Cambyses 5 Darius I and Propaganda Starter QUESTIONS

Cambyses 5. Darius I and Propaganda

Starter: QUESTIONS for ANSWERS: 1) THE NABONIDUS CHRONICLE 2) THE APIS BULL 3) PASARGADAE 4) SMERDIS 5) AHURA MAZDA

Darius’ ascension propaganda? Lesson Objectives: 1) To visually analyse a source for evidence of propaganda. 2) To evaluate why Darius would have lied about his ascension to the Persian throne. 522 BC: lies and

• In pairs; Task 1 What is propaganda? Why do rulers/regimes rely on propaganda? What examples of propaganda have you come across in History? CHALLENGE: Why might Darius need to use propaganda?

Task 2 • Go over your flow charts of the two versions of Darius’ ascension to the Persian throne. • Colour code the stories into; a) Parts you believe to be true b) Parts you belief to be false CHALLENGE – How far do you believe both of these accounts? Why? Is Herodotus or the Bisitun Inscription more believable?

Soon after coming to power, Darius ordered the carving of a huge monument explaining how he came to the throne. This was called the Bisitun Inscription. The inscription is approximately 15 metres high by 25 metres wide and 100 metres up a limestone cliff from an ancient road connecting the capitals of Babylonia and Media. This was a main road so lots of people would have seen it. It was also located up the cliff so no one could climb up and deface it. As well as a carved image, it also contained 3 sets of texts (which we studied last lesson) in 3 different languages.

Task 3 – key features of the Bisitun Inscription • Label the key features of the Bisitun Inscription; a) King Darius carrying his bow b) Ahura Mazda looking down on the precedings c) False Smerdis being trodden on by Darius d) The royal bodyguards protecting Darius e) 9 conquered peoples chained up. CHALLENGE – What evidence is there of Darius’ propaganda in the inscription?

The Bisitun Inscription

Task 4 – Why did Darius need to use propaganda? Use the OCR textbook p 31 to answer the question above. Use the writing frame below to help you; Many historians think Cambyses’ real brother did become king in 522 BC. This would force Darius to use the Bisitun Inscription as propaganda because…. . Darius was only a distant relative to King Cambyses. . This would force Darius to use the Bisitun Inscription as propaganda because…. . The Bisitun inscription makes no mention of Darius and the 6 others plotting and trickery. This is because…… As a new king, Darius would want to use the Bisitun Inscription as propaganda because….