The Trebizond Campaign, also known as the Battle of Trebizond was a series of brilliant Russian naval and land operations that resulted in the capture of Trebizond

Trabzon

Trabzon is a city on the Black Sea coast of north-eastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. Trabzon, located on the historical Silk Road, became a melting pot of religions, languages and culture for centuries and a trade gateway to Iran in the southeast and the Caucasus to the northeast...

. It was the logistical step after the Erzerum Campaign. Operations began on February 5 and concluded when the Ottoman troops abandoned Trebizond on the night of April 15, 1916.

Effect on Armenians

Prior to World War I, the vibrant Armenian community of Trebizond numbered 30,000. In 1915, during 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...

, they were massacred and deported. After the Russian capture of Trebizond, some 500 surviving Armenians were able to return, as well as Armenian monks of the Kaymakli Monastery

Kaymakli Monastery

Kaymaklı Monastery is a ruined Armenian Apostolic monastery near Trabzon, Turkey.The monastery originally included a church, a bell tower at the northwest corner, and a small chapel near the southeast corner.- Location, founding and name :...

.