It declared all citizens of the future state to be born free and equal before the law, with freedom of speech, religion and economic activity.

[2] At the time, Madras was home to a small but prosperous and influential community of about 200–240 Armenian merchants, mostly of New Julfan origin.

[4][5] Faced with shrinking commercial prospects in India, they became more concerned with Armenian education and national consciousness and with the state of their ancestral homeland, Armenia, then divided between the Ottoman Empire and Iran.

[7] Shahamirian's ideas were influenced by Baghramian, as well as Joseph Emin, an Indo-Armenian who had traveled to Europe and spent years trying to organize a rebellion to free Armenia from Muslim rule.

[6][8][9] The Shahamirians, Baghramian and their collaborators, known collectively as the Madras group, sought to rally Armenians in Armenia and the diaspora to educate themselves about their history and struggle against foreign rule.

[17] The final publication of Snare of Glory appears to have been delayed by the censuring of the activities of Shahamirian's group by Catholicos Simeon of Yerevan (head of the Armenian Church 1763–1780).

In 1776, Catholicos Simeon reacted extremely negatively to the group's first book, Nor tetrak vor kochi hordorak, for its radical ideas.

[19] Instead, the Catholicos excommunicated the book's author, Movses Baghramian, and demanded that Shahamirian close down the printing press and destroy all copies of Nor tetrak vor kochi hordorak.

[22] After 1783, Shahamirian was in periodic contact with King Heraclius II of Georgia, whom he saw as a potential ally for the realization of the Madras group's political goals.

[25] In a letter dated to 15 October 1787, Shahamirian wrote to Heraclius saying that he was unable to fulfill his request, but instead sent him a manuscript copy of the second, draft constitution part of Snare of Glory, which had not yet been printed at that point.

[26][27] Shahamirian also sent manuscript copies of the work prior to its publication to Catholicos Ghukas Karnetsi and Hovsep Arghutian, archbishop of the Armenians of Russia.

[29] The 1773 dating was accepted by most scholars as fact until the 1920s, when historian Tadevos Avdalbegyan demonstrated that this is impossible, as the text contains references to events that took place after 1773, such as the American War of Independence and the death of Iranian ruler Karim Khan Zand.

[31] Historians Abgar Hovhannisyan and Poghos Khachatryan suggest that Movses Baghramian and Joseph Emin also contributed to the composition of Snare of Glory.

"[27] Snare of Glory consists of two main parts: a historical-theoretical introduction, and the text of the draft constitution of the future Armenian state.

[37] It declares all citizens of the future state to be born free and equal before the law, with freedom of speech, religion and economic activity.

This exception was included to interest King Heraclius II of Georgia, whom the Madras group saw as a potential ally for the liberation of Armenia.

[37] Scholars agree that the author(s) of Snare of Glory were influenced by the ideas of the European Enlightenment, but the means and extent to which they interacted with Enlightenment-era texts is somewhat unclear.

[38] Boghos Levon Zekiyan and Vahé Oshagan write that the influence of the ideas of John Locke and Montesquieu, such as the concept of the trias politica, is especially apparent in Snare of Glory.

[38] Batwagan Toufanian writes that the Bible and Christian philosophy constitute the most familiar, but not necessarily the sole, conceptual framework for Shahamirian.

[38] Snare of Glory is written in Classical Armenian heavily mixed with vernacular and foreign words and containing many grammatical and orthographical errors.