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In 286 Tiridates III liberated Armenia. Tiridates was converted to Christianity by Saint Gregory and in 301 (recent scholarship says 314) Armenia became the world’s first Christian state. Christianity provided Armenians with a national identity and consciousness that has persisted through the centuries of conquest and division that have followed. It was the bulwark of the Armenian language and culture, a rallying point for the scattered elements of the population, and the center of resistance against assimilation. In 387 Armenia was divided between Byzantium and Persia. In 450 the Persian king commanded all Christians to convert and enforced his will with the invasion of a large Persian army that was victorious. The Armenians continued to resist and in 484, a new Persian ruler granted full toleration of Christianity. | In 286 Tiridates III liberated Armenia. Tiridates was converted to Christianity by Saint Gregory and in 301 (recent scholarship says 314) Armenia became the world’s first Christian state. Christianity provided Armenians with a national identity and consciousness that has persisted through the centuries of conquest and division that have followed. It was the bulwark of the Armenian language and culture, a rallying point for the scattered elements of the population, and the center of resistance against assimilation. In 387 Armenia was divided between Byzantium and Persia. In 450 the Persian king commanded all Christians to convert and enforced his will with the invasion of a large Persian army that was victorious. The Armenians continued to resist and in 484, a new Persian ruler granted full toleration of Christianity. | ||
Arabs gained control of Armenia in 653 but permitted the rule of Armenian princes, which in time became virtual kings. The Bagrantuni dynasty reestablished an Armenian kingdom in 806 and ruled during a period of prosperity during the 9th and 10th centuries. The Seljuk Turks overran the country in the 11th century and the Mongols in the 13th century. During these centuries a diaspora of Armenians sought safety elsewhere. | Arabs gained control of Armenia in 653 but permitted the rule of Armenian princes, which in time became virtual kings. The Bagrantuni dynasty reestablished an Armenian kingdom in 806 and ruled during a period of prosperity during the 9th and 10th centuries. The Seljuk Turks overran the country in the 11th century and the Mongols in the 13th century. During these centuries a [diaspora of Armenians sought safety elsewhere. | ||
Ottoman Turks and Persians contested the area in the 16th century and in 1639 they divided Armenia between them. The Persian half eventually fell to the Russian empire in 1828. Muslim Turks saw the large Christian population in the eastern half of Turkey as a subversive threat. They massacred 300,000 Armenians in 1894-1896. Armenia was a battleground between Turkish and Russian armies during World War I. Though successful against the Turks, Russian troops withdrew after the Russian Revolution in 1917. Turkish massacres of Armenians escalated; between 1915-1922 nearly 1.5 million Armenians perished in what is considered the first genocide of the twentieth century. A modern diaspora of Armenians sought refuge in Russia, the United States, and elsewhere. | Ottoman Turks and Persians contested the area in the 16th century and in 1639 they divided Armenia between them. The Persian half eventually fell to the Russian empire in 1828. Muslim Turks saw the large Christian population in the eastern half of Turkey as a subversive threat. They massacred 300,000 Armenians in 1894-1896. Armenia was a battleground between Turkish and Russian armies during World War I. Though successful against the Turks, Russian troops withdrew after the Russian Revolution in 1917. Turkish massacres of Armenians escalated; between 1915-1922 nearly 1.5 million Armenians perished in what is considered the first genocide of the twentieth century. A modern diaspora of Armenians sought refuge in Russia, the United States, and elsewhere. (for more information on the diaspora, see the article [https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/history-armenian-diaspora/ History of the Armenian Diaspora] on the FamilySearch Blog). | ||
The defeat of the Ottoman Turks in World War I and the dissolution of the Russian Empire gave the Armenians a chance to declare independence in May 1918; but the nation could not defend its borders against the Red Army that invaded in December 1920 and reestablished Russian ascendancy. During the war between Turkey and Greece (1920-1922), Armenians sided with the Greeks and the victorious Turks wrested the districts of Kars and Ardahan from the western portion of Armenia. Russia incorporated the remainder of Armenia into the Russian Empire and thence intosome gramar the Transcaucasian Soviet Republic in 1922. It became a separate republic in 1936 and remained part of the Soviet Union until the union disintegrated in late 1991 and Armenia regained its independence. | The defeat of the Ottoman Turks in World War I and the dissolution of the Russian Empire gave the Armenians a chance to declare independence in May 1918; but the nation could not defend its borders against the Red Army that invaded in December 1920 and reestablished Russian ascendancy. During the war between Turkey and Greece (1920-1922), Armenians sided with the Greeks and the victorious Turks wrested the districts of Kars and Ardahan from the western portion of Armenia. Russia incorporated the remainder of Armenia into the Russian Empire and thence intosome gramar the Transcaucasian Soviet Republic in 1922. It became a separate republic in 1936 and remained part of the Soviet Union until the union disintegrated in late 1991 and Armenia regained its independence. | ||