Cyrus the Great

Cyrus the Great created the first Persian Empire and remains one of the world's most impressive rulers and military campaigners.

Cyrus the Great created the first Persian Empire in the 500s BCE, and sealed his pre-eminence as one of the greatest founders of empire. He conquered all major civilizations in his region and his influence reached from the Balkans in the West to the Indus river in the East. His brilliant campaigns brought vast wealth and grandeur to his homeland and a reputation for military leadership that has stood the test of time.

FLAME TREE 451. The bestselling paperback series on myths, legends, warriors, leaders and epic literature. Although Norse, Greek and Celtic mythology dominate the popular imagination in Western countries, there are so many other tradition around the world that contribute to the rich exploration of our collective past and create new perspectives on events of the past, and the lessons of the future.

Ian Macgregor Morris (Editing and Introduction) is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Salzburg, and a Visiting Research Fellow at the Netherlands Institute for the Near East at the University of Leiden. He has published extensively on Achaemenid Persia, Sparta, early modern political culture and the classical tradition. He is currently working on a study of the Persian king Xerxes, and is editing Brill’s Companion to the Spartan Tradition; and recently served as consultant and primary contributor on Finding Sparta's 300 (Unearthed, Season 5, Ep. 06: Discovery Science Channel).

Jackson is General Editor of The World's Greatest Myths and Legends series, with titles including 'Myths of Babylon', 'Indian Myth', 'Egyptian Myth', 'Norse Myth' and 'Polynesian Island Myth'. He is editor of 'Myths and Legends' and foreword writer for 'Celtic Myths and Tales'. Other related work includes articles on the Philosophy of Time, 'Macbeth, A Gothic Chaos' and William Blake's use of mythology in his visionary literature.