The Challenge from the East: the Persians Flashcards
Who was Cyrus the Great?
He was a king of Persia who implemented cavalry into the Persian military, as well as conquered many places to the East
Who was Darius?
He was a King of Persia who fought to take the West after reaching India in the East, and tried to invade Greece after Athens assisted in the Ionian revolts
What were the Ionian revolts?
Histiaeus convinced Ionians to revolt against Persia so he could be sent down to deal with them (he was bored of the court life) Athens assisted Ionia by sending forces, so Darius wanted to go after them
What was the Battle of Marathon?
c.490, Persians set up camp in the Plain of Marathon, ready to take on Athens. The Athenian army composed of 9,000 troops, including 1,000 Plataeans. They were afraid to attack the Persians as they had no cavalry. When the Athenians did attack, they had a line longer than the Persians to ensure they didn’t edge to the side - this resulted in the Persians pushing the Athenian centre back, but the flanks now encircled them, and victory was on the Greek side - only 192 Greeks died, 6,000 Persians (supposedly)
What was an ‘archer-pair’?
An archer firing from behind the cover of a large body-shield
What type of shields did the Persians use?
Large rectangular shields of thick leather, which were light and resilient; they were called spara
Who were sparabara?
Persian pavise-bearers, who carried a particular type of shield
How was the Persian army organized?
Into regiments of 1000 men, called hazarabam
Who were the ‘Immortals’?
The Persian King’s personal division of 10,000 ‘Immortals’
Why were they called the Immortals?
Because the division was unfailingly kept up to strength
What did Persian cavalrymen wear?
Median dress: trousers, a long-sleeved tunic reaching down to the knee, a sleeved cloak worn on the shoulders to leave the arms free
Who was Themistocles?
An Athenian politician and naval strategist who was the creator of the Athenian sea-power and chief saviour of Greece in the second Persian war
Who were the Medes?
Indo-Europeans located in Northern Iran
What weapons and armour did the Immortals have?
Bow, iron spears, large dagger, corselet of metal scales, shields covered in hide, but no helmet or leg protection
