Sahak III Bagratuni

Sahak III Bagratuni
Prince of Sper and Tayk
In office 750–770
Preceded by	Ashot III Bagratuni
Succeeded by	Smbat VII Bagratuni
Prince of Armenia
In office 753–770
Preceded by	Mushegh VI Mamikonian
Succeeded by	Smbat VII Bagratuni
Personal details
Died	c. 770
Children	Ashot III Bagratuni
Parent	Bagrat Bagratuni (father)

Sahak III Bagratuni, also known as Sahak Bagratuni (date of birth unknown – c. 770), was an 8th-century Armenian nakharar, patrician, and Prince of Armenia from the Bagratuni dynasty. In Armenian academic historiography, his tenure as Prince of Armenia is generally dated to 753–770.

Sahak was among the Bagratuni princes who held one of the highest local administrative offices in Armenia under Arab rule. He was active during the early period of the Abbasid Caliphate, when taxation increased in Armenia, the responsibility for maintaining Armenian military units was placed upon the ministerial houses, and the caliphal authorities sought to restrict the political and military autonomy of the Armenian feudal nobility.

According to the 8th-century historian Ghewond, Sahak was the son of Bagrat. He belonged to the same dynasty as the former Prince of Armenia Ashot the Blind and was Ashot's paternal cousin. Ghewond described him as tall, handsome, noble in character, and God-fearing.

Sahak's rule represented an important transitional period in the history of the Bagratuni dynasty. Although an independent Armenian state had not yet been restored, the Bagratunis gradually strengthened their position and became one of Armenia's most influential noble families during the 8th and 9th centuries. Following Sahak's death, the office of Prince of Armenia passed to Smbat Bagratuni, a representative of another branch of the dynasty. In 775, the office was assumed by Sahak's son Ashot Bagratuni.

Origin and dynastic affiliation

Sahak belonged to the Bagratuni dynasty, one of the most influential noble houses of ancient and medieval Armenia. During the period of the Arsacid Kingdom of Armenia, the hereditary offices of the Bagratunis included that of the coronant and several other royal court positions. In subsequent centuries, the dynasty expanded its domains and played an important role in Armenia's military and political life.

According to Ghewond, Sahak's father was a prince named Bagrat. Bagrat was the paternal uncle of Ashot the Blind, and Sahak and Ashot were therefore paternal cousins. This genealogical relationship indicates that different branches of the Bagratuni dynasty alternately held the offices of Prince of Armenia and sparapet during the middle of the 8th century.

No reliable information has survived concerning Sahak's mother or wife. At least one son is known, Ashot Bagratuni, who was appointed Prince of Armenia following the anti-Arab uprising of 774–775 and held the office from 775 until 781.

Historical background

Armenia under Arab rule

From the middle of the 7th century, Armenia was under the suzerainty of the Caliphate. The Arab authorities incorporated the Armenian territories, together with several regions of Caucasian Albania and Iberia, into the administrative province of Arminiya. The Arab governor appointed by the caliph was commonly referred to in Armenian sources as an ostikan.

Despite foreign domination, the Armenian nakharar system remained in existence. Armenian princely houses continued to possess their hereditary estates, maintain their own military forces, and participate in the internal administration of the country. One of the highest local offices was that of the Prince of Armenia.

The Prince of Armenia was subordinate to the Arab ostikan of Arminiya, but simultaneously represented the Armenian ministerial class. He acted as an intermediary between the caliphal administration and the local Armenian princes, and participated in the organisation of taxation, the mobilisation of Armenian troops, and the settlement of internal political matters.

Armenia differed from several other Christian regions of the Caliphate in that local Christian nobles were permitted to hold such a high administrative office. The Prince of Armenia served alongside the sparapet, the supreme commander of the Armenian armed forces.

Transition from the Umayyads to the Abbasids

The beginning of Sahak's rule coincided with major political changes within the Caliphate. In 750, the Umayyad Caliphate was overthrown and replaced by the Abbasid Caliphate.

The change of dynasty did not initially bring the expected relief to the Armenian nobility. The new authorities continued, and in some cases intensified, fiscal and administrative control. During Sahak's tenure, the previous system of financing the Armenian cavalry was altered, and much of the cost of military service was transferred to the Armenian princely houses.

The policies of the Caliphate aggravated several problems:

• increases in taxes and tribute;
• abuses committed by tax collectors;
• rising military expenses for the Armenian noble houses;
• the suspension of payments to Armenian troops;
• the captivity of members of the population and the confiscation of property;
• restrictions on the political autonomy of the Armenian nobles.

Under these conditions, the Prince of Armenia was required to preserve formal loyalty to the Caliphate while attempting to defend the interests of the Armenian nobility and population.

Prince of Armenia

According to Ghewond, Sahak was appointed Prince of Armenia by an Arab governor named Yazid.

In the chronological list of Armenian princes compiled by Aram Ter-Ghevondyan, Sahak held office from 753 until 770. According to this chronology, he succeeded Mushegh VI Mamikonian, who had served as Prince of Armenia from 748 until 753. After Sahak, the princely responsibilities were exercised by Smbat Bagratuni until 775.

The article on Sahak Bagratuni in the Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia states that, within the Bagratuni dynasty, he succeeded Ashot the Blind. This formulation concerns not only the succession to office but also the transfer of the leading position within the Bagratuni house.

Sahak is attributed the titles of Prince of Armenia and patrician. Some reference works also present him as a sparapet or military commander. However, sources concerning the same period sometimes attribute the office of sparapet to Smbat Bagratuni. The precise official nature of Sahak's military authority therefore remains uncertain.

Ghewond's statement that Sahak commanded troops wherever he was sent indicates that he exercised practical military authority, regardless of the formal title of his position.

Nature of his administration

Sahak's authority was not fully sovereign. He governed under the suzerainty of the Caliphate and was formally subordinate to the Arab ostikan of Arminiya. At the same time, as Prince of Armenia, he represented the collective interests of the Armenian ministerial class.

His principal responsibilities may have included:

• regulating relations among the Armenian noble houses;
• mobilising and commanding Armenian troops;
• negotiating with the Arab authorities;
• coordinating the fulfilment of tax obligations;
• maintaining internal order;
• supporting relations between the Armenian Church and the secular nobility.

The surviving sources do not record any particular laws or administrative reforms enacted by Sahak. His political activity is chiefly known from his attempts to moderate caliphal pressure and from his participation in the ecclesiastical council of Partav.

The Armenian cavalry

The Armenian heavily armed cavalry had played an important role in regional warfare since the early medieval period. During the first phase of Arab rule, the military units of the Armenian nobles received a degree of financial and material support from the caliphal court in return for their service.

According to Ghewond, these payments were discontinued during Sahak's rule. The Arab authorities instead required the Armenian princely houses to cover the equipment, food, and maintenance of their troops from the taxes levied upon them.

This change had both economic and political consequences. The nobles continued to provide troops to the Caliphate, but now bore the financial burden themselves. This reduced the benefits of military service and increased dissatisfaction with Arab rule.

According to Ghewond, the soldiers went to war reluctantly. Sahak nevertheless continued to command the military units entrusted to him. This situation illustrates the dual nature of his position: he was expected to fulfil the military requirements of the Caliphate while commanding troops whose material conditions and morale were deteriorating.

Fiscal and social conditions

During the first decades of Abbasid rule, the tax burden in Armenia increased. According to Armenian sources, robbery, devastation, captivity, and confiscation of property became frequent during Sahak's tenure.

The tax burden did not affect every social group equally. The peasantry was required to pay state and local taxes, while the princely houses were also responsible for the maintenance of their troops. Ecclesiastical institutions were likewise subjected to economic pressure.

The authority of the Prince of Armenia was limited because the principal directions of fiscal policy were determined by the central and provincial authorities of the Caliphate. Sahak therefore could not unilaterally abolish taxes or terminate the activities of tax collectors.

He attempted to moderate violence and economic pressure through negotiation. According to the Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia, his peaceful negotiations did not produce a positive result.

Relations with other noble houses

Among the most influential noble houses in 8th-century Armenian political life were the Bagratunis, Mamikonians, Artsrunis, Siunis, Kamsarakans, and several other ministerial families.

The Bagratunis and Mamikonians competed for political leadership and for the office of Prince of Armenia. Immediately before Sahak, the office had been held by Mushegh Mamikonian. Following Sahak's appointment, it returned to the Bagratuni dynasty.

Dynastic rivalry did not, however, exclude cooperation. Under pressure from the Arab authorities, the Armenian noble houses frequently participated together in assemblies, military undertakings, and discussions of ecclesiastical affairs.

Representatives of the Siuni, Artsruni, Khorkhoruni, Ashots, Vanand, and other noble houses participated alongside Sahak in the Council of Partav. This indicates that the Prince of Armenia took part in the discussion of matters of nationwide importance.

Council of Partav

In 768, Sahak Bagratuni participated in the ecclesiastical Council of Partav. The council was convened during the tenure of Catholicos Sion I Bavonetsi and was devoted to the internal discipline of the Armenian Church, the responsibilities of the clergy, and the regulation of liturgical life.

The council was held not in Dvin, the traditional seat of the Armenian catholicoi, but in Partav, which was an important ecclesiastical centre of the eastern Armenian regions. The reason for the choice of location is not known with certainty.

The participants included:

• Catholicos Sion I Bavonetsi;
• the patrician Sahak Bagratuni;
• Smbat Bagratuni;
• Atrnerseh Siuni;
• Mehrzhan Artsruni;
• Vahram Khorkhoruni;
• Artavazd Ashots;
• Vahan of Vanand;
• Sahak of Goghtn;
• David, Catholicos of Caucasian Albania;
• bishops of various dioceses and secular princes.

The council adopted 24 canons. They concerned the obligations of bishops and priests, ecclesiastical discipline, the celebration of services, the protection of church property, marriage and family relations, and other matters affecting the Christian community.

The canons provided for disciplinary action against members of the clergy who failed to fulfil their responsibilities or care for their congregations. The purpose of the disciplinary decisions was to strengthen ecclesiastical institutions at a time when political instability and economic pressure had weakened church life.

Sahak's participation in the council demonstrates that the Prince of Armenia did not possess only military and fiscal responsibilities. He also took part in discussions of important ecclesiastical and social matters. No source, however, indicates that Sahak personally composed the canons or directed the ecclesiastical discussions. His role should be understood as the participation of a representative of the highest secular authority.

Relations with the Church

In a medieval source, Sahak is described as a man acquainted with the fear of God. This description corresponds to the manner in which Ghewond often portrayed Christian princes whom he regarded favourably.

Sahak's participation in the Council of Partav reflects cooperation between the Prince of Armenia and the Armenian Church. During the period of Arab rule, the Church remained one of the principal organised institutions of Armenian society. The catholicos and the nobles often discussed social, moral, and legal matters jointly.

At the same time, Sahak should not be presented as the author of ecclesiastical reforms. The surviving evidence confirms only his participation in the council and his high secular position.

Arrest and death

During the final years of Sahak's rule, relations between the Arab authorities and the Armenian nobility continued to deteriorate. Following the failure of negotiations, Sahak was, according to Armenian encyclopaedic sources, treacherously arrested and killed by Arab officials. His property was confiscated.

Sahak's killing demonstrates that even the office of Prince of Armenia, which was recognised by the Caliphate, did not guarantee personal security. Arab provincial authorities could remove, arrest, or eliminate local princes whom they considered unreliable.

Succession

Following Sahak's death, the responsibilities of the Prince of Armenia were assumed by Smbat Bagratuni. He was the son of Ashot the Blind and had been mentioned as sparapet from 753, during Sahak's tenure.

Smbat participated in the anti-Arab uprising of 774–775 and was killed in one of the battles of 775. Following the defeat of the uprising, Sahak's son Ashot Bagratuni was appointed Prince of Armenia.

This succession illustrates the role of two closely related branches of the Bagratuni dynasty:

• the branch of Ashot the Blind and his son Smbat;
• the branch of Bagrat, his son Sahak, and his grandson Ashot.

Although the political approaches of these branches did not always coincide, the office of Prince of Armenia remained largely under the control of the Bagratuni dynasty.

Smbat V aspet 646

Varaz-Tirots III (d. 670)

Ashot II (684–689) Prince of Armenia

Smbat VI (693–726) Prince of Armenia

Ashot

Vasak

Bagrat

Smbat nakharar (d. 705)

Ashot III (732–748) Prince of Armenia

Sahak III (753–770) Prince of Armenia

Political activity of Sahak's son Ashot

Sahak's son Ashot Bagratuni did not become Prince of Armenia immediately following his father's death. Smbat Bagratuni first assumed the office, while Ashot became prince only after the defeat of the uprising of 775.

Ashot did not participate in the uprising of 774–775. He advised the rebels to abandon their struggle, arguing that the Armenian forces could not resist the much larger army of the Caliphate. At the same time, he provided the rebels with information regarding the activities of the Arab army, although they did not fully trust him.

Ashot's cautious approach shared some similarities with Sahak's policy of negotiation. Both avoided direct confrontation when the balance of forces was unequal. This similarity does not, however, prove that their activities were based upon a previously formulated common political programme.

Legacy

No buildings, inscriptions, or coins known to bear Sahak III Bagratuni's name have survived. His historical memory is primarily associated with the office of Prince of Armenia, the Council of Partav, and the political continuity of the Bagratuni dynasty.

His principal legacy may be considered in three areas:

• Dynastic: his son Ashot continued the participation of the Bagratuni dynasty in the government of Armenia;
• Political: during his tenure, the institution of the Prince of Armenia was preserved despite the centralising policies of the Abbasids;
• Ecclesiastical and social: the Council of Partav, in which he participated, attempted to restore ecclesiastical discipline and regulate several social matters.

Sahak's career reflects the complex position of an Armenian nobleman in the 8th century. He was simultaneously a local prince, an official recognised by the Caliphate, a commander of Armenian troops, and a secular representative of Christian Armenian society.

Sources

• Dadoyan, Seta B. (2011). The Armenians in the Medieval Islamic World: The Arab Period in Arminiyah, Seventh to Eleventh Centuries. Transaction Publishers. ISBN 9781412846523.
• Grousset, René (1973). Histoire de l’Arménie des origines à 1071 (in French). Paris: Payot.
• Laurent, Joseph L. (1919). L'Arménie entre Byzance et l'Islam: depuis la conquête arabe jusqu'en 886 (in French). Paris: De Boccard.

Bibliography

• Ter-Ghevondyan, Aram (1964). "«Հայոց իշխան»-ը արաբական տիրապետության ժամանակաշրջանում" [The Prince of Armenia during the period of Arab rule]. Patma-Banasirakan Handes (in Armenian) (2): 121–134.

• Łewond. Պատմություն [History] (in Armenian). Yerevan.

• "Սահակ Բագրատունի" [Sahak Bagratuni]. Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia (in Armenian). Vol. 10. Yerevan: Main Editorial Office of the Armenian Encyclopedia. 1984. p. 135.

• "Հայոց իշխան" [Prince of Armenia]. Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia (in Armenian). Yerevan: Main Editorial Office of the Armenian Encyclopedia.

• Toumanoff, Cyril (1990). Les dynasties de la Caucasie chrétienne de l'Antiquité jusqu'au XIXe siècle (in French). Rome. p. 122.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

• Ghewond (2007). History of Ghewond, the Eminent Vardapet of the Armenians. Translated by Zaven Arzoumanian (2 ed.). Western Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America.

External links

• Armenian text of Ghewond's History
• English translation of Ghewond's History
• Aram Ter-Ghevondyan, “The Prince of Armenia during the period of Arab rule”
• “Sahak Bagratuni” in the Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia