VAN THROUGHOUT FOUR DYNASTIES
 

Written by Gevork Nazaryan

The Orontids retained the City of Van as the capital of the new dynasty. Throughout history, most royal dynasties liked to change capitals to provinces and counties that were within their inherent domains -- also taking into consideration the strategic factor. The
 

THE ARMENIAN CAVALIER ARISTOCRACY FORMED
THE ELITE FIGHTING CORE OF THE ARMAN WARRIOR CASTE.
THE ARMENIAN HORSEMEN WARRIORS WERE UNMATCHED
THROUGHOUT THE ANCIENT WORLD. THE CHIVALRIC TRADITION
OF VIRTUOUS ETHOS CONTINUED WELL INTO THE MIDDLE AGES.

Q U E E N   P A R A N D Z E M. DAUGHTER OF NAXARAR ANDOVK SIWNI. ONE OF THE
MOST OUTSTANDING HEROINE QUEENS IN THE MILLENNIA SPAN OF
ARMENIAN HISTORY. AS CONTEMPORARY AND LATER HISTORIANS DESCRIBED HER
AS BEAUTIFUL, PROUD, VIRTUOUS AND PATRIOTIC WITH ALL HER BEING.
AN ARCHETYPICAL IDEAL SYMBOL OF A TRUE CAUCASIAN ARMENIAN LADY.
SHE MARRIED PRINCE GNEL OF THE ARSACID ROYAL HOUSE
AND AFTER HIS DEATH IN A BATTLE, BECAME THE WIFE OF KING
ARSHAK II -- THE QUEEN OF GREATER ARMENIA AND TIKNANTS TIKIN [LIT. LADY OF LADIES].
AFTER TREACHEROUS IMPRISONMENT OF ARSHAK II IN THE PERSIAN CAPITAL OF
TISBON BY THE SHAPUH II IN 368, QUEEN PARANDZEM BECAME THE RALLYING
SYMBOL AND LEADER OF ARMENIAN NOBLES AND THE PEOPLE IN THE FIGHT TO DEFEND
THE NATION. THE FOCAL POINT OF THE DEFENSE OF THE KINGDOM
BECAME THE CASTLE OF ARTAGERS -- WHERE BETWEEN
368-69 QUEEN PARANDZEM LED HEROIC 14 MONTH DEFENSE OF THE STRONGHOLD
ONLY TO BE OVERRUN BY NUMERICALLY OVERWHELMING FORCES OF SHAPUH II.

THE BEAUTIFUL QUEEN FOUGHT ALONGSIDE WITH THE ARMENIAN WARRIORS
WITH A SWORD AND SHIELD TO THE VERY END TELLING HER MEN THAT
SURRENDER IS NOT AN OPTION...SHE WAS WOUNDED AND CAPTURED
AS ALL OF HER BODYGUARD WAS WIPED OUT AS THEY FELL WHILE
TRYING TO PROTECT HER FROM THE SPEARS AND SWORDS OF THE ENEMY.
LIKE A WOUNDED LIONESS SHE WAS TAKEN TO THE CAPITAL TISBON IN 369,
WHERE THE PERSIAN SHAH TOLD OF HIS AMAZEMENT OF THE LEVEL OF HER
COURAGE AND DEDICATION TO HER NATION AND HER PEOPLE.
QUEEN PARANDZEM WAS AN IMPORTANT SYMBOL OF ARMENIA AND
AS LONG AS SHE WAS ALIVE SHE SERVED AS A BEACON OF
LIGHT AND FREEDOM URGING THE ARMENIAN PEOPLE TO
CONTINUE THE FIGHT OF RESISTANCE  AGAINST FOREIGN TYRANNY.
SHAPUH II...ALBEIT UNWILLINGLY ORDERED THE EXECUTION
OF HIS 'BELOVED' CAPTIVE LIONESS
AS THE HISTORIANS OF THE TIME NOTED WITH GREAT DEAL
OF PERSONAL REMORSE AND REGRET.

THE HEROES OF THE VARDANANK' A PORTION OF THE HUGE HISTORIC PAINTING
BATTLE OF AVARAYR [MAY 26, 451]  BY GRIGOR XANJEAN.
BETWEEN ARMENIAN [66,000] AND PERSIAN ARMIES [SOME 300,000] BECAME
AN EPIC BATTLE FOR SURVIVAL AND PRESERVATION OF NATIONAL IDENTITY.

Artaxiad Dynasty that followed the Orontids, in the beginning of the second century BC, made a number of additions to the ancient capital. The city had a considerable population growth during the reign the imperial reign of the King of Kings -- Tigran the Great. Van became an important commercial trading center within the extensive network of trade and commerce of the vast Armenian Empire.

At this period the city had a large inflow of many different nationalities from all of the corners of the empire. Greeks, Syrians, Cappadocians, Adiabenians and other nationalities added to the diversity and the multitude of the city.

GENERAL PLAN OF THE CONVENT OF H O G E A C‛ V A N K‛

THE STILL STANDING GRACEFUL KHACHKAR-CROSS STONE NEAR THE RUINS OF
THE OHANAVANK‛ MONASTERY.

CANON TABLE FROM QUEEN MLK‛Ē'S GOSPEL [851-862]. MEKHITARIST LIBRARY,
VENICE, SAN LAZZARO ISLAND. MS NO. 1144/86. FOUR PILLARS SUPPORT THE
ARCH OF HEAVEN WITH THE COSMIC OCEAN [NOTE THE OCTOPUS IN THE CENTER
WITH FISH/MARINE/MARY-ANNE/GODDESS]. 3 RINGS DIVIDED IN 3 SEC. WITHIN.
DNA/OURUBOROS INTERWOVEN SNAKES PASSING THROUGH...
25 BLOSSOMED ROSES ALONG WITH BIRDS [PSYCHIC/SPIRITUAL ENERGY].

CANON TABLE FROM XITH CENTURY GOSPEL.
ARMENIAN PATRIARCHATE OF JERUSALEM COLLECTION. MS NO. 2555, FOL. 7.
FOUR PILLARS SUPPORT THE PYRAMIDAL COSMIC HIERARCHY [NOTE THE
MIRRORED DIVERGING TRIANGLE] CAPPED BY THE RED CROSS UPON THE
CRESCENT [SOLAR CROSS IN THE HEAVEN BOAT/PRECESSION,
ALT. SOL + LUNA UNION]. 3 AND 3 FLEUR-DE-LYS-ESQUE BRANCHES
ON EACH SIDE [NOTE THE EYES IN THE CORE WITH DEXTER AND SINISTER
SPINNING COSMIC WHEELS IN THE PERIPHERY] WITH ACCOMPANYING 3 + 3 BIRDS.
THE TWO LOVE-BIRDS [PARENTS/DUALITY COMMUNION] PROMINENTLY STANDING
ON EACH SIDE. NOTE THE LEFT AND RIGHT SPINNING [8 OR S-ESQUE] SPIRALS ON
THE FOUR COLUMNS WITH FIVE WHITE SWASTIKAS WITHIN THE ARCHWAY...
KHACHKAR-CROSS STONE IN SANAHIN. XIIITH CENTURY. A LIVING MANDALA...

During the reign of the Arsacid kings -- from the Ist to Vth centuries, a number of wars were fought between the Arsacids and the Sassanians of Iran. The Arsacids of Armenia were against the Sassanians, who staged a coup and overthrew the ruling Arsacid Dynasty of Iran. The Arsacids fought the Sassanians in Armenian Atrpatakan and Caucasian Albania, driving the enemy beyond Lake Urmia. In 301, Armenia, under King Tiridates III and St. Gregory the Illuminator made Christianity the official religion of the state thus making Armenia the first Christian nation.

GENERAL PLAN OF THE  V A R A G A V A N K‛  C O M P L E X

KHACHKAR-CROSS STONE IN VARAGAVANK‛ MONASTERY NEAR VAN.

 Unfortunately this further divided Zoroastrian Iran and Christian Armenia [previous to the conversion to Christianity, Armenia was overwhelmingly Mithraic country of the solar cult of Mihr -- Mher -- Mithras -- Armenians carried this religion -- that was especially popular amongst the aristocracy and the warrior caste -- to four corners of the world -- most notably to the Roman Empire, the city of Rome in particular]. Around 360, the Sassanians launched a military incursion into Greater Armenia. The large Sassanian army besieged Van. The city had insufficient defense forces, since most of the forces were concentrated in the Ararat Valley, around the

A G A R A K [VIITH CEN.]. CRUCIFORM. EQUILATERAL HORIZONTAL + VERTICAL
AXIS. FOUR SECTIONS LEADING TO THE [QUINTESSENTIAL] CENTER.

T‛ A L I N [VIITH CEN.]. THE CRUX TEMPLE BUILT BY THE
ORDERS OF PRINCE NERSEH OF THE HOUSE OF KAMSARAK.

I R I N D [VIITH CEN.]. MULTI-APSE PATTERN -- EIGHT RAYS
LEADING TO OCTAGONAL CORE.

THE COSMIC CRUX-AXIS WITH SUBLIME SACRED SYMBOLISM.
KHACHKAR IN THE WESTERN ABBEY OF SANAHIN MONASTERY. 1215.
THOUSANDS OF PRICELESS KHACHKARS LIKE THIS ONE WERE CREATED BY THE
TALENTED HAND OF ARMENIAN MASTER CRAFTSMAN. IT IS ALMOST HARD
TO BELIEVE THAT THE MASTER HAS USED SUCH STURDY MATERIAL AS STONE TO
 CREATE THIS NEEDLELIKE INTERWOVEN, MULTILAYERED MASTERPIECE.

new Arsacid capital of Vałaršapat. After months of heroic defense by the city's garrison, the Sassanians finally broke through -- killing, looting and taking scores of inhabitants captive to Iran. This was a devastating blow that was a setback to the overall progress of the city.

TRADITIONAL OCTAVE  DOME OF THE ARMENIAN MASTER ARCHITECTS
M R E N [VIITH CENTURY].

TWO OF THE COUNTLESS ARMENIAN HEROES THROUGHOUT LONG
 MILLENNIA. ST. MESROP MASHTOTS
AND H. H. THE CATHOLICOS ST. SAHAK PARTEV. HISTORIC SCULPTURE BY
ARA SARKISIAN ON DISPLAY IN THE MATENADARAN IN CAPITAL YEREVAN.

ANANIA OF ŠIRAK. THE BRILLIANT VIITH CENTURY MULTITALENTED
MATHEMATICIAN, CARTOGRAPHER AND ASTRONOMER. ŠIRAKATSI
METICULOUS MAPPED OUT ALL OF THE PROVINCES, COUNTIES,
CITIES, TOWNS, VILLAGES, RIVERS, LAKES, MOUNTAIN CHAINS,
PASSES, VALLEYS AND CREEKS OF GREATER ARMENIA AND NEIGHBORING
LANDS IN A WORK ENTITLED AŠXARHATSOYTS [LIT. LAND/EARTH GUIDE].

THE RUINS OF THE ANCIENT HOSHAP CASTLE IN THE HIGH HEART OF ARMENIA.

 After the Vth century, the city was the personal possession of the Rštuni nobility. The Rštuni holdings, along with Van, were later taken over by the Artsruni House. In the Xth century, the Artsrunis established the kingdom of Van-Vaspurakan which rivaled and challenged the authority of the Bagratid rule over rest of Armenia. Van prospered once again under the Artsrunis.