Changes

Armenia was traditionally a border state that was kept independent by the [[Roman Empire]] against frequent [[Parthian]] and later [[Persian]] invasions.  It served as a buffer state between the empires.  Armenia was the first nation to convert to Christianity, in 301 before Christianity was even legal in Rome. Armenia then flourished and its capital Ani was called the "city of a thousand and one churches."

Armenia was traditionally a border state that was kept independent by the [[Roman Empire]] against frequent [[Parthian]] and later [[Persian]] invasions.  It served as a buffer state between the empires.  Armenia was the first nation to convert to Christianity, in 301 before Christianity was even legal in Rome. Armenia then flourished and its capital Ani was called the "city of a thousand and one churches."

==Ottoman areas==

==Ottoman control of Western Armenia==

Following victory over [[Persia]] at the Battle of Chaldiran in 1514, the [[Ottoman Empire]] extended its rule over western Armenia. In 1555 Armenia was divided between the Shahs of Persia and the Sultans of Turkey.  

Following victory over [[Persia]] at the Battle of Chaldiran in 1514, the [[Ottoman Empire]] extended its rule over western Armenia. In 1555 Armenia was divided between the Shahs of Persia and the Sultans of Turkey.  

With the advent of [[World War I]] the situation became much worse.  As Christians in an Empire of Muslims that was now at war with Christian nations, especially Russia, the Armenians were viewed by the Ottoman government as a threat and potential subversive allies of the Russians.  The Ottomans first disarmed the Armenian population, and then sought to destroy them starting in 1915.  A massive [[genocide]] occurred, consisting of the deaths of 600,000 or more Armenian men, women and children. Most died by starvation in the desert. Turkey has never admitted the deaths were a premeditated genocide, and the topic is generally not discussed in Turkey.   

With the advent of [[World War I]] the situation became much worse.  As Christians in an Empire of Muslims that was now at war with Christian nations, especially Russia, the Armenians were viewed by the Ottoman government as a threat and potential subversive allies of the Russians.  The Ottomans first disarmed the Armenian population, and then sought to destroy them starting in 1915.  A massive [[genocide]] occurred, consisting of the deaths of 600,000 or more Armenian men, women and children. Most died by starvation in the desert. Turkey has never admitted the deaths were a premeditated genocide, and the topic is generally not discussed in Turkey.   

==Russian rule==

==Russian control of Eastern Armenia==

The Armenians, divided under the rule of the  Ottoman Empire and Persia and ravaged by the  fighting between them, turned for military assistance and political protection in the 18th  and 19th centuries to [[History of Russia|Russia]]. The Russian advance  along the Caspian and the expansion into Georgia  encouraged requests for help. When a 70,000 strong  Persian army entered Transcaucasia in 1804, the Russian general Tsitsianov began his advance on  Erevan. Many Armenians joined the Russians  captured in 1808. In 1810 the Turks and Persians  invaded the area, but the Russian commander M. I. Kutuzov routed the Ottoman army on the Danube.  Turkey recognized Russian rule in Transcaucasia in the Treaty of Bucharest in 1812. Resounding  defeats imposed on the Persians forced the shah to agree in 1813 to the incorporation of a large part  of Transcaucasia into the Russian Empire. Russian victories over renewed war with Persia led to the  unification of Transcaucasia with Russia, 1829.  

The Armenians, divided under the rule of the  Ottoman Empire and Persia and ravaged by the  fighting between them, turned for military assistance and political protection in the 18th  and 19th centuries to [[History of Russia|Russia]]. The Russian advance  along the Caspian and the expansion into Georgia  encouraged requests for help. When a 70,000 strong  Persian army entered Transcaucasia in 1804, the Russian general Tsitsianov began his advance on  Erevan. Many Armenians joined the Russians  captured in 1808. In 1810 the Turks and Persians  invaded the area, but the Russian commander M. I. Kutuzov routed the Ottoman army on the Danube.  Turkey recognized Russian rule in Transcaucasia in the Treaty of Bucharest in 1812. Resounding  defeats imposed on the Persians forced the shah to agree in 1813 to the incorporation of a large part  of Transcaucasia into the Russian Empire. Russian victories over renewed war with Persia led to the  unification of Transcaucasia with Russia, 1829.  

Under Russia, the number of Armenians in the area now represented by present-day Armenia increased from 46,000 in 1827 to 511,000 in 1897. Thus by joining Russia, Eastern Armenia became the home of the national survival of the Armenian people.  

 

Under Russia, the number of Armenians in the area now represented by present-day Armenia increased from 46,000 in 1827 to 511,000 in 1897. Thus by joining Russia, Eastern Armenia became the home of the national survival of the Armenian people. Despite tsarist restrictions and oppression, the Armenians developed a cultural renaissance and a national awareness which surpassed that of their co-nationals in the Ottoman and Persian empires. During the 19th century the Eastern Armenians (those in Russia) strove for regional autonomy and for the repartition of Transcaucasia into distinct ethnic provinces as well as for personal and collective security. They did not seek national independence but identified with oppositional Russia in an attempt to effect internal reforms.

 

 

Being part of Russia opened up new market opportunities and allowed the emergence of capitalism, which brought about socioeconomic changes in almost all the regions of Eastern Armenia, including Zangezur and Kazakh. By the end of the 19th century both Zangezur and Kazakh had become major grain producers, and while Zangezur was also engaged in sericulture, an important ocupation in Kazakh was hog raising. The rising class of Armenian businessmen and bankers were centered not so much in Yerevan but in Baku and Tiflis (Tbilisi, Georgia), and sent younger sons to set up business connections in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Following the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878, Russians occupied the six Armenian vilayets, and Armenian nationalism was stimulated. In 1880, a revolutionary organization known as the Defenders of the Fatherland was organized in Erzurum. A few years later, in 1885, the Armenakan society was organized, and in 1887 the Hunchagian Party appeared. The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktzutun) was formed in 1890.  The Dashnaks were socialists who sought to overthrow the Tsarist  system and create an independent state. They also wanted to acquire the Armenian areas in the otooman Empire by force.  

Following the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878, Russians occupied the six Armenian vilayets, and Armenian nationalism was stimulated. In 1880, a revolutionary organization known as the Defenders of the Fatherland was organized in Erzurum. A few years later, in 1885, the Armenakan society was organized, and in 1887 the Hunchagian Party appeared. The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktzutun) was formed in 1890.  The Dashnaks were socialists who sought to overthrow the Tsarist  system and create an independent state. They also wanted to acquire the Armenian areas in the otooman Empire by force.  

The making of a modern Armenian nation was an intellectual event that took place largely outside the Armenian heartland in the Armenian communities of Western Turkey, Russia, India, and Europe. It was here that the first generation of patriotic intellectuals emerged. By the 18th century the Armenian language had fragmented into numerous mutually incomprehensible dialects, while any knowledge of Armenian history had been effectively wiped out except among a small group of monks, who copied and recopied the ancient texts. The first modern generation of Armenian patriots undertook a revival of Armenian letters and spread the new nationalism to the next generation of patriotic intellectuals from Western Anatolia and the Armenian colonies of the Russian Empire.<ref> Ronald Grigor Suny, "The Formation of the Armenian Patriotic Intelligentsia in Russia: The First Generations." ''Armenian Review'' 1983 36(3): 18-34. </ref>

The making of a modern Armenian nation was an intellectual event that took place largely outside the Armenian heartland in the Armenian communities of Western Turkey, Russia, India, and Europe. It was here that the first generation of patriotic intellectuals emerged. By the 18th century the Armenian language had fragmented into numerous mutually incomprehensible dialects, while any knowledge of Armenian history had been effectively wiped out except among a small group of monks, who copied and recopied the ancient texts. The first modern generation of Armenian patriots undertook a revival of Armenian letters and spread the new nationalism to the next generation of patriotic intellectuals from Western Anatolia and the Armenian colonies of the Russian Empire.<ref> Ronald Grigor Suny, "The Formation of the Armenian Patriotic Intelligentsia in Russia: The First Generations." ''Armenian Review'' 1983 36(3): 18-34. </ref>

Gevorg Bashinjaghian (1857-1925) was a leading  Armenian landscape painter. Educated at the Petersburg Academy of Art, Bashinjaghian was acquainted with European, Russian, Oriental, and classical Greek and Roman art. His 1883 exhibition in Tiflis of 16 landscapes of Armenia and the Caucasus established Armenian realistic landscape painting as a distinct genre of art. In Italy in 1884, he admired Renaissance art, and in Paris, 1899-1901, he participated in exhibitions with contemporary European artists. He painted several views of Ararat, Lake Sevan, and other Armenian landscapes combining peacefulness, simplicity, and majesty.  

The new literature of the Eastern Armenians which emerged in the mid-19th century resulted in a shift from the antiquated church language, which had dominated the literature of both east and west, to the currently used vernacular. The eastern center of its development was finally Yerevan, whose dialect became the adopted literary language of the east. The literature ranged from a romantic to a realist approach.

 

Despite his short and difficult life, Armenian poet Petros Durian (1851-72) left a rich literary legacy: plays, poetry, and journalistic articles. His historical plays are the first examples of the romantic drama in Armenian literature, and express a deeply democratic mood of the writer; his journalistic writings show that Durian was concerned about contemporary social issues. But his poetry was his greatest contribution, rejecting classicism and descriptiveness, and full of deep feelings. Durian's lyrical hero, with few exceptions, is the poet himself, but his poems express mankind's thoughts and aspirations, and possess great social meaning.  

The Armenian journalist Grigor Artsruni (1845-92) published the first European-style Armenian magazine, ''Mshak''. As editor and proprietor from 1872 to 1892, he published views on a wide range of contemporary national and international issues: the Russo-Turkish War of 1877, the rise of the Eastern Question, and the Congress of Berlin in 1878, especially as they affected the Armenian subjects of the Ottoman Empire. Among his contributors the most prominent was the novelist Raffi (pseud. for Hakob Melik` Hakobyan, 1835-88).  

Alexander Yeritsian (1841-1902) was a major Armenian public and literary figure who wrote on historical, archaeological, ethnic, and socioeconomic matters from a national-conservative viewpoint. Yeritsian was well read in European economics, and his views, as expressed in the economic weekly ''Vacharakan'', which started publication in Tiflis in 1866, cover commerce, speculative finance, silver and gold currency, paper money, rise and fall in the value of money, free trade, competition, supply and demand, industry and savings, and other aspects of the world economy of his day.  

A. Araskhanian (1857-1912), editor of the Armenian monthly Moorch published in Tiflis, 1889-1907, resolved to foster literary cultural progress through the press. Philologists, literary critics, and intellectuals wrote on the history and theory of literature for Moorch and encouraged young writers and initiators of the literature of village life. Moorch enhanced understanding between writers in Eastern Armenia (in Russia) and Western Armenia (in the Ottoman Empire), emphasized the interaction between life and literature, and consistently observed progressive principles in literary criticism.  

The Armenian journalist Grigor Artsruni (1845-92) published the first European-style Armenian magazine, ''Mshak'' in Tbilisi. As editor and proprietor from 1872 to 1892, he published views on a wide range of contemporary national and international issues: the Russo-Turkish War of 1877, the rise of the Eastern Question, and the Congress of Berlin in 1878, especially as they affected the Armenian subjects of the Ottoman Empire. The newspaper has played an important role in Armenian social and intellectual life, consistently promoting solidarity among Armenians, Russians, and the people of the Caucasus, and promoting economic and cultural ties. During the Russo-Turkish War, 1877-78, convinced that the liberation of the Armenian people was possible only with Russia's help, Mshak supported the western Armenians' liberation movement. Encouraging the development of Armenian literature, the newspaper championed critical realism. It broadened the world view of the Armenian press by covering all major events and cultural phenomena. Many Armenian intellectuals contributed to ''Mshak''; the most prominent was the novelist Raffi (pseud. for Hakob Melik` Hakobyan, 1835-88). .  

Hakob Kochoyan (1883-1959), was a prominent Armenian painter, professor, and lecturer in the Yerevan Institute of Fine Arts, famed as an innovator in his style of drawing. Receiving his artistic education and living in Europe before settling in Yerevan in 1922, he expressed the artistic traditions of East and West. His work represents a rich variety of style, theme, genre, and technique in oil, watercolor, gouache, engravings, pencil drawings, and sketches on canvas, stamps, crystal, and china. His paintings and illustrations in books and periodicals deal with Armenian history, natural scenery, folklore, and contemporary life. They express the nation's vitality and durability. His paintings have been exhibited internationally.  

Hakob Kochoyan (1883-1959), was a prominent Armenian painter, professor, and lecturer in the Yerevan Institute of Fine Arts, famed as an innovator in his style of drawing. Receiving his artistic education and living in Europe before settling in Yerevan in 1922, he expressed the artistic traditions of East and West. His work represents a rich variety of style, theme, genre, and technique in oil, watercolor, gouache, engravings, pencil drawings, and sketches on canvas, stamps, crystal, and china. His paintings and illustrations in books and periodicals deal with Armenian history, natural scenery, folklore, and contemporary life. They express the nation's vitality and durability. His paintings have been exhibited internationally.  

====Music and song====

====Music and song====

Valuable poetry and songs were written by Bishop Petros Berdoumian Nakhichevantsi, erudite theologian and poet in Armenia (d. 1784). He represents the revival and renovation of 18th-century national religious songs, which were meant to combat the weakening in traditional Armenian piety and morals due to the plans of the sultans to assimilate subject nations. Nakhichevantsi witnessed the siege of Nakhichevan in 1740 by the tyrant Tahmaz, and his Elegy expressed the nation's sufferings and the misery of the church. His message to the people is to struggle against tyranny and live a meaningful life.  

Valuable poetry and songs were written by Bishop Petros Berdoumian Nakhichevantsi, erudite theologian and poet in Armenia (d. 1784). He represents the revival and renovation of 18th-century national religious songs, which were meant to combat the weakening in traditional Armenian piety and morals due to the plans of the sultans to assimilate subject nations. Nakhichevantsi witnessed the siege of Nakhichevan in 1740 by the tyrant Tahmaz, and his Elegy expressed the nation's sufferings and the misery of the church. His message to the people is to struggle against tyranny and live a meaningful life.  

==Historiography==

==Historiography==

The Armenian historian Ashot Hovhannisyan (1887-1972) studied in Germany where he received his doctorate in 1913. In 1920 he was a member of the Soviet Russian delegation sent to negotiate with the government of Armenia. Subsequently he held a number of educational and political posts. Arrested in 1937, he resumed his historical studies in 1954 and was appointed director of the Historical Section of the Armenian Academy of Sciences in 1961. During this period he published several important works, the principal one being his ''Drvagner Hay Azatagrakan Mtk'i Patmut'yan'' [Episodes in the history of the concept of Armenian liberation].  

 

 

The historian Ashot Hovhannisyan (1887-1972) studied in Germany where he received his doctorate in 1913. In 1920 he was a member of the Soviet Russian delegation sent to negotiate with the government of Armenia. Subsequently he held a number of educational and political posts. Arrested in 1937, he resumed his historical studies in 1954 and was appointed director of the Historical Section of the Armenian Academy of Sciences in 1961. During this period he published several important works, the principal one being his ''Drvagner Hay Azatagrakan Mtk'i Patmut'yan'' [Episodes in the history of the concept of Armenian liberation].  

Under the totalitarian Soviet regime, historiographical policy was laid down by the Party authorities and imposed through the Academy of Sciences. As a consequence, 19th-20th-century Armenian history could not be analyzed critically. The events of 1917-21 had to be discussed purely from a class point of view, suppressing national aspects. In medieval studies, Armenian history of the 12th and 13th centuries could not be based on primary evidence; the religious T'ondrakian movement had to be presented purely as a social phenomenon. Nevertheless, many good studies were published, especially on the ancient and medieval periods. There were also some positive aspects of Soviet policy, such as the establishment of the Academy of Sciences of Armenia in 1943.  

Under the totalitarian Soviet regime, historiographical policy was laid down by the Party authorities and imposed through the Academy of Sciences. As a consequence, 19th-20th-century Armenian history could not be analyzed critically. The events of 1917-21 had to be discussed purely from a class point of view, suppressing national aspects. In medieval studies, Armenian history of the 12th and 13th centuries could not be based on primary evidence; the religious T'ondrakian movement had to be presented purely as a social phenomenon. Nevertheless, many good studies were published, especially on the ancient and medieval periods. There were also some positive aspects of Soviet policy, such as the establishment of the Academy of Sciences of Armenia in 1943.