Editing Medes (section)

== History ==
=== Origins ===
At the end of the 2nd millennium BC, the Iranian tribes emerged in the region of northwest Iran. These tribes expanded their control over larger areas.<ref>{{Harvnb|Diakonoff|1985|pp=36–41}}</ref> [[Iranian peoples|Iranian]] tribes were present in western and northwestern Iran from at least the 12th or 11th centuries BC. But the significance of Iranian elements in these regions were established from the beginning of the second half of the 8th century BC.<ref name=dandamaev-lukonin-2-3>{{Harvnb|Dandamaev|Lukonin|Kohl|Dadson|2004|pp=2–3}}</ref> By this time the Iranian tribes were the majority in what later become the territory of the Median Kingdom and also the west of [[Media (region)|Media proper]].<ref name=dandamaev-lukonin-2-3/> A study of textual sources from the region shows that in the Neo-Assyrian period, the regions of Media, and further to the west and the northwest, had a population with Iranian speaking people as the majority.<ref>{{Harvnb|Zadok|2002|p=140}}</ref>

In western and northwestern Iran and in areas further west prior to Median rule, there is evidence of the earlier political activity of the powerful societies of Elam, Mannaea, [[Assyria]] and [[Urartu]].<ref name="dandamaev-lukonin-2-3" /> There are various and updated opinions on the positions and activities of Iranian tribes in these societies prior to the "major Iranian state formations" in the late 7th century BC.<ref name="dandamaev-lukonin-2-3" /> One opinion (of Herzfeld, ''et al.'') is that the ruling class were "Iranian migrants" but the society was "autonomous" while another opinion (of Grantovsky, ''et al.'') holds that both the ruling class and basic elements of the population were Iranian.<ref>{{Harvnb|Dandamaev|Lukonin|Kohl|Dadson|2004|p=3}}</ref>

The Medes first appear on the historical scene in the 9th century BCE, when they are mentioned in contemporary Assyrian texts. By this time, it is highly likely that Indo-Iranian-speaking peoples had already settled in Western Iran at least some 500 years — if not 1,000 years — prior to this period. Most scholars believe that the arrival of Indo-Iranian speaking populations into Western Iran was not the result of one mass migration, but instead small groups of nomadic pastoralists gradually infiltrated the region from the northeast over a long period of time, perhaps dating back to the early 2nd millennium BCE. These pastoralist groups gave rise to diverse cultural and linguistic groups, with one such group eventually coalescing into the people referred to by the Assyrians as the Medes.<ref name=":1" /> From the 9th century BCE onwards the Medes were well established in Western Iran and frequently clashed with the Assyrians, their powerful neighbors to the west.

=== Assyrian intervention in Median territories ===
The [[Zagros Mountains]] and the [[Iranian Plateau]] were politically fragmented in the extreme. The Assyrian sources of the 8th and 7th centuries BCE tell of a bewildering number of kings and chieftains who ruled areas of different sizes, most of which seem to have been very small. In referring to the Median rulers, the Assyrian texts use the title ''bēl āli'' (meaning "city lord"), a term for petty rulers who were not important enough to be called kings. Since there's no very large settlements in Median territory, ''bēl āli'' is sometimes translated as "chief" or "chieftain". From the Assyrian perspective, the Medes were a strange people living beyond the eastern fringes of the civilized world. [[Shalmaneser III]] (858-824 BC) was the first Assyrian king who made serious efforts to extend the power of his kingdom beyond the reaches of northern Mesopotamia, and he was the first Assyrian king to reach the Iranian Plateau. Although his army operated near Median territories in 843, 827, and 826 BCE, the Medes are not mentioned in the reports on these campaigns. Only once, in 834, did Shalmaneser sally forth from [[Parsua]] in order to attack four settlements in the regions of "Messi, Amadaya, Araziaš and Harhar." Among these, Amadaya can be identified as Media. Shalmaneser's attack was, however, a mere side show without any consequences since Media was not the focus of Shalmaneser's attention.

The Assyrian interest in the Iranian highlands probably stemmed from their need for horses to supply the chariots and cavalry of their armed forces. For most of the 9th century BCE, the Assyrians found what they needed in the Zagros Mountains, in areas closer to the Assyrian heartland and more accessible. However, the situation changed when the kingdom of [[Urartu]] expanded into the areas south of [[Lake Urmia]], thus cutting off Assyria's most convenient connection with central Iran. This prompted Assyria to seek new and more reliable access routes connecting Assyria with horse-breeding areas far from Urartian interference. This attracted Assyria's attention to the Medes, renowned for their wealth of horses. In a campaign in 819 or 818 BCE, [[Shamshi-Adad V]] (823-811 BCE) led Assyrian forces deep into western Iran. Advancing through Mesa, Gizilbunda, Mataya (Media), and Araziaš, he followed the path previously taken by Shalmaneser III in 834 BCE. During this expedition, Assyrian forces encountered and fought a ruler named Hanaşiruka in Media. According to Shamshi-Adad's inscriptions, they purportedly killed 2,300 of Hanaşiruka's warriors and 140 cavalrymen, and Hanaşiruka's royal city of Sagbita was destroyed, along with 1,200 other settlements. However, considering later campaigns in the region, these figures seem exaggerated. Hanaşiruka fared better than his neighboring rulers, the king of Gizilbunda and the ruler of Araziaš. Hanaşiruka not only survived the assault but also did not submit to the Assyrian king and apparently had no booty taken from his land. While only a fraction of the Median territories was affected by Shamshi-Adad's incursion, this marked the first of a series of Assyrian attempts to exert its power over the horse breeders of western Iran. Between 810 and 766 BCE, at least seven and possibly as many as nine Assyrian campaigns were directed against Media, climaxing in the years 793-787 BCE when [[Nergal-ila'i]], the commander-in-chief of [[Adad-nirari III]] (810-783 BCE), led no fewer than five expeditions east-ward.<ref name=":0" />

The earliest Assyrian incursions into the Zagros region seem to have focused mainly on plunder. It is only under the king [[Tiglath-Pileser III]] (744-727 BCE) and his successors that the Assyrians attempted to take direct control of Median territory by founding new Assyrian provinces in the western Zagros. They also converted some Median towns to Assyrian centers, renaming them with the prefix ''kār'', which meant "harbor" or "trading station".<ref name=":1" /> Their new names highlight their central role in commerce.<ref name=waters>{{cite journal |last=Waters |first=Matt |date=October–December 2005 |title=[Review:&#93; Media and Its Discontents |url=https://www.academia.edu/1040674 |url-access=registration |journal=Journal of the American Oriental Society |volume=125 |issue=4 |pages=517–533 |jstor=i20064419 |access-date=2024-02-10 }}</ref> In the course of his campaigns, Tiglath-Pileser III established two new provinces, expanding the permanent Assyrian presence much further onto the Iranian Plateau. East of the existing Assyrian province of Zamua (established no later than 843 BCE), Tiglath-Pileser founded the province of Parsua. Additionally, the province of Namri, likely established in the 790s BCE, now shared a border with the newly created province of Bit-Hamban. The Assyrian overland route connecting the Median territories with the Mesopotamian lowlands now reached as far as the strategically significant city of Harhar on the Iranian Plateau. In 738 BCE, Tiglath-Pileser sent an army detachment against "the mighty Medes in the east", likely in the region beyond [[Mount Alvand]]. The operation was successful, with the Assyrians capturing the settlement of Mulugani and capturing "5,000 horses, people, oxen, sheep and goats."

[[Sargon II]] (721-705 BCE) resumed efforts to strengthen the Assyrian Empire's grip on western Iran even further. This renewed advance was a highly concentrated affair, accomplished in just four years from 716 to 713 BCE, during which time the Median lands were invaded no fewer than three times. Most chiefs who paid tribute in 714 BCE, did not do so again in 713 BCE, which shows that even when the Assyrian Empire's involvement with the Median territories was at its absolute peak, only a small fraction of the Median chiefs in power established a lasting relationship with the Assyrian conqueror. The majority anticipated that Assyrian forces would eventually withdraw, as they had done in the past. However, the establishment of fortresses in Harhar and Kišesim in 716 BCE marked a turning point. From then on, the Assyrians maintained a permanent presence in western Iran.

However, the effectiveness of Assyrian rule was still limited and remained weak, especially in areas east of the Zagros mountain range. Since direct control over the Medes was challenging to keep, deals were made with those local rulers. In exchange for recognizing the Assyrian king's authority, providing a fixed quantity of horses as tribute, and fulfilling other obligations, cooperative chiefs received the protection of the Assyrian Empire and retained the freedom to govern their subjects as they deemed fit. This compromise usually suited both sides well.<ref name=":0" /> Sargon II undertook another expedition to Media in 708 BCE but was unable to achieve his goal of conquering all Median lands or establishing stable control over them. Subsequently, the tribes on the Iranian plateau opposing Assyrian dominance consolidated their efforts against it. By the end of the 8th century BCE, the first major unions and states based on tribal confederations began to emerge in the western Iranian territory, led by local chiefs.{{sfn|Dandamayev|Medvedskaya|2006}} While during Sargon II's reign, the Medes seemed contained through diplomacy and the strategic backing of competing factions, by the time of his grandson [[Esarhaddon]] (680-669 BCE), the Assyrians appeared to have lost ground in Media. Records from this period indicate unrest in the Median provinces. In inquiries directed to the god [[Shamash]], the king seeks guidance on the power of the Medes and their allies, the [[Cimmerians]] and [[Manneans]]. Notably, the ''bēl-āli'' of Karkaššî, [[Kashtariti]], becomes the focus of the king's concern. Even the once routine collection of horse tribute from the Medes now encounters unexpected difficulties.

The ''adê'' tablets record the oaths made by eight Zagros-dwelling ''bēl-ālāni'' who swore loyalty to Esarhaddon and his crown prince [[Ashurbanipal]] (668-631 BCE). The interpretation of these oaths has been a subject of debate, ranging from vassal treaties to the swearing in of a corps of Median bodyguards to the crown prince. The discovery of a very similar tablet from the Syrian site of [[Tell Tayinat]] points to an empire-wide attempt at making all allies swear allegiance to the crown-prince before Esarhaddon's death. Six years prior one of these ''bēl-ālāni'', Ramataya of Urakazabarna, had visited the Assyrian court. He brought tribute in the form of horses and lapis lazuli, seeking Esarhaddon's assistance against rival ''bēl-ālāni''. However, it appears that the oaths and alliances eventually fell apart, leading to the tablets that documented them being taken from the temple storage room and crushed. While, by the mid-seventh century, the Median ''bēl-ālāni'' seemed poised to form alliances that could have united against the Assyrians, there is no indication that the fundamental political structure of the Medes as independent ''bēl-ālāni'' was undergoing significant changes as Herodotus's story of [[Deioces]]'s rise would suggest. The last mention of Median ''bēl-ālāni'' comes from an inscription of Ashurbanipal that recounts a campaign of 656 BCE, in which three Median ''bēl-ālāni'' rebelled and were captured and brought back to Nineveh. As it became conceivable for a united Media to defeat Assyria and assume her mantle of power in the region, the impetus to unite may have been stronger than the competitive forces dividing the ''bēl-ālāni''.<ref name=":1" />

After 670 BCE, susceptible to Scythian and Cimmerian raids and facing the decline of trade along the [[Great Khorasan Road]], many Median chiefdoms probably collapsed leaving fewer chiefs to compete for power. The states of non-Iranian peoples like the [[Manneans]], [[Elippians]], and [[Kassites]] probably collapsed as well, which allowed Median groups to take over their territory. With fewer chiefs remaining, one of them might have risen to the position of paramount chief, subjugating his former equals. [[Cyaxares]] probably rose to prominence in this context. He may indeed have fought the Scythians, as Herodotus claims, which may have earned him his reputation as a great warrior. Through his victories, Cyaxares gained more and more influence, eventually uniting the Medes and other peoples under his leadership.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.academia.edu/34484530 |title=The Median Dark Age |access-date=2024-01-18 |last=Nijssen |first=Daan}}</ref>

=== Rise and fall ===
{{Main|Median kingdom}}
[[File:Pre-Achaemenid Era.gif|thumb|Timeline of Pre-Achaemenid era.]]

From the 10th to the late 7th centuries BCE, the western parts of Media fell under the domination of the vast [[Neo-Assyrian Empire]], which stretched from [[Cyprus]] in the west, to parts of western Iran in the east, and [[ancient Egypt|Egypt]] and the north of the [[Arabian Peninsula]].<ref>[[Georges Roux]], ''Ancient Iraq'', 1992{{full citation needed|date=June 2014}}</ref> During the reign of [[Sinsharishkun]] (622–612 BCE), the Assyrian empire, which had been in a state of constant civil war since 626 BCE, began to unravel. Subject peoples, such as the Babylonians, Egyptians, Scythians, Cimmerians, and [[Arameans]] quietly ceased to pay tribute to Assyria.

Assyrian dominance over the Medes came to an end during the reign of Median king [[Cyaxares]], who, in alliance with the Babylonian king [[Nabopolassar]], attacked and destroyed the strife-riven Neo-Assyrian Empire between 616 and 609 BCE.<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/place/Assyria/ Encyclopaedia Britannica] "The last great Assyrian ruler was Ashurbanipal, but his last years and the period following his death, in 627 BCE, are obscure. The state was finally destroyed by a Chaldean-Median coalition in 612–609 bce."</ref> After the fall of Assyria, a unified [[Median state]] became one of the four major powers of the [[ancient Near East]] together with Babylonia, [[Lydia]], and [[ancient Egypt|Egypt]]. The Medes were subsequently able to expand beyond their original homeland and had eventually a territory stretching roughly from northeastern Iran to the [[Kızılırmak River]] in [[Anatolia]].<ref name=":3" />

Cyaxares was succeeded by his son [[Astyages]]. In 553 BCE, [[Cyrus the Great]], the King of Persia, a Median vassal, [[Medo-Persian conflict|revolted]] against the Median king. In 550 BCE, Cyrus finally won a decisive victory resulting in Astyages' capture by his own dissatisfied nobles, who promptly turned him over to the triumphant Cyrus.<ref name=":3">{{cite book|title=From Cyrus to Alexander: A History of the Persian Empire|first= Pierre|last= Briant|publisher= Eisenbrauns|year= 2006|page= 31}}</ref>

==== Median dynasty ====
{{Main|Median dynasty}}

In Herodotus (I, 95–130), [[Deioces]] is introduced as the founder of a centralized Median state. He had been known to the Median people as "a just and incorruptible man" and when asked by the Median people to solve their possible disputes he agreed and put forward the condition that they make him "king" and build a great city at Ecbatana as the capital of the Median state.<ref>{{Harvnb|Young|1988|p=16}}</ref> Judging from the contemporary sources of the region, and disregarding<ref>{{Harvnb|Young|1988|p=19}}</ref> the account of Herodotus, puts the formation of a unified Median state during the reign of [[Cyaxares]] or later.<ref>{{Harvnb|Young|1988|p=21}}</ref>

The list of Median rulers and their period of reign is compiled according to two sources. Firstly, Herodotus who calls them "kings" and associates them with the same family. Secondly, the [[Babylonian Chronicles]] which in "Gadd's Chronicle on the Fall of Nineveh" gives its own list. A combined list stretching over 150 years is thus:

* [[Deioces]] (700s–675 BC)
* [[Phraortes]] (675–653 BC)
* [[Scythians|Scythian]] rule (652–624 BC)
* [[Cyaxares]] (624–585 BC)
* [[Astyages]] (585–550 BC)<ref name="Diakonoff1985">{{Harvnb|Diakonoff|1985|p=112}}</ref>

However, not all of these dates and personalities given by Herodotus match the other near eastern sources.<ref name="Diakonoff1985" />

=== Later history ===
[[Image:Persepolis Apadana noerdliche Treppe Detail.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|The Apadana Palace, 5th century BCE [[Achaemenid Empire|Achaemenid]] [[relief|bas-relief]] shows a Mede soldier behind a Persian soldier, in [[Persepolis]], Iran]]
After Cyrus's victory against Astyages, the Medes were subjected to their close kin, the Persians.<ref>Herodotus, ''The Histories'', p. 93.{{full citation needed|date=June 2014}}</ref> In the new empire they retained a prominent position; in honour and war, they stood next to the Persians; their court ceremony was adopted by the new sovereigns, who in the summer months resided in [[Ecbatana]]; and many noble Medes were employed as officials, [[satrap]]s and generals.

In later periods, Medes and especially Mede soldiers are identified and portrayed prominently in ancient archaeological sites such as [[Persepolis]], where they are shown to have a major role and presence in the military of the [[Achaemenid Empire]].