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Persians

The Age of the Great Kings

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Persians

Written by: Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones
Narrated by: Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones
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A stunning portrait of the magnificent splendor of ancient Persia and its enduring legacies for today's Iran.

“A brilliant feat of resurrection.” -Tom Holland, author of Dominion

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.

Middle East Military World Ancient History Africa Iran Ancient Greece
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What the critics say

“There is a long legacy of misinformation around ancient Persian empires, the lives of its leaders, and greater Persian society. However, by examining the artifacts and monuments that remain, historian Llewellyn-Jones brings forth a view of ancient Persia that is rich in tradition and historical significance.”—Library Journal
“Immersive… Llewellyn-Jones expertly illuminates the decentralized, multicultural nature of the Achaemenid empire and offers valuable perspective on the modern Middle East, where the great kings of ancient Persia still feature in Iran’s national self-image. This is a valuable contribution to the understanding of ‘history’s first great superpower.’—Publishers Marketplace
“A brilliant feat of resurrection, restoring to the Persian Empire the color, brilliance, and complexity that renders it one of the most fascinating and influential of ancient civilizations, and of which for so long, in most histories of antiquity, it has been bled.”—Tom Holland, author of Dominion
"Always lively, often challenging, this is a very welcome exploration of one of the greatest empires and cultures of the ancient world. Highly recommended."—Adrian Goldsworthy, author of Philip and Alexander
“Superb, authoritative, and compelling, a fresh history of the Persian Great Kings that combines exuberant storytelling with outstanding scholarship that is both entertaining and bracing revisionist, filled with a cast of ruthless conquerors, queens, eunuchs, and concubines that brings the Persian world blazingly to life through Persian instead of the usual Greek sources. The result is a tour de force.”—Simon Sebag Montefiore, author of Jerusalem: The Biography
“Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones brings the men, women, and rich history of ancient Persia alive in technicolor splendor with energy, passion, and real understanding. This is immersive time travel of the highest order.”—Samira Ahmed, journalist and broadcaster
“Persians is a wonderful introduction to the ancient world’s largest and most consequential empire. Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones is one of the foremost scholars of Achaemenid history, and he gives us a gripping account of the history of ancient Persia, tracking how a small tribal society in southwestern Iran came to be the world’s first superpower.”
—Touraj Daryaee, University of California, Irvine
“This is an engaging, pacy account of the Persian Empire which is based on a rich range of sources. Going right up to the use of Cyrus the Great in modern Iran, the ‘Persian Version’ on which Professor Lloyd-Jones focuses has much to tell us about how different cultures create history and use it to tell their stories.”—Helen King, professor emerita, Classical Studies, The Open University
All stars
Most Relevant
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.

Depth and breath of content is immense.

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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,

Best Book Written About Persian Empire (Iran)

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Everything about this book is perfect, interesting, and kept me enthralled throughout, even though it was long. The work is thoroughly researched, and the narrator was clear and so the presentation and the information were both 100%. I learned so much I thank the writer for doing this for us!

Fabulous!

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