Vanadzor, formerly called Kirovakan (Կիրովական), is an urban municipal community and the third largest city in Armenia, serving as the capital of Lori Province in the northern part of the country. It is located about 128 kilometres north of the capital Yerevan. As of the 2011 census, the city had a population of 86,199, down from 148,876 reported at the 1979 official census. Currently, the town has a population of approximately 76,000. Vanadzor is the seat of the Diocese of Gougark of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

Garegin Ter-Harutyunyan, better known by his nom de guerre Garegin Nzhdeh, was an Armenian statesman, military commander and nationalist political thinker. As a member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, he was involved in the national liberation struggle and revolutionary activities during the First Balkan War and World War I and became one of the key political and military leaders of the First Republic of Armenia (1918–1921). He is widely admired as a charismatic national hero by Armenians.