History of Nagorno-Karabakh - Armenian Princedoms of Dizak and Khachen

Armenian Princedoms of Dizak and Khachen

From the beginning of the 9th century, princely houses of Khachen and Dizak were storing up strength. The prince of Khachen, Sahl Smbatean and the prince of Dizak, Yesaie Abu Musse headed the struggle against the Arabs. They and their heirs succeed in retaining their own dominion borders impregnable. From the 10th century the Khachen principality became of great importance in the land’s political and cultural life. For the 11th–12th centuries Artsakh and Khachen were subjected to the Seljuk Turk nomad tribes’ invasion but they defended their independence.

The end of the 12th century and the first half of the 13th century became one of the most favorable periods for the land’s flourishing. During this time, valuable architecture was constructed, such as Hovanes Mkrtich (John the Baptist) church and the vestibule of Gandzasar monastery (1216–1260; ancient residence of the Armenian Catholicos of Albania), the Dadi Monastery Cathedral Church (1214), and Gtchavank Cathedral Church (1241–1248). These churches are considered to be the masterpieces of the Armenian architecture.

In 30–40 years of the 13th century the Tatar and Mongols conquered Transcaucasia. The efforts of the Artsakh-Khachen king Hasan-Jalal succeeded in partially saving the land from being destroyed. However, after his death in 1261, Khachen became another victim of the Tatars and Mongols. The situation became still more aggravating in the 14th century in the years of the Turk tribes Qara Koyunlu and Aq Qoyunlu, having replaced the Tatars and Mongols. During this period the area received its Turkic name Karabakh (the Black garden) for the first time. However, it is necessary to mention that as the name Karabakh referred to not only present Nagorno-Karabah (Mountain Karabah), and also (and mainly) Flat Karabakh, that is the plain before merge of rivers Arax and Kura where Turkic nomads began to prevail.

The centuries-long subjection of the local Armenians to Muslim leaders, their relation with Turkic tribal elders and frequent cases of Turkic-Armenian intermarriage resulted in Armenians adopting elements of Turkic-Iranian Muslim culture, such as language, personal names, music, an increasingly humble position of women and, in some cases, even polygamy.