Armenian Revolt (850–855)

Armenian Revolt (850–855)

Bust of Caliph al-Mutawakkil on a silver dirham
Date850 CE–855 CE
Location
Ostikanate of Arminiya and surroundings
Result Abbasid victory
Territorial
changes
  • Reimposition of Abbasid authority over Arminiya
  • Arab tribal expansion in Arminiya
  • Destruction of Tbilisi
Belligerents
Abbasid Caliphate Bagratuni dynasty
Emirate of Tbilisi
Artsruni dynasty
Siunia dynasty
Kingdom of Abkhazia
Mamikonian dynasty
Commanders and leaders
Yusuf ibn Abi Sa'id al-Marwazi †
Bugha al-Kabir		 Bagrat II (POW)
Smbat VIII Executed
Musa ibn Zurara (POW)
Ishaq ibn Isma'il †
Gurgen Artsruni (POW)
Ashot I Artsruni (POW)
Esayi Abumushe (POW)
Sahl Smbatean (POW)
Demetrius II
Casualties and losses
c. 1,800 killed 30,000 rebels killed
50,000 civilians massacred (in Tbilisi)

Armenian Revolt (Arabic: ثَوْرَةُ الأَرْمَن) was an armed rebellion fought in 850–855 by Armenian nobles against Abbasid administrative control over Arminiya. The revolt was triggered by the imposition of harsh tax policies by Abbasid governors. It was ultimately crushed by the Abbasid general Bugha al-Kabir, resulting in the capture of numerous Armenian nobles who were sent to Samarra and the reimposition of Abbasid authority over the region.

Background

Throughout the reign of Caliph al-Wathiq (842–847), Armenia remained outside effective Abbasid control, but the accession of the energetic al-Mutawakkil in 847 brought to the throne a ruler determined to reimpose Abbasid authority.[1] In 849, the Caliph appointed a new governor of Arminiya, Abu Sa'id Muhammad al-Marwazi. As he moved to enter Armenia with his army, however, he was met on the border by envoys from Bagrat with gifts and with the promised tribute, in a move calculated to prevent the Arab tax collectors from entering the country. This was an act of open revolt by Bagrat, but Abu Sa'id preferred for the moment to withdraw rather than enter the province. In the next year, Abu Sa'id sent two local Arab lords, al-Ala ibn Ahmad al-Azdi and Musa ibn Zurara (the emir of Arzen, who was married to a sister of Bagrat), to subdue the two southern provinces of Taron and Vaspurakan on the pretext of raising taxes. According to Al-Baladhuri, one of the immediate causes of the revolt was the desecration of the Dayr al-Aqdah monastery in Sisakan by al-Ala as-Safavi, which caused extreme outrage among the Armenian princes and prompted them to begin correspondence with each other, encouraging rebellion and disobedience.[2]

This resulted in open conflict between the Arabs and Bagrat and the Artsruni ruler of Vaspurakan, Ashot I. Ashot defeated al-Ala and evicted him from his territory, and then went to the assistance of Bagrat. The Armenian coalition included forces from multiple noble houses: Tornik Bagratuni (1 detachment), Shapuh Amatuni (9 detachments), Grigor Gnuni (7 detachments), Artavazd Yntruni (8 detachments), plus detachments from 14 other minor houses, totaling forces from 16 Artsruni princes.[3] The Armenian armies faced and defeated Musa near the capital of Taron, Mush, and pursued him until Baghesh, stopping only after the entreaties of Musa's wife, the sister of Bagrat. The Armenians then proceeded to massacre the Arab settlers in Aghdznik, prompting the Caliph to intervene in force.[4]

Meanwhile, The Emirate of Tbilisi grew in relative strength under Ishaq ibn Isma'il (833–853), who was powerful enough to suppress the ambitions of the Georgian princes and to contend with the Abbasid authority in the region. He had been resisting against the caliph for over twenty years, withholding annual tribute payments to Baghdad.[5]

Rebellion

Abu Sa'id launched a new expedition in 851 but died on the 22nd of Shawwal 236 AH (April 29, 851), having ruled from 850 to 851.[2] His son, Yusuf, assumed leadership of the caliphal expedition and ruled from 851 to 852.[2] The arrival of the Abbasid army in his lands led Ashot Artsruni to prefer to submit a peace with the Arabs, forcing Bagrat too to enter into negotiations with Yusuf. During the talks, however, with the connivance of his brother, he was captured and brought to the caliphal capital of Samarra. Bagrat's downfall came from his political ambitions – he was seeking the official position of supreme ruler (amil) of all Arminiya, Kartli, and Albania, a position that had been held de jure by the princes of neighboring Albania since 837.[6]

In retaliation to this treachery, residents of the Khut district launched a retaliatory strike under the leadership of a certain Yovhan. They besieged Muş in early winter 851 with the first snow, and after a nearly 3-month siege, they stormed the city and it's capital Taron in late February 852, killing Yusuf who had taken refuge under the dome of the Church of the Holy Savior.[7][8] The harsh winter conditions were so severe that many fighters lost fingers to frostbite.[9]

Caliph Al-Mutawakkil responded by dispatching the Turkic general Bugha al-Kabir into the country between March 27 and June 22, 852. and Bugha first captured Musa ibn Zurara, whom he accused of treason for contributing to Yusuf ibn Abi Sa'id al-Marwazi's death and sympathizing with the Armenian cause.[9] Setting out from his base at Diyar Bakr, he first focused on the southern half of Armenia, i.e. the regions of Vaspurakan and Lake Van, before moving north to Dvin, Iberia and Albania. Bugha sent a detachment under commander Zirak to Rshtunik district, which devastated the area around Van.[9] During a siege at Nkan fortress, Ashot Artsruni was forced to surrender due to disagreements among the Armenian princes.[9]

When Gurgen Artsruni continued resistance, Bugha sent a 15,000-man force against him. In the subsequent battle at Zav River valley, Gurgen's 900 men defeated the Arab force, killing 1,800 Arab soldiers before the survivors retreated toward Azerbaijan.[10] Bugha then sent a 10,000-man force under commander Khetum with promises of recognizing Gurgen's hereditary rule over Vaspurakan, but when Gurgen came to negotiate, he was captured and sent to Samarra.[10] After securing Vaspurakan, Bugha went north to Kartli specifically to punish the separatist Tbilisi emir Ishaq ibn Isma'il.[10] He sacked and burned Tiflis (Tbilisi) to the ground, killing 50,000 residents, and had Ishaq decapitated, ending the city's chances of becoming the center of an independent Islamic state in the Caucasus.[10] After conquering Tbilisi, Bugha defeated the Abkhazian king Demetrius II (818–854), who fled northward toward Alania. Bugha pursued him with a 120,000-man army, but his advance was halted by fierce resistance from the Kakheti mountain fighters (Tsanars), whom he unsuccessfully attacked 19 times, and severe winter conditions with heavy snowfall.[11]

In Albania, Bugha besieged the fortress of Ktish where Esayi Abumushe had taken refuge. Despite 28 unsuccessful assault attempts over an entire year, the fortress held out until the Caliph sent written guarantees of safe passage, luring Abumushe to Samarra.[12] Bugha's campaigns resulted in massive casualties: 30,000 mountain fighters were killed in Sanasunk and Khut districts.[9] In Dvin in 853/854, 150 Armenians were executed for refusing to convert to Islam.[12] The campaign represented a systematic effort by the Caliph to target and decimate Armenia's military nobility, essentially destroying the Armenian army's leadership structure to prevent future resistance.[13] By the end of 853, he had subdued the country and made many Caucasian magnates and princes (the eristavi and nakharar) captive, including Grigor-Derenik Artsruni, his uncle Gurgen and his father Ashot I, along with Vasak Siuni, Philip Siuni, Grigor Mamikonean, Grigor Supan, Sahl Smbatean, Stepanos Kon Sevordik, Nerseh of Gardman, Ktritch of Gardman, and Esayi Abumushe, all sent to caliphal capital of Samarra.[14][15][16][11]

Over the course of three years, Bugha methodically re-occupied and subdued the whole province of Arminiya, from the southern regions of Taron and Vaspurakan up to the principalities of Caucasian Albania and most of Iberia in the north. The princes of Armenia remained divided and focused on their own personal rivalries, facilitating the Abbasid re-conquest by fighting alongside the Caliph's troops and handing over their rivals into captivity. The re-imposition of Abbasid authority was also marked by tens of thousands of executions among the male fighting population, and did not spare the princely families, whether Christian or Muslim, either: by the time of Bugha's return to Samarra in 855, most of the princes of Armenia were captives in the Caliph's court along with their sons.[16][17]

Aftermath

Bugha's campaign also facilitated the territorial expansion of several Arab tribal groups throughout Armenia. The Uthmanid tribe, which had previously settled near Lake Van during earlier migration periods under Harun al-Rashid, used the instability to seize additional territory from the Gnuni family around Berkri and extend their influence toward the Amiwk fortress and Varag region. Similarly, the Shaybani and Sulami tribes expanded their domains, with the Shaybani reaching the shores of Lake Van at Datwan. The Sulami established control over Apahunik during this period. These Arab settlements were reinforced by new migrants who had accompanied Bugha's forces, fundamentally altering the demographic and political landscape of the region.[18]

After the suppression of the revolt, the Armenian princes were released. Despite accompanying Bugha's campaigns as sparapet, Smbat Bagratuni secretly aided local Christians, including warning the Mtiul people not to let Bugha pass when he attempted to invade Alania. However, he was ultimately taken to Samarra with the other princes and executed for refusing to convert to Islam.[11] Bagrat was succeeded by his sons Ashot and David as rulers of Taron, although a portion of the region seems to have passed to a member of the Artsruni family, Gurgen I Artsruni the son of Abu Belj.[19]

The title of sparapet was given to Ashot V Bagratuni, who in 862 also granted the title "prince of princes" by the Abbasid Caliph, al-Musta'in, This title essentially granted Ashot the status of de facto king,[20] and placed him at a similar level of power as the emirs,[21] but did not allow Ashot to have administrative rule over the kingdom. as later leading to the establishment of the virtually independent Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia in 884.[22][23][24]

References

  1. ^ Laurent 1919, p. 117.
  2. ^ a b c Shahinyan 2008, p. 109.
  3. ^ Shahinyan 2008, p. 108.
  4. ^ Ter-Ghewondyan 1976, pp. 41–42.
  5. ^ Laurent 1919, p. 118–119.
  6. ^ Shahinyan 2008, p. 110.
  7. ^ Shahinyan 2008, pp. 110–111.
  8. ^ Ter-Ghewondyan 1976, pp. 42–43.
  9. ^ a b c d e Shahinyan 2008, p. 111.
  10. ^ a b c d Shahinyan 2008, p. 112.
  11. ^ a b c Shahinyan 2008, pp. 112–113.
  12. ^ a b Shahinyan 2008, p. 113.
  13. ^ Laurent 1919, p. 120.
  14. ^ Hovannisian 2004, pp. 140–141.
  15. ^ Gordon 2001, p. 90.
  16. ^ a b Ter-Ghewondyan 1976, pp. 43–44.
  17. ^ Laurent 1919, pp. 122–123.
  18. ^ Ter-Ghewondyan 1976, pp. 44.
  19. ^ Laurent 1919, pp. 124–127.
  20. ^ Garsoïan 2004, p. 147.
  21. ^ Martin-Hisard 2007, p. 237.
  22. ^ Grousset 2008, p. 373.
  23. ^ Laurent 1919, pp. 128ff..
  24. ^ Ter-Ghewondyan 1976, pp. 53ff..

Sources

  • Laurent, Joseph L. (1919). L'Arménie entre Byzance et l'Islam: depuis la conquête arabe jusqu'en 886 (in French). Paris: De Boccard.
  • Ter-Ghewondyan, Aram (1976) [1965]. The Arab Emirates in Bagratid Armenia. Translated by Garsoïan, Nina. Lisbon: Livraria Bertrand. OCLC 490638192.
  • Gordon, Matthew S. (2001). The Breaking of a Thousand Swords: A History of the Turkish Military of Samarra (A.H. 200–275/815–889 C.E.). Albany, New York: State University of New York Press. ISBN 0-7914-4795-2.
  • Hovannisian, Richard G. (2004). The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times, Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiquity to the Fourteenth Century. Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 1-4039-6636-2.
  • Garsoïan, Nina (2004) [First published 1997]. "The Independent Kingdoms of Medieval Armenia". Armenian People form Ancient to Modern Times, vol. I : The Dynastic Periods: From Antiquity to the Fourteenth Century. Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-1403964212.
  • Martin-Hisard, Bernadette (2007) [First published 1982]. "Domination arabe et libertés arméniennes (VIIe ‑ IXe siècle)" [Arab Domination and Armenian Freedom (8th–9th Century)]. Histoire du peuple arménien [History of the Armenian People] (in French). Toulouse. pp. 213–241. ISBN 978-2-7089-6874-5.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Grousset, René (2008) [First published 1947]. Histoire de l'Arménie des origines à 1071 [History of the Origins of Armenia until 1071] (in French). Paris. ISBN 978-2-228-88912-4.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Shahinyan, A. K. (2008). "Последнее восстание в арабской провинции Арминийа (850-855 гг.)" [The last revolt in the Arab province of Arminiya (850-855)]. Вестник Санкт-Петербургского Университета. Серия 2: История (in Russian). 4 (1): 108–117.
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