Two
thousand
years
ago,
the
Armenian
emperor,
Tigranes
II
(Dickran),
King
of
Kings,
marched
into
Judea
at the head of a vast invading army.
And
planted
the
seeds
of
a
perpetual
Armenian
presence in the Holy Land.
For
strategic
reasons
-
he
did
not
want
to
extend
his
front
or
engage
in
another
costly
military
confrontation
with
the
ruling
Roman
forces
-
he
did
not
enter
Jerusalem,
which
was
nothing
more
than
an
insignificant regional province at the time.
The
first
Armenians
were
soldiers
and
conscripts
he
left
behind
to
man
the
garrisons
he
had
had
erected
along
the
borders.
They
were
joined
by
camp
followers
and
soon
intermingled
with
the
local
population
and
settled
as
homeowners,
traders,
artisans
and
builders,
in
and around the city.
One of them was my direct ancestor.
Endowed
with
a
rich,
dynamic
culture,
age-old
traditions
and
glorious
history,
Armenians
have
helped
place Jerusalem squarely on the map of the world.
This
website
has
been
created
with
the
aim
of
preserving
and
perpetuating
our
precious
legacy
and
heritage.
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