The Armenian military in the Byzantine empire - conflict and alliance under Justinian and Maurice

This study will act as a catalyst for a long overdue scholarly research into the military history of Armenia. After all, the booming studies of the Romano-Byzantine and Parthian-Persian militaries could hardly claim to be inclusive without a closer analysis of the enduringly dynamic armed forces of this other autonomous, and intermittently fully independent, actor in the historical Near East.This book strives to bring to light one of the least known, yet most turbulent periods in the history of the Armenian military. In its first part, Dr. Ayvazyan embark on a military-historical analysis of the Armenian uprising against Emperor Justinian’s government in 538-539. While revealing and evaluating various tactical elements and stratagems employed by the Armenian forces, it was imperative to selectively consider previous and later evidence on their military operations, including both conventional warfare and high risk missions such as targeting killings of enemy commanders-in-chief and assassination plots against the heads of colonial – state or provincial – government. And in the second part, he examines the Byzantine attitudes towards the Armenians and their armed forces, revealing, inter alia, that the underlying source of continuity of the anti-Armenian images with the analogous Roman tradition of prejudice was predominantly geopolitical. Most importantly, this book reveals and interprets a great deal of new historical facts and realities. Though the book is purely academic in terms of extensive references, footnotes, etc., the style of my writing is simple, lucid and concise.