Mkrtich Khrimian (classical ; 4 April 182029 October 1907) was an Armenian Apostolic Church leader, educator, and publisher who served as Catholicos of All Armenians from 1893 to 1907. During this period he was known as Mkrtich I of Van (Մկրտիչ Ա Վանեցի, Mkrtich A Vanetsi).
A native of Van, one of the largest cities in Turkish (Western) Armenia, Khrimian became a celibate priest (vardapet) in 1854 after the death of his wife and daughter. In the 1850s and 1860s he served as the abbot of two important monasteries in Turkish Armenia: Varagavank near Van and Surb Karapet Monastery near Mush. During this period he established schools and journals in both monasteries. He served as Patriarch of Constantinople—the most influential figure within the Ottoman Armenian community—from 1869 to 1873 and resigned due to pressure from the Ottoman government which saw him as a threat. He was the head of the Armenian delegation at the 1878 Congress of Berlin. Returning from Europe, he encouraged Armenian peasants to follow the example of Christian Balkan peoples by launching an armed struggle for autonomy or independence from the Ottoman Turks.
Between 1879 and 1885 he served as prelate of Van, after which he was forced into exile to Jerusalem. He was elected as head of the Armenian Church in 1892, however, he was enthroned more than a year later and served in that position until his death. He opposed the Russian government's attempt to confiscate the properties of the Armenian Church in 1903, which was later canceled in part due to his efforts. Khrimian further endorsed the liberation movement of the Armenian revolutionaries.
He is a towering figure in modern Armenian history and has been affectionately called Khrimian Hayrik (hayrik is diminutive for "father"). A well-known defender of Armenian interests and aspirations, his progressive activities are seen as having laid the groundwork for the rise of Armenian nationalism and the consequent national liberation movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Early life, education, and travels Khrimian was born in the Aygestan (Aikesdan) quarter of Van. His father, a weaver, died when Mkrtich was a child and he was brought up by his uncle, Khachatur, a merchant. The root of his last name, Khrim, is the Armenian language term for Crimea, suggests a link his family had with the peninsula. He received informal education at parochial schools of Lim and Ktuts islands in Lake Van and Varagavank, where he studied classical Armenian, history, and ecclesiastical literature. Upon returning to Van in 1842, he embarked on a journey across the region and made a pilgrimage to Etchmiadzin, the center of the Armenian Church. Khrimian wished to continue his education at a European university, but this desire was never realized. He lived in Constantinople from 1844 to 1846 where he made connections with Armenian intellectuals.
Returning to Van in 1846, he married Mariam Sevikian. In 1847 he crossed to Persia and the Russian Caucasus, where he visited the Ararat plain, Shirak, and Nakhichevan. He lived in Alexandropol (Gyumri) for six months. In 1848 once again moved to Constantinople via Tiflis, Batumi, and Trabzon. From 1848 to 1850 he taught at an all-girl school in Constantinople's Khasgiugh (Hasköy) quarter. In 1851 he traveled to Cilicia where he was sent to report on the state of Armenian schools. By traveling and living in various Armenian-populated provinces, he acquired an intimate knowledge of the problems and aspirations of ordinary Armenians. He was upset with the apathy the upper and middle classes of the Armenian community of Constantinople showed towards provincial Armenians.
Returning to Van in 1853, he found himself with no immediate family left; his wife, daughter, and mother had died. He thereafter decided to devote himself to a life in the Armenian Apostolic Church. In 1854, at age 34, Khirimian was ordained as vardapet (celibate priest) at the Aghtamar Cathedral in Lake Van. In 1855 he was appointed abbot of the Holy Cross Church in Scutari (Üsküdar), near Constantinople. Khrimian began production of the periodical Artsvi Vaspurakan ("Eagle of Vaspurakan") at a publishing house located next to his Scutari church.
Van, Mush, and Istanbul
Monasteries of Varag and Surb Karapet Khrimian returned to Van in 1857 and established the Zharangavorats School at Varagavank monastery. He founded a publishing house at the monastery, through which he resumed the publication of Artsvi Vaspurakan in 1859. Its publication continued until 1864.
In 1862 he was appointed abbot of the Surb Karapet Monastery near Mush, which meant he was also the prelate of Taron. He revitalized the monastery and transformed it into a flourishing center. He founded a school there and a journal, called Artsvik Tarono ("Eaglet of Taron"). He succeeded in convincing the wali (governor) of the Erzurum Vilayet to lower taxes for Armenians.
Patriarch of Constantinople On 20 October 1868, Khrimian was ordained as a bishop in Etchmiadzin. On 4 September 1869 he was elected as the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople, who was the de facto leader of the Armenian community of the Ottoman Empire in both religious and secular matters. According to Ali Tekkoyun, a Turkish scholar of religion, his election indicated that the Amira (wealthiest) class and the imperial authorities lost power over the Armenians as went against their interests. He cleared the patriarchate's debt and sought to increase the provincial representation in the Armenian National Assembly. As the de facto political leader of the Christian Armenian millet in the eyes of the Sublime Porte, he prepared a detailed report documenting instances of oppression, persecution, and miscarriage of justice in the Armenian provinces and presented the document to the Sublime Porte. Khrimian used the position to advance the interests and conditions of the poor and oppressed provincial Armenians.
The Khrimian report, officially titled First Report on Provincial Oppressions needs to be understood in the context of the Tanzimat reforms (1839, 1856). Aimed at centralizing the administration and improving the tax base of the government, the reforms had not been effectively implemented in the more peripheral parts of the Empire, among them the Anatolian provinces. As a consequence, the local populations often suffered from double taxation, both from the central government and from the part of local tribal leaders who had access to tax farming rights, most of them Kurdish notables. Issues explicitly mentioned in Khrimian's report include: violence committed by tax farmers against the local population, forced conversions to Islam and other crimes committed out of religious fanaticism, over-taxation, and neglect of tax farmer duties, leading to harvest losses. The report also made several suggestions on how to address these problems: In particular, the Kurdish tribesmen were supposed to be disarmed and taught an agricultural lifestyle. Moreover, the report asked for the creation of an effective police force, with Armenians being allowed to serve at all levels, and for transparent communication of the Sublime Porte's orders.
His outspokenness about the issues facing the Armenian population annoyed not only the Ottoman authorities but some of the Armenian wealthy elite. According to Gerard Libaridian, the promotion of rights of provincial Armenians "made him an enemy of many influential Armenians in Istanbul." He was compelled to resign by the Ottoman government in 1873. Armayis Vartooguian wrote in 1896 that Khrimian "could have held the post of Patriarch of Constantinople for life had he not been driven to resign by the intrigues of the Turkish Government, which disliked him very much because of his zeal for the well-being of his flock."
Following his resignation, Khrimian dedicated his time to literary pursuits.
Berlin Congress In the aftermath of the 1877–78 Russo-Turkish War, Khrimian led the Armenian delegation at the Congress of Berlin. The delegation's mission was to present a memorandum to the great powers concerning the implementation of reforms in the Armenian provinces of the Ottoman Empire. The delegation's main goal was to secure substantial reforms in the Armenian provinces that would be supervised by European powers—which meant Russia in reality, as its troops were stationed in parts of Armenia. Armenians hoped that Russian pressure (and threat of intervention) would force the Ottoman government to improve conditions in the Armenian provinces. The Armenian delegation furthermore demanded some form of autonomy for the Armenian provinces, similar to the Maronite autonomy in Mount Lebanon, but did not advocate breakup of the Ottoman Empire or annexation of the Armenian provinces into Russia.
The Treaty of Berlin, which was signed on 13 July 1878, is considered a failure of the Armenian mission to the congress by historians. It failed to force the Ottoman government to implement real reforms. Panossian writes that all the Armenian delegation received were "toothless promises." In the congress, Khrimian witnessed the Christian Balkan peoples (Serbs, Montenegrins, and Bulgarians) achieving independence or some degree of autonomy.
After returning to Constantinople, Khrimian delivered a series of speeches "which secured him a place in the radicalisation of Armenian thinking, and the clear and forceful articulation of demands based on nationalist principles." He gave a well-known sermon in which he called for the armament of the Armenians in order to fight for an independent Armenia. He told his flock that "Armenia, in contrast with the Christian states of the Balkans, did not win autonomy from the Porte because no Armenian blood had been shed in the cause of freedom." Famous for its allegories, the sermon is considered to have initiated the Armenian revolutionary movement.
In the sermon, he "used an analogy of a ladle and dish with the sword and freedom in explaining the Balkan countries' struggle for freedom during the Congress. For him, the freedom of Armenia was only possible through the use of armed force." In particular, he stated: "There, where guns talk and swords make noise, what significance do appeals and petitions have?" He added:
Prelate of Van and exile
After his return from Europe, Khrimian was appointed Prelate of Van in 1879. He opened new schools, including the first agricultural school in Armenian lands. In the 1880s he supported the Armenian secret societies devoted to the cause of national liberation, such as Sev khach ("Սև խաչ", Black cross) of Van and Pashtpan hayrenyats ("Պաշտպան հայրենյաց", Defender of the Fatherland). The Ottoman government, which looked unfavorably on his activities, suspended him in 1885 and sent him to Constantinople, where he could be controlled by the authorities.
Following the 15 July 1890 Kum Kapu demonstration, four representatives of the Armenian National Assembly (Khrimian, Garegin Srvandztiants, Matthew Izmirlian, Grigoris Aleatjian) presented a report criticizing the Ottoman government for the treatment of the Armenian peasantry. In December 1890, he was exiled to Jerusalem "under pretense of being on a pilgrimage." He lived in the St. James monastery in the city's Armenian Quarter.
Catholicos On 5 May 1892, an election held at Etchmiadzin unanimously elected Khrimian to the position of Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church. According to Vartooguian, "Khrimian's popularity was so overwhelming that any one opposing him would be recognized by the nation as a traitor. Khrimian was recognized as the standard of patriotism, and whoever sought the best interests of the nation could not but favor his election." Vartooguian adds that the Russian imperial government was displeased with his election as they sought to incorporate the Armenian Church under the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church in an attempt to Russify the Armenian population.