Vardan Mamikonian

Vardan Mamikonian was an Armenian military leader who led a rebellion against Sasanian Iran in 450-451. He was the head of the Mamikonian noble family and holder of the hereditary title of sparapet, the supreme commander of the Armenian armed forces. Vardan and most of his comrades died at the Battle of Avarayr in 451, but their sacrifice was immortalized in the works of the Armenian historians Elishe and Ghazar Parpetsi. He is regarded as a national hero among Armenians and venerated as a martyr and a saint of the Armenian Apostolic Church and the Armenian Catholic Church. Vardan and the rebellion he led are commemorated in numerous works of art and literature. According to Arshag Chobanian, "To the Armenian nation, Vartan [...] is the most beloved figure, the most sacred in their history, the symbolical hero who typifies the national spirit."