Contemporary accounts The conquest of South Arabia by Persia is absent from Persian sources. One Byzantine source notes the event in passing: according to
Theophanes of Byzantium, Khosrow I marched against the Ethiopians and "with the aid of Miranos, the Persian general, he captured Sanatources, king of the Ḥimyarites, sacked their city and enslaved the inhabitants." Prior to the invasion, the Byzantine and Sasanian empires had long been in competition over who would be able to exert their control over the region.
Arabic sources There are six major accounts in Arabic sources that describe the Persian invasions: one by
Ibn Ishaq (d. 767 AD/150 AH) recorded by
Ibn Hisham (d. 833/218) and
Al-Tabari (d. 923/310), an account by
Ibn al-Daya (d. 951/340), another version ascribed by Al-Tabari to
Hisham ibn al-Kalbi (d. 819/204),
Al-Dinawari (d. 895), and one by
Ibn Qutaybah (d. 889/276). The accounts differ on a number of major and minor details.
Al-Tabari's account According to Ibn Ishaq as recorded by
Al-Tabari, Abraha was succeeded by his son
Masruq ibn Abraha. During this time, Ma'adi Yakrib sought out foreign aid in ending Aksumite rule over South Arabia. After lack of success appealing to either the Byzantine emperor or the Al-Hiran king, the
Sasanian emperor
Khosrow I agreed to his request and sent an army. The
Sasanian military, onboard eight ships, sailed around the coasts of the
Arabian Peninsula; although two of the ships were wrecked, the rest successfully docked in the
Hadhramaut region of
southern Arabia. During the initial invasion, Nawzadh was killed by Aksumite forces. This event led Wahrez to pursue a vendetta against the Ethiopian ruler of Yemen,
Masruq ibn Abraha, who was personally executed by Wahrez at the
Battle of Hadhramaut. The decisive Persian victory at Hadhramaut marked the beginning of the Aksumite retreat and the subsequent
besieging of Sanaʽa by the Persians. Following the capture of Sanaʽa by Sasanian forces, Wahrez reinstated the former
Himyarite king
Sayf ibn Dhī Yazan to his throne as a vassal of the
Sasanian Persian Empire.
Second Persian invasion By 575–578 AD, the Himyarite vassal king Yazan was murdered by his Ethiopian servants, following which the Aksumites returned and re-established their power in the region. In response, the Sasanian military
invaded Yemen a second time, headed by a force of 4000 men and led by Wahrez.
Yemen was then annexed by the Sasanian Empire as a province, and Wahrez was installed as its direct governor by the
Sasanian emperor Khosrow I.
Greater Yemen remained under Sasanian control until the
Early Muslim conquests.
Comparison of Arabic sources The account of Ibn Ishaq was recorded by
Ibn Hisham and
Al-Tabari. Both focus on
Sayf ibn Dhi Yazan, a semi-legendary king who sought the aid of the Persians in expelling the Aksumites. In Ibn Hisham's recording of Ibn Ishaq's account, Sayf wishes to expel the Aksumites and seeks foreign help in doing so. First, he asks for help from the Byzantine emperor, but without success. Then, he asks the same of the king of
Al-Hira (wrongly identified in this account as
Al-Nu'man III ibn al-Mundhir). The king tells him that he may join him in his upcoming trip to and audience with
Khosrow I, the Persian emperor. Ibn Ishaq now offers a detailed, but folkloric account of the custom and scenery of how the royal court was like. When Sayf meets Khosrow I, he asks him for help against Aksum. Khosrow I declines, saying that he cannot endanger his army in such an expedition. He gives Sayf 10,000 dirhams (although the Persian currency was
drahms at the time) and a fine robe. However, Sayf scatters the money. Khosrow interrogates him over this and, in doing so, learns of massive gold and silver deposits in South Arabia. This convinces him to send an army of 800 prisoners under the commander Wahriz, who defeats the Aksumites led by
Masruq ibn Abraha. The Al-Tabari version of the account of Ibn Ishaq has some minor discrepancies with preceding account according to Ibn Hisham, primarily regarding the circumstances of the death of the son of Wahriz in battle, and what happened during Wahriz's return to Persia after victory. Unlike Ibn Hisham, Al-Tabari has an extended account of what happened after the victory: Sayf begins to massacre the Aksumites after Wahriz leaves. This leads to a rebellion that ends up killing Sayf and re-establishing previous rule over the region. Wahriz is forced to return and re-conquer the region. This time, he stays and maintains rule over the region as a viceroy to ensure stability. In the account of Ibn al-Daya, Wahriz plays no role and Sayf is solely responsible for victory against the Aksumites after convincing Khosrow I to aid him. In addition, Ibn al-Daya includes a story where the Aksumites attempt to subvert the message sent by Sayf to Khosrow. The account of
Ibn al-Kalbi, also recorded by Al-Tabari, differs substantially from the account of Ibn Ishaq. The hero of this account is not Sayf, but a different member of the Dhu Yazan family: Abū Murra al-Fayyāḍ Dhū Yazan. In addition, Abu Murra's wife was said to have been abducted by Abraha, adding a personal grudge to the story. In Ibn al-Kalbi, Abu Murra visits the Al-Hiran king first (this time recorded as
Amr ibn Hind), and then the Byzantine emperor. Instead of staying at the Byzantine court for several years, he stays at the Persian court until his death. Back in South Arabia, Abu Murra's son
Ma'adi Yakrib is being raised under the impression that he is the son of Abraha and brother of Masruq. However, he learns that this is not true. After Abraha's death, he first seeks help from the Byzantines, and then finds it with the Persians. Similar to Ibn Ishaq, Wahriz plays the major role in leading an army of prisoners to defeat Masruq, and the black soldiers are massacred afterwards. In the account of Al-Dinawari, Sayf is again responsible for recruiting help, but plays a much more minor role. He is rejected by both Byzantines and Al-Hirans (though for new reasons), and this time, when he seeks Persian help, Khosrow agrees immediately. The rest of the story is described briefly and continues until the death and burial of Wahriz. Ibn Qutayba's account survives in two different sources, which are both different from one another. In the first, Sayf is not mentioned and the Persian expedition is the idea of Khosrow. The second resembles other Arab versions of the story, but also suggests a much larger contingent of troops (7500) sent by Khosrow. Additional minor accounts of the invasions are known with other discrepancies. Of the six major accounts, two of the major points of discrepancy concern the role played by Sayf in bringing about the Persian conquest, and Sayf's religious identity: Sayf is variously described as an idolater, a Jew, or a Jew with proto-Muslim leanings. Problematically, the rulers of South Arabia at the time are known to have been Christians from the archaeological record. The question of the importance played by Sayf largely differs between sources with Persian versus Arab leanings: in those with Persian leanings, Sayf is less important in bringing about the conquests, whereas in those with Arab leanings, he is much more important and the role of the Persians (including Wahriz) is downplayed. ==See also==