Figure 1.--

Parthia was an ancient country southeast of the Caspian Sea more or less in the area of what is now Khurasan. The Parhians are believed to be of Scythian origins. We do not yet know much about them. The Parthians served as mounted archers in the armies of first the Assyrians and then the Persians. The Parthians were a largely fedual society based on horsemen. They tended to avoid head on confrontation in military engagements. The Parthians were famed archers, able to fire their arows over their backs. This was known as the Parthian shot which is the origin of the term "parting shot". Led by Arsaces, they freed themselves from Seleucid rule and established their own empire (250 BC). The Parthians gradually extended their empire east to India. Rome for its part had wared with all the important powers they confronted, Carthage, Macedonia, and Gaul. The Parthians were after Ceasar's victory in Gaul the next logical outlet to expand Rome's Empire. The peak of the Parthian empire was reached with the defeat of Crassus at Carrhae (53 BC) which affected the struggle for power in Rome. The Parthians were later defeated by the Romans, but not destroyed (39-38 BC). After this their power was severely curbed and they gradually declined. Ardashir I overthrew the Parthians and founded the Sassanian Empire (226 AD ).

Location

Parthia was an ancient country southeast of the Caspian Sea more or less in the area of what is now Khurasan. At its peak it encompased n area including what is now Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaidzhan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan. The core of the empire was Armemia, Iraq, and Iran. It might be viewed as one of the many Prsian empires.

Ethnicity

The Parhians are believed to be of Scythian origins. We do not yet know much about them.

Military Technology

The Parthians served as mounted archers in the armies of first the Assyrians and then the Persians. They tended to avoid head on confrontation in military engagements. The Parthians were famed archers, able to fire their arows over their backs. This was known as the Parthian shot which is the origin of the term "parting shot".

Society

Very few written Parthian historical sources have been found. The Parthians originated fron nomads which gradually setteled. They never developed the literary tradition which left us detailed accounts of other major ancient civilizations. Thus although the Parthian Empire endured five centuries, we know relatively little about it. Much of what is know about the Parthians and their associated kingdoms of Characene, Elymais and Persis comes from Roman records and are thus not always flatering. Another source of information is coins. The Parthians were a largely fedual society based on horsemen. The defeat pf the Seleucids left them in control of the wesern terminus of the famed Silk Road. This brought great wealth and power turning Parthia into an Eastern superpower.

Clothing

History

The Parhians defeated and replaced the Helanized Seleucids which ruled what is now Iran and Iraq after the death of Alexander. Led by Arsaces, they freed themselves from Seleucid rule and established their own empire (250 BC). The Parthians gradually extended their empire east to India and west into the Fertile Cresant and toward the Mediterranean. They were contemporaneous with Rome. Rome for its part had wared with all the important powers they confronted, Carthage, Macedonia, and Gaul. The Parthians were after Ceasar's victory in Gaul the next logical outlet to expand Rome's Empire. The peak of the Parthian empire was reached with the defeat of Crassus at Carrhae (53 BC) which affected the struggle for power in Rome. The Parthians were later defeated by the Romans, but not destroyed (39-38 BC). After this their power was severely curbed and they gradually declined. Ardashir I overthrew the Parthians and founded the Sassanian Empire (226 AD).

Sources