Shapur served as the governor of Sakastan–a province far away from the imperial court in
Ctesiphon, and had since its conquest by
Ardashir I (), served as a difficult area for the Sasanians to maintain control over. As a result, the province had since its early days functioned as a form of vassal kingdom, ruled by princes from the Sasanian family, who held the title of
sakanshah ("king of the
Saka"). Although native Sakastani soldiers had helped Shapur II in his wars against the
Romans, they were probably mercenaries, and the province still remained relatively decentralized. In 311, while Shapur was travelling from Sakastan to
Istakhr, a city in
Pars, he stopped at the ruins of the ancient
Achaemenid capital of
Persepolis, and had an inscription carved at the
Tachara, the former palace of
Darius the Great. == References ==