The role of the Elites of Iranian Armenians Community in the procedure of Occupation of the Caucasus by Russia

To the Iranians minds the matter of the Russification of the Caucasus, as an Iranian area by its historical, cultural and ethnical roots, always has been a fresh and recursive concern; the process in which the Armenians had a dominant role. Inspired by memories of the Crusader Wars, the Armenians always were engaged with the ideal of presence of a powerful Christian state in their neighborhood.
Since Western Europe powers never were as close to the region as to cause any change on the Caucasus, naturally the attention of the Armenians had been absorbed to another Christian state, the State of Muscovy.
The process which Armenians attempted to involve the ever-expansionist state of Muscovy or later Russian Empire with Caucasus affairs through it, begun by 1660th (1070 H.) and took long up to 1828, year of signing Turkmanchay treaty. This survey tried, by appeal to an explicative approach, to shed light on twists and turns of a 160 years process and the transition of the Armenian loyalty from Iran to the Russia as most as possible.
Findings of this survey show that the church leaders, the Meliks, and the merchants, as the triumvir which shaped the Armenian Aristocracy, respectively had the most effective influence on the Armenians political loyalty; while introduction of the Russia was the initiation of the merchants, then the Meliks intensified the aspiration, and at last it was the church which by choosing its new affiliation put the end on everything.