Musa MARJANLI ARMENIANS. RUSSIA. THE CAUCASUS Dubai Khazar University press 2011 Musa MARJANLI Armenians. Russia. The Caucasus Khazar University Press ISBN: 978-9952-20-063-8 The present book by M. Marjanli dwells upon the relationships Arme- nians have had with autochthonous peoples and Russia in the South Caucasus after being resettled to this region, and the attempts by Arme- nian migrants to Armenianize territories and ethnicities. The existence of a total of 26 “Armenias” confirms the planned nature of the Armeni- ans’ eastward advance: from their ancestral homeland in the Balkans, i.e. Europe, to Asia Minor and further southwards. Therefore, Armenian scholars never talk of the history of Armenia proper, but of the Arme- nian people. The book is meant for historians and experts in international relations, as well as a broad readership. ISBN: 978-9952-20-063-8 © Musa MARJANLI. 2011 Table of contents Introduction............................................................................................4 Armenians and Russia..........................................................................7 Role and importance of the Caucasus Armenians for Russia..........13 Armenians’ attempts to realize the “Great Armenia” myth in the Caucasus..........................................................................20 Armenians’ Karabakh syndrome: background and realization....34 Armenian and Georgian collisions...................................................46 Why are Armenians not Caucasians?...............................................56 Conclusion............................................................................................75 Introduction No matter whether we had much or little,we provided you with a shelter and treated you like brothers. So don’t treat us like enemies in our own home! It is better to have a lion sitting in your way than an enemy in your home. Georgians used to say so long ago, so do we and so will any reasonable Armenian. Ilia Chavchavadze The Armenians, who have covered a centuries-long thorny road from Europe to Asia Minor, including the Caucasus, have al- ways attempted to ‘Armenianize’ the territories, states, tribes and ethnic groups along the way. Such were their actions during the Roman and Byzantine Empires, the Arabic caliphate, the Seljuk and Mongol states, the Persian and Ottoman Empires. This is con- firmed by the fact that there are now 26 “Armenias” by which one can actually trace the Armenians’ eastward advance: from the Bal- kans, i.e. from Europe, to Asia Minor and further to the East. The Armenians, who have covered a centuries-long thorny road from Europe to Asia Minor, including the Caucasus, have al- ways attempted to ‘Armenianize’ the territories, states, tribes and ethnic groups along the way. Such were their actions during the Roman and Byzantine Empires, the Arabic caliphate, the Seljuk and Mongol states, the Persian and Ottoman Empires. This is confirmed by the fact that there are now 26 “Armenias” by which 4 Introdiction one can actually trace the Armenians’ eastward advance: from the Balkans, i.e. from Europe, to Asia Minor and further to the East. The Armenians, who have covered a centuries-long thorny road from Europe to Asia Minor, including the Caucasus, have al- ways attempted to ‘Armenianize’ the territories, states, tribes and ethnic groups along the way. Such were their actions during the Roman and Byzantine Empires, the Arabic caliphate, the Seljuk and Mongol states, the Persian and Ottoman Empires. This is con- firmed by the fact that there are now 26 “Armenias” by which one can actually trace the Armenians’ eastward advance: from the Bal- kans, i.e. from Europe, to Asia Minor and further to the East. As a matter of fact, a prominent representative of the Silver Age of Russian poetry and founder of Russian Symbolism, Valery Bryusov, added a 27th Georgian1 Armenia to the list. Therefore, Armenian scholars talk not so much about the his- tory of Armenia but rather about the history of the Armenian people. Even Moses Khorenatsi, “the father of Armenian history” who lived in the 5th century, wrote the “History of the Armenians” (“Hayots Patmut’yun”)2, not the history of Armenia. His research dwells upon the First, Second, Third, Fourth and Greek Armenias3. Two centuries later, in the 7th century, Anania Shirakaci also point- ed to a number of ‘Armenias’ in his “Ashharacuic” (“Geography”): First, Second, Third, Fourth, Minor, Great, High Armenias and Persarmenia4. Given the number of “Armenias”, it is quite typical of this people to attempt to revive Armenian statehood in places where it has been lost four times at different periods in history. Thus, the Kingdoms of Van, Vaspurakan, Kars and Ani, and the state of Cilicia were located in Asia Minor, but the First, Second and Third Armenian Republics were proclaimed on Azerbaijan ter 1 Bryusov V, Chronicle of historical destinies of the Armenian people. M., 1918. Ch. IX. 2 Movses Khorenatsi // Soviet History Encyclopedia (SHE). T.9. M., 1966. Col. 537; The Big Soviet Encyclopedia (BSE). 3rd edition. Vol. 16. M., 1974. P.385. 3 Movses Khorenatsi, History of Armenia. M., 1858. P.50-51. 4 Armenian geography of the 7th century B.C. attributed to Movses Khorenatsi (text and translation with maps and explanatory endnotes issued by K. Patkanov). 1877. P. 33-35, 42-44, 47. 5 Musa MARJANLI. Armenians. Russia. The Caucasus ritories, in the historical region of Chukhur-Saad5. To confirm the above, suffice it to refer to the work of a western expert on Armenia, D. Lang, who writes: “Greek author Strabo links Armenians to Thessaly, a region in the North of Greece. He adds that a resident of Thessaly Armenus visited the country to- gether with Argonaut Jason and friends and named it after him- self. As to Phrygians, Strabo claims that they are of Thracian origin and had come to Asia Minor from what is now Bulgaria after the Trojan War. This semi-legendary information is quite interesting as it enables us to link Armenian ancestors to the mysterious “peo- ple of the Sea” who waged wars in Asia Minor in 1200 B.C.”6. However, Armenians’ attempts to settle down on a certain ter- ritory and establish their own statehood remained futile for a long time. As is the case today, they were always an ethnic minority7. They could always have a certain impact on the situation in the host country, but never change their own status dramatically. The Armenians’ last hope in this regard was associated with Russia and the Caucasus. What this has resulted in is well-known from the history of the Caucasus and the peoples living there. It is also well-known from the diverse relations of the Armenian people with its neighbors in different spheres, different levels of political, confessional, cultural, socioeconomic and ethnic life. 5 K. Yuzbashyan, Armenian states of the times of Badratids and Byzantine of 9th-11th centuries. P.150, 172; G. Sarkisyan, K. Khudaverdyan, K. Yuzbashyan, Ancestry of Hayk. Essay on history and culture of Armenia from ancient times to the formation of the Third Republic. P. 11,21,86, 106, 217, 235, 307; History of the Armenian people, 1980. P. 27, 124, 145,284, 292. 6 D. Lang, Armenians. Creative people. M., 2004.P. 25. See in detail: History of Armenian people, 1980. P.27; A.G. Adonts // New Brokgauz-Efron Encyclopedia. Vol.3 S. Petersburg, Col. 601; G. Kapancyan, Hayas – Armenians’ cradle. Ethnogenesis of Armenians and first history. Yerevan. 1947. P. 240, 242; same author. Historical and linguistic works. To Armenians’ first history. Ancient Asia Minor. Yerevan, 1956; same author. To the origin of the Armenian language. Yerevan, 1946; I. Diyakonov. Prehistory of Armenian people. Yerevan, 1968. P. 202-203; I. Chopin, New notes on ancient history of the Caucasus and its inhabitants, S. Petersburg., 1896. P. 26. Ancient Greeks described as “people of the Sea” the tribes which entered Northern Africa and Western Asia via the Mediterranean Sea in the 12th century. 7 J. McCarthy, C. McCarthy. Turks and Armenians. Handbook on the Armenian issue. Baku, 1996, P. 18. 6 ARMENIANS AND RUSSIA Early information about Armenians in Russia dates back to the 13th century when Price Daniel Romanovych (1238-1264) of Galicia and Volhynia invited the Armenians to his lands8. This is when first Armenian colonies appeared in Western Ukraine, which hap- pens to be the home of Simeon Lehaci, 17th century Armenian author who described, in his Traveler Notes, a problem-free and happy life of his fellow tribesmen in the Ottoman Empire9. During the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich (1645-1676), new waves of Arme- nians emerged in Russia, but it was Peter the Great (1682-1725) who helped the Armenians settle down in Russia the most and gave them different advantages”10. Thus, after seizing the Caspian coast in 1722, he attempted to settle the Muslim-populated terri- tories of Dagestan and Azerbaijan with Christians. With this aim, Peter the Great ordered his envoy to Istanbul A. Rumyantsev to talk Armenians of the Ottoman Empire into moving to a newly- established Caspian region of the Russian Empire that covered the seaside territories of Azerbaijan from Derbent in the north to Rasht in the south. The Armenians were promised that local people “will be deported and the territories given to the Armenians”. This is how Azerbaijan was used in starting the process of “Armenianization” of the Caucasus. Peter the Great wanted to re- settle Ottoman Armenians first because most Armenians lived in the territories of the Ottoman sultan; second, the Ottoman Empire 8 S. Solovyev. History of Russia since ancient times. Works. Book II, Vol. III-IV. M., 1988. P. 183, 514-515, 571, 617. 9 Simeon Lehaci. Traveler Notes. M., 1965. 10 The Central State Historical Archive of the Russian Federation (hereinafter CSHA RF). F. 880. Op.5, D. 387. L.6; G. Ezov. Relations of Peter I with Armenians. St. Petersburg, 1898, P.2 7 Musa MARJANLI. Armenians. Russia. The Caucasus was Russia’s main rival in the struggle for the Caucasus; third, O ttoman Armenians who knew Russia’s rival from within might prove useful in helping to learn the enemy better; fourth, these Armenians could play the role of “a fifth column” in the enemy camp; fifth, by resettling the Armenians, Peter the Great was also increasing the Christian population of the Caucasus that would eventually support him in the local Muslim environment. The policies of Peter the Great in the Caucasus were continued by Ekaterina II (1762-1796), who “expressed a desire to restore the Armenian kingdom under the patronage of Russia”11. This plan was meant to strengthen the Christian element in the Caucasus by means of the Armenian satellite factor which was to be used in Russian geopolitics in the south. This tactic was part of a strat- egy designed to gain a foothold in Derbent, occupy Shamakhi and Ganja, and then, with enough troops, seize Erevan from Karabakh and Sygnakh”12. Thus, the plan was to realize a strategic mission in the Caucasus at the expense of Azerbaijan. However, Russia did not intend to establish an “Armenian state” where there had never been Armenian statehood. This is why the well-known Russian expert on the Caucasus, political analyst and journalist, V. Velichko, wrote in the early 20th centu- ry that one of Empress Ekaterina’s favorites, “a brilliant prince of Taurida”, G. A. Potemkin, was a man of great imagination. He was fascinated with the idea of reviving a Christian kingdom in “the Armenian plain”13. The revival could take place, for Ekaterina II “was extremely kind to Armenians, which could be explained by moral corruption and excessive luxury during her reign”14. Judg- ing by the fact that grateful Armenians of Nakhchivan-on-Don (near Rostov-on-Don) erected a monument to Ekaterina II, one can 11 A. Anninsky. History of Armenian Church (until the 19th century). S. Petersburg, 1889. P.305. 12 Collection of statements relating to review of history of Armenians. 1833- 1838. M., 1838. P.69. 13 V. Velichko. The Caucasus. The Russian affair and inter-tribal points. S. Petersburg, 1904. P.77 14 Ditto. 8 Armenians and Russia agree that she was quite well-disposed to these aliens. It should be mentioned that in Soviet times the monument was knocked down, but local Armenians restored it in post-Soviet years. The Armenians enjoyed favorable treatment also during the reign of Alexander I (1801-1825) who issued a “high resolution” to a petition requesting to settle Armenians near Derbent. Thus, a document from 21 December 1802 evidenced “the rights and priv- ileges that his ancestors had granted to the Armenian people”15. In the 19th century, the Russian Empire was the actual master in the Caspian Sea, the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea, which is why it gained access to the Straits and the Mediterranean. In the same century it seized the Caucasus and the Crimea, and was giv- ing orders in the Balkans. Therefore, V. Velichko thought it ap- propriate to indicate, with reference to the Ottoman Armenians, that “A hope for the revival of the Armenian people and state runs like a barely noticeable thread through the history of the Arme- nian people, full of humiliation at the hands of great and small kings of other faiths… It is noteworthy that this hope grows in parallel to the growth of Russian territories, as its victory banner gets closer to Western Asia”16. Its main rival here was still the Ot- toman Empire which was home to a great many of Armenians. It was from there and also from parts of the Iranian monarchy that a huge stream of Armenians poured into the South Caucasus, predominantly into the Northern Azerbaijan. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, this process was developing with active participa- tion of the Russian Empire and the Armenian Gregorian Church of Echmiadzin whose Catholicos was a theocratic leader17 of the Armenians following a third loss of the Armenian statehood in Asia Minor in the 11th century18. Therefore, the definition of “Ar- menian geographic space” attributed to the east of Asia Minor 15 CSHA RF. F. 880. Po.5. D. 389. L.17 ob. 16 V. Velichko. The Caucasus. The Russian affair and inter-tribal points. P.76-77. 17 V. Velichko. The Caucasus. Russian affairs and inter-tribal points. Ch. 10 18 K. Yuzbashyan, Armenian states of the times of Badratids and Byzantine of the 9th-11th centuries. P.4-5, 170; G. Sarkisyan, K. Khudaverdyan, K. Yuzbashyan. Ancestry of Hayk. Essay on history and culture of Armenia from ancient times to the formation of the Third Republic. Ch. Vi and VII. 9 Musa MARJANLI. Armenians. Russia. The Caucasus where there were Armenian kingdoms before, started to apply to the territory of the Caucasus in the 19th century. This is how a new geographic notion, “the Caucasus Armenia”, emerged at the expense of Azerbaijani lands. To confirm the above, let’s have a look at the following. When the Russian-Iranian War (1826-1828) ended in signing the Treaty of Turkmenchay, Emperor Nicolai I (1825-1855) issued a “high resolution” to the Senate on 21 March 1828 saying that “on the strength of the treaty with Persia concluded on 10 February 1828, I enjoin henceforth that the Khanate of Erivan and the Khanate of Nakhchivan annexed to Russia shall be called the Armenian region”19. The Russian Empire believed that the Armenians would fit well into the plan on a complete Christianization of the Caucasus. There were enough grounds for that. First, there were much more Armenians than any other eastern Christians in Muslim states. Second, they mainly lived in Ottoman and Iranian monarchies which were Russia’s principal rivals in the struggle for the Cau- casus. Third, they were indispensible in Russia’s rivalry with the Iranian and Ottoman states because they knew their strengths and weaknesses very well. Fourth, the Armenians were “light on their feet” and always ready for “change of place” if this promised them any benefit. Fifth, their motto was “ubi bene ibi patria” (where there is bread, there is my country). Sixth, they had not had their own statehood for 500 years by then. For these reasons, after the Russian-Iranian (1826-1828) and Russian-Ottoman wars (1828-1829) had ended, the Treaty of Adri- anople with Istanbul and the Treaty of Turkmenchay with Tehran specifically stipulated migratory preferences for the settlement of Ottoman and Iranian Armenians on Russian lands. Most of them settled down on the territory of former Azerbaijani khanates of Erivan, Nakhchivan and Karabakh which were abolished in the early 19th century. To facilitate the mass migration of the Arme- nians, the authorities set up special commissions that provided 19 CSHA RF F. 1018. Sp. 9. D. 21. L. 1 ob 10