| Principality of Khachen | ||||
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Royal Standard of the Principality of Khachen during the reign of Grand Prince Hasan Jalal Vahtangian (1214-1261). |
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| The Melikdoms of Karabakh and Melik Houses in the 17-19th centuries | ||||
| Capital | Khachen, Haterk, Vaykunik | |||
| Language(s) | Armenian | |||
| Religion | Armenian Apostolic Church | |||
| Government | Monarchy | |||
| History | ||||
| - Established | 11th century | |||
| - Disestablished | 1750 | |||
| History of Nagorno-Karabakh | |
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This article is part of a series |
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| Ancient History | |
| Artsakh | |
| Middle Ages | |
| Principality of Khachen | |
| Kingdom of Artsakh | |
| Melikdoms of Karabakh | |
| Modern Era | |
| Karabakh Khanate | |
| Russian Karabakh | |
| Early 20th Century | |
| Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast | |
| Nagorno-Karabakh War | |
| Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh | |
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The Principality of Khachen (Armenian: Խաչենի իշխանություն), also known as Khamsa (meaning five in Arabic), was a medieval Armenian principality in the territory of historical Artsakh (present-day Nagorno-Karabakh).[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] The marches of Artsakh and Utik were attached to the Kingdom of Armenia in Antiquity but in the early medieval period were often under Georgian and Albanian control under Sassanid or Arab suzerainty.[8] From the 12th century the Armenian Khachen principality dominated the region.[8] The Byzantine emperor Constantine VII addressed his letters to the prince of Khachen with the inscription "To Prince of Khachen, Armenia."[9]
According to Abū Dulaf, an Arab traveller of the time, Khachen was an Armenian principality immediately south of Barda'a.[10] The Armenian princely family of Hasan Jalalyan began ruling much of Khachen and Artsakh in 1214.[11][12][13] In 1216, the Jalalyans founded the Gandzasar monastery which became the seat of a local Catholicos forced to Khachen from Partav (Barda) by the steady Islamization of the city.[8] The Khamsa (The Five) principalities maintained Armenian autonomy in the region throughout the Persian-Ottoman Wars. In 1603 the Persians established a protectorate over the Khamsa and sponsored the establishment of a local khanate in 1750.[8]
The name Khamsa, which was used by Arabs for the state, refers to the five Armenian Melikdoms who ruled the state.