The Activities of the Mamikonyan Nakharar Family in 452–482

The sons of Hmayak Mamikonyan mentioned in the primary sources – Vahan, Vasak and Artashes, the son of the brother of the Sparapet Vardan (commander of the army) – Hamazasp, as well as Mushegh Mamikonyan, figured in the political life of the Marzpanate Armenia of the second half of the 5th century. The Mamikonyan brothers, arrested in the autumn of 450 by Vasak Syuni and sent as hostages to Persia in 455, were released from exile thanks to the efforts of Bidaxsh Ashusha and returned to their motherland in the early 460s. In the 460s of the 5th century, the Persian court again began to pursue a policy of oppression and persecution against Christians and the establishment of Zoroastrianism, which led to an uprising against Persian rule. In the second half of the 470s, Vahan Mamikonyan, who was the Sparapet, led the liberation struggle against Persian rule, and in 484, by the Treaty of Nvarsak, restored both the rights of the church and the nakharar system, receiving, among other things, the position of Armenian Marzpan.