Van Resistance

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Van Resistance
Armenian troops holding a defense line against Turkish forces in the walled fortress of Van in May 1915.
Date April 19, 1915 - May 20, 1915 Location Western Armenia Result Armenian victory
Combatants
Military of Ottoman Empire Kurdish brigands	Armenian residents of Van
Commanders
Jevdet Bey
Strength
12,000	1,500 [1]
Casualties
?	Estimated 55,000 civilian casualties [2]

For the conflict of 1896 see Defense of Van. For air resistance of a van, please see Automotive aerodynamics.

The Resistance at Van was one of the few instances during the Armenian Genocide where Armenians, in an act of self-defense, fought against the Ottoman Empire's armed forces. The resistance reached its zenith with the temporary establishment of a local provisional Armenian government (1915-1917) which in its term incorporated into the Russian administration of Western Armenia and then to the Democratic Republic of Armenia. However incorporation to Democratic Republic of Armenia was left on the paper as the Ottomans re-occupied the region under the Bolshevik-German Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (Armenia condemns the treaty). The resistance began to build the front line that ended with Treaty of Batum and region was one more time removed from the Armenia. At the end of WWI, the region, as well as some nearby areas, (collectively referred to as Wilsonian Armenia) passed to the Republic of Armenia under the Treaty of Sèvres.

The initial armed resistance occurred between April 19 and May 6, 1915 at the Van and lasted for a period of less than a month. The second big resistance was during the Ottoman advance and the Battle of Van which ended with the arrival of Russian troops on the side of the Armenian forces. The resistance following the uprising and the arrival of Russian army, the latter continued to advance, eventually controlling much of Western Armenia. Armenian volunteer units within the Russian army, as well as Armenian militia, assisted the Russians in governing the region under the leadership of Aram Manougian(also known as "Aram of Van"), as well as in keeping the Ottomans out of it from 1916 to 1918 - nearly three years. With the Russian Revolution, Armenian and Georgian units formed the front line against the advancing Ottoman Army.

Contents 1 Background 2 The fight for survival, 1915 2.1 April, 16 2.2 April, 19 2.3 April, 20 2.4 April, 24 3 Provisional government 3.1 May, 2 3.2 May, 6 3.3 May, 16 3.4 May, 27 4 Setback, August 15 5 Expansion, 1916-17 6 From militia to organized front 7 From provisional to a nation 8 The last defense, 1918 9 International recognition efforts 10 Last Flare, 1920 11 Conclusion 12 Timeline 13 Notes 14 References 15 See also

[edit] Background

Main article: Armenian Genocide

Armenian Genocide
Background
Armenians in the Ottoman Empire · Armenian Question · Hamidian Massacres · Zeitun Resistance (1895) · 1896 Ottoman Bank Takeover · Yıldız Attempt · Adana Massacre · Young Turk Revolution
The Genocide
Armenian notables deported from the Ottoman capital · Tehcir Law · Armenian casualties of deportations · Ottoman Armenian casualties  · Labour battalion
Major extermination centers: Bitlis · Deir ez-Zor · Diyarbakır · Erzurum · Kharput · Muş · Sivas · Trabzon
Resistance: Zeitun  · Van · Musa Dagh · Urfa · Shabin-Karahisar · Armenian militia
Foreign aid and relief: Reactions · American Committee for Relief in the Near East
Responsible parties
Young Turks: Talat · Enver · Djemal · Committee of Union and Progress · Teskilati Mahsusa · The Special Organization · Ottoman Army · Kurdish Irregulars · Topal Osman
Aftermath
Courts-Martial · Operation Nemesis · Partitioning of the Ottoman Empire · Denial of the Genocide
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In 1914, before World War I Armenians made up a relative majority of the population in what is today known as Eastern Anatolia (or Western Armenia). According to most Western sources, their numbers were between 1.8 and 2.1 million. ^[3] In the Van province, they constituted an absolute majority.^[4]

The members of the three main Armenian political parties—Armenakans (Ramkavars), Hnchakians, and the Armenian Revolutionary Federation—had extensive presence in the Lake Van area, and two other empires in the region ^[5]. Following the 1908 revolution by the Young Turks, and the subsequent dethroning of sultan Abdul Hamid II, the Armenian political parties chose a policy of cooperation with the new Young Turk regime. On April 15, 1915, Wangenheim, the German ambassador in Constantinople, reported "that the Armenians have given up their ideas of a revolution since the introduction of the Constitution and that there is no organization for such a revolt." ^[6]

[edit] The fight for survival, 1915

After World War I began, the Russian army, consisting of 30,000 men, was sent to the region, and according to the plan, the unit would reach Van in May 1915.

Local Armenian leaders—ARF members Aram Manukyan, Vramyan, Ishkan, and Ramkavar member Armenak Yekaryan—told the Armenian population to remain loyal to the Ottoman government and not to antagonize it.^[7]

After an unsuccessful campaign against Russians, Jevdet Bey, the governor of Van province, returned to Van and, as C.J. Walker recounts, "instigated a reign of terror in the outlying villages of the province on the pretext of searching for arms." In the process, the Turkish gendarmes indiscriminately murdered Armenians. ^[8] The Survival of a Nation

[edit] April, 16

In mid-April of 1915, at the request of Jevdet, several prominent Armenians from Van, led by Iskhan, went to the nearby village of Shadakh to mediate a minor dispute. Accompanied by Turkish guards, they stopped midway in a village, where a feast was prepared for them. Here, on April 16, Ishkhan and his Armenian companions were murdered.

Alarmed, Armenians in Van requested Dr. Clarence Ussher, missionary and representative of the then neutral United States, to mediate between them and Jevdet. Attempts at mediation were unsuccessful.

[edit] April, 19

On April 19, Jevdet issued an order throughout the Van province, which read: "The Armenians must be exterminated. If any Muslim protect a Christian, first, his house shall be burnt; then the Christian killed before his eyes, then his [the Muslim's] family and himself." ^[9]. On the same day, Turkish soldiers attacked all Armenian villages in the Van province, killing 55,000 Armenians. ^[10]

On 19 April 1915, Armenians set fire to the powder stores in the Van armoury, resulting in an explosion that killed four soldiers.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] April, 20

The next day 20 April 1915 Armenians in the city of Van,in the surrounding countryside, and in small towns began a local uprising with pitchforks, wrenches, pipes, and other makeshift weapons. According to American ambassador Henry Morgenthau, on April 20, 1915 Ottoman soldiers seized several Armenian women who wanted to enter the city. Armenian men that came to help were later shot dead. Morgenthau would remark that this act lead to the Turkish military forces to open fire upon Van with artillery, effectively laying it under siege.^[11]

Within a couple of days, the Armenian patriots were in control of the region. The Ottoman army was dealing with the Russian advance. The local Ottoman units counterattacked and began fighting for control of the area. In early 1915 the Ottoman eastern front was split. All the military units in Van before 1915 were sent north in an attempt to block the Russian forces. This left just a few combat units and police, a total of 5000 men.^[11] The personal account of Morgenthau estimates the Armenian patriots at 1,500 men. This core unit was accompanied by non-organized supporters. The governor lost control of the city in a very short time.

[edit] April, 24

On 24 April 1915, the fourth day of the riots, Jevdet Bey^{[citation needed]} (for the name), the Ottoman governor, sent a telegram to the Interior Ministry asking permission to send the Muslim civilian population to provinces further west, given the conditions and the Russian advance. Records from different sources reveal the issue had many dimensions. The emigrated Muslims could not return to their homes until 2 April 1918, which gives a rough sense of the time that the region was a war zone. There are also accounts of how most of the Muslims fled the region. The ones that did not leave were faced with some hardship in the war zone. Under these conditions, the Armenian defenders of Van with the leadership of Aram of Van, established a local provisional government . ^[12]

[edit] Provisional government

Further information: Free Vaspurakan

To cover local administrative needs, a temporary Armenian government was set up in Van. This was the seed of the organizational structure that would be named the "Administration of Western Armenia". By the end of April 1915, the Armenian resistance (mainly the ARF) had control of Van, and established an Armenian "General Staff" under the command of Aram Manougian.

[edit] May, 2

Seeking to regain control of Van from the rebels, the Ottoman 10th Army from Mesopotamia arrived outside the town on 2 May 1915, but the arrival of Russian and Armenian battalions (30,000 men), in the region on 3 May, prevented an attack. At this time, there were negotiations between the Ottoman army and the local governing structure.^{[citation needed]} Under these conditions, the Ottomans' retreat from the region allowed them to reorganise for a future attack.

[edit] May, 6

The Russian troops moved in on 6 May 1915. ^[13] On the 6th of May the Armenian flag flew over the citadel of Van. ^[14] On May 6, the Russian troops, including the Araratian volunteer brigade led by commander Vardan (Sargis Mehrabyan), entered the city.^[15] was added to this structure with the arrival of the Armenian volunteer brigade. In a short time, the main Russian and Armenian battalions moved toward the secondary goals of securing the region.

[edit] May, 16

On 16 May the Armenian battalions led Russian regulars into Van.^{[16] [17]} The establishment of a local structure by the Armenians was cited to form a point in linking to the expeditionary army in Persia. ^[18]

[edit] May, 27

See also: Tehcir Law

The Ottoman government began the deportation process of Armenians from what it names as the war zone, (Caucasus Campaign).

[edit] Setback, August 15

In July, the Russian army moved from Van to the fortress town of Malazgirt in preparation for a new offensive into Anatolia. However, the Ottoman Army attacked the Russian Army at Malazgirt before the Russians could launch an offensive of their own. The Battle of Malazgirt was fought from 23 July to 1 August. It resulted in defeat for the Russians who then retreated north to the town of Kara Killisse. The Russians defeated the Turks in the Battle of Kara Killisse (5-6 August, 1915).

Further information: Battle of Malazgirt (1915), Battle of Kara Killisse

With the Russians defeated, the Ottoman Army was able to concentrate on Van. During the reoccupation of the Lake Van region, the Armenians only put up token resistance. Most of the Armenians of fighting age had gone to Van to make a stand against the Ottoman Army. The Ottoman army arrived outside the city on the 15th of August. On the 16th, it began a bombardment. On the 19th of August, the Turks entered the city and, after a two-hour fight, decisively defeated the local units and destroyed the garrison.

Further information: Battle of Van

From 15th of August to the middle of September (less than a month), the Ottoman Army was in the city. However, they had to leave very shortly. The Russian army, with Andranik Toros Ozanian, returned with a bigger force.

[edit] Expansion, 1916-17

See also: Battle of Bitlis and Battle of Mush

The Russians soon returned to the city. In 1916, Western Armenia gained an Armenian control with the official establishment of Administration for Western Armenia, some sources refer to it as the first republic of Armenia. Fighting around the east side of Lake Van continued during the 1916, the Armenian militia give support to establishment of order. The Armenian volunteer units were the first battalion that entered the Bitlis. The only bright spot for the Ottomans during 1916-17 was General Mustafa Kemal's reconquest of Mush and Battle of Bitlis in August of 1916. The Russians drove Kemal's troops out of these towns at the end of the autumn. Fighting around the east side of Lake Van continued throughout the summer of 1917 but was inconclusive.

[edit] From militia to organized front

See also: Armenian militia

In December, 1917, regular Russian regiments were deserting the frontline. In this situation the army corps in this frontline realigned themselves under the command of General Tovmas Nazarbekian, with Dro as a civilian commissioner, see administration. The frontline had three main divisions: Movses Silikyan, General Andranik and Mikhail Areshian. Another regular unit was under Colonel Korganian. There were Armenian partisian guerrilla detachments accompanying these main units. The line from Van to Erzincan was organized through these units. Ottomans had to be stopped with 1/3 to 1/4 (without location information, it was mentioned that Adrianic had 150,000 men) of the previous uprising levels with 300 mile frontline (high mountain area, with specific gateways). Bogos Nubar the president of the "Armenian National Delegation" declared during the Paris Peace Conference, 1919.

“

In the Caucasus, where, without mentioning the 150,000 Armenians in the Imperial Russian Army, more than 40,000 of their volunteers contributed to the liberation of a portion of the Armenian vilayets (Province of Van), and where, under the command of their leaders, Antranik and Nazerbekoff, they, alone among the peoples of the Caucasus, offered resistance to the Turkish armies, from the beginning of the Bolshevist withdrawal right up to the signing of an armistice."[19]

”

The Russian Revolution of 1917 changed the political and military structure of the region. On the eve of 1917, the Russian army in the Caucasus was organized along national and ethnic lines, such as the Armenian volunteer units ^[20], with General Movses Silikian. The disintegration of the imperial army was partly blamed on this national formation. On the other hand, this organization gave a chance for the Confederation of Armenian parties to develop an organized armed structure, instead of working in militias.

The Armenian commanders of Armenian volunteer units of initial years who had acted on a national goal (playing a pivotal role in the formation of both the Administration for Western Armenia and the Democratic Republic of Armenia) were punished in 1922, the Democratic Republic of Armenia was reoccupied by Russian forces (see last flare), such as Garegin Njdeh. This picture was emminent to Ottomans during the initial years of World War I. The Ottomans believed that the Caucasus campaign was formed by Armenians, since the units they faced were Armenian volunteers and militias.

[edit] From provisional to a nation

See also: Democratic Republic of Armenia

On the Eastern Armenia side a Russian Provisional Government was established in 1917. The Armenians learned that the Grand Duke Nicholas and the Special Transcaucasian Committee (особый Закавказский Комитет (ОЗАКОМ), osobyy Zakavkazskiy Komitet (OZAKOM)), Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic, was not going to keep his promise of helping the Armenians to move back from the Caucasus refugee camps to their homeland. The Armenians (in their thousands), who moved to their hometowns with their own resources found out that Russian soldiers had left their posts and returned to their hometowns.^[21] The Armenian resistance formed a Democratic Republic of Armenia through the establishment of the Armenian Congress of Eastern Armenians(ACEA). The ACEA first devised policies to direct the war effort, and the relief and repatriation of refugees. The Congress passed a law organizing the defence of the Caucasus against the Ottoman Empire using the vast quantity of supplies and ammunition left by the Russian army. The Congress also selected a fifteen member permanent executive committee, known as the Armenian National Council. The chairman of this committee was Avetis Aharonian. The committee’s first task was to set the stage and then declare the Democratic Republic of Armenia, which at that time the Administration for Western Armenia was claimed to be a part of. The claim become official with the recognition of the Wilsonian Armenia which Avetis Aharonian defended the rights of Van resistance and being part of Democratic Republic of Armenia during the Paris Peace Conference, 1919 .

[edit] The last defense, 1918

While the new state was forming, the border that was drawn by the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk and signed on 3 March 1918, only lasted until May. From May to 30 October, the Ottoman Empire struggled against the Democratic Republic of Armenia, and pushed the border to the east.

Conditions in the resistance of March 1918 was best explained by R.G. Hovannisian: "In the summer of 1918 the Armenian National council reluctantly transferred from Tiflis to Yerevan to take over the leadership of the republic from the popular dictator Aram Manukian and the renowned military commander Drastamat Kanayan. It then began the daunting process of establishing a national administrative machinery in an isolated and landlocked misery. This was not the autonomy or independence of which Armenian intellectuals had dreamed and for which a generation of youth had been sacrificed. Yet, as it happened, it was here that the Armenian people were destined to continue its national existence". ^[22]

Enver Pasha was the War Minister for the Ottoman Empire at that time, and sent the newly established Army of Islam to Armenia. Under heavy pressure from the combined forces of the Ottoman army and the Kurdish irregulars, the Republic was forced to withdraw from Erzincan to Erzurum. In the end, the Republic had to evacuate Erzurum as well. With all the units gathared in Sardarapat, the Battle of Sardarapat (May 22-26 1918), proved that General Movses Silikian could cause an Ottoman retreat.

Further southeast, in Van, the Armenians resisted the Turkish army until April 1918, but were eventually forced to evacuate it and withdraw to Persia. The Azerbaijani Tatars sided with the Ottoman Empire and seized the lines of communication, thus cutting off the Armenian National Councils in Baku and Erevan from the National Council in Tiflis. The British sent a small military force under the command of General Lionel Charles Dunsterville into Baku, which arrived around 4 August, 1918. This unit showed no opposition to marching Ottomans. With the Armistice of Mudros, Enver Pasha's movement disintegrated.^[23]

On 30 October 1918 the Ottoman Empire signed the Armistice of Mudros with the Triple Entente and its military activity in this region ceased.

[edit] International recognition efforts

One concept that is analyzed under the Armenian Revolutionary movements is the source of "Wilsonian Armenia", why and how it came into consideration during the Paris Peace Conference, 1919.

This area stayed outside the control of the Ottoman Empire for nearly 3 years, (1915-18). The ARF's achievement was including their activity region during this period in the Paris Peace Conference, 1919. Armenian Diaspora defended the argument that it was natural to extend it to Armenian control, as after the Russian Revolution this region was controlled by Armenian volunteer units and later Armenia. The Armenian "provisional government" that was set up used as an argument "the ability to control the region" in Wilsonian Armenia. A secondary argument developed during this period was the dominant population becoming Armenian as the Turkish inhabitants of the region moved to the western provinces. Armenia claimed to be tolerant of minorities. President Wilson’s acceptance letter (for drawing the frontier), to the Paris Peace Conference in 1919 said: "The world expects of them (the Armenians), that they give every encouragement and help within their power to those Turkish refugees who may desire to return to their former homes in the districts of Trebizond, Erzerum, Van and Bitlis remembering that these peoples, too, have suffered greatly." ^[24] Today, as a continuation of the initial goal, the creation of a free, independent, and united Armenia; all territories designated as Wilsonian Armenia by the Treaty of Sèvres as well as regions like Artsakh, is the first goal of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation^[25]

[edit] Last Flare, 1920

The resistance's last fight was against Bolshevik suppression in Armenia during 1921. Many members of the resistance were arrested and killed in prison. L. Shant, Kachaznouni and other leaders were also arrested. Approximately 1200 Army officers were exiled to Russia.

[edit] Conclusion

The revolution managed to build an Armenian homeland after World War I. However, the Turkish-Armenian War took Wilsonian Armenia away from Armenia. The resistance failed for some Armenian historians because of the 'oil' politics of the time. Armenia did not survive long without the extension of Wilsonian Armenia, and became part of the Soviet Union.

Some historical figures from the time of the Van Resistance include: Aram Manougian, Andranik Toros Ozanian, Drastamat Kanayan, Garegin Njdeh, Hakob Zavriev and Simon Vratsian.

[edit] Timeline

• April 19, 1915, fire in the powder stores in the Van armoury.
• April 20, 1915, Armenians in the city of Van, the countryside, and small towns begins a local uprising.
• April 24, 1915, Ottoman governor asks permission to move the Muslim civilian population to the west.
• May 2, 1915, Ottoman Army moves close to Van, but withdraws because of the presence of the Russian Army.
• May 3, 1915, Russian Army enters Van.
• August 16, 1915, Ottoman Army besieges Van, Battle of Van.
• September 1915, Ottoman Army is forced out by Russians.
• August 1916 Ottoman Army moves to the west of the region (Mush and Bitlis), but is forced out within a month.
• February 1917 Russian units disintegrate. Armenian volunteer units keep formation.
• Summer 1917 Inconclusive skirmishes.
• September 1917 Establishment of the Democratic Republic of Armenia; Armenian volunteer units form its military.
• 1918 Ottoman army begins to reoccupy to the pre WW I borders and face the Democratic Republic of Armenia.
• March 3, 1918, The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk gives Kars, Ardahan and Batum regions to the Ottoman Empire.
• March 4, 1918, Armenia condemns the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.
• March 9, 1918, Armenia presents its position to the Ottoman Empire.
• March 12, 1918, Change of hands in Kars rejected by Armenia.
• May 22, 1918, Battle of Sardarapat, Armenian forces against the Ottoman Empire.

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

• Vartanian, H.K. The Western Armenian Liberation Struggle Yerevan, 1967
• Morgenthau, Henry, an electronic version of his book can be found here [1]
• The Struggle for Transcaucasia, 1917-21, by Kazemzadeh, F.
• The Republic of Armenia, Hovannisian, R.G.

[edit] See also

• Armenia
• Armenians
• Armenian Genocide
• Caucasus Campaign
• Democratic Republic of Armenia
• Ottoman Armenian population
• Georgian-Armenian War 1918
• Armenian-Azeri war 1918
• Turkish-Armenian War