Prexaspes ( el, Πρηξάσπης, translit=Prēxáspēs) was a prominent
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
during the reign of
Cambyses II
Cambyses II ( peo, 𐎣𐎲𐎢𐎪𐎡𐎹 ''Kabūjiya'') was the second King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire from 530 to 522 BC. He was the son and successor of Cyrus the Great () and his mother was Cassandane.
Before his accession, Cambyses ...
(530–522 BC), the second
King of Kings
King of Kings; grc-gre, Βασιλεὺς Βασιλέων, Basileùs Basiléōn; hy, արքայից արքա, ark'ayits ark'a; sa, महाराजाधिराज, Mahārājadhirāja; ka, მეფეთ მეფე, ''Mepet mepe'' ...
of the
Achaemenid Persian Empire
The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire (; peo, 𐎧𐏁𐏂, , ), also called the First Persian Empire, was an ancient Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great in 550 BC. Based in Western Asia, it was contemporarily the largest emp ...
. According to
Herodotus
Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known f ...
, when Cambyses ordered his trusted counselor Prexaspes to kill
Bardiya
Bardiya or Smerdis ( peo, 𐎲𐎼𐎮𐎡𐎹 ; grc, Σμέρδις ; possibly died 522 BC), also named as Tanyoxarces ( grc, Τανυοξάρκης ) by Ctesias, was a son of Cyrus the Great and the younger brother of Cambyses II, both ...
(also known as Smerdis), the King's own brother, Prexaspes loyally carried out his order. Herodotus provides two versions of the murder. After moving from
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
(where he was stationed) to
Susa
Susa ( ; Middle elx, 𒀸𒋗𒊺𒂗, translit=Šušen; Middle and Neo- elx, 𒋢𒋢𒌦, translit=Šušun; Neo-Elamite and Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼𒀭, translit=Šušán; Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼, translit=Šušá; fa, شوش ...
, Prexaspes either killed Bardiya in a hunting field near Susa, or drowned him in the
Erythrean Sea
The Erythraean Sea ( grc-gre, Ἐρυθρὰ Θάλασσα, ''Erythrà Thálassa'', ."Red Sea") was a former maritime designation that always included the Gulf of Aden and at times other seas between Arabia Felix and the Horn of Africa. Origin ...
.
After Cambyses's death, Prexaspes denied murdering Bardiya at first, but ultimately, in the words of ''
Brill's New Pauly'', "revealed before the assembled Persians the usurpation by the
Magi
Magi (; singular magus ; from Latin ''magus'', cf. fa, مغ ) were priests in Zoroastrianism and the earlier religions of the western Iranians. The earliest known use of the word ''magi'' is in the trilingual inscription written by Darius th ...
(
Patizeithes
Patizeithes ( el, Πατιζείθης, translit=Pathizeíthēs) was a Persian magus (priest) who flourished in the second half of the 6th century BC. According to Herodotus, he persuaded his brother Smerdis (Gaumata) in 521 BC to rebel against C ...
), called for their overthrow and committed suicide (Hdt. 3,66 ff.; 74 ff.)."
References
Sources
*
* {{Cite encyclopedia , title=Prexaspes , encyclopedia=Brill's New Pauly , publisher=Brill Online , url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/brill-s-new-pauly/prexaspes-e1008180?s.num=7&s.f.s2_parent=s.f.book.brill-s-new-pauly&s.q=persian , last=Wiesehöfer , first=Josef , date=2006 , editor-last=Salazar , editor-first=Christine F. , authorlink=Josef Wiesehöfer , editor-last2=Landfester , editor-first2=Manfred , editor-last3=Gentry , editor-first3=Francis G.
6th-century BC Iranian people
People from the Achaemenid Empire
Suicides in Iran
520s BC deaths