Cambyses II

Cambyses II

▪ king of Persia
flourished 6th century BC

      Achaemenid king of Persia (reigned 529–522 BC), who conquered Egypt in 525; he was the eldest son of King Cyrus II the Great by Cassandane, daughter of a fellow Achaemenid. During his father's lifetime Cambyses was in charge of Babylonian affairs. In 538 he performed the ritual duties of a Babylonian king at the important New Year festival, and in 530, before Cyrus set out on his last campaign, he was appointed regent in Babylon.

      The conquest of Egypt (Egypt, ancient), planned by Cyrus, was the major achievement of Cambyses' reign. The invasion took place during the reign of Psamtik III. Cambyses received assistance from Polycrates of Samos; from Phanes, a Greek general in the Egyptian army who gave him valuable military information; and from the Arabs, who provided water for the crossing of the Sinai Desert. After Cambyses had won the Battle of Pelusium (525) in the Nile Delta and had captured Heliopolis and Memphis, Egyptian resistance collapsed.

      While in Egypt, Cambyses planned expeditions against Ethiopia, the Oasis of Amon (modern Wāḥat Sīwah), and Carthage. He himself set out against Ethiopia, but, after annexing the northern part of the country, he ran short of supplies and had to return. A detachment sent out from Thebes captured al-Kharijah (Kharga) Oasis but perished in a sandstorm before reaching the Oasis of Amon. The attack on Carthage was never attempted.

      The 5th-century-BC Greek historian Herodotus accused Cambyses of many atrocities in Egypt, attributing them to madness, but contemporary Egyptian sources suggest that his accusations must largely be discounted. At least at the beginning of his rule, Cambyses pursued a conciliatory policy.

      According to a later Achaemenid king, Darius I the Great, Cambyses, before going to Egypt, had secretly killed his brother, Bardiya, whom Herodotus called Smerdis (Bardiya). The murdered prince was, however, impersonated by Gaumata the Magian, who in March 522 seized the Achaemenid throne. Cambyses, on his return from Egypt, heard of the revolt in Syria, where he died in the summer of 522, either by his own hand or as the result of an accident.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • CAMBYSES — (Pers., Kambujiya; Bab., Kam bu zi (ia); Aram., Kanbuzi; Greek, Cambyses), the son of cyrus , king of Persia (530–522 B.C.E.). It appears that in 538, several months after Cyrus conquered Babylon, Cambyses was appointed king of Babylon by his… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Cambyses (II) — [kam bī′sēz΄] died 522 B.C.; king of Persia (529 522): son of Cyrus the Great * * * …   Universalium

  • Cambyses (II) — [kam bī′sēz΄] died 522 B.C.; king of Persia (529 522): son of Cyrus the Great …   English World dictionary

  • Cambyses (II) — [kam bī′sēz΄] died 522 B.C.; king of Persia (529 522): son of Cyrus the Great …   English World dictionary

  • Cambyses — King of Persia 525 522 BC.     Cyrus II, the Achaemenid ruler who established the *Persian empire, sent his son Cambyses to overthrow Egypt s Twenty sixth Dynasty and to annex the country as part of his empire. Cambyses first dealt with… …   Ancient Egypt

  • Cambyses — (reigned 530 522 b.c.)    The son of Cyrus II and the second king of the Achaemenid Persian Empire. The first important assignment Cyrus gave Cambyses (cam BEE seez) was to rule Babylon after Cyrus had captured it. Not long afterward Cambyses… …   Ancient Mesopotamia dictioary

  • CAMBYSES — I. CAMBYSES Persa, mediocri stirpe, ad Astyage, altero, penultimo Medorum Rege, in generum ascitus, elocatâ ipsi Mandane filiâ, quo sic a nepote periculum sibi in somno praedictum evitaret. Hinc Cyrus natus. Iustin. l. 1. c. 4. Herodot Musâ. 1.… …   Hofmann J. Lexicon universale

  • Cambyses I — ▪ ruler of Anshan flourished 6th century BC       ruler of Anshan c. 600–559 BC. Cambyses was the son of Cyrus I and succeeded his father in Anshan (northwest of Susa in Elam) as a vassal of King Astyages of Media. According to the 5th century BC …   Universalium

  • Cambyses (disambiguation) — Cambyses or Cambese (Greek: polytonic|Καμβύσης; Old Persian Kambujiya ) is the name of three members of the Achaemenid line of ancient Persia:*Cambyses, son of Teispes of Anshan, father of Cyrus I, [ Herod., VII.II. ] didn t rule. *Cambyses I of… …   Wikipedia

  • Cambyses I of Anshan — Cambyses I, Old Persian: Kambūjiya, the Elder (c. 600 BC ndash;559 BC) was King of Anshan from c. 580 to 559 BC and was the father of Cyrus II (Cyrus the Great). His name in Greek was Καμβύσης , whence the Latin Cambyses. Cambyses was an early… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”