King Darius I proclaimed his ascent to power in his famous Behistun inscription, carved into a sheer rock face, just east of what is now the city of Kermanshah, in 518 BC. He claimed an inherited right to rule through his father, grandfather and great-grandfather back to his great-great-grandfather Teispes who was also the grandfather of Cyrus the Great.
This inscription is an excellent example of history being rewritten by the victors. Darius blackened the name of his predecessor, Cambyses, by portraying him as a rampaging madman when he was, in fact, an efficient ruler.
Darius then set himself up as the restorer of order and the rightful ruler of Persia. In fact Darius was a usurper who probably murdered the legitimate successor to Cambyses and who owed his elevation to support from the important nobles with whom he planned the coup and to his control of key portions of the army. He strengthened his position by marrying all the remaining female descendants of Cyrus (three in number) and the daughter of the most senior of his fellow conspirators.
