During the short period of independence, one of the most important events in the city was the founding of the Yerevan State University on May 16, 1919, by Government decree. The university building was situated on the main street of Yerevan, Astafyan (now Abovyan) , in the building of the former teaching seminary, which was built between the years 1900-1906. On December 2, 1920, the Bolshevik 11th Red Army entered Yerevan, and Armenia was sovietized. Although the Armenian revolutionary forces managed to retake the city in February of 1921, and set all of the imprisoned political leaders free, they were once again defeated on April 2, 1921, by the forces of the 11th Red Army, which had just returned from Georgia.
Becoming the Capital of Armenia
On May 28, 1918, with the declaration of the First Republic of Armenia (1918-1920) and the restoration of independence, Yerevan became the capital of Armenia and the center of the newly independent state. However, the members of the Armenian National Council continued to reside in Tbilisi, a cultural center for Armenians of the Caucasus. The government arrived in Yerevan only in the mid summer. Since then, Yerevan became the seat of the national government.
First Anniversary of First Republic of Armenia in Yerevan, 1919
Declaration of Independence of Armenia, 1918
Soviet Red Army on Abovyan Street,
1920
Government Building of First Republic of Armenia Copyright: Tommy and Georgie (on Flickr)
As the Capital of Armenia: The Period of the First Republic (1918 - 1920)
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