The Kingdom of Tashir-Dzoraget ( hy, Տաշիր-Ձորագետի Թագավորություն ''Tashir-Dzorageti t'agavorut'yun''), alternatively known as the Kingdom of Lori or Kiurikian Kingdom by later historians, was a medieval Armenian kingdom formed in the year 979 by the

Kiurikian dynasty The Kiurikian or Kiurikid dynasty ( hy, Կյուրիկյաններ or more rarely Gurgenian, hy, Գուրգենյաններ) was a medieval Armenian royal dynasty which ruled the kingdoms of Tashir-Dzoraget (978-1118) and Kakheti-Hereti (1029 ...

, a branch of the

Bagratuni dynasty The Bagratuni or Bagratid dynasty ( hy, Բագրատունի, ) was an Armenian royal dynasty which ruled the medieval Kingdom of Armenia from c. 885 until 1045. Originating as vassals of the Kingdom of Armenia of antiquity, they rose to bec ...

, as a vassal kingdom 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 ...

. The first capital of the kingdom was Matsnaberd, currently part of modern-day

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...

. It was located on the territories of modern-day northern Armenia, northwestern Azerbaijan and southern Georgia. The founder of the kingdom and the

was king

Kiurike I Kiurike I (alternatively spelled Gorige, Korike or Gurgen; hy, Գուրգեն Ա Կյուրիկե) was the first king of the Kingdom of Tashir-Dzoraget. He was succeeded by his son David I Anhoghin David I Anhoghin ( hy, Դավիթ Անհողի ...

(also known as Gurgen I). In 979 King Smbat II 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 ''O ...

granted the province of

Tashir Tashir ( hy, Տաշիր) is a town and urban municipal community located in Lori Province at the north of Armenia, near the border with Georgia. It is located 42 km north of the provincial centre Vanadzor and 154 north of the capital Ye ...

to his brother Kiurike with the title of king. The branch went on to outlive the main one in Ani. It became especially strong during the reign of King

David I Anhoghin David I Anhoghin ( hy, Դավիթ Անհողին) succeeded his father to the throne of the Kingdom of Tashir-Dzoraget. His nickname ''Anhoghin'' ("Landless") refers to a temporary loss of his lands he suffered after a defeat at the hands of the k ...

who succeeded his father Kiurike and ruled between 989 and 1048. David I Anhoghin conquered some territories from Emirates of

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million pe ...

and

Ganja Ganja (, ; ) is one of the oldest and most commonly used synonyms for marijuana. Its usage in English dates to before 1689. Etymology ''Ganja'' is borrowed from Hindi/Urdu ( hi, गांजा, links=no, ur, , links=no, IPA: �aːɲd͡ ...

, and chose

Samshvilde Samshvilde ( ka, სამშვილდე, ) is a ruined fortified city and archaeological site in Georgia, in the country's south, near the homonymous modern-day village in the Tetritsqaro Municipality, Kvemo Kartli region. The ruins of the ...

as his residence. In 1001, he unsuccessfully tried to gain independence from the Bagratid kings. After failing he was punished by King Gagik I, who confiscated all of his possessions; after this David was to become known as "Anhoghin" meaning "the Landless." David I was succeeded by his son

Kiurike II Kiurike II (alternatively spelled Gorige, Korike or Gurgen) was the third king of the Kingdom of Lori The Kingdom of Tashir-Dzoraget ( hy, Տաշիր-Ձորագետի Թագավորություն ''Tashir-Dzorageti t'agavorut'yun''), alternati ...

, who ruled between 1048 and 1089. After the fall of the Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia in 1045, Kiurike II was bestowed by the Byzantines with the title of ''

Kouropalates ''Kouropalatēs'', Latinized as ''curopalates'' or ''curopalata'' ( el, κουροπαλάτης, from lat, cura palatii "he one incharge of the palace"). and Anglicized as curopalate, was a Byzantine court title, one of the highest from the tim ...

'' and became an independent ruler. Kiurike II moved the capital from Matsnaberd to Lori in 1064.Большая советская энциклопедия: During the Seljuk invasions of the Caucasus, Kiurke II nominally became a vassal of the

Seljuk Empire The Great Seljuk Empire, or the Seljuk Empire was a high medieval, culturally Turko-Persian, Sunni Muslim empire, founded and ruled by the Qïnïq branch of Oghuz Turks. It spanned a total area of from Anatolia and the Levant in the west to ...

. At the peak of its power, kingdom of Tashir-Dzoraget became suzerain of the Emirate of Tiflis and the kingdom of Kakheti-Hereti, where a branch of Kiurikian dynasty ruled from 1029 to 1105. In 1089, David II succeeded his father Kiurike II, and ruled until 1118 when Tashir-Dzoraget was annexed to the

Kingdom of Georgia The Kingdom of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სამეფო, tr), also known as the Georgian Empire, was a medieval Eurasian monarchy that was founded in circa 1008 AD. It reached its Golden Age of political and economic ...

. After this, the Kiurikians, having strengthened themselves in the fortresses of Tavush, Matsnaberd and Nor-Berd, retained their royal title until the beginning of the 13th century, when

Mongols The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member ...

conquered the region. Unlike their Bagratuni relatives, the Kiurikian kings were unique in minting their own coins, with the line, "May the Lord aid Kiurike (George) the Khorapaghat (Kouropalates)," running in five lines inscribed on the reverse side. They sponsored the construction of a number of churches and monasteries in northern Armenia, including those in

Sanahin Sanahin () is a village in the northern province of Lori in Armenia, now considered part of the city of Alaverdi (a cable car connects it with Alaverdi). The village is notable for its Sanahin Monastery complex, founded in the 10th century an ...

, Haghpat and Haghartsin, where a great many of them were interred.Manuk-Khaloyan, Armen, "In the Cemetery of their Ancestors: The Royal Burial Tombs of the Bagratuni Kings of Greater Armenia (890-1073/79)," ''Revue des Études Arméniennes'' 35 (2013), p. 168, note 124.

Gallery

File:Haghpat - Armenia (2935022258).jpg, Smbat II and his brother

depicted at the entrance to

Haghpat Monastery Haghpat Monastery, also known as Haghpatavank ( hy, Հաղպատավանք), is a medieval monastery complex in Haghpat, Armenia, built between the 10th and 13th century. Location The location of Haghpat Monastery was chosen so that it overlooks ...

File:Akhtala Castle (3).JPG, Akhtala fortress, built by the Kiurikians at the end of the 10th century File:Lori Berd.JPG, Lori, the 2nd capital of the kingdom

Gallery

References

See also