Sanesan
Sanesan was the king of Maskut in the early 4th century. He converted to Christianity, but then rejected it and slew Grigoris, the bishop who had introduced him to the faith. According to Faustus Byuzand, when Grigoris arrived in the Caucasian Albanian principality of Maskut (located along the northeastern Azerbaijani and south Dagestani shore of the Caspian Sea) to preach Christianity, its ruler Sanatruk (also known as Sanesan) of the local branch of Arsacides ordered him killed. Grigoris was trampled to death by mounted Maskut soldiers in the Vatnik Valley, near the present-day village of Nughdi 37 south of Derbent.[2]
| Sanesan | |
|---|---|
| King of Maskut King of Caucasian Albania[1] | |
| Reign | 4th century AD |
| Predecessor | Urnayr |
| Successor | Vachagan II |
| House | Arsacid dynasty |
| Religion | Paganism Church of Caucasian Albania |
According to the history of Faustus Byuzand, Sanesan was a member of the Arsacid Dynasty and ruled lands bordering the Kura river. During the reign of his kinsman Khosrov III the Small, he invaded Armenia with an army of various peoples including Huns and Alans in 337. After occupying Armenia for most of a year, he was defeated and killed by the Armenian general Vatche Mamikonian.
Sanesan's people, the Mazk'kut'k, have variously been identified as the Massagetae or as the Meskheti.[3]
Sources
- Faustus of Byzantium, History of the Armenians, Third Book, Chs 6–7.
- Kaghankatvatsi - History of Aghuank
- René Grousset, Histoire de l'Arménie, Payot, Paris, 1973 S. 130
- Otto J. Maenchen-Helfen, ed. Max Knight, The World of the Huns: Studies in their History and Culture, University of California Press, 1973, p. 458.