Xerxes

High school (ages 12+)
History & Culture

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/xerxes

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the full name?Xerxes I
2. What is the dynasty?Achaemenid Dynasty
3. Who was Xerxes and when did he become king?Xerxes was a king of the Achaemenid Empire who became ruler in 486 BCE. He led a huge army and built great buildings.
4. Why did Xerxes invade Greece?He wanted to show his power and surpass his predecessors, launching a big invasion in 480 BCE.

Achaemenid Empire: The largest empire the world had yet seen, stretching from Eastern Europe and the Black Sea to the Indus River and Central Asia.
Hellespont: An ancient name for the Dardanelles, a narrow strait in northwestern Turkey connecting the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara.
Bas-relief: A type of sculpture in which the sculpted elements remain attached to a solid background of the same material, creating a raised image.
Imperial Propaganda: The use of communication and art by an empire to promote its ideology, achievements, and legitimacy to its subjects and foreign powers.