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Index

Armenia

The Urartu Civilisation

Victory for Independence

Artashisian Dynasty on the Armenian Throne

Armenia caught between Rome and the Arsacids

The Acceptance of Christianity

Defending Christianity

Armenia Under the Bagratouni Dynasty

Cilicia - the New Armenia

Armenia Under Turanian Rule

The Renaissance or the Resurrection of Armenia

The Eastern Question

Russia in the Caucasus

The Armenian Question

Battle on Two Fronts

Tsarist Russia Against the Armenians

The Revolution of the Young Turks and the Armenian People on the Eve of World War I

The First World War

The Resurrection of Armenia

Armenia on the Road to Independence, 1918

- Armenia on the Road to Independence, 1918

Eastern Armenia

Western Armenia

"The Fateful Years" (1914-1917)

"Hopes and Emotions" (March-October, 1917)

The Bolshevik Revolution and Armenia

Transcaucasia Adrift (November, 1917

Dilemmas (March-April, 1918)

War and Independence (April-May, 1918)

The Republics of Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia

The Suppliants (June-October, 1918)

In conclusion

Soviet Armenia

The Second Independent Republic of Armenia

Epilogue

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Armenia was allowed to experience a short period of peace and that occurred in 17 A.D., when Germanicus with his army came to Armenia in order to put Artashes III on the Armenian throne. This king, who was also known as Zenon and who Mommsen described as "a great drinker, but a brave warrior", was aware of the advantages of Armenia and its needs. During his reign, which lasted for 32 years, Armenia experienced peace. After his reign the internal wrangling started once again and the interference of the nobility in the ruling of the country increased , especially after the Romans put Mithradates, brother of the Iberian (presentday Georgian) king, who was a genuine bandit, on the Armenian throne. At the first opportunity he murdered one of his brothers, who the Romans had been appointed to be his successor, so that his own son, Rhadamiste, would become the next king of Armenia. 33

The Armenians were horrified by this deed which had struck their royal family, in spite of the fact that they were foreign rulers, forced upon them by Rome. The Roman historian Tacitus wrote: "If these rulers had earned their throne through heroism, then they would have been less interesting for Rome." This way of thinking was shared by some of the Roman "realists" but the Armenian people thought something else: their wrath was extreme and revolt became a fact. In A.D. 53 they called for Persian assistance to throw Rhadamiste out of Armenia, and Tirdat, the brother of the Persian king, was placed on the Armenian throne.

The Reign of Tirdat I (53-100)

The reign of Tirdat I was the beginning of the Arshakouni (Arsacids) dynasty which, in other words, was of Persian blood. This dynasty ruled in Armenia for over three centuries and existed two hundred years after the fall of the Arsacid dynasty in their Persian homeland.

As Henri Focillon pointed out, of the four branches of the Arsacid dynasty, which ruled in Persia, Armenia, Bactriane and Scyrhie, the one in Persian was the mightiest and had overwhelming influence over the other three branches. Nevertheless, it was the branch in Armenia which would outlive them all. 35

Since the coronation of Tirdat as the Armenian king more or less meant the end of Roman influence in that area and an advantage for their Persian enemies, the Romans decided to attack Armenia in order to drive out the new king. This plan was delayed until AD 58 and during that time Tirdat I had enough time to strengthen the foundations of his kingdom.

This attack was the beginning of a war which would last for four years, during which Armenia, supported by the Persians, would successfully withstand the Romans.

The famous Roman field commander Corbulon, who was a great warrior and whose campaign against the Persians and the Armenians according to Bossuet was the only true victory of Emperor Nero, crossed the Euphrates River with 30,000 soldiers and marched towards the place which is the present-day Erzurum. Tirdat I, the new Armenian king, put up a great resistance. 37 With great skill he was able to concentrate his forces so that he closed the path from the Black Sea to Trabizond, i.e. the maintenance and transport road to the Roman army.