Artur Mkrtchyan was born in 1959 in the Hadrut region. In 1976, he graduated from secondary school in his native village and in the same year he was admitted to the Faculty of History at Yerevan State University. Here Artur Mkrtchyan chose ethnography, a narrow professional field that at that time had no “political demand”. The famous ethnographer Yuri Mkrtumyan played a certain role in his choice.
From the choice of his profession to the beginning of his work at the Hadrut Historical Museum, Artur Mkrtchyan collected rich demographic-ethnographic material in a number of settlements of Soviet Armenia and former Artsakh, both on his own initiative and within the framework of targeted scientific expeditions organized by well-known experts.
In 1977, as a second-year student, Artur Mkrtchyan traveled with his friend, archaeologist Hamlet Poghosyan, to the village of Khachen in the Hadrut region, collecting historical material from eighteen villages of Artsakh. It was his first trip to the homeland for scientific purposes. After that, the material culture of Artsakh was always in the center of his attention. In the following years, Artur Mkrtchyan collected demographic data from Tumanyan, Artik, Artashat, Dvin, Ashtarak, Echmiadzin, Meghri, Kapan, Goris, Karmir regions and various villages of the Republic of Armenia. He was impressed by Armenia’s historical and cultural monuments, ruined and standing churches: Khor Virap, Garni, Geghard, etc.
The Karabakh movement, which began in 1988, completely engulfed Artur Mkrtchyan and he was at the center of the events in the Hadrut region not only as a leader, organizer and commander, but also as a direct soldier. It should be noted that Artur Mkrtchyan was a member of the second delegation from Artsakh to Moscow in January 1988.
From the very beginning of the Artsakh Movement, Artur Mkrtchyan was an active participant in the movement, being among the 9 people who wrote the first letter to Gorbachev. Artur Mkrtchyan’s path from the Hadrut rally of February 12, 1988 was very fast.
During Artur Mkrtchyan’s tenure, the Malibalu and Krkjan regions surrounding Stepanakert, the Khocalu district and a number of villages of Hadrut were liberated. Although he was an active participant in the development of the military operation plan, he did not see the liberation of Shushi. The period of realization of Artur Mkrtchyan’s scientific preferences coincided with the rapid rise of the Karabakh liberation struggle, and the young man, who grew up in a noble, traditional family, received a solid Armenian education, and was nourished by national ideas, threw himself into the maelstrom of the liberation struggle.
Artur Mkrtchyan used to say: “I was born on this land, I owe everything I have to this land, now it is time for reparations.”
At the first session of the Supreme Council of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, Artur Mkrtchyan was elected President, 44 out of 48 deputies voted for him. During his three and a half months in office, Artur Mkrtchyan demonstrated the seriousness of a state official and the dignity of a heroic Artsakh leader, the ability to quickly and timely solve the problems facing the young republic, always keeping the issue of strengthening the country’s defense in the center of attention.
He laid the foundation stone on which Artsakh was built.
On January 11, 1992, additional elections were held. Taking into account that deputies were not elected in all constituencies, the Central Election Commission of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic organized new elections on different dates until July 3, 1994. As a result, a parliament consisting of 75 deputies was formed.
Artur Mkrtchyan died on April 14, 1992 for unknown reasons.