Kumayri | |
---|---|
Old city (Gyumri) | |
From the top: Abovyan avenue, Aslamazyan Gallery, Holy Saviour’s Church, Rustaveli Street, Dzitoghtsyan Museum of National Architecture Sev Berd Fortress | |
City | Gyumri |
District | Kumayri |
Established | 5th century BC |
Area | |
• Total | 10 km2 (4 sq mi) |
Website | http://www.gyumri.am |
The Kumayri historic district, also known as the Kumayri Historical and Cultural Museum-Reserve, is the oldest part of Gyumri with its own unique architecture. It has more than a thousand buildings dating back to the 19th and 20th centuries. The district is one of few places in Armenia, and the world, with authentic urban Armenian architecture. Almost all the structures of the Kumayri district have survived the two major earthquakes in 1926 and 1988 respectively. The historic district of Kumayri occupies the central and western part of modern-day Gyumri. [1] [2]
The area was first mentioned as Kumayri in the historic Urartian inscriptions dating back to the 8th century BC. [3] Historians believe that Xenophon passed through Kumayri during his return to the Black Sea, a journey immortalized in his Anabasis. [4]
Kumayri was again mentioned in 773 in accounts of the revolt against Arab domination led by Artavazd Mamikonyan that resulted in a revival of Armenian statehood. Later, during and after the reign of Bagratids, Kumayri developed into a well-built modern town that was a center of commerce for the region. [1]
In 1804, the Russian forces controlled over Shirak region at the beginning of the Russo-Persian War of 1804–1813. Kumayri became officially part of the Russian Empire at the Treaty of Gulistan.
During the period of Russian rule, Kumayri became one of the developing cities in the Transcaucasus. In 1829, in the aftermath of the Russo-Turkish War, there was a big influx of Armenian population, as around 3,000 families who had migrated from territories in the Ottoman Empire -in particular from the towns of Kars, Erzurum, and Doğubayazıt- settled in and around Kumayri.
A major Russian fortress was built on the site in 1837. Gyumri was finally formed as a town in 1840 to become the centre of the newly established Alexandropol uezd, experiencing rapid growth during its first decade. In 1849, the Alexandropol Uyezd became part of the Erivan Governorate. The town was an important outpost for the Imperial Russian armed forces in the Transcaucasus where their military barracks were established (e.g., at Poligons, Severski, Kazachi Post). The Russians built the Sev Berd fortress at the western edge of the city during the 1830s in response to the Russo-Turkish War of 1828–1829.
Alexandropol had been quickly transformed to become one of the major centres of the Russian troops during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878. After the establishment of the railway station in 1899, Alexandropol witnessed a significant growth and became the largest city in Eastern Armenia. By the end of the 19th century, Alexandropol was home to 430 shopping stores as well as several workshops and cultural institutions.
The majority of the historic buildings in Kumayri date back to the 19th and 20th centuries. Monuments such the homes of important Armenian cultural figures and wealthy families from the pre-Soviet period, and several churches, including a Russian chapel, still stand. [1]
The historic district contains around 1,600 monuments of cultural significance that occupy the streets of Gorky, Abovyan, Rustaveli, and Vardapets. [5]
The famous house of the Dzitoghtsyan family was built in 1872 by four brothers who migrated from the Western Armenian village of Dzitogh, to the city of Alexandropol. [6] It is built with the famous red tuff stone of Shirak.
The house-museum, exhibits a collection of the Alexandropol social life characteristics, from the 19th century up to the 1920s. It also features the cultural, architectural and religious aspects of the city. [7]
The Gallery is located off the central square of Gyumri. The building was constructed as a private residence in 1880 by the Qeshishyan family, who were known to be wealthy merchants. After the ruinous earthquake of 1988 the building of the gallery was given to the homeless people and was reopened in 2004. [8] It is the only museum named after female artists and devoted to female artists in Armenia. This building has been protected by the government since 1980 as a historical and cultural heritage site.
Armenian Apostolic Church in the center of Kumayri. It was completed in 1872 and consecrated in 1873. The construction was fulfilled through the donations of the population of Kumayri and the Drampyan family.
The design of the church was derived from the architecture of the Cathedral of Ani. However the Holy Saviour Church is much larger than the Cathedral of Ani.
The building was built in 1886, with red tuff stone of Shirak Province, and was the home of a wealthy merchant named Qeshishyan. During most of the Soviet period, it was used as a storehouse. In July 1983, not wanting to wait until Shiraz's death to honour him, government officials offered Shiraz a home to live in. However, the poet only lived in this house for a year, as he died in March 1984. [9]
In order to preserve his legacy, the building later became a house-museum by the resolution of the Government of Armenia.
Black fortress that was built on top of a hill following Russian control of the region. The full fortification took a decade after the first stones were laid in 1834. The fortress is a 360-degree round structure made of black stone, from which it gets its name. After Russia's loss in the Crimean War, Sev Berd was upgraded and designated a "first-class" fortress. It never underwent a siege, but was of strategic importance in victories over the Turks in subsequent wars that lasted through 1878. The fortress was downgraded to "second-class" status in 1887, after the final Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 that saw Russia gain strongholds in Kars and Batumi. [10]
Built in 1884, the church of the Holy Mother of God belongs to the cruciform style of the Armenian churches with an external rectangular shape. The belfry is located at the top of the main entrance on the western side of the building. The church is topped with a large dome at the center surrounded with 2 minor domes. Unlike other Armenian churches, the altar at the Holy Mother of God is unique for its multi-iconic decoration.
Restaurant and prominent beerhouse in Gyumri. It was opened during the 1960s in Soviet Armenia and located in the historic district of Kumayri. It occupies an old mansion built in the 1860s. The beerhouse is named after humorist Mkrtich Melkonyan (1881-1931), a native of Gyumri, better known as Poloz Mukuch. Nowadays, the beerhouse is one of the prominent landmarks of the city of Gyumri. [11]
The Raphaelyan House, built in the 1880s by the wealthy family of that name as a rental apartment building. Later, the building became the Paris Hotel, and during the Soviet period, it served as a maternity hospital. Currently, the building is being reconstructed by its private owners. [1]
The church was built in the southern part of the town. In the first half of the 19th century the hill was used as a Christian cemetery, where civilians and soldiers were buried. In 1853, the complex got the name of “Hill of Honor”. This church is a vivid example of a small classical Russian church built of Armenian black tuff stone and bears the name of St. Michael Arkhistratig. Because of the roof’s tin material, the Alexandrapol people were used to use plplan (meaning shining or sparkling) to describe the dome of the church. During the Soviet rule the church served as repository. [12]
Shirak is a province of Armenia. It is located in the north-west of the country, bordering the provinces of Lori to the east and Aragatsotn to the south and southeast, and the countries of Turkey to the west and Georgia to the north. Its capital and largest city is Gyumri, which is the second largest city in Armenia. It is as much semi-desert as it is mountain meadow or high alpine. In the south, the high steppes merge into mountain terrain, being verdant green in the spring, with hues of reddish brown in the summer. The province is served by the Shirak International Airport of Gyumri.
Kars is a city in northeast Turkey. It is the seat of Kars Province and Kars District. As of 2022, its population was 91,450. Kars, in classical historiography (Strabo), was in the ancient region known as Chorzene, part of the province of Ayrarat in the Kingdom of Armenia, and later the capital of the Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia from 929 to 961. Currently, the mayor of Kars is Türker Öksüz. The city had an Armenian ethnic majority until it was re-captured by Turkish nationalist forces in late 1920.
Gyumri is an urban municipal community and the second-largest city in Armenia, serving as the administrative center of Shirak Province in the northwestern part of the country. By the end of the 19th century, when the city was known as Alexandropol, it became the largest city of Russian-ruled Eastern Armenia with a population above that of Yerevan. The city became renowned as a cultural hub, while also carrying significance as a major center of Russian troops during Russo-Turkish wars of the 19th century.
Hovhannes Shiraz was an Armenian poet.
Avetik Sahaki Isahakyan was a prominent Armenian lyric poet, writer and public activist.
Artik is a town in the Artik Municipality of the Shirak Province of Armenia. As of the 2011 census, the town had a population of 19,534. As per the 2016 official estimate, the population of Artik is around 18,800.
Maralik is a town in the Ani Municipality of the Shirak Province at the northwest of Armenia. As of the 2011 census, the population of the town is 5,398, down from 5,782 reported in the 2001 census. As per the 2016 official estimate, the population of Maralik is around 5,500.
The Erivan Governorate was a province (guberniya) of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire, with its centеr in Erivan. Its area was 27,830 sq. kilometеrs, roughly corresponding to what is now most of central Armenia, the Iğdır Province of Turkey, and the Nakhchivan exclave of Azerbaijan. At the end of the 19th century, it bordered the Tiflis Governorate to the north, the Elizavetpol Governorate to the east, the Kars Oblast to the west, and Persia and the Ottoman Empire to the south. Mount Ararat and the fertile Ararat Valley were included in the center of the province.
Armenian architecture comprises architectural works with an aesthetic or historical connection to the Armenian people. It is difficult to situate this architectural style within precise geographical or chronological limits, but many of its monuments were created in the regions of historical Armenia, the Armenian Highlands. The greatest achievement of Armenian architecture is generally agreed to be its medieval churches and seventh century churches, though there are different opinions precisely in which respects.
Russians in Armenia are ethnic Russians living in Armenia, where they make up the second largest minority. In the 2022 census, there were 14,074 Russians counted, making up about 0.5% of the whole population of Armenia. A reportage in November 2022 says that more than 300,000 Russians moved to Armenia since the beginning of Russo-Ukainian war.
Anipemza is a village in the Ani Municipality of the Shirak Province of Armenia. The Statistical Committee of Armenia reported its population was 523 in 2010, up from 349 at the 2001 census.
Football Club Shirak, commonly known as Shirak, is an Armenian professional sports club based in Gyumri. Shirak is known for its professional football team which is one of the oldest football clubs in Armenia, having been created in 1958. The club is the only team that participated in all seasons of the Armenian Premier League since its creation in 1992 until 2021. Shirak is one of the more successful clubs in Armenia, having won a total of 11 domestic titles including four Armenian Premier League titles, two Armenian Cup, and five Armenian Super Cup.
The Karin dialect is a Western Armenian dialect originally spoken in and around the city of Erzurum, now located in eastern Turkey.
Officially Dzitoghtsyan House-Museum of Social Life and National Architecture, is a museum in the Kumayri historic district of Gyumri, Armenia. It was founded in 1984 in the Dzitoghtsyan family house, dating back to the 19th century. The museum exhibits elements of the daily urban life of Gyumri, as well as the local cultural and architectural characteristics of the city.
Holy Saviour's Church, is a 19th-century church in Gyumri, Armenia. It occupies the southern side of the Vartanants Square at the centre of Gyumri. It was constructed between 1858 and 1872 and consecrated in 1873.
Sev Berd or Black Fortress is an abandoned Russian imperial fortress in Gyumri, Shirak Province, Armenia. The fortress, which lies 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from the Turkish border, was built in response to the Russo-Turkish War of 1828–1829. It is a national cultural heritage monument in Armenia.
Poloz Mukuch is a restaurant and prominent beerhouse in Gyumri, the second-largest city in Armenia. It was opened during the 1960s in Soviet Armenia and located in the historic district of Kumayri. It occupies an old mansion built in the 1860s. The beerhouse is named after humorist Mkrtich Melkonyan (1881-1931), a native of Gyumri, better known as Poloz Mukuch.
The Gallery of Mariam and Eranuhi Aslamazyan Sisters is a gallery in Armenia, exhibiting the complete collection of the painting, graphic, ceramic works of Mariam and Eranuhi Aslamazyan sisters. It holds the largest collection of the Aslamazyan sisters' paintings, prints, drawings, and ceramic works of any museum in the world. It is the only museum named after female artists and devoted to female artists in Armenia.
The Hovhannes Shiraz House-Museum was founded in 1983 in the Kumayri historic district of Gyumri, Armenia, and opened in 2003. The museum is devoted to the exhibition and preservation of the Armenian poet Hovhannes Shiraz's personal belongings, manuscripts and works.
Poloz Mukuch was a popular Armenian satirist and fabulist from Gyumri.