The advance of Xusrtj II Parviez (602-28)

When the news that the Romans had broken their allegiance to Maurice and had killed him reached Xusro, he became furious, and was disgusted by it and was filled with anger. He sheltered the son of Maurice who had come to him as a refugee, crowned him and announced him king over the Romans. He then dispatched him together with strong troops led by three of his commanders. One of them, called Rumiytizan, was sent to Syria, which he conquered as far as Palestine... 383 The other commander, whose name was Sahin, was the Padosban of the West.384 He journeyed until he took possession of Egypt, Alexandria and Nubia. He sent Xusro the keys of the city of Alexandria in the 28 th year of his reign. As far as the third commander is concerned, he was called Faruhan and his rank was that of ‘Sahrbaraz’.2°8 Heading for Constantinople he halted at the shore of the Gulf close by, where he set up his camp. At the order of Xusro he destroyed the land of the Romans out of anger at the insult done to Maurice and to avenge him upon them.

In this brief account the Arab historian summarises the successful Sasanian advances from 603 onwards.385 386 During a first phase of the war, which Xusro II Parvez declared as an act of revenge for the assassination of his former benefactor Maurice,387 the Sasanians gained control of Armenia and from there marched on into Cappadocia. Further south their advances were equally successful. Among other conquests were the fortified border cities Amida, Rhesaina, Kallinikos and Kirkesion. All of Mesopotamia fell into Sasanian hands so that the Euphrates became the new border-line between the two empires. Between 608 and 610 Persian troops also pushed their way through Asia Minor and eventually reached Chalcedon. Another contingent marched as far as Caesarea, which remained in Sasanian hands forayear.211 However, by the beginning of the year 610 the Persians withdrew from Asia Minor.212

Political unrest within the Byzantine Empire favoured the Sasanian successes considerably and eventually led to Phocas’ downfall. Heraclius, the son of the exarchos of Carthage of the same name, became the new ruler of the Byzantine Empire. By now it had also become clear that the Romans were in a weak position in the Eastern provinces because they had exploited these economically and because they were enforcing an orthodox religious policy. The inhabitants of these provinces did not identify with Byzantium any more but accepted the Persians, who adhered to a tolerant religious policy, as their new rulers. In addition, the Roman troops were in a desolate state and no longer in the position to resist any serious attacks. It is thus not surprising that at the beginning of his reign Heraclius sought to come to an agreement with Xusro II Parvtiz (590—628) in order to consolidate his own position as well as that of his empire.

Xusro II’s activities during the following years, however, indicate that the Sasanian ruler was not interested in a settlement. Although his initial aim in the war, namely to avenge his former benefactor Maurice, had been realised when Phocas fell, the weakness of the Byzantine Empire at the time and the successes of his own army raised ambitions way beyond his original goals. He now wanted to beat his great Western opponent into complete submission.213

Soon after Heraclius succeeded to the throne, he was confronted with serious Persian advances into Byzantine territory. The troops of Xusro II crossed the Euphrates, once more invaded Syria, raided the countryside and conquered numerous cities, above all Antioch (6ii).214 At about the same time Sasanian troops marched via Cilicia into Cappadocia and reconquered Caesarea, which had been in the meantime liberated by the Romans. Towards the end of the year 6i2 the situation was more than problematic for the Romans. Apart from the important city of Caesarea, most of Syria was in Sasanian hands, as a consequence of which links and communications with the provinces of Palestine and Egypt were severely impaired. Heraclius therefore had to do everything he could to prevent a split of his empire and the loss of the economically important province of

Egypt.

Accordingly, the year 613 was marked by Heraclius’ desperate attempts to stop the Persian advance. He sent Philippicus to Armenia in order that he would threaten Sasanian territory from there, while he himself marched south in order to re-conquer Syria. Neither of the two projects was successful and the Roman troops had to withdraw in light of the superiority of the Persian forces. Heraclius returned to Constantinople while the Sasanians continued their expansive policy unchecked. Before the end of 613 they took several Syrian and Palestinian coastal cities, and among these Damascus fell without any opposition. In May of the following year the Persians captured the holy city of Jerusalem after a short siege.388 389 The churches were set on fire, murder and plunder swept the city for three days. The Holy Cross was taken to Ktesiphon,390 an act that received much attention by the Arab author Tabari (33) and that caused a spirit of desperation and indignation throughout the Christian world.

During the following period the Persians conquered all of Syria and Palestine, and in 615 Sasanian troops once more reached Chalcedon in Asia Minor and the gates of Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire.217 Heraclius’ renewed attempts to make peace failed yet again. As the Romans were also attacked from the north, the situation became more and more threatening. The Slavs and Avars were raiding Greece and the Balkan provinces. When in 617 the latter reached Constantinople, the capital was attacked from two sides.218 The emperor tried to conclude a peace with the Avars but was as unsuccessful as he had been with the Sasanians before. At this point (end of 616) the Persians embarked on an Egyptian campaign. They captured Pelousion, Babylon, Memphis and Nikiu without much resistance. After an initial unsuccessful attack, Alexandria was eventually taken by treason. By 619 the Persians had gained control of all of Egypt.391

For Byzantium, losing Alexandria was a particularly bitter defeat, since the capital’s grain supply was now in jeopardy. For the Sasanians, having conquered Egypt meant control of the entire Near East. Tabari, whose account compresses the sequence of events, conveys the impression that Xusro II carefully instructed his armies to push in three directions, namely into Syria, Egypt and Asia Minor. The old borders of the Achaemenid Empire seemed restored. It is difficult to assess whether the Sasanians of the early seventh century still knew about the size and dimensions of the empire of their ancestors and if the late Sasanian rulers modelled their foreign policy upon an Achaemenid goal of world domination. However, there is no doubt that in 619 the Sasanian Empire was at the zenith of its powers. Byzantium, in contrast, was threatened from all sides and limited to a defensive policy. Nevertheless, the superiority of the Eastern power did not last for very long. In the year 622 the emperor Heraclius started a counter offensive392 which formed the beginning of the downfall of the Sasanian Empire.