Hovsep Arghutian (archbishop)

He had a close personal relationship with Catherine the Great and Grigory Potemkin and advised them on Russia's policies in the Caucasus region.

[6] Catherine the Great's victories over the Ottomans and interest in the South Caucasus again raised Armenian hopes of gaining autonomy through Russian assistance.

[7] Arghutian, on the other hand, was a strong supporter of Russian expansion into the South Caucasus and believed that Armenians should adopt a pro-Russian orientation.

[9] He was close to Catherine the Great[1] and was a personal friend of her powerful favorite Grigory Potemkin and General Alexander Suvorov.

[5] In 1780, Arghutian and the influential Russian-Armenian Ivan Lazarev met with Potemkin to discuss Russia's policies towards the Caucasus and Armenia.

[1] The signing of the Treaty of Georgievsk in 1783, by which the Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti became a protectorate of Russia, encouraged Arghutian to increase his diplomatic efforts.

[13] In 1792, at Potemkin and Arghutian's initiative,[14] the settlement of Grigoriopol (named after Saint Gregory the Illuminator) was founded and populated with Armenians from Moldavia and Bessarabia who had suffered during the latest Russo-Turkish war.

[1] Arghutian participated in the composition of the emperor's 1799 proclamation which established uniform privileges for the Armenian communities of Grigoriopol, Crimea, Astrakhan, Kizlyar, and Mozdok.

[5] Arghutian collaborated with the wealthy Indo-Armenian merchant Grigor Khaldarian to found the first Armenian printing house in Russia.

[16] Arghutian used his connections with wealthy merchants in the Armenian diaspora to gain financial support for his printing activities.

[5] However, Arghutian fell ill and died in Tiflis (Tbilisi) on 9 March 1801 while traveling to Ejmiatsin to take up his position and was never consecrated as catholicos.