58: Persia's First Family
As the reign of another king draw's toward a close, it's time to look at the royal family. Xerxes' household was like a microcosm of early Achaemenid history. His mother, Atossa, drew a direct connect...
4 Sep 202139min
57: Xerxes at Home
It's time to return to the imperial heartland and tour the "city" that Xerxes' built. The foundations may have been laid by Darius, but Xerxes was the one who turned Persepolis from a construction pro...
14 Aug 202132min
56: Domestic Affairs
As the war with the Greeks drags on into obscurity, it is time to investigate what was happening inside the empire under Xerxes. In the far west, most territories slipped from Persian control complete...
25 Juli 202148min
55: Still Loud on the Western Front
After the Persian defeat at Mycale, the stories of the Greco-Persian war get less dramatic, but the war itself did not come to an end. Late 479 BCE saw the beginning of Greek offensives in Persian ter...
10 Juli 202136min
54: Two By "Sea"
Supposedly on the same day as the Battle of Plataea, another battle was unfolding at the foot of Mount Mycale (modern Mount Dilek). The Greek fleet agreed to aid Samian rebels against Persia and saile...
15 Juni 202131min
53: One By Land
After a year of relative success, the Persian occupation of northern Greece received its second massive defeat. For the first time, the Hellenic League managed to field the full might of a Greek army ...
24 Maj 202143min
Interview: Sean Manning
I sat down with Dr. Sean Manning, author of the new book: Armed Force in the Teispid-Achaemenid Empire: Past Approaches, Future Prospects to discuss the military might of the Persian Empire (and why i...
10 Maj 202159min
52: The Adventure Continues
At the end of 480 BCE, there was a lull in the conflict between the Greeks and Persians, but not a stop. The Peloponnesians went home. The Athenians raided the Aegean. Xerxes took most of his troops b...
24 Apr 202142min
