herodotus. The English translation Arrogance: The Conquests of Xerxes by Frederick H. Martens appeared in 1930.[73][74]

The Persian king in the Biblical Book of Esther is commonly thought to be Xerxes

Later generations' fascination with ancient Sparta, particularly the

anachronisms. Similarly, a highly satirized depiction of Xerxes based on his portrayal in 300 appears in the South Park episode "D-Yikes!
"

Other works dealing with the Persian Empire or the Biblical story of

, Xerxes featured as a short swordsman.

Xerxes (Ahasuerus) by Ernest Normand, 1888 (detail)

Gore Vidal, in his historical fiction novel Creation (1981), describes at length the rise of the Achaemenids, especially Darius I, and presents the life and death circumstances of Xerxes. Vidal's version of the Persian Wars, which diverges from the orthodoxy of the Greek histories, is told through the invented character of Cyrus Spitama, a half-Greek, half-Persian, and grandson of the prophet Zoroaster. Thanks to his family connection, Cyrus is brought up in the Persian court after the murder of Zoroaster, becoming the boyhood friend of Xerxes, and later a diplomat who is sent to India, and later to Greece, and who is thereby able to gain privileged access to many leading historical figures of the period.[76]

Xerxes (Ahasuerus) is portrayed by Richard Egan in the 1960 film Esther and the King and by Joel Smallbone in the 2013 film, The Book of Esther. In at least one of these films, the events of the Book of Esther are depicted as taking place upon Xerxes' return from Greece.[citation needed]

Xerxes plays an important background role (never making an appearance) in two short works of

Departures and "The Craft of War" by Lois Tilton in Alternate Generals volume 1 (edited by Turtledove).[citation needed
]

See also

Notes

  1. Old Persian: 𐎧𐏁𐎹𐎠𐎼𐏁𐎠 Xšayār̥šā also Khshayārsha;[3] Greek
    : Ξέρξης Xérxēs

References

  1. Darius I
    .
  2. , pp. 220–221
  3. ^ Littman, R. J.. "The Religious Policy of Xerxes and the 'Book of Esther'". The Jewish Quarterly Review, January 1975, New Series, Vol. 65, No. 3, footnote 2, accessed 30 December 2022
  4. ^ .
  5. ^ a b Marciak 2017, p. 80; Schmitt 2000
  6. ^ Schmitt 2000.
  7. ^ Llewellyn-Jones 2017, p. 70.
  8. ^ Waters 1996, pp. 11, 18.
  9. ^ Briant 2002, p. 132.
  10. ^ Briant 2002, p. 520.
  11. ^ Stoneman 2015, p. 1.
  12. ^ "vase (inv.65.4695) - inv.65.4695, BnF". medaillesetantiques.bnf.fr (in French).
  13. ^ a b c Stoneman 2015, p. 27.
  14. ^ a b c Stoneman 2015, p. 28.
  15. ^ a b c Stoneman 2015, p. 29.
  16. ^ a b Dandamayev 1989, p. 183.
  17. ^ Dandamayev 1989, pp. 178–179.
  18. ^ Herodotus 7.1–5
  19. ^ R. Shabani Chapter I, p. 15
  20. ^ Olmstead: The history of Persian empire
  21. ^ The Cambridge History of Iran vol. 2. p. 509.
  22. ^ Dandamayev 1989, p. 180.
  23. Encyclopaedia Iranica
    .
  24. ^ . Retrieved 17 December 2022. According to Herodotus (7.2-3) Atossa played a prominent role in the selection of Xerxes as heir to the throne.
  25. ^ The Cambridge Ancient History vol. V p. 72.
  26. ^ a b c d Briant 2002, p. 525.
  27. ^ Dandamayev 1983, p. 414.
  28. ^ a b c d e Dandamayev 1993, p. 41.
  29. ^ Stoneman 2015, p. 111.
  30. ^ Dandamayev 1989, pp. 185–186.
  31. ^ Sancisi-Weerdenburg 2002, p. 579.
  32. ^ Deloucas 2016, p. 39.
  33. ^ Waerzeggers & Seire 2018, p. 3.
  34. ^ Briant 2002, p. 544.
  35. ^ Deloucas 2016, p. 40.
  36. ^ Deloucas 2016, p. 41.
  37. ^ Soldiers with names, after Walser
  38. ^ The Achaemenid Empire in South Asia and Recent Excavations in Akra in Northwest Pakistan Peter Magee, Cameron Petrie, Robert Knox, Farid Khan, Ken Thomas p. 713
  39. ^ Naqš-e-Rostam – Encyclopaedia Iranica.
  40. , p. 77
  41. ^ Bailkey, Nels, ed. Readings in Ancient History, p. 175. D.C. Heath and Co., 1992.
  42. ^ G. Mafodda, La monarchia di Gelone tra pragmatismo, ideologia e propaganda, (Messina, 1996) pp. 119–136
  43. ^ Barkworth, 1993. "The Organization of Xerxes' Army." Iranica Antiqua Vol. 27, pp. 149–167
  44. ^ Martin Steskal, Der Zerstörungsbefund 480/79 der Athener Akropolis. Eine Fallstudie zum etablierten Chronologiegerüst, Verlag Dr. Kovač, Hamburg, 2004
  45. ^ Herodotus VIII, 97
  46. ^ "Bêl-šimânni and Šamaš-eriba – Livius". livius.org. Archived from the original on 22 June 2015. Retrieved 7 September 2016.
  47. ^ Ghirshman, Iran, p. 172
  48. ^ Fergusson, James. A History of Architecture in All Countries, from the Earliest Times to the Present Day: 1. Ancient architecture. 2. Christian architecture. xxxi, 634 p. front., illus. p. 211.
  49. ^ Herodotus VII.11
  50. ^ Iran-e-Bastan/Pirnia book 1 p. 873
  51. ^ Dandamayev
  52. ^ History of Persian Empire, Olmstead pp. 289/90
  53. ^ a b c Malandra 2005.
  54. ^ Boyce 1984, pp. 684–687.
  55. ^ Briant 2002, p. 549.
  56. ^ Ctesias
  57. ^ M. Brosius, Women in ancient Persia.
  58. ^ Hall 1993, p. 118-127.
  59. ^ Briant 2002, p. 57.
  60. ^ Radner 2013, p. 454.
  61. ^ Briant 2002, pp. 158, 516.
  62. ^ Stoneman 2015, p. 2.
  63. ^ Stoneman 2015, p. 9.
  64. .
  65. .
  66. ^ "Book of Esther | Summary & Facts". 8 August 2023.
  67. ^ McCullough, W. S. (28 July 2011) [15 December 1984]. "Ahasureus". Encyclopædia Iranica. Retrieved 3 April 2020. There may be some factual nucleus behind the Esther narrative, but the book in its present form displays such inaccuracies and inconsistencies that it must be described as a piece of historical fiction.
  68. . Like the Joseph story in Genesis and the book of Daniel, it is a fictional piece of prose writing involving the interaction between foreigners and Hebrews/Jews.
  69. ^ Hirsch, Emil G.; Dyneley Prince, John; Schechter, Solomon (1906). Singer, Isidor; Adler, Cyrus (eds.). "Esther". Jewish Encyclopedia. Retrieved 25 April 2020. The vast majority of modern expositors have reached the conclusion that the book is a piece of pure fiction, although some writers qualify their criticism by an attempt to treat it as a historical romance.
  70. ^ "Johann Adolph Hasse | German composer". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  71. ^ "Metastasio's Musicians: Music In The Seventeenth And Eighteenth Centuries". Oxford Western Music. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  72. ^ "Christer Malmbergs värld - Musik – Klassisk musik – Johann Christian Bach". christermalmberg.se. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  73. ^ "Xerxes, of De hoogmoed". www.bibliotheek.nl. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  74. ISBN 978-1-884964-36-7.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link
    )
  75. ^ Boucher, Geoff. "Frank Miller returns to the '300' battlefield with 'Xerxes': 'I make no apologies whatsoever'". The Los Angeles Times. 1 June 2010. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
  76. ^ Gore Vidal, Creation: A Novel (Random House, 1981)

Bibliography

Ancient sources

Modern sources

External links

Xerxes I
Born: c. 519 BC Died: 465 BC
Preceded by
King of Kings of Persia

486–465 BC
Succeeded by
Artaxerxes I
Pharaoh of Egypt
XXVII Dynasty
486–465 BC