The Achaemenid Persian Empire: The History and Legacy of the Ancient Greeks’ Most Famous Enemy
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The Achaemenid Persian Empire: The History and Legacy of the Ancient Greeks’ Most Famous Enemy
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Narrated by:
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Colin Fluxman
About this listen
"By the favor of Ahuramazda these are the countries which I got into my possession along with this Persian people, which felt fear of me and bore me tribute : Elam, Media, Babylonia, Arabia, Assyria, Egypt, Armenia, Cappadocia, Lydia, the Greeks who are of the mainland and those who are by the sea, and countries which are across the sea, Sagartia, Parthia, Drangiana, Aria, Bactria, Sogdia, Chorasmia, Sattagydia, Arachosia, Hinduš, Gandara, Sacae, Maka." - An inscription on a terrace wall in Persepolis, circa 521 CE
Lying in the middle of a plain in modern day Iran is a forgotten ancient city: Persepolis. Built 2,500 years ago, it was known in its day as the richest city under the sun. Persepolis was the capital of Achaemenid Persian Empire, the largest empire the world had ever seen. But after its destruction, it was largely forgotten for nearly 2,000 years, and the lives and achievements of those who built it were almost entirely erased from history. Alexander the Great’s troops razed the city to the ground in a drunken riot to celebrate the conquest of the capital, after which time and sand buried it for centuries.
It was not until the excavations of the 1930s that many of the relics, reliefs, and clay tablets that offer so much information about ancient Persian life could be studied for the first time. Through archaeological remains, ancient texts, and work by a new generation of historians, a picture can today be built of the Achaemenid Persian Empire and their capital city of Persepolis. Although the city had been destroyed, the legacy of the Persians survived, even as they mostly remain an enigma to the West and are not nearly as well understood as the Greeks, Romans, or Egyptians. In a sense, the Achaemenid Persian Empire holds some of the most enduring mysteries of ancient civilization.
The Achaemenid Persian Empire: The History and Legacy of the Ancient Greeks’ Most Famous Enemy looks at one of history’s largest empires.
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-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 89
Published to coincide with Marathon's 2500th anniversary, a riveting history of the historic battle. The Battle of Marathon in 490 B.C. is not only understood as the most decisive event in the struggle between the Greeks and the Persians, but can also be seen as perhaps the most significant moment in our collective history. 10,000 Athenian citizens faced a Persian military force of more than 25,000.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Effectively evokes the world of ancient greece
- By Aaron on 11-02-10
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Carthage Must Be Destroyed
- The Rise and Fall of an Ancient Civilization
- By: Richard Miles
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 14 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 670
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 580
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 577
An epic history of a doomed civilization and a lost empire. The devastating struggle to the death between the Carthaginians and the Romans was one of the defining dramas of the ancient world. In an epic series of land and sea battles, both sides came close to victory before the Carthaginians finally succumbed and their capital city, history, and culture were almost utterly erased.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Outstanding! This is THE book on Carthage.
- By Haakon B. Dahl on 01-21-13
By: Richard Miles
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The Rise and Fall of Ancient Egypt
- By: Toby Wilkinson
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 18 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,090
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 949
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 944
In this landmark work, one of the world's most renowned Egyptologists tells the epic story of this great civilization, from its birth as the first nation-state to its final absorption into the Roman Empire - 3,000 years of wild drama, bold spectacle, and unforgettable characters. Award-winning scholar Toby Wilkinson captures not only the lavish pomp and artistic grandeur of this land of pyramids and pharaohs but for the first time reveals the constant propaganda and repression that were its foundations.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Well Written and Detailed
- By Matthew G. on 01-26-18
By: Toby Wilkinson
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The Spartacus War
- By: Barry Strauss
- Narrated by: Ray Grover
- Length: 6 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 253
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 207
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 208
The Spartacus War is the extraordinary story of the most famous slave rebellion in the ancient world, the fascinating true story behind a legend that has been the inspiration for novelists, filmmakers, and revolutionaries for 2,000 years. Starting with only 74 men, a gladiator named Spartacus incited a rebellion that threatened Rome itself.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Interesting
- By Jean on 08-02-15
By: Barry Strauss
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The War That Made the Roman Empire
- Antony, Cleopatra, and Octavian at Actium
- By: Barry Strauss
- Narrated by: Jacques Roy
- Length: 9 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 260
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 235
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 234
Following Caesar’s assassination and Mark Antony’s defeat of the conspirators who killed Caesar, two powerful men remained in Rome—Antony and Caesar’s chosen heir, young Octavian, the future Augustus. When Antony fell in love with the most powerful woman in the world, Egypt’s ruler Cleopatra, and thwarted Octavian’s ambition to rule the empire, another civil war broke out. In 31 BC one of the largest naval battles in the ancient world took place—more than 600 ships, almost 200,000 men, and one woman—the Battle of Actium.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Highly detailed accounts
- By LEE on 03-28-22
By: Barry Strauss
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Istanbul
- City of Majesty at the Crossroads of the World
- By: Thomas F. Madden
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 14 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 283
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 248
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 248
For more than two millennia, Istanbul has stood at the crossroads of the world, perched at the very tip of Europe, gazing across the shores of Asia. The history of this city - known as Byzantium, then Constantinople, now Istanbul - is at once glorious, outsized, and astounding. Founded by the Greeks, its location blessed it as a center for trade but also made it a target of every empire in history, from Alexander the Great and his Macedonian Empire, to the Romans and later the Ottomans.
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1 out of 5 stars
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A History Without People
- By SeanO on 04-02-19
By: Thomas F. Madden
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The History of the Ancient World
- From the Earliest Accounts to the Fall of Rome
- By: Susan Wise Bauer
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 26 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,589
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,887
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,860
This is the first volume in a bold new series that tells the stories of all peoples, connecting historical events from Europe to the Middle East to the far coast of China, while still giving weight to the characteristics of each country. Susan Wise Bauer provides both sweeping scope and vivid attention to the individual lives that give flesh to abstract assertions about human history. This narrative history employs the methods of "history from beneath" - literature, epic traditions, private letters, and accounts - to connect kings and leaders with the lives of those they ruled.
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5 out of 5 stars
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An Historic Achievement
- By Ellen S. Wilds on 04-25-14
By: Susan Wise Bauer
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Hadrian's Wall
- By: Adrian Goldsworthy
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 3 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 132
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 118
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 118
Stretching 80 miles from coast to coast across northern England, Hadrian's Wall is the largest Roman artifact known today. It is commonly viewed as a defiant barrier, the end of the empire, a place where civilization stopped and barbarism began. In fact, the massive structure remains shrouded in mystery. Was the wall intended to keep out the Picts, who inhabited the North? Or was it merely a symbol of Roman power and wealth? What was life like for soldiers stationed along its expanse? How was the extraordinary structure built - with what technology, skills, and materials?
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5 out of 5 stars
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Makes me want to Go there.
- By John Ciccariello on 06-07-18
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Alexander the Great
- Journey to the End of the Earth
- By: Norman F. Cantor
- Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
- Length: 4 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 439
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 382
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Story4 out of 5 stars 380
In this succinct portrait of Alexander the Great, distinguished scholar and historian Norman Cantor draws on the major writings of Alexander's contemporaries, as well as the most recent psychological and cultural studies to illuminate this most legendary of men - a great figure in the ancient world whose puzzling personality greatly fueled his military accomplishments.
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5 out of 5 stars
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FIVE STAR BOOK!!!!
- By Fun Lovin Lady on 09-25-12
By: Norman F. Cantor
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The Rise of Athens
- The Story of the World's Greatest Civilization
- By: Anthony Everitt
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 16 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 617
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 544
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 542
Filled with tales of adventure and astounding reversals of fortune, The Rise of Athens celebrates the city-state that transformed the world - from the democratic revolution that marked its beginning through the city's political and cultural golden age to its decline into the ancient equivalent of a modern-day university town. Anthony Everitt constructs his history with unforgettable portraits of the talented, tricky, ambitious, and unscrupulous Athenians who fueled the city's rise.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Good but not great. With some disturbing opinions.
- By Anthony on 06-25-19
By: Anthony Everitt
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The Rise of Rome
- The Making of the World's Greatest Empire
- By: Anthony Everitt
- Narrated by: Clive Chafer
- Length: 14 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 491
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 425
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 417
Emerging as a market town from a cluster of hill villages in the eighth and seventh centuries B.C., Rome grew to become the ancient world's preeminent power. Everitt fashions the story of Rome's rise to glory into an erudite book filled with lasting lessons for our time. He chronicles the clash between patricians and plebeians that defined the politics of the Republic. He shows how Rome's shrewd strategy of offering citizenship to her defeated subjects was instrumental in expanding the reach of her burgeoning empire.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Rome from the fall of Troy through Julius Caesar
- By Mike From Mesa on 12-11-12
By: Anthony Everitt
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Justinian's Flea
- Plague, Empire, and the Birth of Europe
- By: William Rosen
- Narrated by: Barrett Whitener
- Length: 11 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 438
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 236
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Story4 out of 5 stars 236
The emperor Justinian reunified Rome's fractured empire by defeating the Goths and Vandals. At his capital in Constantinople, he built the world's most beautiful building, married the most powerful empress, and wrote the empire's most enduring legal code, seemingly restoring Rome's fortunes for the next five hundred years. Then, in the summer of 542, he encountered a flea. The ensuing outbreak of bubonic plague killed 5,000 people a day in Constantinople and nearly killed Justinian himself.
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5 out of 5 stars
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More history than Disease
- By joan on 06-25-07
By: William Rosen
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The Grand Strategy of Classical Sparta
- The Persian Challenge
- By: Paul A. Rahe
- Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
- Length: 14 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 217
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 203
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 199
More than 2,500 years ago, a confederation of small Greek city-states defeated the invading armies of Persia, the most powerful empire in the world. In this meticulously researched study, historian Paul Rahe argues that Sparta was responsible for the initial establishment of the Hellenic defensive coalition and was, in fact, the most essential player in its ultimate victory.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Excellent Investigation Undermined by Bad Editing
- By Richard on 02-12-16
By: Paul A. Rahe
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Persians
- The Age of the Great Kings
- By: Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones
- Narrated by: Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones
- Length: 18 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 163
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 146
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 148
The Achaemenid Persian kings ruled over the largest empire of antiquity, stretching from Libya to the steppes of Asia and from Ethiopia to Pakistan. In Persians, historian Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones tells the epic story of this dynasty and the world it ruled. Drawing on Iranian inscriptions, cuneiform tablets, art, and archaeology, he shows how the Achaemenid Persian Empire was the world’s first superpower—one built, despite its imperial ambition, on cooperation and tolerance. This is the definitive history of the Achaemenid dynasty and its legacies in modern-day Iran.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Good History and Historiography
- By David A on 04-19-22
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Thermopylae
- By: Paul Cartledge
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 6 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 134
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 74
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Story4 out of 5 stars 70
In 480 B.C., a huge Persian army, led by the inimitable King Xerxes, entered the mountain pass of Thermopylae to march on Greece, intending to conquer the land with little difficulty. But the Greeks, led by King Leonidas and a small army of Spartans, took the battle to the Persians at Thermopylae and halted their advance: almost. It is one of history's most acclaimed battles, one of civilization's greatest last stands.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Requires full attention
- By Euryleia on 01-18-08
By: Paul Cartledge
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The Vikings and Their Enemies
- Warfare in Northern Europe, 750-1100
- By: Philip Line
- Narrated by: Robert Fass
- Length: 13 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 386
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 338
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Story4 out of 5 stars 338
A fresh account of some of history's greatest warriors. The Vikings had an extraordinary and far-reaching historical impact. From the eighth to the 11th centuries, they ranged across Europe - raiding, exploring, and colonizing - and their presence was felt as far away as Russia and Byzantium. They are most famous as warriors, yet perhaps their talent for warfare is too little understood.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Remarkable and comprehensive
- By Harald on 02-04-19
By: Philip Line