Qajar Iran The siege of Erivan (Yerevan, the capital of modern Armenia) took place from July to September 1804, during the Russo-Persian War (1804–1813).

Commanded by Crown-Prince Abbas Mirza and King Fath-Ali Shah Qajar himself (r. 1797–1834), the Iranians successfully defended the city and defeated the Russian attack.

[10] At Echmiadzin, near Erivan, his army clashed with that of Crown Prince and commander-in-chief Abbas Mirza[1] and Tsitsianov and his men were forced to withdraw.

[1] At the end of June, Tsitsianov arrived in front of Erivan, with an army ranging between 3,000 and 20,000 men, as well as Georgian and Armenian auxiliaries.

[12] At the time of the battle the Iranians still fought with their "traditional army", mainly composed of light artillery and mobile cavalry; they had not yet initiated the program that would later create a military on modern lines (the Nezam-e Jadid).

[17][15] Reasons behind the uprising were dissatisfaction with Tsitsianov's policies, the corruption of Pyotr Ivanovich Kovalensky's administration, and the abolition of the Bagrationi dynasty.

[4] A large proportion had died or ended up wounded, and another thousand had become ill.[16] The rest had become weakened as they had had to live and fight for five weeks on half rations.

[22] Tsitsianov stated that the Iranian governor needed to be "annihilated" if Russia wanted to achieve glory and a proper strategic position in the Caucasus.

[21] In contrast, a few years later, when Tsitsianov's successor Ivan Gudovich unsuccessfully besieged Erivan, Alexander condemned his expedition as "stupid" and sent him into retirement.

[23] The Iranian army, after the successful defence, in line with their customary protocol, received orders to disband for the winter with instructions to reassemble in the spring of 1805 for a new campaign.