Avan Yuzbashi

Avan Yuzbashi (ca. 1670–1735)[1] was a commander of Armenian armies in Karabagh, and an important figure of the Armenian liberation struggle during the 1720s in Karabagh.[1]

Avan Yuzbashi
Bornca. 1670
Died1735
AllegianceArmenian national movement
Years of service1724-1728
RankSupreme commander of the five melikdoms of Artsakh.

Biography

Avan and his family were originally from Lori.[1] They eventually moved to Shusha in Varanda in 1717.[1]

Avan was instrumental in aiding David Bek's forces and gaining victories over the forces of Safavid Iran and the Ottoman Empire in Zangezur region. In a letter to the Russian monarch, Yuzbashi wrote, "We will fight until that time when we will enter the service of the tsar, and all will perish to the last one but we will not leave Christianity; we will fight for our faith." Kekhva Chelebi, an Armenian patriot who maintained correspondence between the meliks of Karabakh and the Russian authorities, reports:

… The nearest Armenian stronghold … was Shushi. Shushi is four days' distance from Shemakhi. Armed Armenians under the command of Avan Yuzbashi guard it. After meeting with the Armenian leaders, including the Patriarch, they returned to Derbent via Shemakhi. Rocky mountains surround the town of Shushi. The number of the armed Armenians has not been determined. There are rumors that the Armenians have defeated the Turks in a number of skirmishes in Karabagh …[2]

Avan was given the title of "khan" by king Tahmasp II and was appointed as commander-in-chief of Karabagh by him.[3]

References
  1. Bournoutian 2001, p. 447.
  2. Bournoutian, George A. Armenians and Russia, 1626-1796: A Documentary Record. Costa Mesa, CA: Mazda Publishers, 2001, page 133, (Kekhva Chelebi’s Report to the Collegium of [Russian] Foreign Affairs (17 December 1725))
  3. Bournoutian 2001, p. 410.

Sources
  • Bournoutian, George A. (2001). Armenians and Russia, 1626-1796: A Documentary Record. Mazda Publishers. ISBN 978-1568591322.
  • Kiesling, Brady (2005), Rediscovering Armenia: Guide, Yerevan, Armenia: Matit Graphic Design Studio
  • Suny, Ronald Grigor (1993), Looking Toward Ararat:Armenia in Modern History, Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press


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