Everything about Gagik Ii totally explained
Gagik II of Ani (
Armenian: Գագիկ Բ) was the last
Bagratuni King of
Ani from 1042 to 1045.
Historical background
During the reign of John
Smbat III, a feudal lord,
David, who owned
Taik during his battles against the Muslims, gained a large area which stretched all the way to
Manzikert. David was a subject of
Byzantium and when he died his entire territory was occupied by
Basil II, who had resumed the policy of, bit by bit, annexing Armenia to his empire. This policy of occupation and expansion was also pursued by the successors of Basil II. By the death of Smbat III in 1042,
Michael V, one of the successors of Basil II, was the emperor cornering Armenia. Michael claimed that the Kingdom of Ani by virtue of the will of Smbat III, was bequeathed to the Byzantine Empire upon his death.
When the Armenian
sparapet,
Vahram Pahlavouni, prepared the coronation of the successor to Smbat III, king’s nephew Gagik II who at that time was only fourteen years old, the Byzantine emperor began supporting a rebel,
Vest Sarkis, an Armenian pro-Byzantine prince of and minister of the former King who took over the city of Ani with Byzantine support. After this the Kingdom of Ani resisted three assaults of the Byzantine Empire, forcing them to retreat. Byzantium exerted its forces to the outmost in order to conquer Armenia and once for all annex it to the empire. To this end, they sent a great army to the southern part of Armenia and at the same time convinced the
Albanian king to attack Armenia from the east. At the fierce battle that was fought by the walls of Ani, general Vahram Pahlavuni heavily defeated the Byzantine army, forcing them to leave 20,000 dead behind. This victory allowed Vahram Pahlavuni along with
Catholicos Petros Guedadarts to crown Gagik II king of Armenia and subsequently take the fortress of Ani, which was in the hands of Vest Sarkis. Sarkis ran away to the fortress of St. Mary and was eventually captured. After this great victory, the new Armenian king, together with Vahram, turned towards their second enemy, the
Seljuk Turks, who were still intent on conquering the kingdom. In the following two years Gagik reinforced the army and fought against Seljuk hordes.
Gregory Pahlavuni nephew of Vahram, defended the fortress of
Bjni. The Armenian army hurried to confront the enemy at the location of the present-day lake
Sevan, where the king and his commander split the Armenian army into two units. The first division engaged in a battle with the Seljuk Turks and then pretended to run away, drawing the Turks after them to the second army, which was lying in ambush. The battle ended with catastrophic defeat for the Seljuk Turks. This defeat of the Turks engendered as a cry for unification across the Armenian feudal Kingdoms. In the Kingdom of
Vaspurakan which formerly under the protection of the Empire, the population had been deserted by Byzantines, the people eagerly anticipated the Armenian king driving the Seljuk Turks out of their homeland. During the leadership of Gagik II, known for his courage as
the Lion, the Armenians revolted and the Turks were forced to retreat to Khoy and Salmas.
Betrayal and exile
Vahram began negotiations with the new Byzantine emperor
Constantine IX Monomachus. Gagik II offered to be a vassal of the emperor, but the Byzantines didn't accept it and prepared a new expedition entrusting Duke of Iberia, Michael Iasites, but he failed in the face of the Armenian resistance. Emperor Constantine wished to continue the policy of his predecessors and therefore sent an army to conquer Armenia, whilst inciting the Arab emir of Dvin, Aboul Asvar, to attack Armenia from the east. King Gagik II, however, managed to get placate Aboul Asvar, by sending him gifts, allowing him to concentrate his forces against the Byzantines, eventually forcing them to flee. Thus, King Gagik II proved he was worthy of the throne and the title of fighting king, which had passed on to him from the very first kings in the Bagratuni dynasty. Byzantines had realised that that if Armenia couldn't be conquered by force, it could be taken by treachery. Gagik II made the grave mistake of forgiving Vest Sarkis for his high treason against the crown. This traitor was still a subject of Byzantium, constantly fostering the naive hope of being appointed as king of Armenia if Byzantium was to conquer Armenia. With the assistance of Vest Sarkis, the Byzantine emperor invited Gagik II to
Constantinople to sign a permanent peace-treaty. Gagik II was lured into the trap and went to Constantinople. There the emperor demanded that the Armenian king abdicate and hand over the throne to him, and since Gagik II refused to do so he was thrown into jail. Byzantines promptly sent an army to Armenia, which was now without its leader. In lieu of its king, Armenia considered offering the throne of the country to David Anholin of Lori or to the emir of Dwin, Abul Uswar, married to the sister of David Anholin, and even to Bagrat IV of Georgia. Bagratuni King Gagik Abas of Kars wasn't considered. The patriarch Petros didn't approve of any of the three candidates and finally conceded to the Byzantines the delivery of the city and other fortresses. Finally, with the help of the treachery of Catholicos Petros, Byzantines were able to occupy Ani in 1045. The country was immediately inaugurated as a province in the empire. Not satisfied with the extinction of the political life of the Armenians, the Byzantine clergy insisted upon their conversion to the Greek Orthodox faith. Meanwhile Armenia became economically the slave of the functionaries sent from the capital, who crushed the people under the burden of heavy taxes. The Armenian nobility, a favorite subject of persecution, suffered the heaviest losses through systematic purges by the civil authorities. The only parts of Armenia which continued their independent existence were Kars, which managed to maintain its independence for a couple decades longer, and Lori which thanks to its geographical situation was much more secure and continued its independence for another century. By destroying the government of Bagratuni Armenian Kingdom in Ani, Byzantines had also removed the only power which could withstand a full scale Seljuk invasion. By itself, Byzantium couldn't summon the same level of defence with which Armenia had managed to hold off the Seljuks. Alfred Rambaud express the following on this matter: “The Byzantine occupation of Armenia resulted in catastrophic consequences for both sides, since the empire lost its natural link through which it was connected to the east. Until that point the Armenians had managed to withstand all assaults, but when Armenia lost its royal dynasty, everything else was lost as well.”
Final years
Gagik received as compensation for his Kingdom the district of Lycandus in Asia Minor and the town of Bizou, in the vicinity of
Caesarea. He was also granted the use of a palace on the
Bosphorus in Constantinople and a pension from the Imperial treasury. Several seals testify
Kakikios Aniotes (Gagik of Ani) as Duke of the
thema of Charsianon. Michael Iasites, duke of Iberia was entrusted with the government of Ani. Sarkis went in the service of Bagrat IV of Georgia. The Bishop of Caesarea, named Marcus, lost no occasion to express his scorn towards Gagik whom he considered a heretic. After several insults by Marcus directed against him, Gagik eventually murdered the Bishop which made Gagik even more unpopular among the locals. As the story goes, it's said the Bishop had a dog named Armenen, so as to scorn the Armenians. One day, Gagik took the dog, put it in a bag, and beat it, he then put the bishop in the same bag with the now mad dog. The bishop was killed by his own dog. Later Gagik was kidnapped by the Byzantine governors (three brothers) of Kyzistra who hanged him, in 1080. During the reign of
Thoros I of the
Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia the death of king Gagik II was avenged. The Armenian forces took the fortress of Kyzistra and killed the three Byzantines who had hung the last King of Ani.
In Fiction
Gagik appears as a character in
Anin Dzakhvetsav, Pakrad Ayvaziants's novel which chronicles the fall of Ani and the Bagratid line.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Gagik Ii'.
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