some things that happened during that period of time. In January 478 BC, Esther became the queen for Ahasuerus (also known as Xerxes), king of the Persian Empire (Esther 2:16). Prior to that, however, three famous battles occurred that the Bible does not discuss. These battles, involving the Persians, are considered very important in the history of western civilization. The first was the battle at Marathon, where the Athenians and their allies defeated the Persian army of Darius the Great in 490