ARTSAKH HISTORICAL MONUMENTS

Tzar 5 — 16 cc․ 34 Monuments

NKR (Country) / Karvajar (District) / Tzar (Village)

Location

It is situated in the upper stream of the river Trtu, on the higher elevation of a triangular plateau formed by the confluence of the Trtu and its tributary Tzaraget, 2030-2050 m above the sea. The plateau is isolated by deep gorges, and is 300-310 m higher than the bank of the Trtu flowing on the eastern and southeastern sides of the town, and 120-130 m higher than the bank of the Tzaraget streaming on the north. The only unprotected part is the narrow strip of land connecting the southwestern angle of the plateau with the mountain range. This section, approximately 250 m long, was fortified since the antiquity, owing to which Tzar and the surrounding plateau might, in the case of necessity, be turned into an invincible fortress.

Samvel Karapetian, Armenian Cultural Monuments in the Region of Karabakh, Yerevan, 2001, p. 50.

Historical Introduction

The Soviet period was first of all symbolized by the process of deliberate and mass destruction of the local Armenian culture. Besides two churches and cemeteries inside the village, two monastery complexes situated a little below, in the gorge under the rocks in the southern and northwestern outskirts of the village were also totally destroyed. The first of them was the famous Getamijo Surb Astvatzatzin (Holy Virgin of the Confluence) monastery, founded in 1301. Turning them to quarries, the Kurds built rather a large school in the centre of the village, using the khachkars, tombstones and inscriptions merely as a building material for the project. We have registered 133 fragments, within the walls of that school, of which 37 are inscribed.

S. Karapetian, Turkish School... from Armenian Khachkars, "HH", 1995, March 10, N 49, p. 2 (in Arm.); Samvel Karapetian, Armenian Cultural Monuments in the Region of Karabakh, Yerevan, 2001, p. 65.

“God blessed stronghold of Tzar” this is how the medieval authors named this fortified princely residence of the province.

Samvel Karapetian, Armenian Cultural Monuments in the Region of Karabakh, Yerevan, 2001, p. 50.

Tzar was mentioned in historical records since the Middle Ages. Although the region or the Tzar province is recorded much more frequently than the town Tzar (as, for instance, by Stepanos Orbelian), there is a reason to believe that the province should have been named after the administrative centre of the whole region, being the residential of princes or later meliks. Thus we may assume that the fortress of Tzar existed at least as long as the province.

St. Orbelian, History of Syunik, Yerevan, 1986, p. 263 (in Arm.); Samvel Karapetian, Armenian Cultural Monuments in the Region of Karabakh, Yerevan, 2001, p. 50.

1289 y․

“The village, which is called Tzar” was first mentioned in 1289.

"Corpus", Issue 5, compiled by S. Barkhudarian, Yerevan, 1982, p. 222; Samvel Karapetian, Armenian Cultural Monuments in the Region of Karabakh, Yerevan, 2001, p. 50.

Scriptoria
1684 y․

Tzar was also the centre of literature. The Sermon book (Karozcharan) kept in Matenadaran as item N 2067 was written in 1684 in Tzar by scribe Varvare, and illustrated by Father Barsegh for Petros Preceptor.

List of Manuscripts, vol. 1, Yerevan, 1965, p. 712 (in Arm.); Samvel Karapetian, Armenian Cultural Monuments in the Region of Karabakh, Yerevan, 2001, p. 60.

Population
18 c․

As other settlements in the province Tzar was deserted in the second quarter of the XVIII cent.

Samvel Karapetian, Armenian Cultural Monuments in the Region of Karabakh, Yerevan, 2001, p. 60.

18 c․

In the middle of the XVIII cent, the Kurdish tribe Parakhkanli (Farikean) occupied Tzar, but it took them almost 100 years to settle there constantly.

Leo, History of the Armenian Parish Schools in Karabakh in 1838-1913, Tiflis, 1914, p. 677; M. Bishop Barkhutariants, Artsakh, Baku, 1895, p. 409; Samvel Karapetian, Armenian Cultural Monuments in the Region of Karabakh, Yerevan, 2001, p. 65.

1908 y․

The toponym Tzar was distorted to Zar. In 1908 Zar still remained the most densely populated settlement of the province, though the number of its Kurdish inhabitants reached only 383 people.

Caucasian Calendar for 1910, Tiflis, 1909 (in Rus.); Samvel Karapetian, Armenian Cultural Monuments in the Region of Karabakh, Yerevan, 2001, p. 65.

1979 y․

Later and during the Soviet period Zar was the second largest village after the regional centre Kalbajar by the number of population (1002 inhabitants in 1979, consisting mainly of Turkophone Kurds).

Soviet Azerbaijanian Encyclopaedia, vol. 4, Baku, 1980, p. 299 (in Azerb.); Samvel Karapetian, Armenian Cultural Monuments in the Region of Karabakh, Yerevan, 2001, p. 65.

Description
1763 y․

It is noteworthy that in spite of the fact that there was no other settlement with the identical name, the cadastre of Dadi Vank, dated 1763, mentioned it as “Metzn ‘Great’ Tzar”. Tzar was really large even being devastated. Four churches, cemeteries with numerous khachkars, and two monasteries nearby prove that once it had been a densely populated town. After the withdrawal of Armenian population from the town, numerous pieces of culture were left without care. The place was occupied by nomadic tribe Parakhkanlu, that initially merely used (or accommodated) the structures inherited from the former Christian population. Disastrous destruction began when they passed to the settled mode of life.

"Jambr" Assembled and Rendered by Simeon Catholicos Yerevantsi, Vagharshapat, 1873, p. 283. Possibly to differ from the identical village in the neighboring province of Sodk. Samvel Karapetian, Armenian Cultural Monuments in the Region of Karabakh, Yerevan, 2001, pp. 50-51.

1940 — 1950 yy․

The destruction of Armenian monuments continued even on the larger scale upon the establishment of the Soviet power, and especially in the period between 1940-50. Two of four churches inside the village, alongside with both monasteries situated nearby, and old cemeteries were totally destroyed during that decade. The stone was reused while building schools or other public structures in Tzar and Chragh.

Samvel Karapetian, Armenian Cultural Monuments in the Region of Karabakh, Yerevan, 2001, p. 51.

Master plan of the village and its environs Type Map
Author Samvel Karapetyan
Source Sketch

Type Photo
Direction From the south
Author Samvel Karapetyan

Type Photo
Author Samvel Karapetyan

Type Photo
Direction From the west
Author Samvel Karapetyan

Name	Year/Century	Etymology
Zar	1812 — 1920 yy․
Mets Tzar	1600 — 1812 yy․