Battle of Avarayr

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Battle of Avarayr
Part of Vardanank Wars

Depiction of Vartan and his men
Date May 26, 451[1]
Location Avarayr, Armenia
Result Sassanid victory[2]
Belligerents
Sassanid Empire Armenian rebels
Commanders
Yazdegerd II Vartan Mamikonian
Strength
200,000[3] 66,000
Casualties and losses
Heavy Heavy

Battle of Avarayr (Armenian: Ավարայրի ճակատամարտ, May 26, 451, also known as Battle of Vartanantz, Վարդանանց Պատերազմ) is remembered by Armenians as one of the greatest battles in their history. It was fought on the Avarayr Field in Vaspurakan, between the Armenian rebels under Saint Vartan and their Sassanid overlords. Although the Persians were victorious militarily, the Armenians were guaranteed religious freedom.

Contents

[edit] Background

Before the Sassanid conquest of Armenia, Armenia had been the first nation to accept Christianity as their religion (301 AD). The Armenians accepted the Persian mandate in all respects, provided that they were allowed to practice Christianity. But some of the Sassanid kings, including Yazdegerd II, refused this idea, because the Armenian Christian Church had too close of relation with the Western Christian Church rather than the Eastern Christian Orthodox Church led by the more Aramaic speaking priests rather than the Latin speakers of the Western Church. As a result, Yazdegerd II, in an attempt to bind Armenia closer to Persia, began encouraging the Armenian Church to be less obedient to the Western Church and favour Eastern Orthodox Church. Yazdegerd II summoned leading Armenian nobles to Ctesiphon and forced them to close ties with the Western Church. At the time the Sassanid Empires arch rival was the Byzantine Empire of the west and the Armenians had accepted the Byzantine rule before the Sassanid uprising because the Byzantine Empire was a Christian Empire. The Sassanid Empire did not want anyone under there territory to be in close ties to the Byzantine for it could create spies and other issues. When the Armenian Nobles were summoned to Ctesiphion they were pressured by the Eastern Church and the Sassanid Vazzirs to close all ties with the Western Church. The Armenian Nobles felt pressured and did not want to cooperate with a non-Christian Empire but felt obligated to do so.

When the news about the nobles were being obligated to cooperate with the Sassanid Empire over their friends the Byzantine reached Armenia, a mass revolt broke out. On their return home, the nobles, led by Vartan Mamikonian, joined the rebels. Upon hearing the news of rebellion, Yazdegerd gathered a massive army and began attacking Armenian rebels. In response, the Armenians asked the Western Christian Byzantine Empire for support, as Vartan had good relations with Theodosius II, who had given him the rank of general. He sent a delegation to Constantinople for help, but help never arrived in time. The close relation between Vartan Mamikonian and Theodosius II was the very reason why the Armenian Church wouldn't follow the Eastern Church which is today.

[edit] Battle

A medieval Armenian miniature representing the battle.
A medieval Armenian miniature representing the battle.

The 66,000-strong Armenian army took the Holy Communion before the battle. The army was mostly composed of peasants, accompanied by some soldiers, who were motivated into protecting their religion. The Persian army, said to be four times larger, featured war elephants and the famous Persian Savaran. During the battle Vartan, along with eight of his generals, perished, and many Armenian generals and nobility including Vasag Suni defected to the Persians.

[edit] Outcome

Following the victory, Yazdegerd jailed some Armenian priests and nobles and appointed a new governor for Armenia.

The Armenian Church was also unable to send a delegation to the Council of Chalcedon, as it was heavily involved in the war.[citation needed] The Armenian Church rejected the decision of the Council of Chalcedon and adheres to miaphysitism.

In the decades following the battle, the continued Armenian resistance led by Vartan's successor, Vahan Mamikonian, eventually forced the Sassanid Persians to accept the Nvarsak Treaty (484), which guaranteed religious freedom to the Christian Armenians. [4] As a result, Shah Peroz I ceased the persecution of Armenians, finally granted general amnesty, and allowed the construction of new churches. Consequently, the battle has been viewed by the Armenians as a moral victory. May 26 is considered to be a holy day by Armenians, and is one of the most important national and religious days in Armenia.

[edit] References

  • Elishe: History of Vardan and the Armenian War, transl. R.W. Thomson, Cambridge, Mass. 1982
  • Visions Of Ararat: Writings On Armenia By Christopher J. Walker; Page 3
  • Dr. Abd al-Husayn Zarrin’kub "Ruzgaran:tarikh-i Iran az aghz ta saqut saltnat Pahlvi" Sukhan, 1999. ISBN 964-6961-11-8
  • Modern Armenia: People, Nation, State By Gerard J. Libaridian
  • Vahan Kurkjian - Period of the Marzbans — Battle of Avarair
  • Gevork Nazaryan - The struggle for Religious Freedom
  1. ^ The Kurds: A Concise Handbook By Mehrdad R. Izady - Page 76
  2. ^ Armenia: The Case for a Forgotten Genocide - Page 89
  3. ^ The Encyclopaedia Iranica - Avarayr
  4. ^ www.ANSC.org - Armenian Network of Student Clubs

[edit] External links