Battle of Sardarapat
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Sardarabad or Battle of Sardarapat ' onMouseout='HidePop("41726")' href="/topics/Turkish_language">Turkish
: Serdarabad Muharebesi or Serdarabad Savaşı) was a battle of the Caucasus Campaign
of World War I
that took place near Sardarabad (modern-day Armavir
), Armenia
from May 21-29, 1918. Sardarabad was only 40 kilometers west of the city of Yerevan
and the battle is currently seen as not only stopping the Ottoman advance into the rest of Armenia but also preventing the complete destruction of the Armenian nation
. In the words of historian and researcher Christopher J. Walker
, had the Armenians lost this battle, "it is perfectly possible that the word Armenia would have henceforth denoted only an antique geographical term."
seizure of power in Russia, the Sovnarkom, the highest government authority under the Bolshevik system, issued a decree which called for the withdrawal of Russian troops from the Caucasus Front
. This move threw the Armenian leadership in the Transcaucasia
into a panic, since it removed from the region the only force capable of protecting the Armenian people from the Ottoman Empire
, which had effectively exterminated its Armenian population
through systematic massacres and deportations. The Armenians refused to recognize the authority of the Bolsheviks and attempted to form military units to defend the front as the Ottoman armies prepared to expand eastward.
The Armenians attempted to stall the Ottoman advance as they created a small Armenian army to take up the positions the Russians had abandoned. General Tovmas Nazarbekian
was selected as its commanding officer and Drastamat Kanayan
was appointed as civilian commissar. But in May 1918, just two months after the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty was concluded with the Russian SFSR, elements of the Ottoman Third Army
crossed into Eastern Armenia
and attacked Alexandropol (modern-day Gyumri
). The Ottoman Army
intended to crush Armenia and seize what was left of Transcaucasia. The German
government, the Ottoman Empire's ally, objected to this attack and refused to help the Ottoman Army in the operation.
At this time, only a small area of historical Armenian territory which used to be a part of the Russian Empire remained unconquered by the Ottoman Empire, and into that area hundreds of thousands of Armenian refugees had fled after the Armenian Genocide
. The Ottoman Forces began a three-pronged attack in an attempt to finally overwhelm and conquer the rest of Armenia. When Alexandropol fell, the Ottoman Army moved into the former territory of the Yerevan guberniia
– the heart of Armenia.
The Ottoman offensive was viewed by Armenians with foreboding. With nowhere else left to retreat, they decided to make their stand and prepare for the upcoming battle: Catholicos Gevorg V ordered that church bells peal for six days as Armenians from all walks of life – peasants, poets, blacksmith, and even the clergymen – rallied to form organized military units. Civilians, including children, aided in the effort as well, as "Carts drawn by oxen, water buffalo, and cows jammed the roads bringing food, provisions, ammunition, and volunteers from the vicinity" of Yerevan.
Acting under Minister of War Enver Pasha's request, Miralay
(Colonel
) Kâzım Karabekir Bey
's I Caucasian Corps
and Mirliva
Yakub Shevki Pahsa
's II Caucasian Corps
put into action in the direction of Karakilisa (modern-day Vanadzor
), Sardarabad, Tiflis (modern-day Tbilisi
) and Yerevan
on 20 May. While Karakilisa was selected as their main target, Tiflis and Yerevan were to be kept under pressure. The operations of the southern flank were given to the I Caucasian Corps and the task of capturing Karakilisa was given to the II Caucasian Corps.
The Ottoman force reached Karakilisa on May 20 without resistance. Only a single combat action took place near the village of Karzakh
. The detachment commanded by Zihni Bey, that advanced forward in Sardarabad area, reached the station of Alagöz (modern-day Aragats
) and line of Mahtaka. On May 21, the detachment of Zihni Bey defeated Armenian unit composed of 600 infantry and 250 cavalry, and then took Sardarabad. From there, their forces started advancing toward Yeghegnut
.
Armenian general Movses Silikyan
ordered elements of the 5th Armenian Regiment under Poghos Bek-Pirumyan, a reserve guerrilla unit, and a special cavalry regiment to check the advance of the Ottoman army. An offensive was launched on May 22 and the Armenian forces were successful in halting the Ottomans in their tracks and forcing Yakub Shevki Pasha's forces into a general rout
(retreating nearly 15-20 kilometers in a westerly direction). The Ottoman command, however, was able to recuperate from its losses and reorganized its forces near the mountain heights on the north-west bank of the Araks river
. Repeated attempts to cross the river was met with fierce resistance by the 5th Armenian Regiment.
On May 24, several more skirmishes took place between the Armenian and Ottoman forces. However, attempts to dislodge the Ottomans from their well-entrenched positions the following day by Poghos Bek-Pirumyan's and other commanders' forces were met with failure. On May 27, an Armenian force commanded by Colonel Karapet Hasan-Pashayan performed a flanking maneuver and struck the Ottoman positions from the rear while the rest of the Armenian forces pounded the main Ottoman positions. An Ottoman force based in Talin
was sent to alleviate it by attacking the Armenian rear, but was unable to change the outcome of the battle. Suffering heavy losses, Ottoman commanders ordered a general retreat as the surviving elements of the Ottoman army were put to flight.
. But, almost immediately, he was informed of the ongoing negotiations between the Ottoman leadership and the Armenian National Council in Tiflis and was told by Corps Commander Tovmas Nazarbekian
to cease military operations in the region. Though members of the National Council were widely criticized for issuing this order at the time, this decision was carried out on account of the fact that the ammunition stores had been all but been depleted and Ottoman commanders had received fresh reinforcements.
The Ottoman defeats at Sardarabad, Bash Abaran
, and Karakilisa staved off the annihilation of the Armenian nation, and the victories here were instrumental in allowing the Armenian National Council to declare the independence of the Democratic Republic of Armenia
on May 30 (retroactive to May 28). Though the terms that Armenia agreed to in the Treaty of Batum
(June 4, 1918) were excessively harsh, the little republic was able to hold out until the Ottomans were forced to withdraw from the region with the end of World War I in late 1918.
until after the death of Joseph Stalin
. In the mid-1960s, a number of Soviet historians began to highlight its importance, as well as that of Bash Abaran's and Karakilisa's. The Soviet military historian Evgenii F. Ludshuvet, for example, emphasized that these battles, fought by the "Armenian Dashnak forces", helped slow down the Turkish advance on Baku
and helped relieve some pressure against that city. Notable Soviet Armenian literary figures such as Hovhannes Shiraz
and Paruyr Sevak
, whose work "Sardarapat" was turned into a popular song, even composed songs and wrote poems that lionized the Armenian fighters. Ivan Bagramyan, a Marshal of the Soviet Union
and himself a participant of the battle, described its importance in the following manner:
After the commemoration of the Armenian Genocide's fiftieth anniversary in 1965, Soviet authorities agreed to the construction of a monument and park
dedicated to the Armenian victory near the site of the battle. Architect Rafayel Israyelian
was commissioned to design the monument, which was completed in 1968.
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
: Serdarabad Muharebesi or Serdarabad Savaşı) was a battle of the Caucasus Campaign
Caucasus Campaign
The Caucasus Campaign comprised armed conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empire, later including Azerbaijan, Armenia, Central Caspian Dictatorship and the UK as part of the Middle Eastern theatre or alternatively named as part of the Caucasus Campaign during World War I...
of 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...
that took place near Sardarabad (modern-day Armavir
Armavir, Armenia
Armavir is a city located in western Armenia. The 1989 census reported that the city had a total population of 46,900, but this has declined considerably: the 2001 census counted 32,034; estimate for 2008 is 26,387. It is the capital of the Armavir province . The city of Armavir in Russia, founded...
), Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
from May 21-29, 1918. Sardarabad was only 40 kilometers west of the city of Yerevan
Yerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
and the battle is currently seen as not only stopping the Ottoman advance into the rest of Armenia but also preventing the complete destruction of the Armenian nation
Armenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
. In the words of historian and researcher Christopher J. Walker
Christopher J. Walker
Christopher J. Walker is a British historian and author.He worked in Sotheby's department of historical and literary manuscripts. After the winning of Winston Churchill Travelling Fellowship he wrote a book on Armenian history which was reissued in 1990. In 1975 with the support of "Minority...
, had the Armenians lost this battle, "it is perfectly possible that the word Armenia would have henceforth denoted only an antique geographical term."
Background
In January 1918, two months after the BolshevikBolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
seizure of power in Russia, the Sovnarkom, the highest government authority under the Bolshevik system, issued a decree which called for the withdrawal of Russian troops from the Caucasus Front
Caucasus Campaign
The Caucasus Campaign comprised armed conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empire, later including Azerbaijan, Armenia, Central Caspian Dictatorship and the UK as part of the Middle Eastern theatre or alternatively named as part of the Caucasus Campaign during World War I...
. This move threw the Armenian leadership in the Transcaucasia
South Caucasus
The South Caucasus is a geopolitical region located on the border of Eastern Europe and Southwest Asia also referred to as Transcaucasia, or The Trans-Caucasus...
into a panic, since it removed from the region the only force capable of protecting the Armenian people 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...
, which had effectively exterminated its Armenian population
Armenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
through systematic massacres and deportations. The Armenians refused to recognize the authority of the Bolsheviks and attempted to form military units to defend the front as the Ottoman armies prepared to expand eastward.
The Armenians attempted to stall the Ottoman advance as they created a small Armenian army to take up the positions the Russians had abandoned. General Tovmas Nazarbekian
Tovmas Nazarbekian
Tovmas Nazarbekian, commonly known as General Nazarbekov , was an Armenian general in the Russian Caucasus Army that appointed as the governor of the Administration for Western Armenia and later promoted to commander-in-chief of Democratic Republic of Armenia.He was born to a wealthy Russianized...
was selected as its commanding officer and Drastamat Kanayan
Drastamat Kanayan
General Drastamat Kanayan , known as General Dro, Դրօ, May 31, 1884 March 8, 1956), was a politician, revolutionary, military commander of Hitler’s Armenian Legion of the Wehrmacht, the armed forces of Nazi Germany, and part of Armenian national liberation movement as a member of the A.R.F...
was appointed as civilian commissar. But in May 1918, just two months after the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty was concluded with the Russian SFSR, elements of the Ottoman Third Army
Third Army (Ottoman Empire)
The Ottoman Third Army was originally established in the Balkans and later defended the northern and eastern parts of the Ottoman Empire. Its initial headquarters was at Salonica. With the onset of World War I, it moved to Erzurum Fortress. The headquarters was moved to Susehir after the Battle...
crossed into Eastern Armenia
Eastern Armenia
Eastern Armenia or Caucasian Armenia was the portion of Ottoman Armenia and Persian Armenia that was ceded to the Russian Empire following the Russo-Turkish War, 1828-1829...
and attacked Alexandropol (modern-day Gyumri
Gyumri
Gyumri is the capital and largest city of the Shirak Province in northwest Armenia. It is located about 120 km from the capital Yerevan, and, with a population of 168,918 , is the second-largest city in Armenia.The name of the city has been changed many times in history...
). The Ottoman Army
Military of the Ottoman Empire
The history of military of the Ottoman Empire can be divided in five main periods. The foundation era covers the years between 1300 and 1453 , the classical period covers the years between 1451 and 1606 , the reformation period covers the years between 1606 and 1826 ,...
intended to crush Armenia and seize what was left of Transcaucasia. The German
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
government, the Ottoman Empire's ally, objected to this attack and refused to help the Ottoman Army in the operation.
At this time, only a small area of historical Armenian territory which used to be a part of the Russian Empire remained unconquered by the Ottoman Empire, and into that area hundreds of thousands of Armenian refugees had fled after the Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
. The Ottoman Forces began a three-pronged attack in an attempt to finally overwhelm and conquer the rest of Armenia. When Alexandropol fell, the Ottoman Army moved into the former territory of the Yerevan guberniia
Erivan Governorate
Erivan Governorate was one of the guberniyas of the Russian Empire, with its centre in Erivan . Its area was 27,830 sq. kilometres. It roughly corresponded to what is now most of central Armenia, the Iğdır Province of Turkey, and Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan exclave...
– the heart of Armenia.
Battle
Acting under Minister of War Enver Pasha's request, Miralay
Miralay
Miralay or Mîr-i alay was a military rank of the Ottoman Army and Navy. It corresponds to a Colonel . Miralay is a compound word composed of Mir and Alay...
(Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
) Kâzım Karabekir Bey
Kazim Karabekir
Musa Kâzım Karabekir was a Turkish general and politician. He was commander of the Eastern Army in the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I and served as Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey before his death.-Early years:Karabekir was born in 1882 as the son of an Ottoman General,...
's I Caucasian Corps
I Caucasian Corps (Ottoman Empire)
The I Caucasian Corps of the Ottoman Empire was one of the corps of the Ottoman Army...
and Mirliva
Mirliva
Mirliva or Mîr-i livâ was a military rank of the Ottoman Army. It corresponds to a Brigadier General or Major General . Mirliva is a compound word composed of Mir and Liva...
Yakub Shevki Pahsa
Yakup Şevki Subaşı
Yakup Şevki Subaşı, also known as Yakub Shevki Pasha was a general of the Ottoman Army and the Turkish Army.-Sources:...
's II Caucasian Corps
II Caucasian Corps (Ottoman Empire)
The II Caucasian Corps of the Ottoman Empire was one of the corps of the Ottoman Army...
put into action in the direction of Karakilisa (modern-day Vanadzor
Vanadzor
-Industry:Vanadzor is dominated by large chemical plants which include: "Prometey-Khimprom", "Vanadzor Chemical Plant", "Vanadzor Khimprom" and "Vanadzor Chemical Fiber Plant". Another big enterprise is the "Vanadzor Thermal Power Plant....
), Sardarabad, Tiflis (modern-day Tbilisi
Tbilisi
Tbilisi is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form T'pilisi and it was officially known as Tiflis until 1936...
) and Yerevan
Yerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
on 20 May. While Karakilisa was selected as their main target, Tiflis and Yerevan were to be kept under pressure. The operations of the southern flank were given to the I Caucasian Corps and the task of capturing Karakilisa was given to the II Caucasian Corps.
The Ottoman force reached Karakilisa on May 20 without resistance. Only a single combat action took place near the village of Karzakh
Karzakh
Karzakh is a village in Akhalkalaki district of Georgia....
. The detachment commanded by Zihni Bey, that advanced forward in Sardarabad area, reached the station of Alagöz (modern-day Aragats
Aragats, Talin
Aragats is a village in the Aragatsotn Province of Armenia. It has two schools.- References :* – World-Gazetteer.com*Kiesling, Rediscoving Armenia, p. 20, available online at the...
) and line of Mahtaka. On May 21, the detachment of Zihni Bey defeated Armenian unit composed of 600 infantry and 250 cavalry, and then took Sardarabad. From there, their forces started advancing toward Yeghegnut
Yeghegnut, Armavir
Yeghegnut is a town in the Armavir Province of Armenia.- References :* – World-Gazetteer.com...
.
Armenian general Movses Silikyan
Movses Silikyan
Movses Silikyan , , Movses Silikov) was a famed Armenian general and national hero of World War I, Major General in the Russian army and subsequently in the Armenian army...
ordered elements of the 5th Armenian Regiment under Poghos Bek-Pirumyan, a reserve guerrilla unit, and a special cavalry regiment to check the advance of the Ottoman army. An offensive was launched on May 22 and the Armenian forces were successful in halting the Ottomans in their tracks and forcing Yakub Shevki Pasha's forces into a general rout
Rout
A rout is commonly defined as a chaotic and disorderly retreat or withdrawal of troops from a battlefield, resulting in the victory of the opposing party, or following defeat, a collapse of discipline, or poor morale. A routed army often degenerates into a sense of "every man for himself" as the...
(retreating nearly 15-20 kilometers in a westerly direction). The Ottoman command, however, was able to recuperate from its losses and reorganized its forces near the mountain heights on the north-west bank of the Araks river
Araks River
The Aras , is a river located in and along the countries of Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Iran. Its total length is...
. Repeated attempts to cross the river was met with fierce resistance by the 5th Armenian Regiment.
On May 24, several more skirmishes took place between the Armenian and Ottoman forces. However, attempts to dislodge the Ottomans from their well-entrenched positions the following day by Poghos Bek-Pirumyan's and other commanders' forces were met with failure. On May 27, an Armenian force commanded by Colonel Karapet Hasan-Pashayan performed a flanking maneuver and struck the Ottoman positions from the rear while the rest of the Armenian forces pounded the main Ottoman positions. An Ottoman force based in Talin
Talin
Talin is a town in the Aragatsotn province of Armenia. It has a population of 5,371. The seventh century Talin Cathedral is located in the town.- History :...
was sent to alleviate it by attacking the Armenian rear, but was unable to change the outcome of the battle. Suffering heavy losses, Ottoman commanders ordered a general retreat as the surviving elements of the Ottoman army were put to flight.
Aftermath
With the Ottoman forces in a full rout, General Silikyan wished to press on his advantage with the hope of dislodging the Ottomans from Alexandropol and KarsKars
Kars is a city in northeast Turkey and the capital of Kars Province. The population of the city is 73,826 as of 2010.-Etymology:As Chorzene, the town appears in Roman historiography as part of ancient Armenia...
. But, almost immediately, he was informed of the ongoing negotiations between the Ottoman leadership and the Armenian National Council in Tiflis and was told by Corps Commander Tovmas Nazarbekian
Tovmas Nazarbekian
Tovmas Nazarbekian, commonly known as General Nazarbekov , was an Armenian general in the Russian Caucasus Army that appointed as the governor of the Administration for Western Armenia and later promoted to commander-in-chief of Democratic Republic of Armenia.He was born to a wealthy Russianized...
to cease military operations in the region. Though members of the National Council were widely criticized for issuing this order at the time, this decision was carried out on account of the fact that the ammunition stores had been all but been depleted and Ottoman commanders had received fresh reinforcements.
The Ottoman defeats at Sardarabad, Bash Abaran
Battle of Bash Abaran
The Battle of Bash Abaran was a battle of Caucasus Campaign of World War I that took place in the vicinity of Bash Abaran, in 1918. The Ottoman divisions attacked on May 21, but after three days of fierce combat the Armenians remained firm and the Ottoman regiments retreated in defeat.Armenian...
, and Karakilisa staved off the annihilation of the Armenian nation, and the victories here were instrumental in allowing the Armenian National Council to declare the independence of the Democratic Republic of Armenia
Democratic Republic of Armenia
The Democratic Republic of Armenia was the first modern establishment of an Armenian state...
on May 30 (retroactive to May 28). Though the terms that Armenia agreed to in the Treaty of Batum
Treaty of Batum
Treaty of Batum was signed in Batum between the Democratic Republic of Armenia and the Ottoman Empire on June 4 1918. It was the first treaty of the Democratic Republic of Armenia. It consisted of 14 articles...
(June 4, 1918) were excessively harsh, the little republic was able to hold out until the Ottomans were forced to withdraw from the region with the end of World War I in late 1918.
Legacy and memory
The battle of Sardarabad holds a special place in Armenian historical memory and is often compared to the 451 A.D. battle of Avarayr. Leaders of the first Armenian republic frequently invoked the name of the battle, exhorting their people to aspire to the example of those who had fought and participated in it. The battle was seldom mentioned or given little significance in Soviet historiographySoviet historiography
Soviet historiography is the methodology of history studies by historians in the Soviet Union . In the USSR, the study of history was marked by alternating periods of freedom allowed and restrictions imposed by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union , and also by the struggle of historians to...
until after the death of Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
. In the mid-1960s, a number of Soviet historians began to highlight its importance, as well as that of Bash Abaran's and Karakilisa's. The Soviet military historian Evgenii F. Ludshuvet, for example, emphasized that these battles, fought by the "Armenian Dashnak forces", helped slow down the Turkish advance on Baku
Baku
Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...
and helped relieve some pressure against that city. Notable Soviet Armenian literary figures such as Hovhannes Shiraz
Hovhannes Shiraz
Hovhannes Shiraz was a notable Armenian poet.- Biography :He was born Hovhannes Karapetyan in the city of Alexandropol, then part of the Russian Empire . His first work called Beginning of Spring was published in 1935...
and Paruyr Sevak
Paruyr Sevak
Paruyr Rafaeli Ghazaryan was an Armenian poet. He is considered one of the greatest Armenian poets of the twentieth century. -Biography:...
, whose work "Sardarapat" was turned into a popular song, even composed songs and wrote poems that lionized the Armenian fighters. Ivan Bagramyan, a Marshal of the Soviet Union
Marshal of the Soviet Union
Marshal of the Soviet Union was the de facto highest military rank of the Soviet Union. ....
and himself a participant of the battle, described its importance in the following manner:
After the commemoration of the Armenian Genocide's fiftieth anniversary in 1965, Soviet authorities agreed to the construction of a monument and park
Sardarapat Memorial
Sardarapat Memorial is a memorial complex to the Battle of Sardarapat located in the village of Araks, in the Armavir Province of Armenia, 11 kilometers southwest of Armavir town...
dedicated to the Armenian victory near the site of the battle. Architect Rafayel Israyelian
Rafayel Israyelian
Rafayel Israyelyan |Georgia]] - 8 September 1973, Yerevan, Armenia) was an Armenian architect and designer based in Yerevan, Armenia. He is author of an immense architectural heritage of civil buildings, monuments and design works.-Background and Education:...
was commissioned to design the monument, which was completed in 1968.
Further reading
Afansyan, Serzh. Սարդարապատի հաղթանակը, Հայաստան, Մայիս 1918 (The Victory at Sardarapat, Armenia, May 1918). Yerevan: Iravabanakan Grakanutyan Publishing, 1991.- Allen, William E.D. and Paul Muratoff. Caucasian Battlefields. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1953. Aghayan, Tsatur P.Tsatur AghayanTsatur Paveli Aghayan was an Armenian historian. He was a Professor at Yerevan State University, an academic of the Armenian Academy of Sciences, the editor of the Lraber journal, and a renowned scientist of the Armenian SSR...
Հոկտեմբերը և Հայ Ժողովրդի Ազատագրական Պայքարը (October and the Liberation Struggle of the Armenian People). Yerevan: Yerevan State University Press, 1982. - Kayaloff, Jacques. The Battle of Sardarabad. The Hague: Mouton, 1973.
- Hovannisian, Richard GRichard G. HovannisianRichard G. Hovannisian is an American historian and scholar. He was born and raised in Tulare, California. He received his B.A. and M.A. degrees from the University of California, Berkeley, and his Ph.D. from University of California, Los Angeles. He was also Associate Professor of History at...
. Armenia on the Road to Independence, 1918. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1967. Poidebard, Antoine. "Rôle militaire des Arméniens sur le front du Caucase après la defection de l'armée russe (décembre 1917-novembre 1918)." Revue des Études ArméniennesRevue des Études ArméniennesRevue des Études Arméniennes is a prominent French language academic journal dedicated to the study of Armenian history, art history, philology, linguistics, literature. The journal was founded by two French scholars who specialized in Armenian studies in Paris in 1920, Frédéric Macler and Antoine...
, I, pt. 2, 1920.