The formation of the Armenian people occurred during the 2nd–1st millennia BC. Over the course of many centuries, the various tribes and tribal confederations inhabiting the Armenian Highlands—differing from one another in language, cultural development, and social organization—gradually coalesced into a single ethnos.

In this prolonged and complex ethnogenetic process, a prominent role was played by those groups whose languages belonged to the Indo-European family. Each tribe or tribal union contributed specific elements to the emerging Armenian people—its anthropological characteristics, linguistic features, and aspects of material and spiritual culture. Scholars distinguish the tribal confederation Hayasa, from which, according to prevailing scholarly hypotheses, the Armenian endonym “hay” is believed to derive.

The geopolitical setting in which the Armenian people took shape has left a profound imprint on their historical trajectory. Positioned at the crossroads of the Asian and European worlds, Armenians maintained continuous contacts with both Western and Eastern civilizations from the earliest times, and Armenian culture absorbed numerous elements from these spheres.

At the same time, the geographic location of the Armenian Highlands made the region repeatedly vulnerable to foreign incursions—by conquerors advancing from west to east, and even more frequently by those arriving from the east.

These conditions significantly shaped the regularities and distinctive features of Armenian historical development. The geopolitical factor has retained its relevance even in the contemporary era.

The formation of the Armenian people at a certain stage coincided with the history of the Araratian Kingdom (Urartu), one of the major powers of the Ancient Near East.

In the 9th century BC, the Kingdom of Urartu emerged in the basin of Lake Van and, within a short period, became one of the most powerful states of its time. The kingdom reached its greatest flourishing during the reign of Argishti I (786–764 BC). It was he who, in 782 BC, founded the fortress of Erebuni, which would later evolve into the present-day capital of Armenia, Yerevan.

The Araratian Kingdom, composed of various tribes and surrounded by hostile states, gradually weakened and disintegrated in the 7th century BC.

Urartu was a slave-owning state with a highly developed economy. Particularly advanced were its fortification architecture, canal construction, sculpture, metallurgy, and other fields. A rich historical corpus has been preserved thanks to its own cuneiform inscriptions.

Within the Urartian state— even during its period of greatest power—Armenian tribal unions not only preserved their distinct identity but also succeeded in fully Armenianizing several regions and tribes of the Armenian Highlands.

Among all the tribal groups incorporated into the Araratian Kingdom, the Armenian tribes proved the most resilient. Thus, when this state disappeared from the historical stage in the early 6th century BC, the Armenians established their own statehood, becoming the direct heirs of the Araratian Kingdom.

The Armenians on the Armenian Highlands established a new statehood that fully incorporated everything that had once belonged to the Araratian Kingdom—its settlements, economic resources, irrigation networks, a significant portion of its material culture, and elements of its spiritual culture. Thus, the Armenian people are contemporaries of the ancient civilizations of the Near East, including Babylon, Media, Assyria, and others.

The earliest evidence of independent Armenian political activity dates to the late 7th century BC. According to historical sources, one of the Armenian leaders, Paruyr, took part in the war against Assyria, fighting alongside the armies of two allied states—Babylonia and Media. According to tradition, in recognition of his service, Paruyr was acknowledged by the allies as king of the Armenians. He was followed by the rulers of the Yervanduni (Orontid) dynasty. However, the independence of the Armenian kingdom did not last long.

At the end of the 6th century BC, Armenia was incorporated into the Achaemenid Persian Empire. The country continued to be governed by satraps, most of whom belonged to the royal Yervanduni dynasty.

In 521–520 BC, Armenia attempted to free itself from Achaemenid rule, but after fierce fighting, King Darius I managed to subdue the Armenians once and for all. Armenia became a satrapy, periodically governed by members of the Yervanduni dynasty. Valuable information about Armenia and the Armenians of this period is provided by the trilingual Behistun inscription and by the work of the Greek commander and historian Xenophon, Anabasis.

At the end of the 4th century BC, the Achaemenid Empire ceased to exist with the invasion of Alexander the Great’s forces. In a short period, Alexander established a vast empire that encompassed Western and Central Asia, Egypt, and India. Armenia was not incorporated into his empire and thus regained its independence.

Immediately after Alexander’s death in 323 BC, his empire was divided among his generals into separate kingdoms. The most extensive of these was the domain of Seleucus, which included nearly all of Alexander’s Asian territories. The Seleucid Kingdom became a formidable neighbor of Armenia. Throughout the 3rd century BC, it repeatedly attempted to conquer Armenia. The struggle met with varying degrees of success, but the Armenians managed to preserve their independence. The country continued to be ruled by kings of the Yervanduni (Orontid) dynasty.

By the middle of the 3rd century BC, the ancient Armenian kingdom had fragmented into four separate kingdoms: Greater Armenia, Lesser Armenia, Tsopk-Sophene, and Commagene.

At the end of the 3rd century BC, the Seleucid Empire succeeded in conquering all Armenian kingdoms and incorporated them into its satrapies. Members of the local Armenian nobility—Artashes, Zareh, and Mithridates—were confirmed as rulers of Greater Armenia, Sophene, and Lesser Armenia, respectively.

In the early 2nd century BC, the Seleucid Kingdom clashed with the Roman Republic, which ultimately led to its decline. Greater Armenia, under the leadership of Artashes, and Tsopk, under Zareh, immediately took advantage of the changed political circumstances and declared their independence.

From the time of Alexander the Great’s conquests, the Armenians were drawn into the process of Hellenization, which had a significant impact on the socio-economic and cultural life of Armenian society. The Hellenistic period lasted several centuries, during which ancient Greek civilization interacted with the local cultures of Western Asia. Armenian culture of this period was enriched by numerous elements of Western civilizations. The political structures of Armenian society were also influenced and transformed under the impact of Hellenism.

Greater Armenia became the nucleus around which the Armenian lands were consolidated. King Artashes I (189–160 BC) pursued a consistent policy of unifying the fragmented Armenian kingdoms and territories into a single state, significantly expanding the borders of Greater Armenia in all directions.

Ancient historians attest that the population inhabiting the lands annexed to Greater Armenia spoke a single language—Armenian.

By the end of Artashes I’s reign, the kingdom of Greater Armenia stretched from the Kura River valley in the north to the Tigris River in the south, and from the Caspian Sea in the east to the Euphrates River in the west. In terms of ethnicity, it was a homogeneous state. Artashes implemented a series of reforms—land, military, and administrative—and established a new capital in the Ararat Valley, Artashat, as well as founding several other cities.

In addition to the kingdom of Greater Armenia, the kingdoms of Lesser Armenia, Tsopk-Sophene, and Commagene also existed during this period.

Greater Armenia reached its peak during the reign of the distinguished statesman and military leader, Tigranes II the Great (95–55 BC), grandson of Artashes I.

In the early decades of his reign, Tigranes II annexed a number of territories to Armenia in the south and southeast (Atropatene, Northern Mesopotamia), as well as in the west and southwest (Assyria, Phoenicia, Commagene, and Cilicia Plain). Among the territories incorporated into Greater Armenia was Tsopk-Sophene, the last of the Armenian states to have preserved its independence.

Not only the declining Seleucid Kingdom but also the Parthian state, whose king was compelled to relinquish the traditional title of “King of Kings” in favor of Tigranes II, could not withstand the conquests of a strengthened Armenia. As a result of these conquests, the territory of Greater Armenia nearly tripled in size. It became one of the most powerful states of the region, extending from the Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean, bordering Egypt in the extreme southwest and the eastern provinces of the Roman Republic in the west.

For a time, Tigranes II made Antioch, one of the largest cultural centers of the Ancient Near East, his capital. In the 80s BC, he founded a new capital, Tigranocerta, on the banks of one of the upper tributaries of the Tigris. He governed the conquered territories of his empire through Armenian governors.

Tigranes II’s empire was, by nature, a Hellenistic-style monarchy. It consisted of three systems. The first comprised the original Armenian lands (Greater Armenia, Tsopk-Sophene, and Commagene), covering approximately 360,000 sq. km. The second included subordinate kingdoms (Iberia, Aghvank [Alvania], Media, Adiabene, Osroene, Syria, Phoenicia, Cilicia), covering roughly 600,000 sq. km. The third encompassed countries and tribes under the political influence of Armenia (Parthians, Nabataeans, Jews, Scythian tribes of the lower Amu Darya, Arabs of the Persian Gulf and Red Sea coasts), with a combined area exceeding 2 million sq. km.

At the outset of his conquests, Tigranes II formed an alliance with Mithridates VI Eupator, king of Pontus. This alliance was reinforced by a dynastic marriage: Tigranes married Mithridates’ daughter, Cleopatra. At that time, Pontus was already at war with the Roman Republic, which sought to expand into Asia Minor. The war proceeded with varying degrees of success.

After losing his kingdom in 70 BC, Mithridates fled to Tigranocerta, to his son-in-law Tigranes. This became the pretext for war between Rome and Armenia.

In 69 BC, the Roman commander Lucullus advanced his forces against Tigranocerta. On October 6, the Romans defeated the Armenian army and sacked the young capital. Following this victory, Lucullus aimed to capture the ancient Armenian capital, Artashat, and force the Armenian king to acknowledge his defeat. However, the Roman advance into the interior of Armenia failed. At the Aratsani River, a battle occurred in which the Romans were defeated, forcing their army to retreat.

Pursuing their adversaries, Tigranes and Mithridates managed to secure Armenia and Pontus. The Roman Republic could not accept this setback. Command of the eastern Roman forces was transferred from the deposed Lucullus to Pompey, who defeated Mithridates VI and then invaded Armenia, directing his main attack toward Artashat. Recognizing the overwhelming strength of the Romans, Tigranes II agreed to conclude peace with Pompey.

In 66 BC, a peace treaty was signed in Artashat, by which Greater Armenia relinquished all its conquests and agreed to pay a substantial military tribute. The independence of Greater Armenia itself and the territorial integrity of the Armenian kingdom were preserved. The treaty declared Armenia “a friend and ally of the Roman people.”

The Roman–Parthian conflict, which began in the mid-1st century BC, created a new political situation for Armenia that persisted for many centuries. Although the states involved in these relations changed over time, Armenia was compelled to safeguard its independence and territorial integrity.

In the early years of Artavazd II’s reign (55–35 BC), son of Tigranes II the Great, Rome launched a campaign against the Parthian state, sending forces under the command of Crassus. Considering the actual military and political circumstances, Artavazd II formed an alliance with Parthia. Crassus’ campaign ended in a Roman defeat, and Crassus was killed (53 BC).

In 36 BC, Rome initiated a second campaign against the Parthian Empire, led by the general Mark Antony. The Romans advanced through the southern provinces of Armenia, compelling Artavazd II to provide a portion of his troops to participate in military operations against the Parthians. However, when the Romans suffered their first defeat, Artavazd immediately withdrew his forces.

Having lost a significant part of his army and being forced to retreat, Antony accused the Armenian king of treason, declaring him a co-conspirator in the Roman defeat. Some time later, Antony invaded Armenia again with a larger army, reached Artashat, and compelled Artavazd to surrender. The Armenian king and his family were taken in chains to Alexandria (Egypt), where, by the order of Antony’s wife Cleopatra, the Armenian king was executed.

In the subsequent decades, the last representatives of the Artaxiad dynasty on the Armenian throne became puppets first of the Roman Empire, and then of the Parthian Empire. In 1 BC, the Artaxiad dynasty came to an end. The ancient Armenian state experienced a profound crisis.

In the first half of the 1st century AD, Greater Armenia was largely under the control of Roman client rulers. The crisis was overcome in the mid-1st century through a Parthian–Armenian alliance established to counter the ongoing aggression of the Roman Empire.

In AD 52, the Parthian king Vologases I of the Arsacid dynasty sent an army to Armenia under the command of his brother Tiridates, who, gaining the support of the Armenian people, ascended the throne in Armenia.

Following the Roman defeat in the ten-year war, and according to the Peace of Rhandeia in AD 66, Tiridates was crowned in Rome by the emperor Nero himself.

During Tiridates’ reign, the process of stabilizing the Armenian state began, a process that continued, with some interruptions, over the subsequent two centuries.

In the early 2nd century, a new capital of Armenia, Vagharshapat, was established. A century later, the Arsacid dynasty was fully consolidated in Greater Armenia. The establishment of hereditary rule was of great significance for the further development of the country.

In the mid-3rd century, following a coup in Iran and the rise of the aggressive Sassanid dynasty, Armenia established friendly relations with Rome. Many individuals dissatisfied with or persecuted by the Sassanids sought refuge in Greater Armenia, which also affected Armenian–Iranian relations. The Sassanid king Shapur I conquered a large part of Greater Armenia in AD 252.

After Iran’s defeat in a subsequent war with Rome, and with the signing of a peace treaty in the city of Nisibis (Mtsbin) in AD 298, Armenia was freed from Sassanid control and came under Roman protection. Tiridates III of the Arsacid dynasty was confirmed on the Armenian throne.

During the reign of the Arsacid dynasty, a momentous event occurred in the history of the Armenian people—the adoption of Christianity.

The first Christian communities in Armenia appeared as early as the 1st century. Christianity entered Armenia from the south, through Assyria, and from the west, through Lesser Armenia and Cappadocia. The first Christian missionaries were the apostles Thaddeus and Bartholomew.

King Tiridates III the Great (298–330) initially persecuted Christians harshly in the early years of his reign. However, the ruling circles of Armenia and neighboring regions soon recognized that the ideas of Christianity could be effectively employed to strengthen the centralization of power amid Roman–Iranian rivalry, and attitudes toward Christianity changed.

In AD 301, Tiridates III abolished polytheism and declared Christianity the sole official religion of his state. Armenia thus became the first country in the world to declare Christianity a state religion. As a result, the Armenian Church continues to be recognized as one of the oldest among Christian churches.

The first Catholicos of the Armenian Church was Gregory the Illuminator (Grigor Partev), whom the Church regards as the second enlightener of the Armenians after the apostles. Within a short period, under the conditions of early feudalism, the Armenian Church became one of the largest landowners in the country.

In the 3rd–4th centuries, feudal structures began to dominate in Armenia. Former governors of provinces and districts became princes or ministers with hereditary rights to their estates. The administrative organs of the country increasingly became monopolized by certain noble families. At the same time, separatist aspirations among the new large landowners intensified.

The 4th century was full of turbulent events. During the reign of the successors of Tiridates III, conflicts between the princes and the central authority escalated. Kings Khosrov III (330–338) and Tiran (338–350) managed to maintain the integrity of the state through harsh measures. Under King Arshak II (350–368), amid the war between Rome and Iran, the sharp disagreements between the central authority and the major feudal lords were compounded by a struggle between pro-Roman and pro-Persian factions forming around the king.

In the 360s, Armenia faced invasions from Iran and engaged in a difficult and unequal struggle to preserve its independence. The betrayal of numerous princes who sided with the Persians forced Arshak II to agree to Persian proposals to initiate peace negotiations.

However, upon arriving in the Persian capital, the Armenian king was arrested, blinded, and imprisoned, where he later died. Persian forces invaded Armenia, caused massive destruction, razed many cities, and deported their inhabitants to Iran.

In AD 370, with Roman assistance, Pap, the son of Arshak II, took emergency measures to restore the territorial integrity of the state and suppress centrifugal forces within the country. However, when King Pap, having consolidated his position internally, attempted to normalize relations with Iran, he fell out of favor with Rome. The king was treacherously assassinated by the Roman general Trajan during a banquet to which he had been invited by the Roman himself.

In AD 387, the western provinces of Armenia, comprising approximately one-quarter of the country’s territory, were ceded to Rome, while the remaining three-quarters came under Iranian control. From this time onward, a situation arose that persisted for many subsequent centuries—the division of Armenia into Western and Eastern Armenia, each developing under the influence of either Byzantium or Iran. The border between Western and Eastern Armenia shifted repeatedly, depending on which of the powers dividing Armenia held the upper hand in the ongoing conflict.

The Armenian king Khosrov IV attempted to reunify Greater Armenia, but his efforts were in vain. His brother Vramshapuh (389–415) ruled as king in Eastern Armenia and as governor in Western Armenia.

In AD 428, the Arsacid dynasty came to an end, and with it, the ancient Armenian state ceased to exist.

Being part of Sassanid Iran, Eastern Armenia lost its state sovereignty but retained certain self-governing structures that had existed during the Arsacid period. The economic and social position of the local nobility remained relatively strong. Eastern Armenia maintained its own army, commanded by the sparapet (commander-in-chief). Often, local governors were even appointed as marzpans. Initially, the Persian authorities were also tolerant toward the Armenian Church.

However, by the mid-5th century, the situation changed. Iran increased taxes and began appointing key officials from among the Persians. The previous tolerance toward the Christian faith of the Armenians was replaced by efforts to impose Mazdean Zoroastrianism, which threatened Armenian identity.

In the spring of AD 450, the Persian authorities attempted to force the Armenian population to adopt the Persian religion. In response, a popular uprising began. At the same time, divisions arose among the Armenian nobility. Supporters of decisive action rallied around Vardan Mamikonian, the sparapet, while Marzpan Vasak Siuni chose a peaceful approach.

On May 26, 451, the decisive battle took place in the Avarayr Plain, southeast of Mount Ararat. Vardan Mamikonian and many of his allies fell in battle. Armenian resistance continued until the end of 451, but the uprising was ultimately defeated.

Nevertheless, the Armenians’ determined struggle forced the Persians to make concessions, reducing taxes and abandoning the plan to convert Armenians to Zoroastrianism.

In AD 481, a new uprising against the Persians broke out, led by Vahan Mamikonian, the nephew of Vardan Mamikonian. The Armenians achieved victories in the battles of Akori and Nersehapat. In AD 484, a peace treaty was signed in the village of Nvarsak, which restored Armenian self-government.

During the 5th century and the first quarter of the 6th century, the marzpanate system in Western Armenia remained largely unchanged. Armenian lords often held the highest offices and commanded the local armies.

The situation changed during the reign of Emperor Justinian I (527–565). The imperial authorities implemented an administrative reform in Western Armenia, effectively abolishing Armenian self-governance. Taxes increased, the economic power of Armenian nobility was undermined, and Armenian military units were regularly sent to the Balkans, participating in campaigns against the enemies of Byzantium.

During the prolonged wars between Iran and Byzantium, Western Armenia repeatedly became a theater of military operations, which had a devastating impact on the country and its population.

By the end of the 6th century, due to the severe situation in the region, Iran ceded a significant portion of Armenian lands to Byzantium. This division occurred in AD 591, when, according to the treaty, most of Armenia was incorporated into the Byzantine Empire.

By establishing a powerful state—the Caliphate, strengthened by a unified religion, Islam—the Arabs, in the 630s–640s, launched a series of campaigns against Iran, capturing its central and western regions, and seized Mesopotamia, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt. Confronting the Byzantine Empire, the Arabs won several victories over Byzantine forces but were unable to completely defeat the empire.

In AD 640, the Arabs first entered Eastern Armenia, then under Iranian control. The ruler of Armenia, Theodoros Rshtuni, in AD 652 was forced to recognize Arab authority and sign a treaty. Under this agreement, no Arab garrisons were stationed in Armenia, allowing the country to maintain relative independence during the early decades of Arab rule.

From the beginning of the 8th century, as the Caliphate completed its conquests and consolidated power over the territories, Arab rule in Armenia became more oppressive—taxes increased, and religious intolerance intensified. The first uprisings against the Arab yoke occurred in AD 703, followed by revolts in 747–750 and 774–775. The liberation struggle was led by Armenian princes, the most influential of whom were the Mamikonians and the Bagratunis. The Bagratunis adopted a more flexible approach, earning the trust of the Arab authorities. Rivalry between the Mamikonians and Bagratunis turned into enmity, and as a result of internal conflicts, the Bagratunis emerged as the dominant political force.

The Arabs established control over large territories of Armenia, displacing local populations. Armenia, Georgia, and the eastern Caucasus were incorporated into the province of Arminiya (Arabic for “Armenia”), with its center in Dvin, the former Armenian capital. During Arab rule, Armenians began to emigrate from their historic homeland—a phenomenon that would characterize much of Armenian history in subsequent centuries. Unable to endure the severe social pressures, Armenians migrated to neighboring Christian countries, including Byzantium and Georgia.

The most significant uprising against the Arabs took place in AD 850–855, seriously challenging Arab authority in Armenia. As a result, Armenia achieved internal autonomy, laying the foundation for the restoration of Armenian statehood.

The struggle of the Armenian people against Arab domination culminated in success at the beginning of the 9th century. The ruling princely dynasty of the Bagratuni managed to consolidate its power and soon proclaimed the independence of Armenia. In 885, Ashot I became the first king of the new dynasty.

Refusing to accept the loss of Armenia, the Arab Caliphate attempted to restore its authority in the country by military means, but Ashot II the Iron, reigning from 921 to 926, expelled the Arabs and confirmed the royal title.

With victory over the Arabs in the second and third decades of the 10th century, Armenia’s independence was finally secured. This created conditions for peaceful prosperity. Although the Armenian state was restored under its former name, “Greater Armenia,” the Bagratids were unable to unite all Armenian lands under their aegis. In addition to Greater Armenia, whose capital from 961 was the city of Ani, several other separate Armenian kingdoms and principalities existed.

The Bagratid dynasty reached the peak of its power during the reign of Gagik I (990–1020). He ended the Arab invasions of Armenia and united most of the Armenian territories under the central authority of the Bagratids. The “King of Kings” of the Bagratuni, or “Shahanshah,” governed the state through high-ranking officials and administrative agencies.

Existing for only 160 years, the Bagratuni realm left a significant mark on Armenian history. This period was characterized by the development of trade and urban life, as well as notable achievements in spiritual and cultural life.

The joint struggle of Armenians and Georgians against foreign invaders later laid the foundation for an Armenian-Georgian military alliance.

At the same time, the economic and military power of the princes formed the basis for both their independence and the fragmentation of the country. Princes seeking autonomy, receiving support from both the Arabs and Byzantium, pursued centrifugal policies. In the 10th century, this process led to the emergence of the kingdoms of Vaspurakan, Vanand (Kars), Syunik, and Tashir-Dzoraget (Lori), which likely recognized the supreme authority of the Bagratuni “Shahanshahs” of Ani.

After the death of Gagik I, a fierce struggle for power erupted. Taking advantage of internal disagreements among the Armenians, the Byzantines captured the capital Ani in 1045 and deposed King Gagik II.

During the reign of the Bagratids, various sectarian movements flourished in different parts of Armenia. Especially in the 9th–10th centuries, the Paulician and Tondrakian movements gained strength, mobilizing all layers of society—from peasants to the nobility and clergy. Sometimes these sectarian movements developed into uprisings against the feudal order.

The Armenian state in Cilicia emerged in the Mediterranean region at the end of the 11th century and endured for three centuries. Its existence represents a remarkable phenomenon not only in Armenian history but also in world history, as there are few examples of a people establishing a national state far from their historical homeland.

Armenians first appeared in Cilicia as early as the 1st century BCE. However, they became the dominant population in the region by the mid-11th century, when waves of migrants fleeing Byzantine policies and devastating Seljuk raids significantly increased the Armenian presence. Among these migrants were members of princely families, who later played a crucial role in establishing Armenian statehood in the region.

In 1080, in the mountainous part of Cilicia, Prince Ruben founded a new Armenian state. His successors, the Rubenid dynasty, successfully resisted Byzantine expansion and consolidated the state’s foundations.

Exploiting Byzantium’s weakening and the conflicts between the Seljuk Turks and the Crusaders, the Rubenids expanded their influence into the Cilician Plain and laid the groundwork for full independence.

Cilician Armenia reached the height of its power in the late 12th and early 13th centuries under the leadership of King Levon II (1187—1219), an exceptional statesman and military leader, crowned in 1198 and recognized by both Byzantium and several European powers.

The kingdom’s growth continued under the Hetumid dynasty. The Hetumids cultivated active diplomatic relations with the Mongols, who reached Cilicia in 1254. By forming an alliance with the Mongols, Cilicia secured protection against their invasions and obtained support against the Seljuks, though this did not extend to the Mamluks of Egypt.

By the late 13th and early 14th centuries, the kingdom faced political decline. The rising Egyptian sultanate exerted pressure not only on Byzantium but also on Cilician Armenia. The kingdom ultimately collapsed under the last Armenian royal dynasty, the Lusignans, in 1375.

Over its three-century existence, Cilician Armenia developed sophisticated institutions and a unique legal system that combined laws inherited from the Armenian homeland with norms borrowed from European states.

Cilician Armenia was a feudal state governed by the king and royal agencies. It maintained a formidable army, numbering up to 60,000 in wartime, and actively engaged in trade across the Mediterranean, supported by its own merchant fleet.

The Armenian Church played a central role in society, preserving its distinct identity despite growing pressure from the Vatican. Between 1293 and 1441, the Catholicos of All Armenians resided in Sis, the capital of Cilicia.

Starting from the second half of the 11th century, Armenia was subjected to devastating invasions by foreign conquerors: initially by Seljuk tribes, in the 13th–14th centuries by the Mongols, and at the end of the 14th century by the armies of Timur (Tamerlane).

By the second half of the 11th century, Armenia had been fully conquered by the Seljuk Turks. However, Seljuk rule could not extinguish the Armenian spirit of liberation. Armenians repeatedly rose in rebellion to overthrow foreign domination. The Armenian-Georgian alliance enabled them to defeat the invaders and liberate northeastern Armenia. Under the rule of the Zakarid princely dynasty, this region experienced a flourishing of its economy, culture, and trade.

In 1220, the Mongols invaded Armenia and Aghvank (Alvania). At this stage, their primary goal was merely to gather information about the territories they intended to conquer in the future. They met little resistance, as separatist conflicts were intensifying in Georgia and the Armenian territories under its control.

In 1238, a Mongol army of 30,000 entered Armenia, and by 1244 they had fully conquered the country. Weakened Georgia and Armenia were unable to organize effective resistance. In 1249, 1259, and 1261, Armenian and Georgian princes rose against Mongol rule but were defeated. Over time, Armenian principalities gradually weakened, and some disappeared entirely from the historical stage.

At the beginning of the 14th century, the vast Mongol Empire began to disintegrate. Turkic tribes, emerging as new powers, launched military campaigns in the second half of the 14th century. Between 1386 and 1403, Armenia suffered devastating invasions by Timur, from which the country struggled to recover for many years.

Subsequent conquerors were at a lower level of socio-economic and cultural development compared to the Armenian population they ruled. This was a major reason for the gradual decline of Armenia: its productive forces were destroyed, once-prosperous cities were depopulated, and the development of national culture was hindered.

One of the most destructive consequences of foreign domination was the disruption of the ethnic homogeneity of Armenia’s population. Turkic tribes, brought by the conquerors, settled in Armenian territories, displacing the local population. Unable to endure severe social pressures and religious persecution, many Armenians left their homeland in search of better living conditions abroad. Nevertheless, the Armenian people mobilized all their efforts to withstand these blows of fate and to ensure the survival of their nation.

In the second half of the 15th century, the situation in Western Asia changed dramatically when the Ottoman Turks conquered Byzantium and began expanding eastward. At the beginning of the 16th century, the Safavid dynasty rose to power in Iran, also pursuing expansionist ambitions. This gave rise to a sharp conflict between Ottoman Turkey and Safavid Iran. The wars between them, fought with varying success and intensity, had a profoundly negative impact on Armenia, which became a primary theater of military operations.

In 1555, the Peace of Amasya was signed, marking the first time Armenia was divided between Safavid Iran and Ottoman Turkey. Western Armenia came under Ottoman control, while Eastern Armenia fell under Safavid rule. Hostilities resumed with renewed intensity in 1603.

Avoiding direct confrontation with the Ottoman army, Shah Abbas I in 1604 forcibly relocated approximately 350,000 Armenians to the interior of Iran, devastating much of Eastern Armenia. The regions of Artsakh and Syunik partially avoided deportation and migration. In the same year, Ottoman forces invaded Eastern Armenia and captured about 30,000 people who had evaded Abbas’s deportation. The forced relocation, known as the sürgün, inflicted a catastrophic demographic blow on the Armenian population, fundamentally altering the ethnic composition of large parts of Eastern Armenia. The consequences of this coerced migration are still felt today.

In 1639, a peace treaty between Turkey and Iran was concluded, once again establishing the border between the two empires, which remained in place until the early 19th century.

Despite these difficult circumstances, Armenians in the mountainous regions of Armenia—Artsakh, Syunik, Shatakh, Moks, Sasun, and Zeitun—managed to maintain local autonomy. The principality of Zeitun was particularly notable; it assumed only a limited obligation to pay taxes to the Ottoman authorities in the first half of the 17th century while preserving internal self-governance. These autonomous principalities played a significant role in the development of the Armenian national liberation movement.

The Armenian people, divided between the eastern dominions of the Ottoman Empire and Safavid Iran, found themselves in a dire situation, subjected to severe social and national oppression. The second half of the 17th century and the entirety of the 18th century were marked by determined efforts to find ways to free themselves from foreign domination. In this endeavor, the Armenian Church played a leading role, representing the interests of the entire nation.

Initially, the Armenians sought assistance from European powers. To this end, missions organized by the Armenian Church were sent westward, appealing to the governments of European states and the Vatican, but these efforts were largely unsuccessful.

In 1677, under the leadership of Catholicos David IV Jughaetsi, a secret assembly in Etchmiadzin sent a special delegation to Europe to request aid, which included the young Israel Ori. After prolonged journeys and petitions, realizing that Europe had no interest in supporting Armenia, Ori turned to Russia. The program presented by Israel Ori attracted the attention of Tsar Peter I, who, pursuing his own political objectives, agreed to support Armenia’s liberation. To assess the internal situation in the country, Peter I sent a delegation to Persia led by Ori. Tragically, Israel Ori died unexpectedly on his return journey to Russia in 1711.

The strengthening of Russia during Peter I’s reign inspired the Armenian socio-political circles to view Russia as an external power capable of assisting in Armenia’s liberation from Ottoman and Iranian domination. Strategic and economic interests motivated Russia to establish control in the Caucasus and gain access to the Near Eastern region, aligning its foreign policy objectives with the aspirations of the Armenian people.

Following Russia’s victory in the Northern War, Peter I launched a campaign in the South Caucasus with the aim of consolidating Russian influence in the region. The internal instability in Iran and the Russian advance raised hopes among Armenians and Georgians, who resolved to jointly resist Persian domination, expecting military support from Russia. However, unfavorable political circumstances forced the Russian contingents to retreat.

In Syunik, the liberation struggle was led by David Bek, Mkhitar Sparapet, and Ter Avetis. Their campaign proved successful, culminating in the recognition of Armenian authority in Syunik by Iran.

In Artsakh, Armenians united under the leadership of the commanders Avan and Tarkhan, engaging in determined resistance. Defensive fortresses and strongholds were organized to protect the region.

Taking advantage of the weakening of Iranian positions in Eastern Armenia and the Russian withdrawal, the Ottomans invaded the region in 1724 and, after a three-month siege, captured Yerevan. In 1726, they advanced into Syunik and Artsakh. Several Ottoman campaigns ended in defeat, but after prolonged and arduous struggles, between 1729 and 1731, the Ottomans managed to dominate Artsakh and Syunik.

In the 1730s, Nader Shah established his rule over Eastern Armenia. In his campaign against the Ottomans, he also received support from the Armenian population and the melikdoms. Recognizing that reliance on the Armenians was crucial in confronting external and internal adversaries, he granted extensive rights to the Armenian meliks of Artsakh and partially to those of Syunik. This period saw the emergence of the five principalities of Khamsa in Artsakh.

The situation in Artsakh changed dramatically after Nader Shah’s assassination in 1747. Iran experienced a period of political instability, and the four khanates formed in Eastern Armenia pursued independent policies. Taking advantage of the internecine conflict among the meliks, Panah, the leader of the Javanshir clan, and his son Ibrahim managed to seize the fortress of Shushi and establish themselves in Karabakh in the 1760s, thus founding the Karabakh Khanate. The Armenian meliks in Karabakh gradually weakened.

During the same period, as British influence expanded in India, the Armenian community there actively sought ways to liberate their homeland. The abuses of the British authorities compelled Armenian merchants to explore measures for the emancipation of Armenia.

Particularly notable was the activity of Joseph Emin, educated in England. According to his plan, the liberation of Armenia from Iranian domination could be achieved through Armenian-Georgian cooperation and with Russian support. To implement his plan, in the 1760s Emin established contacts with Russian and Georgian authorities. With the assistance of Abbot Hovhannes of the Msho Holy Apostles Monastery, Emin found an ally. Fearing conflict with the Ottomans, King Heraclius II of Georgia refused to support Emin and demanded that he leave Georgia.

In 1766, Emin settled in Artsakh, aiming to unite the Armenian meliks and utilize their military forces in the struggle for Armenia’s liberation. However, he received no support there and returned to India in 1770.

During the 1770s, Emin’s works, New Treatise Called Exhortation and The Well-Devised Trap, were published in India. Despite some differences, they envisioned the liberation of Armenia from Ottoman and Persian rule and the establishment of republican governance. The realization of this goal placed significant emphasis on the enlightenment of the people.

A major contribution to the liberation movement was made by the group led by Shahamir Shahamiryan. The liberation of the country was intended to be achieved through a nationwide uprising with support from Georgia and Russia. However, the leaders of the movement failed to recognize that Russia’s objective was not the liberation of Armenia and the Caucasus, but the consolidation of Russian authority.

In 1769 and 1789, Movses Sarafyan and Joseph Arghutyan submitted their plans for Armenia’s liberation to the Russian government. They envisioned Armenia under Russian protection, establishing close relations between the two states.

In the 1790s, during a dynastic struggle, Aga Muhammad of the Turkic Qajar tribe prevailed. He succeeded in conquering most of Iran and subjugated the four khanates in Eastern Armenia. In 1795, aiming to restore the former power of Persia and expel Russia from the Caucasus, he captured and sacked Tiflis.

To prevent the consolidation of Persian forces in Georgia, and in accordance with the Russian-Georgian treaty of alliance signed in Georgievsk in 1783, Russia declared war on Aga Muhammad in 1796. However, the death of Catherine II led to the cessation of the Russian campaign.

At the beginning of the 19th century, Armenia remained under the dominion of Qajar Iran and the Ottoman Empire. The Armenian population endured severe national, religious, and social persecution, with no guarantees for the security of life or property. Taxation was arbitrary, and practices such as forced Islamization, child abduction, and enslavement were widespread.

Pursuing its imperial objectives, Russia sought to consolidate its position in the Caucasus and Western Asia, exploiting the aspirations of the Armenian people to overthrow Persian and Ottoman domination.

Russian policy in the Transcaucasus began to yield tangible results in the early 19th century. In 1801, Georgia was annexed into the Russian Empire. Alongside it, the northern Armenian provinces of Lori-Pambak and Tavush-Shamshadin were incorporated into Russia.

Escalating conflicts between Russia and Iran, followed by hostilities with the Ottoman Empire, led to the Russo-Persian War (1804–1813) and the Russo-Turkish War (1806–1812). Between 1805 and 1806, Russian forces occupied the khanates of Karabakh, Shirvan, and Baku. By defeating the Persian and Ottoman armies, which had enjoyed European support, in a series of battles, Russia compelled both empires to negotiate peace.

The Treaty of Bucharest, signed in May 1812, did not alter the Russian-Turkish border in the Transcaucasus. Meanwhile, the Treaty of Gulistan, signed in 1813, transferred Karabakh and other northeastern Armenian territories to Russia.

Refusing to accept its territorial losses, Iran launched a war against Russia in 1826. The fortress of Shushi heroically withstood a 60,000-strong army led by Abbas Mirza for 47 days.

The Armenian population provided substantial support to the Russian army, both economically and militarily. Units under Martiros Vekilyan and Grigor Manucharyan operated in Lori-Pambak and Gazakh-Shamshadin. In the spring of 1827, under the direction of Archbishop Nerses Ashtaraketsi, head of the Georgian-Armenian Eparchy, Armenian volunteer detachments were formed.

A turning point in the Russo-Persian War came with the capture of the Yerevan fortress on 1 October 1827. Subsequently, Russian forces advanced into Iranian territory, reaching Tabriz and forcing Persia to accept a peace settlement. In February 1828, the Treaty of Turkmenchay was signed, formally ceding the Yerevan and Nakhichevan khanates to Russia.

The Turkmenchay Treaty also facilitated the resettlement of Iranian Armenians to territories acquired by Russia. Over 40,000 Armenians relocated during this period.

Nerses Ashtaraketsi, Catholicos of All Armenians from 1843 to 1857, was regarded as the embodiment of the Armenian liberation movement of the 1820s and its pro-Russian orientation. He envisioned an Armenian autonomy under Russian protection, though he became disillusioned with both the outcomes of the Turkmenchay Treaty and the Russian authorities’ treatment of Armenian settlers.

In 1828, the Russo-Turkish War erupted over the Greek crisis. Russian forces occupied Akhalkalaki, Akhaltsikhe, Ardahan, Kars, and Erzurum. By September 1829, at Adrianople, the Ottoman Empire not only ceded Akhalkalaki and Akhaltsikhe but also formally recognized the incorporation of Eastern Armenia into the Russian Empire.

Under the treaties, Armenians were granted the right to relocate from Western Armenia, still under Ottoman control, to Eastern Armenia, now part of Russia. Over 80,000 Western Armenians migrated during this period.

Due to the intervention of certain European powers, the aspiration of Western Armenians to fully reunite with their eastern compatriots was not realized, and Russia returned the remaining territories of Western Armenia to the Ottoman Empire.

For the first time in centuries, Armenia experienced a large-scale repatriation. This migration transformed the demographic landscape of Eastern Armenia: Armenians became the dominant population, and Eastern Armenia emerged as the central hub for the unification of the Armenian nation.

Rejecting the plan for Armenian autonomy proposed by a group of Armenian intellectuals, the Russian government implemented a series of administrative reforms in Eastern Armenia between 1828 and 1849. In 1849, the Erivan Governorate was established, encompassing a significant, though not the entirety, of Eastern Armenia. In 1836, the Russian authorities issued a regulation concerning the Armenian Apostolic Church, which completely deprived the Church of influence over secular life—removing its judicial, educational, and other civil functions—while retaining only its spiritual authority.

At the same time, the economy of Eastern Armenia, now integrated into the Russian Empire and exposed to capitalist relations, experienced a certain growth. Agriculture remained the leading sector, with Armenian peasants cultivating wheat, barley, rice, and cotton. From the mid-19th century, the industrial sector began to develop: mining and food-processing industries expanded, along with blacksmithing, copper-smelting, and jewelry production. Artisans increasingly organized into guilds.

Armenian entrepreneurs and laborers were employed not only in the industry of Eastern Armenia but throughout the Caucasus. Trade—both import and export—within the region was largely conducted by Armenian merchants.

However, in Eastern Armenia, the Russian Empire pursued a colonial policy, recognizing the landownership and hereditary rights of khans, beks, and meliks. Eastern Armenia primarily served as a raw-material base for Russian industry.

The long period of Turkish-Persian domination had a profoundly negative impact on the Armenian economy. In contrast to Eastern Armenia, which was part of Russia, Western Armenia remained under extremely difficult political and economic conditions. The internal instability of the Ottoman Empire and high taxation hindered normal economic development. This situation persisted even after the 1839 decree introducing constitutional reform, which marked the beginning of the Tanzimat period.

In 1853, disputes over the holy sites of Jerusalem triggered the Crimean War, initially fought between Russia and Turkey in the Caucasus. Russian forces achieved notable victories and captured Kars in November 1855. However, the involvement of Britain and France on the side of Turkey ultimately led to Russia’s defeat. Under the peace treaty signed in Paris in March 1856, Russia returned all territories of Western Armenia that it had occupied to Turkey. Many Western Armenians migrated again to Eastern Armenia.

During the 1860s and 1870s, Eastern Armenia underwent further administrative reorganization. In 1867, the Caucasus was divided into five governorates. Most of Eastern Armenia became part of the Erivan Governorate, Syunik and Artsakh were incorporated into the Elisavetpol Governorate, and Lori into the Tiflis Governorate. This administrative division remained in place until 1918.

On May 14, 1870, a peasant reform was carried out in Eastern Armenia, granting peasants the right to purchase their plots of land.

In the second half of the 19th century, the Ottoman Empire pursued an extremely harsh policy toward its Christian subjects, particularly affecting the Western Armenians. They were treated as powerless subjects. Armenian peasants faced double or even triple exploitation, paying taxes to the state, Turkish or Kurdish landowners, and Islamic religious institutions.

Seeking to eliminate the semi-autonomous status of Zeitun, in 1862 the Sultan’s government made a new attempt to subdue the Armenians of this region. Failing to capture the town, Ottoman forces surrounded it, intending to starve the population into submission. The determined resistance of the Armenians, coupled with pressure from France, forced the Sultan to lift the siege of Zeitun.

To prevent European intervention in the internal affairs of the Ottoman Empire under the pretext of protecting Christians, the Ottoman government proclaimed certain “freedoms” and “rights” for its subject peoples. In 1868, the Sultan issued the Armenian National Constitution, which established specific social, political, and cultural provisions for the Western Armenians.

Between 1875 and 1877, European attention shifted to the events unfolding in the Balkans, known as the Serbo-Bulgarian Crisis. Russia positioned itself as a protector of the revolting Slavic peoples. During the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878, Russian forces, including Armenian volunteer units, liberated a significant portion of Western Armenia, occupying Ardahan, Bayazet, Alashkert, Kars, Erzurum, and Batum. On the Balkan front, Russian troops advanced through Ottoman resistance into Bulgaria, capturing Sofia and subsequently Adrianople, posing a real threat to Constantinople itself.

On March 3, 1878, the Treaty of San Stefano was signed. Parts of Bessarabia, along with the cities of Batum, Kars, Ardahan, and Bayazet, were ceded to Russia. However, the remaining territories of Western Armenia that had been occupied by Russian forces during the war were returned to Turkey.

At the request of the Western Armenian community, Article 16 was included in the treaty, aiming to provide certain guarantees and rights to Western Armenians within the Ottoman Empire. Turkey was obliged to implement reforms in Armenian-populated regions, with Russian forces stationed there for six months to ensure compliance. With the adoption of Article 16, the Western Armenian issue became a matter of international relations, destined to remain a subject of global diplomatic attention for many years.

Russia’s growing influence in the Balkans alarmed the European powers. Britain and Austria-Hungary called for a conference in Berlin to discuss the post-war situation.

An Armenian delegation, led by prominent public and church figure Mkrtich Khrimian, was sent to the conference. Between March and May 1878, the delegation visited Italy, France, and Britain to secure the support of these governments for a favorable resolution of the Armenian Question at the upcoming conference. Other delegates traveled to Saint Petersburg for the same purpose.

At the Berlin Conference, Russia found itself isolated, facing a united front of European powers. The Treaty of San Stefano was revised, depriving Russia of many of the gains from its military victories.

The Berlin Treaty included Article 61, which stipulated the implementation of reforms in Armenian-populated regions. However, these reforms were to be carried out without the presence of Russian forces and only with the consensus of the European powers.

As a result, the Armenian Question became a convenient instrument for the Great Powers to exert pressure on the Ottoman Empire and pursue various strategic and political advantages.

The Armenian people’s liberation movement and the problems of socio-economic development found expression in the 1860s in the ideologies of Armenian public movements. Three main ideological-political currents emerged: clerical-conservative, liberal-bourgeois, and revolutionary-democratic.

After the Berlin Conference, a new stage in the national liberation struggle of the Armenian people began. Article 61 of the Berlin Agreement caused disappointment among the Armenian political and social circles. It was widely believed that the nation should solve its problems independently and give the liberation struggle an organized character.

Prominent public figures played a significant role in propagating liberation ideas, including the writer Raffi, the poet Rafael Patkanian, the publicists Grigor Artsruni, and Bishop Garegin Srvandztyan. The awakening of national consciousness and the intensification of the struggle laid the foundation for the formation of political groups and organizations, whose main goal was the liberation of the people. Among them, the “Black Cross,” “Defender of the Fatherland,” and “Union of Patriots” stood out.

These organizations proposed programs for the liberation of the Armenian people and took practical steps in this direction. However, their membership remained limited, and they were unable to conduct large-scale activities, remaining only a stage in the formation of Armenian political parties.

The formation of Armenian national parties in the late 19th century was driven by the intensification of the national liberation struggle. Central to the parties’ programs were issues of resolving the Armenian Question and liberating Western Armenians.

The first Armenian party, “Armenakan,” was founded in 1885 in Marseille (France) by Armenian intellectuals united around the newspaper Armenia and its editor, Mkrtich Portugalian. The party aimed to achieve the national liberation of the Armenian people and the subsequent restoration of the state. The Armenakans organized armed detachments and distinguished themselves during the self-defense of Armenians in the city of Van in 1896.

In 1887, a group of Armenian students studying in Switzerland founded the “Hunchak” party in Geneva, named after their newspaper. The founders—Avetis and Maro Nazarbekian, Ruben Khanazatian, and others—were influenced by populist socialism. The party’s primary goal was to resolve the Armenian Question through revolution. By its class nature, Hunchak was a petty-bourgeois socialist party. In the 1890s, it actively participated in organizing the self-defense of Armenian settlements in Western Armenia.

In 1890, the “Armenian Revolutionary Federation” (“Dashnaktsutyun”) was founded in Tbilisi. Its founders—Christophor Mikaelian, Stepan Zorian (Rostom), Simon Zavarian, and others—declared that the party’s goal was to resolve the Armenian Question through armed struggle, individual terrorist acts, and diplomatic efforts. By the late 1890s, Dashnaktsutyun had become the dominant party in Armenian socio-political life.

By the end of the 19th century, Armenakan in Van advocated for constitutional and economic reforms; Hunchak, particularly influential in Constantinople and Cilicia, demanded the creation of a separate Armenian state; Dashnaktsutyun, which had extended its network from the Caucasus to Turkish Armenia, sought Armenian autonomy and broad social and economic reforms within the framework of the Ottoman Empire.

In the 1880s–1890s, discrimination against Armenians intensified in the Russian Empire. The tsarist authorities persecuted social and political figures in Eastern Armenia, imposed secret control over the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, considering it a center of Armenian revolutionary activity, expelled clergy, and closed Armenian schools. One of the consequences of tsarist colonial policy was that Eastern Armenia became merely a source of raw materials and a market for imperial goods.

At the same time, economic activity revived: copper and salt production grew, cotton-processing plants were established, agriculture developed, and cognac factories appeared in 1887. The economy of Eastern Armenia acquired a capitalist character, adapting to the demands of the Russian market. The Armenian bourgeoisie and working class concentrated in major industrial centers of the Caucasus, especially Baku and Tiflis. The growth of capitalism led to social unrest: initial workers’ protests occurred, and rural movements demanded improvements in economic conditions.

A radically different and catastrophic situation prevailed in Western Armenia. The Ottoman Empire, having become a semi-colony of European powers, sought to compensate for the loss of its western territories with new conquests in the East. Armenians became an obstacle to these plans. National and economic persecutions of Western Armenians in the 1880s–1890s became particularly severe.

Despite difficult conditions, Armenian entrepreneurs maintained economic activity, owning industrial enterprises across the empire. At the same time, peasant impoverishment intensified, and emigration increased sharply.

Discrimination gave rise to opposition among Western Armenians, expressed in the movement of the haiduks. Armed detachments of young fedayi were created to protect life and property. The movement gained strength in Sasun, Van, Mush, Tarone, and Shapin-Garahisar. The fedayi were respected by the people, had excellent knowledge of the terrain, and skillfully applied tactical methods. Leaders of the detachments included Akhbyur (“Spring”) Serob, Gevorg Chavush, Andranik, Nikol Ghuman, and others.

Despite heroism, the movement remained fragmented and did not achieve complete success. The Ottoman government harshly suppressed manifestations of national consciousness: it dispersed a demonstration at the “Gum Gapu” square (organized by Hunchak), attempts by Dashnaktsutyun to cross the border in 1890 failed, and in 1891 the Hamidiye cavalry regiments were formed. Between 1894 and 1896, Sultan Abdul Hamid organized Armenian pogroms in Sasun, Constantinople, Trabzon, Marash, Karin, Suse, Van, Bayazet, and other regions.

The genocidal policies provoked uprisings: in 1894 in Sasun (led by Mtsn Murad, Gevorg Chavush, and Grair), in 1895 in Zeitun, and in 1896 in Van. Although these uprisings were suppressed, they stimulated the expansion of the liberation movement.

During the pogroms, Armenian social circles appealed to European powers for protection, but interventions were minimal. The Great Powers used the Armenian Question to advance their own political and economic interests. The liberation struggle and diplomatic pressure forced Sultan Abdul Hamid to announce the “May Reforms” in 1895, which were never implemented. The brutal suppression of a demonstration at Bab Ali Square in Constantinople triggered widespread pogroms.

As a result, over three years more than 300,000 Armenians became victims of the Ottoman government; hundreds of villages and towns were destroyed, enormous material damage was inflicted, and many Armenians were forced to leave their homes.

As in Russia, market relations gradually took root in Eastern Armenia, which was considered one of the empire’s peripheral regions. In the South Caucasus, economic development was particularly stimulated by the construction of railways. The leading branch of industry in Eastern Armenia was copper production, with the main mining centers located in Alaverdi and Kapan. The production of alcoholic beverages was also developed, and salt extraction held significant importance.

Due to the weak economic development of Eastern Armenia, the Armenian bourgeoisie and working class were primarily concentrated in Baku, Tiflis, and other industrial centers.

Although industry displayed a certain level of progress, the same cannot be said of agriculture. It developed slowly, as the autocratic system of the Russian Empire—with few exceptions—obstructed the establishment of bourgeois relations in rural areas.

A manifestation of Tsarist colonial policy was the decree issued on June 12, 1903, which confiscated the property of the Armenian Apostolic Church. This measure primarily struck Armenian schools, which were supported by the income from church estates. Naturally, this action by the imperial authorities provoked mass resistance among the Armenian people, which ultimately succeeded. By the decree of August 1, 1903, the property of the Armenian Church was restored.

The First Russian Revolution mobilized the entire population of the empire, including the Armenians of Eastern Armenia. Miners and railway workers organized strikes; peasant uprisings also took place, especially in the Lori region.

The powerful revolutionary movement forced Nicholas II to issue the Manifesto of October 17, 1905, which laid the foundation for the establishment of a constitutional monarchy in Russia.

To divert the population of the South Caucasus from revolutionary struggle, Tsarism, together with the British bourgeoisie—which had commercial interests in the region—incited Armenian–Tatar clashes in Baku, Yerevan, Nakhichevan, Shushi, Tiflis, and elsewhere. The organization of the self-defense of Eastern Armenians was assumed by representatives of the Dashnaktsutyun party.

After suppressing the revolution, Tsarism persecuted opposition political parties and individuals. Armenian national parties faced harsh repression. Attempts were made to accuse Armenian intellectuals of conducting anti-Russian propaganda and even to initiate a political trial against them. However, the trial did not produce the desired results for the imperial authorities, and most of the accused were released.

The agrarian policies of Imperial Prime Minister Pyotr Stolypin (1907–1911) partially contributed to the development of capitalism in rural areas, as the abolition of obligatory communal dues increased the motivation of the peasantry.

A wholly different socio-economic and socio-psychological situation prevailed in the Armenian-populated provinces of the Ottoman Empire. The Armenians of Western Armenia experienced revolution and a change of power, yet their condition and status not only failed to improve in practice—even with international intervention—but their physical security became even more precarious.

The massacres of the 1890s did not break the fighting spirit of Western Armenians. In Taron, the organization of self-defense was undertaken by Hrayr and Andranik. A significant episode in the liberation struggle of Western Armenians was the battle at the Arakelots Monastery in Mush in November 1901. The fedayi fighters entrenched in the monastery, under Andranik’s leadership, demonstrated through their courageous military actions that the liberation struggle of the Armenians of the West continued.

At the turn of the century, Sasun became one of the key centers of the Western Armenian national liberation movement, drawing the close attention of the Ottoman government. In April 1904, overwhelming Ottoman forces attacked Sasun. The military council, led by Andranik, organized the defense. Fierce battles continued until mid-July 1904. The enemy, using its numerical superiority, ultimately suppressed the resistance of the people of Sasun. Ottoman forces also carried out destructive raids on Armenian villages in the Mush plain.

To deprive the enemy of a pretext for committing further violence against the civilian population, Armenian national parties decided to temporarily withdraw fedayi forces from Western Armenia.

In July 1908, a coup d’état took place in the Ottoman Empire, overthrowing the sultanic regime and bringing to power the bourgeois-nationalist Committee of Union and Progress (the “Young Turks”). Preparing to seize power, the Young Turks had promised to end national oppression and secure equality for non-Turkish peoples in order to gain the support of opposition forces. However, the coup did not improve the situation of the empire’s subject peoples, including the Armenians. The new Ottoman leadership advanced a program of Pan-Turkism.

The first manifestation of the Young Turks’ anti-Armenian policy was the massacre of the Armenians of Cilicia in April 1909. In several locations, Armenians organized active resistance. Around 30,000 Armenians of the city of Adana and its surrounding districts were massacred.

In the context of the Balkan crisis, in the autumn of 1912, favorable conditions arose for reopening the Armenian Question. Catholicos Gevorg V authorized Boghos Nubar Pasha to present the issue of Armenian reforms to the Great Powers. After lengthy negotiations, on January 29, 1914—through Russia’s active involvement—the Ottoman government agreed to implement reforms in Western Armenia. However, the outbreak of the First World War nullified the reform plan.

In August 1914, the First World War began. Allied with Germany, the Ottoman Empire sought to seize vast territories of the Russian Empire and to establish the imaginary state of “Great Turan.” For its part, tsarist Russia aimed to conquer Western Armenia and gain control over the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits. Naturally, Eastern Armenians who were subjects of Russia were conscripted into the Russian army, while Western Armenians, who were subjects of the Ottoman Empire, were compelled—against their own interests—to serve in the Turkish army.

After the war began, a movement for forming Armenian volunteer units emerged in Armenian-populated areas of the Russian Empire. The Holy See of Etchmiadzin supported the development of the volunteer movement, and the Catholicos of All Armenians blessed the Armenian fighters. Seven Armenian volunteer detachments were formed rather quickly. Their commanders included Andranik (A. Ozanian), Dro (D. Kanayan), Hamazasp (H. Srvanztian), Keri (A. Gavafian), Vardan (V. Mehrabian), A. Janpoladian (later H. Bzhshkyan), and H. Arghutian. The total number of Armenian volunteers reached nearly 10,000. These units participated actively in military operations.

Between 1914 and 1917, during the fighting on the Caucasus front, Russian forces repeatedly defeated the Ottoman army and liberated a significant part of Western Armenia. This situation remained unchanged even in December 1917, when an armistice was signed on the Caucasus front following Russia’s withdrawal from the war.

Taking advantage of the war, the Young Turk government carried out the long-planned program for the extermination of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire. The anti-Armenian policy of the Ottoman leadership was shaped by several factors. Foremost among them was the militant ideology of Pan-Islamism and Pan-Turkism, which formed the foundation of both the Empire’s foreign and domestic policies.

Armenians, because of their generally pro-Russian orientation, were viewed as an obstacle to the idea of creating “Great Turan.” In addition, the Turkish national bourgeoisie harbored deep resentment toward the Armenian bourgeoisie, which for a long time had held leading positions in the key sectors of the Ottoman economy. Since the late nineteenth century, the Turkish bourgeoisie sought to resolve this competition not through economic means but by forcibly removing the non-Turkish bourgeoisie from economic life, seizing their means of production, and physically destroying their competitors.

Documentary sources indisputably show that the plans for eliminating the Western Armenian population were developed before the war began. From the very first days of the war, unrestrained anti-Armenian propaganda spread across the Empire, intensifying especially after the Ottoman army suffered its first defeats on the Caucasus front. In February 1915, War Minister Enver issued an order to exterminate the Armenian soldiers conscripted into the Turkish army—a command carried out with unprecedented brutality.

On April 15, 1915, the Young Turk leaders Enver, Talaat, and Nazim signed an order for the deportation and extermination of Armenians throughout the Empire. On the night of April 24, the arrests of Armenian intellectuals began in Constantinople. More than 800 individuals were arrested and deported deep into Anatolia. Some were killed en route, others after reaching their places of exile.

Between 1915 and 1916, the mass extermination of the population of Western Armenia (the provinces of Van, Erzurum, Bitlis, Kharberd, Sebastia, Diyarbakir, and Trebizond), as well as Cilicia, Western Anatolia, and other Armenian-inhabited regions, was carried out. The so-called deportations in fact pursued a single aim: the annihilation of the Armenian people. Only a small portion of the deportees managed to reach the concentration camps set up for Armenians in Mesopotamia and Syria; massacres continued even within these camps. The actions of the Ottoman perpetrators were marked by extreme cruelty.

Within the territory of the Ottoman Empire alone, the number of victims of the Armenian Genocide reached 1.5 million. Approximately 800,000 Armenians became refugees, dispersing across many countries of the world.

In several locations, Armenian communities mounted determined resistance against Ottoman regular forces, punitive units, and Kurdish bands. In the spring of 1915, the Armenians of Van successfully defended themselves, repelling enemy assaults and holding the city until the arrival of Russian troops and Armenian volunteers. Heroic resistance was also offered by the Armenians of Shabin-Karahisar, Mush, Sassun, and Urfa, despite facing forces far superior in number. In Suedia, the defenders of Musa Dagh held out for forty days.

The Armenian Genocide inflicted immense damage on the material and spiritual culture of the Armenian people. Thousands of historical and architectural monuments were destroyed, and national sanctuaries were desecrated. Prominent writers and poets—Grigor Zohrab, Daniel Varuzhan, Siamanto, Ruben Sevak, among others—became victims, as did publicists N. Tagvoryan, Yessalem, Hrant, numerous artists, actors, scholars, and more than 4,000 clergymen. Overcome by psychological trauma, the great Armenian composer Soghomon Soghomonian (Komitas) lost his sanity.

Progressive humanity condemned the atrocities committed by the Turkish perpetrators. Statesmen, scholars, and cultural figures from many countries denounced the genocide and took part in providing humanitarian assistance to the Armenian people, particularly to the refugees who had found shelter throughout the world.

After the Ottoman Empire’s defeat in the First World War (October 1918), the leaders of the Young Turks were charged by the new Turkish government with dragging the country into a disastrous war and were put on trial. They were accused of organizing and carrying out the massacre of the Armenians living in the Empire. However, the sentences against several Young Turk leaders were issued in absentia, as they had fled the country after the defeat. Some of them—Talaat, Behaeddin Shakir, Cemal Azmi, Said Khalil, and others—were later executed by Armenian avengers.

The February 1917 Revolution toppled Tsarism in Russia. By the order of the Provisional Government, the Caucasian Viceroyalty was abolished, and on March 9, the Special Transcaucasian Committee was established. National parties in the Caucasus, with the exception of the Bolsheviks, aligned themselves with the Provisional Government.

By the decree of the Provisional Government on April 26, 1917, a provisional status was established in Western Armenia. Around 140,000 Western Armenians returned to their ancestral homes. From May 11 to May 25, the Congress of Western Armenians convened in Tiflis, establishing the Western Armenian National Council. In the autumn of the same year, the Western Armenian National Council was formally established in Tiflis.

On October 25, 1917 (November 7 in the Gregorian calendar), a Bolshevik armed uprising occurred in Petrograd. Rejecting Bolshevik authority, the political forces of the Caucasus established a new governing body, the Transcaucasian Commissariat, in Tiflis on November 15, 1917.

A decree of reconciliation with Soviet power led to the dissolution of the Caucasian Front. On December 8, 1917, a ceasefire was signed in Erzincan between the Transcaucasian Commissariat and the Ottoman Empire; however, it did not halt the subsequent Turkish advance.

On December 29, 1917, the People’s Commissariat of Soviet Russia issued a decree “On Turkish Armenia,” which recognized the right of Western Armenians to self-determination, including full independence. Nevertheless, there were no guarantees for the decree’s implementation, particularly given the unstable conditions in the Ottoman Empire, where the Turks were preparing a counteroffensive along the collapsed Caucasian front.

To prevent the forthcoming Turkish attack, the formation of Armenian national military units was initiated in November 1917. Armenian officers of the former Russian army and Aram Manukian, chairman of the Yerevan National Council, played a significant role in this effort.

Under the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, concluded between the Bolshevik government and the Central Powers, Turkey was ceded several Armenian territories. The borders between the two states were restored to those that existed prior to the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878. The Transcaucasian Seim did not recognize the treaty and instead preferred to negotiate separately with Turkey in Trabzon.

In January 1918, Turkish forces, violating the ceasefire, launched an offensive on the Caucasian front. On April 9 (22), 1918, under persistent Turkish pressure and the influence of Georgian Mensheviks and Muslim representatives in the Seim, the Transcaucasian Federation declared its secession from Russia, establishing the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic.

Turkey was granted full operational freedom. Within a short period, the adversary captured Kars and Alexandropol and approached Yerevan. The Turkish advance into Eastern Armenia and the Transcaucasus was accompanied by the genocide of Eastern Armenians and refugee Western Armenians. Turkish units also perpetrated massacres of Armenians in Iranian territories, including Makou, Khoy, and several other regions.

On May 2, 1918, Turkey issued a new ultimatum, leading to the collapse of the Transcaucasian Federation. On May 26, the independence of Azerbaijan was declared, followed by Armenia on May 28.

In response to the threat, all Armenian national forces united, and the people rose to defend the homeland. Between May 22 and 28, 1918, at the battles of Sardarapat, Bash-Aparan, and Karakilisa, Armenian forces were able to decisively defeat the Turks and halt further advancement. These battles became a testament to the Armenian people’s indomitable will, determination, and unity, paving the way for the proclamation of the Democratic Republic of Armenia.

On June 4, 1918, a peace treaty was signed between Armenia and Turkey in Batumi, leaving Armenia with only 12,000 square kilometers and a population of 310,000. According to the treaty, Armenian forces were to withdraw from Baku. However, the Baku Armenian National Council rejected the agreement, as it endangered the lives of approximately 100,000 Armenians in the city.

Despite this, Turkish forces, employing overwhelming strength and enduring heavy losses, captured the city on September 15, 1918, massacring some 30,000 Armenians.

On May 28, 1918, the Armenian National Council in Tiflis declared itself the “supreme and sole authority over the Armenian provinces.” By June 4, Turkey recognized Armenia’s independence, although only over a severely limited territory of 12,000 square kilometers under the Armenian government’s control.

In July 1918, the first government of the Republic was formed under the leadership of H. Kajaznuni. On August 1, 1918, the Parliament of the Republic of Armenia began its work, consisting of 40 deputies elected on a multi-party basis. It was decided to draft and adopt a fundamental law, the Constitution. Subsequently, the national symbols of the Republic of Armenia—the flag, the emblem, and the coat of arms—were adopted. Attention was also paid to protecting the rights of national minorities.

The defeat of the Ottoman Empire in the First World War enabled Armenia to declare itself independent and united on May 28, 1919. In June, parliamentary elections were held, with the majority of votes going to the ARF Dashnaktsutyun. 

Domestically, the government sought to overcome the widespread economic crisis, exacerbated by the presence of more than 300,000 refugees in Armenia. The operation of several enterprises processing agricultural products was restored with great difficulty.

To increase agricultural production and provide peasants with land, it was planned to transfer lands confiscated from the Church and large landowners to them. A new taxation system was introduced to improve the financial situation. Despite adverse conditions, education developed, and in January 1920, the University of Armenia was opened.

In foreign policy, the government prioritized resolving the Armenian Question. A crucial element of this issue was the liberation of territories occupied by the Turks, achieved following Turkey’s defeat in the First World War.

At the end of 1918 and the beginning of 1919, Karakilisa, Alexandropol, Kars, Kaghzvan, Sharur, Oltu, and Nakhichevan were returned to Armenia, restoring almost the entire 1914 border. At the same time, the populations of Zangezur and Artsakh successfully resisted Turkish-Azerbaijani attempts to seize these regions. In December 1919, a border dispute with Georgia led to a brief war.

The Armenian government viewed Turkey’s defeat in the world war as an opportunity to bring the Armenian Question back to international attention. The Armenian delegation participated in the Paris Peace Conference, which began in February 1919 and aimed to address the post-war international order. In May 1919, the Conference decided to assign a mandate over Armenia to the United States, a decision endorsed by the newly formed League of Nations. However, after prolonged discussions, the U.S. Senate rejected the proposal, partly due to Bolshevik uprisings in Armenia.

Unable to gain power through legal means, Armenian Bolsheviks launched an uprising in May 1920, hoping to achieve their goals with the support of Soviet Azerbaijan and the 11th Red Army. However, lacking such assistance and popular support, the uprising failed and was suppressed.

After protracted negotiations, on August 10, 1920, the victorious Entente powers signed the Treaty of Sèvres with defeated Turkey. According to the treaty, Turkey recognized Armenia as an independent state, granted Armenia access to the Black Sea, and reserved the right for the U.S. government to determine the borders between Turkey and Armenia, with Armenia’s total area set at 160,000 square kilometers.

However, Turkey never ratified the Treaty of Sèvres, as it did not recognize the new Kemalist government. Moreover, fearing that Turkey might fall entirely under Russian influence, European powers made concessions and did not insist on Turkey’s compliance. Armenia alone could not enforce the treaty. Consequently, the latest attempt to resolve the Armenian Question failed.

Relations between the Republic of Armenia and Soviet Russia developed through complex channels. Despite officially endorsing the right of nations to self-determination, Soviet Russia had no interest in losing influence in the South Caucasus. In May 1920, negotiations between Armenia and Soviet Russia failed. Following this, Soviet Russia provided military support to Azerbaijan to establish Soviet control. Under these circumstances, Red Army units occupied Karabakh, Zangezur, and Nakhichevan. This prompted Kemalist Turkey, aiming to annul the Treaty of Sèvres, to launch military operations against Armenia on September 28, 1920.

The exhausted Armenian army could not resist successfully. Appeals for assistance to the Allies went unanswered. On November 18, 1920, the Armenian government accepted Turkey’s ultimatum. Armenia suffered defeat, and more than half of its territory was occupied by Turkish forces.

On December 2, 1920, in Alexandropol, Turkey forced Armenia to sign a treaty restoring the borders defined by the Treaty of Batum. Armenia renounced the Treaty of Sèvres and disarmed.

On the same day, an agreement was signed in Yerevan between Soviet Russia and Armenia. The government of Simon Vratsian announced the transfer of its powers, and Armenia was declared a Soviet republic. As early as November 29, units of the Red Army, escorted from Soviet Azerbaijan, entered Armenian territory alongside the Revolutionary Committee of Armenia established in Azerbaijan.

Under the conditions of the Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Sèvres, Armenians in Cilicia hoped that even if they could not reunite with the homeland, they might gain independence or autonomy under French protection. However, pursuing its economic and political interests, France handed Cilicia over to Turkey in October 1921, leading to new massacres of the Armenian population. In many locations (Marash, Hadjin, Urfa, Jdeydeh, Aintab), Armenians resisted Turkish attacks with varying degrees of success.

On December 2, 1920, an agreement was signed with Soviet Russia stipulating that representatives of the Dashnak Party should also be included in the first government of Soviet Armenia, the Revolutionary Committee (Revkom). However, when Revkom, led by A. Kasyan, arrived in Yerevan, it did not implement this provision. All authority in the republic passed into the hands of the Bolsheviks.

During the very first months of its rule, the Communist Party of Armenia and the Revkom carried out the nationalization of land, water, forests, mineral resources, major industrial enterprises, and banks. Private property was abolished. A harsh policy of grain expropriation was implemented.

These multifaceted acts of repression provoked widespread discontent and led to civil unrest and war (February–April 1921). The overall leadership of the uprising was assumed by the Dashnak Party (ARF Dashnaktsutyun). Initially, military operations saw fluctuating successes, but with the assistance of Russian troops, the balance of power shifted decisively in favor of the Soviet authorities.

In December 1921, elections were held for new governing bodies—Soviets—and administratively Armenia was divided into nine districts. In January–February 1922, the first congress of Armenian Soviets adopted the first constitution of the Armenian SSR. Between 1920 and 1922, the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic established diplomatic relations with a number of countries, first with other Soviet republics and later with Persia and Turkey.

During the first years of Soviet rule, Armenia suffered significant territorial losses. Under the Treaty of Kars, signed on October 18, 1921, Kars province and the Surmalu region were transferred to Turkey. By special arrangement, Nakhichevan was handed over to Soviet Azerbaijan. Due to internal political intrigues, Nagorno-Karabakh was also incorporated into Azerbaijan. On July 5, 1921, the Caucasian Bureau of the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks) decided to grant Nagorno-Karabakh autonomous status within Azerbaijan.

There were, however, certain successes. The nationwide struggle of the Zangezur Armenians, led by Garegin Nzhdeh, bore fruit, and Zangezur remained part of Soviet Armenia. In February 1921, Lori was liberated and incorporated into Soviet Armenia. The local struggle against the Georgian Menshevik authorities was used to further the Sovietization of Georgia.

On March 12, 1922, the three Transcaucasian republics signed a federal treaty to create the Transcaucasian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (TSFSR), which lasted until 1936. On December 30, 1922, the four Soviet republics issued a declaration establishing the USSR. In 1936, according to a new constitutional arrangement, the federation of Transcaucasian republics was abolished, and a new constitution of the Armenian SSR was adopted in 1937. Armenia thus became a constituent republic of the USSR.

During its seven decades within the USSR, Armenia underwent a difficult path of socio-economic and political development, marked by achievements and hardships, successes and sacrifices. The lives of the Armenian people were subject to conditions typical for the entire Union. By the 1920s, the administrative-command system of the Communist Party was established in Armenia. It became the state apparatus, undermining democratic institutions.

In the first decade of Soviet rule, major initiatives were undertaken in industrial development. Across Armenia, as in the entire USSR, agriculture was subjected to collectivization, involving the forced and brutal suppression of peasant households. This enabled the state to fully control agricultural revenues, the majority of which were directed to industrial development.

From the mid-1920s, the Soviet authorities began implementing an industrialization policy. Numerous hydroelectric stations and industrial enterprises were built. The creation of a strong industrial base was regarded by the Communist Party as the key factor for building socialism.

By the 1940s, copper mining, chemical and building materials industries, as well as light and food industries, developed in Armenia. However, serious mistakes were made in the siting of industrial enterprises, and environmental concerns were largely ignored.

After World War II, particularly from the 1960s onward, leading sectors in the republic’s industry included mechanical engineering, equipment production, automation, and computing technology. Significant attention was also paid to expanding the energy base. Between 1946 and 1950, more than fifty industrial enterprises were constructed.

Despite growth in production volumes, many goods were of low quality. The administrative-command system aimed to transform Armenia into a “major chemistry” republic. From the mid-1970s, this shifted toward “small-scale household chemistry.” Industrial development made Armenia a predominantly industrial country and accelerated urbanization, with the majority of the population living in cities.

Despite numerous agrarian reforms, rising purchase prices, and other measures, agriculture continued to lag significantly behind global averages. The lack of motivation among collective farm workers was acute. Rural areas remained far behind urban centers in social and cultural development.

Under the established one-party system, violations of legality became commonplace. The authorities conducted campaigns against the Armenian Apostolic Church, closing and demolishing hundreds of churches and monasteries, and persecuting clergy and believers. In the late 1930s, representatives of the intelligentsia, clergy, civil servants, as well as numerous party and state officials were repressed, often executed. Among the victims was the Catholicos of All Armenians, Khoren Muradbekyan. According to incomplete data, more than 6,000 people were executed in Armenia between 1936 and 1938.

In 1949, thousands of families were unlawfully deported from Armenia to the Altai region. The republic’s party-state bureaucracy obediently implemented all central directives.

The Armenian people actively participated in World War II. During the Great Patriotic War (1941–1945), hundreds of thousands of Armenians fought against Nazi Germany, including in six national Armenian divisions. Over 500,000 men were conscripted from Soviet Armenia. Numerous Armenian military leaders were decorated, including Marshals Hovhannes Bagramyan, Hamazasp Babajanyan, S. Khudyakov (Armenak Khamperyants), Admiral Hovhannes Isakov, among others. Approximately 100 Armenians were awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union. Around 100,000 Armenians served as partisans in Europe.

Relations with the diaspora evolved in a complex manner. In the 1920s, diaspora organizations provided assistance to Armenia, enabling the repatriation of more than 40,000 Armenians. From the late 1930s, connections with the diaspora were severed.

After World War II, following the active participation of the diaspora in the fight against fascism, Armenia’s ties with the diaspora were restored. In the late 1940s, more than 80,000 Armenians returned to the republic. However, from the mid-1970s onward, worsening living conditions in the USSR contributed to renewed emigration from Armenia.

From the mid-1970s, negative trends emerged in the Soviet economy. Extensive methods of management exhausted their potential, and the country began to lag behind the global level of scientific and technological progress. Economic stagnation became evident. Attempts at reform failed to address all spheres of social life. Corruption, embezzlement, and other negative phenomena became widespread, generating public discontent.

In the 1960s, a national awakening began in Armenia, expressed in the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Demonstrators demanded official recognition of the genocide. Underground organizations emerged, advocating for international recognition of the Armenian Cause, reunification of Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia, and the establishment of democratic governance.

In the mid-1980s, significant changes took place in the life of the Soviet Union. Under the leadership of Mikhail Gorbachev, a new course of perestroika was proclaimed, intended to encompass all spheres of social life. Broad popular support for the new policy stemmed from the hope that it would rescue the country from deep stagnation and renew public life. At the initial stage, certain advances were indeed achieved, especially in the establishment of glasnost and the democratization of social and political processes. Under pressure from progressive forces, the Communist Party was compelled to relinquish its monopoly on power, thus creating real preconditions for the emergence of a multi-party system.

Democratization processes unfolded in Armenia as well. Within the general course of reforms, many past events were re-evaluated; society returned to moral values previously rejected by official ideology; the Armenian Church experienced a visible revival; and the idea of unity between Armenians of the homeland and the diaspora gained wide recognition.

A unique catalyst of these developments in Armenia became the Karabakh Movement. The Armenians of Artsakh—who had repeatedly, though unsuccessfully, raised the issue of integrating the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region (NKAR) into the Armenian SSR—again demanded the reunification of a divided people. They believed that perestroika must penetrate all spheres of societal life, including interethnic relations.

On 20 February 1988, the NKAR Regional Soviet adopted a decision to reunify with the Armenian SSR. Mass rallies and demonstrations in support of the Armenians of Artsakh took place throughout Armenia. The Armenian people appealed to the union authorities with hope, expecting a just resolution of the Karabakh issue.

However, this demand was met with hostility not only by Azerbaijan but also by the central Soviet authorities. On 27–29 February 1988, pogroms against Armenians occurred in Sumgait (Azerbaijan), resulting in the deaths of dozens of innocent people. This crime received no political assessment, nor were its true organizers identified and punished.

The Karabakh Movement gained the broad support of all strata of Armenian society. The Karabakh Committee was formed, assuming leadership of the expanding movement. Under powerful popular pressure, on 15 June 1988 the Supreme Soviet of the Armenian SSR expressed its approval for the incorporation of NKAR into Armenia. Yet one month later, the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet rejected the joint request of the NKAR Regional Soviet and the Armenian SSR to reunify the region with Armenia.

On 7 December 1988, a devastating earthquake struck Armenia, affecting nearly 40% of its territory. Numerous cities and hundreds of villages were destroyed; according to official data, about 25,000 people perished. Many Soviet republics, foreign countries, international organizations, and the diaspora provided essential and tangible assistance to the disaster-stricken regions. Thanks to this aid, a number of enterprises were restored and new residential districts were built, although various circumstances prevented the full implementation of reconstruction plans.

Despite the catastrophe, the movement did not subside. Its demands now extended beyond solving the Karabakh issue, raising urgent questions of environmental protection, homeland–diaspora unity, and broad democratic reforms. The movement evolved into the Pan-Armenian National Movement, which enjoyed wide public support. The crisis of republican authority became irreversible.

On 12 January 1989, the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet suspended the legislative and executive bodies of the NKAR. A Committee for Special Administration was established. In the spring, after the leaders of the Karabakh Movement were released from prison, the struggle gained new momentum. Its program now addressed numerous national issues, including the restoration of Armenian state independence. The establishment of the PANM was directed precisely toward these goals.

From July 1989, violating international norms, Azerbaijan imposed a blockade on Armenia and the NKAR. Fuel, food supplies, and other essential goods ceased to reach the republic, deepening the economic crisis. This blockade marked the beginning of an undeclared war. In 1990, Azerbaijan also cut off the gas pipeline supplying Armenia from Russia.

On 16 August 1989, an Assembly of Authorized Representatives of the NKAR elected a National Council to stabilize and supervise the situation in the region. To neutralize its activity, the USSR Supreme Soviet created a republican organizing committee with equal representation from Armenians and Azerbaijanis. However, this principle was violated, and the committee pursued an anti-Armenian course.

Under these conditions, on 1 December 1989, the Supreme Soviet of the Armenian SSR and the NKAR National Council jointly adopted a resolution on the reunification of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh. Remaining faithful to their policy, in January 1990 the Azerbaijani authorities organized new massacres of Armenians in Baku. At the same time, the Azerbaijani Popular Front carried out attacks along the Armenian–Azerbaijani border. Armenian self-defense units responded resolutely. More than 300,000 Armenians fled Azerbaijan, while the Azerbaijani population left Armenia.

In May 1990, elections to the Supreme Soviet of the Armenian SSR were held, in which the Pan-Armenian National Movement won a decisive victory. The leader of the PANM, Levon Ter-Petrosyan, was elected Chairman of the Supreme Soviet.

On 23 August 1990, the Supreme Soviet of the Armenian SSR adopted the Declaration of Independence of Armenia, which—“expressing the united will of the Armenian people, based on the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the recognized norms of international law, and setting the task of creating a democratic, lawful state”—proclaimed the beginning of the process of establishing independent statehood. The Armenian SSR was renamed the Republic of Armenia, and new national symbols—flag and coat of arms—were adopted. On 28 February 1991, a parliamentary law established the foundations of a multi-party political system.

With the support of Soviet internal troops, Azerbaijani armed formations depopulated the Armenian villages of Getashen and Martunashen in April–May 1991, and in the summer of 1992 they carried out similar actions in the Shahumyan and Martakert districts. Despite territorial losses, the Armenian population continued its struggle for liberation. Owing to selfless efforts, Armenian freedom fighters liberated numerous settlements. In September 1991, Nagorno-Karabakh proclaimed its independence.

On 19 August 1991, the Soviet security structures attempted to establish a military dictatorship in the Soviet Union through a coup d’état. However, decisive actions by liberal forces and Western intervention led to the failure of this attempt. The coup accelerated the dissolution of the USSR and the attainment of independence by its constituent republics. In the referendum held on 21 September 1991, an overwhelming majority of voters opted for independence. On 28 September 1991, the Supreme Council of the Republic of Armenia proclaimed independence. Shortly thereafter, on 16 October 1991, the first presidential elections were held in Armenia. Levon Ter-Petrosyan was elected President of the Republic of Armenia, and Gagik Harutyunyan became Vice President. During this period, guerrilla warfare intensified in the enemy-occupied regions of Artsakh.

On 8 December 1991, Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus signed an agreement dissolving the USSR and establishing the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). On 21 December of the same year, eleven sovereign states, including Armenia, signed the treaty creating the CIS. Armenia was subsequently recognized as a sovereign state by a number of countries. On 2 March 1992, Armenia became a member of the United Nations.

On 8 May 1992, Armenian detachments in Artsakh liberated Shushi. A few days later, they secured the Lachin Corridor, providing a vital link between Artsakh and the Republic of Armenia. The national liberation struggle of Artsakh entered a new phase. Unable to resolve the Karabakh issue in its favor by military means and seeking to avoid further losses, the authorities of Azerbaijan were compelled to enter negotiations mediated by the Russian Federation and the OSCE Minsk Group. A ceasefire was established by the agreement of 12 May 1994.

Throughout the 1991–1994 war, the Armenian side suffered more than 6,500 fatalities and more than 15,000 wounded. According to various sources, Azerbaijan’s losses amounted to 20–25 thousand killed and approximately 50 thousand wounded. The ceasefire was violated by Azerbaijan in April 2016 during the Four-Day War.

After the proclamation of independence, Armenia undertook significant reforms: private property was restored, the economy became more diversified, land was privatized, and trade, public catering, and small businesses were privatized. Despite the severe conditions generated by the collapse of the USSR, the severing of economic ties, and the blockade of transport routes and gas pipelines by Azerbaijan, the Armenian economy began gradually emerging from crisis in 1994–1996, achieving its first successes in the industrial sector. The Armenian Nuclear Power Plant, shut down after the earthquake of 7 December 1988, was reopened, which helped alleviate the energy crisis.

A multiparty system was established, along with numerous public unions and associations, and the socio-political activity of the population increased. On 5 July 1995, the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia was adopted by nationwide referendum.

Conditions were created for the unrestricted activity of the Armenian Church, allowing for the restoration of moral values that had long been integral to Armenian cultural and social life.

In its foreign policy, the Republic of Armenia advocated for the establishment of equitable relations with foreign states and the peaceful resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, insisting on the unconditional security of the population of Artsakh.

In the presidential elections held in September 1996, Levon Ter-Petrosyan was re-elected for a second term. According to official data of the Central Electoral Commission, 51.75% of voters supported him, while 41.29% voted for the united opposition candidate, Vazgen Manukyan. Dissatisfied with the results and believing the elections to have been falsified, citizens organized mass rallies demanding a second round. Public discontent was also driven by deteriorating living standards and unchecked criminal groups that had emerged in the country. On 25 September 1996, protesters stormed the parliament building. The uprising was suppressed; opposition leaders and activists were arrested, staged trials were held, and rallies and demonstrations were banned. Earlier, in 1994, several members of the ARF Dashnaktsutyun party had been arrested, and the party itself was declared illegal.

The crisis caused by internal factors was further aggravated by disagreements over the resolution of the Karabakh issue. The disagreements arose not only between the leadership of Nagorno-Karabakh and the Republic of Armenia but also within Armenia’s own governing elite. The position of the President and his supporters was not accepted. By that time, the President and his political base, the Armenian National Movement, no longer held a majority in the National Assembly. Under these conditions, on 3 February 1998, Levon Ter-Petrosyan resigned. In the snap elections held in March of the same year, Robert Kocharyan, then serving as Prime Minister, was elected President of the Republic of Armenia.

On 27 October 1999, during a question-and-answer session between the National Assembly and the Government of the Republic of Armenia, five armed terrorists stormed the parliamentary chamber and opened fire. The attack claimed the lives of Speaker Karen Demirchyan, Prime Minister Vazgen Sargsyan, Deputy Speakers Yuri Bakhshyan and Ruben Miroyan, MPs Armenak Armenakyan, Mikael Kotanyan, Henrikh Abrahamyan, and Minister Leonard Petrosyan; eight others were wounded. The terrorist act of 27 October sharply exacerbated the country’s domestic political situation.

The fourth presidential election in the Republic of Armenia took place in 2003. In the second round, Robert Kocharyan was re-elected president. Parliamentary elections were held in May of the same year; no party won an absolute majority. Armenia formed its first coalition government, composed of the Republican Party of Armenia, the Orinats Yerkir Party, and the reinstated ARF Dashnaktsutyun, under the premiership of Andranik Margaryan, who had held the post since 2000.

In the parliamentary elections of 12 May 2007, the Republican Party of Armenia secured a majority. A coalition agreement was signed between the Republican Party and the Prosperous Armenia Party, and Serzh Sargsyan was appointed Prime Minister.

The fifth presidential election took place on 19 February 2008. The candidates included the first President, Levon Ter-Petrosyan, and Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan. Prime Minister Sargsyan was elected President of the Republic of Armenia. Refusing to recognize the results, the radical wing of the opposition, led by Ter-Petrosyan, began mass protests on 20 February, lasting ten days. Escalating tensions led to the tragic events of 1–2 March, when clashes between police and protesters resulted in ten deaths and numerous injuries. A 20-day state of emergency was declared.

To ease societal tensions, the President proposed the creation of a Public Council in autumn 2008, consisting of specialists from diverse fields and representatives of the intellectual elite.

In the sixth presidential election in 2013, Serzh Sargsyan was re-elected. Following a referendum on 6 December 2015, constitutional amendments were adopted that transformed Armenia into a parliamentary republic with a dominant role for the National Assembly and the government, while the incumbent president retained his powers until the end of his term.

On 2 March 2018, Armen Sarkissian, a former Armenia’s ambassador to the United Kingdom, was elected the fourth President of Armenia by parliament and assumed office on 9 April 2018, when President Serzh Sargsyan’s term ended and the government resigned. On the same day, Sargsyan—having completed his second term—was nominated by the Republican Party for the post of Prime Minister and was elected on 17 April despite widespread public protests. On 23 April, under immense pressure from the public, he resigned.

On 8 May, the National Assembly elected Nikol Pashinyan—leader of the Civil Contract Party and organizer of the mass protests—as Prime Minister. In the snap parliamentary elections of 2 December 2018, Pashinyan’s “My Step” alliance won with 70.42% of the vote. On 14 January 2019, President Armen Sarkissian signed the decree appointing Pashinyan as Prime Minister.

From the very beginning, it became evident that Armenia’s future was being shaped by external forces and that Pashinyan struggled to govern effectively. This became especially clear during the COVID-19 pandemic. Armenia’s state of emergency lasted six months—from 16 March to 11 September 2019. After legislative amendments, a four-month nationwide quarantine was imposed until 11 January 2021 and later extended to 11 July 2021. The Armenian government spent 163.4 billion drams (about USD 335 million) on 24 anti-crisis programs. Despite these measures, Armenia’s economic activity declined by 7.6% in 2020. Economic recovery in 2021 was driven largely by high global copper prices, which boosted mining revenues. In 2022, Armenia’s economy was further supported by relocants from Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus following the outbreak of the Russia–Ukraine conflict.

On 27 September 2020, Azerbaijan launched a large-scale offensive along the entire line of contact in Artsakh. On the night of 9–10 November, the leaders of Armenia, Russia, and Azerbaijan signed a declaration ending the war. Under the agreement, part of the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region (with the exception of Shushi and Hadrut), as well as the Berdzor humanitarian corridor linking Artsakh with Armenia, remained under Armenian control.

The post-war status quo lasted until September 2023. After more than nine months of blockade, Azerbaijan launched another attack on Artsakh on 17 September. In parallel with ethnic cleansing, the entire territory of Artsakh fell under Azerbaijani control on 20 September. The entire Armenian population of Artsakh fled to the Republic of Armenia. As of 29 September, approximately 85,000 forcibly displaced persons had arrived in Armenia, while around 30,000 had left Artsakh earlier. Today, Artsakh has been entirely deprived of its indigenous Armenian population.

Following Armenia’s defeat in the 2020 war and under pressure from opposition forces, Pashinyan resigned, and snap parliamentary elections were held on 20 June 2021, after which he again assumed the post of Prime Minister.

On 23 January 2022, President Armen Sarkissian announced his intention to resign, citing his inability to influence Armenia’s internal and foreign policy processes. His resignation took effect on 1 February 2022. On 3 March, the parliament elected Vahagn Khachaturyan, former Minister of High-Tech Industry, as President of the Republic; his inauguration took place on 13 March.