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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 Under the Bagratouni Dynasty

"The city of Ani was a roadway from west to east." W. S. Davis

The Emergence of the Bagratouni

During the second half of the 9th century a monumental transition took place in the history of the Armenian people. One of the families of the Armenian nobility had gained such political know-how and skill in directing foreign policy that they were able to gain independence for Armenia. The Bagratouni family brought about an independent existence lasting for 200 years, catching once again the glorious thread of Armenian history which had been broken for 400 years, first by the Persians and then by the Arabs, and continuing it through the Middle Ages. 1

The Bagratouni family was one of the oldest Armenian noble families; as earlier mentioned, their forefathers, during the reign of the Arshakouni dynasty, bore the responsibility for the cavalry of the country.

The family's importance waned during the Persian rule, so that by the time the Arab rule began, the Bagratouni sphere of influence was considerably less than that of the Mamikonian and Rshtouni families.

Before their emergence to power, the Bagratouni lands, in contrast to the other noble families who owned coherent provinces, were scattered (Here we can draw a similarity to the lands of the Hohenzollern family in Germany).

The major parts of the Bagratouni lands were located in Ispir, in the province of Tchorouk, and also in the region which stretches between present-day Nakhichevan and Joulfa. They also owned a third region, Dariounk, which was constituted of present-day Bayazid and Maku.

This division and diffusion of their lands was both a disadvantage and an advantage for the Bagratouni family. The lack of a coherent province to their name was seen as a drawback; yet at the same time, the scattered nature of their lands made them less vulnerable. When they were at war with the Arabs, for instance, and the battle turned against them, they could retreat to the province of Tchorouk which was beyond the reach of the Arabs and near to Byzantine. Conversely, in case of war with Byzantine, when the enemy armies occupied the Tchorouk province, the Bagratouni family could move to their lands in the Araxes Valley and, with the assistance of the Arabs, continue the battle against Byzantine. 7

We have earlier mentioned that the Arabs, during their rule over Armenia, adapted a wise policy, namely to create conflicts among the Armenian princes and play them against each other, in this way bringing about the destruction of the most important and mightiest of the Armenian houses, Mamikonian, Kamsarakan and Rshtouni. The families of Bagratouni and Artzrouni took full advantage of this Arab policy. The Bagratouni family, by receiving some of the lands of the disintegrated Mamikonian family in the Euphrates and Araxes, and the lands of the Kamsarakan family in Kars, was able to steadily expand unify its territory in a coherent whole.