Smbat VIII Bagratuni or Smbat the Confessor ( hy, Սմբատ Խոստովանող, Smbat Khostovanogh) 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 ...
noble of the
Bagratid (Bagratuni) family and one of the most important princes (''
nakharar
''Nakharar'' ( hy, նախարար ''naxarar'', from Parthian ''naxvadār'' "holder of the primacy""նախարար" in H. Ačaṙean (1926–35), ''Hayerēn Armatakan Baṙaran'' (Yerevan: Yerevan State University), 2nd ed., 1971–79) was a here ...
'') of Armenia in the mid-9th century as the commander-in-chief (''
sparapet'') of Armenia. Taken prisoner to
Samarra, he was pressured to convert to Islam but refused and died there. He was the father of
Ashot I of Armenia
Ashot I ( hy, Աշոտ Ա; c. 820 – 890) was an Armenian king who oversaw the beginning of Armenia's second golden age (862 – 977). He was the son of Smbat VIII the Confessor and was a member of the Bagratuni Dynasty.
Life
Early life
Ashot w ...
, founder of the
Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia
The Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia, also known as Bagratid Armenia ( xcl, Բագրատունեաց Հայաստան, or , , 'kingdom of the Bagratunis'), was an independent Armenian state established by Ashot I Bagratuni of the Bagratuni dynasty ...
.
Life
Smbat was the younger son of
Ashot IV Bagratuni Ashot IV Bagratuni ( hy, Աշոտ Դ Բագրատունի), better known as Ashot Msaker ( hy, Աշոտ Մսակեր, "Ashot the Meat Eater / the Carnivorous"), reputedly for his refusal to refrain from eating meat during Lent, was an Armenian prin ...
, who by the time of his death in 826 had come to control a large part 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 ' ...
, and was recognized by the
Abbasid
The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...
caliphs as presiding prince (''
ishkhan'') of Armenia.
After his death, Smbat and his older brother
Bagrat
Bagrat ( hy, Բագրատ, in Western Armenian pronounced Pakrad, ka, ბაგრატ) is a male name popular in Georgia and Armenia. It is derived from the Old Persian ''Bagadāta'', "gift of God".
The names of the Armenian Bagratuni and ...
divided their father's inheritance between them: Bagrat took the regions of
Taron,
Khoith and
Sassoun
Sason ( hy, Սասուն, translit=Sasun, ku, Qabilcewz, ar, قبل جوز; formerly known as Sasun or Sassoun) is a district and town in the Batman Province of Turkey. It was formerly part of the sanjak of Siirt, which was in Diyarbakır vi ...
, i.e. the family's domains on the Upper
Euphrates
The Euphrates () is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia ( ''the land between the rivers''). Originating in Turkey, the Eup ...
, while Smbat received the ancestral lands around
Bagaran and the
Araxes river. In a calculated effort to keep the two brothers divided, the Abbasid government divided Ashot's authority and conferred on Smbat the title of commander-in-chief (''
sparapet'') and ruler of
Shirak, while Bagrat was named presiding prince four years after his father's death. Abbasid calculations proved correct, as the two brothers spent much time quarrelling with each other. In 841, for instance, Bagrat had the Armenian bishops depose the
Catholicos of Armenia
The Catholicos of All Armenians (plural Catholicoi) ( hy, Ամենայն Հայոց Կաթողիկոս; see #Other names), is the chief bishop and spiritual leader of Armenia's national church, the Armenian Apostolic Church, and the worldwide Arme ...
,
John IV, but he was promptly re-installed in his see by Smbat with the assistance of the other princes.
Nevertheless, the Armenian princes were able to use the Caliphate's preoccupation with the
Khurramite
The Khurramites ( fa, خرمدینان ''Khorram-Dīnân'', meaning "those of the Joyful Religion") were an IranianW. Madelung, "Khurrammiya" in ''Encyclopaedia of Islam''. Edited by: P. Bearman, Th. Bianchi, C.E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel and W.P ...
rebellion of
Babak Khorramdin
, native_name_lang =
, birth_date = 795 or 798
, birth_place = Ardabil, Abbasid Caliphate
, spouse = Banu
, death_date = probably 7 January 838 (age 40 or 43)
, death_place = Samarra, Abbasid Caliphate
, years_active ...
to achieve a significant degree of autonomy during this period. Smbat, who had spent time at the caliphal court as a hostage, was more circumspect about openly challenging Arab power than his brother, but both were ultimately too weak to seriously threaten Abbasid predominance for the time being. When
Khalid ibn Yazid al-Shaybani, who in his previous tenures had become enormously unpopular among both the Christian and the Arab princes of the country, was appointed as caliphal governor in 841, Smbat led the reaction against him. The rebels achieved his recall by the Caliph and his replacement with the weaker and more pliant Ali ibn Husayn, to whom the Armenians not only refused to hand over the expected taxes, but whom they promptly blockaded in his capital,
Bardaa. When Caliph
al-Wathiq
Abū Jaʿfar Hārūn ibn Muḥammad ( ar, أبو جعفر هارون بن محمد المعتصم; 17 April 812 – 10 August 847), better known by his regnal name al-Wāthiq bi’llāh (, ), was an Abbasid caliph who reigned from 842 until 84 ...
() reappointed Khalid as governor, Smbat was again at the forefront of a revolt against him, alongside the Muslim rebel
Sawada ibn Abd al-Hamid al-Jahhafi and Sahak, Prince of
Syunik. The rebels were heavily defeated at the Battle of Kawakert, however.
Like all prominent ''nakharar'', he was taken captive by
Bugha al-Kabir
Bugha al-Kabir (), also known as Bugha al-Turki (), was a 9th-century Khazar general who served the Abbasid Caliphate.
He was of Khazar origin, and was acquired along with his sons as a military slave (''ghulam'') by al-Mu'tasim in 819/820.Gordo ...
when he invaded Armenia in 853–855. Many of the ''nakharar'' converted to Islam to save their lives, but Smbat did not. He is venerated as a confessor for the faith by the Armenian Church.
Smbat's son
Ashot V Bagratuni succeeded his father as ''sparapet''. In 862 Ashot also became "prince of princes", leading eventually to his establishment of the virtually independent
Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia
The Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia, also known as Bagratid Armenia ( xcl, Բագրատունեաց Հայաստան, or , , 'kingdom of the Bagratunis'), was an independent Armenian state established by Ashot I Bagratuni of the Bagratuni dynasty ...
in 884.
References
Sources
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smbat 08 Bagratuni
9th-century deaths
9th-century Armenian people
Bagratuni dynasty
9th-century rulers in Asia
Prisoners and detainees of the Abbasid Caliphate
Rebellions against the Abbasid Caliphate
Vassal rulers of the Abbasid Caliphate