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=Super Mario 64=
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==Reception==
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''Super Mario 64'' is counted by 1up.com as one of the first games to have brought a series of 2D games into full 3D.<ref name="1up1" /> The game was designed with the earlier ''Mario'' titles' maneuvers, [[power-up]] blocks, level themes (such as grassland, lava, ice, desert, and so on), enemies, and other characters in mind. ''Super Mario 64''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s translation of traditional 2D platforming action into 3D was hailed as a great success by many players, and the game itself went on to effectively drive sales of the N64 console,{{Who|date=June 2007}} and is regarded today as one of the best games ever made.
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There were others who felt that ''Super Mario 64'' did ''not'' readily capture the "feel" of its predecessors.{{Who|date=June 2007}} In the transition to 3D, many of the series conventions were rethought drastically, placing an emphasis on exploration over traditional platform jumping, or "hop and bop" action. While few disputed its quality, it has been argued that it established an entirely new genre, different from that of previous games in the series.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/3211627.stm | title=Platform video games evolve | last= | first= | publisher=[[BBC]] | date=2003-10-25 |accessdate=2006-11-21}}</ref>
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===Reviews===
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''Super Mario 64'' was praised in the gaming press, and is still highly acclaimed. It has collected numerous awards, including various "Game of the Year" honors by members of the gaming media, as well as Nintendo's own bestseller [[Player's Choice]] selection.
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==Impact and legacy==
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''Super Mario 64'' set many precedents for 3D platformers to follow.<ref name="1up1" />
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Most existing 3D games at the time used a [[first-person shooter|first person]] or fixed perspective, but the platform gameplay of ''Super Mario 64'' required the use of a free camera. The game world is therefore viewed through an in-game [[professional video camera|video camera]] operated by [[Lakitu]].<ref name="instructions" /> Lakitu handles the camera automatically, but the player can change the perspective manually when necessary, since the camera programming occasionally makes the view get stuck behind walls or at odd angles. This was a useful innovation, as other games were sometimes unplayable due to an unfixable bad camera.<ref name="npsep96">(September 1996). "Super Mario 64". ''Nintendo Power'', vol 88. pp. 14-23.</ref>
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The Nintendo 64's analog control stick allowed for more realistic and wide-ranging character movements than the [[digital]] [[D-pad]]s of previous consoles, and ''Super Mario 64'' exploits this feature extensively. For example, Mario's speed varies depending on the degree of tilt of the control stick.<ref name="instructions" /> The range and direction of many other movements can be controlled as well. The Bowser battles exhibit this by forcing the player to rotate the control stick in circles in order to swing Bowser around and throw him into mines placed around the arena.<ref>(June 1996). "N64 Exclusive". ''Nintendo Power'', vol 85. pp. 16-17.</ref>
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''Super Mario 64'' was also notable for its sense of freedom and [[linearity (computer and video games)|non-linearity]]. This was initially unfamiliar to many people, among them was Michael Grayford of [[Liquid Entertainment]]:
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{{quote|When I first played ''Mario 64'', I was very turned off. There were too many places to run around and too much stuff to do, and I didn't really see the point or the spirit of the game. I tried it again later, though, hearing from everyone how fun it was, and ended up playing it all the way through to the end. I was highly pleased. Each level brought some new unique cool gameplay element and I was never bored.<ref name="GameSpy50">{{cite web | title=GameSpy's Top 50 Games of All Time | year=July 2001 | publisher=gamespy.com | url=http://archive.gamespy.com/articles/july01/top502ase/index3.shtm | accessdate=2006-02-11}}</ref>}}
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[[Warren Spector]], former lead designer at [[Ion Storm Inc.]], also gave the following explanation for the game's influence:
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{{quote|It's not possible to squeeze this much gameplay into a single game. Mario has, like, ten things he can do and yet there's never a moment where you feel constrained in any way. No game has done a better job of showing goals before they can be attained, allowing players to make a plan and execute on it. And the way the game allows players to explore the same spaces several times while revealing something new each time is a revelation. Any developer who wouldn't kill to have made this game is nuts.<ref name="GameSpy50" />}}
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A central hub, where controls can be learned before entering levels themselves, has been used in many 3D platformers since. In addition, the game's mission-based level design was an inspiration for other game designers. For example, [[Martin Hollis]], who produced and directed ''[[GoldenEye 007]]'', says that "the idea for the huge variety of missions within a level came from ''Super Mario 64''."<ref>{{cite web | title=The Making of GoldenEye 007 | year=September 2, 2004 | publisher=zoonami.com | url=http://www.zoonami.com/briefing/2004-09-02.php | accessdate=2006-02-11}}</ref>
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===Remakes and sequels===
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''Super Mario 64'' was first re-released in Japan on [[July 18]] [[1997]] as ''Shindou Super Mario 64''. This version added support for the [[Rumble Pak]] and included voice acting from the American version as well.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://ign64.ign.com/objects/010/010131.html | title=Shindou Super Mario 64 (Rumble Pak Vers.) | publisher=[[IGN]] | accessdate=2006-10-22}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.allgame.com/cg/agg.dll?p=agg&sql=1:17806 | title=Shindou Super Mario 64 | last=Davies | first=Jonti | publisher=allgame|accessdate=2006-10-22}}</ref> In [[1998]], ''Super Mario 64'' was re-released in America as part of the [[Player's Choice]] line: a selection of games with high sales sold for a reduced price.
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Nel 2007 è uscita una nuova versione di ''Super Mario 64'' per Wii Virtual console al prezzo di 1.000 Wii Points.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://wii.ign.com/articles/733/733464p1.html | title=IGN's Nintendo Wii FAQ | last=Casamassina | first=Matt | authorlink=Matt Casamassina | publisher=[[IGN]]|date=[[2006-09-19]] | pages=5 | accessdate=2006-10-22}}</ref> This release adds compatibility with the [[GameCube]] and Classic controllers, and [http://www.bytecellar.com/archives/000084.php enhances the display]. This version is able to run in [[480p]] on properly configured setups.
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==Note e riferimenti==
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=Charmed multimedia=
== Syndication ==
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The series was originally shown on the [[The WB Television Network|WB]] television network in the [[United States]] and on [[CTV]] in [[Canada]], with independent station [[CKXT-TV|SunTV]] (originally Toronto 1) picking up the show's 8th season after CTV decided against continuing its broadcast.
Currently, the show is licensed to a number of networks in North America, with the major carriers being [[Turner Network Television|TNT]] and Canada's [[Showcase Diva]]. TNT airs four different episodes each weekday at 8:00am, 9:00am, 4:00pm & 5:00pm E/P.<ref name="TNT">{{cite web |url=http://www.tnt.tv/schedule/daily/ |title=TNT daily schedule |work=TNT.tv |accessdate=2007-01-01}}</ref> Showcase Diva airs the same episode twice a day, Monday - Friday at 1:00 & 8:00pm ET (10:00am & 5:00pm PT).<ref name="Showcase Diva">{{cite web |url=http://www.showcase.ca/diva/schedule/default.asp?scheduleTime=allday |title=Showcase Diva daily schedule |work=Showcase.ca |accessdate=2007-01-06}}</ref> Charmed is shown in the Province of [[Quebec]] in French on [[VRAK.TV]] Mondays at 9:00pm (21h00), with the same episode repeated Fridays at 6:00pm (18h00) and Saturdays at 8:00pm (20h00).<ref name="VRAK">{{cite web |url=http://www.vrak.tv/grille/diffusion/1345084/ |title=VRAK.TV daily schedule |work=VRAK.TV |accessdate=2007-01-02}}</ref>
Outside of North America, Charmed is broadcast in a high number of other countries and television networks, each with their own schedule for the series, and sometimes with their own title for the series. Countries where Charmed airs include the following:
== DVDs ==
DVDs of ''Charmed'' were first released in 2005, after overcoming licensing issues with the commercial songs in individual episodes.
The first seven ''Charmed'' DVD sets contain no special features in accordance with Paramount's "no extras" policy, and much to the chagrin of both the fans and of ''Charmed'' executive producer [[Brad Kern]], who had stated many times that his efforts to persuade Paramount to include some form of extras were unsuccessful.<ref name="KernInterview">{{cite web |url=http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/articles/bradkern.cfm |title=Brad Kern Interview |work=TVShowsOnDVD.com |first=Gord |last=Lacey |date=[[2006-02-27]] |accessdate=2006-06-06}}</ref>
This changed in 2006, when Paramount's television DVD department was taken over by [[CBS]], resulting in a promise that the last ''Charmed'' DVD box set would contain bonus material.<ref name="CBSextras">{{cite news |url=http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/newsitem.cfm?NewsID=5429 |title=CBS works some magic - Extras on Season 8 |work=TVShowsOnDVD.com |first=Gord |last=Lacey |date=[[2006-04-04]] |accessdate=2006-06-30}}</ref>
The special features that have been confirmed for Season 8 include three featurettes: "To The Manor Born"; "The Making of Charmed"; and a 2-part documentary "The Story of Charmed" (which also contains some parts of the unaired pilot) and "Forever Charmed".<ref name="DVDs8spain">{{cite web |url=http://www.zonadvd.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=3660 |title=Embrujadas - Octava Temporada |work=ZonaDVD.com |accessdate=2007-01-07}}</ref> There are also expected to be cast and crew episode commentaries, and more extras on the Region 1 DVD set, aside from the aforementioned featurettes.<ref name="DVDs8r1"/> In Issue 12 of ''Charmed'' magazine, Kern stated that he wanted approximately 90 minutes of extras, and would also have liked to include the unaired pilot (starring [[Lori Rom]] as Phoebe Halliwell); however, this encountered legal difficulties.<ref name="CharmedMag8e">{{cite news |url=http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/newsitem.cfm?NewsID=6240 |title=''Charmed'' magazine talks about Season 8 Extras |work=TVShowsOnDVD.com |first=Gord |last=Lacey |date=[[2006-08-10]] |accessdate=2006-08-31}}</ref>
Regions 2-6 of Season 8 features a new opening theme, having replaced the song "How Soon is Now?" with an instrumental piece. So far, no explanation has been given for this change or if the change will also be made for the Region 1 release.
=Mesopotamia=
==Prima dinastia babilonese==
The actual origins of the Dynasty are rather hard to pinpoint with great certainty simply because Babylon itself, due to a high-water table, yields very few archaeological materials intact. Thus any evidence must come from surrounding regions and written records. Not much is known about the kings from Su-abu through Sin-muballit. What is known, however, is that they accumulated little land. Quando Hammurabi salì al trono di Babilonia l'impero era molto piccolo empire only consisted of a few towns in the surrounding area: [[Dilbat]], [[Sippar]], [[Kish]], and [[Borsippa]]. Durante il regno di Hammurabi tuttavia Babilonia si espanse rapidamente. However, Babylon remained but one of several important areas in Mesopotamia, along with [[Assyria]], then ruled by [[Shamshi-Adad I]], and [[Larsa]], then ruled by [[Rim-Sin]].
Nel tredicesimo anno di regno Hammurabi conquistò [[Larsa]] e varie città importanti come [[Nippur]], [[Ur]], [[Uruk]] e [[Isin]]. Hammurabi riuscì a conquistare tutta la Mesopotamia meridionale. Un altra formidabile potenza di quella regione nel 2° millennio fu [[Eshnunna]] che Hammurabi riuscì a conquistare nel 1761 a.C. circa. Babylon exploited Eshnunna's well-established commercial trade routes and the economic stability that came with them. Non passò molto tempo prima che l'esercito di Hammurabi conquistasse l'[[Assiria]] e parte delle montagne Zagros. Nel 1760 a.C. con la conquista di [[Mari]] l'impero babilonese riuscì a portare a termine l'unificazione della [[Mesopotamia]].
Hammurabi's other name was [[Hammurapi-ilu]], meaning ''Hammurapi the god'' or perhaps ''Hammurapi is god''. He could have been [[Amraphel]] king of [[Shinar]] or [[Sinear]] in the Jewish records and the [[Bible]], a contemporary of [[Abraham]]. (Abraham lived from [[1870s BC|1871]] to [[1780s BC|1784]], according to modern interpretations of the Old Testament's figures that have been usually reckoned in modern half years before the Exodus, from equinox to equinox.)
The [[Venus tablets of Ammisaduqa]] (i.e., several ancient versions on clay tablets) are famous, and several books had been published about them. Several dates have been offered but the old dates of many sourcebooks seens to be outdated and incorrect. There are further difficulties: the 21 years span of the detailed observations of the planet [[Venus (planet)|Venus]] may or may not coincide with the reign of this king, because his name is not mentioned, only the [[Year of the Golden Throne]]. A few sources, some printed almost a century ago, claim that the original text mentions an occultation of the Venus by the moon. It seems to me a misinterpretation because the original texts in the book of [[Erica Reiner]] and [[D. Pingree]], ''The Venus Tablet of Ammisaduqa'' there is no such sentence. Prof. P.J. Huber's detailed calculations at this point also prefer [[1650s BC|1659]] for the fall of Babylon, based on the statistical probability of dating based on the planet's observations. He finds the presently accepted middle chronology too low from the astronomical point of view.
A text about the [[fall of Babylon]] by the [[Hittites]] of [[Mursilis]] I at the end of Samsuditana's reign tells about a twin eclipse is crucial for a correct Babylonian chronology. (The reading of the word ''Babylon'' is uncertain but why should a Babylonian tablet refer to another city?). The pair of lunar and solar eclipses occurred in the month [[Shimanu]] ([[Sivan]]). Professor Peter J. Huber has computed several options that would satisfy the conditions of the detailed description. The lunar eclipse took place on [[February 9]], [[1650s BC|1659 BC]]. It started at 4:43 and ended at 6:47. The latter was invisible which safisfies the record which tells that the setting moon was still eclipsed. The solar eclipse occurred on February 23, 1659. It started at 10:26, has its maximum at 11:45, and ended at 13:04. See Peter Huber, ''Astronomical dating of Babylon I and Ur III'' in ''Monographic Journals of the Near East'' (1982: 41).
==Impero neo-babilonese==
[[Image:Shepherd 1923 Oriental Empires c.600 BCE.jpg|thumb|right|300px|The Middle East, c. 600 BC, showing extent of Chaldean rule.]]
===Independence from Assyrian rule===
Through the centuries of [[Assyria]]n domination, Babylonia enjoyed a prominent status, and revolted at the slightest indication that it did not. However, the Assyrians always managed to restore Babylonian loyalty, whether through granting of increased privileges, or militarily. That finally changed in [[627 BC]] with the death of the last strong Assyrian ruler, [[Ashurbanipal]], and Babylonia rebelled under [[Nabopolassar]] the Chaldean the following year. With help from the [[Medes]], [[Nineveh]] was sacked in 612, and the seat of empire was again transferred to Babylonia.
===Nebuchadnezzar===
{{main|Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon}}
Nabopolassar was followed by his son [[Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon|Nebuchadnezzar II]], whose reign of 43 years made Babylon once more the mistress of the civilized world. Only a small fragment of his annals has been discovered, relating to his invasion of Egypt in [[567 BC]], and referring to "Phut of the Ionians".
===Rise of the Achaemenids===
Of the reign of the last Babylonian king, [[Nabonidus]] (''Nabu-na'id''), and the conquest of Babylonia by [[Cyrus the Great|Cyrus]], there is a fair amount of information available. This is chiefly derived from a chronological tablet containing the annals of Nabonidus, supplemented by another inscription of Nabonidus where he recounts his restoration of the temple of the Moon-god at Harran; as well as by a proclamation of Cyrus issued shortly after his formal recognition as king of Babylonia. It was in the sixth year of Nabonidus ([[549 BC]]) that Cyrus, the Achaemenid Persian "king of [[Anshan]]" in Elam, revolted against his suzerain [[Astyages]], "king of the Manda" or Medes, at Ecbatana. Astyages' army betrayed him to his enemy, and Cyrus established himself at Ecbatana, thus putting an end to the empire of the Medes. Three years later Cyrus had become king of all Persia, and was engaged in a campaign in the north of [[Mesopotamia]]. Meanwhile, Nabonidus had established a camp in the desert, near the southern frontier of his kingdom, leaving his son [[Belshazzar]] (''Belsharutsur'') in command of the army.
In [[539 BC]] Cyrus invaded Babylonia. A battle was fought at Opis in the month of June, where the Babylonians were defeated; and immediately afterwards Sippara surrendered to the invader. Nabonidus fled to Babylon, where he was pursued by Gobryas, the governor of [[Gutium]]<ref>http://www.livius.org/gi-gr/gobryas/gobryas_1.html</ref>, and on the 16th of ''Tammuz'', two days after the capture of Sippara, "the soldiers of Cyrus entered Babylon without fighting." Nabonidus was dragged from his hiding-place, and Gutian guards were placed at the gates of the great temple of Bel, where the services continued without interruption. Cyrus did not arrive until the 3rd of ''Marchesvan'' (October), Gobryas having acted for him in his absence. Gobryas was now made governor of the province of Babylon, and a few days afterwards the son of Nabonidus died. A public mourning followed, lasting six days, and Cambyses accompanied the corpse to the tomb{{Fact|date=August 2007}}.
Cyrus now claimed to be the legitimate successor of the ancient Babylonian kings and the avenger of [[Bel-Marduk]], who was assumed to be wrathful at the impiety of Nabonidus in removing the images of the local gods from their ancestral shrines, to his capital Babylon. Nabonidus, in fact, had excited a strong feeling against himself by attempting to centralize the religion of Babylonia in the temple of [[Marduk]] at Babylon, and while he had thus alienated the local priesthoods, the military party despised him on account of his antiquarian tastes. He seems to have left the defense of his kingdom to others, occupying himself with the more congenial work of excavating the foundation records of the temples and determining the dates of their builders.
The invasion of Babylonia by Cyrus was doubtless facilitated by the existence of a disaffected party in the state, as well as by the presence of foreign exiles like the Jews, who had been planted in the midst of the country. One of the first acts of Cyrus accordingly was to allow these exiles to return to their own homes, carrying with them the images of their gods and their sacred vessels. The permission to do so was embodied in a proclamation, whereby the conqueror endeavored to justify his claim to the Babylonian throne. The feeling was still strong that none had a right to rule over western Asia until he had been consecrated to the office by Bel and his priests; and accordingly, Cyrus henceforth assumed the imperial title of "King of Babylon."
A year before Cyrus' death, in [[529 BC]], he elevated his son [[Cambyses II]] in the government, making him king of Babylon, while he reserved for himself the fuller title of "king of the (other) provinces" of the empire. It was only when [[Darius Hystaspis]] ("the Magian") acquired the Persian throne and ruled it as a representative of the [[Zoroastrianism|Zoroastrian religion]], that the old tradition was broken and the claim of Babylon to confer legitimacy on the rulers of western Asia ceased to be acknowledged. Darius, in fact, entered Babylon as a conqueror.
After the murder of [[Smerdis the Usurper]] by Darius, it briefly recovered its independence under Nidinta-Bel, who took the name of [[Nebuchadnezzar III]], and reigned from October [[521 BC]] to August [[520 BC]], when the Persians took it by storm. A few years later, probably [[514 BC]], Babylon again revolted under [[Arakha]]; on this occasion, after its capture by the Persians, the walls were partly destroyed. E-Saggila, the great temple of Bel, however, still continued to be kept in repair and to be a center of Babylonian patriotism, until at last the foundation of [[Seleucia on the Tigris|Seleucia]] diverted the population to the new capital of Babylonia and the ruins of the old city became a quarry for the builders of the new seat of government.
== Conquista islamica della Mesopotamia persiana ==
The collapse of the Sassanid polity after the death of Khusrau II left the Persians in a weak position ''vis-a-vis'' Arab invaders. At first the Muslims merely attempted to consolidate their rule over the fringes of the desert and the Lakhmid Arabs. The border town of [[Hira (city)|Hira]] fell to the Muslims in 633. The Sassanids had reorganized under a new king, [[Yazdegerd III]].
The main military commander of the Muslims, [[Khalid ibn al-Walid]], was able to conquer most of [[Mesopotamia]] ([[Iraq]]) from the Persians in a span of nine months, from April 633 until January 634, after a series of battles. The following are some of the most significant battles fought between the Muslim Arabs and the Persians in Mesopotamia.
=== Battle of Walaja ===
{{main|Battle of Walaja}}
The Battle of Walaja was a battle fought in Mesopotamia ([[Iraq]]) on [[May]] [[633]] between the [[Muslim conquests|Muslim Arabs]] under [[Khalid ibn al-Walid]] against the [[Sassanid Empire|Persian Empire]] and its [[Arab]] allies. The strength of the Persian army at the battle was 10,000–50,000 compared to 18,000 for the Arabs.
Khalid decisively defeated the Persian forces using a variation of the [[Pincer movement|double envelopment]] tactical manoeuvre, similar to the manoeuvre [[Hannibal]] used to defeat the [[Roman Republic|Roman]] forces at the [[Battle of Cannae]], though Khalid developed his version independently.
=== Battle of Firaz ===
{{main|Battle of Firaz}}
Khalid defeated the combined forces of the Persian Empire, [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine Empire]] and Christian Arabs at the [[Battle of Firaz]]. The result of the battle was a decisive victory for Khalid, which led to most of Mesopotamia being annexed by the Muslims.
After this victory, Khalid left Mesopotamia to lead another [[Muslim conquest of Syria|campaign at Syria]] against the Roman Empire, after which Mithna ibn Haris took command in Mesopotamia.
===Battle of the Bridge===
{{main|Battle of the Bridge}}
The Sassanids mounted a counterattack under Bahman Jadu, who led 9,000 Persians against 10,000 Arabs. The Persians won a major victory at the [[Battle of the Bridge]] against the Muslims in October 634, in which Abu Ubaid was killed in battle. The Persians lost 600 men, and the Arabs more than 4,000.
After a decisive Muslim victory against the Romans in [[Levant|Syria]] at the [[Battle of Yarmuk]] in 636, the second caliph, [[Umar]], was able to transfer forces to the east and resume the offensive against the Sassanids.
=== The Battle of al-Qādisiyyah ===
{{main|Battle of al-Qādisiyyah}}
This was the decisive engagement that sealed the fate of the Sassanid empire. Around the year 636, [[Rostam Farrokhzad|Rostam Farrokhzād]], advisor and general for [[Yazdegerd III]] (''r''. 632–51) led an army said to number 60,000 men across the [[Euphrates River]] to [[Battle of al-Qādisiyyah|al-Qādisiyyah]], near the present-day city of [[Hilla]] in [[Iraq]]. Some have criticised him for this decision to face the Arabs on their own ground — on the fringes of the desert — and surmised that the Persians could have held their own if they had stayed on the opposite bank of the Euphrates.
The [[Caliph]] [[Umar]] dispatched 36,000 men under the command of [[Sa'ad ibn Abi Waqqas|Sa`d ibn Abī Waqqās]] against the Persian army. The [[Battle of al-Qādisiyyah]] followed, with the Persians prevailing at first, but on the third day of fighting, the Muslims gained the upper hand. The Persian general [[Rostam Farrokhzād]] was caught and beheaded. According to some sources, the Persian losses were 20,000, and the Arabs lost 8,500 men.
Following the Battle, the Arab Muslim armies pushed forward toward the Persian capital of [[Ctesiphon]] (also called Madā'in in Arabic), which was quickly evacuated by Yazdgird after a brief siege. After seizing the city, they continued their drive eastwards, following Yazdgird and his remaining troops. Within a short space of time, the Arab armies defeated a major Sāsānian counter-attack in the Battle of Jalūlā', as well as other engagements at [[Qasr-e Shirin]], and Masabadhan. By the mid-7th Century, the Arabs controlled all of Mesopotamia, including the area that is now the Iranian province of [[Khuzestan]].
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