King Croesus

The expression "as rich as Croesus" comes from the legendary wealth of
the king who reigned from 560 to 546 BC over Lydia
in western Asia Minor. Gold from the mines and
from the sands of the River Pactolus filled his coffers to overflowing.
The Lydians in the time of Croesus, it is believed,
were the first people to mint coins as money.

The fame of the splendid court of Croesus at Sardis
attracted many visitors. One of these, according to a legend, was Solon,
the lawgiver of the Greeks. The king proudly displayed his treasures and
asked Solon who was the happiest man that he had met. Solon named two or
three obscure men who had lived and died happily. Croesus was surprised
and angry and said: "Man of Athens, dost thou count my happiness as nothing?"
"In truth," replied Solon, "I count no man happy until his death, for no
man can know what the gods may have in store for him."

There was indeed great misfortune in store for Croesus. Cyrus the Great
of Persia, extending his vast domains, was soon threatening the kingdom
of Lydia. Croesus consulted the oracle of Delphi
in Greece. The oracle replied: "If Croesus goes to war he will destroy
a great empire." So Croesus went out to meet the army of Cyrus and was
utterly defeated, he destroyed his own great empire.

The old story goes on to relate that Cyrus ordered Croesus to be burned
alive. When Croesus saw the flames creeping upward to consume him, he remembered
the words of the wise Solon and cried out, "O Solon! Solon! Solon!" Supposedly
Cyrus was so moved by the story of how Solon had warned the proud king
that he ordered Croesus to be released. Cyrus asked to Croesus why he shouted
Solon's name, and Croesus asked him another question "what your soldiers
are doing now?", showing the Persian soldiers taking all the treasures
and destroying everything; Cyrus replied "They are plundering your city";
then Croesus said "They are not plundering my city, it's your city now
and your soldiers are destroying your city". After that short conversation
Cyrus the Great stopped his soldiers.

Today Sardis (known as Sart nearby
Salihli) is in the Aegean region and
tours start from Izmir.