Echmiadzin Church Center of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
Echmiadzin is not far from Yerevan. This place, worshipped by Armenians throughout the world since here there is the center of Armenian Apostolic Church.
Echmiadzin - the former name of which is Vagarshapat, was founded in the first half of II century on the place of ancient settlement of Vardgesavan. Since 163, after destruction of Artashat by Romans, the city had become political, cultural, and then religious and educational center of the country.
In 301 the Christianity became the state religion of Armenia. According to a legend, the first patriarch Gregory the Illuminator dreamt, that the only begotten, that is the Christ, came down from the sky with fiery hammer in hands and specified the place for construction of the cathedral. On this place in 303, in place of an ancient pagan temple, the church named ECHMIADZIN was founded which in Armenian means "the place of the advent of the only son".