-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"">In
ancient Iranian mythology, construction of the city is attributed to
Tahmoures Divband, the fabulous king of Pishdadian dynasty, however it is
believed that the Sassanids have constructed Kermanshah. Bahram
IV called Kermanshah gave his name to this city. It was a glorious
city in Sassanid period about the 4th century AD when it became the
capital city and a significant health center serving as a summer resort for Sassanid kings.
In AD 226, following a two-year war led by the Persian Emperor, Ardashir I,
against Kurdish tribes in the region, the empire reinstated a local Kurdish prince,
Kayus of Medya, to rule Kermanshah. Within the dynasty known as the House
of Kayus (also
Kâvusakân) remained a semi-independent Kurdish
kingdom lasting until AD 380 before Ardashir II removed the dynasty's
last ruling member.
Islamic periods
Kermanshah
was conquered by the Arabs in AD 640. Under Seljuk rule in
the eleventh century, it was a major cultural and commercial centre in Western Iran and
the southern Kurdish region as a whole. The Safavids fortified the
town, and the Qajars repulsed an attack by the Ottomans during Fath
Ali Shah's
