Running head: THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE 1 THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE 5 Title: The Armenian Genocide Name: Instructor’s Name: Institution: Introduction The Armenian genocide refers to a campaign by the government of the Ottoman Empire to get rid of the minority Armenian citizens from their ancestral land in the empire. The Ottoman Empire existed between 1300 and 1923. At the height of its success in the 1600s the empire controlled cast territories in Southeast Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The capital of the Empire was in Istanbul (Constantinople) the empire was headed by a Sultan who had absolute authority over his subjects. The Turks practiced Islam and the empire was governed based on Islamic law. During the 15th and 16th centuries Armenia was brought under Ottoman rule (Kervokian, 2011). The Armenians were a Christian minority and they mainly occupied the eastern provinces of the empire although significant populations could be found in the Western provinces as well as in the capital Constantinople. The Armenians lived as second class citizens in the empire and were denied many rights. For instance their lives and property were not protected by law; they were barred from participating in government and they were also forced to pay more taxes. However for the most part there were no violent conflict and minority populations within the empire prospered as the empire’s economy expanded. Circumstances Leading To the Genocide In the middle of the 19th century, three great powers of Europe i.e. Britain, France and Russia began to pressure the Ottoman to grant equal rights to all its subjects. This period was known as the Tanzimat period and some of the reforms instituted include; replacement of religious laws with secular law and reforms in the banking sector among others. However the Muslims in the empire rejected the idea of equality with Christians. Toward the late 1870s the Greeks together with a number of Christian nations under the Ottoman Empire who were displeased by mistreatment, had acquired independence from the Ottoman rule often with the help of great powers of Europe. During this period the empire was also in decline and major European powers were jostling for territories which the empire previously controlled. To finance the war the empire borrowed large sums of money from European banks. Later in 1875 the Ottoman state was unable to service the loans and declared bankruptcy (Taner, 2007). Rise of Armenian Nationalism In the late 1860s and early 1870s, Armenian intellectuals began calls for better treatment from the government. Their demands included police protection from the looting and killing perpetrated by Muslim communities, administrative reforms and they also wanted Christian testimonies to be admitted in court. The Ottoman government did not act on these demands and in the contrary they invited further oppression ...

1. Running head: THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE 1
THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
5
Title: The Armenian Genocide
Name:
Instructor’s Name:
Institution:
Introduction
The Armenian genocide refers to a campaign by the government
of the Ottoman Empire to get rid of the minority Armenian
citizens from their ancestral land in the empire. The Ottoman
Empire existed between 1300 and 1923. At the height of its
success in the 1600s the empire controlled cast territories in
Southeast Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The capital
of the Empire was in Istanbul (Constantinople) the empire was
headed by a Sultan who had absolute authority over his
subjects. The Turks practiced Islam and the empire was
governed based on Islamic law. During the 15th and 16th
centuries Armenia was brought under Ottoman rule (Kervokian,
2011). The Armenians were a Christian minority and they
mainly occupied the eastern provinces of the empire although
significant populations could be found in the Western provinces
as well as in the capital Constantinople. The Armenians lived as
second class citizens in the empire and were denied many
rights. For instance their lives and property were not protected
by law; they were barred from participating in government and
they were also forced to pay more taxes. However for the most
part there were no violent conflict and minority populations
within the empire prospered as the empire’s economy expanded.
Circumstances Leading To the Genocide
In the middle of the 19th century, three great powers of Europe

2. i.e. Britain, France and Russia began to pressure the Ottoman to
grant equal rights to all its subjects. This period was known as
the Tanzimat period and some of the reforms instituted include;
replacement of religious laws with secular law and reforms in
the banking sector among others. However the Muslims in the
empire rejected the idea of equality with Christians. Toward the
late 1870s the Greeks together with a number of Christian
nations under the Ottoman Empire who were displeased by
mistreatment, had acquired independence from the Ottoman rule
often with the help of great powers of Europe. During this
period the empire was also in decline and major European
powers were jostling for territories which the empire previously
controlled. To finance the war the empire borrowed large sums
of money from European banks. Later in 1875 the Ottoman state
was unable to service the loans and declared bankruptcy (Taner,
2007).
Rise of Armenian Nationalism
In the late 1860s and early 1870s, Armenian intellectuals began
calls for better treatment from the government. Their demands
included police protection from the looting and killing
perpetrated by Muslim communities, administrative reforms and
they also wanted Christian testimonies to be admitted in court.
The Ottoman government did not act on these demands and in
the contrary they invited further oppression.in 1890 Sultan
Abdul formed a paramilitary group known as Hamidiye to deal
with the Armenians through oppression and massacre. These
massacres were meant to limit the growth of Armenian
nationalism and it is estimated that they cost up to 300000
Armenian lives besides serious loss in property (Grigor, 2015).
The Role of the Young Turks
As a direct consequence of the crisis in the Ottoman Empire, a
new group known as the Young Turks seized power in a coup de
tat in 1909. It restored the constitution of 1876 and introduced
multiparty politics. The Armenians were optimistic because the
constitution guaranteed the freedom of citizens and endeavored
to resolve inter-ethnic tensions thereby transforming the empire

3. into a more harmonious society. However the Young Turks were
divided into liberal constitutionalists and the nationalists. The
nationalists were less tolerant of Armenian related issues
(Taner, 2012).
The First Balkan War
Another important even that precede the Armenian genocide
was, the First Balkan war which broke out in October 1912 and
lasted till May 1913. The Balkan states i.e. Bulgaria, Serbia,
Greece and Montenegro went to war against the Ottoman
Empire. The combined armies of the Balkan states emerged
victorious because of their numerical strength and the strategic
disadvantage of the Ottoman army. As a result of the war, the
Ottoman Empire lost almost all European territory in its empire.
After the First Balkan war and the loss of Ottoman Empire’s
territories in Europe, there was a massive migration of Muslims
who were forced to flee to the Ottoman Empire which they
perceived as their homeland. The Muslim community in the
empire was not pleased with this flood of immigrants. Many of
the refugees were settled in the same areas where the Armenians
resided from 1878. The Muslim immigrants did not get along
with their Armenian neighbors who were relatively more well
off and they later came to play a critical role in the murder of
Armenians and looting of their property during the genocide
(Vakahn, 1995).
The First World War
The new leaders of the Ottoman Empire envisioned an exclusive
Turkish state through conquering Eastern territories inhabited
by ethnic Turks people who by then were subjects of the
Russian Empire. The leaders had a bigger plan to eliminate all
Armenians from the empire and from the neighboring countries
in order to meet their objectives. Other minority Christian
ethnic groups such as the Assyrians and the Ottoman Greeks
were also targeted for extermination. In 1914, the empire
joined the World War 1 on the side of the Central powers
because of its differences with Russia. The empire used the
cover of the war to launch attacks on the minority Armenians.

4. The date of commencement of the genocide is widely held as 24
April 2015 when 250 Armenian leaders were arrested and
deported while others were killed by Ottoman authorities
(Kevorkian, 2011). The genocide was carried out in two major
phases. In phase one, Armenian able-bodied men who were
serving in the Ottoman army were disarmed and killed
systematically by being conscripted into forced labor then
worked to death while others were executed in small groups.
Phase two involved the deportation of women, children and the
elderly from their homes on death marches heading to the
Syrian Desert. The deportations were disguised as resettlement
programs because the Allies had warned the Empire about the
consequences of mistreatment of Christian minorities. The
deportees were treated brutally and because no feeding program
had been arranged, starvation took the lives of many. Others
were killed cruelly in massacres along the deportation routes.
Many young women and children were captured and enslaved in
Turkish and Muslim homes. The few who reached Northern
Syria were sent further south to die in the desert. At home in the
Ottoman Empire the material wealth of the Armenians were
confiscated by the authorities.
Conclusion
In the years after the war 400 officials were arrested and
charged for various crimes against the Armenians. Some were
found guilty and sentenced to death. However they escaped
justice by fleeing to other countries. It is estimated that 1.5
million Armenians perished in the genocide. In the wake of the
genocide Armenians lost their ancestral land and were forced
into exile. Turkey, the successor state of the Ottoman Empire
does not accept that the word genocide is an accurate term to
refer to the mass killings of Armenians (Taner, 2007).
REFERENCES
Grigor S. R., (2015) "They Can Live in the Desert but Nowhere
Else": A History of the Armenian Genocide
Kevorkian R., (2011). The Armenian Genocide: A Complete

5. History.
Taner A., (2007) A Shameful Act: The Armenian Genocide and
the Question of Turkish Responsibility.
Taner A., (2012). The Young Turks' Crime Against Humanity:
The Armenian Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing in the Ottoman
Empire.
Vahakn D., (1995). The History of the Armenian Genocide:
Ethnic Conflict from the Balkans to Anatolia to the Caucasus.
Criminal Law Today, Fourth Edition, by Frank Schmalleger,
Daniel E. Hall, with John J. Dolatowski. Published by Prentice
Hall.
Copyright © 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Criminal Law Today, Fourth Edition, by Frank Schmalleger,
Daniel E. Hall, with John J. Dolatowski. Published by Prentice
Hall.
Copyright © 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Criminal Law Today, Fourth Edition, by Frank Schmalleger,
Daniel E. Hall, with John J. Dolatowski. Published by Prentice
Hall.
Copyright © 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Criminal Law Today, Fourth Edition, by Frank Schmalleger,
Daniel E. Hall, with John J. Dolatowski. Published by Prentice

6. Hall.
Copyright © 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Criminal Law Today, Fourth Edition, by Frank Schmalleger,
Daniel E. Hall, with John J. Dolatowski. Published by Prentice
Hall.
Copyright © 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Criminal Law Today, Fourth Edition, by Frank Schmalleger,
Daniel E. Hall, with John J. Dolatowski. Published by Prentice
Hall.
Copyright © 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Criminal Law Today, Fourth Edition, by Frank Schmalleger,
Daniel E. Hall, with John J. Dolatowski. Published by Prentice
Hall.
Copyright © 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Criminal Law Today, Fourth Edition, by Frank Schmalleger,
Daniel E. Hall, with John J. Dolatowski. Published by Prentice
Hall.
Copyright © 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Criminal Law Today, Fourth Edition, by Frank Schmalleger,
Daniel E. Hall, with John J. Dolatowski. Published by Prentice
Hall.

7. Copyright © 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Criminal Law Today, Fourth Edition, by Frank Schmalleger,
Daniel E. Hall, with John J. Dolatowski. Published by Prentice
Hall.
Copyright © 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Criminal Law Today, Fourth Edition, by Frank Schmalleger,
Daniel E. Hall, with John J. Dolatowski. Published by Prentice
Hall.
Copyright © 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Criminal Law Today, Fourth Edition, by Frank Schmalleger,
Daniel E. Hall, with John J. Dolatowski. Published by Prentice
Hall.
Copyright © 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Criminal Law Today, Fourth Edition, by Frank Schmalleger,
Daniel E. Hall, with John J. Dolatowski. Published by Prentice
Hall.
Copyright © 2010 by Pearson Education, Inc.
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