The area of modern-day Stepanavan was first settled during the 4th millennium BC. The remains of an ancient fortress are found on the western edge of the town dating back to the 3rd millennium BC. Later, it became part of the
Urartu Kingdom between the 8th and 6th centuries BC. After the
Achaemenid invasion, the region became part of the
Satrapy of Armenia between the 6th and 4th centuries BC. With the establishment of the
Kingdom of Armenia in 331 BC, the region became part of the
Tashir canton of
Gugark; the 13th province of Greater Armenia. Following the partition of Armenia in 387 between the
Byzantine Empire and
Sassanid Persia, and the subsequent collapse of
Arsacid Armenia in 428,
Eastern Armenia including Tashir region became under the rule of Sassanid Persia. However, the earliest records about human settlement in modern-day Stepanavan dates back to the 5th century, when the basilica of the Holy Mother of God was built on the shores of
Dzoraget River (destroyed by the Soviets during the 1930s). During the 2nd half of the 7th century, Armenia was conquered by the
Arab invaders. At the end of the 9th century, Tashir became part of the newly established
Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia. In 979, King
Kiurike I founded the
Kingdom of Tashir-Dzoraget (alternatively known as the Kingdom of Lori) under the rule of the Kiurikian dynasty and the protectorate of the
Bagratid kings of Armenia. The Kiurikians ruled the kingdom until 1118 when Tashir-Dzoraget became part of the
Kingdom of Georgia. The
Seljuks invaded the region in the early 12th century, but their rule did not last long and in 1118-1122 the Georgian king
David the Builder conquered Lori and granted the rule to the Georgian-Armenian
Orbelian Dynasty. The Orbelians revolted unsuccessfully in 1177, after which a
Kipchak named Khubasari was appointed
spasalari of Lori. Later in 1185, the province became ruled by the
Zakarian dynasty after Queen
Tamar of Georgia appointed the Zakarid prince Sarkis as its governor. The Holy Saviour chapel dating back to the 13th century is still found at the centre of modern-day Stepanavan. Located on the northern trade route, Tashir region turned into a significant commercial centre in medieval Armenia. However, the region was devastated by the
Mongol invasion of 1236 led by
Chaghatai Khan, and the Zakarian dynasty declined by the second half of the 14th century. Tashir region was annexed by
Safavid Persia as a result of the 1555
Peace of Amasya and became part of Persia's Kartli-Kakheti province. After
Nader Shah's murder in 1747, the Georgian kingdoms of
Kartli and
Kakheti became independent and united into a
single kingdom by 1762. In 1801, together with the Georgian provinces of Kartli and Kakheti, Tashir was annexed by the
Russian Empire. During the reign of
Catherine the Great, the town of Jalaloghly was founded in 1810, by the Armenian prince
Davit Hasan-Jalalyan from
Artsakh. Tashir became officially part of the Russian Empire at the
Treaty of Gulistan signed on 1 January 1813 between Imperial Russia and
Qajar Persia. Administratively, Jalaloghli was part of the
Borchaly uezd within the
Tiflis Governorate of the Russian Empire. In May 1918, Lori became part of the newly formed
Republic of Armenia. In late 1918,
Armenia and
Georgia fought a
border war over Lori. In January 1919, the Lori neutral zone was established by the British forces. Following Armenia's sovietization in December 1920, Lori -including Jalaloghli- was finally incorporated into
Soviet Armenia on 11 February 1921. The 2 parts of the town are connected with each other through the Stepanavan Bridge opened in 1989. == Geography ==