The End Of The Achaemenid Empire
The Achaemenid Empire is renowned for its successful implementation of a centralized, bureaucratic administration model, its multicultural policy, the construction of infrastructure, including road and postal systems, the use of an official language throughout its territories, and the development of civil services, including its possession of a sizable, professional army. Its innovations encouraged the adoption of comparable forms of government by other succeeding empires. By 330 BC, Greek Macedonia, led by Alexander the Great, a fervent admirer of Cyrus the Great, had completely subdued the Achaemenid Empire. After the Partition of Triparadisus in 321 BC, the majority of the old empire's territory was ruled by the Ptolemaic Kingdom and the Seleucid Empire, signaling the start of the Hellenistic period. Hellenistic rule persisted until the central plateau elites of Iran attained power under the Parthian Empire.
King Darius I's son, Xerxes, succeeded him and ruled until 465 BC. The empire lost ground while he was in power. There were a number of causes for this. He was a brutal king, yet one of the reasons he fell to the Greeks early in the Persian Wars was because he was a weak man. There were additional sociological factors. As Xerxes was not a strong leader, the social structure of the empire began to collapse. The lower and middle classes banded together to plan riots and other forms of insurrection. Other officials quarreled over foreign policy as the satraps started to seriously disrupt the economy. All of this resulted in the power of the government being reduced.
The populace needed a king who could raise a powerful army and provide enough wealth to keep the infrastructure of the empire in working order. The economy deteriorated, there was little money for new construction or art, and taxes were raised by the government. This ultimately resulted in destitution. Trade suffered, crop production dropped, and Persia was unable to advance in science and education. The Achaemenid Empire collapsed as a result of all these circumstances.
