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History of Persia Podcast

99: Slaves of the King History of Persia

The Achaemenid Empire has a strange and complex history with enslavement. Today we separate fact and fiction both ancient and modern to discuss forced labor under Achaemenid rule.Patreon | Support Page | STORE Twitter | Facebook | InstagramSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/history-of-persia/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
  1. 99: Slaves of the King
  2. 98: Wars for the West
  3. 97: Bactria – Ruling the Later Empire
  4. Bonus 33 Preview
  5. 96: Ochus II

99: Slaves of the King

Fragment from the Samaria Papyri via Biblical Archaeology Review 4:1, March 1978

The Achaemenid Empire has a strange and complex history with enslavement. Today we separate fact and fiction both ancient and modern to discuss forced labor under Achaemenid rule.
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97: Bactria – Ruling the Later Empire

Aramaic letter from Akhvamazda directing Bagavant to build fortifications via Wikimedia

The Khaleeli Collection of Aramaic Documents from Achaemenid Bactria are an incredible and unique collection of Achaemenid records first revealed in 2012. They provide an otherwise impossible glimpse to Achaemenid rule in the northeastern provinces.
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96: Ochus II

Artabazos II as depicted on his own coinage via Wikimedia

The final years of Artaxerxes II were filled with turmoil and sadness, but when his son Ochus rose to power as Artaxerxes III, the Persian Empire entered a new age. The new Artaxerxes set out to repair and remake the empire as his own.
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95: The Holy Trinity

A column base from Hamadan (Ecbatana) where Artaxerxes II invokes Ahura Mazda, Mithra, and Anahita via Livius.org

As we approach the end of Artaxerxes II, it’s time to talk about his gods. All of a sudden, Anahita and Mithra began appearing alongside Ahura Mazda in royal inscriptions, but it turns out it may not have been so sudden after all.
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2022 Holiday Special: Mithra and Mehregan

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93: Ezra

Ezra Reads the Law to the People, Gustav Dore’s Illustrated English Bible, 1866

Now we go back in time to the seventh year of Artaxerxes, and we’ll explore the history of Ezra the Scribe as he compiled an official Jewish Torah on the Great King’s orders.
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Patreon Bonus 26: The Good Book

Patreon Bonus 27: Names and Dates

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92: Family Ties

A 4th Century BCE stele from Dascyleium depicting a Persian woman and her servants via Wikimedia

It’s time to take a step back and see what the royal family was up to in the decades following Cunaxa. Artaxerxes II married his daughters, meaning its time to discuss the controversial subject of Xwedodah. Then, it’s on to a bloody conflict in the shadows as the royal princes battle for their succession rights.
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A gold stater minted by Orontes during his time in Mysia, featuring his own portrait via Wikimedia

After years of quietly building up their strength, Ariobarzanes’ and Datames’ rebellion was out in the open, but unbeknownst to them, not all of their supposed allies were ready to abandon the Empire. Meanwhile, Greece and Egypt were both on the verge of war once again.
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A silver coin minted by Datames in Cilicia showing the rebel satrap with a faravahar (R) and the Cilician god Baaltars (L) via Wikimedia

As his generals struggled against Egypt, Artaxerxes dealt with their failures harshly – so harshly that his newest commander in the west rejected the Empire altogether. Fearing for his life whether he invaded Egypt or not, Datames quietly raised the rebel and tried to take all of Anatolia with him.
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