Summary
Armenia and the Armenians in International Treaties
Sahakyan, Tigran
(28th c. BCE to 19th c. CE) (Yerevan: Lusakn, 2024)
This study presents the most significant treaties relating to Armenia and the Armenians, entered into both by Armenia and other states over the course of some five millennia, from 2800 BCE to the early 19th century CE. They have been collected from Sumerian, Hittite, Hurrian, Assyrian, Urartean (Araratean), Akkadian, Elamite, Persian, Greek, Roman, Syrian, Armenian, Georgian, Byzantine, Arab, Turkic, Western European, American, Russian and other sources, incorporating the findings of the most important works by Armenian and foreign scholars. Some of these treaties were signed by the internationally recognized Armenian state in various eras, including Aratta, Hayasa-Azzi, Nairi, Urartu, Yervanduni Armenia, Armenia Major, Bagratuni Armenia and the Cilician Kingdom. Others were signed during periods when the Armenians were stateless, including the eras of the Roman Empire, Byzantine Empire, Arab Caliphate, Ottoman Empire, Russian Empire and domination of other great powers.
International treaties document the essence of relations between states and peoples, and thus, this study allows readers to form a clear picture of the political trajectory of the Armenian people and state through this period of nearly 4700 years from 2800 BCE to the early 19th century CE.
Treaty No. 1. In the 28th-27th centuries BCE the ancient states of Aratta (Armenia) and Sumer entered into a trade and commerce treaty, whereby Sumer is obligated to provide Aratta grain and other agricultural products, in exchange for which Aratta undertakes to export, via the Euphrates River, gold, silver, lapis lazuli, carnelian, and various construction materials.
Treaty No. 2. In the 14th century BCE the Hayasa-Azzi King Hukkana (1370-1345 BCE) and the Hittite King Suppiluliuma (1370-1326 BCE) entered into a peace, friendship and mutual assistance treaty, whereby 1) the parties agree to refrain from attacking each other and to provide military assistance to each other in the event of third-party attack; 2) the Hittite king gives his sister in marriage to the Hayasa-Azzi king, according her the title of queen; 3) the Hayasa-Azzi king withdraws his troops from Hittite territories.
Treaty No. 3. In 1314 BCE the Hittite King Mursili II (1325-1303 BCE) and Mutti, head of the governing council of the Hayasa-Azzi city of Halimana entered into a peace treaty, whereby 1) the parties form a military-political alliance; 2) the Hayasa-Azzi state provides the Hittite state with an army of 3000 soldiers and returns 1000 captive Hittites to their homeland.
Treaty No. 4. At the beginning of the 11th century BCE the Assyrian King Tiglath-Pileser I (1117-1080 BC) and the 23 “kings” of the lands of Nairi entered into a peace treaty, whereby 1) the 23 kings of Nairi pledge their unreserved allegiance to Assyria; 2) the 23 kings of Nairi send their sons to Assyria as hostage-sureties; 3) 23 kings of Nairi undertake to pay annual tribute of 1200 horses and 2000 oxen to Assyria.
Treaty No. 5. The Araratean (Urartean) Kingdom lasted close to 300 years from 880 to 590 BCE. During the reign of Argishti I (786-764 BCE), Urartu reached the peak of its glory and power. Urartu subdued Assryria, the mightiest state of the ancient world, and consequently, in 774 BCE Argishti I and the Assyrian King Shalmaneser III (782-772 BCE) entered into a peace treaty, whereby Assyria becomes Urartu’s vassal state, paying tribute and ceding the country of Mana to Urartu. Urartu emerged as the strongest state in Asia Minor for the next century.
Treaty No. 6. In the 640s BCE, Assyria regained its power and Urartu became weaker. As a result of their territorial rivalry, in 639 BCE, Sarduri III (645-635 BCE) and Ashurbanipal (668-638 BCE) entered into a treaty of amity and support, whereby the parties agree to render mutual military assistance in case of external threats. However, that did not prevent the Medes in 612-605 BCE from destroying Assyria. In the 590s BCE, Urartu also succumbed to the invasions of Medes, Scythians and Cimmerians.
Treaty No. 7. In the Near East, the Median Empire rose out of the ruins of the Assyrian Empire. In the 580s BCE, the Kingdoms of Media and Armenia (Armina) entered into a peace treaty, whereby Armenia pledges fealty to Media, becoming a part of the Median Empire and agrees, in case of war, to supply 8,000 cavalry and 40,000 infantry.
Treaty No. 8. In 559 BCE Cyrus I (559-529 BCE) destroyed the Median Empire and founded the Achaemenian Empire of Iran. The Achaemenian Empire and Armenia (Arminiya) entered into a treaty of amity in 559-553 BCE, whereby the Armenian kingdom becomes part of the Achaemenian Empire and the leader of the Armenian forces is the Armenian King (later, satrap).
Treaty No. 9. Shortly after 200 BCE, a new power entered the Near East, Rome, which in 190 BCE at the Battle of Magnesia, destroyed the Seleucid King Antiochus III, the Great (223-187 BCE). The Armenian generals Artashes (Artaxias) and Zareh (Zariadres) served under King Antiochus the Great. After Antiochus’s defeat by the Romans, these Armenian generals entered into an alliance with Rome, and in 189 BCE, the newly established states of Armenia Major and Tsopk were recognized as independent states by Rome under the leadership of Artashes I (189-160 BCE) and Zareh respectively. The history of the state of Armenia Major starts from 189 BCE. Subsequently, in 94 BCE Tsopk was united with Armenia Major under the Armenian King Tigran II (the Great)).
Treaty No. 10. As early as the 3rd century BCE various regions that were part of the Yervanduni Kingdom were ceded by the Seleucids to neighboring countries, including Kartli. In the 180s BCE, in the city of Mtskheta, King Artshashes I and the Kartli and Osetian states entered into a peace treaty, whereby the regions of Gugark, Chorzene and Pariadres are returned to Armenia Major and amicable relations are established between the parties. Ten years later the Kartli-Oset parties breached the treaty, but after being defeated by the Armenians were obliged to mint coins bearing Artashes I’s image and to support Armenia Major with an army of 10,000 in wars against foreign invaders.
Treaty No. 11. At the beginning of the 2nd century BCE, two military-political alliances took shape in Asia Minor, the Roman and the Seleucid/Pontic. The Roman alliance comprised Cappadocia, Pergamon, Bithynia, Armenia Major and Tsopk. The Seleucid alliance comprised Pontus, Armenia Minor, Crimean Chersoneus (Kherson), Prince Gathalos of Sarmatia, Heraclea, Mesembria, and Cyzicus. The conflict ended with the victory of the Roman alliance, resulting in 179 BCE in a peace treaty between the Roman and Pontic Alliance, whereby 1) the Selucid (Pontic) alliance withdraws its forces from Cappadocia, pays large reparations to the Roman alliance, and releases its captives; 2) all of Karenitis and Derksene and half of Akilesene are ceded by Armenia Minor to Armenia Major; 3) the other half of Akilesene and the Ante-Taurus low lands are ceded to the Kingdom of Tsopk.
Treaty No. 12. In 165 BCE, King Artashes I of Armenia Major and the Seleucid King Antiochus IV (Epiphanes) (175-164 BCE) engaged in armed conflict. The Armenians were defeated, but through the intercession of the Medes, in 165 BCE the Armenians and Seleucids entered into a treaty, whereby Armenia Major retains its independence.
Treaty No. 13. Toward the end of the 2nd century BCE, King Artavazd I of Armenia Major (160-117 BCE) and the Parthia King Mithridates II (123-87 BCE) engaged in armed conflicts in which the Armenians were defeated. In 120 BCE, the Armenians and Parthians entered into a peace treaty, whereby several southern provinces of Armenia Major are ceded to Parthia and the crown prince Tigran (later Tigran II the Great) is taken to Parthia as a hostage-surety.
Treaty No. 14. In 95 BCE, Armenian crown prince Tigran, who was being held as a hostage-surety, was released, returned to Armenia Major and ascended to the throne. Tigran II the Great (95-55 BCE) established the Armenian Empire. In 93 BCE Armenia’s King Tigran II and Pontus’s King Mithridates Eupator VI (120-63 BCE) entered into a treaty of amity and mutual military-political assistance, whereby 1) Armenian Minor remains part of Pontus; 2) Mithradates’ daughter Cleopatra marries Tigran II, becoming queen of Armenia Major; 3) the parties commit to mutual military-political assistance; 4) the parties agree that Armenia Major expands into Parthia, Mespotamia, Syria and Phoenicia, Cilicia, the South Caucasus, and Atropatene, while Pontus expands into Asia Minor and along the Black Sea basin.
Treaty No. 15. During the first period of the reign of Tigran II the Great (94-66 BCE) Armenia Major conquered Tsopk, Atropatene, Adiabene, Migdonia, Hadrene, Osroene, Commagene, the Cilician low lands, Syria, Phoenicia, Caucasian Albania, and Kartli, and became an empire. However, Rome grew stronger, overtaking Armenia Major, and in 66 BCE in Artashat, Tigran II the Great and the commander of the Roman Army of the East, Gnaeus Pompey, entered into a peace, amity and alliance treaty, whereby 1) Armenia Major relinquishes all of the regions conquered by Tigran II from 94 to 66 BCE, but kept the 15 provinces of Armenia Major (Upper Armenia, Tsopk, Aghdznik, Turuberan, Mokk, Korchayk, Persian Armenia, Vaspurakan, Siunik, Artsakh, Paytakaran, Utik, Gugark, Tayk, Ayrarat) and the Godarzenae region; 2) Rome recognizes the independence and territorial integrity of Armenia Major, and Tigran II the Great retains the title of King of Kings; 3) Armenia Major pays large reparations to Rome.
Treaty No. 16. In 37 CE Rome and Parthia entered into a treaty, whereby the Godarzenae region, totaling 4832 sq. km. (Samtskhe 2650 sq. km., Ajaria 1450 sq. km. and Tor 732 sq. km. ) are ceded to Kartli, and Armenian Mesopotamia, totaling 27,600 sq. km. (Tur-Abdi or Tsavdek Province 3975 sq. km. , Arvastan 5850 sq. km. and Greater Tsopk 17775 sq. km) are ceded to Parthia.
Treaty No. 17. During the period from 1 CE to 52 CE, Armenia Major was not ruled by an Armenian dynasty, but was ruled by Rome. In 52 CE, Parthia’s King Vologases I (Vagharsh 51-75 CE) installed his younger brother, Tiridates I (of the Arsacid dynasty, later Trdat I Arshakuni), on the throne of Armenia Major. At first, Rome did not recognize him, and until 63 CE there were conflicts between Rome and Parthia. Eventually, in 63 CE at Rhandeia, Rome and Parthia entered into a treaty, whereby 1) King Tiridates (Trdat I Arshakuni) is recognized by Rome as the ruler of Armenia Major, with a crown bestowed by the Roman Emperor Nero in 65 CE; 2) Parthia and Rome withdraw their troops from Armenia Major; 3) the Arshakuni (Arsacid) dynasty is internationally recognized as the legitimate political force ruling over Armenia Major; 4) Rome and Parthia recognize the independence and territorial integrity of Armenia Major. In 66 CE Rome and Armenia entered a further agreement, confirming that Armenia Major relinquished claims to Godarzenae and Mesopotamia in CE 37.
Treaty No. 18. During the 224-227 revolution in Persia, the Sasanian Dynasty came to power. In 244 Roman Emperor Philip II (Marcus Julius Philippus) Caesar (244-249) and Persia‘s Shapur I (242-272) signed a peace treaty, whereby 1) Armenia Major comes under Rome’s sphere of influence, while Mesopotamia came under Persia’s; 2) Armenia Minor remains under Rome’s control; 3) Rome pays Persia a 500,000-dinar reparation.
Treaty No. 19. In the Persian-Roman conflicts of the 290s, Rome emerged the victor. Accordingly in 298, at Nisibis, the Sasanian King Narseh (293-302) and the Roman Emperor Diocletian (284-305) entered into a peace treaty, whereby 1) Armenia Major is deemed a Roman protectorate; 2) Persia returns Mesopotamia and the lower Tigris lands of Tsopk, Angeghatun, Aghdznik, Corduene, Mokk, Tsavdek and Rehimena; 3) the Armenian Fortress of Zinta in the south-eastern Atropatene is recognized as the border of Armenia Major with Iran; 4) the Armenian and Georgian Kings are declared allies.
Treaty No. 20. The 40-year term of the Treaty of Nisibis expired in 338. Shapur II (309-379) adopted a more aggressive stance toward Rome, achieving military victories in the 360s. The Armenian King Arshak II (350-367) fought on the side of Rome. In 363 Rome and Persia entered into a peace treaty, on terms deemed “shameful” for Rome, whereby Rome is obliged to cease protecting Armenia Major in the event of an Iranian invasion. Moreover, Rome is forced to cede to Iran the regions of Armenia Major in Mesopotamia it had acquired under the Treaty of Nisibis; namely, Aghdznik, Mokk, Corduene, Tsavdek, Rehimena, including the 15 fortresses and cities, inter alia, Nisibis, Singaras and Castra Maurorum.
Treaty No. 21. In 387, Persian King Shapur III (383-388) and Roman Emperor Theodoros I (379-395) entered into a treaty on the partition of Armenia Major, whereby 80% of Armenia Major is ceded to Persia, and 20% to Rome. Mesopotamia is similarly partitioned between them.
Treaty No. 22. In 395, the Roman Empire split into two parts, the Western and Eastern Empires, the latter coming to be known as the Byzantine Empire and as such, the legal successor to the portion of Armenia Major ceded to Rome in 387. In 422 the Persian and the Byzantine Empires entered into a 50-year peace agreement, whereby the Persian side recognizes the Byzantine successorship and control over the portion of Armenia Major ceded to Rome in 387, thus ratifying the partition of Armenia Major and Mesopotamia between them. Six years later, in 428, Persia abolished the remnants of the Arshakuni dynasty in the portion of Armenia Major under its control.
Treaty No. 23. At the end of the 5th century, the Armenian marzpanate revolted against the religious persecution of their Persian overlords. In 484, in the village of Nvarsak, the Persian King Vologases (484-491) and Persian General Nikhor signed a peace treaty with the Armenian rebels, led by Vahan Mamikonian, whereby Persia agrees to allow the Armenians to practice their Christian faith and pardons the rebels. The treaty was ratified the following year. In 488 Vahan Mamikonian was established as Marzpan and Overseer of Armenia. This period is called the Armenian Marzpanate or Tanutirakan Armenia, which in modern terms would be the highest level of local automony available in the Persian Empire of that time.
Treaty No. 24. In 591 the Persian King Khosrow II Parvez (590-628) and the Byzantine Emperor Maurice (582-602) signed a peace treaty, whereby Persia cedes to the victorious Byzantines most of the Armenian marzpanate, except for Vaspurakan and the Masiatsotn and Kotayk provinces of Ayrarat. Persia also cedes to Byzantium most of Iberia/Georgia, except for the city Tpkhis (Tbilisi).
Treaty No. 25. In 640-650, the Arabs occupied Armenia and Persia. Byzantium was no longer able to protect Armenia. Armenia, under the leadership of Thedoros Rshtuni (634-654), allied itself with the Arab Caliphate, entering into a peace, amity and mutual defense treaty with the Caliphate in 652, whereby 1) Armenia becomes the ally of the Arab Caliphate, exempt from tribute for three years, thereafter obligated to pay modest annual tribute; 2) Armenia retains the right to maintain 15,000 cavalry at its own expense, subject to the Byzantines’ right to deploy this cavalry anywhere except Syria; (i.e., it was primarily for use for domestic Byzantine deployment); 3) Arab military forces are not to be stationed in Armenia; 4) in the event of an attack on Armenia by Byzantium or other enemies, the Arab Caliphate undertakes to provide the necessary assistance and forces for Armenia’s protection.
Treaty No. 26. In 1021, Senekerim Artsruni (968-1021) of Kingdom of Vaspurakan and Emperor Basil II of the Byzantine Empire enter into a land swap treaty, whereby Vaspurakan is incorporated into the Byzantine Empire. In exchange, Byzantium allocates to Senekerim Artsruni the city of Sebastia along with its environs, subject to the restriction that it not become a nation-state. Approximately 80,000 Armenians relocated from Vaspurakan, leaving behind their homeland and settling permanently in Sebastia. Nomadic Arabs and Kurds gradually migrated and settled in Vaspurakan.
Treaty No. 27. In 1022, in Trabizon, the Armenian Bagratuni King Hovhannes-Smbat (1020-1041) and the Byzantine Emperor Basil II signed a treaty, whereby upon Hovhannes-Smbat’s death, the Bagratuni Kingdom (with its capital of Ani), would pass, as a bequest, to Byzantium in right of ownership. In 1041 King Hovhannes Smbat died, and the Byzantine Emperor asserted his claims as heir, using diplomatic and military pressure, luring the last Armenian Bagratuni King, Gagik II (1041-45), on false pretenses to Constantinople and imprisoning him there, eventually taking over the Armenian Kingdom in its entirety along with its capital of Ani in 1045. Thus ended the Armenian Bagratuni Kingdom founded in 885.
Treaty No. 28. In 1246, in Karakorum, the capital of the Mongol Empire, Cilician Armenia’s Constable Smbat (1208-1276) and the Mongol Empire’s Güyük Khan entered into a preliminary agreement of alliance and amity, whereby 1) Cilician Armenia becomes an ally of the Mongol Empire, while continuing to pay tribute to the Mongols; 2) the Mongol Empire undertakes to provide military assistance to Cilician Armenia against the Sultanate of Iconium; 3) the parties agree to ratify this preliminary agreement by a final treaty to be signed by King Hetum of Cilicia and the Mongol Empire’s Güyük Khan in Karakorum, an event which took place in 1254.
Treaty No. 29. In 1254 in Karakorum, the capital of the Mongol Empire, the Mongol Empire’s Möngke Khan and Cilician Armenia’s King Hetum I (1226-1270) signed a permanent peace, amity and mutual defense treaty, whereby 1) the parties agree to be permanent allies; 2) no Mongol forces or officials may enter Cilician Armenia without its consent; 3) the Parties are obliged to assist each other in time of war with Cilician Armenia undertaking to help the Mongols occupy Mesopotamia, Syria and Palestine, while the Mongols undertake to protect Armenia from attacks by the Muslims of Iconium, Egypt, and neighboring states; 4) lands previously belonging to Armenia taken by the Mongols or other states are to be returned to Armenia; 5) the Armenian Church is granted privileges and immunities throughout the Mongol Empire, including exemption from taxation.
Treaty No. 30. In 1268, the Sultan of Mamluk Egypt eliminated the last Crusader Kingdom in Antioch. The Armenians had amicable relations with the Crusaders. In 1268, an Armenian-Egyptian peace treaty was signed, whereby 1) the Mongols (through King Hetum I’s intercession) return to Egypt the captive Arab General Sonkar-al-Askari, in exchange for which the Egyptian Sultan releases and repatriates the Armenian crown-prince Levon, who was being held as hostage-surety; 2) Cilician Armenia cedes to Egypt the fortresses of Darpasak, Marzban, Daban, Shihel-Hadid in exchange for which the Mamluk forces are withdrawn and the regions of Cilician Armenia seized by the Egyptian Mamluks during the war are returned to Armenia.
Treaty No. 31. Cilician Armenia’s King Levon III (1271-1289), who in 1268 was released from Egyptian Mamluk captivity, made an unsuccessful appeal to Europe in 1282 for a new crusade, straining Armenian-Egyptian relations. Under military pressure from Egyptian and other Muslim countries, in 1285, Cilician Armenia and the Egyptian Sultanate entered into a peace treaty, whereby 1) Cilician Armenia is obligated to pay annual tribute to the Egyptian Sultanate of 500,000 (sovereigns, the Egyptian monetary unit), 25 steeds, 25 mules and other property; 2) trade relations are reestablished between the parties, and prisoners are exchanged.
Treaty No. 32. In constant clashes with each other, Cilician Armenia and the Egyptian Mamluk Sultanate in 1305 again signed a peace treaty, pursuant to which the Armenians continued to pay tribute to Egypt.
Treaty No. 33. With the aim of defending itself from neighboring Muslim states, Cilician Armenia sought the assistance of the Pope and Europe. From 1337 to 1435, the Hundred Years’ War between France and England was raging, and Armenia’s appeals went unanswered. During this period, the Egyptian Sultanate invaded Cilician Armenia. Hoping to restore peace, Armenian King Levon V (1320-1342) sent a delegation headed by the Armenian Catholicos Constantine IV Lambronatsi (1323-1326) to Cairo to meet with the Egyptian Sultan. In 1323, an Armenian-Egyptian peace treaty was signed, whereby 1) Cilician Armenia is obliged to pay an annual tribute of 1.2 million silver dirhem as well as 50% of the income from the sale of salt to foreign traders at the Port of Ayas; 2) Egypt withdraws its troops from Cilician Armenia and returns the port of Ayas, the city and other occupied regions to Armenia.
Treaty No. 34. King Levon V (1320-1342) sent special emissaries to Europe, proposing a crusade against Egypt and Iconium Sultanates, which further aggravated Armenian-Muslim relations. Sultan Melik Nasir of Egypt and Altun Bugha, the Amir of Aleppo attacked and destroyed Cilician Armenia. In 1337 in Cairo, a treaty between Armenia and Egypt was signed, whereby Cilician Armenia cedes the vital Port of Ayas to Egypt and the forts and cities to the east of Ceyhan. King Levon V gave an oath upon the Gospel that he would cease relations with the Pope in Rome and the King of France (as a consequence of which the Pope’s supporters killed Levon V).
Treaty No. 35. In 1469 in Venice the White Sheep Turkomans, Republic of Venice, the Roman Pope, the Neapolitan Kingdom, Hungary, Karmania, and Cyprus entered into a military-political alliance against the Ottomans and Egyptian Mamluks, whereby 1) the military forces of the parties agree to joint and mutual military action to subdue the Ottomans and Mamluks; 2) Venice undertakes to mount a naval attack on the Ottomans and Mamluks. However, the Ottomans made a preemptive strike and closed all sea lanes, occupying Karamania in 1470. As a result of these battles, the Ottoman Empire for the first time exercised control over several provinces of Western Armenia. Armenia became a theater of protracted armed conflict between the Ottoman Turks and the Safavid Persians.
Treaty No. 36. In 1517, at the conference of Cambrai, the King of France proposed establishing a European Coalition to break up the Ottoman Empire. The coalition failed. Moreover, in an about-face, France in 1535 signed three treaties with the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent (1520-1566), whereby 1) they form a military alliance to oppose their enemies in the Mediterranean; 2) the subjects of each state party are granted the right to freely navigate, reside and trade in the territories of the other with custom duties set at 5%; 3) merchants who were the subjects of other states are permitted to navigate Ottoman waters only under the French flag and are deemed to be under French protection; 4) France was recognized as the protector of the Catholic holy places in Palestine as well as the Catholic subjects of the Ottoman Empire (including the Armenian Catholics).
Treaty No. 37. In the 16th-17th centuries Armenia was a battleground between Turkey and Persia. On May 29, 1555, in the city of Amasia, in Pontus, a Turkish-Persian peace and boundary delimitation treaty was signed, whereby 1) most of Vaspurakan is ceded to the Ottoman Empire, along with Bayazet and Alashkert regions (Note: earlier, all the rest of Western Armenia and Western Georgia, had already been ceded to the Ottomans); 2) Eastern Armenia, Eastern Georgia and the Eastern South Caucasus are ceded to Persia.
Treaty No. 38. On March 21, 1590, the Ottoman Empire and Safavid Persia enter into a peace and boundary delimitation treaty, whereby 1) the defeated Persians cede Eastern Armenia, Eastern Georgia, Eastern South Caucasus and the Atrpatakan (Atropatene) to Ottoman Turkey; 2) Persia undertakes to refrain from interfering with the Ottoman Empire’s struggle with Russia over control of the north-western shores of the Caspian; 3) Persia is obligated to pay the Ottoman Empire an annual tribute of 200 bolts of silk.
Treaty No. 39. On May 17, 1639, in Constantinople, the Ottoman Empire and Safavid Persia signed the Qaṣr-e Shīrīn Treaty (also known as the Zuhab Treaty) on peace and boundary affirmation, whereby 1) Baghdad and Iraq are ceded to the Ottoman Empire; 2) Armenia is divided between the Ottomans and the Safavids: Gugark, Ararat Plain, Siunik, Artsakh and eastern Vaspurakan being ceded to Persia, while the southern provinces of Ararat, Turuberan, western Vaspurakan, Tsopk, Aghdznik, Upper Armenia, Basen, Vanand, including Kars, are ceded to the Ottomans. These Turkish-Persian borders remained unchanged until the beginning of the 19th century.
Treaty No. 40. On May 31, 1667, in Moscow, Russia and the Armenian Merchants Association of New Julfa (Isfahan, Persia) headed by the Shah’s emissary Lusignents entered into a trade agreement, whereby 1) the sale of Persian goods in Russia is permitted; 2) transit of Persian goods via Russia to Europe is permitted; 3) all goods sold by Persian merchants to Europe is to be transported via Russia and not the Ottoman Empire. This agreement made the Armenian merchants a “thorn in the side” of the Ottoman, European, and in particular, English merchants.
Treaty No. 41. On September 12, 1723, in St. Petersburg, Russia and Persia entered into a treaty of amity, whereby 1) Russia undertakes to assist Persia in overcoming civil unrest, including a rebellion in Eastern Armenia; 2) Persia cedes Derbent, Baku, Gilan, Mazanderan, Astrabad and other regions to Russia.
Treaty No. 42. On March 24, 1724, in Gandzak, a friendship treaty among the Armenians, Georgians and Tatars was signed, aimed at opposing the Ottoman Turkish intervention in the South Caucasus. On the one hand, Russia was encouraging the peoples of the South Caucasus to oppose Turkish incursions, while on the other hand, on July 12, 1724, in Constantinople, it entered into the following peace treaty with the Ottoman Empire, contravening the interests of the South Caucasus.
Treaty No. 43. On June 24, 1724, in Constantinople, a Turkish-Russian treaty was signed, whereby 1) Ottoman Turkey recognizes Russia’s control over the region from Derbent to Mazanderan along the Caspian shoreline; 2) Russia in turn recognizes Turkey’s rights with respect to Persian possessions in the South Caucasus (Tiflis, Gandzak, Nakhichevan, Siunik, as well as the lands bounded by Ardabil-Tabriz on north and the Tabriz-Kermanshah on the west). Emboldened by this treaty, Ottoman Turkey occupied Yerevan in 1725 and Siunik and Artsakh in 1728.
Treaty No. 44. On July 10 (21), 1774, in the Bulgarian village of Küçük Kaynarca (Kuchuk-Kainarji), Russia and Turkey signed a peace treaty, in the aftermath of the Russo-Turkish war of 1768-1774 in which Russia was the victor. According to that treaty, 1) the Kuban River is the Russian-Turkish border in the South Caucasus; 2) Crimea is separated from Ottoman Turkey and recognized an autonomous Khanate, joined to Russia in 1783; 3) Kerch, Yenigale, Kinburn fortresses, and the Greater and Lesser Kabard, are ceded to Russia; 4) Russian trade vessels are granted the right to navigate the Black Sea, Bosphorus and Dardenelles; 5) Moldova and Wallachia are granted autonomy, under the protectorate of Russia; 6) Turkey is obligated to pay Russia 4.5 million rubles in reparations; 7) Turkey is required to grant amnesty to Turkish subjects who collaborated with Russia in the war.
Treaty No. 45. In 1779, Hovsep Abp. Arghutian and the wealthy Indian-Armenian merchant Shahamir Shahamirian presented to the Russian Imperial Court two proposed treaties relating to a plan for an Armenian state, the main points of which are as follows: 1) the leader of the proposed Armenian state would be appointed by the Russian Tsar. The leader could be Armenian (a member of the Armenian Apostolic Church) or a Russian, but would be anointed in Holy Etchmiadzin; 2) the Armenian state to be established would be a permanent ally and friend of Russia; 3) Armenia’s capital would be Vagharshapat or Ani or another city in the state of Ayrarat; 4) the Armenian state would have its own flag, seal, insignia, and currency; 5) Russia would grant Armenia access to a port on the Caspian Sea; 6) Russia would station a force of 6000 soldiers in Armenia, which would gradually be withdrawn over 20 years; 7) merchants who were subjects of Russia or Armenia would have customs-free entry and exit from either country. The proposal earned Empress Catherine II’s (1762-1796) approval, but it was not implemented.
Treaty No. 46. On July 24, 1783, at the Georgievsk Fortress in Krasnodar, Russia and the Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti signed a treaty of amity, whereby 1) the Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti accepts Russia’s sole suzerainty and protection; 2) the Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti’s foreign policy is henceforth to be coordinated with and by Russia; 3) the Georgian King is confirmed by the Russian Tsar and gives an oath of fealty; 4) during wartime, the Georgian military is to be deployed only on the side of Russia; 5) Georgian nobility are recognized as equal in all respects to the Russian nobility; 6) Russia undertakes to protect and defend the Georgian monarchy. On January 24, 1784, Georgian King Irakli II signed and ratified this treaty. On January 18, 1801, and September 12, 1801, the Tsar of Russia decreed that the Kartli-Kakheti Kingdom was joined to Russia; thus the kingdom was subsumed into the unitary Russian state as a territorial-administrative unit of the Russian Empire. Together with the Georgian Kingdom, the northern regions of Armenia including Lori, Pambak, Shamshadin, Ghazakh and neighboring areas, were incorporated into the Russian Empire.
Treaty No. 47. In 1788, the British East India Company and the head of the Armenian Merchants Association of India, Panos Kalantarian, signed an agreement, whereby 1) Armenian merchants are granted all rights and privileges equal to English merchants; 2) the British East India Company is obliged to build, at its own expense, Armenian Churches in India in those Armenian communities that did not yet have Armenian Churches. Pursuant to that treaty England aimed to draw Armenian merchants and other Armenian social strata into the English colonization plan for India. However, the Armenians were resistant, for which reason the House of Commons of the British Parliament labelled them “ingrates” and revoked the aforementioned treaty privileges relating to the Armenians of India.
Treaty No. 48. On May 14, 1805, on the banks of the Kurakchay River, Russia and Persia entered into a peace treaty, whereby Persia cedes all of Karabagh, as well as Siunik’s Kapan, Goris and Sisian regions to Russia. For Russia, the treaty was signed by Prince Pavel Tsitsianov and for Persia, Ibraham Khan of Shushi and Karabagh. At the signing were present the Primate of the Armenian Church of Tiflis and Gandzak, Abp. Hovhannes Geghardakir, and Melik Jumshud Melik-Shahnazarian of Varanda.
Treaty No. 49. On October 12 (24), 1813, at the fortress city of Gulistan in Karabagh, General Commander of the Russian Army of the Caucasus Nikolay Rtishchev and Persian Emissary Mirza Abolhassan Khan signed a peace treaty, whereby 1) Persia cedes Ghaghadan, Kartli-Kakheti Kingdom, Baku, Gandzak, Shirvan, Quba, Derbent, and Talish khanates, Lori, Ghazakh, Shamshatin, Ijevan, Shirak, Zangezur regions; 2) Russia cedes Meghri region to Persia; 3) Russia has the right to maintain a navy in the Caspian Sea; 4) the merchants of each state party were granted the right to freely engage in trade in both countries. The provisions of the Treaty of Gulistan were incorporated and reaffirmed in the February 10, 1828 Treaty of Turkmenchay between Russia and Persia.
Treaty No. 50. On February 10, 1828, at Turkmenchay, Russia and Persia entered into a peace treaty, whereby 1) per its 2nd paragraph, the parties deem it necesssary to replace the Treaty of Gulistan (October 12 (24), 1813) with a new treaty; 2) per its 3rd paragraph, Persia cedes the Khanates of Erevan and Nakhichevan to Russia, “with full rights of ownership”; 3) per its 15th paragraph, 45,000 Armenian subjects of Persia comprising 8249 Armenian families are to be repatriated to Eastern Armenia. Thus, pursuant to the Treaties of Kurakchay, Gulistan and Turkmenchay, most of Eastern Armenia was separated from Persia and became part of the Russian Empire.
