Drachma of Yazdegerd II, minted at Gurgan or Qom between 439-447
Shahanshah of the Sasanian Empire
Reign
438–457
Predecessor
Bahram V
Successor
Hormizd III
Died
457
Consort
Denag
Issue
Hormizd III Peroz I Balash Zarer Vachagan III (?)
House
House of Sasan
Father
Bahram V
Mother
Sapinud
Religion
Zoroastrianism
Yazdegerd II (also spelled Yazdgerd and Yazdgird; Middle Persian: 𐭩𐭦𐭣𐭪𐭥𐭲𐭩), was the Sasanian King of Kings (shahanshah) of Iran from 438 to 457. He was the successor and son of Bahram V (r. 420–438).
His reign was marked by wars against the Eastern Roman Empire in the west and the Kidarites in the east, as well as by his efforts and attempts to strengthen royal centralisation in the bureaucracy by imposing Zoroastrianism on the non-Zoroastrians within the country, namely the Christians. This backfired in Armenia, culminating in a large-scale rebellion led by the military leader Vardan Mamikonian, who was ultimately defeated and killed at the Battle of Avarayr in 451. Nevertheless, religious freedom was subsequently allowed in the country. Among the Christians who died in these crackdowns was a woman named Meskinta, subsequently recognized as a martyr and saint by Chaldean Christians, and the namesake of the Mart Meskinta Chaldean Church of Mosul, Iraq.[1]
Yazdegerd II was the first Sasanian ruler to assume the title of kay ("king"), which evidently associates him and the dynasty to the mythical Kayanian dynasty commemorated in the Avesta. His death led to a dynastic struggle between his two sons Hormizd III and Peroz I for the throne, with the latter emerging victorious.
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^Fiey, J.M. (1959). Mossoul Chrétienne: Essai sur l'histoire, l'archéologie et l'état actuel des monuments chrétiens de la ville de Mossoul (in French). Beirut: Imprimerie Catholique. pp. 120–23.
Empire, ruling briefly from 457 to 459. He was the son and successor of YazdegerdII (r. 438–457). His reign was marked by the rebellion of his younger brother...
(shahanshah) from 420 to 438. The son of the incumbent Sasanian shah Yazdegerd I (r. 399–420), Bahram was at an early age sent to the Lahkmid court in...
Sasanian King of Kings (shahanshah) of Iran from 459 to 484. A son of YazdegerdII (r. 438–457), he disputed the rule of his elder brother and incumbent...
young Theodosius II (408–450) under his guardianship. Yazdegerd also married a Jewish princess, who bore him a son called Narsi. Yazdegerd I's successor...
Yazdijird) may refer to: Yazdegerd I (r. 399–420), Sasanian King of Persia YazdegerdII (r. 438–457), Sasanian King, son of Bahram V Yazdegerd III (r. 632–651)...
Nebuchadnezzar II (/nɛbjʊkədˈnɛzər/; Babylonian cuneiform: Nabû-kudurri-uṣur, meaning "Nabu, watch over my heir"; Biblical Hebrew: נְבוּכַדְנֶאצַּר Nəḇūḵaḏneʾṣṣar)...
minted in Pars, used the title of kirbakkar ("beneficent"). The reign of YazdegerdII (r. 438–457) marks the start of a new inscription on the Sasanian coins;...
of Mithridates II" Assar, G.R.F., "A Revised Parthian Chronology of the Period 165–91 BC" Qashqai, H., "The successors of Mithridates II" Assar, G.R.F...
Western Empire and a main source of food for Rome. The Sassanid Shah YazdegerdII invaded Armenia in 441.[citation needed] The Romans stripped the Balkan...
fire-altar, most likely constructed during the proselytizing campaign of YazdegerdII (r. 438–457) against the Christian Armenians, have been found directly...
was a Sasanian queen (banbishn). She was the wife of the king (shah) YazdegerdII (r. 438–457), and functioned as queen regent in Ctesiphon during the...
IV (Persian: اردوان Ardavan) and ended when the last Sasanian monarch, Yazdegerd III (632–651), lost a 19-year struggle to drive out the early Arab Caliphate...
Alkhans) of the northeastern border in check. Indeed, Kavad's grandfather YazdegerdII (r. 438–457) had managed to hold off the Kidarites during his wars against...
Orange (France). King YazdegerdII of Persia signs a peace treaty after a short war with the Eastern Roman Empire. Theodosius II sends his commander, Anatolius...
foes of YazdegerdII (435–457), who from 442, fought 'tribes of the Hephthalites', according to the Armenian Elisee Vardaped. In 453, Yazdegerd moved his...
including Artsakh and Utik. In the mid-5th century, the Sassanid King YazdegerdII passed an edict requiring all the Christians in his empire to convert...
5th century by the Kidarites, who forced Yazdegerd I (r. 399–420), Bahram V (r. 420–438), and/or YazdegerdII (r. 438–457) to pay them tribute. Although...
Persian rule, provided they were allowed to practise Christianity; but YazdegerdII, concerned that the Armenian Church was hierarchically dependent on the...
Bahram II Bahram III Narseh Hormizd II Adur Narseh Shapur II Ardashir II Shapur III Bahram IV Yazdegerd I Shapur IV Khosrow Bahram V YazdegerdII Hormizd...
Kingdom in Hispania.[citation needed] May 26 – Battle of Vartanantz: King YazdegerdII defeats the Armenian army (66,000 men) under their rebel leader Vartan...
Scorpion II (Ancient Egyptian: possibly Selk or Weha), also known as King Scorpion, was a ruler during the Protodynastic Period of Upper Egypt (c. 3200–3000 BCE)...
slain at Crecganford in battle against Hengist and his son Oisc of Kent. YazdegerdII dies after a 19-year reign. He is succeeded by his son Hormizd III who...
sent by Ahura Mazda to end Yazdegerd's tyranny. Gurgān is known to have held a mint as early as the reign of YazdegerdII. An unsuccessful revolt led...
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