Mihranids of Gugark | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 330–8th-century | |||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | ||||||||
| Bidaxsh | |||||||||
• 330–361? | Peroz (first) | ||||||||
• mid 8th-century | Arshusha VI (last mentioned) | ||||||||
| Historical era | Middle Ages | ||||||||
• Established | 330 | ||||||||
• Disestablished | 8th-century | ||||||||
| |||||||||
TheMihranids of Gugark were anIranian princely dynasty, which ruled theArmeno-Iberian frontier region ofGugark fromc. 330 to the 8th-century.[1][2] They held the title ofbidaxsh ("margrave").
Albeit the family claimed descent from thePersianSasanian rulers of Iran, they were in reality a branch of theHouse of Mihran, one of theSeven Great Houses of Iran.[3] Its firstbidaxsh wasPeroz, who dislodged the Gusharidbidaxshes of Gugark, thus initiating Mihranid rule there.[4][5] During this period, the Mihranids enjoyed warm relations with the newly establishedChosroid dynasty ofIberia, also a branch of the Mihranids. Peroz was the son-in-law ofMirian III, the first Christian king of Iberia.[6][7] Although Peroz refused to convert to Christianity, he still remained loyal to the Iberian king. He and his followers finally converted during the rule of the Mirian III's son and successorAspacures III (r. 363?–380).[8]
Gugark was normally subject to the Kingdom of Armenia, but fell under the authority of Iberia after the Sasanians and Romans partitioned Armenia in 387.[9] Not much earlier, the Iberian Kingdom had fallen under the authority of the Sasanians after an invasion by theKing of Kings (shahanshah)Shapur II (r. 309–379).[10][11]Varsken travelled to the Iranian court in 470, where he converted to Zoroastrianism and shifted his allegiance from the Iberian monarchy to the Sasanian Empire.[12][13] As a reward for his conversion, he was given the viceroyalty ofCaucasian Albania and a daughter of Peroz in marriage.[5] Espousing his pro-Iranian position, he attempted to force his family to convert to Zoroastrianism, including his first wifeShushanik (a daughter of Vardan), which eventually resulted in hermartyrdom.[14][15][5] His policies were unacceptable to the Iberian kingVakhtang I (r. 447/49–502/22), who had him killed and then revolted against Iran in 482.[16] Thebidaxsh Vahram-Arshusha V sided with the Sasanians during theByzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628, and was captured at theBattle of Nineveh on 12 December 627.[17]
In the 8th-century, the lands and titles of the Mihranids was acquired by the ArmenianBagratuni princes, thus marking the end of the Mihranids of Gugark.[18]
Based on available sources, the modern historianCyril Toumanoff has deduced a list of the ruling Mihranidbidaxshes of Gugark, albeit it remains incomplete.[2]
| Name | Reign |
|---|---|
| Peroz | 330–361? |
| Bakur I | after 394–430 |
| Arshusha I | after 430–? |
| Bakur II | mid 5th-century |
| Arshusha II | ?–470 |
| Varsken | 470–482 |
| Arshusha III | 482–after 540/1 |
| Arshusha IV | ca. first decade of the 7th-century |
| Vahram-Arshusha V | late 620s |
| Arshusha VI | mid 8th-century |
