how did economic decline lead to the collapse of the achaemenid dynasty
Achaemenid Empire Part of the cause of the Empire's decline had been the heavy tax burden put upon the state, which eventually led to economic decline.[86][87] An estimate of the tribute imposed on the subject nations was up to U.S. $180M per year. This does not include the material goods and supplies that were supplied as taxes.[88] After the high overhead of government – the military, the bureaucracy, whatever the satraps could safely dip into the coffers for themselves – this money went into the royal treasury. According to Diodorus, at Persepolis, Alexander III found some 180,000 Attic talents of silver besides the additional treasure the Macedonians were carrying that already had been seized in Damascus by Parmenion.[89][better source needed] This amounted to U.S. $2.7B. On top of this, Darius III had taken 8,000 talents with him on his flight to the north.[88][better source needed] Alexander put this static hoard back into the economy, and upon his death some 130,000 talents had been spent on the building of cities, dockyards, temples, and the payment of the troops, besides the ordinary government expenses.[90][better source needed] Additionally, one of the satraps, Harpalus, had made off to Greece with some 6,000 talents, which Athens used to rebuild its economy after seizing it during the struggles with the Corinthian League.[91][better source needed] Due to the flood of money from Alexander's hoard entering Greece, however, a disruption in the economy occurred, in agriculture, banking, rents, the great increase in mercenary soldiers that cash allowed the wealthy, and an increase in piracy.[92][better source needed]