Geography and power
Kars possessed urban and military importance even before the establishment of the Bagratuni Kingdom. Its fortress controlled the region of Vanand and the roads leading toward Western Armenia and Byzantium. During the reign of Abas I Bagratuni in the first half of the tenth century, Kars became the capital of Armenia.
The choice of the city as capital demonstrated that security had become the primary concern. After the wars of the previous decades, the Bagratunis required a naturally defensible city with strong walls. Royal structures and churches were built in Kars, the most famous of which is the Church of the Holy Apostles. At the same time, the city was becoming a center of craftsmanship and regional trade.
However, as the Bagratuni state grew stronger, the demands placed upon the capital changed once again. Kars was suitable for defense, but the new kingdom needed a more spacious city capable of accommodating a growing royal court, population, trade, and ecclesiastical institutions. The nearby fortified city of Ani offered such opportunities.
Historical evidence
The Church of the Holy Apostles, built under Abas, offers surviving evidence of royal Kars. Four apses enclose the central domed space. Twelve figures on the drum are interpreted as apostles, connecting the building’s name to its sculptural decoration.
Later history of the city
In 961, Ashot III the Merciful transferred the capital to Ani. Kars did not lose its political significance afterward and became the center of a separate Kingdom of Kars, but the role of the principal pan-Armenian capital passed to Ani.
Sources and further reading
Ստեփանոս Տարոնեցի, Տիեզերական պատմություն · P. Cuneo, Architettura armena, 1988.