“Maragha-150” - a witness of big Armenian falsification and misappropriation Built by Armenians, destroyed by Armenians

The history of the presence of Armenians in the South Caucasus has long been at the epicentre of fiery discussions since Armenians adamantly present themselves as "indigenous people" of the region but historical sources claim vice versa.

Multiple sources confirm factually that the first information about the ethnic Armenians’ arrival in South Caucasus dates back to the 19th century, i.e., after the Russo-Persian war in 1828. However, Armenians claim that they have been living there for millennia as the “first Christians” in the world and in the region.

But claims remain dead in the water when visual and material proofs leave no room for distorting facts.

One of the dozens of such proofs is the “Maragha-150” monument once installed in the modern-day Tartar (previously Aghdara) region of Azerbaijan. The man-made installation was unveiled in 1978 to honour the 150th anniversary of the relocation of Armenians to the South Caucasus, namely to the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. Prominent Azerbaijani orientalist and historian, Academician Ziya Bunyadov in his article "Myths and those who invented myths" wrote that the opening of the “Maragha-150” monument was covered solemnly by all the Karabakh media.

The original "Maragha-150" memorial that was built by Armenians, in Azerbaijan's modern-day Tartar (previously Aghdara) region in 1978

In addition, Ilgar Gasimov, a resident of the Tartar region, once recalled how he saw the Armenian monument appear in the Azerbaijani lands.

“I was 16 years old. On the way with my father to the village of Umudlu, we saw how the Armenians were opening the monument. It consists of ordinary crushed stone, multi-coloured mosaics with an area of about 30 square meters and the composition "Girls at the fountain". The composition comprised of the main monument measuring 1.5 meters in width and 3 meters in height with marble column springs on the right and left sides. On one of the marble columns was written 1828 from top to bottom and 1978 from above.

According to Gasimov, similar monuments were built also in the Chayli village of Tartar and in the city of Khankendi to mark the arrival of Armenians in Karabakh.

Relocation of Armenians to new territories

Historical sources demonstrate that ethnic Armenians did not exist in the Karabakh region until after the Russian Empire organized their relocation to Azerbaijani territories from Iran and Turkey following the war from 1804-1812. After Russia won the war over Iran, northern parts of Azerbaijan, except Iravan (modern-day Yerevan) and Nakhchivan were incorporated into the Russian empire. In wake of the next Russo-Persian war from 1826-1828, resulted in the entirety of northern Azerbaijani lands, including Iravan and Nakhchivan, being occupied by Imperial Russia under the Turkmenchay treaty. Southern territories fell under Iran’s control.

Article 15 of the treaty addressed that Armenians living in Iran may move to the north from the Araz river on the Iran-Azerbaijan border within one year after the conclusion of the agreement.

Under the post-occupation administrative division, northern Azerbaijan was divided into the provinces of Baku, Yelizavetpol (Ganja city in the west of Azerbaijan), and Iravan. The Karabakh and modern-day East Zangazur regions were part of the Yelizavetpol province. One of the ways the Tsardom of Russia used to expand its colonial policy in the occupied territories was the relocation of people within the borders of the South Caucasus, including Azerbaijan.

The project of Armenians’ resettlement to Azerbaijan from Iran was developed in 1827 in the South Caucasus Diplomatic Office headed by Alexander Griboyedov, the representative of Russia in Iran. He had been actively involved in the implementation of the project on the resettlement of Iranian Armenians to Azerbaijan. According to historical sources, Griboyedov paid special attention to the relocation of Armenians from Iran to the Russian border, which then covered the newly occupied territories of Azerbaijan. The data of the Russian Military History Archive from May 26, 1828, suggests that Armenians, who were moved to Karabakh and Iravan consisted of 279 and 948 families respectively.

An illustration of the relocation of Armenians from Iran to Azerbaijan

The Armenians were relocated to new territories due to several reasons, including their lack of an established state and reportedly being submissive compared to others. A special commission was established to deal with the deployment of Armenians from the Ottoman and Iranian territories to the South Caucasus. As a result of the relocation, the number of Armenians in the Karabakh region reached 18,000 between 1828 and 1829 and hit 34,606 in 1843.

Nikolai Shavrov, a military administrator who was involved in the relocation, wrote that 84,000 Armenians from the Ottoman were placed on the best lands in the Yelizavetpol and Iravan provinces of Azerbaijan, where ethnic Armenians practically did not exist. The mountainous part of Yelizavetpol or the Karabakh region and the coasts of Lake Goycha on the western edge of Azerbaijan received the largest part of Armenians relocated by the Tsardom of Russia. Shavrov has further noted that over one million of around 1.3 million Armenians living in the South Caucasus did not have any connection to the indigenous people and have been settled by the Tsarist regime.

What happened to “Maragha-150”?

After cementing their presence in the Azerbaijani lands under the patronage of the Russian Empire’s predecessor the Soviet Union, the ethnic Armenians began to solemnize their so-called “history” in these lands. And the "Maragha-150" memorials served namely to this purpose. However, years later, the 150-year-old history of Armenians in Karabakh was attempted to be erased and redesigned as "millennia-old".

The first sample of the "Maragha-150" monument series in the Skihkarkh village of Tartar went through quite a puzzling storyline when its creators have suddenly become its "nemesis".

In 1988, the memorial was completely refashioned as spring without Armenian inscriptions on it. The alteration came at a time when ethnic Armenians living in Karabakh, who labelled themselves as the “indigenous people”, began demanding a so-called “right for self-determination” from the Azerbaijani authorities.

The "Maghara-150" memorial after it was refashioned by Armenians in 1988

The demands of Karabakh Armenians later sparked into an armed conflict launched and sponsored by the Armenian government. The fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 set fertile ground for Armenia to launch an all-out attack against its eastern neighbour. The war from 1991-1994 saw 20 per cent of Azerbaijan’s sovereign territory occupied by Armenia.

The post-occupation cultural vandalism in the Azerbaijani lands did not bypass the "Maragha-150" memorial. Armenians have all but completely destroyed it to bury historical realities, i.e. their own history, into oblivion. Today, only a small portion of the "Maragha-150" monument stands still in Tartar. The Azerbaijani government preserves it to not let the historical realities be distorted by Armenians.

The current look of the "Maragha-150" memorial