Persians
The Age of the Great Kings
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Narrated by:
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Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones
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Written by:
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Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones
About this listen
A stunning portrait of the magnificent splendor and enduring legacy of ancient Persia
The Achaemenid Persian kings ruled over the largest empire of antiquity, stretching from Libya to the steppes of Asia and from Ethiopia to Pakistan. From the palace-city of Persepolis, Cyrus the Great, Darius, Xerxes, and their heirs reigned supreme for centuries until the conquests of Alexander of Macedon brought the empire to a swift and unexpected end in the late 330s BCE.
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, a book that completely reshapes our understanding of the ancient world.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2022 Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones (P)2022 Basic BooksYou may also enjoy...
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- Anonymous User
- 2024-08-23
Depth and breath of content is immense.
Persian history is quite a thing to try and decipher and read over the years but this book by far has been the most concise and finely detailed texts on Persian History I’ve ever come across. As a Persian this was a real treat and I’m sure all fans of history would also agree.
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- Shiva Vosoughi
- 2022-12-23
Best Book Written About Persian Empire (Iran)
This is easily the best book written about the Persian Empire.
It had details that I had never heard ANYWHERE,
Now, after Messi won the World cup, the only other thing I need in life is Lioyd writing a Book about Ashkanians & then another one about Sassanians so it becomes a trilogy. there are zero books about those two on Audible.
Because I love the way he cuts deep into history year by year and presents his own comments AND all the other thesis about the matter.
The only part he missed was about the Shah (Ariamehr), in which he mentioned he's not charismatic and the 1979 Islamic revolution reasons, I think 1979 and what followed was the last cry for Islam in Iran not the new dawn, I think it was already on it's way out and mullas/Muslim Iranians had to do something before it's too late, not understanding this part is totally ok and understandable for a none Iranian. currently (2022) the last shah is extremely popular in Iran and is seen as a prophet figure. they use part of his speeches on their TikTok videos and is kinda a father figure for the gen z & millennials,
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