Xerxes: Foreign Policy

Question	Answer
List three reasons why Xerxes wanted to invade the Greek mainland.	1. He inherited his father's plan to add Greece to the Persian empire. 2. He was influenced by his cousin, Mardonius, who wanted to become a satrap. 3. Was influenced by his mother, Queen Atossa, who wanted Xerxes to be a worthy successor of Darius I.
Give three examples of how Xerxes made preparations for the invasion of Greece.	1. He mobilised the expenses and resources of the empire towards invasion. 2. He spent four years preparing to attack. 3. He had engineers engaged on large projects (e.g. the bridges across both the Hellespont and Strymon River).
Describe two key features of Xerxes' army.	1. Consisted of components from various parts of the empire - soldiers had their own dress, weapons, and tactics. 2. Main strengths were the Iranian cavalry and the infantry (who were armed with bows and spears).
Which ancient historian describes the Persian army, and what do they say?	Herodotus describes the army as consisting of 1.7 million men, and was "far greater than any other in recorded history." NOTE: Modern historians suggest it may have only been 2-300,000 men.

Resource summary

	Created by Hunter Lynch over 10 years ago