Over a period of four years and fourteen successive kings, the Sasanian Empire weakened considerably, and the power of the central authority passed into the hands of its generals, contributing to its fall.

The murder of all his brothers, "all well-educated, valiant, and chivalrous men",[2] stripped the Sasanian dynasty of a future competent ruler, and has been described as a "mad rampage" and "reckless".

[3] The overthrow and death of Khosrow culminated in the chaotic Sasanian civil war of 628–632, with the most powerful members of the nobility gaining full autonomy and starting to create their own government.

Shahrbaraz, however, was unable to capture the city, and then made an alliance with Piruz Khosrow, the leader of the Parsig faction, and the previous minister of the Empire during the reign of Ardashir's father, Kavad II.

[9] Shahrbaraz, with the aid of these two powerful figures, captured Ctesiphon, and executed Ardashir III, along with Mah-Adhur himself, including other Sasanian nobles like Ardabīl.

[12] After having his proposal declined, Farrukh Hormizd "no longer shied away from the throne itself", declaring "Today I am the leader of the people and the pillar of the country of Iran.

[12] In order to deal with Farrukh Hormizd, Azarmidokht supposedly allied herself with Mihranid dynast Siyavakhsh, who was the grandson of Bahram Chobin, the famous military commander (spahbed) and briefly shah of Iran.

The young king did not have the authority required to bring stability to his extensive empire, which was swiftly falling apart due to ceaseless internal conflicts between the army commanders, courtiers, and powerful members of the aristocracy, who were fighting amongst themselves and wiping out each other.

[19] The governors of the provinces of Mazun and Yemen had already asserted their independence during the civil war of 628–632, thus resulting in the disintegration of Sasanian rule in the Arabian Peninsula, which was uniting under the banner of Islam.

Indeed, during the first years of his rule coins were only minted in Pars, Sakastan, and Khuzestan, approximately corresponding to the regions of the southwest (Xwarwarān) and southeast (Nēmrōz), where the Parsig was based.

[24] The circumstances were so chaotic, and the condition of the nation so alarming, that "the Persians openly spoke of the immanent downfall of their empire, and saw its portents in natural calamities.