Husik I of Armenia

d. c. AD 348 (beaten to death) · Catholicos of Armenia · Martyr · Armenia

The Nicene Age

Who Husik I of Armenia was

Grandson of Gregory the Illuminator and catholicos, beaten to death — so P'awstos Buzand relates — on the order of King Tiran for barring the apostatizing king from the door of the church. His killing sharpened the long Armenian quarrel between the crown and the Illuminator's line.

Verified single attestation

P'awstos Buzand alone.

Also listed in martyrs.

Common questions

When did Husik I die?

Husik I of Armenia is dated d. c. AD 348 (beaten to death) in the archive, which places Husik I in the Nicene Age (AD 313–400). The dating is traditional and approximate; the archive marks it as uncertain rather than fixing a year the sources do not give.

Which early sources mention Husik I?

Husik I of Armenia is named in 1 primary-source passage catalogued here, drawn from P'awstos Buzand. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.

Where was Husik I from?

The archive associates Husik I of Armenia with Armenia.

Who were Husik I’s contemporaries?

The archive links Husik I of Armenia to 4 other figures, including Vrtanes I of Armenia, Grigoris of the Albanians, Nerses I the Great and Pʼaren of Ashtishat. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.

Primary-source mentions (1)

Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.

P'awstos Buzand, History of the Armenians III.12 (c. AD 470; original Armenian, summarized)

c. AD 475

[First attested ~120 years after the event. P'awstos relates that when King Tiran came with his court to the church at a feast, Husik barred the door against him as unworthy; the king had the catholicos beaten with ox-hide whips until he was carried out dying — the Illuminator's line martyred by the very crown it had baptized.]

P'awstos Buzand · source text