Kingdom of Artsakh
The Kingdom of Artsakh (Armenian: Արցախի թագավորություն) was a medieval dependent Armenian kingdom on the territory of Syunik and Artsakh provinces, Gardman canton of Utik province, Mazaz and Varazhnunik canton of Ayrarat province.[1] Contemporary sources referred to it as the Khachen. However, because the domain of Khachen during the reign of Prince Hasan Jalal included the entire territory of the modern Nagorno Karabakh Republic plus many contiguous lands to its west, south and north, his principality was often called the Kingdom of Artsakh.[2] The royal [3] house of Khachen was a cadet branch of the ancient Syunid dynasty and was named Khachen, after its main stronghold. Hasan-Jalal traced his descent to the Armenian Aranshahik dynasty, a family that predated the establishment of the Parthian Arsacids in the region.[4] The kingdom emerged when Hovhannes-Senekerim acquired the royal title in 1000.
Kingdom of Artsakh | |||||||||
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| 1000–1261 | |||||||||
 Royal Standard of the Principality of Khachen (Kingdom of Syunik) during the reign of Grand Prince Hasan Jalal Vahtangian (1214-1261) | |||||||||
 Syunik as vassal of the Armenian kingdom around 1000 | |||||||||
| Capital | Khachen, Haterk, Vaykunik | ||||||||
| Common languages | Armenian | ||||||||
| Religion | Armenian Apostolic | ||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | ||||||||
| King | |||||||||
| History | |||||||||
• Established | 1000 | ||||||||
• Subdivision of the kingdom | 1182 | ||||||||
• Acquisition of Dizak and Gardman | 1261 | ||||||||
• Assassination of Hasan Jalal, last king of Syunik | 1261 | ||||||||
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Artsakh maintained its sovereign rulers, though in the early 13th century they accepted Georgian, then Mongol suzerainty.[5] They lost the royal title after the assassination of Hasan-Jalal (1214–1261) by the Ilkhanid ruler Arghun, but continued to rule Syunik as a principality, which from the 16th century comprised five Armenian melikdoms of Artsakh and Kashatagh melikdom of Syunik which lasted until the early 19th century.[1] The descendants of the kings of Syunik played a prominent role in the history of Syunik as far as the 20th century.
References
- Hewsen, Robert H (2001). Armenia: A Historical Atlas. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp. 118–121. ISBN 0-226-33228-4.
- Hewsen, Robert H. “The Kingdom of Artsakh,” in T. Samuelian & M. Stone, eds. Medieval Armenian Culture. Chico, CA, 1983
- Hewsen, Robert H. “The Kingdom of Artsakh,” p. 47
- Ulubabyan, Bagrat (1975). Խաչենի իշխանությունը, X-XVI դարերում [The Principality of Khachen, From the Tenth to Sixteenth centuries] (in Armenian). Yerevan: Armenian Academy of Sciences. pp. 56–59.
- Hewsen, Robert H. "The Meliks of Eastern Armenia: A Preliminary Study." Revue des Études Arméniennes. NS: IX, 1972, pp. 255-329.
Further reading
- Robert H. Hewsen. "The Kingdom of Arc'ax" in Medieval Armenian Culture (University of Pennsylvania Armenian Texts and Studies). Thomas J. Samuelian and Michael E. Stone (eds.) Chico, California: Scholars Press, 1984. ISBN 0-89130-642-0.
Historical states and regions of Armenia | ||
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| Independent Armenian states |
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| Minor or dependent Armenian states |
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| Provinces or Ashkhars of Armenia Major | ||
| Other Armenian regions |
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| Other provinces under Tigranes the Great | ||