Darius
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Darius was the assassin of King Xerxes I of Persia. A proponent of free will, he is considered to be one of the very first proto-Assassins, active several centuries before its formal founding. His assassination of the Persian king was the first recorded usage of the Hidden Blade, which went on to become the iconic weapon of the Assassin Brotherhood.
Biography
During the 5th century BCE, the precursors to the Templars supported the reign and conquests of the Achaemenid kings Darius I and his son Xerxes I.[1] Opposing the Persian kings tyranny over the people, Darius personally assassinated King Xerxes I with the Hidden Blade in August 465 BCE, in what would become the first recorded use of the Assassins' iconic weapon.[2]
By 48 BCE, his Hidden Blade wound up in the hands of Queen Cleopatra of Egypt, who passed it on to her protector Aya. After she made her own, Aya in turn gave Darius' blade to her husband Bayek. After the two founded the Hidden Ones, it became the iconic weapon of their organization,[3] still used centuries later when their Brotherhood reformed as the Assassins.[2]
By the Renaissance, a tomb dedicated to Darius was located in the Basilica di Santa Maria Novella in Florence, where a sarcophagus lay with an Assassin Seal that provided access to the hidden armor of Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad. In 1478, this sarcophagus was opened by Ezio Auditore, who took the Seal and later obtained the armor.[2]
A statue of Darius was also erected sometime before 1476 in the sanctuary beneath the Villa Auditore in Monteriggioni.[2]
Trivia
- Darius was the first known user of the Hidden Blade.
- Darius was depicted with all ten fingers. Whether this is artistic license or an oversight is unknown.
- Unlike most Assassins, Darius wore his Hidden Blade on the right arm.
- Historically, Xerxes was assassinated by Artabanus.
Gallery
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Darius' sarcophagus -
The Seal of Darius -
Darius' insignia
Appearance
- Assassin's Creed II (statue only)
