The last great Persian empire before Islam — founded by Ardashir I in 224 CE, drained by war with Byzantium, and overrun by the Arab conquest that killed its last shah Yazdegerd III in 651.
Born
224 CE
Died
651 CE
Lived
427 years
Dead for
1,375 yrs
Cause of death
Conquest
Replaced by
Rashidun Caliphate
The Obituary
Founded in 224 CE when Ardashir I overthrew the Parthians, the Sasanian Empire ruled Persia and Mesopotamia for over four centuries as Rome’s and then Byzantium’s great eastern rival. It built a centralized state, made Zoroastrianism official, and presided over a flourishing of art, architecture, and learning at its capital Ctesiphon. The ruinous war with Byzantium in the early 7th century left both empires spent. When Arab Muslim armies struck in the 630s, the weakened Sasanians could not hold; the last shah, Yazdegerd III, was killed in flight in 651, ending the dynasty.
Worth remembering
Zoroastrianism was its state religion, with grand fire temples across the empire.
It and the Byzantine Empire fought a final exhausting war from 602 to 628 that left both vulnerable.
Gallery
Sasanian rock relief of Shapur I's triumph over Roman emperors at Naqsh-e RostamCarole Raddato · CC BY-SA 2.0Sasanian gilded silver plate showing a king hunting ramsCC0
Watch
Overview of ancient Persia (Sasanian context) — Khan Academy
Sources
Sasanian Empire founded by Ardashir I in 224 CE after defeating the Parthians Wikipedia
The Sasanian Empire (224–651 CE) founded by Ardashir I, with Zoroastrianism as state religion and Ctesiphon as its capital, was the dominant power in the Near East for over four centuries World History Encyclopedia
A graveyard tradition: leave a stone to show you came, and remembered.
Buried nearby — by shared fate or a neighbouring lifespan.
