Khosrov III the Small (''Khosrov III Kotak''; ''Kotak'' means "little, short, small") was the king of Arsacid Armenia . Khosrov was the son and successor of King Tiridates III. Khosrov received the

epithet An epithet (, ), also a byname, is a descriptive term (word or phrase) commonly accompanying or occurring in place of the name of a real or fictitious person, place, or thing. It is usually literally descriptive, as in Alfred the Great, Suleima ...

''Kotak'' because he was a man of short stature. He was the namesake of his paternal grandfather

Khosrov II of Armenia Khosrov II (known in Roman sources as Chosroes, died 258), also known as Khosrov the Brave was an Armenian king from the Arsacid dynasty in the mid-third century. Khosrov II was the son of Tiridates II, King of Armenia, and followed his father ...

, and the

Parthian Parthian may refer to: Historical * Parthian people * A demonym "of Parthia", a region of north-eastern of Greater Iran * Parthian Empire (247 BC – 224 AD) * Parthian language, a now-extinct Middle Iranian language * Parthian shot, an archery sk ...

and Armenian monarchs of this name (see

Khosrau Khosrow (; also spelled Khusrow, Khusraw, Khusrau, Khusro, Khasru, Khosru, Chosro or Osro) may refer to: * Khosrow (name), a male given name also used as a title Iranian rulers * Khosrow I, Sasanian ruler 531–579 * Khosrow II, Sasanian ruler ...

). Armenia fell into chaos after the death of Tiridates III. An Arsacid prince named Sanatruk (whom

Faustus of Byzantium The name Faustus primarily refers to Faust, the protagonist of the German legend. Faustus may also refer to: * Faustus (praenomen), a Latin personal name * Faustus of Alexandria (died 250), priest and martyr * Faustus of Byzantium, 5th-centur ...

calls

Sanesan Sanesan () or Sanatruk () was the king of Maskut in the early 4th century. Sanesan's people, the Mazk'kut'k, have variously been identified as the Massagetae or as the Meskheti. Life According to both Faustus Byuzand and Moses of Chorene, when ...

, king of

Maskut The Maskut (also known as Mazkut, Muskur) were a group of Massagetaen- Sarmato- Alanian tribes located in the eastern part of the Caucasus, along the western coast of the Caspian Sea. They lived between Derbent and Shaporan, which corresponds to ...

, and identifies as Khosrov's brother) raised a rebellion to take the throne. In the southwest, the ''bdeashkh'' of

Arzanene Arzanene () or Aghdznik () was a historical region in the southwest of the ancient kingdom of Armenia. It was ruled by one of the four (''bidakhsh'', ) of Armenia, the highest ranking nobles below the king who ruled over the kingdom's border reg ...

Bakur revolted against the Arsacid monarchy with the support of the

Sasanian The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranians"), was an Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, the length of the Sasanian dynasty's reign ...

king

Shapur II Shapur II ( , 309–379), also known as Shapur the Great, was the tenth King of Kings (List of monarchs of the Sasanian Empire, Shahanshah) of Sasanian Iran. He took the title at birth and held it until his death at age 70, making him the List ...

. The anti-Persian faction in Armenia led by Patriarch Vrtanes I crowned Khosrov king with the help of

Constantine the Great Constantine I (27 February 27222 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was a Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337 and the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. He played a Constantine the Great and Christianity, pivotal ro ...

. Khosrov crushed Bakur's rebellion and retook Arzanene and

Armenian Mesopotamia Armenian Mesopotamia () was a region in Northern Mesopotamia that was inhabited partly by Armenians. In antiquity, this region bordered the Armenian provinces of Tsopk and Aghdznik to the North, as well as Assyrian Mesopotamia and Commagene to ...

. He then made peace with Sasanian Iran by agreeing to pay a yearly tribute to the Persians. Khosrov also exterminated two feuding princely houses in Armenia, the Ordunis and the Manavazians, and seized their lands. After the departure of the Roman legions from Armenia, Sanatruk invaded Armenia at the incitement of Shapur II with an army of various Caucasian mercenaries and invaded

Ayrarat Ayrarat () was the central province of the ancient kingdom of Armenia, located in the plain of the upper Aras River. Most of the historical capitals of Armenia were located in this province, including Armavir, Yervandashat, Artashat, Vagharsha ...

, the central province of the kingdom. Sanatruk took the city of

Vagharshapat Vagharshapat ( ) is the List of cities and towns in Armenia, 5th-largest city in Armenia and the most populous municipal community of Armavir Province, located about west of the capital Yerevan, and north of the closed Turkish-Armenian border ...

and forced Khosrov and Vrtanes to flee westward to Kogovit. Forces loyal to Khosrov rallied under ''

Sparapet ' () was a military title and office in ancient and medieval Armenia. Under the Arsacid dynasty of Armenia, the ' was the supreme commander of the kingdom's armed forces. During the Arsacid period and for some time afterwards, the office was held ...

'' Vache

Mamikonian Mamikonian or Mamikonean () was an Armenian aristocratic dynasty which dominated Armenia between the 4th and 8th centuries—through the late antique kingdom, Sasanian, Byzantine, and Arab dominations. They were the most notable noble house in ...

and destroyed Sanatruk's army in a surprise attack, killing the pretender in a battle near Oshakan. Khosrov rewarded his top generals Vache Mamikonian and Vahan

Amatuni The House of Amatuni () is an ancient Armenian noble family, known from the 4th century in the canton of Artaz, between lakes Van and Urmia, with its center at Shavarshan (latter-day Maku), and subsequently also at Aragatsotn, west of Lake Se ...

and the other ''nakharars'' that had remained loyal to him with land and other lavish gifts. After this, the country enjoyed a period of peace, and Khosrov occupied himself with building his new capital city of Dvin. He also founded two large hunting grounds in Ayrarat called Khosrovakert and Tachar Mayri. The

Khosrov Forest State Reserve Khosrov Forest State Reserve () is a nature reserve in Ararat Province of Armenia. The reserve is one of the oldest protected areas in the world having a history of about 1,700 years. It was founded in the 4th century (334–338) by the order o ...

in modern-day Armenia is named after him. In 337, Shapur II's army laid siege to

Nisibis Nusaybin () is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Mardin Province, Turkey. Its area is 1,079 km2, and its population is 115,586 (2022). The city is populated by Kurds of different tribal affiliation. Nusaybin is separated ...

, while one of his generals marched against central Armenia. A ''nakharar'' named Databe

Bznuni The Bznunis () are an ancient authority, a nakharar () family in Armenia. Genealogy According to ancestral story, which tells us Movses Khorenatsi, the dynasty of Bznunis originates from Baz forefather. Baz was Manavaz Haykazuni's grandson. H ...

was tasked with organizing the defense, but instead passed over to the Sasanian side. Vache Mamikonian and Vahan Amatuni led the Armenian army to victory against the Persian invaders in a battle near the southeastern coast of

Lake Van Lake Van (; ; ) is the largest lake in Turkey. It lies in the Eastern Anatolia Region of Turkey in the provinces of Van Province, Van and Bitlis Province, Bitlis, in the Armenian highlands. It is a Salt lake, saline Soda lake, soda lake, receiv ...

. Databe Bznuni was executed; his house was annihilated and their holdings were seized by the king. After this, Khosrov decreed that all ''nakharar''s with a force larger than 1,000 soldiers were obligated to live at the royal court, where the king could exercise control over them. Khosrov broke off relations with Sasanian Iran and moved Armenia closer to the Roman Empire. Shapur soon invaded Armenia again but was repulsed at great cost to the Armenian defenders. ''Sparapet'' Vache Mamikonian and many other great lords were killed in battle. Khosrov died in 338/339 in Dvin. His remains were interred in the Arsacid royal mausoleum in

Ani Ani (; ; ) is a ruined medieval Armenian city now situated in Turkey's province of Kars, next to the closed border with Armenia. Between 961 and 1045, it was the capital of the Bagratid Armenian kingdom that covered much of present-day Armen ...

. He was succeeded by his son, Tiran. Khosrov had three children: a son, Tiran, who succeeded him as king; a daughter, Varazdukht, who married Pap, the son of Patriarch Husik; and another daughter, Bambishn, who married the second son of Husik, Atanagenes, with whom she had Nerses, the future Patriarch of Armenia.

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