In the first century BC, Rome, striving for world dominion, wanted to conquer Asia Minor, but the chain of Roman conquests was not completed as Pontus, Armenia and Parthia began a heroic struggle for their independence and freedom. Defending their homeland from the Roman conquerors, the Armenian people also rose up to defend their right to life and survival by force of arms. Under the leadership of King of Kings Tigranes II the Great, Armenia became one of the powerful states of the world. The artistic image of that epoch is reflected in the historical novel ''Tigranes the Great" by Hayk Khachatryan, a famous writer, whose name as a historical novelist world literary critics put on a par with Walter Scott, Stefan Zweig, Henryk Sienkiwicz and others.