RA President Serzh Sargsyan today visited the Sardarapat Memorial outside Yerevan on the occasion of Republic Day.

There, he laid a wreath in honor of those who gave their lives in defense of the remaining part of the Armenian nation against an Ottoman advance. The actual battle lasted from May 21-29, 1918

Sardarapat was only 40 kilometers west of the city of Yerevan and the battle is currently seen as not only stopping the Ottoman advance into the rest of Armenia but also preventing the complete destruction of the Armenian nation. In the words of historian and researcher Christopher J. Walker, had the Armenians lost this battle, "it is perfectly possible that the word Armenia would have henceforth denoted only an antique geographical term."

The Ottoman defeats at Sardarapat, Bash Abaran, and Karakilisa staved off the annihilation of the Armenian nation, and the victories here were instrumental in allowing the Armenian National Council to declare the independence of the Democratic Republic of Armenia on May 30 (retroactive to May 28).

After the commemoration of the Armenian Genocide's fiftieth anniversary in 1965, Soviet authorities agreed to the construction of a monument and park dedicated to the Armenian victory near the site of the battle. Architect Rafayel Israyelian was commissioned to design the monument, which was completed in 1968.