- The first major conference of the Entente powers is held today at Chantilly, the headquarters of General Joffre, as representatives of Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Serbia, and Belgium meet to discuss strategy. Given that the Entente powers are arranged almost in a circle around their main antagonists - Germany and Austria-Hungary - the focal point of discussion is the coordination of multiple simultaneous offensives, utilizing their numerical superiority to force their enemies to fight on all fronts. In such a scenario, the Germans and Austro-Hungarians would not be able to defend everywhere in sufficient depth, and eventually one of the fronts would collapse. Joffre particularly emphasizes operations on what he calls the 'larger' fronts - Western, Eastern, and Italian/Balkan - and that only attacks here can have a decisive effect. Missing from Joffre's formulation are operations against the Ottoman Empire, implying the British would be more useful if they abandoned the Gallipoli campaign and refocused all of their strength on the Western Front. Though details are avoided, the Entente countries (minus Russia, given the deteriorating situation on the Eastern Front) agree to launch major operations this fall.
A corollary of the co-ordination of offensives is that it is not necessary for any particular offensive to actually work; even if an attack fails to gain any ground, it will have contributed to the overall victory of the Entente if, by simply pinning enemy reserves and inflicting casualties, it contributes to the success of an offensive elsewhere. This is a potent rationalization of failure, and is is particularly well-suited to the Italian Front, given the Italian army has shown no ability to win a battle on its own anyway; at least this will give the appearance of 'purpose' behind the throwing away of thousands of lives along the Isonzo River.
- General Castlenau, commander of the Army Group of the Centre, replies to Joffre's inquiry regarding future offensives by identifying two sectors he believes that such an operation can be undertaken. The first is a ten-kilometre stretch of the line about twenty kilometres west of Reims, near the Chemin des Dames and the Aisne River, while the second, centred on Perthes in Champagne, lay in 4th Army's sector. Both regions have already been the setting for major battles in the war: in the former the Battle of the Aisne River in September 1914, and in the latter the 1st Battle of Champagne over the winter.
- Having failed to break through at any point, the Italian offensive along the Isonso River is called off today, bringing the 1st Battle of the Isonzo to an end. Overall, the Italians have suffered 15 000 casualties, which pale in comparison to future battles on the Isonzo, but already the pattern of attack, failure, and attack again is being set; Cadorna is already preparing for his next offensive in the sector. Austro-Hungarian losses, meanwhile, number almost 10 000, but confidence has grown that the meagre forces defending the Isonzo may actually be able to hold off the Italians.
- Shortly after the Italian entry into the war, they had deployed a squadron of four Pisa-class armoured cruisers to Venice to support hit-and-run operations against the Adriatic coast, and also to ameliorate concern from the army over a lack of naval support for the advance across the Isonzo River (such that it was). The British and French liaison officers to the Italian fleet see the move as pointless, as the armoured cruisers would lack the speed to catch their most likely opponent, the Austro-Hungarian Novara-class light cruisers, and otherwise are too far to support the main Italian fleet at Taranto. Today Amalfi, one of the Pisa-class armoured cruisers, puts to sea to support a sweep by Italian destroyers while escorted by only two torpedo-boats itself, and is torpedoed and sunk by UB14. Of note, the identity of the submarine is a matter of some uncertainty. It was a German boat, commanded by a German and with a German crew, and after shipment overland it had been assembled at the main Austro-Hungarian naval base of Pola and was en route to the Aegean to combat. The potential issue, of course, is that Germany and Italy are not at war, so a German submarine theoretically has no business attacking an Italian armoured cruiser. This technicality is evaded by the presence of an Austro-Hungarian naval officer on UB14 as a pilot, thereby allowing the Austro-Hungarians to claim that the submarine was under their 'direction' while in the Adriatic.
- For several months the Ottoman authorities have been pursuing a campaign of genocide against the Armenian population, the victims being either murdered outright or expelled from their homes and force-marched to the deserts of Syria. The Ottoman government has presented this as an operation based on military necessity, in that the Armenian population in eastern Anatolia is fundamentally disloyal and needs to be removed from regions near the front lines in the Caucasus. This invented justification is notably the excuse conveyed to their German allies, and German officials in the Ottoman Empire initially accepted that the deportations were necessary limited. Over the past several weeks, however, the true intentions of the Ottoman leadership have become clear to Hans Wangenheim, German ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, who writes to Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg today that deportations are occurring 'even in those parts of the country . . . not threatened by any enemy invasion' and that 'the government is indeed pursuing its purpose of eradicating the Armenian race from the Turkish[sic] Empire.'
Showing posts with label Armenian Genocide. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Armenian Genocide. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 07, 2015
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
May 27th, 1915
- In fierce hand-to-hand fighting, the French 70th Division seizes the cemetery at the village of Ablain, west of Souchez in Artois, and the connecting German trenches.
- Early in 1915 the French had decided to embark on a campaign of strategic bombing that aimed to impair German industrial production. The first bomber group, GB1, was equipped with the reliable Voisin III aircraft, which was specially-equipped with bomb racks that carried 155mm artillery shells. After training for several months, GB1 undertakes its first mission today. Their target is the Badische Anilin Company of Ludwigshafen. The raid is a moderate success, with all but one of the aircraft returning safely to base. Unfortunately, it was the squadron commander's plane that crash-landed, and he will spend the rest of the war in a POW camp.
- Mackensen's orders for the ongoing German offensive in Galicia emphasize the importance of the advance of XXXXI Reserve Corps. On the southern flank of 11th Army, the corps is to advance towards the Medyka-Mosciska road, the seizure of which would sever the main Russian communication and supply link to Przemsyl, while the objectives of the rest of the army are more limited. The attacks of XXXXI Corps, however, encounter heavy Russian resistance; only in the afternoon is 81st Reserve Division able to capture the town of Stubno.
Meanwhile, as the German 11th Army has advanced eastward to and across the San River, its connection with the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army to the north has necessarily stretched, with the latter forced to hold a greater length of the line. The result has been the commitment of most of 4th Army's reserves to the front line to maintain a cohesive front, leaving insufficient forces available in the event of a Russian counterattack. Overnight, this is precisely what happens: the Russian III Caucasian Corps launches an attack east of Sieniawa. The initial blow falls against the Austro-Hungarian 36th Infantry Regiment, which promptly disintegrates, and 10th Division falls back across the San River in disorder. Because of a lack of Austro-Hungarian reserves, the Germans are forced to send 19th Division from the neighbouring 11th Army to the rescue. Though the Russian attack soon bogs down and fails to cross the San, its initial success has succeeded in forcing the Germans to dispatch reinforcements that otherwise was to have contributed to Mackensen's ongoing offensive.
On the Russian side, General Ivanov of South-West Front has wavered over whether his armies should hold Przemysl, or retreat further to the east. On three occasions since the 25th he has issued orders to abandon the fortress, only to countermand them within hours. Today Russian army headquarters intervenes, instructing that Przemysl is to be held. To facilitate this, the corps on the northern flank of Przemysl, formerly of 3rd Army, are transferred to 8th Army, so that one commander - General Brusilov - can direct all of the forces at and around the fortress. In an effort to hold Przemysl, he begins shifting divisions from the southern flank of the fortress, where the Austro-Hungarian 3rd and 2nd Armies have been largely ineffective, to the northern flank to oppose the ongoing advance of the German 11th Army.
- The German submarine U21 claims a second victim off Gallipoli when it torpedoes the British pre-dreadnought Majestic at 640am this morning. As it sinks it rolls over and comes to rest in shallow water near Sedd el Bahr. Its keel remains visible above the surface, a stark reminder that the waters off the Dardanelles are now contested.
- Today the Ottoman cabinet approves The Provisional Law Concerning the Measures to be Taken by the Military Authorities Against Those Who Oppose the Operations of the Government During Wartime, which provides the legal basis for the ongoing deportation and mass murder of the Armenian population. It gives army and local officials sweeping power to take whatever means they deem necessary to deal with any real or perceived opposition to the persecution of the war, and in particular authorized the forced relocation of entires towns and villages 'in response to military needs, or in response to any signs of treachery and betrayal.' The ongoing paranoia of the Young Turk leadership combined with the catalogue of battlefield defeats ensures that Ottoman officials see 'signs' of resistance everywhere - indeed, if the Ottomans are doing poorly someone must be to blame, and that group must be purged from Ottoman society. This is to be the fate of the Armenian population in particular, and though massacres predated the law, the pace of extermination will accelerate afterward its proclamation.
- Early in 1915 the French had decided to embark on a campaign of strategic bombing that aimed to impair German industrial production. The first bomber group, GB1, was equipped with the reliable Voisin III aircraft, which was specially-equipped with bomb racks that carried 155mm artillery shells. After training for several months, GB1 undertakes its first mission today. Their target is the Badische Anilin Company of Ludwigshafen. The raid is a moderate success, with all but one of the aircraft returning safely to base. Unfortunately, it was the squadron commander's plane that crash-landed, and he will spend the rest of the war in a POW camp.
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| The French Voisin III bomber. |
- Mackensen's orders for the ongoing German offensive in Galicia emphasize the importance of the advance of XXXXI Reserve Corps. On the southern flank of 11th Army, the corps is to advance towards the Medyka-Mosciska road, the seizure of which would sever the main Russian communication and supply link to Przemsyl, while the objectives of the rest of the army are more limited. The attacks of XXXXI Corps, however, encounter heavy Russian resistance; only in the afternoon is 81st Reserve Division able to capture the town of Stubno.
Meanwhile, as the German 11th Army has advanced eastward to and across the San River, its connection with the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army to the north has necessarily stretched, with the latter forced to hold a greater length of the line. The result has been the commitment of most of 4th Army's reserves to the front line to maintain a cohesive front, leaving insufficient forces available in the event of a Russian counterattack. Overnight, this is precisely what happens: the Russian III Caucasian Corps launches an attack east of Sieniawa. The initial blow falls against the Austro-Hungarian 36th Infantry Regiment, which promptly disintegrates, and 10th Division falls back across the San River in disorder. Because of a lack of Austro-Hungarian reserves, the Germans are forced to send 19th Division from the neighbouring 11th Army to the rescue. Though the Russian attack soon bogs down and fails to cross the San, its initial success has succeeded in forcing the Germans to dispatch reinforcements that otherwise was to have contributed to Mackensen's ongoing offensive.
On the Russian side, General Ivanov of South-West Front has wavered over whether his armies should hold Przemysl, or retreat further to the east. On three occasions since the 25th he has issued orders to abandon the fortress, only to countermand them within hours. Today Russian army headquarters intervenes, instructing that Przemysl is to be held. To facilitate this, the corps on the northern flank of Przemysl, formerly of 3rd Army, are transferred to 8th Army, so that one commander - General Brusilov - can direct all of the forces at and around the fortress. In an effort to hold Przemysl, he begins shifting divisions from the southern flank of the fortress, where the Austro-Hungarian 3rd and 2nd Armies have been largely ineffective, to the northern flank to oppose the ongoing advance of the German 11th Army.
 |
| The Russian attack at Sieniawa, just north of the offensive of the German 11th Army, May 27th, 1915. |
- The German submarine U21 claims a second victim off Gallipoli when it torpedoes the British pre-dreadnought Majestic at 640am this morning. As it sinks it rolls over and comes to rest in shallow water near Sedd el Bahr. Its keel remains visible above the surface, a stark reminder that the waters off the Dardanelles are now contested.
 |
| The British pre-dreadnought Majestic sinking off Gallipoli, May 27th, 1915. |
- Today the Ottoman cabinet approves The Provisional Law Concerning the Measures to be Taken by the Military Authorities Against Those Who Oppose the Operations of the Government During Wartime, which provides the legal basis for the ongoing deportation and mass murder of the Armenian population. It gives army and local officials sweeping power to take whatever means they deem necessary to deal with any real or perceived opposition to the persecution of the war, and in particular authorized the forced relocation of entires towns and villages 'in response to military needs, or in response to any signs of treachery and betrayal.' The ongoing paranoia of the Young Turk leadership combined with the catalogue of battlefield defeats ensures that Ottoman officials see 'signs' of resistance everywhere - indeed, if the Ottomans are doing poorly someone must be to blame, and that group must be purged from Ottoman society. This is to be the fate of the Armenian population in particular, and though massacres predated the law, the pace of extermination will accelerate afterward its proclamation.
Sunday, May 24, 2015
May 24th, 1915
- The ongoing German offensive in Galicia, and the continued inability of the Russian army to substantially halt the enemy advance, have led to increasingly strident requests from the Russian government to France, begging the latter to intensify their efforts on the Western Front to force the Germans to redeploy divisions from the east. In response Joffre sends a message to Grand Duke Nicholas, stating that no significant German forces have moved from the west to the east in recent weeks. That is the most Joffre can offer; the ongoing Artois offensive is the most the French can go, and the Russian pressure makes the continuation of efforts there of even greater importance.
- While the German 11th Army was securing its bridgehead across the San River, the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army confronted the former Austro-Hungarian fortress of Przemysl, now a key defensive point in the Russian line. However, 3rd Army has been unable to make any substantial process against the Russian-held fortifications, nor has the Austro-Hungarian 2nd Army to the east been able to break through to the north to outflank Przemysl from the south. Thus for the offensive in Galicia to continue, the Germans will once again have to do the heavy work of breaking the Russian defence.
General Mackensen's plan is for VI, XXXXI Reserve, and Guard Corps to cross the Rada River (a tributary of the San) and capture Radymno before moving further east and southeast, cutting behind Przemysl. X Corps, meanwhile, will guard the northern flank of the advance along the Lubaczowka River from Russian counterattacks. After spending several days to bring up supplies and munitions, German artillery began a preliminary bombardment of the Russian line north of Przemysl, and at 8am today the infantry advance begins.
The first attack is against a bulge in the German line held by the Russian XXI Corps west of the San. Under heavy pressure from VI Corps to the north and XXXXI Reserve Corps to the south, the Russians break and fall back in disorder. Hundreds die attempting to retreat back across the San, while thousands surrender, and by noon XXXXI Corps captures Radymno. To the north, 1st Guard Division breaks through the Russian line north of Wietlin and reaches Bobrowka.
The new commander of the Russian 3rd Army issues orders to III Caucasian, XXIV, and XXIX Corps to attack southwards into the flank of the advancing German 11th Army. Before the orders can be executed, however, XXIX Corps is itself outflanked by the advancing German Guard Corps, and is forced to fall back northwards across the Lubaczowka. Overall the renewal of the German assault has seen the Russian 3rd Army battered yet again, as the Germans take 21 000 prisoners today.
- At midnight hostilities commence between Italy and Austria-Hungary, in line with the former's declaration of war yesterday. This represents the failure of months of diplomatic efforts by both Germany and Austria-Hungary to keep their erstwhile ally neutral. As their ambassadors depart Italy, Bernhard von Bülow observes to his Austro-Hungarian colleague today: 'We were just not meant to succeed. But we can say to ourselves, as Bismark said to Prince Alexander of Battenberg when he was a candidate for the Bulgarian throne: "At least we shall have interesting memories."'
Meanwhile, on the first day of fighting on the Italian Front, General Luigi Cadorna, chief of staff of the Italian army, begins to implement his plan for the invasion of Austria-Hungary. His primary advance is to be undertaken by 2nd and 3rd Armies, moving east along the northern coast of the Adriatic Sea. Their first objective is to secure the Isonzo River and vital mountains of the Julian Alps, before a further advance towards Trieste and beyond. Along the northern portion of the Italian Front, the 1st and 4th Armies are aligned against Trentino and the Tyrol, and are to secure important high ground in order to better hold the line. However, the lack of information from the government regarding when the war was to begin has impaired Cadorna's preparations, and the Italian army is hardly a model of effective organization to begin with. By today less than half of the supplies necessary have actually reached the front. Thus the first day of the war for Italy sees only halting movement towards the enemy frontier.
As for the Austro-Hungarians, Conrad, along with the Emperor and much of the government, are incensed at the supposed betrayal of their former ally. Conrad for weeks has desired to launch a major offensive against Italy upon its entry into the war, largely as a punishment expedition that would shatter Italian morale; indeed, Conrad has argued for the suspension of operations in Galicia to ensure the transfer of sufficient forces to the Italian Front. To Falkenhayn this is sheer madness, as nothing that can be effectively accomplished against Italy could compensate for the lost opportunity for a great victory over the Russians. The German chief of staff has thus refused not only to send German divisions to the Italian Front, but also to replace Austro-Hungarian divisions on the Eastern Front sent to the Alps. As a result of Falkenhayn's refusal, Conrad has begrudgingly abandoned plans to attack Italy. Instead, those forces assembling on the Italian frontier, mainly augmented by divisions drawn from the Serbian Front, are ordered to adopt defensive positions, especially along the Isonzo River, a decision of monumental importance in the years to come.
At sea, while the Italian navy shows as much initiative and foresight as the army does, the Austro-Hungarians are eager to get in the first strike. At 8pm yesterday evening the fleet sailed from its anchorage at Pola, and at dawn bombardment Ancona and other points along the northern Italian coast, targeting port facilities, railway bridges, and other strategic objectives. The Italian fleet is caught napping, and regardless its main fleet is far to the south. The only naval combat sees the old Italian destroyer Turbine sunk by the light cruiser Helgoland and two destroyers off Pelagosa. Simultaneously, several Austro-Hungarian aircraft arrive in the skies above Venice and drop a number of bombs. By noon the Austro-Hungarian fleet is back in port, having struck the first blow at sea without loss.
- Word of the massacres of Armenians in eastern Anatolia has reached the outside world, and further details have come to light since the Russian occupation of Van on the 20th. Confronting growing evidence of a systemic campaign of annihilation, the governments of the Entente powers issue a public statement today, stating that the leadership of the Ottoman Empire will be held to account after the war for their role in the mass murder of Armenians.
- While the German 11th Army was securing its bridgehead across the San River, the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army confronted the former Austro-Hungarian fortress of Przemysl, now a key defensive point in the Russian line. However, 3rd Army has been unable to make any substantial process against the Russian-held fortifications, nor has the Austro-Hungarian 2nd Army to the east been able to break through to the north to outflank Przemysl from the south. Thus for the offensive in Galicia to continue, the Germans will once again have to do the heavy work of breaking the Russian defence.
General Mackensen's plan is for VI, XXXXI Reserve, and Guard Corps to cross the Rada River (a tributary of the San) and capture Radymno before moving further east and southeast, cutting behind Przemysl. X Corps, meanwhile, will guard the northern flank of the advance along the Lubaczowka River from Russian counterattacks. After spending several days to bring up supplies and munitions, German artillery began a preliminary bombardment of the Russian line north of Przemysl, and at 8am today the infantry advance begins.
The first attack is against a bulge in the German line held by the Russian XXI Corps west of the San. Under heavy pressure from VI Corps to the north and XXXXI Reserve Corps to the south, the Russians break and fall back in disorder. Hundreds die attempting to retreat back across the San, while thousands surrender, and by noon XXXXI Corps captures Radymno. To the north, 1st Guard Division breaks through the Russian line north of Wietlin and reaches Bobrowka.
The new commander of the Russian 3rd Army issues orders to III Caucasian, XXIV, and XXIX Corps to attack southwards into the flank of the advancing German 11th Army. Before the orders can be executed, however, XXIX Corps is itself outflanked by the advancing German Guard Corps, and is forced to fall back northwards across the Lubaczowka. Overall the renewal of the German assault has seen the Russian 3rd Army battered yet again, as the Germans take 21 000 prisoners today.
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| The advance of the German 11th Army north of Przemysl, May 24th to 28th, 1915. |
- At midnight hostilities commence between Italy and Austria-Hungary, in line with the former's declaration of war yesterday. This represents the failure of months of diplomatic efforts by both Germany and Austria-Hungary to keep their erstwhile ally neutral. As their ambassadors depart Italy, Bernhard von Bülow observes to his Austro-Hungarian colleague today: 'We were just not meant to succeed. But we can say to ourselves, as Bismark said to Prince Alexander of Battenberg when he was a candidate for the Bulgarian throne: "At least we shall have interesting memories."'
Meanwhile, on the first day of fighting on the Italian Front, General Luigi Cadorna, chief of staff of the Italian army, begins to implement his plan for the invasion of Austria-Hungary. His primary advance is to be undertaken by 2nd and 3rd Armies, moving east along the northern coast of the Adriatic Sea. Their first objective is to secure the Isonzo River and vital mountains of the Julian Alps, before a further advance towards Trieste and beyond. Along the northern portion of the Italian Front, the 1st and 4th Armies are aligned against Trentino and the Tyrol, and are to secure important high ground in order to better hold the line. However, the lack of information from the government regarding when the war was to begin has impaired Cadorna's preparations, and the Italian army is hardly a model of effective organization to begin with. By today less than half of the supplies necessary have actually reached the front. Thus the first day of the war for Italy sees only halting movement towards the enemy frontier.
As for the Austro-Hungarians, Conrad, along with the Emperor and much of the government, are incensed at the supposed betrayal of their former ally. Conrad for weeks has desired to launch a major offensive against Italy upon its entry into the war, largely as a punishment expedition that would shatter Italian morale; indeed, Conrad has argued for the suspension of operations in Galicia to ensure the transfer of sufficient forces to the Italian Front. To Falkenhayn this is sheer madness, as nothing that can be effectively accomplished against Italy could compensate for the lost opportunity for a great victory over the Russians. The German chief of staff has thus refused not only to send German divisions to the Italian Front, but also to replace Austro-Hungarian divisions on the Eastern Front sent to the Alps. As a result of Falkenhayn's refusal, Conrad has begrudgingly abandoned plans to attack Italy. Instead, those forces assembling on the Italian frontier, mainly augmented by divisions drawn from the Serbian Front, are ordered to adopt defensive positions, especially along the Isonzo River, a decision of monumental importance in the years to come.
 |
| The Italian Front, May 24th, 1915. |
At sea, while the Italian navy shows as much initiative and foresight as the army does, the Austro-Hungarians are eager to get in the first strike. At 8pm yesterday evening the fleet sailed from its anchorage at Pola, and at dawn bombardment Ancona and other points along the northern Italian coast, targeting port facilities, railway bridges, and other strategic objectives. The Italian fleet is caught napping, and regardless its main fleet is far to the south. The only naval combat sees the old Italian destroyer Turbine sunk by the light cruiser Helgoland and two destroyers off Pelagosa. Simultaneously, several Austro-Hungarian aircraft arrive in the skies above Venice and drop a number of bombs. By noon the Austro-Hungarian fleet is back in port, having struck the first blow at sea without loss.
- Word of the massacres of Armenians in eastern Anatolia has reached the outside world, and further details have come to light since the Russian occupation of Van on the 20th. Confronting growing evidence of a systemic campaign of annihilation, the governments of the Entente powers issue a public statement today, stating that the leadership of the Ottoman Empire will be held to account after the war for their role in the mass murder of Armenians.
Wednesday, May 20, 2015
May 20th, 1915
- In Britain the events of the past few months - the use of gas at Ypres, the sinking of Lusitania, and the bombing raids of Zeppelins - have nurtured an anti-German hysteria that needed little encouragement in the first place. Today the magazine Flight argues that Germans in Britain must be rounded up and interned, as otherwise they may light fires to direct Zeppelin bombing raids at night.
- After a three day delay caused by poor weather, the first of the new methodical attacks, as ordered by General Foch, are launched today in Artois by the French 10th Army. Preceded by a heavy artillery bombardment, French infantry advance several hundred yards, and the newly-won ground is to serve as a jumping off point for further attacks.
Meanwhile Joffre, for his part, issues instructions to his subordinates instructing them that it is vital to place reserves as close to the front lines as possible. He hopes in future to avoid a repetition of the fighting on May 9th, when infantry of Pétain's XXXIII Corps managed to reach Vimy Ridge but were pushed back due to reserves being deployed too far behind the front line, allowing the Germans to push the successful infantry back off the high ground.
- The German threat to the inner flanks of the Russian XXIV and III Caucasian Corps diminishes today when 56th Division, acting in accordance with Mackensen's orders to consolidate control of the bridgehead over the San River, pulls back behind the Lubaczowka River.
On the Russian side, General Dimitriev of 3rd Army, who has had to watch his command crumble under two and a half weeks of near-constant German pressure, is dismissed today, replaced by the commander of XII Corps.
- Owing to exhaustion, the fighting between the western wings of the Russian 9th and Austro-Hungarian 7th Armies in the eastern Carpathians dies out today. Neither side has accomplished its objectives, though in the larger picture this favours the Austro-Hungarians, in that the Russian attacks here have not forced them to pull additional forces away from the San River fighting to hold on to the Bukovina.
- As scheduled, at 2pm this afternoon the Italian Chamber of Deputies is called to order. Prime Minister Salandra introduces the bill by which parliament will cede full financial powers to the government in the event of war; in practical terms, parliament is being asked to give the government the authority to go to war. Salandra also gives a brief address, emphasizing the perceived violations of the Triple Alliance by Austria-Hungary, both by going to war without consultation in July 1914 and by failing to provide territorial compensation for aggrandizement in the Balkans. Foreign Minister Sonnino then presents diplomatic telegrams outlining the course of negotiations with Austria-Hungary up to the denunciation of the alliance on May 4th; to Sonnino's credit, the telegrams are only heavily edited, as opposed to being outright forgeries. After brief discussion, the bill is passed by a margin of 407 to 74; most of the opposition comes from the Revolutionary Socialists and deputies from the rural south, where neutralist opinion is strongest. At 7pm Salandra adjourns Chamber, and the deputies depart singing the Garibaldi hymn. This outburst of enthusiasm for war is the last echo of the 'Radiant Days of May'.
- For the past four weeks, the Ottoman city of Van has been the scene of bitter fighting between Armenian insurgents and the Ottoman garrison. The Armenian population has been besieged, but have been able to hold off efforts of the Ottomans to crush the rising. In response, the local governor pushed tens of thousands of Armenian refugees into the city in the hopes of causing starvation, while thousands of Armenian prisoners have been murdered. This takes place, of course, while wholesale massacres have been taking place in the countryside.
As the desperate clash at Van has been ongoing, however, the Russian army has been approaching from the east. Three days ago, the Ottoman forces lifted their siege of Van, and today elements of the Russian army arrive at the city. The Armenian population is jubilant at the arrival of their saviours, and the Armenian elders of Van offer the Russian commanding general the keys to the city, and in return the Russians appoint the leader of the Armenian defence committee, Aram Manoukian, governor of the region. Freed from the yoke of Ottoman oppression and the threat of massacre, the Armenians take violent revenge. Now that they have the upper hand, it is the turn of Ottoman prisoners to be murdered. Armenians also torch many of the important buildings of Van, seen as symbols of Ottoman tyranny.
The fall of Van, moreover, serves to reinforce the paranoia of the leadership of the Ottoman Empire regarding the Armenian population. It is all the easier now to see the Armenians as a mortal internal threat to the survival of the empire, given their apparent cooperation with the Russians. It accelerates efforts to deport and exterminate the Armenian population throughout eastern Anatolia.
- At the height of the Battle of Sarikamish in December, Russian forces had evacuated Persian Azerbaijan, but after the crushing victory achieved in the battle had returned, reoccupying Tabriz at the end of January. According to the terms of the Anglo-Russian Convention, northern Persia was within the Russian sphere of influence, and considering its proximity to the Ottoman Empire it is seen as a southern extension of the Caucasus front and the Russian government is eager to secure effective control of the region. Two days ago, a Russian banker was murdered in Isfahan, in the centre of Persia, and the Russian government uses the episode to justify the dispatch of additional troops to protect Persian interests in northern Persia, the detachment landing at Enzeli today. However, the proximity of Enzeli to Teheran - just over a hundred and fifty miles separates the two - raises fears among German diplomats that the Russians may attempt to seize control of the government and the country as a whole.
- After a three day delay caused by poor weather, the first of the new methodical attacks, as ordered by General Foch, are launched today in Artois by the French 10th Army. Preceded by a heavy artillery bombardment, French infantry advance several hundred yards, and the newly-won ground is to serve as a jumping off point for further attacks.
Meanwhile Joffre, for his part, issues instructions to his subordinates instructing them that it is vital to place reserves as close to the front lines as possible. He hopes in future to avoid a repetition of the fighting on May 9th, when infantry of Pétain's XXXIII Corps managed to reach Vimy Ridge but were pushed back due to reserves being deployed too far behind the front line, allowing the Germans to push the successful infantry back off the high ground.
- The German threat to the inner flanks of the Russian XXIV and III Caucasian Corps diminishes today when 56th Division, acting in accordance with Mackensen's orders to consolidate control of the bridgehead over the San River, pulls back behind the Lubaczowka River.
On the Russian side, General Dimitriev of 3rd Army, who has had to watch his command crumble under two and a half weeks of near-constant German pressure, is dismissed today, replaced by the commander of XII Corps.
- Owing to exhaustion, the fighting between the western wings of the Russian 9th and Austro-Hungarian 7th Armies in the eastern Carpathians dies out today. Neither side has accomplished its objectives, though in the larger picture this favours the Austro-Hungarians, in that the Russian attacks here have not forced them to pull additional forces away from the San River fighting to hold on to the Bukovina.
- As scheduled, at 2pm this afternoon the Italian Chamber of Deputies is called to order. Prime Minister Salandra introduces the bill by which parliament will cede full financial powers to the government in the event of war; in practical terms, parliament is being asked to give the government the authority to go to war. Salandra also gives a brief address, emphasizing the perceived violations of the Triple Alliance by Austria-Hungary, both by going to war without consultation in July 1914 and by failing to provide territorial compensation for aggrandizement in the Balkans. Foreign Minister Sonnino then presents diplomatic telegrams outlining the course of negotiations with Austria-Hungary up to the denunciation of the alliance on May 4th; to Sonnino's credit, the telegrams are only heavily edited, as opposed to being outright forgeries. After brief discussion, the bill is passed by a margin of 407 to 74; most of the opposition comes from the Revolutionary Socialists and deputies from the rural south, where neutralist opinion is strongest. At 7pm Salandra adjourns Chamber, and the deputies depart singing the Garibaldi hymn. This outburst of enthusiasm for war is the last echo of the 'Radiant Days of May'.
- For the past four weeks, the Ottoman city of Van has been the scene of bitter fighting between Armenian insurgents and the Ottoman garrison. The Armenian population has been besieged, but have been able to hold off efforts of the Ottomans to crush the rising. In response, the local governor pushed tens of thousands of Armenian refugees into the city in the hopes of causing starvation, while thousands of Armenian prisoners have been murdered. This takes place, of course, while wholesale massacres have been taking place in the countryside.
As the desperate clash at Van has been ongoing, however, the Russian army has been approaching from the east. Three days ago, the Ottoman forces lifted their siege of Van, and today elements of the Russian army arrive at the city. The Armenian population is jubilant at the arrival of their saviours, and the Armenian elders of Van offer the Russian commanding general the keys to the city, and in return the Russians appoint the leader of the Armenian defence committee, Aram Manoukian, governor of the region. Freed from the yoke of Ottoman oppression and the threat of massacre, the Armenians take violent revenge. Now that they have the upper hand, it is the turn of Ottoman prisoners to be murdered. Armenians also torch many of the important buildings of Van, seen as symbols of Ottoman tyranny.
The fall of Van, moreover, serves to reinforce the paranoia of the leadership of the Ottoman Empire regarding the Armenian population. It is all the easier now to see the Armenians as a mortal internal threat to the survival of the empire, given their apparent cooperation with the Russians. It accelerates efforts to deport and exterminate the Armenian population throughout eastern Anatolia.
- At the height of the Battle of Sarikamish in December, Russian forces had evacuated Persian Azerbaijan, but after the crushing victory achieved in the battle had returned, reoccupying Tabriz at the end of January. According to the terms of the Anglo-Russian Convention, northern Persia was within the Russian sphere of influence, and considering its proximity to the Ottoman Empire it is seen as a southern extension of the Caucasus front and the Russian government is eager to secure effective control of the region. Two days ago, a Russian banker was murdered in Isfahan, in the centre of Persia, and the Russian government uses the episode to justify the dispatch of additional troops to protect Persian interests in northern Persia, the detachment landing at Enzeli today. However, the proximity of Enzeli to Teheran - just over a hundred and fifty miles separates the two - raises fears among German diplomats that the Russians may attempt to seize control of the government and the country as a whole.
Friday, April 24, 2015
April 24th, 1915
- After a short artillery bombardment, the Germans at Ypres launch a second gas attack, releasing the deadly clouds to drift over the British and Canadian lines at and north of St. Julien. From 5am the Germans launch a series of heavy assaults on the battered 3rd Canadian Brigade. Gassed for the second time, it has reached the limits of its endurance, and under overwhelming pressure fall back. After midday they withdraw 700 yards south of St. Julien, yielding the village to the enemy. To the east 2nd Canadian Brigade, commanded by General Arthur Currie, has to pull back its left wing, much as 3rd Canadian Brigade had done two days earlier.
Still, though the Canadian line bends and ground is yielded to the enemy, it does not shatter. Even though it is only two days since the first gas attack, already countermeasures are being improvised. Soldiers quickly learn that chlorine gas, heavier than hair, clings to the earth, and that remaining in low ground is fatal. Similarly, running from the gas, by making one breath more heavily, simply makes one more susceptible to its effects. Finally, cloths soaked in urine negate much of the effect of the gas. Though the chlorine gas still causes casualties, it is not the completely unknown terror it was on the 22nd. Never again will a gas attack have the same psychological impact. At Gravenstafel in particular, the Canadian 8th Battalion makes a valiant stand and, though heavily outnumbered, fights the Germans to a standstill, preventing a breakthough that could have swept behind the British 28th Division east of Ypres and unhinged the entire defence of the salient. Again, though the Germans have gained additional ground, they have not won a decisive success, and further Entente reinforcements are en route.
- In the St.-Mihiel salient the German counterattack shifts focus slightly to advance southwest of Les Éparges, and achieves a notable success: the capture of four kilometres of the French first trench line, two kilometres of the French second trench line, and even a battery of 75-mm artillery pieces. General Dubail of the Provisional Group of the East reports to Joffre that the German success was due to the profligate use of artillery and trench mortars.
- At a meeting of the German and Austro-Hungarian leadership at Conrad's headquarters today, Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg warns Foreign Minister Count Burián that the Austro-Hungarians can not count on any German military aid to fight Italy should the latter enter the war, and that such a circumstance could lead to defeat. The one hope those assembled cling to is that impending German offensive near Gorlice and Tarnow, if successful, will perhaps convince the Italians to hold back.
- Today the harbour at Mudros on Lemnos in the eastern Mediterranean is barely-controlled chaos as final preparations are completed for the landings on Gallipoli. One by one the transports leave the anchorage, bound for a rendezvous either at the island of Imbros or Tenedos. The two destinations are a reflection of the plan adopted by General Sir Ian Hamilton, which calls for two main landings to be undertaken tomorrow. The first, assigned to the ANZACs assembling at Imbros, is to land on the western side of the peninsula north of Gaba Tepe, where resistance is expected to be light. After securing the beaches the ANZACs are to advance eastward to control part of the Sari Bair range before seizing the hill at Mal Tepe and taking Kilid Bahr, the high point on Gallipoli, on the second day. Meanwhile, the British 29th Division and the Plymouth battalion of the Royal Naval Division, assembling at Tenedos, will be landing at a number of beaches around the Helles tip of the peninsula. Though these positions were known to be well-defended by the Ottomans, it is hoped that naval gunfire will be able to overcome resistance. By the end of the first day these forces are to have seized the heights at Achi Baba behind the village of Krithia, and on the second will join the ANZACs in capturing Kilid Bahr. Once the high ground along the centre of the peninsula is seized, the Dardanelles coast can be clearing of enemy artillery and the minesweepers can finally complete their work. At the same time as the main landings, diversionary attacks will be made by the French at Kum Kale on the Asiatic shore and elsewhere to confuse and distract the Ottomans. It is a complex operation, and Hamilton hopes that by conducting so many landings simultanously the Ottomans will be unable to concentrate overwhelming force against any of them. In practice, what Hamilton has done is divided his own force such that none will be able to achieve its objectives.
- Cevdet Bey reports to Constantinople today that the Armenian rebels in the city of Van number four thousand, have barricaded themselves in the Armenian quarter, and are proving impossible to dislodge. As artillery is brought in to bombard Van, the Ottomans allow fifteen thousand Armenian civilians escaping massacres in the countryside to join the besieged rebels. This is not done out of any sense of mercy, of course; rather, the hope is that the more mouths there are to feed in Van, the quicker they will all starve to death.
With the rebellion continuing in Van, the Young Turk leadership moves to implement further measures against the Armenian population. Talat Pasha, the Minister of the Interior, issues orders for the arrest of all prominent Armenians in Constantinople, while Enver Pasha, the Minister of War, sends orders to army commanders in eastern Anatolia to deport the Armenian population in those regions where they are in open revolt. The key dispatch, however, is a second message written by Talat Pasha, sent to the commander of 4th Army in the Caucasus. The Minister of Interior states that deporting Armenians to the Konya region, as has been done in the past, is no longer feasible, since concentrating substantial numbers of Armenians in such a location would simply create further problems. Instead, those Armenians 'whose expulsion from places like Iskenderun, Dörtyol, Adana, Haçin, Zeytûm, and Sis has been deemed necessary, to the southeast of Haleb, Zor, and Urfa'. The vilyats named by Talat are to be found in the Syrian interior; in other words, Talat is ordering the Armenian population in the region of Van to be relocated into the desert and left to their own devices.
 |
| The line at Ypres at midnight, April 24th, 1915, showing the ground yielded by 3rd Canadian Brigade today. |
Still, though the Canadian line bends and ground is yielded to the enemy, it does not shatter. Even though it is only two days since the first gas attack, already countermeasures are being improvised. Soldiers quickly learn that chlorine gas, heavier than hair, clings to the earth, and that remaining in low ground is fatal. Similarly, running from the gas, by making one breath more heavily, simply makes one more susceptible to its effects. Finally, cloths soaked in urine negate much of the effect of the gas. Though the chlorine gas still causes casualties, it is not the completely unknown terror it was on the 22nd. Never again will a gas attack have the same psychological impact. At Gravenstafel in particular, the Canadian 8th Battalion makes a valiant stand and, though heavily outnumbered, fights the Germans to a standstill, preventing a breakthough that could have swept behind the British 28th Division east of Ypres and unhinged the entire defence of the salient. Again, though the Germans have gained additional ground, they have not won a decisive success, and further Entente reinforcements are en route.
 |
| French soldiers using improvised gas masks in the 2nd Battle of Ypres. |
- In the St.-Mihiel salient the German counterattack shifts focus slightly to advance southwest of Les Éparges, and achieves a notable success: the capture of four kilometres of the French first trench line, two kilometres of the French second trench line, and even a battery of 75-mm artillery pieces. General Dubail of the Provisional Group of the East reports to Joffre that the German success was due to the profligate use of artillery and trench mortars.
- At a meeting of the German and Austro-Hungarian leadership at Conrad's headquarters today, Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg warns Foreign Minister Count Burián that the Austro-Hungarians can not count on any German military aid to fight Italy should the latter enter the war, and that such a circumstance could lead to defeat. The one hope those assembled cling to is that impending German offensive near Gorlice and Tarnow, if successful, will perhaps convince the Italians to hold back.
 |
| The ongoing arrival of elements of the German 11th Army east of Krakow, April 24th, 1915. |
- Today the harbour at Mudros on Lemnos in the eastern Mediterranean is barely-controlled chaos as final preparations are completed for the landings on Gallipoli. One by one the transports leave the anchorage, bound for a rendezvous either at the island of Imbros or Tenedos. The two destinations are a reflection of the plan adopted by General Sir Ian Hamilton, which calls for two main landings to be undertaken tomorrow. The first, assigned to the ANZACs assembling at Imbros, is to land on the western side of the peninsula north of Gaba Tepe, where resistance is expected to be light. After securing the beaches the ANZACs are to advance eastward to control part of the Sari Bair range before seizing the hill at Mal Tepe and taking Kilid Bahr, the high point on Gallipoli, on the second day. Meanwhile, the British 29th Division and the Plymouth battalion of the Royal Naval Division, assembling at Tenedos, will be landing at a number of beaches around the Helles tip of the peninsula. Though these positions were known to be well-defended by the Ottomans, it is hoped that naval gunfire will be able to overcome resistance. By the end of the first day these forces are to have seized the heights at Achi Baba behind the village of Krithia, and on the second will join the ANZACs in capturing Kilid Bahr. Once the high ground along the centre of the peninsula is seized, the Dardanelles coast can be clearing of enemy artillery and the minesweepers can finally complete their work. At the same time as the main landings, diversionary attacks will be made by the French at Kum Kale on the Asiatic shore and elsewhere to confuse and distract the Ottomans. It is a complex operation, and Hamilton hopes that by conducting so many landings simultanously the Ottomans will be unable to concentrate overwhelming force against any of them. In practice, what Hamilton has done is divided his own force such that none will be able to achieve its objectives.
- Cevdet Bey reports to Constantinople today that the Armenian rebels in the city of Van number four thousand, have barricaded themselves in the Armenian quarter, and are proving impossible to dislodge. As artillery is brought in to bombard Van, the Ottomans allow fifteen thousand Armenian civilians escaping massacres in the countryside to join the besieged rebels. This is not done out of any sense of mercy, of course; rather, the hope is that the more mouths there are to feed in Van, the quicker they will all starve to death.
With the rebellion continuing in Van, the Young Turk leadership moves to implement further measures against the Armenian population. Talat Pasha, the Minister of the Interior, issues orders for the arrest of all prominent Armenians in Constantinople, while Enver Pasha, the Minister of War, sends orders to army commanders in eastern Anatolia to deport the Armenian population in those regions where they are in open revolt. The key dispatch, however, is a second message written by Talat Pasha, sent to the commander of 4th Army in the Caucasus. The Minister of Interior states that deporting Armenians to the Konya region, as has been done in the past, is no longer feasible, since concentrating substantial numbers of Armenians in such a location would simply create further problems. Instead, those Armenians 'whose expulsion from places like Iskenderun, Dörtyol, Adana, Haçin, Zeytûm, and Sis has been deemed necessary, to the southeast of Haleb, Zor, and Urfa'. The vilyats named by Talat are to be found in the Syrian interior; in other words, Talat is ordering the Armenian population in the region of Van to be relocated into the desert and left to their own devices.
Monday, April 20, 2015
April 20th, 1915
- Prime Minister Asquith gives a speech today to armaments workers in Newcastle, attempting to calm public and press concerns over a shortage of artillery shells by suggesting that the supply of munitions is adequate in present circumstances. Asquith bases his speech on advice from Lord Kitchener, who has assured the Prime Minister that worries over a 'shells crisis' are vastly overblown. The reality being otherwise, Asquith will come to regret his comments.
- Preceded by heavy artillery bombardments, the Germans have launched repeated attacks against the British position on Hill 60 for three days. After bitter fighting the Germans have reestablished themselves on the slopes of the hill, with the British defenders left clinging to the large craters the detonation of their mines on the 17th created.
- From the outbreak of the war, when it declined to side with Austria-Hungary and Germany in fulfillment of its obligations under the Triple Alliance, Italy has remained on the sidelines. This neutrality, however, has never meant indifference; indeed, the Italian government has keenly followed the fortunes of both sides, for it has always intended to leverage its neutrality to secure territorial concessions. There is a powerful sentiment among many of the ruling class that Italian unification is not yet complete, as long as Italians live outside of Italy. This has inevitably drawn attention to Austria-Hungary; not only to secure the city of Trieste and the region of Trentino, but also to achieve a dominant position in the Adriatic and influence in the Balkans. Italy has already taken advantage of the war to occupy the Albanian port of Valona, and negotiations have been ongoing with Austria-Hungary over territorial concessions. However, even despite the intransigence of Conrad, Franz Joseph, and others in the Austro-Hungarian government, it was always improbable that Austria-Hungary would ever willing cede all the territory desired by the Italian government.
This has inevitably drawn the Italian government towards the Entente, as the British and French are more than happy to promise whatever Italy desires to secure its entry into the war on their side. Since March 3rd, secret negotiations have been underway to find the size of the bribe necessary for Italy to join the Entente. The only significant stumbling block has been Russia - whereas Britain and France have no problem handing over whatever portion of the Balkans Italy desires, Russia has been more reticent, as it desires both to maintain its own influence in the Balkans and secure territorial acquisitions for its Serbian ally. The lands desired by both Serbia and Italy are not mutually compatible, and much of the focus of the negotiations has been on the fate of the Dalmatian coast and the islands just offshore. Generally, it has been the Russians who have compromised, for they have been promised post-war control over Constantinople and the Dardanelles by the British and French, and are not willing to endanger that pledge for the sake of their Serbian ally. The last stumbling block has been the date on which Italy will actually enter the war. The Italian government, on the advice of the army, has requested a delay until mid-May; the Russians, meanwhile, want Italian intervention as quickly as possible, in order to force Austria-Hungary to divert forces from the Carpathians. After personal messages from President Poincaré and King George V, this evening the tsar agrees to the delay, clearing the path for a final agreement.
- When the Ottoman Empire entered the war in November 1914, its Young Turk leadership had sought to utilize the conflict to achieve their ambition of transforming the state into a revitalized pan-Turkic empire, seizing lands in central Asia from Russia inhabited by Turkic peoples. The crushing defeat at Sarikamish in January 1915 had destroyed these hopes, and in the aftermath the Young Turks had sought to assign blame to minorities within the Ottoman Empire, seeing non-Turkic peoples as inherently disloyal. The focus for such accusations had rapidly become the Armenian people, whose Christian religion had also told against them. Armenians had long been a scapegoat in Ottoman history, with widespread ethnic massacres occurring in the two decades prior to 1914. Further, though 2 million Armenians lived on the Ottoman side of the frontier in the Caucasus, another 1.5 million lived on the Russian side, which made it easy for the Ottoman government to portray the Armenians as sympathetic to the enemy.
Over the past several months, increasingly harsh measures have been taken against Armenians. Those who served in the Ottoman army had been removed from combat formations and reassigned to labour battalions, preemptively disarming them lest they cause any trouble. In the countryside of the western Caucasus, and in particular the region around Lake Van, Ottoman police and soldiers have taken ever-harsher measures against the Armenian population, and by April massacres of civilians are increasingly commonplace. These atrocities have occurred with the knowledge and complicity of governor Cevdet Bey, brother-in-law to Enver Pasha - indeed, Cevdet's appointment to Van in February aimed to ensure that anti-Armenian measures adopted by the national leadership would be enthusiastically enforced at the local level.
Yesterday Cevdet yesterday had ordered Ottoman police and army detachments into the Armenian-dominated city of Van. After several attacks on Armenian civilians, the Armenian population rises in rebellion today, and this uprising will provide the Young Turk leadership with the excuse to implement the policy they desired to implement anyway: genocide.
- Preceded by heavy artillery bombardments, the Germans have launched repeated attacks against the British position on Hill 60 for three days. After bitter fighting the Germans have reestablished themselves on the slopes of the hill, with the British defenders left clinging to the large craters the detonation of their mines on the 17th created.
- From the outbreak of the war, when it declined to side with Austria-Hungary and Germany in fulfillment of its obligations under the Triple Alliance, Italy has remained on the sidelines. This neutrality, however, has never meant indifference; indeed, the Italian government has keenly followed the fortunes of both sides, for it has always intended to leverage its neutrality to secure territorial concessions. There is a powerful sentiment among many of the ruling class that Italian unification is not yet complete, as long as Italians live outside of Italy. This has inevitably drawn attention to Austria-Hungary; not only to secure the city of Trieste and the region of Trentino, but also to achieve a dominant position in the Adriatic and influence in the Balkans. Italy has already taken advantage of the war to occupy the Albanian port of Valona, and negotiations have been ongoing with Austria-Hungary over territorial concessions. However, even despite the intransigence of Conrad, Franz Joseph, and others in the Austro-Hungarian government, it was always improbable that Austria-Hungary would ever willing cede all the territory desired by the Italian government.
This has inevitably drawn the Italian government towards the Entente, as the British and French are more than happy to promise whatever Italy desires to secure its entry into the war on their side. Since March 3rd, secret negotiations have been underway to find the size of the bribe necessary for Italy to join the Entente. The only significant stumbling block has been Russia - whereas Britain and France have no problem handing over whatever portion of the Balkans Italy desires, Russia has been more reticent, as it desires both to maintain its own influence in the Balkans and secure territorial acquisitions for its Serbian ally. The lands desired by both Serbia and Italy are not mutually compatible, and much of the focus of the negotiations has been on the fate of the Dalmatian coast and the islands just offshore. Generally, it has been the Russians who have compromised, for they have been promised post-war control over Constantinople and the Dardanelles by the British and French, and are not willing to endanger that pledge for the sake of their Serbian ally. The last stumbling block has been the date on which Italy will actually enter the war. The Italian government, on the advice of the army, has requested a delay until mid-May; the Russians, meanwhile, want Italian intervention as quickly as possible, in order to force Austria-Hungary to divert forces from the Carpathians. After personal messages from President Poincaré and King George V, this evening the tsar agrees to the delay, clearing the path for a final agreement.
- When the Ottoman Empire entered the war in November 1914, its Young Turk leadership had sought to utilize the conflict to achieve their ambition of transforming the state into a revitalized pan-Turkic empire, seizing lands in central Asia from Russia inhabited by Turkic peoples. The crushing defeat at Sarikamish in January 1915 had destroyed these hopes, and in the aftermath the Young Turks had sought to assign blame to minorities within the Ottoman Empire, seeing non-Turkic peoples as inherently disloyal. The focus for such accusations had rapidly become the Armenian people, whose Christian religion had also told against them. Armenians had long been a scapegoat in Ottoman history, with widespread ethnic massacres occurring in the two decades prior to 1914. Further, though 2 million Armenians lived on the Ottoman side of the frontier in the Caucasus, another 1.5 million lived on the Russian side, which made it easy for the Ottoman government to portray the Armenians as sympathetic to the enemy.
Over the past several months, increasingly harsh measures have been taken against Armenians. Those who served in the Ottoman army had been removed from combat formations and reassigned to labour battalions, preemptively disarming them lest they cause any trouble. In the countryside of the western Caucasus, and in particular the region around Lake Van, Ottoman police and soldiers have taken ever-harsher measures against the Armenian population, and by April massacres of civilians are increasingly commonplace. These atrocities have occurred with the knowledge and complicity of governor Cevdet Bey, brother-in-law to Enver Pasha - indeed, Cevdet's appointment to Van in February aimed to ensure that anti-Armenian measures adopted by the national leadership would be enthusiastically enforced at the local level.
Yesterday Cevdet yesterday had ordered Ottoman police and army detachments into the Armenian-dominated city of Van. After several attacks on Armenian civilians, the Armenian population rises in rebellion today, and this uprising will provide the Young Turk leadership with the excuse to implement the policy they desired to implement anyway: genocide.
.jpg) |
| The Ottoman Empire, showing the location of the city of Van in the Caucasus. |
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