The intelligence of the murder of Siawush had no sooner reached Persia, than Kai•Kaoos assembled a large army to revenge the blood of his son. Roostum was so licited to take the command ; but that chief would con sent only upon condition that Sudaba should be put to death, as it was to the wicked passions of that princess that he ascribed the exile and misfortunes of the brave Siawush. Kai-Kaoos was obliged to comply, and Roostuni immediately took the field. After several engagements, Afrasiab was driven from his dominions, over which Roostum is said to have held sway for seven years. Every effort was now made to discover the son of Siawush, but in vain. Afrasiab, afraid of his resentment should he join the Persians, had ordered him to be conveyed beyond the sea of China. The young prince, however, was at last restored to his grandfather Kai-Kaoos, who was so overcome with joy, that he descended from his throne, and, placing Kai-Khoosroo upon it, ordered all present to do him homage. He was soon afterwards crowned ; but, though sovereign of Persia, he paid as much attention to his grandfather, as if that monarch had never resigned his power. lie was a prince of the highest qualities, but his whole reign was spent in waging war against the Tartars, to avenge the murder of his father Siawush. After a long and bloody struggle, with various success, it was at last accomplished by the capture and death of Afrasiab. Roostum bore a most conspicuous part in this war, and received for his services Cabul, Zabulistan, and Neimroz, as hereditary possessions.
After a prosperous reign of sixty-three years, Kai Khoosroo resolved to devote the remainder of his clays to religion. He raised to the throne Lohrasp, the son-in law of Kai-Kaoos ; and, attended by some nobles, retired to a sacred spring which had been selected as the place of his repose, where, we arc told, he soon afterwards disap peared ; and all those who accompanied him were, on their return, destroyed by a violent tempest. By the com mand of Lohrasp, an army was dispatched under Rahain Gudurz, commonly entitled Bucht-ul-Nasser, the governor of Irak, to extend his dominions to the west ; and, ac cording to a Mahomedan author, it was during this expe dition that Jerusalem was taken and plundered, and such of its inhabitants as survived the sword carried captive into Persia. Bucht-ul Nasser is supposed by some to be the Nebuchadnezzar of the Jewish historians ; while others make the successful exploits of this army refer to the conquest of Egypt by Cambyses.
Lohrasp resigned the sceptre in favour of his son Gush tasp, whose reign is celebrated chiefly for the introduc tion of the worship of fire by Zoroaster. This new doc trine was first taught in the province of Aderbijan, arid soon spread over the whole empire. Gushtasp, who is said to have been converted by his son Isfundear, built temples of fire in every part of the kingdom, and ordered twelve thousand cow-hides to to finely tanned, that the precepts of the prophet might be written upon them. These were deposited in a vault at Persepolis, and holy men were appointed to guard them. The consequence of this change of religion was, a war with Arjasp, king of Tartary, who sent a threatening message to the Persian 3 0 2 monarch, warning him of the error into which he had fallen, and demanding that he should immediately return to the faith of his ancestors. This war was prosecuted
with the exterminating fury of fanatical enthusiasm ; and the devotion of Isfundear to the doctrines of Zoroaster led him to sacrifice his personal aggrandizement to the cause of his religion. The armies of Persia at first prevailed ; but, in a second battle, they were completely overthrown by the Tartar king, and the daughter of Gushtasp carried into captivity. Isfundear, who had been imprisoned at the instigation of his enemies, who ruled at his father's court, and who had designs against his life, was imme diately released ; and Gushtasp promised to resign to him his crown, should he succeed in recovering his sister. Isfundear took Rouecndeh, the capital of Tartary, by stra tagem ; and, having slain Arjasp, restored the princess of Persia to her father. The promise of Gushtasp, however, was not fulfilled ; and the intrigues of his enemies again threw Isfundear into confinement. Upon receiving this intelligence, the Tartars again took the field, plundered Khorassan, entered Buikh, then the capital of the empire, and, having put to the sword all the priests and followers of Zoroaster whom they found in that city, among whom was the old king Lohrasp, they carried away in triumph the apron of Kawah, the celebrated standard of Persia.
Isfundear was again called from prison to lead the Per sian forces ; and, forgetting his own injuries, he hastened to avenge the injuries of his country. His success was complete. He took Roueendeh, slew the Tartar king, and recovered the sacred banner. Having subdued all the foreign enemies of the empire, he now looked with confidence for his reward,--the crown of Persia. But the artful Gushtasp evaded the demand, and alleged that Roostum, who had retired to Seistan, and thrown off his allegiance, was still unsubdued. It was long before the prince, could be prevailed upon to undertake this despe rate enterprize, which proved fatal both to his fame and his life ; and the old monarch saw too late the folly of the attempt, and long mourned his irretrievable loss.
Bahman, surnamed Ardisheer Dirazdust, the son of Is fundear, succeeded to the throne. He is celebrated for the wisdom which he displayed in the internal arrange ments of his kingdom, and his minute acquaintance with the actual condition of the country. He extended his conquests to the west, deposed the son of Bucht-ul-Nasser (the Belshazzar of the Scriptures) from his government of Babylon, and appointed Koresch (Cyrus) his successor. Under Koresch the Jews were treated with great kind ness, and by the express command of Bahman, whose fa vourite lady was of that nation. But a stain has been left upon his name and his reign, by the murder of Roostum, and the invasion of Seistan. He was succeeded by his daughter Homia, who is said to have been pregnant by her own father, and who, after a reign of thirty-two years, resigned her crown to her son Darah the first. This mo narch engaged in war with Philip of Macedon, and it is stated, that though unsuccessful at first, he ultimately prevailed, and reduced Philip to such extremity, that he agreed to give his daughter to Darab, and pay an annual tribute of a thousand eggs of pure gold.