page_title: Sasanian civil war of 628–632
section_title: Aftermath and impact
hierarchical_section_title: Sasanian civil war of 628–632 / Aftermath and impact
caption_attribution_description: English: Coin of the Sasanian king Yazdegerd III, 651 mint.
context_page_description: The Sasanian civil war of 628–632, also known as the Sasanian Interregnum was a conflict that broke out after the execution of the Sasanian king Khosrau II between the nobles of different factions, notably the Parthian faction, the Persian faction, the Nimruzi faction, and the faction of general Shahrbaraz. Rapid turnover of rulers and increasing provincial landholder power further diminished the empire. Over a period of fourteen years and thirteen successive kings, the Sasanian Empire weakened considerably, and the power of the central authority passed into the hands of its generals, contributing to its fall.
context_section_description: The Sasanian Empire was greatly weakened when Yazdegerd III ascended the throne. The young king did not have the authority required to bring stability to his extensive empire, which was swiftly falling apart due to ceaseless internal conflicts between the army commanders, courtiers, and powerful members of the aristocracy, who were fighting amongst themselves and wiping out each other. Many of the governors of the empire had proclaimed independence and carved out their own kingdom. The governors of the provinces of Mazun and Yemen had already asserted their independence during the civil war of 628–632, thus resulting in the disintegration of Sasanian rule in the Arabian peninsula, which was uniting under the banner of Islam. The empire was starting to look more like the Parthian feudal system before the fall of the Arsacid Empire.
  Yazdegerd, although being acknowledged as the rightful monarch by both the Parsig and Pahlav factions, did not seem to have held sway over all of his empire. Indeed, during the first years of his rule coins were only minted in Pars, Sakastan, and Khuzestan, approximately corresponding to the regions of the southwest (Xwarwarān) and southeast (Nēmrōz), where the Parsig was based. The Pahlav, who were mainly based in the northern portion of the empire, refused to mint coins of him. The empire was also at the same time invaded on all fronts; by the Göktürks in the east, and by Khazars in the west, who raided Armenia and Adurbadagan. The Sasanian army had been heavily weakened due to the war with the Byzantines and internal conflict. The circumstances were so chaotic, and the condition of the nation so alarming, that "the Persians openly spoke of the immanent downfall of their empire, and saw its portents in natural calamities." The empire met its end against the Arabs during the Arab invasion of Iran, with Yazdegerd being killed in 651, possibly at the instigation of one his own subjects.
caption: Coin of Yazdegerd III.
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