William Ambrose Shedd
Encyclopedia
William Ambrose Shedd was a US Presbyterian missionary who served in Persia and tried to protect the Assyrian people
from the genocide
.
He was born January 24, 1865, in the little mountain village of Seir, overlooking the Urmia
plain, from missionary parents who had come to devote their lives helping the Assyrian
community. Upon the completion of his education at Princeton University
, he spent the rest of his life among the Assyrian Christians of northwestern Iran. In 1904 he published a book called Islam and the Oriental Churches: Their historical relations.
In 1918 it became necessary for Dr. Shedd to disassociate himself from
missionary work and to apply himself to consular work, as the US Consul in Urmia. He tried to reconcile the Assyrians and the Muslim
Persians
but without success.
In July 1918 after the Ottoman army advanced toward Urmia
, the mass flight of Assyrian Christians from Urmia towards safety in British-occupied Iraq
started. The flight that began in Urmia, ended in the Baquba camp north-east of Baghdad
. Dr. Shedd and his wife, Mary Lewis Shedd, were with the Assyrians in this flight, and when they had reached Sain Ghala, Dr. Shedd died of cholera
and was buried somewhere there. His body was later recovered by his wife and buried in the Christian cemetery in Tabriz
.
Russian writer Viktor Shklovsky
who was in Urmia in late 1917 mentioned Shedd's activities in his memoirs Sentimental'noe puteshestvie, vospominaniia (A Sentimental Journey) as one of the encouraging examples of humanism amidst the violence Shklovsky witnessed in Persia and Russia in 1917-20.
Assyrian people
The Assyrian people are a distinct ethnic group whose origins lie in ancient Mesopotamia...
from the genocide
Assyrian genocide
The Assyrian Genocide refers to the mass slaughter of the Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac population of the Ottoman Empire during the 1890s, the First World War, and the period of 1922-1925...
.
He was born January 24, 1865, in the little mountain village of Seir, overlooking the Urmia
Urmia
- Demographics :According to official census of 2006, the population of Urmia is about 871,204.- Language :The population of Urmia is mainly Azerbaijani people, with Kurdish, Assyrian Christian, and Armenian minorities...
plain, from missionary parents who had come to devote their lives helping the Assyrian
Assyrian people
The Assyrian people are a distinct ethnic group whose origins lie in ancient Mesopotamia...
community. Upon the completion of his education at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, he spent the rest of his life among the Assyrian Christians of northwestern Iran. In 1904 he published a book called Islam and the Oriental Churches: Their historical relations.
In 1918 it became necessary for Dr. Shedd to disassociate himself from
missionary work and to apply himself to consular work, as the US Consul in Urmia. He tried to reconcile the Assyrians and the Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
Persians
Persian people
The Persian people are part of the Iranian peoples who speak the modern Persian language and closely akin Iranian dialects and languages. The origin of the ethnic Iranian/Persian peoples are traced to the Ancient Iranian peoples, who were part of the ancient Indo-Iranians and themselves part of...
but without success.
In July 1918 after the Ottoman army advanced toward Urmia
Persian Campaign
The Persian Campaign or Invasion of Persia was a series of engagements at northern Persian Azerbaijan and western Persia between the British Empire and the Russian Empire against the Ottoman Empire, beginning in December 1914 and ending with the Armistice of Mudros on October 30, 1918 as part of...
, the mass flight of Assyrian Christians from Urmia towards safety in British-occupied Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
started. The flight that began in Urmia, ended in the Baquba camp north-east of Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
. Dr. Shedd and his wife, Mary Lewis Shedd, were with the Assyrians in this flight, and when they had reached Sain Ghala, Dr. Shedd died of cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
and was buried somewhere there. His body was later recovered by his wife and buried in the Christian cemetery in Tabriz
Tabriz
Tabriz is the fourth largest city and one of the historical capitals of Iran and the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. Situated at an altitude of 1,350 meters at the junction of the Quri River and Aji River, it was the second largest city in Iran until the late 1960s, one of its former...
.
Russian writer Viktor Shklovsky
Viktor Shklovsky
Viktor Borisovich Shklovsky was a Russian and Soviet critic, writer, and pamphleteer.-Life:...
who was in Urmia in late 1917 mentioned Shedd's activities in his memoirs Sentimental'noe puteshestvie, vospominaniia (A Sentimental Journey) as one of the encouraging examples of humanism amidst the violence Shklovsky witnessed in Persia and Russia in 1917-20.
External links
- Shedd, Mary Lewis. The Measure of a Man: The Life of William Ambrose Shedd, Missionary to Persia
- The Measure of a Man: The Life of William Ambrose Shedd, Missionary to Persia by Mary Lewis Shedd, reviewed by George Yana (Bebla), Journal of Assyrian Academic Studies
- The Book of Missionary Heroes by Basil Mathews (2008). Chapter XXV. The Moses of the Assyrians