Adergoudounbadēs ( grc, Ἀδεργουδουνβάδης, before 488 – 541), was a prominent
Sasanian nobleman, general, and ''
kanarang'' during the reigns of
Kavadh I (r. 488–531) and
Khosrow I
Khosrow I (also spelled Khosrau, Khusro or Chosroes; pal, 𐭧𐭥𐭮𐭫𐭥𐭣𐭩; New Persian: []), traditionally known by his epithet of Anushirvan ( [] "the Immortal Soul"), was the Sasanian Empire, Sasanian King of Kings of Iran from ...
(r. 531–579). His life is known only through the work of the
Byzantine historian
Procopius. His native name was probably Adurgundbad (in New fa, آذرگندبد), an abbreviation of ''Adurgushnaspbad''.
records the native name as ''Ādhargulbād'' ().
Biography
Adhurgunbadh first appears in 488. A young man at the time, according to Procopius, he already had a reputation as a soldier. In that year, he helped Kavadh I rise to the throne against his uncle
Balash
Balash (Middle Persian: 𐭥𐭥𐭣𐭠𐭧𐭱𐭩, ) was the Sasanian King of Kings of Iran from 484 to 488. He was the brother and successor of Peroz I (), who had been defeated and killed by a Hephthalite army.
Name
''Balāsh'' () is the N ...
. As a reward, Kavadh raised Adergoudounbades to the important post of ''kanarang'', governor of the northeastern province of
Abarshahr which adjoined Hephthalite territory, replacing his relative,
Gushnaspdad
Gushnaspdād, known in Byzantine sources as Gousanastadēs (), was a Sasanian nobleman, who was ''kanarang'' during the reign of Balash (r. 484–488), and Kavad I (r. 488–531).
Biography
Gushnaspdad first appears in 496, as one of the supporte ...
(Gousanastades), who was executed.
Little is known of Adergoudounbades during the subsequent decades, save that he had considerable success as a general: Procopius reports that he subdued twelve
barbarian
A barbarian (or savage) is someone who is perceived to be either Civilization, uncivilized or primitive. The designation is usually applied as a generalization based on a popular stereotype; barbarians can be members of any nation judged by som ...
tribes to Persian rule. He participated in the
Anastasian War
The Anastasian War was fought from 502 to 506 between the Byzantine Empire and the Sasanian Empire. It was the first major conflict between the two powers since 440, and would be the prelude to a long series of destructive conflicts between the tw ...
, being involved in the
Siege of Amida (502–503)
The siege of Amida occurred in 502–503, during the Anastasian War. The city was not garrisoned by any troops of the Byzantine Empire but nevertheless resisted for three months before falling to the military of the Sasanian Empire under Kavadh I. ...
.
When Khosrow I ascended the throne in 531, a conspiracy was formed by
Bawi and other nobles who wanted to overthrow him and elevate his nephew Kavadh, the son of Kavadh I's second eldest son Jamasp (Greek ''Zames'')
—who could not himself claim the throne as he was blind in one eye—to the throne. The conspiracy was discovered and suppressed, but Kavadh, who was still a child, was away from the court, being raised by Adergoudounbades. Khosrau sent orders to kill Kavadh, but Adergoudounbades disobeyed and brought him up in secret, until he was betrayed to the shah in 541 by his own son, Bahram (''Varrames''). Khosrow had him executed, but Kavadh, or someone claiming to be him, managed to flee to the Byzantine Empire.
[.]
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{{refend
5th-century births
541 deaths
5th-century Iranian people
6th-century Iranian people
Executed military personnel
People of the Roman–Sasanian Wars
Kanarang
People executed by the Sasanian Empire
Generals of Khosrow I
Anastasian War
Generals of Kavad I