This map illustrates the rise and expansion of the Sassanid Empire, also known as Erānshahr (“Domain of the Iranians/Aryans”) or the Neo-Persian Empire. Founded by the House of Sasan, it was the longest-lived Persian imperial dynasty, ruling from 224 CE until the Islamic conquests of the 7th century.
The Sassanids saw themselves as heirs to the Achaemenids and direct rivals of the Greco-Roman world, waging centuries of war against Rome and later Byzantium. At its height, the empire stretched from Mesopotamia and the Persian Gulf to the Caucasus and Central Asia. Under Khosrow II (r. 590–628), it even occupied Egypt, the Levant, and parts of Anatolia, briefly seizing key Byzantine provinces. Their strength was such that they once captured a Roman emperor, Valerian (in 260 CE), a rare humiliation for Rome. This reach and power made the Sassanids one of late antiquity’s dominant forces until the Arab conquests and the rise of Islam transformed the region.
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Cite This Work
APA Style
Netchev, S. (2023, January 10). Map of the Sassanid Empire c. 620 CE. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/16853/map-of-the-sassanid-empire-c-620-ce/
Chicago Style
Netchev, Simeon. "Map of the Sassanid Empire c. 620 CE." World History Encyclopedia, January 10, 2023. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/16853/map-of-the-sassanid-empire-c-620-ce/.
MLA Style
Netchev, Simeon. "Map of the Sassanid Empire c. 620 CE." World History Encyclopedia, 10 Jan 2023, https://www.worldhistory.org/image/16853/map-of-the-sassanid-empire-c-620-ce/.
