Khosrow II summary

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Below is the article summary. For the full article, see Khosrow II.

Khosrow II, or Khosrow Parvīz, (died 628), King of the Sāsānian dynasty (r. 590–628) whose military exploits extended the empire to its furthest extent. He came to the throne—assisted by Maurice, the emperor of the Byzantine Empire—in troubled times. When a new Byzantine emperor took the throne, however, Khosrow launched a war against the empire, seizing Armenia and central Anatolia. In 613 his forces took Damascus, and Jerusalem fell in 614. His fortunes suffered a reverse when Byzantine forces recaptured lost ground and killed his ablest generals. Revolution within the royal family followed, and Khosrow was executed. Under his reign, silverwork and carpet weaving reached a peak, and there is evidence of a renaissance in rock sculpture. After his death the empire rapidly declined, falling to the Arabs during the Islamic conquests in 640.

imperialism Summary

Imperialism, state policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion, especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political and economic control of other areas. Because it always involves the use of power, whether military or economic or some subtler form, imperialism has

government Summary

Government, the political system by which a country or community is administered and regulated. Most of the key words commonly used to describe governments—words such as monarchy, oligarchy, and democracy—are of Greek or Roman origin. They have been current for more than 2,000 years and have not