ANCIENT
PERSIA

In the mid-sixth century BCE, Cyrus II of Persia defeated powerful neighbours and founded the Achaemenid Empire. It grew to stretch from the Aegean Sea toward the Indus Valley, one of the largest empires of the ancient world. Cyrus became famous for a practical kind of tolerance: conquered peoples were often allowed to keep local customs, languages, and religions if they paid tribute and kept peace. That policy helped a huge, diverse realm hold together.