Sasun: The History of an 1890s Armenian Revolt

367 Pages·2014·2.26 MB·English

by  Justin McCarthy

Sasun

Sasun
The History of
an 1890s Armenian Revolt
Justin McCarthy, Ömer Turan,
and Cemalettin Taşkıran
The University of Utah Press
Salt Lake City
Copyright © 2014 by The University of Utah Press. All rights reserved.
The Defiance House Man colophon is a registered trademark
of the University of Utah Press. It is based on a four-foot-tall
Ancient Pueblo pictograph (late PIII) near Glen Canyon, Utah.
18 17 16 15 14 1 2 3 4 5
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
McCarthy, Justin, 1945–
Sasun : the history of an 1890s Armenian revolt / Justin McCarthy, Ömer
Turan, Cemalettin Taşkiran.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn 978-1-60781-384-2 (cloth) — isbn 978-1-60781-385-9 (ebook)
1. Armenians — Turkey — History. 2. Kurds — Turkey — History. 3. Sason
(Turkey) — History. 4. Ethnic conflict — Turkey. I. Turan, Ömer. II.
Taşkiran, Cemalettin. III. Title. IV. Title: History of an 1890s Armenian
revolt.
DR435.A7M333 2014
956.6'20154 — dc23
2014036315
Printed and bound by Sheridan Books, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan.
In memory of Safiye (Menger) İmre

Contents
List of Figures ix
A Note on Translations and Transliterations xi
Acknowledgments xiii
Introduction 1
1. Sasun 3
2. Conflict in Sasun 11
3. Sasun in the Press 38
4. The Missionaries 72
5. Publicists for the Armenian Cause 87
6. The British and Others 100
7. The Commission I 116
8. The Commission II 171
9. Conclusion 193
Appendix A. The Hallward Report 195
Appendix B. The Testimony of Colonel Tevfik 201
Appendix C. Report of the Consular Delegates 209
Appendix D. The Hampson Report 261
Bibliographical Note: Modern Histories of Sasun 267
Endnotes 269
Selected Bibliography 343
Index 347
vii

Figures
Maps
1.1. The Sasun Region 4
1.2. Modern Borders 4
1.3. Typical Sasun Village Distribution 8
1.4. Central Sasun 9
2.1. The Devil’s Bridge 25
2.2. Ottoman Troop Movements, August 1894 34
3.1. Region from Sasun to Kars 55
7.1. Kurdish Migratory Routes 132
Tables
1.1. Altitude in the Sasun Region 5
1.2. Average Temperatures in the Sasun Region 5
1.3. Population of Kazas in the Sasun Region 7
2.1. Armenian Fighters 27
4.1. Missionary Estimates of Armenian Mortality in Sasun 76
7.1. Villages and Houses Exactly as Listed by the European
Delegates 140
7.2. Hampson’s Report on Destruction 168
8.1. Estimates of Dead Fighters 188
ix