Page:Islam, Turkey, and Armenia, and How They Happened.djvu/71

Rh kingdom in that of Darius, and the exaction of a tribute of four hundred talents.

Xenophon, the celebrated Greek general, historian and philosopher, born 445 B.C., in his account of the adventurous retreat of the Greeks in the East, known in history as "The Retreat of the Ten Thousand," throws much light upon the ancient Armenians and Kurds.

Armenia was included in the conquests of Alexander the Great, 320 B.C., and after his death at the partition of his kingdom Armenia was submitted to the Seleucidæ of Syria. But in 190 B.C. she revolted against the Syrian King, Antiochus the Great, and gained her independence through the aid of the Parthian king, Mithridates I., who appointed his brother, Valarsaces, over Armenia. This was the beginning of the second period of the Armenian Kingdom.

4. The Four Periods of the Armenian Kingdom. The first period, beginning with Haig and ending at the time of Seleucidæ, embraces about 22 centuries. The first part of this period is legendary, or rather, unknown. The second period begins with Valarsaces, 190 B.C., and goes until 390 A.D., embracing a period of nearly 600 years. The greatest event of this period is the evangelization of the whole nation, about which the reader will find a concise information in the next chapter. The greatest king of this period was Tigranes II., who was able to fight with the Roman rulers. After him Tacitus, the historian, says the Armenians were almost always