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95-677: The capital of the province was Ganzak . Ādurbādagān is the Middle Persian spelling of the Parthian Āturpātākān , which is derived from the name of the former satrap of the area, Atropates (Āturpāt). It is attested in Georgian as Adarbadagan and in Armenian as Atrpatakan . While Middle Persian texts are vague and incomprehensible about the geography of Adurbadagan, New Persian and Arabic texts are clearer. According to

190-522: A mobad (priest) named Mazdak caught Kavad's attention. Mazdak was the chief representative of a religious and philosophical movement called Mazdakism . Not only did it consist of theological teachings, but it also advocated for political and social reforms that would impact the nobility and clergy. The Mazdak movement was nonviolent and called for the sharing of wealth, women and property, an archaic form of communism . According to modern historians Touraj Daryaee and Matthew Canepa , 'sharing women'

285-546: A "warrior nobility" ( arteshtaran ), it still had a significantly smaller population, was more impoverished, and was a less centralized state compared to the Roman Empire . As a result, the Sasanian shahs had access to fewer full-time fighters, and depended on recruits from the nobility instead. Some exceptions were the royal cavalry bodyguard, garrison soldiers, and units recruited from places outside Iran. The bulk of

380-470: A barbarian. In the end the negotiations did not reach a consensus. Khosrow reportedly felt insulted by the Byzantines, and his attitude towards them deteriorated. Mahbod, who with Siyawush, had acted as the diplomats in the negotiations accused him of purposely sabotaging them. Further accusations were made against Siyawush, which included his reverence for new deities, and having his dead wife buried,

475-749: A bastion of Iranian presence in the Caucasus. The Sasanians exerted considerable influence on trade in the region under Kavad. By using the strategic location of the Persian Gulf , the Sasanians interfered to prevent Byzantine traders from taking take part in the India trade. They accomplished this either by bargaining with trade associates in the Indian subcontinent —ranging from the Gupta Empire in

570-638: A branch of the Parthian Arsacids from the 1st-century AD. During the late Parthian era, the empire was declining, resulting in the weakening of hold over western Iran. The Iranologist Touraj Daryaee argues that the reign of the Parthian monarch Vologases V ( r.  191–208 ) was "the turning point in Arsacid history, in that the dynasty lost much of its prestige." The people of Adurbadagan (both nobility and peasantry) allied themselves with

665-402: A dispute over Lazica . Although Kavad's forces suffered two notable losses at the battles of Dara and Satala , the war was largely indecisive, with both sides suffering heavy losses. In 531, while the Sasanian army was besieging Martyropolis , Kavad died from an illness. He was succeeded by Khosrow I, who inherited a reinvigorated and mighty empire equal to that of the Byzantines. Because of

760-453: A key role in Balash's deposition, appointed Kavad as the new shah of Iran. According to Miskawayh (d. 1030), Sukhra was Kavad's maternal uncle. Kavad ascended the throne in 488 at the age of 15. His youth is emphasized on his coins, which show him with short whiskers. He inherited an empire that had reached its lowest ebb. The nobility and clergy exerted great influence and authority over

855-761: A member of the Parthian House of Karen , one of the Seven Great Houses of Iran , quickly raised a new force and stopped the Hephthalites from achieving further success. Peroz' brother, Balash , was elected as shah by the Iranian magnates, most notably Sukhra and the Mihranid general Shapur Mihran . However, Balash proved unpopular among the nobility and clergy who had him blinded and deposed after just four years in 488. Sukhra, who had played

950-661: A military bastion, and then religious one. However, in 241/2, Shapur I had to mount an expedition in Adurbadagan to quell unrest. After that, the province seemingly became completely subdued. Under Kavad I ( r.  488–496, 498–531 ) and his son and successor Khosrow I ( r.  531–579 ) the empire was divided into four frontier regions ( kust in Middle Persian ), with a military commander ( spahbed ) in charge of each district. The frontier regions were known as xwarāsān (East), xwarārān (West), nēmrōz (South) and abāxtar (North). Due to negative connotations,

1045-449: A poll-tax on his subjects, and thus secured the release of Kavad before he mounted his third campaign in 484. There, Peroz was defeated and killed by a Hephthalite army, possibly near Balkh . His army was completely destroyed, and his body was never found. Four of his sons and brothers had also died. The main Sasanian cities of the eastern region of Khorasan − Nishapur , Herat and Marw were now under Hephthalite rule. Sukhra ,

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1140-399: A result, the siege was lifted and peace was made between Kavad's successor Khosrow I and Justinian. The provinces of Gorgan, Khuzestan, and Asoristan provided the most Sasanian coinage for Kavad during his reign. His reign marks the introduction of distinctive traits on the obverse sides of the coin which includes astral symbols, particularly, a crescent on both of his shoulders, and

1235-482: A star in the left corner. The reverse side shows the traditional fire altar flanked by two attendants facing it in veneration. Kavad used the title of kay ( Kayanian ) on his coins, a title that had been used since the reign of his grandfather Yazdegerd II ( r.  438–457 ). Kavad was, however, the last Sasanian shah to have kay inscribed on his coins—the last one issued in 513. The regular obverse inscription on his coins simply has his name; in 504, however,

1330-424: A testimonial to the Sasanian conquest of Adurbadagan. The nobility of Adurbadagan most likely allied themselves the Sasanians due to a desire for a strong state capable of maintaining order. The priesthood, who may have felt alienated by the easy-going Arsacids, probably also supported the Sasanian family, due to its association with Zoroastrianism . The events that occurred during the early Sasanian period increased

1425-406: A violation of Iranian law. Siyawush was thus most likely a Mazdakite, the religious sect that Kavad had originally, but now no longer, supported. Although Siyawush was a close friend of Kavad and had helped him escape imprisonment, Kavad did not try to prevent his execution. Seemingly his purpose was to restrict Siyawush's immense authority as the head of the Sasanian army, a post which was disliked by

1520-420: A vision of Jesus whilst besieging Amida, which encouraged him to remain resolute in his effort. Jesus guaranteed to give him Amida within three days, which happened. Kavad's forces then sacked the city, taking much booty. The city's church was spared, however, due to the relationship between Kavad and Jesus. Kavad was even thought to have venerated a figure of Jesus. According to modern historian Richard Payne,

1615-517: A year after the new Byzantine emperor Justinian I ( r.  527–565 ) had been crowned. This was supposedly the result of the Byzantines not acknowledging Khosrow as Kavad's heir. According to the Greek chronicler John Malalas , military clashes first took place in Lazica , which had been disputed between the two empires since 522. Not long after this the battles also spread down to Mesopotamia, where

1710-535: Is an ancient town founded in northwestern Iran . The city stood somewhere south of Lake Urmia , and it has been postulated that the Persian nobleman Atropates chose the city as his capital. The exact location, according to Minorsky , Schippmann, and Boyce , is identified as being the ruins (37.011555°N, 46.193187°E) at Leylan , Malekan County in the Miandoab plain. The word ganzak means "treasury", and

1805-543: Is different. He says that Kavad's sister helped him to escape by rolling him in a carpet, which she made the guard believe was soaked with her menstrual blood. The guard did not object or investigate the carpet, "fearing lest he become polluted by it". One of the authors of the Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire , John Robert Martindale, proposes she may have been Sambice , Kavad's sister-wife, who

1900-399: Is emphasized by al-Tabari , who states that Sukhra "was in charge of government of the kingdom and the management of affairs ... [T]he people came to Sukhra and undertook all their dealings with him, treating Kavad as a person of no importance and regarding his commands with contempt." Numerous regions and the representatives of the elite paid tribute to Sukhra not to Kavad. Sukhra controlled

1995-569: Is known to have said that: "If you [were to] kill me all of Adurbadagan [will] rise in avenging my blood, and will wage war against you." The Arab general accepted Isfandyadh's advice and made peace with him. However, Bahram, the brother of Isfandyadh, refused to submit to the Arab forces and kept resisting them. Although he was quickly defeated by the Arabs, and was forced to flee from Adurbadagan. Adurbadagan thus came under Arab suzerainty. The majority of

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2090-707: Is of Median origin ( ganǰəm ). It was adopted into Persian by the Achaemenid Empire , as the name is related to the Persian word for "treasury", گنج ganj . Ganzak was built by the Achaemenids and was the seat of the satrap of Media . During the 4th century BC, the city became part of the domains of the Persian aristocrat Atropates , who had deserted to Alexander the Great , and had probably made Ganzak his capital. The kingdom of Atropates became known as

2185-690: Is said to have founded the city Eran-asan-kerd-Kawad in Media ; Fahraj in Spahan ; and Weh-Kawad, Eran-win(n)ard-Kawad, Kawad-khwarrah, and Arrajan in Pars . He rebuilt Kirmanshah in Media, which he also used as one of his residences. He is also said to have founded a township in Meybod , which was named Haft-adhar ("seven fires"), because of a Zoroastrian fire temple being established there. Its original fire

2280-616: Is transliterated in Greek as Kabates , Chü-he-to in Chinese , and Qubādh in Arabic . The son of the Sasanian shah Peroz I ( r.  459–484 ), Kavad was born in 473. The Sasanian family had been the monarchs of Iran since 224 after the triumph of the first Sasanian shah Ardashir I ( r.  224–242 ) over the Parthian (Arsacid) Empire . Although Iranian society was greatly militarised and its elite designated themselves as

2375-521: The Denkard , and the Zand-i Wahman yasn . Later Islamic-era sources, particularly al-Tabari , also mention Mazdak. These later writings were perhaps corrupted by Iranian oral folklore, given that blame put on Mazdak for the redistribution of aristocratic properties to the people, is a topic repeated in Iranian oral history. Other 'villains' in pre-Islamic Iranian history, namely Gaumata in

2470-556: The Arabs invaded Adurbadagan , which was the domain of the Ispahbudhan brothers Isfandyadh and Bahram. Isfandyadh made a stand against the Arabs, where a battle was fought. He was, however, defeated and captured by the Arabs. While Isfandyadh was in captivity, he told the Arab general Bukayr ibn Abdallah , that if he sought to conquer Adurbadagan easily and peacefully, he should make peace with him. According to Bal'ami , Isfandyadh

2565-652: The Behistun Inscription of the Achaemenid king Darius the Great ( r.  522 – 486 BC ), and Wahnam in the Paikuli inscription of the Sasanian king Narseh ( r.  293–302 ) are frequently accused of similar misdeeds. The nobility deposed Kavad in 496 for his support of the Mazdakites and his execution of Sukhra. They installed his more impressionable brother Jamasp on

2660-740: The Iranologist Ehsan Yarshater . Khosrow's mother was in reality a noblewoman from the House of Ispahbudhan , one of the Seven Great Houses. At the Hephthalite court in Bactria , Kavad gained the support of the Hephthalite king, and also married his daughter, who was Kavad's niece. During his stay, Kavad might have witnessed the rise of the Hephthalites to a better position than that of their former suzerains ,

2755-641: The Kidarites , a Hun dynasty. The present-day district of Qobadian (the Arabicized form of Kavadian) near Balkh, which was then under Hephthalite rule, was perhaps founded by Kavad and possibly served as his source of revenue. In 498 (or 499), Kavad returned to Iran with a Hephthalite army. When he crossed the domains of the Kanarangiyan in Khorasan, he was met by Adergoudounbades , a member of

2850-410: The 9th-century Persian geographer Ibn Khordadbeh , the following cities were part of the province; Ardabil , Bagavan , Balwankirgh, Barza, Barzand , Ghabrawan, Ganzak , Khuy , Kulsarah, Maragha , Marand , Muqan , Shapurkhwast, Sisar , T'awrezh , Nariz, Urmia , Salmas , Shiz , and Warthan (Vardanakert), which he considered the northmost point of Adurbadagan. The southern extent of the province

2945-515: The Armenian Taurus , and reached Martyropolis , where its governor Theodore, surrendered without any resistance and gave Kavad two years worth of taxes collected from the province of Sophene . Because of this, Kavad let Theodore keep his position as governor of the city. Kavad then besieged the fortress-city of Amida through the autumn and winter (502–503). The siege proved to be a far more difficult enterprise than Kavad had expected;

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3040-519: The Atropatenian kingdom. However, the name still survived, and instead of being merged with Media was a province of its own, where Ganzak continued to be the capital. In 591, the Battle of Blarathon occurred near Ganzak between the Sasanian king Khosrow II (590–628) and the usurper Bahram Chobin (r. 590–591). The battle ended in a defeat for Bahram Chobin, who fled to Khorasan . In 622, Ganzak

3135-738: The Byzantine city of Antioch in 540, conquered Yemen in the 570s, and under the Parthian military commander Bahram Chobin defeated the Hephthalites and their allies, the Western Turkic Khaganate , in the Perso-Turkic war of 588–589 . Although the reforms were beneficial for the Empire, they may also have resulted in the decline of the traditional links between the aristocracy and the crown under Hormizd IV ( r.  579–590 ) and Khosrow II ( r.  590–628 ), to

3230-448: The Byzantine emperor Heraclius . The Iranians succeeded in saving the fire, which they later restored to the temple, which was quickly rebuilt. The apocalyptical Middle Persian text Zand-i Wahman yasn may report some form of contemporary memory of the destruction of the temple; "They will remove Adur Gushnasp from its place . . . on account of (the devastation of) these armies, Adur Gushnasp will be carried to Padishkhwargar ." In 651,

3325-411: The Byzantine emperor Justin I , Kavad proposed that he adopt Khosrow. This proposal was greeted initially with enthusiasm by the Byzantine emperor and his nephew, Justinian . However, Justinian's quaestor , Proclus, opposed the move concerned over the possibility that Khosrow might attempt to take over the Byzantine throne. The Byzantines made a counter-proposal to adopt Khosrow not as a Roman but as

3420-503: The Byzantine province of Commagene . When the Byzantine army under Belisarius approached, Azarethes and his men withdrew east, halting at Callinicum . In the ensuing battle the Byzantines suffered a heavy defeat, but Iranian losses were so great Kavad was displeased with Azarethes, and relieved him of his command. In 531, the Iranians besieged Martyropolis . During the siege, however, Kavad became ill and died on 13 September. As

3515-461: The Byzantines did not end with a decisive winner, the conquest of Amida was the greatest accomplishment achieved by a Sasanian force since 359, when the same city had been captured by Shapur II. Kavad's relationship with his Christian subjects is unclear. In Christian Iberia, where the Sasanians had earlier tried to spread Zoroastrianism, Kavad represented himself as an advocate of orthodox Zoroastrianism. In Armenia, however, he settled disputes with

3610-400: The Byzantines suffered a heavy defeat near the border. In 530, one of the famous open-field battles took place between the Byzantine and Sasanian troops at Dara . The Sasanian army led by Perozes , Pityaxes and Baresmanas suffered a severe defeat. The battle did not, however, bring an end to the conflict. The following year Kavad raised an army, which he sent under Azarethes to invade

3705-718: The Christians and appears to have continued Balash's peaceful approach. The Christians of Mesopotamia and Iran proper practised their religion without any persecution, despite the punishment of Christians in Iran proper being briefly mentioned in c.  512/3 . Like Jamasp, Kavad also supported the patriarch of the Church of the East , Babai , and Christians served in high offices at the Sasanian court. According to Eberhard Sauer, Sasanian monarchs only persecuted other religions when it

3800-594: The Church of the East. His work was then translated from Syriac to Middle Persian and presented to Kavad. This work has since been lost . Kavad's reign marked a new turn in Sasanian–Christian relations; before his reign, Jesus had been seen solely as the defender of the Byzantines. This changed under Kavad. According to an apocryphal account in the Chronicle of Pseudo–Zachariah of Mytilene , written by an anonymous West Syrian monk at Amida in 569, Kavad saw

3895-475: The Parthian nobility worked for the Sasanian shah for personal benefit, personal oath, and, conceivably, a common awareness of the "Aryan" (Iranian) kinship they shared with their Persian overlords. Another vital component of the army was the Armenian cavalry, which was recruited from outside the ranks of the Parthian wuzurgan . However, the revolt of Armenia in 451 and the loss of its cavalry had weakened

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3990-503: The Persian Sasanian prince Ardashir I ( r.  224–242 ) during his wars against Vologases V's son and second successor Artabanus IV ( r.  216–224 ). In 226, Adurbadagan submitted with little resistance to Ardashir I after he had defeated and killed Artabanus IV at the Battle of Hormozdgan . Ardashir I and his son and heir Shapur I ( r.  240–270 ) are depicted in a rock relief near Salmas , possibly

4085-589: The Sasanian capital of Ctesiphon . Even in prison, Sukhra was considered too powerful and was executed. This caused displeasure among some prominent members of the nobility weakening Kavad's status as shah. It also marked the temporary loss of authority of the House of Karen, whose members were exiled in the regions of Tabaristan and Zabulistan , which was away from the Sasanian court in Ctesiphon. According to classical sources, not long after Sukhra's execution,

4180-659: The Sasanian's attempts to keep the Hunnic tribes (i.e. the Hephthalites , Kidarites , Chionites and Alkhans ) of the northeastern border in check. Indeed, Kavad's grandfather Yazdegerd II ( r.  438–457 ) had managed to hold off the Kidarites during his wars against them, which had occupied him throughout most of his reign. Now, however, Sasanian authority in Central Asia began to decay. In 474 and

4275-441: The Sasanians could now be viewed as adherents of Jesus and his saints, if not Christianity itself. Not much is known about Kavad's wars in the east. According to Procopius, Kavad was forced to leave for the eastern frontier in 503 to deal with an attack by "hostile Huns", one of the many clashes in a reportedly lengthy war. After the Sasanian disaster in 484, all of Khorasan was seized by the Hephthalites; no Sasanian coins minted in

4370-619: The Zoroastrian priesthood but also Christian and Jewish leaders slandered Mazdak and his followers. According to the Shahnameh , written several centuries later by the medieval Persian poet Ferdowsi , Kavad had Mazdak and his supporters sent to Khosrow. His supporters were killed in a walled orchard, buried head first with only their feet visible. Khosrow then summoned Mazdak to look at his garden, saying: "You will find trees there that no-one has ever seen and no-one ever heard of even from

4465-521: The aid of his sister and an officer named Siyawush , Kavad and some of his followers fled east to the territory of the Hephthalite king who provided him with an army. This enabled Kavad to restore himself to the throne in 498/9. Bankrupted by this hiatus, Kavad applied for subsidies from the Byzantine emperor Anastasius I . The Byzantines had originally paid the Iranians voluntarily to maintain

4560-461: The area (Nishapur, Herat, Marw) have been found from his first reign. The increase in the number of coins minted at Gorgan (which was now the northernmost Sasanian point) during his first reign may indicate a yearly tribute he paid to the Hephthalites. During his second reign, his fortunes changed. A Sasanian campaign in 508 led to the conquest of the Zundaber (Zumdaber) Castellum, associated with

4655-515: The city. Kavad then tried unsuccessfully to capture Edessa in Osroene . In 505 an invasion of Armenia by the Huns from the Caucasus led to an armistice; the Byzantines paid subsidies to the Iranians for the maintenance of the fortifications on the Caucasus, in return for Amida. The peace treaty was signed by the Ispahbudhan aristocrat Bawi , Kavad's brother-in-law. Although Kavad's first war with

4750-417: The commander of the prison. They came to an understanding that she would be allowed to see Kavad in exchange for sleeping with him. Kavad's friend, Siyawush , who was regularly in the same area as the prison, planned his friend's escape by preparing horses near the prison. Kavad changed clothes with his wife to disguise himself as a woman, and escaped from the prison and fled with Siyawush. Tabari's account

4845-448: The continuation of their authority despite the efforts by Kavad and Khosrow. A new priestly office was also created known as the "advocate and judge of the poor" ( driyōšān jādag-gōw ud dādwar ), which assisted the clergy to help the poor and underprivileged, which they had possibly ignored previously. The power of the dehqan , a class of small land-owning magnates, increased substantially (and possibly even led to their establishment in

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4940-400: The country was made a Sassanian province in 428, the Armenian districts of Parskahayk and Paytakaran were incorporated into Adurbadagan. The northern extent of Adurbadagan was enlarged in 571 with the inclusion of the Armenian district of Sisanak ( Siwnik ). Since c.  323 BC the area of Adurbadagan had been ruled by local dynasties, initially by Atropates and his descendants, and

5035-471: The defenders, although unsupported by troops, repelled the Iranian assaults for three months before they were finally defeated. He had its inhabitants deported to a city in southern Iran, which he named "Kavad's Better Amida" ( Weh-az-Amid-Kawad ). He left a garrison in Amida which included his general Glon, two marzbans ( margraves ) and 3,000 soldiers. The Byzantines failed in their attempt to recapture

5130-523: The defense of the Caucasus against attacks from the north. Anastasius refused the subsidies, which led Kavad to invade his domains, thus starting the Anastasian War . Kavad first seized Theodosiopolis and Martyropolis respectively, and then Amida after holding the city under siege for three months. The two empires made peace in 506, with the Byzantines agreeing to pay subsidies to Kavad for

5225-463: The degree that many belonging to the wuzurgan class, notably Bahram Chobin of the Mihran family, and later Shahrbaraz of the same family, were bold enough to dispute the legitimacy of the Sasanian family and lay claims to the throne. With his reforms under way by the 520s, Kavad no longer had any use for Mazdak and he officially stopped supporting the Mazdakites. A debate was arranged where not only

5320-518: The family, who agreed to help him. Another noble who supported Kavad was Zarmihr Karen , a son of Sukhra. Jamasp and the nobility and clergy did not resist as they wanted to prevent another civil war. They agreed that he would be king again with the understanding that he would not hurt Jamasp or the elite. Jamasp was spared, albeit probably blinded, while Gushnaspdad and other nobles who had plotted against Kavad were executed. Generally, however, Kavad secured his position by lenience. Adergoudounbades

5415-433: The first place). A group of these dehqans was enlisted into a group of cavalry men, who were managed directly by the shah and earned steady wages. This was done to decrease the reliance on the Parthian cavalry. Soldiers were also enlisted from Sasanian allies, such as the Hephthalites, Arabs , and Daylamites . As a result, the newly rejuvenated Sasanian army proved successful in its efforts in subsequent decades. It sacked

5510-697: The governor of Atropatene, Isfandyadh , became a vassal of the Rashidun Caliphate . Some years later, however, Isfandyadh disappeared from mention, and Atropatene thus must have been incorporated into the Rashidun administration. Ganzak, no longer the capital of Atropatene, survived under the Muslims but was destroyed sometime during the late medieval era. Leylan , a town close to Ganzak, became its successor. Kavad I Kavad I ( Middle Persian : 𐭪𐭥𐭠𐭲 Kawād ; 473 – 13 September 531)

5605-454: The high nobility included the powerful Parthian noble families (known as the wuzurgan ) that were centered on the Iranian plateau . They served as the backbone of the Sasanian feudal army and were largely autonomous. The Sasanian shahs had noticeably little control over the wuzurgan ; attempts to restrict their self-determination usually resulted in the murder of the shah. Ultimately,

5700-544: The importance of Adurbadagan. While the Parthian Empire fell in Iran, their collateral line in Armenia prevented Ardashir I from conquering Armenia (or least all of it). Although Armenia was finally conquered by Shapur I in 252, the country would continue to prove problematic for the Sasanians, even more it converted to Christianity . As a result, Adurbadagan had been since the advent of the Sasanians fortified into

5795-406: The late 470s/early 480s, Peroz was defeated and captured twice by the Hephthalites respectively. In his second defeat, he offered to pay thirty mule packs of silver drachms in ransom, but could only pay twenty. Unable to pay the other ten, he sent Kavad in 482 as a hostage to the Hephthalite court until he could pay the rest. He eventually managed to gain the ten mule packs of silver by imposing

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5890-517: The lower classes. The historicity of the persona of Mazdak has been questioned. He may have been a fabrication to take the blame away from Kavad. Contemporary historians, including Procopius and Joshua the Stylite make no mention of Mazdak naming Kavad as the figure behind the movement. Mention of Mazdak only emerges in later Middle Persian Zoroastrian documents, namely the Bundahishn ,

5985-419: The maintenance of the fortifications on the Caucasus in return for Amida. Around this time, Kavad also fought a lengthy war against his former allies, the Hephthalites; by 513 he had re-taken the region of Khorasan from them. In 528, the Iberian War erupted between the Sasanians and Byzantines in what is now eastern Georgia because the Byzantines refused to acknowledge Khosrow as Kavad's heir and because of

6080-413: The manpower to do so, however, as the army was controlled by Sukhra and the Sasanians relied mainly on the military of the Seven Great Houses of Iran. He found his solution in Shapur of Ray , a powerful nobleman from the House of Mihran, and a resolute opponent of Sukhra. Shapur, at the head of an army of his own men and disgruntled nobles, marched to Shiraz, defeated Sukhra's forces, and imprisoned him in

6175-423: The many challenges and issues Kavad successfully overcame, he is considered one of the most effective and successful kings to rule the Sasanian Empire. In the words of the Iranologist Nikolaus Schindel, he was "a genius in his own right, even if of a somewhat Machiavellian type." Due to increased Sasanian interest in Kayanian history, Kavad was named after the mythological Kayanian king Kavi Kavata . The name

6270-421: The money by force. In 502, Kavad invaded Byzantine Armenia with a force that included Hephthalite soldiers. He captured Theodosiopolis , perhaps with local support; in any case, the city was undefended by troops and weakly fortified. He then marched through southwestern Armenia, reportedly without facing any resistance, and entrusted local governor with the administration of the area. He proceeded to cross

6365-449: The mouth of the ancient sages." Mazdak, seeing his followers' corpses, screamed and passed out. He was executed afterwards by Khosrow, who had his feet fastened on a gallows and had his men shoot arrows at Mazdak. The validity of the story is uncertain; Ferdowsi used much earlier reports of events to write the Shahnameh , and thus the story may report some form of contemporary memory. Many places were founded or re-built under Kavad. He

6460-410: The nation, and were able to act as king-makers, as seen by their choice to depose Balash. Economically, the empire was not doing well either, the result of drought, famine, and the crushing defeats delivered by the Hephthalites. They had not only seized large parts of its eastern provinces, but had also forced the Sasanians to pay vast amounts of tribute to them, which had depleted the royal treasury of

6555-422: The nobility and clergy weakened by the Mazdakites. They would not be completed under his reign but were continued by his son, Khosrow I. The serious blows the Sasanians had suffered at the hands of the Hephthalites in the last quarter of the 5th century was a key reason behind the reforms the two made. Tax reform was implemented, a poll tax was created, and a review of taxable land was undertaken to ensure taxation

6650-461: The north to the Anuradhapura monarchs of Sri Lanka in the south—or by attacking the Byzantine boats. Iranian traders were also able to seize Indian vessels well before they could make contact with Byzantine traders. These advantages resulted in the Iranian traders establishing something resembling a monopoly over the India trade. The Sasanians and Byzantines had kept peace since the brief Byzantine–Sasanian War of 440 . The last major war between

6745-409: The other nobles. Siyawush was executed, and his office was abolished. Despite the breakdown of the negotiations, it was not until 530 that full-scale warfare on the main western frontier broke out. In the intervening years, the two sides preferred waging war by proxy, through Arab allies in the south and Huns in the north. Hostility between the two powers erupted into conflict once again in 528, just

6840-455: The population in Adurbadagan were Western-Iranian ethnic groups who practised Zoroastrianism , and spoke Adhari (including its dialect Tati ). With the incorporation of Armenian districts in 428 and 527, Adurbadagan also had an Armenian population. Ganzak Ganzak ( Persian : گنزک Ganzak , Greek : Γάζακα Gazaka , Latin : Gaza , Gazaca , Ganzaga , Arabic : جانزاك Janzaq , جازنا Jazna , Armenian : Գանձակ Gandzak ),

6935-480: The rebel forces of Bahram Chobin. However, not long after the battle, Khosrow II's maternal uncle Vistahm rebelled (precise date unknown, 590/1–596 or 594/5–600), and managed to gain control of some parts of Adurbadagan. He was, however, defeated by Khosrow II and the Sasanian general Smbat IV Bagratuni . During the Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628 , the fire temple of Adur Gushnasp was sacked in 623/4 by

7030-537: The reign of Peroz I and named Perozabad ("the city of Peroz"), was fortified by Kavad and called Perozkavad ("victorious Kavad"). The Albanian former capital of Kabala , a large urban area that included the headquarters of one of the Albanian bishops, was also fortified by Kavad. He founded the city of Baylakan , which by most researchers is identified with the ruins of Oren-kala. Ultimately, these extensive buildings and fortifications transformed Caucasian Albania into

7125-435: The royal treasury and the Iranian military. In 493, Kavad, having reached adulthood, wanted to put an end to Sukhra's dominance, and had him exiled to his native Shiraz in southwestern Iran. Even in exile, however, Sukhra was in control of everything except the kingly crown. He bragged about having put Kavad on the throne. Alarmed by the thought that Sukhra might rebel, Kavad wanted to get rid of him completely. He lacked

7220-413: The shah. Rebellions were occurring in the western provinces including Armenia and Iberia . Simultaneously, the country's peasant class was growing more and more uneasy and alienated from the elite. The young and inexperienced Kavad was tutored by Sukhra during his first five years as shah. During this period, Kavad was a mere figurehead , whilst Sukhra was the de facto ruler of the empire. This

7315-428: The slogan abzōn ("may he prosper/increase") was added. According to Procopius and other historians, Kavad had written a succession plan that favoured Khosrow just before his death. Historian John Malalas stated that Kavad crowned Khosrow himself. However, at the beginning of Khosrow's reign in 531, Bawi, and other members of the Iranian aristocracy, became involved in a conspiracy to overthrow Khosrow and make Kavad,

7410-434: The son of Kavad's second eldest son Jamasp , the shah of Iran. Upon learning of the plot, Khosrow executed all of his brothers and their offspring, as well as Bawi and the other nobles who were involved. Khosrow also ordered the execution of Kavad, who was still a child, and was away from the court, being raised by Adergoudounbades. He sent orders to kill Kavad, but Adergoudounbades disobeyed and secretly raised him until he

7505-555: The temple of az-Zunin in the area of ad-Dawar, situated between Bust and Kandahar . A Sasanian coin dating to 512/3 has been found in Marw. This indicates the Sasanians under Kavad had managed to re-conquer Khorasan after successfully dealing with the Hephthalites. Around 520 to secure the succession of his youngest son Khosrow, whose position was threatened by rival brothers and the Mazdakite sect, and to improve his relationship with

7600-430: The term abāxtar was substituted with the name of Adurbadagan. Due to sharing the same name, the kust of Adurbadagan and its namesake province were often incorrectly seen as being the same in sources. The province of Adurbadagan, along with provinces such as Gilan and Caucasian Albania were part of the northern quarter. In August 591, the Battle of Blarathon took place near Ganzak, between Khosrow II 's forces and

7695-529: The throne. A council soon took place among the nobility to discuss what to do with Kavad. Gushnaspdad , a member of the Kanarangiyan, the family that held the important title of kanarang (military leader of Abarshahr ), proposed Kavad be executed. His suggestion was overruled and Kavad was imprisoned instead in the Castle of Oblivion in Khuzestan . According to Procopius' account, Kavad's wife approached

7790-570: The two empires had been during the reign of Shapur II ( r.  309–379 ). However, war finally erupted in 502. Bankrupted by his hiatus in 496–498/9, Kavad applied for subsidies to the Byzantine Empire , who originally had paid the Iranians voluntarily to maintain the defense of the Caucasus against attacks from the north. The Iranians seemingly saw the money as a debt due to them. But now Emperor Anastasius I ( r.  491–518 ) refused subsidies forcing Kavad to attempt to obtain

7885-537: The words of Iranologist Nikolaus Schindel he was "a genius in his own right, even if of a somewhat Machiavellian type." He was successful in his efforts to reinvigorate his declining empire paving the way for a smooth transition to his son Khosrow I, who inherited a powerful empire. Khosrow improved it further during his reign, becoming one of the most popular shahs of Iran earning the epithet Anushirvan ("the immortal soul"). The Ziyarid dynasty , which mainly ruled over Tabaristan and Gorgan between 931–1090, claimed that

7980-609: The “ Atropatene ”. During the rule of this kingdom, the sacred fire temple Adur Gushnasp was constructed. In ca. 148 BC, the kingdom of Atropatene became a vassal state of the Parthian Empire . In 36 BC, the Romans besieged Ganzak. Still, they were defeated by a combined force under the Atropatenian king Artavasdes I and the Parthian king Orodes II . In ca. 224 AD, the Sasanian king Ardashir I (r. 224–242) put an end to

8075-446: Was appointed the new kanarang, while Siyawush was appointed the head of the Sasanian army ( arteshtaran-salar ). Another of Sukhra's sons, Bozorgmehr , was made Kavad's great minister ( wuzurg framadar ). Kavad's reclamation of his throne displays the troubled circumstances of the empire; a small force was able to overwhelm the nobility-clergy alliance. Kavad's reign is noteworthy for his reforms, which he had been able to make with

8170-456: Was at the city of Sisar. Maragha was the main city of the western part, while Ardabil was the main city in the eastern part. The Middle Persian geography text Šahrestānīhā ī Ērānšahr mentions a major city in Adurbadagan named "Shahrestan i Adurbadagan", which may have been another name for Ardabil. The capital of the province was Ganzak. When the Arsacid house of Armenia was abolished and

8265-536: Was betrayed to the shah in 541 by his own son, Bahram. Khosrow had him executed, but Kavad, or someone claiming to be him, managed to flee to the Byzantine Empire. Kavad's reign is considered a turning point in Sasanian history. As a result of the many challenges and issues Kavad successfully handled, he is considered one of the most effective and successful kings to rule the Sasanian Empire. In

8360-472: Was completed by his son and successor, Khosrow I . They were made possible by Kavad's use of the Mazdakite preacher Mazdak , leading to a social revolution that weakened the authority of the nobility and the clergy. Because of this, and the execution of the powerful king-maker Sukhra , Kavad was imprisoned in the Castle of Oblivion ending his reign. He was replaced by his brother Jamasp . However, with

8455-538: Was created by fire brought from seven other temples in Pars, Balkh, Adurbadagan , Nisa , Spahan , Ghazni , and Ctesiphon. In the Caucasus , Kavad had new fortifications built at Derbent , and ordered the construction of the Apzut Kawat wall ( Middle Persian : *Abzūd Kawād , "Kavad increased [in glory]" or "has prospered"). The prominent Caucasian Albanian capital of P'artaw , which had been rebuilt during

8550-535: Was destroyed by the Roman/Byzantine emperor Heraclius , who also had the sacred fire temple Adhur Gushnasp destroyed. The Byzantine sources reported that Ganzak was a large town with “about 3,000 houses”. The governor of Atropatene, Farrukh Hormizd , did not resist the Byzantines due to an alliance he had made with them along with the military rebel Shahrbaraz . In 651, during the Muslim conquest of Persia ,

8645-480: Was fair. The empire was divided into four frontier regions ( kust in Middle Persian), with a spāhbed (military commander) in charge of each district; a chancery was also added to keep the soldiers equipped. Before Kavad and Khosrow's reforms, the Iranians' general ( Eran-spahbed ) managed the empire's army. Many of these military commanders were notably from the wuzurgan class of Parthia , indicating

8740-533: Was in their urgent political interests to do so. According to the Chronicle of Seert and the historian Mari ibn Sulayman , Kavad ordered all the religious communities in the empire to submit written descriptions of their beliefs. This took place sometime before 496. In response to this command, the Patriarch Aqaq commissioned Elishaʿ bar Quzbaye , interpreter of the school of Nisibis , to write for

8835-399: Was most likely an overstatement and defamation deriving from Mazdak's decree that loosened marriage laws to help the lower classes. Powerful families saw this as a tactic to weaken their lineage and advantages, which was most likely the case. Kavad used the movement as a political tool to curb the power of the nobility and clergy. Royal granaries were distributed, and land was shared among

8930-497: Was the Sasanian King of Kings of Iran from 488 to 531, with a two or three-year interruption. A son of Peroz I ( r.  459–484 ), he was crowned by the nobles to replace his deposed and unpopular uncle Balash ( r. 484–488 ). Inheriting a declining empire where the authority and status of the Sasanian kings had largely ended, Kavad tried to reorganize his empire by introducing many reforms whose implementation

9025-441: Was the mother of his eldest son, Kawus . Regardless, Kavad managed to escape imprisonment and fled to the court of the Hephthalite king, where he took refuge. According to the narratives included in the history of al-Tabari, during his flight Kavad met a peasant girl from Nishapur, named Niwandukht, who became pregnant with his child, who would ascend the throne as Khosrow I . However, the story has been dismissed as "fable" by

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