Classical antiquity and Urartu period Many ancient human settlements have been found in the
Akhurian valley dating back to around 9000 BC. The territory of Shirak has been settled since the early
Stone Age. At the higher areas that are above 2000 meters, many remains have been found from the early
Bronze Age. Other remains from the 2nd millennium BC, revealed that a civilization was founded between the 20th and 12th centuries BC. With the start of the Iron Age during the 12th century BC, relations among the various ethnic groups of Armenian Highland were developed. Soon after the establishment of the
Urartu Kingdom of Van at the end of the 9th century BC, Shirak became part of the kingdom. Two cuneiform inscriptions have been found in Shirak left by King
Argishti I () of
Urartu, where he wrote about the invasion of the land of
Eriakhi (the name that Shirak is derived from, according to many historians). According to the inscriptions, the region was home to a well developed civilization based on agriculture and cattle-breeding. Historians believe that
Xenophon passed through the territories of Shirak during his return to the Black Sea, a journey immortalized in his
Anabasis.
Achaemenids and the ancient Armenian Kingdom By the second half of the 6th century BC, Shirak became part of the
Achaemenid Empire. The remains of a royal settlement found near the village of
Beniamin dating back to the 5th to 2nd centuries BC, are an example of the Achemenid influence in the region. By the beginning of the 5th century BC, Shirak became part of the
Satrapy of Armenia under the rule of the
Orontids. Later in 331 BC, the entire territory was included in the
Ayrarat province of
Ancient Armenian Kingdom as part of the Shirak canton. During the 1st century AD, Shirak was granted to the
Kamsarakan family, who ruled the region during the
Arsacid Kingdom of Armenia.
Sasanians and Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia Following the partition of Armenia in 387 AD between the Byzantines and the Persians, and as a result of the fall of the Arsacid Kingdom of Armenia in 428, the region of Shirak became part of the
Sasanian Empire of Persia. However, Shirak is home to many early examples of the
Armenian church architecture dating back to the 5th century, including the
Yererouk, the Saint Mariné Church of Artik, and the
Hokevank Monastery. In 658 AD, during the height of the Arab Islamic invasions, Shirak -along with the rest of the Armenian territories- was conquered during the
Muslim conquest of Persia, as it was part of Persian-ruled Armenia. It became part of the
Emirate of Armenia under the
Umayyad Caliphate. However, the Kamsarakan family continued to rule the region under the Arab Islamic rule of Armenia. By the foundation of the
Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia in 885, Shirak entered a new era of growth and progress, particularly when the city of
Ani of Shirak became the capital of the kingdom in 961. By the second half of the 10th century, Shirak was under the influence of the Armenian
Pahlavuni family, who were descendants of the Kamsarakans. The Pahlavunis had a great contribution in the progress of Shirak with the foundation of many fortresses, monastic complexes, educational institutions, etc. The monasteries of
Khtzkonk,
Harichavank,
Marmashen and Horomos were among the prominent religious and educational centres of medieval Armenia.
Seljuk period, Zakarid Armenia and Turkmen rule , flourished under the Zakarids After the fall of Armenia to the
Byzantine Empire in 1045 and later to the
Seljuk invaders in 1064, the region entered an era of decline in all social, educational and cultural aspects. However, with the establishment of the
Zakarid Principality of Armenia in 1201 under the
Georgian protectorate, the Eastern Armenian territories, mainly Lori and Shirak, entered a new period of growth and stability, becoming a trade centre between the east and the west. After the Mongols captured
Ani in 1236, Armenia turned into a
Mongol protectorate as part of the
Ilkhanate, and the Zakarids became vassals to the
Mongols. After the fall of the Ilkhanate in the mid-14th century, the Zakarid princes ruled over Lori, Shirak and Ararat plain until 1360 when they fell to the invading Turkic tribes. By the last quarter of the 14th century, the
Aq Qoyunlu Sunni
Oghuz Turkic tribe took over Armenia, including Shirak. In 1400,
Timur invaded Armenia and Georgia, and captured more than 60,000 of the survived local people as slaves. Many districts including Shirak were depopulated. In 1410, Armenia fell under the control of the
Kara Koyunlu Shia Oghuz Turkic tribe. According to the Armenian historian
Thomas of Metsoph, although the Kara Koyunlu levied heavy taxes against the Armenians, the early years of their rule were relatively peaceful and some reconstruction of towns took place.
Iranian and Russian rule In 1501, most of the
Eastern Armenian territories including Shirak were conquered by the emerging
Safavid dynasty of Iran led by Shah
Ismail I. Soon after in 1502, Shirak became part of the newly formed
Erivan Beglarbegi, a new administrative territory of Iran formed by the Safavids. During the first half of the 18th century, Kumayri became part of the
Erivan Khanate under the rule of the
Afsharid dynasty and later under the
Qajar dynasty of Persia. or the Black Fortress near
Gyumri, built during the 1830s by the Russians in response to the
Russo-Turkish War of 1828–1829 In June 1804, the
Russian Empire took control of Shirak region at the beginning of the
Russo-Persian War of 1804–1813. The region became officially part of the Russian Empire at the
Treaty of Gulistan signed on 1 January 1813. During the period of the Russian rule, the region witnessed a swift growth and the town of Gyumri became one of the developing cities in
Transcaucasia. In 1829, in the aftermath of the
Russo-Turkish War, there was a big influx of an Armenian population, as around 3,000 families who had migrated from territories in the Ottoman Empire - in particular from the towns of
Kars,
Erzurum, and
Doğubeyazıt- settled in Shirak. The Russian poet
Alexander Pushkin visited the region during his
journey to the Caucasus and eastern Turkey in 1829. In 1837 Russian
Tsar Nicholas I arrived in Shirak and re-founded the city of Gyumri as Alexandropol. The name was chosen in honour of Tsar Nicholas I's wife, Princess
Charlotte of Prussia, who had changed her name to
Alexandra Fyodorovna after converting to
Orthodox Christianity. A major
Russian fortress was built in Alexandropol in 1837. The city was completely rebuilt by 1840 to become the centre of the newly established
Alexandropol Uyezd, experiencing rapid growth during its first decade. The Alexandropol Uyezd included the northern Armenian territories of Shirak, Lori and Tavush. In 1849, the Alexandropol Uyezd became part of the
Erivan Governorate, and Shirak became an important outpost for the Imperial Russian armed forces in the Transcaucasus where their military barracks were established. During the
Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78 Shirak became one of the major centres of the Russian troops. After the establishment of the railway station in Alexandropol in 1899, Shirak witnessed a significant growth as centre of trade and industry, becoming the most developed region within eastern Armenia.
20th century After the
October Revolution of 1917 and the Russian withdrawal from Transcaucasia, the
First Republic of Armenia was proclaimed on 28 May 1918, which included Shirak. On 10 May 1920, the local Bolshevik Armenians aided by the Muslim population, attempted a
coup d'état in Alexandropol against the
Dashnak government of Armenia. The
uprising was suppressed by the Armenian government on May 14 and its leaders were executed. However, during
another Turkish invasion, Turkish troops again attacked Shirak and occupied Alexandropol on 7 November 1920. Armenia was forced to sign the
Treaty of Alexandropol on December 3 to stop the Turkish advance towards Yerevan, however a concurrent Soviet invasion led to the fall of the Armenian government on December 2. The Turkish forces withdrew from Alexandropol after the
Treaty of Kars was signed in October 1921 by the unrecognized Soviet and Turkish governments. Under the Bolsheviks, Alexandropol was renamed Leninakan in 1924, after the deceased Soviet leader
Vladimir Lenin. Shirak became a major industrial region within the
Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic. Leninakan was the second largest city, after the capital Yerevan. However, Shirak, and particularly Leninakan, suffered major damage during the
1988 Armenian earthquake which devastated many parts of northern Armenia. The earthquake occurred along a known thrust fault with a length of . Its
strike was parallel to the Caucasus range and dipped to the north-northeast. From 1930 until 1995, modern-day Shirak was divided into 5
raions (districts) and 1 city of republican subordination within the Armenian SSR: Amasia, Ghukasyan (Ashotsk), Akhurian, Ani, Artik and the city of Leniankan. With the territorial administration reform of 1995, the 5 raions and the city of Gyumri (Leninakan) were merged to form the Shirak Province. ==Demographics==