The Armenian Genocide The first genocide of the 20th Century

Armenian Holocaust First instance of “ethnic cleansing” of the 20 th century Centrally planned and administered by Turkish government against the Armenian population Carried out during WWI ( ) Armenians are subjected to abduction, torture, massacre, starvation, etc.

Background of Armenia Armenia was a part of the Ottoman Empire. While the empire was Muslim, Armenians remained Christians. They were tolerated, but did not experience full equality under Islamic law. In 1867, Sultan Abdul Hamid II, came to power and attempted to stop the many revolutions within his empire. He did this mainly by encouraging Muslim groups to settle in Armenian lands.

The Armenian Genocide 1. Pictures and names of key political leaders involved and explanation of roles. Three figures from the CUP controlled the government; Mehmet Talaat, Minister of the Interior in 1915 and Grand Vizier (Prime Minister) in 1917; Ismail Enver, Minister of War; Ahmed Jemal, Minister of the Marine and Military Governor of Syria. This Young Turk triumvirate relied on other members of the CUP appointed to high government posts and assigned to military commands to carry out the Armenian Genocide. In addition to the Ministry of War and the Ministry of the Interior, the Young Turks also relied on a newly-created secret outfit which they manned with convicts and irregular troops, called the Special Organization (Teshkilati Mahsusa). Its primary function was the carrying out of the mass slaughter of the deported Armenians. In charge of the Special Organization was Behaeddin Shakir, a medical doctor. Moreover, ideologists such as Zia Gokalp propagandized through the media on behalf of the CUP by promoting Pan-Turanism, the creation of a new empire stretching from Anatolia into Central Asia whose population would be exclusively Turkic.

Armenian Holocaust 15 th -16 th centuries, Armenians are brought into the Ottoman Empire Armenians are mostly Christian Ottomans are Muslim Armenians are treated like second- class citizens Overtaxed, forced into Islam

The Ottoman Empire, 1914

Sultan Abdul Hamid II, also known as the “Red Sultan” for his role in the genocide.

Armenian Background Cont… This caused wide spread conflict and in 1894, Hamid falsely charged the Armenians for rebelling without authority. The Muslims, backed by the Ottoman Empire, were allowed to attack the Armenians. Over the course of the next 2 years, 200,000 Armenians died from attack and/or starvation.

The Young Turks In 1908, a group of young intellectuals over threw the sultan-called The Young Turks. This new leadership sought to make the Ottoman Empire exclusively Turkish and Muslims. In 1910, the Armenians were labeled enemies of Muslim Turkey (due to not fitting the above description)

Enver Bey, the leader of the Young Turks.

The Genocide Begins In 1914, Turkey entered WWI. A military offensive against Russia ended in disaster and Turkey accused the Armenians of aiding Russia. On April 24, 1915-Turkish authorities arrested and executed Armenian leaders in Constantinople. This date would be forever remembered as the beginning of the Armenian genocide.

Armenian Holocaust Forty-thousand Armenian men serving in Turkish military Weapons are confiscated and they are put into slave labor camps Armed roundups begin on April 24, 1915 of 250 Armenian political leaders, educators, writers, clergy etc. in Constantinople This is followed by mass arrests of men who are tortured and shot

The Genocide Continues… In June 1915, the Armenian population was deported to the desserts of Syria and Iraq. Prior to deportation, all able- bodied males were shot. 25% of those that left Turkey would eventually arrive in Syria and Iraq. The majority of people were either murdered or died of thirst and starvation along the way.

The Armenian Genocide 2. Headlines from the Newspapers Armenians Are Sent to Perish in the Desert - Turks Accused of Plan to Exterminate Whole Population (New York Times, August 18, 1915) Million Armenians Killed or in Exile - American Committee on Relief Says Victims of Turks Are Steadily Increasing - Policy of Extermination (New York Times, December 15, 1915).

Armenian Holocaust Women, children, and the elderly are then told to pack light necessities Told they are being relocated to safety Begin death marches across the Syrian desert where die of thirst, starvation, heat, etc. These marches covered hundreds of miles and lasted months

The Armenian Genocide 4. Map of the Victimized Region

The Armenian Genocide 3. From the Mouth of Witnesses and Victims 87 years old Armenian survivor, Kosrov Derebegian. “I saw so many horses, so many people, so many children. Many Armenian villages evacuated. My father disappeared with a lot of other men. I remember people panicking. I see we are in the water. I saw a Turk kill a woman with a large knife and a naked man stabbed fatally. Swollen, dead bodies. Flies all over the place.” Joint Commemorative committee, Joyce Matz. “As in the Holocaust, Armenians were tattooed, men separated from their families, women were violated and children impaled upon Turkish bayonets,”

The Genocide Ends In 1919, the Young Turks were put on trial for war crimes and were found guilty for the destruction of the Armenian people. In 1923, a war hero Mustafa Ataturk came to power, formed the Republic of Turkey, and released all prisoners found guilty of war crimes (including the Young Turks).

Mustafa Kemel Ataturk

Armenian Holocaust The Allied Powers (Great Britain, France, Russia) responded to news of the massacres by issuing a warning to Turkey: “the Allied governments announce publicly that they will hold all the members of the Ottoman Government, as well as such of their agents as are implicated, personally responsible for such matters.” No effect Total deaths: million

In the end, the Soviet Union carved out territory for the Armenians. Over 1 million Armenians died during the genocide. Today, the country of Turkey still formally denies that any premeditated genocide took place.

Why do we know so little about this event during WWI? 1 million deaths is not a lot compared to millions lost in other countries. Europe is in shambles, each country has its own issues to deal with. The term “genocide” is created by Professor Raphael Lempkin in 1946, (after WWII ) and recognized at a United Nations convention in Genocide, briefly, is the intent to destroy, in whole or part, ethnic or religious groups.

The Armenian Controversy To this day, the Turks deny that the Genocide occurred. This is a VERY controversial issue to the Turks. 23 countries acknowledge the event was genocide In early October 2007, the U.S. Congress opened debate on whether or not to declare the Armenian event a genocide – much to the dismay of the Turkish government. Admission to the EU- want Turks to admit that it was a genocide