compiled and introduced
by Ara Sarafian
ISBN 978-1-903656-66-2
70 pp., includes color map insert.
Publication year 2011 by Gomidas Institute (London)
Price: pb., UK£12.00 / US$18.00 plus shipping.
To order contact
[email protected] or [email protected]
Free pdf download of book.
Free pdf download of map 1 and map 2.
Recent documents released in Turkish archives, combined with surviving documents from Talaat’s Pasha’s private papers, confirm that Talaat was indeed the architect of the Armenian Genocide. There is a clear record that he ordered and supervised the general deportation of Ottoman Armenians in 1915-16, and that he followed the fate of such deportees from close quarters. Talaat was sent updates regarding Armenians at different stages of deportations, as well as information about the fate of others who were subjected to special treatment. Although a great deal of Ottoman records still remain unavailable in Turkish archives, the available records show that the Ottoman deportation thesis was a smokescreen for the annihilation of Armenians. Ottoman records in Turkish archives, as well as Talaat’s 1917 report, show that less than 100,000 Armenians survived in the so-called resettlement zone for Armenians. According to Talaat’s report on the Armenian Genocide, most Armenians in the Ottoman Empire had disappeared between 1915 and 1917, or they were dispersed in different provinces of the Ottoman Empire for assimilation. The forced assimilation of hundreds of thousands of Armenians was indicative of the power, control and purpose of the Ottoman state.
Talaat Pasha’s Report on the Armenian Genocide is the closest official Ottoman view we have of the Armenian Genocide. The report was undoubtedly prepared for Talaat Pasha and meant for his private use. It was not meant for publication and probably only survived because Talaat was assassinated in 1921 and his widow gave the report to a Turkish historian who eventually published it.* No such record has been released by Turkish archives to date, though the data presented in the 1917 report can be checked against the available Ottoman records and stands scrutiny.
According to Talaat’s figures 1,150,000 Armenians disappeared in the Ottoman Empire between 1915-1917. This number includes well over 100,000 Armenians who fled from the Ottoman Empire in 1915 (and died in large numbers from hunger, exposure and disease), but it does not include tens of thousands of Armenian women and children who were absorbed into Muslim families or placed into state orphanages for assimilation.
In this publication of Talaat’s report on the Armenian Genocide, historian Ara Sarafian discusses the 1917 report in light of other Ottoman records. He presents Talaat’s statistics in all detail and includes two invaluable color maps demonstrating the content of the report, as well as additional Ottoman documents related to the Armenian Genocide. Sarafian presents Talaat’s breakdown of the number of Armenians, their native provinces, and their whereabouts in the Ottoman Empire in 1917.
* See Murat Bardakçý, Talat Paþa’nýn Evrak-ý Metrukesi : Sadrazam Talat Paþa’nýn özel arþivinde bulunan Ermeni tehciri konusundaki belgeler ve hususi yazýþmalar [The Remaining Documents of Talaat Pasha: Documents and Important Correspondence Found in the Private Archives of Sadrazam Talaat Pasha about the Armenian Deportations], Istanbul: Everest Yayýnlarý, 2008.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction by Ara Sarafian 5
Map 18
TALAAT PASHA’S 1917 REPORT
Opening Summary Page: Data and Calculations 20
WESTERN PROVINCES (MAP) 22
Constantinople 23
Edirne vilayet 24
Chatalja mutasarriflik 25
Izmit mutasarriflik 26
Hudavendigar (Bursa) vilayet 27
Karesi mutasarriflik 28
Kala-i Sultaniye (Chanakkale) mutasarriflik 29
Eskishehir vilayet 30
Aydin vilayet 31
Kutahya mutasarriflik 32
Afyon Karahisar mutasarriflik 33
Konia vilayet 34
Menteshe mutasarriflik 35
Teke (Antalya) mutasarriflik 36
CENTRAL PROVINCES (MAP) 37
Ankara (Angora) vilayet 38
Bolu mutasarriflik 39
Kastamonu vilayet 40
Janik (Samsun) mutasarriflik 41
Nigde mutasarriflik 42
Kayseri mutasarriflik 43
Adana vilayet 44
Ichil mutasarriflik 45
EASTERN PROVINCES (MAP) 46
Sivas vilayet 47
Erzerum vilayet 48
Bitlis vilayet 49
Van vilayet 50
Trebizond vilayet 51
Mamuretulaziz (Elazig) vilayet 52
SOUTH EASTERN PROVINCES AND RESETTLEMENT ZONE (MAP) 53
Marash mutasarriflik 54
Aleppo (Halep) vilayet 55
Urfa mutasarriflik 56
Diyarbekir vilayet 57
Syria vilayet 58
Zor mutasarriflik 59
Mosul vilayet 60
Beirut vilayet 61
Jerusalem (Kudus-i Sherif) vilayet 62
Appendix 1: A Report from the Turkish Military Archives 65
Appendix 2: Talaat’s “Black Booklet” 67
Map 1: Destruction of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, 1915-17 insert
Map 2: Surviving Armenian Deportees in the Ottoman Empire, 1917 insert
