Lakhmid kingdom
Lakhmid kingdom المناذرة | |||||||
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| c. 268–602 | |||||||
Map of the Lakhmid kingdom (green) and Sasanian territory under Lakhmid governance (light green) in the sixth century. | |||||||
| Status | Dependency of the Sasanian Empire | ||||||
| Capital | Al-Hira | ||||||
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| Government | Monarchy | ||||||
| History | |||||||
• Established | c. 268 | ||||||
• Annexed by the Sasanian Empire | 602 | ||||||
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| Historical Arab states and dynasties |
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The Lakhmid kingdom (Arabic: اللخميون al-Lakhmiyyūn), also known as al-Manādhirah (المناذرة), was an Arab kingdom that ruled parts of Southern Mesopotamia and northeastern Arabia from the late 3rd century until 602 CE. Governed by the Nasrid dynasty of the Banu Lakhm tribe, the kingdom was centered on Al-Hira, which served as its capital and political base.
The Lakhmids functioned as a client state of the Sasanian Empire, playing a key role in defending Persia's western frontier. As part of this position, they frequently opposed the Ghassanids, a rival Arab polity allied with the Roman Empire, and participated in the Roman–Persian wars of late antiquity.
The kingdom was dissolved in 602 when the Sasanian ruler Khosrow II deposed and executed its last king, Al-Nu'man III, bringing the Lakhmid territories under direct Persian control. The fall of the Lakhmids marked a significant shift in the balance of power along Persia's Arab frontier and preceded major conflicts between Arab forces and the Sasanian state in the early 7th century.