Khrimyan Hayrik, the ideologist of the Western Armenian liberation movement


Khrimyan Hayrik was the first to compile the curriculum and textbooks for the subject of Patriotic Studies. He founded a school in Varagavank that corresponded to the modern perception of schooling, with textbooks, a blackboard, a chair-table, and stationery. In addition, he founded the first periodical published in Western Armenia, “Artsui Vaspurakan.” It is no coincidence that the first Western Armenian liberation organizations and parties were founded in Van. The core of his activity is also the commitment to write an epic that reproduces the historical memory of the nation, which Garegin Srvandztyants undertakes.

Armenian history in the perceptions of Maghakia Ormanyan's work "Azgapatum"


Archbishop Malakia Ormanyan composed works of national significance at the beginning of the 10th century, of which the works “Azgapatum” and “Hayots Egegystin” are of particular importance. The concept of azgapatum, according to him, is the inseparability of the Armenian Church from the Armenian identity, therefore, Armenian history, starting from the early Middle Ages, is directly connected with the history of the Armenian Church. Armenian history is composed with this logic, taking into account the chronological sequence of the reigns of the Catholicos. In both works, the author substantiates the Orthodox faith of the Armenian Church, does not avoid using the term “Orthodox” even in the official name of the Church, explaining that the term has no connection with the Greek, Russian, and other Eastern European Orthodox (“Orthodox”) churches. Due to the invaluable principle of composition and the source-scientific basis, his works have great significance for the study of the homeland.

Catholicos Zakaria Dzagetsi at the origins of the restoration of the kingdom


The uprising against the Arab Caliphate in 850-855 was successful and Armenia was able to regain its kingdom. The military and economic capabilities of the Armenian princely families of the Bagratunis, Artsrunis, Syunis and Aranshahs were comparable, therefore a force enjoying authority and legitimacy was needed to unite them. With its unified hierarchal structure, the Armenian Church was such, whose head, Catholicos Zakaria Dzagetsi, convened a council and urged unity around the Bagratuni prince Ashot. The council unanimously decided to proclaim Ashot the King of Armenia.

The Forerunner of the Armenian Liberation Movement: Hakob IV of Jughayetsi


In 1677, Hakob IV of Jughayetsi convened a meeting in the Mother Cathedral of Holy Etchmiadzin, where the Armenian elite gathered. They decided to form a delegation headed by the Catholicos, which was to travel to Europe. The delegation was to negotiate with the Pope of Rome, the leader of Poland, who had anti-Turkish sentiments. For the first time, the Catholicos sent a letter about liberation to the Russian leader Alexei Mikhailovich, the father of Peter the Great.

The Armenian Church in the Whirlwind of the May Heroic Battles


From January 28, 1918, the Turkish army launched a large-scale offensive and appeared in the Ararat Valley on May 21. The leadership of the newly formed Armenian state, influenced by the chain of concessions, suggested to Catholicos Gevorg Surenyants that he leave Holy Etchmiadzin, because in a few days it would be captured. The Catholicos did not agree and sent celibate clergy to the front, led by the prominent scholar Bishop Garegin Hovsepyans. The bells of all churches rang with the call to wake up, and a psychological breakthrough began that overwhelmed the military-political leadership. The victorious heroic battles of Sardarapat and Aparan took place, thanks to which the Armenians were not only saved from final destruction, but also the modern Armenian statehood in the form of a republic was created.

Medieval Armenian Historiography as a Civilizational Phenomenon


Armenian historiography is a civilizational phenomenon. The transmission of historical knowledge from generation to generation as a mechanism for the reproduction of historical memory varies among different peoples. Among Armenians, on the one hand, we have the principle of written transmission in the form of historiography and the oral principle, which was transmitted in the form of epics, reached its highest form by the 19th century and was written down starting from 1874.

The Armenian Church as a Pioneer of Armenian Modernization - Armenian Printing


Printing was first introduced to Armenia by the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. The printing press at that time was huge and it was impossible to transport it to Armenia. That is why the first Armenian book, Urbatagirk, was printed in Venice by Hakob Meghapart.

Stepanos Orbelian's Vision of Restoring Statehood


The Pope calls on King Hetum II of Cilicia to adopt the Catholic faith and unite the two churches. As a result, the Armenian King of Cilicia had to receive the approval of the Pope, and the Armenian Apostolic Church had to make painful concessions. This agenda is opposed by the Catholicos of Constantinople, Constantine II. King Hetum II accuses the Catholicos of worldly living. High-ranking clergy appear, who express their readiness to oppose the Catholicos. A council is convened in the capital, Sis, where they decide to remove the Catholicos from the throne and imprison him. 3 years later, the Mamluks of Egypt capture the Catholicosate of Rome and, with the support of the King, capture the new Catholicos, who has ascended to the throne, and take him to Egypt, where he dies.

“Eastern” Vardapets: Guardians of Armenian Identity in the High Middle Ages


The issue of unifying the Armenian Apostolic Church with the Byzantine Catholic Church was particularly acute in the region of Cilician Armenia. Nerses Shnorhali sent a letter to the Vardapets located in the territory of Armenia itself, because their opinion should be taken into account in making a decision. Nerses Shnorhali was in favor of dialogue between the two churches, but he was never in favor of the unification of the churches. Later, the Catholicos and the kings of Cilicia deliberately sent such letters to the Vardapets in order to show their justifications in the West as a reason for rejecting the unification of the churches.

Martyrdom for the Homeland as a Basis for Canonization


The Armenian Apostolic Church considered martyrdom for the homeland a sacred act as early as the 4th century. In other words, Christianity affirms that the homeland is a sacred living space. Vrtanes, the son of Gregory the Illuminator, was the first to establish a rule by which martyrdom for the homeland was equated with martyrdom for the faith.

Movses Khorenatsi: History of the Armenians


Movses Khorenatsi initially acts as an ideologist of the restoration of the kingdom. He does a high-level job by the standards of a modern scholar, writing his work with a critical approach. Khorenatsi's History of the Armenians is not simply a history of a nation, but a history centered on the kingdom. In other words, the goal of the book is the restoration of the Armenian kingdom.

The Architects of Our Identity: Mesrop Mashtots and Sahak Partev


During the Van Kingdom, we had a local writing system, which was ideographic in nature. In parallel, since the 4th century BC, the use of the Greek alphabet had taken root in Armenia. In other words, we had writing, but we never achieved the creation of a local alphabet. Mesrop Mashtots’ work is unique from a historical perspective: he created an alphabetic system.