31°45′N44°08′E / 31.750°N 44.133°E /31.750; 44.133
Al-Qādisiyyah (Arabic:القادسية) is a historical city in southernMesopotamia, southwest ofal-Hillah andal-Kūfah in Iraq. It is most famous as the site of theBattle of al-Qādisiyyah inc. 636, in which anArabMuslim army defeated a largerSasanian army.
Prior to theArab conquest, al-Qādisiyyah was but a small village on the western side of theEuphrates River, near an old castle at `Udhayb, and was possibly part of theWall of the Arabs.[1] However, during the centuries that followed, al-Qādisiyyah grew in size and importance and was a noted stop along very important highways of commerce that led to Baghdād and Mecca.[2]
Al-Qādisiyyah was the scene of a decisive battle in theconquest of Persia by the Arabs around 636.[3] The Muslim troops of thecaliph`Omar led bySa`d ibn Abī Waqqās despite their outnumbered forces defeated the army of theSassanid emperorYazdgard III, led byRostam Farrokhzād. The battle of Al-Qādisiyyah would later be depicted in a manuscript ofShahnameh, a national epic authorized by the Persian poetFerdowsi.
Another Qādisiyyah existed on theTigris River, off the road betweenBaghdād andSāmarrā', not very far from the Euphrates city. Both cities are recorded in the geographies ofIbn Khordadbeh.[4]