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The Kurds, however, were successfully driven off by the armed Armenian villagers, but that success was now seen as a possible threat by the Ottoman authorities. In 1894 the villagers refused to pay taxes unless the Ottoman authorities adequately protected them against renewed Kurdish attacks and extortions. Instead, the government sent a force of about 3,000 soldiers and Kurdish irregulars to disarm the villagers, an event which ended in a general massacre of between 900 to 3,000 men, women and children. The "Sasun affair" was widely publicised and was investigated by representatives from the European Powers, resulting in demands that Ottoman Turkey initiate reforms in the six "Armenian vilayets". Abdul Hamid's response to those demands culminated in the [[Hamidian Massacres|anti-Armenian pogroms]] of 1895 and 1896.<ref>Hewsen. ''Armenia'', p. 231.</ref> |
The Kurds, however, were successfully driven off by the armed Armenian villagers, but that success was now seen as a possible threat by the Ottoman authorities. In 1894 the villagers refused to pay taxes unless the Ottoman authorities adequately protected them against renewed Kurdish attacks and extortions. Instead, the government sent a force of about 3,000 soldiers and Kurdish irregulars to disarm the villagers, an event which ended in a general massacre of between 900 to 3,000 men, women and children. The "Sasun affair" was widely publicised and was investigated by representatives from the European Powers, resulting in demands that Ottoman Turkey initiate reforms in the six "Armenian vilayets". Abdul Hamid's response to those demands culminated in the [[Hamidian Massacres|anti-Armenian pogroms]] of 1895 and 1896.<ref>Hewsen. ''Armenia'', p. 231.</ref> |
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Sason was the site of two major Armenian revolts against the Ottoman State prior to World War I in 1894 and 1903,<ref> Ermeni Dosyasi, 1982, Cemal Anadol</ref> which marked the start of serious hostilities between the the Ottoman State and its minority Armenian population, especially in the East where the Russian influence was pervasive and the Armenian insurgents very active. |
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In the context of [[Denial_of_the_Armenian_Genocide|Armenian Genocide]] denialist literature, some Turkish sources still hold that the Sasun events of 1893-94 were Armenian revolts against the Ottoman state, incited by Armenian revolutionaries and foreign agents, and that they foreshadowed more serious Armenian rebellions.<ref> Ermeni Dosyasi, 1982, Cemal Anadol</ref> |
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==Modern Sason== |
==Modern Sason== |
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Revision as of 04:15, 27 June 2008
- Sason is also a spider genus (Barychelidae)
Sason (Armenian: Սասուն; Kurdish: Kabilcevz; formerly known as Sasun) is a district in the Batman Province of Turkey. It was formerly part of the sanjak of Siirt, which was in Diyarbakır vilayet until 1880 and in Bitlis vilayet in 1892. Later it became part of Muş sanjak in Bitlis vilayet, and remained part of Muş until 1927. It was one of the districts of Siirt province until 1993.
History
Historically the area was known as Sasun. Its name is said to have been derived from the ruling Sanasuni family.[citation needed] Its main ruler was Khut Sanasuni circa 590 AD.[citation needed] The region was later ruled by the Mamikonian dynasty from around 772 until 1189/1190, when the Mamikonians moved to Cilicia after being dispossessed by Shah-Armen.[1]
The Ottoman period
The region eventually was conquered by the Ottoman Empire, becoming part of the sanjak of Muş in vilayet of Bitlis, and continued to hold a substantial population of Armenians.[2] During this period, Sasun was a federation of some forty Armenian villages, whose inhabitants were known as Sasuntsis (Armenian: Սասունցի).[2] Surrounded by fierce Kurdish tribes to whom they were often forced to pay tribute, the Sasuntsis were able to maintain an autonomy free of Turkish rule until the end of the nineteenth century when the Kurds themselves were finally brought under government control. [2][3] Proud warriors, the Sasuntsis made all their weapons and relied on nothing from the outside world.[2]
In 1893, some three to four thousand nomadic Kurds from the Diyarbekir plains entered Sasun region, intent on pillage. The Kurds were responsible for bringing economic ruin to the agrarian community of the Armenian villagers: they would steal livestock and demand the Armenians to pay a second tax (that is, a separate tax in addition to the one Armenians paid to the Ottoman government).[4] When Armenians decided to challenge Kurdish extortion, a fight ensued and a Kurd was killed. Using the Kurd's death as a pretext by describing that a revolt had taken place, Turkish officials endorsed a Kurdish attack against the Armenians of Sasun.[5]
The Kurds, however, were successfully driven off by the armed Armenian villagers, but that success was now seen as a possible threat by the Ottoman authorities. In 1894 the villagers refused to pay taxes unless the Ottoman authorities adequately protected them against renewed Kurdish attacks and extortions. Instead, the government sent a force of about 3,000 soldiers and Kurdish irregulars to disarm the villagers, an event which ended in a general massacre of between 900 to 3,000 men, women and children. The "Sasun affair" was widely publicised and was investigated by representatives from the European Powers, resulting in demands that Ottoman Turkey initiate reforms in the six "Armenian vilayets". Abdul Hamid's response to those demands culminated in the anti-Armenian pogroms of 1895 and 1896.[6]
Sason was the site of two major Armenian revolts against the Ottoman State prior to World War I in 1894 and 1903,[7] which marked the start of serious hostilities between the the Ottoman State and its minority Armenian population, especially in the East where the Russian influence was pervasive and the Armenian insurgents very active.
Modern Sason
Today, most of Sason's population is Kurd or Zaza. An Armenian minority may still exist (in 1972 there were estimated to be some 6,000 Armenian villagers in the region).[8]
Culture
The area was the setting for the Armenian epic Sasna Tsrer ("The Daredevils of Sasun") which was rediscovered in 1876 and is now better known as Sasuntsi Davit ("David of Sasun").[2] This epic dates from the time of the invasion of Armenia by the Califs of Egypt (about 670), in which the Armenian folk hero of the same name drives foreign invaders from Armenia.[9]
References
- ^ Hewsen, Robert H. Armenia: A Historical Atlas. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. pp. p. 95. ISBN 0-2263-3228-4.
{{cite book}}:|pages=has extra text (help) - ^ a b c d e Ibid., p. 206.
- ^ Ibid., p. 167.
- ^ Balakian, Peter. The Burning Tigris: The Armenian Genocide and America's Response. New York: HarperCollins. pp. p. 54. ISBN 0-0605-5870-9.
{{cite book}}:|pages=has extra text (help) - ^ Ibid., pp. 54-55.
- ^ Hewsen. Armenia, p. 231.
- ^ Ermeni Dosyasi, 1982, Cemal Anadol
- ^ Ibid., p. 268.
- ^ Toumanian, Hovhannes. David of Sassoun (Armenian and English version ed.). U.S.A.: Oshagan Publishers. pp. pp. 7-8.
{{cite book}}:|pages=has extra text (help)
See also
External links
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