Research paper on Armenia - Essay Example

Research paper on Armenia The official of Armenia is the Republic of Armenia. It is a country situated in the Eurasia which is basically between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. Its immediate neighboring countries are Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Iran. Armenia is a former republic which was there when the Soviet Union was existent. Indeed this nation has one of the most historic of civilizations on display and the rich cultural heritage only adds to its value over decades. Armenia is regarded as one of the initial nations which adopted Christianity as its official religion. Armenia is without a doubt a very active part within Europe though its location might not suggest the very same. The capital of Armenia is Yerevan and its official language is Armenian. The governmental type is that of unitary republic and its population by 2005 estimates stands at around 3,215,800. In this paper, we will focus on the historical contexts of Armenia and present a research about the very same. With that, we mean that we will delve into the historical times of the country and what cultural attachments there are for us to see and understand from in the context of Armenia as a historical state. Whilst on the topic of research for this paper, we find that Armenia as a nation has never found things going easily for herself. There have been invasions, troubles and battles all around which have marred the historical significance of the country nonetheless. Armenia since prehistoric times has been proposed as the Garden of Eden as it is surrounded by the Biblical mountains of the Ararat. The Armenian highlands are credited as being as first ones in the world to have any traces of human civilization. The capital of Armenia, Yerevan was founded in the year 782 BC and is a rich splendor when the talk rises up concerning the heritage of human civilizations. Orontid Dynasty is known as the first kingdom which was formed within Armenia and this had its fair share under the different dynasties that actually existed within the time until 428 AD. This kingdom became one of the most powerful ones between 95 and 66 BC. There were periods of independence which were enjoyed by Armenia during this time as well as autonomy was there for the rulers to enjoy during the dynasty. The dynasty thus can easily suggest to us the sort of aura Armenia had for its countrymen and women yet it failed to live up to the historians’ expectations in the matter that there were troubles looming all around. This suggests to us that Armenia as a nation had to face a lot of brunt at the hands of the different ruling parties which did their best to bring about a change in their own lives rather than the citizens of the state by providing them good governance and a sense of freedom within their homeland. The invasions that have happened on Armenia were mainly due to the fact that its strategic location is as such – being on the threshold of Europe and Asia. The different invasions were courtesy the Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Mongols, Russians, Ottoman Turks, Persians, Arabs and Assyrians. Its tilt towards the religion of Christianity can be judged from the perspective that it was in the year 301 that Armenia became one of the first countries to adopt Christianity as its official religion. The pagan communities were widespread before this and the conversion was helped by a general influx of the Christian communities over a period of time. This was credited on the shoulders of the Christian missionaries who did their best to educate the masses about the religion and its teachings as such. Tiridates III was the ruler who can be remarked as the initial one who brought people close towards the teachings of Christianity. Armenian kingdom was overthrown in the year 428 and this embarked on a different level for Armenia since the incorporation of the country was in the form of a marzpanate situated within the Sassanid Empire which was in essence ruled over by a marzpan. Then there was an American rebellion in the year 451 which resulted in an autonomous state position on the part of the country and this lasted till the year 630 when Sassanid Empire was overthrown by Arab Caliphate. After all this drama, Armenia became an autonomous state within the Arabic Empire as it was reunited with the Armenian lands which were formerly commanded over by the Byzantine Empire in all fairness. The Principality of Armenia was active till the year 884 and after that Armenia regained independence from the Arabic Empire which by that time had become very feeble to say the least and had lost all hold over the Armenian lands. Thus the mix of Byzantine and Arabic Empires left the country in a muddle of unconvincing calm which could have been provided to it had there been a stable system of governance in place but since it was missing, there were bounties to be had by the different usurpers of power. Add to that, a lot of struggle was made courtesy the people who lived in Armenia and considered it as their “everything”. After the Armenian kingdom regained itself, the Bagratuni Dynasty started to rule over it and this continued till the year 1045. It was in the same year that Byzantine Empire took over the Bagratid Armenia and thus all the Armenian states started to come under the complete control of the Byzantine Empire with the passage of a little time. This did not last long, since in the year 1071 Seljuk Turks punched out the Byzantines and took over the reigns of Armenia in the famous Battle of Manzikert. This gave the green signal for the foundation of the Seljuk Empire. But it was not long when the Seljuk Empire started to fall down on its own feet and in the year 1100, there was an establishment of semi independent Armenian principality by the Armenian princes in the northern and eastern parts of the country which was later called the Zakarid Armenia. Within the Zakarid Armenia, the noble family of Orbelians divided control with the Zakarids in different areas of Armenia as well as Kurdish dynasties which had control in Shaddadids and Ayyubids. In the year 1230 Mongol Ilkhanate took over the Zakaryan Principality and thus marked its control over the Armenian lands. This was seen by the weakening of the whole country as a number of invasions, battles and destruction left it nothing short of a sorry saga. Thus we can find a sudden change over a period of every five decades where some new Empire came into its own and started to play havoc with the lives of the original owners of the Armenian lands. These invasions and change of Empires left a lot to be desired of and much worse could have been done had there been no hue and cry on the part of the individuals who were committed and loyal towards the Armenian betterment. However history will recall from its research that these people were very few and if at all there were any, no noticeable contribution was made as regards to their commitment and loyalty levels. It was in the 1500s that the Safavid Persia and Ottoman Empire played their due role at dividing their control over the Armenian nation. Following this, the Young Turks conquered the government of Sultan Hamid and thus this revolution changed the second class status which was bestowed on to them. The World War I followed soon after and then there was the Ottoman Empire’s attack on the Russian regime which left the new government to look towards the Armenians with a sense of distrust and skepticism. In the year 1915, the Armenians were taken over by the Ottoman authorities and a large cross section of the population which lived in Anatolia started to fizzle out as a result of the Armenian Genocide. The events that happened between the years 1915 and 1917 are thought of as being state sponsored on the part of the Armenian population. This comprised of mass killings and slaying left, right and center. The Turkish authorities are of the view that the genocide took place due to the Civil War which was happening within Armenia which might not be true when history is revisited. They also remark that famine and disease coupled with the Civil War to make matters worse for the Armenian population. Russian Army was able to cut through the Ottoman Armenia during the times of the World War I and with this we come to know about the Russian Revolution of 1917. When the World War I ended, there was a decision that was made with regards to the Ottoman Empire. It was divided so that there could be a sense of peace and harmony amongst the people. The Treaty of Sevres thus made sure that the existence of Armenia was maintained and the new borders were chalked up by the American President Woodrow Wilson. With this, the notion was raised up which saw Ottoman Armenia being referred to as the “Wilsonian Armenia”. This suggests that American President did his utmost to bring in an American system of rule within Armenia which was not the right thing to do since Armenia had its own unique historical significance and a rich cultural heritage. Add to that, the people were just not adopted to the American policies which suggests that the “Wilsonian Armenia” is something to gain deep insight from as far as the thinking mindset of the American rulers was concerned. They wanted to bring it under their own rule, if not practically than at least in the thinking ideologies of the people so that the rule could be drafted in within the related ranks of the nation. After the same, there were efforts to make this country a mandate which was basically to be under the protection of the US government but the same was turned down with the passage of a considerable period of time. The Treaty was literally rejected by the Turkish National Movement which was headed by Mustafa Kamal Attaturk. This Treaty died its natural death with the decision making him the rightful ruler of Turkey. BIBLIOGRAPHY Armenia Wikipedia Found Online at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armenia The History of Armenia Little Armenia Found Online at: http://www.littlearmenia.com/html/little_armenia/armenian_history.asp 2006 Word Count: 1,717 Read More