Mardavij

Mardavij (Persian: مرداویج‎‎, also spelled as Mardaviz, Mardavich, Mardavige, and Mardavaz; died 935), was the founder of the Ziyarid dynasty, which was founded in 930.

Born to a Zoroastrian family native to Tabaristan, Mardavij was an anti-Muslim, who sought to revive the Persian Empire which was conquered in 651 by the Muslims. He first started his career by joining the army of Asfar ibn Shiruya. Mardavij, however, later betrayed him, and killed him, conquering much of Jibal. Mardavij then set out to conquer Hamadan, Dinavar and Isfahan from the Abbasids, where he declared himself king of Iran and made Isfahan the capital of his kingdom.

He then defeated the Dailamite general Makan ibn Kaki, and conquered Tabaristan in 932. By 934, his authority was acknowledged in Shiraz and Ahvaz. However, his goal of recreating the Persian Empire was ruined when he was murdered by his own Turkish slaves.

Biography

Early life

Mardavij was born ca. in 890 when Amr-i Laith Saffari and Nasr I ruled in Sistan and Khorasan respectively. Some reports say that his birthplace was in Daylaman (in northwestern Iran) or somewhere in Mazandaran. Mardavij was the son of Ziyar, and a sister of Harusindan, a Gilite ruler. Mardavij belonged to the Arghich tribe, which claimed to be descended from Arghush Farhadan, king of Gilan who lived during the time of Kai Khosrow. Members of the Arghich clan were mostly known to be considered as warriors, and the name of Mardavij which means 'a man who fights bravely' should have been popular. The religion of Ziyar and his family is not exactly known. Zoroastrianism, including heterodox branches such as the Mazdakite, the Zurvanite and Gayomardian, was still popular at his time. However, Mardavij was known to harbor Zoroastrian sympathies and practiced that religion.