41 Facts About Bahram V

Bahram V, known as Bahram Gur, was the Sasanian King of Kings from 420 to 438.

The son of the incumbent Sasanian shah Yazdegerd I, Bahram was at an early age sent to the Lahkmid court in al-Hira, where he was raised under the tutelage of the Lakhmid kings.

Bahram V is a central figure in several of the most famous works in Persian literature.

Bahram V is mentioned in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh written between 977 and 1010, and he is the protagonist of Nizami Ganjavi's romantic epic Haft Peykar, written in 1197.

Bahram V visited them on a rotating basis, and they entertained him with exciting stories.

Bahram V is the focal point in the Hasht-Behesht, written by Amir Khusrau in ca.

Bahram V is remembered as one of the most famous kings in Iranian history, due to his cancellation of taxes and public debt at celebratory events, his encouragement of musicians, and his enjoyment of hunting.

Bahram V was born around 400; according to folklore, he was born in Rusan, close to the city of Spahan.

Bahram V was the son of shah Yazdegerd I and Shushandukht, a daughter of the Jewish exilarch.

Bahram V was shortly after, murdered by the nobles and priests, who elected a son of Bahram IV, Khosrow, as shah.

Bahram V distrusted the nobles, who had been unreliable to the earlier Sasanian shahs, and thus chose instead to seek support from the Zoroastrian priesthood.

Bahram V was the first Sasanian shah to not be crowned by a noble, but by a chief priest.

Bahram V married an Indian princess and received the port of Debal in Sind as a dowry, together with the adjacent territories.

Bahram V systematically pursued a policy of tribal resettlement in these coastal regions.

At the urging of the Zoroastrian priests and the Surenid minister Mihr Narseh, Bahram V began his reign with a systematic persecution of the Christians.

Bahram V was thus forced to pay tribute to the Kidarites, in order to stop their incursions into his empire.

Bahram V first went to the holy temple of Adur Gushnasp in Adurbadagan, where he prayed.

Bahram V then proceeded to Armenia to recruit additional troops.

The war was concluded in 427, with Bahram V cementing his name as a great champion of Iran.

The name of Bahram V was long remembered amongst the people of the surrounding area; the Sogdian city of Bukhara would later mint coins with his image.

Bahram V erected a pillar at the Oxus, which marked that the river constituted his empire's eastern frontier.

Bahram V thus believed that he had restored the ancient borders of his realm.

Bahram V appointed his brother Narseh as the governor of the surrounding region.

Bahram V founded the city of Marw-i Rot, near the city of Marw.

Bahram V appointed Artaxias IV as king of Armenia in 422 at the request of the nakharars, reportedly on the term that the Armenian prince called himself the Middle Persian name Ardashir.

Bahram V hoped that the Roman emperor Theodosius II would help the Armenians after he had sorted out his own issues in his empire.

Bahram V issued coins in gold, silver, copper and lead.

Bahram V died in 438; his manner of death is shrouded in mystery.

The story of Bahram V portrays that of a classic hunter king in Iranian literature, which is associated with the namesake god, known in Avestan as Verethragna.

Bahram V introduces the story by giving a description of the birth of Bahram and his upbringing in the court of the Lakhmid king al-Nu'man and his fabled palace Khawarnaq.

Bahram V, whose upbringing is entrusted to al-Nu'man, becomes a formidable huntsman.

Bahram V's architect is ordered to construct seven domes for each of his new brides.

Bahram V is skeptical but follows the advice of the architect.

Bahram V finds out that his realm is in turmoil, the royal treasury has been depleted and the neighboring kingdoms are posed to invade.

Bahram V starts investigating the corrupt minister and from the multitude of complaints, he selects seven who tell him the injustice they have suffered.

The minister is subsequently put to death and Bahram V restores order and orders the seven domes to be converted to Zoroastrian fire temples.

Bahram V then goes hunting, but in an obscure manner disappears.

Bahram V accomplished this by shooting two arrows into the head of a female gazelle, thus giving her "antlers".

Bahram V, enraged, threw her to the ground, and trampled her with his camel.

One day, word of a skilled female musician reaches Bahram V, which leads him to search for her.

Bahram V accepts, and they return to the Khawarnaq palace.