If military ability and power were needed to save the Marwānids and restore order in the empire, Marwān II undoubtedly had both. He had spent the greater part of his life leading expeditions on the Armenian frontier where he had earned himself a well-deserved military reputation. Furthermore, he had assembled a powerful army which had enabled him to defeat the formidable Khazar. As we have seen he now proceeded to re-conquer the empire, but in spite of his success in Syria, Iraq and western Iran his efforts were doomed to failure. His regime was bound to arouse more opposition throughout the empire because in fact it was a more pronouncedly Qaysite regime than that of his predecessors. He himself was certainly a strong advocate of expansionist policies. In contrast to his predecessors who had the waning support of the Syrian army, Marwān II had the willing and solid support of the army of Jazīra, his own creation. These Jazīrans were indeed the hard core of the Qaysites and, now revitalized and reorganized by Marwān II, they were ready to take over more forcefully the role of the Syrians under the previous regime. But even such a well-organized group, which by its very nature was clearly a minority, could not give new life to bankrupt policies.