“Azerbaijan and the Armenian issue in the Caucasus” by historian Rizvan Huseynov has been published

“Azerbaijan and the Armenian issue in the Caucasus” by historian Rizvan Huseynov has been published

6/24/2025   Armenia, Armenian falsification In English, Azerbaijan, In English, Karabakh Conflict,

In June 2025, the “East-West” Publishing House published the English-language book “Azerbaijan and the Armenian issue in the Caucasus” authored by historian Rizvan Huseynov.

The book will be put up for sale on Amazon.com soon. But you can already order the book by writing to the email rizvanhuseyn73@gmail.com

About author:

Huseynov Rizvan Najaf oglu – 

Historian, Director of the Center for the History of the Caucasus, Associate Professor at the branch of UNESCO

Honorable Member of the Central Office of the “Azerbaijan Patriotic War Veterans” Association.

Member of the Public Council under the State Committee on Religious Associations of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Huseynov has been actively involved in peacekeeping efforts, leading numerous peacebuilding projects that bring together experts and activists from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Türkiye, Russia, Europe, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. He has collaborated on projects supported by prominent international organizations.

He also serves as Chairman of the "All-Caucasus House" Peacebuilding Initiative, headquartered in Georgia and leads the international working group “In Search of the Sun” under UNESCO. This group includes scientists, researchers, and artists from 12 countries. This initiative is a voluntary civic movement of like-minded individuals from various nations and focuses on the study, interdisciplinary research, preservation, and promotion of the cultural, historical, and architectural heritage of the Caucasus.

Huseynov is author of several television projects and documentary-historical films, contributing to the dissemination of knowledge about the region’s rich history and heritage.

Overview

Rizvan Huseynov. Azerbaijan and the Armenian issue in the Caucasus. Baku, “East-West”, 2025, 448 p, ISBN 978-9952-597-15-8

This research is based on extensive analysis of ancient manuscripts and historical sources, focusing on Azerbaijan's historical territories in the North Caucasus. For over two centuries, efforts have been made by Armenians to consign to these territories to oblivion. Drawing upon more than 400 sources – spanning ancient, medieval, and late historical periods – the author examines the Azerbaijan's territories in the North Caucasus. These include citations from ancient Syrian, Persian, Greek, Roman, Georgian, Armenian, Arab and Muslim, Ottoman, Russian, European, American sources, archive papers, and correspondence.

The book critically evaluates the reliability of Armenian medieval sources, incorporating scholarly critiques from experts in Caucasian and Armenian history. It highlights significant concerns about the provenance and authenticity of these sources, many of which are marred by late interpolations and even deliberate falsifications by copyists and interpreters. Consequently, the author demonstrates that the majority of Armenian historical sources are not credible as scientific references for studying regional history.

However, certain part of Armenian and even foreign scholars, research centers, and educational institutions continue to rely on these compromised sources to construct narratives about the region’s history.

The author exposes the clandestine apparatus of centuries-old strategies employed by Armenian propaganda, as well as ideological and historical sciences for misappropriating culture, spiritual and historical heritage of other nations. The presented evidence and factual analysis confidently refute the Armenian propagandist narrative regarding Azerbaijan’s history, systematically exposing numerous falsifications by medieval authors and sources frequently utilized in efforts against Azerbaijan.

ЧИТАТЬ ПОЛНОСТЬЮ

DESTROYED IRAVAN FORTRESS: BRIEF OVERVIEW OF HISTORICAL SITE IN YEREVAN

DESTROYED IRAVAN FORTRESS: BRIEF OVERVIEW OF HISTORICAL SITE IN YEREVAN

9/26/2022   Armenia, Armenian falsification In English, Azerbaijan, In English,

 

DESTROYED IRAVAN FORTRESS: BRIEF OVERVIEW OF HISTORICAL SITE IN YEREVAN

By Rizvan HUSEYNOV,

Journal "IRS-Heritage", № 52, summer 2022, pр. 22-29

 

Ethnographic map of the Iravan province showing the borders of districts, police stations and rural communities. 1886

 

The outstanding 44-day military operation carried out in fall 2020 led to the liberation of the occupied Azerbaijani territories in Karabakh. As a result, Azerbaijan also gained control over its entire border with Iran and Armenia. It was also followed by rehabilitation of infrastructure and settlements in Karabakh, ahead of a return of all Azerbaijani internally displaced persons ousted from those residential areas by Armenian invaders in the early 1990s. Moreover, Baku announced its long-term plans to return refugees to their native land in Zangazur and other regions of Armenia where Azerbaijanis had lived from the ancient times. Therefore, the relevance of projects aimed at studying medieval Azerbaijani cultural, architectural and historical heritage wiped out in Armenia is increasing in Azerbaijan. There is a need for projects aimed at researching the heritage of historical Azerbaijan, including those concerning the tragic fate of the Azerbaijani medieval city of Iravan (Irevan), which was completely destroyed and displaced by the emergence of Yerevan, the current capital of Armenia. A number of European, Russian, Ottoman and Armenian sources allow thoroughly tracking down the tragic fate of the medieval Azerbaijani city of Irevan. Following its destruction, the Armenian authorities created a myth in the 1960s with regard to an ancient Erebuni that allegedly dated back to a historical period 28 centuries ago. The discovered ruins of an Urartian fortress near Yerevan were referenced to create this myth. The world community and scholars should not show indifference to such manifestation of Armenian vandalism and falsifications.

Iravan. Dome of the Sardar mosque

INTRODUCTION

Attempts have been made through Armenian propaganda and pseudoscience for many years to prove that Yerevan is an “ancient Armenian city older than Rome” that has never had any bearing on Azerbaijan and the Azerbaijani cultural, historical and architectural heritage. It is worth mentioning that Chukhursaad, one of the four baylarbay entities of the Azerbaijani Safavid state, was located in the territory of present-day Armenia, in the Middle Ages. In 1504, Safavid Shah Ismail ordered his commander, Revangulu Khan, to build a fortress in Chukhursaad. It was constructed by 1511 and named Revan in honor of Revangulu Khan. It later started to be pronounced as Irevan, because the vowel “i” is often pronounced before the consonant “r” in Turkic languages.

The Iravan fortress became famous in the East as a site of minarets. There were eight mosques and 800 houses in the fortress and only Azerbaijani Turks lived there.

Transit road. Iravan, bridge and Khan’s Palace

IMPACT OF ARMENIAN FALSIFICATIONS

Every opportunity is used in Armenia to conceal the truth about the history of Yerevan. In May 2014, the Armenian authorities presented the film “A capital older than Rome”, released in response to the substantiated criticism from Azerbaijan regarding the destruction of the medieval architectural and historical heritage of Yerevan by the Armenian authorities and the “Armenianization” of its history. The Armenian film describes at length and comprehensively the ancient history of Yerevan, which is allegedly almost 2,800 years old. However, two coins of 14th century Muslim Turkic rulers are referenced as the only proof of those allegations. Thus, the Armenian side is seeking to prove that the Iravan (Irevan) fortress was built not by Safavid commander Revangulu Khan in the early 16th century, but actually existed before that time period. However, a contradicting fact was revealed during studies concerning the Hulaguids could not have minted coins in the 14th century in the city of Revan, which was non-existent at the time. In addition, Armenian media outlets, themselves, have circulated reports saying that coins started to be minted in Iravan after the 16th century during the Safavid rule and later during the reign of the Iravan khans. At the same time, the reports said the mint was located in the area of the palace of the Iravan Khan in the historical center of Yerevan, which is currently completely ruined [12].

It is noteworthy that this is not the first time Armenian propagandists falsified the coins of Azerbaijani rulers. In the 1960s, B. Piotrovsky, a Soviet academician, indignantly pointed out the falsifications of S. Ayvazyan, an Armenian scholar. Ayvazyan had reversed the in coins shown in the movie with an inscription saying they had been purportedly minted in Yerevan. A 14th century coin of Hulaguid ruler Anushirvan (Anushirovan) indicated the city of Marivan in the territory of present-day Iran, not Yerevan, as the place where it was minted. The film also briefly shows a coin by the ruler Abu Said allegedly made in Yerevan. However, the coin, itself, says it was produced in Royan, Iran. Moreover, numerous sources note that Irevan (Revan) was founded in the early 16th century, which was followed by the construction of a mint within a fortress area. This conclusion is confirmed by a number of studies conducted by foreign scholars and coin collections. Therefore, the inscriptions upon the coins of the Azerbaijani Eldiguzids dating back to the 12th-13th centuries, regarding them as “Armenian-Hayas” coins attributed to the 17th century BCE [16].

coin of Hulaguid ruler Abu Said, 14th century 

coin of Hulaguid ruler Anushirvan (Anushirovan), 14th century 

IREVAN (IRAVAN) IN AZERBAIJAN

A. J. Saint-Martin, a well-known French 19th century scholar dealing with the Caucasus studies, noted, “... Rovan, (a title) given to one of the regions of Azerbaijan, which is possibly Revan, was named by the Muslims. It is Iravan, a part of Armenia, the capital city, which has always been part of Azerbaijan under their rule,” he wrote [3].

According to the “Brief historical review of the city of Iravani” by Khachatur Abovyan, a well-known Armenian educator and writer who lived in the 19th century, Armenian writers made no reference to Iravani until the beginning of the 13th century. From 1209, it had been referenced as “a location”. Abovyan regarded as completely fictitious the texts saying that Noah, having seen land from Mount Ararat in the area where the city is currently located, called the latter Iravan. He added that “this city probably became known in 1441 when the Persians took it over during [the reign of] Jahan Shah (an Azerbaijani ruler of the Qara-Qoyunlu empire – R.H.)” [5].

It is noteworthy that even Abovyan, who was so wellversed on the history of Armenian culture, was unaware of the exact time the city of Iravan was founded and assumed that this happened during the period of Turkic Azerbaijani rulers. Moreover, it is known for certain that Evliya Celebi, a medieval Ottoman traveler and geographer, referred to the beginning of the 15th century as the date of the emergence of a little settlement in this area. According to him, Khoja Khan Lekhichani, a merchant who was one of the people favored by Amir Timur, set foot on this land in 810, according to the Hijri calendar (in 1407-1408). He saw fertile land and settled there with all of his family members. He was increasingly becoming rich by cultivating rice and building this city. Further, Celebi added that in 915 (Hijri) (1509-10), Shah Ismail ordered Revangulu Khan, his vizier, to build a fortress on this site. Revangulu Khan erected a fortress over seven years and named it “Revan” [1].

The fact that Iravan was granted its title and became a walled city during the Safavid rule was confirmed by Academician V. V. Bartold, an outstanding Soviet Russian Orientalist. “Iravan emerged as a settlement under Timur [the late 14th century] and became a city as late as in the 16th century during the rule of Shah Ismail and was granted its current name at around the same time,” Bartold wrote [6].

Jean Chardin, a French traveler, who made a stopover in Iravan in 1673, described the Iravan fortress and the Khan’s palace in detail [4]. He noted that the fortress, which consisted of 800 houses, was larger than a little town and populated by the Safavids [2]. The word «Safavids» implied the Turkic Qizilbash Shia population. Some Armenian researchers are trying to prove an extensive presence of indigenous Armenians in the Iravan fortress area, referring to medieval notes of foreign travelers. However, the Armenian propagandists are being insincere, since available sources simply refer to Armenians who came to the fortress for daily part-time work or commerce. Yervand Shahaziz, an Armenian writer, says in his book titled “Old Yerevan” that Muslims, Turks lived in the fortress, while Armenians owned shops there and went home in the evening, having locked them up [19].

The Blue Mosque built in 1766. Photo of the late 19th century

According to numerous sources, Iravan was located in Azerbaijan. In particular, S. Burnashev, a Russian military adviser in Georgia, wrote in the 18th century about “the Azerbaijani cities Iravan and Ganja” with a slightly different spelling of these two words [13]. The fact that Iravan and other land where the Russian troops were heading were located in Azerbaijan is also evidenced by the reports issued by Gen. I.V. Gudovich, who unsuccessfully attempted to capture Iravan in 1808. In his messages, Gudovich uses the expression “in the entire Azerbaijan and the Iravan province in particular” [15].

The high status of the Iravan khan, who essentially was not subordinate to the Persian shah, is proven by direct correspondence between senior Russian officials and the khan. In particular, this included an appeal from Russian Empress Yelizaveta Petrovna’s secretary, Chancellor M.I. Vorontsov. Vorontsov used the words “the most honorable and high-ranking ruler of the Iravan province, Megmed Khan, my sincere friend” in his letter [17].

Iravan khans frequently negotiated with tsarist Russia directly; legal documents issued by the khanate’s rulers circulated in the region for a long time. In particular, the Armenians, who were crossing over to the Russian side in the Caucasus, carried decrees and other documents in the Azerbaijani language from the Iravan rulers. Based on the Azerbaijani decrees, Armenian fugitives sought to maintain their land and arrived in the area. This indicates that the land of the present-day Armenia belonged to the Azerbaijani Turks. The Russian archives have retained those decrees issued by the Iravan rulers to some Armenians in the mid-18th century [14].

N. Bogdanov, a Soviet historian, wrote that “the last Khan of Yerevan, Sardar Huseyn Khan, originally from the Azerbaijani nomadic Qajar tribe, was related to the dynasty reigning in Iran and was a border commander in Yerevan before he was granted the title of khan”. 

“Prior to the date of the Russian troops’ incursion, he ruled the khanate absolutely independently over 22 years with a merely formal dependence upon Iran,” Bogdanov said [7].

 

Caucasus in the 18-19th centuries

GRADUAL DESTRUCTION OF IRAVAN FORTRESS

The Iravan fortress had a large number of structures. The fortress, itself, remained in good condition even after an assault by Russian troops. It was a reliable fortified structure, which was referenced in the Russian military archives as follows: “The fortress (i.e. Iravan) ... is surrounded by a double stone wall with round towers; there is a foundry and the palace of the Iravan sardar (military leader), a very good ancient building that occupies almost half of the embankment side of the fortress” [8].

The Iravan fortress, which withstood its capture by the Russian forces, was destroyed gradually by the Armenians over the course of one century. Following the “Sovietization” of Armenia, this historical site in Yerevan was demolished. The fortress, which was a historical center in Yerevan, partially remained in place until as late as the 1920s and 1930s. During that period, the authorities in Soviet Armenia started consistently destroying ancient structures. In the 1950s and 1960s, the fortress and the city’s entire historical center were completely wiped out, since a new general development plan for the Armenian capital failed to envisage preservation of the latter. This is nonsense! In cities all over the world, historical centers are primary areas slated for preservation as they are considered a source of pride and sites that have utmost architectural and historical importance…However, this was not the case in Armenia, a country where the historical center of the capital was destroyed altogether.

The Armenian attempts to justify the destruction of the Iravan fortress as well as mosques and other structures by alleged consequences of the Soviet authorities’ struggle with the remnants of religion are absolutely meaningless. Not only religious sites that were indeed frequently demolished during the Soviet period, but also a slew of buildings and structures unrelated to any religion whatsoever have been destroyed in Yerevan.

Therefore, the current allegations of Armenian propagandists that the Iravan fortress was destroyed as part of the Soviet clampdown on religion are groundless. On the contrary, the Soviet government was restoring and retaining historical monuments and the centers of old cities. After all, no one ever considered demolishing the Kremlin in Moscow, Icheri Sheher (Old City) in Baku, the Narikala fortress in Tbilisi, the Naryn-Kala fortress in the city of Derbent in Russia’s republic of Dagestan, etc. The Armenian leadership destroyed the historical center of Yerevan simply because it reminded people of the Azerbaijani Muslim past of the present-day Armenian capital.

This is a crime of the Armenian authorities, which are taking these actions in a bid to hide the real history of Yerevan and Armenia from future generations. This is confirmed by Andrey Ivanov, a Russian architect who authored a series of articles concerning the ancient Yerevan that were released by Armenian media. Ivanov noted that the general layout of Yerevan approved in 1924 did not ensure retaining the ancient sites. The project was conceived and implemented by A. O. Tamanyan, an Armenian architect.

“After all, Tamanyan outlined another direction (of activity), which is ruthless destruction of the city’s old material substance. Despite the whole delicacy of planning, almost all housing development laid out in the 1924 plan covered new buildings to be constructed regularly and on a quarterly basis (with the exception of several churches and mosques),” Ivanov wrote [11].

Ivanov also cited the research of other Russian scholars. “Today it is clear that Tamanyan, who was creating a new Yerevan, acted in line with the ‘destroying the place’ strategy with regard to the old city, which envisaged ‘eliminating all of its conventional signs, features and stereotypes: according to N. and D. Zamyatins,” the Russian architect said [10].

Prof. Karen Balyan, a corresponding member of the International Academy of Architecture (IAA), also made strongly worded remarks concerning the comprehensive destruction of the old city of Yerevan in Armenian media. According to him, a great number of Armenian architects “competed” in the destruction of the medieval buildings in Yerevan during the Soviet times. Balyan deems the current situation with urban planning in Yerevan even more deplorable. It is worth mentioning that not so long ago, a project aimed at creating “a historical center” of the city recently “surfaced” in Yerevan mayor’s office. This is nonsense as the Armenian authorities, in fact, gradually destroyed the Iravan fortress, a real historical center, before deciding to “invent” a new Yerevan!

Balyan noted with regard to the “Old Yerevan” project, “Of course, this is a mock-up molded with the use of just a few remaining pieces of genuine architecture (essentially a reproduction item), let’s be realistic. It has a single roof. Although Yerevan courtyards have always been outdoors, all this will turn into an indoor museum. It will be not a historically formed environment, but its imitation as a whole... I don’t know how to save the old Yerevan, but this is how it is going to be” [18].

In fact, a number of scholars and content writers have unequivocally suggested that the primary goal of rebuilding Yerevan was the destruction of Iravan’s medieval architectural ensemble. Most of the buildings dating back to the Middle Ages were demolished by the Armenian authorities in Yerevan’s center over several decades during the Soviet era and a modern city was built instead.

Iravan. Market square and mosque

FALSIFICATION OF YEREVAN HISTORY

Following the destruction of medieval Azerbaijani architecture, the myth regarding Erebuni, an Urartian fortress whence Yerevan allegedly originated, was conceived and materialized. Simultaneously, another myth suggesting that Urartian culture and history is directly intertwined with the Armenian one was created.

The allegations came after Soviet archaeologists discovered ruins of an Urartian fortress in the 1950s in Teishebaini, a short distance away from Yerevan, along with a cuneiform plaque with the letters “RBN” in Cyrillic font. The inscription with the three letters was immediately interpreted by the Armenian side as the word “Erebuni” or Yerevan. However, the cuneiform inscription refers not to Erebuni, but the Urartian fortress Irpuini, not to mention Yerevan itself. Armenian scholars, themselves, note that the language, culture and history of Urartu have no bearing on the Armenians, especially since the ancestors of so-called Armenians lived far from this region in the Balkans when the Urartians built fortresses in the Caucasus. The Armenians began to shape up centuries after the collapse of the Urartian state. It took many more centuries for them to emerge in the Caucasus region thereafter. Nevertheless, the cuneiform “RBN” was linked to the history of Yerevan, in accordance with the mentioned far-fetched allegations, which drew fire from eminent Soviet and foreign scholars, including those who contributed to the Teishebaini excavations.

This was repeatedly pointed out by I. I. Mints, an academician at the USSR Academy of Sciences. Mints was a leading and world-renowned scholar dealing with the Soviet historical science, who had visited the site of the Urartian fortress excavations. It was also confirmed by Academician B. Piotrovsky, a well-known archaeologist, historian and Orientalist, who carried out the excavations.

Having arrived in time for the Erebuni celebrations, the Soviet scholars were astonished by the fact that the hastily built “Urartian township” was presented by the Armenian authorities as a real ancient city. In reply to relevant questions from Soviet historians, their Armenian colleagues said it was a mock-up museum facility aimed at familiarizing young people and visitors with the appearance of ancient Urartian buildings.

Maxim Pakharenko, a Russian journalist and researcher, who recently visited Yerevan, accurately termed the Erebuni complex as a Soviet-Urartian fortress, since almost all of its parts were built during the Soviet era and presented further as a mock-up of the Urartian period. Pakharenko also said the Erebuni museum “was full of copies of artefacts”. According to him, Erebuni does not look like an ancient site as it is “a fortress rebuilt in the Soviet times”.

“It is sensed that Soviet rebuilders added special impressiveness to the Erebuni walls... Most likely, the Soviet renovators made the stone-made foundations of the walls higher on purpose,” Pakharenko wrote. As for the alleged Urartian tomb and mausoleum discovered in Yerevan in the area of the Avtoagregat plant in 1984, Pakharenko said “apparently, this mausoleum was entirely newly built from the outside” [9].

Nowadays, this fake fortress in Yerevan is presented as an ancient architectural monument, which is shown to residents and visitors. Films are made, books and articles are written about this mock-up, which is regarded as “a forerunner” of Yerevan. All this started with the destruction of the Iravan fortress, the real historical center of the city where 800 medieval structures were once located... The international community and scholars should not tolerate these acts of Armenian vandalism and falsifications.

Carte generale de la Turquie d'Asie, de la Perse, de l'Arabie, du Caboul et du Turkestan 1822

CONCLUSION

Throughout a long historical period, foreign, Russian tsarist and Soviet scholars shunned the study of Azerbaijan’s historical territory in the Caucasus and considered this issue from the viewpoint of Iran and Turkey’s history, as well as the stand-off between these countries and Russia. As a result, the glorious pages of Azerbaijani history, including those of the Iravan Khanate, were ignored, although the latter had left an indelible mark on world history, culture, architecture and socio-political developments in the Caucasus region. After the breakup of the Soviet Union and the establishment of an independent Azerbaijan, the country set a course for researching its historical heritage and exposing the false Armenian historical premises. The Azerbaijan Republic is a spiritual successor of great medieval empires of the East, countries and khanates that existed in different periods of history in the Caucasus, Asia Minor, the Near East and Middle East. Essentially, the entire territory of the present-day Republic of Armenia was a historical part of Azerbaijan for many centuries. Azerbaijan will continue to expose the Armenian lies and reveal the true history of the region based on reliable sources to the world community.

 

References

1. Çələbi Evliya. Səyahətnamə (Azərbaycan tarixinə aid seçmələr). Hazırlayan Seyidağa Onullahi. Bakı, 1997, s.50

2. Şardən J. Səyahətnamə (Fransız dilindən tərcümə edən V.Aslanov). Bakı, 1994, s. 21

3. Jean-Antoine Saint-Martin. Mémoires historiques et géographiquessur l’Arménie, suivis du texte Armenien de l’histoire des princes Orphélians, 1819, p. 312-315

4. Journal du voyage du chevalier Chardin en Perse et aux Indes orientales par la mer Noire et par la Colchide

5. Абовян Хачатур. Полное собрание сочинений, Т.VIII, Ереван (на армянском языке), 1958, с. 287

6. Бартольд В.В. Сочинения, т. VII. Работы по исторической географии и истории Ирана. М.: Наука, 1971, стр. 212-213

7. Богданов Н. К вопросу о феодальной эксплуатации кочевников в Закавказском крае в первой трети XIX в. // Исторический архив. Т. II. М.-Л. 1939, с. 225

8. Военный энциклопедический лексикон (в 14 томах). Второе исправленное издание под общим руководством М. И. Богдановича. СПб, 1852-1858, Том 14, 1858 г., с. 437

9. Ереван. Урартская крепость и музей Эребуни, http://maximus101.livejournal.com – 03.11.2013

10. Замятина Н., Замятин Д. Гений места и город: варианты взаимодействия // Вестник Евразии. 2007. № 1 (35). с. 77

11. Иванов Андрей. Северный проспект ведет в Конд. Этюды о духе места. Часть II, http://archi.ru - 19.10.2011

12. «Из истории армянских монет: Во времена персидских правителей чеканились и городские монеты Ирвана (Еревана)», www.panarmenian.net - 18.10.2013

13. «Картина Грузии или описание политическаго состояния царств Карталинскаго и Кахетинскаго, сделанное пребывающим при Его высочестве царе Карталинском и Кахетинском Ираклии Темуразовиче полковником и кавалером Бурнашевым в Тифлисе в 1786 г.», (Издание К.Н. Бегичева, Тифлис, 1896 г.)

14. Отношенiе гр. Гудовича къ гр. Кочубею, отъ 1-го ноября 1807 года, № 123 // АКАК, том III, с. 235

15. Отношенiе гр. Гудовича кь товарищу министра иностранныхъ делъ гр. Салтыкову, отъ 11-го января 1809 года, № 7. // АКАК, том III, с. 291; Всеподданнейшее донесенiе гр. Гудовича, отъ 11-го, декабря 1808 года, № 18.— Амамлы. // АКАК, том III, с. 252

16. Пиотровский Б.Б. «Письмо в редакцию» Историко-филологический журнал 1971, №3, с.302-303

17. Письмо государственного канцлера графа Воронцова к Эриванскому хану, от 21 октября 1802 года // АКАК, том I, с. 549

18. Старый Ереван в новом Ереване, http://golosarmenii.am - 18.07.2014

19. Յերվանդ Շահազիզ: Հին Յերևանը: Յերևան, 1931. (Ерванд Шахазиз. «Старый Ереван». Ереван, 1931, на армянском языке), с. 34

ЧИТАТЬ ПОЛНОСТЬЮ

Rizvan HUSEYNOV. "Christian heritage of Karabakh as ‘apple of discord’: overview of conflict history"

Rizvan HUSEYNOV. "Christian heritage of Karabakh as ‘apple of discord’: overview of conflict history"

11/17/2021   Armenian falsification In English, Azerbaijan, In English, Karabakh Conflict,

Rizvan HUSEYNOV, 

Director of the Center for the History of the Caucasus,

Senior researcher at the Institute of Law and Human Rights of Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences (ANAS)

A new era started in the history of the South Caucasus after Azerbaijan liberated its territories from Armenian occupation as a result of the 44-day war in fall 2020. A significant chance emerged for resolving the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, which has been flaring up incessantly for over a century. Thousands of destroyed cities and villages, cemeteries, mosques, churches and other historical and architectural monuments remained in the liberated territories. Restoration of this heritage, including primarily religious and historical sites, is currently in full swing.

Meanwhile, some foreign commentators expressed concern over the future fate of the Christian monuments in Karabakh, erroneously regarding all of them as part of the Armenian spiritual and architectural heritage. Azerbaijan reasonably reminds the international community that the overwhelming majority of these sites pertain to the Christian heritage of the ancient Albanian autocephalous church, the period of the ancient Caucasian Albania, and in particular, the Udi people, who have preserved their Albanian faith to date and cherish their memorable history.

The process of revitalizing the Albanian Autocephalous Apostolic Church on the basis of local Albanian-Udi communities is underway in Azerbaijan. Registration of the Albanian Udi Christian community in the Azerbaijan Republic in 2003 was the first step taken in this direction. In 2010, the Christian Udi community of the town of Oguz was registered (1). These communities, which include thousands of Christians, own several churches. Following the liberation of the occupied territories, Albanian Christian shrines will be restored and some of them transferred to the Christian communities of Azerbaijan.

In this regard, it would be appropriate to provide a brief description of the history of Caucasian Albania, the Albanian autocephalous church and the subsequent “Armenianizing” of this abundant legacy. The ancient Caucasian Albania (endonym-Aran) existed as various state entities (in the 4th century BCE-8th century CE), for more than 1,000 years and further for another millennium in the form of small semi-independent formations up until the 18th century. The ancient Albanian state, which was located approximately within the same boundaries from the ancient time period to the early Middle Ages, spanning from the Araz river in the south to the spurs of the Greater Caucasus mountain range in the north, played an important role in the history of the Caucasus peoples. In some periods of history, the borders of Albania stretched along the Kura river or split between several state entities. The Aranshahs, Aran Atabays and other rulers governed these states in the Middle Ages.

The Azerbaijani people are among primary heirs of the historical and cultural heritage of Albania, whose territory essentially coincides with the present-day borders of the Azerbaijan Republic. Currently, the title “Albania”, derived from ancient Greek sources (Αλβανία) (2), is widespread in the historical science, while “Aran” (ar-Ran or Ran) remains the original geographic name of this area The Anabasis of Alexander, a piece of work written by ancient author Arrian, contains initial accounts regarding the population of Caucasian Albania. Arrian refers to the involvement of Albanians in the Achaemenid army fighting the troops of Alexander the Great during the Battle of Gaugamela in 331 BCE. Therefore, as early as in the 4th century BCE, Albans (Agvans) were famed for their military deeds. According to Strabo, the Albanian nation emerged on the basis of 26 tribes and each of these once spoke its own language and had its own czar; they were later united and ruled by a single czar (3).

The Albanian written language, which was instrumental in spreading and asserting Christianity in the region, facilitated the translation of the Bible and other theological literature from the Syrian and Greek languages from the middle of the 4th century. This is proven by an Albanian rescript (M/8t-13, M/5sh-50) found in 1996 by Academician Z. N. Aleksidze, an associate member of Georgia’s Academy of Sciences, in St. Catherine’s Monastery at the foot of Mount Sinai. Aleksidze noted that the discovery of a complete lectionary created in the Albanian script and language in Sinai directly indicates that advanced Christian writing was applied in Albania. Aleksidze wrote that the information in various sources about available translations of the books of prophets, Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles into the Albanian language was fully confirmed by the Sinai discovery. 

Only a nation that possesses a full text of the Bible in its mother tongue may have a lectionary. “The fact that some of the readings discovered in the Albanian lectionary are not encountered in the most ancient Armenian and Georgian lectionaries is worthy of attention as well. This is proof of the fact that the Albanian Lectionary is not a translation from any of these languages, but was compiled independently on the basis of the currently missing Greek Lectionary,” Aleksidze said (4).

Armenian Catholicos Babgen I wrote back in the 6th century with regard to the Christian faith of the Caucasus states, “As we wrote to you earlier, we haven such a faith that is in accord with those of the Georgians and Albanians and each of these is in our own language” (5).

In the 8th-12th centuries, Albanian state entities and the church started to weaken, largely due to the Arab invasion and the fact that Arab rulers were seeking to subordinate the Albanian Church to the Armenian one, which advocated for the Caliphate’s interests in Asia Minor and the Caucasus in that period. It is noteworthy that Gandzasar was mentioned for the first time in the mid-10th century by Armenian Catholicos Ananias I in a message titled “On the Rebellion in the House of Aghvank”, which listed the Gandzasar ruler among senior Albanian clergymen that were independent of the Armenian Church (6). The existence of the Gandzasar Patriarchate was also mentioned in the commentary to the translation of the “Book of Stories” by 17th century author Arakel Davrijetsi. “Patriarchal thrones also existed in Jerusalem, Sis, Akhtamar and Gandzasar (the latter was abolished in the early 19th century),” Davrijetsi wrote (7).

The subsequent period, i.e. the 12th-13th centuries, saw a decline of the Arab Caliphate and its power began to be taken over by Turkic tribes. The spread of Turkic domination in Asia Minor and the Caucasus allowed numerous Christian communities and rulers to bolster their presence, since the Turkic rulers were known for their acceptance of non-Muslims and were often followers of the Christian faith themselves. This period of history was remembered by the flourishing of the Albanian Principality of Khachen and the Patriarchy based in Gandzasar, which housed the department of the Albanian Catholicoi. A great number of religious buildings were constructed in the area, which indicated the high level of architecture. Monastery facilities were becoming centers for the construction of religious worship sites. Many of these were built as ancestral tombs of large feudal families. Most of the remaining domed temples were built in the 13th century. These shrines are part of the monastery complexes of Gandzasar. 

The grand appearance of the Gandzasar temple reflects the abundance and strength of the Principality of Khachen and an emerging hope that the Christian population of Albania bound for unification of divided principalities and revitalization of the Albanian state (8). It is particularly worth mentioning that the Khachen ruler called himself “atabay”, which indicates a Turkic trace and influence upon this partially independent principality. The role of Gandzasar bishops from the Hasan-Jalal dynasty increased from 1240. In the late 14th-early 15th century, Gandzasar Monastery served as the chair for the Albanian Catholicoi. From then onward, the Albanian Catholicate had been called Gandzasar. In 1634, the Gandzasar Patriarchate had to recognize the supremacy of the Etchmiadzin Catholicate, but it continued to surpass Armenian clergymen on matters related to the ordainment of Albanian Catholicoi.

Unfortunately, the Gandzasar monastery, just like many other shrines located in Azerbaijan’s Karabakh territory, sustained numerous changes, significant rebuilding or so-called “restoration” aimed at Armenianizing this sample of Albanian spiritual, cultural and historical heritage. Therefore, the original state and significance of Gandzasar may be perceived strictly based on ancient manuscripts, as well as old researches and books. A significant amount of factual data may be derived from the scientific research of Academician J. Orbeli (1887-1961) and the publications of Bishop Makar Barkhudaryants (1834-1906), which reference the condition of temples, inscriptions and tombstone epitaphs prior to their complete “Armenianization”, which started from the beginning or the middle of the 19th century and continues to this day.

Interesting excerpts on the history of Caucasian Albania and Albanians in particular are available in Orbeli’s book titled “Selected works” (Yerevan, 1963). The scholar noted that the Armenians had captured Albania, in particular, the present-day Nagorno-Karabakh and Khachen. Referring to “northern Armenia”, Orbeli explained that in fact, the term implied the land of Albania.

“The images of men armed with swords, bows, quivers, spears, battle axes and spades with little flags waving in the background, as well as warriors that come to the forefront when we research boilers and relief types and those that are very closely consistent with technically much less perfect ornaments of slightly rough cross stones in northern Armenia, more precisely, the southern regions of Albania seized by Armenian feudal lords, just like the current Nagorno-Karabakh and in particular, the region adjacent to Gandzasar, are particularly valuable for keeping chronicles about the everyday life of feudal noblemen of the Caucasus during that epoch (the 12th-13th centuries – R.H.),” Orbeli wrote (9).

Orbeli repeatedly said in his works that the names of Albanian patriarchs, princes and well-known people are mentioned on the gravestones and inscriptions encountered in Gandzasar. Orbeli also places an emphasis in his writing on the personality and tenure of Albanian ruler, Khachen Prince Hasan Jalal Davla. The Principality of Khachen emerged in the Albanian province of Artsakh in Karabakh in the 12th-13th centuries. According to Orbeli, “it was part of ancient Albania”. The principality’s center was based in the basins of Khachenchay and partially Tartarchay rivers. Hasan Jalal (1215-1261), a descendant of the Albanian Mihranids, became the ruler of this principality. Hasan Jalal was a suzerain prince of Khachen and Artsakh (partially). 

According to Armenian, Georgian and Persian sources, as well as epigraphic inscriptions, Hasan Jalal had been granted such high titles as “the prince of princes”, “the king of Albania” and “the great borderland possessor of Albania”. Hasan Jalal, himself, was called the tsar and autocrat. His reign may be considered a period of economic, political and cultural revival of Albania.

The ancient Gandzasar Monastery existed long before Hasan Jalal’s tenure, serving as a family tomb of the Khachen rulers, i.e. Jalalids. Hasan Jalal, himself, was buried there. Hasan Jalal built the Gandzasar cathedral in 1216-1238 at the insistence of Albanian Patriarch Nerses. Hasan Jalal, himself, regarded it as “the Albanian patronal cathedral”. Nearly all of the Albanian Catholicoi or patriarchs of the latest period were buried in Gandzasar, which is evidenced by the epigraphy on gravestones dated until as late as 1828. According to Orbeli and other researchers, Prince Hasan Jalal Davla had two brothers, Zakaria Nasr Davla and Ivane Atabeg (10). Evidently, their names and an indication of their affiliation with Azerbaijani Atabays make it clear that this generation of princes has absolutely no bearing on Armenians. It is noteworthy that A. Saint-Martin, a well-known 19th century French scholar dealing with Caucasus studies, also wrote that Hasan Jalal’s brothers and entourage were part of the Eldeguzid dynasty, i.e. Atabays of Azerbaijan (11).

The epigraphic inscriptions of Gandzasar traced back to Hasan Jalal’s tenure cited his title as “the Atabay of Khachen”. Orbeli said in an article titled “Hasan Jalal, Prince of Khachen” that the Gandzasar monastery (built in 1216-1238) was sanctified in 1240 in the presence of Albanian Catholicos Nerses (12). Hasan Jalal’s complimentary note on a book of Gospel that he presented to the Albanian Patriarchy in Gandzasar is particularly worth mention ing. According to Orbeli, this Gospel is currently kept in the Etchmiadzin library. In that note, Hasan Jalal refers to his trip to Mongolia where he would meet Sartak, a son of Batu Khan.

“I (Hasan Jalal Davla) ...went to see the king of shooters in the East ... Thus, in the summer of 1261, I (brought) this holy Gospel, decorated in memory of the Godloving lady (Mamkan), to our bright and holy patronal (monastery) of Albania, the spiritual father Nerses ...” (13).

Mamkan, Hasan Jalal’s wife, built a magnificent architectural facility at the gate of the Gandzasar church. It was solemnly consecrated in 689 Hijri (1240 AD) in the presence of the Albanian Catholicos. A relevant inscription that remained to date reads, “This church was consecrated in 689 (1240) during the patriarchate of TerNerses, the Catholicos of Albania.”

Some inscriptions made on gravestones say “This herein is the grave of Gregory, the Catholicos of Albania, in 1102 (1653)”, “This is the grave of Yeremin, the Catholicos of Albania from the dynasty of Jalal Dola, in 1149 (1700)” and “This is the grave of Albanian Catholicos Yesayi...1177 (1728)”. 

Local residents referred to Gandzasar as Albanian land even in the late 17th century. Having restored the roof of the monastery, Apav, a priest from the Talysh village, left an inscription there that says, “We built roofs and [rebuilt] the collapsed walls of churches in the holy throne of the Albanian Gandzasar at the expense of our righteous funds” (14).

The significance of the Gandzasar patriarchy started to diminish gradually from the 17th-18th centuries. Despite having lost their political secular power, representatives of the Hasan Jalal dynasty remained spiritual leaders. They continued to serve as patriarchs, i.e. the Catholicoi of the independent Albanian church until the early 19th century, a period of history that saw the beginning of northern Azerbaijan’s accession to the Russian Empire. First, the title of the Albanian Patriarch (Catholicos) was abolished by the Czar’s decree in 1815.

From then onward, the senior priest of the Albanian Church served as a metropolitan bishop. On March 11, 1836, Emperor of Russia Nicholas I signed special “Regulations” on the status of the Armenian Church consisting of 10 chapters and 111 clauses (15). According to this document (16), the Czar’s mandate abolished the Albanian Catholicate (Gandzasar Patriarchate) (17).

It was replaced by the two newly established dioceses (Artsakh-Shusha and Shamakhi) under the jurisdiction of the Armenian Catholicate (Etchmiadzin Patriarchate) and the vicariate of Ganja, created as part of the Tiflis consistory of the Armenian Church. In 1909-1910, the Russian Holy Synod authorized the Etchmiadzin Synod and the Erivan Armenian-Gregorian consistory to destroy the old archival files of the subordinate dioceses. Apparently, the Albanian Church archives that had remained available until then were among those documents.

Bishop Makar Barkhudaryants noted the deplorable condition of the Gandzasar monastery in the late 19th century when the shrine was already overseen by the Armenian Church. He wrote that “the wonderful monastery is crumbling morally and materially as stones are gradually falling out and breaking up”. He also said “a great number of precious manuscripts have been looted, while the remaining manuscripts, as we have seen, succumbed to dampness and negligence; services have not been performed in the monastery for months, because there are no literate people, schools, monks or just ordinary lectors” (18).

The information provided by Barkhudaryants also makes it clear that the Albanian Church had nine episcopacies in the mountainous part of Karabakh alone back in 1828. Its institutions were entirely “in a flourishing state” and “the monasteries were inhabited”. The monasteries were gradually abandoned, losing monk communities, after the abolition of the Albanian Catholicate.

Afterwards, the unattended shrines mostly started collapsing, according to available data (19). The 1836 order of Russian Emperor Nicholas I on the abolition of the Albanian autocephalous church and the handover of its property, books and churches to the jurisdiction of the Armenian Church had tragic consequences for the Albanian culture and people.

Following the loss of churches’ independence and amid ongoing mass settlement of Armenians in the Karabakh region (the territory of the former Caucasian Albania), the process of “Gregorianization” (Armenianization) of the local Christian population (descendants of Caucasian Albanians) was launched and Albans began to be considered Armenians. Later, this fact was admitted by Armenian scholars. A book by historian B. Ishkhanyan, published in Petrograd in 1916, notes that “the Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh are partly aborigines, descendants of ancient Albanians, and partly refugees from Turkey and Iran, for whom Azerbaijani land became a shelter from persecution” (20).

The mentioned “Armenianization”, which started long before Russia’s entry to the region, also affected the dynasty of Hasan Jalal and its members started to be called “the Jalalyans”. Albanian Catholicos Yesai, who held the patriarchal throne in 1702-1728, described the roots and origin of the Albans in “A Brief History of the Country of Albania” (21). He noted frequent Armenian attempts to appropriate Albanian culture and faith with the support of major powers. The Albanian Catholicos aired grievance over the fact that the Armenians were accomplishing their goal time and time again and said he was probably the last descendant of the Albanians who “ruled his land”.

The entire 18th century was marred by rivalry over domination between the Armenian Etchmiadzin church and the Albanian Church of Gandzasar and the latter was ultimately defeated. Following the arrival of tsarist Russia in the Caucasus in the early 19th century, the Albanian church lost its status and the Russian authorities relied on Etchmiadzin instead. Raffi (Hakob MelikHakobyan), a 19th century Armenian writer, said the following with regard to Gandzasar in “The Princedoms of Khamsa”, “It is known that the Catholicate of Aghvank existed for 15 centuries, i.e. from the times of Grigoris (a grandson of St. Gregory the Illuminator- R.H.) until 1828. Various monasteries of the country of Aghvank had been the residence for the Catholicoi. Recently, the Gandzasar monastery in the Khachen province of Karabakh served this purpose,” Raffi wrote (22).

“We should not forget that not only Karabakh, but also Gandzak, Shamakhi, Nukha, Derbent and other provinces were the dioceses of the Aghvank Catholicate,” he said (23).

Referring to Karabakh Christians, Raffi wrote that “these people are accustomed to being independent of Etchmiadzin and having their own special spiritual leadership, which was fulfilled by the Catholicate of Aghvank for many centuries” (24).

Russian documents (25) include a letter written by Israel, the latest Albanian patriarch, who indignantly noted gradual abolition of the Albanian Church and its re-subordination to the Ararat (Etchmiadzin) Catholicos, who previously had no bearing whatsoever on Albanians, whose patriarchy was located in Karabakh at the Amaras monastery (in Azerbaijan’s Khojavand district). The patriarch stressed that they were Armenians by faith (Monophysites/ Gregorians) and had never reported or belonged to the Ararat (Etchmiadzin) Patriarchate.

The mentioned document said it was “a letter of Aghvan Patriarch Israel to Count Gudovich, dated August 19, 1806”. “About 1,400 years have passed since Grigoris, a grandson of great Armenian Saint Gregory, was ordained as Patriarch,” the letter said. It reads further that “all Armenians living in Karabakh, Yelizavetpol, Shaki and Shirvan… i.e. the Aghvan province, was assigned to his diocese at his full disposal”. This right with regard to this monastery has been valid to date “and former Ararat patriarchs had no business and never dealt with it”, the cleric wrote, adding that decision-making depended entirely “on a single Amaras patriarch” (26).

Despite the Albanian patriarch’s request, the czarist autocracy reassigned the Albanian churches to Etchmiadzin. The Russian authorities neglected the fact that the congregations of the Armenian and Albanian churches included representatives of completely different peoples. This was followed by a riot led by Albanian Patriarch Israel (27). In the long run, the autocracy quelled the rebellion. The Albanian churches and worshippers were subsequently subordinated to the Etchmiadzin Catholicos, while the Albanian patriarch who spearheaded the riot was exiled and died shortly thereafter. Afterwards, the Etchmiadzin church started insistently asking the czarist autocracy to subordinate the churches and congregations in Karabakh and Ganja to it as well (28). Etchmiadzin’s request was fulfilled; the Armenian Church completely took over and destroyed the heritage, temples, culture and peoples of Caucasian Albania at the hands of the autocracy.

These developments occurred against the backdrop of mass settlement of Armenians from Turkey, Iran and the Middle East to the South Caucasus, in particular, Karabakh, Zangazur and Erivan, in the 19th and 20th centuries. Russian scholar N. Shavrov, who was closely involved in enforcing the measures on colonizing the Caucasus, said “more than 1 million out of 1.3 million Armenians living in Transcaucasia were not among indigenous residents and we settled them in the region” by the early 20th century.

The historian mentioned the “highland part of the Yelizavetpol governorate”, i.e. the present-day NagornoKarabakh, among the areas populated by Armenian settlers. Shavrov particularly stressed that “Armenians from among landless newcomers, having widely used perjury, seized vast state-owned land” (29).

The mass settlement of Armenians in the South Caucasus continued during the USSR period and after its collapse. It was marred by consistent expulsion of local Azerbaijani population in 1918-20, as well as in 1947-53 and 1988-1993. About a million Azerbaijanis were ousted from Armenia and Karabakh during the Karabakh conflict alone. However, this matter is a topic for another research project. This article briefly references the reasons for the conflicting views between Armenian and Azerbaijani people concerning historical, spiritual and architectural heritage. Our goal is to prevent any attempts to plant “an apple of discord” and trigger conflict between the two nations. In doing so, it is necessary to take stock of the historical developments and political pre-conditions that caused the conflict in order to avoid its reoccurrence in the future.

References :

1. «Удин - Аркадий Владимирович из Кировобада - вымысел армянского агитпропа», 25 мая 2012 года - https://www.turantoday.com/2012/05/blog-post_25.html)

2. арм. Աղռւաճղ, Алуанк; груз. რანი, Рани; парф. Ardan; сирийск. Аран; арабо-персид. Ар-Ран, Арран

3. Страбон. География: в 17-ти кн. (перевод Г.А.Стратановского). Л., М., 1964. кн. XI, гл.4.

4. Алексидзе З.Н. Предварительное сообщение об идентификации и дешифровки албанского текста, обнаруженного на Синайской горе // ThehistoryofCaucasus. The scientific-public Almanac. Issue No1, Baku, 21-24 of may 2001.

5. Православная энциклопедия. М., 2000. Т.I, с.458.

6. Архимандрит Хачатур Дадян. Записки об «Истории Страны Агванк» Св. Эчмиадзина. Эчмиадзин, Арарат, 1896).

7. Аракел Даврижеци. Книга историй. (пер. Л. А. Ханларян). М. 1973, Глава 24,

8. Мамедова Г.Г. Культовое зодчество Кавказской Албании (IV–XIV вв.). Баку: Элм, 1997, c. 97-99

9. Орбели И.А. Избранные труды, Ереван, 1963 г., статья «Албанские рельефы и бронзовые котлы», с.358.

10. Нефритовая кинжальная рукоять хранится в Кавказском Музее, (И.А.Орбели. Избранные труды, с. 149 // «Известиях Императорской Академии наук», 1909, VI серия, том III, No61, стр. 377-389

11. Saint-Martin M. «Mémories historiques et géografique sur l’Arménie», Vol. II, Paris, 1819, p 81

12. И.А.Орбели «Избранные труды», Ереван, 1963 г, стр. 150

13. Там же,с.155

14. Рашид Геюшев. Гандзасар, памятник Кавказской Албании. Баку, Элм, 1986 г.

15. Православная энциклопедия. Т.3. М., 2001. с. 349

16. Православная энциклопедия. Т.3. М., 2001. с. 338-339

17. ЦГИА, справка 1907 г., фонд 821, опись 139 (173) единица хранения 96

18. Бархударянц М. Арцах – НАИИАНА инв. No1622, ч.I, с.160

19. Там же, с. 5

20. Ишханян Б. Народности Кавказа. Петроград, 1916

21. Есаи Хасан-Джалалян. Краткая история страны Албанской (1702-1722 гг.) (перевод Т. И. ТерГригоряна). Баку: Элм. 1989

22. Раффи. Меликства Хамсы. Перевод с армянского Л.М.Казаряна. Ереван, «Наири», 1991, с. 38

23. Указ. соч., с. 50

24. Указ. соч., с. 74-75

25. Акты, собранные Кавказской археографической комиссией (АКАК), под редакцией А.П.Берже. Том III. Тип. Главного управления наместника Кавказского. Тифлис, 1869, с. 79-81

26. АКАК, с. 79

27. Предписанiе гр. Гудовича ген.-м. Небольсину, отъ 11-го ноября 1807 года, No 603. АКАК, том II, 151, с. 80

28. Записка Армянского apxieпископа Ioаннeca, поданная гр. Гудовичу. АКАК, том III, 152, с. 81

29. Издание русского собрания. Шавров Н.Н. «Новая угроза русскому делу в Закавказье», СПб., 1911, стр. 59-61).

ЧИТАТЬ ПОЛНОСТЬЮ