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Revision as of 08:34, 28 May 2004
Armenia first emerged into history around 800 BC as part of the Kingdom of Urartu or Van, which flourished in the Caucasus and eastern Asia Minor until 600 BC. After the destruction of the Seleucid Empire, the first Armenian state was founded in 190 BC. At its zenith, from 95 to 65 BC, Armenia extended its rule over parts of Caucasus and the area that is now eastern Turkey, Syria and Lebanon. For a time, Armenia was one of the strongest states in the Roman East. It became part of the Roman Empire in 64 BC and the Armenian People adopted a Western political, philosophical, and religious orientation.
In 301 AD, Armenia became the first nation to adopt Christianity as a state religion, establishing a church that still exists independently of both the Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox churches, having become so in AD 451 as a result of its excommunication by the Council of Chalcedon. The Armenian Apostolic Church is a part of the Oriental Orthodox communion, which must not be confused with the Eastern Orthodox communion. During its later political eclipses, Armenia depended on the church to preserve and protect its unique identity. From around 1100 to 1350, the focus of Armenian nationalism moved south, as the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, which had close ties to European Crusader States, flourished in southeastern Asia Minor until conquered by Muslim states.
Between the 4th and 19th centuries, Armenia was conquered and ruled by, among others, Persians, Byzantines, Arabs, Mongols, and Turks. In the 1820s parts of historic Armenia under Persian control centering on Yerevan and Lake Sevan were incorporated into Russia. During the turmoil of the Russian Revolution and the take over of the Bolsheviks Stepan Shaumyan was placed in charge of Armenia, but an Islamic rebellion overthrew Shaumyan and declared a Transcaucasian Federation independent from Russia. Shaumyan was executed by British troops in September 1918 and the independence of Armenia lasted until late 1920 when the communists came to power following an invasion of Armenia by the Red Army, and in 1922, Armenia became part of the Transcaucasian Federative Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1936, it became the Armenian SSR. Armenia declared its independence from the Soviet Union on September 21, 1991.
See also: Armenian Holocaust
References
- All about Armenia by www.haias.net
- Much of the material in this article comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000 and the 2003 U.S. Department of State website.