Tiridates III, also known as Tiridates the Great or Tiridates IV, was the Armenian Arsacid king from c. 298 to c. 330. In the early 4th century, Tiridates proclaimed Christianity as the state religion of Armenia, making the Armenian kingdom the first state to officially embrace Christianity.
19th-century illustration of Tiridates
Tiridates III the Great, the Great King of the Armenians.
Tiridates III with his wife Ashkhen and sister Khosrovidukht by Naghash Hovnatan.
Tiridates III and Gregory the Illuminator, Echmiadzin.
Arsacid dynasty of Armenia
The Arsacid dynasty, called the Arshakuni in Armenian, ruled the Kingdom of Armenia, with some interruptions, from 12 to 428. The dynasty was a branch of the Arsacid dynasty of Parthia. Arsacid kings reigned intermittently throughout the chaotic years following the fall of the Artaxiad dynasty until 62, when Tiridates I, brother of Parthian King Vologases I, secured Arsacid rule in Armenia as a client king of Rome. However, he did not succeed in establishing his line on the throne, and various princes of different Arsacid lineages ruled until the accession of Vologases II, who succeeded in establishing his own line on the Armenian throne, which ruled the kingdom until its abolishment by the Sasanian Empire in 428.
Arshakid Mausoleum: 4th century
Coin issued to celebrate the victory of Lucius Verus Armeniacus against Vologases IV in the war for Armenia.
Anachronistic painting of the baptism of King Tiridates III (Trdat III) by St. Gregory the Enlightener.