Perso-Turkic war of 627–629
Perso-Turkic war of 627–629 | |||||||
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Part of Göktürk–Persian wars and the Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628 | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Sasanian Empire Sasanian Iberia |
Western Turkic Khaganate Byzantine Empire | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Khosrow II Shahraplakan Stephen I of Iberia |
Göktürk–Persian wars | ||||||
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The Perso-Turkic war of 627–629 was the third and final conflict between the
Background
Following the
In 625, Heraclius dispatched to the steppes his emissary, named Andrew, who promised to the Khagan some "staggering riches" in return for military aid. A unit of 1,000 horsemen fought their way through Persian Transcaucasia and delivered the Khagan's message to the Byzantine camp in Anatolia.
Siege of Derbent
Early in 627, the Göktürks and their
At the arrival of the all-powerful scourge (universal wrath) confronting us, the invaders [Turks], like billowing waves of the sea, crashed against the walls and demolished them to their foundations. [In Partaw], seeing the terrible danger from the multitude of hideously ugly, vile, broad-faced, without eyelashes, and with long flowing hair like women, which descended upon them, a great terror (trembling) seized the inhabitants. They were even more horrified when they saw the accurate and strong [Khazar] archers, whose arrows rained down upon them like heavy hailstones, and how they [Khazars], like ravenous wolves that had lost all shame, fell upon them and mercilessly slaughtered them on the streets and squares of the city. Their eyes had no mercy for neither the beautiful, nor handsome, nor the young men or women; they did not spare even the unfit, harmless, lame, nor old; they had no pity (compassion, regrets), and their hearts did not shrink at the sight of the babies embracing their murdered mothers; to the contrary, they suckled blood from their breasts like milk. [9]
The fall of the fortress that had been considered impregnable sparked panic all over the country. Aghvanian forces withdrew to their capital,
The Lord of the North wreaked havoc all over the country. He sent his wardens to deal with artisans of all kind, especially those skilled in washing out gold, extraction of silver and iron, as well as making copper items. He imposed duties on fishers and goods from the great
Siege of Tbilisi
The next objective of the Turkic-Byzantine offensive was the Kingdom of Iberia, whose ruler Stephanus was a tributary to Khosrow II. In the words of Movses Kagankatvatsi, the Khazars "encircled and besieged the famous and great sybaritic trade city of Tbilisi,"[11] whereupon they were joined by Emperor Heraclius with his mighty army.
Heraclius and Tong Yabghu (called Ziebel in the
The siege dragged on without much progress, punctuated by frequent sallies on the part of the besieged; one of these claimed the life of their king. After two months the Khazars retreated to the steppe, promising to return by the autumn.[14] Tong Yabghu left young Böri Shad, either his son or nephew, in charge of the remaining forty thousand which were to assist Heraclius during the siege. Before long these departed as well, leaving the Byzantines to continue the siege alone and prompting jeers from the besieged.[15]
When the Georgians ironically referred to the Emperor as "the goat," hinting at his incestuous marriage, Heraclius recalled a passage from the Book of Daniel about the two-horned ram overthrown by the one-horned goat. He interpreted this as a good sign and struck southward against Persia. On 12 December 627 he appeared on the bank of the Tigris and clashed with Persian forces near the ruins of Nineveh. In January he ravaged the environs of the Persian capital Ctesiphon, signaling a sea-change in the Persian-Byzantine relations.
Conclusion
After the triumph of Heraclius, Tong Yabghu hastened to resume the siege of Tiflis and successfully stormed the city in winter. "With their swords raised, they advanced on the walls, and all this multitude, climbing upon each other's shoulders, rose up the walls. A black shadow fell upon the wobegone citizens; they were vanquished and lost their ground," Movses narrates. Although the Georgians surrendered without further resistance, the city was looted and its citizens were massacred. The Persian governor and the Georgian prince were tortured to death in the presence of Tong Yabghu.[16]
The Gokturks, renowned for their expertise in
These words indicate that Tong Yabghu was eager to retain control of the westernmost portion of the
See also
- First Perso-Turkic War
- Second Perso-Turkic War
- Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628 – Last war between the Byzantine and Sasanian empires
- Timeline of the Turkic peoples (500–1300)
Notes
- ^ See, generally, Christian 260-285.
- ^ Denis Sinor, The Historical Role of the Turk Empire, Journal of World History, IV, 3, Neuchatel, 1958, pp.429-433
- ^ Liu, Xinru, "The Silk Road: Overland Trade and Cultural Interactions in Eurasia", in Agricultural and Pastoral Societies in Ancient and Classical History, ed. Michael Adas, American Historical Association, Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2001, p. 168.
- ^ Howard, Michael C., Transnationalism in Ancient and Medieval Societies: the Role of Cross Border Trade and Travel, McFarland & Company, 2012, p. 133.
- ^ Gumilev 206.
- ^ Gumilev 205–8.
- ^ Movses 155.
- ^ Gumilev 216.
- ^ Movses 105.
- ^ Movses 131.
- ^ Movses 107
- ^ a b Artamonov 57.[full citation needed]
- ^ Gibbon ch. 46.
- ^ Movses 108.
- ^ Theophanes 236.
- ^ Movses 119–20.
- ^ Gumilev 222–23.
- ^ Movses 121.
- ^ Movses 132.
- ^ Movses 133.
References
- Artamonov, Mikhail. Essays on the Early History of the Khazars (Очерки ранней истории хазар). Leningrad, 1936.
- Artamonov, Mikhail. Istoriya Khazar. Leningrad, 1962.
- Brook, Kevin Alan. The Jews of Khazaria. 2nd ed. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc, 2006.
- Christian, David. A History of Russia, Mongolia and Central Asia. Blackwell, 1999.
- The History Of The Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire. London, 1845.
- ISBN 5-17-024793-1.
- Patkanov). St. Petersburg, 1861.
- Theophanes the Confessor. Летопись византийца Феофана от Диоклетиана... Moscow, 1890.