What do you think?
Rate this book
Cyrus the Great
This is the story of the founder of the ancient Persian Empire, a monarchy, perhaps the most wealthy and magnificent the world have ever seen.
289 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1850
77 people are currently reading
232 people want to read
About the author
Jacob Abbott
1,400 books91 followersAbbott was born at Hallowell, Maine to Jacob and Betsey Abbott. He graduated from Bowdoin College in 1820; studied at Andover Theological Seminary in 1821, 1822, and 1824; was tutor in 1824-1825, and from 1825 to 1829 was professor of mathematics and natural philosophy at Amherst College; was licensed to preach by the Hampshire Association in 1826; founded the Mount Vernon School for Young Ladies in Boston in 1829, and was principal of it in 1829-1833; was pastor of Eliot Congregational Church (which he founded), at Roxbury, Massachusetts in 1834-1835; and was, with his brothers, a founder, and in 1843-1851 a principal of Abbott's Institute, and in 1845-1848 of the Mount Vernon School for Boys, in New York City.
He was a prolific author, writing juvenile fiction, brief histories, biographies, religious books for the general reader, and a few works in popular science. He died in Farmington, Maine, where he had spent part of his time after 1839, and where his brother, Samuel Phillips Abbott, founded the Abbott School.
His Rollo Books, such as Rollo at Work, Rollo at Play, Rollo in Europe, etc., are the best known of his writings, having as their chief characters a representative boy and his associates. In them Abbott did for one or two generations of young American readers a service not unlike that performed earlier, in England and America, by the authors of Evenings at Home, The History of Sandford and Merton, and the The Parent's Assistant.
Fewacres in 1906, Abbott's residence at Farmington, Maine
His brothers, John S.C. Abbott and Gorham Dummer Abbott, were also authors. His sons, Benjamin Vaughan Abbott, Austin Abbott, both eminent lawyers, Lyman Abbott, and Edward Abbott, a clergyman, were also well-known authors.
He was a prolific author, writing juvenile fiction, brief histories, biographies, religious books for the general reader, and a few works in popular science. He died in Farmington, Maine, where he had spent part of his time after 1839, and where his brother, Samuel Phillips Abbott, founded the Abbott School.
His Rollo Books, such as Rollo at Work, Rollo at Play, Rollo in Europe, etc., are the best known of his writings, having as their chief characters a representative boy and his associates. In them Abbott did for one or two generations of young American readers a service not unlike that performed earlier, in England and America, by the authors of Evenings at Home, The History of Sandford and Merton, and the The Parent's Assistant.
Fewacres in 1906, Abbott's residence at Farmington, Maine
His brothers, John S.C. Abbott and Gorham Dummer Abbott, were also authors. His sons, Benjamin Vaughan Abbott, Austin Abbott, both eminent lawyers, Lyman Abbott, and Edward Abbott, a clergyman, were also well-known authors.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
April 7, 2010
O man, whoever you are and wherever you come from, for I know you will come, I am Cyrus who won the Persians their empire. Do not therefore begrudge me this bit of earth that covers my bones.
April 20, 2020
The life of Cyrus the Great isn’t as eventful as those of others narrated by Jacob Abbott. But still, Abbott manages to captivate me with his writing. In the last paragraphs, Abbott reflects on the tragic transformation of Cyrus. Here is what he had to say:
“In reflecting on this melancholy termination of this great conqueror's history, our minds naturally revert to the scenes of his childhood, and we wonder that so amiable, and gentle, and generous a boy should become so selfish, and unfeeling, and overbearing as a man. But such are the natural and inevitable effects of ambition and an inordinate love of power. The history of a conqueror is always a tragical and melancholy tale. He begins life with an exhibition of great and noble qualities, which awaken in us, who read his history, the same admiration that was felt for him, personally, by his friends and countrymen while he lived, and on which the vast ascendency which he acquired over the minds of his fellow-men, and which led to his power and fame, was, in a great measure, founded. On the other hand, he ends life neglected, hated, and abhorred. His ambition has been gratified, but the gratification has brought with it no substantial peace or happiness; on the contrary, it has filled his soul with uneasiness, discontent, suspiciousness, and misery. The histories of heroes would be far less painful in the perusal if we could reverse this moral change of character, so as to have the cruelty, the selfishness, and the oppression exhaust themselves in the comparatively unimportant transactions of early life, and the spirit of kindness, generosity, and beneficence blessing and beautifying its close. To be generous, disinterested, and noble, seems to be necessary as the precursor of great military success; and to be hard-hearted, selfish, and cruel is the almost inevitable consequence of it. The exceptions to this rule, though some of them are very splendid, are yet very few.”
It’s frightening to reflect that one’s promise and potential, one’s apparent qualities are no foreteller of his destiny. Only after one is tested, with ease and hardship, peacefulness and fear, power and weakness, plenty and need … only after one withstands the test of time, can we truly judge that person.
But even then, we cannot really make a judgement. For we only see a part of the picture, not the totality of circumstances. Veiled are the heavy burdens and moral dilemmas, and veiled too are the silent whispers in the dark corners of the minds, hearts, and souls.
But if there’s one thing that’s certain, it’s that life’s not over until it’s over, for better or for worse. One can never settle on past successes, for every new day brings new challenges and tests… new trials … one can never rest until the final rest. But on the bright side, there’s a blessing in all of this. It means that every day is a new beginning, a new chance to make things right … a new chance to start over and live as one ought to live.
I also loved reading this:
“Araspes maintained that every man had the command of his own heart and affections, and that, with proper determination and energy, he could direct the channels in which they should run, and confine them within such limits and bounds as he pleased. Cyrus, on the other hand, maintained that human passions were stronger than the human will; that no one could rely on the strength of his resolutions to control the impulses of the heart once strongly excited, and that a man's only safety was in controlling the circumstances which tended to excite them. This was specially true, he said, in respect to the passion of love. The experience of mankind, he said, had shown that no strength of moral principle, no firmness of purpose, no fixedness of resolution, no degree of suffering, no fear of shame, was sufficient to control, in the hearts of men, the impetuosity of the passion of love, when it was once fairly awakened. In a word, Araspes advocated, on the subject of love, a sort of new school philosophy, while that of Cyrus leaned very seriously toward the old.
Araspes's self-confidence.
In conclusion, Cyrus jocosely counseled Araspes to beware lest he should prove that love was stronger than the will by becoming himself enamored of the beautiful Susian queen. Araspes said that Cyrus need not fear; there was no danger. He must be a miserable wretch indeed, he said, who could not summon within him sufficient resolution and energy to control his own passions and desires. As for himself, he was sure that he was safe.”
“In reflecting on this melancholy termination of this great conqueror's history, our minds naturally revert to the scenes of his childhood, and we wonder that so amiable, and gentle, and generous a boy should become so selfish, and unfeeling, and overbearing as a man. But such are the natural and inevitable effects of ambition and an inordinate love of power. The history of a conqueror is always a tragical and melancholy tale. He begins life with an exhibition of great and noble qualities, which awaken in us, who read his history, the same admiration that was felt for him, personally, by his friends and countrymen while he lived, and on which the vast ascendency which he acquired over the minds of his fellow-men, and which led to his power and fame, was, in a great measure, founded. On the other hand, he ends life neglected, hated, and abhorred. His ambition has been gratified, but the gratification has brought with it no substantial peace or happiness; on the contrary, it has filled his soul with uneasiness, discontent, suspiciousness, and misery. The histories of heroes would be far less painful in the perusal if we could reverse this moral change of character, so as to have the cruelty, the selfishness, and the oppression exhaust themselves in the comparatively unimportant transactions of early life, and the spirit of kindness, generosity, and beneficence blessing and beautifying its close. To be generous, disinterested, and noble, seems to be necessary as the precursor of great military success; and to be hard-hearted, selfish, and cruel is the almost inevitable consequence of it. The exceptions to this rule, though some of them are very splendid, are yet very few.”
It’s frightening to reflect that one’s promise and potential, one’s apparent qualities are no foreteller of his destiny. Only after one is tested, with ease and hardship, peacefulness and fear, power and weakness, plenty and need … only after one withstands the test of time, can we truly judge that person.
But even then, we cannot really make a judgement. For we only see a part of the picture, not the totality of circumstances. Veiled are the heavy burdens and moral dilemmas, and veiled too are the silent whispers in the dark corners of the minds, hearts, and souls.
But if there’s one thing that’s certain, it’s that life’s not over until it’s over, for better or for worse. One can never settle on past successes, for every new day brings new challenges and tests… new trials … one can never rest until the final rest. But on the bright side, there’s a blessing in all of this. It means that every day is a new beginning, a new chance to make things right … a new chance to start over and live as one ought to live.
I also loved reading this:
“Araspes maintained that every man had the command of his own heart and affections, and that, with proper determination and energy, he could direct the channels in which they should run, and confine them within such limits and bounds as he pleased. Cyrus, on the other hand, maintained that human passions were stronger than the human will; that no one could rely on the strength of his resolutions to control the impulses of the heart once strongly excited, and that a man's only safety was in controlling the circumstances which tended to excite them. This was specially true, he said, in respect to the passion of love. The experience of mankind, he said, had shown that no strength of moral principle, no firmness of purpose, no fixedness of resolution, no degree of suffering, no fear of shame, was sufficient to control, in the hearts of men, the impetuosity of the passion of love, when it was once fairly awakened. In a word, Araspes advocated, on the subject of love, a sort of new school philosophy, while that of Cyrus leaned very seriously toward the old.
Araspes's self-confidence.
In conclusion, Cyrus jocosely counseled Araspes to beware lest he should prove that love was stronger than the will by becoming himself enamored of the beautiful Susian queen. Araspes said that Cyrus need not fear; there was no danger. He must be a miserable wretch indeed, he said, who could not summon within him sufficient resolution and energy to control his own passions and desires. As for himself, he was sure that he was safe.”
June 10, 2014
Abbott does a great job with his histories. He gives enough detail to bring the characters to life, but not so much that one gets bogged down. I always enjoy his "moral of the story" as well. I have just learned that Abraham Lincoln read and enjoyed Abbott's histories. So, I'm in good company!
July 13, 2025
"It has been supposed by some scholars, who have examined attentively all the circumstances connected with these transactions, that so far as Cyrus was influenced by political considerations in ordering the return of the Jews, his design was to re-establish that nation as a barrier between his dominions and those of the Egyptians. The Egyptians and the Chaldeans had long been deadly enemies, and now that Cyrus had become master of the Chaldean realms, he would, of course, in assuming their territories and their power, be obliged to defend himself against their foes."
February 14, 2023
Quick review!
This is not a critical biography but a retelling of Cyrus' story based on two ancient sources, Herodotus and Xenophon. If you're looking for a critical biography, look somewhere else! (After all, due to the material provided by Herodotus and Xenophon, many chunks of the story are pretty close to myth.) But if you'd like to read one story based on what Herodotus and Xenophon have to tell us, plus Abbott's occasional comments and assessments, this is the book for you. Abbott also includes relevant material from the Old Testament.
Abbott does a good job weaving these two sources together. I really liked his discussion of Herodotus and Xenophon as sources in the first chapter; he presents background (why they wrote what they wrote) in addition to biographies. Another interesting aspect of this book is that Abbott pauses his narrative of Cyrus when one of the sources provides backrgound (story) for one of the major figures in Cyrus' life.
Since I've only read (parts) of Herodotus previously, it was enjoyable to hear some new stories from Xenophon.
There's very little commentary or discussion of themes. Abbott does pause his narrative in a few places to give comments (such as thoughts about tyrants).
Note also that this is not a novel: Abbott does not turn Cyrus into a developed character, and the narrative does not unfold as you'd expect in historical fiction. He's just repeating and interweaving his sources.
I give the book 4/5 stars. I don't have major criticisms. I enjoyed it for background listening (I listened on LibriVox) while driving to and from work. But I'd not recommend it for everyone as "a great book." If you think you'd enjoy 7+ hours as described above, listen or read away!
This is not a critical biography but a retelling of Cyrus' story based on two ancient sources, Herodotus and Xenophon. If you're looking for a critical biography, look somewhere else! (After all, due to the material provided by Herodotus and Xenophon, many chunks of the story are pretty close to myth.) But if you'd like to read one story based on what Herodotus and Xenophon have to tell us, plus Abbott's occasional comments and assessments, this is the book for you. Abbott also includes relevant material from the Old Testament.
Abbott does a good job weaving these two sources together. I really liked his discussion of Herodotus and Xenophon as sources in the first chapter; he presents background (why they wrote what they wrote) in addition to biographies. Another interesting aspect of this book is that Abbott pauses his narrative of Cyrus when one of the sources provides backrgound (story) for one of the major figures in Cyrus' life.
Since I've only read (parts) of Herodotus previously, it was enjoyable to hear some new stories from Xenophon.
There's very little commentary or discussion of themes. Abbott does pause his narrative in a few places to give comments (such as thoughts about tyrants).
Note also that this is not a novel: Abbott does not turn Cyrus into a developed character, and the narrative does not unfold as you'd expect in historical fiction. He's just repeating and interweaving his sources.
I give the book 4/5 stars. I don't have major criticisms. I enjoyed it for background listening (I listened on LibriVox) while driving to and from work. But I'd not recommend it for everyone as "a great book." If you think you'd enjoy 7+ hours as described above, listen or read away!
September 24, 2016
Really enjoyed reading this. A very easy read. It gives background information to Cyrus who is mentioned in the Bible in relation to the Jews returning from captivity in (what was) Babylon to their homeland in Judea.
December 26, 2016
Short biography, originally published in 1850, Volume 3 of the Makers of History. Abbott's sources are Herodotus and Xenophon. This was an enjoyable read which reviewed familiar stories, but taught me new ones. One complaint I have was that the writing failed to portray Persian culture. I couldn't/didn't picture an Asian boy/man while I read this.
Unrelated to the story, there were two exhilarating word-bird moments. After Cyrus conquers Croesus, they meet face to face. There were difficulties in respect to language, too, which embarrassed the conversation, as the two kings could speak to each other only through an interpreter. Embarrassed: an archaic meaning is to hamper or impede, complicate.
Explaining the engineering of the land around Babylon, the author compared the raised banks to the levees of New Orleans with a glorious asterisk*: From the French word levée, raised.
Commenting on monuments:
In fact, statues of brass or of marble generally make far more durable monuments than statues of gold; and no structure or object of art is likely to be very permanent among mankind unless the workmanship is worth more than the material.
To Bible readers, Cyrus is the king who liberated the Jews from Babylonian captivity. Abbott framed this in a way I'd never before thought of (emphasis mine):
The march of this peaceful multitude of families—men, women, and children together—burdened as they went, not with arms and ammunition for conquest and destruction, but with tools and implements for honest industry, and stores of provisions and utensils for the peaceful purposes of social life, as it was, in its bearings and results, one of the grandest events in history, so it must have presented, in its progress, one of the most extraordinary spectacles that the world has ever seen.
Unrelated to the story, there were two exhilarating word-bird moments. After Cyrus conquers Croesus, they meet face to face. There were difficulties in respect to language, too, which embarrassed the conversation, as the two kings could speak to each other only through an interpreter. Embarrassed: an archaic meaning is to hamper or impede, complicate.
Explaining the engineering of the land around Babylon, the author compared the raised banks to the levees of New Orleans with a glorious asterisk*: From the French word levée, raised.
Commenting on monuments:
In fact, statues of brass or of marble generally make far more durable monuments than statues of gold; and no structure or object of art is likely to be very permanent among mankind unless the workmanship is worth more than the material.
To Bible readers, Cyrus is the king who liberated the Jews from Babylonian captivity. Abbott framed this in a way I'd never before thought of (emphasis mine):
The march of this peaceful multitude of families—men, women, and children together—burdened as they went, not with arms and ammunition for conquest and destruction, but with tools and implements for honest industry, and stores of provisions and utensils for the peaceful purposes of social life, as it was, in its bearings and results, one of the grandest events in history, so it must have presented, in its progress, one of the most extraordinary spectacles that the world has ever seen.
October 28, 2018
Interesting read
Written in the Augustine style, this book reflects the era in which it was written. It's a great read, and the author actively encourages their readers to consider the extent to which the sources can be trusted. Targeted I guess at teen-agers of the day, it nonetheless makes interesting reading for even such ancient folk as myself.
Written in the Augustine style, this book reflects the era in which it was written. It's a great read, and the author actively encourages their readers to consider the extent to which the sources can be trusted. Targeted I guess at teen-agers of the day, it nonetheless makes interesting reading for even such ancient folk as myself.
May 2, 2021
I knew nothing about Cyrus when beginning this biography. It was interesting to read about how the Persian Empire was established and how it encountered the Jewish nation. It was Cyrus who freed the Jews from Babylonian bondage and who told them to rebuild their temple.
February 10, 2025
A great little primer on Cyrus' life. My five year old son enjoyed it, with most of the gore going over his head. I can forsee sons revisiting this many times over the years and it leading to deep dives into the primary sources.
May 17, 2021
Abbott draws upon Xenophon the storyteller and Herodotus' sometimes dubious Histories, to reveal a fanciful biography of Cyrus the Great.
June 12, 2021
Interesting
It’s a great good. A very good introduction to Cyrus and the beginning of a great empire. Thank you for this book.
It’s a great good. A very good introduction to Cyrus and the beginning of a great empire. Thank you for this book.
July 4, 2021
'We wonder that so amiable, gentle and generous farm boy should become so selfish, unfeeling and overbearing as a man'
September 26, 2021
Abbott is a fantastic story teller who weaves biblical wisdom into historical narrative. He's quickly moving up the top ten list of people that I'd like to have a beer with.
April 6, 2025
Interesting and readable.
March 2, 2020
I appreciated the stories in the lore of Cyrus the Great, having no prior exposure to these tales of ancient Persian history, brought to us through the Greeks.
Gotta say, I don't believe that as a mother I would send my mostly-grown son off to live with the grandfather who had tried to murder him as an infant and caused me to believe he was dead for a good decade. . .
Gotta say, I don't believe that as a mother I would send my mostly-grown son off to live with the grandfather who had tried to murder him as an infant and caused me to believe he was dead for a good decade. . .
Want to read
May 10, 2013$0.0
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews