Posted inAntiquity

Three Brothers-in-Law Dominated the Near East in the 6th Century BC, Until Cyrus the Great Changed History

In the 6th century BC, the Near East was dominated by three powerful kingdoms: the Median Empire of Astyages, the Neo-Babylonian Empire of Nebuchadnezzar II, and the Lydian Kingdom of Croesus. These three great kings were related by marriage: Astyages had married Arienis, sister of Croesus, while Nebuchadnezzar II had married Amytis, daughter of Astyages, […]

Posted inAncient Greece

The Jaxartes River, the Battle Where Alexander Defeated the Scythians Using Catapults, Wounded and with Nearly His Entire Army Sick with Dysentery

As its name indicates, the Spanish Cape of Finisterre (finis terrae) was considered in Antiquity as the westernmost limit of the known world. But where was the eastern border located at that time? It was Alexander the Great who, in 329 BCE, established this boundary—at least in its northernmost part—of the Greco-Roman world, which remained […]

Posted inAncient Greece

Chares, the Athenian General who Held Power to Enrich Himself and his Supporters without Ever Winning a Major Battle

Brave to the point of recklessness, especially when it came to excessively exposing his own physical integrity during combat, Chares of Athens was a general who never enjoyed prestige or popular favor. The reason lies in his shady personality: not only did he not hide but boasted of his libertine behavior, he lacked scruples, did […]

Posted inAncient Egypt

Amyrtaeus, the Only Pharaoh of the Unique 28th Egyptian Dynasty That Ended Persian Domination

Although it is difficult to establish an exact number due to periods of significant political confusion, it is generally agreed that around three hundred pharaohs reigned over Ancient Egypt, spread across thirty-three dynasties. Of these, the most unique was likely the 28th, literally so, since it had only one ruler: Psamtik V, better known as […]

Posted inAncient Greece

The Expedition of the Ten Thousand, the Greeks who Ventured into the Heart of the Persian Empire One Hundred Years before Alexander

Thalassa! Thalassa!, the legendary cry of excitement uttered by Greek mercenaries when they saw the sea, which could put an end to their painful retreat by Persian land and return them safely to their homeland, is now a classic phrase that metaphorizes that Hellenic world so closely linked to the great blue and could very […]