Muslim Conquest Of Pars
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The Arab conquest of Pars took place from 638/9 to 650/1, and ended with subjugation of the
Sasanian The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranians"), was an 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 ...
province of Pars, also known as Fars or
Persis Persis (, ''Persís;'' Old Persian: 𐎱𐎠𐎼𐎿, ''Parsa''), also called Persia proper, is a historic region in southwestern Iran, roughly corresponding with Fars province. The Persian ethnic group are thought to have initially migrated ...
, to the
Rashidun Caliphate The Rashidun Caliphate () is a title given for the reigns of first caliphs (lit. "successors") — Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali collectively — believed to Political aspects of Islam, represent the perfect Islam and governance who led the ...
under
Umar Umar ibn al-Khattab (; ), also spelled Omar, was the second Rashidun caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. He succeeded Abu Bakr () and is regarded as a senior companion and father-in-law of the Islamic prophet Mu ...
. The Arab invasion of Sasanian Pars took place in two phases. An initial
Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
i naval expedition in 638 ended in failure. After a change in Bahrain's governor, that unsuccessful campaign was followed with a second campaign conducted in 643 by a combined force of
Arab Arabs (,  , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...
tribesmen from Bahrain and
Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...
under the leadership of Uthman ibn Abi al-As al-Thaqafi that ultimately overran the province. The Sasanian emperor
Yazdegerd III Yazdegerd III (also Romanized as ''Yazdgerd'', ''Yazdgird'') was the last Sasanian Empire, Sasanian King of Kings from 632 to 651. His father was Shahriyar (son of Khosrow II), Shahriyar and his grandfather was Khosrow II. Ascending the throne a ...
, who had travelled to Pars to command the defense against the Arabs, was forced to flee to Kirman. This ended Sasanian control or the territory, though its population would later rebel several times against Arab rule.


History


Initial expedition and Sasanian counter-attack

The Arab conquest of Pars began in 638/9, when the Rashidun governor of
Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
at the time, al-'Ala' ibn al-Hadrami, led a naval expedition against the Sasanians without the permission of
Umar Umar ibn al-Khattab (; ), also spelled Omar, was the second Rashidun caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. He succeeded Abu Bakr () and is regarded as a senior companion and father-in-law of the Islamic prophet Mu ...
. The expedition proceeded to captured an island in the
Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...
, and, although al-'Ala' and the rest of the Arabs had been ordered to not invade Pars or its surrounding islands, he organized his army into three groups – one under Al-Jarud ibn Mu'alla, the second under Al-Sawwar ibn Hammam and the third under Khulayd ibn al-Mundhir ibn Sawa – and moved on the province. When the first group entered Pars, it was quickly defeated and al-Jarud was killed. The same thing soon happened to the second group. However, things proved to be more fortunate with the third group; Khulayd managed to keep them on bay, but was unable to withdraw back to Bahrain due to the Sasanians blocking his way to the sea. The Sasanians also burnt many of the ships of the Arab forces. Umar, upon hearing of al-'Ala's ill-fated naval expedition against Pars, dismissed him as governor and reassigned him to the Sasanian front in Iraq, where he was placed under the command of his rival
Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas ibn Wuhayb al-Zuhri () was an Arabs, Arab Muslims, Muslim commander. He was the founder of Kufa and served as its governor under Umar, Umar ibn al-Khattab. He played a leading role in the Muslim conquest of Persia and was a cl ...
. The caliphal meanwhile ordered Utbah ibn Ghazwan to send reinforcements to assist Khulayd, who managed to withdraw back to Bahrain with some of his men, while the rest withdrew to
Basra Basra () is a port city in Iraq, southern Iraq. It is the capital of the eponymous Basra Governorate, as well as the List of largest cities of Iraq, third largest city in Iraq overall, behind Baghdad and Mosul. Located near the Iran–Iraq bor ...
. Al-'Ala was replaced as governor of Bahrain by Uthman ibn Abi al-As al-Thaqafi, who had earlier been appointed governor in 636 before being recalled to
Ta'if Taif (, ) is a city and governorate in Mecca Province in Saudi Arabia. Located at an elevation of in the slopes of the Hijaz Mountains, which themselves are part of the Sarawat Mountains, Sarat Mountains, the city has a population of 563,282 pe ...
in 637.


Second expedition and successful invasion

In ca. 643, Uthman ibn Abi al-As al-Thaqafi seized Bishapur, and made a peace treaty with the inhabitants of the city. In 19/644, al-'Ala' once again attacked Pars from Bahrain, reaching as far as Estakhr, until he was repelled by the governor (''
marzban Marzbān, or Marzpān (Middle Persian: 𐭬𐭫𐭱𐭰𐭠𐭭𐭯 transliteration: mrzwpn, derived from Middle Persian: 𐭬𐭫𐭱 ''marz'' "border, boundary" and the Middle Persian suffix: 𐭡𐭭𐭯 ''-pān'' "guardian"; Modern Persian: ...
'') of Pars, Shahrag. Al-Thaqafi later managed to establish a military base at Tawwaj, and shortly defeated and killed Shahrag near Rew-shahr, though some sources state that this action was carried out by his brother. A Persian convert to
Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
, Hormoz ibn Hayyan al-'Abdi, was shortly sent by al-Thaqafi to attack a fortress known as Senez on the coast of Pars. After the accession of
Uthman ibn Affan Uthman ibn Affan (17 June 656) was the third caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate, ruling from 644 until Assassination of Uthman, his assassination in 656. Uthman, a second cousin, son-in-law, and notable Companions of the Prophet, companion of ...
as the new
Caliph A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...
of the Rashidun Caliphate on 11 November, the inhabitants of Bishapur under the leadership of Shahrag's brother declared independence, but were defeated. The date for this revolt mains disputed, as the Persian historian
al-Baladhuri ʾAḥmad ibn Yaḥyā ibn Jābir al-Balādhurī () was a 9th-century West Asian historian. One of the eminent Middle Eastern historians of his age, he spent most of his life in Baghdad and enjoyed great influence at the court of the caliph al ...
states that it occurred in 646. In 648, 'Abd-Allah ibn al-'Ash'ari forced the governor of Estakhr, Mahak, to surrender the city. However, this was not the final conquest of Estakhr, as the inhabitants of the city subsequently rebelled in 649/50 while its newly appointed governor, 'Abd-Allah ibn 'Amir was trying to capture Gor. During the insurrection, the military governor of the province, 'Ubayd Allah ibn Ma'mar, was defeated and killed. In 650/1, the Sasanian emperor
Yazdegerd III Yazdegerd III (also Romanized as ''Yazdgerd'', ''Yazdgird'') was the last Sasanian Empire, Sasanian King of Kings from 632 to 651. His father was Shahriyar (son of Khosrow II), Shahriyar and his grandfather was Khosrow II. Ascending the throne a ...
himself travelled to Estakhr to personally organize the defense against the Arabs, and after some time he went to Gor. In his absence, the defenses at Estakhr failed and the city was sacked by the Arabs, who killed over 40,000 defenders. The Arabs then quickly seized Gor, Kazerun and Siraf, while Yazdegerd III fled to Kirman. The flight of the emperor brought an end to the conflict and the Arab victory delivered the province into caliphal control. However, the inhabitants of the province would later rebel several times against Arab rule.


References


Sources

* * * * * * * * {{coord missing, Fars province 650s conflicts 640s conflicts 630s conflicts History of Fars province Pars