Who Were The Satraps Of The Achaemenid Empire?

Conny Waters – AncientPages.com – They may not be often mentioned, but the Satraps played an essential role in ancient history. Satraps were governors of provinces of the Achaemenid Empire, and later its successors the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic Empire.

Satraps had similar responsibilities to the vizier, who next after the Pharaoh was the most influential person in ancient Egypt. As the highest state official, the vizier was the immediate subordinate of the king and responsible for legal matters, and thus feared by criminals. Satraps held a prestigious position as representatives of the king.

Satrap sarcophagus banquet scene. Credit: Javicu Curucho – CC BY-SA 2.0

Satraps were not only “responsible for delivering his messages but were also responsible for maintaining a level of order in whichever city they were stationed. They were essentially considered governors of the state. Satrap literally translates to “protector of the province,” meaning these individuals had a great responsibility bestowed to them. They would also collect taxes, control local officials, and acted as the supreme judge of the province for every criminal and civil case brought before them. Each Satrap had their own council of Persians to assist in their official affairs.” 1

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