Theodore Rshtuni

Theodore Rshtuni
Born	?
Died	654/655 A.D. Damascus
Buried at	Rshtunik'
Rank	Sparapet
Battles/wars	Arab conquest of Armenia Byzantine–Arab Wars

Theodore Rshtuni (Armenian: Թեոդորոս Ռշտունի, also spelled Theodoros Ṛštuni; 590 - 654/655 AD), equated with the patrikios Pasagnathes (Πασαγνάθης) of Theophanes the Confessor, was an Armenian nakharar, famous for resisting the first Arab invasions of Armenia. Rshtuni was appointed as ishkhan and kouropalates of Byzantine Armenia by Emperor Heraclius when the previous ishkan David Saharuni was overthrown by other nakharars.

Prior to the Arab invasions, Rshtuni had been appointed the sparapet (commander-in-chief) of the Armenian forces in the Armenian Marzapante and was appointed as the marzban of Armenia in 634.

He defended, alongside the Byzantine General Procopius, against the first, unsuccessful, Arab attack into Armenia in 640. He was unable to prevent the Arabs from pillaging the capital of Dvin in 642. He gained a victory over the Arabs, for which he was recognized as ruler of Armenia by Constans II in 643.

Constans paid special attention to his family's imperiled homeland of Armenia, and he favored Byzantine generals of Armenian extraction to halt Arab advances.

Meanwhile, the strength of Arab assaults continued to increase. Theodore eventually concluded a truce with then governor of Syria, Muawiyah I in 651, and Arabs concentrated their efforts against the remaining pockets of resistance in the Sassanid Empire. Finally, by 652 Rshtuni, despairing of further resistance, accepted Muawiyah's suzerainty and was appointed ruler of Armenia. Rshtuni was able to negotiate a treaty that left Armenia with a relatively high level of autonomy.

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