Hormizd IV facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Hormizd IV𐭠𐭥𐭧𐭥𐭬𐭦𐭣 |
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| King of Kings of Iran and non-Iran | |
Drachma of Hormizd IV, minted at Spahan.
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| Shahanshah of the Sasanian Empire | |
| Reign | 579–590 |
| Predecessor | Khosrow I |
| Successor | Bahram Chobin (rival king) Khosrow II (successor) |
| Born | c. 540 |
| Died | June 590 (aged 49–50) Ctesiphon |
| Spouse | Unnamed Ispahbudhan noblewoman Unnamed Christian noblewoman |
| Issue | Khosrow II Unnamed daughter |
| House | House of Sasan |
| Father | Khosrow I |
| Mother | Khazar princess |
| Religion | Zoroastrianism |
Hormizd IV (also known as Hormozd IV or Ohrmazd IV) was a powerful ruler of the Sasanian Empire from 579 to 590. He was called the King of Kings of Iran. His father was the famous Khosrow I, and his mother was a princess from the Khazar people.
During his time as king, Hormizd IV often clashed with the rich nobles and the Zoroastrian priests. He preferred to support the common landowners, known as dehqan. His rule was full of wars. In the west, he continued a long war against the Byzantine Empire, which had started during his father's reign. In the east, his general Bahram Chobin bravely fought and defeated the Western Turkic Khaganate in the First Perso-Turkic War. Hormizd IV also brought the region of Iberia (modern-day Georgia) fully into the Sasanian Empire.
Hormizd IV became jealous of Bahram Chobin's success. He removed Bahram from his position, which made Bahram rebel. This started the Sasanian civil war of 589–591. Later, two unhappy nobles, Vistahm and Vinduyih, removed Hormizd IV from power and had him killed. They then made his son, Khosrow II, the new king. Hormizd IV was known for being fair to different religions. He did not let the Zoroastrian priests harm the Christian people in his country.
Contents
What's in a Name?
The name Hormizd (also spelled Ōhrmazd or Hormozd) comes from Middle Persian. It is the name of the most important god in Zoroastrianism, called Ahura Mazda. In ancient Persian, it was Auramazdā.
Hormizd's Rule and Personality
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Khosrow I, Hormizd's father, saw that Hormizd was a good leader. He chose Hormizd to be his heir. This was also because Hormizd's mother came from a noble family. Hormizd became king in 579. Stories say he was very smart and wanted to be kind to poor and weak people. He seemed less interested in war than earlier kings, but he was determined to continue his father's changes.
He tried his best to follow his father's policies. This meant supporting the landowners (the dehqan) against the powerful nobles. He also protected the rights of common people. He stopped the Zoroastrian priests from gaining too much power. However, he sometimes used harsh methods to keep these policies in place. This made the Zoroastrians dislike him.
Hormizd IV was known for his religious tolerance. When priests asked him to persecute Christians, he refused. He said he wanted "all his subjects to practice their religion freely." He even had some priests killed, including the chief priest, because they opposed his views.
He also had a difficult relationship with the nobles. Many important figures from his father's time were killed. This included famous ministers and military leaders. Hormizd himself was related to some of these noble families. Because of his actions against the nobility and clergy, old Persian writings often show Hormizd in a negative light.
However, modern historians see him differently. They believe he was a well-meaning ruler. He tried to control the nobles and priests and help the common people. Even though his rule ended badly, he aimed for good things.
War with the Byzantines
Hormizd IV inherited a war with the Byzantine Empire from his father. Peace talks had started, but Hormizd demanded a yearly payment that the Byzantines used to make. This caused the talks to break down.
In 580, the Lakhmids, who were allies of the Sasanians, were defeated by the Ghassanids, who were allies of the Byzantines. In the same year, a Byzantine army attacked deep into Sasanian territory. Around this time, the king of Iberia died. Hormizd took this chance to end the Iberian monarchy. He made his son Khosrow the governor of Caucasian Albania. Khosrow worked with the Iberian nobles and brought their country into the Sasanian Empire.
In 581, the Byzantine general Maurice tried to attack the Sasanian capital, Ctesiphon. His army moved along the Euphrates river. But the Iranians destroyed a bridge, stopping Maurice's advance. The Iranian general Adarmahan then attacked northern Mesopotamia. Maurice had to retreat. Later, Maurice defeated Adarmahan in battle.
In 582, the Iranian generals Tamkhosrow and Adarmahan attacked Byzantine land. Maurice fought them outside the city of Constantina and won a big victory. Tamkhosrow was killed. Later, a new Byzantine commander, John Mystacon, was defeated by the Iranian general Kardarigan.
In 583, the Iranians tried to recapture a fortress called Aphumon. But the Romans attacked another new fortress, drawing the Iranians away. Hormizd then asked for peace, but the talks failed again.
In 585, Kardarigan attacked the Byzantine base of Monocarton, but the siege failed. He then went north to Martyropolis. In 586, Hormizd tried for peace again, but the Iranians demanded gold, and talks broke down. Soon after, the Iranians lost a major battle at Solachon. The Byzantines then raided Iranian lands. In 589, the Iranians managed to capture Martyropolis with the help of a Roman officer who switched sides.
Turkic Attacks in the East
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In 588, the Turks and their allies, the Hephthalites, invaded Sasanian lands. They attacked and defeated Sasanian soldiers in Balkh. They then took other cities like Talaqan, Badghis, and Herat. This was against a treaty that said the Oxus river was the border between the empires.
Bahram Chobin, a general from the Parthian Mihranid family, was chosen to lead the army against them. He was given control of Khorasan. Bahram's army, with 12,000 skilled horsemen, surprised a large army of Turks and Hephthalites in April 588. By 589, he had pushed back the Turks and entered Balkh in triumph. He captured the Turkic treasury and the Khagan's golden throne.
He then crossed the Oxus river and won a major victory over the Turks. He even killed the Turkic leader, Bagha Qaghan, with an arrow. Bahram reached as far as Baykand, near Bukhara. He also captured Birmudha, the son of the dead Khagan, and sent him to Ctesiphon.
Hormizd treated Birmudha well and sent him back to Bahram. The Sasanians now controlled the Sogdian cities of Chach and Samarkand. Hormizd even minted coins there. This victory made Iran the most powerful country in the Near East for a short time.
After his great victory, Bahram was sent to the Caucasus to fight off other nomads. He won there too. He was then made commander against the Byzantines again and won a battle in Georgia. However, he later suffered a small defeat by a Byzantine army. Hormizd, who was jealous of Bahram's fame, used this defeat as an excuse to remove him from his position. He also humiliated Bahram.
Some stories say that Hormizd's minister was jealous of Bahram. He told Hormizd that Bahram had kept some of the war treasures for himself. Other stories say it was Birmudha or other courtiers who made Hormizd suspicious. No matter the reason, Hormizd could not stand Bahram's growing fame. He removed Bahram from his job and sent him a chain and a spindle, which was a way of saying he thought Bahram was a lowly slave, like a woman. Bahram, who was still in the east, became very angry and rebelled against Hormizd.
Civil War Begins
Because Bahram was a respected noble and a great military leader, many soldiers and others joined his rebellion. This started the Sasanian civil war of 589–591. Bahram then appointed a new governor for Khorasan and marched towards Ctesiphon.
The Sasanian royal family had always been seen as having a special right to rule. This right, called the xwarrah, was believed to be given to the first Sasanian king, Ardashir I. But now, Bahram, who was from a Parthian family, challenged this. This was the first time in Sasanian history that a non-Sasanian family tried to take the throne.
Bahram spread rumors based on an old religious book. It said that a savior named Kay Bahram would come from the frontiers and rule over many lands. Since Bahram's life fit the timing, many believed he was this promised savior. Some even said Bahram claimed to be the spirit of the sun god Mithra. He swore to bring back the old ways of his ancestors.
Hormizd sent an army under Sarames the Elder to arrest Bahram. But Bahram defeated Sarames and had him killed by an elephant. Bahram then marched towards Media, where Sasanian kings often stayed in summer. Hormizd left Ctesiphon to cut off communication between the capital and his soldiers on the Byzantine border. Around this time, soldiers near Nisibis rebelled against Hormizd and joined Bahram.
Bahram's influence grew stronger. Sasanian loyalist forces sent to fight the rebels also rebelled and killed their commander. This made Hormizd's position very weak. He tried to make peace with Bahram. He also prepared to gather his royal treasures and flee to al-Hira. A new Sasanian army was sent under general Farrukhan to face Bahram. Farrukhan asked Hormizd to release a prisoner named Zadspram, who he thought would help him against Bahram.
Farrukhan's and Bahram's armies met at the Great Zab river. Neither side attacked right away. Farrukhan hoped Bahram's troops would desert him. Instead, Zadspram deserted Farrukhan, and then some of Farrukhan's own officers killed him.
Hormizd's Overthrow and Death
While in Ctesiphon, Hormizd was overthrown in a peaceful palace takeover. His brothers-in-law, Vistahm and Vinduyih, who both disliked Hormizd, led this. They blinded Hormizd with a hot needle. They then put his oldest son, Khosrow II, on the throne. In June, the two brothers murdered Hormizd.
Some historians say Khosrow II was involved in his father's murder. Others say he was not. Hormizd's death remained a sensitive topic. A few years later, Khosrow II ordered the execution of his uncles and other nobles who had helped kill his father. Later, when Khosrow II was overthrown by his own son, he was accused of killing his father.
Hormizd's Religious Views
Hormizd, like other Sasanian rulers, followed Zoroastrianism. However, Sasanian kings had learned that religious minorities were important. They tried to treat everyone fairly under the law. Jews and especially Christians had accepted their place in the empire.
Hormizd understood how important Christians were and wanted their support. When Zoroastrian priests asked him to attack Christians, he refused. He told the clergy:
"Just as our royal throne cannot stand on its two front legs without the two back ones, our kingdom cannot stand or endure firmly if we cause the Christians and adherents of other faiths, who differ in belief from ourselves, to become hostile to us. So refrain from harming the Christians and become assiduous in good works, so that the Christians and the adherents of other faiths may see this, praise you for it, and feel themselves drawn toward your religion."
His kindness towards Christians earned him their gratitude. He was married to a Christian woman and prayed to Saint Sergius, a military saint. Because of this, some suspected he might have Christian beliefs. However, his son Khosrow II also honored Saint Sergius. Hormizd also believed in astrology and wore a special charm to protect himself from death.
Coins of Hormizd IV
On the back of his coins, Hormizd is shown wearing a crown similar to one worn by his great-grandfather, Peroz I. This crown had a diadem, a crown with points, and a korymbos (a globe-like ornament) with a moon crescent. Hormizd also used symbols like stars and crescents on his coins. Gold coins were rarely made by Sasanian rulers, and Hormizd was one of the kings who did not mint them.
Family Life
Hormizd had at least two wives. One was a noblewoman from the Ispahbudhan family. The other was a Christian woman.
Besides Khosrow II, Hormizd also had an unnamed daughter. She married Shahrbaraz, a general from the Mihranid family.
