The Cimmerians ended the Phrygian reign, and were then followed by the Medes (585BC) and the Persians (547 BC). The Persians divided the empire into semi autonomous provinces and ruled the area using governors who were known as ‘satraps’. In the ancient Persian language, Katpatuka, the word for Cappadocia, meant "Land of the well bred horses".

The Persians gave their people the freedom to choose their own religion and to speak their native languages. Since the religion they were devoted to was the Zoroastrian religion, fire was considered to be divine, and so, the volcanoes of Erciyes and Hasandagi were sacred for them.

The Persians constructed a "Royal Road" connecting their capital city in Cappadocia to the Aegean region.  The Macedonian King Alexander defeated Persian armies twice, in 334 and 332 BC, and conquered this great empire.

After bringing the Persian Empire to an end, King Alexander met with great resistance in Cappadocia.  He tried to rule the area through one of his commanders named Sabictus, but the ruling classes and people resisted and declared Ariarthes, a Persian aristocrat, as king.  Ariarthes I (332 - 322 BC) was a successful ruler, and extended the borders of the Cappadocian Kingdom as far as the Black Sea. 

The kingdom of Cappadocia lived in peace until the death of Alexander. From then until 17AD, when it became a Roman province, it fought wars with the Macedonians, the Galatians and the Pontus nation.

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