Kingdom of Armenia fortress of the 4th century Inscriptions found in the region around
Lake Sevan attributed to King
Artaxias I confirm that the
historic province of Syunik was part of the
Artaxiad Kingdom of Armenia during the 2nd century BC. The first dynasty to rule Syunik was the
Siunia dynasty, beginning in the 1st century. The first known
nakharar ruler was Valinak Siak (c. 330) and his successor was his brother Andok or Andovk (Antiochus, c. 340). In 379, Babik (Bagben) the son of Andok, was re-established as a
nakharar by the
Mamikonian family. Babik had a sister called
Pharantzem who had married the
Arsacid Prince Gnel, nephew of the Armenian King
Arsaces II (Arshak II) and later married Arsaces II as her second husband. Babik's rule lasted for less than ten years and by about 386 or 387, Dara was deposed by the
Sassanid Empire. Valinak (c. 400–409) was followed by Vasak (409–452). Vasak had two sons: Babik (Bagben), Bakur and a daughter who married Vasak's successor, Varazvahan (452–472). Varazvahan's son Gelehon ruled from 470 to 477, who died in 483. Babik (Bagben) the brother of Varazvahan became the new
nakharar in 477. Hadz the brother of Gelehon died on 25 September 482. The Syunik Province was later governed by Vahan (c. 570), Philip (Philipo, c. 580), Stephen (Stephanos, c. 590–597), Sahak (Isaac, c. 597) and Grigor (Gregory, until 640).
Medieval Syunik , 8th century A dynasty was formed, governed by a branch of the
Bagratuni, with minor vassal princes from one or more previous dynasties.
Vasak III (c. 800) suffered an assault from the
emir of
Manazkert, Sevada. He established a garrison in
Chalat, in the district of
Dzoluk. He then called for help from the Persian revolutionary chief
Babak Khorramdin, who married a daughter of the king. After the death of Vasak III in 821, Babak inherited the country that revolted against him. Babak suppressed the revolt but was harassed by both Muslims and Armenians. Finally, he abdicated and the children of Vasak, Philip and Sahak, regained power. Philip controlled over eastern Syunik, including the cantons of the
Vayots Dzor and
Baghk. Sahak governed the western canton of Syunik, known as
Gegharkunik. In 826, Sahak allied with his ancient enemy – Sevada, the Qaisite emir of Manazkert – against the governor of
Caliph, but he was defeated and died in
Kavakert. His son
Grigor-Sufan succeeded him as prince of Western Syunik. In the Eastern region, Philipo died on 10 August 848. He was succeeded by three children (
Babgen,
Vasak-Ichkhanik and
Achot) that ruled jointly. Babgen fought with Grigor-Sufan and killed him (sometime in 849–851) but Babgen died shortly after (851) and Vasak-Ichkhanik (Vasak IV) followed him. Vasak-Ichkhanik had peaceful relations with
Vasak-Gabor, who had ascended to the throne of Western Syunik, replacing his father Grigor-Sufan.
Nerseh Pilippean, brother of Babgen, directed (822–23) an expedition to
Aghuania defeating and killing the prince
Varaz-Terdat II The eastern part remained divided: Sembat, which had the main title, governed the western part of the Eastern Syunik with the Vayots Dzor, bordered by Vaspurakan. Sahak governed the eastern part until the river
Hakar. Babgen governed the district of the Baghk, and Vasak (who died in 922) an indeterminate territory. Nasr, the emir of
Azerbaijan, captured territory through
perfidy against Babgen and Sahak in Dwin. After the invasion, Sembat unseated Nasr and obtained the freedom of his brothers. Sembat was followed by his son Vasak, and Sahak in turn by his son Sembat. Vasak received the royal title from the Muslims at the end of his reign, which lasted until 963. The throne was inherited by his nephew Sembat (963–998) who was recognized as king by the emirs of Tauris and of
Arran. He was married to the princess of Aghuania,
Chahandoukht. At his death, he was followed by Vasak (c. 998–1019). Vasak was succeeded by two nephews (the children of his sister and a Prince Achot) called Sembat and Grigor (1019–1084). During his periods Syunik was vassal of
Great Seljuk Empire. Grigor was married with the princess Chahandoukht, daughter of
Sevada of Aghuania. The only successor to the two princes, was a daughter of Grigor's called
Chahandoukht. Rule passed to the prince of Aghuania,
Seneqerim Ioan who governed both territories from 1084 until his death in 1105. Seneqerim Ioan was followed by his son
Grigor of Syunik and Aghuania, who governed until 1166 when the country was conquered by the
Seljuq Turks. It was ruled by Seljuks of
Hamadan,
Atabegs of Azerbaijan,
Kingdom of Georgia,
Khwarezmshahs,
Ilkhanate,
Chupanids,
Jalayirids,
Kara Koyunlu,
Timurid Empire and
Aq Qoyunlu successively before Safavid rule. It mostly had autonomous rule and was for some periods fully independent under the Armenian meliks , 1020-1166 Later, the
Orbelian dynasty, one of whose members wrote an important history of the country, governed Syunik in times of
Timur (Tamerlan) as vassals.
Iranian rule Between the middle of the 18th century and early in the 19th century, the Syunik was part of the
Karabakh khanate of the
Safavid Empire. It was also ruled by the Ottomans between 1578 and 1606 and again between 1722 and 1736. By the beginning of the 18th century, Syunik was associated with the Armenian military leader
David Bek, who led the liberation campaign of the Armenians of Syunik against
Safavid Persia and the invading Ottoman Turks. David Bek started his battles in 1722 with the help of thousands of local Armenian patriots who liberated Syunik. The centre of David Bek's struggle was the
Baghaberd Fortress northwest of Kapan and
Halidzor Fortress southwest of Kapan where he died in 1728.
Imperial Russian rule as per the
Treaty of Gulistan signed in 1813 Following the
Russo-Persian War of 1804–13, Syunik -along with the rest of
Karabakh Khanate- passed into
Imperial Russian possession, officially signed in the
Treaty of Gulistan in 1813. The khanate was abolished by the Russian government in 1822. The region was divided between the
Erivan Governorate, and
Baku Governorate (known as
Shemakha Governorate until 1859). When the
Elisabethpol Governorate was established in 1868, the region became part of the
Zangezursky Uyezd, with its administration based in the town of
Geryusy starting from 1870. According to the official census of the Russian Empire in 1897, the total population of Zangezursky Uyezd was 137,971, with 51.6% of them were Caucasian Tatars and 46,1% were Armenians. The beginning of 20th century saw an outbreak in ethnic tensions between the Armenian and Tatar populations in the Caucasus, culminating in the
Armenian-Tatar massacres. Clashes occurred in Nakhchivan and Sharur-Daralgez uyezdy of the Erevan gubernia and in
Zangezur, Shusha and Javanshir uezdy of Elizavetpol gubernia in 1905. According to Armenian sources 128 Armenian and 158 Azerbaijanian villages were "pillaged or destroyed" During these events, the Armenians of Syunik were massacred "without distinction of sex or age" by Azeri forces, and children were mutilated. Tensions were accelerated with the collapse of the
Russian Empire. The region fell under the authority of the Special Transcaucasian Committee of the
Russian Provisional Government and subsequently the short-lived
Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic. When the TDFR was dissolved in May 1918, Zangezur,
Nakhchivan, and
Nagorno-Karabakh became heavily contested between the newly formed and short-lived states of the
Republic of Armenia and the
Azerbaijan Democratic Republic. At the time, Syunik had an Armenian majority of 350,000 and a Muslim population of 180,000. According to
Thomas de Waal, the dispute over Syunik resulted in the displacement of region's Caucasian Tatar minority through direct military action by Armenian guerrilla commanders
Andranik,
Rouben Ter Minassian and later
Garegin Nzhdeh.
Republic of Armenia in 1921, mainly occupying present-day Syunik Between 1918 and 1920 Syunik was included in the short-lived
Republic of Armenia. After the Sovietization of Armenia, Syunik became the main centre of the resistance against the Bolsheviks, thus becoming part of the unrecognized
Republic of Mountainous Armenia. The city of
Goris became the capital of the unrecognized state, and
Garegin Nzhdeh was chosen as prime minister and minister of defence. Later, in July,
Simon Vratsian took the office as prime minister while Nzhdeh became the governor and the general commander. Nzhdeh actively engaged in expelling the 3/5th
Azerbaijani population of Zangezur. Between April and July 1921, the Red Army conducted massive military operations in the region, attacking Syunik from the north and east. After months of fierce battles with the Red Army, the Republic of Mountainous Armenia capitulated in July 1921 following Soviet Russia's promises to keep the mountainous region as a part of Soviet Armenia. After the conflict, Garegin Nzhdeh, his soldiers, and many prominent Armenian intellectuals, including leaders of the
Republic of Armenia, crossed the
border into the neighbouring city of
Tabriz in Persia. Thus, Syunik became part of the
Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic in July 1921.
Soviet Syunik memorial near Kapan built during the 1970s Armenian forces eventually secured the region but their efforts were in vain when the
Bolsheviks, successful in the
Russian Civil War, pushed deep into the Caucasus. Syunik was one of the last major holdouts of the independent Armenian state whose leaders were eventually expelled by incoming Soviet authorities to Iran. During
Sovietization, Syunik became part of Soviet Armenia, while the two other disputed territories, Nakhchivan and Nagorno-Karabakh became part of Soviet Azerbaijan. It then became part of Armenia under the
Transcaucasian SFSR and part of the
Armenian SSR in 1936. Under Soviet rule, Syunik suffered a devastating earthquake in April 1931, leaving 80% of its villages destroyed. A subsequent earthquake hit the region in May during the same year, destroying 27 of 38 villages in the
Sisian district. As an administrative unit, modern-day Syunik was divided into the four raions of Meghri, Kapan, Goris and Sisian (four the current eight "communities" share names and main towns with the Soviet era raions). Despite the region's troubled early years in the
Soviet Union, it gradually began to recover with much of the area's infrastructure rebuilt and improved. During the Soviet era, Syunik was noted as a source of metal and ore production. However, the region was shaken by the renewal of the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh with neighbouring Azerbaijan. In 1987–1989, the remaining Azeri inhabitants fled the region as a result of interethnic violence. This exodus of Azeri population made Syunik and Armenia, in general, more homogeneous.
Independent Armenia 's memorial near Kapan, opened in 2001 Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, Syunik has been a constituent part of the Republic of Armenia. After the independence of Armenia, the four raions of Soviet Syunik were merged during the 1995 administrative reform to form the Syunik Province with the town of Kapan as the provincial capital. Being the republic's southernmost province, it has gained a strategic and economic importance for Armenia. The border with Iran enhanced the export of vital energy resources from Armenia to Iran and other regions. Recently, a new 140-kilometer-long
Armenia-Iran pipeline has been opened, projected to supply Armenia with up to 1.1 billion m3 of gas per year until 2019, when the target of the supply is expected to rise to 2.3 billion m3 annually." The new pipeline attracted Armenia's northern neighbor Georgia, seeking to lessen its dependence on energy from Russia. In 2000, an old cemetery was found between the villages of Kornidzor and Khndzoresk near Goris. It was built during the
Kara Koyunlu rule. As a result of the
2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War, the territories to the east of Syunik, which had been under Armenian control since the
First Nagorno-Karabakh War, came under Azerbaijani control, lengthening the province's border with Azerbaijan and creating fears about the province's security. In one border settlement in Syunik,
Shurnukh, 12 houses came under the control of Azerbaijan after being found to be located on the Azerbaijani side of the border. The president of Azerbaijan
Ilham Aliyev insisted that this meant that Armenia is obligated to provide a "corridor" to Azerbaijan through Syunik and threatened to establish the "corridor" by force if Armenia did not oblige. Prime Minister
Nikol Pashinyan rejected this, arguing that the ceasefire agreement does not call for a corridor through Syunik but for the general opening of transportation routes between the two countries. On 10 November 2021 it was announced the alternate Goris-Kapan highway completely within Armenia's borders was completed. == Demographics ==