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The Young Turks
A group of reformers calling themselves the "Young Turks" overthrow Sultan Abdul Hamid and establish a more modern constitutional government. Armenians hope to have an equal place in this new state, but the nationalistic Young Turks, led by a triumvirate known as the Three Pashas, soon announce their plan to "Turkify" the empire and remove all threats to the empire. -
Turkish Boycott
A Turkish boycott of Armenian businesses is declared by the Ittihadists. Dr. Nazim travels throughout the provinces to implement the boycott. -
Western Armenians
Western Armenians are asked to incite Eastern Armenians to rise against the
Russian Empire at the Armenian Congress in Erzurum but understandably refused, while pledging
loyalty to the Ottoman Empire. -
The Ottoman Empire enters World War I.
Under German command, Ottoman forces bomb Russian Black Sea ports. With this event, the Muslim Ottoman Empire formally enters World War I on the side of Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Allied powers declare war on the Ottoman Empire several days later. -
Russia defeats Turks at Sarikamish
Enver Pasha blames the defeat on Armenians in the region having actively sided with the Russians. -
The Turskish Gov
The Turkish government publicly charges that Armenian bakers in the
army bakeries of Sivas were poisoning the bread of the Turkish forces.
The bakers are cruelly beaten, despite the fact that a group of doctors
prove the charge to be false by examining the bread and even eating it.
As this marks an attempt on the part of the government to incite
massacre, the government does not rescind the charge. -
Turkish Government
Armenian refugees from villages surrounding the city of Van arrive and
notify the inhabitants that 80 villages in Van Province were already
obliterated and that 24,000 Armenians had been killed in three days. -
Armenian Genocide begins
Several hundred Armenian leaders, writers, and intellectuals are arrested, starting in Constantinople, and most are murdered. -
Russian Troops come
Temporary relief for some Armenians came as Russian troops attacked along the Eastern Front and made their way into central Turkey -
Provisional Law
The Turkish government confiscates by a provisional law all the real estate of the Armenians -
Armenian Orphanage In Syria
350 Armenian orphans from an Armenian orphanage in Syria are given to surviving relatives, no matter how distantly related, in order to keep them from falling into the hands of the Turks. -
Gernan General
The German General Hans Friedrich von Seeckt, at the time Chief of Staff of the Turkish Army, is instructed to prevent Turkish atrocities against the Armenians of the Caucasus, since the Russian armies had fallen apart in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution and the Turks were advancing almost unopposed. -
Turkish Gov
The Turkish government announces that upon his return from the Peace Conference at Brest-Litovsk, Talaat will grant amnesty to the Armenians in Turkey. Practically, it is an empty gesture for the benefit of the Europeans, as most surviving Armenians were living outside of Turkey proper and those still left in Turkey were being systematically destroyed. -
Requests for Young Turks to face trial
In the months that followed, repeated requests were made by Turkey's new moderate government and the Allies asking Germany to send the Young Turks back home to stand trial. However all such requests were turned down. -
US
The United States of America officially recognizes the Independent Republic of Armenia -
Republic Of Turkey
The Republic of Turkey is proclaimed by the Turkish Grand National Assembly with Mustafa Kemal as its President.
