Persian Empire, 550–330 BCE
Autocracy · Empire · Middle East · Classical Antiquity era
The Achaemenid empire: large-scale centralization, a tolerant bureaucracy, and external expansion.
Cyrus and his successors assembled the largest empire yet seen, ruled through satraps, royal roads and tribute, with broad tolerance of local cults. Succession crises and satrapal revolts recurred without breaking the system. The expeditions against Greece failed at Salamis and Plataea. Court intrigue weakened later reigns, and Alexander’s invasion ended the dynasty.
Open Persian Empire 550–330 BCE in the interactive 3D atlas →
Dominant patterns
- External Expansion
- Militarization
- Regime Stabilization
- Imperial Decline
- Succession Crisis
Political-science factor profile
Each factor 0–100; higher = stronger authoritarian / crisis pole (except institutional stability, where higher = stronger institutions).
| Centralization of Power | 78 |
| Media Control | 30 |
| Repression | 48 |
| Nationalism | 40 |
| Militarization | 80 |
| Economic Stress | 46 |
| External Conflict | 82 |
| Cult of Personality | 76 |
| Elite Fragmentation | 54 |
| Institutions | 68 |
| Social Polarization | 40 |
| Corruption & Patrimonialism | 45 |
| Ideological Mobilization | 40 |
| External Sovereignty | 100 |
Economy & society
| GDP per capita | $650 (intl-$) |
| Population | 25.0M people |
| Share of world population | 25% |
| Territory | ~5.5M km² |
| Capital population | ~200k |
Closest historical twins
The country-eras whose structural profile most resembles Persian Empire 550–330 BCE, by similarity score (0–100).
- Macedon, 359–336 BCE – similarity 91/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Regime Stabilization, Imperial Decline, Succession Crisis
- Maurya Empire, 322–185 BCE – similarity 90/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Regime Stabilization, Imperial Decline
- Byzantium, 527–565 – similarity 88/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Regime Stabilization, Imperial Decline
- Han Dynasty, 206 BCE–220 CE – similarity 86/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Regime Stabilization, Imperial Decline
- Mughal Empire, 1556–1605 – similarity 85/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Regime Stabilization
- Ottoman Empire, 1520–1566 – similarity 84/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Regime Stabilization
- Abbasid Caliphate, 786–833 – similarity 84/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Regime Stabilization, Succession Crisis
- Mongol Empire, 1206–1279 – similarity 83/100 · shared: External Expansion, Militarization, Imperial Decline, Succession Crisis
What followed
- The largest power of its time.
- Conquest by Alexander.