Armenian rebellions
Encyclopedia
Armenian national awakening covers the activities of ethnic Armenian
to obtain independence, similar to other non-Ottoman ethnic groups during the rise of nationalism under the Ottoman Empire
. Among the Armenian elite, idea of republicanism
replaced the absolute monarchy
of the Ottoman Dynasty
, and establishment of the Armenian National Assembly
in 1863 replaced the membership of Millet
system. Armenian National Assembly took over some of the regulations of temporal matters of the Ottoman Armenian Community from the Armenian Patriarchate. While it took World War I
for the establishment of First Armenian Republic
, the Armenians had oscillated between the ideas of having an Armenian republic
or an autonomous region within the empire during the history of Ottoman democracy
with organizations like Social Democrat Hunchakian Party
and Armenian Democratic Liberal Party (Ramgavar Party) (Armenakan). The Empire tried to cover the social needs by creating the Tanzimat
era, the development of Ottomanism
and First Constitutional Era
. However, the coexistence of the communities under Ottomanism
proved to be a dysfunctional solution as did the Second Constitutional Era
which also ignited the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire
.
The Armenian national ideology developed long after the Greek movement, however the factors contributing to the emergence of Armenian nationalism
made the movement far more similar to that of the Greeks than those of other ethnic groups. Enlightenment among Armenians, sometimes called as renaissance of the Armenian people, came from two sources; First one was the Armenian monks belonging to the Mekhitarist Order. Second one was the socio-political developments of the 19th century, mainly "French Revolution" and establishment of "Russian revolutionary though." Mekhitarist Order had exclusive devotion to persons and things Armenian. Amongst their countrymen the influence of the monks has been not only directive in the way of holiness and true service to God and the Church, but creative of a wholesome national ambition and self-respect. Apostles of culture and progress, they may be said, with strict justice, to have preserved from degradation and neglect the language and literature of their country, and in so doing, have been the saviors of the Armenian race.
In the Ottoman Empire, the social structure of "Armenians" before the 18th century was based on the system of "Millet," The Armenian Millet, part of Millet (Ottoman Empire)
, was a confessional communities
in the Ottoman Empire
. Confessional communities on local issues were functioning like the autonomous territories. The Ottoman millet specifically referred to the separate legal courts pertaining to personal law under which sections of the society were allowed to rule themselves with fairly little interference from the central system
. Each millet was under the supervision of an Ethnarch
('national' leader), most often a religious hierarch. Armenian millet was under the Armenian Apostolic Church
. The Millets had a great deal of power - they set their own laws and collected and distributed their own taxes. As the people of "The Book" Armenians were able to maintain their houses of worship, obtain religious literature, and employ clergy of their faith for their congregations. These were rights given in the local level. These rights become limited with the economic and technological developments of the 18th century. The ottoman citizens wanted representation in national level. They wanted to have participation more than local level.
The 18th century generated new schools and libraries and chance to study in the universities of Western Europe for different elasticities of the Ottoman Empire. Here they came into contact with the radical ideas of the European Enlightenment
and the French Revolution
. Educated and influential members of the large diaspora tried to transmit these ideas back to their own, with the double aim of raising their educational level and simultaneously strengthening their national identity. The Greeks were thus the first of the Ottoman Empire's subject peoples to secure recognition as an independent sovereign power. After a long and bloody struggle, and with the aid of the Great Powers, the Greek Revolution win independence for Greece
from the Ottoman Empire granted by the Treaty of Constantinople
in July 1832.
Beyond the mostly accepted terms of the Armenian nationalism as given in the above paragraphs, the concept has come to include a range of pseudohistoric interpretations of Prehistoric Armenia
, including the idea of linking it to the Iron Age kingdom of Urartu
. The Armenians are the "original inhabitants" of the territory of what is named as historic Armenia. The Armenian claim against the other inhabitants of the period. The suggestion that the Armenians had also been newcomers to the region, might rise, within the logic of ethnic nationalism
. The correct possibility that against the Armenian claims to the territory (people living in the resgion) were "morally equal". Identification with the distant glories of Urartu and its prehistoric forerunners can be used to reassert Armenian "indigeneity" and "compensate for modern miseries", and together with Mount Ararat
has come to be a powerful symbol of Armenian ethnicity especially among the second generation diaspora
(Redgate 1995).
The idea which claims people living under Urartu were consciously Armenian, essentialist
interpretations of Armenian ethnicity over the ages abound in Armenian historiography, and flourished particularly during the Soviet era, with examples such as S. A. Sardarian's Pervobytnoye obshchestvo v Amenii of 1967 which besides "numerous plagiarisms and mistakes" goes as far as to postulate a separate Armenian race native to the Armenian plateau, and attributes the invention of metallurgy to the Armenians (Kohl and Tsetskhladze 1995). Heavily slanted depictions of Urartu are common in this literature. Armenian historical view must explain why Urartian epigraphy is in the non-Indo-European Urartian language. While there are reasonable scholarly scenarios that there was a Proto-Armenian component in Urartu, and that the early Armenians were the bona fide cultural heirs to Urartu, but the essentialist view of Armenian nationhood that simply equates Urartu with Armenia cannot be sustained (Kohl and Tsetskhladze 1995).
. After the "Greek Revolution" Ottoman Empire tried to respond the new conditions. Tanzimat period
(1839 to 1st Constitution
of 1876), a series of constitutional reforms provided a limited modernization. In 1856, the Hatt-ı Hümayun
promised equality for all Ottoman citizens irrespective of their ethnicity and confession, widening the scope of the 1839 Hatt-ı Şerif of Gülhane
. In 1863 the Armenian National Constitution
(Ottoman Turkish:"Nizâmnâme-i Millet-i Ermeniyân") was the Ottoman Empire
approved form of the "Code of Regulations" composed of 150 articles drafted by the "Armenian intelligentsia", which defined the powers of Patriarch (position in Ottoman Millet
) and newly formed "Armenian National Assembly
". The reformist period peaked with the Constitution, called the Kanûn-ı Esâsî
(meaning "Basic Law
" in Ottoman Turkish), written by members of the Young Ottomans
, which was promulgated on 23 November 1876. It established freedom of belief and equality of all citizens before the law. "Firman of the Reforms" gave immense privileges to the Armenians, which formed a "governance in governance" to eliminate the aristocratic dominance
of the Armenian nobles by development of the political strata in the society. These two reforms, which were theoretically perfect examples of social change by law, brought serious stress over Ottoman political and administrative structure. Armenian Nobles (Amira) were not happy, and they were the owners of the economic system.
The Armenian National Assembly had a main council in Constantinople and sub-councils in the provincial centers. Main assembly consisted of 120 Armenian Nobles and 20 ecclesiastical members. The Assembly in capital meet very seldom. Local assemblies were deaf to the complaints of the poorer members of the community. In 1980 the wealthy and influential Armenians had no sympathy with the ideas of national independence or autonomy. They even signed an address of loyalty and devotion to the Sultan condemning the nationalist agitation as the work of misguided persons who have no authority or influence. This alienation from the center was highlighted by the work of bishiop Mkrtich Khrimian
. He worked to increase the influence of sub-councils of the towns of eastern Anatolia in the capital. Armenian National Assembly's policies aligned with the Anatolia with the increased influence of sub-councils. 1892 Khrimyan Hayrik was unanimously elected Catholicos of All Armenians.
Kagik Ozanyan claims that Tanzimat regulations, helped the formation of an Armenian political strata and incited the Armenian national spirit, which was aligned with the nation building through revolution aligned with the French Revolution
perspective. General Mayewski, who was the Russian Consul General to Ottoman Empire recorded the following
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According to one position the breakdown of the "coexistence of the communities within the Ottoman Empire" was a direct result of the Christian Armenians and Muslims (Turks and Kurds) inability of living together. Armenian Patriarch
Nerses Varjabedyan expresses his position to British Minister of Foreign Affairs, Lord Salisbury
on April 13, 1878.
Most of the Ottoman sources do not give credit to these claims. They present the argument that the system of "Millet
" and State and Religion
preserved the Empire for centuries. A strong argument behind rejecting the "clash of civilizations" originated from the analysis of the activity timetable. The clashes collected in distinct events. Each event had high density with distinct beginning and an end. There was no single period that a thousand deaths were spread over a long period of time. This fact supports the "revolutionary view" instead of clash of civilizations, which showed the European powers the true nature of Ottoman rule. European powers needed to do something about these events through the international agreements. Assuredly Europe would do nothing if those thousand deaths were spread over years.
Unresolved social problems in the Empire began to feed Armenian national politics, along the other ethnic groups. After intervention in Russia in 1877-1878, Russian-Ottoman border brought new the political and military structure. The numbers of Circassians and Laz
from the Russian Empire forcefully deported to Ottoman Empire. These emigrations brought tensions and changed the population distribution and balance of power within the local communities in eastern Anatolia. Russia became protectorate of Christian Armenians and this created a relatively more hostile environment to the Muslims (Kurds) who were left under Russian control. Kurdish-Armenian relations
come to another turn. The newly established relations were complex. The change did not only effected the Armenian Millet but also the local non-tribal Kurds as well. The Kurdish tribal leaders that fled during the war began to express their power along the countryside. The region's social structure, coexistence of the communities was broken. The broken social structure required implementation of new reforms. However, Germany (another protector) refused to act in concert with the other powers, which 'interference with the happiness of other sovereigns' was the main reason given for the reform plans of February 1882 of the Sultan.
structure degraded, Armenians begin to rethink their position in the world. In this analysis the Armenian subjects of the Empire influenced by the Armenian Diaspora
and the network of congregations and schools of the Protestant missionaries throughout the Empire. The initial aim of these missionaries were the conversion of the Muslims and Jews
, they soon became involved with Protestant reformation
of the Orthodox Armenians. The European intellectual currents such as ideas of French revolution
were transmitted through the 23,000 Armenian students within 127 Protestant congregations with 13,000 communicants, and 400 schools. From the first day when Rev. William Goodell
settled in Constantinople in 1831 to the end of World War I, the missionaries made considerable contributions to the education of Armenians. They not only stressed elementary education, but established colleges and other institutions of learning There were colleges, such as International College at Smyrna; American College for Girls, Syrian Protestant College at Beirut
and Robert College
, in which institutions many Armenian students received their education. Ottoman Armenians educated with the European Way began to make attempts in forming organizations – secret societies
, local groups, such as the 'Protectors of the Fatherland' (1881) which was established in Erzurum. Protectors of the Fatherland was almost certainly affected by the ideas of French revolution
and Greek Revolution as 'Freedom or Death' was their motto.
The Armenian national liberation movement gathered momentum with the establishment of Armenian Revolutionary Federation
, Social Democrat Hunchakian Party
and Armenakan
(later named as Ramgavar). The Social Democrat Hunchakian Party (Hentchaks) had the goal to gain Armenia's independence from the Ottoman Empire. The Armenian Revolutionary Federation
(ARF) originally aimed for autonomy of the Armenian-populated areas, which changed to establishment of Armenian state with the coming years. ARF adopted a decentralized modus operandi according to which the various chapters in different countries were allowed to plan and implement policies in tune with their local political atmosphere.
During 1880-1890 the local communication channels were developed. The organizations were fully functional under Ankara
, Amasya
, Çorum
, Diyarbakır
, Yozgat
, and Tokat
. In 1893 they began to use wall newspapers (newspapers like billboards) directed toward the non Armenian subjects. The main theme of these materials were people should take control of their own life against the oppressors. These ideological communicants did not have any effect on the Muslims. These activities ended with clashes between revolutionaries and Ottoman police. Generally resulted with the jail time. Every jail time ended with official exchanges between Ottoman Empire and Britain, as it was the protectorate of the Educated revolutionaries who can print papers. It was more than probable' that Armenian revolutionaries were responsible parties in this conflict, Britain concluded. Sultan panicked, and local authorities act against them as they were cutting telegraph wires, bombing the odd government buildings. Britain or European powers concluded that however if there would be more interference these would end with religious fanaticism, and a civil war (massacres) would occur.
Armenians mainly lived in the intersection of three empires, Ottoman Empire
, Russian Empire
and Persian Empire. The Armenian diaspora, which lived in Europe mainly, was composed of the elite whom were being educated in European Universities or performing the trade. It was expected that revolutionary thinking would cover the three empires, not only inside (local forms such as "Protectors of the Fatherland") but also in Europe, such as Geneva
. The Armenians in Europe (Armenian diaspora
) began to hold meetings about their oppressed status leading to the foundation of parties that would formalize "national politics" under Armenakan
s, Hnchakians, and Armenian Revolutionary Federation
with the coming years. These secret societies (or parties for some) which developed the "National Politics" stated goals as "freeing the Armenians from the Ottoman Empire
by any means possible". H. K. Vartanian wrote that the Armenian revolutionary movement was a direct and necessary response to the increasingly intolerable social, economic and political conditions of the 19th century decaying and declining Ottoman Empire.
Armenian national movement was clearly an international movement. However, practical center for Armenian revolutionaries was the Armenians in the Russian Empire, where Armenians could meet, organize funds, move the sources and materials to Ottoman Empire easily. The organization that was founded in Geneva
(Europe), mostly by active Russian Armenians, took the idea of nationalism and gave it a clear imprint of Caucasian revolutionary thought in 1887. Caucasian revolutionary thought was directed at the Ottoman Empire, which the diaspora saw as its homeland. Young Armenia Society founded in 1889 by Kristapor Mikayelian within Caucasus
become bigger with time. Young Armenia Society organized Fedayee campaigns into Ottoman territory. The tsarist regime cracked down on any attempt by Russian Armenians to engage in action across the border, a leading example being the Gugunian Expedition
of 1890.
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There had been no considerable movement in behalf of Armenian independence before Abdul Hamid's time. There had been no Armenian political problem before the Treaty of Berlin, 1878
. 1878 was marked for the down turn of relations between Armenians and Ottoman Empire.
The stipulation in favor of Armenian autonomy in the treaty of Berlin produced an immediate change. Unfortunately there were special difficulties for the realization of the so called Ottoman liberal political program that could end with what article stipulated. For one thing not all the Armenians were under the Ottoman Empire. As the population considered, there was Armenians in the Russian Empire approaching to 900,000 at the nineteenth century. Ottoman subjects amounting perhaps to 1,200,000, were distributed through the six vilayets of Sivas, Bitlis, Erzerum, Harput, Diabekir, and Van. In some of these districts, they had the highest ethnic minority, among the Turks, Greeks, Assyrians, Jews, and Kurds but Armenians failed to represent more than %50 percent, a clear majority, in any district with which they were associated. Besides other difficulties, Armenians perceived the conditions of treaty (Article LXI) of Berlin as an early realization of their autonomy, if the powers should have proceeded straightway to enforce the Armenian provision. The rationalization of humanitarian intervention depended also to the Cyprus Convention
besides the Treaty of Berlin, 1878
. In 1879, one year of after the agreements, the only thing missing was the practical events to enable the articles for the demand of an Armenian state.
The Bashkaleh Resistance
was the first recorded bloody encounter between the Armenakans and the Ottoman Empire on May 1889. After the Armenian Massacres of 1894-1896 the Armenian population in the six vilayets, which were also the Kurdish regions, had a sharp decline somewhere between 80,000 to 300,000 and Armenian population in the conflict region drop to 900,000 from 1,200,000 before 1878. These massacres perpetuated by the Hamidieh soldier and European powers were asked to intervene. Instead of Armenian autonomy in these regions, Kurds (Kurdish tribal chiefs) retained much of their autonomy and power. The Abdulhamid made little attempt to alter the traditional power structure of “segmented, agrarian Kurish societies” – agha, shayk, and tribal chief. Because of their geographical position at the southern and eastern fringe of the empire and mountainous topography, and limited transportation and communication system. The state had little access to these provinces and were forced to make informal agreements with tribal chiefs, for instance the ottoman qadi and mufti did not have jurisdiction over religious law which bolstered Kurdish authority and autonomy. The Armenian national movement had discovered through their revolutionary movement that neither Tsar Alexander II with his idealism nor Gladstone
's Liberalism was a dependable hope.
The first effective intervention had come by the Woodrow Wilson
who agreed to transfer what will be named as "Wilsonian Armenia
" back to the Armenians in the Treaty of Sèvres
.
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
to obtain independence, similar to other non-Ottoman ethnic groups during the rise of nationalism under the Ottoman Empire
Rise of nationalism under the Ottoman Empire
The rise of the Western notion of nationalism under the Ottoman Empire eventually caused the break-down of the Ottoman millet concept...
. Among the Armenian elite, idea of republicanism
Republicanism
Republicanism is the ideology of governing a nation as a republic, where the head of state is appointed by means other than heredity, often elections. The exact meaning of republicanism varies depending on the cultural and historical context...
replaced the absolute monarchy
Absolute monarchy
Absolute monarchy is a monarchical form of government in which the monarch exercises ultimate governing authority as head of state and head of government, his or her power not being limited by a constitution or by the law. An absolute monarch thus wields unrestricted political power over the...
of the Ottoman Dynasty
Ottoman Dynasty
The Ottoman Dynasty ruled the Ottoman Empire from 1299 to 1922, beginning with Osman I , though the dynasty was not proclaimed until Orhan Bey declared himself sultan...
, and establishment of the Armenian National Assembly
Armenian National Assembly (Ottoman Empire)
Armenian National Assembly was the governing body of the Armenian Millet established by Armenian National Constitution of 1863 under Ottoman Empire....
in 1863 replaced the membership of Millet
Millet (Ottoman Empire)
Millet is a term for the confessional communities in the Ottoman Empire. It refers to the separate legal courts pertaining to "personal law" under which communities were allowed to rule themselves under their own system...
system. Armenian National Assembly took over some of the regulations of temporal matters of the Ottoman Armenian Community from the Armenian Patriarchate. While it took World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
for the establishment of First Armenian Republic
Democratic Republic of Armenia
The Democratic Republic of Armenia was the first modern establishment of an Armenian state...
, the Armenians had oscillated between the ideas of having an Armenian republic
Republic
A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...
or an autonomous region within the empire during the history of Ottoman democracy
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
with organizations like Social Democrat Hunchakian Party
Social Democrat Hunchakian Party
The Social Democrat Hunchakian Party , is the oldest of the Armenian political parties and was the first Socialist party in the Ottoman Empire and in Persia...
and Armenian Democratic Liberal Party (Ramgavar Party) (Armenakan). The Empire tried to cover the social needs by creating the Tanzimat
Tanzimat
The Tanzimât , meaning reorganization of the Ottoman Empire, was a period of reformation that began in 1839 and ended with the First Constitutional Era in 1876. The Tanzimât reform era was characterized by various attempts to modernize the Ottoman Empire, to secure its territorial integrity against...
era, the development of Ottomanism
Ottomanism
Ottomanism was a concept which developed prior to the First Constitutional Era of the Ottoman Empire. Its proponents believed that it could solve the social issues that the empire was facing. Ottomanism was highly affected by thinkers such as Montesquieu and Rousseau and the French Revolution. It...
and First Constitutional Era
First Constitutional Era (Ottoman Empire)
The First Constitutional Era of the Ottoman Empire was the period of constitutional monarchy from the promulgation of the Kanûn-ı Esâsî , written by members of the Young Ottomans, on 23 November 1876 until 13 February 1878...
. However, the coexistence of the communities under Ottomanism
Ottomanism
Ottomanism was a concept which developed prior to the First Constitutional Era of the Ottoman Empire. Its proponents believed that it could solve the social issues that the empire was facing. Ottomanism was highly affected by thinkers such as Montesquieu and Rousseau and the French Revolution. It...
proved to be a dysfunctional solution as did the Second Constitutional Era
Second Constitutional Era (Ottoman Empire)
The Second Constitutional Era of the Ottoman Empire began shortly after Sultan Abdülhamid II restored the constitutional monarchy after the 1908 Young Turk Revolution. The period established many political groups...
which also ignited the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire
Dissolution of the Ottoman Empire
The Dissolution of the Ottoman Empire included the watershed events of the Young Turk Revolution and the establishment of the Second Constitutional Era, and ended with the Partitioning of the Ottoman Empire by the victorious sides of World War I.- Establishment of the Second Constitutional Era, 24...
.
Origins
Armenian nationalism
Armenian nationalism in the modern period has its roots in the romantic nationalism of Mikayel Chamchian and generally defined as the creation of a free, independent and united Armenia formulated as the Armenian Cause . Armenian national awakening developed in the 1880s in the context of the...
made the movement far more similar to that of the Greeks than those of other ethnic groups. Enlightenment among Armenians, sometimes called as renaissance of the Armenian people, came from two sources; First one was the Armenian monks belonging to the Mekhitarist Order. Second one was the socio-political developments of the 19th century, mainly "French Revolution" and establishment of "Russian revolutionary though." Mekhitarist Order had exclusive devotion to persons and things Armenian. Amongst their countrymen the influence of the monks has been not only directive in the way of holiness and true service to God and the Church, but creative of a wholesome national ambition and self-respect. Apostles of culture and progress, they may be said, with strict justice, to have preserved from degradation and neglect the language and literature of their country, and in so doing, have been the saviors of the Armenian race.
In the Ottoman Empire, the social structure of "Armenians" before the 18th century was based on the system of "Millet," The Armenian Millet, part of Millet (Ottoman Empire)
Millet (Ottoman Empire)
Millet is a term for the confessional communities in the Ottoman Empire. It refers to the separate legal courts pertaining to "personal law" under which communities were allowed to rule themselves under their own system...
, was a confessional communities
Confessional community
A confessional community is a group of people with similar religious beliefs.In the Ottoman Empire, this allowed people to be grouped by religious confession as opposed to nationality or ethnicity, which was more consistent with the existing social structure. People were able to represent...
in the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
. Confessional communities on local issues were functioning like the autonomous territories. The Ottoman millet specifically referred to the separate legal courts pertaining to personal law under which sections of the society were allowed to rule themselves with fairly little interference from the central system
State organisation of the Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire developed a highly advanced organisation of state over the centuries. Even though it had a very centralized government with the Sultan as the supreme ruler, it had an effective control of its provinces and inhabitants, as well as its officials. Wealth and rank wasn't necessarily...
. Each millet was under the supervision of an Ethnarch
Ethnarch
Ethnarch, pronounced , the anglicized form of ethnarches refers generally to political leadership over a common ethnic group or homogeneous kingdom. The word is derived from the Greek words and ....
('national' leader), most often a religious hierarch. Armenian millet was under the Armenian Apostolic Church
Armenian Apostolic Church
The Armenian Apostolic Church is the world's oldest National Church, is part of Oriental Orthodoxy, and is one of the most ancient Christian communities. Armenia was the first country to adopt Christianity as its official religion in 301 AD, in establishing this church...
. The Millets had a great deal of power - they set their own laws and collected and distributed their own taxes. As the people of "The Book" Armenians were able to maintain their houses of worship, obtain religious literature, and employ clergy of their faith for their congregations. These were rights given in the local level. These rights become limited with the economic and technological developments of the 18th century. The ottoman citizens wanted representation in national level. They wanted to have participation more than local level.
The 18th century generated new schools and libraries and chance to study in the universities of Western Europe for different elasticities of the Ottoman Empire. Here they came into contact with the radical ideas of the European Enlightenment
Age of Enlightenment
The Age of Enlightenment was an elite cultural movement of intellectuals in 18th century Europe that sought to mobilize the power of reason in order to reform society and advance knowledge. It promoted intellectual interchange and opposed intolerance and abuses in church and state...
and the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
. Educated and influential members of the large diaspora tried to transmit these ideas back to their own, with the double aim of raising their educational level and simultaneously strengthening their national identity. The Greeks were thus the first of the Ottoman Empire's subject peoples to secure recognition as an independent sovereign power. After a long and bloody struggle, and with the aid of the Great Powers, the Greek Revolution win independence for Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
from the Ottoman Empire granted by the Treaty of Constantinople
Treaty of Constantinople (1832)
The Τreaty of Constantinople was the product of the Constantinople Conference which opened in February 1832 with the participation of the Great Powers on the one hand and the Ottoman Empire on the other. The factors which shaped the treaty included the refusal of Léopold, King of Belgium, to...
in July 1832.
Beyond the mostly accepted terms of the Armenian nationalism as given in the above paragraphs, the concept has come to include a range of pseudohistoric interpretations of Prehistoric Armenia
Prehistoric Armenia
The Armenian Highland shows traces of settlement from the Neolithic era. The Shulaveri-Shomu culture of the central Transcaucasus region is one of the earliest known prehistoric culture in the area, carbon-dated to roughly 6000 - 4000 BC. Another early culture in the area is the Kura-Araxes...
, including the idea of linking it to the Iron Age kingdom of Urartu
Urartu
Urartu , corresponding to Ararat or Kingdom of Van was an Iron Age kingdom centered around Lake Van in the Armenian Highland....
. The Armenians are the "original inhabitants" of the territory of what is named as historic Armenia. The Armenian claim against the other inhabitants of the period. The suggestion that the Armenians had also been newcomers to the region, might rise, within the logic of ethnic nationalism
Ethnic nationalism
Ethnic nationalism is a form of nationalism wherein the "nation" is defined in terms of ethnicity. Whatever specific ethnicity is involved, ethnic nationalism always includes some element of descent from previous generations and the implied claim of ethnic essentialism, i.e...
. The correct possibility that against the Armenian claims to the territory (people living in the resgion) were "morally equal". Identification with the distant glories of Urartu and its prehistoric forerunners can be used to reassert Armenian "indigeneity" and "compensate for modern miseries", and together with Mount Ararat
Mount Ararat
Mount Ararat is a snow-capped, dormant volcanic cone in Turkey. It has two peaks: Greater Ararat and Lesser Ararat .The Ararat massif is about in diameter...
has come to be a powerful symbol of Armenian ethnicity especially among the second generation diaspora
Armenian diaspora
The Armenian diaspora refers to the Armenian communities outside the Republic of Armenia and self proclaimed de facto independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic...
(Redgate 1995).
The idea which claims people living under Urartu were consciously Armenian, essentialist
Essentialism
In philosophy, essentialism is the view that, for any specific kind of entity, there is a set of characteristics or properties all of which any entity of that kind must possess. Therefore all things can be precisely defined or described...
interpretations of Armenian ethnicity over the ages abound in Armenian historiography, and flourished particularly during the Soviet era, with examples such as S. A. Sardarian's Pervobytnoye obshchestvo v Amenii of 1967 which besides "numerous plagiarisms and mistakes" goes as far as to postulate a separate Armenian race native to the Armenian plateau, and attributes the invention of metallurgy to the Armenians (Kohl and Tsetskhladze 1995). Heavily slanted depictions of Urartu are common in this literature. Armenian historical view must explain why Urartian epigraphy is in the non-Indo-European Urartian language. While there are reasonable scholarly scenarios that there was a Proto-Armenian component in Urartu, and that the early Armenians were the bona fide cultural heirs to Urartu, but the essentialist view of Armenian nationhood that simply equates Urartu with Armenia cannot be sustained (Kohl and Tsetskhladze 1995).
Rise of national thinking 1839 -
Khrimian Hayrik worked to increase the influence of sub-councils of National AssemblyArmenian National Assembly (Ottoman Empire)
Armenian National Assembly was the governing body of the Armenian Millet established by Armenian National Constitution of 1863 under Ottoman Empire....
. After the "Greek Revolution" Ottoman Empire tried to respond the new conditions. Tanzimat period
Tanzimat
The Tanzimât , meaning reorganization of the Ottoman Empire, was a period of reformation that began in 1839 and ended with the First Constitutional Era in 1876. The Tanzimât reform era was characterized by various attempts to modernize the Ottoman Empire, to secure its territorial integrity against...
(1839 to 1st Constitution
First Constitutional Era (Ottoman Empire)
The First Constitutional Era of the Ottoman Empire was the period of constitutional monarchy from the promulgation of the Kanûn-ı Esâsî , written by members of the Young Ottomans, on 23 November 1876 until 13 February 1878...
of 1876), a series of constitutional reforms provided a limited modernization. In 1856, the Hatt-ı Hümayun
Hatt-i humayun
Hatt-i humayun , also known as hatt-i sharif , is the diplomatics term for a document or handwritten note of an official nature by an Ottoman Sultan. The terms come from hatt , hümayun and şerif...
promised equality for all Ottoman citizens irrespective of their ethnicity and confession, widening the scope of the 1839 Hatt-ı Şerif of Gülhane
Hatt-i Sharif
The Hatt-i Sharif of Gülhane or Tanzimât Fermânı was an 1839 proclamation by Ottoman Sultan Abdülmecid I that launched the Tanzimât period of reforms and reorganization....
. In 1863 the Armenian National Constitution
Armenian National Constitution
Armenian National Constitution or Regulation of the Armenian Nation was Ottoman Empire approved form of the "Code of Regulations" composed of 150 articles drafted by the Armenian intelligentsia Armenian National Constitution or Regulation of the Armenian Nation (Armenian:"Հայ ազգային...
(Ottoman Turkish:"Nizâmnâme-i Millet-i Ermeniyân") was the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
approved form of the "Code of Regulations" composed of 150 articles drafted by the "Armenian intelligentsia", which defined the powers of Patriarch (position in Ottoman Millet
Millet (Ottoman Empire)
Millet is a term for the confessional communities in the Ottoman Empire. It refers to the separate legal courts pertaining to "personal law" under which communities were allowed to rule themselves under their own system...
) and newly formed "Armenian National Assembly
Armenian National Assembly (Ottoman Empire)
Armenian National Assembly was the governing body of the Armenian Millet established by Armenian National Constitution of 1863 under Ottoman Empire....
". The reformist period peaked with the Constitution, called the Kanûn-ı Esâsî
Kanûn-i Esâsî
The Ottoman constitution of 1876 was the first constitution of the Ottoman Empire. Written by members of the Young Ottomans, particularly Midhat Pasha, during the reign of Sultan Abdülhamid II , the constitution was only in effect for two years, from 1876 to 1878.A large part of the reason for the...
(meaning "Basic Law
Basic Law
The term basic law is used in some places as an alternative to "constitution", implying it is a temporary but necessary measure without formal enactment of constitution. A basic law is either a codified constitution, or in countries with uncodified constitutions, a law given to have constitution...
" in Ottoman Turkish), written by members of the Young Ottomans
Young Ottomans
The Young Ottomans were a secret organization of Ottoman nationalist intellectuals formed in 1865, influenced by such Western thinkers as Montesquieu and Rousseau and the French Revolution. They developed the concept of Ottomanism, aligned with these thinkers...
, which was promulgated on 23 November 1876. It established freedom of belief and equality of all citizens before the law. "Firman of the Reforms" gave immense privileges to the Armenians, which formed a "governance in governance" to eliminate the aristocratic dominance
Aristocracy
Aristocracy , is a form of government in which a few elite citizens rule. The term derives from the Greek aristokratia, meaning "rule of the best". In origin in Ancient Greece, it was conceived of as rule by the best qualified citizens, and contrasted with monarchy...
of the Armenian nobles by development of the political strata in the society. These two reforms, which were theoretically perfect examples of social change by law, brought serious stress over Ottoman political and administrative structure. Armenian Nobles (Amira) were not happy, and they were the owners of the economic system.
The Armenian National Assembly had a main council in Constantinople and sub-councils in the provincial centers. Main assembly consisted of 120 Armenian Nobles and 20 ecclesiastical members. The Assembly in capital meet very seldom. Local assemblies were deaf to the complaints of the poorer members of the community. In 1980 the wealthy and influential Armenians had no sympathy with the ideas of national independence or autonomy. They even signed an address of loyalty and devotion to the Sultan condemning the nationalist agitation as the work of misguided persons who have no authority or influence. This alienation from the center was highlighted by the work of bishiop Mkrtich Khrimian
Mkrtich Khrimian
Mkrtich Khrimian , also known as Khrimian Hayrik , was an Armenian writer, newspaper editor, and political and religious leader. He served as the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople , Prelate of Van and Catholicos of All Armenians...
. He worked to increase the influence of sub-councils of the towns of eastern Anatolia in the capital. Armenian National Assembly's policies aligned with the Anatolia with the increased influence of sub-councils. 1892 Khrimyan Hayrik was unanimously elected Catholicos of All Armenians.
Kagik Ozanyan claims that Tanzimat regulations, helped the formation of an Armenian political strata and incited the Armenian national spirit, which was aligned with the nation building through revolution aligned with the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
perspective. General Mayewski, who was the Russian Consul General to Ottoman Empire recorded the following
Issue of Civilizations
Patriarch
Originally a patriarch was a man who exercised autocratic authority as a pater familias over an extended family. The system of such rule of families by senior males is called patriarchy. This is a Greek word, a compound of πατριά , "lineage, descent", esp...
Nerses Varjabedyan expresses his position to British Minister of Foreign Affairs, Lord Salisbury
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury
Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury, KG, GCVO, PC , styled Lord Robert Cecil before 1865 and Viscount Cranborne from June 1865 until April 1868, was a British Conservative statesman and thrice Prime Minister, serving for a total of over 13 years...
on April 13, 1878.
Most of the Ottoman sources do not give credit to these claims. They present the argument that the system of "Millet
Millet (Ottoman Empire)
Millet is a term for the confessional communities in the Ottoman Empire. It refers to the separate legal courts pertaining to "personal law" under which communities were allowed to rule themselves under their own system...
" and State and Religion
State and Religion (Ottoman Empire)
During the 1st centuries of control over the Balkans by the Ottoman Empire , the Christian population, and especially the Orthodox Christians , faced various degrees of tolerance, both from local Ottoman authorities and from the Sultan.The Ottoman...
preserved the Empire for centuries. A strong argument behind rejecting the "clash of civilizations" originated from the analysis of the activity timetable. The clashes collected in distinct events. Each event had high density with distinct beginning and an end. There was no single period that a thousand deaths were spread over a long period of time. This fact supports the "revolutionary view" instead of clash of civilizations, which showed the European powers the true nature of Ottoman rule. European powers needed to do something about these events through the international agreements. Assuredly Europe would do nothing if those thousand deaths were spread over years.
Unresolved social problems in the Empire began to feed Armenian national politics, along the other ethnic groups. After intervention in Russia in 1877-1878, Russian-Ottoman border brought new the political and military structure. The numbers of Circassians and Laz
Laz people
The Laz are an ethnic group native to the Black Sea coastal regions of Turkey and Georgia...
from the Russian Empire forcefully deported to Ottoman Empire. These emigrations brought tensions and changed the population distribution and balance of power within the local communities in eastern Anatolia. Russia became protectorate of Christian Armenians and this created a relatively more hostile environment to the Muslims (Kurds) who were left under Russian control. Kurdish-Armenian relations
Kurdish-Armenian relations
Kurdish-Armenian relations covers the historical relations between the Kurds and the Armenians.-Ancient Armenia and Corduene:Ancient Corduene, identified as Kurdistan in some sources was twice incorporated into the Kingdom of Armenia. The first period was in the first century BCE from 90 to 66 BCE...
come to another turn. The newly established relations were complex. The change did not only effected the Armenian Millet but also the local non-tribal Kurds as well. The Kurdish tribal leaders that fled during the war began to express their power along the countryside. The region's social structure, coexistence of the communities was broken. The broken social structure required implementation of new reforms. However, Germany (another protector) refused to act in concert with the other powers, which 'interference with the happiness of other sovereigns' was the main reason given for the reform plans of February 1882 of the Sultan.
Revolution Perspective
As the MilletMillet (Ottoman Empire)
Millet is a term for the confessional communities in the Ottoman Empire. It refers to the separate legal courts pertaining to "personal law" under which communities were allowed to rule themselves under their own system...
structure degraded, Armenians begin to rethink their position in the world. In this analysis the Armenian subjects of the Empire influenced by the Armenian Diaspora
Armenian diaspora
The Armenian diaspora refers to the Armenian communities outside the Republic of Armenia and self proclaimed de facto independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic...
and the network of congregations and schools of the Protestant missionaries throughout the Empire. The initial aim of these missionaries were the conversion of the Muslims and Jews
Mission (Christian)
Christian missionary activities often involve sending individuals and groups , to foreign countries and to places in their own homeland. This has frequently involved not only evangelization , but also humanitarian work, especially among the poor and disadvantaged...
, they soon became involved with Protestant reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
of the Orthodox Armenians. The European intellectual currents such as ideas of French revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
were transmitted through the 23,000 Armenian students within 127 Protestant congregations with 13,000 communicants, and 400 schools. From the first day when Rev. William Goodell
William Goodell
William Goodell was an abolitionist and reformer born in Coventry, New York on October 3, 1792. Goodell spent several years of his early childhood confined to his room due to illness. It was during this confinement that he first discovered an appreciation for religion and writing...
settled in Constantinople in 1831 to the end of World War I, the missionaries made considerable contributions to the education of Armenians. They not only stressed elementary education, but established colleges and other institutions of learning There were colleges, such as International College at Smyrna; American College for Girls, Syrian Protestant College at Beirut
American University of Beirut
The American University of Beirut is a private, independent university in Beirut, Lebanon. It was founded as the Syrian Protestant College by American missionaries in 1866...
and Robert College
Robert College
Robert College of Istanbul , is one of the most selective independent private high schools in Turkey. Robert College is a co-educational, boarding school with a wooded campus on the European side of Istanbul between the two bridges on the Bosphorus, with the Arnavutköy district to the east, and...
, in which institutions many Armenian students received their education. Ottoman Armenians educated with the European Way began to make attempts in forming organizations – secret societies
Secret society
A secret society is a club or organization whose activities and inner functioning are concealed from non-members. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as intelligence agencies or guerrilla insurgencies, which hide their...
, local groups, such as the 'Protectors of the Fatherland' (1881) which was established in Erzurum. Protectors of the Fatherland was almost certainly affected by the ideas of French revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
and Greek Revolution as 'Freedom or Death' was their motto.
The Armenian national liberation movement gathered momentum with the establishment of Armenian Revolutionary Federation
Armenian Revolutionary Federation
The Armenian Revolutionary Federation is an Armenian political party founded in Tiflis in 1890 by Christapor Mikaelian, Stepan Zorian, and Simon Zavarian...
, Social Democrat Hunchakian Party
Social Democrat Hunchakian Party
The Social Democrat Hunchakian Party , is the oldest of the Armenian political parties and was the first Socialist party in the Ottoman Empire and in Persia...
and Armenakan
Armenakan
Armenakan may denote:*Armenian Democratic Liberal Party , historically known as the Armenakan Party from 1885 until 1921*Armenakan-Democratic Liberal Party, an Armenian Party established in 2009 as a splinter group from the Armenian Liberal Democratic Party...
(later named as Ramgavar). The Social Democrat Hunchakian Party (Hentchaks) had the goal to gain Armenia's independence from the Ottoman Empire. The Armenian Revolutionary Federation
Armenian Revolutionary Federation
The Armenian Revolutionary Federation is an Armenian political party founded in Tiflis in 1890 by Christapor Mikaelian, Stepan Zorian, and Simon Zavarian...
(ARF) originally aimed for autonomy of the Armenian-populated areas, which changed to establishment of Armenian state with the coming years. ARF adopted a decentralized modus operandi according to which the various chapters in different countries were allowed to plan and implement policies in tune with their local political atmosphere.
During 1880-1890 the local communication channels were developed. The organizations were fully functional under Ankara
Ankara
Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
, Amasya
Amasya
- History :Its location in this steep valley makes the city a mountain stronghold, easy to defend, and thus Amasya has had a long and prominent history.-Antiquity:...
, Çorum
Çorum
Çorum is a landlocked northern Anatolian city that is the capital of the Çorum Province of Turkey. Çorum is located inland in the central Black Sea Region of Turkey, and is approximately from Ankara and from Istanbul...
, Diyarbakır
Diyarbakır
Diyarbakır is one of the largest cities in southeastern Turkey...
, Yozgat
Yozgat
Yozgat is a city and the capital district of Yozgat province in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey. According to 2009 census, population of the district is 113,614 of which 73,835 live in the city of Yozgat.-History:...
, and Tokat
Tokat
Tokat is the capital city of Tokat Province of Turkey, at the mid Black Sea region of Anatolia. According to the 2009 census, the city of Tokat has a population of 129,879.-History:Tokat was established in the Hittite era....
. In 1893 they began to use wall newspapers (newspapers like billboards) directed toward the non Armenian subjects. The main theme of these materials were people should take control of their own life against the oppressors. These ideological communicants did not have any effect on the Muslims. These activities ended with clashes between revolutionaries and Ottoman police. Generally resulted with the jail time. Every jail time ended with official exchanges between Ottoman Empire and Britain, as it was the protectorate of the Educated revolutionaries who can print papers. It was more than probable' that Armenian revolutionaries were responsible parties in this conflict, Britain concluded. Sultan panicked, and local authorities act against them as they were cutting telegraph wires, bombing the odd government buildings. Britain or European powers concluded that however if there would be more interference these would end with religious fanaticism, and a civil war (massacres) would occur.
Armenians mainly lived in the intersection of three empires, Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
and Persian Empire. The Armenian diaspora, which lived in Europe mainly, was composed of the elite whom were being educated in European Universities or performing the trade. It was expected that revolutionary thinking would cover the three empires, not only inside (local forms such as "Protectors of the Fatherland") but also in Europe, such as Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
. The Armenians in Europe (Armenian diaspora
Armenian diaspora
The Armenian diaspora refers to the Armenian communities outside the Republic of Armenia and self proclaimed de facto independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic...
) began to hold meetings about their oppressed status leading to the foundation of parties that would formalize "national politics" under Armenakan
Armenakan
Armenakan may denote:*Armenian Democratic Liberal Party , historically known as the Armenakan Party from 1885 until 1921*Armenakan-Democratic Liberal Party, an Armenian Party established in 2009 as a splinter group from the Armenian Liberal Democratic Party...
s, Hnchakians, and Armenian Revolutionary Federation
Armenian Revolutionary Federation
The Armenian Revolutionary Federation is an Armenian political party founded in Tiflis in 1890 by Christapor Mikaelian, Stepan Zorian, and Simon Zavarian...
with the coming years. These secret societies (or parties for some) which developed the "National Politics" stated goals as "freeing the Armenians from the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
by any means possible". H. K. Vartanian wrote that the Armenian revolutionary movement was a direct and necessary response to the increasingly intolerable social, economic and political conditions of the 19th century decaying and declining Ottoman Empire.
Armenian national movement was clearly an international movement. However, practical center for Armenian revolutionaries was the Armenians in the Russian Empire, where Armenians could meet, organize funds, move the sources and materials to Ottoman Empire easily. The organization that was founded in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
(Europe), mostly by active Russian Armenians, took the idea of nationalism and gave it a clear imprint of Caucasian revolutionary thought in 1887. Caucasian revolutionary thought was directed at the Ottoman Empire, which the diaspora saw as its homeland. Young Armenia Society founded in 1889 by Kristapor Mikayelian within Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
become bigger with time. Young Armenia Society organized Fedayee campaigns into Ottoman territory. The tsarist regime cracked down on any attempt by Russian Armenians to engage in action across the border, a leading example being the Gugunian Expedition
Gugunian Expedition
The Gugunian Expedition was an attempt by a small group of Armenian nationalists from the Russian Empire to launch an armed expedition across the border into the Ottoman Empire in 1890 in support of local Armenians.- Background :...
of 1890.
The Great Powers
Treaty of Berlin, 1878
The Treaty of Berlin was the final act of the Congress of Berlin , by which the United Kingdom, Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Italy, Russia and the Ottoman Empire under Sultan Abdul Hamid II revised the Treaty of San Stefano signed on March 3 of the same year...
. 1878 was marked for the down turn of relations between Armenians and Ottoman Empire.
The stipulation in favor of Armenian autonomy in the treaty of Berlin produced an immediate change. Unfortunately there were special difficulties for the realization of the so called Ottoman liberal political program that could end with what article stipulated. For one thing not all the Armenians were under the Ottoman Empire. As the population considered, there was Armenians in the Russian Empire approaching to 900,000 at the nineteenth century. Ottoman subjects amounting perhaps to 1,200,000, were distributed through the six vilayets of Sivas, Bitlis, Erzerum, Harput, Diabekir, and Van. In some of these districts, they had the highest ethnic minority, among the Turks, Greeks, Assyrians, Jews, and Kurds but Armenians failed to represent more than %50 percent, a clear majority, in any district with which they were associated. Besides other difficulties, Armenians perceived the conditions of treaty (Article LXI) of Berlin as an early realization of their autonomy, if the powers should have proceeded straightway to enforce the Armenian provision. The rationalization of humanitarian intervention depended also to the Cyprus Convention
Cyprus Convention
The Cyprus Convention of 4 June, 1878 was a secret agreement reached between the United Kingdom and the Ottoman Empire which granted control of Cyprus to Great Britain in exchange for their support of the Ottomans during the Congress of Berlin...
besides the Treaty of Berlin, 1878
Treaty of Berlin, 1878
The Treaty of Berlin was the final act of the Congress of Berlin , by which the United Kingdom, Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Italy, Russia and the Ottoman Empire under Sultan Abdul Hamid II revised the Treaty of San Stefano signed on March 3 of the same year...
. In 1879, one year of after the agreements, the only thing missing was the practical events to enable the articles for the demand of an Armenian state.
The Bashkaleh Resistance
Bashkaleh Resistance
The Bashkale Resistance was the bloody encounter between three revolutionaries of Armenakan and the some Ottoman officials on May 1889. Even though it is named as Bashkale Resistance, the event happened in the Van Province...
was the first recorded bloody encounter between the Armenakans and the Ottoman Empire on May 1889. After the Armenian Massacres of 1894-1896 the Armenian population in the six vilayets, which were also the Kurdish regions, had a sharp decline somewhere between 80,000 to 300,000 and Armenian population in the conflict region drop to 900,000 from 1,200,000 before 1878. These massacres perpetuated by the Hamidieh soldier and European powers were asked to intervene. Instead of Armenian autonomy in these regions, Kurds (Kurdish tribal chiefs) retained much of their autonomy and power. The Abdulhamid made little attempt to alter the traditional power structure of “segmented, agrarian Kurish societies” – agha, shayk, and tribal chief. Because of their geographical position at the southern and eastern fringe of the empire and mountainous topography, and limited transportation and communication system. The state had little access to these provinces and were forced to make informal agreements with tribal chiefs, for instance the ottoman qadi and mufti did not have jurisdiction over religious law which bolstered Kurdish authority and autonomy. The Armenian national movement had discovered through their revolutionary movement that neither Tsar Alexander II with his idealism nor Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone FRS FSS was a British Liberal statesman. In a career lasting over sixty years, he served as Prime Minister four separate times , more than any other person. Gladstone was also Britain's oldest Prime Minister, 84 years old when he resigned for the last time...
's Liberalism was a dependable hope.
The first effective intervention had come by the Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
who agreed to transfer what will be named as "Wilsonian Armenia
Wilsonian Armenia
Wilsonian Armenia refers to the boundary configuration of the Armenian state in the Treaty of Sèvres, drawn by US President Woodrow Wilson State Department. The Treaty of Sèvres was a peace treaty that had been drafted and signed between the Western Allied Powers and the defeated government of the...
" back to the Armenians in the Treaty of Sèvres
Treaty of Sèvres
The Treaty of Sèvres was the peace treaty between the Ottoman Empire and Allies at the end of World War I. The Treaty of Versailles was signed with Germany before this treaty to annul the German concessions including the economic rights and enterprises. Also, France, Great Britain and Italy...
.
The activities
| Decade | Event | Organization |
| 1880s | Bashkaleh Resistance Bashkaleh Resistance The Bashkale Resistance was the bloody encounter between three revolutionaries of Armenakan and the some Ottoman officials on May 1889. Even though it is named as Bashkale Resistance, the event happened in the Van Province... |
Armenakan Party Armenakan Armenakan may denote:*Armenian Democratic Liberal Party , historically known as the Armenakan Party from 1885 until 1921*Armenakan-Democratic Liberal Party, an Armenian Party established in 2009 as a splinter group from the Armenian Liberal Democratic Party... |
| 1890s | Kum Kapu demonstration Kum Kapu demonstration The Kum Kapu demonstration occurred in the Kumkapı district of Constantinople on July 27, 1890. It ensued in skirmishing where several persons, including a police officer were killed. Many more were wounded.- Background :... |
Hunchaks (Social Democrat Hunchakian Party) |
| Defense of Van Defense of Van The 1896 Defense of Van or Van Rebellion was an act of self-defense by the Armenian population in Van against the armed forces of the Ottoman Empire in June 1896.- Background :... |
Armenakan Party Armenakan Armenakan may denote:*Armenian Democratic Liberal Party , historically known as the Armenakan Party from 1885 until 1921*Armenakan-Democratic Liberal Party, an Armenian Party established in 2009 as a splinter group from the Armenian Liberal Democratic Party... |
|
| 1896 Ottoman Bank Takeover 1896 Ottoman Bank Takeover The 1896 Ottoman Bank Takeover was the seizing of the Ottoman Bank in Constantinople, Ottoman Empire, on 26 August 1896, by members of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation... |
Armenian Revolutionary Federation Armenian Revolutionary Federation The Armenian Revolutionary Federation is an Armenian political party founded in Tiflis in 1890 by Christapor Mikaelian, Stepan Zorian, and Simon Zavarian... |
|
| Khanasor Expedition Khanasor Expedition The Khanasor Expedition was an attack by an Armenian irregular unit against the Kurdish Mazrik tribe on July 25, 1897. In 1896, in the aftermath of the Defense of Van, the Mazrik tribe had ambushed and slaughtered many of the Armenian defenders of Van as they were retreating into Persia... |
Armenian Revolutionary Federation Armenian Revolutionary Federation The Armenian Revolutionary Federation is an Armenian political party founded in Tiflis in 1890 by Christapor Mikaelian, Stepan Zorian, and Simon Zavarian... |
|
| Sasun Resistance Sasun Resistance (1894) The Sassoun resistance of 1894 or also known as First Sassoun resistance was the conflict between Ottoman Empire's forces and the Armenian militia belong to Armenian national movement's Hunchak party at the Sassoun region.- Background :... |
Armenian Revolutionary Federation Armenian Revolutionary Federation The Armenian Revolutionary Federation is an Armenian political party founded in Tiflis in 1890 by Christapor Mikaelian, Stepan Zorian, and Simon Zavarian... |
|
| 1900s | Yıldız Attempt Yildiz Attempt Yıldız assassination attempt was an assassination attempted on Sultan Abdul Hamid II by the Armenian Revolutionary Federation at Yıldız Mosque on July 21, 1905 in the Ottoman capital Constantinople .- Background :... |
Armenian Revolutionary Federation Armenian Revolutionary Federation The Armenian Revolutionary Federation is an Armenian political party founded in Tiflis in 1890 by Christapor Mikaelian, Stepan Zorian, and Simon Zavarian... |
| Sasun Uprising | Armenian Revolutionary Federation Armenian Revolutionary Federation The Armenian Revolutionary Federation is an Armenian political party founded in Tiflis in 1890 by Christapor Mikaelian, Stepan Zorian, and Simon Zavarian... |