By the Start of the 1900 S the Ottoman Empire Was Not What It Used to Be (See Map)

War Creates an Opportunity For Genocide

By the start of the 1900’s the Ottoman Empire was not what it used to be (see map). The Ottoman empire had become corrupt, oppressive and weak over a period of centuries. In addition, due to nationalism in the conquered territories of Greece, Serbia, Romania, and North Africa the empire had shrunk as nations took back their independence. In an attempt to regain lost territory and national pride, the Ottoman Turks allied themselves with the Germans during World War I (see map below). The Germans and Turks worked closely coordinating military operations against Britain, France and Russia in the Middle East and the Mediterranean Sea.

During World War I, the Armenian population in the Ottoman Empire began looking for ways to press the issue of their independence with greater urgency. The area of Ottoman territory historically known as Armenia was located on the Eastern front of the war near Russia. The Turkish government said that the Armenians were sympathetic to the Russians because they were Christians, so the government disarmed all Armenian citizens, forcing them to turn in every last pistol and rifle. This event left many Armenians unable to protect themselves. At this time, about forty thousand Armenian men served in the Turkish Army. In the fall and winter of 1914, all of their weapons were confiscated and they were put into slave labor groups to build roads or were used as human pack animals.

Some claim that Armenians cooperated with the Russians in opposing the Turks in exchange for promises of independence if the Russians beat the Ottomans. This claim cannot be verified. While the Russians wanted Armenian territory, they were not completely open to having a large Armenia population. In other words, they wanted Armenia, but without the Armenians. What is known is that Armenians from all over the Ottoman Empire, not just in the east were deported, mistreated and massacred in an organized and planned out program of mass murder.

Using the confusion of World War I as disguise, the Turks began forcibly removing Armenians from their homeland. Between 1915-1916 alone over one million Armenians were marched from their homes and into the desert to camps and into Syria. Over the course of World War I, over 1.8 million would be deported. The Turks claimed that the presence of Armenians in the east presented a threat to security. In reality, the Turks finally had a convenient excuse to deal with the Armenians in a way that would eliminate them almost completely and provide them with a way to act upon their hatred and prejudice for the Armenians.