Parmys Shahbanu – The elusive Persian Queen of the Achaemenid Empire

Queen Parmys Shahbanu was the granddaughter, niece, wife, stepmother, and cousin of Persian kings of the Achaemenid Empire. She was the queen consort of King Darius the Great of the Achaemenid Empire. She was the granddaughter of King Cyrus the Great. When Darius the Great became King of the Achaemenid Empire, he married her and her two aunts. However, Queen Parmys Shahbanu still remains an elusive queen in Persian history.^[1]

The date of Queen Parmys Shahbanu is unknown.^[2] In the Persepolis Fortifications Tablets, her Persian name was Uparmiya.^[3] She was the only daughter of Prince Smerdis.^[4] Her mother is unknown.^[5] Princess Parmys’s grandfather was King Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid Empire (r. 559-530 B.C.E).^[6] She was the niece of King Cambyses II, Queen Atossa Shabanu and Queen Artystone Shahbanu.^[7]

In 530 B.C.E., King Cyrus the Great died. Princess Parmys’s uncle, Cambyses II, became the next King of the Achaemenid Empire. In 525 B.C.E., King Cambyses II became suspicious of Princess Parmys’s father, Prince Smerdis.^[8] King Cambyses II assassinated Prince Smerdis and kept the murder a secret.^[9] In 522 B.C.E., an imposter, who claimed to be Princess Parmys’s father, overthrew King Cambyses II and ascended the Achaemenid throne.^[10] There is no mention of how Princess Parmys thought about the False Smerdis.^[11]

In 522 B.C.E., Prince Darius overthrew the False Smerdis and became King of the Achaemenid Empire.^[12] He became known in history as Darius the Great.^[13] King Darius the Great married both Princess Parmys’s aunts, Queen Atossa Shahbanu and Queen Artystone Shahbanu.^[14] Both of her aunts became queens.^[15] King Darius the Great also married Princess Parmys and made her queen.^[16] The marriage was to legitimise King Darius the Great’s rule.^[17]

There is very little information known about Parmys Shahbanu as Queen of the Achaemenid Empire.^[18] She may not have been King Darius the Great’s favourite wife.^[19] Instead, historians believe that King Darius the Great’s favourite wife was her aunt, Queen Artystone Shahbanu.^[20] This is because she is mentioned more in the surviving Persian texts during King Darius the Great’s reign.^[21] Queen Parmys Shahbanu bore King Darius the Great a son named Prince Ariomardus.^[22] However, there is no evidence that Queen Parmys Shahbanu ever wielded any political influence during her husband’s reign.^[23] There is also no information on whether she owned any palaces. The death date of Queen Parmys Shahbanu is also unknown.^[24] Her son, Prince Ariomardus, did not become King.^[25] Instead, the next King of the Achaemenid Empire was Queen Atossa Shahbanu’s son, Xerxes I.^[26]

There are very few facts known about Queen Parmys Shahbanu.^[27] She has been largely overshadowed by Queen Atossa Shahbanu.^[28] This may have been because her son did not become the next King of the Achaemenid Empire.^[29] She may not have been the favourite wife of King Darius the Great.^[30] There is also no evidence that she owned any palaces.^[31] Therefore, her political role is unclear.^[32] Hopefully, more information on this little-known Persian queen will be brought to light.

Sources:

Brosius, M. (1998). Women in Ancient Persia, 559-531 BC. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

Lendering, J. (2019, April 27). “Parmys”. Livius.org. Retrieved on September 29, 2025 from https://www.livius.org/articles/person/parmys/.

Llewellyn-Jones, L. (2022). Persians: The Age of the Great Kings. NY: Basic Books.

Myers, A. (2023). “Atossa”. Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia.