Armenian irregular units
Encyclopedia
Armenian irregular units, also known as Fedayees
were Armenian civilians who left their families to form armed brigades. Armenian fedayees were volunteers and, literally, "one who is ready to sacrifice his life" (Fedayee fidā'ī,) for his people). The term Fedayee was the Turkish term used by many centuries ago and also used by Armenians in the Ottoman Empire
who formed guerrilla organizations and armed bands in reaction to the unchecked murder of Armenians and the pillage of Armenian villages by criminals, tribal Kurdish forces, and Hamidian guards
during the reign of Abdul Hamid II
. Most of the fedayee leaders were members of the Armenian national liberation movement.
Their ultimate goal was always to gain Armenian autonomy (Armenakan
s) or independence (Dashnaks, Hunchaks) depending on their ideology and the degree of oppression visited on Armenians. This can be seen in the Dashnak slogan "Ազատութիւն կամ Մահ" (Azatutyun kam Mah), which literally translates as "Liberty or Death".
. The Dashnak contribution to the fight in Persia was mostly a military one, as it sent some of its well known fedayees to Iran
. They took part in Iranian Constitutional Revolution
. Among the participants was the Dashnak leader Yeprem Khan Davityan
in the Khanasor Expedition
or Sarkis Gugunian in the Gugunian Expedition
.
, Sasun Resistance (1894)
, Zeitun Rebellion (1895–1896), Defense of Van
, and Khanasor Expedition
. They were the leaders and members of the Armenian national movement
. These bands committed sabotage activities like cutting telegraph lines and raiding army supplies. They also committed assassinations and counter-attacks on Muslim villages. They helped Armenians defend themselves during village purges by Ottoman officials. They were supported by Armenians and quickly gained fame, support and trust by them.
Famous Armenian fedayees in this period included Nikol Duman
(or Douman), Girayr
, Papken Siuni
, when the Committee of Union and Progress
came into power and, for a time, granted the Empore's Armenian citizens the same rights as its Turkish and Kurdish citizens. Most fedayee groups disbanded, their members returning to their families.
Famous Armenian fedayees in this period included Christapor Mikaelian
(Yıldız assassination attempt), Kevork Chavush
, Hampartsoum Boyadjian
, and Murad of Sebastia
.
or to pay special fees (which would be used in the war effort) in order to be excluded from service. As a result of this law, most able-bodied men were removed from their homes, leaving only the women, children, and elderly by themselves. Most of the Armenian recruits were later turned into road laborers, and many were executed before the beginning of the Armenian Genocide
.
The genocide gave way to the return of the fedayees. Apart from thousands of Armenians who were drafted or volunteered in several different armies fighting against the Ottoman empire, and apart from those who were drafted in the Ottoman army prior to World War I
, the fedayees fought inside Ottoman borders.
During the first year of the new republic
, Armenians were flooding from Anatolia
to safe havens. Roads were clogged with refugees. Further southeast, in Van
, the fedayees helped the local Armenians resist the Turkish army until April 1918, but eventually were forced to evacuate it and withdraw to Persia.
To consider emergency measures, the Western Armenian Administration
sponsored a conference which adopted plans to form a twenty-thousand-man militia under Andranik in December 1917. Civilian commissioner Dr. Hakob Zavriev
promoted Adrianik to Major General and he took the command of Armenia within the Ottoman Empire. They fought in numerous successful battles such as the Battle of Kara Killisse, the Battle of Bash Abaran
and the Battle of Sardarapat
, as fedayees merged with the Armenian army (Erivan centered) under the General Tovmas Nazarbekian
.
The total number of guerrillas in these irregular bands was 40,000–50,000, according to Boghos Nubar, the president of the "Armenian National Delegation":
Boghos Nubar, as a part of the Armenian Delegation, had the intention to expand the borders of the independent Democratic Republic of Armenia
. Thus, he might have elevated the number of Armenian fedayees who were able to fight in order to show that the Armenians are capable of defending an eventually large Ottoman-Armenian border. In reality, their numbers at that time were much lower, considering the fact that there were no more than a few handful of fedayees in most of the confrontations between them and Kurdish irregulars or Turkish soldiers, even according to foreign accounts. Moreover, many of the fedayees were the same and reappeared in various places and battles. One should also note that many Armenian irregular fighters died defending regions of Western Armenia
during the genocide
.
.
The fedayee bands soon disbanded or left the new Soviet Armenia as Armenia lost its independence to the USSR mostly to Europe
and North America
.
over Nagorno-Karabakh
was turning into the Nagorno-Karabakh War
.
.
Fedayeen
Fedayeen is a term used to describe several distinct militant groups and individuals in West Asia at different times in history. It is sometimes used colloquially to refer to suicide squads, especially those who are not bombers.-Overview:...
were Armenian civilians who left their families to form armed brigades. Armenian fedayees were volunteers and, literally, "one who is ready to sacrifice his life" (Fedayee fidā'ī,) for his people). The term Fedayee was the Turkish term used by many centuries ago and also used by Armenians in the Ottoman Empire
Armenians in the Ottoman Empire
Armenians in the Ottoman Empire or Ottoman Armenians were ethnic Armenian people of the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Armenian Catholic Church or the Armenian Protestant Church who lived in the Ottoman Empire...
who formed guerrilla organizations and armed bands in reaction to the unchecked murder of Armenians and the pillage of Armenian villages by criminals, tribal Kurdish forces, and Hamidian guards
Hamidiye (cavalry)
The Hamidiye corps were well-armed, irregular Sunni Kurdish, Turkish, Turkmenand Yörük cavalry formations that operated in the eastern regions of the Ottoman Empire...
during the reign of Abdul Hamid II
Abdul Hamid II
His Imperial Majesty, The Sultan Abdülhamid II, Emperor of the Ottomans, Caliph of the Faithful was the 34th sultan of the Ottoman Empire...
. Most of the fedayee leaders were members of the Armenian national liberation movement.
Their ultimate goal was always to gain Armenian autonomy (Armenakan
Armenakan
Armenakan may denote:*Armenian Democratic Liberal Party , historically known as the Armenakan Party from 1885 until 1921*Armenakan-Democratic Liberal Party, an Armenian Party established in 2009 as a splinter group from the Armenian Liberal Democratic Party...
s) or independence (Dashnaks, Hunchaks) depending on their ideology and the degree of oppression visited on Armenians. This can be seen in the Dashnak slogan "Ազատութիւն կամ Մահ" (Azatutyun kam Mah), which literally translates as "Liberty or Death".
Persian Empire
Armenian volunteers also existed among the Armenians in the Persian EmpireArmenians in the Persian Empire
Persian Armenia or Persarmenia corresponds to the Persian territory in which Armenians have lived until the Arab conquest of Persia. The size of Persian Armenia varied over time. It sometimes simply referred to as Eastern Armenia. According to George A...
. The Dashnak contribution to the fight in Persia was mostly a military one, as it sent some of its well known fedayees to Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. They took part in Iranian Constitutional Revolution
Iranian Constitutional Revolution
The Persian Constitutional Revolution or Iranian Constitutional Revolution took place between 1905 and 1907...
. Among the participants was the Dashnak leader Yeprem Khan Davityan
Russian Empire
There were famous Russian Armenian fedayees. They supported the Ottoman Armenian fedayees such as Hovsep ArghutianHovsep Arghutian
Hovsep Arghutian was an Armenian military commander and political activist.He was born in Sanahin, Armenia, in an aristocratic family. He finished the Nersisian School in Tiflis, in 1889 he went to Western Armenia, where co-operated with the fedayee groups and Arabo...
in the Khanasor Expedition
Khanasor Expedition
The Khanasor Expedition was an attack by an Armenian irregular unit against the Kurdish Mazrik tribe on July 25, 1897. In 1896, in the aftermath of the Defense of Van, the Mazrik tribe had ambushed and slaughtered many of the Armenian defenders of Van as they were retreating into Persia...
or Sarkis Gugunian in the Gugunian Expedition
Gugunian Expedition
The Gugunian Expedition was an attempt by a small group of Armenian nationalists from the Russian Empire to launch an armed expedition across the border into the Ottoman Empire in 1890 in support of local Armenians.- Background :...
.
Abdul Hamid II Period 1876 - 1908
Armenian fedayees' main goal was to defend Armenian villagers from persecution and at the same time, disrupt the Ottoman Empire's activities in Armenian populated regions. Armenian volunteers fight during Hamidian MassacresHamidian massacres
The Hamidian massacres , also referred to as the Armenian Massacres of 1894–1896, refers to the massacring of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire, with estimates of the dead ranging from anywhere between 80,000 to 300,000, and at least 50,000 orphans as a result...
, Sasun Resistance (1894)
Sasun Resistance (1894)
The Sassoun resistance of 1894 or also known as First Sassoun resistance was the conflict between Ottoman Empire's forces and the Armenian militia belong to Armenian national movement's Hunchak party at the Sassoun region.- Background :...
, Zeitun Rebellion (1895–1896), Defense of Van
Defense of Van
The 1896 Defense of Van or Van Rebellion was an act of self-defense by the Armenian population in Van against the armed forces of the Ottoman Empire in June 1896.- Background :...
, and Khanasor Expedition
Khanasor Expedition
The Khanasor Expedition was an attack by an Armenian irregular unit against the Kurdish Mazrik tribe on July 25, 1897. In 1896, in the aftermath of the Defense of Van, the Mazrik tribe had ambushed and slaughtered many of the Armenian defenders of Van as they were retreating into Persia...
. They were the leaders and members of the Armenian national movement
Armenian national movement
Armenian national movement, also known as the "Armenian revolutionary movement" and Armenian national liberation movement was the Armenian national effort to re-establish an Armenian state in the historic Armenian homelands of eastern Asia Minor and the Transcaucasus...
. These bands committed sabotage activities like cutting telegraph lines and raiding army supplies. They also committed assassinations and counter-attacks on Muslim villages. They helped Armenians defend themselves during village purges by Ottoman officials. They were supported by Armenians and quickly gained fame, support and trust by them.
Famous Armenian fedayees in this period included Nikol Duman
Nikol Duman
Nikol Duman was an Armenian fedayee from Karabakh....
(or Douman), Girayr
Girayr
Girair or Jirair was an Armenian fedayee leader, the senior brother of Medzn Mourad. He studied at Vartanian school in Hajin and then, in Constantinople. Then he returned to Western Armenia and worked as a teacher...
, Papken Siuni
Papken Siuni
Bedros Parian better known by his nom de guerre Papken Siuni, was an important figure in the Armenian national movement, an Armenian Revolutionary Federation member and the leader, alongside Karekin Pastermadjian , of the 1896 Ottoman Bank takeover.- Early life :Bedros Parian was born in 1873 in...
Second Constitutional Period 1908 - 1914
Their activities in the Ottoman Empire dissipated after the Second Constitutional Era of the Ottoman EmpireSecond Constitutional Era (Ottoman Empire)
The Second Constitutional Era of the Ottoman Empire began shortly after Sultan Abdülhamid II restored the constitutional monarchy after the 1908 Young Turk Revolution. The period established many political groups...
, when the Committee of Union and Progress
Committee of Union and Progress
The Committee of Union and Progress began as a secret society established as the "Committee of Ottoman Union" in 1889 by the medical students İbrahim Temo, Abdullah Cevdet, İshak Sükuti and Ali Hüseyinzade...
came into power and, for a time, granted the Empore's Armenian citizens the same rights as its Turkish and Kurdish citizens. Most fedayee groups disbanded, their members returning to their families.
Famous Armenian fedayees in this period included Christapor Mikaelian
Christapor Mikaelian
Christapor Mikaelian also known by his noms de guerre Hellen , Topal , and Edward , was one of the three founders of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation along Stepan Zorian and Simon Zavarian, also part of Armenian national liberation movement.- Early life :Christapor Mikaelian was born in the...
(Yıldız assassination attempt), Kevork Chavush
Kevork Chavush
Kevork Aroyi Ghazarian commonly known as Kevork Chavush or Gevorg Chaush , was an Armenian fedayee in the Ottoman Empire....
, Hampartsoum Boyadjian
Hampartsoum Boyadjian
Hampartsoum Boyadjian also known by his noms de guerre Medzn Mourad was an Armenian national movement leader and a fedayee and political activist of Hunchakian.He was born in Hajin...
, and Murad of Sebastia
Murad of Sebastia
Murad of Sebastia was a fedayee during the Armenian national liberation movement in the Ottoman empire. He was born in the village of Kovtun , near Sivas to a poor rural family. During his childhood, he grazed cattle...
.
World War I, Armenian Genocide
Some fedayee groups joined the Ottoman army after the Ottoman government passed a new law to support the war effort that required all enabled adult males up to the age of forty-five to either be recruited in the Ottoman armyMilitary of the Ottoman Empire
The history of military of the Ottoman Empire can be divided in five main periods. The foundation era covers the years between 1300 and 1453 , the classical period covers the years between 1451 and 1606 , the reformation period covers the years between 1606 and 1826 ,...
or to pay special fees (which would be used in the war effort) in order to be excluded from service. As a result of this law, most able-bodied men were removed from their homes, leaving only the women, children, and elderly by themselves. Most of the Armenian recruits were later turned into road laborers, and many were executed before the beginning of the Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
.
The genocide gave way to the return of the fedayees. Apart from thousands of Armenians who were drafted or volunteered in several different armies fighting against the Ottoman empire, and apart from those who were drafted in the Ottoman army prior to World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the fedayees fought inside Ottoman borders.
During the first year of the new republic
Democratic Republic of Armenia
The Democratic Republic of Armenia was the first modern establishment of an Armenian state...
, Armenians were flooding from Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
to safe havens. Roads were clogged with refugees. Further southeast, in Van
Van, Turkey
Van is a city in southeastern Turkey and the seat of the Kurdish-majority Van Province, and is located on the eastern shore of Lake Van. The city's official population in 2010 was 367,419, but many estimates put this as much higher with a 1996 estimate stating 500,000 and former Mayor Burhan...
, the fedayees helped the local Armenians resist the Turkish army until April 1918, but eventually were forced to evacuate it and withdraw to Persia.
To consider emergency measures, the Western Armenian Administration
Administration for Western Armenia
The Administration for Western Armenia was an temporary Armenian provisional government between 1915 and 1918, with the autonomous region initially set up around Lake Van after the Siege of Van of the Caucasus Campaign, with the leadership of Aram Manukian of Armenian Revolutionary Federation. It...
sponsored a conference which adopted plans to form a twenty-thousand-man militia under Andranik in December 1917. Civilian commissioner Dr. Hakob Zavriev
Hakob Zavriev
Hakob Zavriev was an Armenian politician.Zavriev was a graduate of the St. Petersburg Army Medical Academy. He later joined the Armenian Revolutionary Federation. The viceroy of the Caucasus consulted him over the formation of the Armenian volunteer units in 1914...
promoted Adrianik to Major General and he took the command of Armenia within the Ottoman Empire. They fought in numerous successful battles such as the Battle of Kara Killisse, the Battle of Bash Abaran
Battle of Bash Abaran
The Battle of Bash Abaran was a battle of Caucasus Campaign of World War I that took place in the vicinity of Bash Abaran, in 1918. The Ottoman divisions attacked on May 21, but after three days of fierce combat the Armenians remained firm and the Ottoman regiments retreated in defeat.Armenian...
and the Battle of Sardarapat
Battle of Sardarapat
The Battle of Sardarabad or Battle of Sardarapat was a battle of the Caucasus Campaign of World War I that took place near Sardarabad , Armenia from May 21-29, 1918...
, as fedayees merged with the Armenian army (Erivan centered) under the General Tovmas Nazarbekian
Tovmas Nazarbekian
Tovmas Nazarbekian, commonly known as General Nazarbekov , was an Armenian general in the Russian Caucasus Army that appointed as the governor of the Administration for Western Armenia and later promoted to commander-in-chief of Democratic Republic of Armenia.He was born to a wealthy Russianized...
.
The total number of guerrillas in these irregular bands was 40,000–50,000, according to Boghos Nubar, the president of the "Armenian National Delegation":
Boghos Nubar, as a part of the Armenian Delegation, had the intention to expand the borders of the independent Democratic Republic of Armenia
Democratic Republic of Armenia
The Democratic Republic of Armenia was the first modern establishment of an Armenian state...
. Thus, he might have elevated the number of Armenian fedayees who were able to fight in order to show that the Armenians are capable of defending an eventually large Ottoman-Armenian border. In reality, their numbers at that time were much lower, considering the fact that there were no more than a few handful of fedayees in most of the confrontations between them and Kurdish irregulars or Turkish soldiers, even according to foreign accounts. Moreover, many of the fedayees were the same and reappeared in various places and battles. One should also note that many Armenian irregular fighters died defending regions of Western Armenia
Western Armenia
Western Armenia is a term, primarily used by Armenians, to refer to Armenian-inhabited areas of the Armenian Highland that were part of the Ottoman Empire and now are part of the Republic of Turkey....
during the genocide
Armenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
.
Democratic Republic of Armenia
Drasdamat Kanayan, another well-known fedayee, led the battle in the Georgian-Armenian WarGeorgian-Armenian War 1918
Georgian-Armenian War was a border war fought in 1918 between the Democratic Republic of Georgia and the Democratic Republic of Armenia over the parts of the then-disputed provinces of Lori, Javakheti, and Borchalo district, which had been historically Armeno-Georgian marchlands, but were largely...
.
The fedayee bands soon disbanded or left the new Soviet Armenia as Armenia lost its independence to the USSR mostly to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
Nagorno-Karabakh War
The term fedayee was later used by Armenian irregular forces in the early 1990s when the dispute with AzerbaijanAzerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
over Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh is a landlocked region in the South Caucasus, lying between Lower Karabakh and Zangezur and covering the southeastern range of the Lesser Caucasus mountains...
was turning into the Nagorno-Karabakh War
Nagorno-Karabakh War
The Nagorno-Karabakh War was an armed conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the small enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh backed by the Republic of Armenia, and the Republic of Azerbaijan...
.
List of major detachments
Here is a list of the major Armenian volunteer detachments during the Nagorno-Karabakh WarNagorno-Karabakh War
The Nagorno-Karabakh War was an armed conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the small enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh backed by the Republic of Armenia, and the Republic of Azerbaijan...
.