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It is worth noting though that, unlike the Artzrouni family which always cooperated with the Arabs and was dependent on them, the Bagratouni family, on several occasions, revolted against the Arabs. As we have mentioned earlier, it was a member of the Bagratouni family who, at the beginning of the 8th century, instigated and led an uprising against the Arabs. Nevertheless, later when the Mamikonian family made a bid for freedom for Armenia, the Bagratouni made the grave mistake of not joining forces with them, instead allowing the Arabs to tear the Mamikonian forces to pieces so that they could take their pick from their disbanded lands. However, they did participate in the last uprisings during the 8th century. After the losses from this rebellion, they were forced to leave their lands in central and eastern Armenia, and to seek shelter in Ispir, thence continuing the resistance. It was at this point that, with the help of the Byzantine Empire, the Bagratouni family was transformed, as Laurent says, to "the real factor in the political balance."

Consequently the furious Arabs for a long period of time only lent their support to the Artzrouni family. However, fear of the new power and privileged position of the Bagratouni family forced the Arabs, at the end of the 8th century, to resume their relations with this pre-eminent. 8

Due to the prevailing situation, the Bagratouni family was able to retain their territories in central and eastern Armenia. During the first decades of the 9th century events unfolded in the Arab world which strengthened the position of the Bagratouni family even more, and allowed them to expand their territories. When princes and the people in the vicinity of Armenia (especially in Persian Azerbaijan) constantly revolted against the caliphate in Baghdad 9, the caliphs were forced to request assistance from the Bagratouni in order to suppress these uprisings. In return for their services, the Bagratouni received new authority and new territories and thereby were able to unify their scattered.

By about 850, the house of Bagratouni owned the whole of Armenia, apart from the province of Vaspourakan which was still under the rule of the Artzrouni family, and the present-day Zangezour which was owned by the noble family of Siuni. Armenia was already on the road to liberation from Arabs' stranglehold.

As Laurent points out, over the preceding two centuries the Arabs had tried to weaken and destroy the most powerful Armenian noble families and had succeeded so well in their plan that there was no one left whom they could play against the Bagratouni. Thereby, Armenia had now gained what it lacked most of all in order to display its power.

During the era when Armenia was divided into several different principalities, the Armenian princes held no pride for their fatherland in their hearts. "An Armenian government and a country which is independent and united, which these princes should have devoted their entire time and energy to, had no meaning for them. For them, the fatherland meant only the principality which they ruled over and it was that land which the princes were ready to sacrifice their lives for. Their notions of fatherland were strictly local, and the bond which tied them to one another was not political. This bond was sustained only through common customs and traditions, their language and religion, and we know that these factors have never been sufficient enough on their own to create an actual nation." 12

By the time in question, however, in place of all these principalities stood a new united power which slowly was transforming into the shape of a country and a government and constituted almost the whole of Armenia, or at least all of those parts which were holy and sacred for the Armenians and could arouse more readily the feelings of the people.