Zhayedan

Zhayedan
Active	224-644
Allegiance	Sassanid Empire
Type	Heavy cavalry
Size	10,000
Engagements	Battle of Dara, Battle of the Bridge, Battle of al-Qādisiyyah, unnamed others

Military of the Sasanian Empire
Armed forces and units
Cataphract Clibanarii Aswārān Grīvpānvar War elephants Pāygān Zhāyēdān Pushtīgbān Sarmatians Daylamites Sogdian warriors Gond ī Shāhanshāh Darigan Stōr Bezashk Navy
Ranks
Spāhbed Aspbed Pāygōsbān Marzbān, Kanarang Masmughān Pushtigbān Sālār Erān anbāraghbad Argbed Hazārbed Pāygān Sālār Savārān Sardār Gond Sālār Darīgbed Nāvbed
Defense lines
Wall of the Arabs Great Wall of Gorgan Wall of Tammisha Derbent Wall Darial
Conflicts
Romans Arabian tribes Hephthalites Turks Ethiopians Rashidun Caliphate Revolts and civil wars

Zhāyēdān^[1] (literally "The Immortals") were warriors of an elite unit within the Sassanian army, numbering 10,000 men.^[2] They are possibly modeled on the former Immortals, who served the rulers of the Achaemenid Empire, and possibly wore the same clothing as their predecessors. These warriors bore some of the finest quality weaponry and armor of the entire Sassanian military. The Zhayedan were led by a commander bearing the title of "Varhranighan-khvadhay".

Appearances in battles

Zhayedan soldiers were a form of cataphracts, a type of heavy cavalry shock troops. Although elite warriors, they do not have much role in the wars involving Rome, as they were kept as reserves alongside the generals (Spahbed). When used, they would inflict high casualties on the enemy. Kaveh Farrokh writes in Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War that they were used often against the Arabs in the 7th century. Their appearances include the Battle of Dara, the Battle of Avarayr, Battle of the Bridge, and the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah.

Weapons

The immortals were equipped with some of the finest weapons of their day, including spear, sword, mace, dagger, and cane bow. They wore heavy scale or mail armor and heavy steel breastplates. According to some historians and scholars, they had golden chains and bracelets, possibly a sign of their wealth or high rank in the Sassanian army. Their helmets, of the Spangenhelm type, would have been adapted throughout the Sassanid Persia.

"But no sooner had the first light of day appeared, than the glittering coats of mail, girt with bands of steel, and the gleaming cuirasses, seen from afar, showed that the king's forces were at hand."

The immortals are said to have used the tough and powerful Nisean horse, native to the Zagros Mountains of western Iran ^[3]

In popular culture

• In the award-winning strategy game Rome Total War: Barbarian Invasion the Sassanids can use Immortals. They are known as "Clibanarii Immortals" and are the elite general bodyguard unit.
• In strategy game Total War: Attila the Sassanids can use Zhayedan Immortals as Missile Cavalry.

See also

• Cataphract
• Pushtigban Body Guards
• Sassanid army
• Spahbod
• Byzantine army
• Late Roman army
• Roman-Persian Wars
• Derbent, the only surviving Sassanid fortress
• Persian war elephants
• Immortals (Persian Empire)

References

1. ↑ Also zhāvēdān, jāvēdān, zhāvēdān, jāyēdān. It may be also spelled with "t" instead of "d".
2. ↑ Sassanian elite cavalry AD 224-642 By Kaveh Farrokh; p. 6 Archived April 17, 2015, at the Wayback Machine.
3. ↑ Rome's Enemies (3): Parthians and Sassanid Persians By Peter Wilcox, Angus McBride