The 197th anniversary of the Battle of Oshakan was celebrated in Armenia

On August 16, Armenia celebrated the 197th anniversary of the Battle of Oshakan. The representative office of "Rossotrudnichestvo" organized a solemn rally on this occasion. Representatives of Armenian and Russian clergy, military and public organizations participated in the ceremony. The rally took place near the "Heroes of Oshakan" monument (Armavir marz). On August 29, 1827, during the Russo-Persian War (1826−1828), the Battle of Oshakan (also known as the Battle of Ashtarak) took place, during which General A. Krasovsky's three-thousand-strong combined detachment went into battle against the Persian army of Prince Abbas-Mirza, who was ten times superior. In August 1827, the Persian army invaded Eastern Armenia and united with the forces of Erivan Sardar Husein Khan Qajar to besiege Etchmiadzin Monastery. The Russian military detachment of General Krasovsky, located 35 versts away from Etchmiadzin, together with the Armenian and Georgian volunteers who joined him, came to the aid of the besieged monastery and, despite the tenfold numerical superiority of the Persian army, managed to break through the enemy's defensive lines, after which the siege was lifted the same night. Archbishop Nerses Ashtaraketsi (the future Catholicos of All Armenians), who was in Etchmiadzin at that time, holding the monk's relic, "the Roman spear stained with the blood of Christ", prayed for the victory of the "Russian army". The Russian detachment entered the monastery amid bells and prayer songs. Archbishop Nerses Ashtaraketsi of Etchmiadzin greeted everyone. "A handful of our Russian brothers reached us through the fierce enemy's army of thirty thousand. This storm gained immortal fame, and the name of General Krasovsky will remain forever unforgettable in the annals of Etchmiadzin." 1833-1834 On the initiative of Catholicos Ephraim I Dzorageghts and Archbishop Nerses Ashtaraketsu, the monument to the soldiers who fell on August 29, 1827 was built 4 kilometers away from Etchmiadzin with the funds of the monastery and local residents. On April 19, 2011, the solemn opening of the monument "Dedicated to the Russian warriors-saviors of the Mother See of Etchmiadzin who fell in the battle of Oshakan in 1827" took place.