224

Events in 224 2

• 247 BC – 224 Parthian Empire Persian revival; rival of Rome The Parthian (Arsacid) Empire restored native Iranian rule and became Rome's great rival in the east for nearly five centuries, its famed horse-archers and cataphracts repeatedly checking Roman expansion — most notably annihilating Crassus's legions at Carrhae in 53 BC.
• 224 – 651 Sasanian Empire — last pre-Islamic empire The longest-lived Persian imperial dynasty Founded by Ardashir I, the Sasanian Empire revived Persian power, made Zoroastrianism the state religion, and ruled as a superpower rivalling Rome and Byzantium for over four centuries. It was a golden age of Persian art, architecture and administration before falling to the Arab Muslim conquest.