IranianWorld

MITHRIDATES I., son of Arsaces IV., whom Orosius (5.4) rightly calls the sixth from Arsaces I., a man of distinguished bravery, greatly extended the Parthian empire. He conquered Eucratides, the king of Bactria, and deprived him of many of his provinces. He is said even to have penetrated into India and to have subdued all the people between the Hydaspes and the Indus. He conquered the Medes and Elymaeans, who had revolted from the Syrians, and his empire extended at least from the Hindu Caucasus to the Euphrates. Demetrius Nicator, king of Syria, marched against Mithridates; he was at first suecessful, but was afterwards taken prisoner in B. C. 138. Mithridates, however, treated him with respect, and gave him his daughter Rhodogune in marriage; but the marriage appears not to have been solemnized till the accession of his son Phraates II. Mithridates died during the captivity of Demetrius, between B. C. 138 and 130. He is described as a just and upright prince, who did not...

By: Mohammad Sadeq Nazmi Afshar Photo:Naghshe Rostam, Sassanid King is receiving the kingdom ring from Nahid⬆️ Mutual love between mother and child is an instinct found in almost all living creatures, even the very primitive species. This instinct is all the more prominent in human being, the most sophisticated of creatures, expanding to social dimensions. From this standpoint, mother, as a symbol of affection, fertility and creation, could be regarded as the first god men have worshiped. It seems that the worship of mother started since the concept of family and being born from a common ancestor was formed. Among men, the concept of family in its social meaning dates back to the caved welling era, i.e. when the Neanderthals took refuge in caves as a result of the third Ice Age, where it emerged eventually as homo sapiens after undergoing an evolutionary period. During this time, some 30,000 years ago, man discovered fire, warming up his cave. The number of caves and their ...

Following the overwhelming reformist victory in Iran's parliamentary elections of February 2000, the Heinrich Boll Foundation, in cooperation with the Haus der Kulturen der Welt (House of World Cultures), held the controversial conference "Iran after the Elections" in April of 2000. The conference was intended to encourage cultural and economic ties between Iranian reformers, Iranian exiles, and the general German public, as well as provide information on the status of Iran. Seventeen speakers were from Iranian reformists parties, both religious and secular. The Iranian press filmed the conference and broadcast it in Iran several weeks later, causing an uproar. The Berlin Conference came under attack by conservative elements who considered the proceedings defamation of the Islamic Republic of Iran. All of the Iranian speakers were prosecuted by Tehran officials on charges such as harming "national security," "propaganda a...

Historically located to the northwest of Iran and east of Turkey, Armenia has been the focus of many military campaigns due to its position as a passageway between Europe and Asia. Rarely masters of their own identity, Armenians have often been reduced to refugees. At such times they often fled into the Iranian-occupied area of Azerbaijan, settling in cities to the west of the Caspian Sea such as Tabriz. Under Safavid rule, Armenia and most of Transcaucasia would be united under Iranian control, posing a major threat to the Ottomans. The harsh climate and insufficient means of communications to Constantinople from Armenia allowed it to remain in Safavid hands until a peace agreement was signed in 1555 splitting Armenia into a western Ottoman portion and an eastern Iranian portion. During the struggle for territory, each side deported native Armenians into territories under their own control, replacing them with Kurdish populations and dis...

  Bahrām VI Čōbīn, chief commander under the Sasanian Hormozd IV and king of Iran in 590-91, was a son of Bahrāmgošnasp ( FIGURE 1 ), of the family of Mehrān, one of the seven great houses of the Sasanian period (Justi,  Namenbuch , p. 363 no. 23). First mentioned in Šāpūr’s Kaʿba-ye Zardošt inscription (“Arštāt, the Mehrān, from Ray,” see W. B. Henning,  BSOAS  14, 1952, p. 510), the family remained the hereditary margraves of Ray and produced notable generals (Nöldeke,  Geschichte der Perser , p. 139 n. 3). Bahrām was called Mehrbandak (Arm. Mehrevandak; Justi, loc. cit.), but his tall and slender physique earned him the nickname Čōbīn(a), var. Šōpēn “Javelin-like” ( Šāh-nāma , Moscow, VIII, p. 377; cf. V. Minorsky,  JRAS , 1939, p. 108). Bahrām started as margrave of Ray (Masʿūdī,  Morūj  II, p. 213), commanded a cavalry force which captured Dārā in 572 (Theophylactos Simocatta, 3.18.10f.), became Spahbaḏ of the North (i.e., satrap of Azerbaij...

Background story: After suffering a minor defeat in the  Battle of Araxis  against the Byzantines, Shah Hormizd IV humiliated general Bahram Chobin, sending to him women's clothing to wear. Thus, he, along with the main Persian army, rebelled against the Shah and marched toward Ctesiphon. Hormizd was killed and his son, Khosrau II, unable to fight such an army, fled to Constantinople and Bahram sat on the throne. The Battle: When General  Bahram Chobin  seized the Sassanid Persian throne, Emperor  Maurice  sent a large army to support the legitimate ruler,  Khosrau II  (Chosroes). The army was led by generals  Narses ,  John Mystacon  and the Persian  Bindoy , uncle of Khosrau. After a fierce skirmish near  Lake Urmiah , Bahram lost Ctesiphon and retreated to northwestern Iran where he was routed at Ganzak. Bahram fled to the Turks and was soon assassinated. Restoration of Khosrau ended the war. Dara and Martyropolis were ...