Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople

Autonomous See

Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople

Coat-of-arms of the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople

Classification| Oriental Orthodox
Primate| Sahak II Mashalian[1]
Language| Western Armenian
Headquarters| Istanbul, Turkey
Territory| Turkey
Recognition| by Armenian Apostolic Church as their autonomous church
Separations| Armenian Evangelical Church (1846)
Members| 95,000

The Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople (Turkish: İstanbul Ermeni Patrikhanesi; Western Armenian: Պատրիարքութիւն Հայոց Կոստանդնուպոլսոյ, Badriark'ut'iun Hayots' Gosdantnubolsoy) is an autonomous see of the Armenian Apostolic Church. The seat of the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople (French: Patriarche de Constantinople, Turkish: Konstantinopolis Ermeni Patriği[note 1]), also known as Armenian Patriarch of Istanbul, is the Surp Asdvadzadzin Patriarchal Church (Holy Mother of God Patriarchal Church) in the Kumkapı neighborhood of Istanbul.

The patriarchate is one of the smallest of the Oriental Orthodox Churches but one that has exerted a very significant political role and today still exercises a spiritual authority. The Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople recognizes the primacy of the Catholicos of All Armenians, in the spiritual and administrative headquarters of the Armenian Church, the Etchmiadzin, Armenia, in matters that pertain to the worldwide Armenian Apostolic Church. In local matters, the patriarchal see is autonomous.

## History

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Armenian Church adjacent to the patriarchal residence in Istanbul

### Establishment in 1461

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Part of  a series on

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During the Byzantine period, the Armenian Apostolic Church had not been allowed to operate in Constantinople because the two churches (Armenian Church and Orthodox Church) mutually regarded each other as heretical.[citation needed] The schism was rooted in the rejection of the Council of Chalcedon by the Oriental Orthodox Churches, of which the Armenian Church is a part, while the Byzantine Church and the rest of Eastern Orthodoxy had accepted it.

After conquering Constantinople, the Ottoman Empire allowed the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Constantinople to stay in the city. But Sultan Mehmed II asked the Armenians to establish their own church in the new Ottoman capital, as part of the Millet system. From then on the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople acted as a superior religious institution in the Ottoman Empire, even standing over the Armenian Catholicos. For a short period, the Syriac Orthodox Church was also placed under the jurisdiction of the Armenian Patriarchate.[citation needed]

The first Armenian patriarch of Constantinople was Hovakim I, who was at the time the metropolitan of Bursa. In 1461, he was brought to Constantinople by Sultan Mehmed II and established as the Armenian patriarch of Constantinople. Hovakim I was recognized as the religious and secular leader of all Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, and carried the title of milletbaşı or ethnarch as well as patriarch.

### Ottoman period, 1461–1908

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The Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople in 1878. Interior view of Holy Mother-of-God Patriarchal Church The building of the patriarchate in Istanbul Patriarch Nerses Varjabedyan (1837–1884)

The Armenian Patriarchate served the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire with a line of patriarchs in Constantinople. However, like the Greek Patriarchate, the Armenians suffered severely from intervention by the state in their internal affairs. Although there have been 115 pontificates since 1461, there have only been 84 individual patriarchs. In 1861, a national constitution (Sahmanadrootiun in Armenian) was granted to Armenians living in the Ottoman Empire by Sultan Abdülaziz. In 1896 Patriarch Madteos III (Izmirlian) was deposed and exiled to Jerusalem by Sultan Abdülhamid II for boldly denouncing the 1896 massacre.[clarification needed] The constitution governing the Armenians was suspended by the Sultan.

### Young Turks period, 1908–1922

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The Armenian patriarch of Constantinople Madteos III (Izmirlian) was permitted to return to Istanbul in 1908 when Sultan Abdulhamid II was deposed by the Young Turks.

The new Turkish administration also restored the constitution. In the initial period of the reign of the Young Turks, the Armenians enjoyed a brief period of restoration of civil liberties between 1908 and 1915.

However, in 1915 the Armenians suffered great hardship under the Young Turk administration owing to the desire of the Turkish government for its peoples to be religiously homogeneous (i.e., Muslim), motivated perhaps by an imagined threat of Armenians from Russian influences with whom Turkey was at war. The Armenian community of Turkey in 1915 was accordingly decimated by mass deportations and killings. The events surrounding this ethnic cleansing of Armenians from Turkey have become known as the Armenian genocide. The inability of Turkey to acknowledge these events has been a source of significant angst among Armenians worldwide for the past hundred years. Prior to 1915, 1.1 million Armenians lived in Turkey; today (2015) less than 100,000 reside there.

With this backdrop of turmoil for Armenians, the post of the patriarch remained vacant from 1915 to 1919. The office was abolished by the Council of Ministers on July 28, 1916.[3] It was restored for a brief period from 1919 to 1922 with Patriarch Zaven I Der Yeghiayan residing. To alleviate the fate of the survivors of the Armenian genocide the patriarchate founded a Committee for Orphan Relief, a Central Committee for Deportees and was also involved in the establishment of the National Relief Mission.[4]

### Republic of Turkey, 1923–present

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See also: Republic of Turkey and Secularism in Turkey

Despite a huge diminution in the number of its faithful during the Armenian genocide, the patriarchate remains the spiritual head of the largest Christian community presently living in Turkey.

Today, the Armenian patriarchs are recognized as the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church in Turkey and he is invited to state ceremonies.

Five Armenian patriarchs have served after the establishment of the Republic of Turkey. The synod of the Patriarchate has designated, with the votes of 25 of its 26 members,[5] Aram Ateşyan as Patrik Genel Vekili (Turkish for acting patriarch) in 2010 because of the illness of the Patriarch Mesrob II Mutafyan. Some members of the Armenian community of Turkey criticised this move and asked for the election of a new patriarch by universal suffrage instead. (It is estimated that some 20 thousand members of the community are eligible to vote in such an election.)[6] At last, the synod decided to retire the Patriarch Mesrob II Mutafyan on October 26, 2016, and to organize an election for a new patriarch.[1][7][8][9] Following the death of Patriarch Mesrob II, Abp. Sahak II Mashalian was elected Patriarch of İstanbul in 2019.

## See also

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* List of Armenian Patriarchs of Constantinople
* Armenians in the Ottoman Empire
* Armenians in Turkey
* Armenian Apostolic Church

## Notes

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1. ^ In languages of other ethnic minorities of the Ottoman Empire:[2]
* Bulgarian: патриарх Patriark
* Greek: πατριάρχης patriarkis
* Ladino: patriarkas

## References

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1. ^ a b "Turkey's Armenian church elects new patriarch". www.houstonchronicle.com. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
2. ^ Strauss, Johann (2010). "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire: Translations of the Kanun-ı Esasi and Other Official Texts into Minority Languages". In Herzog, Christoph; Malek Sharif (eds.). The First Ottoman Experiment in Democracy. Wurzburg. p. 21-51.`{{cite book}}`: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) (info page on book at Martin Luther University) - Cited: p. 45-46 (PDF p. 47-48)
3. ^ Kevorkian, Raymond (3 June 2008). "The Extermination of Ottoman Armenians by the Young Turk Regime (1915-1916)". SciencesPo.
4. ^ Kevorkian, Raymond (2011-03-30). The Armenian Genocide: A Complete History. I.B.Tauris. p. 759\. ISBN 978-0-85773-020-6.
5. ^ "Armenians of Istanbul - Istanbul Armenians".
6. ^ "Ermeni cemaati patriğini seçmek istiyor". cumhuriyet.com.tr. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
7. ^ Fides, Agenzia. "ASIA/TURKEY - Agreement reached on the procedures to elect the new Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople - Agenzia Fides". www.fides.org. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
8. ^ "Ermeni Patrikliği için seçim kararı alındı". 27 October 2016.
9. ^ "ASIA/TURKEY - Agreement reached on the procedures to elect the new Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople - Agenzia Fides".

## External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Armenian Patriarchs of Constantinople.

* Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople Lraper Bulletin [1]
* Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople
* Gandzasar Monastery, Nagorno Karabakh

41°00′16″N 28°57′40″E﻿ / ﻿41.0045°N 28.9612°E﻿ / 41.0045; 28.9612

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Oriental Orthodox Churches

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Armenian patriarchs of Constantinople

* Hovakim I
* Nigolayos I
* Garabed I
* Mardiros I
* Krikor I
* Astvadzadur I
* Stepanos I
* Diradur I
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* Krikor II
* vacant, 1608–11
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* Hovhannes III
* Krikor II
* Zakaria I
* Hovhannes III
* Zakaria I
* Tavit I
* Giragos I
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* Tavit I
* Tovmas II
* Tavit I
* Yegiazar I
* Hovhannes IV
* vacant, 1655–57
* Tovmas II
* Mardiros II
* Ghazar I
* Hovhannes V
* Sarkis III
* Hovhannes V
* Sarkis III
* Stepanos II
* Hovhannes VI
* Andreas I
* Garabed II
* Sarkis IV
* Garabed II
* Toros I
* Garabed II
* Yeprem I
* Garabed II
* Toros I
* Khachatur II
* Garabed II
* vacant, 1689–92
* Matteos I
* Yeprem I
* Melkisetek II
* Mkhitar I
* Melkisetek II
* Yeprem I
* Avedik I
* Kalust Gaydzag I
* Nerses I
* Avedik I
* Mardidros III
* Mickael I
* Sahag I
* Hovhannes VII
* Sahag I
* Hovhannes VIII
* Hovhannes IX
* Hagop II
* Brokhoron I
* Minas I
* Kevork I
* Hagop II
* Krikor III
* Zakaria II
* Hovhannes X
* Zakaria II
* Taniel I
* Hovhannes XI
* Krikor IV
* Hovhannes XI
* Abraham I
* Boghos I
* Garabet III
* Stepanos III
* Hagopos III
* Stepanos III
* Astvadzadur II
* Matteos II
* Hagopos III
* Kevork II
* Sarkis V
* vacant, 1861–63: Stepan Maghakyan (locum tenens)
* Boghos II
* Ignatios I
* Mkrtich I Khrimian
* Nerses II
* Harootiun I
* Khoren II
* Matteos III
* Malachia Ormanian
* Matteos III
* Yeghische Tourian
* Hovhannes XII Arsharuni
* Zaven I Der Yeghiayan
* vacant, 1915–19
* Zaven I Der Yeghiayan
* vacant, 1922–27
* Mesrob I Naroyan
* vacant, 1943–51
* Karekin I Khachadourian
* vacant, 1961–63
* Shenork I Kaloustian
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