Editing Darius the Great (section)

==Government==

===Organization===
{{further|Districts of the Achaemenid Empire}}
[[File:Tribute in the Achaemenid Empire.jpg|thumb|350px|Volume of annual tribute per district, in the Achaemenid Empire.<ref name=HIII>Herodotus [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Herodotus/3D*.html Book III, 89–95]</ref><ref name=ZA>{{cite book |last1=Archibald |first1=Zosia |last2=Davies |first2=John K. |last3=Gabrielsen |first3=Vincent |title=The Economies of Hellenistic Societies, Third to First Centuries BC |date=2011 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-958792-6 |page=404 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w9YUDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA404 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Iranica – Achaemenid Relations">{{cite web |title=India Relations: Achaemenid Period – Encyclopaedia Iranica |url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/india-iii-relations-achaemenid-period |website=iranicaonline.org }}</ref>]]

Early in his reign, Darius wanted to reorganize the structure of the empire and reform the system of taxation he inherited from Cyrus and Cambyses. To do this, Darius created twenty provinces called [[satrapies]] (or ''archi'') which were each assigned to a [[satrap]] (''archon'') and specified fixed [[tribute]]s that the satrapies were required to pay.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} [[List of revenues of Darius I of Persia|A complete list]] is preserved in the catalogue of Herodotus, beginning with Ionia and listing the other satrapies from west to east excluding [[Persis]], which was the land of the Persians and the only province which was not a conquered land.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} Tributes were paid in both silver and gold talents. Tributes in silver from each satrap were measured with the Babylonian [[Talent (measurement)|talent]].{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} Those paid in gold were measured with the [[Euboea|Euboic]] talent.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} The total tribute from the satraps came to an amount less than 15,000 silver talents.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}}

The majority of the satraps were of [[Persian people|Persian]] origin and were members of the royal house or the six great noble families.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} These satraps were personally picked by Darius to monitor these provinces. Each of the provinces was divided into sub-provinces, each having its own governor, who was chosen either by the royal court or by the satrap.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} To assess tributes, a commission evaluated the expenses and revenues of each satrap.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} To ensure that one person did not gain too much power, each satrap had a secretary, who observed the affairs of the state and communicated with Darius; a treasurer, who safeguarded provincial revenues; and a garrison commander, who was responsible for the troops.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} Additionally, royal inspectors, who were the "eyes and ears" of Darius, completed further checks on each satrap.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}}

The imperial administration was coordinated by the chancery with headquarters at Persepolis, Susa, and Babylon with Bactria, Ecbatana, Sardis, Dascylium and Memphis having branches.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} Darius kept [[Aramaic]] as the common language, which soon spread throughout the empire.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} However, Darius gathered a group of scholars to create a separate language system only used for Persis and the Persians, which was called Aryan script and was only used for official inscriptions.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} Before this, the accomplishments of the king were addressed in Persian solely through narration and hymns and through the "masters of memory".{{sfn|Briant|2002|pp=126–127}} Indeed, oral history continued to play an important role throughout the history of Iran.{{sfn|Briant|2002|pp=126–127}}

===Economy===
{{see also|Achaemenid coinage}}
[[File:Daric coin of the Achaemenid Empire (Darius I to Xerxes II).jpg|thumb|right|Gold [[Persian daric|daric]], minted at [[Sardis]]]]

Darius introduced a new universal currency, the [[Persian daric|daric]], sometime before 500 BCE.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} Darius used the coinage system as a transnational currency to regulate trade and commerce throughout his empire. The Daric was also recognized beyond the borders of the empire, in places such as Celtic Central Europe and Eastern Europe. There were two types of darics, a gold daric and a silver daric. Only the king could mint gold darics. Important generals and satraps minted silver darics, the latter usually to recruit Greek mercenaries in [[Anatolia]]. The daric was a major boost to international trade. Trade goods such as textiles, carpets, tools and [[metalworking|metal objects]] began to travel throughout Asia, Europe and Africa. To further improve trade, Darius built the [[Royal Road]], a postal system and Phoenician-based commercial shipping.

The daric also improved government revenues as the introduction of the daric made it easier to collect new taxes on land, livestock and marketplaces. This led to the registration of land which was measured and then taxed. The increased government revenues helped maintain and improve existing infrastructure and helped fund [[irrigation]] projects in dry lands. This new tax system also led to the formation of state banking and the creation of banking firms. One of the most famous banking firms was [[Murashu and Sons|Murashu Sons]], based in the Babylonian city of [[Nippur]].{{sfn|Farrokh|2007|p=65}} These banking firms provided loans and credit to clients.{{sfn|Farrokh|2007|pp=65–66}}

In an effort to further improve trade, Darius built canals, underground [[Traditional water sources of Persian antiquity|waterways]] and a powerful navy.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} According to Herodotus, qanat irrigation technology was introduced to Egypt, which is supported by the historian [[Albert T. Olmstead]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Olmstead |first=A. T. |url=https://isac.uchicago.edu/sites/default/files/uploads/shared/docs/history_persian_empire.pdf |title=History of the Persian Empire |publisher=[[The University of Chicago Press]] |year=1948 |isbn=0-226-62777-2 |pages=224 |language=en-US}}</ref> He further improved and expanded the network of roads and [[Angarium|way stations]] throughout the empire, so that there was a system of travel authorization for the King, satraps and other high officials, which entitled the traveller to draw provisions at daily stopping places.{{sfn|Konecky|2008|p=86}}{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}}

===Religion===
{{quote box|quote="By the grace of Ahuramazda am I king; Ahuramazda has granted me the kingdom."<br>— Darius, on the [[Behistun Inscription]]|width=30%}}
{{multiple image
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| header        = Darius at Behistun
| image1        = Behistun relief Darius.jpg
| caption1      = Darius on the [[Behistun Inscription]] reliefs
| image2        = Behistun Darius the Great.jpg
| caption2      = Crowned head of Darius at Behistun
}}

While there is no general consensus in scholarship whether Darius and his predecessors had been influenced by [[Zoroastrianism]],{{sfn|Malandra|2005}} it is well established that Darius was a firm believer in [[Ahura Mazda]], whom he saw as the supreme deity.{{sfn|Malandra|2005}}{{sfn|Briant|2002|p=126}} However, Ahura Mazda was also worshipped by adherents of the [[Indo-Iranians|(Indo-)Iranian]] religious tradition.{{sfn|Malandra|2005}}{{sfn|Boyce|1984|pp=684–687}} As can be seen at the [[Behistun Inscription]], Darius believed that Ahura Mazda had appointed him to rule the Achaemenid Empire.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}}

Darius had dualistic philosophical convictions and believed that each rebellion in his kingdom was the work of druj, the enemy of [[Asha]]. Darius believed that because he lived righteously by Asha, Ahura Mazda supported him.{{sfn|Boyce|1979|p=55}} In many [[cuneiform]] inscriptions denoting his achievements, he presents himself as a devout believer, perhaps even convinced that he had a divine right to rule over the world.{{sfn|Boyce|1979|pp=54–55}} However, his relationship with the deity was far more complex: in one inscription he writes "Ahura Mazda is mine, I am Ahura Mazda's".

In the lands that were conquered by his empire, Darius followed the same Achaemenid tolerance that Cyrus had shown and later Achaemenid kings would show.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} He supported faiths and religions that were "alien" as long as the adherents were "submissive and peaceable", sometimes giving them grants from his treasury for their purposes.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}}{{sfn|Boyce|1979|p=56}} He had funded the restoration of the [[Second Temple|Israelite temple]] which had originally been decreed by Cyrus, was supportive towards Greek cults which can be seen in his letter to Gadatas, and supported Elamite priests.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} He had also observed Egyptian religious rites related to kingship and had built the temple for the Egyptian god, [[Amun]].{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}}

===Building projects===
[[File:History of Egypt, Chaldea, Syria, Babylonia and Assyria (1903) (14584070300).jpg|thumb|Reconstruction drawing of the [[Palace of Darius in Susa]]]]
[[File:Persepolis - Tachara 01.jpg|thumb|The ruins of [[Tachara]] palace in [[Persepolis]]]]
Early on, Darius and his advisors had the idea to establish new royal mansions at Susa and Persepolis because he was eager to demonstrate his newfound power and leave a lasting legacy. Since Cyrus's conquest, Susa's urban layout had remained unchanged, maintaining the layout from the Elamite era. Only during Darius's rule does the archaeological evidence at Susa start showing any signs of an Achaemenid layout.{{sfn|Briant|2002|p=165}}

During [[First Persian invasion of Greece|Darius's Greek expedition]], he had begun construction projects in Susa, [[History of Achaemenid Egypt|Egypt]] and [[Persepolis]]. The [[Darius Canal]] that connected the [[Nile]] to the [[Red Sea]] was constructed by him. It ran from present-day [[Zagazig]] in the eastern [[Nile Delta]] through [[Wadi Tumilat]], [[Lake Timsah]], and [[Great Bitter Lake]], which are both close to present-day [[Suez]]. To open this canal, he travelled to Egypt in 497 BCE, where the inauguration was carried out with great fanfare and celebration. Darius also built a canal to connect the Red Sea and [[Mediterranean Sea|Mediterranean]].{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}}{{sfn|Spielvogel|2009|p=49}} On this visit to Egypt he erected [[Darius the Great's Suez Inscriptions|monuments]] and executed [[Aryandes]] on the charge of treason. When Darius returned to Persis, he found that the codification of Egyptian law had been finished.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}}

In Egypt, Darius built many temples and restored those that had previously been destroyed. Even though Darius was a believer of Ahura Mazda, he built temples dedicated to the Gods of the [[Ancient Egyptian religion]]. Several temples found were dedicated to [[Ptah]] and [[Nekhbet]]. Darius also created several roads and routes in Egypt. The monuments that Darius built were often inscribed in the official languages of the Persian Empire, [[Old Persian]], [[Elamite]] and [[Akkadian language|Babylonian]] and [[Egyptian hieroglyphs]]. To construct these monuments, Darius employed a large number of workers and artisans of diverse nationalities. Several of these workers were deportees who had been employed specifically for these projects. These deportees enhanced the empire's economy and improved inter-cultural relations.{{sfn|Shahbazi|1994|pp=41–50}} At the time of Darius's death construction projects were still under way. Xerxes completed these works and in some cases expanded his father's projects by erecting new buildings of his own.{{sfn|Boardman|1988|p=76}}

<gallery widths="200px" heights="200px" perrow="4">
File:National Meusem Darafsh 6 (42).JPG|[[Egyptian statue of Darius I]], as Pharaoh of the [[Twenty-seventh Dynasty of Egypt]];<ref>{{cite book |last1=Razmjou |first1=Shahrokh |title=Ars orientalis; the arts of Islam and the East |date=1954 |publisher=Freer Gallery of Art |pages=[https://archive.org/details/arsorient323320022003univ/page/n95/mode/2up 81]–101 |url=https://archive.org/details/arsorient323320022003univ/page/n95/mode/2up}}</ref> 522–486 BCE; [[greywacke]]; height: 2.46 m;<ref name=":0">{{cite book |last1=livius.org |url=https://www.livius.org/articles/person/darius-the-great/9-death/ |title=Darius the Great: Death |publisher=Thames & Hudson |year=2017 |isbn=978-0-500-20428-3 |page=280}}</ref> [[National Museum of Iran]] ([[Teheran]])
File:Flickr - isawnyu - Hibis, Temple Decorations (III).jpg|Darius as [[Pharaoh]] of Egypt at the [[Temple of Hibis]]
File:HibisGate3Dareios1AmunRaKamutef.jpg|Relief showing Darius I offering lettuces to the Egyptian deity [[Amun-Ra Kamutef]], [[Temple of Hibis]]
</gallery>