Movses Gevorgi Gorgisyan ( hy, Մովսես Գևորգի Գորգիսյան; 3 December 1961 – 19 January 1990) was an

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

politician and national hero, one of the leaders of the Nagorno-Karabakh movement. He was one of the founders of the

Army of Independence The Army of Independence () was an Armenian armed group that was active in the period leading up to Armenia becoming an independent state in 1991. It was founded in late 1989 by members of the Union for National Self-Determination, including Ashot ...

. Widely known for his speeches on the independence of

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

, he was also an active advocate of Artsakh's independence campaign.

Biography

Movses Gorgisyan was born on December 3, 1961 in

Yerevan Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Y ...

, the capital of Armenia. In 1984, Gorgisyan graduated from the

Armenian State Pedagogical University Khachatur Abovian Armenian State Pedagogical University (ASPU) ( hy, Խաչատուր Աբովյանի անվան հայկական պետական մանկավարժական համալսարան, ՀՊՄՀ), is a state university and higher educa ...

's Department of Culture, with the qualification of a stage director and producer. From 1986-1987, he worked at the Theatre of

Goris Goris ( hy, Գորիս) is a town and the centre of the urban community of Goris, in Syunik Province at the south of Armenia. Located in the valley of the Goris (or Vararak) River, it is 254 km from the Armenian capital Yerevan and 67 km ...

. In 1987, he joined the national movement, becoming a member of the

Union for National Self-Determination Union for National Self-Determination ( hy, Ազգային ինքնորոշում միավորում; ''Azgayin ink’noroshum miavorum'') is an Armenian political party. It was founded in 1987 by Paruyr Hayrikyan, a Soviet dissident seeking inde ...

. Gorgisyan led the demonstrations for independence in Yerevan which led to him being jailed in 1988. He also was an editor of the Armenian edition of ''Glasnost'' magazine. Gorgisyan was the first person to hoist Armenia's tricolor flag on 28 May 1988 for the first time. This was the same day the

First Republic of Armenia The First Republic of Armenia, officially known at the time of its existence as the Republic of Armenia ( hy, Հայաստանի Հանրապետութիւն), was the first modern Armenian state since the loss of Armenian statehood in the Middle ...

was founded 70 years prior. In late 1989, Gorgisyan and several other members of the Union for National Self-Determination founded the

(''Ankakhutʻyan banak''), an armed group which engaged in violent clashes with the Soviet and Soviet Azerbaijani authorities in the

Armenian SSR The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic,; russian: Армянская Советская Социалистическая Республика, translit=Armyanskaya Sovetskaya Sotsialisticheskaya Respublika) also commonly referred to as Soviet A ...

and the

Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast The Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO), DQMV, hy, Լեռնային Ղարաբաղի Ինքնավար Մարզ, ԼՂԻՄ was an autonomous oblast within the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic that was created on July 7, 1923. Its cap ...

Death

Gorgisyan was killed on 19 January 1990 during a battle with Azerbaijani forces in

Yeraskh Yeraskh ( hy, Երասխ, formerly, Arazdayan) is a village in the Ararat Province of Armenia. Yeraskh is the closest Armenian village to the closed border with Azerbaijan. The settlement is adjacent to Heydarabad, Azerbaijan across the border ...

near the border villages in

Ararat region Ararat ( hy, wikt:Արարատ, Արարատ, ), is a administrative divisions of Armenia, province (''marz (territorial entity), marz'') of Armenia. Its capital and largest city is the town of Artashat, Armenia, Artashat. The province is named ...

and was buried at

Tsitsernakaberd The Armenian Genocide Memorial complex ( hy, Հայոց ցեղասպանության զոհերի հուշահամալիր, ''Hayots tseghaspanutyan zoheri hushahamalir'', or Ծիծեռնակաբերդ, '' Tsitsernakaberd'') is Armenia's official ...

memorial complex. He posthumously received the highest title in

, the

National Hero of Armenia , image = , caption = The Order of Fatherland , presenter = President of Armenia , country = , type = , eligibility = Armenian citizens, foreign citizens and stateless persons , award ...

award.

References

External links

Մ. Գորգիսեան - ՍՈՒԳԸ ՀԱՎԵՐԺ Է, ԵԹԵ ՊԱՅՔԱՐ ՉԿԱBiography, Mil.am
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gorgisyan, Movses 1961 births 1990 deaths Armenian State Pedagogical University alumni Armenian activists Armenian nationalists Armenian military personnel of the Nagorno-Karabakh War National Hero of Armenia