Bahram III

Bahram III (also spelled Wahram III or Warahran III; , New Persian: ), was the sixth king (shah) of the Sasanian Empire. He was son and successor of Bahram II. As a prelude to his kingship he was viceroy in the province of Sakastan, which had been re-conquered by his father sometime in the 280s. Bahram III ascended to the throne after his father's death in 293. Many nobles considered him too weak to rule, instead pledging allegiance to his grand-uncle Narseh. After reigning for a period of only four months, Bahram III was either captured or more likely killed during a campaign by Narseh, who took his place as king. Name His theophoric name "Bahram" is the New Persian form of the Middle Persian Warahrān (also spelled Wahrām), which is derived from the Old Iranian Vṛθragna. The Avestan equivalent was Verethragna, the name of the old Iranian god of victory, whilst the Parthian version was *Warθagn. The name is transliterated in Greek as Baranes, whilst the Armenian transliteration is Vahagn/Vrām. The name is attested in Georgian as Baram and Latin as Vararanes. Biography In Sasanian Iran, it was customary for kings after conquering a land or people, to give their sons titles showing domination over them. Bahram III gained his title of "sākān shāh" presumably after his father's victory over the Sakastan (present day Sistan) region. Also following early Sasanian practices of giving appanage of provinces to princes, Bahram III was appointed to Sakastan, a region of strategic importance in defending the eastern extremes of the kingdom.