Timeline of Armenian history

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is a timeline of Armenian history, comprising important legal and territorial changes and political events in Armenia and its predecessor states. To read about the background to these events, see History of Armenia. See also the list of Armenian kings.

Millennia: 3rd BC · 2nd BC–1st BC · 1st–2nd · 3rd
Centuries: 24th BC · 23rd BC · 22nd BC · 21st BC

24th century BC[]

Year Date Event
2400 BC The Book of Genesis identifies the land of Ararat as the resting place of Noah's Ark after the "great deluge" described there. The Indo-Europeans were people who presumably spread from the Caucasus, settling on lands along the way. Armenian is one of the Indo-European language branches.

23rd century BC[]

Year Date Event
2300 BC The legendary figure Hayk creates the Armenian nation in the Ararat region. (Akkadians mention Armani in 2300 BC)

22nd century BC[]

21st century BC[]

Centuries: 20th BC · 19th BC · 18th BC · 17th BC · 16th BC · 15th BC · 14th BC · 13th BC · 12th BC · 11th BC · 10th BC · 9th BC · 8th BC · 7th BC · 6th BC · 5th BC · 4th BC · 3rd BC · 2nd BC · 1st BC

20th century BC[]

Year Date Event
2000 BC Trialeti culture

19th century BC[]

18th century BC[]

17th century BC[]

Year Date Event
1700 BC Aram, Armenian patriarch mentioned in the History of Armenia (Moses of Chorene) (dated 5th century AD)

16th century BC[]

15th century BC[]

Year Date Event
1450 BC Artatama I (Thutmose III of Egypt, mentions the people of Ermenen in 1446 BC)

14th century BC[]

Year Date Event
1400 Artashumara
1384 Artatama II

13th century BC[]

12th century BC[]

Year Date Event
1200 BC Nairi, a confederation of tribes in the Armenian Highlands, roughly corresponding to the modern Van and Hakkâri provinces of modern Turkey.

11th century BC[]

10th century BC[]

9th century BC[]

Year Date Event
860 BC Foundation of the Kingdom of Urartu with Aramé.
834 BC Reign of Sarduri I who constructs Tushpa (Van). (to 828 BC)
810 BC Reign of Menuas who conquers the Araratian fields. (to 785 BC)

8th century BC[]

Year Date Event
785 BC Reign of Argishtis I.
782 BC Construction of the fortress of Erebuni (modern Yerevan).

7th century BC[]

6th century BC[]

Year Date Event
585 BC Conquest of Urartu by the Medes.
570 BC Reign of Orontes I Sakavakyats.
512 BC Armenia is annexed to Persia by Darius I. Urartu is officially called Armenia for the first time in the Behistun inscription.

5th century BC[]

Year Date Event
401 BC Orontes I (Yervand I).

4th century BC[]

Year Date Event
331 BC Alexander the Great attacks Persia and defeats Darius III, but never conquers Armenia. As a result, Armenia regains its independence from Persia.

3rd century BC[]

2nd century BC[]

Year Date Event
190 BC Artaxias I reclaims the sovereignty of Armenia from the Seleucids by establishing the Artaxiad Dynasty with Artaxata as the capital.

1st century BC[]

Year Date Event
95 BC Accession of power by Tigranes the Great.
93 BC Invasion of Cappadocia
88 BC Conquest of Atropatene, Gordyene, and Osrhoene
83 BC Conquest of Syria, Phoenicia, and Cilicia
69 BC Tigranes' army is defeated at the Battle of Tigranocerta against Lucullus' Roman army.
68 BC Lucullus is beaten off from Artaxata.
67 BC Lucullus is recalled to Rome.
66 BC Pompey invades Armenia, but returns to Roman land after being offered a generous sum of money by Tigranes.
55 BC Death of Tigranes the Great. Artavasdes II continues to rule Armenia.
Reign of Artavasdes. (to 34 BC)

Centuries: 1st · 2nd · 3rd · 4th · 5th · 6th · 7th · 8th · 9th · 10th · 11th · 12th · 13th · 14th · 15th · 16th · 17th · 18th · 19th · 20th

1st century[]

Year Date Event
1 End of the Artaxiad Dynasty in Armenia. Arsacid dynasty of Parthia (Iran) incorporates Armenia.
53 Tiridates I reaffirms Armenian independence by founding the Arsacid dynasty of Armenia
58 Roman general Corbulo invades Armenia with the assistance of the Iberians and Commagenians.
66 Tiridates is crowned in Rome by Nero, after he and Corbulo came to an agreement.
72 War against the Alans

2nd century[]

3rd century[]

Year Date Event
228 Tiridates II repels Sassanid invasion.
287 Beginning of the reign of Tiridates III.

4th century[]

Year Date Event
301 Armenia becomes the first official Christian state in the world, King Tiridates III proclaims Christianity as the official state religion of Armenia. Zoroastrianism starts to decline gradually.
330 End of Tiridates III's reign.
387 Division of Armenia into Western and Eastern parts per the between the Sassanid Persians and Byzantines.
392 Armenia regains its might by the coronation of King Vramshapuh in 392.

5th century[]

Year Date Event
405 Mesrop Mashtots invents the Armenian alphabet.
428 End of the Arsacid dynasty of Armenia. Marzpanate Armenia era as part of the Sassanid Empire begins.
451 The Battle of Avarayr, led by Vartan Mamikonian, secures the Christian religion in Armenia.

6th century[]

7th century[]

Year Date Event
639 The first Arab invasion under the leadership of Abd ar-Rahman ibn Rabiah devastates the region of Taron.
642 Arabs storm the city of Dvin killing 12,000 its inhabitants and taking 35,000 into slavery.
645 Theodorus Rshtuni and other Armenian nakharars accepted Muslim rule over Armenia.
650 Armenia becomes the main battleground of the Khazar–Arab Wars & Byzantine–Arab Wars which leaves the lands depopulated. (to 750)

8th century[]

Year Date Event
790 The Principality of Hamamshen is established in the modern day area of eastern Rize Province, Turkey.

9th century[]

Year Date Event
861 is recognized as prince of princes by the Baghdad court, followed by a war against local Muslim emirs. (to 862)
885 Ashot wins and is thus recognized King of the Armenians by Baghdad in 885.
886 Formal recognition of Armenian sovereignty by Constantinople.
891 King Ashot I dies and is succeeded by his son Smbat I, in 892.

10th century[]

Year Date Event
961 King Ashot III (953–977) transfers the capital from Kars to Ani, which came to be considered the "City of a 1001 Churches" which rivaled other metropolises like Baghdad and Constantinople.

11th century[]

Year Date Event
1016 Seljuk Turks first appear in the region.
1045 Armenia falls to Byzantine troops, and an exodus from the Armenian lands begins.
1064 Byzantine Ani, once the capital of Bagratid Armenia, is conquered and destroyed by the Seljuk Turks.
1071 After the Battle of Manzikert, Seljuk dominance is established over Anatolia and a large number of Turkish tribes migrate to the region.
1072 The Seljuks sell Ani to the Shaddadid, a Kurdish tribe ruling a territory coinciding with modern-day Armenia.
1078 Establishment of the Armenian Principality of Cilicia, led by the Rubenid Dynasty.
1095 The First Crusade is launched by Pope Urban I.

12th century[]

Year Date Event
1187 Debut of Leon II's reign as prince.
1194 After the decline of the Seljuk dominance in the region, Eastern Anatolia is ruled by a slew of Turkish emirates and tribes, such as the Ahlatshahs, Mengujekids, Saltukids and the Artuqids. (to 1241)
1198 Leon II "the Magnificent" managed to secure his crown, becoming the first King of Armenian Cilicia.

13th century[]

Year Date Event
1219 Death of Leon II.
1241 Mongol Invasion of Anatolia, much of the sedentary population of Armenia is slaughtered. (to 1244)
1256 Turco-Mongol rule continues in Eastern Anatolia under the Ilkhanate rulers and their Turkish and Kurdish vassals. (to 1335)

14th century[]

Year Date Event
1335 The decline of Mongol power leads Armenia to be dominated once again by Anatolian Turkoman tribes such as the Chobanids. (to 1400)
1375 Fall of the Armenian kingdom of Cilicia to the Mameluks of Egypt and their Ramadanid vassals.
1400 Tamerlane's devastating invasion of Georgia, Armenia and Central Anatolia leads to the slaughter of large portions of the population of Armenia and the enslavement of over 60,000 people from Anatolia and the Caucasus.

15th century[]

Year Date Event
1405 After Tamerlane's death, Anatolia becomes a battleground between the rival tribal confederations of the Ak Koyunlu and the Kara Koyunlu.
1461 Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople established by the then Ottoman Emperor, Mehmed II.
1478 Armenian migration to Bruges, Belgium.

16th century[]

Year Date Event
1502 The Safavid Dynasty is established in Persia, that conquers Armenia.
1512 Printing of first Armenian books.
1514 The Ottoman-Persian Wars rage in the Armenian Highlands for the first time, the Ottomans temporarily gain Western Armenia.
1519 Decree of King Sigismund I that Armenians in Poland by governed under code of laws by Mkhitar Gosh.
The first Jelali revolts; clashes between Sunnite Turks and Kurds and Shi'ite Qizilbash cause friction in Eastern Anatolia. (to 1528)
1520 Large portions of Armenia are conquered by Selim I.
1532 Ottoman-Safavid War (1532-1555) commences.
1555 Peace of Amasya signed between the Ottomans and Safavids. Western Armenia falls in Ottoman hands, Eastern Armenia stays under Persian rule.
1567 Establishment of Armenian printing press in Constantinople.
1598 Continuation of the devastating Jelali revolts in Anatolia. (to 1611)

17th century[]

Year Date Event
1603 Shah Abbas of Persia invades Ottoman Armenia (to 1618) and reestablishes full control over Eastern Armenia and large parts of Western Armenia as part of his empire.
1605 When forced to abandon the siege of Kars, Shah Abbas orders the complete destruction of many Armenian towns and villages and over 300,000 Armenians to Persia, of which only half survive.
1623 The final Ottoman-Safavid War rages in both parts of historic Armenia.
1639 Treaty of Zuhab signed between the Ottomans and Safavids. Western Armenia falls decisively under Ottoman rule. Safavids remain in possession of Eastern Armenia.
1648 Major earthquake in Van.

18th century[]

Year Date Event
1712 Sayat Nova, renowned Armenian poet troubadour.
1722 David Bek leads the national liberation movement in 1722, but passes away in 1728.
1747 The Persians establish the Karabakh Khanate.
1759 Arrival of Hovsep Emin in Armenia
1778 Establishment of Nor Nakhichevan

19th century[]

Year Date Event
1809 15 October Khachatur Abovian, renowned novelist, poet, and playwright, is born.
1810 Zeitountsi revolts.
1811 Mkhitarist order of Vienna founded.
1813 Treaty of Gulistan. All of Eastern Armenia remains under Persian rule, except for the Armenians in Karabakh, which had already de facto become part of the Russian Empire.
1824 Founding of Nersessian Academy in Tiflis
1826 Nickolas Balian, architect in Constantinople (to 1858)
1827 Occupation of Yerevan by Russian forces
1828 Treaty of Turkmanchay. Eastern Armenia is forcefully ceded by Persia to Russia per the Russo-Persian War (1826-1828), strengthening Russian control of Transcaucasus.
1836 The Russian government enacts the Polozhenie, a statute greatly restricting the power of the Armenian Church.[1]
1894–1896 Hamidian Massacres; an estimated 80,000–300,000 are killed.

20th century[]

Year Date Event
1909 Adana Massacre: An estimated 15,000–30,000 are killed.
1915 Armenian genocide: An estimated 1,500,000 are killed. (to 1923)
1918 3 March The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk gives Kars, Ardahan and Batum regions to the Ottoman Empire.
22 May Battle of Sardarapat
28 May The Armenian Congress of Eastern Armenians declares the first Republic of Armenia.
4 June Treaty of Batum
30 October Armistice of Mudros, the Ottoman Empire agreeing to leave the Transcaucasus. The Democratic Republic of Armenia assumes control of Western Armenia, now that the Ottomans are forced to leave.
1920 2 December Soviet-aligned Armenian SSR established (distinct from and opponent of the first Republic of Armenia).
6 December Fall of the first Republic of Armenia, fully occupied by the Turkish National Movement and the Red Army (Soviet Union).[2]

Soviet rule[]

Year Date Event
1923 30 December Establishment of the Soviet Union; Armenian SSR joins the Soviet Union.
7 July Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast is created granting Armenian autonomy for Nagorno-Karabakh within Azerbaijan SSR.
1965 24 April 1965 Yerevan demonstrations
1988 20 February First Nagorno-Karabakh War commences.
7 December Spitak earthquake.

Independence; last decade of the 20th century[]

Year Date Event
1991 21 September Armenian independence referendum
17 October First-ever Armenian presidential election, Levon Ter-Petrosyan elected President with overwhelming popular support.
1992 9 May Capture of Shusha
1994 12 May First Nagorno-Karabakh War formally ends
1995 5 July Armenian constitutional referendum
1999 27 October Armenian parliament shooting

21st century[]

Year Date Event
2001 25 January Armenia's accession to the Council of Europe
2004 12 April Robert Kocharyan's government dispersed massive, peaceful protest using excessive force[3]
2008 19 February Armenian presidential election, 2008
2012 6 May Armenian parliamentary election, 2012
2013 18 February Armenian presidential election, 2013
2015 2 January Armenia's accession to the Eurasian Union
12 January 2015 Gyumri massacre
2016 1-5 April 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh clashes
2017 2 April Armenian parliamentary election, 2017
24 November The Armenia-EU Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement is ratified in Brussels
2018 2 March Armenian presidential election, 2018
8 May 2018 Armenian Velvet Revolution
9 December Armenian parliamentary election, 2018
2020 27 September 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War commences
10 November 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War formally ends
2021 20 June Armenian parliamentary election, 2021

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Suny, Ronald Grigor; "Eastern Armenians under Tsarist Rule" in Armenian People, p. 115
  2. ^ "armenicum". www.conflicts.rem33.com. Archived from the original on 2017-09-14. Retrieved 2018-05-26. Two days later, on December 4, Dro left Erevan for the lake Sevan area where he welcomed the Revkom and, in turn, gave up his power to the new Bolshevik administration. Two more days later, the first units of the red Army entered the Armenian capital. That was the end of the First republic, and independent Armenian statehood was interrupted for more than 70 years until August 1991. (Hovannisian, pp. 386-390)
  3. ^ "Armenia Events of 2004". Human Rights Watch. Retrieved 10 April 2013.

Further reading[]

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