Arshak II

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Arshak II (or Arsaces II) (350-367) was the son of Diran. During his reign, Shapur II of Persia tried to take over Armenia once and for all. Arshak II was taken prisoner during talks about peace with Shapur and later killed himself in prison.

Despite having many troubles during his reign, Arshak II was able to change many parts of his kingdom for the better. They included:

• The creation of many monasteries, to keep monks away from the problems of everyday life. They also helped spread the gospel
• The building of hospitals
• The creation of many schools to teach Assyrian and Greek, since the Holy Bible was read in those languages at that time
• The ban of inbred marriages, polygamy, divorce, pagan rituals, drunkenness and killings for revenge
• The better treatment of slaves

[change] References

• Translated from the Armenian: Mihran Kurdoghlian, Badmoutioun Hayots, A. hador [Armenian History, volume I], Athens, Greece, 1994, pg. 108-111