Baghaberd

Baghaberd, in the Kapan municipality of Armenia, is an Armenian-built fortress whose occupation spans several centuries.

Traditions and attributions place the fortress’s origins in the early historic period. Some accounts date its foundation to the third or fourth centuries, and one tradition identifies a fourth-century founder named Baghak of Sisak Nahapet. Medieval narratives describe Baghaberd as active in the fourth century during fights with the Sassanid Empire. The medieval chronicler Stepanos Orbelian relates that a prince named Andovk attacked a city belonging to the Sassanid king Shapur II, withdrew to Baghaberd with supplies when Shapur counterattacked, and there repelled three of Shapur’s detachments by rolling rocks down the cliff; Orbelian adds that Andovk later went to Constantinople and received honors from Emperor Theodosius I. Orbelian also records that the fortress stood in the year 350 and that Arshak II used it during his war with Shapur.

Baghaberd remained in use through the medieval period. After the nearby city of Kapan was destroyed in 1103, Baghaberd served as the final capital of the kingdom of Syunik. In 1170 the fortress fell to Seljuk (Turkic) forces; its treasures were taken and in excess of 10,000 manuscripts were destroyed, an event that is cited as marking the fall of the Syunik kingdom. Over time the site has been known by several names, including David Bek’s Castle and Kapani berd, as well as its Armenian name Baghaberd.