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EnglandAncient History

The Persian Empire, 559 to 465 BC

6 dot points across 6 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

How did Cambyses extend the empire, and how did Darius come to the throne amid a disputed succession?

Cambyses and the conquest of Egypt, the succession crisis after his death, and the accession of Darius I, studied through Herodotus Book 3 and the Behistun inscription, with the contradiction between the two accounts of how Darius took power.
An OCR GCSE Ancient History answer on Cambyses and the accession of Darius I, covering the conquest of Egypt in 525 BC, Herodotus's hostile portrait of the mad king, the succession crisis after Cambyses's death, and how Herodotus and the Behistun inscription give contradicting accounts of how Darius came to the throne.
14 min answer →

How did Darius I organise and hold together the largest empire the world had yet seen?

The reign of Darius I and the administration of the empire: the satrapy system, tribute and taxation, the Royal Road and communications, the king's ideology and the building programme at Persepolis and Susa as expressions of royal power.
An OCR GCSE Ancient History answer on the administration of the Persian empire under Darius I, covering the satrapy system, tribute and taxation, the Royal Road and the king's messengers, royal ideology and the building programmes at Persepolis and Susa, and how the Persepolis reliefs present subject peoples and royal power.
14 min answer →

Why did the Ionian Greeks revolt, and why did Darius's punitive expedition fail at Marathon?

The Ionian Revolt of 499 to 494 BC, Athenian involvement and the burning of Sardis, the Persian reconquest of Ionia, and Darius's first invasion of Greece ending in defeat at the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC, studied through Herodotus.
An OCR GCSE Ancient History answer on the Ionian Revolt of 499 to 494 BC and the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC, covering the causes of the revolt, Athenian help and the burning of Sardis, the Persian reconquest of Ionia, Darius's punitive expedition and why the Athenians won at Marathon, studied through Herodotus.
14 min answer →

What are the prescribed sources for the Persian Empire study, and how do you use Greek and Persian evidence together?

The prescribed sources for the Persian Empire period study: Herodotus as the main Greek literary narrative (and its problems), and the Persian material evidence (the Cyrus Cylinder, the Behistun inscription and the Persepolis reliefs), and how to weigh one kind against the other.
An OCR GCSE Ancient History guide to the prescribed sources for the Persian Empire period study, explaining how to use Herodotus as the main Greek literary narrative (and the problems of a later, pro-Greek, moralising author) alongside the Persian material evidence (the Cyrus Cylinder, the Behistun inscription and the Persepolis reliefs), and how to weigh Greek against Persian sources.
14 min answer →

How did Cyrus the Great turn a minor kingdom into the largest empire the world had yet seen?

The rise of Cyrus the Great and the foundation of the Persian empire: the conquest of Media, the defeat of Croesus of Lydia and the capture of Babylon, and how the Cyrus Cylinder presents his policy towards conquered peoples.
A focused answer to the rise of Cyrus the Great in OCR's GCSE Persian Empire period study, covering the conquest of Media, the defeat of Croesus of Lydia and the capture of Babylon, the policy of conciliation advertised by the Cyrus Cylinder, and how to read Herodotus as the main source for the founding of the empire.
14 min answer →

Why did Xerxes' vast invasion of Greece in 480 BC end in defeat?

The accession of Xerxes and his great invasion of Greece in 480 BC: the bridging of the Hellespont and the canal at Athos, the battles of Thermopylae and Artemisium, Salamis and Plataea, and the reasons for the Persian failure, studied through Herodotus Book 7.
An OCR GCSE Ancient History answer on the invasion of Greece by Xerxes in 480 BC, covering his preparations and the bridging of the Hellespont, Thermopylae and Artemisium, the decisive sea battle of Salamis and the land battle of Plataea, and why the great Persian invasion failed, studied through Herodotus Book 7.
15 min answer →