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Gyan-Avspar
The ''pushtigban'' was an elite military unit of the Sasanian Empire, charged with the protection of the Persian Emperor. They were stationed during peacetime in the royal capital of Ctesiphon and were drawn from the best of the ranks of the Sasanian Savārān cavalry. They numbered 1000 men, under the command of the ''pushtigban-salar'' ; in battle they fought mostly as cataphracts, heavily armed and armoured horsemen who would charge enemy positions with tremendous momentum. There are allusions to the participation of this unit in sources describing the Shapur II's Arab campaign and Siege of Amida (359). A sub-unit of ''pushtigban'' were the ''gyan-avspar'', the "sacrificers of their lives" - the best of the ''pushtigban''. The ''pushtigban'' fought with distinction and zeal befitting their name during Julian's invasion of Persia in the 4th century AD. The ''pushtigban'' disappeared with the Muslim conquest of Persia, that led to the Fall of the Sasanian Empire. See also ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sasanian Empire
The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, the length of the Sasanian dynasty's reign over ancient Iran was second only to the directly preceding Arsacid dynasty of Parthia. Founded by Ardashir I, whose rise coincided with the decline of Arsacid influence in the face of both internal and external strife, the House of Sasan was highly determined to restore the legacy of the Achaemenid Empire by expanding and consolidating the Iranian nation's dominions. Most notably, after defeating Artabanus IV of Parthia during the Battle of Hormozdgan in 224, it began competing far more zealously with the neighbouring Roman Empire than the Arsacids had, thus sparking a new phase of the Roman–Iranian Wars. This effort by Ardashir's dynasty ultimately re-established Iran as a major power of late an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Julian's Persian War
Julian's Persian expedition began in March 363 AD and was the final military campaign of the Roman emperor Julian. The Romans fought against the Sasanian Empire, ruled at the time by Shapur II. Aiming to capture the Sasanians' winter capital of Ctesiphon, Julian assembled a large army. In order to mislead the opponent and to carry out a pincer attack, he sent a detachment to join with his ally Arshak II of Arsacid Armenia to take the Tigris route from the north. Meanwhile, his main army and a large fleet, facing little opposition, advanced rapidly down the Euphrates, destroying several well-fortified cities along the way. The ships then reached the walls of Ctesiphon, where a large Sasanian force had assembled in its defense. The Romans won a victory outside the city, but the northern army failed to arrive, and the fortified capital seemed impregnable. Due to these complications, Julian did not attempt to besiege the city, instead burning the Roman fleet of supplies and lea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guards Units Of The Sasanian Empire
Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison guard, who supervises prisoners in a prison or jail * Security guard, who protects property, assets, or people * Conductor (rail) § Train guard, in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and India Computing and telecommunications * Guard (computer science), in programming language, an expression that directs program execution * Guard (information security), a device for controlling communication between computer networks * Guard interval, intervals in transmission, used in telecommunications * Aircraft emergency frequency, commonly referred to as "guard" Governmental and military * Border guard, a state security agency * Coast guard, responsible for coastal defence and offshore rescue * Colour guard, a detachment of soldiers assigned to the pro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Osprey Publishing
Osprey Publishing is a British publishing company specializing in military history formerly based in Oxford. Predominantly an illustrated publisher, many of their books contain full-colour artwork plates, maps and photographs, and the company produces over a dozen ongoing series, each focusing on a specific aspect of the history of warfare. Their publications include the ''Men-at-Arms'' series, running to over 500 titles, with each book dedicated to a specific historical army or military unit. Osprey is an imprint (trade name), imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing. History In the 1960s, the Brooke Bond Tea Company began including a series of military aircraft cards with packages of their tea. The cards proved popular, and the artist Dick Ward proposed the idea of publishing illustrated books about military aircraft. The idea was approved and a small subsidiary company called Osprey was formed in 1968. The company’s first book, ''North American P-51D Mustang in USAAF-USAF Service'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cataphract
A cataphract was a form of armoured heavy cavalry that originated in Persia and was fielded in ancient warfare throughout Eurasia and Northern Africa. Historically, the cataphract was a very heavily armoured horseman, with both the rider and mount almost completely covered in scale or lamellar armour over chain mail, and typically wielding a kontos (lance) as his primary weapon. Cataphracts served as the elite cavalry force for most empires and nations that fielded them, primarily used for charges to break through opposing heavy cavalry and infantry formations. Chronicled by many historians from the earliest days of antiquity up until the High Middle Ages, they may have influenced the later European knights, through contact with the Eastern Roman Empire.Nell, Grant S. (1995) ''The Savaran: The Original Knights''. University of Oklahoma Press. Peoples and states deploying cataphracts at some point in their history included: the Scythians, Sarmatians, Alans, Medes, Parthi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Immortals (Sasanian Empire)
The Immortals was an elite cavalry unit of the army of the Sasanian Empire with the alleged size of 10,000 men, similar to the Achaemenid " Immortals" described by Herodotus. The name is derived from a term used by Roman historians to refer to the unit. Armenian and Islamic sources also have allusions to elite unit(s) in the Sasanian army. History The "Immortals" (Greek: ''Athanatoi'') is a name used by Roman historians of the Roman-Persian Wars to refer to an elite unit of the army of the Sasanian Empire. Some of these sources claim the unit was composed of 10,000 cavalrymen. The reported Greek name and the size of the force is identical to the " Immortals" infantry unit of the Achaemenid Empire described by Herodotus. The name "Immortals" has been used by Greek-language works of Roman historians Procopius (describing the Battles of Thannuris and Dara), John Malalas (describing the Roman–Sasanian War of 421–422), Theophanes, and the lexicographer Hesychius, with the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fall Of The Sasanian Empire
As part of the early Muslim conquests, which were initiated by Muhammad in 622, the Rashidun Caliphate conquered the Sasanian Empire between 632 and 654. This event led to the decline of Zoroastrianism, which had been the official religion of Name of Iran, Persia (or Iran) since the time of the Achaemenid Empire. The persecution of Zoroastrians by the early Muslims during and after this conflict prompted many of them to flee eastward to Indian subcontinent, India, where they were Zoroastrianism in India, granted refuge by various kings. While Pre-Islamic Arabia, Arabia was experiencing the rise of Islam in the 7th century, Persia was struggling with unprecedented levels of political, social, economic, and military weakness; the Military of the Sasanian Empire, Sasanian army had greatly exhausted itself in the Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628. Following the execution of Sasanian shah Khosrow II in 628, Persia's internal political stability began deteriorating at a rapid pa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siege Of Amida (359)
The siege of Amida was a military investment of the Roman fortified frontier city of Amida (modern Diyarbakır, Turkey) by the Sasanian Empire. It took place in AD 359 when the Sasanian army under king Shapur II invaded the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire. Shapur wanted to exploit the absence of the Roman Emperor Constantius II who was overseeing affairs in the western part of the Empire. The city fell after a siege of 73 days. Background Ammianus Marcellinus, a Roman army officer, provided a vivid description of the siege in his work (''Res Gestae''). Ammianus served on the staff of Ursicinus, the Magister Equitum (master of horse) of the East, during the events of the siege. Persian When Shapur II took control of the Sasanian Empire, he sought to regain old territories previously lost to the Roman Empire. After crushing the Arabs in the south, Shapur II had to fight for a decade against invaders called the Xionites. He was successful in his efforts, asserting his d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heavy Cavalry
Heavy cavalry was a class of cavalry intended to deliver a battlefield charge and also to act as a Military reserve, tactical reserve; they are also often termed ''shock cavalry''. Although their equipment differed greatly depending on the region and historical period, heavy cavalry were generally mounted on large powerful warhorses, wore body armor, and armed with either lances, swords, Mace (bludgeon), maces, flail (weapon), flails (disputed), battle axes, or war hammers; their mounts may also have been protected by barding. They were distinct from light cavalry, who were intended for raid (military), raiding, reconnaissance, screening (tactical), screening, skirmishing, patrolling, and tactical communications. History Persian Empires Iranian tribes such as the Massagetae were believed to be the originator of the class of heavy cavalry known as cataphract. During the time of Achaemenid Empire, Achaemenid Persia cavalry was the elite arm of service (as was the case in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shapur II's Arab Campaign
The Shapur II's Arab campaign took place in 325, against numerous Arab tribes, due to the Arab incursions into the Sasanian Empire. Shapur II defeated all the Arab tribes during his campaign Arab incursions During the childhood of Shapur II, Arab nomads made several incursions into the Sasanian homeland of Pars, where they raided Gor and its surroundings. Furthermore, they also made incursions into Meshan and Mazun. Shapur II's campaign At the age of 16, Shapur II led an expedition against the Arabs. According to al-Tabari, he hand-picked 1,000 cavalrymen for the campaign, a possible reference to the '' pushtigban'' unit. He primarily campaigned against the Iyad tribe in Asoristan and thereafter he crossed the Persian Gulf, reaching al-Khatt, a region between present-day Bahrain and Qatar. He then attacked the Banu Tamim in Hajar mountains. After having dealt with the Arabs of eastern Arabia, he continued his expedition into western Arabia and Syrian Desert, Furthermore, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cataphract
A cataphract was a form of armoured heavy cavalry that originated in Persia and was fielded in ancient warfare throughout Eurasia and Northern Africa. Historically, the cataphract was a very heavily armoured horseman, with both the rider and mount almost completely covered in scale or lamellar armour over chain mail, and typically wielding a kontos (lance) as his primary weapon. Cataphracts served as the elite cavalry force for most empires and nations that fielded them, primarily used for charges to break through opposing heavy cavalry and infantry formations. Chronicled by many historians from the earliest days of antiquity up until the High Middle Ages, they may have influenced the later European knights, through contact with the Eastern Roman Empire.Nell, Grant S. (1995) ''The Savaran: The Original Knights''. University of Oklahoma Press. Peoples and states deploying cataphracts at some point in their history included: the Scythians, Sarmatians, Alans, Medes, Parthi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
