11　印欧人

印欧波斯人征服了闪族和埃及世界

埃及、巴比伦、亚述和腓尼基的世界存在了近3000年。富饶谷地的这些高贵民族在逐渐衰老。当一个更加朝气蓬勃的新民族诞生时，这些古老民族的厄运就开始了。我们管这个新民族叫印欧民族，因为他们不仅征服了欧洲，也让自己成为英属印度地区的统治阶级。

这些印欧人像闪族人一样，也是白种人，但他们说的是另一种不同的语言。除了匈牙利语、芬兰语和西班牙北部的巴斯克方言之外，这种语言被认为是欧洲所有其他语种的共同祖先。

当我们刚听说印欧人时，他们就已在里海岸边生活了几百年。后来，他们收起帐篷，去寻找新的家园。他们中的一些人来到中亚山区，在伊朗高原周围的山峰上一住就是几百年。我们称他们雅利安人。还有一些人追逐着落日，占据了欧洲平原。后面讲希腊和罗马故事的时候，我再介绍他们。

在这里，我们先跟随雅利安人前进。在他们伟大导师查拉图斯特拉（或琐罗亚

follow the swiftly flowing Indus river on its way to the sea.

Others had preferred to stay among the hills of western Asia and there they had founded the half-independent communities of the Medes and the Persians, two peoples whose names we have copied from the old Greek history-books. In the seventh century before the birth of Christ, the Medes had established a kingdom of their own called Media, but this perished when Cyrus, the chief of a clan known as the Anshan, made himself king of all the Persian tribes and started upon a career of conquest which soon made him and his children the undisputed masters of the whole of western Asia and of Egypt.

Indeed, with such energy did these Indo-European Persians push their triumphant campaigns in the west that they soon found themselves in serious difficulties with certain other Indo-European tribes which centuries before had moved into Europe and had taken possession of the Greek peninsula and the islands of the Ægean Sea.

These difficulties led to the three famous wars between Greece and Persia during which King Darius and King Xerxes of Persia invaded the northern part of the peninsula. They ravaged the lands of the Greeks and tried very hard to get a foothold upon the European continent.

But in this they did not succeed. The navy of Athens proved unconquerable. By cutting off the lines of supplies of the Persian armies, the Greek sailors invariably forced the Asiatic rulers to return to their base.

It was the first encounter between Asia, the ancient teacher, and Europe, the young and eager pupil. A great many of the other chapters of this book will tell you how the struggle between east and west has continued until this very day.

斯德）的领导下，他们中大多数人离开了山区的家，沿着奔流入海的印度河前进。

另一些人则宁愿守在西亚山区，他们建立了半独立的米底人社会和波斯人社会。对于这两个民族的名字，我们沿用了古希腊史书中的记载。公元前7世纪，米底人建立了自己的米底王国。但由于居鲁士的出现，它灭亡了。居鲁士是安善地区的首领，统治了所有的波斯部落，并不断开疆拓土，很快他和子孙就成为整个西亚和埃及理所当然的主人。

印欧人和他们的邻居

凭着旺盛的精力，这些印欧波斯人继续乘胜西征，不久与另一支印欧部落发生了激烈冲突。另一支印欧部落是在几百年前移居到欧洲的，他们占领了希腊半岛和爱琴海诸岛。

这些冲突引发了希腊和波斯之间的三次著名战役。当时，波斯国王大流士和薛西斯入侵希腊半岛北部。他们洗劫了希腊，费尽心力要在欧洲大陆得到立足之地。

但是他们都失败了。雅典海军所向无敌。希腊水手多次切断波斯军队的供给线，每次都把那位亚洲统帅赶回老巢。

亚洲被尊为古代的老师，欧洲则是年轻奋发的学生。这是它们的第一次相遇。本书的后面章节会告诉你们，东西方之间的战争是怎样持续至今的。