Bagratuni dynasty
| Bagratuni | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Country |
Armenia Caucasian Albania |
| Parent house | Orontid Dynasty |
| Titles | |
| Founded | 100 BC |
| Founder | Ashot I |
| Final ruler | Gagik II |
| Ethnicity | Armenian |
| Cadet branches |
Rubenids (possibly) Hasan-Jalalyan (indirectly) |
The Bagratuni or Bagratid (Armenian: ) royal dynasty was a royal family of Armenia that ruled many regional polities of the medieval Kingdom of Armenia, such as Syunik, Lori, Vaspurakan, Vanand, Taron, and Tayk.
The Bagratid family first emerged as nakharars, members of the hereditary nobility of Armenia. Their holdings were in the region of İspir, in the Çoruh River valley. As early as 288-301, the Bagratid prince Smbat held the hereditary Armenian titles of Aspet, which means Master of the Horse, and T'agatir, which means Coronant of the King.
According to Prince Cyril Toumanoff, the earliest Bagratid prince was chronicled as early as 314 AD. In the 8th century, Smbat VII Bagratuni revolted against the Abbasid Caliphate but the revolt was defeated.
The Bagratid Princes of Armenia are known as early as 1st century BC when they served under the Artaxiad Dynasty. Unlike most noble families of Armenia they held only strips of land, as opposed to the Mamikonians, who held a unified land territory. These are the earliest Bagratid princes in Armenia prior to the establishment of the kingdom, as mentioned by the Union of Armenian Noblemen. Ashot I was the first Bagratid King, the founder of the Royal dynasty. He was recognized as prince of princes by the court at Baghdad in 861, which provoked war with local Arab emirs. Ashot won the war, and was recognized as King of the Armenians by Baghdad in 885. Recognition from Constantinople followed in 886. In an effort to unify the Armenian nation under one flag, the Bagratids subjugated other Armenian noble families through conquests and fragile marriage alliances. Eventually, some noble families such as the Artsrunis and the Siunis broke off from the central Bagratid authority.Ashot III the Merciful transferred their capital to the city of Ani, now famous for its ruins. They kept power by playing off the competition between the Byzantine Empire and the Arabs.
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Wikipedia