Yazdegerd II was the fifteenth Sassanid King of Persia. He was the son of Bahram V

Bahram V

Bahram V was the fourteenth Sassanid King of Persia . Also called Bahram Gur or Bahramgur , he was a son of Yazdegerd I , after whose sudden death he gained the crown against the opposition of the grandees by the help of Mundhir, the Arab dynast of al-Hirah.- Reign and war with Rome :Bahram V...

 (421–438) and reigned from 438 to 457.

In the beginning of his reign, Yazdegerd moved his court to Khorasan to face the threat from the Huns. This resulted in Yazdegerd gaining control of Bactria which secured the eastern flank of the Sassanid Empire. In his offensive against the Huns, Yazdegerd's focus shifted to Armenia, Caucasian Albania and the Roman Empire.

Romans had been constructing fortifications in the nearby Persian territory of Carrhae, in anticipation of subsequent expeditions. The Roman Emperor, Theodosius II

Theodosius II

Theodosius II , commonly surnamed Theodosius the Younger, or Theodosius the Calligrapher, was Byzantine Emperor from 408 to 450. He is mostly known for promulgating the Theodosian law code, and for the construction of the Theodosian Walls of Constantinople...

 (408–450), asked for peace and sent his commander, Anatolius, personally to Yazdegerd's camp. In the ensuing negotiations in 441, both empires promised not to build any new fortifications in their border territories. Yazdegerd, gathered his forces in Nishapur

Nishapur

Nishapur or Nishabur , is a city in the Razavi Khorasan province in northeastern Iran, situated in a fertile plain at the foot of the Binalud Mountains, near the regional capital of Mashhad...

 in 443 and launched a prolonged campaign against the Kidarites

Kidarites

The Kidarite were a dynasty of the "Ki" clan, probably originating from the Uar people. They were part of the complex of tribes known collectively as Xionites or "Hunas"....

. After numerous battles, he crushed them and drove them out beyond the Oxus river in 450.

During his eastern campaign, Yazdegerd grew suspicious of Christians

Christianity in Iran

Christianity in Iran has a long history, dating back to the early years of the faith. It has always been a minority religion, with the majority state religions — Zoroastrianism before the Islamic conquest, Sunni Islam in the Middle Ages and Shia Islam in modern times — though it had a much larger...

 in the army and the nobility and expelled many of them. He then persecuted the Assyrians Christians

Assyrian people

The Assyrian people are a distinct ethnic group whose origins lie in ancient Mesopotamia...

 and, to a much lesser extent, Jews

Jews

The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...

 (he published a decree abolishing the Sabbath

Shabbat

Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...

, and ordered executions of Jewish leaders, including the Exilarch

Exilarch

Exilarch refers to the leaders of the Diaspora Jewish community in Babylon following the deportation of King Jeconiah and his court into Babylonian exile after the first fall of Jerusalem in 597 BCE and augmented after the further deportations following the destruction...

 Mar Nuna). Advancing his pro-Zoroastrian policy, he battled an uprising of Armenian

Armenians

Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....

 Christians in the Battle of Vartanantz

Battle of Vartanantz

The Battle of Avarayr also known as Battle of Vartanantz, was fought on May 26, 451 on the Avarayr Plain in Vaspurakan, between the Armenian Army under Saint Vartan and their Sassanid rulers...

 in 451.

In his later years, Yazdegerd became engaged again with the Kidarites until his death in 457. He pursued strict religious policies and persecuted various minorities.

See also

• Sunik
• Vartan Mamikonians
  Mamikonian
  Mamikonian, Mamikoneans, or Mamigonian was a noble family which dominated Armenian politics between the 4th and 8th century. They ruled the Armenian regions of Taron, Sasun, Bagrevand and others...