Khosrov I (; fl. second half 2nd c. - first half 3rd c., died 217) was a Parthian prince who served as a Roman client king of Armenia. Khosrov I was one of the sons born to King Vologases II of Armenia (Vagharsh II)Hovannisian, The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times, Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiquity to the Fourteenth Century, p.71 who is also known as Vologases V of ParthiaToumanoff, Manuel de généalogie et de chronologie pour le Caucase chrétien (Arménie, Géorgie, Albanie) [détail des éditions], p.73 by a mother whose name is unknown. Through his father, Khosrov I was a member of the House of Parthia and thus a relation of the Arsacid dynasty of Armenia.Hovannisian, The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times, Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiquity to the Fourteenth Century, p.71In 191, Vologases II ascended the Parthian throne, and as a result relinquished the Armenian throne to Khosrov I. Throughout the 1st and 2nd-centuries, the Armenian throne was usually occupied by a close relative of the Parthian King of Kings, who held the title of "Great King of Armenia". According to the 5th-century Armenian historian Agathangelos, the king of Armenia had the second rank in the Parthian realm, below only the Parthian king. The modern historian Lee E. Patterson suggests that Agathangelos may have exaggerated the importance of his homeland. Khosrov I served as Armenian King from 191 until 217. In Armenian sources, Khosrov I is often confused with his famous grandson Khosrov II.Hovannisian, The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times, Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiquity to the Fourteenth Century, p.71 Little is known on his life, prior to becoming King of Armenia.Khosrov I is the King whom classical authors present as a neutral monarch towards Rome.Hovannisian, The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times, Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiquity to the Fourteenth Century, p.71 In 195 when the Roman emperor Septimius Severus was on his great campaign to the Parthian Empire sacking the capital Ctesiphon, Khosrov I had sent gifts and hostages to Severus.Hovannisian, The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times, Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiquity to the Fourteenth Century, p.71 As a client monarch of Rome, Khosrov I was under the protection of Septimius Severus and his successor Caracalla.Adalian, Historical Dictionary of Armenia, p.174Between 214 and 216, Khosrov I with his family were held under Roman detention for unknown reasons which provoked a major uprising in Armenia against Rome.Adalian, Historical Dictionary of Armenia, p.174 In 215, Caracalla led a Roman army and invaded ArmeniaAdalian, Historical Dictionary of Armenia, p.174 to end the uprising. Khosrov I may be the Khosrov mentioned in an Egyptian inscription that speaks of Khosrov the Armenian.Hovannisian, The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times, Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiquity to the Fourteenth Century, p.71In 217 when Khosrov I died, his son Tiridates II,Adalian, Historical Dictionary of Armenia, p.174 was granted the Armenian crownHovannisian, The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times, Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiquity to the Fourteenth Century, p.71 by the Roman emperor Caracalla.Adalian, Historical Dictionary of Armenia, p.174 Tiridates II was declared King of Armenia upon Caracalla's assassinationAdalian, Historical Dictionary of Armenia, p.174 which was on 8 April 217.
Biography of Khosrov I the Valiant
After the death of Vagharsh II, his son Khosrov I the Brave (206–253) was proclaimed king of the Kingdom of Greater Armenia. He was a man of great intellect, exceptional organizational talent, as well as notable military and diplomatic abilities. At the beginning of his reign, he crossed the Caucasus Mountains, and as a result, in the spring of 207, the army of the Kingdom of Greater Armenia (approximately 110,000 troops), led by Khosrov I the Brave, sparapet Ashot Bagratuni, and Babken Artsruni, passed through the Derbent Pass on a punitive campaign and defeated the combined forces of the Basilian and Alanian kingdoms (around 60,000 troops, including Sarmatians, Khazars, and Bulgars) in the Battle of Derbent FortressMovses Khorenatsi, History of the Armenians, Book 2, Chapter 65.Ukhtanes, History of the Armenians, Chapters 46, 47.Stephen Taronetsi (Asoghik), Universal History, Book 1, Chapter 5.Սամվել Անեցի «Ժամանակագրություն»Vardan Areveltsi, Universal History, Chapter 17.David Baghishetsi, Chronology.. As a result, the war initiated earlier by his father, Vagharsh II, came to an end.Consequently, the kingdoms of Alania, Basileia, and Caucasian Albania recognized the supremacy of the Kingdom of Greater Armenia, while hostages were taken from the Sarmatians, Khazars, Basilians, and Bulgars as guarantees of the concluded peace. The borders of Armenian dominance extended northward to the southern valley of the Volga River and the Ciscaucasian steppes, and eastward to the Caspian Sea and Atropatene. Thus, succeeding his father and inflicting a crushing defeat upon the combined Basilian and Alanian forces, Khosrov I the Brave—who already held the Kingdom of Iberia under his authority through his brother Rev—also imposed allied obligations upon the Basilian and Alanian kingdoms, effectively creating a powerful confederation of northern states under the supremacy of Greater Armenia. While protecting the interests of the priestly class, he persecuted Christian communities.In 202, together with his ally, the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus, he was present in Egypt during the latter’s campaign.Following the Sasanian coup against the Parthian Arsacids in 208–209, and in 213, Khosrov I allied himself with and supported Artabanus V, who had been proclaimed King of Kings in Parthia in opposition to Vagharsh VI.In the autumn of 216, Khosrov I the Brave, together with his wife, arrived at a Roman imperial camp located in Corduene, where, however, the Armenian king and queen were capturedCassius Dio, Roman History, Book 78, Chapters 12, 18, 19, 21.Aelius Spartianus, Historia Augusta, "Life of Antoninus Caracalla", Section 6.. Upon learning of this, the army of Greater Armenia (about 100,000 troops), led by Prince Trdat, set out on a campaign and advanced toward the enemy. In response, the Roman army under Theocritus also moved to meet the Armenian forces. The armies approached each other and formed battle lines. The Armenian army inflicted a heavy defeat on the Roman forces, which retreated toward Edessa.
Meanwhile, the Roman army (approximately 140,000 troops), led by Septimius Caracalla, marched along the route Edessa–Carrhae–Nisibis–Arbela and prepared to invade the territory of the Parthian kingdom. Upon learning this, the combined forces of the Parthian kingdom (around 80,000 troops), led by Artabanus V, and the Kingdom of Greater Armenia (around 100,000 troops), led by Prince Trdat, advanced toward the enemy, which retreated as far as Nisibis and encamped nearby. However, on April 8, Caracalla was assassinated by his own guards. Thereafter, in the immediate vicinity of the opposing army, his secretary and the true organizer of the conspiracy, Marcus Macrinus (217–218), was proclaimed emperor.
Under these circumstances, on April 9, the opposing sides approached each other and formed battle lines. On that day, the combined Parthian and Armenian forces launched an attack, but the fierce battle, which lasted all day, brought no advantage to either side. On April 10, the engagements continued with no decisive outcome. On April 11, the allied Parthian and Armenian army, superior particularly in cavalry, launched another attack and attempted to outflank the Roman formation; in response, however, the Romans extended their lines and managed to hold their positions. As a result, the intense and bloody fighting that continued throughout the day again produced no decisive advantage, and by the end of the day, both sides—having suffered heavy losses—retreated to their initial positions.
In these difficult circumstances, Marcus Macrinus, fully understanding that his equally strained opponent was fighting stubbornly, likely driven by a desire for revenge against Caracalla, released Khosrov I the Brave and his wife on April 12. Through them, he informed the opposing command that Caracalla had been dead for four days and, taking this into account, proposed concluding peace. The proposal was accepted, and thus peace was concluded, bringing the Fifth Roman–Parthian War to an end. As a result, Khosrov I the Brave was restored to the throne of Greater ArmeniaHerodian, History of the Empire, Book 4, Section 15.Julius Capitolinus, Historia Augusta, "Life of Opilius Macrinus", Section 8.Eutropius, Abridgement of Roman History, Book 8, Chapter 20.Sextus Rufus (Festus), The Breviary of the Roman People / History of the Caesars, Chapter 21.Orosius, Seven Books of History Against the Pagans, Book 7, Chapter 18..
On April 27, 224, at the Battle of Hormozdgan, the army of the Persian kingdom led by Ardashir I (220–243), together with its allies, utterly defeated the forces of the Parthian kingdom led by Artabanus V. The leader of the Sasanian dynasty, who harbored deep and even hereditary hatred toward the Arsacids, was not satisfied merely with the death of Artabanus V, casting down his severed head, he trampled it with relentless fury. A new era was opening for the Near and Middle EastManandian, H. H., A Critical Survey of the History of the Armenian People, Vol. 2, Yerevan 1978, pp. 70-71.. The age of the Arsacids was coming to an end, and the era of the Sasanians was beginning.
The outbreak of the Arsacid War