Gordiya

Illustration of Gordiya in theShahnameh of Shah Tahmasp

Gordiya(also spelledGurdiyaandKurdiyah) was an influentialIraniannoblewoman from theHouse of Mihran,who was first the sister-wife of the distinguished military leaderBahram Chobin,then the wife of theIspahbudhandynastVistahm,and ultimately the wife of the last prominentSasanianemperor,Khosrow II.

Background

Gordiya was a member of theHouse of Mihran,one of theseven Great Houses of Iran.The family was ofParthianorigin, and was centered inRay,south ofTehran,the capital of present-day Iran. Her father wasBahram Gushnasp,a military officer who hadfought the Byzantinesand campaigned inYemenduring the reign ofKhosrow I(r. 531–579). Her grandfatherGurgin Miladhad served as themarzban(general of a frontier province, "margrave") ofArmeniafrom 572 to 574.Gordiya had three siblings whom were Gorduya, Mardansina and most notably,Bahram Chobin,whom she married.It is however not known if she and Bahram were full siblings.

Biography

In 590, Bahram mounted alarge-scale rebellionagainst the Sasanian family, forcing the newly ascended rulerKhosrow IIto flee, while taking the throne for himself.He was the following year defeated and killed.Not long after, Khosrow II's uncleVistahmrebelled against him, carving a principality for himself in the entire eastern and northern quadrants of the Iranian realm.It was during this period that he married Gordiya, consequently increasing his status.His rebellion, however, also proved unsuccessful; according to some accounts, he was killed byHephthalitesubject Pariowk, whilst an alternative account states that it was Gordiya who killed him after being given the promise of marriage in return by Khosrow II.The 9th-century historianDinawarimentioned a son of Gordiya and Khosrow, namedJuvansher,as reigning as monarch of Iran briefly in 630. This king however remains obscure, and none of his coins have yet been found.

Sources

• Al-Tabari, Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn Jarir(1985–2007). Ehsan Yar-Shater (ed.).The History of Al-Ṭabarī.Vol. 40 vols. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
• Brosius, Maria. "WOMEN i. In Pre-Islamic Persia".Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol.London et al.
• Pourshariati, Parvaneh (2008).Decline and Fall of the Sasanian Empire: The Sasanian-Parthian Confederacy and the Arab Conquest of Iran.London and New York: I.B. Tauris.ISBN978-1-84511-645-3.
• Shahbazi, A. Sh. (1988). "Bahrām VI Čōbīn".Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. III, Fasc. 5.London et al. pp. 514–522.{{cite encyclopedia}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• Shahbazi, A. Sh. (1989). "Besṭām o Bendōy".Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. IV, Fasc. 2.pp. 180–182.