Article by Wagner Hertzog 

The Zapotecs are an indigenous people of Mexico, who, like the Maya, and unlike the Aztecs and Incas, were able to survive the Spanish conquest, and therefore managed to exist until the present day. With a population that, according to speculation, can reach a million inhabitants, they are concentrated mainly in the southern state of Oaxaca, but also inhabit other Mexican states, like Jalisco and Guerrero, in addition to a small diaspora that have settled down in some cities, in the American part of the state of California. Having been one of the most important civilizations of the Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, the Zapotecs established a modest empire in the Valley of Oaxaca, whose first capital was the city of Monte Albán, which later would be completely taken over and controlled by the Mixtecs. Reaching its apogee during the classical period, many archaeologists, scholars and researchers believe that Monte Albán was initially built by Zapotecs who congregated to build fortifications to protect themselves from external threats. At the beginning of the classical period (200 - 1000 CE), the Zapotec empire consolidated itself as a political and military power, guaranteeing its dominion over tribes, civilizations and surrounding territories, without anyone being able to compete, to challenge them or to suppress their hegemony. So the Zapotecs somehow managed to remain undefeated for centuries.
 
As far as it can be ascribed, the Zapotecs, like various civilizations in Mesoamerica, haven’t recorded their history, at least, not all of it, leaving to archeology the task of conducting research and making firsthand discoveries. The renowned Mexican archaeologist Alfonso Caso y Andrade, devoted to the study of ancient peoples of Mexico, was one of the first in his area to devote himself to the study of the Zapotec civilization (although he has also devoted himself to the research of many other pre-Columbian cultures and civilizations), and was one of the first to carry out research and excavations in situ in Monte Albán, concentrating his readings and interpretations on slabs of a great palace, now known as "Palace J", whose inscriptions on the slabs apparently depict what appear to have been local provinces controlled by the Zapotecs, as well as rulers who would have surrendered peacefully to their dominion, and also those who were killed, and had to be conquered by force.

The Zapotecs are also considered to be among the first peoples of Mesoamerica to develop a system of writing, of a logographic character, which, to this day, remains largely unknown, and many believe that it was a predecessor of systems later developed by the Maya, Aztecs and Mixtecs. It is also believed that they have cohabited with different levels of interaction with other races and cultures, and, according to traditional historiography, their relations with Aztecs and Mixtecs are very well documented. One of the main characteristics of the Zapotec society seems to have been gender equality: women would have as many rights as men, although the Zapotecs today seem more inclined to conservatism, and a strong tendency to segregate activities and genders, being responsible of a considerable setback on this issue. Nevertheless, situations and customs vary greatly depending on the community. While some women and female adolescents enjoy some freedom, others live in much more conservative atmospheres and environments.

At the time of the conquest of the Spanish invaders, the Zapotec civilization was centuries distant from its glorious days, unable to offer adequate resistance to the invading culture, although, on the other hand, they never experienced a severe or irreversible decline, like the one experienced by the Maya, for example, in a certain period of their history. To this day, the factors that have contributed to the survival of Zapotec peoples and culture are not very clear, but like the Mayans, it is probable that the Zapotecs have dispersed to other territories, thus ensuring their continuity, although several indicators highlight the fact that a certain nucleus of them has never left Oaxaca. Another factor that may have contributed to their permanence was the possible identification by the Spaniards of the Aztec empire as their greatest enemy, possibly not evaluating as a major threat tribes and civilizations considered minor, or incapable of triggering an uprising; Europeans may have felt no need to declare war or to eradicate the Zapotecs. A possible treaty or a speculative ability to accept and coexist with the Spaniards may have also been a determining factor in this process, although such formulations on these fields are only mere hypotheses and conjectures. The fact is that the Zapotecs have remained, which have a considerable value in cultural, social and political terms.

The Zapotecs today are divided into four main groups: the istmeños, the serranos, the southerners, and the Zapotecs of the Central Valley, agglomerated in the Oaxaca Valley region, and suburbs, the classic territory of the Zapotec civilization during its apogee. Although many of them speak some of the Zapotec languages, or one of its numerous dialects – while there are a few monoglots – much of them were assimilated by globalization, or "Mexicanized," being virtually distant from its cultural roots.


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Article written by Wagner Hertzog

The Toltec culture was a civilization of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, which founded an empire normally inserted in the classic and post-classic period of Mesoamerican chronology, and whose capital was the city of Tollan-Xicocotitlan (Tula), of which little is known in the present day, by virtue of a great lack of information.
 

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What is known concerning Toltec culture and civilization was a collection of texts transmitted by the Aztecs, who considered the Toltec their predecessors, portraying and disseminating them widely as the apogee of civilization. Nonetheless, the scientific community today finds itself highly divided as to whether or not to consider the Toltec civilization as a real and factual civilization of the past. Several scientists and archaeologists who have studied the Aztec inscriptions claim that the vast majority of the descriptions provided are purely mythological, arguing with cynicism and mistrust to what extent, in fact, Aztec narratives would be real portraits of an earlier civilization. Up to the present day, absolutely no consensus has emerged among the experts, regarding the Toltec civilization, and the debate continues.

The study concerning Toltec historicity is not new, and has already generated frequent, disputed and heated debates. In the 21st century, the preponderance of seeing Toltec civilization as a myth constructed by the Aztecs seem to have gained new impetus, and prevails in some academic circles; the division established between scholars and researchers in the subject has only increased, to the point that today it is absolutely impossible to affirm with truthfulness who were (or weren’t) the Toltec. Another point of interest among Toltec culture enthusiasts is the great similarities between Tula and Chichén Itzá, a huge Mayan complex from the late classic period.
 
Nevertheless, despite the lack of consensus, and its existence being doubted for a long time, the statues, ruins, monuments and pyramids that exist today in Tula are considered products of the Toltec civilization. In this way, it is not surprising that Tula remains one of the most popular tourist destinations in Mexico, and the columns of Atlantean soldiers – four huge statues of 4.6m high Toltec warriors, carved in stone –, continues to fascinate tourists and travelers alike, and to intrigue archaeologists interested in Mesoamerican culture. While a definitive answer on Toltec culture does not exist, and apparently never will, at least there will be no shortage of research material, books and lectures, as well as controversial and interesting debates, on the Toltec in particular, and on civilizations of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica in general. Some of them are extremely mysterious, and are still surrounded by many uncertainties, such as the Toltec themselves, and others more known and widespread, such as the Mayans. But of course, all of them, equally fascinating, educational and interesting. At least, for those who like and appreciate.


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article by Wagner Hertzog 

The Spartacus League was a striking and historical, but ephemeral German political movement with revolutionary, marxist and socialist tendencies, founded in Germany in 1915, during World War I, and its most prominent members were Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg, both affiliated with the leftist wing of the Social Democratic Party of Germany. Both left, after the party expressed support for the German Empire in a declaration of war against the Russian Empire. Unhappy with the political guidelines for power in Germany during this period, both Liebknecht and Luxemburg were arrested for publicly speaking out against the war. With the Kaiser's resignation, and the end of the monarchy, the world, as the Germans knew it, was over, and the nation invariably plunged into chaos, disorder and political instability. With ideas based on what Liebknecht defined as a "Free Socialist Republic" - naively believing that such a republic would be born from the ashes of the German Empire - one of the principles the Spartacus League advocated was the state recognizing and taking into consideration the needs of the proletariat, and giving the working class a greater role in the government. At the end of 1918, the Spartacus League finally became the Communist Party of Germany. It became active at the beginning of the following year's notorious, but ill-fated, Spartacus Rebellion which, possibly inspired by the Russian Revolution, took place in the first weeks of January 1919, initially inflated by the ordinary working class, with the clear objective of destabilizing the Weimar Republic, and declaring its opposition to the ongoing political state of affairs. Raising barricades through the streets of Berlin and invading the headquarters of a newspaper that published articles hostile to the Spartacus League, the workers and sympathizers of the cause resisted for eleven days in the busy streets of Berlin, believing they were initiating a historic, promising and forceful insurrection, which, ironically, would soon come to an end, for lack of strength and resistance. The rebellion, which occurred suddenly, without any kind of logistical or military support, was in fact doomed to failure from the outset, and with the help of the Freikorps - anticommunist paramilitary units composed entirely of volunteers - the uprising was quickly crushed by the government. Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg were immediately arrested, and they were both executed shortly thereafter, which invariably led to the rapid dissolution and eventual demise of the Spartacus League. Unfortunately, an extremely fragile organization from the beginning, it was never able to properly offer consistent resistance to its political opponents, or even consolidate a solid and cohesive agenda of social change.

  
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The proof that, to a certain extent, Ancient Greece was unified - by Wagner Hertzog

The Delian League was a confederation of city-states led by Athens, who had a profound, eviscerating and intense rivalry with the Peloponnesian league, which was, by its turn, led by Athens’ main antagonist, Sparta. This infuriating and complicated rivalry fatally culminated in the bloodthirsty Peloponnesian war, that abruptly put an end to the Athenian leadership in the region of Attica. So, vehemently analyzing the context, it is wrong to say that Ancient Greece – at least according to some historians –, never was a unified nation. From a logistic, politic and strategic point of view there was a unification that, if by one side never saw any formal politicizing process, on the other, was very cohesive and systematically organic. During its peak period the prominence and the leadership of Athens over the Delian League came to be so strong that many historians refer to this period as the Athenian Empire. 

Several times throughout its existence, city-states with membership in the Delian League, due to profound dissatisfactions over a vast array of subjects, deflagrated insurgencies, mainly to free themselves against the abusive, sometimes dictatorial – even tyrannical – domain of Athens, being mostly defeated in the vast majority of occasions. Athens wisely used these wars at their favor, with another purpose in mind: to intimidate and threat other cities with potential to stage a rebellion. Since Athens usually defeated the insurgents in bloody and humiliating battles, other city-states with membership in the Delian League would refrain from taking the same path. The so called "golden period”, also referenced as the classic history of Athens, came to an end when the city was devastated after the Peloponnesian War. 

Another aspect interesting to analyze are the main differences between the powers of the Hellenic world: democratic and cultural Athens was vastly different – in fact, completely incompatible – from the more oligarchic, warfare-oriented and militarized Sparta. Throughout the classical history of Greece, these two opposite poles would be thoroughly and intermittently involved in hostile conflicts, for the benefit of their social, political and ideological ambitions. 

Although it is entirely possible to understand the concept of city-state, Ancient Greece saw, indeed, periods of political, military and ideological unification. The fact that each and every city-state detained a vast degree of autonomy does not imply an intrinsic factor of complete independence: for the greater part of its existence, the Delian League was led by Athens, assuming the same role Sparta did, concerning the Peloponnesian League (and both, by the way – just for the record – often did it with iron hand, never tolerating rebellion or disobedience of any kind). 

So, to affirm that Ancient Greece was a disjointed and disconnected ordeal of city-states is an entirely wrong supposition. Although it has never been a cohesive union, history teaches us that there were fairly organized confederations of city-states, united by a strong leadership – that at certain times acted in an excessively dictatorial mode, its true – comprising a coherent unity, fighting for common interests. The Delian League and The Peloponnesian League, guided by the strong leadership of Athens and Sparta respectively, were two city-states that divided Ancient Greece into two belligerent, distinct and rival poles, often exerting with iron fist the political and ideological ambitions which both represented and fought for, obviously moved by the ardent desire to guarantee their political hegemony. Something that nation-states to this day try to enforce by the excruciating, tragic, inhumane and violent means of war. 


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by Wagner Hertzog 

Being "Etruscan" an exonym of Roman origin, the Etruscans called themselves by the endonym "Rasenna"; one hypothesis that seeks to explain their origins affirms that the Etruscan civilization developed from the autochthonous Villanovan culture. The beginnings of Rome, as well as its development as a primitive city-state, are possibly due to the expansion of Etruria when, in reaction to their territorial control, several tribes of Latins and Sabines probably united, forming a sort of coalition, to defend themselves against the periodic invasions of the Etruscan peoples. Several wars of Rome against Etruscan city-states like Fidenae and Veii are very well documented. 

Nevertheless, Etruscan society and culture played a major role in the early formation of Rome. As a city-state in its formative years, Rome developed gradually from a confederated alliance of Latins, Sabines and Etruscans. Inevitably, various elements of Etruscan culture and civilization were assimilated and disseminated by the Romans, who, especially during the republican period, recognized and prided themselves on the peoples who were responsible for their origins. 

Many historians today claim that the Roman civilization only became a powerful and emerging city-state because its rise coincided with the decline of the Etruscan civilization, undoubtedly a favorite subject among contemporary archaeologists and historians. Their language also continues to be a source of fascination, mystery and curiosity, which rekindles the uniqueness of their origins; they spoke an archaic isolated language, which by convention has been called Etruscan. Study, discussion and research between so called “etruscologists” show clearly that, unlike the neighboring peoples, the Etruscans did not spoke an Indo-European language. With an almost enigmatic writing system, their language remains mostly obscure, and was never entirely deciphered.  

Although their hegemony in the area was quite short – it lasted less than four centuries – history shows that they were of major importance to a certain degree in shaping roman’s culture, as well as war tactics. They engaged in trade and commerce with other civilizations – like the Greeks and Celts –, and usually could have warm, almost peaceful relations with them. Nevertheless, they engaged in warfare, and one of the main reasons that seeks to explain the formation of Rome was the fact that probably the Latin tribes that lived disperse in the seven hills of Rome had united to protect themselves from the periodic incursions of Etruscans into their territory, thus slowly giving rise to what early Rome came to be: an emerging, strong, independent city-state, destined to expand even further, and to become one of the most powerful, impressive and distinguished empires in human history.  

Unfortunately, several aspects of the Etruscan civilization are obscure. Since only a handful of texts directly written by them survive, what is mostly known forcibly comes from roman texts, with a lot of sources whose historical accuracy are not exactly reliable. The essence of what is known about the Etruscan civilization comes from archaeological evidence, as well as studies and research done in situ. With scarcity of historic legitimate sources from their own time, the substantial essence of the Etruscan civilization, unfortunately, is doomed to remain a mystery. 





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Article by Wagner Hertzog

   

Dobrica Ćosi
, born Dobrosav Ćosi
, was a politician, statesman and Yugoslav writer, who in 1992 became the first president of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Although a newly constituted nation composed only of Serbia and Montenegro, it was largely considered to be the successor state of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, although such an assertion was disputed by the other republics of the Balkan Peninsula. A man who would later become a symbol of both a dynamic and unstable government,

​Dobrica Ćosi  was seen by many of his supporters as "The Father of the Nation," as well as a warrior of political and social causes. As a young man, he showed a penchant for public life and, engaging in communist political causes from his youth, in 1939 at the beginning of World War II, Dobrica Ćosi, then only seventeen years old, joined the Communist Youth Organization, and from then on, would rise rapidly in the spheres of power, never to dissociate himself from politics. A determined man, with fervent communist convictions, would end up consolidating a notorious and consistent, but troubled political career, which, by virtue of his aggressive and bold centralizing tendencies, inherent to his polemical and nationalistic character, would make the world see him as one of the most controversial Yugoslavian politicians of his time. As an enthusiast of Tito, and the propaganda of a strong and united Yugoslavia, unlike many of his countrymen, who defended a moderate political administrative management, with respect for the autonomy of local governments, Dobrica Ćosi
 fervently defended a solid and cohesive central government, with broad powers at the federal level, with a priority to eradicate separatist movements and to stifle peripheral nationalisms.

Nonetheless, early on, Dobrica Ćosić demonstrated its major moral fault, partiality, visible especially by his policies favoring Serbs and Montenegrins, as well as a special concern for the region of Kosovo, whose autonomy would make him feel deeply resentful. When Slobodan Miloševi  came to power in 1989, Dobrica Ćosi , initially enthusiastic and demonstrating his unconditional support, especially for sharing his Serbian expansionist and protectionist proposals, was gradually distancing himself from this fact, when the objectives and government directives of both statesmen clearly demonstrated to be incompatible and divergent. Shortly thereafter, Dobrica Ćosić declared himself to be Miloševi 's opponent, which cost him the presidency. Then, Dobrica Ćosi  joined Otpor!, an anti-Miloševi  organization, which quickly gained notoriety in Belgrade. However, despite assuming a seemingly optimistic and constructive policy guideline, many of his actions and convictions to this day are viewed with serious reservations, due to the tragic consequences that many of his political attitudes and decisions have finally set out, although indirectly,  most of the time. One of them was the fact that, at least to some extent, it was through his influence that Radovan Karadži  became leader of the Bosnian Serbs, and later he became the first president of the Republika Srpska, a Serbian enclave in Bosnia and Herzegovina. And until 2010, Dobrica Ćosi  claimed to support all the actions under which the Republika Srpska army – then under Ratko Mladi  – operated during the Bosnian war, which caused major controversy, due to war crimes committed with hideous, hostile and visceral brutality. It is important to note that the Srebrenica massacre, which exterminated more than 8,000 Bosniaks in a matter of a few days, is considered the worst slaughter in postwar Europe, and the epithet "Bosnian Butcher" is applied to both Radovan Karadži  and Ratko Mladi , individuals directly responsible for the massacre. No less noteworthy is the fact that both were prosecuted in the Netherlands by the International Criminal Court for the Former Yugoslavia. Nevertheless, doesn’t matter now what were his real motivations – we will simply never know –, Dobrica Ćosi seems to have been a man engaged in the political and social causes of his time, being, like any person before or after him, a man endowed with many qualities on one hand, and serious defects on the other. A man of many talents, Dobrica Ćosi  was also a renowned and prominent writer, winner of several literary awards, as well as a distinguished member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts. 

Having died on May 18, 2014, at the age of 92, it is certain that Dobrica Ćosi , for many Serbs, will leave a gap in the political and intellectual life of Serbia, which few men will be able to fulfill, due to his persistent engagement and tireless battle – not always impartial, sadly – by a nation free from the heinous internal ills and opportunistic and demagogic foreign parasites, in an inflexible search for the consolidation of a solid national identity, as well as for the preservation of its cultural and social hegemony, where freedom is not only a statute of the state, but the guarantee of a life well lived. If Dobrica Ćosi  was a fearless and daring hero, or just another foolish and opportunistic public man, only time will tell. The truth, after all, shows us that doesn’t matter how the Serbs choose to see Dobrica Ćosić from now on, or how they will pass on his legacy, he was just a man like you and me, with dreams, fears, goals and struggles. Nothing more than that.


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In the late 1940s, China was governed by the nationalist party, whose leader was a notorious military man on the national political scene, named Chiang Kai-shek, an individual born in the Fenghua District, located in Zhejiang Province. Rebelling against the nationalist primacy, the communists, led by a Marxist-Leninist thinker named Mao Zedong, organized his group of combatants to throw out an insurgency against the nationalists and seize power. And that's exactly what they did. Invariably, a civil war was fatally triggered.

By virtue of circumstances as well as strategy, the communists eventually came out victorious. Because of the purge to which they were subjected, the nationalists had no alternative but to flee to the island of Formosa. There, upon arriving in Taipei – which Chiang Kai-shek called the wartime capital – the nationalists reorganized themselves, determined to return to the continent and regain their place in government. Nevertheless, Chiang Kai-shek, no less a butcher than his communist rival, began a huge purge when he arrived in Taiwan with his entourage of nationalists. Any individual suspected of being a communist, or to maintain any connections with the communists of the continent, was summarily executed. After abortive attempts to take over the Chinese mainland government and depose political rivals, it was clear that the days of nationalist primacy in the newly formed communist republic were over. In this way, the nationalists had to content themselves with governing the island of Formosa, on which they founded the modern island nation now known as Taiwan. Nevertheless, decades have passed by, but the nationalists continued to claim their sovereignty over the continent, just as mainland China continued to try to reassert its supposed right to political sovereignty over Taiwan. However, Taiwan has always been an independent nation, never having established political ties with the communist nation founded by Mao Zedong.

Because of this conflict, countries that recognize and legitimize the People's Republic of China and establish trade or diplomatic relations with it do not recognize Taiwan's political sovereignty, but see it as a rebellious separatist territory of China .

Likewise, nations that recognize the legitimacy of the Republic of China and establish trade or diplomatic relations with it, see the communist mainland government as an illegitimate opportunist government that rose to power by overthrowing the legally established nationalist party, .

This is a question that divides countries to this day, including the United States and England, which have never reached a consensus. Recently, the United States has had serious diplomatic problems with China because of its trade relations with Taiwan, which have shaken diplomatic relations between the two countries.

A complex political subject, the China-Taiwan question is far from being over, and probably will never met a solution plausible or accepted by both sides. 



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One Step Beyond – whose complete title was, in fact, Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond – was an American anthology television series, that aired on ABC from the beginning of 1959 to mid-1961. Hosted and directed by charismatic John Newland, it was similar to the subsequent, but much more successful, The Twilight Zone, scripted and presented by American screen legend Rod Serling. 



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Like the Twilight Zone, One Step Beyond had a similar premise: each episode showed a different story, that ranged mainly from somber and unexplained mysteries, to the most unknown parapsychological phenomena that could ever haunt the existence of human beings. Although a little more down to earth on the approach of its subjects – not nearly as esoteric, eccentric or imaginative as The Twilight Zone –, the show to this day has its widely appreciated circle of enthusiasts. Fascinating and incredibly lucid, One Step Beyond knew how to wisely explore the innermost psychological fears of the mind, and the susceptibility of human beings to it, as well as expose the fragile perception of humans themselves in what concerns the limitations of their own condition, and how they can be confused and trapped by it.

Like the Twilight Zone, One Step Beyond had featured over its two and a half years run a lot of legendary actors and actresses – but before they had achieved notoriety and fame –, like Elizabeth Montgomery, Suzanne Pleshette, Donald Pleasence, Robert Loggia, Christopher Lee and William Shatner (which also starred in two episodes of The Twilight Zone), amongst others, as well as an enormous cast of other incredibly talented actors, that haven’t become famous, or didn’t solidified well-established careers. 

With almost one hundred episodes that ran for three seasons, unfortunately One Step Beyond failed to meet the success or to achieve the audience of its most well-known seemingly related show, The Twilight Zone. But this doesn’t mean One Step Beyond was inferior or mediocre: the quality of the stories, as well as the acting and directing speaks for itself in each episode of the series. Despite the striking similarities, the two shows also had profound differences, since One Step Beyond usually dealt with far more real possibilities, departing from lucid premises, while Rod Serling – who scripted most of the episodes of The Twilight Zone – usually explored more implausible and hermetic, but nevertheless fascinating, scenarios.    

These two shows are part of the American television folklore. If you like a classic tale of mystery, or a deranged and deviating story of hallucination and desperation, I highly recommend you to watch One Step Beyond.       


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Valerian Madatov, whose complete name was Valerian Grigoryevich Madatov, was a notorious general of the Russian empire, of noble Armenian descent, who fought in the historic 19th century conflicts against the Turks and the Persians. 

Born in 1782, Madatov’s military career started at the dawn of the new century. Leaving his homeland in an effort to enlist the help of Russian political authorities against Muslim control of the territory, Madatov – probably unbeknownst to him at the time – was about to start a life of unpredictable and conspicuous adventures, like little human beings in history. In the Russian-Turkish wars, Madatov’s experience would deeply enlarge, and his bravery and profound sense of commitment and duty would decorate him with many honors, and this proceeded throughout his life. Soon, he had a profoundly important role in the Napoleonic wars, more specifically when the French troops invaded Russia. Soon afterwards, he would be a leading instrumental figure in the military offensive to attack the French empire.  

Always progressing in the military ranks, he fought and witnessed several battles, being ostensibly injured in several of them. He also had an enormous role during the Russian conquest of the Caucasus, since he was deeply familiarized with all aspects of the region: languages, tribes, customs and geography. 

An intelligent, articulate and tireless general, Valerian Madatov was the personification of dedication. Formidably disciplined and with a strong sense of purpose, he was mostly victorious and successful in practically all the military operations in which he was engaged. 

When the Persians attacked a Russian stronghold in the Caucasus upon which Madatov was the leader, being a sagacious, confident and experienced military strategist, he managed to succeed in one of the most implausible battles of the time, defeating an army of 10.000 Persians, with a brigade of only 2.000 men. Nonetheless, this only intensified the strife, and both political powers called reinforcements, to continue their belligerent dispute.   

Surprisingly, the Russians again inflicted over the Persians another humiliating defeat, forcing them to retreat, for once and for all, which favored Madatov with another military promotion. 

Madatov’s military career would end in another war against the Turks. A little before the end of the war and the signing of a peace treaty, Madatov died unexpectedly, from natural causes, approximately forty seven years old. His mortal remains were buried in a cemetery in Saint Petersburg. 
    
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Vardan Mamikonian was an Armenian military leader of the late antiquity, of particular importance in the Battle of Avarayr, which was fought against the Persians. I think you can say the battle can be considered almost a religious one, since it’s overtones were all practically grounded in the right and in the fundamental principle of the individual to exercise faith. With the Armenian territory – which held some degree of autonomy and independence – falling under the Sassanid domain, they’ve tried to suppress Christianity. Nonetheless, the Armenians would not let their faith to be despised, demoralized nor to disappear from their lives, so they prepared themselves to fight for their right to practice their faith.     

Initially tolerant of the Armenians’ Christian faith, the Sassanid rulers, for political reasons, tried to persuade them to untie themselves from orthodox Christianity, which was then centered in Rome and Byzantium. But they were not successful in their intentions. So they tried to suppress Christianity by using force, destroying churches, and radically enforcing Zoroastrianism.      

For their surprise, the Armenians hadn’t accepted this pacifically. Soon after the decree, conflagrations and insurrections exploded throughout the region. When hearing about the religious freedom of his comrades being restricted, Vardan Mamikonian, a respected general, asked for the Byzantine Empire’s military assistance, which was conceded, but unfortunately, haven’t arrived at the expected time. The Sassanid army had already prepared an attack. 

With experienced veterans and army officials, reinforced by an enormous contingent of the population, the Armenians were able to gather an effective offensive. They were deeply committed to fight for their right to practice Christianity – which was, by then, their cultural and historic religion – as well as to maintain their customs and principles, that the Sassanid dynasty was deeply committed to modify, extinguish and subvert.     

Nevertheless, despite the respectable and consistent contingent the Armenians had organized in their behalf, the Sassanid army was simply too superior to be subdued. The Armenians inevitably suffered tragic losses, and expired at the battlefield. Vardan Mamikonian perished in the conflict, along with his war entourage. 

Always tough and determined in their resistance, the Armenians never accepted their fate. The general dissatisfactions and the aggressive rebellion against the religious suppression progressed in the years to come. Vahan Mamikonian, nephew of Vardan Mamikonian, led a continuation of the turmoil against the Sassanid dynasty, that eventually resulted in the Treaty of Nvarsak, that guaranteed and restored religious freedom to the Armenians. A testimony that exposes the value of perseverance, persistence and faith.    
 

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