Iran / Persia: 19th century engraving of Cyrus the Great (r. 559-530 BCE)

Cyrus II of Persia (Old Persian: Kuruš (c. 600 BC or 576 BC–530 BCE), commonly known as Cyrus the Great, also known as Cyrus the Elder, was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire.

Under his rule, the empire embraced all the previous civilized states of the ancient Near East, expanded vastly and eventually conquered most of Southwest Asia and much of Central Asia and the Caucasus. From the Mediterranean sea and Hellespont in the west to the Indus River in the east, Cyrus the Great created the largest empire the world had yet seen.

His regal titles in full were The Great King, King of Persia, King of Anshan, King of Media, King of Babylon, King of Sumer and Akkad, King of the four corners of the World. He also pronounced what some consider to be one of the first historically important declarations of human rights via the Cyrus Cylinder sometime between 539 and 530 BCE, although this has been disputed by some scholars.

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