President Serzh Sargsyan visited Sardarapat Memorial in Armavir to attend the festive events dedicated to the Day of the First Republic of Armenia.
Following a ceremonial parade, the President laid a wreath at the Memorial to the heroes of the Battle of Sardarapat.
The Battle of Sardarapat was a battle of the Caucasus Campaign of World War I that took place near Sardarapat (modern-day Armavir), Armenia. Sardarapat was only 40 kilometers west of the city of Yerevan, with the battle not only stopping the Ottoman advance into the rest of Armenia but also preventing the complete destruction of the Armenian nation.
The Democratic Republic of Armenia, also known as the First Republic of Armenia, was proclaimed on May 28, 1918, after the dissolution of the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic. Its army continued to fight on the Allied side south of the Caucasus until the Ottoman Empire surrendered in October 1918. The independent republic endured from May 1918 to December 1920.
