Saint Tiridates III of Armenia

Tiridates III (c. 250s – c. 330), 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 (301, according to tradition) Tiridates adopted Christianity as the state religion of Armenia, thus making the Kingdom of Armenia the first state to officially embrace Christianity. The name Tiridates is the Greek variant of the Parthian name Trdat, meaning "created by Tir." Although Tir does not appear in the Avesta, he is a prominent yazata (angelic divinity) in the Zoroastrian religion. The name also appears in other Greek variants, such as Terdates, Teridates, Teridatios, and Tiridatios. It appears in Syriac as Turadatis and in Latin as Tiridates. Tiridates III was the son of Khosrov II of Armenia, the latter being assassinated in 252 by a Parthian agent named Anak under orders from Ardashir I. Tiridates had at least one sibling, a sister called Khosrovidukht and was the namesake of his paternal grandfather, Tiridates II of Armenia. Anak was captured and executed along with most of his family, while his son, Gregory the Illuminator, was sheltered in Caesaria, in Cappadocia. As the only surviving heir to the throne, Tiridates was quickly taken away to Rome soon after his father's assassination while still an infant. He was educated in Rome and was skilled in languages and military tactics; in addition he firmly understood and appreciated Roman law. The Armenian historian Movses Khorenatsi describes him as a strong and brave warrior, who participated in combat against his enemies, and personally led his army to victory in many battles. In 270, the Roman emperor Aurelian engaged the Sassanids on the eastern front and was able to drive them back. Tiridates, as heir to the now Persian-occupied Armenian throne, came to Armenia and quickly raised an army and drove the enemy out in 298. For a while, fortune appeared to favour Tiridates.