Artabanus IV of Parthia

For other people of the same name, see Artabanus (disambiguation).

Artabanus IV of Parthia ruled the Parthian Empire (c. 216 – 224). He was the younger son of Vologases V who died in 208. Artabanus rebelled against his brother Vologases VI, and soon gained the upper hand, although Vologases VI maintained himself in a part of Babylonia until about 228.^[1]

The Roman emperor Caracalla, wishing to make use of this civil war for a conquest of the East in imitation of his idol, Alexander the Great, attacked the Parthians in 216. He crossed the Tigris, destroyed the towns and spoiled the tombs of Arbela, but when Artabanus advanced at the head of an army, he retired to Carrhae. There Caracalla was murdered by Martialis on April 8, 217. Caracalla's successor, the Praetorian Prefect of the Guard Macrinus, was defeated at Nisibis and concluded a peace with Artabanus, in which he gave up all the Roman conquests, restored the booty, and paid a heavy contribution to the Parthians.^[2]

In Susa was found a stela, showing the king and the satrap Khwasak. The stela dates to year 215 and demonstrated that the city was at that time part of the Parthian empire. There are indications that it was before independent.

At about this time, Ardashir had begun his conquests in Persia and Carmania. This expansion came to the attention of the Arsacid Great King, Artabanus IV, who ordered his vassal, the ruler of Khuzestan, to confront Ardashir.^[3] It was Ardashir, however, who emerged victorious in that battle. In 224, Artabanus IV himself invaded Fars to confront the rebelling Ardashir. The latter won the first battle, but with heavy losses on both sides. In the second battle, the Parthians suffered a greater loss, and Ardashir was again deemed the victor. Their armies clashed once again in a final battle at Hormozgan, near the modern city of Bandar Abbas. At this encounter, the Parthian army was completely defeated, and Artabanus IV was killed.^[4] This ended the 400-year rule of the Arsacid Dynasty.

References

^ Percy Sykes, History of Persia, Vol.1, (Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1969), 385.
^ Michael Axworthy, A History of Iran: Empire of the Mind, (Basic Books, 2008), 43.
^ Maria Brosius, The Persians: An Introduction, (Routledge, 2006), 140.
^ Maria Brosius, 140.

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Dio Cassius, vii, 12; lxxviii, 26.

Artabanus IV of Parthia Arsacid dynasty
Preceded by Vologases VI of Parthia	Great King (Shah) of Parthia 208 – 228	Succeeded by Ardashir I of Persia